Monday News: “Hollywood screenwriters and studios reach tentative deal to resolve strike”; “We’re Living in a Kevin McCarthy Doom Loop”; “Meanwhile, the media seems all-in on helping [Trump] get reelected”; Trumpism imperils all Jewish Americans”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, September 25.

• Yes, there was global warming in prehistoric times. But nothing in millions of years compares with what we see today
• Analysis: After U.N. meeting, countries brace for COP28 fossil fuel fight
• China and U.S. face mounting calls to strike a climate deal at COP28
• Six young activists devote years to climate fight with 32 governments. Now comes their day in court (“Six children and young adults are set to take 32 European governments to court for what they say is a failure to adequately address human-caused climate change.”)
• How do we raise trillions of dollars to fight the climate crisis? The answer is staring us in the face (“The profits for oil and gas companies have reached truly staggering proportions”)
• Osiris-Rex: Nasa confirms return of asteroid Bennu samples
• A NASA asteroid sample just landed on Earth. It holds clues about the origins of life.
• Ursula von der Leyen: ‘Ukraine is fighting for its survival. It’s also fighting for our values’ (“An interview with the president of the European Commission.”)
• Ukraine is building an advanced army of drones. For now, pilots improvise with duct tape and bombs
• Ukraine war live updates: Russia inflicts ‘significant damage’ on Odesa in attack; Poland tries to ease tensions with Kyiv
• Russia’s Invasion Triggers Baby Bust in Ukraine (“A slump in births is accelerating decades of population decline and deepening a demographic crisis”)
• Hillary Clinton: Putin ‘Hates Democracy’ And Will Interfere In U.S. Elections Again
• Ethnic Armenians flee Karabakh after breakaway region’s defeat
• China Developers Drop Most in 9 Months on Evergrande Woes
• India had been riding a geopolitical high. But it comes to the UN with a mess on its hands
• Canada row over parliament praise for Ukrainian Nazi war veteran (Yikes, crazy.)
• US urged to withhold military aid to Egypt in wake of Bob Menendez charges (“Senator Menendez was indicted on a set of explosive charges of corruptly aiding the government in Cairo”)
• Greece, Battered a Decade Ago, Is Booming (“It is one of Europe’s fastest-growing economies, and while investors and tourists are flocking to the country, memories of austerity measures are fresh.”)
• Thousands of migrants go missing in the Mediterranean, often never to be identified
• It seems like the next big fight (“CP2: not a friendly Star Wars robot, more like a Death Star”)
• After summer’s extreme weather, more Americans see climate change as a culprit, AP-NORC poll shows (“In total, 64% of U.S. adults say both that they’ve recently experienced extreme weather and that they believe it was caused at least partially by climate change, up from 54% in April. And about 65% say climate change will have or already has had a major impact in their lifetime.” This should be 100%, and it should have been 100% years ago.)
• Why America Has a Long-Term Labor Crisis in Six Charts (“While the hot pandemic-era job market is cooling, it is set to remain tight for years.”)
• Writers Guild Reaches Tentative Agreement With Studios and Streamers, Union Says
• Hollywood screenwriters and studios reach tentative deal to resolve strike (“The writers walkout started nearly 150 days ago, bringing the film and television industry to a standstill”)
• Writers Guild and Hollywood studios reach tentative agreement to end strike. No deal yet for actors
• Hollywood writers strike: WGA reaches ‘tentative’ deal to end 146-day strike (“After five days of negotiations with studios and streaming services, union says it has an ‘exceptional’ deal for members to vote on”)
• Detroit and Hollywood have more in common than you might think
• A new Supreme Court case could trigger a second Great Depression (“America’s Trumpiest court handed down a shockingly dangerous decision. The Supreme Court is likely, but not certain, to fix it.”)
• The Open Plot to Dismantle the Federal Government (“I can’t overstate my level of concern about the damage this would do.” A second Trump term, or election of another Trumpist as president, would be the END of our democracy, rule of law, etc. THE END.)
• Trump has a second-term agenda, and it’s more terrifying than ever
• “Trumpism imperils all Jewish Americans”: Experts warn of “America’s rising tide of antisemitsm” (“Donald Trump celebrated Rosh Hashanah by threatening Jewish Americans who do not support him”)
• The Year We’re In For (“The Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol should have been a turning point. But our reality only got darker—and it’s going to get weirder from here.”)
