csmonitor--2020-12-09--The best nonfiction books of 2020 offer wisdom and insight

Curious minds deserve insightful books , and there was no shortage of excellent titles this year .
Here is the Monitor ’ s list of superlative nonfiction books published in 2020 , from histories to memoirs and everything in between .
In her stirring follow-up to “ The Warmth of Other Suns , ” Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson persuasively argues that racism alone does not explain America ’ s social divisions .
Rather , the United States ought to be understood as having a race-based caste system , one whose hierarchies , though artificial , are remarkably enduring .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and comprehensive biography of Sen. Joseph McCarthy , the polarizing spearhead of the Red Scare of the 1950s and – Tye contends – the origin of some disturbing features in our 21st-century political landscape .
“ In the future , everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes , ” Andy Warhol is credited with saying .
But there is nothing fleeting about his legacy as an artist , filmmaker , and self-created pop-culture phenomenon .
His life and work are examined in detail in Blake Gopnik ’ s biography .
Warhol devotees will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ receive an education in all things Andy .
Colin Woodard tells not the story of how America became a nation , but rather of how America crafted its own version of its national history , and how that national mythology has changed over the decades .
“ Stories of the Sahara ” by Sanmao As a Chinese woman born in 1943 , Sanmao was a pioneering global citizen .
These 20 essays about living in one of the harshest areas of the world in the 1970s are testimony to her audacity and courage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Citizen : An American Lyric ” with a brilliant and timely examination of whiteness in America .
This consciousness-raising , bravura combination of personal essays , poems , photographs , and cultural commentary works on so many levels and is a skyscraper in the literature on racism .
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Barton Gellman writes an insider account of the breaking of Edward Snowden ’ s story and its wider implications for the modern world , all told in prose as gripping as a spy thriller .
The poems of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow aren @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the first major biography of the fabled New England poet in many years , Nicholas A. Basbanes argues that Longfellow is making a comeback .
His exhaustively researched account of Longfellow ’ s career should give that reappraisal a boost .
Carl Safina looks at three species – the sperm whale , the scarlet macaw , and the chimpanzee – to chart all the ways they build and sustain their societies .
He explores how those cultures echo and differ from our own .
U.N. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld was negotiating an end @ @ @ @ @ @ @ died in a plane crash in 1961 .
To this day , many believe he was assassinated .
Journalist Ravi Somaiya explores one of the most compelling mysteries of the Cold War in this grim and absorbing book .
Abraham Lincoln had less than a year of formal education ; he has often been portrayed as inexperienced and unprepared to lead .
David S. Reynolds ’ monumental , reverential biography rejects that narrative , arguing that Lincoln ’ s immersion in the high and low culture of 19th-century America , along with his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ steer the Union through the Civil War .
This riveting , cinematic biography of America ’ s longest-serving first lady spans Eleanor Roosevelt ’ s lonely childhood , her frosty marriage to FDR , their White House years , her intimate relationships outside their marriage , and her widowhood , during which she became an advocate for human rights .
In 2012 , a religion scholar announced a discovery : an ancient papyrus fragment that suggested that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene may have been married .
Expanding on his 2016 article for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the story of the papyrus and the couple who tried to pass it off as real .
Renowned biologist and explorer Roman Dial searches for his 27-year-old son , who has gone missing in the jungles of Costa Rica .
Part memoir , part mystery , “ The Adventurer ’ s Son ” is a story of a father ’ s love – for his son , and for the natural world .

Curious minds deserve insightful books, and there was no shortage of excellent titles this year. Here is the Monitor’s list of superlative nonfiction books published in 2020, from histories to memoirs and everything in between.
“Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson
In her stirring follow-up to “The Warmth of Other Suns,” Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson persuasively argues that racism alone does not explain America’s social divisions. Rather, the United States ought to be understood as having a race-based caste system, one whose hierarchies, though artificial, are remarkably enduring.
“Demagogue” by Larry Tye
Courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt View caption Hide caption “Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy” by Larry Tye, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 597 pp.
Bestselling biographer Larry Tye writes a long and comprehensive biography of Sen. Joseph McCarthy, the polarizing spearhead of the Red Scare of the 1950s and – Tye contends – the origin of some disturbing features in our 21st-century political landscape.
“Warhol” by Blake Gopnik
“In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes,” Andy Warhol is credited with saying. But there is nothing fleeting about his legacy as an artist, filmmaker, and self-created pop-culture phenomenon. His life and work are examined in detail in Blake Gopnik’s biography. Warhol devotees will rejoice, and more casual readers will receive an education in all things Andy.
“Union” by Colin Woodard
Colin Woodard tells not the story of how America became a nation, but rather of how America crafted its own version of its national history, and how that national mythology has changed over the decades.
“Stories of the Sahara” by Sanmao
Courtesy of Bloomsbury Publishing View caption Hide caption “Stories of the Sahara” by Sanmao, translated from the Chinese by Mike Fu, Bloomsbury, 416 pp.
As a Chinese woman born in 1943, Sanmao was a pioneering global citizen. These 20 essays about living in one of the harshest areas of the world in the 1970s are testimony to her audacity and courage.
“Just Us” by Claudia Rankine
Claudia Rankine follows her prize-winning “Citizen: An American Lyric” with a brilliant and timely examination of whiteness in America. This consciousness-raising, bravura combination of personal essays, poems, photographs, and cultural commentary works on so many levels and is a skyscraper in the literature on racism.
“Dark Mirror” by Barton Gellman
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Barton Gellman writes an insider account of the breaking of Edward Snowden’s story and its wider implications for the modern world, all told in prose as gripping as a spy thriller.
“Cross of Snow” by Nicholas A. Basbanes
Courtesy of Penguin Random House View caption Hide caption “Cross of Snow: A Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow” by Nicholas A. Basbanes, Alfred A. Knopf, 465 pp.
The poems of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow aren’t in fashion today, but in the first major biography of the fabled New England poet in many years, Nicholas A. Basbanes argues that Longfellow is making a comeback. His exhaustively researched account of Longfellow’s career should give that reappraisal a boost.
“Becoming Wild” by Carl Safina
Carl Safina looks at three species – the sperm whale, the scarlet macaw, and the chimpanzee – to chart all the ways they build and sustain their societies. He explores how those cultures echo and differ from our own.
“The Golden Thread” by Ravi Somaiya
U.N. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld was negotiating an end to the Congolese civil war when he died in a plane crash in 1961. To this day, many believe he was assassinated. Journalist Ravi Somaiya explores one of the most compelling mysteries of the Cold War in this grim and absorbing book.
“Abe” by David S. Reynolds
Abraham Lincoln had less than a year of formal education; he has often been portrayed as inexperienced and unprepared to lead. David S. Reynolds’ monumental, reverential biography rejects that narrative, arguing that Lincoln’s immersion in the high and low culture of 19th-century America, along with his deep moral convictions, equipped him to steer the Union through the Civil War.
“Eleanor” by David Michaelis
This riveting, cinematic biography of America’s longest-serving first lady spans Eleanor Roosevelt’s lonely childhood, her frosty marriage to FDR, their White House years, her intimate relationships outside their marriage, and her widowhood, during which she became an advocate for human rights.
“Veritas” by Ariel Sabar
Penguin Random House View caption Hide caption “Veritas: A Harvard Professor, a Con Man and the Gospel of Jesus's Wife” by Ariel Sabar, Doubleday, 416 pp.
In 2012, a religion scholar announced a discovery: an ancient papyrus fragment that suggested that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene may have been married. Expanding on his 2016 article for The Atlantic, Ariel Sabar digs into the story of the papyrus and the couple who tried to pass it off as real.
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“The Adventurer’s Son” by Roman Dial
Renowned biologist and explorer Roman Dial searches for his 27-year-old son, who has gone missing in the jungles of Costa Rica. Part memoir, part mystery, “The Adventurer’s Son” is a story of a father’s love – for his son, and for the natural world.


csmonitor--2020-12-09--See the world differently with the best fiction books of 2020

