Old Guys

In the series called “Shrinking,” which is streaming on Apple, Harrison Ford plays a character I can identify with. He’s a grouchy old man in his 70s battling Parkinson’s.

The maddening thing with this disease is it can take different forms with a disquieting number of potential symptoms, both on the motor skill and cognitive levels.

Ford’s character experiences tremors, depth perception impairment, memory lapses, plus moments when he “freezes” and is unable (temporarily) to move.

There also can be balance issues, tiredness, vivid dreaming and a range of other symptoms as the disease progresses.

There are plenty of other characters in”Shrinking,” some better than others. It’s part drama, part comedy and partly a commentary on therapy.

But for those of us battling P.D., the show quite accurately captures what we’re dealing with, day in, day out. It is like our body is at war with itself. 

But the good part of “Shrinking” is it profiles resilience.

Resilience — we’re going to need a lot of that to get through the Trump era. In his own twisted way, he has inflicted the equivalent of a political Parkinson’s Disease on the entire nation.

HEADLINES:

• At Home and Abroad, Deference to Trump Turns Increasingly to Defiance (NYT)

• Iran has held new talks with neighboring Oman on management of the Strait of Hormuz, blockaded over nearly six ‌months of conflict, with Oman’s foreign minister saying he was hopeful a temporary corridor through the waterway could be announced soon. (Reuters)

• One US dollar now costs 2 million rials in Iran, and here’s what it can buy (Al Jazeera)

• Wiped out: US faces surging toilet paper prices amid trade war with Canada (Guardian)

• Hundreds killed, more than 1,000 missing in Nepal and China after Himalayan flood (Reuters)

• Flash flood on Nepal-Tibet border, hundreds of tourists missing (BBC)

• What triggered the catastrophic flood on the Nepal-Tibet border? (Reuters)

• CIA chief John Ratcliffe reportedly made secretive Moscow trip to warn Russia against attacking NATO (CNBC)

• Hegseth’s Purge of Top Generals Leaves the Army Rudderless (NYT)

• The Real Reason There’s a Munitions Shortage (Nation)

• Pentagon attack on Stars and Stripes is part of Trump’s war on media (The Hill)

• Active-duty Air Force officer who called for Trump impeachment faces three charges (Military Times)

• The scope of Hegseth’s damage to the U.S. Army comes into sharper focus (MS Now)

• Before Hegseth fired him, top general was advised to drop Kid Rock probe (WP)

• Judge Sides With Texas Over Minnesota on Extradition of ICE Agent (NYT)

• Immigrant dad of USS Lincoln sailor is released from ICE detention (NBC)

• USS Abraham Lincoln heads to Thailand for a brief stop after a lengthy deployment at sea (AP)

• 3 Secret Service Officials Are Said to Be on Leave Amid Inquiry (NYT)

• Lawyers gear up as Trump administration threatens election officials with arrest (WP)

• Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Clear-Eyed Solo Dissent Explains the Supreme Court’s Voting Assault (Slate)

• Immigration officers are being diverted to Trump’s voter-fraud effort (WP)

• I Worked for Trump. The Natalie Harp Saga Isn’t Surprising. (Bulwark)

• Russia’s baiting and switching Latin Americans to fight its war (The Hill)

• One Woman Conceived a Baby. One Carried Him. Who’s the Mother? (NYT)

• Rob Bonta Says No Paramount-WBD Settlement Talks Scheduled After He Canceled Monday Session (Deadline)

• F.D.A. Approves Drug Poised to Transform Care for Pancreatic Cancer (NYT)

• Invasive green crabs are bad for the environment, so New Englanders are starting to eat more of them (AP)

• Is R.F.K., Jr., Winning or Losing? (New Yorker)

• ‘Life of M’ constructs a portrait of how stardom hides a person’s core (NPR)

• Tim Curry, ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ Star, Dies at 80 (Variety)

• Dolly Parton Had the Voice, and Concerns, of an Earth Angel (NYT)

• Reporter Lisa Richwine talks Dolly Parton’s life and legacy on the Reuters World News podcast — listen now. (Reuters)

• Meta to Pay Up to $17.1 Billion in Landmark Settlement Over Social Media Addiction Claims (NYT)

• Microsoft employees reveal how much cash they’re burning on AI (BI)

• Everyone is making a U-turn on data centers as public support craters (Politico)

• MIT Says AI Is Forcing A Rethink Of College Itself (Forbes)

• AI can now credibly complete most undergraduate assignments, MIT warns (WP)

• Robots need help learning human skills. These AI companies are rushing to meet the demand (CNBC)

• Bill Gates was an AI optimist. Now he’s scared of what could go wrong. (WP)

• A.I. Is Becoming So Powerful, It’s Stumping Those Trying to Contain It (NYT)

• New Meta Glasses Feature Reminds Users To Blink To Appear Human (Onion)