Arts & Literature, Magazines, Opinion, Politics, Previews, Stories

Preview: The New Yorker Magazine – Jan 2 & 9, 2023

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A woman walks alone on New York City's High Line in winter.
Art by Ryo Takemasa

The New Yorker Magazine – December 26, 2022:

Trapped in the Trenches in Ukraine

A soldier holding a gun in Ukraine, photographed by David Guttenfelder.

Along the country’s seven-hundred-mile front line, constant artillery fire and drone surveillance have made it excruciatingly difficult to maneuver.

What Donald Trump’s Trial Might Look Like

Excerpts from Secret Service reports displayed on a screen during a hearing of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022.

Presidents have been impeached, but none has ever been asked, after leaving office, to turn himself in for arraignment. The January 6th committee’s final actions could help change that.

Seventy-five Years After Indian Partition, Who Owns the Narrative?

A man towering over a landscape draws a line on the ground, which separates two sides of a tent camp and its inhabitants.

Literature once filled in archival gaps by saying the unsayable. Now a younger generation is devising new modes of telling the story and finding new stories to tell.

Cities, Travel, Videos, Views

Tilt-Shift Travel: A Look At ‘Melbourne In Miniature’

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Little Big World (December 26, 2022) – Melbourne is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania.

I was in Australia to shoot an ARTE documentary in the Outback and decided to stay one week longer and team up with Visit Victoria to shoot my first Little Big World episode in Australia. Melbourne consistently ranked as the world’s most liveable city for much of the 2010s and I can toally see why! It’s a big vibrant city with impressive architecture, amazing cultural offers, from museums to street art, live music and theatre.

Also there are some pretty great food places in the city. Many beautiful parks in the area invote to relax and the the Yarra River for water activitie. Oh, and the Ocean is just a quick tram ride away.

News, Podcasts, Politics, Stories

Stories Of 2023: Support For Ukraine, The Cost Of Living, Global Economy

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Monocle’s head of radio, Tom Edwards, looks ahead to 2023 with Rachel Cunliffe and Barbara Serra including a global response to Russia, a cost of living crisis, what’s next for the global economy at Davos and how the UK will cope with Eurovision.

News, Newspapers, Views

Front Page: The New York Times – December 26, 2022

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Democrats, Feeling New Strength, Plan to Go on Offense on Voting Rights

After retaining most of the governor’s offices they hold and capturing the legislatures in Michigan and Minnesota, Democrats are putting forward a long list of proposals to expand voting access.

In Memphis, the Phonics Movement Comes to High School

Literacy lessons are embedded in every academic class. Even in biology.

How Citizen Spies Foiled Putin’s Grand Plan for One Ukrainian City

A partisan cell in Kherson spied on, undermined and even hunted down Russian soldiers. Now that Vladimir V. Putin’s forces are gone, people feel free to talk — and to brag a little.

Casinos Target a Vulnerable Clientele: Older Asian Gamblers

The industry’s efforts to lure Asian customers will be a significant factor looming over the upcoming application process for new casino licenses in New York.

Nature, Travel, Videos, Views, Wildlife

Winter Views: Good Earth State Park, South Dakota

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CBS Sunday Morning – A winter wonderland, at Good Earth State Park in South Dakota. Videographer: Kevin Kjergaard.

Good Earth State Park southeast of Sioux Falls is an important cultural and historical site as well as a unique nature retreat adjacent to the most developed and populated part of our state. The site itself is one of the oldest sites of long-term human habitation in the United States. The river, abundant wildlife, fertile flood plains, availability of pipestone (catlinite) and protection from winds made the area an important gathering place for seasonal ceremonies and a significant trading center for many tribal peoples from 1300-1700 A.D.

During this time, occupants were primarily Oneota Tradition Peoples, including Omaha, Ponca, Ioway and Otoe, but many other tribes were attracted and participated in trading agricultural product as well as hides, pelts and pipestone (catlinite).