Stories offer a chance to understand the world , and the Monitor ’ s picks for the best fiction books of 2020 offer clarity and insight .
From cozy mysteries to studies on the immigrant experience , there ’ s something for everyone on this list .
A Sri Lankan man living as an unauthorized immigrant in Australia discovers that he holds key information in a murder case .
But if he goes to the authorities to reveal the killer , he will also reveal himself .
Aravind Adiga unfolds a compelling story that pits self-interest against conscience .
Irish-born @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the home life of William Shakespeare in a historical novel named for the playwright ’ s son , whose death at age 11 may have prompted his father to write “ Hamlet.
” O ’ Farrell extrapolates a very thin historical record into an imaginative , sensitive , and believable story .
Nora ’ s life is burdened by regrets .
Then she stumbles on a library with books that enable her to test out the lives she could have led .
Her discoveries prove life-affirming in Matt Haig ’ s dazzling fantasy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Army crosses paths with an Irish woman , the indentured servant of a Union officer .
When the South surrenders and Simon immerses himself in his music , he still longs for her .
Beautifully told with lyrical descriptions , the novel illuminates the everyday struggles of the era .
New York City after the 2008 financial collapse provides the setting for Christopher Beha ’ s modern-day morality tale in which algorithmic thinking clashes with impulsiveness .
Cleverly written with poetic overtones , the narrative provides engaging twists and turns .
“ All @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Penny Inspector Gamache endeavors to uncover a sinister web of crime in the City of Light , ignited by the attempted hit-and-run of his beloved godfather .
Sparkling with psychological suspense , secrets , danger , and levity , this masterful addition to Louise Penny ’ s “ Three Pines ” crime mystery series also celebrates the enduring gift of love and family .
Readers needn ’ t be fans of “ Pride and Prejudice ” to enjoy this novel in which Mary , the middle sister in the Jane Austen classic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s a historical novel for contemporary times .
Ayad Akhtar ’ s novel is a tour de force that mixes personal narrative , political history , and social commentary .
Tracing the corrosive effects of scorched-earth political rhetoric and late capitalism , Akhtar explores subjects as far-ranging as the leveraging of debt , the corporatization of health care , and the state of higher education today , through his family ’ s fierce debates and experiences .
The backdrop for this charming and cleverly written “ cozy mystery ” is an upscale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the septuagenarians tackle cold cases , but when one of the developers of their community is murdered , the little club looks for answers .
Twin sisters take very different paths in this gripping exploration of race , identity , and the meaning of home .
A poignant combination of mystery and history , the novel moves briskly while addressing issues of great weight .
While the plot occasionally hinges on unlikely coincidences and surprises , the same could be said for the nation and the times that are chronicled in this book @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her award-winning debut , “ Homegoing , ” with the affecting story of Ghanaian immigrants struggling to realize the American dream in the face of racism and the opioid crisis .
Told by the daughter , Gifty , it is also the story of a young woman ’ s spiritual journey to reconcile her calling as a neuroscientist with her evangelical Christian faith .

Stories offer a chance to understand the world, and the Monitor’s picks for the best fiction books of 2020 offer clarity and insight. From cozy mysteries to studies on the immigrant experience, there’s something for everyone on this list.
“Amnesty” by Aravind Adiga
Courtesy of Simon & Schuster View caption Hide caption “Amnesty” by Aravind Adiga, Scribner, 256 pp.
A Sri Lankan man living as an unauthorized immigrant in Australia discovers that he holds key information in a murder case. But if he goes to the authorities to reveal the killer, he will also reveal himself. Aravind Adiga unfolds a compelling story that pits self-interest against conscience.
“Hamnet” by Maggie O’Farrell
Irish-born writer Maggie O’Farrell vividly renders the home life of William Shakespeare in a historical novel named for the playwright’s son, whose death at age 11 may have prompted his father to write “Hamlet.” O’Farrell extrapolates a very thin historical record into an imaginative, sensitive, and believable story.
“The Midnight Library” by Matt Haig
Nora’s life is burdened by regrets. Then she stumbles on a library with books that enable her to test out the lives she could have led. Her discoveries prove life-affirming in Matt Haig’s dazzling fantasy.
“Simon the Fiddler” by Paulette Jiles
Courtesy of HarperCollins View caption Hide caption “Simon the Fiddler” by Paulette Jiles, William Morrow, 352 pp.
A fiddler conscripted into the Confederate Army crosses paths with an Irish woman, the indentured servant of a Union officer. When the South surrenders and Simon immerses himself in his music, he still longs for her. Beautifully told with lyrical descriptions, the novel illuminates the everyday struggles of the era.
“The Index of Self-Destructive Acts” by Christopher Beha
New York City after the 2008 financial collapse provides the setting for Christopher Beha’s modern-day morality tale in which algorithmic thinking clashes with impulsiveness. Cleverly written with poetic overtones, the narrative provides engaging twists and turns.
“All the Devils Are Here” by Louise Penny
Inspector Gamache endeavors to uncover a sinister web of crime in the City of Light, ignited by the attempted hit-and-run of his beloved godfather. Sparkling with psychological suspense, secrets, danger, and levity, this masterful addition to Louise Penny’s “Three Pines” crime mystery series also celebrates the enduring gift of love and family.
“The Other Bennet Sister” by Janice Hadlow
Courtesy of Macmillan Publishers View caption Hide caption “The Other Bennet Sister” by Janice Hadlow, Henry Holt and Company, 463 pp.
Readers needn’t be fans of “Pride and Prejudice” to enjoy this novel in which Mary, the middle sister in the Jane Austen classic, steps out of the shadows. It’s a historical novel for contemporary times.
“Homeland Elegies” by Ayad Akhtar
Ayad Akhtar’s novel is a tour de force that mixes personal narrative, political history, and social commentary. Tracing the corrosive effects of scorched-earth political rhetoric and late capitalism, Akhtar explores subjects as far-ranging as the leveraging of debt, the corporatization of health care, and the state of higher education today, through his family’s fierce debates and experiences.
“The Thursday Murder Club” by Richard Osman
The backdrop for this charming and cleverly written “cozy mystery” is an upscale British retirement community. At first, the septuagenarians tackle cold cases, but when one of the developers of their community is murdered, the little club looks for answers.
“The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett
Courtesy of Penguin Random House View caption Hide caption “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett, Riverhead Books, 343 pp.
Twin sisters take very different paths in this gripping exploration of race, identity, and the meaning of home. A poignant combination of mystery and history, the novel moves briskly while addressing issues of great weight. While the plot occasionally hinges on unlikely coincidences and surprises, the same could be said for the nation and the times that are chronicled in this book.
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“Transcendent Kingdom” by Yaa Gyasi
Ghana-born American writer Yaa Gyasi follows her award-winning debut, “Homegoing,” with the affecting story of Ghanaian immigrants struggling to realize the American dream in the face of racism and the opioid crisis. Told by the daughter, Gifty, it is also the story of a young woman’s spiritual journey to reconcile her calling as a neuroscientist with her evangelical Christian faith.


csmonitor--2020-12-09--Trump's stimulus check offer shakes up COVID-19 relief talks

