Music: Abdullah Ibrahim — ‘Water From An Ancient Well’
Pete Hegseth’s mother to her son: ‘You are an abuser of women — that is the ugly truth’
The New York Times published an email sent by Penelope Hegseth to her son (who has been nominated to become Donald Trump’s defense secretary) in 2018 as he was in the middle of divorcing his wife, Samantha: Son, I have tried to keep quiet about your character and behavior, but after listening to the way you made Samantha feel today, I cannot stay silent. And as a woman and your mother I feel I must speak out.. You are an…
Syrian rebels breach city of Aleppo, in biggest advance in years
The New York Times reports: Syrian rebels breached the major city of Aleppo on Friday, according to the fighters and a war monitor, reigniting the country’s long-running civil war with an intensity not seen in years. The rebels, including Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, took control of “more than half of Aleppo” within hours on Friday without resistance from Syrian government forces, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitoring group based in Britain. Independent Syrian media shared images…
Will Joe Biden’s legacy not only be another Trump term but also another pandemic?
Zeynep Tufekci writes: Almost five years after Covid blew into our lives, the main thing standing between us and the next global pandemic is luck. And with the advent of flu season, that luck may well be running out. The H5N1 avian flu, having mutated its way across species, is raging out of control among the nation’s cattle, infecting roughly a third of the dairy herds in California alone. Farmworkers have so far avoided tragedy, as the virus has not…
Why Charles Kushner, Trump’s pick for U.S. ambassador to France, is so controversial
The Associated Press reports: President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday he intends to nominate real estate developer Charles Kushner, father of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, to serve as ambassador to France. Trump made the announcement in a Truth Social post, calling Charles Kushner “a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker.” Kushner is the founder of Kushner Companies, a real estate firm. Jared Kushner is a former White House senior adviser to Trump who is married to Trump’s eldest daughter, Ivanka. The…
Trump signed the law to require presidential ethics pledges. Now he is exempting himself from it
The Independent reports: A bipartisan bill to boost transparency and make sure incoming presidents stick to an ethics plan was so uncontroversial that it passed the Senate by a voice vote in 2020. Donald Trump then signed it into law. But now, after blowing past deadlines to adhere to the law after winning the White House a second time, Trump appears to have excluded himself from those same ethical guidelines. Trump missed two months of deadlines before finally signing off…
Journalists flock to Bluesky as X becomes increasingly ‘toxic’
NBC News reports: When Ashton Pittman, an award-winning news editor and reporter, first joined the app Bluesky, he said, he was the only Mississippi journalist he knew to be using it. Until about five weeks ago, he said, that was the case. But now, Pittman said, there are at least 15 Mississippi journalists on Bluesky as it becomes a preferred platform for reporters, writers, activists and other groups who have become increasingly alienated by X. Pittman’s outlet, the Mississippi Free…
New powder that captures carbon could be ‘quantum leap’ for industry
The Guardian reports: An innocuous yellow powder, created in a lab, could be a new way to combat the climate crisis by absorbing carbon from the air. Just half a pound of the stuff may remove as much carbon dioxide as a tree can, according to early tests. Once the carbon is absorbed by the powder, it can be released into safe storage or be used in industrial processes, like carbonizing drinks. “This really addresses a major problem in the…
Abdullah Ibrahim – A Brother With Perfect Timing
A Brother With Perfect Timing was filmed in 1986—four years before the release from prison of Nelson Mandela, and while the apartheid regime was still in place. The documentary includes a live performance by Ibrahim and discussions about two of his compositions, “Anthem for a New Nation” and “Mannenberg”. As described by the reviewer for KUVO radio, “Throughout the film, Ibrahim plays different roles. At times he is the narrator, telling stories and sharing anecdotes, cultural and musical history…
Texas is gearing up in a big way for Trump’s mass deportation campaign
The Washington Post reports: While Donald Trump’s opponents denounce the president-elect’s planned “mass deportations” and border crackdown, this state’s Republican leaders are vying to make Texas the launching pad. Gov. Greg Abbott and other top officials have spent the past four years positioning themselves as the Biden administration’s greatest antagonists — and heirs to the border enforcement campaign begun by the last Trump administration. Despite having no constitutional authority on immigration enforcement, they have used tools of the state to…
Trump is filling his administration with people tied to Project 2025
The New York Times reports: During the campaign, President-elect Donald J. Trump swore he had “nothing to do with” a right-wing policy blueprint known as Project 2025 that would overhaul the federal government, even though many of those involved in developing the plans were his allies. Mr. Trump even described many of the policy goals as “absolutely ridiculous.” And during his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, he said he was “not going to read it.” Now, as he plans…
Trump blocks RFK Jr’s hoped for influence over the agricultural industry
Politico reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spent weeks lobbying Donald Trump to nominate an Agriculture secretary who would be his ally in a war with the sugar, soybean, corn and other farm commodity interests he argues are poisoning Americans. Working largely from his home in California, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services even meticulously vetted and put forward his own list of candidates to run the massive agency responsible for the country’s farm and food…
Israeli military to remain in Gaza for years, food minister says
The Guardian reports: The Israeli military will remain in Gaza for many years, fighting against fresh Hamas recruits in the territory and could be responsible for delivery of humanitarian aid there, a senior Israeli minister has said. The comments by Avi Dichter, Israel’s minister for food security and a member of the Israeli security cabinet, confirm an emerging picture of a long-term deployment of Israeli troops inside Gaza, with no immediate Israeli plan for any other administration to govern the…
UK spy chief says Russia behind ‘staggeringly reckless’ sabotage in Europe
Reuters reports: Britain’s foreign spy chief accused Russia on Friday of waging a “staggeringly reckless campaign” of sabotage in Europe while also stepping up its nuclear sabre-rattling to scare other countries off from backing Ukraine. Richard Moore, head of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service known as MI6, said that any softening in support for Ukraine against Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion would embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies. In what appeared a message to incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration…
Big pharma is the only reason anyone still dies from HIV
Charlotte Kilpatrick writes: The year is 1998. While antiviral drugs to treat HIV had been approved a decade earlier, only five out of 33 million people who carried the virus were receiving the life-saving treatment. Nowhere was the situation worse than in South Africa. The country had the highest global prevalence of the disease with nearly one in five people infected and 200,000 children orphaned. Treatment options were limited. That year, the Minister of Health released a report outlining the…
A grief with no name
Jelena Markovic writes: I keep religious icons in my house, the Orthodox ones where Christ has dark, pensive eyes. When my friends come over, they sometimes ask why. It doesn’t seem to fit with the rest of my personality. ‘My parents are religious,’ I say. This makes no sense, because I put the icons up myself. My friend Daniel keeps icons up as well. ‘I’m not sure if I’m a believer, but if there was one true faith, it would…