The Trap

 As Europe teeters toward war, a war we all hope doesn't escalate into World War III, history reminds us that most great powers get their way until the moment they suddenly don’t and then the situation deteriorates quickly.

Russia is a case in point. Its former empire began crumbling when it lost the war in Afghanistan. The loss of control over many satellites of the old Soviet Union in both Europe and Asia followed, leaving the angry remnant of empire that is Vladimir Putin’s shrunken state of today.

After the imperial troops depart, assuming a new empire doesn’t ride right in, the newly freed countries usually struggle to establish some sort of independent status, as Afghanistan is doing now. Empires, dictators, strongmen always seem invincible — until they aren’t. That is the way of history. Although I’ve read every analysis of the Ukraine situation I can find, none have said what I believe will prove true: That if Putin goes through with this ill-conceived invasion, it will be the beginning of the end for his hold on power.

Like most autocrats who have been in place too long, Putin has developed an exaggerated sense of his personal power and may be dramatically underestimating his vulnerability. Therefore it appears he is about to walk into a trap. While restoring the Soviet empire might seem like an achievable goal to him, in reality that is not going to be tolerated by the West, let alone (in the end) China.

Therefore he proceeds alone and at his own great peril.

***

Among today’s top stories is one that might be easy to overlook: “Five Afghan women who refuse to be silenced, from the BBC. Ultimately it is those who refuse to be silenced, of course, who inspire the next wave of change.

TODAY’s NEWS (62):

1. Russia has massed up to 190,000 personnel in and near Ukraine, U.S. says (Reuters)

2. U.S. Warns of Imminent Russian Invasion of Ukraine With Tanks, Jets, Cyberattacks (WSJ)

3. Russian troop build-up most significant since WW2 - US (BBC)

4. Ukrainian rebels evacuate civilians to Russia amid crisis (AP)

5. Pro-Russian separatists order mass evacuation of eastern Ukraine (Guardian)

6. Russia unveils nuclear drills as Putin blames Kyiv for ‘escalation’ in eastern Ukraine (Financial Times)

7. After 30 Years of Peace, Ukraine Crisis Shakes Europeans (NYT)

8. The West’s 2-part strategy for stopping an invasion (Politico)

9. Biden gathers allies for crisis talks amid spike in cease-fire violations (WP)

10. VIDEO: Blinken Challenges Russia to Pledge It Will Not Invade Ukraine (AP)

11. The Speech In Which Putin Told Us Who He Was (Politico)

12. Has Biden got inside Putin’s head? (Financial Times)

13. Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian rebels reported increased shelling in eastern Ukraine for a second straight day on Friday, an escalation that Washington and other Western allies say could form part of a Russian pretext to invade. (Reuters)

14. Why would world leaders balk at giving Putin DNA? (AP)

15. 'Keep a cool head': Ukraine urges calm as the drumbeats of war get louder (Politico)

16. Stocks Fall as Ukraine Tensions Mount (WSJ)

17. Despite the threat of war, some Americans in Ukraine are staying put (NPR)

18. Five Afghan women who refuse to be silenced (BBC)

19. As BA.2 subvariant of Omicron rises, lab studies point to signs of severity (CNN)

20. Six African countries to begin making mRNA vaccines as part of WHO scheme (Guardian)

21. Omicron slammed essential workers. So the National Guard became teachers, janitors and more. (WP)

22. S. Korea keeps crowd limits as omicron causes 25-fold spike (AP)

23. Vulnerable to the Virus, High-Risk Americans Feel Pain as the U.S. Moves On (NYT)

24. Lower Omicron Efficacy Led to FDA Delay on Pfizer Shot in Young Kids (WSJ)

25. Illegal border crossings push Hong Kong Covid outbreak into China (Financial Times)

26. New study shows a significant increase in the risk of mental health disorders after COVID-19 (STLToday)

27. Newsom declares a Covid détente  (Politico)

28. Surgeon general tests positive for Covid-19 (CNN)

29. Canadian police are poised to clear out hundreds of truck drivers from Ottawa who have staged a three-week-long protest against pandemic restrictions that has crippled the capital and prompted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to assume emergency powers. (Reuters)

30. Police move in on Ottawa protests and begin making arrests. (NYT)

31. Ottawa arrests two ‘Freedom Convoy’ protest organizers as police chief vows to ‘take back’ city (WP)

32. Americans are fleeing to places where political views match their own (NPR)

33. Retired conservative federal judge says helping Pence ahead of January 6 was 'the highest honor' of his life (Business Insider)

34. The never-before-told backstory of Pence's Jan. 6 argument (Politico)

35. N.Y. Attorney General Can Question Trump and 2 Children, Judge Rules (NYT)

36. A Manhattan judge called Donald Trump “just a bad guy” in a scathing rebuke to a lawyer arguing that the former president was being unfairly singled out for investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James because he's a Republican. State Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Trump and his children Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. to testify under oath in a civil investigation launched by James into Trump Organization business practices. [HuffPost]

37. GOP blockade of Fed nominees leads Democrats to fear for other vacancies, including Supreme Court (WP)

38. Fed adopts broad new rules barring officials from most trades (Politico)

39. 3.7 million more kids are in poverty without the monthly Child Tax Credit, study says (NPR)