The Trump administration dove back into Capitol Hill ’ s confusing COVID-19 negotiations on Tuesday , offering a $ 916 billion package to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that would send a $ 600 direct payment to most Americans – but eliminate a $ 300 per week in extra employment benefits favored by a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators .
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made the offer to Ms. Pelosi late Tuesday afternoon , he said in a statement .
He offered few details , though House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy said it proposes the $ 600 direct payment for individuals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is half the payment delivered by the March pandemic relief bill .
Mr. Mnuchin reached out to Ms. Pelosi after a call with top congressional GOP leaders , including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , who remains at odds with Democratic leaders over COVID-19 relief .
Ms. Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y. , responded to Mr. Mnuchin ’ s entreaty with a statement that said they would prefer to let a bipartisan group take the lead .
The bipartisan group , led by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska , among others , is seeking to rally lawmakers in both parties behind a $ 908 billion framework that includes a $ 300-per-week pandemic jobless benefit and $ 160 billion for states and local governments .
It is more generous than a GOP plan that ’ s been filibustered twice already but far smaller than a wish list assembled by House Democrats .
Mr. McConnell had earlier proposed shelving a top Democratic priority – aid to state and local governments – in exchange for dropping his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lawsuits for COVID-related negligence .
Democrats angrily rejected the idea , saying Mr. McConnell was undermining the efforts of a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators and reneging on earlier statements that state and local aid would likely have to be an element of a COVID-19 relief agreement given Democratic control of the House .
The $ 916 billion Mr. Mnuchin offer , the separate ongoing talks among key rank-and-file senators , and the shifting demands by the White House all add up to muddled , confusing prospects for a long-delayed COVID-19 aid package @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – all sides say failure isn ’ t an option .
The Mnuchin plan resurrects direct payments that are popular with President Donald Trump and the public but which are disliked by many Republican lawmakers who say they are costly and send too much aid to people who do not need it .
Democrats generally embrace the idea .
“ Right now we ’ re targeting struggling families , failing businesses , health care workers , and we don ’ t have a stimulus check to every single person , regardless of need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ McConnell said Congress will not adjourn without providing the long-overdue COVID-19 relief .
He had previously said he would not put any pandemic relief bill on the floor that does not include the liability shield , which is being sought by businesses , universities , nonprofits , and others that are reopening during the pandemic .
“ Leaving here without a COVID relief package can not happen , ” Mr. McConnell said .
“ Why don ’ t we set aside the two obviously most contentious issues .
We know we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the first of the year .
We ’ ll live to fight those another day.
” Top Senate Democrat Schumer immediately rejected the entreaty , saying the state and local relief is sought by many Republicans , too , including some conservatives like Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Mitt Romney of Utah .
Ms. Pelosi blasted Mr. McConnell ’ s offer as an attempt to undercut the bipartisan group whose framework she supports as a foundation for the negotiations .
Ms. Pelosi initially demanded more than $ 900 billion for state and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fiscal situation in the states hasn ’ t been as bad as feared and Democratic leaders could be willing to accept a $ 160 billion proposal by the moderate group .
Already , Capitol Hill leaders are moving a government shutdown deadline to the end of next week , but progress is slow and key decisions are yet to be made .
The House has scheduled a vote on a one-week temporary government funding bill for Wednesday .
Without the measure , the government would shut down this weekend .
Separately , Ms. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Shelby , R-Ala. , spoke by phone on Monday to try to kick start talks on a separate $ 1.4 trillion government-wide spending bill .
That measure is held up over issues like protections for the sage grouse , the census , and accounting maneuvers being employed by lawmakers to squeeze $ 12 billion more into the legislation .
Mr. McConnell initially proposed a sweeping five-year liability shield , retroactive to December 2019 , to protect companies and organizations from COVID-19-related lawsuits .
Democrats , along with their allies in labor and civil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a danger to workers .
And there hasn ’ t been a wave of lawsuits .
“ Contrary to the majority leader ’ s dire predictions , there has been no flood of COVID lawsuits .
In fact , quite the opposite , ” said Mr. Schumer .
“ Far from the pandemic of lawsuits , there ’ s barely been a trickle.
” This story was reported by The Associated Press .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

The Trump administration dove back into Capitol Hill’s confusing COVID-19 negotiations on Tuesday, offering a $916 billion package to
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that would send a $600 direct payment to most Americans – but eliminate a $300 per week in extra employment benefits favored by a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made the offer to Ms. Pelosi late Tuesday afternoon, he said in a statement. He offered few details, though House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy said it proposes the $600 direct payment for individuals and $1,200 for couples, which is half the payment delivered by the March pandemic relief bill.
Mr. Mnuchin reached out to Ms. Pelosi after a call with top congressional GOP leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who remains at odds with Democratic leaders over COVID-19 relief. Ms. Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., responded to Mr. Mnuchin’s entreaty with a statement that said they would prefer to let a bipartisan group take the lead.
The bipartisan group, led by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and GOP Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, among others, is seeking to rally lawmakers in both parties behind a $908 billion framework that includes a $300-per-week pandemic jobless benefit and $160 billion for states and local governments. It is more generous than a GOP plan that’s been filibustered twice already but far smaller than a wish list assembled by House Democrats.
Mr. McConnell had earlier proposed shelving a top Democratic priority – aid to state and local governments – in exchange for dropping his own pet provision, a shield against lawsuits for COVID-related negligence. Democrats angrily rejected the idea, saying Mr. McConnell was undermining the efforts of a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators and reneging on earlier statements that state and local aid would likely have to be an element of a COVID-19 relief agreement given Democratic control of the House.
The $916 billion Mr. Mnuchin offer, the separate ongoing talks among key rank-and-file senators, and the shifting demands by the White House all add up to muddled, confusing prospects for a long-delayed COVID-19 aid package. The pressure to deliver is intense – all sides say failure isn’t an option.
The Mnuchin plan resurrects direct payments that are popular with President Donald Trump and the public but which are disliked by many Republican lawmakers who say they are costly and send too much aid to people who do not need it. Democrats generally embrace the idea.
“Right now we’re targeting struggling families, failing businesses, health care workers, and we don’t have a stimulus check to every single person, regardless of need,” said Ms. Collins.
Mr. McConnell said Congress will not adjourn without providing the long-overdue COVID-19 relief. He had previously said he would not put any pandemic relief bill on the floor that does not include the liability shield, which is being sought by businesses, universities, nonprofits, and others that are reopening during the pandemic.
“Leaving here without a COVID relief package cannot happen,” Mr. McConnell said. “Why don’t we set aside the two obviously most contentious issues. We know we’re going to be confronted with another request after the first of the year. We’ll live to fight those another day.”
Top Senate Democrat Schumer immediately rejected the entreaty, saying the state and local relief is sought by many Republicans, too, including some conservatives like Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Mitt Romney of Utah. Ms. Pelosi blasted Mr. McConnell’s offer as an attempt to undercut the bipartisan group whose framework she supports as a foundation for the negotiations.
Ms. Pelosi initially demanded more than $900 billion for state and local governments this spring, but the fiscal situation in the states hasn’t been as bad as feared and Democratic leaders could be willing to accept a $160 billion proposal by the moderate group.
Already, Capitol Hill leaders are moving a government shutdown deadline to the end of next week, but progress is slow and key decisions are yet to be made. The House has scheduled a vote on a one-week temporary government funding bill for Wednesday. Without the measure, the government would shut down this weekend.
Separately, Ms. Pelosi and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., spoke by phone on Monday to try to kick start talks on a separate $1.4 trillion government-wide spending bill. That measure is held up over issues like protections for the sage grouse, the census, and accounting maneuvers being employed by lawmakers to squeeze $12 billion more into the legislation.
Mr. McConnell initially proposed a sweeping five-year liability shield, retroactive to December 2019, to protect companies and organizations from COVID-19-related lawsuits. Democrats, along with their allies in labor and civil rights groups, roundly dismissed that approach as a danger to workers. And there hasn’t been a wave of lawsuits.
“Contrary to the majority leader’s dire predictions, there has been no flood of COVID lawsuits. In fact, quite the opposite,” said Mr. Schumer. “Far from the pandemic of lawsuits, there’s barely been a trickle.”
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This story was reported by The Associated Press.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-12-10--Flappers said ‘baloney!’ to the idea that slang was for men

We ’ re practically a whole year into the 2020s and I still haven ’ t talked about “ flapperese , ” the language of those icons of the 1920s , the flappers .
I ’ ll stop being such a wet blanket and remedy that right now .
Flappers were the successors to the suffragists , bent on enjoying new social freedoms after women had secured the legal right to vote .
They delighted in scandals that would shock few people today – they bobbed their hair , showed their knees in public ( with their stockings turned down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also self-consciously created their own slang , breaking down the linguistic orthodoxy of the time that held slang to be the province of men .
In 1922 , linguist Otto Jespersen laid out his views on how gender affects language change .
Women displayed an “ instinctive shrinking from coarse and gross expressions ” ; men “ want to avoid what is commonplace and banal and replace it by new and fresh expressions.
” In his view , women might coin euphemisms to avoid unpleasantness , but men were responsible for slang , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vitality of language could be found .
Flappers said baloney !
to Professor Jespersen and created or popularized slang words of their own , making 1920s English a lot less blah .
They published several glossaries , such as “ A Flapper ’ s Dictionary ” ( 1922 ) and a short-lived monthly magazine , The Flapper , leaving us a record of this ephemeral language , flapperese .
The most famous flapper phrases are probably the cat ’ s pajamas and the cat ’ s meow .
Both mean “ excellent , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as in “ Oh , I love her – she ’ s the cat ’ s pajamas !
” The formula “ animal + body part or piece of clothing = ‘ excellent ’ ” was endlessly productive .
You could have the oyster ’ s earring , the sardine ’ s whiskers , the bee ’ s knees , and so on .
Flappers were the first to go on blind dates , with men they had been introduced to but didn ’ t know personally .
They could tell when things @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” ) , knew not to take any wooden nickels , and felt confident in telling censorious elders to mind your own beeswax .
This slang contains plenty of evaluative words for men : a dud is boring , a big-timer charming , a corn-shredder one who dances on his partner ’ s feet , and a 10-minute egg is hard-boiled or tough .
But flapperese lacks a word for the flapper ’ s male counterpart .
The closest term is probably flipper , but , as the name suggests , he was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the flapper .
This likely reflects an actual dearth of young men : World War I and the 1918 flu epidemic had concluded not long before .
But it also reveals the female-focused nature of flapperdom , and of its slang .

