Reading archive 2022-10-31

Elon Musk deleted a tweet about Paul Pelosi. Here’s why that matters.: The comment amplified a baseless report about the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband and stirred an outcry

How to survive a crowd crush and why they can become deadly: Staying on your feet, keeping your arms free and helping those around you are all ways to improve your chances of getting to safety

At small-town radio station, the right-wing misinformation effort goes local

Reading archive 2022-10-29

Attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband follows years of GOP demonizing her: A man with right-wing views who broke into the House speaker’s home yelled “Where is Nancy?” before assaulting Paul Pelosi with a hammer, police say.

D.C.’s great rat migration — and how they survived during the pandemic: Play this video game to try your paw at surviving as Cheddar the D.C. rat

Rat catchers share tips and videos of their rodent showdowns

Opinion  For Metro, governance reform has to come before financial infusions

Opinion  American Jews start to think the unthinkable

Kyrie Irving Boosts Antisemitic Movie Peddling ‘Jewish Slave Ships’: The video is based on a venomously antisemitic book which asserts that "many famous high-ranking Jews" have "admitted" to "worship[ing] Satan or Lucifer."

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Reading archive 2022-10-27

News of ‘Twister’ sequel has weather fanatics swirling with excitement: Filming for a follow-up to the 1996 box office hit that starred Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt will begin in the spring, Deadline reports

Overt U.S. antisemitism returns with Trump, Ye: ‘Something is different’: ‘It’s like we’re coming back from a 50-year vacation,’ one expert said

Nearly half of Americans think U.S. should be ‘Christian nation,’ poll finds: But Pew respondents differed widely in describing what that term might mean

Opinion  James Bennet was right

Cal State banned caste discrimination. Two Hindu professors sued.

Reading archive 2022-10-26

All the times our kids spooked the %^*! out of us

Trial begins for two D.C. police officers charged in fatal moped chase

Kanye West may have finally reached the point of no return: As a dominant cultural figure of the 21st century, West has been through cycle after cycle of controversy and redemption. His repeated antisemitic statements might prove too much to overcome.

These scary stories will chill your blood during spooky season: Whether you’re looking for a classic ghost story or a Lovecraftian tale of cosmic horror, we have a recommendation for you

Woman goes to work, gets swallowed whole by 22-foot python

Opinion  Under-voting in D.C. at-large races devalues voters in wards 7 and 8 [ed. note: majorities of Ward 7 and 8 voters don't vote for at-large council races]

Opinion  Trump lets the truth slip about the MAGA base — and today’s GOP - "In Trump’s own telling, GOP base voters must be told that when they lose, they’ve been robbed — the outcome is illegitimate by definition. Scores of other GOP candidates are running for positions of control over elections — while essentially vowing to treat future elections as subject to nullification — which makes Trump’s point harder to deny."

D.C.’s most famous bald eagle couple rebuilds nest in Washington: Experts say the pair, Mr. President and Lotus, will probably try to breed soon. If eggs are laid, eaglets could hatch in the spring.

Reading archive 2022-10-25

Exploring the architecture of Washington, beyond the National Mall

Here’s exactly how your diet affects the planet, a landmark study finds: From pork to rice to seafood, a new analysis of nearly 99 percent of all food production on land and sea reveals the ecological footprint of what we eat - "For example, beef production in Brazil has a larger environmental impact than is attributed to the U.S. cattle industry, though Brazil produces 10 percent less meat than the United States."

How you can make more socially conscious Halloween candy choices: Chocolate, a fixture of Halloween, can have serious environmental, climate and social impacts.

What ‘The Trump Tapes’ reveal about Bob Woodward: The legendary journalist said audio recordings of his Trump interviews offer deeper understanding of the man. They are also a surprising window into Woodward’s method.

Liberal Democrats withdraw letter to Biden that urged him to rethink Ukraine strategy

Reading archive 2022-10-24

Opinon  What we found when analyzing 1,000 viral TikToks on #Abortion - "We found two things, chiefly: pro-abortion-rights posts get more views than antiabortion videos — and the platform is almost perfectly designed to further divide us."

