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<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>A New Lawsuit Alleges That Leonard Leo Called for the Arrest of a Pro-Choice Protester</strong> - The court filing claims that the Federalist Society leader, a champion of free speech, urged police to violate the First Amendment rights of a demonstrator near his Maine home. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/a-new-lawsuit-alleges-that-leonard-leo-called-for-the-arrest-of-a-pro-choice-protester">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Puzzling, Increasingly Rightward Turn of Mario Vargas Llosa</strong> - The writer has shocked many by endorsing Latin America and Spains rising authoritarian movements. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-puzzling-increasingly-rightward-turn-of-mario-vargas-llosa">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A Day in the Life of Congresss “Traffic Cop”</strong> - The House Committee on Rules decides which bills go forward. Jim McGovern, the ranking Democrat, has watched a decades-long erosion of the process. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-political-scene/a-day-in-the-life-of-jim-mcgovern-us-congress">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Finally, the Trump Case Weve Been Waiting For</strong> - But, with 2024 looming, is it already too late? - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/finally-the-trump-case-weve-been-waiting-for">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Transcendent Thrill of Watching the Tour de France</strong> - The hours of coverage a day provide a pleasurable distraction from flooding rains, air-quality alerts, and climate dread. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-transcendent-thrill-of-watching-the-tour-de-france">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>The invisible consequences of heat on the body and mind</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="An illustration of a person running from a shaded area out into bright blazing sunlight, sweating." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/su7_24YJXI1tZtK1x7gxZSrjn3Q=/480x0:1920x1080/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72471431/Vox_LaurenTamaki_Heatwave.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Lauren Tamaki for Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Heat has bigger effects on us than we may realize.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="INnEPf">
A few weeks ago, the world recorded the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/19/climate/global-heat-records-july.html">hottest</a> day ever, breaking a record set just the day before. The milestone for hottest single temperature on the planet may fall any day now as Death Valley approaches <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/death-valley-could-set-a-world-record-hot-temperature/">130 degrees Fahrenheit</a>. And last month was the hottest <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/06/world/warmest-june-global-record-climate/index.html">June</a> ever measured across the world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sGRAmI">
Its the hottest summer of our lives, and summertime isnt even halfway over.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hynQQ2">
These are the effects at about 1 degree Celsius of warming — just an early warning sign of a world that, on its current trajectory, is poised to warm <a href="https://gizmodo.com/un-report-climate-change-2-degrees-warming-1849704926">three or more times</a> that amount.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P0GYsH">
Heat is a particular kind of killer. In the United States, it leads to more deaths than hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding, and earthquakes — <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/extreme-heat-is-deadlier-than-hurricanes-floods-and-tornadoes-combined/">combined</a>. But heat is also called the <a href="https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2022/10/battling-heat-waves-the-silent-killer/">silent killer</a> because we simply dont know all of its effects on our bodies. In fact, we only have data on a slice of the deadly consequences. Heat also puts an unequal burden on more vulnerable populations, harming older and lower-income people, outdoor workers, and prisoners while other parts of society try to look away from inside air-conditioned homes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LV9Oy4">
There are just as many non-fatal health consequences in a heat wave. The toll grows the longer a heat wave lingers, which leads to the exact conditions a large part of the world finds itself in this summer.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JNywbz">
Even our best metric for understanding all of the consequences of heat is flawed. Most health research on heat focuses on deaths and to a lesser extent hospital admissions. Vivek Shandas, Portland State University professor of climate adaptation, calls the focus on mortality overly “blunt measures” that fail to capture how climate change is harming the worlds mental and physical health. While most of the studies discussed below track heat-related deaths, they are more likely missing a bigger picture: Theres an even broader population suffering from heat, but in ways that dont lead to hospitalization or death.
</p>
<h3 id="VZ7XKo">
Whats the physical toll of extreme heat?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WRWbsW">
<strong>Cardiovascular</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Odhv1a">
The primary performer in helping cool the body down is the heart. It is under special strain when temperatures rise, and the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4155032/">vast number of deaths</a> associated with a heat wave isnt directly from <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21812-heatstroke">heatstroke</a>, when the organs can shut down from overheating, but because the heart cant keep up.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vlTrux">
Several systems in the body work overtime to keep internal organs cool as temperatures rise. In hotter temperatures, the heart moves more blood to the skin, so that the heat can dissipate into the environment. The evaporation of sweat is essential to the process. But as the body ages, it becomes less efficient at achieving all this, less able to pump enough blood with every beat, worse at increasing skin blood flow, and less able to sweat to cool down. Not only does the body become less efficient at cooling down, but older adults are also more likely to be taking medications that affect their ability to regulate internal temperatures.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wAR8e5">
Healthy individuals, young and old, arent immune either. The cause can be environmental: The <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2023/06/28/texas-prisons-heat-deaths/">Texas Tribune</a> reported that last month at least five prisoners died of heart attacks during heat waves, in a state where two-thirds of prisons lack air conditioning. Two of the men were only 34 and 35.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A mock prison cell made of cardboard and paper stands in front of the Texas state Capitol building in Austin, with onlookers and cameras nearby. " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rRHJm13atVez5-gxylMaT5u8lEk=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24799776/GettyImages_1541221050.jpg"/> <cite>Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A mock cell serves as a protest against the heat inside Texas prisons on July 18, 2023.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bf99ju">
Cardiovascular failure is one reason death counts in a heat wave are highly disputed and chronically undercounted. Health researchers try to make up for the gaps in reporting by looking at excess mortality to nail down more accurate data.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bBnNi5">
A recent study published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02419-z"><em>Nature Medicine</em></a> found that the 2022 summer heat waves led to over 60,000 deaths in Europe, with younger men and older women at higher risk. It almost broke the previous record of as many as 70,000 excess deaths across Europe in the summer of 2003. During a heat dome in the Pacific Northwest two years ago, official estimates registered a few hundred deaths, but ultimately the death toll was likely <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36289-3#:~:text=by%20the%20heatwave.-,Human%20health,-Heatwaves%20can%20have">well over 1,000</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="e7GTtr">
<strong>Respiratory</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gJacEe">
