Grumpy Editor

LEADERS PROVE SHADY IN MORE THAN 70 COUNTRIES

Leaders who left office in at least 72 countries since year 2000 have been jailed or prosecuted, notes an Axios item spotted by Grumpy Editor.

 

Axios notes since 1980, about half the world’s countries have had at least one such case — and not counting impeachments or coups.  Included are democracies France, Israel and South Korea.

 

Most cases against the former leaders relate to corruption, adds Axios.

 

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

 

17-YEAR-OLD FLIES SOLO AROUND WORLD.  Mack Rutherford, a 17-year-old Belgian-British dual national, becomes the youngest person to fly solo around the world in a small aircraft.  He landed in Bulgaria, where he started his around the world flight. Rutherford says he hopes his achievement will inspire young people to pursue their dreams.

 

WASHINGTON STATE AIMS TO NIX GAS-POWERED VEHICLES.  Washington state plans to follow California in prohibiting the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035.  California, largest auto market in the U.S., plans to phase out sale of gas cars over the next 13 years. 

AMBASSADOR FOR THE ARCTIC PLANNED.   Triggered by increased Russian military activity in the region, the U.S. plans to name an Ambassador for the Arctic. The Ambassador-at-Large will be put in place to advance U.S. policy in the northern polar region. 

U.N. CEMETERY IN SOUTH KOREA.  The Busan, South Korea veterans cemetery remains the only U.N. cemetery in the world.  Established in 1955 after the South Korean government offered the land for the U.N.'s permanent use to honor troops and medical personnel sent from 22 countries under the U.N. flag during the Korean War.  More than 2,300 people from 11 nations are interred there. 

 

SMUGGLER PUTS REPTILES IN PANTS.  Prosecutors in California say Jose Manuel Perez, 30, smuggled more than 1,700 wild animals, including 60 reptiles, worth $739,000 into the U.S.  Officials found reptiles hidden in his clothing in small bags.  When he was caught crossing into the U.S., federal agents said he had about 60 reptiles on him, including some in his pants.

INACCURATE WEATHER FORECASTS LEAD TO FIRING TWO.  The head and deputy head of Hungary’s National Meteorological Service were fired following an inaccurate rain forecast.  The forecast prompted postponement of a fireworks display set for St. Stephen’s Day, the country’s most important national holiday.

TWIN GIANT PANDAS BORN.  Twin giant pandas --- a male and a female --- are born at a breeding center in southwestern China.  The cubs are the second pair of twins born to their mother.

DROUGHT SENDS DANUBE RIVER TO LOW LEVEL.  Europe's worst drought in years has pushed the Danube River to one of its lowest levels in almost a century, exposing the hulks of dozens of explosives-laden German warships sunk during World War II near Serbia's river port town of Prahovo.

WATER SHORTAGE HITS CHINA DURING WORST HEAT WAVE

China, too, is facing a water shortage during the worst heat wave on record but it’s working on bringing rainfall to dried-up parts, notes Grumpy Editor.

 

From aircraft it is firing silver iodide rods (the size of cigarettes) into clouds to help form ice crystals, reports CNN. The crystals then help clouds produce rain. 

 

China's Ministry of Water Resources mentions drought throughout the Yangtze river basin is "adversely affecting drinking water security of rural people and livestock, and the growth of crops.”

 

Several regions on the Yangtze have launched weather modification programs.

 

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

FLOAT PLANE ENTERS NEW YORK-D.C. SERVICE.  A new way to travel between New York City and Washington, D.C., is by float plane.  Using eight-seat Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft, Tailwind Air will start two daily flights between the Skyport Marina near East 23rd Street in Manhattan and  College Park Airport just outside D.C.  The plane will take off from water in New York and land on the runway at Suburban D.C. airport in College Park, Maryland.  Flight time will be between 80-90 minutes and cost $395 one-way.

 

PANDEMIC TRIGGERS RECKLESS DRIVING.  The pandemic has triggered an upswing in reckless behavior on the road.  Crashes in 2021 were up 10.5 percent from the prior year. An estimated 9,560 people died in crashes in the first three months this year.  That’s equivalent to a death every 13 minutes.

 

MONKEY DIALS 911.  The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office was surprised to learn a monkey at the Zoo to You in Paso Robles called 911.   Deputies were dispatched to the zoo.  Seems that Route, a capuchin monkey, picked up the zoo’s cellphone from a golf cart and dialed 911.

