Impeach RFK Jr. and Defend Health Care
The United States is approaching a public health tipping point. Measles cases are rising, vaccination rates are falling, and public health experts ...
Online Letter Campaign, no JavaScript
 US citizens: call on your congressional officials to impeach RFK Jr and remove him from office , for supporting medical disinformation. See the instructions for how to sign this letter campaign without running any nonfree JavaScript code--not trivial, but not hard. The Capitol Switchboard numbers are 202-224-3121, 888-818-6641 and 888-355-3588.
Take Action: Protect Social Security offices!
New internal documents at the Social Security Administration reveal plans to shutter Social Security offices, and drive 15 million people away from...
 US citizens: write to Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano saying to keep Social Security offices open.
the Guardian
How are you? If you’re German, like me, you might struggle to answer | Carolin Würfel
Our cultural aversion to superficial answers leaves ‘Wie geht’s?’ sounding like a trick question. Perhaps it is time to let our guard down, s...
 The writer says that Germans find it very difficult to confront the German equivalent of being asked, "How are you?" I have always felt this way about it. There have always been problems in my life, which implied that "Fine" as an answer would have been false. To answer that way felt like lying. Nowadays I can say that "My lymphoma is still in remission," which is pleasant and true.
Glossary
the Guardian
Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center should serve as a warning to UK arts institutions | Charlotte Higgins
Art is not immune from the advances of the hard right – but it isn’t too late for resistance, says the Guardian’s chief culture writer, Charl...
 The bully's ruination of the Kennedy Center is a warning to everyone of what fascists in power will do to arts, culture, and democratic discourse.
the Guardian
Obamacare expiration will have ‘death spiral’ effect on US healthcare – experts
End of subsidies after failed legislation will have serious and damaging impact on entire sector, policy experts say
 *Obamacare expiration will have "death spiral" effect on US [medical insurance].* Only the sickest will pay for coverage, so the plans will go broke and disappear.
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The Intercept
NY Times’ Bret Stephens Blames Palestine Freedom Movement for Bondi Beach Shooting
New York Times columnist Bret Stephens parroted Benjamin Netanyahu’s scurrilous weaponization antisemitism to justify any and all of Israel’s a...
the Guardian
Around the world, anti-Jewish hate is growing. In Bondi, we see the tragic results | Dave Rich
After the latest in a series of deadly attacks on the global Jewish community, Jews are angry. And we have good reason to be, says Dave Rich of the...
 Israeli extremists cite antisemitic violence as justification for anti-Palestinian violence. Other extremists respond to violence against Palestinians by encouraging antisemitic violence . Each of these streams of violence encourages the other, but neither of them justifies the other. Both of them are
Glossary
the Guardian
First Thing: Trump orders blockade of oil tankers under sanctions from entering and leaving Venezuela
Move comes amid escalating campaign against Maduro as Venezuelan government condemns ‘grotesque threat’. Plus, how to plan a polyamorous wedding
 The bully has started out-and-out war with Venezuela, with a naval blockade.
Glossary
the Guardian
US judge says Trump officials cannot ban surprise lawmaker visits to ICE facilities
District judge says policies deeming ICE field offices ‘off-limits for congressional oversight’ violates federal law
 * District judge says policies deeming deportation thugs' field offices "off-limits for congressional oversight" violates federal law .*
the Guardian
Man who documented Uyghur camps in China may face removal from US after ICE arrest
Guan Heng, who filmed at sites in China of alleged rights violations against Muslim group, detained by ICE in August
 Guan Heng documented China's repression of Uyghurs, then fled to the US. The US is pushing to deport him to Uganda, which might send him to China for brainwashing. I am curious why the US denied him asylum.
the Guardian
Women who say they were tricked into servitude for Opus Dei to meet in Argentina
Pope said to have urged organisers to hold conference after 43 women alleged they were exploited as minors by Catholic group
Enslaved Workers
 The Catholic organization Opus Dei enslaved teenage women as domestic servants, after having promised to give them education. See the enslaved workers page.