Opinion  The world continues to ignore the radicalization of India

Opinion  Give my disregards to Broadway’s over-the-top theater ‘trigger warnings’

Florida needs workers to rebuild after Ian. Undocumented migrants are stepping in.: Hundreds have arrived in the Sunshine State despite Gov. Ron DeSantis’s warning that those without papers are not wanted in Florida. - "'We’d like them back,' Nancy Randall, a real estate agent who declined to give her age or political affiliation, said of the immigrants DeSantis had flown to Martha’s Vineyard, after Ian drove four feet of water into her green-shuttered home in Naples, soaking her grandmother’s rocking chair and everything else. 'We need all the helpers we can get.'"

The anxieties of growing old when you’re LGBTQ: Who would you call to bring you chicken soup? For many LGBTQ seniors who are alone, that’s no easy question.

Ask a Doctor: What happens if I drink too much water?: Normal kidneys can release up to a quart of fluid every hour. Drinking more than that can be hazardous to your health.

Right-wing roadshow promotes Christian nationalism before midterms - "The traveling carnival of misinformation merges entertainment, politics and theology and makes the existential argument to those attending: The debate is no longer about Republican vs. Democrat, they say, it’s about good vs. evil. And it’s time to pick a side."

D.C.'s troubled sports-betting app could soon have some competition

Reading archive 2022-10-22

The ‘This American Life’ of ghost stories is captivating Gen Z ‘Otherworld’ podcast has amassed fandom by tapping into a growing online fascination with the paranormal

As Elon Musk expands his reach, Washington worries: Many lawmakers see the billionaire as too powerful and increasingly reckless - "'Elon, The Everywhere' is what one White House official called him. 'He believes he is such a gift to mankind that he doesn’t need any guardrails, that he knows best.'"

Under Xi, China wants absolute security. It’s making the world nervous.

The World Cup is only a month away. Will Qatar be ready?

Mar-a-Lago classified papers held U.S. secrets about Iran and China: Iran’s missile program, U.S. intelligence work aimed at China were among the most sensitive material seized by the FBI, people familiar with the matter say

Reading archive 2022-10-21

Fiona Hill: ‘Elon Musk Is Transmitting a Message for Putin - "It’s very clear that Elon Musk is transmitting a message for Putin. There was a conference in Aspen in late September when Musk offered a version of what was in his tweet — including the recognition of Crimea as Russian because it’s been mostly Russian since the 1780s — and the suggestion that the Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia should be up for negotiation, because there should be guaranteed water supplies to Crimea. He made this suggestion before Putin’s annexation of those two territories on September 30. It was a very specific reference. Kherson and Zaporizhzhia essentially control all the water supplies to Crimea. Crimea is a dry peninsula. It has aquifers, but it doesn’t have rivers. It’s dependent on water from the Dnipro River that flows through a canal from Kherson. It’s unlikely Elon Musk knows about this himself. The reference to water is so specific that this clearly is a message from Putin.

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"His solution is to have secret diplomacy, as we did during Cuban Missile Crisis, and have a direct compromise between the United States and Russia. 

"But there’s no strategic standoff here. This is pure nuclear blackmail. There can’t be a compromise based on him not setting off a nuclear weapon if we hand over Ukraine. Putin is behaving like a rogue state because, well, he is a rogue state at this point. And he’s being explicit about what he wants. We have to pull all the diplomatic stops out. We have to ensure that he’s not going to have the effect that he wants with this nuclear brinkmanship. 

"Putin is also making it very clear that to get what you want in the world, you have to have a nuclear weapon and to protect yourself, you also have to have a nuclear weapon. So this is an absolute mess. Global nuclear stability is on a knife edge.

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We’re not in a proxy war with Russia, just like we weren’t in a proxy war with Germany during World War I when we were trying to get German forces out of France and Belgium. It wasn’t a proxy war either when we were trying to get Germany out of Poland and all the other places that it invaded in Europe during World War II. We are trying to help Ukraine liberate itself, having been invaded by Russia. 

"This whole proxy war debate deprives Ukraine of agency. But, if we talk about Ukraine being part of NATO at this particular moment, it will simply feed into this flawed discussion. It will detract from the essence of what this war is, which is Russia trying to seize Ukrainian territory."

Reading archive 2022-10-20

Boy, 12, Charged in Md. Gas Station Murder Back in Jail After Attacking Student: The 12-year-old boy was released from juvenile detention and ordered to go back to school after he was charged with killing a gas station employee in Prince George's County, Maryland

Opinion  CNN host dreams of a ‘whole network’ for ‘independent thinkers’

Opinion  Hawley is right that there’s a masculinity crisis. It’s inside the GOP.

