7/13/2022: Global Population Drops
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7/13/2022: Global Population Drops
PLUS: BRICS Bucks, Mr. “Irrelevant,” and Pete’s New Ink
Today is Wednesday, July 13, 2022.
It is the 194th day of the year.
171 days remain.
TRENDING
Thor: Love and Thunder was trending Tuesday after some viewers became outraged over a “graphic” scene in the new Marvel movie. More in Showbiz.
Emmy Awards landed in Twitter’s Top 10 Trends yesterday after this year’s nominations were announced. More in Showbiz.
#PrimeDay was trending on Day 1 of Amazon Prime Day. Twitter users shared the hashtag while bragging about the amazing deals they scored.
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HIT LIST
Have you heard of the BRICS nations?
That’s Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – a coalition of five countries that are now working to create their own reserve currency that would further weaken the International Monetary Fund and the U.S. Dollar.
The effort is Russia’s response to Western nations that tried to cut it off from global financial markets as it invaded Ukraine.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Just weeks after the invasion, European countries were paying more than ever for natural gas from Russia, and paying in rubles, anyway, a move not only sanctioned but encouraged by the European Union’s fiscal policy advisers. As a result, Russia’s ruble strongly rebounded, filling VLADIMIR PUTIN’s coffers while European citizens fret about heating their homes this fall and winter.
MEANWHILE: As WNBA player BRITTNEY GRINER remains detained in Russia after smuggling weed into the country, LEBRON JAMES says she might be better off staying put and not coming back to the United States.
On the HBO show “The Shop,” James asks, “Now, how can she feel like America has her back? I would be feeling like, ‘Do I even want to go back to America?’”
WORTH ASKING: Maybe he could get paid in BRICS bucks and see how that goes over.
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ELON MUSK cryptically tweeted “Oh the irony lol” on Tuesday – with no other text or meme or video.
It was likely a response to Twitter formally suing Musk demanding he go through with the purchase of the company.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Twitter was at first very resistant and reluctant to the buyout. But now, as its stock price has tanked, they’re demanding it go through.
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A Texas man shot two teenage thugs who tried to carjack him with his two kids in the back.
A Ring doorbell captured the frightening incident, showing the two perps approach the SUV just as it pulled into the driveway. As they got near the rear passenger door, the dad fired from the passenger seat through the rear window, and appeared to hit both of the would-be thieves, who scurried away into a getaway car and sped off. They later showed up at a hospital.
The hero father is not facing charges.
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Meta – the company that runs Facebook – is going on a firing spree.
A directive from higher-ups tells managers to actively force out employees who aren’t performing. One memo notes, “As a manager, you cannot allow someone to be net neutral or negative for Meta.”
A few weeks ago, MARK ZUCKERBERG said at a company town hall, “Realistically, there are probably a bunch of people at the company who shouldn’t be here,” and said he wanted to raise expectations for workers.
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The USDA has shut down a beagle breeding facility in Virginia after months of infractions and violations that made for unsafe and unhealthy conditions for the dogs.
Now, they’re looking to find homes for 4,000 such dogs in the next 60 days. The Humane Society has stepped in to help prep the animals for adoptions, including spaying and neutering procedures and vaccinations.
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A Maryland man survived falling into the crater of Italy’s Mount Vesuvius over the weekend.
Italian officials say the man and his group went on a trail closed off to tourists. The victim’s phone fell out of his hands, and while crawling down to get it, he stumbled and fell a few meters into the volcano. Officials spotted the man and rushed to get him out.
He’s facing charges of invading public land.
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Did you pay a little extra for a nice trim package on your car that includes heated seats?
Now, BMW wants to make you pay every month for the privilege. The Verge reports that the feature was recently rolled out in South Korea, and the subscription feature is also available in the UK, Germany, New Zealand, and South Africa.
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The United Nations reports that the global population growth rate fell below 1% in 2020, the slowest rate since 1950. Despite the slow in growth, global population is expected to hit 8 billion later this year
MEANWHILE: China is set to be overtaken by India as the most-populated country.
THIS IS WILD: Between now and 2050, half of the increase in global population is expected to be concentrated in just eight countries: Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Tanzania.
