The pandemic has changed our lives permanently and paranoid fantasies have taken root. But a remedy for the crisis of trust we’re facing might be found in an unlikely place — in J.R.R. Tolkein’s The Lord of the Rings.
Tag: covid
? Bonjou!* Welcome to Thursday, where Libya’s prime minister survives an assassination attempt, Belarus and Russia start joint military drills and a Republican congresswoman spills her gazpacho. Fasten your seatbelts, we’re also looking at the world of private jet travel, a means of transportation that soared during the pandemic. [*Haitian Creole] SIGN UP This […]
? Dumêlang!* Welcome to Thursday, where a U.S. air raid in Syria kills civilians, tainted cocaine kills 20 in Argentina, and Jeff Bezos’ superyacht gets special treatment in Rotterdam. Thanks to Persian-language media Kayhan, we also look at the discontent brewing among Iranians vis-à-vis their country’s religious government. [*Northern Sotho, South Africa] SPOTLIGHT I […]
The long toll of the pandemic is the final straw for many burned out healthcare workers in the West. But the Great Resignation in the medical field is global, with developing countries already struggling to contain the pandemic in the face of a doctor brain drain.
Theaters, museums and cinemas welcomed “essential services” on their stage floors to make a point about the industry’s struggles during the latest COVID lockdown.
? Grüss Gott!* Welcome to Thursday, where Ukraine lashed out at Biden’s prediction about Russian intentions, Austria is betting on a new incentive for the unvaccinated, and the Australian city of Adelaide is baffled by a mysterious spate of googly eyes. We also look at Russia’s latest efforts to dismantle the REvil hacking group, at […]
A growing number of studies around the world show that COVID and lockdown restrictions have prompted a disproportionate increase in mental health illness and suicide attempts among adolescent females.
? Halo!* Welcome to Monday, where China is on high COVID alert as Lunar New Year celebrations kick off, Tonga reels from a massive underwater eruption, and a veteran FBI agent may have found out who betrayed Anne Frank to the Nazis. Meanwhile, Russian daily Kommersant recounts how Kazakhstan has passed from one strongman to […]
January 15-16 Kazakhstan’s vicious circle of strongmen COVID school chaos around the world The truth behind why we lie to ourselves … and much more! BUT FIRST, A NEWS QUIZ! What do you remember from the news this week? 1. What extreme measure did the Canadian province of Quebec take to encourage people to get […]
? Lasso fyafulla!* Welcome to Wednesday, where Quebec will tax the unvaccinated, North Korea says it tested hypersonic missile, and we salute you Magawa, Cambodia’s landmine-sniffing “hero rat.” La Stampa also visits the outskirts of Rome to see how the coronavirus pandemic has amplified longstanding social divides and inequalities in the Italian capital. [*Tamang – […]
The pandemic has exposed longstanding inequalities and brought more people into a cycle of hunger and precariousness,
Rising fuel costs were the initial spark for rare public protests in Kazakhstan. But the violent unrest reveals widespread dissatisfaction with the authoritarian regime that has ruled the country since its independence.
But first, a news quiz! What do you remember from the news this week? 1. Who is the namesake of the space telescope that has successfully deployed its impressive sunshield this week? 2. What did CCTV catch an Argentinian judge doing with a convicted cop-killer? 3. Why is a multimillion-dollar footbridge being replaced in Venice? […]
? Saluton!* Welcome to Friday, where order has been restored in Kazakhstan, with a very heavy hand and help from Russia, North Korea bows out of the Beijing Olympics because of COVID and a new study shows dogs have multilingual skills. Meanwhile, Negar Jokar writes in Persian-language media Kayhan-London about the ways that Iran hounds […]
? Hallo!* Welcome to Thursday, where Kazakhstan police kill dozens of protesters, Australia revokes No-Vax Djokovic’s visa and an Argentine judge gets caught on camera kissing an inmate. We also look at the measures countries around the world are implementing to force the hands of unvaccinated citizens to get the jabs. [*Flemish] SIGN UP This […]
? Muraho!* Welcome to Wednesday, where the Omicron variant keeps breaking daily infection records around the world, violent protests lead Kazakhstan to declare state of emergency, and France’s Macron is in la merde for his vulgar warning to unvaccinated people. Meanwhile, we look at Denmark’s plans to rent prison cells abroad, and what this could […]
? Khulumkha!* Welcome to Tuesday, where Haiti’s prime minister reveals assassination attempt, Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes is found guilty of fraud, and Winnie the Pooh is up for grabs. We also turn to French daily Les Echos to see what happens when the world of fine wine and champagne collides with the NFT market. [*Kokborok […]
? Kia ora!* Happy New Year! Welcome to Monday, where Sudan’s embattled prime minister resigns, Australia sees record daily COVID cases and Venice says ciao to its Instagrammable footbridge for safety reasons. Meanwhile, we look at what could bring down the budding alliance between China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin. [*Maori] SPOTLIGHT 2022: […]
Categories
2022: Year Of The Wake-Up Call
The signs for 2022 may appear grim right now, but at least we know what we’re facing. Will we make the right decisions?
Here are the 10 most-read articles of the past year: Who Is Lauriane Doumbouya, The French Wife Of Guinea’s Coup Leader? During the recent inauguration of new Guinea president Mamadi Doumbouya, the presence of a female French police officer alongside the coup leader grabbed the public’s attention. But little is still known about the new […]
? Bonjour!* Welcome to Friday, where several European countries see record daily COVID cases, South Korea pardons Park Geun-hye, and Taste-the-TV is a thing. We also look at a familiar story unfolding in Ukraine, where former president Petro Poroshenko has been accused of being in cahoots with Russia. As mentioned yesterday, the Worldcrunch Today crew […]
? העלא* Welcome to Thursday where some hopeful reports on the effects of the new COVID variant, a new symbolic crackdown takes place in Hong Kong and the Bard of Malibu phones it in when it comes to Christmas decorations. We also feature a report from Warsaw daily Gazeta Wyborcza on the deteriorating conditions for […]
What we got wrong about the vaccines, what we still don’t know…and why we need to keep vaccinating.
