Members phkrause Posted July 21, 2022 Author Members Posted July 21, 2022 July 21, 2022 By David Leonhardt Good morning. We look at what the latest Covid surge means for the country. Masked pedestrians in New York in May.Dave Sanders for The New York Times A guide to BA.5 The Covid virus has a Darwinian quality. As variants emerge, they compete with one another to become dominant. The most contagious variants tend to win the competition because they can spread more quickly. It’s survival of the fittest. That is why the virus has become more contagious over time. Today, the most contagious form of Covid yet — the BA.5 subvariant — is spreading around the globe. “It looks as if we are unable to control it,” Dr. Charles Chiu of the University of California, San Francisco, told The Times. In the U.S., cases have surged recently, as has the number of hospitalized patients with Covid (although some of them were admitted for other reasons and happened to test positive for the virus while in the hospital): Chart shows 7-day averages. | Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services At the same time, I know that many readers aren’t sure how much attention to pay to Covid anymore. Most Americans are vaccinated, and the vaccines provide excellent protection against serious illness in a vast majority of cases. In a recent Times poll, fewer than 1 percent of Americans described Covid as the country’s most important problem. “I’m actually pleased to see the pandemic is not top of mind,” Dr. Ashish Jha, President Biden’s Covid coordinator, told me. “It means we’re making progress. The last thing I want as the Covid response coordinator is for us to get back to the point where Covid dominates our lives in scary ways.” Today’s newsletter offers a guide to thinking about BA.5, including what steps the U.S. can take to minimize its toll. Fewer than 1 percent of Americans described Covid as the country’s biggest problem.Gabby Jones for The New York Times Powerful tools … Throughout the pandemic, people have often conflated two different concepts: contagiousness and severity. The first involves how easily the virus spreads. The second involves how sick an average person tends to get once infected. Both matter. A more contagious variant infects more people, increasing the number who get very sick even if the percentage of infected people who get very sick remains the same. A more severe variant, on the other hand, increases the percentage of cases that lead to bad outcomes. But the two concepts are different. If the prospect of getting Covid hasn’t been dominating your life in recent months — because you’re boosted and not in a major risk group — a new variant doesn’t need to cause big changes to your behavior unless it’s more severe. So far, evidence suggests that BA.5 does not cause more severe disease than other Omicron variants, as Chiu and other experts have said. Instead, the percentage of Covid cases leading to bad outcomes is declining. Consider these comparisons: Covid cases have risen faster than hospitalizations (which, again, include many people with mild Covid who are hospitalized for other reasons). Hospitalizations, in turn, have risen faster than the number of Covid patients in the I.C.U. And deaths from Covid have barely risen. Sources: New York Times database; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services One reason is the steady buildup of natural immunity, as more and more people have had the virus. Another factor is the availability of drugs like Evusheld (to help protect immunocompromised people before infection) and Paxlovid (to reduce severity in infected people). “We have the ability to protect ourselves,” Dr. Joseph Kanter, Louisiana’s medical director, said. Paxlovid isn’t perfect. Many people find that it leaves a nasty taste, and rebound cases — in which people get sick again after taking the drug — are fairly common. But those rebound cases tend to be mild. As Jha said: “When you have people getting Paxlovid, they’re not ending up in the hospital. We know that it’s working.” What about long Covid? It remains something of a mystery, and many experts hope that scientific research can eventually clarify what it is and how many people have it. Vaccines do seem to reduce the chances of having long-term symptoms, Jha said, and those symptoms seem to clear up within a few months in an extremely high percentage of cases. Still, if even 2 percent of infections led to long-term problems, that would represent millions of people around the world, which is why more research is important. Until then, long Covid will resemble many other daily risks: Some people will largely ignore it, while others will try to reduce the risk (by wearing a mask indoors, for instance). Both approaches seem reasonable. … not always used The U.S., like many other countries, already has most of the tools it needs to defang BA.5. Unfortunately, many people are not using those tools. Only about half of American adults have received a booster shot. Even fewer have received a second booster. (Anyone 50 and older is now eligible for one, and the Biden administration seems likely to expand eligibility soon.) Jha offers this rule of thumb: If you have not yet gotten a vaccine shot — of any kind — in 2022, consider getting one. Administering a Covid vaccine in Los Angeles in April.Alisha Jucevic for The New York Times Many doctors, for their part, remain unaware of the evidence showing that Paxlovid and Evusheld make a difference. This slow adoption is typical for new drugs, but it’s costly in the case of Covid. The hardest decisions are probably for people who are up-to-date on their vaccine shots and ready to take Paxlovid if they get sick, but still at risk because they have an underlying vulnerability, such as old age, cardiac problems or ongoing cancer treatment. In these instances, the BA.5 surge may call for more mask-wearing, skipping some indoor events or postponing travel. Longer term, it’s a reminder that medical research to find more effective vaccines and treatments continues to have the potential to save many lives. The BA.5 surge is unlikely to lead to major new Covid rules, like mask mandates, even in most liberal cities that have previously been the fastest to adopt them. “You can’t just kind of cry wolf all the time,” Dr. Allison Arwady, Chicago’s health commissioner, told The Times. Most Americans are understandably tired of such mandates. It’s not even clear how well mandates have worked. But Covid is still killing an alarmingly high number of Americans. The onset of BA.5 can offer a reminder that there is a middle ground between allowing Covid to dominate daily life and pretending that the pandemic is over. “We should not let it disrupt our lives,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top federal infectious disease official, said. “But we cannot deny that it is a reality that we need to deal with.” THE LATEST NEWS War in Ukraine The E.U. asked member countries to ration natural gas, warning that Russia might further cut supplies. Russia said that it might extend territorial claims over Ukraine to include parts of the south. Ukrainian troops retook a village in the east, a rare success after months of being on the back foot. Politics Voting in New York last year.Amir Hamja for The New York Times A bipartisan Senate group introduced legislation intended to prevent the electoral tactics that Donald Trump tried in 2020. The amount of Republican support in the House for a bill to codify marriage equality surprised both parties, suggesting a narrow path to enactment. Here’s where midterm elections could affect abortion access. Climate Cooling off in Manhattan.Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times A heat wave in the U.S. isn’t letting up. About 100 million people are under heat advisories. When it comes to climate action, delay is the new denial for Republican lawmakers. Other Big Stories Ivana Trump’s funeral in Manhattan yesterday.Julia Nikhinson/Associated Press Ivana Trump was buried in a gold-hued coffin. “She had brains, she had beauty, and she had grit,” her son Eric Trump said. After Italy’s governing coalition collapsed, its prime minister, Mario Draghi, resigned for a second time. Buenos Aires banned teachers from using gender-inclusive language. One of these two people will be Britain’s next prime minister: Rishi Sunak, the former top finance official, or Liz Truss, the foreign secretary. Opinions Eight Times Opinion columnists revisit their mistakes: Thomas Friedman on Chinese censorship, Michelle Goldberg on Al Franken, Gail Collins on Mitt Romney, Farhad Manjoo on Facebook, David Brooks on capitalism, Paul Krugman on inflation, Bret Stephens on Trump voters and Zeynep Tufekci on the power of protest. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS New York is spending $25 billion to overhaul its airports.Thomas Prior for The New York Times Travel: Wait, La Guardia is nice now? Batman, Walter White: Is the era of the antihero coming to an end? Lives Lived: William Hart was the lead singer of the Delfonics, pioneering Philadelphia’s soulful sound and creating hits like “La-La (Means I Love You).” He died at 77. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC The last starting QB hits the market: San Francisco gave quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo permission to explore trade options Wednesday. He’s late to the open market, but he’ll have suitors. James Harden stays true to his word: The Sixers star agreed to a two-year, $68.6 million deal Wednesday, which represents a sizable pay cut — for now. Harden has said he wanted to take less money in order to give the Sixers more flexibility to build a championship roster. Small tweaks, big results: Lindsey Adler goes behind the scenes with Aaron Judge, who made slight adjustments to his swing at the most critical juncture of his young career. It’s paying off: He’s a front-runner for the A.L. M.V.P. award. ARTS AND IDEAS A scene from Netflix’s “Persuasion.”Nick Wall/Netflix The difficulty of adapting Austen The best Jane Austen adaptations are true to the novel’s plot and confident in their own worlds. A movie version of “Persuasion” on Netflix is neither, Sarah Lyall writes. The problem isn’t that the film takes liberties, Sarah writes. Many Austen iterations do: “Fire Island” sets “Pride and Prejudice” in a present-day vacation home with a group of gay men looking for love. But the new “Persuasion” diverges from the novel’s careful pace, allowing characters to reveal their feelings early on. And it mixes its 19th-century setting with modern phrases (“If you’re a five in London, you’re a 10 in Bath,” one character says). In an interview, the film’s director, Carrie Cracknell, defended her choices: “One of the big hopes I had for the film was to draw in a new audience to Austen, and to make them feel that they really recognize the people onscreen.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Susan Spungen. Ranch is both sauce and marinade for this pan-seared chicken. What to Watch The film “A Dark, Dark Man” is an exceptionally grim police procedural set in Kazakhstan. What (and Where) to Read Michael Crummey, an award-winning author, helps you explore Newfoundland. Late Night Trevor Noah discussed same-sex marriage. Now Time to Play The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was benevolent. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Seeps out (five letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks with health experts about medical care in states that ban abortion, today at 4 p.m. Eastern. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about Trump. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 22, 2022 Author Members Posted July 22, 2022 July 22, 2022 By German Lopez Writer, The Morning Good morning. Gas prices have now fallen for more than a month. Falling gas prices could be good news for political and social stability.Jason Henry for The New York Times Some good news After months of gas prices making life more expensive, they have quietly started to go down — providing financial relief for many Americans. The average nationwide price this week was $4.49 a gallon, down from a peak of $5.01 in June. The average price of gas is still about $1.30 higher than it was a year ago, but it has now fallen for more than a month. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration That is welcome news for consumers: Higher gas prices affect not just people filling their cars but also, through higher transportation costs, the price of almost everything else. Falling prices are also potentially good news for political and social stability. Because gas prices are so visible — posted on giant signs across the country — they have an outsize impact on how Americans feel things are going, experts say. The sentiment can extend beyond financial concerns. Consider Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which caused gas prices to spike in the West as Europe vowed to stop relying on Russian oil and gas. American and European leaders have worried since the war began that rising gas prices could hurt public support for efforts against Russia, because people could come to see the personal cost as too great. So falling gas prices could help sustain public support for Ukraine. Historically, rising gas prices have also hurt incumbent political leaders. Sure enough, approval ratings for President Biden and European leaders have fallen as the prices of gas and other goods have increased. Unchecked, it is the kind of widespread disapproval that can lead to global political instability and extremism. In Italy, for example, the recent collapse of the government could give way to a takeover by a far-right alliance that includes a political party with neo-fascist roots. But gas prices also get at something deeper than partisan politics or any individual policy debate: They help dictate the public mood. As the pandemic has waned, Americans have hoped for a return to normal. But rising gas prices and inflation, along with an increase in violent crime and the war in Ukraine, instead feed into a broader sense of chaos and anomie already fueled by Covid. It is as if Americans have traded some crises for others. “Is this for real?” Caroline McNaney in New Jersey recalled thinking. “I took a job further from home to make more money, and now I feel like I didn’t do anything for myself because gas is so high.” Falling gas prices, then, offer the kind of reprieve people have wanted after a few chaotic years. Gas prices fall more slowly than they rise, so there may be more reductions to come.Brandon Pavan for The New York Times Why gas prices fell Several factors are behind the good news. Oil and gas production has ticked up in the U.S. and elsewhere, increasing supply. Some people are driving less to avoid high prices, decreasing demand. Continued Covid disruptions, particularly in China, have also played a role; lockdowns lead to fewer people traveling, further reducing global demand for oil and gas. The process is playing out slowly — a result of what experts call the “rocket and feather” effect: Gas prices tend to rise quickly, like a rocket, and fall more slowly, like a feather. Gas stations are quicker to increase prices and slower to reduce them to maximize profits. And while rising gas prices drive consumers to comparison-shop more, falling prices ease the need to do so — reducing competitive pressure. What’s next Since gas prices fall more slowly than they rise, they still have room in the coming weeks to drop further — to catch up with reduced oil prices, said Christopher Knittel, an economist at M.I.T. And as strange as it may sound, a weakening economy could help further reduce gas prices. The Federal Reserve has recently increased interest rates, raising the cost of borrowing in an effort to pull down demand and tame inflation. That could lead to more unemployment, but also to a slowdown in price increases after months of record inflation. Beyond a few weeks, the future of gas prices is less certain. “There are still risks out there,” said Rachel Ziemba, an energy expert at the Center for a New American Security. The European Commission proposed rationing natural gas this week.Janos Kummer/Getty Images Among them: More atrocities in Ukraine could further push Europe to stop buying Russian oil and gas. Russia could retaliate against Western sanctions by withholding its shipments, tightening worldwide supply again. Climate change continues to make oil and gas companies cautious about boosting production too much. China’s economy could improve and increase demand, particularly if Covid restrictions ease. But for now, falling gas prices are one bit of good news during a summer marred by headlines about inflation, war, heat waves and rising Covid cases. For more Germany is racing to secure gas supplies before winter and a possible Russian cutoff. Americans have made lifestyle changes, such as car-pooling and biking to work, to avoid high gas prices. Some have also started driving less, which could slow down the economy. The European Central Bank raised interest rates for the first time in more than a decade. THE LATEST NEWS Jan. 6 The Jan. 6 committee showed how Donald Trump refused for hours to take any action to stop the Capitol attack, dismissing pleas from White House officials. Witnesses testified that as the mob stormed the Capitol, members of Mike Pence’s security detail contacted family members to say goodbye. In outtakes from a video address the day after the riot, Trump refused to say that the election was over. Last night’s hearing was the last of the summer, but the committee said it would continue its investigation. The Virus President Biden on Wednesday, a day before testing positive.Doug Mills/The New York Times Biden has Covid. The White House says he’s experiencing mild symptoms. Biden, 79, got his second booster in late March and is taking the antiviral Paxlovid. War in Ukraine Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv region yesterday.Gleb Garanich/Reuters Turkey says there’s a deal between Ukraine and Russia to allow the export of millions of tons of Ukrainian grain. Ukraine says recent strikes on Russian targets, using long-range weapons from the West, prove that it can still win. Other Big Stories The House passed a bill protecting the right to contraception. It’s unlikely to pass in the Senate. A man with a pointed weapon attacked Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate for New York governor, at a campaign event. Zeldin wasn’t injured. California is set to enact a law that would target illegal gun sellers using the bounty system of Texas’ abortion ban. A former Minneapolis police officer who held down George Floyd’s legs was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Amazon is acquiring One Medical, a chain of primary care clinics. An An, the oldest giant male panda in captivity, died at 35 — 105 in human years. Opinions To understand the fall of Roe, look at the Supreme Court’s embrace of religious doctrine, Linda Greenhouse writes. David Brooks asks: Is life a story or a game? Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS Nancy Cardwell and Luis Gallardo practice the tango.Melissa Lyttle for The New York Times It’s never too late: to learn the tango and fall in love. Survival plan: He thought he had built the safest house in Kentucky. Tragedy found him anyway. Big City: Maybe we don’t need 15-minute grocery deliveries after all. Modern Love: A single Muslim woman in her late 20s had never experienced physical intimacy. Advice from Wirecutter: How to delete your tweets — and why you should. Lives Lived: Werner Reich was a frightened 16-year-old prisoner at Auschwitz when a fellow inmate, a magician, taught him a card trick. It changed his life. He died at 94. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC Kyler Murray gets his deal: The Arizona Cardinals quarterback had been clear he desired a new contract, and yesterday the team obliged with a five-year, $230.5 million deal ($160 million guaranteed). It’s the second-highest average annual value ($46.1 million) in N.F.L. history. Paul Goldschmidt’s quiet ascension: The Cardinals slugger is the overwhelming favorite for National League M.V.P., though you’d never know it judging by the headlines. His teammates call him a “robot.” Why are the “Three True Outcomes” down? Home runs, walks and strikeouts are all down across baseball. Ken Rosenthal and Eno Sarris dig into the trend that has league executives baffled. ARTS AND IDEAS Daniel Kaluuya, Jordan Peele, Keke Palmer and Brandon Perea at the “Nope” premiere.Valerie Macon/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images A must-see director “Nope,” in theaters today, is one of the summer’s feverishly anticipated movies. That’s because the film’s director, Jordan Peele, has become Hollywood’s best bet for a good time. This is Peele’s third film, after “Us” and the politically pointed “Get Out,” which satirized post-Obama race relations to nightmarish effect. As A.A. Dowd writes at The Ringer, audiences associate Peele’s name with mind-bending thrillers, much as they did with M. Night Shyamalan in the early 2000s. “What really links the two,” Dowd writes, is “an affinity for the place where horror, science fiction, and drama intersect.” The Times review: Does “Nope” live up to the hype, our critic asks? Yup. PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Ryan Liebe for The New York Times Salt and pepper tofu is crispy on the outside and pillowy on the inside. What to Read Riku Onda is a fixture of Japanese suspense literature. Her novel “Fish Swimming in Dappled Sunlight” is a dreamy psychological thriller. What to Watch “The Gray Man,” a big-budget action film starring Ryan Gosling, has “a screenplay that is an assault of amusement.” Late Night Stephen Colbert went live after last night’s Jan. 6 hearing. Take the News Quiz How well did you keep up with the headlines this week? Now Time to Play The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was optimal. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Swine (four letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — German P.S. Scott Blumenthal, an editor who has worked on our weekly news quiz, is leaving The Times to explore a career as a chaplain. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about the Great Salt Lake. “The Ezra Klein Show” examines America’s struggle to address its mental health crisis. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 23, 2022 Author Members Posted July 23, 2022 July 23, 2022 By Melissa Kirsch Good morning. When it’s more comfortable inside than out, it’s time to play games. Allie Sullberg Game plan A colleague recently drew my attention to a story that ran in The Times a couple of years ago about the late 1960s board game Group Therapy, in which players take turns drawing cards that pose intimate questions and psychological challenges. (A sample: “You have been accused of overintellectualizing your hang-ups. Respond — without falling victim to that criticism.”) The story’s author, Juli Weiner, insists that the game is great fun, that any awkwardness is paradoxically dissipated by the fact that every single thing about the game is awkward, and therefore nothing about it is. There are only hiccups, she argues, “when someone refuses to grant themselves permission to be awkward — the psychological equivalent of being the only person in the sauna clinging to the towel.” This is my kind of good time. As a child, I loved the board game Scruples and “The Book of Questions,” social experiments masquerading as parlor games. As an adult, I find corporate icebreakers mildly thrilling — What’s your favorite cereal? What was your first job? — anything that gives people permission to bypass small talk and talk about themselves. I’m thinking about games because it’s been too hot for picnics, for long walks and bike rides, for the usual summer pastimes. Group Therapy and its ilk may be too emotionally heavy for family game night, but, as many found during the early months of the pandemic, you don’t need much to create hours of diversion. When it’s more comfortable inside than out, when you’ve streamed all there is to stream, try a game of Charades or Celebrity, low-tech entertainment requiring just your wits and a few rules. Perhaps a talky party game like Scattergories or Taboo? Or go old-school: Monopoly. Uno. A deck of playing cards. For solitary pursuits, The Times has a bunch of good games that I swear I’d recommend to you even if I didn’t work here. I’m partial to the crossword (I’m part of the team that tests them before publication), but most people I know are Spelling Bee addicts. The weekly news quiz, written by my colleagues at The Morning, is a nerdy delight. (And the internet sensation Wordle will soon be a board game.) While it seems like, everywhere you turn, normal behavior is being exhaustingly gamified (see: Waze, exercise trackers), there’s still pleasure to be found in inventing games out of thin air as the inspiration arises. As any kid who has ever been dared to make the bed in under three minutes can attest, a challenge makes things interesting. What are your favorite games? Tell me about them. For more How much do you know about graphic memoirs? Play Lit Trivia. Can you bring hummus on a plane? Test your knowledge of the T.S.A.’s carry-on rules. From Wirecutter, “The Best Two-Player Board Games.” These pricey board games double as art, The Wall Street Journal found. Counterpoint: “Board Games Feel Like Existential Punishment.” THE WEEK IN CULTURE Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez.Filippo Monteforte/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Jennifer Lopez revealed her marriage to Ben Affleck in an installment of the art of being J. Lo. Times journalists discussed it. Claes Oldenburg revolutionized our idea of public monuments. He died this week at 93. A spate of books, TV shows and films suggests we’ve never looked so delicious — to one another. The Kennedy Center will honor Gladys Knight and George Clooney during its 45th ceremony in December. Michelle Obama will publish a new book, “The Light We Carry.” Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam’s lead singer, said smoke from the wildfires in Europe had damaged his throat. The band canceled its show in Vienna. Thirty years later, Robin Givens’s role in “Boomerang” deserves reconsideration, Salamishah Tillet argues. A new exhibit in Manhattan documents the cultural shift of the early 1960s. The future of summertime classical music at Lincoln Center is hazy. The choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar was awarded the Gish Prize; organizers cited her trailblazing work. Staff members of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” won’t be prosecuted on charges of unlawfully entering the U.S. Capitol. Dana Canedy, the first Black woman to serve as publisher of Simon & Schuster’s flagship imprint, left her position. HarperCollins workers went on strike for a day. The leading Quidditch organizations renamed the sport quadball, citing a wish to “distance themselves” from J.K. Rowling. THE LATEST NEWS Wheat stored at a farm in Ukraine.Diego Ibarra Sanchez for The New York Times Explosions rocked the Ukrainian port city of Odesa less than 24 hours after Russia agreed to a deal that would unblock grain shipments by sea. The U.S. government is struggling to help Americans displaced by floods and other disasters. President Biden has embraced the promotion of lower gas prices to try to win voters’ approval. Republicans are intensifying attacks on gay and transgender rights. The former Trump adviser Steve Bannon was convicted of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the Jan. 6 committee. The Justice Department is investigating Houston’s failure to address rampant garbage dumping and other environmental problems in minority neighborhoods. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. CULTURE CALENDAR By Gilbert Cruz Culture Editor ? “The Last Movie Stars” (streaming on HBO Max): While another documentary about Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward might have focused on their acting careers and their half-century marriage, this six-part series, directed by Ethan Hawke, adds a unique spin. During the height of the pandemic, Hawke gathered Hollywood pals (George Clooney, Laura Linney, Sam Rockwell, Zoe Kazan …) on Zoom to read from decades-old transcripts of interviews for a scrapped Newman memoir. The resulting film is a fascinating look at stardom, marriage and artistic legacy. ? “The Daughter of Dr. Moreau” (out now): Many of us have experienced that wonderful moment of discovering an author and wanting to follow along wherever they go. That’s how I felt after reading the eerie novel “Mexican Gothic” by the genre-hopping writer Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Her imagination “is a thing of wonder,” The Times’s horror columnist, Danielle Trussoni, wrote. That remains true in her new book, a reimagining of the H.G. Wells science-fiction classic. ? “Renaissance” (Friday): Perhaps you’ve heard that Beyoncé has a new album on the way. This is her first solo studio album since the 2016 instant classic “Lemonade.” One track here is titled “Plastic Off the Sofa,” which is a thing my grandmother would never have approved of. RECIPE OF THE WEEK Bryan Gardner for The New York Times By Melissa Clark Heirloom Tomato Tart In the midst of a heat wave, turning on the oven to bake anything — even Vallery Lomas’s gorgeous heirloom tomato tart — might be an absolutely terrifying idea. But not if you have a large-ish toaster oven, which can get the job done without overheating your kitchen. So I made one this week with some store-bought pesto and the first heirloom tomatoes of the season. I took a tip from commenters and salted the tomatoes as they drained. Not only does this season them through and through, it also helps draw out the moisture, resulting in a firmer, easier-to-slice tart. Then I savored it with a crisp salad and a cold beverage — all without ever breaking a sweat. Or, if cooking anything is just out of the question, we’ve got loads of no-cook recipes to get you through these next few fiery days. A selection of New York Times recipes is available to all readers. Please consider a Cooking subscription for full access. REAL ESTATE A Spanish Colonial Revival house in Richmond, Va.Mick Anders What you get for $1.8 million: An 1838 cottage in East Hampton, N.Y.; a bungalow in Miami Shores, Fla.; or a house in Richmond, Va. The hunt: She had a $700,000 budget and wanted to live in Brooklyn. Which home did she choose? Play our game. Have a seat: Conversation pits are back. Working near home: Apartment buildings are offering co-working spaces as amenities. LIVING Maggie Shannon for The New York Times Sunscreen: Answers to all your burning questions. Great values: 20 summer wines under $20. National parks: Five hidden gems. Beach coolers: How to pack for a picnic in the sand. Travel sights: What you see on a long-haul U.S. train route. GAME OF THE WEEKEND Julio Rodríguez.Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners, M.L.B.: The Mariners haven’t made the playoffs in 20 seasons, the longest drought in baseball. But this season is starting to feel special. Going into this week’s All-Star break, the Mariners had won 14 straight games. Then, in the Home Run Derby, their star rookie, Julio Rodríguez, smashed more than 60 homers in the first two rounds. Will he help break a streak that’s nearly as old as he is? Today at 4 p.m. on FS1. For more: Rodríguez’s constant drive to improve includes perfecting English. The Times looked at the uncanny success of Justin Verlander, the Astros ace who is nearing 40 but still at the top of his game. NOW TIME TO PLAY The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were electing, eliciting, intelligence, neglecting and telegenic. Here is today’s puzzle. Take the news quiz to see how well you followed this week’s headlines. Here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Before You Go … For a transporting read, try “Miss Aluminum,” Susanna Moore’s memoir of her glamorous and troubled life in Los Angeles in the 1960s and ’70s. Hit the space bar for puppies. Here’s Beabadoobee’s latest, “Sunny Day.” Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — Melissa Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 24, 2022 Author Members Posted July 24, 2022 July 24, 2022 By German Lopez Writer, The Morning Good morning. Today, we explain what led to Sri Lanka’s recent protests. Protesters overtaking the prime minister’s office in Colombo, Sri Lanka.Atul Loke for The New York Times Storming the palace Sri Lanka’s recent upheaval offers an extreme example of the world’s recent problems. Covid disrupted the country’s major industries, particularly tourism, and then leaders failed to adapt — setting off a chain of economic calamities, including food and fuel shortages. The crisis prompted protests, culminating in the president’s resignation and the installation of a new president on Wednesday. My colleague Emily Schmall has been reporting on Sri Lanka. I spoke to her about the country’s crisis. What led Sri Lanka to this point? For the past six months or so, economic conditions for everyday Sri Lankans have grown increasingly difficult. Things like fuel and cooking gas became increasingly expensive and hard to find, and inflation soared. New government import bans meant goods from overseas like chocolate and coffee beans disappeared. In Sri Lanka, there’s a sizable middle class. People are not used to scarcity, so they noticed immediately when things started disappearing from shelves. People were upset about that. And the ability to carry on became all but impossible in the last month or so. Eventually, protesters took over the presidential palace. How did that happen? It began with the protesters marching toward the president’s mansion on July 9. Government officials tear-gassed them and fired live rounds around them. This infuriated people. A few commandeered a military truck and used it to break down the gate. Hundreds of people then flooded in and found this place essentially abandoned — the president had fled, and there was nobody stopping them from going inside. Then, they did the same at Temple Trees, the prime minister’s official residence. But the protesters didn’t ransack the place. They started inviting the public to come in, but in an orderly fashion. Activists were forcing people to queue properly. They treated these homes like museums. They were concerned about not damaging any property. After about 24 hours, a gleefulness overtook the place, and some people swam in the president’s pool. They’d done it: They had forced this extremely powerful president — who was accused of war crimes, who was feared — to leave his own home and even the country. But they did it peacefully, without taking up arms. So it was an atmosphere of joy and disbelief, with a bit of absurdity and a bit of comedy thrown in — a very Sri Lankan sort of revolution, relatively low-key and polite. I can’t help but compare this to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. This seemed much more peaceful. Oh, yeah. I couldn’t help thinking of it either. There were several differences. For one, these people were not armed. It was also a bit spontaneous, and there was no clear leader. They did not do it in association with any politician or political party. But the big difference was that these protesters had widespread support. Ordinary Sri Lankans were applauding them and even participating. People who would otherwise never be involved in activism or protests were happily wandering around the properties, enjoying themselves and basking in the success of this movement. In the U.S., we’ve had inflation and supply shortages recently. But this sounds like a whole different level of problems. Yes. So in the U.S., Americans have complained about fuel prices. By contrast, Sri Lanka ran out of fuel. It’s not just that it was expensive; it was impossible to find. A line for fuel in Sri Lanka in May. Atul Loke for The New York Times How did the government react? Until several months in, there was really no government recognition of the crisis. The dynast Gotabaya Rajapaksa was leading the administration at the time, and he had appointed his brothers and his nephew to his cabinet. He didn’t take a lot of counsel from outside his family. There was a lot of denialism among them. They were told repeatedly that the economy was deteriorating. But they were certain tourism would continue to increase after Covid and that would be enough to shore up finances. But that didn’t happen; tourism was starting to come back, but it wasn’t enough. I was surprised that so much of the country was run by this one family. Is that unusual in Sri Lankan history? It was strange even for Sri Lanka. There are a number of families in politics. Rajapaksa was defense secretary when his brother was president from 2005 to 2015. But this administration was an extremely brazen example. The Sri Lankan government increasingly looked like a family business. And it was run that way: a lot of secrecy, not much transparency, not many outsiders. The family tried to benefit from the policies the government was imposing. Does the new government have the people’s trust? Protesters are not happy with Ranil Wickremesinghe, the new president. They feel that his takeover reaffirms the Rajapaksas’ influence because he represents the establishment and because he appointed a friend of the Rajapaksa family as his prime minister. What’s next for Sri Lanka? In the short term, we probably will see continued turmoil. But people are invested in ensuring Sri Lanka doesn’t fall again into this situation where it’s teetering on autocracy, where there’s little transparency and where the will of the people is ignored. So it’s mostly a positive story. More on Emily Schmall: She grew up in DeKalb, Ill., and once had a job detasseling corn. She decided to become a journalist in high school. She began her career at The Miami Herald in 2005 and joined the New Delhi bureau at The Times in 2020. Related: Amid the chaos, Sri Lankans found refuge in cricket. NEWS Health People in line to receive the monkeypox vaccine in San Francisco last week.Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via Associated Press The World Health Organization declared monkeypox a global emergency, a designation requiring an international response. Here’s how to get tested, vaccinated and treated for monkeypox. The overturning of Roe v. Wade set up wrenching choices for pregnant women who have had cancer diagnosed. Politics The Georgia prosecutor investigating Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn his election loss has accelerated her case in recent weeks. Trump allies have sought to undermine the women who have testified against him. A man suspected in an attack on Representative Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate for New York governor, was arrested on a federal assault charge. Other Big Stories Destruction near the steel plant in Mariupol, Ukraine.Pavel Klimov/Reuters “On the verge of madness”: The 80-day siege at a steel plant in Ukraine brought misery and death on both sides. As the gunman in the 2018 Parkland, Fla., school massacre awaits sentencing, a victim’s parents considered whether they supported the death penalty. A wildfire in California destroyed 10 structures and threatened thousands more. FROM OPINION Ron DeSantis is exposing the limits of Donald Trump’s strategy, Ross Douthat writes. Self-censorship is taking root in publishing, Pamela Paul argues. Russ Roberts explains how to make a decision when there’s no “right” one. The Sunday question: Is the Justice Department doing enough to hold Donald Trump accountable for the Jan. 6 riots? While the department has been silent so far about whether officials view Trump as criminally liable, a failure to act could damage the public’s confidence in law enforcement, Quinta Jurecic and Natalie K. Orpett of Lawfare argue. But critics are wrong to rush the work of prosecutors, who have a higher burden of proof than the House committee investigating the attack, Harry Litman writes in The Los Angeles Times. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS Jordi Ruiz Cirera for The New York Times Urban landscape: Mexico City’s colorful street stalls. Heat wave: How to sleep better when it’s hot. Sunday routine: A resident of a Jersey Shore tent colony starts her day with a sunrise walk to the beach. Pilates: Is the workout as good as everyone says? Advice from Wirecutter: Before you spring for an expensive outdoor movie screen, consider a simple white bedsheet. A Times classic: Three tips for better conversations. BOOKS “Lore Olympus,” by Rachel Smythe, is a retelling of Greek myth.Rachel Smythe/Webtoon New readers: Web comics are attracting a fresh audience of young women. By the Book: Ruth Ware doesn’t think you need to finish her books if you don’t want to. Our editors’ picks: “Circus of Dreams,” a former editor’s tales of the 1980s London literary scene, and 12 other books. Times best sellers: “The 6:20 Man,” the latest thriller by David Baldacci, debuts as the No. 1 hardcover fiction best seller. See all our lists here. The Book Review podcast: CJ Hauser talks about her new essay collection, “The Crane Wife.” THE SUNDAY TIMES MAGAZINE A pro-Trump demonstration outside the Pennsylvania Capitol on Nov. 7, 2020.Mark Peterson/Redux, for The New York Times On the cover: How “stop the steal” captured the American right. Recommendation: Deafness can bring a community and an escape. “I consider myself fortunate to have been given this ability to turn off the sound.” Judge John Hodgman: Two friends can’t agree on brunch. Eat: Chocolate cake for the queen of A.S.M.R. eating. Tip: How to say goodbye. Read the full issue. THE WEEK AHEAD What to Watch For Dangerous levels of heat are expected to continue in the South early this week. Tunisians will vote tomorrow on a new constitution that critics say would move the country further toward autocracy. European energy ministers will meet on Tuesday to discuss a planned reduction in gas use. Congressional leaders said they were aiming to vote this week on a bill to bolster American semiconductor manufacturing. The Federal Reserve is expected to significantly raise interest rates at its meeting this week. On Thursday, the government will release data revealing whether the U.S. economy shrank for a second consecutive quarter — typically the marker of a recession. A law banning nearly all abortions in North Dakota is set to go into effect on Thursday. The track and field world championships finish today. Follow our updates. What to Cook This Week Bobbi Lin for The New York Times It’s too hot to cook. Emily Weinstein’s solution: dinnertime salads, including corn salad with tomatoes, basil and cilantro; pasta salad; and tuna salad with hot and sweet peppers. NOW TIME TO PLAY Here’s a clue from the Sunday crossword: 121 Across: Split, then come together? Take the news quiz to see how well you followed the week’s headlines. Here’s today’s Spelling Bee. Here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — German Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 25, 2022 Author Members Posted July 25, 2022 July 25, 2022 By David Leonhardt and Ian Prasad Philbrick Good morning. The political fight over abortion will increasingly be a battle over the mailing of pills into Republican-run states. Misoprostol, used to terminate early pregnancies.George Frey/Reuters By land, sea or air With Roe v. Wade overturned, many of the most intense battles over abortion access will involve the mailing of pills into Republican-run states. Some pregnant women in these states will travel to states where abortion remains legal. But travel can be expensive and time-consuming, making it especially difficult for lower-income workers. That’s why both sides of the abortion issue are now gearing up for an extended fight over what’s known as medication abortion — and specifically over whether women who live in red states will be able to order abortion pills through the mail, even if it’s illegal. Abortion rights advocates are hoping to protect mail services from legal challenges and trying to spread the word that medication abortion is both safe and effective. Abortion opponents are thinking about how to prevent the mail from becoming a loophole that undermines their newly created bans. Today’s newsletter looks at three different realms where this issue is likely to play out. 1. Aid Access In 2018, Dr. Rebecca Gomperts, a Dutch physician, founded a group called Aid Access to help women in countries where abortion is illegal order pills through the mail. With many American states now outlawing abortion, Aid Access has a new relevance in the U.S.: After Texas enacted a strict abortion law last year, for example, Aid Access experienced a surge of requests from Texas. To receive pills, women contact a European doctor through Aid Access’s website. Then, a doctor will often fill the prescription using a pharmacy in India, which will send the pills by mail. They typically arrive in one to three weeks and can be taken safely up to the 12th week of pregnancy. Ordering the pills through Aid Access costs about $110, with discounts available to poorer women. Gomperts told us that she believes Aid Access was not in legal jeopardy because it follows the laws in Austria, where it is based. “I practice according to the law and to all the medical ethical guidelines,” she said. Dr. Rebecca Gomperts, the founder of Aid Access.Remko De Waal/EPA, via Shutterstock Both pro-choice and pro-life advocates agree that cracking down on the mailing of abortion pills is difficult. “This is a tough problem,” James Bopp, the top lawyer for the National Right to Life Committee, said. Elisabeth Smith of the Center for Reproductive Rights said, “Even the federal government does not have enforcement power against an entity that is wholly outside of the U.S.” But Smith added that the situation might be different for women who take the pills: They could be in legal jeopardy in some states. Texas, for example, requires a woman seeking an abortion to visit a clinic twice — partly to restrict the use of pills. A woman who took abortion pills in Texas would be violating that law, and Smith and some other experts believe that prosecutors might bring such a case, especially in the rare instances when women had complications that required a doctor’s care. One question is how law enforcement officials will try to stop the delivery of pills in a majority of cases. Pharmacies, of course, do not label their packages as containing abortion pills. (For the back story to Aid Access: Gomperts has been trying to make abortion accessible for more than two decades, and Emily Bazelon profiled her in The Times Magazine in 2014.) 2. Overseas pharmacies Some overseas pharmacies also ship abortion pills even without a prescription from a doctor. They typically sell generic versions of the drugs mifepristone and misoprostol that have been produced in India. Plan C, a group that helps women looking to obtain pills by mail, has published lists of pharmacies whose pills the group considers reliable. “We had them analyzed in the lab and they were the real thing,” Elisa Wells, Plan C’s co-founder, told us. The pills typically cost $200 to $500. Taking a medication without help from a nurse or a doctor is obviously not an ideal situation, but some women may decide that they have no other option. Plan C also publishes medical and legal information about the pills, and a group called M+A operates a telephone hotline for questions about self-managed abortions or miscarriages. As with pills obtained through Aid Access, women in some states may face legal risks from using an overseas pharmacy. Three states — Oklahoma, Nevada and South Carolina — have laws against self-managed abortion, Wells noted. 3. Mail forwarding A third option involves getting a mailbox in a state where abortion is legal and working online with a medical provider in that state. The provider can send the pills to the mailbox, and the company that operates the mailbox can then forward them to a woman’s home in a state where abortion is banned. This process involves multiple steps. Still, Wells said, it is among the cheapest, most convenient option for many women. It also involves some of the same legal vulnerabilities as the other options here. Bopp, the anti-abortion advocate, said that he hoped the federal government would ultimately find ways to crack down on the mailing of abortion pills from one state to another. But it will not happen so long as President Biden is in office, he added. (This Times Opinion video explains how a Texas woman used the mailbox approach. It meant that she did not have to take time off work, and she could induce the abortion in the privacy of her home.) The bottom line More than half of legal abortions in the U.S. are already conducted using pills, up from virtually none in 2000. The share is almost certain to keep rising, and a substantial number of illegal pill-based abortions also seem likely in Republican-run states. Increasingly, the future of abortion — and the political struggle over it — will revolve around medication abortion. Related stories: Kansas will vote on abortion next week. And in some states where abortion remains legal, wait times have recently grown, because of women traveling from states where it is now illegal. THE LATEST NEWS Climate Cooling off in the Bronx yesterday.Gabby Jones for The New York Times A prolonged heat wave in the Northeast: Yesterday was the fifth straight day of triple-digit temperatures in Newark. The heat is expected to ease in the Northeast but intensify in the Pacific Northwest this week. Much of the South will continue to swelter, as this tracker shows. Here’s how to keep your pets safe. Politics Beto O’Rourke in Texas in June.Montinique Monroe for The New York Times Polls show a tightening in the Texas governor’s race between Greg Abbott, the incumbent, and Beto O’Rourke, his Democratic challenger. Conservative activists who deny the 2020 vote are recruiting sheriffs to their cause, unnerving election officials. As the Jan. 6 committee’s evidence piled up, many conservative media personalities continued to push a more sanitized narrative. Other Big Stories Peatlands in Équateur Province, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.Nanna Heitmann for The New York Times “Our priority is not to save the planet”: Congo is auctioning off peatlands and rainforests to oil companies. Myanmar’s military put to death four pro-democracy activists, the country’s first executions in more than 30 years. China launched a 23-ton space rocket. Nobody knows where its debris will fall. “Parentese”: Adults around the world speak to babies in similar ways. Jonas Vingegaard, a 25-year-old Danish rider, won his first Tour de France, three years after turning pro. Opinions Too many New Yorkers can’t swim. It’s time to change that, Mara Gay writes. Gail Collins and Bret Stephens discuss heat and politics. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS Valerie Woo and her detector dog, Phillip.Shuran Huang for The New York Times Beagle brigade: Floppy-eared agents sniff out diseases and pests. New York City: He runs a real estate empire. Did he steal it? Travel Quiz: A sewing machine, handcuffs, hummus. Do you know what you can take on a plane? Metropolitan Diary: She tasted independence at the 1964 World’s Fair. A Times classic: Easy ways to cut down on junk mail. Lives Lived: Bob Rafelson was an iconoclastic director who was a central figure of the New Hollywood movement. He died at 89. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC Shohei Ohtani on the trade block? The price will be high, Ken Rosenthal writes, but not impossible to meet. The Aug. 2 trade deadline should be most dramatic, with stars like Ohtani, Juan Soto and even Mike Trout in discussions to move. NASCAR drama: Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished first and second in yesterday’s race — until their cars failed inspection afterward. Hamlin is the first Cup Series driver to be stripped of a win in the modern era. Ortiz goes into Hall: Red Sox legend David Ortiz was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday, the most notable member of a seven-man class. Steve Buckley argues he’s already something more: the face of the storied franchise. ARTS AND IDEAS Chicago: Hot dog town A proper Chicago dog is an all-beef frankfurter in a poppy seed bun with yellow mustard, sweet pickle relish, chopped white onion, tomato slices, a dill pickle spear, pickled sport peppers and celery salt. “A source of civic pride, the Chicago-style hot dog is a nexus for many people’s relationship to a city they so adore,” Eric Kim writes. What is it that makes these dogs stand out? The number of toppings plays a role. But the biggest difference may be the lack of an ingredient: ketchup. “We don’t turn anyone away that wants ketchup on their hot dog,” Jeff Greenfield, the owner of Redhot Ranch, told The Times. “But usually we try to limit it to children 12 years and under.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Dane Tashima for The New York Times Don’t skip the celery salt on your Chicago dogs, its herbal lightness makes them shine. Profiles The Grammy nominated singer Maggie Rogers went to Divinity School. “I wanted to build a framework for myself, for how to keep art sacred,” she said. What to Read Here are six new paperbacks that Times editors recommend. Now Time to Play The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were nighttime and theming. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: French school (five letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Clyde McGrady is joining The Times from The Washington Post, where he wrote about race, culture and politics. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about crypto. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 26, 2022 Author Members Posted July 26, 2022 July 26, 2022 By German Lopez Good morning. The debate over inflation often treats it as a uniquely American problem. It’s not. A food market in Warsaw.Maciek Nabrdalik for The New York Times Worldwide problems Inflation has dominated the news about America’s economy in recent months as prices for food, gas and other goods have increased faster than they have in four decades. But inflation is a global phenomenon right now — and the U.S. has actually fared better than other countries in recent months. In June, consumer prices in the U.S. increased 9.1 percent over the previous year; they increased 9.6 percent across the E.U. in the same time period. Chart showing annual change in Consumer Price Index each month up to June 2022. | Source: O.E.C.D. Much of the public discussion about inflation in the U.S. has focused on domestic problems, particularly President Biden’s policies. Critics argue that the American Rescue Plan, the pandemic relief bill that Biden signed into law 16 months ago, has supercharged consumer demand by sending $1.9 trillion to Americans, state governments and other programs. As higher demand has chased limited supplies of goods, prices have soared. The law has certainly played a role in increased inflation, economists say. But the global trends suggest that focusing solely on the U.S.’s role misses a big part of the story — how external forces have driven up prices, too. In today’s newsletter, I want to look at the main causes of inflation and why they might be difficult to fix. Common causes The big factors that drove up inflation in the U.S. also affected the rest of the world: the disruption of supply chains by both the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and soaring consumer demand for goods. But increasing inflation has played out differently in different countries, said Jason Furman, an economist at Harvard University. The U.S.’s earlier, bigger price spike had different causes than Europe’s more recent increase. (Countries differ in how they calculate price changes, but economists still find comparisons of the available data useful.) In the U.S., demand has played a bigger role in inflation than it has elsewhere. That is likely a result of not just the American Rescue Plan but also economic relief measures enacted by Donald Trump. Altogether, the U.S. spent more to prevent economic catastrophe during the pandemic than most of the world did. That led to a stronger recovery, but also to greater inflation. In Europe, supply has played a bigger role. The five-month-old war in Ukraine was a more direct shock to Europe than it was to the rest of the world, because it pushed the continent to try to end its reliance on Russian oil and gas. That prompted Europe’s recent jump in inflation. “The U.S. is trying to cool down an overheating economy,” my colleague Eshe Nelson, who covers economics from London, told me. “That is just not the situation in Europe.” What to do Some of the causes of inflation are in policymakers’ control. Governments can reduce their own spending to reduce demand. Central banks can raise interest rates to increase the cost of borrowing money and, as a result, push down demand — as they have started to do in the U.S. and Europe. In the longer term, investments into, say, clean energy and housing can limit the impact of future supply crunches. But other causes are outside policymakers’ control. The European Central Bank, which sets policy for 19 of 27 E.U. countries, has acknowledged it can only do so much to fight inflation caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “The war is obviously something no central bank can do anything about,” Eshe said. The same is largely true for the trajectory of the pandemic, which now mainly depends on the evolution of new variants. All of that puts policymakers in a bind: They can address part of the inflation problem, but not all of it. That will limit how much policy can bring down price increases in the coming months. Related The Federal Reserve begins a two-day meeting today and is expected to announce another big interest-rate increase. Is the U.S. in a recession? It’s hard to say. Prices are soaring in Ukraine, adding economic havoc to the war’s human toll. THE LATEST NEWS Politics Two aides to Mike Pence testified in the Justice Department’s Jan. 6 investigation. The inquiry could lead to criminal charges against Trump. U.S. officials are concerned about China’s statements on Taiwan. They fear that Beijing might try to move against the island. Most candidates linked to QAnon have lost their primaries, but their ideas are reaching the Republican mainstream. About 300,000 monkeypox vaccine doses sat abroad as the outbreak spread in New York. The federal government waited weeks to ship them to the U.S. Other Big Stories Pope Francis meeting with Indigenous leaders in Maskwacis, Alberta, yesterday.Ian Willms for The New York Times In Canada, the pope apologized for the church-run residential schools where Indigenous children were long abused. Firefighters made progress slowing a wildfire near Yosemite National Park. Kyiv’s nightlife is coming back as young people crave contact, but revelers reckon with guilt — and a curfew. A Manhattan judge exonerated a forgotten sixth defendant in the case of the Central Park Five, who were wrongly convicted in a 1989 rape. A Brooklyn bishop and his wife were robbed of more than $1 million in jewelry during a live-streamed sermon. Joni Mitchell played her first full set in about two decades in a surprise performance at the Newport Folk Festival. Opinions Jack Powers spent two decades in solitary confinement. A documentary by Pete Quandt follows him on his first day of freedom. When medicine — like painkillers or abortion care — is criminalized, patients suffer, Maia Szalavitz writes. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS David Robinson, Jackie Robinson’s son.Elias Williams for The New York Times Jackie Robinson: New York’s new museum is about more than baseball. Unusually fast: Five runners set personal records in a single heat. Was it too good to be true? The conversation pit: Sit down, let’s talk. Dino debate: Was T. rex one species, or three? Advice from Wirecutter: Incognito mode isn’t as incognito as you think. Lives Lived: Paul Sorvino played calm but dangerous men, most notably in “Goodfellas.” He was also a trained tenor, singing on Broadway and in the New York City Opera. Sorvino died at 83. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC Kyler Murray’s homework: A clause in the quarterback’s new contract with the Cardinals caused a stir yesterday — he must complete “independent study” in his free time, or the contract could default. Durant to Boston? The Celtics have offered Jaylen Brown in a possible Kevin Durant swap, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports. It would be a seismic move in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics aren’t the only ones trying to pry Durant out of Brooklyn, though. The magic of a random day: Christopher Kamrani and Jayson Jenks picked a date at random — July 25, 2001 — and decided to report on it. They found amazing stories in what otherwise seemed like a normal day. ARTS AND IDEAS Will Malitek at Film Noir in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.Isaiah Winters for The New York Times New York’s last movie clerk If you’re looking for an obscure film, Will Malitek can help. He is the last movie rental clerk in New York. His shop, Film Noir Cinema, started in 2005 as a walk-in closet of DVDs and has grown into a spacious den of films and memorabilia attached to a 54-seat cinema. Screenings at Film Noir are shrouded in mystery, sometimes offering only a brief description of the night’s theme. Malitek’s taste guides the selections, and don’t expect Hollywood blockbusters. “I am trying to keep it as old school as possible,” he told The Times, “so when people are here they feel like they’re in a different world.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Tara Donne for The New York Times Bake pizza dough directly on the grates of a grill until it’s bubbly and crisp. Theater With age-blind casting at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, two actors who have been married for 38 years play Romeo and Juliet. What to Read The bulk of the poet Robert Lowell’s “Memoirs” has never been published. Late Night Seth Meyers mocked Trump’s speeches. Now Time to Play The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were machine and mechanic. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Scrabble play (four letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — German P.S. On this day in 1987, French explorers recovered the first objects from the wreck of the Titanic: dishes. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about gay marriage. On “The Ezra Klein Show,” a discussion of democracy as a theory of communications. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 27, 2022 Author Members Posted July 27, 2022 July 27, 2022 Continue reading the main story SUPPORTED BY By David Leonhardt Good morning. Digital media is changing language — sometimes rapidly. We explore the example of American Sign Language. The newer sign for “privilege.”Mohamed Sadek and Ege Soyuer for The New York Times Strangers on a train On a train ride from New York to Connecticut last fall, my colleague Amanda Morris and her mother were having a conversation in American Sign Language. A man sitting near them saw them signing to each other and decided to join their conversation. Like Amanda, he was a child of deaf adults who grew up using ASL at home and speaking English elsewhere. And he noticed a trait of Amanda’s: She signed like somebody who was much older than she was. He began gently teasing her about it, saying she was using signs that had fallen out of fashion. He had gone through a similar experience, he said, when he went through training to become an interpreter. During that training, he learned that some of his signs — ones he had learned from his parents — were out of date. The experience inspired Amanda, who is hard of hearing, to take an ASL class, and she noticed the same pattern. “I saw a lot of differences between how my young Deaf teacher signed and how my parents sign,” she told me. In those differences, Amanda recognized that there was a story to tell, and The Times has just published it. The article documents the changes sweeping across ASL. Many are the result of the spread of smartphones and video, which have led to a flowering of ASL conversations, many of them remote. “In the past, ASL was changing in a more face-to-face way,” Amanda said. “Now a word can spread like wildfire on TikTok, and it never could have happened before.” Changing signs for “phone.”Mohamed Sadek and Ege Soyuer for The New York Times From cross to boot An old sign for computer, to take one example, involved large circular motions to evoke the magnetic tapes that once stored data; a new sign combines the letter C with a small circular motion that’s a throwback to the old sign. As is often the case, the new sign is more compact — and thus fully visible on a phone’s tight video shot. Other changes are attempts to make ASL more inclusive and accurate. An old sign for Italy included a cross, but many Italians are now secular; a new sign traces the squiggly outline of Italy’s shape, the famous boot. An old sign for bisexual seemed to imply polygamy; a new sign is simply the letters B and I. An old sign for diversity included a zigzag that suggested inequality; a new sign conjures colors, differences and a large group of people. Change is obviously a part of every language. Merriam-Webster has added hundreds of new entries to its English dictionary in recent years, including super-spreader, horchata, woke and dad bod. But ASL does have a couple of qualities that can cause change to happen rapidly. Most ASL users, unlike Amanda, did not learn the language from their parents. (More than 90 percent of deaf people have hearing parents.) People instead tend to learn the language through classes and their peers. School curriculums and slang can both change more quickly than language habits handed down from one generation to the next. The number of ASL speakers is also relatively small, Amanda notes — with 500,000 being a common estimate. This smallness can contribute to faster change. As in other languages, though, the changes are often matters of debate. MJ Bienvenu, a retired Deaf studies professor in Austin, Texas, said that she found many of the new signs nonsensical. “I feel like many people don’t realize that they bastardize ASL, and it harms more than it helps,” Bienvenu told Amanda. As for Amanda’s mother, she is taking the changes on a case-by-case basis. When Amanda told her yesterday that the article inspired by their train ride was about to be published, her mother said that she planned to switch to some of the new signs, but not all of them. Read the article — and learn about the changes to the signs for dog, phone, parents and privilege. Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM Cisco The Future of Work Made Secure Discover how Cisco technologies can enable you to have a secure, strong network no matter where you’re located. The future of work is now. Learn More THE LATEST NEWS Politics Donald Trump and Mike Pence were less than a mile apart yesterday.Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times; Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA, via Shutterstock Donald Trump and Mike Pence, potential rivals in the 2024 presidential race, gave competing speeches to conservative audiences in Washington. Emails between Trump aides and advisers offer a look into the haphazard plan to reverse the 2020 election using fake electors. The Justice Department has directly asked witnesses in its Jan. 6 investigation about Trump’s efforts to reverse the election. The Economy In a bipartisan vote, the Senate advanced a bill to bolster high-tech research and manufacturing to compete with China. (This newsletter recently explained the larger issues.) “The world may soon be teetering on the edge of a global recession,” the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund said. President Biden insists that the U.S. economy is not in a recession and will not enter one. Inflation has pushed some ice cream truck owners to the brink. (In other ice cream news: The Choco Taco is being discontinued.) War in Ukraine The International Space Station.NASA, via Associated Press Russia says it will leave the International Space Station, a symbol of post-Cold War cooperation with the U.S., after 2024. E.U. nations reached a deal to reduce their natural gas consumption, a move meant to weaken Moscow’s influence over the energy market. Brittney Griner, the W.N.B.A. star detained in Russia, requested leniency. Climate Flooding in Florissant, Mo., yesterday.Michael B. Thomas for The New York Times A record nine inches of rain fell in St. Louis in 24 hours, submerging neighborhoods. (Climate change has made storms like this more intense.) In San Antonio, the temperature has topped triple digits almost every day this month. It’s especially punishing in poor areas where shade is scarce. Experts say that to protect the trees in Yosemite National Park, it’s time to cut and burn some. A lawsuit is in the way. Other Big Stories Tunisia approved a Constitution that effectively ends its fledgling democracy, which grew out of the 2011 Arab Spring uprising. The pharmaceutical company Teva reached a tentative $4.25 billion settlement over its role in the opioid epidemic. The future of One America News is in doubt. Major carriers have dropped the cable network and lawsuits threaten to drain its finances. U.S. authors dominated this year’s Booker Prize nominations. Buzz Aldrin’s jacket from his 1969 trip to the moon and other memorabilia sold for more than $8 million at auction. Opinions In Alabama, court fees and fines trap poor residents in a cycle of debt, Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein writes. Ross Douthat asks: Who owns the Mountain West? Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS Jim Bintliff shovels mud from the Delaware River.Hannah Beier for The New York Times Secret sauce: Baseball relies on his mud. Your money: The case of the $5,000 Bruce Springsteen tickets. A Times classic: Dogs have a unique ability to love us. Lives Lived: David Trimble, a onetime leader in the fight to keep Northern Ireland aligned with Britain, won a Nobel Peace Prize for helping end the sectarian war known as the Troubles. Trimble died at 77. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC Jonathan Toews wants out: The Blackhawks star isn’t interested in a rebuild, he tells Mark Lazerus. A trade or outright release could be possible for the three-time Stanley Cup champion, who’s still just 34. Josh Allen for M.V.P.? The Bills’ young superstar is the odds-on favorite to win the N.F.L.’s top honor this year — and his team is favored to win the Super Bowl. Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM Cisco The Future of Work Made Secure Discover how Cisco technologies can enable you to have a secure, strong network no matter where you’re located. The future of work is now. Learn More ARTS AND IDEAS Valentino’s Haute Couture show in Rome this month.Valerio Mezzanotti for The New York Times The summer of Barbie The color of the season is pink. The inspiration: Barbie. It started with the high-fashion world. During Paris Fashion Week, Valentino debuted a pink collection, and in Rome this month, Anne Hathaway attended his show in a hot-pink sequined dress. Lizzo, Lil Nas X, Kim Kardashian and other celebrities have also been spotted in pink. The trend, dubbed “Barbiecore,” is also popular among Millennials and Gen Z. As the website Who What Wear put it: “Yes, the dolls you played with as a child are leading the sartorial charge right now. Talk about a true nostalgic revival.” Then there’s the live-action Barbie movie that comes out next year, starring Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. Photos of the actors rollerblading in extremely bright outfits have been hard to miss on social media. For more: Vogue has Barbie’s looks through the years. PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Zachary Zavislak for The New York Times Pile toppings onto potato skins and broil them until they look like something you’d order at an Irish bar. Art Glyn Philpot was a respected portrait painter in Britain in the early 20th century. His portraits of Black subjects have been given new names for a new show. Travel A countryside full of stone walls and twisted olive trees: This is Salento, Italy. Late Night Trevor Noah is a fan of the pope. Now Time to Play The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were naturally and unnaturally. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Fighting spirit (five letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Looking to avoid the travel disruptions that have become common? Times experts will answer questions and offer tips in a future newsletter. Submit them here. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about Deshaun Watson. On “The Argument,” Times columnists debate whether Democratic leadership has an age problem. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 28, 2022 Author Members Posted July 28, 2022 July 28, 2022 By David Leonhardt Good morning. Joe Manchin’s climate announcement has the potential to be a very big deal. Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia.Pete Marovich for The New York Times A deal, for now Many parts of federal policy shift back and forth over time. Taxes rise and fall, as do spending on anti-poverty programs and the military. If a package of policies doesn’t pass one year, it might pass in a future year, and the long-term trajectory of the United States probably won’t be affected much. Climate policy is different. The world has already warmed to dangerous levels. Heat waves, wildfires, droughts and severe storms have become more common. The Arctic is melting, and seas are rising. If countries do not act quickly to slow their emissions of greenhouse gases — and, by extension, slow global warming — the damage could be catastrophic, scientists have warned. The U.S. has a uniquely important role in fighting climate change. It has produced far more greenhouse gases over the course of history than any other nation and remains a leading emitter today. In recent years, the U.S. has done considerably less to reduce emissions than Europe. The U.S. also remains the world’s most powerful country, with the ability to influence climate policy in China, India and elsewhere. Until yesterday, the Democratic Party seemed as if it were on the verge of squandering a major opportunity to combat climate change. Democrats control both Congress and the presidency, and yet they had been unable to agree on a package of climate policies to accelerate the use of clean energy and reduce emissions. Senator Joe Manchin had been blocking any deal, and the Senate is so closely divided that the Democrats cannot afford to lose a single vote. Yesterday, however, Manchin appeared to change his mind. He announced that he had agreed to include hundreds of billions of dollars for climate and energy programs in a bill that would also reduce prescription drug prices, raise taxes on the affluent and shrink the federal deficit. If Manchin and other Democrats remain united, it would be a very big deal. “This has the opportunity to be an enormous breakthrough for climate progress,” Sam Ricketts, co-founder of Evergreen Action, an environmental group, told The Times. It’s especially significant because congressional Republicans have almost uniformly opposed policies to slow climate change (a contrast with conservatives in many other countries). And it remains unclear whether Democrats will again control both Congress and the White House anytime soon. If Congress fails to pass a climate bill this summer, it may not do so for years — while the ravages of climate change worsen. After all the recent bickering among Democrats, I know that many people remain skeptical that they actually have a deal until Congress has passed a bill. That skepticism makes sense. Last night’s announced deal between Manchin and Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate, is different from a complete bill that can pass in both the Senate and the House. But I would say this: If this tentative agreement leads to legislation, it will probably have more lasting importance than anything else President Biden signs in his first two years in office. More details Senator Kyrsten Sinema, an Arizona Democrat who has also opposed some of her party’s legislative agenda, has not yet announced her position on the deal between Manchin and Schumer. A spokeswoman for Sinema said that she needed to review the legislation. The package will include tax credits to speed up the development of wind, solar, hydrogen and nuclear power; a tax credit to reduce the price of new electric vehicles; and money to address the disproportionate burden of pollution on low-income communities and communities of color. Senate Democrats estimate that, by the end of the decade, the legislation will allow the U.S. to cut emissions 40 percent below 2005 levels. As my colleagues Emily Cochrane, Jim Tankersley and Lisa Friedman write: “The plan would raise most of its new tax revenue, an estimated $313 billion, by imposing a minimum tax on the so-called book income of large corporations, like Amazon and FedEx, that currently use tax credits and other maneuvers to reduce their tax rates below the 21 percent corporate income tax rate in the United States.” Separately, the Senate yesterday passed an expansive, bipartisan bill to bolster U.S. manufacturing — especially of semiconductors — and to counter China’s geopolitical rise. The bill is expected to pass the House soon. Climate disasters can bury small island nations in debt. So the leader of Barbados went to the I.M.F. with a proposal to save her country. THE LATEST NEWS The Economy Source: Federal Reserve | By Karl Russell The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 0.75 percentage points, its fourth increase of the year — but it also said the economy was softening, suggesting that the campaign to cool demand was working. Jerome Powell, the Fed chair, said he did not believe that the U.S. was in a recession, pointing to the strong labor market. Here’s why rate rises slow inflation, and here’s the likely impact on credit cards, student loans and more. Abortion An effort in Indiana to pass an abortion ban with exceptions has exposed rifts among Republicans on how to legislate in a post-Roe world. A doctor who provided an abortion to a 10-year-old has found herself at the center of a clash in the medical community. Other Big Stories Brittney Griner arriving at a hearing in Russia yesterday.Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters The U.S. offered to exchange an imprisoned Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout, for the W.N.B.A. star Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan, a former Marine. LIV Golf, a professional circuit funded by Saudi Arabia, has found a powerful ally in Donald Trump. Fox News devoted little airtime to a speech by Trump on Tuesday. It did go live with an address by Mike Pence that same day. The U.S. will distribute 800,000 doses of the monkeypox vaccine. In rural America, Covid has hit Black and Hispanic people hardest. A study has found that vitamin D pills do not prevent bone fractures in most people. Opinions Liz Mair writes about Republican governors who are focused on good governance rather than culture wars. On Norman Lear’s 100th birthday, he reflects on Archie Bunker and Trump. Nancy Pelosi’s planned trip to Taiwan could incite a war, Bonnie Glaser and Zack Cooper write. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS A women’s Tour de France is back after 33 years.Monique Jacques for The New York Times Tour de France Femmes: For women’s cycling, it’s a steep climb to equality. Wedding party: A rabbi, a minister and an imam walked into Lincoln Center. Go for a float: A beginner’s guide to paddleboarding. Tech fix: Turn off these default settings. Advice from Wirecutter: Brighten your summer with a tie-dye kit. Lives Lived: Tony Dow found fame at a young age as Wally Cleaver on the 1950s sitcom “Leave It to Beaver.” He first resented the way the role had typecast him, but said that changed with age: “At 40, I realized how great the show was.” He died at 77. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC A sweep and a trade: The Mets finished off a two-game sweep of the Yankees yesterday, but just minutes after the final out, the Bronx Bombers traded for Andrew Benintendi, one of the top bats on the market. DK Metcalf “holds in”: The Seahawks wide receiver attended practice Wednesday, but refused to participate while the team worked on a new contract for him. Mike Trout’s rare condition: The Angels’ superstar outfielder is dealing with a rare back condition, a team trainer said. There is no timetable for his return to the lineup, though Trout said he planned to play again this season. ARTS AND IDEAS A giant boot that dangled over West 45th Street in the 1980s.Ann Slavit Have you seen this boot? The producers of the Broadway revival of “Into the Woods” are looking for a special prop: a huge, inflatable boot that hung over the theater’s facade in the 1980s. The boot returned for the show’s 2002 revival, but was stashed away when the weather got bad. Now, nobody knows where it is, James Barron writes. “It was literally the beacon that called us all to the theater,” the producer Jordan Roth said. “I think why it captured our imagination was the way it really physicalized this impossible balance of the show between whimsy and weight.” Some suspect it was cut into pieces. Others say producers just haven’t looked in the right spot. “It’s in storage,” said Michael David, the executive producer for the original run. “I just don’t know where in storage.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Bobbi Lin for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Eugene Jho. Prop Stylist: Christina Lane. High-summer produce comes together in this corn salad with tomatoes, basil and cilantro. What to Read Hilary A. Hallett’s biography “Inventing the It Girl” thoughtfully restores the early Hollywood pioneer Elinor Glyn to the pantheon of history. Back Story An aneurysm in 2015 robbed Joni Mitchell of her voice. That made her recent return to the stage all the more remarkable. Late Night Stephen Colbert talked about a “potential” investigation into Trump. Now Time to Play The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was adjourn. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Unwanted emails (four letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Vanessa Friedman, The Times’s chief fashion critic, hosts a conversation about how the fashion world can reduce consumption today at 1:30 p.m. Eastern. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about inflation. On The Modern Love podcast, how to find the one. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 29, 2022 Author Members Posted July 29, 2022 July 29, 2022 By David Leonhardt Good morning. The big question is not whether the U.S. is in a recession. It’s whether the economy will soon worsen. The Villanueva family at a market in Alamo, Texas.Verónica G. Cárdenas for The New York Times A vicious cycle? The latest G.D.P. numbers — suggesting that the economy shrank in each of the past two quarters — have intensified a debate about whether the U.S. economy has fallen into a recession. Today’s newsletter will briefly explain that debate. But I also want to explain why some of this discussion is semantic and without much relevance to most Americans. The more important question is simpler: Are the economy’s problems likely to get worse in coming months or will the situation stabilize and possibly even improve? That question has tangible effects for people’s lives. It may influence your decisions about whether to buy a house or car, whether to look for a new job and whether to become more cautious in your spending. There is no clear answer, but there is some useful information. It helps to start with a basic framework: The country’s economic policymakers want the economy to weaken, just not too much. The main economic problem in recent months has been an overheated economy, with more demand for goods than supply of them, leading to the highest levels of inflation since the early 1980s. To bring down inflation, the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates, which leads families to spend less money and, in turn, causes prices to stop rising so rapidly. “We have high inflation and historically high inflation,” Cecilia Rouse, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, told me and other journalists yesterday. “In order to bring down inflation, we understand the economy needs to cool.” But it is very hard for the Fed officials to get the balance right. They are trying to cause a large enough decline in spending to reduce inflation but not such a large decline that companies cut jobs, unemployment rises and the economy falls into a vicious cycle. When people talk about whether the economy is entering a recession, the tangible underlying question is whether that sort of vicious cycle is beginning. So far, it does not appear to have done so. Yet the risks over the rest of 2022 are substantial. Deep, broad, sustained There is no single definition of a recession. One informal definition is two consecutive quarters of shrinking gross domestic product (a measure of the economy’s output). With yesterday’s G.D.P. report, the economy met that standard. Most economists, however, don’t like the two-quarters definition. They consider it too narrow because it is based on a single economic indicator. Any one indicator, even G.D.P., can sometimes be misleading. Right now, G.D.P. may be overstating the economy’s problems for a couple of technical, temporary reasons involving global trade and corporate inventories, Mark Zandi, the chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, said. Another broad measure of the economy, known as gross domestic income, has not been declining in recent months, and it tends to be less volatile than the initial estimates of G.D.P. (Yesterday’s number was an initial estimate, and the government will revise it — maybe even to a positive number — as more information comes in.) The volatility of the initial G.D.P. numbers is why economists generally prefer a different definition of recession. The National Bureau of Economic Research, a private nonprofit, appoints a small standing committee of academic economists who make pronouncements that many other experts treat as official. The N.B.E.R. defines a recession as a significant, persistent and broad decline in economic activity, and the committee members tend to wait months, until enough data is available, to declare a recession to have started. (My colleague Ben Casselman wrote a good explainer of recession definitions this week.) One big reason to doubt that the economy has already entered a recession is the strength of almost every indicator other than G.D.P. Consumer and business spending, for example, are both still rising, as is employment. “It is difficult to see how we suffered a recession during the first half of this year when the economy created so many jobs, unfilled positions were at a record high and layoffs near record lows,” Zandi said. As you can see in this chart by my colleague Ashley Wu, the last few months of the job market bear little resemblance to the run-up of other recent recessions: Chart shows three-month averages. Data is seasonally adjusted and excludes some jobs. Early 2020 data exceeds chart bounds. | Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics The Anxious Index There is one caveat: Professional economists are almost always late in recognizing the start of a recession. Why? They are making judgments based on delayed data, and, like other human beings, they are susceptible to irrational optimism. Historically, when economic forecasters have said that the odds of a near-term recession are at least 30 percent, it means that a recession is actually more likely than not. I’ve referred to that number in the past as the Anxious Index. What is it now? About 44 percent, according to the most recent Wall Street Journal survey of forecasters. The Anxious Index is flashing red. “Are we in a recession? We don’t think so yet. Are we going to be in one? It’s a high risk,” Joel Prakken, the chief U.S. economist for S&P Global Market Intelligence, told Ben Casselman. The Fed’s interest-rate increases — combined with the high energy prices caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the continuing Covid disruptions around the world — have created a significant chance of a vicious cycle of spending cuts and jobs cuts. The Fed, of course, is still hoping to avoid that outcome and achieve a so-called soft landing of lower inflation and continued economic growth. But, as Michael Feroli, an economist at J.P. Morgan, told my colleague Jeanna Smialek, “The degree of difficulty has probably increased.” It’s a strange moment for the economy. On the one hand, the G.D.P. numbers seem to have exaggerated the economy’s weaknesses over the past six months. On the other hand, there are legitimate reasons to worry about the economy over the next six months. THE LATEST NEWS Politics Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader.Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times Behind the scenes of the climate deal: Over 10 days, a small group of Democrats met secretly with Senator Joe Manchin. A loophole allows hedge fund managers to pay lower tax rates than entry-level employees. The Democrats’ new bill narrows it. As the Justice Department investigates the 2020 election, officials know that any misstep could sway the 2024 race. As Congress took 13 months debating subsidies for chip factories, China advanced its effort to manufacture semiconductors that rival Taiwan’s. Other Big Stories Pope Francis blessing the water in Lac Ste. Anne in Alberta, Canada, this week.Ian Willms for The New York Times Pope Francis, 85, needs help standing and walking. He has highlighted his frailty to demand dignity for the aged. The Biden administration plans to administer Covid boosters that target Omicron in September. Flooding killed at least eight people in Kentucky. “There are a lot of people out there still in danger,” the governor said. Monkeypox has stirred memories of the AIDS crisis among gay and bisexual men in New York. Employees at a Trader Joe’s in Massachusetts voted to unionize, a first among the company’s more than 500 stores. JetBlue reached a deal to buy Spirit. It would create the fifth-largest U.S. airline. Opinions A cease-fire would allow Vladimir Putin to recharge before attacking again, Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, argues. Space has been a place of peaceful cooperation, but commercialization may end that, Jessica Green writes. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. MORNING READS Puppies at the Dakin Humane Society in Massachusetts.Danielle Cookish/Dakin Humane Society Dog rescue: Thousands of mistreated beagles need homes. These people are stepping up. A Covid story: His secret changed his friend’s life. Underwater: There are holes on the ocean floor. Scientists don’t know why. Ask Well: Night sweats, explained. Modern Love: A polygraph test that saved a marriage. A Times classic: How to start knitting and love it. Lives Lived: Phyo Zeya Thaw was a hip-hop star whose pro-democracy activism took him into Myanmar’s Parliament. After the coup last year, he joined the resistance. He died at 41, executed by the military junta. SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC All rise: Aaron Judge’s league-leading 39th home run gave the Yankees a walk-off win last night in the Bronx. What Judge is doing in light of his murky contractual future is incredible — he’s currently the favorite to win A.L. M.V.P. DK Metcalf gets paid: One of the N.F.L.’s best young wide receivers agreed to a huge extension for just three seasons, meaning he’ll re-enter free agency while still in his prime. It’s seen as a win for both the player and franchise. Kyler Murray’s homework nixed: The Cardinals removed a controversial clause — which had sparked outrage from fans and pundits alike — from their star quarterback’s new contract. ARTS AND IDEAS Beyoncé at the Oscars this year.Mason Poole/A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images A new Beyoncé album “Renaissance,” Beyoncé’s seventh solo album, is here. Unlike the lead-up to her past few releases, this one has been oddly conventional: She announced the album ahead of time and dropped “Break My Soul,” a single inspired by 1990s dance music. She even joined TikTok. Beyoncé’s previous unorthodox ways, including surprise visual albums and exclusivity deals with streaming services, have distanced her a bit from the mainstream commercial market. Her last No. 1 single was “Single Ladies” in 2008, despite her continued prestige. “She’s still the leader of the culture,” Danyel Smith, a music journalist, told The Times. “There are people that exist in this world to shift the culture, to shift the vibe.” For more: The album is the first of three projects that she created during the pandemic. And Times critics and reporters debate which Beyoncé album is definitive. PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook George Etheredge for The New York Times There’s an art to avocado toast. Heh-Heh. Huh-Huh. After a long hiatus, the animator Mike Judge has brought back “Beavis and Butt-Head.” What to Watch In the comedy thriller “Vengeance,” B.J. Novak plays an aspiring podcaster chasing a true-crime story in West Texas. Late Night Stephen Colbert can’t believe “Manchin is fighting climate change.” Take the News Quiz How well did you keep up with the headlines this week? Now Time to Play The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was avalanche. Here is today’s puzzle. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword and a clue: You are here (five letters). And here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Gilbert Cruz, whose culture recommendations appear in The Morning on Saturdays, will be The Times’s next Books editor. Here’s today’s front page. “The Daily” is about conservative Latinas. Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 30, 2022 Author Members Posted July 30, 2022 July 30, 2022 Continue reading the main story SUPPORTED BY By Melissa Kirsch Good morning. Try out a new podcast or two, courtesy of Morning readers. Allie Sullberg Listen closely What makes a good podcast? I’ve been mulling this question over the past few weeks since I asked readers of The Morning to recommend their favorites. For me, a good podcast is one that makes any drive too short, that renders a middle-seat flight bearable. A good podcast dims the drudgery of folding laundry or preparing dinner, and turns waiting in line at the post office into something fun. I’ll listen to any type of podcast as long as it’s diverting — an interview, a historical recapitulation, a true-crime saga, two pals gabbing. I have a friend who won’t listen to any podcasts that don’t teach her something, another who can’t stand the “normal people who find themselves hilarious, shooting the breeze” style. Readers sent in hundreds of suggestions, many that I hadn’t heard of. Like “Back from Broken,” a podcast about addiction and recovery from Colorado Public Radio, which kept Wynn Jones of Mancos, Colo., company on a cross-country road trip. And “That’s What They Say,” about language, which Steven Hunter of Chicago billed as “possibly the nerdiest podcast out there.” Here are a bunch more to check out: “Looking for Esther.” A Scottish woman searches for her birth mother. “As narrator, she radiates hope, honesty and vulnerability in a way that really touched me,” César González from San Juan, P.R., wrote. “Basic!” The history of basic cable — hosted by Doug Herzog, a former network executive, and Jen Chaney, a TV critic at New York magazine — comes recommended by Amy Black from San Francisco. It features interviews with Cindy Crawford, Jemele Hill, Tim Gunn and others. “Everything Is Alive.” Interviews with inanimate objects. “The perspectives and stories you get from these objects (voice actors portraying a bar of soap, a lamp post, a subway seat, etc.) are hilarious, thought-provoking and wholesome,” Dana Nelson in Eugene, Ore., wrote. “Perfect for a spring-cleaning weekend — episodes are about 20 minutes long, and so uplifting.” “I Was Never There.” “A combination true-crime story, cultural history of a West Virginia commune in the 1970s and ’80s and a compelling mother-daughter story,” Pamela Gray in Santa Barbara, Calif., wrote. “It’s a Clue.” Two sisters chat about Nancy Drew, Encyclopedia Brown and other sleuths from their favorite childhood mysteries. “It just makes me smile,” Jeanette Guinn in Columbia, S.C., wrote. “In the midst of Covid, remembering a simpler time was a balm.” “Chameleon: Hollywood Con Queen.” The search for a movie-industry scammer. “I couldn’t stop listening,” Naga Nataka from Pahoa, Hawaii, wrote. “The pacing, the way people are woven in, the central mystery that drives the narrative. A couple of times, I thought, ‘Wait a minute, is this all some kind of mockumentary metanarrative gotcha?’ It was that weird.” “Fly on the Wall.” David Spade and Dana Carvey interview former cast members, hosts, writers and others from “Saturday Night Live.” “It’s hilarious and also really fun to hear the stories of working on SNL,” Karen Gibson in Los Angeles wrote. “So many great impersonations and jokes woven in — I am laughing out loud quite a bit while listening.” “My Unsung Hero.” Michael Vujovich from Washington, Ill., said it makes him feel good about himself and the world around him. “I always end up smiling, crying or both, but in all the best ways.” If that doesn’t tempt you, check out the show’s official description: “Each episode reveals what the news ignores: everyday acts of kindness and courage that transformed someone’s life.” Sold. I noticed a theme running through these recommendations: podcasts that offer a break, that make people smile or feel relief. I’d love to hear about the music that does just that for you. What song just makes you feel better lately? Tell me about it. Include your name and location, and we may feature your submission in an upcoming installment of The Morning. For more Read a profile of Sam Sanders, who has a new podcast at Vulture. Meet the hosts of the left-leaning podcast “5-4” about the Supreme Court. Check out The Times’s podcast slate. Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM Apple TV+ 'Surface' | Apple TV+ Watch "Surface," from the executive producers of "Big Little Lies," on Apple TV+. Stream Now THE WEEK IN CULTURE The pop star’s seventh solo album is the first of three new projects born during the pandemic.Kevin Mazur/WireImage Beyoncé’s new album, “Renaissance,” embodies decades of dance music. Here’s a guide. Will Smith apologized to Chris Rock for slapping him at the Oscars. The “Wagatha Christie” trial, which began as a quarrel between the spouses of two British soccer stars, ended with a judge dismissing the case. “Jeopardy!” will stick with Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik as its hosts. “To Kill a Mockingbird” closed on Broadway. Its writer, Aaron Sorkin, and director, Bartlett Sher, blamed the original lead producer, Scott Rudin. Art in a time of war: While it won’t stop suffering, culture still has power. A visit to Ukraine by the critic Jason Farago reaffirmed that. Disability representation onscreen is increasing but still falls short, according to a study. Paul Sorvino almost didn’t take his most prominent role as the gangster Paulie Cicero in “Goodfellas.” Sorvino died this week at 83. TBS canceled Samantha Bee’s late-night show, “Full Frontal,” Variety reported. After almost 9,000 episodes, the Australian soap opera “Neighbours” is ending. A community of “X-Men” fans, notably young queer people of color, is growing through podcasts and on social media. Slate asks: Why are Netflix’s most expensive movies getting worse? THE LATEST NEWS A flooded home in Kentucky yesterday.Austin Anthony for The New York Times Creeks and rivers in eastern Kentucky were still swelling in widespread flooding yesterday as rain continued to fall. At least 25 people have died. Russia and Ukraine accused each other of blowing up a prison that held Ukrainian fighters. Europe is rushing to replace Russian natural gas as a major energy source before winter sets in. The Democrats’ climate deal has the potential to transform the automotive and energy industries. Fox News has begun to routinely ignore Donald Trump. Subscribe Today Our journalism is possible only with the support of subscribers. Access all the news and analysis from our experts with The New York Times Basic Access subscription. Subscribe today. CULTURE CALENDAR By Gilbert Cruz Culture Editor ? “Bullet Train” (Friday): I always enjoy Brad Pitt in goofball mode, as he appears to be in this colorful movie about a group of assassins (including Brian Tyree Henry, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Joey King) aboard a Japanese high-speed train. This one is directed by the stuntman-turned-director David Leitch, whose work on “John Wick” and “Atomic Blonde” shows off his facility with down and dirty hand-to-hand action. Also, Bad Bunny shows up. Benito! ? “Reservation Dogs” (Wednesday): This wonderful FX comedy, whose second season premieres this month, follows four Indigenous teenagers on an Oklahoma reservation. Cocreated by Sterlin Harjo and the near-ubiquitous Taika Waititi (“Thor: Love and Thunder,” “What We Do in the Shadows,” “Our Flag Means Death”), it was on our chief TV critic’s best of 2021 list. He knows of which he speaks. ? “Renaissance” (out now): Last week, I mentioned the new Beyoncé album. And I’m doing it again! It will be one of the biggest topics of conversation this weekend, next week, this month. And given that it’s full of “generally upbeat songs” that reference “disco, funk, house, techno, bounce and more,” as our pop music reporters write, it might own the rest of the summer. Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM Apple TV+ 'Surface' | Apple TV+ Watch "Surface," from the executive producers of "Big Little Lies," on Apple TV+. Stream Now RECIPE OF THE WEEK Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. By Melissa Clark Chocolate Chip Cookies Is there ever a bad time to bake a batch of Jacques Torres’s classic chocolate chip cookies? Even in the height of summer, they’re the ideal chewy cookie, with bittersweet chocolate chunks making melt-y puddles in the brown sugar dough and a sprinkling of crunchy sea salt on top. Mr. Torres likes to make the dough a day ahead so the flavors can meld. But I’ve baked them immediately after mixing, and they are nearly as good — still the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made. I like to keep balls of the dough in my freezer, perfect for popping in the oven (or toaster oven) whenever a craving hits. If you don’t have both cake flour and bread flour on hand, you can just use all-purpose; they’ll end up slightly less chewy but just as deeply chocolate-y. A selection of New York Times recipes is available to all readers. Please consider a Cooking subscription for full access. REAL ESTATE Top two, Crystal Glass Photo; bottom two, Stephan Sitzai What you get for $425,000: A farmhouse in Riegelwood, N.C.; an 1812 rowhouse in Philadelphia; or a bungalow in Manchester, Vt. The hunt: She wanted to spend her golden years in California. Which home did she choose? Play our game. A form of self-care: Women are finding empowerment in real estate investing. Full time at the beach: A New Yorker was drawn to the unusual architecture of a Fire Island home. LIVING Downtown Prague.Lenka Grabicova for The New York Times What’s new in Prague: The city is coming out of the pandemic with a youthful vibrancy. Bring a knife: How to cook in a vacation rental. Navigating young adulthood: How to deal with a quarter-life crisis. ‘Medical gaslighting’: Advocate for yourself when you’re feeling ignored at the doctor’s office. Make room: Airport lounges are for everybody now. GAME OF THE WEEKEND England’s Alessia Russo.Naomi Baker/Getty Images England vs. Germany, Euro 2022 women’s final: England’s tradition of international soccer misery includes the women’s team, which has made the semifinals of its past three major tournaments — two World Cups and the last Euro Cup — but has never won. In this year’s semifinal, though, not only did England win but also had fun doing so. (Exhibit A: this back-heel goal by Alessia Russo.) Germany, England’s opponent in the final, has won the tournament eight times. Sunday at noon, ESPN. NOW TIME TO PLAY The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was pageboy. Here is today’s puzzle. Take the news quiz to see how well you followed this week’s headlines. Here’s today’s Wordle. After, use our bot to get better. Before You Go … Can’t get enough of Wordle? Here are more than a hundred similar games. Visit the Museum of Endangered Sounds. Here’s a Tiny Desk Concert from Big Thief. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — Melissa Matthew Cullen, Claire Moses, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Ashley Wu contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Quote phkrause Obstinacy is a barrier to all improvement. - ChL 60
Members phkrause Posted July 31, 2022 Author Members Posted July 31, 2022 July 31, 2022 By Claire Moses Good morning. Today, we explain the increasing politicization of the book-banning debate. Books at a New Jersey high school library that were targeted for bans.Bryan Anselm for The New York Times A growing trend Book-banning attempts have grown in the U.S. over the past few years from relatively isolated battles to a broader effort aimed at works about sexual and racial identity. Alexandra Alter and Elizabeth Harris cover the publishing industry. I spoke to them about what’s behind this trend. Claire: How did book-banning efforts become so widespread? Alexandra: We’ve seen this going from a school or community issue to a really polarizing political issue. Before, parents might hear about a book because their child brought a copy home; now, complaints on social media about inappropriate material go viral, and that leads to more complaints in schools and libraries across the country. Elected officials are also turning book banning into another wedge issue in the culture wars. Last fall, a Republican representative in Texas put together a list of 850 books that he argued were inappropriate material in schools and included books about sexuality, racism and American history. In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin campaigned on the issue by arguing that parents, not schools, should control what their children read. Democrats have also seized on the issue through congressional hearings about rising book bans. And, sometimes, the disputes have spilled into something more menacing. The Proud Boys, the far-right group with a history of street fighting, showed up at a drag-queen-hosted story hour for families in a library in San Lorenzo, Calif.
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