12 NEWS Best columns: The U.S.
InstagramQPolice in Britain responded
to reports of a “rave” of
young people defying
coronavirus restrictions,
only to find a long line of
senior citizens with walkers
and wheelchairs waiting for
vaccinations. Neighbors of
Saxon Hall in Essex called the
police when they glimpsed a
big crowd, perhaps because
ravers had trashed a nearby
church on New Year’s Eve.
Cops found a gray-haired
crowd of people queued up
for “jabs,” some more than
90 years old. “It was really
funny,” said Saxon Hall chair-
man Dennis Baum. “Grumpy
old men and grumpy old
women were in abundance.”QAn award-winning
master chef in Rome has
stirred controversy by serving
lasagna “toothpaste” at his
restaurant. Valerio Braschi,
23, won the MasterChef Italia
award at just 18 years old.
His latest creation is serving
up tubes of warm puree of
minced meat and tomato
sauce, which diners squeeze
onto a toothbrush made from
egg pasta and eat with a
sauce of liquefied parmesan.
Some outraged Italians say
he’s taken culinary creativity
too far. “It might be a bit ex-
treme for the purists,” Braschi
conceded.
QA faithful dog in Turkey
stood vigil outside a hospital
for six days while its owner
was being treated inside. Af-
ter Cemal Senturk was taken
to the hospital by ambulance,
his dog, Boncuk, followed in
the vehicle’s wake. Over en-
suing days, the dog promptly
came back to the hospital
around 9 a.m. and waited
outside until nightfall, when
Senturk’s daughter brought
the loyal pet home. The dog
kept escaping and com-
ing back until Senturk was
discharged from the hospital.
“She’s very used to me,”
Senturk said. “And I miss her,
too, constantly.”It must be true...
I read it in the tabloidsPresident Biden’s biggest foreign policy “nightmare may be China,”
said Nicholas Kristof. In coming years, there is a significant risk of a
military confrontation with the world’s most populous nation, because
President Xi Jinping “is an overconfident, risk-taking bully who believes
that the United States is in decline.” Xi has been sending threatening
signals about invading Taiwan, whose independence he finds galling; as
a test, he could order China’s military to seize the Pratas and Kinmen
islands now controlled by Taiwan, or a cyberattack on Taiwan’s banking
system, or a blockade of its oil deliveries. That kind of aggression could
draw the U.S. into “perhaps the most dangerous confrontation with
another nuclear power since the Cuban missile crisis.” Even if Xi does
not go that far, Biden has to contend with China’s oppression of Hong
Kong, its genocide of the Uighurs, its contempt for human rights, and
its unfair trade practices. Biden has recruited a “tough-minded team of
Asia experts” who understand that China is an untrustworthy adversary.
But a China policy that is too confrontational could lead to a dangerous
escalation of tensions. Let’s keep the cold war with Beijing cold.When a violent mob broke into the Senate chamber on Jan. 6, said
Rachel Mikva, one of the leaders cried out, “Jesus Christ, we invoke
your name!” It was a vivid demonstration of the problem “Christian
nationalism” poses to this country. An estimated 20 percent of American
adults, most of them white, believe the U.S. should be an expressly Chris-
tian country, with biblical teachings guiding every aspect of civic life.
Furious and frightened about losing culture-war battles over abortion
rights, LGBTQ equality, and gender norms, Christian nationalists have
declared a holy war, drawing apocalyptic language from the Book of
Revelation about a cosmic battle between good and evil. At the Capitol
riot, insurrectionists carried large wooden crosses, Bibles, and Jesus flags.
Some organizers called the attack the “Jericho March,” alluding to the
Israelites’ raid of the city of Jericho. Christian nationalists are also work-
ing within the system to install judges who will cite “religious freedom”
to impose their worldview on the law. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) has
said his mission is to “transform our society to reflect the gospel truth
and lordship of Jesus Christ.” What if you don’t agree? To Hawley and
other Christian nationalists, then you’re not a real American.“This might be a good time for Democrats in Congress to stop trad-
ing stocks,” said Alex Pareene. Democrats justifiably raised suspicions
that Georgia Republican senatorial candidates Kelly Loeffler and David
Perdue engaged in insider trading, after they got a coronavirus briefing
early last year and began dumping stocks. But Democrats trade stocks,
too. Sen. Dianne Feinstein admitted last week she forgot to disclose a
$50,000 stock trade made by her husband, while House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi disclosed that her wealthy investor husband invested at least
$500,000 in Tesla—just weeks before President Biden announced he was
converting the entire federal fleet to electric vehicles. “Members of Con-
gress, because of the nature of their jobs, have more inside information
about markets than almost anyone else in America.” Yet elected officials
trade hundreds of millions in stocks every year. These trades “create the
appearance of corrupt self-dealing” no matter what political party is
involved. Sen. Elizabeth Warren has proposed a ban on members of Con-
gress trading stock and a requirement that their holdings be put in a truly
blind trust. That’s “as close to a political slam dunk as an anti-corruption
policy gets.” There is no good reason to oppose it.Biden’s
China
problem
Nicholas Kristof
The New York TimesElected officials
shouldn’t
trade stocks
Alex Pareene
NewRepublic.comThe rise of
Christian
nationalism
Rachel Mikva
USA Today“As a general rule of human civilization, we’ve lived where we work.
But nobody will forget the lesson we were all just forced to learn:
Telecommunications doesn’t have to be the perfect substitute for in-person meetings, as long as
it’s mostly good enough. For the most part, remote work just works. Remote work could do to
America’s residential geography in the 2020s what the highway did in the 1950s and ’60s: spread it
out. The past 12 months have offered a glimpse of the nowhere-everywhere future of work. We’re
only beginning to understand just how strange that future might be.”
Derek Thompson in TheAtlantic.comViewpoint