by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, December 31, New Year’s Eve 2024. It’s been a helluva year, huh?
- World endures ‘decade of deadly heat’ as 2024 caps hottest years on record (“UN secretary general, António Guterres, says ‘we must exit this road to ruin’ in annual new year message”)
- Climate progress screeched to a halt this year. One country had its foot on the brake. (“For years, Saudi Arabia has been accused of delaying climate progress, but experts say this year it has been bolder than ever.”)
- Canary Media’s top 10 clean energy stories in 2024
- World’s 500 Richest People Surpassed $10 Trillion in Wealth This Year (Completely nuts.)
- 2024 was a historic year in global elections — and a bad one for those in power (So, so dumb – blaming people in power simply for being there, not for whether they did their jobs well – or not.)
- U.S. sending $5.9 billion in aid for Ukraine ahead of Trump inauguration
- Putin says he saved Russia, but a year of challenges suggests Moscow’s position is precarious (“Marking 25 years in office, Vladimir Putin says he has remade Russia as a sovereign power and will prevail in Ukraine, but economic and strategic setbacks complicate the picture” Putin and his entire regime need to go.)
- Russian missile and drone attack on Ukraine hits multiple targets, including Kyiv
- After a quarter-century in power, Putin faces a new test: The return of Trump (Weird article.)
- Chinese Companies Have Sidestepped Trump’s Tariffs. They Could Do It Again.
- China Hacked Treasury Dept. in ‘Major’ Breach, U.S. Says
- Beijing unveils plans to boost driverless vehicle use in capital
- South Korea court issues arrest warrant for impeached President Yoon (This is what SHOULD have happened in the United States within weeks of 1/6/21.)
- No safety issues flagged in pre-flight checks, airline boss says after South Korea crash
- South Korea plane crash investigations intensify as questions raised over airport embankment (“Families of the dead remain at Muan international airport to demand more information, as criticism of airport layout mounts”)
- ‘Final tragedy’: experts debate role of concrete barriers and runway design in South Korean plane crash (“The Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 is believed to have suffered a birdstrike, but analysts doubt that as the single cause of the tragedy”)
- Drugs, Scams and Sin: Myanmar’s War Has Made It the Global Crime Capital (What a disaster.)
- How ‘Trophy’ Videos Link Paramilitary Commanders to War Crimes in Sudan (Sudan is another disaster, one that gets WAY less coverage than it merits.)
- Africa Has Entered a New Era of War (“The explosion of old and new conflicts on the continent has gone largely unnoticed amid higher-profile wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.”)
- Amid ceasefire push, Palestinians bear the scars of Israeli detention
- 2024 Is Finally Over. Now Let’s Forget That It Ever Happened. (“Did anything good actually happen this year?”)
- Carter’s presidency holds foreign policy lessons for Trump
- Trump tests influence over GOP with Johnson Speakership vote
- Trump Endorses Mike Johnson to Continue as House Speaker
- The MAGA Honeymoon Is Over (“Silicon Valley and the nativist right worked together to elect Trump. Now the infighting has begun.”)
- Pick Your Fighter: Who’s Who in the Ongoing MAGA Civil War (“Right-wing influencers are clashing with Silicon Valley moguls over immigration policy in the latest drama to engulf Trumpworld.”)
- In a war between tech bros and core MAGA, the winner is easy to spot (“They are a selfish bunch who have shown time and again that what interests them most is themselves.”)
- Trump Had a Few Choice Words About This ‘President Musk’ Thing (“Chaos in the land of the president elect!”)
- MAGA was all about “masculinity” in 2024 — too bad they have no idea what that word means
- What I Saw on the Road to Trump’s Victory: Fear
- The strategist in the hurricane (“As national security adviser, Jake Sullivan often had to improvise — and weigh some very imperfect responses.”)
- Biden World Thinks He Should Have Stayed in the Race. What Are They Smoking? (“The question is not whether he should have dropped out. It’s why he didn’t do so earlier.” Agreed.)
- Biden Exits Battling for His Legacy and Believing He Could Have Won
- Carter was the first president to move the needle, albeit slowly, on gay rights
- Jimmy Carter to be honored at Washington funeral and laid to rest in Georgia
- Trump Loses Appeal of E. Jean Carroll Sexual-Abuse Verdict
- Trump Loses Appeal of Carroll’s $5 Million Award in Sex-Abuse Case
- Elon Musk is on a collision course with Stephen Miller
- How Elon Musk Has Planted Himself Almost Literally at Trump’s Doorstep
- Musk Still Crashing at Mar-a-Lago Bachelor Pad to Be Near Bestie Trump: Report (Totally corrupt, f’ed-up, etc.)
- House Ethics Committee closes investigations into 4 members
- Devin Nunes loses court case against parody Twitter cow — again
- Biden moves to bar oil, gas and geothermal development in a Nevada mountain range for 20 years
- Question for Virginia Policymakers: “So, if new data centers are unlikely to be powered by SMRs, fusion or space solar for the next few decades, what will they be powered by?” (“In the end, the tech titans will find out that the best way to power AI data centers is in the traditional way” – energy expert Michael Liebreich)
- Virginia in 2024: Electoral drama, campus clashes and a surprising exit
- Remembering Jimmy Carter in Virginia (“One of Jimmy Carter’s last public appearances in Virginia came in 2018 when he spoke at Liberty University’s graduation.”)
- EV charging stations bill coming back to General Assembly
- More than 100,000 oysters were grown in Virginia this year. Here’s why it matters.
- Del. Jones makes unannounced visit to Red Onion following reports of inmate mistreatment and self-immolation (“After talking to inmates, Del. Michael Jones, D-Richmond and a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, said he identified several areas where he sees an immediate need for improvement.”)
- Here are the biggest stories of 2024 in Hampton Roads
- Commentary: Trump can’t stop Richmond from making climate progress
- Micron’s expansion celebrated by state, local leaders
- New Roanoke mayor, council members sworn in
- Va. courthouse named after civil rights lawyer designated as landmark (“The Loudoun County courthouse, named after Charles Hamilton Houston, has been recognized as a national historical landmark for its role in the civil rights movement.”)
- Louisa woman faces prison for selling ‘legal’ cannabis and mushrooms
- D.C.-area forecast and updates: Showers possible later today before a rush of cold air in 2025
********************************************************
Sign up for the Blue Virginia weekly newsletter
