Good Tuesday morning. As we read through today’s newsletter, we couldn’t help but notice just how much sad news there is. Let’s hope the rest of the week is a little brighter. Here’s what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door.
1. New York-New Jersey bombings
So many questions about Ahmad Khan Rahami, the suspect in the bombings in New York and New Jersey. Was he self-radicalized or trained? Did he work alone or are there others? What did he do during all those trips to Afghanistan and Pakistan? At this point, he’s not talking. Rahami was captured after he was found sleeping in the doorway of a bar. There are questions for us too. How will we respond after this attack? It’s sad to say, but there’s a blueprint. Here’s how the next couple of days will probably go.
2. Minnesota stabbings
Those who knew him described Dahir Adan as an “exceptional student” who went to a mall in St. Cloud to buy the latest iPhone. The rest of us know him as the man who stabbed 10 people there. Authorities will try to reconcile those two radically different portraits as the investigation into the stabbings continue. Let’s not forget about the hero in all of this: part-time officer Jason Falconer, who shot and killed Adan during the attack.
3. Tulsa shooting
A black man is killed by police. Video of the incident is released. Protesters chant “hands up, don’t shoot.” State and federal authorities investigate. That all-too-familiar script is playing out in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where 40-year-old Terence Crutcher was fatally shot after his car broke down. Video of the incident shows he had his hands up; police admit he was unarmed.
4. Syria civil war
The whole point of the ceasefire was to get life-saving aid to a quarter of a million people in Aleppo. But even that seems impossible in this wretched war. An aid convoy was attacked in a rebel-held area outside the city, destroying 18 of the 31 trucks and killing at least 20. A warehouse was also hit too. And of course no one’s taken responsibility.
5. Bridgegate
Did New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie know about “Bridgegate” while it was going on? Feds say he did and that they’ll prove it during the trial of two Christie confidantes. One of the confidantes will testify he told Christie the lane closures were causing traffic problems in Fort Lee, whose mayor was a Christie rival. This is important because Christie has long denied any involvement. Here’s a very helpful explainer from Max Blau.
BREAKFAST BROWSE
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
Pleas for Pizza
Happy days may be ahead for Pizza, the world’s saddest polar bear, who is stuck in an aquarium in China. He may move to a British wildlife park.
Tidal terminators
Lionfish are super predators in Atlantic waters, taking out other species and ruining coral reefs. To get them under control, here come the killer robots.
Accio real estate
You don’t need a magic spell, just cold hard cash to buy Harry Potter’s house. The real-life house where the fictional wizard grew up is on sale for $620,000.
A dog’s life
People lined up for the latest iPhone this month, but not Coco the dog. His owner, the son of a billionaire, bought Coco eight iPhone 7s!
Sad suit
Funnyman Jim Carrey’s being sued over his girlfriend’s drug overdose death. Carrey said her death was tragic but ultimately “beyond anyone’s control.”
WHAT’S FOR LUNCH
Here’s what’s coming up later
The forgotten tribe: Starting today, we’ll explore why the white working class feels helpless. The series is based on a national survey we conducted with the Kaiser Family Foundation. The results and the stories are fascinating: CNN.com/WhiteWorkingClassAndWorried
Number of the day
858
The number of people improperly granted citizenship because of a fingerprint record screw-up. They were supposed to be deported!
AND FINALLY …
Trick pong
Japanese ping pong players perform some mind-blowing trick shots, because you gotta do something to make ping pong interesting [Ping pong is very interesting – ed]