Some of the excess mortality in a heat wave can also be blamed on more air pollution.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HFKn1f">
Hot, sunny weather enables the chemical reactions that form ground-level ozone. Ozone reacts to lung tissue, causing what the American Lung Association <a href="https://www.lung.org/blog/heat-waves">calls</a> a “sunburn on the lungs.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="s9mdTY">
The summertime rise of ozone is a well-documented and understood phenomenon, but the data on widespread health impacts in a heat wave is usually mixed. In the UK, hospitals <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(18)30338-2/fulltext">have reported</a> a spike in respiratory admissions in summer heat waves, and a report looking at hospitals in Finland found that heat waves between 2001 and 2017 were associated with <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7663418/">a 20 percent rise</a> in hospital admissions for respiratory illness like pneumonia.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8XutFt">
Air temperature doesnt just affect whats in the air, but also how it moves. “Heat domes” have become more common weather patterns, trapping air pollution in stagnant air in the lower atmosphere. An analysis by Climate Central of federal air data back to 1973 found that high summer temperatures <a href="https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/summer-heat-means-stagnant-air">closely correlate</a> with more stagnant air. Its only getting worse. “As the climate warms, stagnant days are projected to increase further, with up to 40 more days per year by late-century,” according to the outlet.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rFEuK4">
Heat waves make for poor air quality in even more indirect ways. Heat dries up the soil, contributing to drought, and in turn creating the perfect conditions for a wildfire to spark and spread. Wildfires are the main contributor to another dangerous air pollutant, particulate matter, which is tracked by the EPAs <a href="https://www.vox.com/climate/23769186/bad-air-quality-index-wildfires-pollution">Air Quality Index</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Hv5USJ">
<strong>Pregnancy</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kMBSzb">
Extreme heat <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9300488/">affects the pregnant person</a> as well as the fetus, and exposure is linked to premature birth and low birthweight. It also <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/repro/heat.html">strains</a> their cardiovascular system, which is already in overdrive during pregnancy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yhLOGy">
Since a pregnant person has a harder time cooling down, its more likely for them to experience symptoms like fatigue, muscle cramping, dizziness, and dehydration, which can lead to more life-threatening conditions like heatstroke.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bBX17y">
The effects of heat are also unequal across pregnant populations. Black women faced the most risk associated with higher temperatures, being more likely to have a preterm birth when researchers studied 60,000 births in California between 1996 and 2006. The study, and a 2018 follow-up, found about a 9 percent increase in deliveries before 37 weeks for every 10-degree rise in weekly outdoor temperatures, according to <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zahrahirji/coronavirus-pregnant-health-heat">BuzzFeed News</a>.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A view from inside the back of the ambulance shows several officials and paramedics lifting a pregnant woman in an emergency chair into the back on a ramp." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/SKLeal1teOLTp9h7v53vWNHuVJU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24799781/GettyImages_1556831066.jpg"/> <cite>Brandon Bell/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A pregnant woman suffering from dehydration is loaded onto an ambulance in Texas on July 19, 2023.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="G26mJ2">
A wider literature review, published in the journal <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m3811"><em>BMJ</em></a> in 2020, found that across 24 countries, every 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter led to a 5 percent increase in preterm birth and a 5 percent increase in stillbirth. Longer periods of abnormally high heat raised the risk even more.
</p>
<h3 id="yqQPHe">
How does hot weather affect our sleep?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lNNSd3">
Heat is, somewhat counterintuitively, deadliest overnight.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AWvLyp">
Our internal body temperature naturally drops at night to help us fall asleep; the body achieves this by moving some of its core heat <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/sleep-disruption-heat-wave/">to the hands and feet</a>. The air temperature affects how well the body manages this process. So not being able to cool down makes the heart work harder all over again, after an entire day of added strain.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="In58jL">
In theory, nighttime should be a respite for the body to recover. But climate change is making summer nights <a href="https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2019/7/19/20700662/heat-wave-2019-health-new-york-washington">warm up</a> even faster than days. “In general, since records began in 1895, summer overnight low temperatures are warming at a rate nearly twice as fast as afternoon high temperatures for the US and the 10 warmest summer minimum temperatures have all occurred since 2002,” according to the <a href="https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/national-climate-201808">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a>. The effect is more pronounced in urban <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ6fSHr5TJg">heat islands</a>, where concrete, asphalt, and steel radiate heat back, keeping temperatures artificially high overnight.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1HEXGp">
Our sleep quality is closely associated with temperature, too. You can toss and turn on a hot night as deep sleep suffers. A hotter room is associated with shorter REM sleep, which is tenuously linked to motor skills, memory formation, and regulating emotions.
</p>
<h3 id="476HPK">
Whats the emotional and mental toll?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5vJv7T">
Heat can affect a lot more than physical health. Research shows learning, emotions, stress, and anxiety can all suffer when its hot. Exactly whats driving this, though, is much harder to pin down. With the age-old warning about not confusing correlation with causation in mind, consider some alternative theories: It could be that poor sleep quality is causing a lot of these problems; that theres some other bodily process scientists dont fully understand; that the stress of coping with heat and paying high AC bills causes extra anxiety; or that other things about societys annual rhythms are making these problems more pronounced.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r1B0om">
Still, a large body of research shows a correlation between heat and well-being. <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2789481?guestAccessKey=689710a0-a6a0-483c-809d-0a93fb2e49ab&amp;utm_source=For_The_Media&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=ftm_links&amp;utm_content=tfl&amp;utm_term=022322">ER visits</a> and suicide rates go up when temperatures are high, which suggests that <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/extreme-heat-affect-mental-health/story?id=101230632">there are a lot more people struggling</a> who go unreported. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/07/16/two-new-studies-warn-that-hotter-world-will-be-more-violent-one/">Violent crime</a> also becomes more frequent in hotter months.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AkImg0">
Heat also impacts learning. A study that compared test scores of more than 144 million students on a standardized international exam and 270 million exam scores of US students found days above 80 degrees affected academic performance. “Temperature has been shown to affect working memory, stamina and cognitive performance, and to lead individuals to reduce time spent engaging in labour activities,” the researchers <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/rising-temperatures-undermine-academic-success-and-equity/">wrote</a>. “This suggests that … heat may directly affect students capacity to learn or teachers ability and willingness to teach.”
