by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, December 18.
- United Nations Biodiversity Talks In Final Days With Many Issues Unresolved (“Negotiators at a United Nations conference have yet to resolve how to protect biodiversity and provide funding to poor countries as talks reach their their final stages.”)
- European Union reaches deal on critical climate policy after marathon talks (“The agreement is crucial to the bloc meeting its target of cutting CO2 emissions by 55 percent by the end of the decade.”)
- Despite the hype, we shouldn’t bank on nuclear fusion to save the world from climate catastrophe (Agreed 100%.)
- Europe’s $1 Trillion Energy Bill Only Marks Start of the Crisis
- CIA Director Bill Burns on war in Ukraine, intelligence challenges posed by China (Very interesting, check it out!)
- Putin’s War: The Inside Story of a Catastrophe (Fascinating, well worth reading this!)
- Key Ukrainian city’s rapid fall leaves unanswered questions (“When about 100 Russian troops rolled into Kherson’s Lilac Park on the morning of March 1, Oleh Shornik was one of about 20 lightly armed Ukrainian volunteers who didn’t stand a chance against them.”)
- Ukraine Latest: Kyiv Heat Mostly Restored After Russian Strikes
- Putin’s War Makes Russian Stocks World’s Worst With Grim Outlook
- Ukraine Latest: Germany Says No Ceasefire on Russian Terms
- Ukraine’s combat amputees face a hard road home
- Russia Can Finally See That Putin’s ‘Days Are Numbered’ (“The war in Ukraine has destroyed Putin’s aura of infallibility back home, and even the Kremlin seems to have realized this is the beginning of the end.”)
- Russia ‘may try to re-enact its early invasion plans of Ukraine on anniversary of war’
- Counting Russia’s War Toll, With Tips, Clips and a Giant Spreadsheet
- N Korea fires 2 ballistic missiles capable of reaching Japan
- Streets deserted in China’s cities as new COVID surge looms
- Iran Uses Rape to Enforce Women’s Modesty
- Iranian actor Taraneh Alidoosti arrested after criticism of death penalty
- The Ideal of Democracy in a Jewish State Is in Jeopardy (Very, very shaky.)
- Violent protests in Peru evoke memories of darkest days of civil war (“At least 20 people have been killed in demonstrations against the ousting of Pedro Castillo, a flashback to a past many hoped they had left behind”)
- Peru’s ‘forgotten people’ rage against political elite after Castillo arrest
- Peru is in crisis. How did it happen?
- This was a World Cup of human rights horrors (Utterly disgraceful.)
- Biden Advisers Craft Re-Election Plans as President Weighs Final Decision
- Manchin’s permitting reform effort is dead. Biden’s climate agenda could be a casualty. (“The biggest missed opportunity of the lame-duck Congress, explained.”)
- Trump tells GOP congressional supporters to cease McCarthy opposition: Breitbart interview
- McCarthy’s race for speaker risks upending House on Day One
- Trump Ominously Evokes Jan. 6, Tells Backers It’s Time To ‘Deal With’ FBI, DOJ ‘Thugs’ (“Donald Trump is urging his followers on Truth Social that the ‘weaponized thugs and tyrants’ in the FBI and DOJ ‘must be dealt with'”)
- Mark Your Calendars: Monday Is “Trump Criminal Referral Day” for the Jan. 6 Panel (“Insurrection. Obstruction. Conspiracy.”)
- Book banning is bad policy. Let’s make it bad politics.
- How an obscure Christian right activist became one of the most powerful men in America (“A rule governing federal courts in Texas turned a former lawyer for the religious right into one of the most powerful people in the United States.”)
- Ex-House members demand probe into sitting lawmakers linked to Jan. 6 (If they were involved in the insurrection, they should be automatically expelled from Congress per the 14th amendment. It’s not optional.)
- “They Must Be Held Accountable”: Former House Members Urge Ethics Investigations for Current Representatives Involved In Jan. 6 Riot
- Holiday gloom at The Washington Post
- DeSantis reverses himself on coronavirus vaccines, moves to right of Trump
- Vaccines saved lives. DeSantis threatens that progress.
- Musk’s Troubling Week Pushes Tesla Investors Closer to the Edge
- Elon Musk Suspends Washington Post’s Taylor Lorenz From Twitter After She Asked Him for Comment on a Story
- Musk unsuspends some reporters on Twitter. But their companies never left.
- Musk cheerleaders and conservative influencers criticize journalist suspensions from Twitter
- The Childish Drama of Elon Musk (“Yet again, an important part of the public square is controlled by a narcissistic toddler.” Reminder: do NOT buy any product made by a Musk-owned company!)
- U.S. Scrutinizes Political Donations by Sam Bankman-Fried and Allies
- Attacker yells ‘Kanye 2024’ during antisemitic assault, police say
- Iconic L.A. mountain lion euthanized after ‘extraordinary life’
- Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA08) Introduces JARED Act To Tighten Ethics Standards For Presidential Appointees (“Jared Kushner, former President Trump’s son-in-law and White House senior adviser, reportedly secured a $2 billion investment from a fund led by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.”)
- Photos: Tim Kaine joins city leaders, volunteers for McClellan for Congress canvass in Richmond
- Colette McEachin backs McClellan, says district ‘deserves better than Morrissey
- Colette McEachin Endorses Jennifer McClellan, Says She Knows Joe Morrissey Well and That VA04 “deserves to be represented by someone who will not embarrass its hard-working residents”
- Republicans again nominate Leon Benjamin in 4th District
- Benjamin takes GOP nomination in 4th, will try for the congressional seat a third time
- Friday Night Update from the ER in Arlington, VA: “We’re actually seeing more [COVID] cases each week than this time last year.”
- Editorial: The 27th will test Trump-adjacent strategy (“Matt Strickland, a Spotsylvania firebrand who defied COVID protocols and ignored court orders to stop selling alcohol after his liquor license was revoked, then all but demanded Youngkin bail him out, is the Tea Party’s new folk hero — and a thorn in Youngkin’s side.”)
- Special election for 24th House District set following the death of Del. Campbell
- Special election set for western Virginia House of Delegates seat
- Roanoke pedestrian’s death part of grim regional trend
- D.C.-area forecast: Cold and dry through midweek before a possible late-week storm
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