Like Oil and Water
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Sanity Break #1
For SRK fans, here is an excellent ode to the ultimate lover boy—‘’—by Canadian rapper Tesher. How can you say no to lyrics like this: “I'm not Keith Urban, I won't put you in a song. Worldwide Don, yeah I feel like Shahrukh Khan.”
Headlines that matter
A MASS RESIGNATION IN LEBANON PM Hassan Diab the mass resignation of his government in a televised speech a week after the massive explosion that devastated the city—and in the face of widespread angry protests. Diab blamed the corruption of the political elite for the blast, and said he “cannot confront it or get rid of it.” But his resignation is unlikely to appease the protesters: > “Protesters seem to have lost their sense of fear, there’s a fearlessness in the air now. It’s clear from the reaction to Hassan > Diab’s resignation that they don’t just want a change in government, they mean this system, under which they believe it’s > completely impossible to achieve a government that will actually look after the needs of the Lebanese people.” Meanwhile, a virtual donor conference led by France and the UN has nearly $300 million in humanitarian assistance to be "directly delivered to the Lebanese population." GHAR WAPSI FOR SACHIN PILOT? The grand rebellion of not-so-young turks may be over. Pilot met both the Gandhi siblings—Rahul and Priyanka—in the first real signs of reconciliation. A likely reason: a number of his loyal MLAs were flirting with the idea of defecting to the other side. offers analysis. For more context: We this drama back in July. CLAMPDOWN IN HONG KONG INTENSIFIES Police have arrested the founder, Jimmy Lai, of Hong Kong’s leading pro-democracy newspaper. The charge: colluding with foreign forces—a crime that carried a punishment of life imprisonment. , people lined up to buy copies of the paper, and its stock soared as investors bought its shares in support. Also under the new national security law: Pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow who is charged with “inciting secession.” And if that weren’t enough, China its laws to make it illegal to fly its flag upside down. The new law will also apply to HK, of course. CHILDREN NOT IMMUNE TO COVID According to a new report, more than in the US tested positive for coronavirus in the last two weeks of July—a 40% increase! And 86 kids have died as a result of the disease since May. More importantly, many children with mild or moderate symptoms have the same as adults—i.e. symptoms that don’t go away even after recovery (We explained long haulers ). In related news: Disney World its hours due to tepid demand (duh!). That much-touted reopening has run into firm parental resistance: More than refuse to take their kids to the amusement park. In other ‘staying safe’ news: A new Duke University study finds that cloth face masks are pretty darn effective—but not as airtight as the N95 variety. Bandanas don’t do eff all to seal anything. And that ghastly neck fleece is actually worse than not wearing a mask. () In other mask-related news: A Chinese businessman in the US has bought the world’s —made of 18-karat white gold, encrusted with 3,600 white and black diamonds and includes N99 filters (hey, it’s functional!). It costs an eye-popping $1.5 million. See it below. Finally, the Popcorn Conundrum: has an excellent read on the future of movie theatres without that one absolutely necessary ingredient: overpriced greasy snacks. Will anyone want to shell out money to watch a movie if they can’t stuff their face? AN ALARMING PROPOSAL FOR DATA SHARING Amazon, Facebook and Google are up in arms over a plan to force all companies to share non-personalised data—the kind stripped of all individual user info. Who with? The government, yes, but also other companies—who would presumably be its rivals (?!). Business groups are making angry noises about how the rule is “tantamount to confiscation of investors’ assets and [undermines] intellectual property protections”—i.e. this is craaazy! () THE INDIAN PANDEMIC: A QUICK ROUNDUP * of the Tirumala Temple in Tirupati have tested positive—of whom 402 have recovered and three died. The trust employs 22,500 workers—including 300 priests—and controls 10 temples in the area. No, there are no plans to stop the daily darshans. * Former President is the latest to test positive: "On a visit to the hospital for a separate procedure, I have tested positive for COVID19 today. I request the people who came in contact with me in the last week, to please self isolate and get tested for COVID-19. #CitizenMukherjee". * According to a new survey, is satisfied with the Modi government’s effort to fight the pandemic. * India’s largest crocodile park near Chennai of money in four months due to the lack of visitors. The 8.5 acre (3.44 hectares) reserve is home to more than 2,000 crocodiles and alligators, as well as turtles, tortoises, lizards and snakes. * Indian doctors are reporting a in women experiencing irregular periods—primarily due to stress. * Over in Bangalore—which sell garments, footwear, stationary etc—have shut shop permanently. The reason: lack of business accompanied by rental debt. * is relocating his remake of ‘Forrest Gump’—‘Laal Singh Chaddha’—to Turkey. The shooting in Punjab was halted in March. And its release date has been pushed to Christmas 2021. BABA RAMDEV EYES IPL Brace yourself for the possibility of endless Patanjali ads come September. Everyone’s least favourite Ayurveda brand is planning to make a bid for the tournament’s title sponsor—a spot that’s empty now that Vivo has dropped out. A leading brand expert : > “Patanjali as a title sponsor for IPL will do more for Patanjali than for IPL. While the caste hierarchy among brands could play > out, Patanjali owning the title sponsorship would be contextual from a nationalist perspective, since there is an enormous > anti-China sentiment prevailing in the country.” Is there anything we like about that sentence? Umm, no.
Sanity Break #2
Ok, so of a teacher offering (dating-meets-chemistry) gyaan to his students—who he just blithely assumes are male—isn’t exactly ‘woke’. But it’s no less hilariously bad! Warning: it’s entirely in Hindi.
Smart & Curious
A LIST OF CURIOUS FACTS : Did you know there’s a romance novel starring the Chinese PM called ‘Xi's the One’ by Sandra Coupland? No, well, here’s a review. (h/t : Did you know that James Bond was inspired by a playboy Serbian double agent named Dusko Popov? : Did you know two companies—one a Canadian beer company and the other a leather shop—named themselves after the Maori word for ‘pubic hair’? : Did you know that Saaya—the famous black panther of Kabini—has a significant other called Cleopatra?
Feel Good Place
always helps brighten a rainy day. or two will do just as well! with ‘Caesar the No Drama Llama’—who has soothed many a raging soul at the Portland protests.
