Happy Monday Morning.
To be ITK, know this:
Is she the new queen of Los Angeles?
TOP FIVE
1. Battling Haiti's gangs — the mission no nation seems to want
2. When Netflix and HBO turned on each other
3. Economy and inflation top public’s agenda
4. How ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’ foretold our era of grifting
5. What moneyball-for-everything has done to American culture
GLOBALIZATION + STATECRAFT
Battling Haiti's gangs — the mission no nation seems to want: Keen to avoid a quagmire, outside powers may finally be questioning their support for PM Ariel Henry. CBC
COVID-19 origins: Investigating a “complex and grave situation” inside a Wuhan lab: The Wuhan Institute of Virology, the cutting-edge biotech facility at the center of swirling suspicions about the pandemic’s onset, was far more troubled than previously known, explosive documents unearthed by a Senate research team reveal. Following the trail of evidence, Vanity Fair and ProPublica provide the clearest picture yet of a laboratory institute in crisis. Vanity Fair
A rare glimpse inside fortress Hong Kong: a city on the edge: Draconian COVID rules and crackdowns on pro-democracy protesters turned the global business hub into a walled city. As it slowly reopens, expats are curiously divided on the rule of Beijing. The Times
Xi Jinping is China’s most audacious leader for decades, argues Kevin Rudd: He has smashed the economic and political precedents set by his predecessors, says Australia’s former prime minister. Economist
Canadian businesses have much to lose if China puts security over economy, experts say: CBC reports worries over trade as economic growth neglected at Communist Party Congress.
China is about to fall into the middle-income trap: By turning away from free enterprise, Xi Jinping ensures that the country’s economy will stop growing. Mickey D. Levy
Inside a US military cyber team’s defense of Ukraine: Russia failed to take down Ukrainian computer systems with a massive cyber-attack when it invaded this year, despite many analysts' predictions. The work of a little-known arm of the US military, which hunts for adversaries online, may be one reason. The BBC was given exclusive access to the cyber-operators involved in these global missions. BBC
NYT: The US says Russia is ‘weaponizing’ food by halting grain shipments
The Westminster sitcom has a new male lead. Pass the popcorn Nick Bryant
+ “Brexit may have satisfied an oak-hearted desire to take back control from Brussels, but the result has been economic pain and political chaos at home. Rather than Britannia unchained, the world sees a Britannia unhinged.”
Somalia car bombings kill at least 100, president says: AP reports at least 100 people were killed in two car bombings at a busy junction in the capital, Somalia’s president said, and the toll could rise in the country’s deadliest attack since a truck bombing at the same spot five years ago killed more than 500.
Welcome to the world of the polycrisis: Today, disparate shocks interact so that the whole is worse than the sum of the parts. Adam Tooze
DISRUPTION + INNOVATION
When Netflix and HBO turned on each other, they forged a new era of television: The defining rivalry of the streaming-TV era began with an insult and a sneak attack. An exclusive adaptation from It’s Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution, and Future of HBO. Bloomberg
Silicon Valley’s unbridled euphoria runs into economic reality: Once-buzzy start-ups had held out against the new reality that the good times are over. No longer. NYT
Welcome to the blah blah blah economy: What people have consistently predicted about the economy has turned out to be wrong. Mark Gilbert
POLITICS + CAMPAIGNS
WP: Obama offers closing message as political tensions rise in US
NBC News: Obama barnstorms Midwest in play to salvage Democrats’ “Blue Wall.”
Midterm momentum grows for Republican House gains, while Senate remains tight: WSJ reports GOP candidates are running strong in blue states amid crime and inflation worries, analysts say.
Economy and inflation top public’s agenda: About half of Americans say either the economy or inflation is the most important issue in their vote for Congress, making pocketbook issues by far the most dominant in the run up to the midterm elections,” according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll.
+ A new CBS News poll finds that 79% of Americans describe things in the country today as “out of control,” as opposed to “under control.”
The Man in the MAGA middle: Kevin McCarthy’s campaign to be Speaker means no enemies to the right, left, or center in his caucus. Ben Jacobs
CULTURE
Is she the new queen of Los Angeles? Larry David presided over her wedding to Ari Emanuel. Kendall Jenner and Hailey Bieber have carried her handbags. Who is Sarah Staudinger? NYT
Prince Harry’s memoir Spare will be released on January 10: The book will cover his experiences dealing with trauma after the death of his mother, Princess Diana, and will be accompanied by a $1.5 million donation to the HIV/AIDS charity Sentebale. Vanity Fair
How ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’ foretold our era of grifting: On the eve of yet another screen adaptation, Patricia Highsmith’s mordant 1955 tale of calculated self-invention feels as relevant as ever. NYT Style Mag
SPORT
What moneyball-for-everything has done to American culture: You can make a thing so perfect that it's ruined. Derek Thompson
Broken relationships, greed, and desperation: The year that revolutionized golf: The Saudi-backed LIV rebel series has split the game in two and changed its landscape forever. The Times
Eight-year-old boy becomes youngest person to ascend Yosemite’s El Capitan: Guardian reports Sam Adventure Baker went up the cliff with his father, but some climbers say the method known as ‘jugging’ is not true climbing.
13 wins is down to 4 (Hype Video) Philadelphia Phillies
Detroit Lions to recognize Barry Sanders with a statue: AP reports Chris Spielman, special assistant to the Lions chief executive officer and Sanders’ former teammate, told the crowd that the statue will be unveiled outside the stadium ahead of the 2023 season.
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
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