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A woman sits under a shaded bus stop, with an orange umbrella resting next to her." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NgXnw3DUjrxKw5T4OMvH3ZdUJgo=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24799788/GettyImages_1541675941.jpg"/> <cite>Brandon Bell/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A woman sits under a shaded bus stop in Phoenix, Arizona, where temperatures were above 110 degrees for at least 14 straight days in July.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4gB0xi">
Theres even evidence showing that peoples decision-making at all levels of society may change in heat waves. A 2019 <a href="https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/app.20170223">study published</a> in the<em> American Economic Journal: Applied Economics</em> found that 266 US immigration judges made harsher judgments when temperatures were higher, even if they were issuing them from the comfort of a climate-controlled courtroom. After controlling for other factors, the researchers found “a 10°F degree increase in case-day temperature reduces decisions favorable to the applicant by 6.55 percent.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xnchUr">
Some work has also found that individuals <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003687017300546?via%3Dihub">perception of risk changes</a> when they are in a hotter environment, especially if they havent had the weeks needed to <a href="https://www.vox.com/climate/2023/4/14/23677907/spring-summer-heat-climate-change-india-bangladesh-thailand">adjust or acclimatize</a>. In other words, when caught off guard by heat, people seem to be more likely to engage in riskier behavior.
</p>
<h3 id="OUcFww">
The toll that research fails to capture: the “human face of heat”
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="m3rLq5">
Heat harms mental, emotional, and physical health, but we have even fewer answers for how much these impacts could be minimized if we only responded differently.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zaclEH">
“You see more social scientists working with climate scientists, architects, and designers [on heat research],” said Daniel Vecellio, a climate and health scholar at George Mason University. “Theres behavioral issues, mental health, and medical issues. You need a coupled approach [to address] the very complex questions of human behavior.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gMh0SC">
Whats happening inside peoples homes is the biggest mystery of them all. Shandas <a href="https://www.portland.gov/pbem/documents/indoor-temperature-assessment-final-report/download">worked on a study</a> for the city of Portland, Oregon, placing sensors in 53 homes last year, and found that even with the AC running at full blast through the night, temperatures in public housing were not getting below 85 degrees.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="noYQul">
“We dont have temperature measurements of indoor spaces,” Shandas said. “We dont have the behavioral response. We open cooling centers, we provide water bottles, and we put misters in places. But we really dont know what humans, specifically who are a bit more sensitive or have difficulty coping, are doing in the heat.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RrJUWR">
Officials are flying blind in responding to a heat wave more often than theyd like to admit, even though there might be more effective immediate interventions. People may benefit far more by getting direct assistance so they can pay their energy bills in the summertime.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2SClGz">
Even if we learn all the answers to whats happening to the body in a heat wave, Shandas said we still dont understand “a lot of the human face of heat,” as in, how people actually cope. What scientists do understand is that this is just the beginning of these consequences playing out on a global scale. Its only going to get hotter from here.
</p></li>
<li><strong>This summers biggest hit? The Barbie marketing team.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Margot Robbie smiling and raising her gloved hand to shade her eyes." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JZWXb59JI_NM5hS2aGZ8KKE3WdU=/480x0:4747x3200/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72471363/GettyImages_1530566866.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Margot Robbie, who plays the titular character in <em>Barbie</em>, at the films world premiere. | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Brand collabs and Barbenheimer memes catapulted Barbie hype to new heights.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qmtnUB">
The fact is, itll be nearly impossible for <a href="https://www.vox.com/e/23564794"><em>Barbie</em></a> to live up to its hype. Just as perfection only exists as an ideal never quite made flesh, Greta Gerwigs desperately anticipated film based on the blonde plastic doll will necessarily disappoint some when the fantasy of its stunning promotion gives way to the reality of seeing the actual movie. Thats the double-edged sword of so much frenzied buzz.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rCizRx">
A kind of mob hysteria has taken hold of us in the past few months: the people are demanding cinematic Barbie — the version artfully masterminded by an esteemed auteur director, starring two beautiful and seriously regarded actors. But of course, <em>Barbie</em> fever is in many ways manufactured mania, with the backing of a Hollywood blockbuster marketing budget. <em>Barbie</em>s total marketing spend hasnt been confirmed, but its not uncommon for big studios to fork over $100 million or more on major releases (according to Deadline, global marketing for <a href="https://deadline.com/2023/05/little-mermaid-box-office-profit-loss-halle-bailey-1235383099/"><em>The Little Mermaid</em> cost around $140 million</a>.) After a few <a href="https://www.vox.com/22380021/movie-theaters-covid-reopening">extremely shaky years for moviegoing</a>, studios are ramping up to <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/movie-marketing-spends-summer-films-1235142253/">blowout ad campaigns</a> again.
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The biggest stars of <em>Barbie</em> arguably arent Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken but the movies uncanny marketing team, which has worked overtime to ensure the doll, movie, and brand are inescapable this summer. Theyve acquired an almost mythic stature, spawning <a href="https://twitter.com/syhmihirn/status/1676410741593882624">memes</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/mattstasoff/status/1673700522904150016">parodies</a> of their terrifying prowess. Never mind all the traditional advertising you might see on the street or on TV, as well as the magazine covers, talk show interviews, and Margot Robbies to-die-for red carpet outfits that come with a press tour (a tour, however, that has been interrupted by the <a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/2023/7/13/23793828/sag-aftra-strike-wga-hollywood">WGA/SAG-AFTRA double strike</a>). No, this Barbie is all about securing brand deals.
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The amount of <em>Barbie</em> film branded merch is pretty mind-numbing. You could build an entire closet out of them: A collection with Gap, Barbie x Bloomingdales, hot pink roller suitcases with luxury <a href="https://beistravel.com/collections/the-barbie-collection">luggage brand Beis</a>, a capsule collection with sneaker brand Superga, more makeup and skin care sets than were willing to count, accessories with Fossil, even a full-on assortment of clothes and accessories at Hot Topic, which has in recent years become a bastion for feeding fandom obsession and millennial nostalgia. (Also important to note that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHXHmdDC8AU">Trisha Paytas</a> did a haul vid of every Hot Topic x Barbie piece). Furniture brand Joybird has a slate of <a href="https://joybird.com/collaborations/barbie/#catalog/barbie-x-joybird">Barbie Dreamhouse-inspired seating</a> to adorn your home. In Brazil, theres even a limited-edition Barbie cheeseburger from Burger King thats dressed with a <a href="https://hypebeast.com/2023/7/burger-king-brazil-barbie-burger-announcement-info">disturbingly pink sauce</a>.
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There were some standout moments, like the blindingly neon Barbie rollerblades from Impala Skate, which went viral after the <a href="https://people.com/movies/margot-robbie-ryan-gosling-rollerblade-barbie-movie/">set photos leaked</a>. An <a href="https://scarlettentertainment.com/us/latest-news/rollerblading-troupe-parade-with-pride-to-promote-new-barbie-movie">army of rollerbladers</a> wearing those exact skates promoted the movie at New York City Pride this year. Or take the surprise reveal of a Barbie Dreamhouse in Malibu, bookable on Airbnb. Theres a Barbie Xbox that looks like a little dollhouse (though, personally, a Barbie-pink edition of the Nintendo Switch would have been way more enticing). If your brand exists in 2023, chances are you did some kind of Barbie collab: a Bumble event featuring <a href="https://bumble.com/en/the-buzz/bumble-barbie-compliments">online dating tips from Barbie and Ken</a>; a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S37bmOzH8c4">Progressive Insurance commercial</a> set in the Barbieverse; a <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/barbie-movie-roku-takeover-1235533856/?blaid=4801874">redesigned Roku City</a> featuring Barbies Dreamhouse and a movie theater marquee advertising the film. A Barbie <a href="https://www.barbieselfie.ai/">selfie generator</a> went somewhat viral a few months back. Google any keywords related to the film right now, and watch the search engines typically staid colors turn pink, with pink sparkles raining down the screen.
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What stands out for brand strategist Moshe Isaacian is how much of the promo around the film has savvily drawn on “what makes Barbie and the movie iconic,” he tells Vox — such as the rollerblades. In a viral Twitter thread listing Barbies copious brand tie-ins, Isaacian <a href="https://twitter.com/MosheIsaacian/status/1673415496929267712">noted</a>, “The devil works hard, but <span class="citation" data-cites="Barbie">@Barbie</span>s marketing team is INSANE.”
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But all that hustle seems poised to pay off. <a href="https://slate.com/culture/2005/07/the-secretive-research-group-that-helps-run-the-movie-business.html">National Research Group</a>, which releases box office projections, is now expecting <em>Barbie</em> to make <a href="https://twitter.com/MattBelloni/status/1680989058481401856">$110 million in its opening weekend</a>. (Meanwhile, rival <em>Oppenheimers</em> projections are a more modest $49 million.) To compare that with other blockbuster openers, <em>Top Gun: Maverick</em> <a href="https://variety.com/2022/film/box-office/top-gun-maverick-box-office-opening-weekend-tom-cruise-1235280787/">banked $124 million</a> in its domestic opening weekend. Over $100 million in the first three days is pretty impressive for a film about a popular childs toy thats aimed at adults — though we do live in a world where the <em>Super Mario Bros.</em> movie <a href="https://variety.com/2023/film/box-office/super-mario-bros-movie-surpasses-frozen-second-biggest-animated-film-1235632448/">destroyed box office records</a>. Not unlike <em>Barbie</em>, <em>Super Mario Bros.</em> also snared a lot of brand deals in the lead-up to its release: a mushroom-heavy <a href="https://ny.eater.com/2023/3/31/23663485/shake-shack-dumbo-super-mario-bros">Shake Shack menu</a> and a line of body care products with Lush Cosmetic, just to name two.
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Isaacian says that such quirky, at times outlandish brand tie-ins are a callback to how big and bold movie marketing was in the 90s — like the now-coveted <a href="https://www.mashed.com/223865/the-untold-truth-of-mcdonalds-szechuan-sauce/">McDonalds Szechuan sauce</a>, which was originally released to promote Disneys <em>Mulan</em>. “What were seeing [thats] different is that with <em>Barbie</em>, its not about getting all this movie marketing to sell Barbie toys,” says Isaacian. “Its to bring what Barbie stands for to our real world.”
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“Its been appealing to the gamers, its been appealing for people who like collecting stuff for their home, people who love skating, and shoes,” he continued. Thats a large part of the appeal — the world of Barbie has always been hyper-surreal fantasy. A doll living in a perfect world, who jumps from career to career with no barriers in her way and a million friends by her side. A doll whose feet literally never quite touch the ground. With each new piece of <em>Barbie</em> promo, were asked to imagine, what if it were all real and possible? Wouldnt la vie en rose be so delightful?
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Gerwigs <em>Barbie</em>, with its tongue-in-cheek tone and PG-13 rating, is not for young children. Its camp that promises to hit hardest for adults of a certain generation — with a cast that includes Helen Mirren, Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Michael Cera, and Rhea Perlman.
