The Next Moment

Sometimes in life you reach a point where you are not sure what comes next, but you know it may be something special. It's hard to say how you know; maybe it is a physical thing, maybe it's an instinct. 

Whatever it is, the world around you starts to come alive in a new kind of way. The parts that were black and white burst into color. The still parts begin to move.

But along with the color and the movement there are storm clouds and an ominous drum roll way in the background. It's as scary as it is exciting.

The people you encounter at these moments can sense all of this about you too. They start reacting to you in a new way. It's like you are giving off chemicals that they pick up; maybe you are. Their nostrils twitch, their eyes widen. They smile.

At these times you're likely to do something rash. And that is a good thing.

In my life, these things tend to happen when one of several things are going to happen. It might be a story -- a big story. It might be a job change. It might be a new friend. Or something much better than all of those things...

Hey, maybe all of this is weather-related. This just in from the San Francisco Chronicle: 

"Gusty winds, cooler temperatures and occasional downpours will greet most of the Bay Area this morning as storms move in over Northern California. Forecasters say this won’t be the only hint of moisture seen this week, as an atmospheric river could reach the Bay Area this weekend and drop heavy rain."

***

THE HEADLINES:

* Vaccine for Young Kids to Be Given at Schools, Care Sites, White House Says (WSJ)

* White House details plans to vaccinate 28 million children age 5-11 (AP)

* The Economic Rebound Is Still Waiting for Workers -- Despite school reopenings and the end of some federal aid, many people are in no rush to land a job. Savings and health concerns are playing a role. (NYT)

* White House doubles down on executive action as Democrats weigh trimming Hill climate plan (WP)

* Reproductive justice advocates warned the country about a domino effect after Texas' abortion ban became law. It has already started.Arkansas state Sen. Jason Rapert (R) announced last week that he will introduce similar legislation that will include “a civil cause of action ― just like Texas.” [HuffPost] 

* Flooding in Venice worsens off-season amid climate change (AP)

* Gov. Gavin Newsom asked Californians cut water use by 15%. Newsom declared a state of emergency across California, adding San Francisco and seven other counties to the list of those severely affected by drought. (SFC)

* Over the past month, Newsom signed a whopping 770 bills into law, including a new high school ethnic studies requirement, a ban on mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes and a measure allowing the state to strip bad police officers of their badges. (Cal Today)

* WHO: Europe the only region with rise in COVID-19 last week (AP)

* Taliban Commander Who Launched Bombings in Kabul Is Now a Police Chief in Charge of Security (WSJ)

* With Afghanistan’s war over, Taliban faces a new hurdle: Enforcing the law — and protecting Afghans from the Islamic State (WP)

* After months of negotiations, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), whose home state and personal fortune depend on the continued burning of heavily polluting coal, appears to have effectively blocked the president’s Clean Electricity Performance Program from a sweeping government spending bill. The possibility that Democrats may fail for the second time in 12 years to pass a meaningful climate law has set off a high-stakes scramble to find a plausible alternative. [HuffPost]

* Thousands Flee Myanmar for India Amid Fears of a Growing Refugee Crisis (NYT)

* In-N-Out is fighting against S.F.’s indoor vaccination verification mandate, calling it “unreasonable, invasive and unsafe" to ask for cards at the door. (SFC)

* Thousands of unvaccinated workers across the United States are facing potential job losses as a growing number of states, cities and private companies start to enforce mandates for inoculation against COVID-19. (Reuters)

* Virus killed 65,000 more men than women in U.S. through August, study finds (WP)

* Major economies will produce more than double the amount of coal, oil and gas in 2030 than is consistent with meeting climate goals set in the 2015 Paris accord to curb global warming, the United Nations and researchers said. (Reuters)

* California’s cilantro yield has doubled in the past 15 years as its popularity has increased with an expanding Mexican food scene. (Merced Sun-Star)

* Mix-and-Match Covid Boosters: Why They Just Might Work (NYT)

* Liz Cheney: Bannon refusal to cooperate suggests Trump was 'personally involved' in planning riot (CNN)

* Facebook, under fire from regulators and lawmakers over its business practices, is planning to rebrand itself with a new name that focuses on the metaverse, the Verge reported on Tuesday. (Reuters)