Documents detail plans to gut Twitter’s workforce: Previously unreported details shed new light on Twitter’s motivations for selling the company — and Elon Musk’s plans to transform it

Reading archive 2022-10-19

The three-year effort to undercut the Russia probe comes up dry

Exclusive: Bob Woodward releasing new audiobook ‘The Trump Tapes’ with eight hours of recorded interviews

Reading archive 2022-10-18

D.C. attorney general plans to take action on Daniel Snyder, Commanders

Ohio Senate debate filled with contentious exchanges

Soda pop, chips, hot dogs, etc. – they can take years off your life: No matter how old you are, or how much junk food you consume, it’s never too late to start undoing the damage caused by a poor diet

A battle for working-class voters in a key Indiana House race: The race in Indiana’s 1st Congressional District will test whether Democrats can halt Republicans’ gains with the White working-class voters — including union members — who played a crucial role in electing Donald Trump in 2016.

GOP to use debt limit to force spending cuts, McCarthy says - "House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said that if Republicans win control of the House the GOP will use raising the debt limit as leverage to force spending cuts — which could include cuts to Medicare and Social Security — and limit additional funding to Ukraine."

Most Ukrainians want to keep fighting until Russia is driven out, poll finds

China plans to seize Taiwan on ‘much faster timeline,’ Blinken says

Opinion  Republicans’ secret economic agenda? A global financial crisis.

Desperate pleas and smuggled pills: A covert abortion network rises after Roe: Amid legal and medical risks, a growing army of activists is funneling pills from Mexico into states that have banned abortion - "'I want those politicians to feel powerless,' the nurse said of her decision to join the ranks of the illegal abortion movement. 'I want them to feel the same way my patients feel.'"

Reading archive 2022-10-17

Trump charged Secret Service ‘exorbitant’ rates at his hotels, records show - "In 2019, Eric Trump said the Trump Organization was saving the Secret Service agents — and taxpayers who paid the bill — huge sums.

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"But the reality was different, the records reveal. During Trump’s presidency, Secret Service supervisors frequently asked for special waivers to let the agency pay far more than the government-approved nightly rate for a hotel in D.C. — usually $195 to $240. Instead, they paid the higher costs the Trump Organization was charging."

American technology boosts China’s hypersonic missile program - "Military research groups at the leading edge of China’s hypersonics and missile programs — many on a U.S. export blacklist — are purchasing a range of specialized American technology, including products developed by firms that have received millions of dollars in grants and contracts from the Pentagon, a Washington Post investigation has found.

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"The Washington Post mapped more than 300 sales since 2019 of U.S.-origin technology to dozens of entities involved in China’s hypersonics or missile programs by analyzing contract solicitation and award documents issued by the groups, as well as speaking to six Chinese scientists working in military labs and universities who described almost unfettered access to American technology with applications in the design and testing of missiles. The scientists spoke to The Post on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive research."

Russia’s airstrikes, intended to show force, reveal another weakness

Opinion  Biden just pulled off a big diplomatic victory — and almost no one noticed - "Israel’s security establishment is firmly in favor of the deal not only because it will help safeguard Israel’s natural gas fields but also because it will help bolster the Lebanese government and economy. Israel does not want a failed state next door."

Opinion  So who’s ‘naive’ about Saudi Arabia, now?

Obama to campaign in Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia: Additional travel dates are expected to be announced in the coming weeks

Opinion  Writers, be wary of Throat-Clearers and Wan Intensifiers. Very, very wary.

Alaska cancels snow crab season for first time after population collapses

Daryl Morey Changed the Game, but He Still Hasn’t Beaten It - "The Billy Beane of basketball revolutionized the modern NBA, but a championship still has eluded one of the most successful executives in league history. This year’s Sixers team, though, could be his best shot yet. Says Joel Embiid: 'What I like about him is that he’s always going for it. Whatever it takes.'"

Exxon fully withdraws from Russia after Putin seizes assets

Reading archive 2022-10-13

With U.S. nudges, Google and others aim to help Iranian protesters

Opinion  I’m the father of a trans boy in Florida. ‘Don’t say gay’ is working as intended.

Founders Claimed A Subversive Right To 'Nature's God'

Sources: Commanders boss Snyder claims 'dirt' on NFL owners, Goodell

Reading archive 2022-10-12

Baltic nations long warned about Russia. Now, maybe the West is listening.

