Where Truths Meet

[NOTE: This is an update of an essay I first published a year ago on December 10, 2020.]

"You're right from your side / I'm right from mine," Bob Dylan wrote in one of his more obscure songs. Similar sentiments from other artists capture the convoluted nature of mutual truth that we all seek in one way or another.

And this raises a particular dilemma for journalists as we attempt to cover corporate and civic affairs for the public. Thus our methodology. I should elaborate.

I remember an incident from our "Circle of Poison" investigation in the 1970s and 1980s. I was focused on the moral aspect of U.S. companies shipping banned pesticides to Third World countries, which exposed farmworkers and their families to health risks, and led to more pollution of the environment, which of course knows no borders.

At an international gathering of people concerned with this issue in Mexico, including many who worked at chemical companies, a representative of Dow Chemical approached me and said, "I understand your concern but what's wrong with helping a hungry world eat?"

His point was that even if the pesticides were considered too dangerous for us here in the U.S., food scarcity was such in poorer countries that such compromises made sense. After all, at least in the short term, pesticides boost food productivity.

His comment got me thinking and we started investigating what crops the hazardous pesticides were being applied to. That research led to a breakthrough in our analysis, as almost all of the crops sprayed in Third World countries did not go to local people but were "export crops" destined to end up right back here in the U.S. with you and me.

This completed the "circle" in our analysis and guaranteed the book would cause more waves than it would have had we solely focused on the impacts overseas.

Thus did an industry representative help us complete a major piece of our investigation. My guess is that he didn't know himself what the pesticides were sued for; he just assumed they were part of an effort to boost local food production.

This example is why we always counsel students and young journalists to probe all sides of the issues they investigate. Environmentalists and worker safety activists may have one perspective; manufacturers and farmers may have another; regulatory agencies may reflect yet another point of view.

In the interest of achieving the highest quotient of truth possible, journalists have to consider whether everybody might be right at the same time. In my example, the guy from Dow was right -- there’s nothing wrong with helping hungry people get food. The environmentalists are right -- pesticides harm the environment. And the regulators that push for more sustainable methods of agricultural production are right about what's best for the long term.

Maybe that is one of the keys to good journalism, or an honest inquiry of any type. Maybe we should always be searching for the ways everybody can be right in one way or another. Maybe then we will get to the Venn diagram of the matter.

Of course, inevitably, this approach has its limits. We have to make choices. Some things we do because they are the right thing to do. 

Morality has to trump the profit motive when it comes to sustaining life on earth.

WEDNESDAY’S HEADLINES:

• Inside Tesla as Elon Musk Pushed an Unflinching Vision for Self-Driving Cars— The automaker may have undermined safety in designing its Autopilot driver-assistance system to fit its chief executive’s vision, former employees say. (NYT)

• A major British study into mixing COVID-19 vaccines has found that people had a better immune response when they received a first dose of AstraZeneca or Pfizer-BioNTech shots followed by Moderna nine weeks later, according to the results. (Reuters)

• CDC issues ‘very high’ risk warning for travel to France and Portugal (WP)

• Desperation drives thousands of Afghans a day across borders (AP)

• Whistleblower: As Afghanistan fell, UK abandoned supporters (AP)

• Former D.C. National Guard Col. Earl Matthews accused Lt. Gen. Charles Flynn — brother of disgraced former security adviser Michael Flynn — and Lt. Gen. Walter Platt of lying to Congress about what happened behind the scenes as rioters breached the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. According to Matthews, the two men have played a key role in the Pentagon’s attempt to shirk responsibility for a dangerously sluggish, hours-late response to the violence. [HuffPost]

• One of suspected killers of Saudi journalist Khashoggi arrested in France(Reuters)

• As virus abates in India, hunger crisis persists (WP)

• Omicron Is Fast Moving, but Perhaps Less Severe, Early Reports Suggest (NYT)