40. Beijing Olympics get political with Taiwan, Uyghur questions (AP)

41. Negotiating With Iran Isn't Working, But Biden Has a Better Option (Politico)

42. The Challenges of an Electric-Vehicle Revolution — The United States Postal Service could lead by example with its new fleet of delivery trucks. What’s standing in the way? (Atlantic)

43. The FBI is launching a digital currency unit for blockchain analysis and virtual asset seizure. U.S. regulators under President Joe Biden have been ratcheting up their scrutiny of the crypto industry in the wake of a series of high-profile cyber attacks last year. Ransomware groups often demand their fees in bitcoin. (Reuters)

44. Facebook whistleblower alleges executives misled investors about climate, covid hoaxes in new SEC complaints(WP)

45. Paid Google ads urging people to apply for fake payments were viewed more than 100 million times in five months — and stayed up until HuffPost began asking questions. The tech behemoth has pocketed more than $2.2 million from 1111 LLC since September to run ads that cruelly con its own users while flagrantly violating its own policies — and, experts say, federal law. [HuffPost]

46. A group representing publishers such as News Corp and National Public Radio wrote to leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee to back two bills targeting Big Tech, including one that would open up smartphone app stores to more competition. (Reuters)

47. California bill would allow citizens to enforce weapons ban (AP)

48. Newsom announces Texas-style bill that would allow residents to sue gun makers (Politico)

49. ‘So Much Damage Has Already Been Done’: The Fight to Reclaim the Blues (Rolling Stone)

50. Behold, This Is The First Asteroid Ever Discovered to Have Three Moons (Science Alert)

51. Can women do anything about being taken less seriously? (Political)

52. National forecasters are pessimistic about California escaping the drought this year. (Cal Today)

53. If We Ever Travel to Another Star, We’re Going Here — Astronomers may have found another planet around Proxima Centauri, the sun’s closest neighbor. (Atlantic)

54. Nearly half of US bald eagles suffer lead poisoning (AP)

55. MLB lockout talks reach new low with 15-minute meeting as Opening Day doomsday looms (NY Post)

56. MLB delays start of spring training games as labor negotiations continue (WP)

57. The people who grow ice (BBC)

58. Japanese researchers shed light on King Tut's dagger (NHK)

59. How Dating During The Pandemic Has Accelerated Relationships (BuzzFeed)

60. New York Times is blasted AGAIN for the 'worst Wordle ever' as fans fail to complete the puzzle even with four letters in the correct space because there were too many options for the missing one. (Daily Mail)

61. The man rethinking the definition of reality (BBC)

62. Rock Looked Way Cooler Wet (The Onion)

Today's Top 47

 TODAY’s HEADLINES:

1. Ukraine Tensions Spike as West Accuses Russia of Lying About Troop Withdrawal — As Russia stoked hopes of a diplomatic solution and claimed to be pulling back forces from the Ukrainian border, U.S. and NATO officials accused Moscow of building up troops instead. (NYT)

2. Russia has added as many as 7,000 troops near the Ukraine border in recent days, contrary to claims by President Vladimir Putin that troops would be pulled back from the region, a senior Biden administration official said. The U.S. official said there has been a marked increase in false claims by Russians. [AP]

3. Ukraine: Satellite images show Russian military activity (BBC)

4. Russian-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces have traded accusations that each had fired across the ceasefire line in eastern Ukraine, adding to a growing concern over the prospect of a wider war. While Moscow denies it is planning an invasion, Western countries warn Russia's military build-up near Ukraine is growing, not shrinking. (Reuters)

5. Russia expels the No. 2 American diplomat in Moscow, State Department says (WP)

6. Blinken Challenges Russia to Commit That It Won’t Invade Ukraine (WSJ)

7. On the Edge of a Polish Forest, Where Some of Putin’s Darkest Fears Lurk — A U.S. missile facility in Poland is at the heart of an issue animating the Kremlin’s calculations over whether to go to war against Ukraine. (NYT)

8. VIDEO: C.D.C. Prepping New Guidance as Omicron Wave Recedes (AP)

9. The politics of getting to the next phase of the coronavirus pandemic (NPR)

10. Covid-19 Death Reports in U.S. Begin to Drop as Omicron Surge Fades (WSJ)

11. As Hong Kong battles a surge of Covid cases, the government has said it plans to make up to 10,000 hotel rooms available for patients, and will also make testing compulsory from March for the 7.5 million people who live in the city. Daily infections have surged by more than 40 times since the start of February. (Reuters)

12. Hong Kong Can’t Live With the Virus. It Can’t Stop It, Either. — An Omicron surge has exposed the weaknesses of a system that was once a world leader in containing the coronavirus. (NYT)

13. As a growing number of U.S. states have begun to ease Covid restrictions as cases decline, U.S. health officials say they are preparing for the next phase of the pandemic, including shoring up testing capacity and updating mask-wearing guidance. Still, officials cautioned that while mask-wearing guidance may change, people will still have to wear masks in certain situations, such as when experiencing Covid symptoms. (Reuters)

