The episode follows cartoon characters who claim to want to stay out of the spotlight but go on various talk shows. They resemble the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but aren’t given their official names on the show. If you missed the episode, or even if you saw it but missed some Easter eggs, here’s what you need to know. [snip] in real life, Meghan Markle has given interviews to several outlets such as Vogue and Variety. In the episode, the Meghan-like character is shown on the cover of fictional magazine “G2.” The cover says “Princess Anus.” This is a play on words of the Latin phrase that appeared on her real-life GQ cover -- “Meghan’s annus mirabilis” -- which translates to “Meghan’s wonderful year.” [snip] Harry and Meghan famously sat down with Oprah in real life, in addition to releasing a six-part Netflix documentary about their relationship. Many have pointed out that their endless self-promotion is at odds with their supposed desire for privacy. 

    On the show, the characters appear on “Good Morning Canada” to claim that they want privacy. The Meghan character holds a sign reading: “Stop looking at us” while the Harry character’s sign reads, “We want our privacy.”

    “The NTSB has looked at electronically controlled pneumatic braking for a number of years and we did some testing as well. Certainly, it would improve safety. But for this investigation and for this derailment, ECP brakes would not have prevented the derailment. The wheel bearing failed on car number 23, so even with ECP brakes, the derailment would have occurred, the fire would have ensued, and the five vinyl chloride tank cars would still have to be vented and burned. What it could have done was maybe reduced damage where a couple of cars could have remained on the tracks, but we’re going to do some modeling along with the Federal Railroad Administration to determine just that.” 

    ...data from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission shows that the railroad industry has shed 30% of its workforce since 2015, despite posting strong profits over roughly the same time frame. Railworker unions in the U.S. engaged in negotiations with major freight companies in an effort to address some of these issues in 2022, but were halted after President Biden signed a bill in December to prevent a nationwide strike before the holiday season. Instead, President Biden ordered unions to implement a new labor contract that more than half of the unions had previously rejected.

    An Obama-era regulation implemented tougher standards for trains carrying 20 or more cars containing high-hazard flammable materials, such as extra locks on locomotives, additional briefings for train crews, and electronically controlled pneumatic brakes. Norfolk Southern and other major rail companies heavily lobbied against this measure, arguing that it had “serious concerns about the ECP brake requirements and the potential adverse impacts on the fluidity of the national freight network,” according to the Norfolk Southern 2015 lobbying disclosure and a report by USA Today.

    Nonetheless, Gov. DeWine said Tuesday that according to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, the train involved in Norfolk Southern’s derailment on Feb. 3 wasn’t categorized as a high-hazard materials train and as such, it wasn’t required to notify officials in Ohio or comply with these additional safety regulations. 

    In spite of safety concerns stemming from lower staffing levels and longer, heavier trains, major railroad companies have continued to push for looser safety requirements for trains carrying hazardous chemicals. The train that derailed on Feb. 3 stretched for more than one mile and was composed of 150 cars, 20 of which were carrying dangerous chemicals, but was only manned by a crew of three people, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. For more than a decade, the Association of American Railroads, which represents Norfolk and other railroad companies, has pushed for one-person crews, a measure that railroad unions continue to vote down, citing substantial safety risks. 

    The aforementioned Obama-era regulation for hazardous materials only included trains carrying a certain amount of class 3 flammables, which excludes the chemicals involved in Norfolk’s recent derailment.