Daily-Dose/archive-daily-dose/01 December, 2021.html

367 lines
44 KiB
HTML
Raw Normal View History

2021-12-01 12:51:39 +00:00
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="" xml:lang="" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head>
<meta charset="utf-8"/>
<meta content="pandoc" name="generator"/>
<meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0, user-scalable=yes" name="viewport"/>
<title>01 December, 2021</title>
<style type="text/css">
code{white-space: pre-wrap;}
span.smallcaps{font-variant: small-caps;}
span.underline{text-decoration: underline;}
div.column{display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; width: 50%;}
</style>
<title>Daily-Dose</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><style>*{overflow-x:hidden;}</style><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
<body>
<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Much of a Threat Is the Omicron Variant to the Economy?</strong> - Joe Biden and Jerome Powell will be watching developments anxiously. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/how-much-of-a-threat-is-the-omicron-variant-to-the-economy">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>More Tree Canopy Can Stop Climate Change from Killing Vulnerable Americans</strong> - A small, willfully misunderstood earmark in the Build Back Better Act is in fact a response to a mortal threat. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/more-tree-canopy-can-stop-climate-change-from-killing-vulnerable-%20americans">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bidens Global Democracy Summit Raises an Awkward Question: Can Ours Endure?</strong> - In the past year, the prospects for improving American democracy have dimmed considerably. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/bidens-global-democracy-summit-raises-an-awkward-question-can-%20ours-endure">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Uncertainties of the Omicron Variant</strong> - The new coronavirus strain is worrisome—but its effect wont be the same everywhere. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/science/medical-dispatch/the-uncertainties-of-the-omicron-variant">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How South African Researchers Identified the Omicron Variant of COVID</strong> - Tulio de Oliveira talks about discovering the new variant and his opposition to travel bans. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/how-south-african-researchers-identified-the-omicron-variant-of-covid">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Congress is getting ready to do what it does best: Procrastinate</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-
cdn.com/thumbor/95H0-R0S4VO7RcFduC6yrRZH8IQ=/667x0:6000x4000/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70211007/GettyImages_1189454516.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Congress has until Friday to avert a government shutdown. | Samuel Corum/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Lawmakers are scrambling to pass a continuing resolution that will keep the government open — and push a funding fight to next year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="44sJZi">
Congress is getting ready to procrastinate on government spending bills yet again.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QU5BrM">
As a Friday deadline fast approaches, lawmakers are scrambling to approve another continuing resolution (CR), or short-term spending bill, that will give them a new January deadline for passing full-year funding bills. If the CR passes by Friday, lawmakers will narrowly avert a government shutdown, and postpone a larger fight over this legislation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zfbCeo">
Delaying approval of these bills has become a habit of Congresss in recent years. Every year, a set of 12 appropriations bills funds federal agencies through the end of September, meaning lawmakers need to pass new legislation by October in order to make sure the government doesnt run out of money. (If the government runs out of money, agencies are forced to furlough employees and reduce their services.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CxC7jY">
This year, as in years past, Congress passed a CR in September that funds the government at existing spending levels until early December. Passing this measure gave lawmakers more time to work on the annual bills, though they still havent finished these negotiations and now need another CR to keep them going.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="io1LlM">
Passing a CR is helpful in the near term because it averts a government shutdown, which can have major consequences for the salaries of federal employees, services like immigration courts and food inspections, and institutions including national parks and the Smithsonian museums. The Biden administration has previously <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/pandemic-response-
shutdown/2021/09/29/a9a8be24-20a8-11ec-b3d6-8cdebe60d3e2_story.html">set up a contingency plan</a>, for instance, that will ensure the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can continue to track coronavirus cases even if the government shuts down.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9AwAjD">
The CR, however, doesnt resolve the deeper differences that Republicans and Democrats have over the bills, which theyll likely have to revisit again in January. While Democrats can pass the full- year funding bills by themselves in the House, they need the support of at least 10 GOP lawmakers in the Senate. And that support has been elusive.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EhrUdW">
“It just kicks the can down the road,” Senate Appropriations Committee vice chair Richard Shelby (R-AL) told reporters.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LOMoKD">
Members of the two parties still have many disagreements on the larger bills. Republicans have <a href="https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/shelby-
democrats-partisan-bills-threaten-fy22-appropriations-process">pushed for stripping spending on programs</a> like the Clean Technology and Green Climate Funds out of a full-year bill, while Democrats have prioritized giving a boost to provisions including public health infrastructure and affordable housing. Republicans have also pushed back against policy changes Democrats would make that take out provisions like the Hyde Amendment, which bars the use of federal funds for many abortions and has been hitched to appropriations bills in the past.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oyqv2k">
If lawmakers arent able to work out their differences on the 12 appropriations bills between now and January, its possible they could find themselves in the same place in less than two months. Congresss likely passage of the CR this week only gives them a new deadline.
</p>
<h3 id="TZjOcr">
The debate over the spending bills, briefly explained
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VCAx8d">
Democratic and Republican disagreements over the funding bills are about substance and timing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yK2cCM">
Republicans have a <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/11/15/gop-trump-budget-congress-521209">swath of demands</a> related to the contents of the spending bills, including removal of funding for programs like the Civilian Climate Corps and the reinstatement of money for a border wall, which Democrats are reallocating. Democrats, meanwhile, are eager to keep many of their priorities and have proposed using the appropriations bills to give a 13 percent boost to domestic and <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/2021/10/18/senate-democrats-unveil-remaining-
fiscal-2022-spending-bills/">foreign aid spending</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uuqZ7N">
Despite the Democratic majority in both chambers, Republicans still have major sway. Because Democrats need 60 votes to pass the funding bills in the Senate, they need 10 Republicans to sign on to the proposal, giving members of the minority leverage over what theyd like to see included.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SEF0qm">
One way certain Republicans have suggested gutting Democratic priorities is by passing a longer-term CR, which would freeze spending levels for different programs at those set by the Trump administration.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Gg5r0d">
In the past, Congress has typically passed a short-term spending bill to keep the government running for a few weeks (or months) until lawmakers are able to agree on the full-year legislation. In 2020, lawmakers passed a CR in early December that <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/09/944674764/house-approves-temporary-government-
funding-bill-as-larger-deal-remains-elusive">expired at the middle of the month</a>. In 2019, <a href="https://www.vox.com/2019/11/21/20970582/congress-spending-bills-border-wall-government-shutdown">they passed a similar CR in mid-November that lasted until December</a>. Both years, Congress went on to pass full-year spending bills in December.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Nko90W">
This time around, however, some Republicans signaled theyd be open to extending a future continuing resolution for as long as a year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7Ot5wK">
“If theres no progress [after December 3], we could be headed for a yearly CR. A lot of people would like that. One, that keeps all the riders off, you know? Think of that from our standpoint,” Shelby <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/finance/579666-shelby-says-another-cr-will-be-
needed-in-december">told reporters in early November</a>.
</p>
<div id="87jozk">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" dir="ltr" lang="en">
Today I made an offer to negotiate on numbers &amp; substance if we return to the Shelby-Leahy agreement (retain legacy riders &amp; jettison poison pills). Pelosi &amp; Schumer supported this model when Dems were in the minority. It is what worked then and what will work for FY22 bills. <a href="https://t.co/8nJzwDmpVB">https://t.co/8nJzwDmpVB</a> <a href="https://t.co/uynDaLfLde">pic.twitter.com/uynDaLfLde</a>
</p>
— Richard Shelby (<span class="citation" data-cites="SenShelby">@SenShelby</span>) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenShelby/status/1455629401241100290?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 2, 2021</a>
</blockquote></div></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="m7gM4A">
By pushing for appropriations to stay at the same level, Republicans hope to curb any spending changes Democrats have proposed, and restrict their ability to boost appropriations to implement their agenda. Democrats, meanwhile, have argued that funding the government at existing levels for the whole year would have detrimental consequences for many programs.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="g4goIg">
“An endless cycle of continuing resolutions is not a responsible way to govern,” Senate Appropriations Chair Patrick Leahy <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/finance/579666-shelby-says-another-cr-will-be-needed-in-december">said in a statement earlier this year</a>. “It means cuts to veterans, cuts to national security and defense, handcuffing our response to the pandemic, and not meeting the challenges of climate change.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EimCCG">
As Leahy alluded to, keeping funding levels the same as last year would mean that the government is less responsive to new needs that have emerged as the pandemic has continued, and that services that combat violence against women and support child care would have less funding than Democrats would like.
