So I read something...: Taiwan

How an alcohol-fueled street fight turned into a conservative cause: The brawl in downtown Cincinnati has sparked debate about policing and bail reform. - "Cincinnati, which 2020 Census data puts at 47 percent White and 40 percent Black, has been rocked by high-profile racial incidents in recent months. In February, residents of a historically Black suburb confronted a neo-Nazi group displaying swastikas and distributing Ku Klux Klan fliers in their community. Residents have since established an armed patrol group of their neighborhood. In May, the father of a Black teen shot and killed by Cincinnati police fatally struck a Hamilton County sheriff’s deputy with his car the day after his son’s death, according to authorities."

Philadelphia transit hits ‘death spiral.’ More cities could follow.: Across Philadelphia and its suburbs, commuters are bracing for a dramatic reduction in public transit after state lawmakers were unable to agree on funding.

On screens and in games, Taiwan acts out a Chinese invasion: With the prospect of a Chinese invasion generating growing anxiety, Taiwan’s entertainment industry is tackling the sensitive subject through TV shows and games.

National Guard troops are in D.C. We went to see what they’re up to.: While some see the more than 2,200 National Guard members in the District as an extra layer of security, others question their utility.

DOGE Targeted Him on Social Media. Then the Taliban Took His Family.: Afghan scholar Mohammad Halimi, who fled the Taliban in 2021, had worked to help U.S. diplomats understand his homeland. Then DOGE put his family’s lives at risk by exposing his sensitive work for a U.S.-funded nonprofit. - "They rifled through other USIP files, spotlighting expenditures they used to publicly embarrass the institute. On Fox, DOGE also bragged about uncovering payments for 'private jets,' when, in fact, records show that USIP chartered a single plane for an evacuation mission out of a war zone for its staff. Cavanaugh did not answer a question about the assertion." [ed. note: among many other lies]

New GOP bill is latest push to extend federal control of D.C. police: The bill joins others from Republican legislators aiming to grant the federal government extended power over D.C. police. - "Committed partisans are always tempted to find evidence, however dubious, that being more hard-line is the path to political victory. It happens to people of all political descriptions. In recent years, though, Democrats have been especially prone to political misjudgments of this kind.

"Sanders’s strong primary challenge to Hillary Clinton in 2016, for example, was taken as a sign that democratic socialism had a bright political future, when it was really a sign that she was an unappealing candidate. His strong performance with White working-class voters in that contest evaporated the next time he ran, when he was no longer a protest vote against Clinton."

A reality check for NPR stations in Trump country: Will rural affiliates see through the politicization and adopt a more all-embracing approach? [ed. note: dumb]

The Culture War Over Nothing: Is anyone actually mad about sorority-rush dances?

MAGA World Is So Close to Getting It: Gavin Newsom’s parodies are riling people up—and they don’t quite seem to understand why. - "As it turns out, the people who pioneered the slogan 'Fuck your feelings' are impossibly delicate souls."

The Real Reason American Socialists Don’t Win: Only part of the left’s most promising political party even wants to win elections or come to power. - "Moreover, some incidents at the convention cast serious doubt on DSA's commitment to the 'democratic' part of its title. For example, the convention rejected an amendment to a resolution declaring that DSA stood 'against all governments that engage in the repression of democratic rights.'"

Wednesday, July 23, 2025

Reading archive 2025-07-23

In hearing, developer told to rework plans to downsize D.C. grocery store: By early next week, Jair Lynch needs to rethink its request to downsize a grocery store it plans to build in a new Northwest Washington neighborhood.

Pressure heats up on D.C. Council to hold vote on RFK Stadium deal: D.C. lawmakers have said for weeks that they are doing their due diligence on the $3.7 billion dollar deal, and expect to approve it - just not as fast as everyone wants.

The ‘World’s Smartest Man’ Absolutely Hates Me: With an apparent score of 276, YoungHoon Kim claims to have the highest IQ on the planet. Just don’t ask him to prove it.

House Republicans eye restrictions on D.C. traffic safety, abortion and more: The proposed federal spending bill comes as President Donald Trump again publicly muses about taking over the city.

Try these hidden ‘NOPE’ buttons to stop AI content: How to turn off AI in Google and DuckDuckGo web search results -- plus a no-AI nuclear option.

