[Fourth-Wall Break] Personally, I have (1) friend from New Zealand, so I reached out to him to ask what locals actually think of this flag redesign proposal and others, and his answer surprised me:

A Zlin 242L light aircraft piloted by Chicago radio personality Bob Collins collides midair with a Cessna 172 over Zion, Illinois as both aircraft are on approach to land at Waukegan National Airport. The wreckage crashes through the roof of a medical building. All three people on both planes are killed and five people on the ground are severely injured. Midair collisions are exceedingly rare, especially in the modern day, and the FAA is on the case to try and figure out what went wrong.

@N0tCircumcised That’s a really extreme hypothetical

An Ariana Afghan Airways Boeing 727 is hijacked on the ground at Stansed Airport, near London. The hijackers demand money and political amnesty in exchange for the release of the passengers, but the British military says that they won’t negotiate.

A presidential election is held in Greece. Konstantinos Stephonopoulos is elected for a second term.

Leader of the Russian Communist Party Gennady Zyuganov announces his candidacy for President of Russia. He is the first candidate to challenge the newly-installed President Vladimir Putin.

A Cambodian policeman directs traffic in Phnom Penh, where authorities are cracking down on traffic patterns on the chaotic and often lawless streets.

The first female Shinkansen (bullet train) drivers are hired in Japan. After six weeks of training, they will begin work.

More:

@yurisoupjob AOL Messenger?

Presidential candidate George W. Bush embraces former Governor of South Carolina David Beasley as he prepares to address the student body at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina.

Christopher Lee Rios, known better as rapper Big Punisher, dies of a sudden heart attack related to obesity in White Plains, New York. He was 28. He leaves behind a wife and three children.

At the White House, President Clinton announces the 2001 national budget.  Clinton promises a debt-free America by the year 2013.

U.S. Navy sailors seize Russian oil tanker Volgoneft off the coast of Muscat, Oman on suspicion of violating oil embargoes against Iraq. The Navy will confiscate the cargo and let the tanker return to Russia.

Japanese anime voice actress Shiho Niiyama dies of leukemia in Tokyo. She was 29.