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Beyond the tangible Barbie logo stuff stans can buy, much of the promo has targeted a kind of digital culture cachet — catnip for adults who keep tabs on art, design, and whatever the latest vibe shift is. Of course there was an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKgaVlMN7IY">Architectural Digest tour</a> of Barbies house. The alleged discovery of Margot Robbies <a href="https://www.vulture.com/2022/05/margot-robbie-letterboxd-account-found-deleted.html">secret Letterboxd list</a> of films to watch for <em>Barbie</em> (with the likes of Jacques Demys <em>The Umbrellas of Cherbourg</em> appearing on it) set cinephiles trembling. Recently, Gerwig did an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2rNnOGfmv0">actual interview with Letterboxd</a> of her “official <em>Barbie</em> watchlist” (it did in fact include <em>Umbrellas</em>). The very fact that its a project helmed by Gerwig — whose past work includes <em>Little Women</em>, <em>Lady Bird</em>, <em>Frances Ha</em> — with a screenplay co-written with Noah Baumbach, was an absurd enough premise to draw an audience in. With their names attached, theres been a permeating sense that the film is bound to be subversive, boundary-breaking, a technicolor acid trip. Axios reports that almost <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/07/06/barbie-movie-marketing-power">half a million <em>Barbie</em> pieces</a> have been published in 2023 — reports, essays, takes, odes to all that Barbie means in the culture — like this <a href="https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-hyperfeminine-aesthetics-barbie-draw-contemporary-art">Artsy deep dive</a> into the films “hyperfeminine” kitsch. Tumblr and Instagram accounts dedicated to aesthetic film stills will be eating good off Gerwigs <em>Barbie</em> for decades.
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Its also coming at more or less the right time, in the <a href="https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/12/10204376/tiktok-bimbo-gen-z-trend">post-bimbo wave</a> of <a href="https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/bimbo">pop culture theory</a>, which says that theres actually no need to choose between hyperfemininity, in whatever forms we typically conceive of it (like, for example, wearing a lot of pink) and being taken seriously as a smart, competent person — that was always an illusory choice anyway. Meanwhile, the platonic ideal of a man is pretty much Ken, a himbo who displays an unpracticed wisdom, and impeccable taste, through his total awe and adoration of the Barbie in his life. You see, hes the polar opposite of a dude wholl smugly observe that youre not like the other girls. A few years earlier, and Gerwigs <em>Barbie</em> might not have seemed so cool; a few years later, it could have felt extremely stale.
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And then there are the memes. <em>Barbie</em> fever isnt just driven by nostalgia or Gerwig heads or the prospect of a big theater-worthy event to look forward to after the lean pandemic years. Hype itself is the energizing pleasure, a wink and nod that youre in on the joke. The biggest catalyst, without a doubt, is the fortuitous fact that Christopher Nolans gritty biopic <em>Oppenheimer</em>, about the man who created the atomic bomb, is <a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/23789864/barbenheimer-barbieheimer-barbie-oppenheimer-release-memes-double-feature">opening on the same day as <em>Barbie</em></a>. On social media, theres been <a href="https://twitter.com/bootcutgenes/status/1673425723913109506">joke after</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ali_sivi/status/1668318577923858435?s=20">joke</a> about the movies made-up rivalry. People are arguing about the correct itinerary for what amounts to summiting Mount Everest in terms of moviegoing this summer: the Barbie-Oppenheimer Double Feature. We have to ask ourselves, would <em>Barbie</em> thirst as we know it today <a href="https://twitter.com/itspastiche/status/1673757738218692622">exist without <em>Oppenheimer</em></a>? If the Extremely Online writers and meme purveyors werent so tickled by the situational irony of it?
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To be clear, the online memes have spilled over into the real world. <em>Barbie</em>s virality has taken on a life of its own, growing into a self-sustaining creature that no marketing team on Earth could predict or wrangle. I actually dont know many people are clamoring to buy Barbie merch — but, according to AMC, <a href="https://variety.com/2023/film/features/barbenheimer-fans-barbie-oppenheimer-double-features-1235665491/">over 40,000 people</a> have bought tickets to both <em>Barbie</em> and <em>Oppenheimer</em> this weekend (somewhere in the world, Nicole Kidman is <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/davidmack/nicole-kidman-amc-ad">beaming with pride</a>). I went to a Barbie-themed birthday party last weekend, the first in my life, adult or child. A few weeks ago at the Soho REI store, among the Camelbaks and carabiners, employees were conducting a poll asking customers whether they were seeing <em>Barbie</em> or <em>Oppenheimer</em> first. (An REI spokesperson confirmed that the company wasnt a part of either films marketing campaigns.)
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Weve talked each others ears off about the movie for free — a thing that no marketing strategy, no matter how savvy or well-funded, could buy. The real <em>Barbie</em> (2023) was all the friends we made along the way.
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<li><strong>Vox, the far-right party making gains in Spain, explained</strong> -
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<img alt="Vice President Javier Ortega Smith wears a white dress shirt and holds up the left side of a light green Vox campaign poster. " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/POloUS2450cw_Ex3-L-tCbRndwk=/27x0:4404x3283/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72471305/1557991101.0.jpg"/>
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Vice President Javier Ortega Smith helps paste up Vox voting posters during a tour of different streets in the center of Pontevedra, on July 20, 2023, in Galicia, Spain. | Beatriz Ciscar/Europa Press/Getty Images
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The countrys upcoming elections could see a hard-right party enter national government for the first time in generations.
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<a href="https://www.vox.com/world/2019/4/27/18514497/spain-elections-vox-psoe-pedro-sanchez">After its July 23 national elections, Spain</a> could be partially governed by a far-right party for the first time in generations.
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Its a development that would be significant both for Spain <a href="https://www.vox.com/world/2022/9/24/23366464/italy-elections-meloni-sweden-europe-far-right">— and the rest of Europe.</a> Domestically, it would mean that Vox, the countrys hard-right party, could help influence policy, advancing harsh attacks on <a href="https://www.vox.com/lgbtq">LGBTQ</a> people, women, and migrants. Broadly, it would also send a message outside Spanish borders, adding to the victories of the far right in places like <a href="https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/6/26/23774334/greek-elections-new-democracy-spartans">Greece</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65926194">Finland,</a> and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63029909">Italy</a> in the last year.
