Good afternoon! It’s Tuesday, and I don’t know about you, but I’m already looking forward to Friday. Maybe it’s the gloomy weather or my inbox that now has over 17,000 unread emails. Anyway, here’s what you need to know today.

1. The “new normal” may go under a stress test in the coming weeks

Right now in Chicago, masks are optional for the more than 340,000 kids who go to public schools. Bars, restaurants and many other businesses don’t have to enforce pandemic-era restrictions. And the month of April is being heralded as the great return of office workers to the downtown area.

So what happens if coronavirus cases soar again? Many health experts say the surge taking place in Europe right now is likely a warning of what’s in store for our future.

“There are so many things we could be doing, yet the United States has time and time again chosen to be reactive, rather than proactive, and that has cost us dearly,” Anne Rimoin, an epidemiologist at UCLA, told The New York Times. “We’ve been wearing rose-colored glasses instead of correcting our vision.”

Some health experts believe any surge that may pop up in the coming weeks will not be as severe as last winter’s omicron wave. The thinking here is that many Americans are protected thanks to vaccines and natural immunities from previous infections.

But other experts say vaccination rates are not ideal in the U.S., and immunities people built up from the omicron wave may be waning. [NYT]

2. Chicago moves closer to picking a location for its first casino

Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration announced today it has zeroed in on three bids to develop the city’s first casino.

The proposals moving forward call for a casino at the current home of the Chicago Tribune and its publishing center along the Chicago River; across the street from Soldier Field; and on The 78, a 62-acre megadevelopment in the South Loop.

No longer in the running is a bid to convert the Lakeside Center at McCormick Place into a lakefront casino. And another proposal, at a truck marshaling yard just south of the convention center, is also out.

A final decision on where a casino will be located is expected by “early summer,” said Jennie Bennett, the city’s chief financial officer. [WBEZ]

3. Ukraine’s fighter pilots use Top Gun-style tactics against Russia’s air force

I read this story this morning and can’t stop thinking about the courage from Ukraine’s fighter pilots, who are vastly outnumbered by the Russian Air Force but have prevented them from taking control of the skies above the country.

“Every time when I fly, it’s for a real fight,” Andriy, a 25-year-old pilot, told The New York Times. “In every fight with Russian jets, there is no equality. They always have five times more” planes in the air. [NYT]

Ukraine forces on the ground, meanwhile, retook a strategically important suburb of Kyiv. But in the southern port city of Mariupol, Russian forces continue their bombardment as civilians flee.

“There’s no connection with the world. We couldn’t ask for help,” said Julia Krytska, who left the city by train to Lviv. “People don’t even have water there.” [AP]

As the war in Ukraine enters another week, President Joe Biden and other NATO leaders are expected to meet tomorrow in Brussels. [AP]

4. Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson defends her record under questioning from senators

It was Day 2 in the confirmation hearings for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who defended her sentencing record for child pornography cases as a judge and representing Guantánamo Bay detainees as a federal public defender.

“I understand how significant, how damaging, how horrible this crime is,” she said after receiving a question about her sentencing record from Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who used his first questions to give Jackson an early chance to respond to Republican criticism that she has been “soft on crime.”

Jackson also turned things around, saying Congress needs to update sentencing laws that are outdated because the internet allows perpetrators to share high volumes of illegal content.

When it came to her representation of Guantánamo Bay detainees, Jackson said, “Federal public defenders don’t get to pick their clients.” [NPR]

Meanwhile, the Republican Party attempted to link Jackson to critical race theory, a move that was immediately denounced as racist by Democrats. [Washington Post]

5. Indiana’s Republican governor vetoes a transgender sports ban

As many red states increasingly challenge the existence of transgender Americans, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb this week went against the trend and vetoed a bill that would have banned transgender female athletes from participating in girls sports.

Holcomb said in a letter that the legislation would likely be challenged in court. And arguments from supporters that there is a lack of fairness in female sports and the government needs to step in were unconvincing, he said.

Halcomb’s veto comes as 11 Republican governors have signed into law similar legislation. [NPR]

The GOP has also taken aim at preventing transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming care, a move that could threaten the health of a third of trans kids, according to a study. [NPR]

Meanwhile, Walt Disney Co. employees across the nation walked out today in protest of CEO Bob Chapek’s refusal to condemn Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. [NBC News]

Here’s what else is happening

• Authorities so far have found no survivors after a flight carrying 132 people crashed in southern China. [NPR]
• Chicago joined other cities in divesting city funds from fossil fuel companies. [Chicago Sun-Times]
• An iconic image of Marilyn Monroe created by Andy Warhol is estimated to fetch around $200 million at auction. [AP]
• Metallica, Dua Lipa and Green Day are among the headliners of this summer’s Lollapalooza. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Oh, and one more thing …

More than 5,000 planets have been identified beyond our solar system, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. And now I have “My Own Planet” by The Flaming Lips stuck in my head.

Anyway, scientists are celebrating the milestone and the possibilities it presents, such as the potential for finding life beyond Earth.

Among the 5,000 planets are super-Earths, gas giants larger than Jupiter and “mini-Neptunes.”

“Each one of them is a new world, a brand-new planet. I get excited about every one because we don’t know anything about them,” said Jessie Christiansen, science lead for the NASA Exoplanet Archive and a research scientist with the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute at Caltech. [NPR]

Tell me something good …

The Oscars are on Sunday, and I’d like to know what movie or actor you loved but ended up getting snubbed.

Jeff M. writes:

“So I am certainly biased due to my friends and I during the pandemic undertaking the truly insane endeavor of watching every Nicolas Cage movie. That being said, I definitely think he should have been nominated for best actor for Pig! It’s a deeply emotional and beautiful movie, and he gives an absolutely incredible performance in it. Truly a great film and a great oversight to not nominate him!”

And Rick writes:

“Shakespeare in Love was a great movie, but no way was it the best that year. Saving Private Ryan was a profound movie that deserved Best Picture.”

And another reader wrote:

“I may have to stop reading you if you pick a Spider-Man movie as your ‘best’ movie of the year! My son, at 5, might have agreed with you, but he actually preferred the Ninja Turtles! So glad he turned out ok! (Please do not show my name if you run this).”

Feel free to email or tweet me, and your response might be shared in the newsletter this week.