Mrs. Merkel Goes to Washington

PNUT GALLERY
 

The UK’s Lost Photo Project hopes to reunite lost cameras with their rightful owners. An online gallery of 20 photos was posted on Thursday, all from cameras lost in the UK in the last 10 years.

 
 
 
IN A NUTSHELL: MUST READ
 

Goliath Meets Goliath: The world of international diplomacy is set for one of its most crucial meetings, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets with her American counterpart in Washington on Friday. The omens for their first in-person meeting aren’t promising. Trump accused Merkel of “ruining Germany” in 2015 with her open door policy to refugees, and he has sent mixed signals about the European Union and spoken kindly of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

Washington-Berlin ties have been under considerable strain since Trump took office, as the US President has attacked the core of German foreign policy: Euro-Atlantic relations. He also threatened both the German car industry and NATO, institutions that are at the heart of German politics and identity, so it’s hard to blame Germans for their distaste of the new American leader.

During the Obama administration, a time in which Germany almost replaced the United Kingdom as the closest US ally, Merkel could count on support from Washington, though various espionage scandals left relations in limbo at times. When Germans woke up on November 10th, their reality suddenly changed, and the country known for its reserved and pragmatic approach to geo-politics became the world’s last bastion of liberal Western values.  

 
 
 
NUTS AND BOLTS: SHOULD READ
 

Kim the Pyromaniac: The last few months have, from the perspective of Pyongyang, been rather successful. North Korea has taken various steps to demonstrate its nuclear capabilities, unnerving its neighbor to the South and undermining US efforts to ‘de-nuclearize’ the rogue nation, all while proving to its ally China that it remains sovereign from Beijing.  

Of course, from a Western perspective these are not successes, but rather further nails in the coffin of the North Korean people. Kim Jung-un, who has ruled the Asian country much like a toddler treats its birthday toy, has managed to even further isolate the country. China has become increasingly critical of Kim’s policies; Beijing is as appalled at the thought of nuclear war with its Asian neighbors as anybody else on the planet.

But this hasn’t stopped North Korea from enacting measures that ignore previous attempts from the United Nations and other international bodies to undo the country’s nuclear program. Officials in Seoul are more and more convinced that war might be in the cards, a prospect that sends shudders throughout the country, whose tone towards the North has become increasingly confrontational. While the world searches for ways to deal with the most dangerous nation on earth, Kim seems to be anything but interested.

 
 
 
KEEPING OUR EYE ON
 

Six Years of War in Syria: This week marked the sixth anniversary of the war in Syria, now considered one of the worst humanitarian crises in recent history. 465,000 Syrians have been killed or are missing. Over 11 million people, or half the population, have fled the country or are internally displaced persons (IDPs). Turkey hosts more than 2.7 million refugees and hundreds of thousands of others are in Lebanon and Jordan. At least 800,000 have applied for asylum in Europe. About one million Syrians are trapped in occupied areas of the country with no access to aid. Siege and starvation are being used as weapons of war. Though numerous peace talks have taken place, there appears to be no end in sight.

Move Over Corporations, Rivers Now Have Personhood Status as Well: After a 160-year fight with the New Zealand government, the Maori people have succeeded in gaining recognition for the Whanganui River as a living entity. Two individuals, one from the Maori and one from the Crown, will represent the river in court proceedings. The river is the first in the world to be granted the same legal rights as a person. Finally, personhood for something that actually deserves it! (We don’t mean to offend family trusts or corporations, but come on!)

 
 
 
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LOOSE NUTS
 

Weekend Reads:

  • People obsess over power. Just throw in the word power in a sentence or in the title of a book, and the book sells. Just ask Robert Caro. Michel Foucault, often cited and hardly read, had some thoughts on power (Aeon)
  • Speaking of power, what does a woman in power look like? (LRB)
  • People aren’t just addicted to technology, they are spending, or escaping, much of their lives on video games, and some die after gaming marathons. Perhaps games are better than life? (1843, NYT, TED)
  • While some of us retreat deeper into technology and video games, some of us retreat into the woods. This person did so for 27 years and survived alone (The Guardian)
  • Anytime Monsanto is found guilty of wrongdoing, in this case a Monsanto product might cause cancer, it reminds us of Michael Clayton, an excellent film, and we believe it’s George Clooney’s best (NYT)
  • We wish everyone a great weekend, but we should perhaps be saying our goodbyes to the Great Barrier Reef. Don’t hate us future generations, for we know (only somewhat) what we have done wrong (Gizmodo)
  • Change is happening all across the United States: politics, social causes, demographics, racial divisions and intermarriage, but one of the most fascinating changes in American society of late is religion and church attendance (The Atlantic)
  • The Trumpian bargain that Southern Baptists have encountered and made (NYT)
  • What is it like to freeze to death and humanity’s pursuit of immortality and what happens when our life expectancies lengthen (Outside & Nautilus)

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