Canadian Ice Climber Climbs Frozen Niagara Falls
Earlier this week, in an act that defies previous attempts to go over the falls, William Gadd, a Canadian ice climber, scaled the frozen Niagara Falls, according to USA Today.
Gadd, a renowned ice climber, three-time Gold medalist at the X-Games and one of National Geographic’s Adventurer of the Year winners, performs stunts and tackles obstacles many would think to be impossible. He started at the base of the Niagara River and climbed over 140 feet to Terrapin Point on Goat Island, an act that many people find astounding. Gadd described his stunt as “the coolest thing I’ve ever done,” in a statement released to USA Today.
Gadd climbed the Falls in about an hour while battling both hypothermia-inducing conditions and over 685,750 gallons of water rushing just next to him according to CNN; at one point he wasclose enough to experience water rushing over his head, using only his picks to keep himself attached to the ice.
Romney, Potential Presidential Candidate, Withdraws From Race
When political factions were pointing fingers at potential presidential candidates for the 2016 election, Mitt Romney emerged as one of the ideal candidates for the GOP nomination. Despite these hopes, Romney declined to run in the next presidential race, according to the Washington Post.
After a heated debate with other party members on who would come out as the GOP nomination, Romney felt as though he would be “[too] badly wounded in the process that he would have trouble defeating Hilary Rodham Clinton in a general election,” according to the Washington Post. Romney’s decision was also due to the increased aggressiveness in Jeb Bush’s campaign. Part of the shock was incurred by the sudden procurement of one of Romney’s main supporters, David Kochel, by Jeb Bush’s campaign.
Romney's resignation opens the doors for other, lesser-known candidates to try for the nominee position. Gov. Christie of New Jersey is counted among these potential candidates.
Tagg Romney, his eldest son, supported Romney’s decision to pull from the race. He is quoted in a statement to the Washington Post as saying “[Criticism] has been all trained on him, and I think that would continue to be the case for next year. His hope is that someone else can come out and catch fire.”
Rallies in Spain Show Low Opinion for Political Elite
The Root, an “opinion and culture site for African-American influences,” named 2014 “The Year of the Protester.” Across the world there have been multiple protests, mainly against political factions that no longer seem to keep the peoples’ interests in mind. 2015 continued this trend with protests in Spain, where activists claim to be “fed up” with the current political climate and its elite, according to the Huffington Post.
On January 31, protesters lined up at the Plaza de Sol in Madrid to show their support for the anti-austerity party “Podemos,” which advocates for faster job growth. Although the country has been one of the fastest growing economies in Europe, according to Huffington Post, one in four citizens are out of a job.
The protesters support Podemos, a political party similar to Syriza in Greece; many protesters have even waved Greek flags to show their support, according to the Huffington Post.
Pablo Iglesias, leader of the party, commented: “2015 is the year of change.”
