Happy Birthday Earth!

 According to the Bible, in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. I gather from various theological sources that may have been about 7,500 years ago. On the other hand, scientists believe that the Big Bang occurred about 13.8 billion years ago, which is another possible start date for life as we know it. 

Much easier to comprehend is the origin of Earth Day, which came about just 52 years ago thanks to a native Iowan, peace activist John McConnell, by then in San Francisco, with supporting roles by Senator Gaylord Nelson, environmental activist Denis Hayes, and the UAW.

Just a couple days ago my eight-year-old granddaughter made this picture celebrating life on earth, whenever and by whichever process it began. It is perhaps notable that until 1970, we had no particular “day” devoted to our planet — a major oversight if there ever was one.

After all, our species has proliferated here, dominating all other life forms as if we were a superior form of fauna, for millennia. But make no mistake about it; we aren’t superior. We’re just in there with all the other fauna and flora in what John Storer, in his memorable little book first published in 1953 called “The Web of Life” 

Many others have used that same title for their own books and stuff, but I prefer Storer’s unpretentious volume, which I read when I was a boy.

Seen through the eyes of an eight-year-old, life is wondrous, magnificent, colorful, strange. My granddaughter’s artistic sense of the proportion of things is governed by the fact that she is still relatively small, which makes the animals and plants around her both bigger than adults may perceive them to be, and perhaps also more important.

Maybe this is why children are natural ecologists. Given half a chance, they will express a reverence for their fellow creatures and plants that too many adults often seem more inclined to take for granted.

We could do worse, IMHO, than to be more like my granddaughter in the way we look at all life around and within us. 

In that spirit, Happy 13.8 billionth Earth Day!

Today’s News (46):

1. Disney to lose tax status in Fla. as lawmakers side with governor in rift over teaching of LGBTQ issues (WP)

2. Florida taxpayers could face a $1 billion Disney debt bomb if its special district status is revoked (CNBC)

3. GOP’s cozy ties with Big Business unravel as DeSantis goes after Disney (WP)

4. Why Ron DeSantis Is Going After Disney (Politico)

5. Warning Ukraine’s Friends to ‘Think Twice,’ Putin Tests Advanced Missile (NYT)

6. Biden says war at critical point as he sends more weapons (BBC)

7. Mystery drone: How the Air Force fast-tracked a new weapon for Ukraine (Politico)

8. New images show mass grave near Mariupol (WP)

9. Putin claims victory in Mariupol despite steel-mill holdouts (AP)

10. VIDEO: What Mariupol’s Steel Fortress Looked Like 3 Months Ago (NYT)

11. President Vladimir Putin claimed victory in the biggest battle of the Ukraine war, declaring the port of Mariupol "liberated" after nearly two months of siege, despite hundreds of defenders still holding out inside a giant steel works. (Reuters)

12. For Civilians Trapped in Mariupol, Fleeing Can Be as Risky as Staying (WSJ)

13. Mariupol steelworks: 'We have wounded and dead inside the bunkers' (BBC)

14. He Was a Penniless Donor to the Far Right. He Was Also a Russian Spy. (NYT)

15. Biden announces another $800m in military aid for Ukraine: ‘We’re in a critical window’ – as it happened (Guardian)

16. Calls to Give Heavy Weapons to Ukraine Divide Germany’s Government (NYT)

17. Desperate Russia Launches Whole New Ukraine Plan (Daily Beast)

18. How Game Theory Explains Why We Have to Sanction Putin — Even If It’s Costly (Politico)

19. A Ukrainian Town Goes Underground as Russia Assaults the East. (NYT)

20. Denmark's prime minister pledged to send more weapons to Ukraineduring a trip to Kyiv, where she and her Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez were meeting President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a gesture of support. European Council President Charles Michel pledged European solidarity with Ukraine during a surprise visit to Kyiv yesterday. (Reuters)

21. U.S. unveils sponsorship program to resettle Ukrainian refugees, discourage travel to U.S.-Mexico border (CBS)

22. A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows 54% of Americans think Biden has been “not tough enough” in his response to Vladimir Putin's war Ukraine. But as the war has dragged on, Americans’ desire to get involved has waned somewhat. Thirty-two percent of Americans say the U.S. should have a major role in the conflict, down from 40% last month. [AP]

23. 5 million leave Ukraine, 7.7 million internally displaced amid Russian invasion (NHK)

24. Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed a "global security initiative" that upholds the principle of "indivisible security", although he gave no details of how it would be implemented. In talks over Ukraine, Russia has insisted that Western governments respect a 1999 agreement based on the principle of "indivisible security" that no country can strengthen its own security at the expense of others. (Reuters)

25. The Cost of Not Indicting Trump Now Is a Presidency Without Guardrails (Politico)

26. Former President Donald Trump appeared to walk out of an interview with his pal Piers Morgan, in which the two oddly shiny men discuss the 2020 presidential election, after the British TV personality pressed Trump on his lies. “With respect, you haven’t produced the hard evidence,” Morgan says in the teaser clip, referring to Trump's fiction that the election was stolen, as Trump attempts to speak over him. [HuffPost]

27. On the battlefield with Russia, Afghanistan’s loss is Ukraine’s gain (WP)

28. An explosion at a Shi'ite mosque in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif killed or wounded at least 20 people, a local Taliban commander said. The explosion came two days after blasts tore through a high school in a predominantly Shi'ite Hazara area in western Kabul, killing at least six people and wounding 11. (Reuters)

29. Gaza violence intensifies as Jerusalem clashes resume (AP)

30. COVID hospitalizations are falling in California despite a rise in infections. (SFC)

31. More Pandemic Fallout: The Chronically Absent Student (NYT)

32. CDC says face masks are still needed to protect the public, and WHO says omicron accounts for 99.5% of global COVID (MarketWatch)

33. With even the most dovish U.S. central bankers now calling for a key interest rate to hit its "neutral" level by year's end to tame high inflation, the Federal Reserve appears headed for perhaps its swiftest shift in monetary policy since the 1960s, with all the risks that ride along with such an abrupt change. (Reuters)

34. Biden’s dismal poll numbers imperil Dem Senate control (Politico)

35. As shootings mount, anger that it’s ‘happening over and over’ (WP)

36. Cleaner Earth: Healing ozone hole, less smog, more eagles (AP)

37. A “stunning” jellyfish species has been identified for the first time in Monterey Bay. (SFC)

38. CNN’s streaming service shutting down a month after launch (AP)

39. In the Murdoch family succession battle, Fox News and democracy hang in the balance (NPR)

40. Kamala Harris' chief of staff heading for the exit (CNN)

41. Tesla results surged past Wall Street expectations, as higher prices helped insulate the electric vehicle maker from supply chain chaos and rising costs. The results should also trigger $23 billion in new payouts to CEO Elon Musk, already the world's richest man. Meanwhile, Musk's The Boring Company has raised $675 million in a Series C funding round, which now values the tunneling enterprise at $5.675 billion. (Reuters)

42. Another solar temper tantrum sends a strong X-class flare toward Earth (Space.com)

43. Astronomers discover micronovae, a new kind of stellar explosion (Phys.org)

44. Uranus by 2049: Here's why scientists want NASA to send a flagship mission to the strange planet (Space.com)

45. A Sonoma County beach town wants to save its homes by moving them (SFC)

46. Twitter, Enemy Of First Amendment Rights, Permanently Bans The Onion (The Onion) 

Library Pollution

 Social media is not the only way conspiracy theories reach the public.

When I was young, one reliable place we could go when seeking accurate information was the public library. Thankfully, that still is the case but increasingly, low-quality books promoting far-right conspiracy theories, COVID disinformation, LGBTQ+ conversion therapy, and Holocaust denial are sneaking into libraries via the digital media service Hoopla, as disclosed in an important article in Vice.

Hoopla, which allows library users to check out ebooks from their personal devices, serves more than 3,000 library systems in over 8,500 public libraries across the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. 

It is one of the primary ways for libraries to ensure their users have access to digital content. But unfortunately, along with legitimate titles, all sorts of garbage is slipping through the cracks.

We know about this because an alert group of librarians in Massachusetts noticed a number of Holocaust denial and anti-Semitic books on Hoopla.

During the pandemic, ebook lending services like this one grew rapidly, of course. A company statement was not entirely encouraging. “We take seriously our role to help libraries provide their patrons with access to a broad variety of content and customize the collection that best fits the needs of their communities. We are working to refine our policies and create more tools that empower libraries to choose which titles they offer to their patrons.”

This all is happening at a time when librarians are already under fire for providing legitimate books explaining issues like critical race theory and sexual identity issues. The far right has co-opted the censorship controversy in red states with widespread book bans in places like Texas.

This places librarians in the middle of another fierce debate polarizing the deeply divided, conspiracy-riven culture that is our modern day reality in the U.S.

The News (42):

1. Ukraine holds Mariupol steel mill amid Russian ultimatum (USA Today)

2. Mariupol official warns of 'last days' as Russia demands Ukrainian troops surrender (Yahoo)

3. Despair in Mariupol’s last stronghold: ‘They’re bombing us with everything’ (NYT)

4. Commander of Mariupol’s last defenders tells The Post his soldiers won’t surrender, even as Russian attacks intensify (WP)

5. 'We didn't have a choice': Ukrainians only way to flee Mariupol was through Russia (CNN)

6. Commander says forces in Mariupol may only have a few hours left (The Hill)

7. Mariupol may fall within days, European official says (Reuters)

8. Ukraine to open humanitarian corridor in Mariupol (Financial Times)

9. Russia’s Chernobyl seizure seen as nuclear risk ‘nightmare’ (AP)

10. More Cautious, Russia Embarks on New Phase of Ukraine War (NYT)

11. West sends Ukraine fighter jets, heavy weapons as fighting intensifies in Donbas (WP)

12. Wealthy Russian businessman Oleg Tinkov condemned what he called Moscow's "crazy war" in Ukraine, saying 90% of his countrymen did not support it and calling on the West to offer Vladimir Putin a dignified way to withdraw. (Reuters)

13. It's planting season in Ukraine, and that means problems for global food supply (NPR)

14. The U.S. Races to Arm Ukraine With Heavier, More Advanced Weaponry (NYT)

15. Howitzer ammo has arrived in Europe for Ukraine, senior US defense official says (CNN)

16. Ukraine war refugees top 5 million as assault intensifies (AP)

17. One body at a time, a Kyiv coroner documents Ukraine’s grim death toll (WP)

18. Ukraine’s War Efforts Gain an Unlikely Source of Funding: Memes (NYT)

19. Russia tests new nuclear-capable missile (AP)

20. Putin sends a warning, oversees ICBM test launch (WP)

21. Russia’s Isolation From the West Will Outlast the War (Atlantic)

22. Ukrainian band DakhaBrakha delivers an urgent message to U.S. audiences (NPR)

23. Kremlin spokesman: Russia gave Ukraine draft truce document (NHK)

24. Taiwan news channel accidentally airs false report of Chinese invasion (Guardian)

25. VIDEO: Explosions at Schools in Kabul Kill at Least 6 (AP, Reuters)

26. The End of Nature — The rise of greenhouse gases and our warming earth. (William McKibben / New Yorker, 1982)

27. Netflix shares slide after its loses 200,000 subscribers (CBS)

28. Moderna announces step toward updating COVID shots for fall (AP)

29. China internet censors scramble as lockdown frustration sparks ‘creative’ wave of dissent (Guardian)

30. Majority of Americans want masks for travelers: AP-NORC poll (AP)

31. China's commercial capital of Shanghai reported no new COVID-19 infections outside quarantine areas in two districts, fanning hopes that the tide is turning in its pandemic battle, as some factories began to return to work. (Reuters)

32. Shanghai allowed 4 million more people to leave their homes Wednesday as measures that shut down China’s biggest city eased, while the International Monetary Fund slashed its forecast of Chinese economic growth and warned the global flow of industrial goods might be disrupted. The ruling Communist Party's "zero COVID" strategy has forced major cities to shut down to isolate every case. [AP]

33. Religious clashes across India spark fears of further violence (WP)

34. Google and Meta impose social media curbs on Hong Kong’s sole leadership candidate (Financial Times)

35. In an international survey of people’s responses to the climate crisis and other pressing issues, the country with the highest percentage of people who say they’re not worried about climate change “at all” turned out to be the United States. Meanwhile, the climate crisis, which is very much real, is still ravaging the U.S. and other nations, bringing deadly — and worsening — droughts, fires, extreme heat, storms and floods. [HuffPost]

36. Fearing a Trump Repeat, Jan. 6 Panel Considers Changes to Insurrection Act (NYT)

37. After it was revealed that the San Francisco police used a sexual assault victim’s DNA against her in an unrelated case, city leaders on Tuesday unanimously voted to prohibit the police from storing DNA obtained from rape kits in city-run databases. (AP)

38. Marianne Faithfull: my stories of Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Metallica and more (Louder)

39. Ebook Services Are Bringing Unhinged Conspiracy Books into Public Libraries (Vice)

40. Should Couples Merge Their Finances? (Atlantic)

41. 56% of Americans who died in 2020 were cremated, more than double what it was just two decades ago. (WP)

42. Company Culture Mostly Clapping (The Onion)

Earth Day Project

 With Daisy

The Ungovernables

 You might not want to be reminded of this but it’s an election year in the U.S. with the midterms coming up in November. All of the seats in the House and a chunk of the Senate are up for grabs. The presidency is not.

