Wednesday Reading List: November 30, 2016
A mixed bag for midweek.
Maddie Stone reports for Gizmodo on a horrifying development in Antarctica: the western ice sheet may be about to collapse. The problem stems from a crack that began 20 miles inland, undergound.
A frozen fortress containing enough water to raise global sea levels many feet should it melt, the West Antarctic ice sheet is separated from the ocean by a series of large glaciers. For now, these glaciers act like corks in wine bottles to hold the ice at bay, but that may not be the case for much longer.
At The Guardian, an anonymous writer tells of how Sam Harris, a “New Atheist,” or Islamophobe, introduced him to the ideas of the “alt-right,” or Nazism.
Moving on from Harris, I unlocked the Pandora’s box of “It’s not racist to criticise Islam!” content. Eventually I was introduced, by YouTube algorithms, to Milo Yiannopoulos and various “anti-SJW” videos (SJW, or social justice warrior, is a pejorative directed at progressives). They were shocking at first, but always presented as innocuous criticism from people claiming to be liberals themselves, or centrists, sometimes “just a regular conservative” — but never, ever identifying as the dreaded “alt-right”.
DJ Dara goes fishing and reflects on the history of American Drum and Bass.
A Denver reporter claims that threats to her well-being from the subject of her reporting threatened her life — and her employers didn’t take her fears seriously.
The business owner in that story would go on to make a threat against Hemmat’s life so credible that the man’s therapist broke HIPPA laws to inform Hemmat directly. And now, Hemmat has left Fox 31 abruptly and is now telling her story, claiming the station did not do enough to protect her life.
“The consumer fraud charges and criminal case against him were the result of a 4 part investigation–I worked very hard to expose this guy–and in the end, I paid a very high price,” Hemmat wrote yesterday.
Finally, at The Concourse, Hamilton Nolan brings the story of a VA psychologist who is quitting because of Trump.
Leaving the VA is one of the hardest decisions of my life, but one that is based in my values and morals. As a woman, a feminist, an atheist, and a human, I am against everything Donald Trump stands for. My morals and ethical obligation to my patients will not permit me to work for such a person. I am fearful of what will happen to my Veterans, those who have given so much of themselves for us all. I will find a way to treat and care for them in other ways, to show them that they are safe, to give them the respect and honor they deserve.
Enjoy your day.