memeorandum: US closer to ‘nuclear war with North Korea’ than ever before: Former Joint Chiefs head (Rachel Tillman/ABC News)

4:00 PM ET, December 31, 2017

Top Items:

BBC:

Iran protests: ‘Iron fist’ threatened if unrest continues — Iran's Revolutionary Guards have warned anti-government protesters they will face the nation's “iron fist” if political unrest continues. — Three days of demonstrations over falling living standards have become the biggest show …

Discussion: NPR, The Guardian, Informed Comment and The Week, more at Mediagazer »

Erin Cunningham / Washington Post:

Iran blocks Instagram and Telegram apps, warns protesters will ‘pay the price’ for unrest — ISTANBUL — Iran on Sunday blocked Instagram and the messaging app Telegram, official media reported, after three days of escalating anti-government unrest. Two demonstrators were killed over the weekend, an official said.

Discussion: The Guardian, Jihad Watch, NBC News, Sputnik International, IJR, AOL, Business Insider and Axios

Philip Gordon / New York Times:
How Can Trump Help Iran's Protesters? Be Quiet.

Discussion: RedState, Politico, IJR, twitchy.com, Outside the Beltway, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, BBC, Breitbart, KTLA, Weekly Standard, Althouse and CNN, more at Techmeme »

Farnaz Fassihi / Wall Street Journal:
Five Things to Know About the Iranian Protests

Discussion: The Hill, CNN, Fox News, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Breitbart, IJR, Instapundit, NBC News, The Guardian, ThinkProgress, twitchy.com, Sputnik International, RedState and Al Jazeera English

Stephen L. Miller / Fox News:
Iran's protests are powerful and real. Why are mainstream media outlets so hesitant to report on them?

Discussion: Breitbart, The Daily Caller and Instapundit

BBC:
Iran protests: Telegram and Instagram restricted

Discussion: CNN, New York Times, Politico, CNBC, AOL, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, The Week and Engadget

Reuters:
Iran warns protesters who pose major challenge to country's leadership

Discussion: Associated Press, The Daily Caller and Politico

Borzou Daragahi / BuzzFeed: Here's What's Behind Iran's Biggest Protests In Seven Years

Dave Barry / miamiherald:

Dave Barry's 2017 Year in Review: Did that really happen? — Looking back on 2017 is like waking up after a party where you made some poor decisions, such as drinking tequila squeezed from the underpants of a person you do not really know. (At least you hope it was tequila.)

Discussion: American Digest

David Cohen / Politico:

Scaramucci: Trump doesn't deny climate change — Former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci on Sunday defended President Donald Trump's tweet last week on climate change as a common-sense statement. — “In the East, it could be the COLDEST New Year's Eve on record.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Axios, CNN, Breitbart and The Week

Megan Kennedy / Click2Houston.com:

Intoxicated man found with small arsenal on top floor of Hyatt Regency downtown, police say — HOUSTON - A man has been arrested on multiple charges after police located a small arsenal of guns on the top floor of the Hyatt Regency on Louisiana Street downtown, Houston police said.

Discussion: Breitbart, abc13.com, Fox News, The Week and Eschaton

Houston Chronicle:

Weapons, ammo found in resident's room in Hyatt Regency Downtown — Houston police have arrested a man who was initially going to be charged with drunk and disorderly conduct at a downtown hotel, until officers discovered an arsenal of weapons in his room. — Houston police uncovered …

Discussion: Raw Story, KHOU-TV, RedState, twitchy.com and IJR

Daniella Diaz / CNN:

Bernstein: Trump's lawyers tell him what he wants to hear on Russia — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — Bernstein said White House aides have told him Trump has repeatedly expressed a desire to fire Mueller — He and his partner of Watergate reporting fame, Bob Woodward, drew parallels between Trump and Nixon

Tom McGhee / Denver Post:

Multiple officers shot, suspect at large, bomb squad, SWAT on scene in Douglas County — More than one officer shot. — A so far undisclosed number of Sheriff's deputies were shot Sunday morning and a Douglas County Sheriff's Office SWAT team is at the scene, a home near the 3400 block …

Discussion: KKTV-TV, Breitbart, Fox News, The Daily Caller, WHNT-TV, Business Insider, RedState, The Week, twitchy.com and ABC News

Karoun Demirjian / Washington Post:

Devin Nunes, targeting Mueller and the FBI, alarms Democrats and some Republicans with his tactics — Rep. Devin Nunes, once sidelined by an ethics inquiry from leading the House Intelligence Committee's Russia probe, is reasserting the full authority of his position as chairman …

Discussion: Mother Jones

Rachel Tillman / ABC News:

US closer to ‘nuclear war with North Korea’ than ever before: Former Joint Chiefs head — The United States faces a greater threat of nuclear conflict on the Korean peninsula than at any previous time, said a former head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under both presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Discussion: Washington Post, Breitbart and Politico

Kristine Phillips / Washington Post:

Niagara Falls is coated in ice — and absolutely jaw-dropping — Historian and author Paul Gromosiak once said that winter at Niagara Falls can be so breathtaking that it “diminishes even those skyscrapers” on the other side of the border in Canada. — Trees once thick with fall leaves …

John Bowden / The Hill:

Golden State Warriors coach: ‘Our core values’ as a nation are ‘under attack’ — The coach of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors says in a new interview that America's “core values” are under attack and citizens must do more to fight false information and “propaganda.”

Dylan Gwinn / Breitbart:
Warriors Coach Steve Kerr: ‘Our Core Values’ As a Nation Are ‘Under Attack’

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Maya Rao / Star Tribune:

Tina Smith prepares for crash course in the U.S. Senate — She'll be learning Senate ropes even as she dives into campaign mode. — Washington - Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith will join the U.S. Senate this week, vowing an early emphasis on economic development and other bread-and-butter issues …

Discussion: Axios and Associated Press

Adam Elmahrek / Los Angeles Times:

California high school football player can't be forced to stand for national anthem, court rules — San Francisco 49ers players kneel during the national anthem before an NFL game against the Houston Texans earlier this month in Houston. (David J. Phillip / Associated Press)

Discussion: The Hill, ThinkProgress and IJR

New York Daily News:

Erica Garner, daughter of police chokehold victim, dies at 27 in Brooklyn — The police chokehold death of her father thrust Erica Garner into the public eye, where she blossomed as an activist who converted tragedy into a calling. — Garner, like her father Eric, died too young …