PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
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Behold the Red-Lipped Batfish, a Uniquely Weird Creature of the Deep (Maria)
The author writes, “As you contemplate the wonders of evolution, and how a creature can be born with something weird and new, and that thing can either help it get ahead or not hurt its chances, and it can then reproduce and make another one like it, spare a thought for the red-lipped batfish. A real animal, it has the kind of mouth that, as a kid, you may have made from Babybel cheese wax, to go with your red wax fake nails. It has a beard of white whiskers. It has fins that bend backwards, like a person’s arms at yoga. … Naturally, it lives in the waters off the Galápagos Islands.”
The Border Crisis Won’t Be Solved at the Border (Dana)
From Texas Monthly: “If Texas officials wanted to stop the arrival of undocumented immigrants, they could try to make it impossible for them to work here. But that would devastate the state’s economy. So instead politicians engage in border theater.”
US House Control Teeters on the Unlikely Battleground of Heavily Democratic California (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “California’s reputation as a hothouse of progressive politics is being tested in a string of U.S. House contests that are again expected to play into which party controls the chamber next year. Despite its distinction as a liberal protectorate, both parties see races in the nation’s most populous state as crucial battlegrounds and are pumping millions of dollars into campaigns that stretch from the beaches of San Diego and Orange County to the almond groves and vineyards of the Central Valley farm belt.”
Why Did ‘The Apprentice’ Bomb? Maybe Because the Most Chilling Thing About Donald Trump Is Offscreen (Reader Jim)
From Variety: “After generating its share of Cannes buzz, [The Apprentice] couldn’t find a distributor. No one wanted to touch it. The Trump campaign made legal threats against the film, centering on a scene of sexual assault (an accusation that was denied in 2015 by Ivana Trump). And this created a ripple effect. Yet it wasn’t just the matter of a potential lawsuit. Back in May and June, the fear had already begun to coalesce that Trump would be the next president (Joe Biden getting kicked out of the race was, at this point, not even a gleam in the Democratic establishment’s eye), and the distributors were scared of recrimination. What if Trump did become president? What would he do to them?”
Netanyahu Mulls Plan to Empty Northern Gaza of Civilians and Cut Off Aid to Those Left Inside (DonkeyHotey)
The author writes, “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is examining a plan to seal off humanitarian aid to northern Gaza in an attempt to starve out Hamas militants, a plan that, if implemented, could trap without food or water hundreds of thousands of Palestinians unwilling or unable to leave their homes.”
Cannabis Use in Teens, Young Adults Linked to Lower Academic Success (Mili)
The author writes, “Cannabis use during adolescence and young adulthood was linked to lower academic performance, a systematic review and meta-analysis suggested. Among 63 studies that comprised 438,329 participants, moderate-certainty evidence indicated that cannabis use among individuals ages 24 years and younger was likely associated with lower school grades … as well as less likelihood of high school completion.”
Everything You Wanted to Know About World War III but Were Afraid to Ask (Sean)
From The American Prospect: “For generations, we thought fear of nuclear holocaust would prevent world war. Is that faith obsolete?”
