From the Editors: Time to move on for the US

TIME TO MOVE ON FOR THE US: A day after the storming of the Capitol there have been calls for US President Donald Trump to step down, demands to impeach him and a flurry of resignations from the Cabinet. There is even talk that Trump is considering pardoning himself. In the midst of all this mayhem, forgotten are the challenges that lie ahead for the President-elect Joe Biden, who has been confirmed by the Congress. The tasks ahead are daunting – chief among them being bringing a divided country together. It is time for the beacon of democracy to move on and show the world what justice, equality and the pursuit of happiness really mean. [COMMENT BY: Alex Abraham, Senior Associate Editor]

MASS VACCINATIONS THE FASTEST WAY TO NORMALITY: With the UAE rolling out mass vaccinations for COVID-19 for its citizens and residents, the last hurdle for clearing the way to a return to normal life has begun in earnest. A total of 826,301 residents have already received the vaccine, and 47,000 people are being inoculated every day under the campaign. However, it is to be remembered that while we are on the way, the battle against COVID-19 is not over yet. Thus it is critical that we maintain the protocols in place to keep the pandemic from spreading. [COMMENT BY: Somshankar Bandyopadhyay, Assistant Editor]

HOLLYWOOD GETS POLITICAL: Even as the dust settles in the aftermath of the US Capitol rioting, Hollywood remains incensed that their country chose to remain on the wrong side of history in this ongoing political drama to grab the US presidency. From talk show hosts such as Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel speaking of their disappointment, celebrities such as Edward Norton, Cardi B, Selena Gomez and now George Clooney have spoken out against the violence that erupted at the US Capitol building less than 48 hours ago, which resulted in the deaths of four individuals as pro Donald Trump protestors stormed the building. Clooney spoke out on an episode of KCRW's 'The Business,' declaring: “It's devastating to watch the people's house being desecrated in that way. But it is also a tremendous overreach in a way — everybody kept waiting for, what's the one thing, the straw that breaks the camel's back and it just seemed like that line just kept getting moved and moved and moved and outrage didn't even matter anymore…. This mattered." Hollywood, along with US President elect Joe Biden, are chanting the same message over and over now: Enough is enough. Now that Congress has certified President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' victorious, let democracy prevail. [COMMENT BY: Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor]

STEVE SMITH FINDS HIS MOJO BACK, AND HOW!: After failing to reach double digits in last four innings against India in the ongoing series, Steve Smith showed why he is the owners of the best average in Test cricket. Grinding his teeth, the former Australian captain on Friday scored a crucial 131 in Sydney to join the elite club of three more batsmen to score the maximum number of hundreds against India (eight) in Test cricket. Sir Gary Sobers, Vivian Richards and Ricky Ponting also had scored eight centuries against India. Smith, currently ranked third in ICC Test rankings, has now scored 27 Test hundreds, equalling Virat Kohli, Graeme Smith and Allan Border. [COMMENT BY: Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor]