Reading archive 2018-09-30

Family ties are no match for Trump’s divisive politics

China has silenced American academics for years. Now they’re pushing back.

Putin’s war is transforming Ukraine

The Geopolitical Divorce of the Century: Why Putin Cannot Afford to Let Ukraine Go

Foreign aid as a cash-only transaction? It’s worth a try.

Reading archive 2018-09-28

We’re in Virgin Territory: Approaching the Kavanaugh collision.

The American Bar Association had concerns about Kavanaugh 12 years ago. Republicans dismissed those, too.

Here’s where Kavanaugh’s sworn testimony was misleading or wrong

Why Brett Kavanaugh’s Hearings Convinced Me That He’s Guilty

Reading archive 2018-09-27

Silence on Wall Street. Tears in a retirement home. The country watches, transfixed, as Ford tells her story.

Reading archive 2018-09-26

Christine Blasey Ford’s family has been nearly silent amid outpouring of support

I Was Labeled The High School ‘Slut.’ It Affected My Whole Life.

I Revealed A Priest Abused Me 30 Years Ago. If I’m A Hero, Why Isn’t Christine Blasey Ford?

Trump Trade Taxes Will Exceed Obamacare Taxes Next Year

National Taxpayers Union Foundation Says Trump Tariffs Will Cost Taxpayers $132 Billion Vs. $34 Billion for Obamacare

GRU colonel Chepiga revealed as Skripal suspect's 'real identity'

Mission implausible: Russians mock improbable spy duo

Kavanaugh’s friends promoted him. Now they have to rescue him.: White House aides and allies who encouraged President Donald Trump to choose him for the highest court have a lot to lose.

Reading archive 2018-09-25

At the U.N., Trump finds the world literally laughing at him

No, I Will Not Debate You: Civility will never defeat fascism, no matter what The Economist thinks. - "There’s a term for this sort of bad-faith argument: it’s called the justification-suppression model. The theory is that bigots refrain from directly defending their own bigotry but get hugely riled up justifying the abstract right to express bigotry. So instead of saying, for example, “I don’t like foreigners,” they’ll fight hard for someone else’s right to get up on stage and yell that foreigners are coming to convert your children and seduce your household pets.

"Focusing the conversation on the ethics of disseminating speech rather than the actual content of that speech is hugely useful for the far right for three reasons. Firstly, it allows them to paint themselves as the wronged party — the martyrs and victims. Secondly, it stops people from talking about the actual wronged parties, the real lives at risk. And thirdly, of course, it’s an enormous diversion tactic, a shout of “Fire!” in the crowded theatre of politics. But Liberals don’t want to feel like bad people, so this impossible choice — betray the letter of your principles, or betray the spirit — leaves everyone feeling filthy.
...
"Steve Bannon, like the howling monster from the id he ushered into the White House, exploits the values of the liberal establishment by offering an impossible choice: betray their stated principles (free, open debate) or dignify fascism and white supremacy. This weaponizes tolerance to legitimize intolerance. If we deny racists a platform, they feed off the appearance of censorship, but if we give them a platform, they’ve also won by being respectfully invited into the penumbra of mainstream legitimacy. Either way, what matters to them is not debate, but airtime and attention. They have no interest in winning on the issues. Their image of a better world is one with their face on every television screen."

Brett Kavanaugh and the Cruelty of Male Bonding When being one of the guys comes at a woman’s expense.

Reading archive 2018-09-24

Senate Democrats Investigate a New Allegation of Sexual Misconduct, from Brett Kavanaugh’s College Years

Reading archive 2018-09-20

‘The Apprentice’ book excerpt: At CIA’s ‘Russia House,’ growing alarm about 2016 election interference

Reading archive 2018-09-19

‘I support higher taxes’: The billionaire behind the National Debt Clock has had it with Trump

New estimate: GOP’s second tax cuts would add $3.8 trillion to deficit

Reading archive 2018-09-18

Scientists thought they had created the perfect tree. But it became a nightmare.

The horticulture industry’s age problem is bigger than you think

What the man accused of being part of Kavanaugh’s alleged sexual assault had to say about women’s sexuality

Reading archive 2018-09-16

California professor, writer of confidential Brett Kavanaugh letter, speaks out about her allegation of sexual assault

Reading archive 2018-09-14

After hazing deaths, parents unite with fraternities to make change

Manafort will cooperate with Mueller as part of guilty plea, prosecutor says

The mystery of Tucker Carlson

Reading archive 2018-09-13

I Wrote Some of the Stolen Memos That Brett Kavanaugh Lied to the Senate About: He should be impeached, not elevated.

Reading archive 2018-09-11

THE FALLING MAN: An unforgettable story.

Republicans have become ‘silent’ on deficit reduction, Romney says

Reading archive 2018-09-10

Infectious Theory Of Alzheimer's Disease Draws Fresh Interest

Reading archive 2018-09-05

Nerve agent poisoning: Theresa May says Russian intelligence officers carried out attack on ex-spy in Salisbury

I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration: I work for the president but like-minded colleagues and I have vowed to thwart parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.

Southern Republican senators reject Trump’s criticism of Sessions

This Is a Constitutional Crisis: A cowardly coup from within the administration threatens to enflame the president’s paranoia and further endanger American security.

We're Watching an Antidemocratic Coup Unfold: Acts of sabotage against the president are perilous to the American system of government. They're also self-serving.

Reading archive 2018-09-04

Bob Woodward’s new book reveals a ‘nervous breakdown’ of Trump’s presidency

Transcript: Phone call between President Trump and journalist Bob Woodward

Reading archive 2018-09-01

McCain conspiracists say his brain cancer was a hoax