* U.S. women are largely dissatisfied with their treatment, poll finds. Most men don’t see a problem. (WP)

* Trump’s Pentagon Chief Quashed Idea to Send 250,000 Troops to the Border (NYT)

* Executives, beware! You could become your own worst enemy. CEOs and other managers are increasingly under the microscope as some investors use artificial intelligence to learn and analyse their language patterns and tone, opening up a new frontier of opportunities to slip up. (Reuters)

* Viking Artifacts Give Precise Date for Europeans’ Earliest Presence in North America (WSJ)

* Increasingly Anxious Man Worried Order Confirmation Email Never Going To Come (The Onion)

Letter From Helmand.13: "Abandoned"

[NOTE: This is the latest in a series of letters from a friend inside Afghanistan who shall remain anonymous. He describes conditions on the ground since the Taliban took power in late August.]

Dear David,

Here in Afghanistan, we’re undergoing a genocide, and the rest of the world has no idea. In recent weeks, more than 300 Shia Muslims were killed and injured in Kunduz and another 150 Shiites in Kandahar. Nobody cares that we’re being murdered, or that we’re starving and desperate. 

The killings  of non-Sunnis have been going on for years, but since the Taliban took over, murders of all Afghans have spiked. The Taliban killed 13 people in Daikondi a few weeks ago. In Panjshir, people found several mass grave sites. Many of these murders throughout the country are taking place covertly. 

In a cruel twist, the Taliban today held an event to commemorate those who carried out suicide attacks against the U.S. forces and the Afghan governement over the past 20 years. They announced that the families of the suicide bombers will be given money and plots of land as rewards for their actions.

Meanwhile, people here are starving. More than 97 percent of Afghans don't know where their next meal will come from. Some families eat only once or twice a day. Basic commodities such as wheat, oil, and gasoline have become too expensive because the borders to Pakistan and Iran are closed. 

There are no jobs. Government employees may be the worst off: The Taliban has not paid their salaries for 3 months. Everyone is trying to borrow money from each other just to survive. A photo was recently circulated on social media showing a man with his 10-year-old daughter sitting in front of him. 

He was trying to sell her. 

People are desperate. Some are being tortured by the Taliban. ISIS is gaining strength.People are starving or being killed every day and there is no place to flee to. 

People in other countries have more sympathy for the killing of animals than they have for the Afghan people who are dying here every day.. Every possible catastrophe  is happening here and no one overseas is doing anything about it. In fact, some analysts say that other  countries are supporting the terrorist groups, including ISIS.

The Afghan people feel we have been abandoned. 

THE HEADLINES:

* Afghanistan's economy is set to contract up to 30% this year and this is likely to further fuel a refugee crisis that will impact neighboring countries, Turkey and Europe, the International Monetary Fund said. (Reuters)

* F.D.A. to Allow ‘Mix and Match’ Approach for Covid Booster Shots --The agency may act this week, when it is expected to authorize booster shots for recipients of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. (NYT)

* Russia’s planet-warming methane leaks come at the planet’s peril--A new breed of satellites devoted to locating and measuring greenhouse gases, including methane, are orbiting Earth — meaning trouble for Russia, the world's second-biggest natural gas producer. (WP)

* Energy crunch hits global recovery as winter approaches (AP)

* A WHO-led program to ensure poorer countries get fair access to COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments aims to secure antiviral drugs for patients with mild symptoms for as little as $10 per course, a draft document seen by Reuters says. Merck's experimental pill molnupiravir is likely to be one of the drugs, and other drugs to treat mild patients are being developed. (Reuters)

* 1 in 3 working families is struggling to find the child care they desperately need (NPR)

* Is Brexit Hurting the U.K. Economy? Trade Data Flashes a Warning (WSJ)

* University of  North Carolina can keep considering race in admissions, federal judge rules (WP)

* Trump Sues to Block Release of White House Papers to Jan. 6 Inquiry (NYT)

* Since October 1, Chinese military aircraft have flown 159 times through Taiwan’s air defense identification zone – a section of international airspace countries can arbitrarily define as theirs to monitor. Reuters analyzes what weeks of mass air force incursions into Taiwan's ADIZ say about China’s air power. (Reuters)

