The Sunday Subject — June 12, 2022

Thousands of people across the country marched for gun reform on Saturday.

In D.C. alone, 40,000 demonstrators protested against the country’s lack of gun reform and the mass shootings that have resulted from it.

The average price of gas in the U.S. has reached a historical record of $5 per gallon.

Data has shown that customer prices were 8.6% higher in May compared to one year earlier, making inflation the highest it has been in over four decades. In response to the crisis, the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates even higher when it meets next week.

Intense street fighting and urban warfare is occurring in Severodonetsk, Ukraine.

Both Ukraine and Russia have suffered a high number of casualties. On Saturday a large fire broke out at a chemical plant in the city following Russian shelling. Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said that she would discuss Ukraine’s bid to join the EU next week.

Iran and Venezuela have signed a 20-year cooperation plan.

They have pledged to work together on oil, defense, and agriculture. The two autocracies share a dislike of America, and each have been the target of crippling U.S. sanctions. On Friday, Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s president, described the two countries as pioneers of a new world order.