"If he failed, their process failed": Inside the NFLPA meltdown

How strategists think about keeping the peace in the Taiwan Strait: In 1914, the world stumbled into a war that hurt all combatants. Is it on the same path now?

I’m a microplastics researcher. Here’s how I limit the plastic in my life.: Microplastics are everywhere. But there are simple ways to lower your exposure.

Ukraine’s top commander asks Trump to help take the war to Russia: With Trump now open to supplying U.S.-made weapons to Ukraine, Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky calls for longer-range missiles and the permission to use them against Russia.

China’s strategy? Let Trump cook.: As President Donald Trump dismantles U.S. soft power and launches trade wars with allies, China is content to sit back and watch. - "'The United States, in their view, is dismantling its alliance relationships and alienating much of the world,' Gewirtz told the Wire China. 'It is dismantling aspects of the U.S. science and technology ecosystem, cutting funding to some of our great universities, and making it very unappealing, if not outright impossible, for foreign talent to come do research in those universities. And it is eliminating arms of U.S. influence around the world, from USAID to Voice of America. China’s view is that the United States is, in a sense, unilaterally disarming.'

...

"[Economic historian]Tooze argued that the Americans have 'dropped the ball' here and the consequences will be vast. 'This is the material dethroning of the West as the central driver of world history,' he said. 'This is really what the provincialization of the West really looks like.'"

The Wrecking of the FBI The former FBI official Peter Strzok on how President Donald Trump is destroying U.S. counterintelligence from the inside. - "But they thought they had a deal. Bracket Trump, leave Trump out of the story, and Trump in turn would license them to go on a hunting expedition against all the people they really hated. A long list of liberal icons, people like—people whom they dislike for other reasons who were in the Epstein network. If Trump would just—they would stand back from Trump and he would then deliver to them justice against their ideological and other kinds of opponents. They’re mad, these people, because Trump reneged on that deal. In order to protect himself, he ended up protecting a lot of other people, too, or so people in MAGA world who are excited about this issue believe that this has been taken away from them. And for some of the people who are the loudest influencers, losing the Epstein file, having Donald Trump say, There are no records, there’s nothing to see here, everybody stand down, that’s not just a threat to their belief system. For many of them, it’s a threat to their livelihoods. For a lot of influencers, Epstein was central to their engagement strategies, very lucrative engagement strategies, and they now have the choice: If they accept the Donald Trump edict—if they say, Okay, we’ll stand down, as President Trump says—then what do they do for engagement?

...

"This is a chronic—I think, going back to the 9/11 analogy, one of the things that happened after 9/11 was the decision was made to harden cockpit doors. What if somebody, a year and a half or two years before 9/11 said, You know, why don’t we harden the cockpit doors? Why don’t we do that? See how that maybe that would be an improvement. And they did it. We would probably now be studying that hardening of cockpit doors as an example of government waste. Right?

"Strzok: Yes.

"Frum: We hardened all the cockpit doors. It cost all this money. No one ever tried it. Nothing ever happened. Why did we ever do that in the first place? What a waste of time and money. Government overregulation hardening cockpit doors. This is the great injustice of government. No one ever knows what’s behind door number two, the thing that didn’t happen, the thing that you prevented."

How to Be More Charismatic, but Not Too Much More: It turns out that being charming has a happy mean.

What to Do With the Most Dangerous Book in America: At a perilous American moment, the Shakespeare scholar James Shapiro explains why he wanted to read The Turner Diaries.

This Is the Presidency John Roberts Has Built: The country is witnessing the creation of an all-powerful institution, and one man is responsible. - "Roberts has all but made at-will removal the president's constitutionally guaranteed prerogative, and his rhetoric goes further yet. His opinions taken together create a dangerously authoritarian and largely ahistorical narrative about the constitutional presidency."

What Trump’s Feud With Jerome Powell Is Really About: The president doesn’t think the Federal Reserve chair is bad at his job. He objects to the job itself. - "The Federal Reserve's assignment is to steward the long-term interests of the U.S. economy even at the occasional expense of short-term pain by balancing the twin objectives of suppressing inflation and managing the unemployment rate. Trump, however, believes that the Fed's objective should be to speed up the economy under Republican administrations and slow it down under Democratic ones. To the extent that the central bank balances unemployment and inflation, he would like to see the pain of high unemployment shifted onto Democratic administrations so that Republican ones can benefit from rapid economic growth."

Thursday, October 31, 2024

Reading archive 2024-10-31

The Unfair Typecasting of Second Empire Style: How did Second Empire architecture — elegant and innovative — become the de facto style for haunted houses and creepy attractions?

Is this the ‘most haunted’ building in Washington? The EEOB’s spooky history.: A locked case in which items somehow moved. Spectral figures in the halls. Ex-White House staffers share Eisenhower Executive Office Building ghost stories.

The passive house trend is booming: These green homes are designed to be as energy efficient as possible. New incentives aim to make them more budget-friendly.

Work Advice: How far should I go to accommodate a neurodivergent colleague?: It’s important to start by asking them what would help them succeed. The results may surprise you.

China built a $50 billion military stronghold in the South China Sea

Congress tried to fix presidential transitions. Trump is testing the changes.: The first test of a little-known change to the presidential transition process is causing anxiety as Trump is potentially poised to return to power.

Guns. Knives. Bats. Hammers. Hatchets. Spears.: As incidents of road rage escalate across the country, aggressive drivers in Texas try to understand what triggers anger.

Two Theories of Immaculate Disinflation, and Their Implications: Paul Krugman

"It is so disastrous": MAGA men are freaking out that wives may be secretly voting for Kamala Harris: "That’s the same thing as having an affair,” Fox News host argues as women fuel early vote in key states

Tuesday, August 6, 2024

Reading archive 2024-08-06

This High Schooler Invented an A.I.-Powered Trap That Zaps Invasive Lanternflies: Using solar power, machine learning and her family’s patio umbrella, 18-year-old Selina Zhang created a synthetic tree that lures the destructive species

I Put Up a Fence in Maine. Why Did It Cause Such a Fuss?

Harris chooses Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as VP pick: Walz, who has a record of winning over rural conservative voters, is little-known on the national stage.

EPA takes emergency action to stop use of dangerous pesticide: The pesticide, known as DCPA, is known to harm fetuses and “needs to be removed from the market immediately,” an EPA official said.

How I fed my family for days with food that was bound for the trash: A new generation of apps are rescuing food from the landfills at a fraction of the retail price at restaurants and grocery stores.

Opinion How to harden our defenses against an authoritarian president: A commander in chief with little concern for legal limits holds a big advantage over any lawful effort to restrain him.

Trump keeps attacking their spouses. Top GOPers keep supporting him anyway.: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) is the latest to find a family member in Donald Trump’s crosshairs.

RFK Jr. says he left a dead bear in Central Park as a joke a decade ago: In 2014, New York City authorities were baffled by the appearance of a dead bear cub in the park. Now the presidential candidate says he was responsible.

‘Ultra-cheap energy for every household’: could a different kind of tariff change everything? Rising block tariffs and national energy guarantee systems are almost unknown in Europe – but are flourishing elsewhere - "The idea is simple: the first block of energy, which is calculated to meet essential needs from heating to cooking and lighting, is either given at a reduced rate or free. The cost a unit then rises in additional blocks, meaning wealthier homes with excessive or non-essential consumption pay more."

The future of paper could come from gene-edited trees: Scientists are working to develop a tree that could ease the production of paper, resulting in less energy use and less pollution. - "The result: They cut the lignin content in some of those varieties almost in half. They also were able to boost the concentration of cellulose — the key ingredient in paper production — compared with lignin, making the trees better for pulping. The team published their findings last year in the prestigious journal Science."

I’m an oncologist. Here’s what I do to reduce my own cancer risk.: A recent study estimated that 40 percent of new cancer diagnoses in U.S. adults were due to modifiable factors such as diet and lifestyle.

Secretaries of state urge Musk to fix AI chatbot spreading false election info: Grok, the AI search assistant on Musk’s X platform, suggested that Kamala Harris had missed the ballot deadline in nine states. She hasn’t.

Boys are flocking to gymnastics classes, thanks to pommel horse guy: Representation matters in all forms, especially when an Olympic athlete like Stephen Nedoroscik is so relatable.

With Vance’s elevation, Pennsylvania voters reexamine Trump’s views on women: “Now that you’ve got Kamala in there, you’ve got a whole different ballgame,” one independent Pennsylvania voter said.

Opinion Republicans suddenly love crypto. Americans should beware. The cryptocurrency lobby is lining up behind Donald Trump. Voters should see nothing good in this.

Taiwan is readying citizens for a Chinese invasion. It’s not going well.: The government extended mandatory military service and revamped reservist training in an effort to make Beijing think twice. But it’s already falling short. - "While President Biden has repeatedly said he would send the U.S. military to defend Taiwan, Trump has made no such promises. Asked what he would do in an interview last month, Trump said that Taiwan was “9,500 miles away” and should pay for American defense."

Opinion How the broken immigration system is pushing skilled workers to enter illegally

Ex-GOP congressman Riggleman endorses Harris, rips Trump’s ‘thirst for power’: The former congressman was twice endorsed by Donald Trump but broke with him over Jan. 6.

Opinion Trump seems to forget it’s not 2016 anymore. And he’s frustrated.: After nine long years, his old way of campaigning just isn’t going to cut it.

JD Vance’s Marine buddies back his service over his politics: Critics call his about-face on Trump an affront to the military’s most basic values. His friends say attacks on his service are out of bounds.

Opinion The NABJ interview with Trump provides a model for media coverage No other sit-down this cycle has laid bare as much about the candidate. - "The mainstream media now faces a test of sorts. After the June 27 debate, the media spent three weeks flooding the zone with coverage of Biden’s frailty, in effect demanding every Democrat to defend Biden or distance themselves from him, and consulting a host of experts on aging. Failure to deploy similarly exacting treatment of Trump would confirm Democrats’ complaints that there is a bizarre double standard in coverage that allows Trump to escape appropriate scrutiny. It’s long past time to stop using euphemisms and soft-pedaling his bigotry. (As I have noted, the vast majority of outlets also have steered clear of assessing Trump’s mental and emotional state, despite repeated episodes in which his slurred speech, verbal glitches, incoherent ranting, mixing up people and bizarre references are obvious to anyone watching.)"

Why are humans such good distance runners? Science offers an answer.: At Paris Olympics, abundant sweat glands, little body hair, arched soles and spring-like Achilles tendons prime endurance runners to excel. - "We have physical features that are unusual or unknown in the rest of the animal kingdom, including abundant sweat glands, relatively little body hair, arched soles and springlike Achilles tendons. We have an abundance of slow-twitch fibers that are efficient for endurance pursuits. (Fast-twitch muscles are better for sprinting.)"

Opinion Why not run a team against Trump? Kamala Harris should borrow from the best comic books and get a band together.

Monday, July 1, 2024

Reading archive 2024-07-01

In head lice outbreaks, ‘selfies’ may be a surprising culprit: Getting close for group selfies could give lice an opportunity to crawl from one head to another, as they cannot jump or fly.

Opinion Denmark’s model for assimilation: Send in the bulldozers: The Danish plan has drawn criticism as ethnic discrimination. Others in Europe may be watching.

D.C. police respond to 6 shootings and a stabbing in 12-hour period: Two people were killed and seven were injured in the seven incidents.

No charges in fatal fight outside of D.C. restaurant: Vivek Taneja’s family says he was attacked while defending himself and his friends; prosecutors assert Taneja was the initial aggressor.

He never saw himself as disadvantaged. Then the government had him write an essay.: It had never occurred to Curtis Joachim to blame racism for his professional setbacks until an SBA application forced him to think differently about his life.

The most religious, and religiously diverse, places in America: This week, we mine the U.S. Religious Census, a decennial count of America’s faithful, for insights into the geography of religious devotion. We also compare people’s claims on church attendance to their actual behavior.

Russia’s devastating glide bombs keep falling on its own territory: Internal Russian documents show how often its glide bombs hit its own territory, likely due to faulty guidance systems, say experts.

What Taiwan is learning from the war in Ukraine: For the Taiwanese public, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has revealed the dangers at their own doorstep, said Taiwan’s de facto ambassador in Washington.

Opinion God save us from this dishonorable court: An egregious, unconscionable ruling on presidential immunity from the Supreme Court. - "Sotomayor was similarly apocalyptic. 'With fear for our democracy, I dissent,' she closed her dissent. Both Sotomayor and Jackson abandoned the customary 'respectfully' — for good reason."

Justice Sotomayor dissent: ‘The President is now a king above the law’: Liberal justices said the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling makes even corrupt presidents immune from criminal prosecution.

Opinion The Trump immunity decision isn’t the end of democracy — but it is bad: The Supreme Court’s opinion is much bigger than Trump.

Opinion Biden’s 2024 survival requires a lot more than hope: If the president falls significantly behind in polls, the party must intervene and find alternative candidates.

Monday, June 10, 2024

Reading archive 2024-06-10

Statues near White House vandalized during Gaza cease-fire protest: National Park Service workers power-washed sculptures in Lafayette Square that were graffitied and vandalized during a Gaza cease-fire protest on Saturday.

Opinion Is Donald Trump okay?: His story about hypothetically being electrocuted is another glimpse into a mind that is unwell.

Justice Alito talked about political divide on purported secret recordings: Recorded by a liberal filmmaker, the audio shows how hardball political tactics have landed at the court.

A home in Ohio for African immigrants with nowhere to go: Asylum seekers from the African nation of Mauritania are settling in a city drawing relatively little attention as immigration to the United States has soared.

OB/GYNs routinely experience sexual harassment, study suggests: Up to 70.9 percent of participants in the reviewed studies reported sexual harassment in the workplace.

What does Chinese repression look like? View these photos of Hong Kong

Opinion The U.S. military plans a ‘Hellscape’ to deter China from attacking Taiwan: But a top U.S. military commander for Asia says time is running out to put the plan in place. - "President Biden has repeatedly said he would send the U.S. military to defend Taiwan, although he added a new caveat in his latest interview with Time, saying, 'It would depend on the circumstances.' President Donald Trump seems less likely to intervene on Taiwan’s behalf, having told a GOP senator while in office that if China attacks, 'there isn’t a f------ thing we can do about it."

Thursday, May 2, 2024

Reading archive 2024-05-01

Brave Little Hunter is free: Baby orca escapes lagoon for open seas

Finding space for wind farms might be easier than we thought - "But the huge structures topped with massive rotating blades only take up five percent of the land where they’ve been built, new research shows

"The rest of the space can be used for other purposes, such as agriculture, according to a study published recently in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Science and Technology."

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene launches her plan to oust Speaker Johnson: But Democrats have promised to ride to the House speaker’s rescue, at least for now

Two teens arrested in shooting during school ‘skip day’ at Md. park: Greenbelt police announced arrests after five teens were shot and wounded at Schrom Hills Park on April 19.

An assassination plot on American soil reveals a darker side of Modi’s India

Opinion How the right U.S. chip strategy can keep Taiwan free

Journalism professors call on New York Times to review Oct. 7 report: A major investigative report into sexual violence in the Hamas attack on Israel has drawn criticism inside and outside

Bill Barr doesn’t mind a little autocracy if your politics are right

Tensions grow between Trump and Lake in Arizona race for Senate: The former president fears that GOP candidate Kari Lake might not win and will drag down his own prospects in the battleground state

America’s appetite for McMansions is devouring modern architecture: Chris Pratt demolishing a mid-century treasure is part of a larger, disturbing trend

Trump admits he told Secret Service to take him to Capitol on Jan 6 in rambling campaign rally: ‘It’s not my deal. I’m a lover, not a fighter,’ Mr Trump told a crowd of supporters in Wisconsin about his actions on January 6

How an inclusive gym brand became a battlefield over LGBTQ+ rights: At least 54 threats have been received by Planet Fitness locations following attacks by far-right influencer Chaya Raichik

Thursday, April 4, 2024

Reading archive 2024-04-04

A Native American tribe once called D.C. home. It’s had no living members for centuries.: As the number of Anacostans dwindled, they merged with larger tribes in the region.

Trump urges Netanyahu to ‘get it over with,’ questions Israel’s approach to war in Gaza: The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has in recent weeks found himself increasingly at odds with the GOP’s unwavering loyalty to Israel.

RFK Jr. campaign describes Jan. 6 defendants as ‘activists,’ then disavows email: Candidate’s team later said the communication, which stated the defendants had been stripped of their rights, ‘does not reflect Mr. Kennedy’s views’

What is May-Thurner syndrome? Lauren Boebert’s diagnosis, explained.