The state of the political union remains shattered, polarized, unproductive and chock full of conspiracy theories, partisan rumors, and short-sighted infighting. 

Republicans presumably will make gains, at least in the House, according to traditional political analyses. The party that controls the White House normally loses ground halfway into a first term, and it is widely expected that will happen this year for the Biden administration.

That we are in the beginning of an inflationary period affecting American consumers is a bad sign for Democrats, of course. But the sources of the rising prices — the pandemic‘s government stimulus payments, related supply chain problems, the Ukrainian war-caused high gas prices — would for the most part be happening independent of which party was in power.

When it comes to blame for a problem like inflation, voters are going to point to the incumbents.

That said, the changes in the distribution of Congressional seats will be somewhat limited due to gerrymandering by both parties that has resulted in mostly safe seats that remain reliably Republican or Democratic regardless of current perturbations.

The electorate remains more Democratic than Republican, though not by a wide margin, and in our federal system, there is no national number that actually matters, it’s only state-by-state.

At this point, it’s difficult to see big changes from the results of the last few national elections. It will no doubt be close, whichever party prevails. And even if the GOP grabs the House majority, the Senate may remain with the Democrats.

Biden’s approval deficit, according to the polling site 538, is 51.9-42.3 percent or 9.6, although it is objectively difficult to figure out why this is the case. He is hardly the polarizing, dislikable figure that his predecessor was — if anything, he may be too much a conciliatory force for these fiercely divided times. 

It seems like few people are in the mood for bipartisan progress on the massive problems facing our society and humanity. Climate change remains political as opposed to the consensus issue it should be.

Poverty, homelessness, drug use, mental health, inequality, discrimination, etc., remain highly partisan topics, unfortunately.

Covid has faded from view, though it is slightly more frequently in the news today than most days in recent weeks. But the controversy over masking and vaccinations appears to be far less a political hot button issue than in the recent past.

According to Electoral-Vote.com, the battle for control of the Senate remains evenly split between the parties, 50-50. The polling site has Democrats strongly favored to retain 45 seats and barely leading in five. The GOP is rated as strongly controlling 44 seats, with three more likely and three barely in the red column.

It can’t get closer than that. Vice-President Kamala Harris would retain the tiebreaker vote if the split is again 50-50.

Today’s News (63):

1. Ukraine Says Russia Begins Assault in the East After Raining Missiles Nationwide (NYT)

2. Forces clash along Ukraine's eastern front line (BBC)

3. Russian forces tried to push through Ukrainian defences along almost the entire front line in eastern Ukraine, launching what President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the "Battle of the Donbas" - the long-awaited second phase of the war. (Reuters)

4. VIDEO: Ukrainians to Receive Training on American Artillery, Pentagon Says (AP)

5. Ukraine Rushes to Evacuate Civilians in East as Russia’s Offensive Pushes Forward (WSJ)

6. Britain and its allies have resolved to give Ukraine the weapons it needs to counter the Russian assault, UK PM Boris Johnson says (BBC)

7. Russia sets new deadline for Mariupol to surrender (WP)

8. Russian forces have seized the city of Kreminna in eastern Ukraine and Ukrainian troops have withdrawn from the city, the regional governor said. Meanwhile, Russia called on Ukrainian forces and foreign fighters holed up in the Azovstal metallurgical plant in the port city of Mariupol to lay down their arms by noon Moscow time if they wanted to live. (Reuters)

9. Bleak assessments of the Russian economy clash with Putin’s rosy claims. (NYT)

10. VIDEO: Explosions Heard at Steel Plant in Besieged Mariupol (Reuters)

11. Ukraine war: Can India feed the world? (BBC)

12. Barrage of Russian missile strikes also hit city of Lviv in western Ukraine (WP)

13. Ukraine War Divides Orthodox Faithful (NYT)

14. Putin's war has entered what Ukrainian officials called a "new phase," as Russian forces launched full-scale ground offensive to take control of the country’s eastern industrial heartland, the Donbas. Moscow has declared the capture of the Donbas to be its main goal in the war since its attempt to seize the capital, Kyiv, failed. [AP]