• Donald Trump’s ‘Extremist’ Gaslighting Exposed In Damning Montage
• Across GOP, many see Trump as likely nominee — including some rival supporters
• As Trump Prosecutions Move Forward, Threats and Concerns Increase (“As criminal cases proceed against the former president, heated rhetoric and anger among his supporters have authorities worried about the risk of political dissent becoming deadly.”)
• ‘I like him even better now’: Trump’s true believers keep the faith (Dangerous cult.)
• Trump isn’t as strong as he looks — his GOP rivals are letting him win
• Is Trump Just an Ordinary Republican Now? (“The former President’s rhetoric during his recent trip to Iowa wasn’t any tamer, but he no longer sounds distinct from his G.O.P. rivals.”)
• Big GOP donors hoped for an alternative to Trump. Now some are giving up.
• Republican vitriol against prosecutors may spur violence, ex-lawmakers warn (“‘Unprecedented and extremely dangerous’ attacks threaten justice system and prosecutorial independence, say former politicians”)
• California Dem calls McCarthy ‘a spectator speaker’
• We’re Living in a Kevin McCarthy Doom Loop (“The spending bill fight extends a career built on concessions, shamelessness, and selling out.”)
• Senate looks to maximize pressure on McCarthy with government funding move
• McCarthy ally dares critics to push vote ousting speaker, blasts hardliners over possible shutdown
• GOP split over shutdown risks making country ungovernable (“The government could run out of money at midnight Saturday as House Speaker Kevin McCarthy struggles to control a faction in his majority”)
• McCarthy confronts key decisions as Congress hurtles toward government shutdown
• On the opioid crisis, the presidential campaign is making us dumber
• How a Little-Known Group Helped Resurgent Democrats Wield Power (“For decades, Republicans have had a robust network of conservative policy groups to push their legislative agenda. Now the States Project is aiming to fill that void on the left.”)
• Home discomfort for Ron DeSantis as Florida Republicans edge away
• How DeSantis’ early missteps hobbled his U.S. presidential bid (DeSantis is a fascist and a freakazoid. He’s also Glenn Youngkin’s role-model governor.)
• Menendez will hold press conference on Monday (He needs to resign. Immediately.)
• Marjorie Taylor Greene Tweets Hanukkah Menorah Image for Yom Kippur (Imbecile.)
• Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA08) Calls on Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) to Resign (“I further urge the Administration and my colleagues in Congress and to note and respond forcefully to the covert Egyptian campaign to thwart American foreign policy aims detailed in the indictment.”)
• Rep. Wexton helped turn Virginia blue. Now Democrats need to hold onto her seat.
• Students protest Youngkin’s K-12 transgender policies: ‘VDOE, let us be’
• WaPo Political Coverage Disastrously Broken; Runs Wildly Flawed “Poll” That Even It Admits Is an “Outlier”; Calls Gen. Mark Milley “Polarizing”; Publishes Bizarre Kathleen Parker Column About How “at least Donald Trump knows how to dress”; etc. (This paper is a f’ing joke.)
• Just how many books are being banned or challenged in Virginia?
• How Virginia’s tobacco legacy endures in new packaging
• Looming government shutdown threatens military pay and defense work in Hampton Roads
• Eastern Shore farmworkers stock our grocery stores. They struggle to take care of themselves. (“Isolated and dependent on their employers, foreign farmworkers on the Eastern Shore are vulnerable. This month, the Department of Labor proposed new rules to protect them — but these residents aren’t waiting for the government.”)
• UVA, Virginia Tech top salary lists for Virginia college and university executives
• Franconia-Springfield Bypass gets $100 million to improve congestion on NoVa rail corridor
• Kerfuffle over Christian prayer at board meeting is overblown (“Publicity surrounding the temporary shutdown of a recent school board meeting in Suffolk – sparked by a citizen asking if she could pray publicly for the division as the 2023-24 year approached – is yet the latest example of some Christians complaining they’re under siege in America. They’re not.”)
• Source of ‘forever chemical’ in Roanoke River to pay $1 billion settlement
• VDOT makes initial plans for I-81 expansion near Roanoke
• Columbia Pike road repair project a disruptive but necessary nuisance in Arlington Co.
• D.C.-area forecast: Lots of gray this week and cooler than normal