We’re practically a whole year into the 2020s and I still haven’t talked about “flapperese,” the language of those icons of the 1920s, the flappers. I’ll stop being such a wet blanket and remedy that right now.
Flappers were the successors to the suffragists, bent on enjoying new social freedoms after women had secured the legal right to vote. They delighted in scandals that would shock few people today – they bobbed their hair, showed their knees in public (with their stockings turned down), and drove cars. They also self-consciously created their own slang, breaking down the linguistic orthodoxy of the time that held slang to be the province of men.
In 1922, linguist Otto Jespersen laid out his views on how gender affects language change. Women displayed an “instinctive shrinking from coarse and gross expressions”; men “want to avoid what is commonplace and banal and replace it by new and fresh expressions.” In his view, women might coin euphemisms to avoid unpleasantness, but men were responsible for slang, where the vibrancy, creativity, and vitality of language could be found.
Flappers said baloney! to Professor Jespersen and created or popularized slang words of their own, making 1920s English a lot less blah. They published several glossaries, such as “A Flapper’s Dictionary” (1922) and a short-lived monthly magazine, The Flapper, leaving us a record of this ephemeral language, flapperese.
The most famous flapper phrases are probably the cat’s pajamas and the cat’s meow. Both mean “excellent,” or “the best,” as in “Oh, I love her – she’s the cat’s pajamas!” The formula “animal + body part or piece of clothing = ‘excellent’” was endlessly productive. You could have the oyster’s earring, the sardine’s whiskers, the bee’s knees, and so on.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
Flappers were the first to go on blind dates, with men they had been introduced to but didn’t know personally. They could tell when things were copacetic (“going just right”), knew not to take any wooden nickels, and felt confident in telling censorious elders to mind your own beeswax.
This slang contains plenty of evaluative words for men: a dud is boring, a big-timer charming, a corn-shredder one who dances on his partner’s feet, and a 10-minute egg is hard-boiled or tough. But flapperese lacks a word for the flapper’s male counterpart. The closest term is probably flipper, but, as the name suggests, he was a sort of auxiliary, an appendage to the flapper. This likely reflects an actual dearth of young men: World War I and the 1918 flu epidemic had concluded not long before. But it also reveals the female-focused nature of flapperdom, and of its slang.


csmonitor--2020-12-10--As pandemic surges, where do ‘front-liners,’ business owners find hope?

“ What I think the pandemic has shown above all is you have to take care of each other , ” Dr. Lu says .
“ We ’ re all connected.
” Dr. Jessica Lu in Seattle uses remote calls with her nursing-home patients to help alleviate their social isolation .
Patients can sometimes help her , too .
After Dr. Lu asked a few questions of one younger patient , the woman flipped the script .
“ Hey , Dr. Lu , ” she said , “ how are you doing ?
” “ We ’ re continuing to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did before – to be the perfect parent , the perfect worker , the perfect student , ” says Wendy Dean , a psychiatrist and co-founder of a nonprofit group supporting health care workers .
“ People have to find a way to have forgiveness for themselves and recognize that they ’ re doing the very best they can.
” Where does a person find hope ?
From emergency rooms to retail shops and virtual classrooms , some common answers involve building human connections and managing expectations .
Amid a new surge of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ others are facing a toll that ’ s emotional and mental as well as physical .
A public defender in San Diego marvels at the resolve of her clients .
A doctor in Providence , Rhode Island , draws strength from the stamina of her emergency room colleagues .
A bookstore owner in Minneapolis gives thanks for the loyalty of his customers .
A middle school teacher in Los Angeles cherishes the enthusiasm of her students .
Nine months into the coronavirus pandemic , as the number of cases soars , the economy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ come unstuck , they face the same obvious yet complicated question that shadows each of us : Where does a person find hope ?
Their answers , if varying in details , revolve around the common theme of connection .
Our daily interactions – deprived of spontaneity and typically filtered through masks , Zoom , or both – remain a source of reassurance as the uncertain present lurches toward a blurred future .
“ There is a sense of being in the foxhole together , ” says Dr. Megan Ranney , an emergency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ referring to her fellow health care workers .
“ It sometimes feels like we ’ re in a war for our patients and for ourselves .
That tightens the bond.
” Still , even for the most resilient among us , persevering week after week in our socially distant existence poses a struggle as another round of stay-at-home orders hits several states .
The country ’ s vast political divide further inflames our grievances as officials at every level send conflicting messages about the pandemic , giving rise to personal distrust and , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ damage inflicted to the spirit and a loss of faith in others can contribute to people experiencing moral injury .
Mental health experts describe the condition as a “ wound to the soul ” that exhausts an individual ’ s emotional reserves and provokes intense doubts about life ’ s worth .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , we have removed our paywall for all pandemic-related stories .
Mending that internal rupture requires a deliberate effort to reassess our expectations and search for purpose as we await the post-pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a psychiatrist and co-founder of the nonprofit group Moral Injury of Healthcare .
“ All of us have the need to feel normal , ” she says .
“ But we ’ re continuing to demand as much of ourselves as we did before – to be the perfect parent , the perfect worker , the perfect student .
People have to find a way to have forgiveness for themselves and recognize that they ’ re doing the very best they can.
” Dr. Ranney has learned to downshift from the 18-hour workdays @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the outbreak .
Yet as cases spike again , the vitriol aimed at doctors and nurses by those who question the severity of the disease – or its existence – marks an unsettling contrast to spring , when the country united in lauding front-line responders .
“ It ’ s a very dark , difficult time for health care workers , who are working at the edge of their physical and emotional capacity , ” she says .
More than 1,400 providers have died from the coronavirus , and thousands more have chosen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sometimes feels like we ’ re the Little Dutch Boy .
We ’ re trying to keep our finger in the dike to stop that dam from breaking – and now we ’ re having tomatoes thrown at us and being told we ’ re making this up.
” Moral injury , a term most often linked to veterans of military conflict , occurs when individuals commit , fail to prevent , or witness an act that violates their ethical beliefs , or when those in positions of authority betray their trust .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ toll that lingers can at once distort self-identity and sow suspicion or disdain of others .
A new report from National Nurses United examines risk factors for moral injury among medical providers as the pandemic drags on .