15. As the war moves east, Russia and Ukraine still facing off in Kherson (WP)

16. Russian diplomats ramp up disinformation (AP)

17. Russian invasion upends young, flourishing Ukrainian publishing industry (NPR)

18. How a Mariupol steel plant became a holdout for the city’s resistance (WP)

19. In Iran, Russia’s war on Ukraine is a political flash point (AP)

20. Ukraine crisis raises question: Does food aid go equally to 'Black and white lives'? (NPR)

21. More than 5,000 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in the U.S. since war began, Biden administration says (WP)

22. A charity kitchen in Ukraine linked to chef José Andrés was destroyed by a missile (NPR)

23. A ‘Wild West’ of Marijuana Shops Grows in Toronto (NYT)

24. Desperate Afghans Sell Kidneys to Survive — Afghanistan’s deepening humanitarian crisis is fueling a booming trade in human organs. “No father in the world wants to sell his son’s kidney.” (WSJ)

25. Prominent Afghan high school targeted by deadly morning bombings (WP)

26. Blasts near Kabul schools kill at least 6 civilians, hurt 17 (AP)

27. Kabul blasts kill six and wound 20 at boys' school (BBC)

28. Kabul School Blasts Kill Six as Afghanistan Violence Continues — Explosions at a school in a Shiite neighborhood that killed at least six and wounded more than 11 others was likely carried out by Islamic State, analysts said, showing the militant group’s continued threat despite a monthslong Taliban campaign against it. (WSJ)

29. A Rising Tally of Lonely Deaths on the Streets — More than ever it has become deadly to be homeless in America, especially for men in their 50s and 60s. (NYT)

30. Nowhere is the homelessness crisis more acute than in California, where about one in four of the nation’s 500,000 homeless people lives. (Cal Today)

31. Fresno had one of the biggest rent increases of any U.S. city last year, fueling a homelessness crisis in a city that used to be California’s most affordable. (Guardian)

32. The U.S. said it will stop carrying out destructive satellite tests. (WP)

33. A fledgling class of crypto that feasts on risk is outshining a wider market paralyzed by war and inflation. Coins backed by gold are newer variants of 'stablecoins', which are typically pegged to the dollar to tame volatility. The largest, Pax Gold or PAXG, has jumped 7.4% in 2022, while main rival Tether Gold has leapt 8.5%. (Reuters)

34. Elon Musk Isn’t the First to Want to Buy Twitter — As Elon Musk attempts to buy Twitter, WSJ looks back at Twitter’s past suitors, like Salesforce, Disney and Alphabet. Tech reporter Tim Higgins explains why those past conversations fell through and what’s different this time. (WSJ)

35. How a love of sci-fi drives Elon Musk and an idea of 'extreme capitalism' (NPR)

36. A legislative proposal for low-income Californians could increase the renter tax credit for the first time in 40 years. (KQED)

37. Most major air carriers in the U.S. announced that, effective immediately, they will no longer enforce mask-wearing rules that have been federal requirements on public transportation since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The moves came hours after a federal judge nominated by Donald Trump voided a recently extended mask mandate. Passengers on several airlines tweeted that captains announced the new policy mid-flight and allowed people to remove their masks. [HuffPost]

38. Baby bust: Pandemic accelerates fall in China’s birth rate (Financial Times)

39. Stop Saying Vaccines Don’t Work for the Immunocompromised (Atlantic)

40. Cheers and fears as US ends mask mandates for travel (AP)

41. Despite effective treatments, HIV drags on. Experts warn COVID may face the same fate (NPR)

42. As Philadelphia Puts On Masks Again, Other Cities Watch Closely (NYT)

43. The Chinese city of Shanghai pleaded for public cooperation with a massive new push to test most of the population for COVID as it tries to bring community transmission down to zero after nearly three weeks of lockdown. We look at why President Xi Jinping is sticking with his stance despite anger and economic headwinds. (Reuters)

44. Moderna says its new 'bivalent' vaccine shows promise against COVID variants (NPR)

45. Trump Allies Continue Legal Drive to Erase His Loss, Stoking Election Doubts — Fifteen months after they tried and failed to overturn the 2020 election, the same group of lawyers and associates is continuing efforts to “decertify” the vote, feeding a false narrative. (NYT)

