Reading archive 2022-09-21

‘Unchecked’ book excerpt: Inside McConnell’s decision not to convict Trump: “Let’s just ignore him,” the GOP Senate leader said at one point, underscoring his hands-off approach on whether to stand up to pro-Trump lawmakers after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol

McConnell-linked super PAC pulls out of Senate race in Arizona: The spending cuts are another blow to Blake Masters, a GOP candidate who has been significantly outraised by his Democratic opponent

Germany nationalizes gas company Uniper to protect energy supplies

‘Death to the dictator’: Videos show growing protests in Iran Anger is spreading across the country after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of the ‘morality police’

Putin drafts up to 300,000 reservists, backs annexation amid war losses

Opinion  Why eliminating the tipped wage is a bad idea for D.C. [ed. note: this argument is ridiculous]

Reading archive 2022-09-20

Opinion  Hey QAnon! Republicans are playing your song.

Video appears to undercut Trump elector’s account of alleged voting-data breach in Georgia

Special master prods Trump lawyers: ‘You can’t have your cake and eat it’: Donald Trump’s attorneys joust with Judge Raymond Dearie on classification question, access to Mar-a-Lago documents

Feds: Minnesota food scheme stole $250M; 47 people charged

Reading archive 2022-09-19

Pentagon opens sweeping review of clandestine psychological operations: Complaints about the U.S. military’s influence operations using Facebook and Twitter have raised concern in the White House and federal agencies.

Reading archive 2022-09-18

Opinion  What if the United States loses the AI race against China? - "The bleak report doesn’t just summarize the costs of losing. It argues the United States will, in fact, lose this race without changes in government policy to focus attention better on the technology challenge. 'The United States still has no process or person responsible for achieving technology advantage,' the report says. 'The U.S public-private ecosystem has vast competitive strengths, but they are un-gathered. America needs a plan for mastering the new geometry of innovation to compete.'"

Ukrainian strikes into Russia’s border towns compound Putin’s troubles

Biden says U.S. troops would defend Taiwan in event of attack by China

Reading archive 2022-09-16

Modi rebukes Putin over war in Ukraine

The letters left behind by demoralized Russian soldiers as they fled

FLIGHT OF THE CONDORS: Once pushed to the brink of extinction, condors are soaring in Northern California skies again with the help of an Indigenous tribe and a team of scientists.

Reading archive 2022-09-14

How sitting all day can cause health problems — even if you exercise: Working out for 30 minutes every day “might not be enough” to counter the health issues created by prolonged sitting, said the author of a sweeping new study

Hillary Clinton’s claim that ‘zero emails’ were marked classified - "In other words, both State Department probes under Trump knocked Clinton for maintaining a private server for State Department communications — but did not hold her responsible for mishandling classified information."

John Durham was successful, just not in the way Barr first intended

U.S. to redirect Afghanistan’s frozen assets after Taliban rejects deal: Biden administration under pressure as Afghanistan faces enormous hunger crisis

Insurers force change on police departments long resistant to it: The high cost of settlements over police misconduct has led insurers to demand police departments overhaul tactics or forgo coverage - "Where community activists, use-of-force victims and city officials have failed to persuade police departments to change dangerous and sometimes deadly policing practices, insurers are successfully dictating changes to tactics and policies, mostly at small to medium-size departments throughout the nation."

Opinion  ‘Residents are scared’: Violent crime is all too common in D.C.

Reading archive 2022-09-13

Graham introduces bill to ban abortions nationwide after 15 weeks

Faced with war losses, Russian propagandists retreat to anger and patriotism

Ukrainian offensive thwarted Russia’s annexation plans in Kharkiv: In liberated towns and villages, occupation officials were already imposing Russian school curriculum