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Ever since the demise of the ultranationalist dictatorship of Francisco Franco in the 1970s, Spanish voters have been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/08/world/europe/far-right-parties-are-rising-to-power-around-europe-is-spain-next.html">hesitant to give the far right federal power</a>. That this could change in the coming elections signals how much ground the movement has gained in Spain and elsewhere.
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<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spains-right-verge-majority-general-election-polls-2023-07-17/">According to polls</a>, the July 23 elections are likely to see unpopular center-left Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez voted out and a new conservative coalition government voted in. While the center-right Partido Popular (PP) — home to Spains traditional conservatives — is set to win the most legislative seats, its not poised to get enough to secure the outright majority needed to form a government. As a result, it will likely need the help of Vox, and the seats that the hard-right party is able to secure, in order to set up a coalition.
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That puts Vox in the position of becoming PPs “junior partner” in government, a role that will give it influence over key leadership positions in the administration and a much bigger platform to tout hard-line immigration <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy">policies</a> as well as misogynistic and homophobic views.
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“If the party were to enter into government as a junior partner to … PP, I would expect the party to push the government toward the right on a whole host of issues, including social justice, gay rights, and gender parity,” Omar Encarnación, a Bard politics professor who studies Spain, told Vox.
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What is Vox (Spains version)?
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The two largest parties in Spain are PP, which is running Parliament member Alberto Núñez Feijóo for prime minister, and the center-left Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE), which is running Sánchez for reelection.
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As <a href="https://www.vox.com/world/2019/4/27/18514497/spain-elections-vox-psoe-pedro-sanchez">Voxs Jen Kirby has previously explained</a>, discontent with how these two parties handled the 2008 financial crisis and a subsequent austerity program, as well as conservative blowback toward the Basque and Catalonian push for independence, led to the emergence of several smaller political parties, including Unidos Podemos on the left, and Vox on the right.
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As <a href="https://www.vox.com/world/2019/4/27/18514497/spain-elections-vox-psoe-pedro-sanchez">Kirby writes: </a>
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The Vox party was officially launched <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-spain-politics/spanish-ruling-party-rebels-launch-new-conservative-party-idUSBREA0F1HM20140116">in January 2014</a>. Breakaway members of the center-right PP formed the party, disgruntled by what they viewed as the PPs lackluster economic policies and weak response to separatists in Catalonia and the Basque country.
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Vox shares similarities with other far-right movements in Europe, such as the National Front in France or Alternatives for Deutschland (AfD) in Germany. Vox is <a href="https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/02/18/inenglish/1550506982_047374.html">anti-immigrant</a>, anti-Muslim, and skeptical of elements of the <a href="https://www.vox.com/european-union">EU</a>. It is also very conservative on issues like <a href="https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/03/20/inenglish/1553076032_593854.html">LGBT</a> rights, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2019/04/spain-vox-feminism/587824/">abortion, and womens rights</a>.
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Voxs platform is founded heavily on nationalism and a return to “tradition” on social issues: The Spanish nation, to hear the party tell it, should prioritize its residents and practices like bullfighting rather than welcoming migrants, should be skeptical of efforts to advance gender equity, and should be actively opposed to LGBTQ rights, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-spain-politics-vox-lgbt/far-right-vox-challenges-spains-acceptance-of-lgbt-rights-idUSKCN1SU1OC">including gay marriage</a>. Key stances Vox has championed include claiming that <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230623-spain-s-right-rattled-by-row-over-macho-violence">gender violence</a> doesnt exist, pushing to <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/world/spain-election-lgbti-law/">reverse a trans rights law</a> that just took effect this year, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spains-far-right-party-vox-would-law-allowing-abortion-2023-07-07/#:~:text=Spain's%20far%2Dright%20party%20Vox%20proposed%20abolishing%20the%20current%20laws,election%20manifesto%20published%20on%20Friday.">banning abortion</a>, and closing shelters housing foreign minors.
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A campaign poster in Madrid captures the partys stances: In it, a hand can be seen throwing symbols that represent womens empowerment and LGBTQ rights into the trash.
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Vox despliega una lona en Madrid contra contra el feminismo, independentismo, el lobby LGTBIQ+ y la Agenda 2030. <a href="https://t.co/PKNlFQfcQ3">pic.twitter.com/PKNlFQfcQ3</a>
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— Wall Street Wolverine (<span class="citation" data-cites="wallstwolverine">@wallstwolverine</span>) <a href="https://twitter.com/wallstwolverine/status/1670427043312312320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2023</a>
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Voxs prominence has grown since the partys founding less than a decade ago. Part of that, again, was reactionary: A newly emerged class of nationalists and ultranationalists were looking for a political home amid the backlash to separatist movements in Catalonia and the Basque region. Vox also gained steam as a rise in migration from non-white Middle Eastern and African countries has increased in recent years due to conflict in these regions.
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Additionally, experts tie the rise of Vox to economic anxieties some Spaniards have: “There are cost-of-living issues, the fear of being left behind by tech and digital transformations, shifts in the economy and workforce,” says Jörn Fleck, a Europe expert at the Atlantic Council. Vox promises it can solve these problems, giving voters a “Spain First” message and pledging to invest in industries like the countrys <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/climate-change-spain-andalucia-far-right-vox-election-2022/">agricultural</a> sector.
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But it often ties those ideas to <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/climate-change-spain-andalucia-far-right-vox-election-2022/">anti-immigrant, anti-Islam</a>, and anti-LGBTQ stances. And now, those views are poised to help shape Spanish policy.
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Is Vox really going to be part of the Spanish government? Howd that happen?
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Vox finds itself on the verge of federal power not because its widely popular but because <a href="https://apnews.com/article/spain-regional-local-elections-3eeb96fa34bc1f8a54d15f2507a44a25">discontent with Sánchezs government</a> has created an opening for the center-right to return to power — but PP likely wont have the numbers to govern on its own.
