From Brexit to Gators: Your Weekly Briefing

This week was full of interesting news stories, ranging from political events to everyday reports.  Find out which European politician is making their voice loud and clear, what Russian President Vladimir Putin had to say about the U.S. election, what findings came from a recent health survey, what happened at Disneyland Paris, and what unexpected visitor made headlines in a Florida furniture store.

The United Kingdom and the European Union: A bitter divorce

In the early hours of the morning on Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May filed formal Brexit divorce papers to the British Parliament.  This is Prime Minister May's first large step in withdrawing the United Kingdom from the European Union, before the March 2019 deadline.  Brexit critics, as well as many other European leaders, are worried that the UK divorcing the EU will cause years of trade uncertainty.  Currently, Britain has the world's fifth largest economy with a total of $2.6 trillion, forcing spectators to worry at whether the country will be able to maintained sustained periods of economic growth following the move.  According to inside sources, in regards to the filed paperwork, the President of the European Council Donald Tusk responded, "U-K thanks byeeeeeee!"

Photo Drawn From: EveningStandard

The Election Hacking Controversy: Putin fires back

In a press conference this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin was asked whether Russia interfered with the United States election.  President Putin vehemently refuted these senseless claims, calling such accusations, "fictional, illusory, provocations, and lies" (CNN).  Putin officials and spokesmen also called such stories, "witch hunts," and simply antagonistic rhetoric against Russia as a nation.  Well, I guess Russia didn't hack the election.  There's your answer America.

Photo Drawn From: The Guardian

New Study Released on Alcoholic Consumption: Turn up to live longer?
A recent study was just released regarding alcohol consumption and its effects on the average human being.  According to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, drinking alcoholic beverages in daily moderation can help individuals live to 100 years of age.  Wayyyyy ahead of you Dr. Gupta.

Photo Drawn From: Washington

Disneyland Paris Controversy: Counterfeit tickets
A British woman, identified as 28-year old Ellie Catchesides, is currently under arrest for selling fake tickets to Disneyland Paris.  According to reports, Catchesides, a mother of three, was reportedly selling up to 15 tickets to Disneyland Paris via her Facebook account.  Through the sale of these tickets, Catchesides made approximately 1,550 pounds or $1,880.  When the customers arrived to Disneyland, they were denied access on the account of counterfeit tickets.  It was also reported that when the families were informed the tickets were fake, they played it off well, saying the tickets weren't fake but rather alternative tickets.

Photo Drawn From: CNN Money

Florida Furniture Store Invaded: Gator literally slashes prices
On Thursday evening, a furniture store in Florida received an unlikely visitor.  At the American Freight Furniture Store in Holiday, Florida, it was reported that a 6-10 foot alligator found its way into the store.  With the help an employee, the store was able to call the Pasco County Sherriff's Office, in which deputies directed the alligator out of the store, through the parking lot, and back into the local pond.  Although, according to reports the alligator still received a higher Florida approval rating than Jeb Bush.

Photo Drawn From: Wired

From Missing Handshakes to Missing Jerseys: Your Weekly Briefing

This week was very dense with news coming out of the entertainment industry, with your average and expected pinch of spice from Washington D.C.  Find out which country was given the cold shoulder by President Trump, where on Earth they found Tom Brady's $500,000 jersey, what common game show made headlines, and which beverage chain has decided to remove its most beloved drink.

Merkel Visits The White House: Another day another mishap
On Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited the White House to meet with President Donald Trump for the first time.  Most media outlets were expecting the encounter to come off as awkward, since Trump was very critical of Germany during the campaign and because of the so-called "crush," Merkel had on Former President Obama.  According to reports, the two spoke about the current state of NATO and stimulating the German economy.  Naturally, eyebrows were raised when German Chancellor Merkel asked for a handshake to no avail from President Trump.  Well, we might as well cross them off the list.

