In my Sunday column, I argued that our attitudes toward college debt are, like our attitudes toward higher education itself, in part a culture-war question. The related assumptions are made explicit from time to time, for instance, in this sentence written by Eve Peyser in the New York Times today: “Despite my degree, I’m currently as broke as a joke.”
The word “despite” there compresses an entire worldview.
Former Vice President Al Gore said Sunday that he hasn’t felt any regrets over conceding the razor-tight 2000 election to George W. Bush.
"There were multiple conversations with the US government about taking more supply in the second quarter," said Scott Gottlieb, a Pfizer board member.
BEIJING (Reuters) -China said on Monday the European Union should stop making "irresponsible remarks" after it called for the release of all those arrested for reporting in China in a statement on a detained Chinese national working for Bloomberg News. China's foreign ministry said on Friday authorities had detained Haze Fan, who works for the Bloomberg bureau in Beijing, on suspicion of endangering national security. The European Union called for authorities to grant Fan "medical assistance if needed, prompt access to a lawyer of her choice, and contacts with her family."
Like many others in March I was spending my days locked down in my London flat, listening to reports about how overwhelmed the NHS was and the struggle to get essential supplies. However where I differed is that all I could think about was Yemen. I am British, but I’m originally Yemeni, and regularly report from it for BBC News and the World Service. If the UK was struggling to cope, I thought to myself, just how would the authorities in Yemen fare? I was terrified for them: my family, my friends, the nation. But I mainly feared for my grandmother. She is in her late 70’s and ticked all the vulnerable categories. I began calling my sister who lives in northern Yemen every day asking her if there were any cases. But while I was terrified, she, like so many others in the war-torn country was oblivious to the threat. The Houthi authorities in the north hadn’t announced a single case. From London I set about trying to find out what was truly happening, but it was near impossible. The Houthis had imposed a blanket restriction on all Covid reporting from areas they control.
The Michigan state House punished one of its own members Monday ahead of the state's Electoral College vote that will affirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory, The Detroit Free Press reports.Earlier Monday, during a local radio interview, state Rep. Gary Eisen (R) was asked about the vote, which is set to take place at the state capitol in Lansing later in the afternoon. Eisen, a supporter of President Trump who has championed his unfounded claims of voter fraud, hinted that he and others were planning some sort of event, either at the capitol or elsewhere, that could potentially disrupt the vote, the Free Press reports. He also questioned the veracity of a threat regarding safety at the capitol, suggesting it was a "convenient" way to dissuade Trump supporters from gathering in protest. But when asked if he could ensure people's safety, Eisen said he couldn't "because what we're doing today is uncharted."In response, Michigan's Republican legislative leaders removed Eisen from his committee assignments for the rest of the term. "We as elected officials must be clear that violence has no place in our democratic process," said Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield (R), noting that numerous politicians in Michigan have faced threats of violence this year, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D). "We must be held to a higher standard." Read more at The Detroit Free Press.More stories from theweek.com Donald Trump's defeat is good. Why does it feel so bad? Judge appointed by Trump heard his case to overturn Biden's win, wholly rejected it on the merits National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien, wife are reportedly making Europe event a holiday vacation
Vladimir Putin is heavily shielded from COVID-19, with visitors made to walk through disinfectant tunnels or quarantine for weeks before meeting him.
A 31-year-old nurse at Tampa General Hospital rolled up her left shirt sleeve on Monday and became the first person in Florida to receive the Covid-19 vaccine. The vaccination was held during a news conference at the hospital, with Gov. Ron DeSantis looking on. Florida joined other states across the country to start administering the vaccination.
Jerry Falwell Jr. resigned as president of Liberty University in August after a series of scandals involving sexual indiscretions and questionable use of university funds on friends and family, but Liberty's board is still split on the partisan direction Falwell steered the private evangelical Christian school founded by his father, Jerry Falwell Sr.Especially divisive, Politico reports, is the question of whether Liberty should continue funding the Falkirk Center, a conservative "think tank" named after Falwell and GOP activist Charlie Kirk that "has produced no peer-reviewed academic work and bears little relation to study centers at other universities," but did run "pro-Trump ads, hired Trump allies including former adviser Sebastian Gorka and current Trump attorney Jenna Ellis to serve as fellows, and, in recent weeks, has aggressively promoted [President] Trump's baseless claims of election fraud."As a 501c(3) nonprofit, Liberty University is technically barred from supporting political candidates and spending money on political campaigns. But the Falkirk Center, founded in 2019, "purchased campaign-season ads on Facebook, at least $50,000's worth of which were designated by the network as political ads, that promoted Trump and other Republican candidates by name," Politico reports. And more generally, since endorsing Trump for president in 2016, Falwell has "pumped millions of the nonprofit religious institution's funds into Republican causes and efforts to promote the Trump administration, blurring the lines between education and politics."Last July, for example, the Falkirk Center held a two-day summit on China policy at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., featuring a host of GOP officials and Trump allies but no Democratic speakers, Politico reports. Numerous evangelical groups have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars holding events at Trump's Washington hotel, where "prominent evangelical ministers were given VIP status," The New York Times reported in October. But Liberty University also has an academic mission, and slashed its humanities programs even as it poured millions into GOP organizations."The Falkirk Center, to me, represents everything that was wrong with Liberty when Jerry was there," Karen Swallow Prior, a professor at Liberty for 21 years who left at the end of last school year, told Politico. "It's brazenly partisan." University spokesman Scott Lamb said the donations to GOP organizations "are consistent with the mission and focus of Liberty University as an evangelical Christian university," and went toward "nonpartisan" activities like voter registration.More stories from theweek.com Donald Trump's defeat is good. Why does it feel so bad? Judge appointed by Trump heard his case to overturn Biden's win, wholly rejected it on the merits National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien, wife are reportedly making Europe event a holiday vacation
All federal employees will be excused from duty on 24 December
Israel announced on Saturday that it is establishing full diplomatic relations with the relatively isolated Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, the latest in a string of international deals designed to show Israel’s growing acceptance abroad. “The circle of recognition of Israel is widening,” said Israeli foreign minister, Gabi Ashkenazi. “The establishment of relations with the Kingdom of Bhutan will constitute a new stage in the deepening of Israel’s relations in Asia.” The agreement follows several years of secret contact between the two countries with the aim of establishing relations, according to a statement from Israel’s foreign ministry. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the deal, tweeting that it is an “additional fruit of the peace agreements”. The accord between the two countries does not appear to be linked to the US-backed Abraham accords, in which four Arab countries have agreed to normalise relations with the Jewish state since August. Mr Netanyahu added that Israel was in contact with more countries to normalise relations. Bhutan is a relatively isolated country and only maintains diplomatic relations with around 53 countries, which does not include the US, UK or France, who only maintain informal contact via India. With a population of around 800,000 people, the Kingdom of Bhutan is wedged between neighbouring giants, China and India. They have long relied on the latter for guidance on foreign and defence policy. Ron Malka, the Israeli ambassador to India said he signed the agreement with his Bhutanese counterpart, Maj Gen Vestop Namgyel, on Saturday night, calling the agreement a “historic day”. The joint statement on the deal said the key areas of cooperation would include economic, technological and agricultural development. “The ties between the peoples through cultural exchanges and tourism would also be further enhanced,” the statement added. Bhutan was closed off to tourists until 1970 and still strictly limits entry to the country with a $250 daily fee per visitor in high season
A former aide to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo who is now running for Manhattan borough president accused him of sexual harassment in a series of tweets on Sunday, saying he made inappropriate comments about her appearance.
The share of Brazilians unwilling to take any COVID-19 vaccine grew to 22% this week, from 9% in August, and most said they would not accept one made in China, a new poll showed on Saturday, as President Jair Bolsonaro’s comments stoked wider skepticism. The survey by pollster Datafolha found 73% of respondents plan to take a shot and 5% do not know if they will, compared to 89% and 3%, respectively, in August. Late last month, Bolsonaro said he would not take any coronavirus vaccine that becomes available.
Research scientist Tommy Thompson isn't incarcerated for breaking the law. Despite an investors lawsuit and a federal court order, Thompson still won't cooperate with authorities trying to find those coins, according to court records, federal prosecutors and the judge who found Thompson in contempt. “He creates a patent for a submarine, but he can’t remember where he put the loot,” federal Judge Algenon Marbley said during a 2017 hearing.
Buttigieg is expected to run for president again in the future. An opportunity in the federal government would catapult any such political plans.
