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Five-Figure Fears: Washington Post: “The super-typhoon that tore through the Philippines and left a feared five-figure death toll touched down in central Vietnam early Monday, already ranking as one of Asia’s most destructive natural disasters in recent decades. As rescue workers struggled to reach some areas along a heavily damaged chain of Philippine islands, survivors described a toll that this impoverished country will be contending with for years. Entire regions are without food and water, and bodies are strewn on the streets, after a typhoon that had much the look of a tsunami, with waves as high as two-story buildings. Photos and videos showed towns ground to a pulp.”
The World: Why Does the Philippines Have So Many Terrible Disasters?
A Snapshot of the Scene on the Ground: Associated Press: “Tacloban resembled a garbage dump from the air, punctuated only by a few concrete buildings that remained standing. ‘I don’t believe there is a single structure that is not destroyed or severely damaged in some way — every single building, every single house,’ U.S. Marine Brig. Gen. Paul Kennedy said after taking a helicopter flight over the city. He spoke on the tarmac at the airport, where two Marine C-130 cargo planes were parked, engines running, unloading supplies. Authorities said at least 9.7 million people in 41 provinces were affected by the typhoon, which is called Yolanda in the Philippines but is known as Haiyan elsewhere in Asia. It’s one of the most powerful recorded typhoons to ever hit land and likely the deadliest natural disaster to beset this poor Southeast Asian nation.”
Foreigners: Please Don’t Send Your Old Shoes to the Philippines. Send Money.
U.S. Pitches In: Reuters: “Additional U.S. military forces arrived in the Philippines on Monday to bolster relief efforts, officials said, with U.S. military cargo planes transporting food, medical supplies and water for victims. Other U.S. aircraft were pre-positioning to assist the Philippines, with U.S. forces operating out of Villamor Air Base in the capital Manila and in the coastal city of Tacloban. FedEX Corp, the Memphis, Tennessee-based global courier delivery company, said in a statement it was ‘working closely with disaster relief organizations (American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Direct Relief and Heart to Heart) to donate transportation of equipment and relief supplies to impacted areas.’”
Photography: Haiyan’s Devastation: Gripping photos from the Philippines
Political Challenges: New York Times: “The storm posed new challenges for President Benigno S. Aquino III, who just two months ago struggled to wrest control of a major city in the south from insurgents. Mr. Aquino has been praised at home and abroad for his fight against corruption during his three and a half years in office, leading to increased foreign investment and an impressive growth rate. But he must still contend with Muslim separatists in the south and with provinces that have long been the domains of regional strongmen, resistant to government control. Now added to that list was one of the country’s worst natural disasters, at a time when emergency funds have been depleted by other calamities, most notably a magnitude-7.2 earthquake that struck the middle of the country four weeks ago. On Monday, amid rising fears of a breakdown of law and order after reports of widespread looting and robberies, the government said it was flying more police officers to the region.”
It’s Monday, November 11th, welcome to the Slatest PM. Follow your afternoon host on Twitter at @Dan_Gartland, and the whole team at @Slatest.
Sunday Is Now Amazon’s Day: New York Times: “The cash-short United States Postal Service, which has failed to win congressional approval to stop delivering mail on Saturdays to save money, has struck a deal with the online retailer Amazon.com to deliver the company’s packages on Sundays — a first for both, with obvious advantages for each. The deal, announced on Sunday and taking effect immediately, in time for the holiday shopping season, gives the Postal Service a chance to take some business from United Parcel Service and FedEx, which do not deliver on Sundays. Now, some orders that would have been handled by either of those carriers for Monday delivery will go through the Postal Service and arrive on Sunday.”
The Slatest: Sarah Palin Nails Her Impression of Tina Fey Doing Sarah Palin
The Houston House Party “Gone Wild”: NBC News: “Two young men are in custody following a shooting at a house party in Houston that left two people dead and 19 others injured, according to police. … Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia said that most of the 19 injured suffered from gunshot wounds, but in the frenzy during the shooting, some also suffered sprained ankles and one broken leg, adding that some party goers tried to escape the gunfire by jumping out of second-floor windows. … Garcia said the shooting began when one of the suspects fired a ‘celebratory’ shot, which led the other suspect to react by firing into the crowd. The party had been widely promoted on social media, leading to a huge turnout.
The Slatest: Russian Artist Nails Scrotum to Ground In “Police State” Protest
Dow Soars (Again): USA Today: “Stocks rose slightly Monday as the Dow Jones industrial average set another record close. Trading in the stock market was muted as bond markets were closed in observance of the Veterans Day holiday. Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange held a moment of silence in observance of the holiday. The Dow rose 21.32 points, or 0.1%, to close at an all-time high of 15,783.10, according to preliminary calculations. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 1.28, or 0.1%, to 1,771.89, falling just shy of its record close of 1,771.95. The Nasdaq composite index gained 1.67, or 0.04%, to 3,919.79. On Friday, stocks got a lift from a better-than-expected jobs report as the Dow gained 1.1% to close at a record 15,761.78.”
The Slatest: What Miley Cyrus Did This Time
PG-13 Turns Violent: Los Angeles Times: “A comprehensive study of violence in movies rated PG-13 has found that gunplay has tripled in such films since 1985, when the rating was introduced, and further concluded that from 2009 to 2012, PG-13 films have contained as much or more violence than films rated R. The study, published Monday in Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, offers a troubling portrait not only of the accelerating levels of violence in blockbuster movies aimed at children but also the effect this kind of cinematic bloodshed can have on young moviegoers, which other studies have shown can increase hostile behavior.”
Weigel: Democrats Might Have Won the Last Big Election of 2013 With an Overlooked Voting Machine
Leader of Afghan Militant Group Killed: Associated Press: “Gunmen killed a senior leader of one of the most feared militant groups fighting U.S. troops in Afghanistan when he stopped to buy fresh bread from a bakery on the outskirts of Pakistan’s capital, members of the militant organization and an eyewitness said Monday. Nasiruddin Haqqani’s death Sunday night is one of the biggest blows to the Haqqani militant network since the Afghan war started, but the commander’s presence in Islamabad and questions over who killed him could spark fresh tension between Pakistan and the United States.”
Future Tense: Your Smartphone Has Officially Hijacked Your Life
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