The list includes inadequate preparation by and support from government agencies and health care employers , lack of social support , and emotional trauma related to the deaths of patients .
Beyond the failures of public and hospital officials , the backlash from large numbers of Americans and limits on hospital visits deepen the plight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the loved ones of patients stricken by the virus .
“ The feeling of betrayal is one thing , ” Dr. Dean says .
“ But there ’ s also this feeling of ‘ I can ’ t do it all .
I can ’ t pull this train by myself.
’ We ’ re asking them to take care of people where prevention has fallen short – and in some cases has been ignored – and we ’ re also asking them to bear witness for all of us.
” Dr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through public advocacy and private diversions .
She serves as a medical analyst for CNN , offering insight into the hardships of front-line responders , and works with Get Us PPE , a nonprofit she co-founded that provides free personal protective equipment to medical organizations .
The mother of two young children , she exhales at home by watching “ The Mandalorian ” with her son and “ Gilmore Girls ” with her daughter , and by taking occasional turns on the family trampoline .
Weekend hikes with her husband and kids allow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s orbit .
The perils and pressures of work aside , Dr. Ranney nurtures a cautious optimism , encouraged by the prospect of a vaccine and a cohesive pandemic plan from President-elect Joe Biden .
“ This is the most urgent public health crisis of our time , ” she says .
“ I ’ m honored I get to do what I do .
It is an absolute privilege.
” A similar sense of dedication and gratitude sustains Dr. Jessica Lu , a third-year family medical resident at University of Washington @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Seattle .
Many of her patients live in nursing homes , and while safety measures preclude in-person visits with most of them , Zoom calls enable her to alleviate their social isolation .
“ From the beginning of the pandemic , I ’ ve recognized how fortunate I am to do the job I ’ m doing , ” she says .
“ That kind of satisfaction keeps me going.
” Dr. Lu holds measured hope that the country ’ s ordeal might persuade coronavirus skeptics to discard “ brute individualism ” as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I think the pandemic has shown above all is you have to take care of each other , ” she says .
“ We ’ re all connected.
” A recent exchange with a patient illustrated that principle in an unexpected way .
She asked a few questions of the young woman , who answered all of them – and then flipped the script .
“ Hey , Dr. Lu , ” she said , “ how are you doing ?
” Her evident sincerity touched the doctor .
“ Every day I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that happens , one little kernel of joy , ” she says .
“ That ’ s how we get through this.
” Tatiana Kline abides by the ethos of empathy in her role as a deputy public defender in San Diego .
The pandemic prevents her and her colleagues from meeting with clients , who languish behind bars as courts delay hearings and trials , increasing their risk of exposure .
An estimated 227,000 inmates in jails and prisons nationwide have contracted COVID-19 , and nearly 1,600 have died .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to our clients , ” she says .
Most of her conversations with them now occur via video conference and phone calls .
“ You miss having that personal touch – shaking hands , looking them in the eye – because that helps make them feel human in a system that doesn ’ t treat them that way.
” When Ms. Kline realized earlier this year that colleagues shared her frustration , she started a virtual wellness program , creating a space for them to discuss their concerns and methods for coping .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to aiding clients , most of whom live along the socioeconomic margins , and she intends to continue the program after the office reopens .
“ Almost everybody feels like they ’ re in limbo right now , ” she says .
“ This is a way to help us keep going forward and advocating for the people we represent.
” A desire to persist motivates Jamie Schwesnedl , who with his wife , Angela , owns Moon Palace Books in Minneapolis .
The shop stands a block from a police station that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ George Floyd ’ s death at the hands of officers on Memorial Day .
During the demonstrations , Mr. Schwesnedl and his employees posted a large sign in the store ’ s upper windows that read “ Abolish The Police , ” a signal of their support for the community .
Moon Palace escaped the charred fate of dozens of nearby businesses that remain in ruins , and the neighborhood has rallied to the shop ’ s cause .
The Schwesnedls , while forced to cut their staff from 41 to 12 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic and protests on the strength of online sales and takeout orders from the store ’ s cafe .
“ People with small businesses are asking themselves , ‘ Should I keep doing this or should I completely reevaluate my life ?
’ ” Mr. Schwesnedl says .
He laughs before adding , “ But you don ’ t have a chance to think about it because you ’ re trying to keep your business afloat.
” Beneath his dark humor lies an economic horror story .
One recent study found that more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March and mid-July .
A Harvard University database shows that 29 % of the country ’ s small businesses have shut down since January .
Mr. Schwesnedl knows that , without healthy holiday sales and new federal stimulus funding , Moon Palace might join the ranks of defunct bookstores .
“ But we ’ re doing what we love , ” he says , “ and the idea that things could improve in 2021 has helped keep us going.
” He laughs again .
“ Besides , what are the options ?
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s view on adapting to pandemic upheaval .
She teaches science to seventh- and eighth-graders at Daniel Webster Middle School in Los Angeles , and since switching to online classes , she has found her students more attentive and engaged .
At the same time , the discretion of private messages has reduced their reluctance to share personal troubles with her , giving her a chance to enlist counselors or tutors when necessary .
“ What I ’ ve seen with being online is that it ’ s a very equal setting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lot of them , ” she says .
“ It ’ s helping build their confidence.
” Early research into remote learning draws less promising conclusions , with studies suggesting that online instruction could magnify disparities in academic performance and cause students to lose as much as 12 months of learning by the end of this school year .
Ms. Levin , a teacher for more than three decades , understands that the pandemic presents academic and emotional obstacles for her students .
When they raise questions about the outbreak , she tends @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , discussing progress on a vaccine or the public health rationale for wearing masks .
On other occasions , if she detects a collective unease , she might propose a virtual group hike to soothe their anxieties , and the class will set off online through a forest or along a river .
Her approach – with students and to life – balances a trust in the primacy of facts with an awareness of the solace that imagination provides .
“ I know from a science standpoint that things will get better , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have an innate optimism that things will get better.
” Now she ’ s just waiting for the science to catch up with the optimism .

