Category Archives: Politics

Morning News: Suicide-Bombings In Kabul, 3D- Printed Homes, OnlyFans

The suicide-bombings that have killed scores of people signal how the Taliban will struggle to rule Afghanistan; meanwhile the rest of the world’s jihadist outfits are drawing lessons from the chaos.

The swift reversal of an explicit-content ban by OnlyFans, a subscription platform, reveals a growing tension between pornography producers and payment processors. And the many merits of 3D-printed homes.

Morning News: Israel PM Visits U.S., Indonesia Anti-Corruption Effort Stalls

Naftali Bennett’s first face-to-face meeting with President Joe Biden will look calm and co-operative. But in time, sharp differences will strain the “reset” they project today. 

Indonesia’s anti-corruption agency is being defanged; it was simply too good at routing the rot President Joko Widodo once promised to eradicate. And estimating the breathtaking global cost of vaccine inequality.

Morning News: U.S. $3.5T Budget, Yelp Covid-19 Fallout, Video Résumés

A.M. Edition for Aug. 25. WSJ’s Charity Scott discusses the fallout as restaurants indicate their vaccination policies on Yelp. 

The House passes a $3.5 trillion budget blueprint. Goldman Sachs will require Covid-19 vaccinations for employees and visitors. U.S. companies rush to cash in on soaring stock prices. And, the growing popularity of video résumés. Marc Stewart hosts.

Morning News: G7 Meets On Refugees, Sweden PM Steps Down, Paralympics

We discuss the emergency G7 meeting called to determine the group’s policy on the Taliban and a looming migration crisis. Plus, why Sweden’s prime minister is stepping down and the Paralympics in Tokyo.

Political Analysis: Errin Haines And Lisa Lerer On Afghanistan Fallout

As President Joe Biden manages the evacuation of Americans in Afghanistan, his domestic policy agenda hangs in the balance on Capitol Hill. To analyze both, Judy Woodruff is joined by Lisa Lerer of The New York Times, and Errin Haines of The 19th.

Covid-19: Patients Dying In Name Of Vaccine Freedom

In the video above, Alexander Stockton, a producer on the Opinion Video team, explores two of the main reasons the number of Covid cases is soaring once again in the United States: vaccine hesitancy and refusal. “It’s hard to watch the pandemic drag on as Americans refuse the vaccine in the name of freedom,” he says. Seeking understanding, Mr. Stockton travels to Mountain Home, Ark., in the Ozarks, a region with galloping contagion and — not unrelated — abysmal vaccination rates. He finds that a range of feelings and beliefs underpins the low rates — including fear, skepticism and a libertarian strain of defiance. This doubt even extends to the staff at a regional hospital, where about half of the medical personnel are not vaccinated — even while the intensive care unit is crowded with unvaccinated Covid patients fighting for their lives. Mountain Home — like the United States as a whole — is caught in a tug of war between private liberty and public health. But Mr. Stockton suggests that unless government upholds its duty to protect Americans, keeping the common good in mind, this may be a battle with no end.

Renewable Energy: The Political Backlash (WSJ)

Political battles at the most local levels are slowing the pace of decarbonization Property owners in the windy and sunny parts of the U.S. are pushing back against large-scale renewable energy development, opposition that researchers say could slow the transition to a cleaner economy. Photo: Aaron Yoder/WSJ

Morning News: Airlines To Aid Refugees, Vaccinating Youths, Blue-Light Glasses

A.M. Edition for Aug. 23. WSJ’s Karina Shah looks at where different countries stand with youth vaccination rates. The Pentagon orders U.S. airlines to help evacuate Americans and Afghan partners from the country. 

At least 21 people are dead after flash flooding in Tennessee. Tropical Depression Henri makes landfall. Bitcoin miners go elsewhere amid a crackdown in China. And, blue-light glasses: a fashion accessory or a necessity?