* As Bitcoin goes mainstream, Wall Street looks to cash in (AP)

* First Bitcoin Futures ETF Rises in Trading Debut (WSJ)

* Complaints about spam texts were up 146% last year. Now, the FCC wants to take action (NPR)

* Justice Dept. asks Supreme Court to stop Texas abortion law (WP)

* An examination of hundreds of health departments around the country shows that the nation may be less prepared for the next pandemic than it was for the current one. (NYT)

* Climate report: Africa’s rare glaciers soon to disappear (AP)

* Wildfire Evacuation Fears in Colorado Springs Halt Housing Development (WSJ)

* Powell’s death a reminder that vaccination is about every person, not just one person (WP)

* North Korea fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile off its east coast, South Korea's military said, pulling Japan's new prime minister off the campaign trail and overshadowing the opening of a major arms fair in Seoul. (Reuters)

* Hearing aids without a prescription or an exam? The FDA takes big step toward making that happen. (WP)

* VIDEO: Diver Discovers 900-Year-Old Sword Off Israeli Coast (Reuters)

* Study Finds Big Bang Result Of Last Universe Blowing Itself Up With Fireworks (The Onion)

Wisdom of the Ages?

The personal memoir service my oldest daughter enrolled me in, StoryWorth, posed a useful question today: "What advice would you give your 20-year-old self?"

As it turns out, I happen to have a child who is turning 23 in a few days and we just happened to have had lunch yesterday. She works for Americorps in the San Francisco public school system.

I'd like to report that I gave her the sage advice of a father five decades further on in life's journey. You know, pearls of wisdom culled from an extra half-century of enduring the school of hard knocks.

But I did no such thing. Instead, I listened as she described the world from her point of view, a world where the young children she works with have been deeply affected by the pandemic and are struggling to catch up intellectually and socially.

She also described a world of deep inequality, where not enough idealistic young people can even afford to live in San Francisco to fill out the opportunities offered there by Americorps (which is the domestic equivalent to the Peace Corps).

She knows she is one of the privileged ones, since she can afford to do this work for a while. She also could move into a far more lucrative private sector role if she chose to do so. As a fresh college graduate from an elite private university, she has a broad range of choices in front of her.

Her choice for now is to work with these children on a stipend.

During our conversation over lunch in a Bernal care, and afterward on a long walk through the city, she turned out to be the one who had some sage advice for me -- about the things I should consider doing or not doing to improve my situation, ways to achieve self-awareness as I navigate my own uncertain future.

As I listened, I noted the mixture of idealism and pragmatism that motivates her at this stage of her life. And I was moved by her caring and her thoughtfulness. I couldn't help but wonder what I might have been like at her age.

There *are* parallels, of course. I was a  Peace Corps teacher in Afghanistan.

Riding on Bart afterward, I thought about how age may be over-rated when to comes to wisdom. Maybe the next StoryWorth question should be: "What advice would your 20-year-old self give to you?

***

On Sunday storm clouds finally moved into the BayArea. They blew in actually, a welcome development. 

This, as we have largely escaped the wildfire smoke that darkened the skies a year ago, which is a local comfort, even as we know others in Canada, Oregon, parts of California and various parts of Europe had terrible wildfires.

It was nearly sundown when the rains started falling, enough to further tamp down the fire hazard in these parts. And meteorologists say we have 3-6 more inches coming later this week.

***

THE HEADLINES:

* Colin Powell, who served Democratic and Republican presidents in war and peace but whose sterling reputation was forever stained by his faulty claims to justify the U.S. war in Iraq, died Monday of COVID-19 complications. He was 84. (AP)

* Iran to host multilateral conference on Afghanistan on October 27 -- In addition to Iran and Russia, the meeting will be attended by China, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, who all have land borders with Afghanistan. (Al Jazeera)

* In Pakistan’s rugged tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan, a quiet and persistent warning is circulating: Pakistan’s own Taliban movement, which had in years past waged a violent campaign against the Islamabad government, has been emboldened by the return to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan. (AP) 

