Upheld: The Supreme Court today upheld Michigan’s voter initiative that bans racial preference, otherwise known as affirmative action, for admission to the state’s public universities. Michigan’s Proposal 2, passed in 2006 with 58 percent of the vote, prohibits discrimination or preferential treatment in public education, government contracting and public employment. The Supreme Court in recent years has ruled that states may apply “affirmative action” to achieve racial balance, but in yesterday’s decision the court ruled that states are also free not to have affirmative action.

Ukraine: Russia has “days not weeks” to carry out a diplomatic agreement to defuse the Ukraine crisis, according to US Ambassador to Ukraine Gregory Pyatt. “There needs to be concrete results,” Pyatt told reporters in Kiev. Armed pro-Russia groups, many of whom are believed to be Russian soldiers and special forces operatives, have not vacated government buildings they occupy in Eastern Ukraine in accordance with an agreement made last week. The US is threatening to ratchet up sanctions against Russia if the occupying forces don’t move out quickly.

The Russian foreign minister, reviving claims that Russian speakers are under threat, called for the US to “fully recognize responsibility for those whom they brought to power and whom they are trying to shield, closing their eyes to the outrages created by this regime and by the fighters on whom this regime leans.” Russia maintains that Ukraine’s recent overthrow of its government was a Western-backed coup.

The Marathon: Thirty-eight year old, Meb Keflezighi a naturalized American from Eritrea, yesterday became the first US citizen to win the men’s Boston Marathon in 31 years. Many of the 32,000 runners had written the names of last year’s bombing victims on the their bodies and race bibs. Some of the runners were people wounded last year. Kenya’s Rita Jeptoo won the women’s race for a second year in a row in a course-record 2:18:57. Her win last year was lost in the aftermath of the double bombing.

House of Money: Netflix is raising prices for new customers so it can create new shows and speed global expansion. The network of “House of Cards” and “Orange is the New Black” already has 50 million subscribers around the world. The price hike could raise up to $1.2 billion as they prepare to expand into France and Germany.

Bigger: Saudi Arabia plans to build the world’s tallest building in Jeddah on the Red Sea. The Kingdom Tower would be 1 kilometer tall … that’s six tenths of a mile. The cost, $1.23 billion. Not to be completely outdone, Hitachi says it will install an elevator capable of reaching 72 mph in a skyscraper to be built in Guangzhou, China. Forty-three seconds from the first to the 95^th floors, fast enough to give passengers trouble with pressure on their ears. Somebody please press 7.

Foot Fashion: Boston Marathon champion Meb Keflezighi won the race wearing a pair of Skechers running shoes, usually considered an also-ran in the racing shoe business. Skechers is more the Hush Puppies of the new millennium. Keflezighi wasn’t wearing a pair from the “relaxed fit” slip-on line or the “memory foam” sneakers. He was fleet of foot in a pair from the new “GoRun” line, but at age 38, he only proved Skechers are for old people.

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