Leaked racist tape shakes political alliances in Los Angeles: For decades, Black people and Latinos made common cause in the diverse city. Now, racist comments from some Latino leaders threaten the partnership.

Alex Jones ordered to pay nearly $1 billion to Sandy Hook families

Reading archive 2022-10-11

Watch the Disturbing Kanye Interview Clips That Tucker Carlson Didn’t Put on Air: Motherboard obtained footage of Ye making bigoted statements about Jewish people and bizarre claims about "fake children," as well as describing visions of "kinetic energy" cities sent to him by God.

What does Madison Cawthorn do now?: The defeated congressman’s next chapter may offer insight into how redemption works, or doesn’t, for a scandal-plagued Republican who still loves Trump

Tulsi Gabbard’s ties to secretive cult may explain her perplexing political journey: Tulsi Gabbard’s upbringing in an offshoot of the Hare Krishna movement with strict devotion to a secretive guru sheds light on her apparent fondness for Vladimir Putin, Bevan Hurley writes

Russian military ‘exhausted,’ Putin’s judgment ‘flawed,’ U.K. spy chief says

Reading archive 2022-10-10

After Outcry Over Racist Remarks, Nury Martinez Resigns As President Of The LA City Council

Twitter and Instagram remove antisemitic posts from Kanye West

A California city’s water supply is expected to run out in two months: Amid a historic drought and record shortages, Coalinga searches for extra water to make it through the year

Steele dossier source heads to trial, in possible last stand for Durham

Reading archive 2022-10-08

The U.S. is the world’s largest oil producer. You’ll still pay more for gas.: The United States’ role in the global oil market, explained

Amid Ukrainian taunts, Russia scrambles to salvage Crimean Bridge after fiery explosion

Norway is portrayed as both hero and villain in Europe’s energy crisis - "In private, E.U. officials and diplomats concede that it is awkward for the bloc to have spent 2021 telling Norway not to drill in the arctic because of climate change, only to spend 2022 hounding them for discounts on fossil fuel. But the war has changed the game, one E.U. official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. Calling peace-promoting, aid-delivering Norway a war profiteer 'punches them where it hurts.'"

Reading archive 2022-10-07

Brett Favre's involvement in Mississippi welfare scandal draws outrage and indifference

The super-rich ‘preppers’ planning to save themselves from the apocalypse - "What I came to realise was that these men are actually the losers. The billionaires who called me out to the desert to evaluate their bunker strategies are not the victors of the economic game so much as the victims of its perversely limited rules. More than anything, they have succumbed to a mindset where 'winning' means earning enough money to insulate themselves from the damage they are creating by earning money in that way. It’s as if they want to build a car that goes fast enough to escape from its own exhaust."

Opinion  Kanye West, Herschel Walker and the politics of toxic Black men

Opinion  Why the West must stop Putin’s drive to export Russia’s cruel pathologies

Opinion  Quit dragging Maggie Haberman

Opinion  A Georgia Republican’s takedown of Trump and Herschel Walker nails it

In U.S., ruinous cotton boll weevils are exiled to a ‘last frontier’

Opinion  A longtime conservative insider warns: The GOP can’t be saved

Reading archive 2022-10-06

Hibernating fat bears are complex. They may hold lessons for human health.: Hibernating bears stay healthy despite being very fat and sedentary. New research is focusing on what humans can learn from them.

Tactics of repression: How Iran is trying to stop Mahsa Amini protests: A visual forensics analysis shows authorities using indiscriminate force, making violent arrests and throttling internet service to crush demonstrations.

Reading archive 2022-10-04

D.C. wants to save at-risk people. Violence, missteps marred the effort.: The city has yet to reach about half of those on its “People of Promise” list, and a top official graded the program as a C-plus.

Ukraine hammers Russian forces into retreat on east and south fronts

Reading archive 2022-10-03

As TV doctor, Mehmet Oz provided platform for questionable products and views: Now a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, Oz has made his medical background and his popular TV show a centerpiece of his campaign

Pro-Life’ Herschel Walker Paid for Girlfriend’s Abortion - The woman has receipts—and a “get well” card she says the football star, now a Senate candidate, sent her.

Reading archive 2022-09-30

These ‘nuclear bros’ say they know how to solve climate change: Meet the internet subculture obsessed with nuclear power — and proud of it

Ginni Thomas falsely asserts to Jan. 6 panel that election was stolen, chairman says