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Sea of green, indeed!

Trump's approval on economy falls in AP-NORC poll, showing new warning signs for president | The Associated Press President Donald Trump’s approval rating on the economy has slumped over the past month as the Iran war drives prices higher, according to a new AP-NORC

www.ap.org/news-highlig...

I wish I could vibe like this! #chilling

a penguin wearing a sleep mask and holding a pillow says " good night " ALT: a penguin wearing a sleep mask and holding a pillow says " good night "

Do you ever have one of those days where you are so busy but when you step back and look at what you accomplished it was really not much at all? 😒🐥

Earth Day - Wikipedia

I remember the first time I celebrated Earth Day in 1989 in a high school class: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Day

They Chose Careers in the Trades and Still Wound Up With Debt As community colleges and union apprenticeships fill up, more students are turning to pricier training options for blue-collar careers.

Here's an important read for today: policymakers are encouraging students to learn trades that are costly to teach, but community colleges and apprenticeships don't have the capacity to meet demand. This sends students to the more expensive for-profit sector, where they take on debt.

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Which Asian Countries Are Most at Risk From the Iran Energy Shock? Across Asia, factories are closing, flagship airlines are cutting routes, and people are lining up for hours to buy cooking gas, all because of the war in Iran.

For almost two months, the conflict in the Middle East has effectively halted shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, all but cutting off a fifth of the world’s supply of oil and LNG.

Few regions have been impacted as much as the Asia-Pacific.

Wordle 1,767 3/6*

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Play Shuffalo: Saturday, April 18, 2026 Can you make a longer word with each new letter?

Shuffalo, 3m 18s

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www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-...

Opinion | Cuba needs real regime change, not a Trump-friendly despot The president says Havana may be "next" after Iran. What does that mean?

Trump issued an executive order claiming that Cuba “constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat” to the United States. In truth, William LeoGrande, a Cuba expert at American University, told me, “The evidence that Cuba is a national security threat is vanishingly thin.” wapo.st/4vLxQfs

Wordle 1,766 4/6*

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Hegemonic suicide

North Korea launches ballistic missiles toward sea South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff says the launches happened on Sunday morning from the North's eastern Sinpo area.

#DPRK shenanigans!

www.npr.org/2026/04/18/n...

Ivermectin claims are spreading "like herpes at a kissing booth" What the drug can and can't do.

"Claims that ivermectin is a cure-all are circulating like herpes at a kissing booth amongst Americans who never made it past high school biology -thanks to miraculous proclamations by celebrities, pundits, and most disturbingly… state legislators."

Billionaire Connie Ballmer Wants to Help Cement NPR’s Future The philanthropist, a longtime listener, donated $80 million to the media organization after the Trump administration cut funding.

www.wsj.com/business/med...

Zimbabwe’s bizarre economic boom A gold rush is combined with a power grab

Zimbabwe, often considered an economic basket-case because of its history of farm seizures and hyperinflation, is enjoying an idiosyncratic boom. Register for free to find out why

Students are speeding through their online degrees in weeks, alarming educators Some online colleges allow students to take unlimited courses on their own time, leading to quick degrees and worries about devaluing credentials.

www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...

Allies fear a rushed US–Iran framework deal could backfire, leaving technical deadlock European allies fear an inexperienced U.S. negotiating team is pushing for a swift, headline‑grabbing framework deal with Iran that could entrench rather than resolve deeper problems.

Allies fear a rushed US–Iran framework deal could backfire, leaving technical deadlock reut.rs/4clmV4q

TINA, TIARA, and TACO…who can keep up? 🐥

IMF, World Bank meetings show limits in mitigating shocks, reliance on US for solutions Global finance leaders, whipsawed by Middle East war ​news, came to grips this past week with their inability to mitigate the economic damage from increasingly frequent geopolitical shocks, and a realization that counting on U.S. leadership to resolve crises is no longer ‌the guarantee it had long been.

IMF, World Bank meetings show limits in mitigating shocks, reliance on US for solutions reut.rs/4tmNxrR

Pancreatic cancer mRNA vaccine shows lasting results in an early trial Scientists caution that more research is needed, but nearly all of the patients who responded to the personalized vaccine are still alive six years later.

"Pancreatic cancer mRNA vaccine shows lasting results in an early trial: Scientists caution that more research is needed, but nearly all of the patients who responded to the personalized vaccine are still alive six years later."

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NASA Shuts Off Instrument on Voyager 1 to Keep Spacecraft Operating - NASA Science On April 17, engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California sent commands to shut down an instrument aboard Voyager 1 called the

science.nasa.gov/blogs/voyage...

Iran's Hormuz whiplash highlights divide within regime as U.S. blockade tightens. 'The fight between different factions has started' | Fortune The Institute for the Study of War said in a note on Friday that the IRGC’s criticism of Araghchi is "reflective of broader divisions within the Iranian regime."

fortune.com/2026/04/18/i...

👉An insightful, in-depth look at Donald J. Trump’s first term, exploring the election that stunned the world.

📚Learn more about the book The Trump First Term https://kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700641185/

@d-ponder.bsky.social 
@juliaazari.bsky.social 

#DonaldTrump #TrumpPresidency #UPKansas

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Connections
Puzzle #1041
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*Buddy