46. With Arizona a Toss-Up, Infighting Reigns Among GOP, Democrats (WSJ)

47. Mitch McConnell calls Donald Trump's bluff in Alaska (CNN)

48. Republicans confront (or sidestep) abuse accusations against midterm candidates (NPR)

49. 5 plot twists that could upend the midterms (Politico)

50. Florida Gov. DeSantis Seeks to End Walt Disney World’s Special Tax District (WSJ)

51. Kimberly Guilfoyle, the fiancée of former President Donald Trump’s eldest son, met with the House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection Monday — more than a month after she abruptly ended a voluntary interview with lawmakers. Guilfoyle spoke at the rally former President Donald Trump held on the White House Ellipse on Jan. 6, 2021, before the riot at the Capitol aimed at overturning Trump’s election loss. [AP]

52. In a major blow, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) lost a bid to block a constitutional challenge to her reelection over her support for last year’s U.S. Capitol riot. U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg of the Northern District of Georgia denied Greene’s request for a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order, ruling Greene had failed to meet the “burden of persuasion." [HuffPost]

53. How Orwell Diagnosed Democrats’ Culture War Problem Decades Ago (Politico)

54. Republicans are overreaching in the culture war (Financial Times)

55. California gives rivers more room to flow to stem flood risk (AP)

56. The FDA is investigating whether Lucky Charms is making people sick. (WP)

57. Joaquin Ciria has spent 31 years in prison for a San Francisco murder he insists he didn't commit. Now, after a campaign by District Attorney Chesa Boudin and San Francisco’s Innocence Commission, a judge has re-examined Ciria’s conviction and ruled that he will walk free. The ruling makes the San Francisco D.A.'s Office just the second in the Bay Area to help clear a person's record with its version of a conviction review unit, Joshua Sharpe writes. Read more. (SFC)

58. World's first electric-powered tanker to go into service in Tokyo Bay (NHK)

59. Killers confronted: humpback whale turns on orca pod in rare encounter (Guardian)

60. NASA discovers rapidly growing black hole — a "missing link" connecting the origins of the universe that was hiding in plain sight (CBS)

61. Jupiter’s moon Europa may have water where life could exist, say scientists (Guardian)

62. NASA advisers call for a visit to Uranus, plus more science during moon landings (NPR)

63. Study: Best Method Of Surviving Layoffs Remains Playing Dead As HR Rounds Corner (The Onion)

Fellow Traveler

 My usual choice on commuter trains is to sit in one of the seats marked for seniors and disabled persons. Most younger people will stand before sitting down in that section. But increasingly, as public transport around here fills up post-pandemic, the priority seats are filling up too. 

Late the other night on a very crowded BART train headed out of San Francisco, the guy who ended up sitting next to me was of indeterminate age, wore a bandana pirate-style in his hair, old clothes — somewhat dirty but not ragged — and reasonably good walking shoes. Lulled by the swaying of the car on the tracks and the warm air, we both began to doze off. 

After a few minutes he bumped against me, and he startled us both awake.

“Sorry,” he said. 

“No problem,” I smiled.

“I’m always afraid of falling asleep on Bart and missing my stop,” he continued. “So it’s good you’re sitting next to me because now I have someone to talk to and I’ll stay awake.”

“Where are you headed?” I asked.

He named a station a few stops past the next transfer point but explained that that would not be the endpoint of his journey.

“When I get off,” he explained, “I’ll walk for three miles to the casino in San Pablo. I go there all the time.”

“Isn’t that a tricky route to walk at night?” I asked. “You’ve gotta go through some pretty sketchy areas.”

“Yeah, but I don’t talk to nobody. If someone approaches me, I put my head down and keep walkin’. Then they leave me alone.”

I thought about this for a moment. It was not only rainy and cold out that night but quite late.

“Have you ever thought about Lyft?” I asked.

“Sure,” he said, “It’s nice but I like to walk. Exercise keeps you healthy.”

He told me he was 51; I told him I was 75.

“So what would have happened tonight if you hadn’t wakened up just now?” I asked.

“Oh, I probably would have stayed asleep until the end of the line. And the problem with that is this is the last train of the night. And that’s already happened to me once before.”

“What did you do?” 

”Well they told me I had to get off and the next train would be the first one in the morning —about six hours later. So I got off, went out and found a diner open late. I stayed there ‘til 2, when it closed, then I sat outside it on the curb for four more hours. It was cold.”

