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The shooting at a congressional baseball practice reminds us of something we too often forget: We are one country, and we’re all in this together. Here’s what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. You can also get “5 Things You Need to Know Today” delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.
NORTH KOREA NUCLEAR BOMB TEST
Weathering heights: You really should pay attention to the climate change conference going on in Paris. Only because THE FATE OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT IS AT STAKE! If the Earth’s temperature goes up by just two degrees, every aspect of our life will be affected. If you think the refugee crisis is tragic now, think of when rising seas eat away cities. If you think the wildfires out West are bad, imagine ones that are 800% larger. Water supplies will dry up. Hurricanes will get more intense. That’s why world leaders are meeting in Paris. That’s why you should pay attention.
PLANNED PARENTHOOD SHOOTING
TURKEY RUSSIA TENSIONS
FINANCIAL MARKETS
Winter’s coming: Brace yourselves, investors. It’s probably going to be another crappy day. Once again things started off badly this morning in China, where stock trading was halted just 30 minutes after markets there took a 5% dive. Over here, the Dow dropped 252 points yesterday, as Wall Street tried to absorb not only the Chinese turmoil, but also North Korea’s alleged nuke test along with the latest belly flop in oil prices. It’s the Dow’s worst start to the trading year since 2008, and we all remember how great that turned out.
SAUDI ARABIA ELECTIONS
You know what? Never mind: Politicians say the darndest things to get elected. Then they get into office and can’t put their money where their mouth is. Take President Obama. For forever, he talked about closing Gitmo. Now, the White House says it can’t. It’ll cost too much.
BREAKFAST BROWSE
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
Quote of the day:
But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye”
– Kobe Bryant, announcing he’ll call it quits after this season, in a retirement poem.
Shine bright like a diamond
Bling-happy scientists have discovered a way to super-heat carbon to make something called Q-carbon – which is even more brilliant than a diamond. But “Q-carbon is a girl’s best friend” just doesn’t have the same ring to it.
Surprise!
The photo of this unusual birthday cake went viral – for all the right reasons.
Haul ass
It takes a village
Emirates Airline has unveiled a new plane that can seat 615. That’s the entire population of Circle, Montana. To do that, it had to lose its first-class section and its showers. Yes, showers.
WHAT’S FOR LUNCH
Here’s what’s coming up later.
With a little help from my friends: After the Paris attacks, France asked its allies to turn the screws tighter on ISIS. British and German lawmakers vote today on how to up their game.
Homeward bound: Lori Berenson spent 20 years in a Peruvian prison, convicted of plotting to overthrow the government. She’s expected to come home today– with her 6-year-old son, whom she raised in prison.
Here are some exercises to relieve carpal tunnel. You’ll need it. It’s Cyber Monday.
Number of the day:
1 kilometer
The number of freebies Clippers center DeAndre Jordan bricked in a game against the Portland Trail Blazers. That ties the (worst) record, set by the great Wilt Chamberlain. Hey, at least he’s in good company.
And finally …
Opening crawl
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” comes out December 18. You’ve got 16 days to catch up on the original trilogy and the three prequels. Or you can brush up on the major plot points in three minutes.
A manhunt intensifies … music royalty win more awards … and a boy with hiccups belts out the national anthem like a pro. It’s Monday, and here are the 5 things you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door: