Thanksgiving in America  For all those who are celebrating today, we’re wishing you a safe and happy Thanksgiving. CNN has published a Thanksgiving message to Americans from President-elect Biden and the incoming First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden: Joe and Jill Biden: Our most important Thanksgiving tradition.
As we’re taking time out to think about all we’re grateful for, we should also be aware of the growing number of Americans who are going hungry. In an important new feature for The Washington Post, Todd Frankel, Andrew Van Dam and Alyssa Fowers reveal how harsh 2020 truly has been for many Americans. According to experts and a Post analysis of new federal data, it’s likely that there’s more hunger in the United States today than at any point since 1998, when the Census Bureau began collecting comparable data about households’ ability to get enough food. One in 8 Americans reported they sometimes or often didn’t have enough food to eat in the past week, hitting nearly 26 million American adults, and 16% of households with children sometimes or often don’t have enough to eat in the past week. “Chilling drone footage. Haunting article. Piercing photographs. Striking graphics. A @washingtonpost all-hands-on-deck package about the terrifying state of hunger in America,” tweets Damian Paletta. As Gwen Pearson says, “If you are lucky and have enough food today, pls remember those who do not.” Lame duck pardons turkey You start off pardoning Corn the turkey, and then, you know, you just can’t stop yourself. You gotta have more. So, yesterday, Trump pardoned Michael Flynn, Ending Case His Justice Dept. Sought to Shut Down. As Charlie Savage reminds us at The New York Times, Flynn twice pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his conversations with Russia’s ambassador. You see, the difference here is, Corn was innocent. Put another way, “Lying liar helps lying liar,” tweets Kara Swisher. Or “Lame duck pardons turkey,” as Binyamin Appelbaum puts it, and we don’t think he’s talking about Corn. “Expected but nevertheless deeply unjust,” says Jennifer Taub. “Another white, wealthy, well-connected white collar criminal faces no consequences.” Rosalind Helderman covers the story at The Washington Post, writing, “Trump’s move marks a full embrace of the retired general he had ousted from the White House after only 22 days on the job — and a final salvo against the Russia investigation that shadowed the first half of his term in office.” Doesn’t seem like a major Kraken the case  Worthing noting that one of Flynn’s lawyers is a certain Sidney Powell, who is now an ex-Trump lawyer, and as Tony Aarons reports at Bloomberg, she just filed election suits in ‘DISTRCOICT’ Court, and no, that’s not the only typo. That’s not even the only misspelling of district. That’s not even the only misspelling of district in the header.
“Happy T-giving from Georgia where the tryptophan has already taken hold,” tweets Charles Bethea. As Scott Travis says, “This doesn’t seem like a major Kraken the case. Do you even have standing to file a lawsuit to overturn an election when your client fired you?” Corruption everywhere we look Speaking of turkeys and Georgia, let’s check with Georgia Sen. David Perdue. According to the reporting by Katie Benner, Adam Goldman, Nicholas Fandos and Kate Kelly of The New York Times, stock trades by Senator Perdue are said to have prompted a Justice Dept. inquiry this past spring. Investigators focused on a sale of at least $1 million of stock in Cardlytics, a financial firm whose board the senator once sat on. They closed the case this summer without charges. T he federal scrutiny, they write, “is the most vivid example to date of how Mr. Perdue’s complex financial interests and frequent trading have complicated his pursuit of a second Senate term.” Meanwhile, at The Washington Post, Beth Reinhard and Carol Leonnig report that after years of denying allegations of lax financial oversight, the National Rifle Association has made a stunning declaration in a new tax filing: Current and former NRA executives used the group’s money for personal benefit and enrichment. As Robin Elizabeth Herr says, “#Corruption everywhere we look: For years, #WayneLaPierre & co. pocketed millions from the #NRA to fund lavish lifestyles…‘LaPierre’s reimbursement of just a fraction of the millions he personally profited.’” The darkness behind the clownface In an alarming rundown of potential rule changes, ProPublica’s Isaac Arnsdorf reveals how Trump is racing to weaken environmental and worker protections, and implement other last-minute policies, before Jan. 20. On Twitter, he shares, “The rules range from long-simmering administration priorities to last-minute scrambles and affect everything from creature comforts like showerheads and clothes washers to life-or-death issues like federal executions and international refugees.” Increasing pollution, decreasing food safety, bringing back firing squads and electrocutions for federal executions. Truly making America...something...again. Fiona McGowan calls it “True colours: the darkness behind the orange clownface.” “If you’re curious as to what kind of fascist second term @realDonaldTrump would have had, here’s a hint. He’s trying to bring back firing squads between now and January. The maniac cannot be gone quickly enough,” says Ron Clements. License to kill Speaking of not really pro-life, Amy Coney Barrett played a decisive role in last night’s Supreme Court decision backing a religious challenge to Cuomo’s virus shutdown order. As Adam Liptak reports at The New York Times, the vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John Roberts joining the court’s three liberal members in dissent. The decision took the opposite approach of earlier court rulings related to coronavirus restrictions in California and Nevada. Apparently this needs to be said, so Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons does: “Religious freedom is not a license to kill people by spreading a deadly virus. This is a disastrous Supreme Court decision. I’m also frightened by the other ways in which this new ultraconservative 5-4 majority will distort religious freedom.” Bringing clarity to confusing times  Meanwhile, if you’re thinking that some of the pandemic restrictions don’t really make any sense, well, it’s not just you. The Logic of Pandemic Restrictions Is Falling Apart, write Amanda Mull, James Hamblin and Sarah Zhang of The Atlantic. What’s worse, “Experts know what has to be done to keep people safe, but confusing policies and tangled messages from some of the country’s most celebrated local leaders are setting people up to die.”
Why can you eat in a restaurant but you can’t hold Thanksgiving at your house? Travis Pillow sums it up: “That basic need for $ is the key that unlocks other mysteries in inconsistent COVID restrictions, like why Thanksgiving dinner is contraindicated but indoor dining is not.” But this is one thing to be thankful for: “Really appreciate @amandamull & the Atlantic for continually bringing clarity to confusing times,” tweets Sadie Dingfelder. Adds Chris Hagan, “I’ve been thinking about this a lot in terms of what our role can be as restrictions change, and giving people information to live their lives.” Argh  This, however, is not helpful. Since unveiling the preliminary results of its Covid vaccine, AstraZeneca has acknowledged a key mistake in the vaccine dosage received by some study participants, adding to questions about whether the vaccine’s apparently spectacular efficacy will hold up under additional testing.
As Rebecca Robbins and Benjamin Mueller report at The New York Times, the odds of regulators in the United States and elsewhere quickly authorizing the emergency use of the AstraZeneca vaccine are declining. The gist of this story: “Argh what a mess,” tweets Ian Leslie. Outside the U.S. Paul Lewis links to “An extraordinary scoop about a guy who ran a pub near Matt Hancock’s home who is now producing millions of vials for Covid test kits. He had no prior experience in medical supplies when he sent Hancock a personal WhatsApp message offering his services.” Felicity Lawrence has that story at The Guardian, Hancock’s former neighbour won Covid test kit work after WhatsApp message. “Surprise, surprise! Can anyone guess the name of the pub that Hancock used to frequent? The Cock Inn!” tweets Andrew Greaves. Next is “Quite the bombshell of a story form CBC here.” Dylan Short is referring to Jennie Russell and Charles Rusnell’s exclusive at CBC News, Secret recordings reveal political directives, tension over Alberta's pandemic response. Brodie Fenlon calls it “A fascinating look behind the curtain.” And, as Colleen Mondor says, “This is appalling.” Ben Hubbard reports at The New York Times that the case of a Saudi woman who campaigned for the right to drive has been sent to terrorism court, right as Saudi Arabia is waiting to see what human rights pressure will come from President-elect Biden. “This story makes me shake with rage. And for what?!” tweets Emily Ramshaw, who highlights, “The official charge against her included attempting to apply for a job at the United Nations and communicating with foreign journalists, diplomats and human rights organizations.” On darkness, light and Diego Maradona  As BBC News reported yesterday, football legend Diego Maradona, one of the greatest players of all time, has died at the age of 60. “Go well, legend 🙏🏾! You live on through a legacy few footballers will ever have,” tweets Victoria Uwonkunda.
At The Guardian, Sachin Nakrani reports that Argentina has declared three days of national mourning. “When his death was announced, some newscasters in Argentina could not hold back the tears. ‘Part of our childhood has died,’ said one presenter on the TV news channel C5N. ‘I thought he could never die,’ said another.” Jere Longman has the New York Times obit for Diego Maradona, One of Soccer’s Greatest Players. Also at the Times, Rory Smith writes of Diego Maradona, the Most Human of Immortals. Andrew Das calls it “.@RorySmith on darkness, light and Diego Maradona.” “Exquisite by @RorySmith,” adds Tariq Panja, quoting, “That such beauty could emerge from such tumult made him mean something more; it gave him a resonance that stretched beyond even his outsize ability. His darkness sharpened the contours of his light.” And at Defector, Ray Ratto writes that Diego Maradona Was Soccer’s First And Last Deity. “Diego Maradona, the bigger, better, weirder version of everyone else who ever did a thing ever,” he tweets. Well this is terrifying We’re going to wrap things up, and we’ll get to the zombie minks in a sec, but first, Steph Auteri is referring to the news that Penguin Random House is buying Simon & Schuster. Alexandra Alter and Edmund Lee of The New York Times report that ViacomCBS agreed to sell the 96-year-old company for more than $2 billion in a deal that will create the first megapublisher. Hamza Shaban dubs it “media consolidation dot biz,” and Preston Fassel says, “This represents a potentially cataclysmic shift in publishing that probably won't be for the better.” Meanwhile, Kate Cox shares, “I have Strong Antitrust Feelings but since I'm off until Monday, and also exhausted and sick, I'm just gonna summarize them as: could we just... NOT, though?” Call 1-800-SINK-A-MINK They’re not really zombies. Probably. Nevertheless, dead mink infected with a mutated form of COVID-19 rise from graves after mass culling. Don’t worry — the details might somehow be even worse than the headline. Joshua Bote has that story at USA Today, and you know what? Sure. Fine. Seems right on schedule. As Erin Smith says, “Is it bad that at this point in 2020, I wouldn’t be surprised by zombie animals?” Because in case you haven’t noticed, “It’s like every time you say 2020 sucks 2020 says hold my beer,” tweets Brett Molina.  Problem solved though: Steve Burgess shares, “Hiya folks, it’s your old pal Willy from Willy’s Weasel and Ferret World here. You got problems with diseased minks emerging from the grave? Not anymore you ain’t. Call Willy’s at 1-800-SINK-A-MINK and stoat relaxin!’”
Maybe that Utah monolith isn’t just art… Happy Thanksgiving! | 
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