Residents in long-term care facilities will be among the first people to receive the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, but there has already been a distribution delay that could prove costly for a population group that is particularly vulnerable to severe cases of COVID-19.The vaccine, which was authorized for emergency use last week, is expected to roll out Monday, but CVS and Walgreens, two companies that will distribute the shots at many nursing homes, have said they were told not to administer them in those locations until the week of Dec. 21 (although Human and Health Services Secretary Alex Azar has contradicted that timeline.)The news has created some confusion, but former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb broke the process down for CBS News' Margaret Brennan on Sunday. As Gottlieb explained, the "critical issue" is that the government hasn't gone into the nursing homes to get consent from individual patients in care facilities. That needs to be done before employees from CVS and Walgreens can administer the vaccine.Gottlieb believes the "costly delay" may have been avoidable, despite regulatory orders. "I think they could have" gotten ahead of the FDA's emergency use authorization, Gottlieb said, by clearing a "fact sheet" on Pfizer's trial data with the FDA ahead of the official hearing, or maybe even providing a limited emergency use authorization just for nursing homes. However, that wasn't done and "we are where we are right now." > Why the delay for Covid19 vaccines at nursing homes? @ScottGottliebMD breaks down the "costly delay" where "there's a lot of death," happening --> pic.twitter.com/wCw6gjY3yw> > -- Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) December 13, 2020More stories from theweek.com Donald Trump's defeat is good. Why does it feel so bad? Judge appointed by Trump heard his case to overturn Biden's win, wholly rejected it on the merits National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien, wife are reportedly making Europe event a holiday vacation
An “terrorist attack” on an oil tanker off the Saudi port city of Jeddah yesterday was caused by an explosive-laden boat, the kingdom’s energy ministry said, after the fourth assault on Saudi energy infrastructure in a month. The Singapore-flagged BW Rhine was hit “by an external source” while discharging refined oil products at Jeddah about 0400 on Monday local time, shipowner Hafnia said in a statement. A Saudi energy ministry spokesman did not identify who was behind the attack but the kingdom has blamed other recent attacks on Houthi rebels in neighbouring Yemen. “Terrorist acts against vital facilities go beyond the kingdom to target the security and stability of worldwide energy supplies and the global economy,” the ministry said in a statement. Jeddah port, the kingdom’s primary shipping point, was closed for an indeterminate duration following the incident, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. “The incident did not result in any casualties, and there was no damage caused to the unloading facilities, nor any effect on supplies," the ministry spokesman said. The 22 crew aboard were able to extinguish a blaze caused by the blast, Hafnia said. “It is possible that some oil has escaped from the vessel,” its statement read. “But this has not been confirmed and instrumentation currently indicates that oil levels on board are at the same level as before the incident.” The vessel was reportedly carrying over 60,000 metric tons of unleaded gasoline from an Aramco refinery at Yanbu for consumption in Saudi Arabia. Monday’s blast followed a series of other recent incidents in the Red Sea, a vital shipping lane for both oil and cargo. On November 25, a Greek-managed oil tanker was damaged at the Saudi terminal of Shuqaiq, south of Jeddah, which the Saudi-led military coalition fighting in Yemen described as a foiled terror attack. Days earlier, Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for a cruise missile strike on an Aramco fuel depot in Jeddah that punctured a diesel storage tank and ignited a fire. Since Saudi intervened in Yemen’s war in 2015 in support of the internationally recognised government, the Iran-backed Houthis have carried out numerous missile strikes and other attacks on Saudi Arabia. The United Nations has concluded that the missiles used likely originated in Iran. During November, the Saudi-led coalition also reported intercepting an explosive-laden drone and several explosive-laden boats launched towards the kingdom by the Houthis. Saudi Arabia recently accused the rebels of laying mines in the southern Red Sea. Dryad Global, a maritime intelligence firm, said if the Houthis were responsible for Monday’s blast, it “would represent a fundamental shift in both targeting capabilities and intent.”
— The first shipments of a COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the United States are headed from Michigan to distribution centers across the country. The first round of the Pfizer vaccine will be given this week to health care workers and at nursing homes. — Despite record amounts of charitable donations this year, nonprofits across the U.S. are being suffocated by the effects of the pandemic as organizations face soaring costs and demands for help, yet are largely without their own support systems, including volunteers and in-person fundraising events.
Chester Doles was jailed in 1993 for viciously beating a Black man. On Friday, he posted a selfie with Loeffler to Russian social media site VK.
A sweeping investigation into the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny pins the non-fatal act on Russia's FSB spy agency, and suggests a very poor tasting cocktail may have been the source.Per the report — which was conducted by the investigative website Bellingcat in partnership with CNN, Der Spiegel, and The Insider — Navalny, a major thorn in the side of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was in the Russian city of Tomsk on Aug. 19 when he met his traveling team at a hotel bar for a drink around 11:15 p.m. He ordered a late-night Bloody Mary, but was told by the bartender the ingredients weren't on hand and that he should have a Negroni instead.Navalny took the advice, but quickly set the drink aside after a sip or two because, he said in an interview, it "tasted like the most disgusting thing I've had in my life." He soon went to bed, and the next morning fell critically ill on his flight back to Moscow.> Bellingcat's investigation suggest Navalny was poisoned with a negroni that had some novichok bitters mixed inhttps://t.co/Q7Pg41d2Xr pic.twitter.com/pWeSWGOJkS> > — max seddon (@maxseddon) December 14, 2020The investigation suggests that drink may have been tainted with the poisoning agent Novichok, although CNN notes the toxin could have also been added to laundry he had done at the hotel, placed on a towel or pillow case, or injected into a shampoo bottle. Read more about the investigation into Navalny's poisoning, which used phone and travel data to implicate the FSB at Bellingcat and CNN.More stories from theweek.com Donald Trump's defeat is good. Why does it feel so bad? Judge appointed by Trump heard his case to overturn Biden's win, wholly rejected it on the merits National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien, wife are reportedly making Europe event a holiday vacation
'Joe Biden is a globalist and Joe Biden will be removed one way or another,’ conspiracy theorist says
