Morning Update: We Cheer For The Otter, But We're The Koi

Trump's "grabber" comments, tech workers push back, Ariana's new video trailer. Your BuzzFeed News newsletter, Nov. 28.

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Trump claimed “a lot of grabbers” are taking children across the border. The data says otherwise.

This week, President Donald Trump, without citing any evidence, said a lot of migrants attempt to “grab a child” near the border to make up false family connections and enter the United States more easily.

However, according to his own administration’s numbers, this is not true. Figures provided by US Customs and Border Protection show that in a five-month period this year, just 0.25% of families stopped by border agents were found to have made a false claim.

That period includes the arrival a previous migrant caravan in May.

You should also know:

That viral photo of the mother fleeing tear gas with her children at the border is now fodder for more conspiracy theories.

Trump is pushing a border wall showdown in Congress, but there’s not much he can do.

Investigators said they still don’t have a motive in the Southern California bar mass shooting

Earlier this month, a man shot and killed 12 people inside a bar in Thousand Oaks, California.

Now, hundreds of interviews later, authorities say they have no idea what motivated him. As the search for an explanation continues, the local sheriff said, “We’re no closer to determining that today than we were at the onset.”

An agent with the FBI added that there’s no evidence the gunman was radicalized. The shooter’s social media activity was also still being reviewed.

SNAPSHOTS

Three US soldiers were killed in Afghanistan in the deadliest attack on American troops this year. A roadside bomb wounded three other US service members as well as an American contractor. The Pentagon is withholding the names of the troops killed until 24 hours after their families have been notified.

Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of SpongeBob SquarePants, has died at 57. Hillenburg, who used his background in marine biology to create the hit show, revealed last year that he had ALS. After his diagnosis, he continued working on the cartoon, which has been running since 1999. People are paying their tributes.

The CDC says California is the source of E. coli-contaminated romaine lettuce. Some romaine lettuce is safe to eat, but only if you know for sure it wasn't grown in the central or northern coastal regions of California.

A gamer says he overheard another player rape a teen girl while playing Grand Theft Auto. The witness claims the suspect stopped playing for around 15 minutes but left his headset microphone on. He told investigators he heard the alleged victim “moan and groan” and then say “no.”

A Syrian man who was stranded in an airport since March has been granted asylum in Canada. Hassan al-Kontar, who had been stuck in a Malaysian airport, was welcomed by his supporters upon touching down in Vancouver.

Ariana Grande released a trailer for her music video for “Thank U Next.” The video, which will showcase pop culture homages from Mean Girls to Bring It On to Legally Blonde, looks HYPE, and the trailer is really, really fun. Also: We do trailers for music videos now.

Big Tech workers are pushing back

Two stories from inside two tech giants:

At Facebook, a former employee said the company has a “black people problem.”

Mark S. Luckie delivered the blunt assessment of Facebook’s diversity and inclusion efforts in a 2,500-word memo before his departure from the company. The memo paints a picture of Facebook having a superficial understanding of diversity.

At Google, workers are openly asking their bosses to cancel the company’s secret, censored search engine in China.

This time, employees are signing their real names in asking Google to cancel Project Dragonfly. This is a remarkable decision in an industry where workers publicizing secret projects are maligned and often punished.

An otter is terrorizing koi at a pond in Vancouver and people are cheering it on

A traditional Chinese garden in Vancouver has been shut down because a river otter is preying on the resident koi fish population.

See, one of the beautiful features of the garden is its koi pond — it houses 14 of the prized and pricey fish. New koi can cost thousands of dollars.

The otter has eaten 11 of those fish — and he’s still not been caught yet.

In keeping with the memeing of life, people have started #TeamOtter and #TeamKoi hashtags. The otter is winning. By a lot.

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