AMERICAN AIRLINES ORDERS SUPERSONIC JETS.  American Airlines orders 20 supersonic jets for future faster travel.  The jets are in the drawing board phase, years away from production and flying. “Looking to the future, supersonic travel will be an important part of our ability to deliver for our customers,” says Chief Financial Officer Derek Kerr.

 

TERRIER ALERTS OWNERS ON HOUSE FIRE.  In Maryland, a Cairn terrier turns out to be a hero in alerting his owners on a house fire.  He barks until the family wakes up and escapes the blaze that destroyed the home.

 

CONDE NAST REVENUE GROWS.  While most digital publishers are forecasting slowdowns in advertising growth, Condé Nast this year expects to exceed the nearly $2 billion in total revenue it saw in 2021 thanks to continued growth in its advertising business, informs Axios. 

 

MELTING ARCTIC OCEAN ICE LEADS TO RISE IN SEA LEVEL

The Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the rest of the world over the past 43 years, points out a Popular Science article, notes Grumpy Editor.

"This means the Arctic is on average around 3℃ warmer than it was in 1980," it adds.  "This is alarming, because the Arctic contains sensitive and delicately balanced climate components that, if pushed too hard, will respond with global consequences.”

A large part of the explanation relates to sea ice, a thin layer of sea water that freezes in winter and partially melts in the summer.

The article mentions “the sea ice is covered in a bright layer of snow which reflects around 85 percent of incoming solar radiation back out to space.”

When covered with sea ice, it adds, the Arctic Ocean acts like a large reflective blanket, reducing the absorption of solar radiation. As the sea ice melts, absorption rates increase, resulting in a positive feedback loop where the rapid pace of ocean warming further amplifies sea ice melt, contributing to even faster ocean warming.

One result of Arctic warming:  Faster melting of the Greenland ice sheet.  That adds to a rise in sea level.

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

SPIDERS TWITCH WHEN THEY SNOOZE.  Scientists focused on spiders and their snoozing.  Training cameras on sleeping spiders, scientists note their legs twitched and parts of their eyes flickered.  With humans that action is closely linked with dreaming.

SOUTH KOREA GETS HEAVIEST RAINFALL IN 75 YEARS.  South Korea experiences its heaviest rainfall since World War II with downpours flooding subway stations and submerged cars on streets.  Rainfall measured almost 16 inches from a two-day storm in some parts of the country.

ATOMIC BOMBING REMEMBERED.  The mayor in Nagasaki, Japan paid tribute to victims of the U.S. atomic bombing 77 years ago then mentioned Russia’s war on Ukraine shows the world that another nuclear attack isn't just a worry but ”a tangible and present crisis.”

WITH TEACHER SHORTAGE, PARENTS STEP IN.  Going into the school year, the U.S. has 300,000 teacher vacancies.  Parents are stepping in as substitutes in efforts to keep schools operating.

HEAVY PRICE TAGS ON RENAMING ARMY BASES.  Renaming Army bases linked to the Confederacy could cost more than $21 million.  The installations honor Confederate generals from the Civil War.  Congress is weighing the name changes.

MARILYN MONROE LOS ANGELES HOME SOLD.  A Los Angeles area home (considered modest by today’s standards) once owned by actress Marilyn Monroe lists for $6.9 million.  Despite her fame, Monroe bought her first home four months before her death. 

CAPE COD SEWER EMERGENCY DECLARED.  A popular beach town on Cape Cod, Massachusetts declared a sewer emergency, ordering restaurants and other food establishments to close immediately in Provincetown during the busy summer vacation period. 

EARTH IS SPINNING FASTER, SAY SCIENTISTS

Hang on.  Scientists say Earth is spinning faster and recently recorded its shortest day, notes Grumpy Editor.

June 29 was 1.59 millisecond less than the average day, they note.

Normal length of a day is 24 hours, or 86,400 seconds. But in recent years, the Earth's rotation has accelerated, shortening some days by milliseconds.

"Since 2016 the Earth started to accelerate," says Leonid Zotov with Lomonosov Moscow State University. “This year it rotates quicker than in 2021 and 2020.”