• A coalition is suing the Environmental Protection Agency for failing to intervene on behalf of San Joaquin Valley residents, who breathe some of the most polluted air in the country. (Capital & Main)

• Rohingya refugees from Myanmar are suing Meta Platforms, formerly known as Facebook, for $150 billion over allegations that the social media company did not take action against anti-Rohingya hate speech that contributed to violence. (Reuters)

• Biden’s Supreme Court commission set to vote on final report (WP)

• The path to power for Republicans in Congress is now rooted in the capacity to generate outrage. This has helped elevate a group of far-right lawmakers — including Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona — whose inflammatory comments once would have made them pariahs. [AP]

• Gen Z most stressed by pandemic, citing toll on careers, education and relationships, poll says (WP)

• Omicron’s less severe cases prompt cautious optimism in South Africa(Financial Times)

• Opioids Feel Like Love. That’s Why They’re Deadly in Tough Times. — America can’t arrest its way out of a problem caused by the fundamental human need to connect. (NYT)

• Scientists find ‘stealth’ version of Omicron that may be harder to track(Guardian)

• How Pearl Harbor forced the world’s first around-the-world commercial flight(WP)

• Why Are We Still Isolating Vaccinated People for 10 Days? (Atlantic)

• US, China still at odds over coronavirus origins (NHK)

• Stocks, Oil Gain on Omicron Optimism (WSJ)

• In Georgia, Republicans’ Faustian bargain with Trump is catching up with them(WP)

• Black People are Leaving Chicago en Masse. It's Changing the City's Power Politics. (Politico)

• ‘Disastrous’ plastic use in farming threatens food safety – UN (Guardian)

• On Ukrainian Front, Grinding War and Weary Anticipation of Invasion (NYT)

• Instagram is touting safety features for teens. Mental health advocates aren’t buying it. (WP)

• Biden’s cyber leaders go to Silicon Valley for more help fighting hackers(Politico)

• Justice Dept. Files Voting Rights Suit Against Texas Over New Map — The department said the state’s redistricting plan would violate the Voting Rights Act by discriminating against minority voters. (NYT)

• Trump’s Blood Oxygen Level in Covid Bout Was Dangerously Low, Former Aide Says (NYT)

• Most voters back abortion rights but are not swayed by threat to Roe, poll finds(Politico)

• Lawmakers say they’ve reached deal to avert another debt ceiling crisis (WP)

• Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett and Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud were announced Monday as finalists for the Heisman Trophy. (AP)

• Man Starting To Think He Didn’t Win 1995 Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Sweepstakes For Free Trip To Australian Outback (The Onion)

WEDNESDAY’s LYRICS:

It's a restless hungry feeling
That don't mean no one no good
When ev'rything I'm a-sayin'
You can say it just as good
You're right from your side
I'm right from mine
We're both just one too many mornings
An' a thousand miles behind

-- Bob Dylan (One Too Many Mornings)

Early Warning

 It’s hard for anyone to sound the alarm about an upcoming potential coup without sounding like an alarmist, but writers in the next issue of The Atlantic are doing just that. 

Pulitzer Prize-journalist Barton Gellman with “Trump’s Next Coup Has Already Begun,” and National Book Award winner George Packer with “Are We Doomed?” lay out the case that Trump is poised for another Presidential run in 2024 and once again claim victory, regardless of the results, just as he did last year.

Trump lost the 2020 election and he’d probably lose again in 2024, but this time around, his party has eliminated the Constitutional barriers to reversing the result at the local level in key swing states.

Our democracy was saved in January 2021 when a handful of ethical county election officials in several of those states refused to bow to Trump’s pressure to decertify the legitimate results; and Vice-President Mike Pence, in perhaps the only principled moment of his career, refused to subvert the Electoral College vote.

It was only by the actions of these few Republican officials, therefore, that Trump’s first attempt at a coup ended in failure.

Still, there is something so strange and fantastical about talking about a “coup” in America that it’s difficult for me to use the word. But our election processes are vulnerable to subversion and that is exactly what Trump and his allies appear to be planning to do the next time around.