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WATCH: This video is apparently a farmer born in 1842, speaking in 1929 about how the world has changed:
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The Dow lost 192 points (0.62%) on Tuesday, to close at 30,981. The S&P lost 35 points (0.92%) to close at 3,818 and the Nasdaq lost 107 points (0.95%) to close at 11,264.
🛢 West Texas Intermediate nosedived 8.5%, trading at $95 a barrel Tuesday. Brent Crude was also suddenly trading under $100 a barrel too.
⛽ The national average price of a gallon of gas was $4.65 Tuesday.
₿ Bitcoin stayed under $20,000 on Tuesday, losing nearly $550 in value.
🛩 There were 2,423 flight delays for routes within, into, or out of the United States, and 482 such cancellations on Tuesday.
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CHARTS
Top 5 Fiction & Nonfiction Books Currently on the New York Times Best Sellers List:
FICTION:
“Where The Crawdads Sing,” Delia Owens
“It Ends With Us,” Colleen Hoover
“Verity,” Colleen Hoover
“Ugly Love,” Colleen Hoover
“The Hotel Nantucket,” Elin Hilderbrand
NONFICTION:
“Battle For The American Mind,” Pete Hegseth with David Goodwin
“Why We Did It,” Tim Miller
“The Body Keeps The Score,” Bessel van der Kolk
“Happy-Go-Lucky,” David Sedaris
“An Immense World,” Ed Yong
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DEATHS
BUSISIWE “Busi” LURAYI has died.
The star of Netflix’s “How to Ruin Christmas,” passed away at her home in South Africa. No cause of death was shared, though her family did note her passing as “sudden.”
She was 36.
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BABY NEWS
JILL DUGGAR, of the 19 Duggars, and her husband DERICK DILLARD have welcomed their third child, a baby boy named Frederick Michael Dillard.
He arrived on July 7.
Jill and Derick are already parents to sons Israel 7, and Samuel, 5.
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RELATIONSHIPS
Actor ROB RIGGLE, 52, is dating professional golfer KASIA KAY, 35.
The couple met when Kasia appeared as a contestant on ABC’s gameshow “Holey Moley,” which Rob co-hosts with JOE TESSITORE.
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BRADLEY COOPER, 47, is dating HUMA ABEDIN, 45.
The actor and HILLARY CLINTON’s top aide were introduced by Vogue editor ANNA WINTOUR and have been seeing each other for a few months, an insider told Page Six.
Abedin was previously married to disgraced politician ANTHONY WEINER, while Cooper was formerly engaged to model IRINIA SHAYK.
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THE SWAMP
A left-wing group called Roots Action has announced plans to spend six figures on a campaign to discourage President JOE BIDEN from running for a second term.
They say they’ll start blasting ads the day after midterm elections focused on early primary states for the presidential election.
In an official statement, Roots Action declares that Biden “has been neither bold nor inspiring,” that his re-election likelihood looks “bleak,” and nominating him would be a “tragic mistake.”
MEANWHILE: A New York Times poll shows 64% of Democrats don’t want Biden to run again, either.
When ABC News’ BEN GITTLESON asked Biden about the poll, the president invented reality, saying: "Read the polls. Read the polls, Jack. You guys are all the same. That poll showed that 92% of Democrats, if I ran, would vote for me.”
BUT WAIT: The 92% number is from a section of that poll that asks Democrats whether they’d vote for Biden specifically in a rematch against former President DONALD TRUMP – meaning they’d vote for him only if Trump were the only other option on the ballot. That doesn’t mean 92% want him to be the nominee.
WORTH NOTING: Biden’s inner circle notoriously shields him from bad news, as they fear he’ll level an outburst against them.
WORTH ASKING: Did Biden’s people only give him the good news from the polling, especially since he lives and dies by approval ratings? Or is he just outright lying?
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Senator ELIZABETH “Pocahontas” WARREN isn’t just loudly upset about the Dobbs decision that undid Roe v Wade. She’s calling for crisis pregnancy centers that steer women away from having abortions to be totally shut down.
WATCH:
Here are some things these often faith-based organizations do for no charge for expecting mothers:
Provide free clothing clothing for newborns throughout infancy and early years.
Provide free classes on child birth, on parenting, and on finding jobs and work that help accommodate the challenges of earning an income while raising kids.
Provide free adoption referrals and resources for expecting mothers who may not be able to raise her child.
Provide free pregnancy testing and sonograms and other check-ups.
IN OTHER WORDS: They provide a pregnant woman with options and choices beyond just aborting their baby, and Warren wants to completely eliminate those choices and options.
Sounds awfully authoritarian.
FURTHER READING (NOT FOR BROADCAST): Lefty strategist and writer JILL FILIPOVIC goes on a long tirade accusing the right of bending and twisting language to accommodate their beliefs in the abortion debate, like the term “unborn child,” which she says is “one of these Orwellian terms designed to short-circuit our ability to think and speak about human existence”… from someone who thinks you need a biology degree to determine who is and isn’t a woman. Read it here >
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More weird news from the hackers going through HUNTER BIDEN’s apparent iCloud account:
In October 2018 – just weeks before he asked dad JOE BIDEN for hundreds of thousands of dollars that he eventually spent on prostitutes – Hunter spent nearly $18,000 on five items of clothing from luxury menswear brand Riflessi: Three jackets (worth $6,000, $5,550, and $2,900 each), one pair of jeans ($500), and one sweater ($400). The details come from a photo of a receipt for the items, which also included a $1200 bill for a hotel stay related specifically to the purchase of the clothes.
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Former National Security Adviser and UN Ambassador JOHN BOLTON told JAKE TAPPER on CNN yesterday he’s played a role in orchestrating coups in other countries.
WORTH NOTING: It shouldn’t surprise anyone that US government officials have played a role in destabilizing despots in other parts of the world. But it’s a bizarre thing to say out loud on national news.
BUT WAIT: If no one is watching CNN, did anyone really see it?
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LOTTERY
No winner for Monday night’s Powerball drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $66 million jackpot or a $37.5 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
Nominations for the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards were announced yesterday.
“Succession” led the pack with 25 nominations, followed by “Ted Lasso” and “The White Lotus,” with 20 apiece. “Hacks” and “Only Murders in the Building” earned 17 nods, and “Euphoria” landed 16.
NOTABLE SNUBS: “Reservation Dogs,” Selena Gomez (“Only Murders in the Building”), “This Is Us,” Sean Penn & Julia Roberts (“Gaslit”), “Yellowstone,” Gary Oldman (“Slow Horses”), Benjamin Bratt (“DMZ”), “Grace & Frankie,” “Panchinko,” Michelle Hurd (“Star Trek: Picard”), “Black-ish,” and “Better Things.”
The Emmys will air on Monday, September 12 on NBC.
WORTH NOTING: NATHAN LANE landed his seventh nomination for his role on “Only Murders in the Building,” making him the most-nominated guest actor in history, Deadline reports.
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Viewers calling for Marvel to issue a “trigger warning” for a scene in the new film “Thor: Love and Thunder,” have been blasted online for “being stupid.”
One response seemed to sum it well: “Sorry, kids. A movie studio is under no obligation to give you a trigger warning that spoils the film for everyone JUST IN CASE. You have the internet. Read the spoilers if you’re that worried about it.”
ON THAT NOTE: We will not share details of the so-called “outrageous” scene as it is very much SPOILER!
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EMINEM announced his second greatest-hits album, titled “Curtain Call 2.”
The album follows his 2005 hit record “Curtain Call: The Hits.”
It will drop on August 5.
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Actor MICKEY ROURKE is not a fan of TOM CRUISE or his films.
During a recent appearance on “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” Rourke called the “Top Gun” actor “irrelevant.”
When asked how he felt about the success of the latest “Top Gun” flick, Rourke said it means nothing to him because Cruise “has been doing the same part for 35 effing years.”
“I got no respect for that,” he added.
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Former NFL player ERIC DECKER and country singer JESSIE JAMES DECKER’s 4-year-old son, Forrest, accidentally posted a NSFW (Not Safe For Work) snap of his dad to Instagram.
The pic, which has since been deleted, showed Forrest smiling for a selfie, with his dad showering in the background. (Eric’s back and butt were clearly seen in the snap.)
