First Alert Weather Day - Oct. 11

 from Weather (WNDU.com) - S. Bend, IN

MONDAY: FIRST ALERT WEATHER DAY. 

Much of the day will be dry with partly to mostly cloudy skies. A cold front will be moving through late afternoon & evening and this will spark showers and thunderstorms. A few storms may become strong to severe. 

Greatest severe risk locally will be across N. Indiana and SW Michigan's western and southern counties. 

The WNDU First Alert team is monitoring the potential for damaging wind gusts as the primary impact late Monday afternoon & evening. Low chance of a brief tornado and quarter size hail. The severe threat will greatly diminish after 10 pm. 

Highs near 80. Wind: SE 10-25. 

Gusts to 30 mph at times.

Ambassador to the Holy See / Vatican : Biden-Harris place J. Donnelly of Granger as Diplomat

Friday Oct. 8, 2021

ND and SMC Student newspaper coverage (Notre Dame, iN)

Observer Staff Report | Friday, October 8, 2021

President Joe Biden nominated Joe Donnelly, who holds two degrees from Notre Dame, as U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican.

Donnelly earned an undergraduate degree in political science in 1977 and graduated from the Notre Dame Law School four years later, in 1981.

He served as Indiana’s senator from 2013 to 2019 and will now oversee the relationship between the United States and the Catholic Church. He will serve at the Embassy to the Holy See in Rome, working on issues ranging from democracy and security to human rights and religious dialogue.

Donnelly also represented Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District in the House from 2007 to 2013. During the 2020 election, he publicly defended the President’s Catholic faith.

Donnelly has also maintained connections to his alma matter. He taught a course for political science students in 2019 and honored the University in a speech submitted to the Congressional Record in 2012.

University President John Jenkins congratulated Donnelly Friday afternoon.

“Joe has been an exemplary public servant in Congress, an invaluable friend of Notre Dame and of me personally, and he is an ideal choice to represent the United States at the Vatican,” Jenkins said in a press release. “He will bring to this role a deep understanding of the issues currently facing our nation and the world, a genuine Catholic faith and an understanding of the role the Church can play in our world.” 

Indigenous Persons Day (second Monday in October) -- 2021 Proclamation from POTUS Biden today

 A Proclamation on Indigenous Peoples’ Day, 2021

OCTOBER 08, 2021•PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONSSince time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures — safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations.  On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government’s trust and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations.Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people — a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to.  That is especially true when it comes to upholding the rights and dignity of the Indigenous people who were here long before colonization of the Americas began.  For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures.  Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples’ resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society.  We also recommit to supporting a new, brighter future of promise and equity for Tribal Nations — a future grounded in Tribal sovereignty and respect for the human rights of Indigenous people in the Americas and around the world.

In the first week of my Administration, I issued a memorandum reaffirming our Nation’s solemn trust and treaty obligations to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations and directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to engage in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal officials.  It is a priority of my Administration to make respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-governance the cornerstone of Federal Indian policy.  History demonstrates that Native American people — and our Nation as a whole — are best served when Tribal governments are empowered to lead their communities and when Federal officials listen to and work together with Tribal leaders when formulating Federal policy that affects Tribal Nations.The contributions that Indigenous peoples have made throughout history — in public service, entrepreneurship, scholarship, the arts, and countless other fields — are integral to our Nation, our culture, and our society.  Indigenous peoples have served, and continue to serve, in the United States Armed Forces with distinction and honor — at one of the highest rates of any group — defending our security every day.  And Native Americans have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, working essential jobs and carrying us through our gravest moments.  Further, in recognition that the pandemic has harmed Indigenous peoples at an alarming and disproportionate rate, Native communities have led the way in connecting people with vaccination, boasting some of the highest rates of any racial or ethnic group. 

The Federal Government has a solemn obligation to lift up and invest in the future of Indigenous people and empower Tribal Nations to govern their own communities and make their own decisions.  We must never forget the centuries-long campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country.  Today, we acknowledge the significant sacrifices made by Native peoples to this country — and recognize their many ongoing contributions to our Nation. 

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor America’s first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today.  I encourage everyone to celebrate and recognize the many Indigenous communities and cultures that make up our great country. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2021, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day.  I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.  I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in honor of our diverse history and the Indigenous peoples who contribute to shaping this Nation.  

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-sixth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

Historic Malaria Vaccine Breakthrough: October 2021 announcement

 In Ghana, Dr. Keziah L Malm, Program Manager at the National Malaria Control Programme, told CNN she was proud of the contributions made by her colleagues who took part in the clinical trial.

"It's been so long and it is refreshing to see the results of the collaboration of Ghanaian scientists, whom I know personally know worked on this research and studies," she said.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/07/africa/africa-historic-malaria-breakthrough-celebrated-intl/index.html

End for 2021 of Daylight Savings Time = Nov. 7, 2021 [ "fall" back one hour ]

 At 2 a.m. the 6-month period of DAYLIGHT SAVINGS Time ends

on November 7, 2021.

Remember to

"Fall Back" one hour and therefore turn your clocks and other time-set devices before going to bed

Meteor Showers (this month) -- Orionids

 from Old Farmer's Almanac (almanac.com) article on 2021 Meteor showers

Orionids | October 20–21, 2021

The Orionids are named after one of the most recognizable constellations in the sky, Orion, 

from which these meteors appear to radiate. 

Often featuring some of brightest and fastest streaking stars, 

the Orionids appear in mid October and reach their peak in the hours 

before dawn on October 21. Unfortunately, this year they will compete directly 

with the full Hunter’s Moon, which will be at its brightest on the same night 

as the Orionids (October 20–21).

Dante Studies at Notre Dame - Panel Discussion October 1, 2021

 details at ND dot-edu

A Panel Discussion reflecting on Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter on Dante anniversary will conclude the Friday Oct. 1, 2021 event.

Time: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM

Location: Annenberg Auditorium, Snite Museum of Art

Welcome by Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.

Co-moderators: Theodore Cachey, Director, Center for Italian Studies, and John Cavadini, Director, McGrath Institute for Church Life

Panelists: Therese Cory (Department of Philosophy); the Rev. Kevin Grove, C.S.C. (Department of Theology); Susannah Monta (Department of English); Vittorio Montemaggi (King’s College London, Von Hügel Institute for Critical Catholic Inquiry); Cyril O’Regan (Department of Theology); Clemens Sedmak (Nanovic Institute for European Studies)

https://events.nd.edu/events/2021/10/01/dante-now/