This wouldn’t be happening if not for the proliferation of disinformation promulgated by conspiracy theorists, i.e., that the 2020 election was “stolen” by Biden. That is a lie, of course, but it is by repeating such lies loudly and incessantly that the authoritarian forces have been able to seize power throughout history.

What can an honest, responsible citizen do about this? For now, perhaps our only option is to speak out — as loudly and repeatedly as possible.

Staying silent is not an option. Because not speaking out is choosing to stand by and allow American democracy to pass into the dustbin of history — on our watch.

I, for one, cannot and will not do that. 

TUESDAY’S HEADLINES:

• Seven days: Following Trump’s coronavirus trail — From the day of his first positive test until his hospitalization last year, the former president came in contact with more than 500 people in proximity to him or at crowded events, according to a Washington Post analysis. (WP)

• A Party, and Nation, in Crisis — The GOP’s leaders are ​​attempting to destroy the foundations of American democracy. (Atlantic)

• Inside the growing alliance between anti-vaccine activists and pro-Trump Republicans (NPR)

• Rep. Devin Nunes to leave Congress to become Trump media company CEO (WP)

• Trump’s Next Coup Has Already Begun — January 6 was practice. Donald Trump’s GOP is much better positioned to subvert the next election. (Atlantic)

• Are We Doomed? — To head off the next insurrection, we’ll need to practice envisioning the worst. (Atlantic)

• Top Pence aide cooperating with January 6 committee (CNN)

• Justice Dept. sues Texas over new voting maps, saying they discriminate against Latinos (WP)

• Police fired teargas and used water cannons to disperse protesters pelting officers with cobblestones and fireworks as a demonstration in Brussels over government-imposed COVID-19 restrictions turned violent. (Reuters)

• Trump Ally Sidney Powell’s nonprofit raised $14 million spreading falsehoods(WP)

• Stocks, Oil Rise on Hopes of Milder Covid Variant (WSJ)

• Dr. Anthony Fauci said "the signals are a bit encouraging" that the new omicron variant of the coronavirus doesn't have "a great degree of severity to it." But he and other health officials continued to urge Americans to remain vigilant and get vaccinated due to the variant's complexity in mutations. [HuffPost]

• U.S. coronavirus cases top 100,000 daily as delta remains dominant (WP)

• Next pandemic could be more lethal than COVID, vaccine creator says (Reuters)

• An examination of COVID-related American death data showed that the most strongly Republican counties had an October death rate six times higher than that of the most strongly Democratic, NPR reported. The single biggest factor in the difference was "misinformation" about COVID-19, which was linked to lower vaccination rates. [HuffPost]

• Pandemic stress weighs heavily on Gen Z: AP-NORC, MTV poll (AP)

• The Omicron variant of the coronavirus has spread to about one-third of U.S. states, but the Delta version remains the majority of COVID-19 infections as cases rise nationwide, U.S. health officials said. (Reuters)

• CNN fired anchor Chris Cuomo over the weekend, less than a week after documents revealed he was more involved than he previously revealed in helping his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, respond to sexual harassment allegations. Chris Cuomo also denied a new sexual misconduct allegation made against him. [HuffPost]

• ‘This is a disaster.’: Severity of learning lost to the pandemic comes into focus(Politico)

• On Syria’s Ruins, a Drug Empire Flourishes (NYT)

• VIDEO: Pope Francis Criticizes an ‘Era of Walls and Barbed Wire’ for Migrants(AP)

• China Increasingly Obscures True State of Its Economy to Outsiders (WSJ)

• President Joe Biden is set to announce a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing sometime this week amid ongoing criticism over the country’s human rights abuses, according to multiple reports. The move would mean athletes could compete as normal, but no American officials would attend the games. [HuffPost]

• China attacks potential US diplomatic boycott of Olympics (AP)