14. WHO says global case decline affected by drop in testing, deaths still very high (WP)

15. As BA.2 subvariant of Omicron rises, lab studies point to signs of severity (CNN)

16. Estimated 73% of US now immune to omicron: Is that enough? (AP)

17. 'Where is my office anyway?' As COVID recedes, remote workers prepare to head back (NPR)

18. Canadian police vow to ‘take back’ Ottawa downtown in standoff with ‘Freedom Convoy’ protesters (WP)

19. Truck drivers protesting in the Canadian capital Ottawa were warned blockading the downtown core could lead to them being arrested unless they departed. The three-week-old protest over Covid restrictions led to a ripple of copycat protests across the globe, and has been a challenge for law enforcement since day one. (Reuters)

20. Truckers hold their ground despite threats of crackdown (AP)

21. Trudeau Says Emergency Powers Needed to Counter Protests (WSJ)

22. Dow drops 622 points for worst session of 2022 because Ukraine fears are rising again (MarketWatch)

23. Jim Clyburn saved Biden’s candidacy — and now has his ear on Court picks

    The South Carolina lawmaker has made clear he wants Biden to appoint U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs to the Supreme Court. (WP)

24. National Guard deploys for new emergency: Teacher shortages (AP)

25. Biden Rejects Trump’s Claim of Privilege for White House Visitor Logs — The president informed the National Archives that it should turn over the logs sought by the Jan. 6 committee within 15 days. (NYT)

26. The frantic texts sent to Trump’s White House chief of staff on Jan. 6 (WP)

27. For Trump, a Perilous Exclamation Point to Years of Wealth Inflation — The former president has spent decades inventing facts and figures to suit his needs. Now, dropped by his accountants, he is making new claims. (NYT)

28. Trump must testify in New York investigation, judge rules (AP)

29. NY Supreme Court justice orders the Trumps to testify under oath (NPR)

30. An alleged Chinese interference plot stirs fears — and smears — ahead of Australian elections (WP)

31. Afghans who bet on a fast path to the United States are facing a closed door. (NYT)

32. Fear runs through Afghanistan’s ‘hazardous’ media landscape (AP)

33. The NFL has hired former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to defend it in a bombshell racial discrimination lawsuit filed this month by former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, one of the few Black coaches in the league. Flores is represented by New York trial lawyer Douglas Wigdor, who spearheaded high-profile gender discrimination cases against disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein and Fox News. [HuffPost]

34. The San Francisco district attorney's stunning claim that California crime labs are using DNA from sexual assault survivors to investigate unrelated crimes shocked prosecutors nationwide, and advocates said the practice could affect victims' willingness to come forward. (AP)

35. Book bans signal the dangerous direction society is moving (WP)

36. CNN probe complete, yet mysteries on Cuomo, Zucker remain (AP)

37. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said she wants to extend proposals to ban stock trading among members of Congress to all state lawmakers, building on growing momentum in Washington to rein in the financial dealings of elected officials. “Public officials should remove all conflicts of interest — whether you’re at the federal or the state level,” Warren said. [HuffPost]

38. As midterms near, Democratic backlash against far-left plans is growing (WP)

39. Brains do not slow down until after age of 60, study finds (Guardian)

40. Mexico’s avocados face fallout from violence, deforestation (AP)

41. The animals that detect disasters (BBC)

42. Agent Orange killed my father. Did it also kill my sisters? Like a detective, I set out to discover the truth. (Current Affairs)

43. The Biggest Galaxy Ever Found Has Just Been Discovered, And It Will Break Your Brain (Science Alert)

44. Elon Musk accuses SEC of 'harassment campaign' (Politico)

45. Biden will allow California to set climate limits on cars. The move could influence the rest of the country. (WP)

46. Ex-NY Times columnist ineligible to run for Oregon governor (AP)

47. Man Short-Circuits After Cashier Hands Him Change, Bag, Receipt At Same Time (The Onion)

Don't Miss the Dance

Watching two of my granddaughters twirl with the late afternoon sunlight Wednesday afternoon, I momentarily forgot what I was going to write about for this news cycle.

They were performing a sort of improv combination of gymnastics and ballet and I was their primary audience.

They also were doing it without a care in the world, not about the Ukraine, or Trump or the Canadian truckers or climate change or the midterm elections. They don’t know about any of that stuff yet, nor should they.

Now is their time to dance in the sunlight. There will be plenty of time to confront the abundant darkness around them in the future.

I harbor thoughts like these all the time, but usually in the context of the rest of us who do not qualify as naive children but as battle-hardened adults. We need to dance in the sunlight too at times. I think especially of my peers in the news business trying to find new angles on the stories they report, write informative yet catchy headlines, and promote their work on social media.

Sometimes they should take a break and just dance, twirling around the room like my granddaughters. But if we’re not careful, life has a way of emptying the music out of us over time to the point we no longer remember how to jump, twirl, stretch or skip. Our movements through time and space become stiff and labored and we just watch the young enjoy life.

One way or another so much gets lost in the process. We stop taking risks in life and in love, trying to avoid the pain — but then nearing the end, as we look back on it all, we remember bit by bit what it was like before we got beaten down.

As the songwriter says, “I could have missed the pain…but I’d have had to miss the dance.”

My advice, FWIW, is don’t miss the dance.

