Sometimes we forget that loop road doesn’t travel the entire length of the earth. We remember that there is society beyond Grad, and North isn’t the highest point in the universe. There’s a whole world out there! And here’s what happened in it…this week.
Emmys
The Emmys was funny, entertaining and, most notably, historic across the board. Former Saturday Night Live actor and The Lonely Island lead writer/singer Andy Samberg did an amazing job as host. His opening film hilariously captured the frantic binge-watching culture created by streaming platforms like Netflix and HBO Go (you can check it out here), and he was able to keep his performance consistently funny throughout the entire show. David Benioff and Dan Weiss’ Game of Thrones broke an Emmy record for amount of awards taken home by its writers, producers and actors in one night, totaling twelve. This broke the previous record holder, The West Wing, by three awards. Viola Davis entered the annals of television history, becoming the first black Woman to take home the coveted “Best Lead Actress” award for her role in How to Get Away with Murder. Her acceptance speech was pretty incredible.
Republican Debate
On September 16th all of America stopped what they were doing, sat back, grabbed some popcorn, and watched the right-wing carnage ensue between 11 of the Republican Party’s top candidates. High hopes were cast for Donald Trump and his usual assertive, conflict-heavy bravado, but the highly agreed upon winner of the debate was Carly Fiorina. Fiorina mustered momentum before the debate by responding to Trump’s comments about her face (yeah, seriously), with her “Faces “ video. She also earned major applause during the debate by confronting Trump about his views on women, and bashing Planned Parenthood. Marco Rubio turned inward, instead of attacking the other candidates, by talking about his experience in the Senate. Jeb Bush’s strongest moments were a result of him defending George Bush’s policies after 9/11, and asking Trump to apologize to his Mexican-American wife, who Trump shamelessly tried to pull into the ensuing immigration debate. Finally there was Chris Christie, who tried to use the back-and-forth between Trump and Fiorina to call them childish and him adult-like. It was an entertaining night of politicians subtly, and not so subtly, insulting each other in a manner that almost made you forget that these are real life people- and they all want to be President.
Pope Francis
On September 22nd, Pope Francis touched down in the U.S. for a historic visit. President Obama, the First Lady, and their daughters, as well as Vice President Biden and his family, greeted the Pope. On Thursday, the 24th, Pope Francis delivered a speech to Congress on immigration tolerance. He urged that immigrants be thought as people who have legitimate reasons for their actions. The Pontiff also used the speech as an opportunity to denounce the use of the death penalty, call for a more just world economy, and promote the protection of ethnic and religious minorities. He urged the world not to fear emigrants and foreigners, acknowledging that most of us were once foreigners; he also turned the topic into a personal anecdote, referring to his immigrant parentage. His six-day trip to the U.S. will conclude this Sunday.
Stampede at Hajj
Unfortunately this week ended in mass tragedy. On Thursday during the annual Hajj, which is the largest modern pilgrimage as Muslims travel to Mecca, a stampede broke out killing over 700 people and injuring about 900 people. The stampede occurred during the ritual known as “stoning the devil.” Even more shocking, this was only the second deadliest stampede to happen during the Hajj. In 1990 a similar incident killed 1,426 people. Around 4,000 workers and 220 emergency vehicles were dispatched to take the injured to hospitals in the area. The stampede has forced the Saudi Arabian government to confront many of its logistical problems that have long plagued the millions of visitors who travel to Mecca for the Hajj. Some officials seemed to blame those involved in the pilgrimage, stating that it was the result of people not following the rules. However, a crane collapse two weeks prior that killed 100 visitors, as well as numerous hotel fires have caused the an identity crisis of the monarchy, which considers itself to be the global protector of Orthodox Islam.