Today's Liberal News

The Easy Way for Joe Biden to Save Lives

There’s an on-the-shelf policy the Biden administration could enact unilaterally that would save millions of American lives, without costing the government a single cent on net.That policy, one pushed for but never implemented by the Trump administration, is eliminating most nicotine from tobacco products. It would not render cigarettes illegal; they would still be available to adults, and the smoking experience would remain much the same. But the product would no longer be so addictive.

The Crown’s Majestic Untruths

The Crown is not a documentary. The presence of actors is a strong clue; the members of the Royal Family wish they were this good-looking. Do viewers need to be warned about this? One British politician thinks so. “It’s a beautifully produced work of fiction, so as with other TV productions, Netflix should be very clear at the beginning it is just that,” the Conservative culture minister, Oliver Dowden, said this week.

Indian Farmers Lead Historic Strike & Protests Against Narendra Modi, Neoliberalism & Inequality

As COVID rages through India, which has the second-highest number of reported cases worldwide, hundreds of thousands of farmers are converging on the capital New Delhi to demand the government repeal new laws that deregulate agricultural markets, saying the reforms give major corporations power to set crop prices far below current rates and devastate the livelihoods of farmers. Agriculture is the leading source of income for more than half of India’s 1.3 billion people.

Ethnic Cleansing Feared as Ethiopia Wages War on Tigray Region Amid Communication Blackout

The United Nations has reached a deal with Ethiopia’s government to allow humanitarian access to the northern Tigray region and start providing aid. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched military action against regional forces one month ago, setting off a bloody conflict and adding to the already alarming number of displaced people and refugees in the country and neighboring nations.

Friday Night Owls: How did the U.S. become so caught up in a cycle of endless wars?

Night Owls, a themed open thread, appears at Daily Kos seven days a week

Daniel Immerwahr at The Nation writes—Fort Everywhere. How did the United States become entangled in a cycle of endless war?

Shortly after the Covid-19 pandemic struck the United States, a reporter asked Donald Trump if he now considered himself a wartime president. “I do. I actually do,” he replied. Swelling with purpose, he opened a press briefing by talking about it.

Compared with the need, job gains were meager in November. At this rate recovery will take years

In yet another indication that the recovery from the Pandemic Recession has dramatically slowed, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that nonfarm employment rose by a mere 245,000 jobs in November. There were 344,000 gained in the private sector, but in all levels of the public sector 99,000 jobs were lost. The headline unemployment rate fell to 6.7%, but that was mostly a product of 400,000 people leaving the labor force.

No longer ‘standing by,’ Proud Boys bring politics of intimidation to streets in defense of Trump

It’s become apparent that, even as Donald Trump tries to deny reality and continue claiming he won the election, the hate group that he ordered, on national television, to “stand back and stand by” now considers (per leadership’s statements that “standby order has been rescinded,” as well as other threatening statements on social media) those orders null and void: The Proud Boys are now playing the role of Trump’s goon-squad defenders in the streets&m

Democrats targeted a Little Rock House seat, but in the end, Republicans won easily

Our project to calculate the 2020 presidential results for all 435 congressional districts nationwide ventures to Arkansas, a former Democratic stronghold that has become one of the most heavily Republican states over the last decade. You can find our complete data set here, which we’re updating continuously as the precinct-level election returns we need for our calculations become available.

Why Some Libraries Are Ending Fines

When I was a kid, the sin of returning books late to the public library populated a category of dread for me next to weekly confessions to the Catholic priest (what can an 8-year-old really have to confess?) and getting caught by the dentist with a tootsie roll wrapper sticking out of my pocket. So decades later, when I heard about libraries going “fine-free,” it sounded like an overdue change and a nice idea.

The Atlantic Daily: 6 Suggestions for Another Weekend at Home

Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inboxApple TV+U.S. hospitals are past their breaking point. It’s time to go home and lock yourself down, if you can. Below, we’ve compiled six suggestions for a weekend spent in isolation.Watch.