• French far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour promised a "reconquest" against decades of decline at his first political rally, as scuffles with anti-racism protesters broke out on its fringes. With echoes of Donald Trump's first campaign for U.S. president, Zemmour promised to slash immigration and taxes to cheers from flag-waving supporters. (Reuters)

• What’s Driving Putin’s Ukraine Brinkmanship? (NYT)

• An Afghan family tried for months to flee to California. Their journey has stalled — Less than half a percent of applications from Afghan nationals who have applied to resettle in the U.S. are accepted. (SFC)

• Russia said it was reinforcing its military base in Tajikistan with 30 new tanks and that its forces at the facility had carried out exercises with missile defence systems, highlighting Moscow's concern about turmoil in Afghanistan. (Reuters)

• All coral reefs in western Indian Ocean ‘at high risk of collapse in next 50 years’ (Guardian)

• California consumes half the oil from the Amazon rainforest. (NBC News)

• Myanmar sentences Aung San Suu Kyi to four years in prison (WP)

• Should Investors Ride Tech Founders to the Moon? (WSJ)

• Fortress Europe: the millions spent on military-grade tech to deter refugees(Guardian)

• How TikTok Reads Your Mind (NYT)

• Historic playoff: Alabama-Cincinnati, Michigan-Georgia (AP)

• Michigan Is Playoff Bound and Life Will Never Be the Same (WSJ)

• Every Ingredient In Recipe Substituted To Avoid Trip To Store (The Onion)

TUESDAY’S LYRICS

“Someday We'll Be Together”

The Supremes

Songwriters: Bristol Johnny William / Fuqua Harvey / Beavers Robert L

I say it, say it, say it, say it again
(Someday, we'll be together)
Oh, yeah, oh, yeah

You're far away from me my love
And just as sure my, my baby
As there are stars above
I wanna say, wanna say, wanna say

Yes we will, yes we will
(Say, someday, we'll be together) Some sweet day
I know, I know, I know, I know

My love is yours, baby
Oh, right from the start
You, you, you possess my soul now, honey
And I know, I know you own my heart
And I wanna say

Some sweet day
Oh, yes we will, yes we will
(Someday, we'll be together) Tell everybody
Yes we will, yes we will

Long time ago, my, my sweet thing
I made a big mistake, honey
I, I, I say, I said, goodbye
Oh, oh, baby, ever, ever, ever
Ever, ever and ever since that day
All I wanna do, all I wanna do was cry, cry, oh

Hey, hey, hey
I long for you every, every night
Ooh, just to kiss your sweet, sweet lips, baby
Hold you ever, ever so tight
And I wanna say

Someday we'll be together
Yes we will, yes we will
Someday we'll be together
Yes we will, yes we will
Someday we'll be together
Someday we'll be together
Yes we will, yes we will

Seaglass Culture

How do we fix a broken society?
 

Many years ago, I gathered seaglass from beaches around the Bay Area and got pretty good at recognizing the best tides for finding it.

One section of Ocean Beach just south of San Francisco yielded a steady harvest of the blue, green, brown and white gems, and there was another nice spot on one edge of Angel Island.

What I loved about seaglass was that it had been smoothed and polished by the waves, sand, sun — transformed into jewels from what had once been simple trash.

You could say that that is the way of all garbage, indeed of all life. After all, the sum total of all of our ancestors, all other organic life forms, and “civilization” is a few inches of compacted topsoil clinging to a hard rock of a planet hurtling and twisting its way through space.

Destination unknown. 

We’re all on the trip together, despite our various shapes, colors, orientations and other distinctions. As much as we see ourselves as individuals, we also are part of a much bigger unit. Our rough places will get smoothed over by time, whether we like that or not.

And much like seaglass, what’s left of each individual will have its own integrity, its own unique ability to reflect the sun when you hold it up to the light.

That could have added up to something nice.

But for now, the pandemic has helped to shatter us into jagged shards of glass, all too good at cutting each other rather than coming together. We’ve broken into tribes of one; even families have shattered. We are like a thousand rough pieces right now than any kind of beautiful whole. 

