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IMPORTANT
| | |  | Tipping Point | China’s Population Falls for First Time in 60 Years Official figures show China’s population shrank by 850,000 people in 2022 — the first such decline since 1961. The tipping point comes a decade earlier than the government and the United Nations predicted. Yi Fuxian, an expert on Chinese population, said the “real demographic crisis is beyond imagination and that all of China’s past economic, social, defense and foreign policies were based on faulty demographic data.” Since abandoning its one-child policy in 2016, China’s been trying to encourage bigger families — with scant success. Yi predicted severe economic consequences: “China has become older before it has become rich,” he said. (Sources: AP, Reuters) |
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|  | Arizona Apocalypse, Now | What Happens When the Taps Run Dry? On Jan. 1, the city of Scottsdale turned off the water supply to the unincorporated community of Rio Verde Foothills. Now residents are forced to buy water hauled in by trucks — or to rely on wells that are increasingly running dry amid a generational drought. Some in Rio Verde Foothills want to form their own water district, while others favor enlisting a private utility company. “What Scottsdale has done is inhumane. Dangerous. They’ve left us without fire protection. They’ve left us without water for families,” said Christy Jackman, one of a group of residents who have taken Scottsdale to court. (Source: WaPo) |
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|  | ‘Deeply Rotten Misogynistic Culture’ | UK Policeman Pleads Guilty to 49 Sex Abuse Charges Spanning 20 Years David Carrick, an elite Metropolitan Police firearms officer, admitted to raping and assaulting 12 women. His crimes were brought to police attention nine times from 2000 to 2021, though he remained on the force when his victims didn’t cooperate with investigations because, as a police spokesperson explained, “he told them they would not be believed.” He was finally arrested in October 2021. “That Carrick could have not only become a police officer, but remain a serving officer for so long whilst he perpetrated these horrific crimes against women, is terrifying,” said campaigner Harriet Wistrich, who blamed the Metropolitan Police’s “deeply rotten misogynistic culture.” (Sources: BBC, The Guardian) |
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|  | The Great Leveler | Cancer Diagnosis Helps Italian Police Nab Mafia Fugitive Italy’s most wanted man, Matteo Messina Denaro, was arrested at a private clinic in Sicily Monday. Police received a tip that the “last godfather” was receiving treatment for a tumor under a false name — but the most recent photos of him were 30 years old, so investigators could only guess what he looked like. They eventually homed in on Messina Denaro by poring over the national health system to weed out suspects of similar age and condition. “Health is one of those things that, sooner or later, forces those who want to hide to expose themselves,” said police Gen. Pasquale Angelosanto. (Sources: Reuters, The Guardian) |
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|  | Briefly | Here are some things you should know about today: Liberated. In one of its most significant victories yet, Somalia’s government said it liberated the towns of Harardhere and Galcad from al-Shabab rebels. Some experts say al-Shabab is on its last legs — but others urge caution. (Source: Al Jazeera) Banned. The Australian Open banned Russian and Belarusian flags after Ukraine’s ambassador complained about a courtside Russian flag during Kamilla Rakhimova’s first-round match against Ukraine’s Kateryna Baindl. (Source: The Statesman) Reaffirmed. A high-level U.S. delegation met with top Ukrainian officials in Kyiv Monday to “reaffirm the United States’ strong and steadfast commitment to Ukraine and its defense against Russia’s unprovoked aggression.” (Source: CNN) |
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INTRIGUING
| | | Blacklisted | Why Black American Realtors Earn 3 Times Less Than White Peers Dallas real estate agent Chastin Miles was thrilled to hold an open house for a 6000-square-foot mansion with all the bells and whistles. His bubble burst when would-be buyers, an older white couple, took one look at him and walked out the door. “They weren’t expecting me to be in that house on this street in this ZIP code.” He’s since taken to having white colleagues work as greeters at the door. Data shows white agents earn three times more than their Black counterparts, and African Americans — who account for 6% of agents but 14% of the population — regularly encounter racism on the job. (Source: NYT) |
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| | | | | Arrivederci | Gina Lollobrigida, Italian Film Icon of the ’50s and ’60s, Dies at 95 Humphrey Bogart said she made “Marilyn Monroe look like Shirley Temple,” and Life magazine called her “the most fetching argument ever advanced for liberal immigration policies.” While there were question marks over her “lack of intensity, lack of presence,” there was no doubting Lollobrigida’s fame as the original Italian film diva, a precursor to Sophia Loren. Highlights of a career on both sides of the Atlantic included Pane, Amore e Fantasia (1953), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1956) and Solomon and Sheba (1959). As film roles dried up from the ’70s onward she focused on art and photography, publishing several books. (Sources: WaPo, The Guardian) |
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| | | Awkward | Since the War Began, Russians and Ukrainians Have Flocked to Bali When William Wiebe co-founded Parq Ubud — a coworking space and apartment complex in Bali, Indonesia — he thought it would appeal to Chinese and Australian tourists. But then Russia invaded Ukraine. “Within days of the war, we were inundated,” said Wiebe, who also described a second wave of arrivals after Moscow’s draft mobilization. Now around 90% of Parq’s residents are Russians and Ukrainians. Alex Man, who moved his family from Kharkiv, said his kids recently got into an argument with Russian classmates about which side was right. But friendships have also formed between Russians and Ukrainians who are united in their opposition to the war. (Source: NYT) |
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| | | Mammoth Undertaking | Joe Rogan Listeners Are Scouring the East River for Mammoth Bones On Dec. 30, John Reeves — an Alaskan gold miner with a penchant for fossils — appeared on hit podcast The Joe Rogan Experience. He claimed a stash of bones deemed unworthy of the American Museum of Natural History had been dumped in New York City’s East River, around 65th Street, in the early 20th century. The museum quickly poured cold (polluted) water on the idea — but that hasn’t deterred treasure hunters from looking for them bones. Commercial diver Don Gann assembled a team of four: “I think the chances are just as good as the lottery. And people buy those tickets every day.” (Source: AP) |
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| | | Tunnel Vision | Running 200 Miles in the Dark in a Disused Train Tunnel — for Fun The Tunnel Ultra is deliberately spartan — runners aren’t permitted to wear headphones or to run next to one another — and in three years only 13 people have completed it. “I don't want there to be no finishers,” explained organizer Mark Cockbain. “But I do want them to go through hell to get there.” Every year around 40 ultramarathoners take on the challenge — among them Guy Bettinson, who holds the course record of 43 hours, 9 minutes. “Most of my medals I chuck in the bin. If it’s one I’m bothered about I keep it in a drawer. I’ve kept the Tunnel one.” (Source: BBC) |
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