Zotov and his colleagues believe the fluctuation could be caused by the Earth's tides, adding not every day is shorter, but if the trend continues, atomic time --- the universal way time is measured on Earth --- may have to change.

Some scientists propose introducing a negative leap second. "Since we cannot change the clock arrows attached to the Earth rotation, we adjust the atomic clock scale," relates Zotov. 

As opposed to leap years, which have an extra day added, a negative leap second would mean clocks skip one second.

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

AIR FORCE GROUNDS AIRCRAFT.  The Air Force grounds almost 300 training aircraft as potentially defective ejection seat part safety concerns spread.  That’s nearly half the combat training aircraft and a smaller portion of primary training aircraft.

GOP SELECTS MILWAUKEE.  Republicans select Milwaukee for its 2024 national convention.  Nashville took itself out of the running when the city council rejected a draft agreement for hosting the event.

UPPER THAMES RIVER DRIES UP.  Following weeks of little rainfall and a July heat wave in Britain, the starting point of England's famous River Thames has dried up and moved downstream.  Last month’s heat smashed the UK’s all-time temperature record.

“GUARD CAT” PREVENTS ROBBERY.  A pet cat in Belden, Miss. helped prevent an early morning robbery at the home of Fred Everitt.  Bandit, a 20-pound cat, alerted his owner with loud meows when two people tried to break into a home.

CHEETAH GOES FOR SPEED.  Fastest running animal?  It’s a cheetah, capable of running as fast as 70 miles an hour.  Yes, exceeding the speed limit in many cities.  The big cat’s body is quite literally built for speed, with long legs, long neck and small head.

 

FLORIDA LEADS IN APPEAL.  Florida leads the list of states where people say they’d move if they had the chance, according to a Rasmussen Reports survey.  It finds 18 percent of adults would rather live in Florida while 11 percent prefer California and 10 percent would choose New York.

HITLER'S WRISTWATCH SOLD.   A Maryland auction house sells a wristwatch that once belonged to Adolf Hitler for $1.1 million.  Alexander Historical Auctions in Chesapeake City had estimated the value between $2 and $4 million, describing the watch as a World War relic of historic proportions.

NORTH KOREA LEADER (AGAIN) SAYS HE'S READY TO USE NUCLEAR WEAPONS

A big yawner in the news is word that North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un warns he’s ready to use nuclear weapons in potential military conflicts with the U.S. and South Korea, notes Grumpy Editor.

This has been going on periodically since the Korean War truce in 1953.

 

In his latest outburst, the North Korean leader unleashed fiery rhetoric against the rivals he says are pushing the Communist nation to the brink of war.

 

The most recent of many U.S.-South Korea military drills apparently inspired Kim’s latest outburst.

 

Observers say while Kim increasingly threatens rivals with nuclear weapons, it’s unlikely that he would use them against superior militaries.

 

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

HUGE GEMSTONE DISCOVERED.  A huge pink 170 carat diamond is discovered in Angola.  It is hailed as the largest gemstone found in three centuries.

 

PARTS SHORTAGE AFFECTS AIRLINES.  With air travel, in addition to labor shortages --- from pilots to air traffic controllers --- airlines are struggling with finding spare parts and engines to keep their aircraft flying.

 

BUZZ ALDRIN'S JACKET AUCTIONED.  Astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s jacket worn on his 1969 moon mission is auctioned off for nearly $2.8 million.  Auction house Sotheby’s says that amount is the highest paid for any American space-flown artifact.

 

ELEPHANTS AFFECTED BY CLIMATE CHANGE.  Climate change is affecting elephants in Kenya.  As Kenya battles its worst drought in four decades, officials say the crisis is killing 20 times more elephants than poaching. 

 

2024 REOPENING SEEN FOR NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL.  Notre Dame Cathedral, the 13th century Paris monument that caught fire in April, 2019, is on track to reopen in 2024, says France's culture minister.  It is being restored to its previous design.

 

NORTHERN NEVADA ADDS CASINO.  Northern Nevada’s first new casino in more than 20 years is set to open Aug. 30.  The casino and dining at Legends Bay Casino in Reno-Sparks, covers 80,000 square feet.

 

REMOTE WORKERS CITE DOGS.  Nearly half (48 percent) of remote workers who own dogs say they would work in a remote position so they can continue to be home with their dogs. Of those, 48 percent are women and 50 percent are men.