https://apnews.com/article/technology-china-floods-93eeee467d8b0c7d148d90710d6ae068

BEIJING (AP) — Heavy flooding has hit central China following unusually heavy rains, with the subway system in the city of Zhengzhou inundated with rushing water.

Just to the north, the famed Shaolin Temple known for its Buddhist monks’ mastery of martial arts was badly hit.

There was no immediate word on possible deaths or injuries Tuesday, but videos posted online showed entire neighborhoods covered in water at least a meter (yard) deep and vehicles floating in the muddy mire.

More than 10,000 residents of Henan province were moved to shelters, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The province, home to the Shaolin Temple and many other cultural sites, is one of China’s most populous and a major base for both industry and agriculture.

China experiences regular flooding during the summer months, but the growth of cities and conversion of farmland into subdivisions has raised the costs of such events.

Space Bezos is back

"The trip really changed me"

https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/07/20/Security-forces-open-fire-during-Iran-water-protests-to-protect-protesters-Fars-

Security forces opened fire during protests over water shortages in Iran’s oil-rich southwest to “protect” protesters, a semi-official news agency said on Tuesday, after authorities blamed demonstrators for the death of a man during the ongoing protests.

The protests, which began on July 15, continued for a fifth consecutive night on Monday in multiple cities in the Khuzestan province, including the provincial capital Ahwaz, Susangerd (al-Khafajiya), and Ramhormoz, according to videos shared on social media.

Now you know the economy is in the tank

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/low-car-supply-forces-wealthy-to-buy-used-rolls-royces-bentleys-1.1630915

More than ever, members of the Rolls-Royce elite are choosing to purchase vehicles from the company’s “Provenance”—or highly selective pre-owned—program. “It used to be that one out of three vehicles we sold were Provenance,” said Gerry Spahn, head of communications for Rolls-Royce North America, during a luncheon held for reporters in order to showcase the new cars. “Now, it’s closer to 75%.”

Rolls-Royce is not the only high-end manufacturer experiencing significant upticks in the used-car business. At Bentley, sales rose 150% from January to May. Certified-pre-owned sales at McLaren are up only 2% year to date over 2020, a record-year, but the prices those supercars are selling for used are higher than when they were new. “McLaren 765LT coupes are trading on the pre-owned market up to 40% over MSRP, which is staggering,” says Nic Brown, acting president of McLaren North America.

Everybody wants a private Army nowadays

https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/563848-dozens-of-democrats-lay-out-vision-for-civilian-climate-corps

A group of more than 80 House and Senate Democrats on Tuesday laid out their vision for a climate jobs program called the Civilian Climate Corps that is expected to be part of a sweeping $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill filled with Democratic priorities.

A new letter from Democrats spanning the ideological spectrum pushed for the program to prioritize natural climate solutions, clean energy, climate resilience and addressing environmental justice.

The lawmakers also called for “ambitious” labor standards, including a living wage, and an award to help participants pay for college or pay back student loans. The letter did not specify how much money should be provided for that program.

They said half of the climate program’s investment should be directed into frontline communities disproportionately impacted by environmental issues, and that half of the Corps's members should be recruited from such communities.

They also want to create a “central entity” in the White House to coordinate and oversee the Corps’s work and have funding for enlisting Americans “at scale” including through AmeriCorps infrastructure.

https://www.newsmax.com/us/fauci-schools-covid-vaccines/2021/07/20/id/1029264/

Dr. Fauci: School COVID Shot Mandates Wouldn't Be a Surprise

It would not be a surprise if schools start to require that children get vaccinations for COVID-19, much as they do for diseases like smallpox or mumps if the pandemic does not fade away, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Tuesday.

"That might actually occur," Fauci, who is also President Joe Biden's chief adviser on COVID, told "CBS This Morning." "That is not the situation right now but I could imagine as we get further into this and we see where we're going with this outbreak, whether or not it's going to be essentially with us for a considerable period of time, I would not be surprised."

https://www.axios.com/white-house-pelosi-covid-positive-41dd58f1-f4a3-4111-a6ae-492810f79703.html

A White House official and a staff member for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) have both tested positive for COVID-19 after attending the same reception last week, officials confirmed to Axios.

Why it matters: While both individuals are vaccinated and mildly symptomatic, they illustrate how Americans inoculated against the coronavirus can still contract and, potentially, unknowingly transmit the virus — even at the highest levels of the nation's government.

The Pelosi staffer helped usher a delegation of Democratic Texas lawmakers around the Capitol last week. Six of those lawmakers, who flew to Washington to block the Texas legislature from changing the state's voting laws, have since tested positive.

Both that staffer and the White House official were at the same rooftop reception at the Hotel Eaton last Wednesday night.

The White House official has not had any recent direct contact with President Biden. The Pelosi aide did not have any contact with the speaker since that person's exposure.