Trump is a man for our moment. Both that man and moment are less authoritarian than anarchic.
Reading
Points for consistency If it feels odd advocating for U.S. aid to Ukraine to fight Vladimir Putin’s Russian invaders, join the club. Those of us who opposed Cold War proxy battles and geopolitical gamesmanship in remote corners of the planet half a century ago now find ourselves living in a more connected world. When a ship stuck in the Suez Canal can disrupt our lives here, what happens on NATO’s doorstep is equally of concern. Just as much as what happens between Israel, Gaza, and Iran. What’s confounding (or not) is how the formerly hawkish Republican Party that once feared commies in woodpiles have truned into Putin’s lapdogs. Perhaps it’s not surprising. Their positions have always been more performance than principle. Two stories from the New York Times concerning the fate of Ukraine.
Last September witnessed what used to be a truly rare weather phenomenon: a Mediterranean hurricane, or “medicane.” Once upon a time, the Mediterranean Sea simply didn’t get hot enough to produce hurricanes more than every few hundred (yes, few hundred!) years. In this case, however, Storm Daniel assaulted Libya with a biblical-style deluge for four straight days. It was enough to overwhelm the al-Bilad and Abu Mansour dams near the city of Derna, built in the 1970s to old cool-earth specifications. The resulting flood destroyed nearly 1,000 buildings, washing thousands of people out to sea, and displaced tens of thousands more. Saliha Abu Bakr, an attorney, told a harrowing tale of how the waters kept rising in her apartment building... Read more
Do you believe that 10 to 20% of the decline in crime in the 1990s was caused by an increase in abortions in the 1970s? Or that the murder rate would have increased by 250% since 1974 if the United States had not built so many new prisons? Did you believe predictions that the welfare […]
Help Byline Times follow the dark money and track the dirty data as millions are spent on online political campaigning this election year
With apologies to Digby For most on the right, pitching a hissy fit is a ploy to control the political narrative. A little phony sanctimony here, some faux outrage there, and plenty of echo-chamber volume, and Democrats run for cover. Maybe even beg forgiveness for something they did not do. But for Donald Trump, pitching a hissy fit is a way of life to which that Marvelous he is entitled. How dare any lesser being deprive him of his birthright? Yet, here Trump sits facing justice for falsifying business records and defrauding voters, a mere pleb in an ungilded New York City courtroom where hissy-fitting is not permitted. On Monday, Justice Juan Merchan explained to Trump just how things work in his domain (New York Times): As part of the pretrial housekeeping, Justice Juan Merchan delivered the so-called Parker warnings on courtroom behavior directly to the defendant, reminding him that he could be jailed if he disrupted the proceedings.
In this column, professional speechwriter Chandler Dean provides partly satirical, partly genuine “How To” advice focused on a hyper-specific subcategory of speeches—from graduation speeches to wedding toasts to eulogies, and all the rhetorical occasions in between.
- - -
Tick-tock: the bachelor or bachelorette or bachelorx party is approaching, and your buddy has insisted that they want you to “totally roast them.” Unfortunately, there is no time to question what ignominious circumstances led them to this masochistic desire. There is only time to write jokes.
I’ve written roasts for celebrities and politicians at fundraisers and closed-door events; I’ve roasted coworkers at their farewell parties; I’ve made fun of friends when they made a typo in the group chat and then I’ve changed the name of the group chat to have the typo in it.
So take it from me: you can both get laughs and protect your friendships (and professional contacts, and geopolitical relationships). Here’s how.
What we want to believe and what is true are seldom the same thing. By George Monbiot, published in the Guardian 15th April 2024 We draw our moral lines in arbitrary places. We might believe we’re guided only by universal values and proven facts, but often we’re swayed by deep themes of which we might […]
Dear Wyna Liu, Editor of Connections:
My morning ritual used to be a time of peace and solitude. A sacred time in which I’d gather up the energy to face the day. I’d brew my coffee and eat my smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel. And then I’d open up the New York Times Games App.
I’d always start with the Spelling Bee. Personally, I like to find the pangram first and then hopefully find enough words for a respectable “Great” or “Amazing.” Not every morning is a “Genius!” morning—and that’s okay!
Then, I’d do the daily Crossword. Not the Mini, the Crossword. A delightful five-minute exercise on Mondays, an hour-long conquest on Sundays.
And if I still had time before my first meeting of the day (and sometimes I’ll admit, during my first meeting of the day), I’d do the sudokus. My personal goal was to solve the easy level in under three minutes and the medium in under four. Just for an extra little challenge, you know?
These puzzles were our brain ticklers, modern man’s solution to the sphinx’s riddle. But you got excited, maybe you got greedy.
You introduced Connections.
In today's BCTV Daily Dispatch: Superman & Lois, The Rookie, Billy Joel, Doctor Who, Velma, Reacher, Dead Boy Detectives, Fallout, and more!
Labour writes to the DPP to demand a criminal investigation over leaflets demanding voters hand over their data to the Conservative party in order to avoid a charge
A dispute between Shell and Ukraine ends with a nasty surprise for the British oil giant
Do you clock off on a Friday feeling like your nine-to-five has made the world a better place? Spend the working week with a guiding sense of purpose? Believe that your job works towards a goal bigger and more important than you? If you’re finding it hard to say ‘yes’, don’t worry: it’s not just […]
In recent months hundreds of thousands of young people have registered to vote. A poor youth turnout was expected to favour the Conservatives
- by Farah Abdessamad
- by Martina Orlandi
We’ve discussed this before:
- fiscal inability;
- an elite faction which wants to take over;
- support of 20% or more of the population;
What is also very common is lost of prestige due to military defeat. This Russia in WWI (and they had also lost to the Japanese, which was particularly humiliating) or Germany, also after WWI. Getting your ass kicked makes people doubt you.
Or, if you want to put it another way: imperial overstretch, military defeat and internal strife.