Brady's Jersey: Mess with the GOAT and you'll get the horns
On Monday evening, Tom Brady's MVP winning Super Bowl LI jersey, as well as his Super Bowl XLIX jersey, were found and acquired in Mexico, of all places.  With the cooperation of Mexican authorities and the United States FBI, officials were able to track down the missing jersey.  The man who stole Brady's jersey is identified as Martin Mauricio Ortega, a former writer for the Mexican newspaper, Diario La Prensa.  According to video surveillance, Mr. Ortega was granted access to the field and locker room with a media pass.  Unfortunately, it has been speculated that the media team was allowed into the locker room too early, and Mr. Ortega was able to abuse his power, get into Mr. Brady's equipment bag, swipe the jersey, and escape the stadium before anyone was aware of the theft.  Although, I think we know what triggered the Mexican reporter...

Photo Drawn From: Twitter

Wheel of Mis-fortune: The worst guess ever?
Wheel of Fortune is making headlines for a hilariously incorrect guess by one of their recent contestants.  Game show host Pat Sajak tried desperately to keep a straight face when a contestant named Kevin was one letter away from correctly guessing the "Play Title," in which he clearly has never heard of, by guessing the letter "K."

Photo Drawn From: Flipboard

While Kevin was clearly embarrassed for looking so foolish on national television, it's still not as bad as Donald Trump's Wheel of Fortune blunder.

Photo Drawn From: Pinterest

Menu Change: America still runs on Dunkin?
Dunkin Donuts recently announced that they plan on discontinuing their iconic "Coolata" before the beginning of the summer.  Many Dunkin Donuts lovers are disappointed with the newest menu change considering Coolata beverages were one of the largest sources of summer time revenue for the coffee chain.  When asked about the change, Dunkin Donuts Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing Chris Fuqua stated, "Our coffee Coolata isn't good enough" (Fox News).  Rumor has it, they're also changing their logo and colors too!

Photo Drawn From: Pinterest

From Korean Madness to March Madness: Your Weekly Briefing

This week was very dense in international news rather than just domestic, government media coverage.  Find out which country was forced to impeach a historic President, why March Madness has turned into March Sadness, how bad Nor'easter Stella turned out, and why Janet Yellen feels confident in the world economy.

South Korea: Are troubling Presidents contagious?
Last Friday, the Korean Constitutional Court voted unanimously to impeach their first female President Park Geun-hye.  The vote came after months of protesting, which initially began in October 2016, started by a small South Korean University.  Although, government officials were finally pushed overboard after tens of thousands of South Korean protestors occupied downtown Seoul holding candles and flags, calling for her impeachment, following a major political scandal in her administration.  Copy cats.

Photo Drawn From: ABC News

March Madness: The science of bracketology
On Sunday night, the NCAAM Selection Committee released the 2017 March Madness Bracket sending basketball fans into a frenzy.  Following Super Bowl LI, sports fans have suffered for a month, awaiting another major sporting event.  To no one's surprise, Gonzaga, Villanova, Kansas, and North Carolina all snatched #1 seeds, while Syracuse and Pitt were snubbed from the tournament altogether.  Unfortunately, many Americans are upset because President Trump is not continuing President Obama's tradition of filling out a bracket on live television.  On the upside, there are rumors Kellyanne Conway will be filling out an alternative brack-et.

Photo Drawn From: CNN

Nor'easter Stella: Let the spring break jokes begin
Into the early hours of the morning on Tuesday, Nor'easter Stella hit fifteen states with several inches of snow.  This blizzard came as a shock to most East Coast families, not expecting a major snow storm in the middle of March.  Naturally, President Trump met with Washington D.C. Mayor Bowser and Metro General Manager Paul Widefeld about incoming storm preparations.  Not only did eight states proclaim a state of emergency, but schools up and down the coast canceled schools as early as Monday evening.  While most states received over six inches of snow, the city of Damascus, Pennsylvania received a whopping 30 inches.  Surprisingly, even Penn State University cancelled classes, despite being one of the most reluctant universities to delay classes due to inclement weather.  I think we know who to thank.

