Always Play the Long Game | The Center Cannot Hold Across the World | Hold Your Breath

“We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time.”

“The very existence of libraries affords the best evidence that we may yet have hope for the future of man”

– T.S. Eliot

Turkey Pulls The Truth Out From Under The Bloody Rug: On Wednesday Turkey’s chief prosecutor, Irfan Fidan, released the first official confirmation that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in a premeditated plot. The statement said Khashoggi was strangled upon entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, his body dismembered, and then destroyed. The statement bolstered Turkish investigators’ belief that Khashoggi’s remains could have been disposed of at the nearby consul general’s house, dissolved in acid or dumped in a well on the property.

In the weeks following the journalist’s disappearance, Saudi officials put forth a variety of ever-changing explanations for what could have happened to him, all in an effort to distance Saudi crown prince and de facto ruler of the kingdom, Mohammad Bin Salman, from any culpability in the killing. A joint Turkish-Saudi investigation was supposedly underway, and President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo were on record claiming Turkey was satisfied with Saudi Arabia’s cooperation in the investigation. But after meeting for two days with the Saudi chief prosecutor, Fidan released his statement just as his Saudi counterpart was departing for Riyadh, indicating not much cooperation had actually happened. Fidan had repeatedly requested that 18 Saudi suspects be extradited for trial in Turkey, that details of the “planning stage” of the killing be forthcoming, and for the identity of the local collaborator, all of which went unanswered.

Additional Reads: “Silicon Valley’s sovereign wealth problem: It’s time to bring out into the open the conversation about where Silicon Valley gets its money.” Further read: Why Silicon Valley investors just can’t quit Saudi money (TechCrunch & Recode)

“Indonesia says it had no warning Saudi Arabia would be executing maid:Indonesian President Joko Widodo said Wednesday that he had called Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir to file a complaint and demand to know why Indonesia had not been notified that Tuti Tursilawati was to be executed Monday.” (WaPo)

The Growing Fear Of Immigrants In Germany Feels Familiar: In Chemnitz, Germany, a German man was allegedly stabbed to death last August by two refugees from Syria and Iraq. Every Friday since, far-right activists have gathered to demonstrate against immigrants. The stabbing has fed a growing nationalistic fervor and led to an increase in violent attacks, particularly on immigrant businesses. No longer do neo-Nazis feel they must curtail their hateful rhetoric, and people campaigning on excluding foreigners are winning elections. The far-right AfD party that openly calls for deporting immigrants used to be on the fringes of German politics; now the party has the third largest membership in Parliament.

Chancellor Angela Merkel was a pillar of German stability for 13 years, but her decision in 2015 to open the borders and allow in almost a million asylum seekers from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan caused a palpable backlash. Support for Merkel’s party, the Christian Democrats, has faltered, and last week the chancellor announced she will not seek reelection in 2021. It is a watershed moment for the German political system. Merkel’s departure will mark the end of an era, and people are wondering whether the political center can survive. The country that was determined to keep its Nazi past in the past is becoming sharply divided, with populism gaining momentum, and tolerance on the defensive.

Additional Read: “Rightwinger leads race to succeed Angela Merkel as party chair: Socially conservative Friedrich Merz is long standing opponent of German chancellor” (Guardian)

Tis the season for pumpkin spice, apples, leaves, and most importantly–incredibly stylish and high-quality boots made from artisans in North America (let’s see Starbucks make a flavor of that). Thursday Boots is going to help you look real good with their comfortable, versatile, and durable boots selection. Thursday Boots uses the same materials and design style as overly expensive designer boots, but Thursday can sell their boots at half the price since they sell them directly to you. And because these boots are so timeless and well made, they’ll most likely last you a few boots seasons. Some boots were just made for walking, Thursday Boots were made for you.

Don’t Let The Door Hit You: All good things must come to an end. Hopefully bad things as well. And so it is that White House Counsel Don McGahn has ended his tumultuous tenure with one last encounter in the Oval Office. While President Trump had given McGahn kudos in the past for steering a successful pathway for two conservative Supreme Court justices, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, Trump’s obsession with the Mueller investigation was much more on his mind. In his parting conversation with the retiring McGahn, Trump made sure to blame him for Mueller’s appointment, and the cloud the investigation continues to cast over his presidency. (CNN)

Additional Read: “Mueller Wants the FBI to Look at a Scheme to Discredit Him: The special counsel says a woman was offered money to fabricate sexual-harassment claims.” (Atlantic)

– “12 Young People on Why They Probably Won’t Vote” (Intelligencer)

– “Trump lashes out at Paul Ryan over birthright citizenship comments, says he ‘should be focusing on holding the Majority’” (WaPo)

– “I Thought the Web Would Stop Hate, Not Spread It: This is what the internet has come to: thugs like Mohammed bin Salman funding tech companies to host the vitriol of thugs like Cesar Sayoc and Robert Bowers.” (NYT)

– “Hate Is on the Ballot Next Week: Don’t let the whataboutists and bothsiders tell you it isn’t.” (NYT)

– A fantastic read on why to always play the long game and take a long term view on life and work: “The long game isn’t particularly notable and sometimes it’s not even noticeable. It’s boring. But when someone chooses to play the long game from an early age, the results can be extraordinary. The long game changes how you conduct your personal and business affairs.” (Farnam Street)

– This isn’t Fahrenheit 451, “A chapter closes: last Hong Kong bookshop selling titles banned in China shuts: Rumours the People’s Bookshop shut its doors after pressure from the government, which is aligned with Beijing.” (Guardian)

– “How Do You Move A Bookstore? With A Human Chain, Book By Book:When October Books, a small radical bookshop in Southampton, England, was moving to a new location down the street, it faced a problem. How could it move its entire stock to the new spot, without spending a lot of money or closing down for long?” (NPR)

– “Are we wrong to assume fish can’t feel pain?: We like to think fish have no feelings. And yet the idea that they have both memory and a capacity for suffering is gaining ground among scientists.” (Guardian)

– “The Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger Language of Dieting: Silicon Valley is creating a bevy of new products and services that could change how people talk—and think—about their body.” (Atlantic)

– “This Is What Happens to Your Body if You Eat Almost No Carbs: You might want to read this before you decide to start living off of butter, bacon, and bourbon.” (Tonic Vice)

– “Your Kid’s Apps Are Crammed With Ads: In a new study of the most downloaded apps for children ages 5 and younger, researchers found advertising in almost all of them.” Of course this is the one time your kid wants to share their cookies. (NYT)

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