Today's Liberal News

News Roundup: Climate change is here; world focus must now shift to preventing worst-case crises

In the news today: The newest IPCC climate report paints a bleak picture, with almost certain odds that current catastrophic weather events will not only continue, but will also continue to worsen, thanks in no small part to the world’s past inaction—and the timeframe for dodging catastrophic climate collapse has been so shortened that it may come in as few as 20 years. The only solution? Immediate and overwhelming human action.

Study shows that Fox News viewership is directly tied to lower COVID-19 vaccination rates

The truly unprecedented refusal of 90 million Americans to accept a safe, available vaccine proven to prevent their own infection, sickness, or death from the COVID-19 virus (or the more recent, more transmissible delta variant) has itself spawned a substantial amount of scientific research. Of the various factors contributing to this trend among a huge swath of the U.S.

‘At a pressure point’: Democrats urge Biden admin to create federal heat standard to protect workers

Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown and Alex Padilla are leading a call urging the Labor Department to establish a much-needed permanent federal heat stress standard. Legislators say that the department had previously announced it was adding it to the spring agenda. But as record summer heat has contributed to the deaths of farmworkers, senators say the danger facing workers is “at a pressure point.

Shop owner doubles down on transphobia with disgusting questions after being confronted over sign

Hate can crop up where you least expect it. Say, for example, in a Star Wars memorabilia store. Tiesa Meskis, an openly trans woman who also happens to serve on the town’s city council, confronted the owner of one such store that was hanging a shockingly bigoted sign, and, unfortunately, that person was not at all happy to be called in and educated. She posted a video of the Aug. 5 exchange on her Facebook and it has since gone viral.

I’ve Hit My Climate Tipping Point

Last summer the temperature in London, where I live, climbed above 37 degrees Celsius—or 100 degrees Fahrenheit. It was hotter outside my body than it was inside it. To someone raised under the sodden, used-tissue skies of Britain, that felt like an offense against nature. Everywhere I went, I felt the same constricting, breathless sensation. The heat was like a prison; I had been sentenced to 100 degrees.

It’s Grim

A new United Nations–led report from hundreds of climate scientists around the world makes it clear: The human-driven climate crisis is now well under way. Earth is likely hotter now than it has been at any moment since the beginning of the last Ice Age, 125,000 years ago, and the world has warmed 1.1 degrees Celsius, or nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit, since the Industrial Revolution began—an “unprecedented” and “rapid” change with no parallel in the Common Era.

The Atlantic’s Paid Circulation Tops 830,000, a Jump of 280,000 Subscribers in a Year

The Atlantic’s paid readership jumped by more than 280,000 in the last 12 months, according to the latest circulation statement filed with the Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). On that statement, which covers the first half of 2021, The Atlantic is reporting a total circulation of 833,410. This represents print and digital subscribers and newsstand sales, and is—by far—the highest circulation that The Atlantic has achieved across its 164-year history.

They Met During Lockdown. They Realized Who They Were Dating Later.

Shortly before the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Celia, an American who was working as a teaching assistant in Spain, began to date a man casually. When the spread of the virus intensified, she essentially moved in with him. She was stressed about the status of their relationship, which they never defined. But the couple didn’t argue, and they were both very affectionate; after finishing work, they cooked and baked together.

“Band-Aid Over a Bullet Wound”: Housing Advocates Welcome CDC Eviction Moratorium But Say It’s Not Enough

Despite a new two-month moratorium on evictions issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, millions of people in the U.S. are still at risk of losing their homes as landlords in some states fight back against the measure. The new CDC moratorium is “a band-aid over a bullet wound,” says Tara Raghuveer, director of KC Tenants, a tenants’ rights organization in Kansas City. “This is a very small step. It’s the bare minimum.

“A Code Red for Humanity”: Major U.N. Report Warns of Climate Catastrophe If Urgent Action Not Taken

In its first major report in nearly a decade, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned the Earth could face runaway global temperature changes unless drastic efforts are made to reduce greenhouse gases. The IPCC says humans are “unequivocally” to blame for the climate crisis, which has already caused “widespread and rapid changes.” Scientists conclude average global temperatures will likely rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.

Why More Americans Aren’t Happy for Gregg Popovich

From time to time, Gregg Popovich, the coach of the United States men’s national basketball team—which won a gold medal last night at the Tokyo Olympics with an 87–82, as-close-as-it-sounds victory over France—suggests a mad poet howling from a windy hillside.

Where Did ‘Synchronized Swimming’ Go?

If you’ve been watching the Olympics, you may have noticed that synchronized swimming has a new name. In July 2017, the International Swimming Federation, or FINA, announced that the sport would be called “artistic swimming,” effective immediately. Not everyone was a fan—to put it mildly.

‘The Revelation Was That I Was the Problem’

Genetically, Xand and Chris van Tulleken are clones. Yet the 42-year-old twins do not look identical, because Xand is more than 30 pounds heavier than Chris. That is the biggest weight difference recorded in the long-running twin study at King’s College London.The van Tullekens live in London. They argue about food—specifically, how much Xand eats—all the time. They are also both medical doctors, and they present British television shows on health and diet.

The Olympics Have Lost Their Appeal

When Tokyo bids farewell to the Olympics this weekend, few people there will be sad to see it go. The Japanese public overwhelmingly opposed hosting the postponed Summer Games, fearing that it could exacerbate the country’s COVID-19 outbreak. In the final week of the competition, Japan broke a record no one wanted, reporting more than 14,000 cases a day—its highest since the pandemic began.