Reading archive 2026-08-26

Karen Attiah Is Still Waiting for the Washington Post to Call: The former columnist says she hasn't heard from the paper since an arbitrator ordered it to rehire her.

Why it matters that Dolly Parton wasn’t a mother: With decades of philanthropy, she proved that parenting isn’t the only way to invest in generations of children.

Canada should be ready to cut electricity, critical minerals, Ontario's premier says

They’re about to enter college. But first, they have to learn sign language.: At Gallaudet University, a school for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, not everyone shows up knowing ASL. A program offers help.

The attack on Putin’s $20 billion pipeline can teach the U.S. about cards: Don’t underestimate countries like Ukraine. The Nord Stream sabotage shows why. - "Nord Stream, the world’s largest offshore pipeline system and Vladimir Putin’s flagship geopolitical project in Europe, took more than two decades to complete and cost nearly $20 billion. In September 2022, a handful of Ukrainians destroyed it with a rented yacht, commercially available diving equipment and four civilian divers armed with makeshift explosives."

Is Mojtaba Khamenei Dead?: The office of Iran’s supreme leader has fallen quiet, fueling uncertainty in a country with decisions to make.

The Qataris Gave Trump an Airplane. He Crippled Their Country in Return.: The tiny Gulf state is learning that the U.S. president doesn’t always keep his end of the deal. - "To understand this strange deal - so absurdly corrupt that there is nothing analogous in the history of the American executive branch - it's necessary to understand Qatar, the rare country with both the means and the disposition to even contemplate it. The Qataris don't have allies. They have investments. Their investments in American relationships are undoubtedly their most important, and they've provided billions of dollars of diplomatic and military-support services to the U.S. But at the same time they've been providing money to America's defense, they've also provided support to America's enemies.

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"The many U.S. intelligence officers, diplomats, and military veterans I spoke with consistently offered the same appraisal: It would be inaccurate to say that Qatar directly 'supports terrorism,' but the country's money and politics support an environment that helps terrorism and extremism flourish."