Dysf-UN-ctional Family Reunion
September 22, 2021
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“The global work of the United Nations is not without reason compared to that of a family – striving for a common goal in concert with all members for a better future.” — Kofi Annan
Dysf-UN-ctional Family Reunion
(Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
As is customary, Brazil’s president was the first world leader to speak at Tuesday’s opening of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. All attendees were expected to be vaccinated against COVID-19, so an appearance by the unvaccinated Jair Bolsonaro was an awkward beginning for an event expected to focus largely on the global response to the coronavirus pandemic. Bolsonaro has said he didn’t need to get vaccinated because he recovered from a mild case of coronavirus last year, which, of course, begs the question. Bolsonaro spent little time on the pandemic, saying only that “We support vaccination efforts.” He claimed that almost 90% of his country’s adult population had received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Daily tracking by Our World in Data shows that as of September 21, just over 68% of Brazilians had gotten at least one shot.
The main focus of Bolsonaro’s address was on his administration’s accomplishments: how Brazil’s agriculture sector feeds over a billion people worldwide, the country’s participation in U.N. peacekeeping missions, and its acceptance of refugees from Venezuela and soon from Afghanistan. He pointed to a 32% reduction in deforestation from a year ago, claimed Brazil was “an example in energy generation” with 83% coming from renewable sources, and put forth a goal to reach ‘climate neutrality’ by 2050. He assured that “no country in the world has such complete environmental legislation,” and nominated Brazil’s Forest Code to “set an example for other countries.” He also had a prediction: “[T]he future of green jobs is in Brazil: renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, low-emission industry, basic sanitation, waste treatment and tourism.”
Custom dictates the next speaker is the head of the host country. President Biden used his time on the world stage to emphasize unity and cooperation to solve global problems. He framed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan as ending “a period of relentless war” and starting “a new era of relentless diplomacy.” He outlined his administration’s aspirations for continued partnership with the nation’s allies, and called on all nations to collectively fight against COVID-19, climate change, human rights violations and “new threats” from emerging technology.
Biden’s message — “We must work together as never before” — stood in sharp contrast to former president Trump’s message in his 2018 U.N. address. Trump had said “We reject the ideology of globalism,” and made clear the U.S. would always put its interests above other nations. Biden wanted to make the case that after four years of “America First” foreign policy, the U.S. remains a reliable international partner, one that will be using “the power of our development aid to invest in new ways of lifting people up around the world.” (WaPo, UN.org, AP)
The Election Nobody Wanted
(Sean Kilpatrick via Getty Images)
- Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau called for a snap election to be held September 20, hoping to win a majority of seats in Parliament for his Liberal Party. He eked out a narrow victory, but for the second time in two years, it wasn’t enough to give him the mandate he wanted; he’ll have to continue working with smaller parties to govern.
- Trudeau spun a positive message for supporters in his 1:15 a.m. Tuesday morning victory speech, but had to acknowledge his election gambit during Canada’s fourth wave of coronavirus hadn’t been popular, as three of his cabinet ministers lost reelection. The progressive New Democratic party, led by ex-lawyer and TikTok star Jagmeet Singh, is set to hold the balance of power, although it also fell short of its goal to topple Trudeau.
- Disappointed as well were the opposition Conservatives; they led the popular vote, but still failed to oust the Liberals. “It looks like nobody wanted an election and no one got what they wanted,” said a political commentator. (Guardian)
Mysterious Microwave Malady
- A U.S. intelligence officer traveling in India with CIA director William Burns earlier this month suffered symptoms consistent with directed-energy attacks known as “Havana Syndrome.” Experts are in the process of verifying the unnamed officer’s symptoms.
- Reports of such symptoms first came from employees at the U.S. embassy in Cuba in 2016. There are now at least 200 cases under investigation, half of them involving intelligence personnel. In August, two possible cases of Havana Syndrome delayed Vice-President Kamala Harris’ trip from Singapore to Vietnam. It’s not known if the officer was targeted because he was traveling with Burns, who has ordered an agency-wide review of possible attacks using microwave or other directed energy.
- A professor of neurology and biochemistry who heads up the Institute for Biodefense Research in Washington said Tuesday “We’re beginning to see a pattern of increased selective targeted use.” (Guardian)
Additional World News
- Russia responsible for Alexander Litvinenko’s assassination, European court rules (CNN)
- As opportunity beckons in Afghanistan, al-Qaeda’s leader squabbles and writes ‘comically boring’ books (WaPo, $)
- Pew study: Little change in India’s religious make-up in 70 years (BBC)
- In Spain, Abortions Are Legal, but Many Doctors Refuse to Perform Them (NYT, $)
- US has ‘no closer ally than Australia’, Biden says after Aukus pact (Guardian)
- China, US unveil separate big steps to fight climate change (AP)
Scuttled Six-Step Subversion
- Lawsuits contesting the 2020 election were thrown out of court. Thereafter Donald Trump’s legal team devised more clandestine plots to subvert the Constitution and overturn the election. One Machiavellian scheme is described in a two-page memo from a conservative lawyer working with Trump’s team, made public by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa in their new book, “Peril.”
