Reading archive 2024-08-27

After virtual academy closes, student heads to classroom for the first time: Montgomery County Public Schools closed a virtual academy. Now, some of its students are bracing to go back to school in person.

This state calls itself the ‘most pro-life.’ But moms there keep dying.: Giving birth in Arkansas, especially its rural southeast, comes with more risk and less care. The challenges feel acute for someone like doula Hajime White. - "Arkansas already has one of the nation’s worst maternal mortality rates, and mothers in this area die at a rate exceeding the state average. Ninety-two percent of recent maternal deaths were preventable, a state review committee found.

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"Though teen birth rates are falling nationally, federal data shows the statistic for Arkansas is almost twice the U.S. average. Lack of access to contraception is a major factor; the rate at which teens in Arkansas have unprotected sex is 75 percent higher, according to a report from the nonprofit Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families."

Opinion How Rep. Mike Gallagher, a rising GOP star, was driven out of politics

More than 200 former Bush, McCain and Romney staffers endorse Harris: An open letter warned that a second Donald Trump presidency “will hurt real, everyday people and weaken our sacred institutions.”

D.C. police starting new unit dedicated to street traffic safety: Traffic enforcement has dropped precipitously since the pandemic while traffic fatalities have gone up.

First day of school in D.C. brings new book bags and buildings: D.C. Public Schools reopened several schools after multimillion-dollar renovations.

Chinese government hackers penetrate U.S. internet providers to spy: Beijing’s hacking effort has “dramatically stepped up from where it used to be,” says former top U.S cybersecurity official.

Lawsuit to keep single-family zoning in Alexandria likely heading to trial: A judge ruled that a group of Alexandria homeowners can move ahead in suing the Northern Virginia city over its “Zoning for Housing” plan.

Scientists have more evidence to explain why billions of crabs vanished around Alaska - "Fishermen and scientists were alarmed when billions of crabs vanished from the Bering Sea near Alaska in 2022. It wasn’t overfishing, scientists explained — it was likely the shockingly warm water that sent the crabs’ metabolism into overdrive and starved them to death."

Cows obstruct Nigeria’s capital as climate change and development leave herders with nowhere to go

Why Democrats are so quiet about climate change right now: Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats have not made significant mentions of climate change or the environment in recent stump speeches.

Good and Bad Critiques of the Trump Civil Fraud Verdict - "But some of the defenses offered on behalf of Trump simply don’t hold water, chief among them the claim that Trump’s conduct was somehow victimless and that the counterparties, primarily banks and insurance companies, came out fine."

Thoughts on Judge Engoron's Opinion, A Response to Calabresi: A different take. - "They were able to repay the loans, true, but they wouldn't have gotten the loans without the lies.  And they reaped massive profits from lying, Judge Engoron concludes, as they were able to make deals they wouldn't have been able to make, and at rates they wouldn't have been able to get, had they been truthful."

YIMBYs' Premature Victory Dance at the DNC: Kamala Harris' promise to end the housing shortage and adopt rent control shows that YIMBY ideas are just one of several competing housing policy agendas within the Democratic Party. - "She has endorsed President Joe Biden's call for federal rent control, a disastrous policy with a long track record of reducing rental housing supply and quality. She's called for $25,000 down payment subsidies for first-time homebuyers, something that could increase supply somewhat but will also certainly increase home prices."

Plastics Are Better for the Climate Than Aluminum and Glass, Actually: Producing plastics from fossil fuels emits a lot of carbon dioxide, but a new study finds the life cycle emissions are actually lower than glass and aluminum. - "The good news is that some companies and researchers are developing nearly endlessly recyclable plastics. Currently, UBQ Materials turns unsorted household wastes including single-use plastics into thermoplastics that can be subsequently recycled as many as five times—a process that cuts greenhouse gas emissions by more than 90 percent. In addition, researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed an 'infinitely recyclable' bio-based plastic called polydiketoenamine that cuts greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 98 percent compared to conventional plastics."

The thread connecting Robert Kennedy Jr., chemtrails and Project 2025: Robert Kennedy Jr.’s exotic beliefs are no barrier to his having authority in a Trump administration. Nor will the Project 2025 authors’. - "'We are going to stop this crime,' Kennedy pledged to user 'Concerned Citizen.' The crime? 'Chemtrails,' the conspiracy theory that the lines planes trace in the sky are not water vapor (which they are) but at least occasionally dangerous chemicals being released for some nebulously explained population-control effort."