“What I think the pandemic has shown above all is you have to take care of each other,” Dr. Lu says. “We’re all connected.”
Dr. Jessica Lu in Seattle uses remote calls with her nursing-home patients to help alleviate their social isolation. Patients can sometimes help her, too. After Dr. Lu asked a few questions of one younger patient, the woman flipped the script. “Hey, Dr. Lu,” she said, “how are you doing?”
“We’re continuing to demand as much of ourselves as we did before – to be the perfect parent, the perfect worker, the perfect student,” says Wendy Dean, a psychiatrist and co-founder of a nonprofit group supporting health care workers. “People have to find a way to have forgiveness for themselves and recognize that they’re doing the very best they can.”
The coronavirus outbreak has inflicted an emotional toll that can extend to what’s known as moral injury. Many people are seeking the perspective – and the human connections – to address a hope deficit.
Where does a person find hope? From emergency rooms to retail shops and virtual classrooms, some common answers involve building human connections and managing expectations.
Amid a new surge of coronavirus cases, many front-line workers and others are facing a toll that’s emotional and mental as well as physical.
A public defender in San Diego marvels at the resolve of her clients. A doctor in Providence, Rhode Island, draws strength from the stamina of her emergency room colleagues. A bookstore owner in Minneapolis gives thanks for the loyalty of his customers. A middle school teacher in Los Angeles cherishes the enthusiasm of her students.
Nine months into the coronavirus pandemic, as the number of cases soars, the economy sputters, and everyday life refuses to come unstuck, they face the same obvious yet complicated question that shadows each of us: Where does a person find hope?
Their answers, if varying in details, revolve around the common theme of connection. Our daily interactions – deprived of spontaneity and typically filtered through masks, Zoom, or both – remain a source of reassurance as the uncertain present lurches toward a blurred future.
Why We Wrote This The coronavirus outbreak has inflicted an emotional toll that can extend to what’s known as moral injury. Many people are seeking the perspective – and the human connections – to address a hope deficit.
“There is a sense of being in the foxhole together,” says Dr. Megan Ranney, an emergency physician at Brown University in Providence, referring to her fellow health care workers. “It sometimes feels like we’re in a war for our patients and for ourselves. That tightens the bond.”
Still, even for the most resilient among us, persevering week after week in our socially distant existence poses a struggle as another round of stay-at-home orders hits several states. The country’s vast political divide further inflames our grievances as officials at every level send conflicting messages about the pandemic, giving rise to personal distrust and, at times, public animosity.
The damage inflicted to the spirit and a loss of faith in others can contribute to people experiencing moral injury. Mental health experts describe the condition as a “wound to the soul” that exhausts an individual’s emotional reserves and provokes intense doubts about life’s worth.
Editor’s note: As a public service, we have removed our paywall for all pandemic-related stories.
Mending that internal rupture requires a deliberate effort to reassess our expectations and search for purpose as we await the post-pandemic era, says Dr. Wendy Dean, a psychiatrist and co-founder of the nonprofit group Moral Injury of Healthcare.
“All of us have the need to feel normal,” she says. “But we’re continuing to demand as much of ourselves as we did before – to be the perfect parent, the perfect worker, the perfect student. People have to find a way to have forgiveness for themselves and recognize that they’re doing the very best they can.”
Bearing witness
Dr. Ranney has learned to downshift from the 18-hour workdays she pulled during the early months of the outbreak. Yet as cases spike again, the vitriol aimed at doctors and nurses by those who question the severity of the disease – or its existence – marks an unsettling contrast to spring, when the country united in lauding front-line responders.
John Raoux/AP View caption Hide caption Orange County Fire Rescue workers give out personal protective equipment, consisting of disposable masks and hand sanitizer, free to small businesses in Orlando, Florida, on Dec. 1, 2020. Many businesses nationwide have closed, while others are struggling to survive the pandemic.
“It’s a very dark, difficult time for health care workers, who are working at the edge of their physical and emotional capacity,” she says. More than 1,400 providers have died from the coronavirus, and thousands more have chosen to leave the profession. “It sometimes feels like we’re the Little Dutch Boy. We’re trying to keep our finger in the dike to stop that dam from breaking – and now we’re having tomatoes thrown at us and being told we’re making this up.”
Moral injury, a term most often linked to veterans of military conflict, occurs when individuals commit, fail to prevent, or witness an act that violates their ethical beliefs, or when those in positions of authority betray their trust. The behavioral, emotional, or psychological toll that lingers can at once distort self-identity and sow suspicion or disdain of others.
A new report from National Nurses United examines risk factors for moral injury among medical providers as the pandemic drags on. The list includes inadequate preparation by and support from government agencies and health care employers, lack of social support, and emotional trauma related to the deaths of patients.
Beyond the failures of public and hospital officials, the backlash from large numbers of Americans and limits on hospital visits deepen the plight of providers, who act as proxies for the loved ones of patients stricken by the virus.
“The feeling of betrayal is one thing,” Dr. Dean says. “But there’s also this feeling of ‘I can’t do it all. I can’t pull this train by myself.’ We’re asking them to take care of people where prevention has fallen short – and in some cases has been ignored – and we’re also asking them to bear witness for all of us.”
Dr. Ranney seeks to ease her unseen burdens through public advocacy and private diversions. She serves as a medical analyst for CNN, offering insight into the hardships of front-line responders, and works with Get Us PPE, a nonprofit she co-founded that provides free personal protective equipment to medical organizations.
The mother of two young children, she exhales at home by watching “The Mandalorian” with her son and “Gilmore Girls” with her daughter, and by taking occasional turns on the family trampoline. Weekend hikes with her husband and kids allow her to briefly slip free of anxiety’s orbit.
The perils and pressures of work aside, Dr. Ranney nurtures a cautious optimism, encouraged by the prospect of a vaccine and a cohesive pandemic plan from President-elect Joe Biden. “This is the most urgent public health crisis of our time,” she says. “I’m honored I get to do what I do. It is an absolute privilege.”
“We’re all connected”
A similar sense of dedication and gratitude sustains Dr. Jessica Lu, a third-year family medical resident at University of Washington Medicine, a health care network in Seattle. Many of her patients live in nursing homes, and while safety measures preclude in-person visits with most of them, Zoom calls enable her to alleviate their social isolation.
“From the beginning of the pandemic, I’ve recognized how fortunate I am to do the job I’m doing,” she says. “That kind of satisfaction keeps me going.”
Ben Garver/The Berkshire Eagle/AP View caption Hide caption A pre-kindergarten group from the Boys and Girls Club visit through the window with members of the supportive day care program at the Froio Senior Center in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on Nov. 24, 2020. Human connections, even through barriers or via computers, are helping many people feel more optimism during difficult times.
Dr. Lu holds measured hope that the country’s ordeal might persuade coronavirus skeptics to discard “brute individualism” as a public health policy. “What I think the pandemic has shown above all is you have to take care of each other,” she says. “We’re all connected.”
A recent exchange with a patient illustrated that principle in an unexpected way. She asked a few questions of the young woman, who answered all of them – and then flipped the script. “Hey, Dr. Lu,” she said, “how are you doing?”
Her evident sincerity touched the doctor. “Every day I’m looking for one good thing that happens, one little kernel of joy,” she says. “That’s how we get through this.”
Methods of coping
Tatiana Kline abides by the ethos of empathy in her role as a deputy public defender in San Diego. The pandemic prevents her and her colleagues from meeting with clients, who languish behind bars as courts delay hearings and trials, increasing their risk of exposure. An estimated 227,000 inmates in jails and prisons nationwide have contracted COVID-19, and nearly 1,600 have died.
“The biggest hurdle is not having face-to-face access to our clients,” she says. Most of her conversations with them now occur via video conference and phone calls. “You miss having that personal touch – shaking hands, looking them in the eye – because that helps make them feel human in a system that doesn’t treat them that way.”
When Ms. Kline realized earlier this year that colleagues shared her frustration, she started a virtual wellness program, creating a space for them to discuss their concerns and methods for coping. The conversations serve to reaffirm their devotion to aiding clients, most of whom live along the socioeconomic margins, and she intends to continue the program after the office reopens.
“Almost everybody feels like they’re in limbo right now,” she says. “This is a way to help us keep going forward and advocating for the people we represent.”
The virtue of persistence
A desire to persist motivates Jamie Schwesnedl, who with his wife, Angela, owns Moon Palace Books in Minneapolis. The shop stands a block from a police station that rioters burned down in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death at the hands of officers on Memorial Day.
During the demonstrations, Mr. Schwesnedl and his employees posted a large sign in the store’s upper windows that read “Abolish The Police,” a signal of their support for the community. Moon Palace escaped the charred fate of dozens of nearby businesses that remain in ruins, and the neighborhood has rallied to the shop’s cause. The Schwesnedls, while forced to cut their staff from 41 to 12, have weathered the dual blows of the pandemic and protests on the strength of online sales and takeout orders from the store’s cafe.
“People with small businesses are asking themselves, ‘Should I keep doing this or should I completely reevaluate my life?’” Mr. Schwesnedl says. He laughs before adding, “But you don’t have a chance to think about it because you’re trying to keep your business afloat.”
Beneath his dark humor lies an economic horror story. One recent study found that more than 420,000 small businesses closed nationwide between March and mid-July. A Harvard University database shows that 29% of the country’s small businesses have shut down since January.
Mr. Schwesnedl knows that, without healthy holiday sales and new federal stimulus funding, Moon Palace might join the ranks of defunct bookstores. “But we’re doing what we love,” he says, “and the idea that things could improve in 2021 has helped keep us going.” He laughs again. “Besides, what are the options?”
Mark Lennihan/AP View caption Hide caption Students enter P.S. 134 Henrietta Szold in New York on Dec. 7, 2020. Whether learning is remote or in person, some students share personal troubles that school systems are seeking to address – whether through counseling or efforts by teachers to blend learning with mental breaks.
Facts and imagination
His cleareyed outlook aligns with Michele Levin’s view on adapting to pandemic upheaval. She teaches science to seventh- and eighth-graders at Daniel Webster Middle School in Los Angeles, and since switching to online classes, she has found her students more attentive and engaged. At the same time, the discretion of private messages has reduced their reluctance to share personal troubles with her, giving her a chance to enlist counselors or tutors when necessary.
“What I’ve seen with being online is that it’s a very equal setting that’s less scary for a lot of them,” she says. “It’s helping build their confidence.”
Early research into remote learning draws less promising conclusions, with studies suggesting that online instruction could magnify disparities in academic performance and cause students to lose as much as 12 months of learning by the end of this school year.
Ms. Levin, a teacher for more than three decades, understands that the pandemic presents academic and emotional obstacles for her students. When they raise questions about the outbreak, she tends to respond with answers grounded in science, discussing progress on a vaccine or the public health rationale for wearing masks.
On other occasions, if she detects a collective unease, she might propose a virtual group hike to soothe their anxieties, and the class will set off online through a forest or along a river.
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Her approach – with students and to life – balances a trust in the primacy of facts with an awareness of the solace that imagination provides. “I know from a science standpoint that things will get better,” she says, “and I have an innate optimism that things will get better.”
Now she’s just waiting for the science to catch up with the optimism.


