Q: Who has the title of oldest person in the world since the death of the lady who held it?
—Kathy McDonough, Peachtree Corners
A: Dina Manfredini, 115, is now considered the oldest living person in the world after the death of Monroe's Besse Cooper, who was 116 and 100 days old when she died on Dec. 4. Manfredini was born in Italy on April 4, 1897, and moved to the U.S. in 1920. She lives in Johnston, Iowa. Guinness World Records reported that only seven other people lived longer than Cooper, including France's Jeanne Calment, who lived a record 122 years before she died in 1997.
Q: There has been a lot on TV and in the newspaper about the “Fiscal Cliff” we are headed for if the Democrats and Republicans fail to reach an agreement about taxes. Exactly what does this entail and what will happen if it is not reached?
—Ruby Cook, Cumming
A: Fiscal Cliff is a term to describe a "combination of expiring tax cuts and across-the-board government spending cuts scheduled to become effective Dec. 31," according to Investopedia.com. The combination of those events could further damage this country's already shaky economy, perhaps even causing another recession through decreased "household income, increased unemployment rates and undermined consumer and investor confidence," according to the website. The Fiscal Cliff would also cut as much as $200 billion from the federal deficit through higher taxes.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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