</p>
<h3 id="cZAOn2">
Whats next for funding the government
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EeuWwJ">
<a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/11/28/22806059/congress-government-funding-debt-ceiling-reconciliation-ndaa-
december">Congress has a massive to-do list</a> to check off before the end of the year, including approving government funding, addressing the debt ceiling, passing legislation to authorize annual defense spending, and approving Democrats $1.85 trillion social spending bill.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BOaDnH">
Because of the impending December 3 deadline, lawmakers must tackle government funding first.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="H3P9lT">
If lawmakers dont approve a CR by the end of Friday, the government would shut down, much like it did in <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/1/19/16905584/government-
shutdown-history-clinton-obama-explained">2019, 2018, 2013, 1996 and 1995</a>. When the government shuts down, workers across many agencies are furloughed and services including immigration case processing, food inspections, and tax preparations are slowed.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="L7zYF5">
Often, the parties controlling Congress have gotten the blame for a government shutdown, making it advantageous for members of the minority to withhold support for funding and cause one. This year, certain House Republicans including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Chip Roy have pushed Senate lawmakers to shut down the government, though other Republicans seem to be less receptive.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5Sz7kW">
Avoiding a shutdown this week doesnt mean the conflict over the spending bills is done, however. Because the new short-term spending bill is expected to expire in January, lawmakers will have to decide if they want to pass another short-term bill at that point, or if theyll be ready to pass the full-year bills by then.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="elBWQy">
In the past, a December CR has led to a full-year bill. Whether that will happen again this time is still up for debate.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TxPOP1">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8rlwIH">
</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Noel King Joins Voxs Today, Explained as Co-Host and Editorial Director</strong> -
<figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VXms0ZzLNIq5aUq-
RVuoMryvOzs=/223x0:3778x2666/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70209615/Voss_NKing54FINAL.0.jpeg"/></p>
<figcaption>
Noel King. | Stephen Voss for Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Voxs flagship daily news podcast will also air on local public radio stations nationwide, in partnership with WNYC Studios.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7319lj">
Vox VPs <strong>Allison Rockey</strong> and <strong>Liz Kelly Nelson</strong> today announced that broadcast journalist <strong>Noel King </strong>is joining <a href="http://vox.com/todayexplained"><em>Today, Explained</em></a><em>, </em>the networks flagship daily news podcast, as co-host and editorial director. In addition to hosting the show that tackles domestic policy, the Fyre Festival of vaccine rollouts, falling in love with a bot, and everything in between, with Voxs singular approach to explanatory journalism (and an original song from time to time), King will help set its direction on a new chapter of growth, developing special series, reporting ambitious stories, and more. King will partner with <em>Today, Explained </em>co-host and Vox Audio creative director <strong>Sean Rameswaram</strong>; the two will share hosting duties, allowing each to continue pursuing longer-term projects and growing <em>Today, Explained</em>s ability to reach audiences across platforms. King starts at Vox on January 3, 2022, and will begin appearing on the podcast early next year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iGCK1s">
Vox Media also announced a partnership with <strong>WNYC Studios</strong> to distribute <em>Today, Explained </em>to public radio stations nationwide beginning in</p></li>
</ul>
<ol start="2022" type="1">
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">This partnership marks the first major terrestrial radio distribution partnership for Vox Media, following an hour-long special edition of the Vox podcast <em>Unexplainable</em> distributed by American Public Media this fall.
