7 Things: Wild weather in US; rolling blackouts hit Alabama; and more …

7. Elon Musk will be president after Civil War?

• Maybe it is too much vodka, maybe it is trolling, whatever it is the predictions made for 2023 by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev are pretty wild and have caught the attention of Twitter/Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who Medvedev suggests will become president of breakaway states after a Civil War.
• Medvedev says their will be war in Europe and in the U.S. with California and Texas forming independent nations. Additionally, Medvedev tweeted, “Texas and Mexico will form an allied state. Elon Musk’ll win the presidential election in a number of states which, after the new Civil War’s end, will have been given to the GOP.”

6. Election-denying Jan. 6 committee member wants the Electoral College ended

• No one ever expected much to come out of the Jan. 6 committee, not much really did, but the profiles of those involved have been raised and those who remain in Congress will look to use those profiles to get what they want. U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) has designs on ending the Electoral College once and for all. 
• While declaring another Jan. 6 event could still happen unless he gets the changes to the laws he wants. As a Democrat in good-standing, Raskin said anything he doesn’t like is a perilous threat, “I think that the electoral college … has become a danger not just to democracy, but to the American people.”

5. Southwest Airlines adds to travel woes

• Alabama had travel woes on some roads Monday evening and Tuesday morning, but it isn’t just Alabama. Airlines across the country are seeing major issues at airports over the high-travel holiday but Southwest Airlines’ problems are by far the worst.
• Southwest had to cancel almost 70% of its flights (2,870-plus) Monday, which is 10 times the number of flights of the second-most canceled airline, Delta. Not only is the weather causing these issues, but internal scheduling matters are also snarling the airline’s attempt to connect canceled crews to new flights.

4. Public pretends to be outraged at a police officer doing his job

• Last month, an 82-year-old woman was arrested for not paying for her garbage pickup, and most of the people reacting online expressed the typical outrage that a police officer would do his job in this situation. Now that the video has been released, the politeness of the officer involved is angering people, as well.
• When Martha Menefield was arrested the arresting officer was painfully polite telling the octogenarian, “I’m sorry, but the law’s the law, Ms. Menefield,” adding, “I’m so serious, it’s a warrant. … I’m not joking.” The officer has been called, “heartless,” and some people actually pretend to believe, “Everyone involved in the arrest of this woman should be fired.” None of that is true, the officer was respectful and did his job.

3. Two arrested for killing 12-year-old; mayor posted Christmas videos

• Birmingham’s record homicides are already heartbreaking enough, a 12-year-old being killed while she slept next to her friends is just added pain. Police have now arrested two people in connection to the murder, 19-year-old Ja’Von Eric Wilson and 18-year-old Jarei Lamar Vance.
• Both men are in Jefferson County Jail without bond for capital murder charges. Sure, this is all terrible but have you seen Mayor Randall Woodfin’s “hilarious” Facebook videos?

2. TVA accepts responsibility as rolling blackouts dominate Christmas weekend

• Record power demand led to rolling blackouts being implemented by the Tennessee Valley Authority while they attempted to get customers to lower their power consumption by lowering thermostats, delaying laundry and dishwashers, and turning off unnecessary lights and electronics. 
• This was the first time in the nearly 90-year existence of the TVA that the agency used rolling blackouts as a power-saving protocol. Last year, after the weather event in Texas, the TVA said it would take temperatures of minus-10 degrees to implement rolling blackouts, they were wrong. TVA CEO Jeff Lyash took responsibility for the blackouts: “It is TVA’s very objective and that of our local power companies, each and every one of those 153 local power companies, never to interrupt your power. That’s what we strive for. And occasionally we fall short of that. And, obviously, we fell short of that, in this case.”

1. Winter weather kills across the country, causes closures and delays in Alabama

• At least 48 people have been killed by severe cold weather this weekend and that number is definitely going to rise as the nation digs out from the latest bout of weather. In New York, bouts of lawlessness followed blizzard conditions and local authorities called those people “absolutely reprehensible.”
• In Alabama, road closures, power outages, government closings and discomfort are the main issues people are dealing with and that will continue through Tuesday. Luckily, schools are closed for the holiday and people have planned to miss work for the holidays but the weather issues will cause problems.