“That sucks,” I said. “Then what happened?”

“Oh, I caught the first train with all the commuters, came back, transferred and went to the right stop. Then I got off, walked the three miles, and made it to the casino.”

A few stops later, we parted ways, and I realized that I had forgotten to ask him how often he wins. Then I looked up the casino, and it says it’s open 24 hours a day. Now I’m retired, maybe I’ll go there myself one of these days. 

Today’s News (47):

1. Putin’s Ukraine Gamble Pivots to a Very Different Battlefield — After Russian forces were mauled in cities and towns in northern Ukraine, Vladimir V. Putin is shifting the focus of his invasion to the flatlands of Donbas, in the east. (NYT)

2. Mariupol defenders ignore Russia surrender deadline (BBC)

3. Zelensky: "I don't believe the world, after we have seen what's going on in Ukraine" (CNN)

4. Why Russia turned away from urban war in Kyiv to focus on the east (WP)

5. VIDEO: Missiles Hit Central Kharkiv (AP, Reuters)

6. After More Than a Month of Fighting, Much of Mariupol Lies in Ruins (WSJ)

7. Ukrainian soldiers hold out in Mariupol, pope laments 'Easter of War' (Reuters)

8. Ukrainian troops mount last-ditch stand in Mariupol’s tunnels (Financial Times)

9. U.S., allies plan for long-term isolation of Russia (WP)

10. Austrian chancellor: Putin ‘in his own war logic’ (Politico)

11. Ukrainian president calls for more help, additional sanctions against Russia (CBS)

12. War crystalizes young Ukrainian leaders' calls for a future aligned with Europe (NPR)

13. ‘This land is in blood’: A Ukraine village digs up the dead (AP)

14. In Lviv, displaced artists create antiwar, anti-Russian work (WP)

15. Russia and Ukraine Build Forces for Looming Battles in East (WSJ)

16. Russia Fires Missile Barrage at Ukrainian Cities and Military Targets (NYT)

17. Mariupol teeters as surrender deadline passes (WP)

18. Biden’s Claim of Russian Genocide in Ukraine Adds to Pressure Campaign (WSJ)

19. The War in Ukraine Is Breaking Russia’s Academic Ties With the West (Yahoo)

20. Zelenskyy urges world to prepare for possible Russian nuclear attack (NHK)

21. Where Russians Turn for Uncensored News on Ukraine — Telegram (NYT)

22. Attacks rock Ukrainian cities as Mariupol nears full Russian control (WP)

23. War Deepens Debt Woes Across Developing World (WSJ)

24. The Unseen Scars of Those Who Kill Via Remote Control — Capt. Kevin Larson was one of the best drone pilots in the U.S. Air Force. Yet as the job weighed on him and untold others, the military failed to recognize its full impact. He fled into the California wilderness. (NYT)

25. A tale of many pandemics: In year three, a matter of status and access (WP)

26. Amid Backlash, Texas Governor Repeals Border-Clogging Immigration Order (NYT)

27. Trump’s Focus on 2020 Election Splits Michigan Republicans (NYT)

28. The next censorship battleground for the Christian right: public libraries (WP)

29. Kentucky Legislature Overrides Beshear’s Veto, Giving Local Political
    Leaders Control Of Public Libraries (Infodocket)

30. Florida says it rejected math textbooks for referring to critical race theory (Axios)

31. For many, Easter Sunday marks a return to in-person worship (AP)

32. Pakistan says cross-border attacks from Afghanistan have increased (Reuters)

33. Tunisia’s neighbours offer help to contain damage after fuel ship sank (Guardian)

34. ‘We’re Exhausted’: Palestinians Decry Israeli Raids as Collective Punishment (NYT)

35. Man who paid $2.9m for NFT of Jack Dorsey’s first tweet set to lose almost $2.9m (Guardian)

36. To fight climate despair, this Christian ecologist says science isn’t enough (WP)

37. Disney Didn’t Leave the GOP Behind — Culture Did (Politico)

38. Washington state retools a first-in-nation payroll tax plan for long-term care costs (NPR)

39. T-Rex Could Actually Be Three Separate Dinosaur Species, Study Argues (WSJ)

40. It's heading our way! NASA confirms largest comet ever has been detected (Marca)

41. More than 50 percent of people worldwide have headache disorders (WP)

42. She Never Stopped Loving Otis Redding. Her City Never Stopped Needing Him. (NYT)

43. Archeologists discover historical artifacts during Notre Dame Cathedral restoration (NPR)

44. How a Determined Congressional Aide Helped Break Open the Biggest Environmental Scandal in U.S. History(Politico)

45. Thinking about how dogs think (WP)

46. You Can Add Seven Years to Your Life if You Stop Worrying About Getting Old (WSJ)

47. Everyone On Camping Trip Just Gets Out Of Way While Friend Who Knows What He’s Doing Takes Care Of Everything (The Onion)

75th Birthday Party

 With all six kids.

