TODAY IS THE LUNAR NEW YEAR FOR CHINA AND KOREA,
BEGINNING THE YEAR OF THE ROOSTER.
JANUARY 29 IS NATIONAL PUZZLE DAY.
JANUARY 31 IS NATIONAL GORILLA SUIT DAY
(ACCORDING TO MAD MAGAZINE).
FEBRUARY IS NATIONAL HEART HEALTH MONTH
AND BLACK AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH.
FEBRUARY 1 MARKS THE 35TH ANNIVERSARY OF
THE ORIGINAL LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN.
FEBRUARY 2 IS GROUNDHOG'S DAY.
AMONGST EVENTS AROUND THE WORLD THIS PAST WEEK…
*Despite hopes otherwise, England’s Supreme Court has ruled that the United Kingdom cannot officially start their “Brexit” from the European Union unless Parliament approves the act.
*Since it has been positively proven that Nesta Carter took a banned substance in the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Jamaican relay team is officially disqualified and Usain Bolt lost his ninth Olympic gold medal.
*To reflect current events, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists have reset the Doomsday Clock to two and a half minutes till midnight.
*
What did NASA scientists discover on Saturn's moon Titan???
*Two Harvard scientists report they have artificially created metallic hydrogen in a laboratory.
*During the 2017 Australian Open of professional tennis, Serena Williams has defeated her sister Venus to win the Woman's Singles title.
THE TERRORIST REPORT…
*Strangely, there have not been that many reported incidents over the past week, although bombs are still the terrorist weapon dujour.
PASSING PARADE…
*Professional baseball players Yordano Ventura (Kansas City Royals) and Andy Marte (Arizona Diamondbacks) lost their lives in a traffic accident this past week.
*Historical author and World War 2 veteran Douglas Reeman has passed away.
*Actor Gordon Kaye (
‘Allo, ‘Allo; Brazil, Coronation Street) has taken his last bow on life’s stage.
*Butch Trucks, drummer for the Allman Brothers Band, is no longer with us.
*Actress Mary Tyler Moore (
The Dick Van Dyke Show, her own sitcom) has taken her last bow on life’s stage.
*Writer Jack Mendelsohn (
Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, The Carol Burnett Show, Three’s Company, co-wrote the script for The Beatles’
Yellow Submarine) has passed away.
*Actor Mike Connors (
Mannix, The 10 Commandments, War and Remembrance) has taken his last bow on life’s stage.
*Actor Kevin Geer (
12 Angry Men, The Pelican Brief) has taken his last bow on life’s stage.
*Actress Barbara Hale, best known as Della Street on
Perry Mason, has taken her last bow on life's stage.
*Actor John Hurt (
Doctor Who, Harry Potter, The Elephant Man, Alien, Spaceballs) has taken his last bow on life's stage.
*Actor Bob Holiday, who portrayed Superman in the Broadway production "It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's Superman", has taken his last bow on life's stage.
*Geoff Nicholls (keyboardist for Black Sabbath and Quartz) has passed away.
*Maggie Roche of the Roche vocal trio is no longer with us.
WITHIN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA…
POLITICALLY…
AMONG THE OPENING ACTS OF THE DONALD TRUMP ADMINISTRATION…(header is a link)
*
An executive order withdrawing America from the Trans Pacific Partnership and reinstating the Mexico City Policy (ended by President Obama) that stops foreign aid to countries who provided American citizens with abortions.
*
Plans to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) so that if favors America more instead of a balance between the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
*A Federal hiring and pay raise freeze.
*Announced his desire to begin construction on a wall along the Mexican border soon. At a projected cost of $12-15 BILLION dollars, Trump wants to pay for it with higher tariffs on Mexican imports while billing the other country for the rest, despite the fact Mexico has repeatedly said they will not support or help fiance the project and
Presidente Enrique Peña Nieto has now canceled his upcoming diplomatic visit to the United States.
*
Reinstating construction of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, despite serious environmental concerns on both.
*Although there were no reported cases during the 2016 Presidential election,
Trump plans to launch an investigation into “serious voter fraud”; despite the fact that at least 4 people connected to Trump, including his own son-in-law, are
registered to vote in TWO DIFFERENT STATES! (There are 2 separate links in that item.)
*Wanting the Park Service to confirm the “huge” attendance numbers of his swearing in ceremony.
*President Trump has signed an executive order declaring that the United States will not acknowledge, accept, nor honor the “sanctuary city” status of any town.
*Another executive order has declared an American travel ban to 7 different Muslim countries, along with
a 120 day freeze on America accepting refugees and immigrants from any country, regardless of their reason(s) for wanting to come here.
ADDENDUM: THE LATTER HALF OF THE ABOVE HAS SINCE BEEN OVERTURNED BY A FEDERAL JUDGE.
*President Trump's
first official foreign visitor is British Prime Minister Theresa May who, among other things, hoped to convince the President as to the continued viability of NATO, something Trump has previously commented negatively on.
*
Trump wants to eliminate 17 government programs/agencies, including the National Endowment for the Arts, which helps fund PBS.
MEANWHILE…
*IS THE RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH AT RISK??? Even after the inauguration is over,
more journalists have been arrested. (There are 2 separate links in this item.)
*
How might the Trump administration affect senior citizens???
*
Not every member of the Republican majority Congress is agreeing with President Trump.
*A Federal judge has ruled that insurance giants Aetna and Human can NOT merge.
*
Has the Republican controlled Congress embraced the concept of “alternative facts”???
*For the first time in its recorded history, the Stock Market rose to 20,000+ shares in reaction to the start of the Donald Trump administration, although some analysts are quick to point out that the top 10% of American citizens own about 80% of the stock wealth involved.
*
Does Wyoming want to eliminate LGTBQ rights???
*
Texas has lost its Federal Courts' appeal for acceptance of its "revised" voters' rules.
California has joined Texas in creating their own movement in hopes of becoming an independent nation/state again someday.
ELSEWHERE…
*Two Harvard scientists report they have artificially created metallic hydrogen in a laboratory.
*Clothing retailer Wet Seal has announced it will soon close ALL its brick and mortar stores. No word yet on whether or not it will maintain an online presence.
*
La La Land, Hidden Figures, and
Moonlight were among
the major nominees for the 2017 Oscars announced.
*During the 2017 Australian Open of professional tennis, Serena Williams has defeated her sister Venus to win the Woman's Singles title.
For more news at any time, either scroll down to our ELSEWHERE feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.