Today's Liberal News

‘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.

Steven Donziger, Lawyer Who Sued Chevron over Amazon Oil Spills, Marks 2 Years Under House Arrest

Protests across the United States are calling for the immediate release of environmental and human rights lawyer Steven Donziger, who has been held under house arrest in New York for two years after being targeted by the oil giant Chevron. Donziger sued the oil giant in Ecuador on behalf of 30,000 Amazonian Indigenous people for dumping 16 billion gallons of oil into their ancestral lands.

A Cycle of War Crimes: Today’s Crisis in Afghanistan Grew Out of 20 Years of U.S. War

As the United Nations Security Council holds an emergency session to discuss the crisis in Afghanistan, we speak with Polk Award-winning journalist Matthieu Aikins, who is based in Kabul. The Taliban have been seizing territory for months as U.S. troops withdraw from the country, and the group is now on the verge of taking several provincial capitals. “In the 13 years I’ve been working here, I’ve never seen a situation as grim,” says Aikins.

Remembering Richard Trumka: Union Leaders Reflect on Death of AFL-CIO Head & Labor Movement Challenges Ahead

Richard Trumka, the longtime president of the AFL-CIO and one of the most powerful labor leaders in the United States, has died of a heart attack at the age of 72. Trumka’s death has prompted an outpouring of tributes from fellow labor figures, activists and lawmakers, including President Joe Biden. Trumka was a third-generation coal miner from Pennsylvania who, at the age of 33, became the youngest president of the United Mine Workers of America.

News Roundup: Rosen testifies to Senate committee; CNN takes on Pillow Guy

In the news today: Trump acting attorney general Jeffrey Rosen testified behind closed doors on Saturday on an effort by Trump and allies to use the Department of Justice to disseminate false claims disputing the results of the U.S. presidential election. A pillow magnate (yes, that’s a thing) continues his role as prolific pro-Trump conspiracy theorist—and these sure don’t seem to be the rantings of someone who’s been getting a good night’s sleep.

Gabe Ortiz on the Michelangelo Signorile Show: Conservative rhetoric warns of ‘diseased’ immigrants

After grasping at straws and watching their constituencies struggle with skyrocketing COVID-19 cases, Republican leaders are whipping out their tired old playbook once again. Leaning on racist, xenophobic tropes to instill fear into the base, the GOP hopes that this fearmongering will be able to distort and distract from the party’s abject failure to prioritize and protect American lives during this continued public health crisis.

Missouri congressman joins GOP’s crowded Senate primary, but weakness at home may hamper prospects

Missouri Rep. Billy Long announced Tuesday evening that he was joining the crowded Republican primary to succeed retiring Sen. Roy Blunt. Long noted that he’d previously been elected to succeed Blunt in the southwestern 7th Congressional District back in 2010, and argued he’d continue his legacy in the upper chamber. The congressman went a little too far linking himself to the incumbent, though. While his launch event listed both Blunt and fellow Sen.

CNN buries Pillow Man with in-depth report on his delusions

To know Pillow Man is to laugh at Pillow Man—or it is if you’re a member in good standing of the sane community, anyway. If not, you may be willing to follow Mike Lindell down every rabbit hole he’s managed to slither through with the help of a spelunker’s headlamp and a Costco-sized tub of Crisco.

Lindell is about what you’d get if Harry Carey had switched from Budweiser to bath salts late in life.