Life-Human Rights: Afghan conversation.29

 [This is the latest in a series of confidential conversations I am having with a friend in Afghanistan about life under Taliban rule. I am protecting his identity for his safety.]

Dear David:

For most of us in Afghanistan, life under the Taliban entails regular violations of our human rights and efforts to control our private lives. 

Men are forced to grow beards and wear turbans or hats at all times. A friend of mine said that a Talib slapped him in the face recently simply because he had closely cut his hair on the sides, a style popular here with young men.

Another friend was slapped in the face for wearing a hair bow, which is also popular here.

But the situation for women is even worse. Not only are they deprived of their right to an education, they can barely go anywhere or do anything on their own.  

The Taliban have ordered shopkeepers to refuse to sell anything to women who have not covered their faces, and the shopkeepers must not allow women to enter the shop, even when they are veiled. The shopkeeper is only allowed to sell goods to women outside of the shop. Shopkeepers who violate these rules are arrested. 

While all of this is happening we are enduring a severe drought. Fully 80 percent of Afghans are engaged in agriculture and livestock, where the impact of the drought is felt most deeply. But as the prices of food are rising, everybody is feeling the pain.

Is it any wonder why so many of us dream of getting out of this place? For too many of us, it has become a living hell.

TODAY’s NEWS:

1. The Slime Machine Targeting Dozens of Biden Nominees — In an escalation of partisan warfare, a little-known dark-money group is trying to thwart the President’s entire slate. (New Yorker)

2. The Danger More Republicans Should Be Talking About — White-supremacist ideology is harmful to all, especially the naive and defenseless minds of youth. (Atlantic)

3. Kyiv arms plant hit by Russia may have made missiles that sank Moskva (Guardian)

4. Russian Forces Expand Footprint in Eastern Ukraine (WSJ)

5. Russia hits Kyiv, Lviv and presses offensive in ruins of Mariupol (Reuters)

6. ‘Neptune’ missile strike shows strength of Ukraine’s homegrown weapons (WP)

7. The War in Ukraine Is Upending Biden’s Agenda at Home (NYT)

8. Ukraine war far from over as Russia renews strikes in Kyiv (AP)

9. More than 900 civilians believed dead in Kyiv region (WP)

10. Girding for New Battle, Russia Warns U.S. on Advanced Weapons for Ukraine (NYT)

11. ‘I feel so lost’: The elderly in Ukraine, left behind, mourn (AP)

12. War in Ukraine generates interest in nuclear energy, despite danger (WP)

13. US Army using lessons from Ukraine war to aid own training (AP)

14. As Ukraine investigates Russian war crimes, the U.S. and EU allies offer assistance (NPR)

15. Clearing the deadly litter of unexploded Russian bombs in Ukraine (WP)

16. Several Million Seen Staying Out of Labor Force Indefinitely (WSJ)

17. U.S. arrests 210,000 migrants at Mexico border in March, rivaling record highs (Reuters)

18. Tanzania’s First Female President Wants to Bring Her Nation in From the Cold (NYT)

19. 5,000 under evacuation orders as New Mexico wildfire rages (AP)

20. Taliban authorities summon Pakistani envoy to protest military strikes. (Reuters)

21. Decade-High Mortgage Rates Pose Threat to Spring Housing Market (WSJ)

22. New, highly transmissible forms of omicron may pose latest covid threat (WP)

23. U.S. Offers Protection to People Who Fled War in Cameroon (NYT)

24. The Pandemic Was Supposed to Push All Shopping Online. It Didn’t. (WSJ)

25. Experts are predicting a summer of travel chaos. Here's why (CNN)

26. Americans shrug off latest rise in Covid cases (Financial Times)

27. Four planets will line up in the sky this month. Here’s how to spot them. (NBC)

28. Study: ‘Truly Being Seen’ Still Ranks Among Worst Possible Experiences In Human Existence (The Onion)