* Microsoft Executives Told Bill Gates to Stop Emailing a Female Staffer Years Ago (WSJ)

* The Biden administration is launching a broad strategy to regulate toxic industrial compounds associated with serious health conditions that are used in products ranging from cookware to carpets and firefighting foams. (AP)

* Threats, Resignations and 100 New Laws: Why Public Health Is in Crisis -- An examination of hundreds of health departments around the country shows that the nation may be less prepared for the next pandemic than it was for the current one. (NYT)

* Returning Workers Confront Creepy Time Capsules of Pre-Pandemic Life (WSJ)

* Murder trial in Ahmaud Arbery case to test racial reckoning (WP)

* Community leaders in Brunswick, Georgia, are preaching unity ahead of the trial of three white men accused of racially motivated murder in the shotgun death of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery, anxious it does not stir racial tensions or violent protests in their small coastal city. (Reuters)

* 4.3 Million Workers Are Missing. Where Did They Go? (WSJ)

* As Manchin Blocks Climate Plan, His State Can’t Hold Back Floods -- As the senator thwarts Democrats’ major push to reduce warming, new data shows West Virginia is more exposed to worsening floods than anywhere else in the country. (NYT)

* Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) said Sunday that former President Donald Trump’s obsession with the 2020 election is “not constructive” and could spell disaster for the GOP in the 2022 midterms. And Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said he would not vote for Trump if he ran for president again in 2024. Despite the high-profile defections, most Republicans have fallen into lockstep behind Trump's lies about his defeat or are silent. [HuffPost]

* Five U.S. lawmakers have accused Amazon of possibly lying to Congress; the accusation follows a Reuters investigation revealing how the company ran a systematic campaign in India of copying products and manipulating search results.  (Reuters)

* As Japan’s yakuza mob weakens, former gangsters struggle to find a role outside crime (WP)

* For Uber and Lyft, the Rideshare Bubble Bursts -- Rideharing companies made a lot of promises. They’re not being kept. (NYT)

* Fire crews make big gains against Southern California blaze (AP)

* Oil prices hit their highest level in years as demand recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, boosted by more custom from power generators turning away from expensive gas and coal to fuel oil and diesel. (Reuters)

* Voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams urged Black churchgoers to turn out for Democrat Terry McAuliffe in next month’s Virginia governor’s election, saying that what happens in the most watched race this year will “show the world who we are” in future contests with even higher stakes. Democrats want to ensure that a state trending increasingly Democratic in recent years doesn't flip back to the Republican column. [AP]

* Metro suspends more than half of its trains after investigation uncovers safety issues (WP)

* China's economy hit its slowest pace of growth in a year in the third quarter, hurt by power shortages, supply chain bottlenecks and major wobbles in the property market and raising pressure on policymakers to do more to prop up the faltering recovery. (Reuters)

* A threat to ancient trees: Sequoia and King’s Canyon National Parks have some of the highest ozone levels in the nation, thanks to smog that blows in other areas, (Wired).* Despite a Punishing Drought, San Diego Has Water. It Wasn’t Easy. -- Sustainability measures that the city and county have taken over decades are paying off. (NYT)

* Lake Tahoe’s water supply is so low that it is no longer flowing into the Truckee River, keeping kokanee salmon from spawning in a major tributary. (LAT)

* Does Vitamin D Help With Seasonal Affective Disorder? (HuffPost)

* Facebook plans to hire 10,000 in the European Union over the next five years, the social media giant said, to help build the so-called metaverse - a nascent online world where people exist and communicate in shared virtual spaces. (Reuters)

* It’s strange Superman was ever straight to begin with (WP)

* Biden’s Plans Raise Questions About What U.S. Can Afford Not to Do -- Democrats are debating whether doing nothing will cost more than doing something to deal with climate change, education, child care, prescription drugs and more. (NYT)

* Entire Facebook Staff Laughs As Man Tightens Privacy Settings (The Onion)

Return to Roots for a Rock Mag

It's the weekend so there's a preponderance of entertainment news, from Adele's comeback to Squid Games' financial impact, to Superman's bisexuality an d a potential deal averting a strike by Hollywood producers.