Acts of random cruelty outnumber acts of kindness. Extremes dominate. Hate is on the loose. Killers are on the road. Isolation rules. Collectivity is disparaged. There is no common square to be found, only acres and acres of silence.

As a result, there can be no beautiful whole. 

Isn’t that a pity?

MONDAY’S HEADLINES:

• How to Care Less About Work — As we peer around the corner of the pandemic, let’s talk about what we want to do—and not do—with the rest of our lives. (Atlantic)

• Voting Battles of 2022 Take Shape as G.O.P. Crafts New Election Bills — Republicans plan to carry their push to reshape the nation’s electoral system into next year, with Democrats vowing to oppose them but holding few options in G.O.P.-led states. (NYT)

• Pro-Trump news site targets election workers, inspiring wave of menace (Reuters)

• As Stacey Abrams enters governor’s race, Georgia becomes a key 2022 battleground (WP)

• Trump-backed former Sen. David Perdue will announce primary bid against Georgia governor this week (Politico)

• Josh Hawley and the Republican Obsession With Manliness — The Missouri senator is tapping into something real — a widespread, politically potent anxiety about young men that is already helping the right. (NYT)

• Bob Dole, longtime Senate leader and 1996 GOP presidential nominee, dies at 98 (Politico)

• Bob Dole Saw Every Stage of the GOP — From World War II to the election of Donald Trump, Bob Dole played a part in countless moments of American history. (Atlantic)

• Both sides planning for new state-by-state abortion fight (AP)

• Fearing a Repeat of Jan. 6, Congress Eyes Changes to Electoral Count Law

  — Members of the special House committee investigating the Capitol riot are among those arguing for an overhaul of a more than century-old statute enacted to address disputed elections. (NYT)

• Pope calls migrant crisis 'shipwreck of civilization' (Reuters)

• A decades-old killing may have been solved with new forensic tech and DNA from a conch shell (WP)

• There is an environmental impact each time you hit 'buy now'. Here's an alternative (NPR)

• Pacific Ocean garbage patch is immense plastic habitat (BBC)

• ‘Wall of secrecy’ in Pfizer contracts as company accused of profiteering (Guardian)

• The Variant Hunters: Inside South Africa’s Effort to Stanch Dangerous Mutations — Scientists in a cutting-edge laboratory do part of the work. Local health workers on foot do the rest. (NYT)

• Data on Omicron’s severity is ‘encouraging’, says US health chief (Financial Times)

• How scary is omicron? Scientists are racing to find answers. (WP)

• UK reports 43,992 cases and 54 deaths; protests in Brussels turn violent(Guardian)

• Pro-Trump counties now have far higher COVID death rates. Misinformation is to blame (NPR)

• Western countries express concern over Afghan reprisals, Taliban reject accusations (Reuters)

• From Serbia, Afghan boxers seek refuge, careers in West (AP)

• Afghanistan: Taliban warned against targeting former security forces (BBC)

• Taliban tighten restrictions on education, media (NHK)

• Facing Economic Collapse, Afghanistan Is Gripped by Starvation— An estimated 22.8 million people — more than half the country’s population — are expected to face potentially life-threatening food insecurity this winter. Many are already on the brink of catastrophe. (NYT)

• U.S. Space Force general warns of China's growing military space potential(Politico)

• French right hopes for reinvigoration with choice of Pécresse (Financial Times)

• Baseball’s Lockout Begins With ‘The Case of the Vanishing Players’ (WSJ)

• CNN Fires Chris Cuomo Amid Inquiry Into His Efforts to Aid His Brother

  — The network said it had “terminated him, effective immediately,” a move that came days after a lawyer for a former colleague accused the host of sexual misconduct.

