Today's Liberal News

Don’t Trash Your Old Phone—Give It a Second Life

The original iPhone SE is a great little phone, and I love it. It has a headphone jack—remember those? It fits in a butt pocket. It was announced in the Obama era.Sure, the first one I owned, which I purchased in 2017, had only 16GB of storage.

Why Democracies Are So Slow to Respond to Evil

Many works of history are much less about the past than they are about the present. People contemplate past events to understand current problems, and in today’s fractured America, the Civil War would surely be a resonant topic for an eminent documentarian to explore. But Ken Burns has been there and done that.

What Do Dogs Know About Us?

Quid and I have struck a deal. Every morning she flies up the stairs, leaps onto our bed, and attacks my nose with her sharp little teeth. And I am awakened.Oh wait, no; we don’t have a deal. She just does that. It is vexing and charming at once. Just at the moment of nose-attack I can smell the sleep collected on her breath and fur. It mingles with the odor of the other dogs in the room and is beginning to smell, to me, like home.

“The Myth of Normal”: Dr. Gabor Maté on Trauma, Illness and Healing in a Toxic Culture

In an extended interview, acclaimed physician and author Dr. Gabor Maté discusses his new book, just out, called “The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture.” “The very values of a society are traumatizing for a lot of people,” says Maté, who argues in his book that “psychological trauma, woundedness, underlies much of what we call disease.

“The Storm Is Here”: War Reporter Luke Mogelson on U.S. Right-Wing Militias, Violence, Jan. 6 & Trump

We speak with The New Yorker’s award-winning war correspondent Luke Mogelson about his new book, “The Storm Is Here: An American Crucible.” The book gives an eyewitness account of right-wing extremism and growing civic unrest in the U.S. since 2020, starting with anti-lockdown protests in Michigan and culminating in the January 6 insurrection. Mogelson, who filmed the attack on the U.S.

Is Biden the Most Pro-Union President in History?

For now, the country’s railroads will continue to run. A national strike—which would’ve started at midnight tonight and disrupted both freight and passenger rail—was averted by a tentative deal between union leaders and railroad management. That deal still needs to be ratified by the union members themselves.President Joe Biden praised the agreement as “a big win for America.

Roger Federer’s Other Legacy

Of all the achievements that Roger Federer has notched during his stellar tennis career, his 19 consecutive ATP Fans’ Favourite awards are particularly telling. The accolades are not remotely as consequential as his 20 Grand Slam titles (the third-most ever) or the 310 weeks he spent ranked No. 1 in the world (the second-most ever). The Fans’ Favourite award is essentially an annual popularity contest.

Why America’s Floors Turned Gray

This is an edition of  The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.Today our staff writer Amanda Mull answers my questions about her recent article exploring gray floors, house flipping, and how America fell under HGTV’s spell.But first, here are three new stories from The Atlantic.
King Charles should get ready to abdicate.

A Vaccine in Each Arm Could Be a Painful Mistake

At a press briefing earlier this month, Ashish Jha, the White House’s COVID czar, laid out some pretty lofty expectations for America’s immunity this fall. “Millions” of Americans, he said, would be flocking to pharmacies for the newest version of the COVID vaccine in September and October, at the same appointment where they’d get their yearly flu shot. “It’s actually a good idea,” he told the press.

“Infuriating”: A Third of Pakistan Is Underwater. Calls Grow for Climate Reparations and Debt Cancellation

Nearly 1,500 people have died and tens of millions have been displaced in Pakistan, where catastrophic flooding has left a third of the country underwater, washing away homes, farmlands, bridges, hospitals and schools. “People have lost everything,” says Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, a Pakistani artist and the grandson of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

“In the Shadow of Invasion”: Artist Molly Crabapple & Ukrainian Journalist Anna Grechishkina Document Ukraine War

Ukraine has accused Russia of bombing a dam in the southern city of Kryvyi Rih — where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was born — forcing evacuation in parts of the city due to flooding. The bombing is the latest Russian attack on civilain infrastructure since Ukrainian forces recaptured over 3,000 square miles of territory from Russia during a counteroffensive this past week.