Today's Liberal News

Scenes From Ukrainian Summer Camp

Summer camp, at its purest, is like Never-Never-Land—a place that exists only in childhood or in memories of it: lake swimming, tree climbing, secret telling, frog catching, and youth everlasting. When I found myself recently on a train platform in Lviv, Ukraine, surrounded by teenagers heading to summer camp in the Carpathian Mountains, such wholesome pleasures seemed almost ridiculously out of reach.The train was running late, for one thing.

What I Learned From the World’s Last Smallpox Patient

Rahima Banu, a toddler in rural Bangladesh, was the last person in the world to contract variola major, the deadly form of smallpox, through natural infection. In October 1975, after World Health Organization epidemiologists learned of her infection, health workers vaccinated those around her, putting an end to variola major transmission around the world. The WHO officially declared smallpox eradicated in 1980, and it remains the only human infectious disease ever to have been eradicated.

Trigger Laws Make Abortion Off Limits for Millions; Patients Face “Intolerable” Risk & Uncertainty

Millions of pregnant people in the United States have now lost access to abortion in their state since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Anti-abortion “trigger laws” have gone into effect in numerous states across the country, including Texas, where it became a felony to perform an abortion starting Thursday,​​ punishable by up to life in prison. We speak to Dr.

Ukraine Update: (Confused) news from Ukraine’s Kherson offensive

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It’s always challenging to sift through the fog of war to ascertain what’s happening on the ground in Ukraine, especially so when it’s breaking news like the Ukrainian counteroffensive, and extra so when it’s in a theater—Kherson in southern Ukraine—in which Ukraine has enforced a tight lid on information. 

As such, what is discussed below may be distorted or even flat out wrong.

What’s in a Classified Document?

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.The flap over Trump’s document cache at Mar-a-Lago has become a political fight, but it’s important for American voters to understand why classified documents are classified and how the GOP’s rationalizations endanger our security.

19 Readers on Donald Trump’s Legal Future

This is an edition of Up for Debate, a newsletter by Conor Friedersdorf. On Wednesdays, he rounds up timely conversations and solicits reader responses to one thought-provoking question. Later, he publishes some thoughtful replies. Sign up for the newsletter here.Last week, I asked readers about Donald Trump’s legal problems, noting that some observers worry about prosecuting a former president while others insist that no one is above the law in America.

House of the Dragon Is Cruel, Messy, and Fascinating

This story contains spoilers for Episode 2 of House of the Dragon.The opening credits of Game of Thrones famously offer a dynamic bird’s-eye trip around a pulsing map of George R. R. Martin’s fantasy world. The sequence serves partly as a practical guide to a sprawling universe.

CA Gov. Newsom Threatens to Veto Farmworker Union Bill as He Buys $14.5M Vineyard in Napa Valley

Hundreds of farmworkers concluded a 24-day march to Sacramento spanning 335 miles to demand California Governor Gavin Newsom support legislation that would make it easier for farmworkers to cast their ballots in union elections by mail. Newsom has threatened to veto the bill, which would keep farmworkers safe from employer retaliation, explains Teresa Romero, president of the United Farm Workers, the labor union that helped organize the march.

Ex-Agent: FBI Has Long History of Abuse, But Trump Probe Shows Better, “More Effective” Path for Agency

The Justice Department has released a redacted version of the affidavit used by the FBI to raid former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. The affidavit revealed authorities were concerned Trump still had possession of top-secret documents that could have compromised U.S. intelligence sources and methods, and said there was “probable cause to believe that evidence of obstruction was found.

“Climate Apartheid”: Pakistan, Contributing Less Than 1% of Global Emissions, Ravaged by Floods

Pakistan has declared a national emergency as massive floods continue to devastate the country, displacing 33 million people and bringing the death toll to over 1,000 since June. We speak with Shah Meer Baloch, Islamabad-based reporter for The Guardian, who describes how the floods have swept away homes, roads and bridges in what Baloch and Pakistan’s top climate official have called a serious “climate catastrophe.