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While Sánchez has had some policy wins as prime minister, including lowering inflation, hes also faced pushback. Votes from a left-wing Basque separatist party helped him get through major labor and housing reforms, for instance, but his alignment with the group — which includes people convicted of armed violence and terrorism — has prompted backlash from some voters, among other issues.
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After his party struggled in regional elections this spring, Sánchez called early elections.
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But for any party to take control of the government unilaterally, it needs 176 of 350 seats in Spains lower house of Parliament. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spains-right-verge-majority-general-election-polls-2023-07-17/">Recent surveys show PP securing roughly 140 seats</a> and Vox projected to win roughly 36 seats, a combined total that could clear the threshold needed. Of Spains political parties, Vox is the most likely partner for the Popular Party as the other major options are left-leaning.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uvfAam">
That doesnt mean Vox is broadly welcome in national government: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/10/spaniards-worried-about-far-right-vox-party-sharing-power-poll-finds">Sixty percent of Spaniards</a> have said in a recent Ipsos poll they are worried about it being part of a coalition. And thus far, its estimated to only get about 10 percent of seats in the upcoming election, per recent surveys.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JsU5xW">
Still, if its able to become a junior partner, that could do a lot to normalize the party and its extreme views. The support it received in regional May elections, for example, allowed it to join coalition governments in several autonomous regions including Valencia and Extremadura. That gave Vox a foothold and legitimacy it had previously struggled to achieve.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6nWSL3">
“Leaders across Spain said they wouldnt get in bed with Vox,” says Johns Hopkins University Iberian Studies professor Bécquer Seguín. “Within a two-three week span, every single one of them flipped.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r7X9Bc">
The July 23 elections could mark some of Voxs most substantial inroads yet. The party first picked up 24 legislative seats in the April 2019 election, a number it went on to double when another snap election was held in November 2019.
</p>
<h3 id="SlbBHS">
What would Vox coming into power mean for Spain?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0uWV80">
If the PP were to form a governing coalition with Voxs members, its not clear exactly what that arrangement would include. But it could lead to the incorporation of some of Voxs hard-line views on immigration, abortion, and LGBTQ rights in the administrations approach to governance.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oOqPu8">
As a junior partner, “Vox would be entitled to make petitions upon the PP, like controlling ministries or adopting some of its electoral agenda,” Encarnación told Vox. “Spain at the moment has a coalition government in place led by the Socialist party in coalition with Podemos, a left-populist party. As part of that coalition, Podemos controlled several ministries, including labor, and at one point it had the vice-presidency.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OQcjf2">
Overall though, a coalition could include some discomfort for both parties. Many of Voxs policy positions are viewed as extreme even by leaders in the conservative Popular Party.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Z3mlnv">
“Gender violence does not exist, macho violence does not exist,” José María Llanos, the <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230623-spain-s-right-rattled-by-row-over-macho-violence">head of Vox in Valencia</a>, has said. Already, Voxs wins at the local level have spurred policy changes that incorporate elements of their nationalistic and traditional ideology.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QFjze2">
A town in eastern Spain has <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spanish-town-ban-lgbt-flag-after-far-right-vox-takes-power-2023-06-21/#:~:text=MADRID%2C%20June%2021%20(Reuters),there%20in%20recent%20local%20elections.">banned the use of the pride flag</a> in public places following the election of a Vox-aligned mayor there. And another <a href="https://ground.news/article/censorship-continues-pp-and-vox-ban-a-film-in-bezana-because-of-a-kiss-between-two-women">town in Northern Spain</a> has barred the screening of a <a href="https://www.vox.com/disney">Disney</a> film about Buzz Lightyear because it includes a same-sex kiss.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="katuEM">
A top leader for the PP, Esteban González Pons, told <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/08/world/europe/far-right-parties-are-rising-to-power-around-europe-is-spain-next.html">the New York Times</a> that the party does not support Voxs views on gay marriage or violence toward women, describing them as “red lines.” Pons also described Vox as anti-Europe and in favor of movements like Brexit, something PP opposes. Climate is perhaps another area where the two groups disagree, with Vox denying that human-made <a href="https://www.vox.com/climate">climate change</a> exists, and PP taking a slightly more moderate approach.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8hQ0yU">
The two do have similarities, however, with some members of the PP also pushing more restrictive immigration policies, which are often backed by leaders on the coasts. Additionally, both have used anti-trans rhetoric and signaled interest in reversing a law that <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/lgbtq-rights-are-forefront-spains-election-rcna94712">expanded trans rights</a> in the country.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lsXy5g">
Some in the center right hope that a partnership with Vox would neutralize some of its more extreme views. But others fear that if the PP needs Vox to come into power, their coalition would give the smaller party much more credence than it previously had.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NsQJHu">
“First, the bad scenario: We can legitimize Vox,” Pons told the New York Times. “Then, there is a second chance: We can normalize Vox … Vox will be another party, a conservative party inside of the system.”
</p>
<h3 id="lyrkMm">
What does Voxs rise mean for Europe broadly?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AoRbV4">
Voxs rise in the national elections would add to the gains that far-right parties have made across Europe in recent years and may embolden such groups further.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ceqq3F">
“The rise of Vox in Spain cannot be separated from the global forces giving rise to right-wing populism in the developed West — including anxiety about immigration, economic insecurity, and a perceived sense of loss of national identity,” says Encarnación.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LozViO">
The Spanish election follows races in other countries where members of the hard right also saw increased momentum. In Greece, a rebranded version of the far-right group <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/6/30/very-worrying-three-far-right-parties-enter-greek-parliament">Golden Dawn</a> won seats in the legislature in June. The far-right anti-immigration <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65926194">Finns Party</a> also made inroads during the Finnish election this past spring, and the alt-right Alternative for Deutschland party <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/germany-far-right-afd-wins-first-governing-post/a-66024256">won its first local election in June</a> after securing about <a href="https://www.bundestag.de/en/parliament/plenary/distributionofseats">10 percent of the Bundestag</a> in the last national elections. Any gains Vox makes could, in turn, boost the momentum of far-right efforts in other European countries as, for example, elections loom in Germany in 2024.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xHGVhr">
Vox has been buoyed by other far-right leaders across Europe as well, with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni offering a fiery endorsement at a recent rally, and others, including Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, praising its positions. Spains relationships with these leaders could deepen if Vox secures its foothold in national government, particularly if the rights influence over European Union politics grows.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MIW5PA">
“Vox is openly Euro-skeptical and seems willing to violate EU norms,” says Oberlin College Hispanic studies professor Sebastiaan Faber. “But if there is a change of guard at the EU after next years elections, the EU itself may become much more right-leaning.”