Are walking pads worth it? Why I’m never leaving my desk treadmill.: Early studies show walking desks might improve mood and stress. For me, the tiny treadmill was a life-changer.

Far-right politics could hurt business in North Carolina, some fear. Again.

Republican candidate’s wife sentenced to prison for voter fraud

Truck crash hurls 77,000 ‘threatened’ salmon into wrong creek

Centrist group No Labels won’t field a ticket in the presidential election: The group said in a statement that it had not identified candidates “with a credible path to winning the White House.”

Trump defends Judge Cannon in fight over classified documents trial: Known for attacking other judges, the indicted former president calls Cannon ‘highly respected’ amid dispute over presidential records law

Judge Cannon shoots down Trump’s presidential records act claim: The ruling may avoid a potential showdown between special counsel Jack Smith and the judge

How a steel ball protected Taiwan’s tallest skyscraper in an earthquake

American killed in Israeli strike in Gaza was father, military veteran

Police identify 4 accused of attacking police officer’s cruiser

Opinion Pay Ronna McDaniel

Israel risking being left holding bag for getting aid to Gazans, US warns

Opinion The mournful isolation of Israel six months after terrorists attacked - "Here in Israel, my worries remain, but they are tinged by the understanding of how vulnerable this tiny country is and how present the threat." [ed. note: if Israel is small and vulnerable, what then of Gaza and West Bank?]

Opinion Israel is at a crisis point: The world has had enough

Opinion No, Big Pharma’s high prices don’t drive innovation - "Our research shows that the biggest drug companies largely fail to turn their enormous profits into discoveries. Instead, most innovation is taking place at small, unprofitable start-ups, whose drugs are largely excluded from Medicare’s new price negotiation system. When it comes to pharmaceutical innovation, smaller is better."

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s running mate and the vaccine wars - "'Every piece of legitimate evidence we have suggests that the causes of autism are present in utero,' said David Mandell, director of the Penn Center for Mental Health at the University of Pennsylvania, in an email. 'To the extent that environmental factors are causative, they likely interact with genetic risk factors in the womb.'

"Of course, even if a link to air pollution is not yet proved, that does not mean it can be ruled out. 'It’s hard to disagree with the opinion that exposure to neurotoxins and air pollution is bad for our health and that we should be doing more to protect our environment and prevent these exposures,' Maureen Durkin, chair of the Department of Population Health Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said in an email. 'Credible research into the causal links of these exposures to autism specifically is difficult to do but should be done and critically evaluated to inform environmental policies.'

...

"Fears about a link between autism and vaccines started in 1998 after the publication of a genuine hoax — the Wakefield study, in the journal Lancet. Based on a supposedly random sample of 12 children, now-discredited anti-vaccine activist and former physician Andrew Wakefield suggested that the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine led to gastrointestinal symptoms, which in turn put harmful proteins in the bloodstream that resulted in autism.

"Dozens of studies followed, including one that studied 1.8 million children over 14 years, all of which showed there was no link. Eventually, it was revealed that Wakefield had received secret payments from a lawyer seeking to sue MMR manufacturers and who supplied some of the patients, had filed a patent application for his own measles vaccine, and had misrepresented or altered medical histories of the 12 patients. In 2010, the article was retracted and Wakefield lost his medical license.

...

"'This is fearmongering,' Mandell said, noting that Wakefield first said autism was the result of the MMR vaccine and no link was found. Then 'RFK Jr. said that the thimerosal in vaccines caused autism. Then thimerosal was removed from vaccines, with no change in increasing rates of diagnosis. … Then they said that it was the number of vaccines or the timing of the vaccines.'"

Thursday, February 1, 2024

Reading archive 2024-02-01

Biden signs executive order sanctioning West Bank settlers

Students reported her for a lesson on race. Then she taught it again.

Why Trump’s MAGA Republican movement dislikes Taylor Swift: Some conservatives are spreading baseless claims about the pop star and her Super Bowl-bound beau being a ‘psyop’ — psychological operation — meant to draw voters to the Democratic Party

Republicans’ plotting to block a Democratic president goes public

Precision equipment for Russian arms makers came from U.S.-allied Taiwan:Moscow-based importer also sought to supply a secretive Kremlin effort to mass-produce attack drones, a Post examination found

An ancient pyramid is getting a glow-up. Archaeologists are down on it.

