Using an ambulance to kill is a new low

Afghanistan ... State of the Union ... Russia ... fitness app ... Grammys

view in browser Monday 1.29.18 Afghanistan is in disarray and things are getting worse. We'll start with that and Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. By Doug Criss Afghanistan   What a violent month it's been in Afghanistan. Over the past couple of weeks, militants have attacked the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, the offices of British aid agency Save the Children in Jalalabad and a Shia cultural center in Kabul. Over the weekend, they packed an ambulance with explosives and blew it up on a crowded Kabul street, killing more than 100. And early this morning, they hit a military base in Kabul, killing 11 soldiers. This is the painful reality of Afghanistan today. The country's in one of the most violent periods of its recent history, and its challenges are deepening. But the sense of exhaustion, of solutions long having lost their sparkle, pervades. According to the US government's own auditors, the Taliban influence or control about half the land. ISIS too, intermittently rises, and then, after coalition airstrikes, falls -- competing to be the most extreme actor in a crowded marketplace. The government in Kabul is weak, ridden by conflict and rivalry between senior players. And the West's ideas for stabilizing the country are running out.   State of the Union President Trump wants to use his first State of the Union address tomorrow to pitch his immigration plan, which has gotten the cold shoulder from both Republicans and Democrats. The plan offers citizenship to 1.8 million undocumented immigrants in exchange for $25 billion for Trump's border wall and other immigration measures. The President is also expected to talk up the economy and the GOP tax cut. Some lawmakers plan to wear black to the speech to draw attention to the #MeToo movement.   Freedom of the press   Strongmen in Southeast Asia are taking Donald Trump's signature line  -- "fake news" -- and using it to not only discredit the media but to also lock up journalists and shut down news sites. A Philippine news site, which ran afoul of President Rodrigo Duterte, may close. A pair of journalists in Myanmar arrested for reporting on the Rohingya. There's little criticism of these heavy-handed tactics from Washington or Trump, so Asia's dictators are emboldened, observers say.    Fitness app   A fitness app's heatmap is taking some heat because it may be endangering the troops. Strava's app has been accused of making US military bases "clearly identifiable and mappable." For example, if a soldiers using the app goes on a daily run, that could be available for all to see through the app. Knowing the troops' movement on bases is a definite security risk. Strava says that it's "committed to helping people better understand" the app's privacy settings.   Grammys   This year's Grammy Awards will be remembered for a lot of things: Kendrick Lamar's powerful political opening, Kesha's #MeToo moment, Janelle Monae's Time's Up speech, white roses on the red carpet. But the biggest moment of music's biggest night belongs to ... a book. Michael Wolff's controversial "Fire and Fury" popped up in a skit that featured Hillary Clinton reading a line about President Trump's love of fast food. The Grammy crowd roared; Twitter lit up. But not everybody loved it. Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, said the "Fire and Fury" stunt ruined "great music with trash." Here's the list of winners (congrats Bruno Mars), and the whole night in 90 seconds.   People are talking about these. Read up. Join in. Hot sale Elon Musk put flamethrowers on sale for just $500, and the internet pretty much lost its mind. New letters After that whole MMA thing fell apart on her, Ronda Rousey's headed to the WWE. Ooops, she did it again Serial stowaway Marilyn Hartman, just days after she allegedly snuck on a flight to London, was arrested at Chicago's O'Hare airport. Triple threat Hope you're all set this week to view the supermoon ... that's also a blue moon ... that's also a blood moon. Got all that? Furniture king Those little weekend jaunts we all take to Ikea wouldn't be possible without founder Ingvar Kamprad, who died at age 91. Here's what's coming up later today House vote The House will vote on a bill that requires allegations of sex abuse of athletes to be reported to authorities. It's the latest fallout in the Larry Nassar case. $530 million The amount in cryptocurrency that hackers stole from an exchange in Japan. It might be the biggest cryptocurrency heist ever. No, I wouldn't say I'm a feminist   President Trump, telling Piers Morgan that he's not solely supportive of just women, but of all people Legend of dominoes Yeah, we know, somebody knocking down more than 20,000 dominoes is kind of ho-hum nowadays. But when it's done as a tribute to "The Legend of Zelda," well even we can't resist that. (Click to view) Share Tweet ALL CNN NEWSLETTERS CNN Five Things shows up in your inbox every weekday at 6 a.m. ET. Like what you see? Don't like what you see? Let us know. We're all about self improvement. Did a friend forward you this newsletter? Sign yourself up!   Copyright © 2018 Cable News Network, LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved., All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to CNN newsletters. update preferences or unsubscribe