TODAY’s HEADLINES (42):

1. As Russia Welcomes Talks, Biden Warns Invasion Is Still Possible (NYT)

2. U.S., Russian Aircraft Flew Perilously Close to Each Other Amid Ukraine Tensions (WSJ)

3. Russia aims to ward off NATO in the event of a Ukraine invasion (WP)

4. VIDEO: Russian Invasion of Ukraine Still ‘Distinctly Possible,’ Biden Says (AP)

5. Putin is invading our heads, and maybe Ukraine Politico)

6. Ukraine crisis: No sign of Russian de-escalation, Nato chief says (BBC)

7. Ukraine crisis: Nato considering new battlegroups in eastern Europe after ‘no sign’ of Russian de-escalation (Guardian)

8. Nato says Russian troop numbers still rising near Ukraine border (Financial Times)

9. Ukraine’s defense ministry says an unprecedented cyber attack is into its second day, targeting its online network and that of two banks. (Reuters)

10. High gas costs from Ukraine threat pose Biden political risk (AP)

11. Biden says a Russian invasion of Ukraine would hurt Americans. Here's how (NPR)

12. Top finance watchdog urges west to ‘think twice’ about Russia sanctions (Financial Times)

13. Is Russia going to invade Ukraine and what does Putin want? (BBC)

14. Russia seeks dialogue on security issues with US (NHK)

15. A World Away From Ukraine, Russia Is Courting Latin America (NYT)

16. New York’s attorney general will go to court Thursday seeking to enforce a subpoena for Donald Trump’s testimony in a civil probe she says uncovered evidence his company used “fraudulent or misleading” accounting to get loans and tax breaks. The decision could force Trump and his children to testify under oath and comes as the House Jan. 6 committee drills in on his plot to install fake electors to overturn his 2020 defeat. [AP]

17. Trump-backed Perdue struggles in Republican primary challenge in Georgia (CNN)

18. Trump Interior secretary crossed lines in land dealings with Halliburton executive, watchdog finds (Politico)

19. Republicans expressed unease after Trump's longtime accounting firm cut its ties with the former president (Business Insider)

20. Fed Eyes Potential for Faster Rate Rises to Ease Inflation (WSJ)

21. In the UK, the annual rate of consumer price inflation rose to 5.5% in January, the fastest annual pace in nearly 30 years. The data suggests there's a strong chance that the Bank of England will raise interest rates for a third meeting in a row in March. (Reuters)

22. A middle-aged woman is the third patient to be potentially cured of HIV, scientists report (WP)

23. Can Bitcoin Be a National Currency? El Salvador Is Trying to Find Out. (WSJ)

24. How a Secret Assault Allegation Against an Anchor Upended CNN (NYT)

25. Feinstein plummets, Harris underwater in new California poll — Approval rating for California's senior senator reaches a new low. (Politico)

26. Jury rules against Sarah Palin in New York Times libel case (WP)

27. The Dark Side of Saying Work Is ‘Like a Family’ — The analogy is accurate—in many unhealthy, manipulative, and toxic ways. (Atlantic)

28. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was dealt a fresh blow with a jury's rejection of her defamation claim against The New York Times. The verdict came a day after the judge presiding over the trial decided to throw out Palin's case while the jury was still deliberating, saying her claim was unproven. [HuffPost]

29. Tensions mount in Ottawa as police warn truckers to leave (AP)

30. ‘Carnival of chaos’: Ottawa police face growing flak for failure to end protests (Guardian)

31. Vaccination during pregnancy may provide infants protection against the coronavirus, CDC study finds (WP)

32. The Millions of People Stuck in Pandemic Limbo — What does society owe immunocompromised people? (Atlantic)

33. American journalist, political satirist and best-selling author P.J. O'Rourke has died at the age of 74. O’Rourke was described as “one of the major voices of his generation.” (Reuters)

34. San Francisco school board members ousted in parental backlash (Politico)

35. Amid debate, women lift their voices with Muslim sacred text (AP)

36. A doctors’ group has filed a complaint against U.C. Davis, alleging that a primate research program funded by Elon Musk was a violation of the Animal Welfare Act, reports (Sacramento Bee)

37. The White House Is Going After One of Climate Change’s Thorniest Problems

    — It requires building new factories. Lots of them. (Atlantic)

38. Student climate activists from Yale, Stanford, Princeton, MIT and Vanderbilt file legal complaints to compel divestment (WP)

39. Sea levels will go up as much as 8 inches in California by 2050, according to recent predictions from federal experts. (SFC)

40. Académie Française denounces rise of English words in public life (Guardian)

41. Multiple weather hazards possible as massive storm sweeps across the country (NBC)

42. Surgeon Totally Blanks On What He Cut Open Patient For (The Onion)

TODAY’s LYRICS

“The Dance”

by Garth Brooks

… Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared 'neath the stars above
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye

… And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end, the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss the dance

… Holding you, I held everything
For a moment wasn't I the king
If I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey, who's to say, you know I might have changed it all

… And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end, the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss the dance

… If our lives are better left to chance
Oh, our lives are better left to chance
Oh, our lives are better left to chance

… I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss the dance

All in the Neighborhood

Meeting up with the web versions of the leading news services on a daily basis is like stopping by your local coffee shop or pub every day — you eventually get to know the regulars.

