Iraqi PM Resigns

Iraqi parliament formally accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi on Sunday amid weeks of anti-government protests that have left more than 400 dead. According to legal experts, the current government will act in a caretaker role for 30 days or until a new successor is chosen.

Hong Kong Bills Made Law

On Wednesday, President Trump signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019 into law, requiring the U.S. State Department to conduct an annual review to see if Hong Kong is “sufficiently autonomous” from China. The president also signed a bill that bans the sale of munitions to the Hong Kong police.

China & Russia Joint Project Debuts

The Power of Siberia pipeline, a joint energy project between China and Russia, is set to debut today. The 1,800 mile natural gas pipeline will deliver 38 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Russia to China over the course of the 30-year agreement.

Shop ‘til you drop

Both Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday set new record highs in online sales this year. Shoppers spent $4.2 billion online on Thanksgiving Day, a 14.5 percent increase from last year - not to be outdone, Black Friday recorded online sales north of $7 billion, with nearly 40 percent of the purchases occurring on smartphones.

Labor Pains & Gains

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and the UAW announced a tentative labor agreement on Saturday, following the outline of already-concluded UAW deals with Ford and General Motors. The agreement is subject to ratification by the union members, and includes a commitment from FCA to invest $9 billion, creating 7,900 new jobs over the four-year contract.

The Loan Ranger

Credit reporting company Experian released a report identifying a 12 percent year over year increase in personal loan debt, which makes it the fastest-growing debt category in the U.S. Personal loan debt still only accounts for just 2 percent of total U.S. consumer debt, despite balances exceeding $300 billion as of the second quarter of this year.

Let It Rain

Disney’s Frozen 2 has set a Thanksgiving holiday box-office record, grossing $123.7 million in the U.S. and Canada over the 5-day weekend. After just two weekends in theaters, Frozen 2 has already made $287.6 million domestically and $738.6 million worldwide, and is on pace to become Disney’s sixth film this year to gross over one billion dollars.

Walking on Air

Strangers who are feeling a sense of goodwill pay it forward in a variety of ways. Free coffee, tithing in church, and giving to beloved causes are all ways to give back. But one couple felt the desire to go above and beyond to help a Galveston, TX woman in need. The result has been a game changer for her.

Adrianna Edwards typically walks 14 miles each day (which takes her 4 hours) to get to her serving job at Denny’s. She was serving a nice local couple on a normal day at work, unaware that her life would soon be changing for the better. When the couple (who wish to remain anonymous) heard that Adrianna was saving up for a car, they wanted to help. So they went to the Classic Galveston Auto Group and returned later that day with a gift for Adrianna.

As they handed her the keys to her new 2011 Nissan Sentra, Adrianna was sure she was being pranked. It can be hard to trust in the goodness in people when life is filled with adversity, but the couple assured Adrianna that the gift was for her. All they asked was that she one day pay it forward. “I just hope that one day when I’m financially stable enough, I can help somebody else in need,” she told KTRK. Her example shows that all that’s needed to make the world a better place is kindness, shared and paid forward.

Family Matters

17-year-old Jamal Hinton of Tempe, Arizona had no plans for Thanksgiving in 2016 - that’s when fate stepped in. He received a group text from local grandmother Wanda Dench, who’d meant to notify her grandkids about the itinerary for Thanksgiving dinner.

When Jamal texted back, “You’re not my grandma. Can I still have a plate?” Wanda didn’t hesitate. “Of course. That’s what grandmas do...feed everyone!” Jamal took her up on the offer and joined her family for Thanksgiving. He was thrilled he’d have a family to celebrate with that year, but it didn’t stop there. Dench and Hinton have gotten close over the years, spending the last few Thanksgivings together and becoming friends.

Jamal calls her his “grandma,” and this year Dench and her husband were invited to his girlfriend’s house for the holiday. Wanda was thrilled to not have to host and cook, but even more thrilled to have extended her circle with one misnumbered text. Mistakes can lead to the biggest opportunities in life - and sometimes, they may even lead to family.