The photo remained up until one of Jessie’s friends texted her, telling her about the graphic photo. Of course, several followers already screenshot the post prior to it being taken down.
Eric later joked about the incident, saying he will need to keep a closer eye on his kids when they use his phone.
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YouTube TV has surpassed 5 million subscribers and free trial participants just a little over five years since it launched.
The number makes YouTube TV the biggest internet pay-TV provider and the fifth-largest TV distributor overall in the US. It trails Comcast, Charter, DirecTV and Dish Network.
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CASTING CALL
KEVIN BACON is set to produce and host a new quiz show called “Lucky 13.”
The 60-minute high-stakes general knowledge game show has the “simplicity of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire',” an insider told Variety.
Bacon called it “addictive fun.”
No word on a premiere date or network.
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K-Pop group BTS is working on a number of projects with Disney, including a docuseries and concert film.
The content will air on Disney’s global streaming services, including Disney+.
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JAMES FRANCO is set to star in the post-WWII drama “Me, You.”
He will play “one of the lead roles” alongside TOM HOLLANDER and DAISY JACOB, a source told Variety.
The coming-of-age drama takes place on the Italian island of Ischia in the 1950s. It follows 16-year-old Marco, who while on a break from his Scottish boarding school befriends US GI turned fisherman Nicola (Franco).
Marco later meets 20-year-old Caia (Jacob), a concentration camp survivor, who he vows to seek revenge for.
Hollander play’s Marco’s father Edward.
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Apple TV+ has renewed its workplace comedy series “Loot” for a second season.
The series stars MAYA RUDOLPH as billionaire Molly Novak, who has a dream life that comes crashing down after her husband of 20 years betrays her and she spirals publicly.
In addition to Rudolph, the show stars JOEL KIM BOOSTER, NAT FAXON, RON FUNCHES and STEPHANIE STYLES.
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COURT CASES
JOHNNY DEPP has settled a lawsuit stemming from an alleged assault involving a crew member on the set of the 2018 flick, “City of Lies.”
The suit was filed after a 2017 incident in which location manager GREGG “Rocky” BROOKS, who worked with Depp on the movie, claimed that the actor punched him twice in the ribs and cursed at him while filming.
Security was called and Depp had to be escorted off the set by his bodyguards.
Now, PEOPLE Magazine reports that the two recently reached a settlement in the case just weeks before it was set to go to civil trial on July 25.
No details on what Depp must do on his end.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
Some eagle-eyed Kardashian fans spotted a new tattoo on PETE DAVIDSON’s right shoulder in a recent photo posted by KIM.
The tattoo -- a small script of the words Jasmine and Aladdin, alongside an infinity sign -- references the pair’s first kiss.
As many may remember, their first kiss actually happened before they were even a couple. It was during Kim’s stint as host of “SNL” when the two were Jasmine and Aladdin for a skit.
SPEAKING OF PETE: He is the new face of Manscaped, a men’s grooming company aimed at “keeping things neat down there.”
“Let’s show them how hairless we could be, boys,” the “SNL” alum jokes in the ad.
Paul Tran, founder and CEO of Manscaped, called Davidson the “perfect partner” because of his “sense of humor and sense of self.”
Dating one of the most famous women in America probably doesn’t hurt either.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE caused quite the stir when they entered St. Paul’s Cathedral solo during the service for QUEEN ELIZABETH’s Platinum Jubilee.
Royal commentator CAMILLA TOMINEY wrote in The Telegraph that the Palace “did not appreciate” the couple opting out of entering with other members of the Royal Family.
In fact, their solo entrance caused an “awkward shuffle,” Tominey added.
Another thing noted from the ceremony was the seating chart. Harry and Meghan were seated on the opposite side of the church from PRINCE WILLIAM and KATE MIDDLETON and did not make an effort to speak to them before or after the service.
As many will remember, the service was the only major public appearance Harry and Meghan attended during their visit to the UK last month.
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SPORTS
Former Steelers QB BEN ROETHISBERGER is not thrilled about the Pittsburgh stadium’s name change.
“Doesn’t seem right,” he wrote on Twitter after news broke that Heinz Field will now be known as Acrisure Stadium.