But the neighborhood has seen better times, you know, so you try to choose e. table with only one chair. Otherwise, some of the down-on-the-luckers will find you, like Time, Newsweek and US News & Report. 

Or a guy from a network. And “Glory Days” will start playing on the jukebox.

But most of the customers are fine.

The New York Times, for example, which must have a character count for its headlines, because most of them are of a very specific length. The Times considers itself the leading U.S. (paper) newspaper, of course, but for a long time now it has been emphasizing its digital subscriptions.

And in that category, subscription revenue, the growth has been impressive but when it comes to online advertising, where the real money is, the Times is a tiny thing — three-tenths of a percent or so of industry-leading Google.

Nearby, the Washington Post has worked hard to avoid any appearance of being a kept woman since Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder, bought it and I have to say the Post has done a very good job on that score. Furthermore, they issue at least three digital updates a day, whereas the Times has only one main newsletter.

The Wall Street Journal remains schizophrenic. The news pages are excellent while the editorial page is almost childish in tone. Now the Times and Post have deep editorial biases too but the voice in their editorials resemble that of an adult compared to the Journal’s.

Then there is the good old Associated Press. As a former wire service stringer myself, I have a special fondness for the wire services and AP is as good and reliable as ever, plus in recent years it has added in an impressive investigative component from time to time.

There are tons of other useful American players in the news business, including weekly or monthly magazines that are adapting to the 24/7 digital news cycle, like The New Yorker and the Atlantic.

Of these, the Atlantic is by far the most impressive, with strong new content almost every day of the week but the New Yorker is catching up.

The British sites I check include BBC, the Guardian, the Financial Times, the Independent and Reuters. There’s a lot more attitude to the first two, of course, AND Reuters has been one of my favorite news services since we partnered with them when I was an exec at Wired Digital in the 1990s.

NHK, the Japanese’s news service is quite modest but good.

NPR, PBS, and public media in general were slow to embrace digital journalism but they’ve come along in recent years. NPR in particular has strengthened its web version substantially.

The previously mentioned television networks, including cable, are generally speaking pretty terrible sources of news online, but I check CNN, Fox, CNBC, NBC, ABC, and CBS anyway for the occasional find. There is rarely much there.

Digital-only sources like Politico and The Hill are quite good at what they do, which is inside-the-Beltway stuff.

Everybody else shows up now and then but probably the biggest surprise-regular for me is Google News. I don’t know how they do it, but this algorithm-driven aggregator is usually very much on top of the breaking news, plus it includes many random news stories I don’t see anywhere else.

So much for tradition! In the virtual world, the biggest media company of them all has gotten pretty darn good at mastering the news cycle. As have the startups. Everyone else is playing catch up.

TODAY’s NEWS (37):

1. Tone of Ukraine Crisis Shifts as Russia Signals Openness to Talk More — Diplomacy is “far from exhausted,” Russia’s foreign minister said, while President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said the prospect of his country joining NATO might be just a “dream.” (NYT)

2. Putin says he does not want war in Europe (BBC)

3. Russia Offers Mixed Messages on Ukraine Troop Pullback (WSJ)

4. Russia says some troops withdrawing from border, even as other major military exercises continue (WP)

5. The Kremlin signaled it is ready to keep talking with the West about security grievances that led to the current Ukraine crisis, offering hope that Russia might not invade its beleaguered neighbor within days as the U.S. and Europe increasingly fear. Moscow, which denies it has any plans to invade Ukraine, wants Western guarantees that NATO won’t allow Ukraine and other former Soviet countries to join as members. [AP]

6. Energy Markets Are Jittery as Russia-Ukraine Tensions Drag On — Oil prices are well over $90 a barrel, and an invasion would most likely push them above $100. Reflecting the uncertainty, stock markets were sliding lower. (NYT)

7. Russia said some of its military units were returning to their basesafter exercises near Ukraine, following days of U.S. and British warnings that Moscow might invade its neighbor at any time. The news drew a cautious response from Ukraine and Britain but prompted a sharp rally on financial markets, as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz flew to Moscow to meet President Vladimir Putin. (Reuters)

8. Inside the White House response to a potential Ukraine invasion (WP)

9. US accuses financial website of spreading Russian propaganda (AP)

10. Ukrainian Ministry of Defense websites hit by cyberattack (Politico)

11. Russia-Ukraine conflict could cause inflation to hit 10%, new analysis finds (CNN)

12. U.S. ‘excess deaths’ during pandemic surpassed 1 million, with covid killing most but other diseases adding to the toll, CDC says (WP)

13. Accounting Firm Cuts Ties With Trump and Retracts Financial Statements

    — The firm, Mazars USA, said in a letter that it could no longer stand behind the annual statements, which are central to an investigation by the New York attorney general. (NYT)

14. Trump vs. McConnell: Latest round between GOP heavyweights has the highest stakes yet (NPR)

15. Ocasio-Cortez: ‘Very real risk’ US democracy won’t exist in 10 years (Guardian)

16. French far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour had a phone call with former U.S. President Donald Trumpwho told him not to give in to pressure, a senior official of Zemmour's campaign said. Trump's 2016 presidential run is often cited as a blueprint for the current campaign of former French talk show commentator Zemmour, who has been convicted several times for inciting racial hatred. (Reuters)