Photo Drawn From: Onward State

Rate Hikes: Janet Yellen announces coming changes
Following the DOW hitting 20,000 for the first time ever, a couple weeks ago, Fed Chair Janet Yellen finally announced that Americans should expect rate hikes in the coming weeks.  Since the New York Stock Exchange is performing so well, more companies have the disposable income to invest in expenditures.  With consumer confidence also rising, companies feel comfortable with taking out loans to invest in future assets.  In turn, there needs to be money for companies to borrow, which is why Janet Yellen is increasing rates.  Due to higher return on investments, the average American would make more profit for depositing their money into the bank.  Although, according to inside sources, as soon as New Jersey Governor Chris Christie heard the word hike, he said, "I'm out."

Photo Drawn From: Daily Mail

From The Oscars to The Oscars: Your Weekly Briefing

While a lot transpired this week in the news, the funniest news came out of the Oscars.  While most viewers were shocked by the conclusion of the award show, there were plenty of lesser known screw-ups that most people didn't hear about.  Find out who lost best picture, who had clarify they aren't dead, and who exactly is Gary from the Oscars...?

The Oscars: And the Oscar for Best Picture goes too...
On Sunday night, the 89th Oscars took placed in the Dolby Theatre, in Hollywood, Los Angeles, honoring the best pictures from 2016.  Millions of people across the world tuned in to see who would win leading actor, leading actress, and best picture.  Unfortunately, when it was time to announce Best Picture, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the card for "Actress in a Leading Role," which had already been awarded to Emma Stone.  When the time came to announce the winner, Warren looked at the card in confusion and handed it to Faye, who panicked and read out La La Land.  Things got worse when this mistake wasn't addressed until the middle of La La Land's acceptance speech, forcing Oscar officials to announce that the true winner was Moonlight.  This drew loud gasps and screams from Hollywood elites who couldn't believe what had just transpired to the cast of La La Land.

Photo Drawn From: LA Times

Emotions were all over the place considering the cast of La La Land was forced to hand over their Oscar to the cast of Moonlight, presenter Warren Beatty was handed the wrong envelope, and host Jimmy Kimmel was that close to successfully hosting the Oscars.  And then there was this.

Photo Drawn From: Twitter

In Memoriam: Or not...
During the middle of the show, singer and song writer Sara Bareilles came out and performed a beautiful ballad in memoriam of those in Hollywood that lost their lives this past year.  The picture and video montage was a tribute to the most beloved actors, actresses, directors, producers, and many more including Carrie Fisher, Bill Paxton, and George Michael.  Unfortunately, it turns out there was a mishap on one of the obituary slides.  In one of the slides, the academy was honoring Costume Designer Janet Patterson but accidentally put a picture of the alive and well Australian film producer Jan Chapman.

Photo Drawn From: New York Times

This drew stark criticism on social media from several individuals trying to point out the mistake and clarify that Jan Chapman is not dead.  You know it's a bad mistake when even President Donald Trump's son is tweeting about it.

Photo Drawn From: Twitter

Hollywood Tourists Treated to a Surprise: Hollywood elites treated to an even bigger surprise...
First there was Alex from Target and now there is Gary from the Oscars.  Nearing the end of the Oscars, host Jimmy Kimmel announced that they were surprising a group of tourists by bringing them into the Dolby Theatre during the show.  Out of the group, "Gary from Chicago" stole the show with his adorable reactions and constant photo taking.  At one point, he even asked Mahershala Ali to take a picture of himself with Mahershala's Oscar statue, and was "married" to his fiancé by Denzel Washington.

Photo Drawn From: Daily Mail

Little did anyone know, Gary from Chicago, also known as Gary Alan Coe, was released from jail just three days ago, after serving 20 years in prison for multiple offenses including attempted rape.  Well...at least the Oscars tried to put on a good show...