Extra, Extra
No Middle Ground in Middle East: “What struck me was not just that [2023] was record-breaking, but the amount by which it broke previous records.” 2023 confirmed as world’s hottest year on record. Dealing with a climate denier? Well, share this headline instead. Almost no one is a money denier. 2023’s billion-dollar disasters list shattered the US record with 28 big weather and climate disasters. Everyone deals with climate change in their own way I guess: Greenland startup begins shipping glacier ice to cocktail bars in the UAE.
+ Two States of Reality: “Blinken said he had promises from four Arab nations and Turkey to help rebuild Gaza after the war. But those nations also want to see an end to the fighting in Gaza and concrete steps toward the eventual creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.” (Bibi is unlikely to pursue that and, at this point, Palestinians are unlikely to believe it could happen.) In Israel, Blinken looks to planning for a post-war Gaza as bombardments rage on.
+ Thirty Something: Gabriel Attal, Macron’s pick for Prime Minister, is France’s youngest at 34, and first openly gay PM.
+ Whatchu Talking About Willis? “District Attorney Fani Willis improperly hired an alleged romantic partner to prosecute Donald Trump and financially benefited from their relationship, according to a court motion filed Monday which argued the criminal charges in the case were unconstitutional.” Filing alleges ‘improper’ relationship between Fulton DA, top Trump prosecutor. (This could end up being much more of a political story than a legal one, but it’s worth keeping an eye on…)
+ Frightening in a Bottle: Scientists find about a quarter million invisible nanoplastic particles in a liter of bottled water.
+ Ouch: “Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is being treated for prostate cancer, according to a statement Tuesday from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center … On January 1, Austin was readmitted to the hospital due to complications … He was found to have a urinary tract infection, the statement said.”
+ Maybe Aaron on the Side of Caution Next Time: It’s easy to figure out who to root for in this story. Jimmy Kimmel is one of the best people around and believing nonsense is Aaron Rodgers’ achilles heel. Kimmel used his monologue to address Aaron Rodgers’ recent ridiculous claim that Kimmel had some connection to Jeffrey Epstein. “This is how these nuts do it now. You don’t like Trump, you’re a pedophile. It’s their go-to move, and it shows you how much they actually care about pedophilia.” Sadly, Kimmel is dead-on. A lot of people believe similar garbage about Biden and a quarter of Republicans believe related views spread by QAnon. Too bad there’s not a vaccination for this kind of stupid. Of course, even if there were, Rodgers wouldn’t take it. (He’s the worst Jet ever, and I’m including the Boeing 737 Max 9.)