17. Report: Conspiracy theorists fuel bump in extremist killings (AP)

18. Protesters, police face off near U.S.-Canada border crossings as Trudeau invokes Emergencies Act (WP)

19. Trucks leaving blockade at Canadian border crossing (AP)

20. School board members across the United States have endured a rash of terroristic threats and hostile messages ignited by roiling controversies over policies on curtailing the coronavirus, bathroom access for transgender students and the teaching of America’s racial history. In a special report, we document the intimidation. (Reuters)

21. Six months of Taliban: Afghans safer, poorer, less hopeful (AP)

22. Afghans say they feel safer but less hopeful under Taliban rule (NPR)

23. Afghanistan in crisis 6 months after Taliban takeover (NHK)

24. How Bad Is the Western Drought? Worst in 12 Centuries, Study Finds. — Fueled by climate change, the drought that started in 2000 is now the driest two decades since 800 A.D. (NYT)

25. Ocean water along U.S. coasts will rise about one foot by 2050, scientists warn — Sea levels are rising even faster on the East Coast and Gulf Coast. And advances in climate science mean we can see the future clearly for the first time. (NPR)

26. A lawsuit against Google points out a big privacy problem (Edit Bd/WP)

27. Bristling tensions and looming laws in Europe could offer clues to two questions: Can bitcoin be a safe-haven asset? And can Russia emerge as a crypto superpower? The answer to the first, for now at least, is no.
    (Reuters)

28. On Mars, a NASA Rover and Helicopter’s Year of Surprise and Discovery

    — The past 12 months on Mars have been both “exciting” and “exhausting” for scientists and engineers minding Perseverance and Ingenuity. And the mission is only really getting started. (NYT)

29. Space junk piece set to hit the moon is likely from a Chinese rocket, not SpaceX — Astronomers noticed it was unlikely the piece of space junk was from the Falcon 9 launch in 2015, due to the gap between the rocket's trajectory and object. (NPR)

30. EU takes on SpaceX and Amazon with its own satellite internet system (Financial Times)

31. Sandy Hook families reach $73 million settlement with gun manufacturer Remington (CNN)

32. “I never wanted 'Maus' to be for children,” says its creator, Art Spiegelman, in this fascinating profile. (New York)

33. The Oscar-Nominated Film That Offers a Master Class in Journalism — The stars of the documentary Writing With Fire are a group of newspaper reporters working to create a revolution in Indian media. (Atlantic)

34. Is Wordle getting harder? Viral game tests players after New York Times takeover (Guardian)

35. The 5,000-year-old human bone found in the River Thames (BBC)

36. Prince Andrew settles with U.S. woman who says she was trafficked to him by Jeffrey Epstein (WP)

37. Family Photo With Ex-Boyfriend Still Prominently Displayed On Grandma’s Mantle (The Onion)

 

Izvinite!

 (Translation: “Sorry!”)

As the fog rolled in off the ocean and the temperature dropped by one-third (25 degrees) around here, it was a reminder that this the northern part of California, not the southern.

One of the first surprises when I landed in San Francisco 50 years ago was that this corner of the state isn’t exactly a tropical paradise so much as a place where you better always have a sweater or jacket close at hand because the local conditions in each of our micro-climates can change several times a day.

The weather here is just like the news, if you pay close attention. Case in point: The showdown on three sides of the Ukraine generates many of the headlines these days as Europe holds its breath for the authoritarian Putin’s next move.

As I follow each twist and turn, I can’t help wondering whether something isn’t being lost in translation in the talks between Russia, the U.S., the Ukraine, and various NATO countries’ leaders.

S.I. Hayakawa, the former senator and president of San Francisco State University who was hated by student activists of my generation, was nonetheless a gifted linguist who on occasion recounted a fascinating story about an international incident that was barely averted during the Cold War after a series of mis-translations between English and Russian officials.

Like most languages, the two do not translate literally back and forth; ultimately it is a matter of interpretation what certain words and phrases mean in the other tongue. This basic fact about languages has caused many problems throughout history and it may still be happening now.

But one thing speaks louder than words and that is the massing of some 130,000 Russian troops on the Ukraine borders. If Putin wants this to end peacefully, it’s unlikely that any words he can utter will do the trick.

So...Izymat'!

(Withdraw!)

TODAY’s NEWS (40):

1. Canada Opens Blockaded Bridge, but in Ottawa, Truckers Won’t Budge — Amid progress at a border bridge, Ottawa remained frozen by an antigovernment protest. There were signs of a slight thaw, with truckers said to be weighing pulling out of part of the capital. (NYT)

2. Canadian police seize guns, arrest 11 in ‘Freedom Convoy’ protests (WP)

3. The Next Pandemic Could Start With a Terrorist Attack — Nations around the world should come together now to determine how best to protect humans from biowarfare. (Atlantic)

4. ‘Freedom Convoy’-style protests against vaccine mandates reach Europe and beyond (WP)

5. Canada protests sound common refrain: ‘We stand for freedom’ (AP)

6. The COVID Strategy America Hasn’t Really Tried — The clearest way to reduce deaths is to push to vaccinate more of the elderly—yes, still! (Atlantic)