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"></p></li>
</ol>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TG70VL">
King joins Vox from NPR, where she was a co-host of <em>Morning Edition </em>and <em>Up First</em>. A restless journalist, she reported from around the US even while occupying the host chair. She was part of a team of NPR journalists who won an Edward R. Murrow Award, and were finalists for the duPont-Columbia Award, for reporting on the Trump administrations “Remain in Mexico” policy. Kings reporting from Minneapolis after George Floyds murder won a Gracie Award for best feature interview. King also conducted live coverage of national elections, an inauguration, and an impeachment or two.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3dfDpd">
In 2020, the Radio Hall of Fame honored her with its “One to Watch” award.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xbVJWC">
Before King joined <em>Morning Edition</em>, her career spanned a range of roles in radio, including stints as a correspondent at <em>Planet Money, </em>a producer at <em>The Takeaway</em>, and a reporter at <em>Marketplace. </em>She began her career as an independent producer abroad. Over five years, she covered the Arab Spring and conflicts in Darfur, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo for Voice of America and PRIs <em>The World</em>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="L3RRfb">
“I have been listening to <em>Today, Explained</em> since the show first launched, and Ive always admired its intellectual sharpness, sonic creativity, and dry sense of humor. Im thrilled to be joining the talented journalists who make the show. Seans ambitions, and those of this team, are clearly boundless, and I cant wait to add my own to the mix,” said King.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qtJkRQq29nTNkBXYX9XQY1Hbss4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23052571/Voss_VoxGroup24FINAL.jpg"/> <cite>Stephen Voss for Vox</cite></p>
<figcaption>
Noel King and Sean Rameswaram will co-host <em>Today, Explained</em> beginning in early 2022.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dYajLM">
“I guess this makes me the queen of <em>Today, Explained</em>?” said Sean Rameswaram. “In all seriousness, I am thrilled to welcome Noel King to the show as a co-host and an editorial lead. Im already used to listening to her every day on the radio. Now I get to learn from her, make great stuff with her, and dream up even more ambitious projects with her and the rest of the phenomenal team at <em>Today, Explained</em>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ECx0cs">
WNYC Studios, which will begin distributing <em>Today, Explained </em>in 2022, currently manages radio distribution of popular programs including <em>Radiolab,</em> <em>Freakonomics,</em> <em>On Being, On the Media, </em>and <em>Science Friday.</em> Further, WNYC Studios will collaborate with the Vox Media Podcast Network to identify additional shows in its portfolio to bring to a national radio audience.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="67ZUOH">
“Were excited to partner with Vox to bring Today, Explained to public radio stations across the United States,” said Armando Gutierrez, Chief Financial Officer at New York Public Radio. “Its intelligent and irreverent daily half hour look at the news and personalities driving our world is critical at this moment.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dsZR0q">
<em>Today, Explained</em> has always been about bringing context and understanding to the news and our world. A big part of that has been a belief that elevating voices of local journalists and subject matter experts where the stories are unfolding is key. Now we look forward to working with our partners at WNYC to bring our show to communities and listeners across the country,” said Liz Kelly Nelson.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="u23MjV">
<em>Today, Explained </em>launched in 2018 with Rameswaram as host, and has released nearly 1,000 episodes. It was named Best News Podcast in the Podcast Academys inaugural <a href="https://www.ambies.com/2021winners#BestNewsPodcast">Ambie Awards</a> and the 2021 <a href="https://winners.webbyawards.com/2021/podcasts/general-series/news-politics/168199/today-explained">Webby Awards</a>. The podcast has launched special series, including <a href="https://www.vox.com/today-explained-to-
kids"><em>Today, Explained to Kids</em></a>, Infrastructure Week, and The Future of Work. It has also helped incubate new shows from Vox Audio, including <em>Unexplainable, </em>a science podcast about everything we dont know.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l3yiRj">
<strong>About Vox Media Podcast Network:</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lE5xKn">
Named by <em>Adweek</em> as 2021s “Hottest in Podcasts,” Vox Media Podcast Network has over 150 active shows featuring industry-leading editorial voices and storytellers from Vox Medias networks and beyond. From daily news and tech to culture and sports, from talk and interview shows to news and rich narrative storytelling, the Vox Media Podcast Network is one of the largest, fastest- growing, and most topically diverse collections of premium podcasts. Learn more about the Vox Media Podcast Network <a href="https://podcasts.voxmedia.com/">here</a>.
