We memorialize special events by the date on which they occurred and so our major holidays are predictable year after year. In the news business, this helps with something called the editorial calendar.
Editors assign stories based on this calendar, which lists historical events, both good and bad. The anniversary of, say, a war or a riot or a major storm is an opportunity to provide audiences with an update, which is one way we can provide context for the current state of affairs.
Running parallel to this calendar of public matters is our personal and family calendar. Births, graduations, weddings and other events are reasons for celebrations, both large and small.
Of course, there is another item that could be called the heartbreak calendar, which marks personal and family tragedies, including breakups, job losses, diseases and injuries and deaths. These are rarely cause for celebration, but they roll around every year just like the rest.
Take yesterday, for example, January 6th. In the Christian faith, it is celebrated as “Three Kings Day,” marking the arrival of the three Magi (wise men: Melchior, Caspar, Balthazar) to bring gifts (gold, frankincense, myrrh) to baby Jesus.
It also was the fifth anniversary of one of the worst days in the history of American democracy, the violent riot at the U.S. Capitol incited by Donald Trump. There is a concerted effort by Trump and his allies to whitewash this riot while erasing it from our collective memory.
It was also my sweet granddaughter Daisy’s 12th birthday.
As for me, I don’t really celebrate religious holidays, and I’m not going to forget that riot, but when it came to celebrating something, I chose Daisy’s birthday
.HEADLINES:
Lawmakers battle over how — and whether — Jan. 6 should be remembered (WP)
January 6, five years on: sustained effort by Trump to rewrite history (Guardian)
US seizes Russian-flagged tanker in Atlantic as UK confirms it gave support to operation (BBC)
Miller says no one would stop U.S. from seizing Greenland (Axios)
Trump says his Greenland fixation is about national security. Europeans are skeptical. (Politico)
Trump Seizing Greenland Could Set Off a Chain Reaction (Atlantic)
Trump’s Foray Into Venezuela Could Embolden Russia’s and China’s Own Aggression (NYT)
What Americans think about the situation in Venezuela, according to recent polls (AP)
Trump boasts about abduction of Venezuela’s Maduro amid global outcry (Al Jazeera)
Supreme Court Increasingly Favors the Rich, Economists Say (NYT)
2 GOP senators caution Hegseth on punishing Kelly (The Hill)
China studying U.S. strike for lessons and opportunities, analysts say (WP)
‘Neither Gaza nor Lebanon!’ Iranian unrest is about more than the economy − protesters reject the Islamic Republic’s whole rationale (The Conversation)
Corporation for Public Broadcasting votes itself out of existence (AP)
The data center rebellion is here, and it’s reshaping the political landscape (WP)
The Robot Cars Have Come for the Kids (NYT)
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