Toronto is home to the world’s largest lake-powered cooling system. Here’s how it works.: Deep lake water cooling (DLWC) is used to cool over 100 buildings in the city. It saves enough electricity to power a town of 25,000 — and it’s so popular the city is pursuing an expansion.

Days of Darkness: How one woman escaped the conspiracy theory trap that has ensnared millions

FBI director warns that Chinese hackers are preparing to ‘wreak havoc’ on US critical infrastructure

Sunday, January 14, 2024

Reading archive 2024-01-14

Opinion France’s new prime minister walks a tightrope around his sexuality

Opinion Donald Trump isn’t coming for us. The rule of law is coming for him.

‘Ordained by God’: Trump’s legal problems galvanize Iowa evangelicals - "'The support has gone from begrudging to enthusiastic. Many evangelicals now see Trump as their champion and defender — perhaps even savior,' said Barry Hankins, a history professor at Baylor University who is an expert in evangelicalism. 'Unwittingly, in my view, many evangelicals are welcoming authoritarianism and courting blasphemy.'"

The economy is improving under Biden. But many voters aren’t giving him credit.: Despite the statistics, the kitchen-table experience of Biden’s first term has meant that many voters have experienced the last few years as a time of relative economic hardship

Two Russian fathers backed army conscription. Only one son came home.

After attempts to meddle in Taiwan’s elections fail, China takes stock

Winter storm tests Texas green grid upgrades: This week’s storm is a big test for the state’s grid upgrades, which experts say can help avoid blackouts — and fight climate change

ANCIENT ELEMENTS OF COOL: I traveled in the hottest months to the hottest places, looking for ways to stay cool

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Reading archive 2023-04-19

4 takeaways from the Dominion v. Fox settlement

China readies supersonic spy drone unit, leaked document says: China’s cutting-edge drone could give it a surveillance advantage during a possible military confrontation over Taiwan

A contest encouraged children to hunt feral cats — until the backlash

30 years later, Waco siege fascinates, infuriates new generations: Young Americans today learn of the 1993 standoff through pop culture and social media, often with an anti-government undertone

Fox News still faces $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit from Smartmatic

Bees Without Borders: Sustainability Program Unites Route One Communities to Build a Pathway for Pollinators

Amazon HQ2 was thought up pre-pandemic. But the world is hybrid now.: As the tech company requests its first subsidies from Virginia, construction delays and a slow return to the office are dimming the economic boost promised by its new headquarters

A stunning gem, to honor a slain geologist, unveiled at Smithsonian: Discoverer of a beautiful green mineral was slain in Kenya by robbers 14 years ago

Saturday, January 28, 2023

Reading archive 2023-01-27

Millennials Are Finally Buying Houses... And Making Them Ugly: What’s up with all these hideous renovations?

Family of 6-year-old who shot teacher speaks out for 1st time: Abby Zwerner was released from the hospital early this week. - "The family said the 'firearm our son accessed was secured.'" [ed. note: OBVIOUSLY NOT]

Downtown D.C.’s struggles mount as many workers remain remote

U.S. general warns troops that war with China is possible in two years: Gen. Michael A. Minihan, who oversees the Air Force’s fleet of transport and refueling aircraft, cited the 2024 presidential elections in Taiwan and the United States as part of his rationale

Tuesday, December 27, 2022

Reading archive 2022-12-27

How to Weatherize Your Home

ENERGY STAR Rebate Finder

Rep.-elect George Santos acknowledges ‘résumé embellishment’ but answers little on finances: The Long Island Republican was pressed to address questions about whether he fabricated his biography and why he reported skyrocketing wealth

Opinion For Cassidy Hutchinson, ‘I don’t remember’ wasn’t good enough

Opinion The grand strategy behind Japan’s defense buildup - "Japan’s steps toward rearmament, for Green, show that the post-World War II period of Pax Americana is 'completely different from anything ever seen in history.' Unlike the British Empire or the Roman Empire, it has been 'based on building up former adversaries as power centers that had their own agency.' Now, 'Japan is choosing, not being forced by America, but is choosing to reinforce the international order that America helped to create after the war.'