• Plankton May Have Escaped ‘Survival of the Fittest’ — Scientists have a new theory about why the ocean has so many types of plankton. (Atlantic)

• National Association Of Corpses Express Outrage At Still-Living Actors Getting Cadaver Roles On ‘CSI,’ ‘Law & Order’ (The Onion)

  MONDAY’s LYRICS:

  “Isn't It a Pity”

  George Harrison

  Isn't it a pity now isn't it a shame
  How we break each other's hearts
  And cause each other pain
  How we take each other's love
  Without thinking anymore
  Forgetting to give back
  Isn't it a pity

  Some things take so long but how do I explain
  When not too many people
  Can see we're all the same
  And because of all their tears
  Their eyes can't hope to see
  The beauty that surrounds them
  Isn't it a pity

  Isn't it a pity isn't it a shame
  How we break each other's hearts
  And cause each other pain
  How we take each other's love
  Without thinking anymore
  Forgetting to give back
  Isn't it a pity

Who Are the Taliban?

Afghan Conversation #19

This is the 19th in a series of letters and conversations with a young Afghan friend of mine about life under Taliban rule. We are protecting his identity for his safety.

In my life under the previous government, prior to the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, I probably saw members of the Taliban three or four times. I read about them in journals, and heard people talking about them, but they were not everywhere as they are now. I’d like to explain what I’ve learned about them over the last three months, now living under their rule.

 

Let’s start with some history. Back in about 1993 or 1994, during the Afghan civil war, we first heard whispers of a group of radical religious students in Saudi-sponsored schools in Pakistan. The group called itself the Islamic Tehreek-e-Taliban (Taliban Islamic Movement). Before long, this extremist movement had infiltrated Afghanistan from the southern border, spreading the slogan "Implementing Islamic Sharia," fighting what it called evil and corruption in Afghanistan, and waging war with Afghan citizens. 

Over the years, despite the U.S. invasion in 2001 and ensuing 20-year military intervention, Taliban forces continued to gather strength. By 2021, having summarily invaded cities and provinces throughout the country, they finally overthrew the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and took control of the government. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is now in power.

 

Also, some terminology is in order. A “Talib” is defined as a religious student. The Taliban (a plural or collective form of the word) consider themselves clergy. From their point of view, their words are the words of truths because they represent God and speak the words of God.

 

Facts and figures

 

No precise figure is available, but estimates put the number of Taliban to between a hundred and two hundred thousand. The vast majority of them, probably 99 percent, are from the Pashtun ethnic group. Non-Taliban citizens are considered slaves who must always be obedient.

 

The Taliban have taken over all high-ranking positions in the government, including the ministry and the directorate. Only the lowest-ranking officers are former officers. Many top Taliban officials are former peasants or peddlers who have risen the ranks based on their religious zealotry. On the reverse end, many former officials are now relegated to construction work.

 

Government positions are also inheritable. That is, if a Talib becomes the head of an organization, he can hand it over to his son or brother.

 

Perilous times

 

The Taliban are not a people of discourse and logic. If a Talib says that the color of milk is black and you don't agree, he will insult and threaten you. After all, he believes he is God’s representative on Earth. Who dares not accept the word of God in such a land as Afghanistan?

 

A few days ago, I learned, a person named Navid from Helmand province wrote on his Facebook page “The Taliban don’t pay teachers. They are beggars who collect money themselves from our homes.” Because of his post, he was captured and brutally killed by the Taliban. His body was dumped in the lake..

 

The people of Afghanistan are starving because of the draconian rule of the Taliban. The United Nations has said that the Taliban have to create an inclusive government, that girls must go to school and women should be allowed to work, but no such actions have taken place. There is not even one Hazara in their cabinet; girls are still banned from going to school; women are not allowed to work. Every day the Taliban are killing the soldiers of the previous government. According to Human Rights Watch, more than a hundred former government soldiers have been killed during the first three months of the Taliban government. Many other innocent citizens are also being killed.

 

This is who the Taliban are. An irrational, fearsome force for evil.