This is the largest Oneota cultural site discovered to date in the upper Midwest. There are two other significant Oneota cultural sites located respectively in southwest Iowa and central Missouri.

Arts & Literature, Books, Newspapers, Previews, Reviews

Books: The New York Times Book Review – Dec 25, 2022

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The New York Times Book Review @nytimesbooks (December 25, 2022):

Courtly Love Can Be Deadly

In the historian Sarah Gristwood’s “The Tudors in Love,” for both monarchs and courtiers the stakes are higher than romance.

Newly Published, From Worker Justice to Sound Waves

A selection of recently published books.

AUDIOBOOKS

The Power of a Good Narrative, in Your Ear or Otherwise

CREDITLIBBY VANDERPLOEG

From Bloomsbury to the Billboard Hot 100, these audiobooks will hook you based on story alone.

Travel, Videos, Views

Village Views: Marsaxlokk In Southeastern Malta (8K)

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Wanderlust Travel Videos (December 2022) – Marsaxlokk is a small, traditional fishing village in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishermen and history. The village is also known for the Marsaxlokk Market, which is mainly a large fish market which takes place along the seafront on Sundays, and a tourist market during all other days of the week.

Inhabited and well-known since antiquity, Marsaxlokk was used as a port by Phoenicians, Carthaginians and also has the remains of a Roman-era harbour. Marsaxlokk is sometimes referred to as Portus Herculis, due to the association of Marsaxlokk Bay with the Roman and Punic remains at Tas-Silġ.

News, Newspapers, Views

Front Page: The New York Times – December 25, 2022

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How the Worst Fears for Democracy Were Averted in 2022

A precariously narrow but consequential slice of the electorate broke with its own voting history to reject openly extremist Republican candidates — at least partly out of concern for the health of the political system.

As Applications Fall, Police Departments Lure Recruits With Bonuses and Attention

Many police chiefs say staffing levels have not rebounded from a wave of resignations that started with the pandemic and the 2020 unrest.

Putin Wants Fealty, and He’s Found It in Africa

As Moscow wages war in Ukraine, its mercenaries have already established control in the Central African Republic — with scant Western reaction.

Winter Storm Leaves Buffalo and Its Region Reeling

Here’s the latest on the bitter cold weather.

Tours, Travel, Videos, Views, Wilderness

Alaska Tours: Wrangell – St. Elias National Park

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Sitting on the edge of Alaska, an 8-hour drive from Anchorage, are the 13.2 million acres that make up Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. The park contains an active volcano, nine of the 16 highest peaks in America and countless glaciers, as well as the last community inside a national park. Jeff Glor reports.

Wrangell-St. Elias is a vast national park that rises from the ocean all the way up to 18,008 ft. At 13.2 million acres, the park is the same size as Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Switzerland combined! Within this wild landscape, people continue to live off the land as they have done for centuries. This rugged, beautiful land is filled with opportunities for adventure.

Business, Financial, Investing, Magazines, Retirement, Reviews

Financial Review: Barron’s Magazine – Dec 26, 2022

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Magazine - Latest Issue - Barron's

Barron’s Magazine – December 26, 2022 issue:

Robots Are Replacing Workers Lost in the Pandemic. They’re Here to Stay.

Robots are moving up in the world. Labor shortages and rising wage costs are breathing life into a new generation that can handle a growing number of tasks.

Brace for Recession Next Year. But the Outlook Isn’t All Doom and Gloom.

Brace for Recession Next Year. But the Outlook Isn’t All Doom and Gloom.

The Fed will keep fighting inflation, and the unemployment rate will rise. But there are positive trends on the horizon.

How to Invest in Robots and Automation

How to Invest in Robots and Automation

Technology investments are out of favor, and the market has been especially tough on companies in the more speculative areas like robotics.

Bill Miller Is Still Bullish on Bitcoin—and a Lot More

As the famed value investor heads for retirement, he isn’t giving up on crypto. Why he likes Amazon.com, Delta Air Lines, and small-caps, too.

News, Views and Reviews For The Intellectually Curious