THE WEEK IN REVIEW: DECEMBER 7-13, 2014

TODAY IS SAINT LUCY'S DAY IN ITALY AND SCANDINAVIA.

THE GEMINIDS METEOR SHOWER REACHES ITS PEAK THIS WEEKEND.

HANUKKAH BEGINS AT SUNSET DECEMBER 16th.

AMONGST EVENTS AROUND THE WORLD THIS PAST WEEK....
*Hong Kong authorities are cracking down on protesters who are calling for better campaign reforms and voting rights in the Chinese government ruled country.
*Time magazine has named The Ebola Fighters their 2014 Person(s) of the Year.
*Workers in 50 Italian cities paused to protest impending new labor laws.
*Microsoft will preview the consumer version of Windows 10 on January 21, 2015.
*Merck has agreed to buy Cubist Pharmaceuticals for $9.5 BILLION U.S. Dollars.
*The last American operated detention center has been closed in Afghanistan.
*Suicide bombings still continue in the Middle East as the death toll from jihadist attacks was over 5000 victims in November 2014!
*A late report claims that Atiqullah Rawoofi of Afghanistan's Supreme Court has been assassinated.
*Today, December 13, 2014; is the last sequential date (12-13-14) to be found in this century!

WITHIN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA...

POLITICALLY...
*The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has released a report condemning the George W. Bush Administration's interrogation policies post 9-11, 2001. Fearing possible retaliation, America has put all its foreign embassies on high alert.
*Congress is allegedly close to a 2015 budget/spending bill that may get passed and await Presidential approval before they go on their Winter Holiday break next week, thus possibly preventing a government shutdown threat.
*The Obama Administration has released new guidelines on racial profiling, to update and replace the ones that have been in effect since 2003.
ELSEWHERE...
*The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that any employees are NOT eligible to be paid for the time necessary to go through a work related security screening.
*Protests over the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner continue across the country.
*The last American operated detention center has been closed in Afghanistan.
*Sony Pictures is reportedly still having computer problems following a severe hacker attack recently.
*The oldest (known) time capsule has been unearthed at the Massachusetts State House. It was originally buried in the building's cornerstone by Samuel Adams in 1795.
*Bill Cosby has broken his silence in a recent New York Post interview, sort of; only saying that his wife is standing by him, as he now faces civil lawsuits stemming from recent allegations against him.
*Ken Weatherwax, who originated the role of Pugsley Addams on TV's The Addams Family, has taken his last bow on life's stage.
*Mary Ann Mobley, former Miss America (1959) and actress, is no longer with us.

For more news at any time, either scroll down to our IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.