SUNDAY’S HEADLINES:

• Inside a Sequencing Lab on the Front Lines of America’s Search for Omicron(NYT)

• Scientists race to gauge omicron variant’s true threat — Is it more transmissible? Does it make people sicker? How well do vaccines fare against it? Scientists hope to have answers to some of their questions within weeks. (WP)

• Expert: Omicron not likely mutated from Delta (NHK)

• WHO says no deaths reported from Omicron yet as Covid variant spreads (Guardian)

• Omicron possibly more infectious because it shares genetic code with common cold coronavirus, study says (WP)

• Omicron complicates puzzle over at-home Covid pill (Politico)

• US vaccinations rise as Omicron cases spread (NHK)

• The Mississippi Abortion Case and the Fragile Legitimacy of the Supreme Court (New Yorker)

• Facing Economic Collapse, Afghanistan Is Gripped by Starvation (NYT)

• Afghanistan: Macron reveals plans for joint European mission (BBC)

• Islamic countries to meet on Afghanistan crisis on Dec. 19 (Reuters)

• Afghan judges in Brazil still fear the Taliban (AP)

• Arab Gulf States Compete for Influence in Taliban-Ruled Afghanistan (WSJ)

• In Afghanistan, ‘Who Has the Guns Gets the Land’ — A decades-long fight over land has been reinvigorated as Taliban leaders look to reward their fighters with property, even if that means evicting others. (NYT)

• Iran nuclear talks to enter critical phase (NHK)

• Russia planning massive military offensive against Ukraine involving 175,000 troops, U.S. intelligence warns (WP)

• US warns Russia could invade Ukraine in early 2022 (Financial Times)

• MH370: Could missing Malaysian Airlines plane finally be found? (BBC)

• A Billion Sea Creatures Cooked to Death — This summer’s historic heat wave in the Pacific Northwest was an ecological catastrophe. (Atlantic)

• Stuck jet stream, La Nina causing weird weather (AP)

• Grab your camera and help science! King tides are crashing onto California beaches — The unusually high and low tides will be affecting coastal communities over the weekend. Scientists are calling on residents and visitors to help document the phenomenon. (NPR)

• Bitcoin Price Tumbles After Wall Street Selloff (WSJ)

• Bitcoin falls by a fifth, cryptos see $1 billion worth liquidated (Reuters)

• How DNA Solved One of the Final Mysteries of Pearl Harbor — Nearly half the crew of the USS Oklahoma was buried in unknown graves — until the military found a pioneering way to decipher a forensic puzzle. (Politico)

• TV news crews are rethinking how to do their jobs safely as violent robberies persist (SFC)

• English Teenager Finds Bronze Age Ax Using a Metal Detector — On her third day out with a metal detector, Milly Hardwick, 13, found a hoard of items from more than 3,000 years ago. (NYT)

• Clearview AI on track to win U.S. patent for facial recognition technology(Politico)

• Trump rails against Meadows for revealing Covid test cover-up – report (Guardian)

• Brazil's Rio cancels New Year celebration as pandemic continues (Reuters)

• Biden and businesses agree on one thing: U.S. needs immigrant workers(Politico)

• Museums for tragedies like 9/11 face a new challenge: Visitors too young to remember (WP)

• Billions for Climate Protection Fuel New Debate: Who Deserves It Most — The $1 trillion infrastructure law funds programs that tend to favor wealthy, white communities — a test for Biden’s pledge to defend the most vulnerable against climate change. (NYT)

• Elite Preschool Boasts 95% Of Graduates Go On To Kindergarten (The Onion)

• In football, Michigan is the Big Ten Champion after beating Iowa 42-3 on Saturday night! (DW)

SUNDAY’s LYRICS

“Can’t Find My Way Back Home”

Blind Faith

By Steve Winwood

Come down off your throne and leave your body alone
Somebody must change
You are the reason I've been waiting all these years
Somebody holds the key

Well, I'm near the end and I just ain't got the time
And I'm wasted and I can't find my way home

I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way home
Still I can't find my way home

And I've done nothing wrong
But I can't find my way home