Trump is Destroying Fox News

Senator: Gorsuch is a Payoff to Big Business ; Boston Public Schools Adopt a New Map ...and More Picks

Senator: Gorsuch is a Payoff to Big Business ; Boston Public Schools Adopt a New Map ...and More Picks

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.

Senator Whitehouse: Gorsuch a Payoff to Big Business & Big Law (Jimmy)

“Whitehouse is making a broader claim about the court. His point isn’t just that Gorsuch should be rejected, but that Democrats should have no respect for the legitimacy of the court so long as the court serves a role as a cog in a corrupt big business machine,” says Matt Stoller. (see clip here).

Syrian Defectors Urge Safe and No-Fly Zones (Dan)

Trump promised to establish “Safe Zones” in Syria to prevent a further humanitarian crisis. Syrian defectors in Washington are also pressing for a no-fly zone over the country. Trump has mostly avoided the issue, focusing instead on Yemen. Can he be swayed?

French Invasion of Middle America? (Reader Steve)

Yes…in 1796. Before Lewis and Clark explored the American frontier, French general Georges Callot made extensive maps of yet-discovered landscape for a possible French land grab. As history shows, Callot’s journey did not end so successfully.

Boston Public Schools Adopt Different Map of the World (Jimmy)

The Mercator projection has been the norm for maps for 500 years. But it noticeably reduces the relative size of Africa and South America, while distorting countries like US and Britain. The Gall-Peters projection corrects that, and has been adopted by a Boston school district.