csmonitor--2020-12-10--Trump has asked judges to overturn election. So far, all have declined.

“ Something far more fundamental than the winner of Wisconsin ’ s electoral votes is implicated in this case , ” Judge Hagedorn wrote .
“ At stake , in some measure , is faith in our system of free and fair elections , a feature central to the enduring strength of our constitutional republic.
” In a Wisconsin case nearly identical to the Texas lawsuit , conservative state Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn , a member of the Federalist Society , expressed alarm at the arguments his fellow Republicans were making , calling the desired outcome of nullifying the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most dramatic invocation of judicial power I have ever seen.
” One still remains at the Supreme Court : The state of Texas filed a lawsuit against the states of Pennsylvania , Georgia , Michigan , and Wisconsin , each of which certified their tallies in favor of President-elect Joe Biden , asking the Supreme Court to toss out the votes of millions of Americans and directing their respective legislatures to choose their slates of electors instead .
Legal experts say it is likely to meet the same fate as the other lawsuits @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before state and federal courts the past five weeks , judges reacted with incredulity at the claims Republican lawyers brought before them , and the sheer audacity of their efforts to disenfranchise millions of American voters .
After 35 days of defeat after defeat in state and federal courts , President Donald Trump and his chorus of allies lost their 50th post-election lawsuit on Tuesday .
It was the latest of a furious five-week but so far futile legal effort to convince American judges across the nation to nullify millions of votes in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the winner of the 2020 presidential election .
There was a certain symmetry , if not irony , in the president ’ s 50th loss on Tuesday , also the electoral “ safe harbor day.
” A feature of a dusty 19th-century law that set a deadline of sorts for lingering election disputes , the 1887 act requires Congress to count the electoral votes of states that certified their elections six days before the Electoral College meets .
All but Wisconsin met that deadline , with one more case being heard Thursday .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ United States Supreme Court , whose conservative majority will provide President Trump with one of his most enduring legacies and remains the last-gasp legal hope of those still fighting to keep the president in office , denied a Republican appeal to throw out Pennsylvania ’ s election .
Mr. Trump and his supporters have a success rate of one minor win out of , as of Thursday , 56 rulings in cases they filed .
While it ’ s all but certain that the electors meeting next Monday will reflect the will of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ curtain has not quite been drawn on the five-week opera of American politics in the time of COVID-19 , and the president ’ s leitmotif of election fraud .
The state of Texas filed a lawsuit against the states of Pennsylvania , Georgia , Michigan , and Wisconsin , each of which certified their tallies in favor of President-elect Joe Biden , asking the Supreme Court on Tuesday to toss out the votes of millions of Americans and directing the states ’ respective legislatures to choose their slates of electors instead .
Joined @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Texas lawsuit argues that since the Constitution only vests state legislatures with the authority to appoint presidential electors , any governor or state official who issued any COVID-19-related changes to election procedures would have violated the Constitution .
Seventeen Republican attorneys general signed an amicus brief , and President Trump has requested to intervene in the case .
Such unconstitutional procedural changes during the pandemic , including expanded mail-in voting and extended deadlines , the Texas lawsuit also alleges , only served to relax these states ’ ballot-integrity measures , triggering what it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and fraud .
On Thursday , 20 states , two territories , and the District of Columbia filed an amicus brief siding with the four battleground states , asking the court not to overturn the election , saying , “ The people have chosen.
” Legal experts say the Texas lawsuit will meet the same fate as the other 55 failed lawsuits Republicans brought to state and federal courts over the past five weeks .
For one , the lawsuit is specifically targeted to battleground states that gave a total of 62 electors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gov .
Greg Abbott , too , issued executive orders “ suspending certain statutes ” governing the election , and extended ballot deadlines .
States that joined the Texas lawsuit , including Kansas and Mississippi , also issued orders allowing mail-in ballots arriving late to be counted , even as they argue such orders in the four battleground states were unconstitutional and dangerous triggers of voter fraud .
“ But hypocrisy aside , the suit is also a perfect microcosm for so many of the other cases we ’ ve seen filed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vladeck , professor at the University of Texas School of Law , about the Texas-led effort to invalidate millions of votes .
“ It is lacking in actual evidence ; it is deeply cynical ; it evinces stunning disrespect for both the role of the courts in our constitutional system and of the states in our elections ; and it is doomed to fail.
” In dozens of similar cases brought before state and federal courts the past five weeks , judges reacted with incredulity at the claims Republican lawyers brought before them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts to disenfranchise millions of American voters .
“ It ’ s not just Democrats who are calling these suits garbage , ” says Wilfred Codrington III , professor of law at Brooklyn Law School in New York .
“ It ’ s been across the board .
And I ’ d say that the most emphatic examples that sum up what has been going on with these lawsuits have been Republican judges.
” In a Wisconsin case nearly identical to the Texas lawsuit , conservative state Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ former chief legal counsel to former Republican Gov .
Scott Walker , expressed alarm last week at the arguments his fellow Republicans were making .
“ [ The ] real stunner here is the sought-after remedy , ” Judge Hagedorn wrote .
“ We are invited to invalidate the entire presidential election in Wisconsin by declaring it ‘ null ’ – yes , the whole thing .
And there ’ s more .
We should , we are told , enjoin the Wisconsin Elections Commission from certifying the election so that Wisconsin ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the legislature instead , and then compel the Governor to certify those electors .
“ At least no one can accuse the petitioners of timidity , ” Judge Hagedorn added , noting such a remedy – a court-ordered disenfranchisement of every Wisconsin voter – would appear to be unprecedented in American history .
“ This petition falls far short of the kind of compelling evidence and legal support we would undoubtedly need , ” he said of the Republican arguments , which were full of “ glaring flaws that render the petition woefully @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of three Republican-appointed judges in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals , including Judge Stephanos Bibas , a member of the Federalist Society appointed by President Trump , also emphatically rejected an appeal argued in person by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani .
“ Free , fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy , ” Judge Bibas wrote .
“ Charges of unfairness are serious .
But calling an election unfair does not make it so .
Charges require specific allegations and then proof .
We have neither here.
” Even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mr. Giuliani was seeking a “ breathtaking ” invalidation of millions of votes .
“ Its alchemy can not transmute lead into gold , ” Judge Bibas wrote .
“ The [ Trump ] Campaign never alleges that any ballot was fraudulent or cast by an illegal voter .
It never alleges that any defendant treated the Trump campaign or its votes worse than it treated the Biden campaign or its votes .
Calling something discrimination does not make it so.
” In public , however , Mr. Giuliani , part of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ force ” legal team , has promised to unleash a torrent of evidence that would reach “ biblical ” proportions .
Reverting to a more pagan analogy , lawyer Sidney Powell also famously said that she would “ release the Kraken ” with a four-state lawsuit that would once and for all expose widespread election malfeasance and justify tossing millions of votes in states that voted for Mr. Biden .
All four of those suits have failed .
“ There ’ s this gap between the specific arguments they ’ re making – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the reception of the public arguments they ’ re presenting in public , ” says Claire Finkelstein , professor of law and at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School .
“ So there ’ s this broader phenomenon of a large percentage of that 70 million people who voted for Donald Trump being actually convinced that the Democrats and Joe Biden have stolen the election from Donald Trump .
“ But by bringing lawsuit after lawsuit after lawsuit , the GOP and Donald Trump are trying to make it look as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about whether or not Joe Biden won the election , ” says Professor Finkelstein .
“ And that maybe is part of an overall strategy that we ’ ve seen the GOP use all through the nearly four years of Donald Trump ’ s presidency , which is to cast confusion and doubt over things that are quite clear , so that everything seems to exist in a kind of haze of law and facts , and you don ’ t really know at any point sort of what happened or what ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ majority of Republicans , in fact , say they do not trust that the 2020 election results were accurate , according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist survey .
Two-thirds of independents and 95 % of Democrats say they do trust the results .
And only 27 congressional Republicans out of 249 in the House and Senate have publicly acknowledged Mr. Biden ’ s 7 million popular vote margin and convincing electoral victory in last month ’ s elections , The Washington Post reports .
The majority simply will not say .
On Tuesday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy , and Senate Rules Committee Chairman Roy Blunt , also refused to acknowledge Mr. Biden ’ s victory .
Still , Republican state election officials and other local GOP lawmakers have maintained that their elections were among the most trouble-free in recent years .
Federal cybersecurity officials in the Trump administration have said the election was the most secure ever conducted .
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“Something far more fundamental than the winner of Wisconsin’s electoral votes is implicated in this case,” Judge Hagedorn wrote . “At stake, in some measure, is faith in our system of free and fair elections, a feature central to the enduring strength of our constitutional republic.”
In a Wisconsin case nearly identical to the Texas lawsuit, conservative state Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn, a member of the Federalist Society, expressed alarm at the arguments his fellow Republicans were making, calling the desired outcome of nullifying the entire presidential election unprecedented and “the most dramatic invocation of judicial power I have ever seen.”
Conservatives have long expressed concern about “activist judges” legislating from the bench. That may be why some of the most scathing rulings against attempts to overturn the election have come from Federalist Society judges and Trump appointees.
