USA - Krauthammer [US political commentator] says that delaying the employer mandate simply to ease political pain before an election is the kind of stuff they do in banana republics. But generally speaking you get past the next election by changing your policies, by announcing new initiatives, but not by wantonly changing the law lawlessly. This is stuff you do in a banana republic. It’s as if the law is simply a blackboard on which Obama writes any number he wants, any delay he wants, and any provision. These are political decisions to minimize the impact leading up to an election. And it’s changing the law in a way that you are not allowed to do.

UK - Tormented by bullies, under ­pressure to fit in and bombarded with school assessments, many children today find themselves struggling to cope. Thousands of children aged 10 and under are being treated for depression, stress and anxiety, an investigation by the Daily Mirror has revealed. Savage Coalition cuts to the network of support for affected youngsters means many end up needing hospital treatment because their psychological problems have spiralled out of control – piling more pressure on NHS budgets. A worrying 4,391 children aged 10 or under have received treatment for stress, anxiety or depression in the last five years, according to figures from two of Britain’s biggest NHS mental health trusts. But the total number of primary school pupils affected is likely to be far higher.

UK - England’s largest river, the Thames, has burst its banks, devastating homes in the southeast in the worst floods in 50 years. PM David Cameron has called the flooding “biblical,” as economists predict the crisis will cost close on $1 billion. Strong gales and huge waves battered the UK this weekend, causing rivers to swell and floodwaters to rise across the country. Fourteen “severe” flood warnings were issued in the counties of Berkshire and Surrey, while two remain in the worst hit county of Somerset. The severe classification means there is potential danger to human life. The UK Met Office has described the period of rainfall the country has experienced as “the most exceptional in 248 years. We have records going back to 1766 and we have nothing like this."

USA - Documents from an Ohio National Guard (ONG) training drill conducted last January reveal the details of a mock disaster where Second Amendment supporters with “anti-government” opinions were portrayed as domestic terrorists. The ONG 52nd Civil Support Team training scenario involved a plot from local school district employees to use biological weapons in order to advance their beliefs about “protecting Gun Rights and Second Amendment rights.” Portsmouth Chief of Police Bill Raisin told NBC 3 WSAZ-TV in Huntington, West Virginia that the drill accurately represented “the reality of the world we live in,” adding that such training “helps us all be prepared.”

USA - The heroin-overdose death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman has caused the media to focus, however fleetingly, on America’s drug problem. News accounts of the Oscar-winner’s tragic demise typically reference the startling increase in heroin-related deaths in the last four to five years.

CHINA - The former chief economist at the World Bank, Justin Yifu Lin, is advising the Chinese government that the time has come for a single global currency. Lin, who is also a professor at Peking University, says that the US dollar “is the root cause of global financial and economic crises” and that moving to a “global super-currency” will bring much needed stability to the global financial system.

USA - A new report finds that hydraulic fracturing poses a growing risk to water supplies in several regions around the country. Only, instead of groundwater contamination that so often makes the headlines, it is from the massive consumption of fresh water in parched areas like Texas and California.

GERMANY - By referring a complaint against the European Central Bank's bond-buying policy to the European Court of Justice, Germany's constitutional court has sidestepped a crucial dispute over who has ultimate authority in the European Union. The issue is highly sensitive at a time when Eurosceptical parties that seek to roll back the EU's powers are gaining ground in many member states ahead of direct elections for the 28-nation European Parliament in May. By a 6-2 majority decision, Germany's top judges asked the European court in Luxembourg for a preliminary ruling on whether the ECB breached its mandate when it agreed to do "whatever it takes" to preserve the euro.

SINGAPORE - Throughout history, a region or country's economic growth has often been followed by a rise in defence spending. Asia-Pacific as a region is witnessing this phenomenon currently. In fact, it is the only region in the world that has seen a steady rise in defence spending over the past five years and the trend is likely to continue at the Singapore Airshow, which gets under way this week. The surge is being led by China - its defence budget has risen each year for two decades and it is now the world's second-biggest spender, behind the US.

USA - More than 8.7 million pounds of meat have been recalled from a Northern California company because the plant “processed diseased and unsound animals,” federal officials announced Saturday. The recall affects both beef and seafood items that were shipped from January 1, 2013 to January 7, 2014. Items were sent to retail locations in California, Florida, Illinois and Texas, according to officials. There have been “no reports of illness due to consumption of these products,” the US Department of Agriculture said, adding that anyone concerned should seek medical attention.

UK - Insulin use has trebled over the last 20 years in the UK driven by soaring rates of Type 2 diabetes as cases of obesity spiral, new research revealed. Experts said their findings are a “wake-up call” not only for making lifestyle changes but for how the condition is treated. Researchers analysed data from patient prescriptions. They discovered a huge increase in the use of insulin, particularly among people with Type 2, which is linked to unhealthy lifestyles.

VATICAN - It was the quietest of announcements that had the effect of a thunder-clap on the Catholic world: A year ago Tuesday, Pope Benedict XVI said in a voice so soft that cardinals strained to hear (and in a Latin not all could easily follow) that he was becoming the first pontiff to resign in more than half a millennium. On the eve of the anniversary, Benedict's longtime private secretary credited his boss' stunning decision with opening the way to the "enormous impact" Pope Francis is having on the church and world at large.

SWITZERLAND - Switzerland's knife-edge decision to curb immigration from the EU raises major problems, heavyweight Germany warned Monday, as Swiss authorities moved to limit the damage to ties with the 28-nation bloc. As both sides mulled the fallout from Sunday's referendum in which 50.3 percent of voters decided to void a pact giving equal footing to European Union citizens in the Swiss labour market, Germany said resolving the issue would be an uphill task. Steffen Seibert, spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said Berlin respected the result. But it "raises considerable problems", he added, noting that Merkel had repeatedly emphasised that free movement was a "prized asset" for Germany.

IRAN - Iranian state television on Friday aired a documentary which featured a computerized simulated attack on Israeli cities. The clip, which was posted on YouTube, is a hypothetical scenario which envisions the Iranian response to an Israeli or American military offensive against Iran's nuclear installations. The title of the film, "Nightmare of Vulture," features footage of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei speaking to cadets in 2011. “Anybody who thinks of attacking the Islamic Republic of Iran should be prepared to receive strong slaps and iron fists from the Armed Forces,” Khamenei is seen saying. “And America, its regional puppets and its guard dog – the Zionist regime – should know that the response of the Iranian nation to any kind of aggression, attacks or even threats will be a response that will make them collapse from within."

UK - German Chancellor Angela Merkel will discuss the future of the European Union with Prime Minister David Cameron on a visit to London this month, as Britain seeks support for a sweeping overhaul of EU treaties. Cameron has yet to spell out all his proposals, but has made it clear he wants to curb immigration from new member states, cut red tape and improve competition. He has so far garnered only limited backing for his reform plans among other EU states, but hopes to secure a new deal if re-elected next year before holding a referendum on Britain's EU membership by 2017. Any signs of support from Germany, the bloc's biggest economy, would strengthen his campaign.