Joe B. Hall's 93rd birthday buoyed by Crum contributions

Reuters
2024 in photos: the world under water
The floods took many forms: coastal homes were inundated as rising seas were pushed ashore by strong storms, torrential amounts of rain fell on an increasingly paved-over world, quickly melting snowpack caused rivers to burst their banks. Whether from lifeboats, makeshift workstations dragged through mud, helicopters, or with drones, Reuters photographers covered flooding in more than 45 countries this year. In the most severe cases — even before the waters had receded — scientists got to work on rapid analyses that asked to what extent climate change amplified a certain storm or rainfall event.
USA TODAY
'The greatest American battle': See photos from WWII's Battle of the Bulge 80 years on
Monday marks the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. See photos from what Churchill called "the greatest American Battle."
AFP
Ex-husband in French rape trial asks 'forgiveness' from family
The French man who has admitted to enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his heavily-sedated wife asked forgiveness from his family on Monday and hailed the courage of his now ex-spouse during his trial.In a trial that shocked the country, Dominique Pelicot, 72, has admitted to drugging his then wife Gisele Pelicot for almost a decade so he and strangers he recruited online could rape her.
AFP
Flash villas, cars and drugs: Assad's legacy in Latakia
The drive winds between manicured lavender-lined lawns to a crescent-shaped home with a gleaming swimming pool on the Syrian coast: Bashar al-Assad's holiday hideaway disgusts those who now come here.The Assad holiday home is in Latakia, Syria's second largest port after Tartus.
USA TODAY
What is Donald Trump's stance on gay marriage? Here's what he's said about same-sex couples
Donald Trump has had varying views on gay marriage in recent decades. Here's what to know ahead of his inauguration in 2025.
AFP
Lagarde says ECB will continue to cut interest rates
European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde said Monday eurozone policymakers would keep cutting interest rates and warned that higher US tariffs under President-elect Donald Trump could hit growth in the bloc.If the United States took a protectionist run on trade under Trump, "growth in the euro area is likely to take a hit", she said.
USA TODAY
Puzzle solutions for Monday, Dec. 16, 2024
Find answers to the latest online sudoku and crossword puzzles that were published in USA TODAY Network's local newspapers.
USA TODAY
Can cold weather make you sick? Your grandma wasn't entirely wrong.
Grandma’s warnings about getting sick walking barefoot on a cold floor or going outside with wet hair have some truth.
Reuters
Analysis-Case against Brazil coup plotters could end decades of impunity
The arrest of a four-star general in Brazil over the weekend shows courts are ready to play hardball with those accused of plotting to violently overturn election results, breaking with the impunity that shadowed nearly a century of military coups. Former Brazilian Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto was arrested on Saturday for allegedly meddling in the investigation of a coup plot organized with former President Jair Bolsonaro, his running mate in the 2022 election. Last month, federal police accused them and over two dozen active and retired military officers of taking part in the plot, including a scheme to kill President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva before he could take office.
AFP
Sri Lanka president in India in first overseas trip
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake vowed to bolster ties with India Monday on his first overseas visit as head of state, with a red carpet welcome by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Modi said he was "happy" that India was Dissanayake's first foreign visit, saying after their meeting it would "add new energy and speed" to ties.
Associated Press
Biden to sign proclamation establishing national monument honoring first US female Cabinet secretary
President Joe Biden will sign a proclamation Monday establishing a national monument honoring the late FDR-era Labor Secretary Frances Perkins, the first woman appointed to serve in a presidential Cabinet and a driving force behind the New Deal, according to the White House. Biden is expected to visit the Labor Department on Monday to formally make the announcement and sign the proclamation that will establish the monument in Newcastle, Maine, the White House said.
Associated Press
A second top Church of England cleric is facing calls to resign over his handling of abuse claims
The senior clergyman who is due to take temporary charge of the Church of England is facing calls to resign over his handling of the case of a priest accused of sexual misconduct. The BBC reported Monday that Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell let a priest remain in his post despite knowing he had been barred by the church from being alone with children and had paid compensation to one of his accusers. The case occurred when Cottrell was bishop of Chelmsford in eastern England.
Associated Press
Sri Lanka's president holds talks with Modi in India in first overseas visit
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake was hosted Monday by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his first overseas visit since assuming office that focused on shoring up ties as concerns grew over China's influence in the region. Modi said India and Sri Lanka will establish electricity grid connectivity and a multi-product petroleum pipeline that will further boost investment and commercial links between the nations.
CNN
Key US Air Force base closes airspace amid drone sightings
Drone activity caused officials to close airspace over one of the United States’ most critical Air Force bases for almost four hours late Friday and early Saturday, according to a base spokesperson and a Notice to Airmen posted on a federal website.
Associated Press
Death toll in Gaza Strip from Israel-Hamas war tops 45,000, Palestinians say
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The death toll in the Gaza Strip from the 14-month war between Israel and Hamas militants has topped 45,000 people, Palestinian health officials said Monday, with 52 dead arriving at hospitals across the bombed-out strip over the past 24 hours. The Gaza Health Ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children. The Israeli military says it has killed more than 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.
AFP
Syrian jails were an extortion machine funding ousted rulers
Ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad's vast network of prisons was not simply a tool of his brutal crackdown on opposition to his rule, it was a money-making machine for his supporters.Hundreds of thousands of people have been detained since protests erupted against Assad's rule in early 2011.
Associated Press
France rushes help to Mayotte, where hundreds or even thousands died in Cyclone Chido
France was rushing help by ship and military aircraft to its poor overseas territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean on Monday after the island was shattered by its worst storm in nearly a century. Authorities in Mayotte fear hundreds and possibly thousands of people have died in Cyclone Chido, although the official death toll on Monday morning stood at 14. Rescue teams and medical personnel have been sent to the island off the east coast of Africa from France and from the nearby French territory of Reunion, as well as tons of supplies.
Time
The Case Against Dogs in the Office
Pets need meaningful work of their own. Not 'dog-friendly' human workplaces, writes bioethicist Jessica Pierce.
CNN
German chancellor faces confidence vote likely to lead to snap elections
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz faces a confidence vote on Monday he is expected to lose, paving the way for which will likely to put Germany on course for a snap election early next year, after the collapse of his governing coalition plunged the country into uncertainty.
CNN
Seven hotel guests suffer suspected poisoning after drinking cocktails at 5-star Fiji resort
Seven tourists are being treated for suspected poisoning after drinking cocktails at a bar in an upscale Fiji resort that’s now being investigated by police.

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