In the News: Week of April 19th
What happened in the world from April 19th - 25th
Happy Sunday morning everyone! I hope you all had a great week.
In the news this week
Kim Jong Un’s health may be in grave danger after surgery. The North Korean leader has recently been absent from public events, and there are credible concerns about the leader’s health. It is difficult to tell how much danger Kim is in, as intelligence coming out of North Korea is hard to come by; some media outlets are reporting that Kim has died, but those reports are unconfirmed. If he does pass away, his sister will likely succeed him as supreme leader.
The price of oil went negative for the first time ever on Monday. Demand has plummeted recently since a majority of the country is staying at home. Logically, you would think that the price of oil wouldn’t be able to go below $0; at its low, it sunk to negative $40 per barrel Monday. Oil can be expensive to store, so in some cases (like this past week) the best thing to do financially if you’re stuck with a bunch of oil is to pay someone to take it off your hands, and that’s exactly what happened. If you want to take your understanding of the oil and gas industry to the next level, check out this educational episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: “The Gang Solves the Gas Crisis.”
President Trump signed an executive order suspending the issuance of new green cards this week. The order is set to last for 60 days, but may be extended or canceled. Foreign nationals seeking a green card who were outside of the United States at the time of the order are barred from entering the country under the order. The order does not apply to applicants already in the country, medical workers, farm workers, spouses of U.S. citizens or their children under age 21.
Headline of the Week: Trump suggests ‘injection’ of disinfectant to beat coronavirus and ‘clean’ the lungs
Although safe for our countertops, unfortunately household disinfectants are not safe for injection. When asked about the comments on Friday, Trump said he was being “sarcastic” to “see what would happen.” He gave no indication of sarcasm when he made the comments and appeared completely serious. Medical experts, scientists, manufacturers of disinfectants, and about 95% of the general population firmly believe that disinfectants cannot be safely injected to stop coronavirus.
Recommended Reading: The Devastating Decline of a Brilliant Young Coder
Cloudflare, the internet security firm that now handles more than 10% of all internet requests, was largely built by Lee Holloway. This story is not about his great work at Cloudflare, though. Holloway has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, the most common form of dementia for people under age 60. It’s estimated that 50,000 to 60,000 Americans are afflicted with the condition.
Holloway’s story is sad but uplifting. It will sound all too familiar for those that know someone with dementia. Holloway isn’t really himself anymore, but at times his old self shines through. His wife, Kristin, recounts one story of a phone call she received from Lee in a grocery store parking lot. Normally, a call to your spouse wouldn’t be a significant event, but this was the first time he had called her in almost two years. He wasn’t able to speak to her on the phone, but she could hear his breathing on the other line.
Lee Holloway is surrounded by loved ones in a home tailored to his needs. His neurodegenerative disease has robbed him of much of his personality, but his connections to loved ones are still there. Several months ago, Lee texted Kristin photos of her and their son on Halloween, a trip to the park, and at Christmas; after the photos, he sent the words “the love.”
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