7. After chasing variants, scientists seek a universal vaccine — To many scientists, developing variant-specific vaccines is a short-term, shortsighted and unsustainable strategy. (WP)

8. Inside McConnell’s Campaign to Take Back the Senate and Thwart Trump — Senator Mitch McConnell is working furiously to bring allies to Washington who will buck Donald J. Trump. It’s not going according to plan. (NYT)

9. A weakened Trump? As some voters edge away, he battles parts of the GOP he once ran. (WP)

10. Former President Donald Trump's longtime accounting firm has dropped the Trump Organization as its client amid New York prosecutors' multiple investigations into whether Trump overvalued his assets in financial statements. Mazars USA also disavowed financial statements it prepared for Trump between 2011 and 2020 and said they “should no longer be relied upon.” [HuffPost]

11. GOP Rep. Jim Jordan says a Trump statement that suggested the execution of former Hillary Clinton campaign aides was 'right on target' (Business Insider)

12. People Are Going Out Again, but Not to the Office — Only a third of U.S. employees have returned to the office, as workers prefer remote work and companies fear ordering them back. (WSJ)

13. SEC, states hit crypto lender BlockFi with $100M penalty (Politico)

14. Ukraine invasion could be imminent, says foreign secretary (BBC)

15. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan was asked whether the U.S. is dangerously sparking panic in Ukraine about a potential Russian invasion. “Only one country has amassed more than 100,000 troops on the border of Ukraine. It’s not the United States. It’s Russia. That is the source of the alarm,” Sullivan told CNN. [HuffPost]

16. Tracking cyber’s role in the Russia-Ukraine conflict (Politico)

17. European, U.S. leaders race to defuse Ukraine crisis amid warnings of imminent Russia attack (WP)

18. US: Over 130,000 Russian troops now staged outside Ukraine (AP)

19. Ukraine’s President Tries to Avert Panic as Pressure Mounts — With Ukraine at the center of Europe’s most intense security crisis of the post-Cold War era, President Zelensky is driving home his message of optimism. (NYT)

20. Ukraine crisis: miscalculation could trigger unintended wider conflict (Guardian)

21. Russian foreign minister stresses ‘a way forward’ for diplomacy in Ukraine crisis (Financial Times)

22. Talks to salvage Iran's 2015 nuclear deal are not at a dead end but key outstanding issues require political decisions by the West, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman said. He also said a prisoner swap deal with the United States was on the agenda in parallel with the talks in Vienna. (Reuters)

23. Unpaid and Potentially Stateless, Afghan Diplomats Seek Permission to Remain in U.S. — American banks have suspended government accounts to prevent the Taliban from gaining access to funds, suspending the salaries of many workers. (NYT)

24. Estimated one million Afghan children engaged in labour: NGO (Aljazeera)

25. World shares skidded as warnings that Russia could invade Ukraine at any time drove oil prices to seven-year peaks, belted the euro and sent investors scuttling back to the safe-haven government bonds they have been dumping all year. (Reuters)

26. Study finds Western megadrought is the worst in 1,200 years (NPR)

27. Flourishing plants show warming Antarctica undergoing ‘major change’ (Guardian)

28. As few as three major criminal groups are responsible for smuggling the vast majority of elephant ivory tusks out of Africa, according to a new study.

    Researchers used analysis of DNA from seized elephant tusks and evidence such as phone records, license plates, financial records and shipping documents to map trafficking operations across the continent and better understand who was behind the crimes. (AP)

29. DNA detectives use elephant tusk analysis to track ivory smugglers (Financial Times)

30. How states are scrambling to find new teachers (Politico)

31. Earth's Core Is in a Weird Superionic State: 'Quite Abnormal' (Newsweek)

32. After Nearly 58 Years, Pennsylvania Police Solve Killing of 9-Year-Old Girl (NYT)

33. Judge to dismiss Sarah Palin’s libel case against New York Times (WP)

34. The Chesa Boudin recall stopped being only about San Francisco a long time ago. (SFC)

35. Fewer small businesses are opening in S.F. The pandemic is only part of the problem (SFC)

36. Heartbreak can literally break your heart, a comic! (NPR)

37. The Paradox of Slow Love — No one formula can guarantee love and lasting commitment, but “taking it slow” may be a losing strategy. (Atlantic)

38. The two songs Bob Dylan said it “doesn’t get any better than” (Far Out)

39. Pandemic love, lost and found (WP)

40. Artificially Intelligent Amazon Supercomputer Stuck In Dead-End Retail Job (The Onion)

Super Hot Sunday

After sifting through the news, as is my daily habit every morning, I sat outside watching the plum blossoms. It was an eventful moment to do so. The weather was springlike as it only can be in Northern California in mid-February, when much of the rest of the country is coated in snow.

But at 76 degrees, Sunday was the last in a string of super-hot days for now, according to my weather app. The heat caused the native plum trees to go from leafless to laden with white blossoms, seemingly overnight.

It was more like four nights, actually, with each succeeding dawn disclosing more flowers than were there at sunset’s last view. Along with the plum blossoms and many other blooms came the pollinators — bees and hummingbirds primarily, angling in for the nectar in lavender and other favored local crops.

