Every month, I give a status update on the books I’ve read and the progress I’ve made on personal goals. That said, I rarely make reference to what’s happening in the world. I like that the Internet is written in ink, and that to a degree, what’s published will be alive forever. It makes blogs and social media profiles like mini time capsules. I think that’s kind of special! For today’s post, I wanted to make a mini time capsule on what the world is like right now.
- The United States is in its eighth month (give or take) of quarantine, as a preventative measure against the coronavirus, AKA COVID-19. Other countries have lifted some restrictions due to decreases in cases, but upticks in cases as a result have put them back in quarantine. Currently, a vaccine is in the testing phases with an alleged 90% effectiveness rate, and is slated to be ready by fall of next year. Imagine that we have the same restrictions we have now until this time next year. It’s unimaginable.
- The United States has mostly chosen a new president! Projections indicate that Joe Biden will be our 46th president, with his vice president, Kamala Harris, becoming the first woman of color to hold the title (as well as the first woman, and first person of color to have the role). However, there are some margins of error to consider: due to the desire to not be in contained spaces (COVID-19 is mostly airborne and can be passed very easily in large groups), more people voted early through the post this year, rather than in person on election day in a voter booth. As a result, several states are in the process of recounts. Biden had a rather large lead over current President Trump, but “Parks and Recreation” has made it clear that recounts can change the game. There’s rumors that if President Trump did lose this election, he might run again in 2024. I think his supporters would love that, but I’m sure the President is ready to sit back, enjoy his wife, children and grandchildren, and the glory of retirement… from his massive resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Or his penthouse apartment in New York City. Wouldn’t you?
- Outside of the United States, Poland is experiencing its own uprising: a court decision was passed earlier in October that would outlaw almost all instances of abortion. Since that decision, men and women (and the nonbinary) have taken to the streets in protest. The police have gotten involved, and tensions are high, but it appears a final ruling has been delayed, due to the government’s surprise at how poorly this went over their constituents. The fight continues!
- In lighter news, Taylor Swift is allegedly recording again. After creating folklore in quarantine, Swift may very well be in the studio as I type. Last year, Swift’s masters were purchased by Scooter Braun, effectively symbolizing that she no longer owned her first six studio albums. She publicly spoke out against the purchase, claiming that she attempted to buy the masters on her own multiple times, only to be shot down by Scott Borchetta of Big Machine Records, her first label. The terms and conditions of the purchase stated that Taylor could rerecord those albums in November of 2020. She made it very clear that she would. It wouldn’t surprise me if we had all five albums by January 13, 2021 (the 13th month of 2020), or even her birthday this year (mid-December).
- The top social media streaming app right now is TikTok. I’ve mentioned it a few times now. It started out as Music.ly when Vine was all the rage several years ago. Since then, it has exploded, particularly as quarantine has put people in their homes with nothing to do but scroll! Rumors are rumbling that the most popular “TikTokers” (such as the likes of Addison Rae, who has over 49 million subscribers on that app alone) are being groomed for bigger popularity, even being paired with other minor or major celebrities for PR to further their careers. An even bigger rumor is that Addison Rae and her family are being prepped to become their own Kardashian-esque dynasty. The E! series about the Kardashian family (“Keeping Up with the Kardashians”) is coming to an end after more than ten years of their lives, and Addison and Kourtney have been seen hanging out regularly, even in quarantine! Who can say what will happen as the Kardashian era ends?
On this day in November, 2020, these are the top stories in politics, world news, and pop culture. Maybe this time next year, we’ll all be in line for COVID vaccines, listening to Taylor’s new version of 1989. Until then, I’m gonna go watch some TikToks before getting ready for bed!