But the most intriguing story in this genre isn't really about entertainment at all, but about a return to the tradition of hard-hitting journalism at Rolling Stone.

Over the past week, I've been noticing the references to Eric Clapton's anti-vaccine stand, but only today did I release that the storied magazine broke the story, including how Clapton benefits financially from anti-tax performances, as well as documentation of his history of racist comments.

This represents a return to its roots for Rolling Stone, now under the guidance of CEO Gus Wenner, one of co-sounder Jann Wenner's sons. Many people may not realize that the magazine's original music editor, Ben Fong-Torres, insisted that his writers not become PR hacks for the rock stars they covered but to bring back the real story, which usually was far more murky.

In addition, there were those of us who didn't cover music at all, but rather the major political stories of the day.

In my case, I used my years at the magazine to help establish with Lowell Bergman and Howard Kohn and others an investigative unit inside Rolling Stone that produced stories on official corruption, police violence, racism, environmental crime, and other non-entertainment topics.

We had the blessing of Jann Wenner until the magazine left San Francisco for New York. Afterward, Bergman and I with Dan Noyes established the Center for Investigative Reporting in late 1977.

Many, many other journalists also pursued serious journalism at the old Rolling Stone; their names are legendary.

For now, it's good to see the rag return to its roots.

***

THE HEADLINES:

* Merck COVID-19 pill sparks calls for access for lower income countries (Reuters)

* Facebook Says AI Can Enforce Its Rules, but the Company’s Own Engineers Are Doubtful --AI has only minimal success in removing hate speech, violent images and other chronic problems from the platform, according to internal company reports. It can’t consistently identify first-person shooting videos, racist rants or gruesome car crashes. (WSJ)

* Money Floods the Race for Control of Congress, More Than a Year Early -- The main House war chests for both Democrats and Republicans have a combined $128 million in the bank — more than double the sum at this point in 2020. (NYT)

* House Democrats have — so far — avoided a wave of retirements that could put their majority in peril (WP)

* Up to 17 U.S. missionaries and family kidnapped in Haiti (Reuters)

* How 3 Strangers a World Away Came to the Rescue of a Badly Burned Afghan Girl -- The story of 8-year-old Asma, injured by a U.S. tear-gas canister, echoes the heartbreak and heroism of the 20-year American misadventure in Afghanistan. (NYT)

* Chronic pain is surprisingly treatable — when patients focus on the brain (WP) 

* The man known as the last Jew of Kabul could soon be heading to Israel, after agreeing to grant his estranged wife a religious divorce in a Zoom call — a precondition for smooth entry to the Holy Land. (AP)

* The New Superman Will Be Bisexual. (WSJ)

* Adele makes music comeback with new single 'Easy On Me' (Reuters)

* Syria Accuses Israel of Assassinating Official Near Golan Heights -- Midhat Saleh, who oversaw the strategic Golan Heights boundary for Syria, was shot and killed by a sniper, the government said. (NYT)

* Hollywood union reaches deal with producers to avoid nationwide strike (WP)

* Netflix's 'Squid Game' estimated to be worth about $900 million - (Bloomberg News)

* Bitcoin-mining power plant raises ire of environmentalists (AP)

* More Lead-Tainted Water in Michigan Draws Attention to Nation’s Aging Pipes -- The crises in Benton Harbor and Flint expose broader failures as a congressional push to address the country’s troubled water system stalls. (NYT)

* Strikes are sweeping the labor market as workers wield new leverage (WP)

* Democrats Weigh Carbon Tax After Manchin Rejects Key Climate Provision -- Faced with the likely demise of a central pillar of President Biden’s agenda, the White House and outraged lawmakers are scrambling to find alternatives. (NYT)

* ‘More immediate, more visceral’ and a lot tougher on Eric Clapton: A plan for reviving Rolling Stone (WP)

* Can a Carbon-Emitting Iron Ore Tycoon Save the Planet? -- Andrew Forrest made a mining fortune. Now he wants to lead a climate change revolution — and beat the fossil fuel giants along the way. (NYT)

* Man Has Never Given Single Definitive Yes To Any Invitation He's Ever Received (The Onion)