For me, sorting through the news and choosing which stories to blend is a process much like cooking a meal. There's chopped onion, garlic, peppers, mushrooms, there's cut cilantro for the end, there's powdered ginger, turmeric, there's either butter or olive oil. Heat it slowly, sauté everything gently.
Luckily I have tasters who help me when I cook. They are small so I bend over with the sauce in a spoon and blow on it so they don't burn their mouths. If it's good they give me a thumb's up.
With the news, there are fewer testers. How much on any given topic can people stand? Normal people are not news junkies so they don't mainline the stuff. I figure a little bit here, a little bit there is the best option.
So yes, aggregating news is a bit like cooking meals. You do it every day and no two days are ever quite the same unless you use recipes.
I don't use recipes.
***
If it were up to you, how would you interpret the intelligence that extremists have targeted Biden's state of the Union address for their next assault on the Capitol?
First, there's no particular reason Biden has to deliver such an address during his first year in office; many Presidents do not. So there is not yet any specific date for planning purposes, and it may not occur until next year.
So does that mean that all the online noise about attacking the Capitol again when Biden gives the speech is just idle chatter?
After January 6th, intelligence officials cannot be certain of anything.
***
The ongoing battle between the Internet giants and various governments -- Australia's, and several in Europe -- over paying media companies for news stories is a high-stakes war that affects all of us. Every day there's something new to know.
Here in the U.S., we've seen how powerfully destructive the fake news spread by conspiracy theorists can elect a President like Trump who tells his followers that people like me are the "enemies of the people."
So who are we? Journalists work to gather and document what is factual as opposed to the fantasies spun by Trump and his enablers. We are the people who determine, among other things, if the available evidence indicates an election was fair or stolen.
And we do that whether it's Democrats or Republicans who win. We don't make very good partisans.
We do this work on the assumption that it matters; that our society is stronger and safer when decisions are based in facts and science than when based on lies and fantasies.
Somehow we developed the idea that we are the friends of the people.
But we are not the ones who decide that. The question for those who see what we do is, "Does it taste good, or should we smother it in salt?"
***
As the first news story below indicates, the Biden administration has apparently decided to continue with the now well-established U.S. practice of waging war (this time in Syria) without a vote in Congress. With all of the talk on all sides about valuing the Constitution, exactly where again, remind me, in that document does it say that war in the Middle East is at the prerogative of the executive branch?
I must have missed that section.
The heds:
* President Joe Biden on Thursday ordered airstrikes on buildings in Syria that the Pentagon said were used by Iranian-backed militias, in retaliation for rocket attacks on U.S. targets in neighboring Iraq. The strikes killed at least 22 people, London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday, citing unconfirmed local reports. (NBC)
* Members of militia groups involved in the Jan. 6 pro-Trump riot are plotting "to blow up the Capitol and kill as many members as possible,' focusing on the State of the Union, U.S. Capitol Police acting Chief Yogananda Pittman said. [HuffPost]
* Saudi crown prince approved fatal Khashoggi operation, U.S. report concludes (WashPo)
* The Coronavirus Is Plotting a Comeback. Here’s Our Chance to Stop It for Good. -- Many scientists are expecting another rise in infections. But this time the surge will be blunted by vaccines and, hopefully, widespread caution. By summer, Americans may be looking at a return to normal life. (NYT)
* Federal health officials are urging gymgoers to wear a mask at all times while exercising indoors after two separate studies found high coronavirus transmission during exercise classes at gyms in Hawaii and Illinois. In an Illinois gym, the CDC said, 68% of people who attended indoor exercise classes ended up contracting the virus. [HuffPost]
* New Covid cases among residents of nursing homes have dropped more than 80 percent since vaccines became available, and deaths have decreased by more than 65 percent (NYT)
* WHO Interested in Second Wuhan Market (WSJ)
* The newest pledges by countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions are falling far short of what's needed to limit global warming to what the Paris climate accord seeks, a new United Nations report says. (AP)
* Unprecedented numbers of students have disappeared during the pandemic. Schools are working harder than ever to find them. (WashPo)
* With One Move, Congress Could Lift Millions Of Children Out Of Poverty -- Lawmakers are weighing a proposal to give families with kids a monthly, cash benefit to help ease the lifelong pull of poverty. Experts say it could cut U.S. child poverty nearly in half. (NPR)
* Neera Tandems imperiled confirmation to lead the Office of Management and Budget in the Biden White House hinges on the support of Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a GOP senator with a history of crossing party line. If she comes out against Tanden, the nominee’s path to confirmation will likely disappear in the evenly divided Senate. [HuffPost]
* Experts: No serious side effects from vaccine seen (NHK)
* So far. 6.9% of the U.S. population has been vaccinated. (CNN)
* The joy of vax: The people giving the shots are seeing hope, and it’s contagious (WashPo)
* As Fires Worsen, A Mental Health Crisis For Those Battling The -- Wildfires are burning more frequently and intensely in a warming world, making them harder to put out. Some fire agencies are expanding support as they see increased cases of anxiety and depression. (NPR)
* Royal Dutch Shell vowed last September to reach net-zero carbon pollution in its business by 2050. The vague goal seemed to become more realistic when the corporation announced earlier this month that its crude oil production had peaked in 2019 and would likely never increase again. Yet the oil giant has continued to fund a network of lobbying groups that fight policies to curb planet-heating emissions and rein in new drilling. [HuffPost]
* What Happened To The Butterflies? Climate, Deforestation Threaten Monarch Migration -- The population of monarch butterflies that migrated south to Mexico to hibernate fell 26% in 2020 compared with the previous year, according to a new report. (NPR)
*As fractures emerge among Proud Boys, experts warn of a shift toward extremist violence (WashPo)
* Across the state, Californians speak more than 200 languages.That means not everybody is getting the pandemic information they need. [The Sacramento Bee]
* On the edge of the Salton Sea, officials and investors see an opportunity to extract lithium, “white gold,” a critical element for batteries. A state lawmaker wants to create a “Lithium Valley.” But environmental justice advocates fear that communities of color will bear the brunt of any negative effects. [CalMatters]
* The same coyote has bitten five people in the Lafayette and Moraga areas. [The San Francisco Chronicle]
* That picture of a rolling, verdant hill under a brilliant blue sky that was the default background for Windows XP is one of the most viewed images in history, and the hill is in Sonoma, off Highway 12. [SFGate]
* Armenia in an Uproar, as Its Prime Minister Warns of an ‘Attempted Military Coup’ (NYT)
* When Facebook disabled Australians’ access to news articles on its platform, and blocked sharing of articles from Australian news organizations, the company moved a step closer to killing the World Wide Web – the hyperlink-based system of freely connecting online sites created in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee. Though the social media giant has said it will return to the negotiating table and restore news for now, the company has shown its hand – and how it is continuing to reshape the web. (Syracuse Prof. Jennifer Grygiel/ NextGov)
* Mr. Potato Head Brand Goes Gender Neutral (NYT)
* A cat that went astray about 15 years ago has been reunited with its owner in the L.A. area. Brandy, a brown tabby, was reunited Monday afternoon with Charles, who adopted her as a 2-month-old kitten in 2005. She was identified by a microchip implanted when she was adopted. (AP)
* City’s Little Italy Now Down To Single Meatball (The Onion)
***
I've sailed the southern oceans
And the stormy northern sea
But now that me sailin's over, me boys
It's harbor time for me
I know you call us Salt and Pepper
For an old salt I may be
But though she may be pepper to you, me boys
She's sweet as sugar to me
-- Harry Chapin
-30-
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