Reading archive 2024-06-26

A 3-year-old voicemail goes viral, leads to emotional reunion: The motivational voicemail ended up on TikTok with 6 million views and a movement to find Tameka Rooks, the woman behind the message - "'The goal is to get you to come in and not be nervous,' Rooks said. 'It’s a lot of money [to take the exams]. So I’m just trying to push you. You might be my next doctor. I might need your help one day'"

Michael Phelps warns Congress that doping issues threaten the Olympics: Olympic legend testifies before House subcommittee in hearing spurred by revelations of Chinese swimmers’ positive tests before Tokyo Games.

Biden to pardon U.S. veterans convicted in gay-sex cases by military: Thousands of former service members involuntarily discharged under old sodomy laws will be allowed to apply for withheld benefits.

Latimer ousts ‘Squad’ member Bowman in Democratic primary in New York: The race between Bowman and county official George Latimer was contentious, with accusations of racism and antisemitism. It was the most expensive House primary in history.

D.C. Council approves money to study reparations for Black residents: The District is likely to join localities nationwide in searching for concrete ways to reckon with slavery’s generational harm.

'My Nigerian great-grandfather sold slaves': Nigerian journalist and novelist Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani writes that one of her ancestors sold slaves, but argues that he should not be judged by today's standards or values. - "Igbo slaves served as domestic servants and labourers. They were sometimes also sacrificed in religious ceremonies and buried alive with their masters to attend to them in the next world.

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"Records from the UK's National Archives at Kew show how desperately the British struggled to end the internal trade in slaves for almost the entire duration of the colonial period. 

"They promoted legitimate trade, especially in palm produce. They introduced English currency to replace the cumbersome brass rods and cowries that merchants needed slaves to carry. They prosecuted offenders with prison sentences."

 - "We, the American dining public, are responsible for covering much of the payroll for front-of-the-house workers. It’s been this way since the Pullman Company hired many formerly enslaved Black people and paid them substandard wages, requiring them to live largely off the tips they earned catering to White travelers."

America imported tipping from Europe — and then took it too far: Our tipping obsession has exacerbated inequality.

Reading archive 2024-05-14

Should our future food be genetically engineered?: Genetically modified crops can help cut carbon emissions, research shows — but they still face major hurdles.

Orcas again sink yacht near Strait of Gibraltar as high-risk season looms: Two people were rescued after orcas hit the roughly 50-foot Alboran Cognac 14 miles off the coast of Morocco, the 26th orca encounter in the region this year.

Why you should embrace using cold water, almost all the time: Heating water gobbles energy, leading to higher utility bills and more planet-warming emissions.

Hammerhead Sharks Are Back in the Caribbean: “I Could Not Believe It”

Biden once nearly died of an aneurysm. Risky surgery changed his life.: Decades ago, Biden’s condition was misdiagnosed as a pinched nerve. His survival helps explain the 81-year-old’s motivations today.

‘Spacey Unmasked’ surfaces new allegations: Kevin Spacey has battled a number of accusations, but a two-part docuseries on Max features more accounts of alleged assault.

The wacky, grueling bike race that captivates a Midwest college town: The Little 500 has been a mainstay at Indiana University for decades, inspiring a movie and the entire campus. Here’s how this year’s dramatic race unfolded.

Opinion  What cellphone data tells us is really happening in cities: People aren’t eager to return to offices, but they’re venturing downtown after hours and on weekends.

The next global crisis could come from the sun. We should prepare now.

U.S. threats led to rupture of vital military ties, Nigerien leader says: In an exclusive interview, Prime Minister Zeine blamed the U.S. for the breakdown in bilateral relations, culminating with the planned ouster of American troops.

Why Clouds Are the Key to New Troubling Projections on Warming

Second Russian invasion is worse than the first, Kharkiv region evacuees say: Thousands of Ukrainians have fled border towns and villages in the northeast Kharkiv region as Russian troops advance in a new attack.

Why you should become a volunteer urban biodiversity scientist: Next time you pick up your phone to snap a seflie, try grabbing a photo of the life around you.

Senator will block RFK site bill unless team honors family of logo creator: Steve Daines (R-Mont.) is calling for Commanders officials “to properly honor the history of the logo and heritage of our tribal nations.”

Gallery Place Chinatown Presentation