- Controversial lawyer John Eastman proposed a six-step plan whereby then-Vice President Mike Pence could stop the certification of Biden’s election and throw it to Trump. The scheme was proposed to Pence by Eastman and Trump in the Oval Office on January 4, during one of Trump’s attempts to convince Pence he had the Constitutional authority to stop the certification.
- “You really need to listen to John. He’s a respected constitutional scholar,” Trump told his VP. Pence seemed amenable, but reached out to both the Senate parliamentarian and former VP Dan Quayle, who convinced him he had no authority beyond counting the votes. Pence’s failure to do Trump’s bidding resulted in riotous commands on January 6 to “Hang Pence.” (CNN)
Missing a Wrench for the Works
- A monthly survey of factory managers for the Institute for Supply Management shows that factory inventories, badly depleted during the pandemic, grew slightly last month, but some of that growth represents products that can’t be sold until missing parts are located.
- Acres of unfinished, parked cars — waiting for semiconductors — are the most visible example of widespread shortages weighing down the economic recovery. A company in Iowa that makes tree-stump cutters and other equipment in heavy demand after Hurricane Ida can’t get wiring harnesses and hydraulic components. A factory in Illinois that makes gears and pulleys used in a variety of industrial equipment can’t find all the parts it needs.
- “I’m getting phone calls of ‘Hey, you’re holding up a $5 million machine,’” the manager says. Even cardboard is in short supply. Manufacturers worldwide are struggling to meet surging demand; then once the parts are found, getting them to the factory is a challenge. Record volumes of freight are overloading the transportation system, leaving key supplies stuck on trucks, trains and cargo ships. (NPR)
Additional USA News
- Media Fascination With The Petito Mystery Looks Like Racism To Some Native Americans (NPR)
- Democrats Begin Effort to Curb Post-Trump Presidential Powers (NYT, $)
- A Bitter Fight Over Fate of Surfside Condo Collapse Site (NYT, $)
- Missouri couple who pointed guns at protesters may have law licenses revoked (Guardian)
- White House says it’s seeking more information on ‘horrific’ footage of Border Patrol agents confronting Haitian immigrants(CNN)
- A homeless man was arrested for a 43-cent ‘theft’ of a Mountain Dew. He could face 7 years in prison. (WaPo, $)
The Giant vs the Senate
- He’s good enough, he’s smart enough, and dog-gone it, we’ve missed him. For more than eight years in the Senate, Al Franken felt he had to stifle the Stuart Smalley side of himself. He had to be serious. He had to watch everything he said. He dared to be dull. It was like he was coexisting with a powerful alter ego in desperate need of submission.
- Thank the Humor Deities — That’s over. Now everything is political roadkill for his new comedy tour: “The Only Former U.S. Senator Currently on Tour Tour.”The recovering politician kicked off his 15-city stand-up tour Saturday at the Academy of Music in bucolic Northampton, Massachusetts. It’s his first extended comedy gig since he resigned from the Senate in January 2018 after several women accused him of inappropriate kissing and groping them during photo sessions, allegations he vigorously denied.
- He wishes he’d gotten due process before being turned into a pariah. But heck, now he’s free to bite the hands that once amicably slapped his back. “I have the freedom to do many things. It’s very hard as a Senator to do a comedy tour,” he explained wryly.
- Franken is bipartisan in his targets. Republicans like Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley, Lindsey Graham and former member Tom Coburn are mocked, occasionally drubbed. Also, fellow Democrats Bernie Sanders, Dianne Feinstein, and Charles Schumer. But mostly, Ted Cruz.
- What the wife shtick was for Henny Youngman and drug humor was for Robin Williams, the Texas Republican is for Franken. “I like Ted Cruz more than most of my colleagues like Ted Cruz. And I really hate Ted Cruz,” the 70-year-old told the nearly sold-out crowd that definitely leaned toward fans old enough to remember those terrific early days of “Saturday Night Live.”
- These days Franken draws mostly on his years in Congress and the greatest hits from his 2017 memoir “Giant of the Senate.” The SNL years are dispensed with swiftly. And yet, some of those Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley are pretty hard to top. (WaPo)
Additional Reads
- Too much of a good home is bad for panda mating, say scientists (Guardian)
- How Humans Lost Their Tails (NYT, $)
- Why eating colourful food is good for you (BBC)
- How did America end up with the world’s largest tiger population? (Guardian)
- The fall equinox is Wednesday: 8 things to know about the first day of autumn (Vox)