</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Netflixs cute, whimsical “City of Ghosts” has layers for both parents and kids to enjoy</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="The kids in the ghost club crowd into a booth next to a big, puffy ghost." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oywzQLf_EgzoLKSRCdhos3PMA8s=/869x0:3568x2024/1310x983/cdn.vox-
cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70209237/CityofGhosts_Season1_Episode1_00_17_09_10.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
The ghost club hangs out with an actual ghost who is haunting a Japanese restaurant. | Netflix
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
This kids show about hidden urban histories and child paranormal investigators is a delight.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZlywBw">
Small, grave children are having a moment. In HBO Maxs upcoming <em>Station Eleven</em>, actor Matilda Lawler plays an 8-year-old who survives an apocalypse that only deepens the concerned frown she already had to begin with, and Netflixs <em>Baby-sitters Club</em> features a scene-stealing little girl who ominously warns people about ghosts and seems to be heading into her goth phase early.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JD36Jg">
But a whole <em>show</em> of small, grave children? For that, youll have to turn to Netflixs <em>City of Ghosts</em>, a lovely animated kids show about ghosts, reality television, and the history all around us. The series came out all the way back in March. That I, someone who follows TV closely, am only just now finding out about it suggests it is yet another program Netflix isnt sure what to do with.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DU76DG">
They should figure out what to do with it! <em>City of Ghosts</em> is a real treat, one that even I, a childless cynic, can enjoy with an open heart. I thank my Vulture colleague Kathryn VanArendonk, a known mom, for turning me on to this show, because I think theres plenty there for non-parents to enjoy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PRby5Y">
Set in Los Angeles, <em>City of Ghosts</em> follows the four-member “ghost club,” a group of kids who take on ghostly mysteries around the city. Their adventures are presented as a faux-reality show, with ghost club leader Zelda (the smallest, gravest child of them all) roping her older brother into filming their exploits. (In a very fun touch, we sometimes hear said brother but dont see him.) Talking head interviews and establishing shots of locations are accompanied by titles written in marker on cardboard, which tiny hands hold up in front of the camera. The kids conduct surprisingly professional interviews. Its all very handmade and cute.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="n6LOam">
Every episode follows a similar format. The kids find out about a nearby haunting, they travel to that location, they gather evidence, they compare notes, and then they go talk to the ghost. The ghosts are presented not as terrifying entities but, instead, as cute, puffy clouds who are really just looking for someone to tell their life stories to. Usually, the kids, the ghosts, and the people being haunted come to some sort of rapprochement, and everybody goes home happy.
</p>
<div id="8ZP54I">
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;">
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SVlHxV">
<em>Adventure Time</em> writer Elizabeth Ito created <em>City of Ghosts</em>, and its particular blend of elements is unlike anything else out there right now. The animation focuses on characters who look rather like Funko Pop figurines, with too-large heads and stick-thin bodies, but the backgrounds are real photographs of Los Angeles locations that have been given a digital filter that makes them almost appear to be watercolor paintings. The animation style took me about half an episode to get used to, but once I was into it, I could appreciate just how gorgeous it is and how well it works for the stories the show tells.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yHoYvQ">
Those stories are also a unique blend of elements. Though the series is a mockumentary — believe it or not, Los Angeles is not filled with cute, cloudlike ghosts that you can call forth by figuring out what they most want — much of the dialogue has the feeling of real interviews. The show is also deeply researched. The ghosts the kids meet all act as windows into different parts of Los Angeless history, and their stories are very real glimpses of a world that predates the births of the ghost club members.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="28jet8">
(Sidebar: There is a whole episode where the kids get interested in skateboard and zine culture while visiting the neighborhood of Venice, and their evident bewilderment at seeing state-of-the-art-for-the-1990s VHS tapes, cassettes, and photocopiers made me feel more ancient than I ever have before.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DlZrjb">
The kids are a big part of the shows almost- documentary feel. Ito has cast real kids to play the ghost clubs members, and their slightly halting delivery offers a feeling akin to the <em>Peanuts</em> specials. The series is also cast with an eye toward diverse representation that doesnt really call attention to itself. The four members of the ghost club capture the racial diversity of LA, and one ghost club member, Thomas, uses they/them pronouns. Rather than belabor Thomass identity, the show simply has various characters refer to them with the right pronouns several times before Thomas points it out themselves in an introduction.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4yNyyb">