</p>
<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>PCB unhappy with ACC president Jay Shah revealing Asia Cup schedule before official ceremony</strong> - The source said that the decision to announce the schedule by Jay Shah had spoilt the PCBs ceremony</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>Mohammad Hafeez front-runner to become Pakistans chief selector</strong> - Pakistan Cricket Boards CMC chairman Zaka Ashraf mulls bringing in a new team manager and media manager for the Asia Cup and the World Cup India.</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>Pakistani woman cricketer Ayesha Naseem, 18, announces retirement citing religion</strong> - Ayesha Naseem was once dubbed as a “serious talent” by the Pakistani great Wasim Akram.</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>Asian Games trials exemption to Phogat, Punia | Delhi High Court to pronounce order on July 22</strong> - Justice Subramonium Prasad reserved verdict on the petition by Under-20 World Champion Antim Panghal and Under-23 Asian Champion Sujeet Kalkal against the direct entry handed to Phogat and Punia.</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>Rohit Sharma surpasses M.S. Dhoni to become Indias fifth-highest run-maker in international cricket</strong> - Rohit Sharma accomplished this feat during Indias second Test against West Indies at Port of Spain</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>Awareness programmes on preventing human-animal interactions held in Udhagamandalam</strong> -</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>Here are the big stories from Karnataka today</strong> - Welcome to the Karnataka Today newsletter, your guide from The Hindu on the major news stories to follow today. Curated and written by Nalme Nachiyar.</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>NIA, J&amp;K Police raid home of Hizbul terrorist in Kishtwar</strong> - The raids were conducted at Riyazs home.</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>Transgender parents plea for birth certificate showing them as parents instead of father and mother</strong> -</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>After 30 years of court battle, his wait for justice continues</strong> - In 1994, a coop. bank employee appeared in court as the lone accused in a case pertaining to pilfering of 36.5 sovereigns of gold from the bank. On July 24, 2023, at a hearing on the same case, he will appear as a witness.</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>Putin may still seek revenge on Wagner boss CIA chief</strong> - “Putin is the ultimate apostle of payback,” William Burns told the Aspen Security Forum.</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>Berlin lion: Crime family member issues plea for missing animal</strong> - The search is intensifying for a suspected wild animal in the southern outskirts of Berlin.</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>Goalkeeper Donnarumma and partner attacked and robbed in Paris</strong> - Italy and Paris St-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and his partner were targeted at their home.</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>Ukraines Zelensky sacks ambassador to UK Prystaiko after criticism</strong> - Vadym Prystaiko had recently criticised the Ukrainian leaders response to a row over military aid.</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>Amsterdam bans cruise ships to limit visitors and curb pollution</strong> - It comes months after young British men were urged not to hold bachelor parties in the Dutch capital.</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>The 90s Internet: When 20 hours online triggered an email from my ISPs president</strong> - 1998 plea for restraint reveals a lost world where the Net was an opt-in experience. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1952396">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Rocket Report: Space Force to pick three; Pythom strikes back</strong> - “With this mission weve made big strides toward reusability.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1955334">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Could there be upsides to being a psychopath?</strong> - It may be that all of us have a little psychopathology inside—with some positives. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1955432">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>No apologies as Reddit halfheartedly tries to repair ties with moderators</strong> - Disenchanted mods Ars spoke with want change, not more communication. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1955306">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>“Church of Bleach” family guilty on all counts, plans to appeal</strong> - The family, who represented themselves, did not speak during the trial. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1955632">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Barack &amp; The Donald go to the barber…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Barack Obama and Donald Trump inadvertently ended up getting a shave at the same barber shop at the same time. The barbers, wondering if things might get nasty, were nervous.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Trumps barber was almost done and was getting ready to use an after-shave as a final touch.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Donald was quick to stop him, saying, “Ill pass. After-shave have a strong smell. My wife Melamine will smell it and think Ive been in a whorehouse.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The other barber then said to Barack, “How about you, Mr. Obama, any after-shave?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Barack replied, “Sure, why not? Michelle has no idea what a whorehouse smells like.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Dennis_Laid"> /u/Dennis_Laid </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155fbhi/barack_the_donald_go_to_the_barber/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155fbhi/barack_the_donald_go_to_the_barber/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What is it called when you buy prostitutes in bulk?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Holesale
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/seedingson"> /u/seedingson </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155b5c5/what_is_it_called_when_you_buy_prostitutes_in_bulk/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155b5c5/what_is_it_called_when_you_buy_prostitutes_in_bulk/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Did you hear about the math teacher whos afraid of negative numbers?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
He will stop at nothing to avoid them.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Reecethehawk"> /u/Reecethehawk </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1555rvn/did_you_hear_about_the_math_teacher_whos_afraid/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1555rvn/did_you_hear_about_the_math_teacher_whos_afraid/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Yesterday I couldnt make out if someone was waving at me, or the person behind me.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
In other news, I just lost my job as a lifeguard.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/VivaIbiza"> /u/VivaIbiza </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155gu0t/yesterday_i_couldnt_make_out_if_someone_was/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/155gu0t/yesterday_i_couldnt_make_out_if_someone_was/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Yo mamas so fat….</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She starts the alphabet with O B C D
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/jerm1777"> /u/jerm1777 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1555zuh/yo_mamas_so_fat/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1555zuh/yo_mamas_so_fat/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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