Heinz released a statement on the new name yesterday, saying that as a company they could not “justify” paying the same amount Acrisure paid for the naming rights. The brand will remain a significant long-term sponsor of the team, however.
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National French Fry Day
National Beans ‘N’ Franks Day
Embrace Your Geekness Day
International Rock Day
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ON THIS DATE
1787 – Congress continues to organize the geographical structure of the new American nation, with the Northwest Ordinance.
This policy set up rules for claiming and settling lands in the West. At first, ironically, claimed land became colonies of the existing states, and adopted the parent-state's constitution. When the colony reached 20,000 inhabitants, it could be considered for statehood. The fear was states would create many of these colonies to influence voting power.
The Northwest Ordinance called for three or five new states in this region, first as territories with their own legislatures, then as candidates for full statehood when the population reached 60,000.
Slavery would also be banned in these new states.
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1865 - P.T. Barnum’s museum burns down.
The blaze was allegedly caused by a broken gas line in a neighboring restaurant.
Lions, pythons, and other creatures not native to New York fled into the streets, to the shock of onlookers. The majority of the animals were shot and clubbed to death by firefighters and other residents.
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1943 – The largest tank battle in world history ends at the Battle of Kursk.
More than 6,000 German and Soviet tanks clashed in the first days of July, supported by 2 million infantry and 5,000 aircraft.
Ultimately, the Soviets were victorious, pushing back a German offensive. By the end of July gains made by the Nazis were erased on the Eastern front.
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1955 – The last woman is hanged in Britain, following a murder conviction.
Her name was Ruth Ellis and she was convicted of killing her boyfriend.
The jury took less than a half hour to find her guilty, and she was automatically given the death penalty for the severity of the crime.
Ten years later, the last man would be executed by the state in Great Britain.
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1960 – JFK gets the nomination from the Democratic Party to run for president. LBJ would be named his running mate.
The pair won with just shy of 50% of the vote. It was one of the closest races in presidential history, beating Richard Nixon by a fraction of a percent.
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1985 – President Reagan's physicians discover polyps on his colon, and advise for immediate surgery. Vice President George Bush became president for the day, while Reagan underwent the operation and recovered.
Nothing noteworthy happened.
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1995 – The first manmade object impacts Jupiter's atmosphere, when the Galileo spacecraft launches a small probe toward the planet.
The probe would measure temperatures and pressures in the planet for almost an hour, while parachuting through the gaseous atmosphere. Eventually, gravity 22-times stronger than on Earth and temperatures exceeding 153 degrees Celsius crushed the probe.
Later, the Galileo Probe would have the same fate, when it was deliberately piloted into the planet to avoid a collision with the moon Europa. That moon is thought to possibly harbor life, and scientists did not want to contaminate it for possible future missions.
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2013 – #BlackLivesMatter is created in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman.
Zimmerman was on trial for the murder of teenager Trayvon Martin.
Over the years, the movement would garner more support and focus mostly on protesting police brutality against African-American people.
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2018 - Protests erupt in the UK as President Donald Trump meets with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle.
To really get their anti-Trump message acress, several protestors erected a blimp depicting the president as a diaper-wearing baby in Parliament Square.
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BIRTHDAYS
Wyatt Oleff - actor, “Guardians of the Galaxy” & “It” - 19
Cody Bellinger - baseball player - 27
Linnea Berthelsen - actress, “Stranger Things” - 29
Colton Haynes - actor, “Teen Wolf” & “San Andreas” - 34
Steven R. McQueen - actor, “The Vampire Diaries” & “Chicago Fire” - 34
Memo Ochoa - soccer player - 37
Yadier Molina - baseball player - 40
Ken Jeong - actor, “The Hangover” series & “The Duff” - 53
Tom Kenny - voice actor, “SpongeBob SquarePants” & “Adventure Time” - 60
Cheech Marin - actor, “Cheech & Chong” -
Erno Rubik - inventor of the Rubik’s cube - 78
Harrison Ford - actor, “Star Wars” & “Indiana Jones” films - 80
Patrick Stewart - actor, “Star Trek” - 82
Born On This Date
George Bradley - baseball pitcher (first no-hitter in MLB history) - 1852 (d. 1931)
Julius Caesar - Roman leader - 100 BC (d. 44 BC)
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