At its core, <em>City of Ghosts</em> succeeds because its a show about the histories that hide within the places we live. The ghost club travels all over Los Angeles in the series first six episodes, and they dig into the messy intersections of personal identity and history. The premiere, for instance, considers the history of LAs Boyle Heights neighborhood, which was home to many Japanese Americans for decades, before becoming home to a predominantly Latino population. Its now a neighborhood fighting back against gentrification, and <em>City of Ghosts</em> nods to all of this without over-emphasizing<strong> </strong>any points.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="F3m9Og">
Other episodes talk about the historically Black neighborhood of Leimert Park and the Indigenous populations who lived on the land that became Los Angeles before European colonizers arrived. The show is interested in the ways buildings shift and change depending on whos occupying them, even though the building structurally remains the same. Kids who just want to watch a show with a cute ghost will find that in the text; parents (especially Angeleno parents) who want to dig into the history will find plenty to talk about in the subtext.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Hh2I56">
And look: I live in Los Angeles. I love this city. I love its history, and I love the ways its buildings and neighborhoods reflect the vast, ever-shifting picture of what it means to be American. Yet even if you dont live here, I think <em>City of Ghosts</em> offers a chance to start a conversation about the ways urban landscapes grow and change over time and the tiny part all of us play in making them vibrant.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="axk0GD">
Netflix has yet to announce a renewal for <em>City of Ghosts</em>, and I dearly hope we get more than the six episodes that exist. This is a winning, whimsical look at complicated topics that never becomes too self-serious or forgets that it has a message to impart. Kids TV has too few shows that hit that benchmark, and it would be sad to see one of the few that does go away.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="k0ADMK">
City of Ghosts <em>six-episode first season</em> <em>is </em><a href="https://www.netflix.com/title/80994664"><em>streaming on Netflix</em></a><em>. For more recommendations from the world of culture, check out the </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/one-good-thing"><em>One Good Thing</em></a><em> archives.</em>
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Andy Flower steps down from coaching role at Punjab Kings</strong> - There is a good possibility that the former Zimbabwe captain will be given a bigger role in his next IPL assignment.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Omicron threat | South Africa players express full confidence in bio-secure measures ahead of India series</strong> - Temba Bavuma said playing in bio-bubbles has been tough and the Cricket South Africa needs to be commended for its work.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Six-time champions Germany, Argentina enter Junior Hockey World Cup semifinals</strong> - In the first quarterfinal of the day, Germany eked out a narrow 3-1 win over Spain in the shoot-out after both the teams were locked at 2-2 in regulation time, before Argentina beat Netherlands 2-1</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Injury-plagued Saina Nehwal pulls out of World Championships, expects to resume training mid-December</strong> - Saina Nehwal, who has won a silver and bronze besides eight quarterfinal finishes in the World Championships over the years, is recovering from a groin pull and knee injury</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>PKL season 8 from December 22 in Bengaluru</strong> - PKL season 8 will begin with U Mumba facing Bengaluru Bulls</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>On CMs agenda for Delhi: COVID-19 booster dose for health workers</strong> - Basavaraj Bommai will be in the national capital on December 2</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inform court about plans to conduct elections to all civic bodies: Calcutta HC to Bengal government, poll panel</strong> - Elections to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation are scheduled to be held on December 19.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Those opposed to BJP should come together, says Sharad Pawar after meeting Mamata Banerjee</strong> - Ms Banerjee made a cryptic remark that there was no UPA now.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Omicron: No cause for panic, says Maharashtra Minister</strong> - International Passengers who tested positive are either asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Kunal Kamras shows in Bengaluru cancelled</strong> - Stand-up comic was scheduled to perform from December 1-19</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Multi-billion EU bid to challenge Chinese influence</strong> - The “Global Gateway” plan is seen as an attempt to counter Chinese influence in Africa and beyond.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Magdalena Andersson became Swedens first female PM twice</strong> - Magdalena Anderssons rise to power has been high political drama, but the finale may be yet to come.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Survivor: Im haunted by deadliest Channel crossing</strong> - Mohamed Isa Omar, one of two survivors of last weeks disaster, tells the BBC he saw people drown.