Anyway as sweet as all that is, the main thing I noticed while sitting in the sun was that a cloud of blossoms was drifting on occasional puffs of breeze through certain sections of the landscape, like a tiny snowstorm or maybe dandruff or even confetti.

Take your pick.

I was aware of course that it was Super Bowl Sunday, but since “my’ team had come up one game short of the prize, its arrival was a mixed blessing. The quintessential celebration of capitalism’s excesses is an odd event punctuated by brands new and old striving to establish or reinvent themselves in the minds of U.S. consumers.

Accordingly among the stories moving on the wires was one informing us that one in four (25 percent) of Californian men watching the game would consume at least one entire six-pack of beer.

In the winner-take-all war on the field, 22 giants were kicking, throwing, catching, carrying, dropping, blocking and otherwise fighting over a single, odd-shaped ball while other more normal-sized people jumped up and down, screaming bloody murder.

Meanwhile, back in the yard, a hummingbird turned into the breeze and caught a ray of sun. For just a second, it glowed like it had a gold crest. And just beyond that, another burst of plum blossoms rode on the wind, oblivious to crypto, the cars or the guys with all of the beer.

TODAY’s NEWS (40):

1. U.S. Battles Putin by Disclosing His Next Possible Moves — Declassified information is part of a campaign to complicate what officials say are Russia’s plans to invade Ukraine. (NYT)

2. VIDEO: Paris Police Fire Tear Gas to Disperse Banned Protest Convoy

   (Reuters, AP and Storyful)

3. Freedom convoys: legitimate Covid protest or vehicle for darker beliefs? (Guardian)

4. ’Freedom Convoy’ protesters, police face off at U.S.-Canada border as Trudeau looks at ‘all options’ (WP)

5. Blockades on Canada-US border continue as protests swell (AP)

6. Canada bridge protesters cleared by police after a week of disruption (BBC)

7. Omicron’s Threat to the Global Economy Runs Through China (WSJ)

8. COVID-19 Is Over (If You’re Rich) (Atlantic)

9. Newsom wants to end school masks, but teachers say not yet (Politico)

10. Autocrats, Not Terrorists, Are Increasingly Taking Americans Hostage (New Yorker)

11. A weakened Trump? As some voters edge away, he battles parts of the Republican Party he once ran. (WP)

12. Neither Biden nor Trump has their party's full support for a 2024 run (CNN)

13. Selling Trump: A Profitable Post-Presidency Like No Other — Much as he did while in the White House, Donald Trump has thoroughly blurred the lines between his political ambitions and his business interests, with a wide-ranging set of moneymaking ventures. (NYT)

14. Every Republican has to answer about Jan. 6, Kinzinger says (Politico)

15. US says Putin intransigent over Ukraine invasion despite diplomatic efforts (Financial Times)

16. Top Biden Official Renews Warning of Imminent Conflict in Ukraine (WSJ)

17. Ukraine advises airlines to skirt Black Sea due to Russian drills (Reuters)

18. U.S. and NATO to bulk up eastern flank as they watch for a potential Russian attack on Ukraine (WP)

19. Ukraine’s leader asks for evidence on new invasion warnings (AP)

20. Inside the Bitcoin Laundering Case That Confounded the Internet (NYT)

21. NFT marketplace suspends most sales, citing 'rampant' fakes and plagiarism (CNN)

22. Declassified Afghanistan reports back commanders who said Biden team was indecisive during crisis (WP)

23. Ex-Afghan president: Biden order on frozen funds an atrocity (AP)

24. Afghan woman activist released after arrest in January (BBC)

25. Arctic seed vault to receive rare deposits (Reuters)

26. Cities aren’t facing up to their ‘long covid’ crisis: Downtown is in deep trouble (WP)

27. Inflation, Ukraine Invasion Threat Stoke Outlook for More Stock Volatility (WSJ)

28. Russia has surrounded Ukraine on three sides. Here's where an invasion could be launched (CNN)

29. Inflation Was Hottest in Atlanta, Mildest in San Francisco in 2021 (WSJ)

30. From campus to Congress, colleges urged to end legacy boost (AP)

31. What American Mental Health Care Is Missing — Scientific research alone cannot address the challenges that Americans with mental illness face. (Atlantic)

32. Do dreams mean anything? Why do I feel like I’m falling? Or wake up paralyzed? We asked experts. (WP)

33. Wild Horses Are Removed From Government Land as Drought Shrinks Food Supply (WSJ)

34. Biologists Investigate Smallest Propeller on Earth – Used by One of the Fastest Organisms on the Planet (SciTechDaily)

35. A rocket is still set to slam into the Moon next month — but it may not be from SpaceX after all (The Verge)

36. Demócratas desalentados aun con mayor poder de voto Latino en nuevo distrito (NPR)

37. Son Ye-jin and Hyun Bin of hit K-drama 'Crash Landing on You' are getting married (CNN)

38. ‘Death on the Nile’ tops domestic box office (NY Post)

39. The rap star of Karachi: ‘My veil cannot take away the talent I have’ (Guardian)

40. New Streaming Service Still Struggling To Come Up With Name Stupid Enough That Public Becomes Furious When They Hear It (The Onion)