"But at the same time, he said, the fact that Japan is making this 'rather desperate' decision should be cause for American humility. Washington is losing the capacity, on its own, to back up the security commitments it has made around the world. That is the paradox of Japan’s strategic transformation: Its defense of the American system is itself a sign of that system’s heightened vulnerability."

Southwest draws regulatory scrutiny as thousands more flights canceled: The carrier’s disruptions upended holiday travel plans for tens of thousands of air travelers

‘Moorish American national’ charged with trying to take mansion [ed. note: from 2013]

Moorish Americans take over a rural gun range, sparking a strange showdown: Members of the group, part of the extremist “sovereign citizen” movement, believe they are immune from dealings with U.S. legal systems

With forests in peril, she’s on a mission to save ‘mother trees’

Taiwan extends mandatory military service to combat Chinese threat

Growing vaccine hesitancy fuels measles, chickenpox resurgence in U.S.: Anti-vaccine sentiment has increased since the pandemic, driven by politicization around the coronavirus vaccine

Police dismissed Black leaders’ claims of a serial killer. Then a woman escaped.

Kentucky hits grim milestone: 6 pediatric flu deaths in 2022 and no end to season in sight

As Russia bombs Ukraine’s infrastructure, its own services crumble

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

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.'"

Thursday, September 8, 2022

Reading archive 2022-09-08

J.D. Vance largely avoids pivot to center in Ohio’s U.S. Senate race after culture-war heavy Republican primary - "In one particularly dark podcast interview in September 2021, Vance called for the firing of millions of federal government employees, likening it to the need for political purges in post-World War II Nazi Germany or Iraq following the fall of Saddam Hussein.

"The federal bureaucracy, Vance said, undermined ex-President Donald Trump’s term in office and needed to be replaced, regardless of civil-service protections. He said ex-President Donald Trump – or whoever – should flout whatever court decisions attempt to block the move, which he called 'de-wokeification.'

"'We are in a late republican period,' Vance said in the podcast interview with Jack Murphy, using another historical metaphor that refers to the transformation of the classical Roman Republic to the Roman Empire. 'If we’re going to push back against it, we’re going to have to get pretty wild, and pretty far out there, and go in directions that a lot of conservatives right now are uncomfortable with.'"

U.S. to sell $1.1 billion in anti-ship, air-to-air weapons to Taiwan

Ron Johnson flips on gay marriage bill after saying he saw ‘no reason to oppose it’

Opinion The D.C. child-care ruling is a disaster for young families - "The time and financial costs of obtaining the credentials create a new barrier to those considering working in the sector and encourages exit for those without the 10 years’ continuous experience needed to avoid the rule. Previous research from economists Diana Thomas and Devon Gorry has found that state requirements for lead carers to have even a high school diploma increase prices by 25 percent to 46 percent. The D.C. educational hurdle is much more stringent."

Thursday, August 18, 2022

Reading archive 2022-08-18

Why Does Rhode Island Ave Keep Flooding?

Allen Weisselberg, longtime Trump executive, pleads guilty to tax fraud

Pa. Senate race no longer tossup as Fetterman memes zero in on Oz’s wealth: The social media spat comes as new predictions show that the tight race is drifting in Fetterman’s favor

In Ukraine, a Russian mercenary group steps out of the shadows

Manti Te’o, victim of a catfishing hoax, hopes he’s still an inspiration

US shows China military might with 'training missions' after tension over Nancy Pelosi's Taiwan trip

Friday, August 5, 2022

Reading archive 2022-08-05

Opinion Chinese ambassador: Why China objects to Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan - "The Taiwan question is about China’s sovereignty and unity — not democracy. But it is true that Pelosi’s visit has aroused the indignation of the 1.4 billion Chinese people." [ed. note: first, lol of course it's about democracy, and two, lol "Hurting the feelings of the Chinese people"

White House summons Chinese ambassador as crisis escalates: Ambassador Qin Gang was called to the White House after China launched ballistic missiles in response to a visit to Taiwan by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Amid ‘mixed race’ speech blowback, Orban echoes Trump in Dallas: Viktor Orban addressed U.S. conservatives, who have praised his hard-right stances on migration and homosexuality as he veers toward authoritarianism