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Hump day recommendations, April 23, 2025

Listen: This Guy Sucked. Are you, like me, nearly as big a history buff as you are a hater? Then this new podcast from Dr. Claire Aubin will be right up your alley. Every week, she and a fellow historian break down the myths and false memories surrounding some of the world’s most unfairly celebrated figures, from Voltaire (the 18th century’s Joe Rogan), to Charlemagne (Aachen’s most genocidal maniac), to Jerry Lee Lewis (Rock n’ Roll’s drunkest sex pest). You’ll laugh, learn, and hopefully come away a little less intimidated by the so-called “Great Men” of history. – Matt

Hear: the evolution of what you’re saying.If you’ve ever wondered how the Proto-Indo-European root word “h1ésh2rnom” evolved over thousands years to become the English word “iron”, or which popular profanity came from the root “pugnéh2nam”, you’ve gotta listen to self-taught linguist @arum_natzorkhang do his 10-second recitations of the words as they evolved from 5000 BCE to today. He also sings Greek tragedies in the original and has thoughts on the languages of Ancient Egypt as well. It’s not for everyone, but if it’s for you, you will NOT be disappointed – and that’s a h1ésh2rnom-clad guarantee. – Alex K.

Watch: “The Mehta Boys.” Directed by Boman Irani, who also stars in the film, this drama follows the relationship between a father and son, two hotheads who are barely on speaking terms. After the passing of his mother, Amay (the son) is stuck with his father after the latter’s flight gets delayed. The duo come face to face with their differences and are left with no choice but to navigate through them. I loved the acting and writing, and how the film shows the reality of a broken middle-class family in India. – Suhani

The letters "DDPF" are seen tagged on a wall of the Aix-Luynes Penitentiary Center in Aix-en-Provence, France, on April 15, 2025.

REUTERS/Manon Cruz

HARD NUMBERS: Terror hits French prisons, UK court defines "woman", Donald dulls diamonds, Wall Street mints money from chaos, India charges Gandhis with money laundering, Protests erupt in Tunisia


6: At least six French prisons have faced attacks from gunmen and arsonists this week in what authorities say were acts of terrorism. No one has claimed responsibility for the incidents, although several featured graffiti of the letters “DDPF,” an acronym for “French Prisoners’ Rights.” The attacks come as the government tries to stamp out rising drug violence – cocaine imports to Europe are blowing through records.

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The Canadian flag flies on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

REUTERS/Blair Gable

Who’s meddling in Canada’s election?

Canada’s foreign interference watchdog is warning that China, India, and Russia plan on meddling in the country’s federal election. The contest, which launched last weekend, has already been marked by a handful of stories about past covert foreign interventions and threats of new ones.

This week, the Globe and Mailreported allegations that India interfered in 2022 to help get Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre elected, though he was not aware of the efforts. They also broke news that former Liberal Party leadership candidate and member of Parliament Chandra Arya was banned from running for leader and reelection because of alleged interference tied, once again, to India.

Now, Canada’s election interference monitoring group is warning that China, India, and Russia will try to interfere in the current election.

Poilievre also accused Liberal leader Mark Carney of being cozy with Beijing due to a $276 million loan Brookfield Asset Management secured from the Bank of China when Carney was Chair of Brookfield’s board. Carney rejected those accusations and, on Wednesday, said that Canada should not pursue greater economic ties with China but should prioritize other Asian nations and Europe.

Other Canadian critics have complained that the US is interfering, citing Donald Trump consigliere Elon Musk’s public statements about the country. But officials say this doesn’t meet the bar for foreign interference. Neither, apparently, do the actions of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith,who recently admitted to Breitbartthat she pressed Trump administration officials to delay tariffs to help elect the Conservatives over the Liberals, since Poilievre would be “the best person” for the White House to deal with given that he would be “very much in sync with the new direction in America.”

Congolese civilians who fled from Bukavu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, following clashes between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, carry their belongings as they gather at the Rusizi border crossing point to return home, in Rusizi district, Rwanda, on Feb. 17, 2025.

REUTERS/Stringer

Hard Numbers: Rebels advance in DRC, Yuge trade corridor, Tragic flooding strikes US, UN seeks billions for Sudan, Taliban visits Japan, Plane crashes in Toronto

350,000: M23 rebels are meeting little resistance in their advance on Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, further challenging Kinshasa’s rule. This move comes after the Rwandan-backed rebels seized control of Goma late last month and just two days after the UN warned that unrest in the country has displaced 350,000 people.

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President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands as they attend a joint press conference at the White House in Washington, DC, on Feb. 13, 2025.

REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Trump imposes tariffs, Modi brings gifts

As promised, US President Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on all American trading partners Thursday afternoon. Each country will be assessed individually, factoring in value-added taxes, foreign tariff rates, industry subsidies, regulations, and currency undervaluation to determine customized duty rates. Trump claimed, “It’s gonna make our country a fortune.”

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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a press conference following a bilateral meeting at Admiralty House in Sydney, Wednesday, May 24, 2023.

(AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

India appeases Trump, but will it avoid trade war?

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi says his country will crack down on illegal migration to the United States. The announcement, which came before Modi’s meeting next week with US President Donald Trump in Washington, is part of an effort to head off a possible trade war.

What moves is Modi making? Delhi has made a series of concessions in the past few weeks. On Saturday, itrevised its tariff system, slashing levies on a broad range of imported US goods, from textiles to motorcycles, including Harley Davidsons, whichTrump had repeatedly raised. Modi has also agreed to accept 18,000 Indian nationals currently on the US deportation list and to keep the US dollar as India’s trading currency. The US had a$45.7 billion trade deficit in goods and services with India in 2022.

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Washington, DC, USA; President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, outgoing United States President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden participate in the departure ceremony for the Bidens on the East Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, DC after the swearing-in of Donald Trump as President on January 20, 2025.

Chris Kleponis-Pool via Imagn Images

Hard Numbers: Biden’s preemptive pardons, Trumpcoin, Billionaires blow up, India convicts hospital rapist

5: With just minutes left in his term, President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons to five members of his family, explaining that he feared people associated with him could be prosecuted under the Trump administration. Hours earlier, he pardoned Gen. Mark Milley and Dr. Anthony Fauci, as well as the members and staff of the Congressional committee investigating the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and police officers who testified before that committee. Biden also commuted the sentence of Leonard Peltier, an Indigenous activist who was controversially convicted of killing two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1975.

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Re-elected Croatian President Zoran Milanovic with wife Sanja Music Milanovic celebrate after winning Croatia's presidential election ON January 12, 2025 in Zagreb, Croatia.

Photo: Igor Kralj/PIXSELL/Sipa USA

Hard Numbers: Croatia’s populist prez, Sweden sails forth, Mayotte hunkers down again, Hindus commence world’s largest religious ceremony

74: Populist Croatian President Zoran Milanovic won an impressive landslide reelection on Sunday, taking 74% of the vote. His office is largely ceremonial, but the overwhelming margin of victory should send a message to Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic – in power since 2016 – about the changing mood of the country.

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