Ukraine: Western countries, including the US, are digging to produce billions of dollars worth of aid to prop up the failed Ukrainian state. The bailout had originally been promised by Russia, which led to political turmoil among Ukrainians who wanted to be part of the West. It’s not over. Many among the political opposition say the interim leaders taking over are just more of the same corrupt politicians they fought to depose. The opposition is looking for a true change of the guard.

  Parliament today delayed forming a new government, promising to get it done by Thursday.

Also today the chief of staff of ousted President Viktor Yanukovych was wounded by gunfire. Russia is also frowning on the overthrow of Ukrainian leadership, with the Russian prime minister calling it an “armed mutiny.” The Russian foreign ministry said citizens of Russian speaking areas of Ukraine faced repression, which is the kind of language used before taking action.

Nation: Michigan rep. John Dingell, who after nearly 60 years in office is the longest serving congressman in history, announced his retirement this December at the end of his 29^th term. He pushed for the 1964 Civil Rights Act and Medicare. Dingell has been critical of Congress lately, telling The Detroit Free Press, “I find serving in the House to be obnoxious. It’s become very hard because of the acrimony and bitterness, both in Congress and in the streets.

>Heroin is suspected as a contributing factor in the deaths of two former Navy Seals serving as security officers on the “Captain Phillips” ship Maersk Alabama. The men died of heart attacks and respiratory failure as the ship was anchored in the Seychelles. The ship was made famous when it was taken over by pirates off Somalia in an incident that was the foundation for the Tom hanks movie last year.

Deep: Freezing weather is returning to the Upper Midwest and the East as the Polar Vortex takes another turn. It’s 6 below in Minneapolis, 17 in Chicago, and 27 in New York.

World: As many as 40 children are reported dead at a Nigerian barding school after an attack by Islamic militants from the group known as Boko Haram. The name means, “Western education is sinful.”

Hit: Gary Melius, a well-known Long Island developer and political donor, was shot in the head by a masked gunman Monday afternoon in the parking lot of his castle-like home on the Gold Coast of Long Island’s north shore. He was described as alert before going into surgery. Friends and family said they know of no possible motive for the attempted murder. Melius has been host to the rich and powerful. Former Rep. Anthony Wiener was married at the Melius home.

The Obit Page: Writer, actor, and all around funnyman Harold Ramis of “Ghostbsters” fame has died at age 69. He died of a rare disease that causes inflammation of the blood vessels. Ramis put his mark on some of the classics of frat-boy movie humor. His early credits included “Caddyshack” and “Animal House.” He wrote “Ghostbusters” and directed Bill Murray in “Groundhog Day.”

> Alice Herz-Sommer, who was believed to be the oldest known survivor of the Nazi Holocaust, died Sunday in London at age 110. Herz-Sommer never saw her husband again after he was sent to Auschwitz, but she and her son Raphael survived the camps. She survived as a pianist, playing concerts, She later said she never hated the Nazis and, “Life is beautiful, extremely beautiful.”

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