One still remains at the Supreme Court: The state of Texas filed a lawsuit against the states of Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, and Wisconsin, each of which certified their tallies in favor of President-elect Joe Biden, asking the Supreme Court to toss out the votes of millions of Americans and directing their respective legislatures to choose their slates of electors instead. Legal experts say it is likely to meet the same fate as the other lawsuits.
In dozens of similar cases brought before state and federal courts the past five weeks, judges reacted with incredulity at the claims Republican lawyers brought before them, and the sheer audacity of their efforts to disenfranchise millions of American voters.
After 35 days of defeat after defeat in state and federal courts, President Donald Trump and his chorus of allies lost their 50th post-election lawsuit on Tuesday.
It was the latest of a furious five-week but so far futile legal effort to convince American judges across the nation to nullify millions of votes in six key states and declare President Trump the winner of the 2020 presidential election.
There was a certain symmetry, if not irony, in the president’s 50th loss on Tuesday, also the electoral “safe harbor day.” A feature of a dusty 19th-century law that set a deadline of sorts for lingering election disputes, the 1887 act requires Congress to count the electoral votes of states that certified their elections six days before the Electoral College meets. All but Wisconsin met that deadline, with one more case being heard Thursday.
Why We Wrote This Conservatives have long expressed concern about “activist judges” legislating from the bench. That may be why some of the most scathing rulings against attempts to overturn the election have come from Federalist Society judges and Trump appointees.
In a terse one-sentence ruling, the United States Supreme Court, whose conservative majority will provide President Trump with one of his most enduring legacies and remains the last-gasp legal hope of those still fighting to keep the president in office, denied a Republican appeal to throw out Pennsylvania’s election. Mr. Trump and his supporters have a success rate of one minor win out of, as of Thursday, 56 rulings in cases they filed.
While it’s all but certain that the electors meeting next Monday will reflect the will of the states that chose them, the curtain has not quite been drawn on the five-week opera of American politics in the time of COVID-19, and the president’s leitmotif of election fraud.
The state of Texas filed a lawsuit against the states of Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, and Wisconsin, each of which certified their tallies in favor of President-elect Joe Biden, asking the Supreme Court on Tuesday to toss out the votes of millions of Americans and directing the states’ respective legislatures to choose their slates of electors instead.
Joined by six other Republican states, the Texas lawsuit argues that since the Constitution only vests state legislatures with the authority to appoint presidential electors, any governor or state official who issued any COVID-19-related changes to election procedures would have violated the Constitution. Seventeen Republican attorneys general signed an amicus brief, and President Trump has requested to intervene in the case.
Such unconstitutional procedural changes during the pandemic, including expanded mail-in voting and extended deadlines, the Texas lawsuit also alleges, only served to relax these states’ ballot-integrity measures, triggering what it says was a host of voting irregularities and fraud.
On Thursday, 20 states, two territories, and the District of Columbia filed an amicus brief siding with the four battleground states, asking the court not to overturn the election, saying, “The people have chosen.”
Legal experts say the Texas lawsuit will meet the same fate as the other 55 failed lawsuits Republicans brought to state and federal courts over the past five weeks. For one, the lawsuit is specifically targeted to battleground states that gave a total of 62 electors to Mr. Biden. But Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, too, issued executive orders “suspending certain statutes” governing the election, and extended ballot deadlines. States that joined the Texas lawsuit, including Kansas and Mississippi, also issued orders allowing mail-in ballots arriving late to be counted, even as they argue such orders in the four battleground states were unconstitutional and dangerous triggers of voter fraud.
“But hypocrisy aside, the suit is also a perfect microcosm for so many of the other cases we’ve seen filed in the past month,” wrote Steve Vladeck, professor at the University of Texas School of Law, about the Texas-led effort to invalidate millions of votes. “It is lacking in actual evidence; it is deeply cynical; it evinces stunning disrespect for both the role of the courts in our constitutional system and of the states in our elections; and it is doomed to fail.”
In dozens of similar cases brought before state and federal courts the past five weeks, judges reacted with incredulity at the claims Republican lawyers brought before them, and the sheer audacity of their efforts to disenfranchise millions of American voters.
“It’s not just Democrats who are calling these suits garbage,” says Wilfred Codrington III, professor of law at Brooklyn Law School in New York. “It’s been across the board. And I’d say that the most emphatic examples that sum up what has been going on with these lawsuits have been Republican judges.”
Conservative judges weigh in
In a Wisconsin case nearly identical to the Texas lawsuit, conservative state Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn, a member of the Federalist Society and former chief legal counsel to former Republican Gov. Scott Walker, expressed alarm last week at the arguments his fellow Republicans were making.
“[The] real stunner here is the sought-after remedy,” Judge Hagedorn wrote. “We are invited to invalidate the entire presidential election in Wisconsin by declaring it ‘null’ – yes, the whole thing. And there’s more. We should, we are told, enjoin the Wisconsin Elections Commission from certifying the election so that Wisconsin’s presidential electors can be chosen by the legislature instead, and then compel the Governor to certify those electors.
“At least no one can accuse the petitioners of timidity,” Judge Hagedorn added, noting such a remedy – a court-ordered disenfranchisement of every Wisconsin voter – would appear to be unprecedented in American history. “This petition falls far short of the kind of compelling evidence and legal support we would undoubtedly need,” he said of the Republican arguments, which were full of “glaring flaws that render the petition woefully deficient.”
In Pennsylvania, a panel of three Republican-appointed judges in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, including Judge Stephanos Bibas, a member of the Federalist Society appointed by President Trump, also emphatically rejected an appeal argued in person by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
“Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy,” Judge Bibas wrote. “Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here.”
Mike Mulholland/The Grand Rapids Press/AP View caption Hide caption Rudy Giuliani attends a Michigan House Oversight Committee hearing for suspicion of voter fraud in Lansing, Michigan, on Dec. 2, 2020. On Nov. 17 Mr. Giuliani represented a client in court for the first time in decades, appearing in a Pennsylvania District Court to speak on behalf of President Donald Trump.
Even so, the Republican team led by Mr. Giuliani was seeking a “breathtaking” invalidation of millions of votes. “Its alchemy cannot transmute lead into gold,” Judge Bibas wrote. “The [Trump] Campaign never alleges that any ballot was fraudulent or cast by an illegal voter. It never alleges that any defendant treated the Trump campaign or its votes worse than it treated the Biden campaign or its votes. Calling something discrimination does not make it so.”
Crumbling GOP trust in elections
In public, however, Mr. Giuliani, part of the president’s self-described “elite strike force” legal team, has promised to unleash a torrent of evidence that would reach “biblical” proportions. Reverting to a more pagan analogy, lawyer Sidney Powell also famously said that she would “release the Kraken” with a four-state lawsuit that would once and for all expose widespread election malfeasance and justify tossing millions of votes in states that voted for Mr. Biden. All four of those suits have failed.
“There’s this gap between the specific arguments they’re making – or not making – in court, and the reception of the public arguments they’re presenting in public,” says Claire Finkelstein, professor of law and at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. “So there’s this broader phenomenon of a large percentage of that 70 million people who voted for Donald Trump being actually convinced that the Democrats and Joe Biden have stolen the election from Donald Trump.
“But by bringing lawsuit after lawsuit after lawsuit, the GOP and Donald Trump are trying to make it look as though there really is a legitimate question about whether or not Joe Biden won the election,” says Professor Finkelstein. “And that maybe is part of an overall strategy that we’ve seen the GOP use all through the nearly four years of Donald Trump’s presidency, which is to cast confusion and doubt over things that are quite clear, so that everything seems to exist in a kind of haze of law and facts, and you don’t really know at any point sort of what happened or what’s allowed.”
An overwhelming 72% majority of Republicans, in fact, say they do not trust that the 2020 election results were accurate, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist survey. Two-thirds of independents and 95% of Democrats say they do trust the results.
And only 27 congressional Republicans out of 249 in the House and Senate have publicly acknowledged Mr. Biden’s 7 million popular vote margin and convincing electoral victory in last month’s elections, The Washington Post reports. The majority simply will not say.
On Tuesday, three Republican members of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Senate Rules Committee Chairman Roy Blunt, also refused to acknowledge Mr. Biden’s victory.
At stake: faith in American democracy
Still, Republican state election officials and other local GOP lawmakers have maintained that their elections were among the most trouble-free in recent years. Federal cybersecurity officials in the Trump administration have said the election was the most secure ever conducted. And Attorney General William Barr, a Trump loyalist, has said investigators have found no evidence of widespread fraud.
Neither has a single state or federal court over the past five weeks, despite the fact that the Trump campaign and other Republicans have had chance after chance to present evidence to support their claims – or their widely proposed remedy to disenfranchise millions of voters and have Republican legislators select state electors instead.
The sheer emptiness of the audacious and unsupported claims, Wisconsin’s conservative Supreme Court Justice said, “compelled” him to offer one last observation at the end of his decision to reject one of the more than 50 lawsuits Republicans have filed.
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“Something far more fundamental than the winner of Wisconsin’s electoral votes is implicated in this case,” Judge Hagedorn wrote. “At stake, in some measure, is faith in our system of free and fair elections, a feature central to the enduring strength of our constitutional republic.
“It can be easy to blithely move on to the next case with a petition so obviously lacking, but this is sobering,” he continued. “The relief being sought by the petitioners is the most dramatic invocation of judicial power I have ever seen. ... This is a dangerous path we are being asked to tread. The loss of public trust in our constitutional order resulting from the exercise of this kind of judicial power would be incalculable.”