? Avuxeni!* Welcome to Wednesday, where Israel announces a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine to vulnerable people, Libya delays “impossible” elections, and a perfectly preserved dinosaur embryo is found in China. We also offer our new edition of Work → In Progress, focusing on the changes at play in the world of work, with an […]
? ഹലോ!* Welcome to Thursday, where Kim Jong-un offers to reopen hotline with Seoul, a 96-year-old Nazi war crime suspect flees and a Turkish man gets so drunk he joins a search party for himself. From France, we also take a look, and listen, to the surprisingly loud noises of the countryside. [*halēā – Malayalam, […]
On the same day that Bethlehem’s Mayor Anton Salman inaugurated the Christmas holiday season earlier this month with an impressive fireworks display and tree lighting in the town square, residents of the West Bank city’s three refugee camps — Aida, Dehaishe and Jibrin, also known as Azza Camp — continued their daily protesting against the Palestinian Authority. The protests, which have included burning tires and blocking roads, aim to gain the release of several Palestinians arrested by Palestinian security forces for waving banners of Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine during the funeral of 14-year-old Amjad […]
? Mandi!* Welcome to Monday, where Gabriel Boric becomes Chile’s youngest president ever, Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai retracts sexual assault claims and a Hungarian grandma goes all out for Christmas decorations. Persian-language magazine Kayhan reflects on how the trial in Sweden of a former Iranian justice official finally gives judicial weight to the decades […]
From helping the homeless to investing in schools, the Anjali Thagana Medai dedicates its profits to ways to help the living of the whole community
? Zdravo!* Welcome to Friday, where Purdue Pharma’s $4.5 billion opioid settlement is overturned, North Korea’s Kim Jong Un celebrates his 10th year in office and water is found in Mars’ Grand Canyon. Weekly news magazine Jeune Afrique also looks at the reasons behind the Muslim Brotherhood’s failure to properly run national governments. [*Serbian] […]
? སྐུ་གཟུགས་བཟང་པོ།!* Welcome to Thursday, where the UK reports highest daily COVID cases, one of the biggest storms of 2021 hits the Philippines and Australia’s new musical hit makers are… birds. And for German daily Die Welt, writer and historian Karl-Heinz Göttert looks at how the Nazis attempted to use Christmas for their own ends. […]
? Halito!* Welcome to Wednesday, where the WHO says vaccines may be less effective against the Omicron variant, a spacecraft “touches” the Sun for the first time and the Berlin metro is offering edible tickets. Warsaw-based daily Gazeta Wyborcza also looks at shocking practices multiplying in Poland’s booming and unregulated funeral business. [*Choctaw, Native American] […]
? Hallo!* Welcome to Tuesday, where Omicron now looms over the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics, Philippine strongman Duterte unexpectedly quits his Senate race, and the NFT world witnesses a very costly slip of the keyboard. In French economic daily Les Echos, Adrien Lelièvre wonders whether the jig is up for the “gig economy.” [*German] […]
? ສະບາຍດີ* Welcome to Monday, where the first ever meeting took place between leaders of Israel and the United Arab Emirates, BoJo declares an “Omicron emergency” and Vladimir Putin shares a side hustle from his past. And for the insomniac and the lonely, we tune in to Taiwan’s new app that connects you to a […]
? Сәлем!* Welcome to Friday, where the U.S. wins bid to extradite whistleblower Julian Assange, Nicaragua breaks off ties with Taiwan to align with China and Sweden takes issue with IKEA branding. In the wake of New Zealand’s plans to ban all future cigarette sales, we take a look at toughening smoking laws around the […]
We’re nearly two years into a global pandemic that has seemingly changed everything in our economy from how we shop to where we eat. COVID-19 indeed may transform our economic lives entirely – except how we work.
? Sveiki!* Welcome to Thursday, where boosters appear to work on Omicron, Jimmy Lai is found guilty and there’s a mind-blowingly bad idea for a new wine. We also see how Ukrainians are measuring the Russian threat of an invasion. [*Latvian] SIGN UP This is our daily newsletter Worldcrunch Today, a rapid tour of […]
? Ellohay!* Welcome to Wednesday, where the Omicron variant triggers toughened travel restrictions, Putin warns NATO of Ukraine “red line,” and school’s in for Santa. For Amsterdam-based daily De Volkskrant, Daphne van Paassen also reports on how some Dutch hairdressers are being trained to recognize signs of domestic violence among their customers. [*Pig Latin] […]
? Dydh da!* Welcome to Wednesday, where Merkel makes way for Scholz, Biden threatens Putin and a Botox scandal has hit Saudi Arabia’s camel beauty pageant. We also tune in to London-based Kayhan, which unpacks the geopolitics of last week’s reported clashes on the border of Iran and Afghanistan. [*Cornish, UK] SIGN UP This […]
Can the countries the United States have invited to an exclusive summit on democracy safeguard and spread a system that is inherently flawed and fragile?
? Mbote!* Welcome to Tuesday, where Biden and Putin go face-to-face on Ukraine, China threatens U.S. over Olympic boycott and the world marks 80 years since Pearl Harbor. Meanwhile, we go back to the small town that recorded Italy’s first coronavirus death back in February 2020, which is now a stronghold for vaccine skeptics. [*M-boh-teh […]