Ripped from the Headlines: March 2020: This Week In Words: February 29–March 6, 2020

Forests, which historically have been excellent at absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, are doing so at a lower rate than before. Deforestation, drought, and higher temperatures reduce the area covered by trees and the efficiency with which they store carbon. Along with melting polar ice that exposes more dark, heat-absorbing water to the sun, is likely to accelerate climate change in the coming years.

A bipartisan bill in the Senate requests that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) move the 2022 Winter Olympics out of China. The bill states that because of China's extensive human rights violations, Beijing is not a fitting host for the games. China currently has over a million Muslims held in detention centers, and other minorities have no rights. Condone comes from the Latin verb condonare, meaning "forgive" or "pardon."

Tornadoes swept across Tennessee, doing massive damage and killing at least 24 people. The fast-moving storms did not give authorities much time to issue warnings, which meant many people did not have time to get to shelter. Nashville and other towns suffered major property damage, with dozens of buildings flattened, and widespread electrical outages. Grapple comes from the Old French grappelle, a hook used for harvesting grapes.

A Chinese navy ship fired a laser at an American surveillance plane flying a mission over the South China Sea. For years, China has been increasing its military presence in the area, specifically by building a number of military bases on artificial islands constructed on reefs. The U.S. does not recognize Chinese control over the area, and continues to patrol the air and waters there. This is a point of serious tension between the two countries.

The White House took control of messaging about the COVID-19 epidemic, putting Vice President Pence in charge. The Secretary of Defense told military commanders not to give any orders or issue any statements about the military's response to the disease that might "surprise" the administration. There are over 75,000 U.S. troops in countries currently effected by the epidemic.

After spending half a billion dollars on his presidential campaign and only winning American Samoa, billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg ended his run. He got off to a quick start after blanketing the airwaves with ads, but after Senator Elizabeth Warren's attacks on his record during the Las Vegas debate, his poll numbers dropped dramatically. Negligible shares a Latin root with neglect, and it means something so unimportant that you can ignore it.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in received harsh criticism for his administration's handling of the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in that country. He did not bar entry to travelers from China in the early days, even after other countries did so. Not long after, he declared that the virus had been contained, but it quickly spread throughout the country. Observes say that Moon's party may suffer in the April midterm elections after his mishandling of the crisis.

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions will have to compete in a runoff election after he did not get enough votes to win the Republican primary for his former Senate seat in Alabama. Tommy Tuberville, a former college football coach who ran against Sessions, made a strong showing that surprised many people. The winner of the runoff will challenge Democrat Doug Jones in the general election in November.

Shortly before Super Tuesday's Democratic primary elections, both Amy Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg dropped out of the race. Both candidates quickly endorsed Joe Biden. This helped Biden win ten of the twelve states in a dramatic turnaround for his campaign, pushing him ahead of Bernie Sanders in the delegate count. Something that surges rises up; if it resurges then it rises up again, often after a period of reduced activity.

House and Senate leaders agreed on a compromise funding bill to respond to the coronavirus. The $8.3 billion will go towards preventing the spread of the disease as well as treating those who become sick. The bill also provides $300 million so that whenever a vaccine is developed it will be available to anyone regardless of their ability to pay.