What in the World?

I was tempted to skip my weekly What in the World? segment this week for a couple of reasons. First of all, I’m itching to start banging out some material about my recent adventures in Seattle and Alaska. And, secondly, because of said recent adventures, I haven’t had the chance to really get caught up with the news around the world (it’s surprisingly difficult to stay in-the-loop while on a ship out in the middle of the Pacific). But, I like this segment (and I hope you do too), and so I don’t want to just push it to the back burner. Plus, this has forced me to read up on everything I’ve missed over the past week and a half.

So here’s this week’s edition of What in the World:

The U.S.

In what’s become an increasingly depressing story, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico continues to drag on. BP has been successful in siphoning up about 1 million gallons of crude per day thanks to a cap that they’ve fit over the gusher. However, worst-case estimates say that the leak could be reaching 2.5 million gallons a day. To compound matters more, hurricane season has started, and the first named storm of the year, Alex, could pose some difficulties to the affected area. While Alex is not expected to hit the spill area, outer winds and rain could cause large sea swells, which will likely thwart cleanup efforts. BP is certainly shelling out a ton for the cleanup, and is also planning to set aside $20 billion to compensate those affected by the spill – from fishermen to hoteliers who are hurting badly right now along the Gulf coast.

In Kentucky over the weekend, a hiker survived the state’s first recorded bear attack. He was able to escape with his life after another hiker threw a daypack at the attacking black bear, distracting it. The man received 50-60 stitches and was released from the hospital on Monday.

Robert Byrd, the United States’ longest-serving senator and great defender of the Constitution, died Monday at the age of 92. He had been a senator for 51 years and held the record for most legislative votes cast.

Asia

Bad flooding in southwestern China has trapped at least 107 people under a massive landslide. The outlook doesn’t look good, and the victims are being considered lost.

This one’s kind of a big deal in the economic world: China and Taiwan are meeting today to sign a broad trade deal aimed at drawing their economies closer together. The deal will end tariffs on hundreds of products, and give Taiwanese firms access to 11 service sectors on the mainland, including banking, accounting, insurance and hospitals. Ever since civil war divided mainland China from the tiny island of Taiwan half a century ago, relations between the two entities have been strained. Let’s hope this is a sign that everyone is going to play nice now. Or, at least, nicer.

Mexico

On Monday, gunmen executed the front-runner in a race for governor in the border state of Tamaulipas. Mexico’s president is blaming cartels for the assassination, saying that this latest crime proves how much of a threat organized crime really is. Recent scandals, threats and attacks involving politicians have raised fears that Mexico’s powerful drug cartels are buying off candidates they support and intimidating (or, so it would now seem, doing away with) those they oppose.

Canada

The G-20 and G-8 summits were held in Toronto over the weekend (with a short break so that Britain’s PM and Germany’s Chancellor could watch their teams face off in the World Cup, of course). Despite a $900 million security budget, an angry mob of black-clad protestors swarmed the city, wreaking havoc and generally causing a big kerfuffle that Toronto would rather not dwell upon. By Monday, more than 900 people had been arrested in connection with the riots — the largest mass arrests Canada has ever seen. Better luck next time, eh?

World Cup News

Who’s following the World Cup in South Africa? Everyone and their grandmother, it seems like. Okay, so that’s an exaggeration; most people I know don’t even follow soccer (erm… football). But I do still know a hefty handful of folks who are following the matches.

Both teams I was supporting are now out of the running — the U.S. and New Zealand. The U.S. made a good showing, but was ousted by Ghana over the weekend. New Zealand didn’t fare as well, failing to make it to the Round of 16. But, they didn’t lose any of their matches, which I think is a definite victory for a country who hasn’t qualified for the World Cup since the very first tournament was played. Well done, All Whites!

It looks like Brazil is really ready to dominate. And the Cup is completely up for grabs now — last year’s top team, Italy, is already out of the race.

Due to a few bad calls (who saw England totally get shafted the other day?), FIFA is being urged to allow video replay at matches. A host of other sports already utilize the instant replay button, so why not soccer? It’s just as fast-paced as other sports that embrace the technology.

In a sad turn of events, a man in Texas is accused of beating his 2-year-old stepdaughter to death after she wouldn’t stop crying while he was trying to watch the U.S./Ghana matchup on Saturday. He should have just given her a vuvuzela horn. Then she would have just added to the ambient background noise, and he could have avoided prison.

Just For Fun

New Jersey’s Asbury Park is keeping abreast of the latest vacationing trends, and is considering letting women go topless on a city beach. (Sorry, couldn’t resist the pun there.) The state has no laws banning topless bathing. Should be an interesting debate, seeing as the beach in question is quite public, not secluded like many topless beaches tend to be. I say go for it, New Jersey. Let it all hang out.

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Also today, I’d like to point out another guest post that I contributed to Travel With a Mate. This one is all about must-do activities for thrill-seekers in New Zealand. Bungy jumping, skydiving, zorbing, sand surfing, parasailing — you name it, and NZ has it.   Check it out here.

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