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Italian football fan banned for slapping journalist live on TV</strong> - Greta Beccaglia reported the man to the police after the incident outside a stadium in Florence.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Covid: Greece to fine over-60s who refuse Covid-19 vaccine</strong> - Fines of €100 (£85) will be imposed from mid-January, with the money going towards healthcare.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Planetary scientists are starting to get stirred up by Starships potential</strong> - “It could provide a revolutionary new way of exploring these worlds.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1816671">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Stare into the abyss of a swirling black hole with this LED monolith installation</strong> - The universal laws of flow and a recurring dream inspired Jesse Woolstons latest work. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1816801">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Microsoft shareholders back protest vote over sexual harassment claims</strong> - Company called on to reveal more about handling of claims in wake of pervasive cases. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1817098">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Womp, womp: Efficacy of Mercks Thor-inspired COVID pill crumbles, vexing experts</strong> - FDA advisors voted 13-to-10 in favor of authorization given risks and modest benefits. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1817073">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Why hundreds of thousands of bots descended on one Steam arcade collection</strong> - Trading card snafu let players essentially mint money from a free download. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1817060">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Pope Francis, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and a little boy are crossing the Atlantic on an airplane when the engines fail.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
They find three parachutes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Donald Trump grabs the first parachute and jumps out of the plane saying, “The world needs a great person like me!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Joe Biden grabs a parachute and says, “I need to help make choices for our world”, so he jumps off the plane.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
At this point, the Pope and the little boy are on the plane.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Pope says to the boy, “take the last parachute, I am too old and Im going to die soon one day.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Actually there are two left. Donald Trump took my backpack.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/WhiteComet99"> /u/WhiteComet99 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r63pzl/pope_francis_donald_trump_joe_biden_and_a_little/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r63pzl/pope_francis_donald_trump_joe_biden_and_a_little/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>My brother has a nut allergy and decided to spread peanut butter on his dick to make it swell</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
…He calls it anaphylactic cock
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/AnPubLocked"> /u/AnPubLocked </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r5vm9j/my_brother_has_a_nut_allergy_and_decided_to/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r5vm9j/my_brother_has_a_nut_allergy_and_decided_to/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>For this joke, Ill be using the word “bitch” but first, I want to make it cear that I would never disrespect a woman by calling her that. So no one needs to get offended, as I am simply, in fact, talking about a female dog, ok?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
All right, so last night I was fuckin this bitch and…
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/TheFiredrake42"> /u/TheFiredrake42 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r61aaj/for_this_joke_ill_be_using_the_word_bitch_but/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r61aaj/for_this_joke_ill_be_using_the_word_bitch_but/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>What is 500ft wide and has no pubic hair?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
What is 500 ft wide and has no pubic hair?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The first row of a Justin Bieber concert.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Lord_Darth_Voldemort"> /u/Lord_Darth_Voldemort </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r66evx/what_is_500ft_wide_and_has_no_pubic_hair/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r66evx/what_is_500ft_wide_and_has_no_pubic_hair/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>Dear Women,When a guy calls you hot,hes looking at your body,When a guy calls you pretty,hes looking at your face, When a guy calls you Beautiful,hes looking at your heart</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
All 3 guys still want to fuck you,though
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Indianfattie"> /u/Indianfattie </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r5mht6/dear_womenwhen_a_guy_calls_you_hothes_looking_at/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/r5mht6/dear_womenwhen_a_guy_calls_you_hothes_looking_at/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
<script>AOS.init();</script></body></html>