Category: 3-SometimeCommentary

Historian and grandson of third secretary-general of the United Nations U Thant, Thant Myint-U, discusses Peacemaker: U Thant and the Forgotten Quest for a Just World—how the UN once brokered real ceasefires (Cuban Missile Crisis, India-Pakistan 1965), why its stature faded, what decolonization changed, and Myanmar's present. A reminder that boring, grown-up diplomacy can beat laser eyes every time. Plus: the case against franchise-ified superhero "universes."

Produced by Corey Wara

Production Coordinator Ashley Khan

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On October 21, 2023, beloved Detroit community leader Samantha Woll was found brutally stabbed to death outside her home—two weeks to the day after the October 7 attacks on Israel. It looked like an open-and-shut case—a hate crime. But swiftly the police ruled that out. Instead they eventually found themselves with two unrelated suspects. When they charged one with murder, the case took a turn that raised questions about antisemitism, race, and justice in America.

Hosted by The Free Press’s Frannie Block, this podcast features exclusive interviews and explores the remarkable, too-short life of Woll and the impact she had. And ⁠Spiral⁠ tells the bizarre twists and turns of one of Detroit’s most haunting recent crimes.

Become a paid subscriber to The Free Press to binge the full series today, and with reduced ads. Click ⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠ to subscribe.

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• Anna on her Signal chat with Lindsey Halligan
• Lawfare's Molly Roberts on the weak case against James
• Ben's Substack

A stroll down the supplement aisle is a walk filled with hope. One pill offers stronger hair and nails. Another promises better memory (which will help when you have to remember to take all these pills). And if you added just one more, you might be able to finally recapture the energy of your teenage years.

But how true are these claims? Currently, the Food and Drug Administration does not approve the contents or the labeling dietary supplements before they hit the shelves.

Around 75 percent of Americans take a supplement, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He once said he took so many vitamins he couldn’t remember them all. But RFK Jr., who champions supplements and other alternative medicines, is now pushing the FDA for stronger regulations.

What could that mean for the supplement industry? And why are so many Americans turning to health alternatives today?

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As we begin our reflections of the 250th year of our shared experiment—in the 5th season of our UNUM series—we are truly honored to bring you the current president of The American Academy of Arts & Sciences, Dr. Laurie L. Patton.

Fresh from the founding of a brand new country with a Big Idea (but still in the throes of the Revolution), John Adams was among the founders of the storied American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Devoted to bringing diverse thinkers, professions and talents to the task of creating and communicating knowledge to serve this new nation, the earliest members of the Academy included George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Its membership through these centuries are civilization’s legends—like Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.

Find the program online here.

This program is part of the series in partnership with Florida Humanities — “UNUM: Democracy Reignited,” a multi-year digital offering exploring the past, present and future of the American idea — as it exists on paper, in the hearts of our people, and as it manifests (or sometimes fails to manifest) in our lives.

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The Village Square is a proud member of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

UNUM: Democracy Reignited is made possible in partnership with Florida Humanities  (Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities.)

For months, President Trump has been ratcheting up the pressure on Venezuela with increasingly aggressive military actions that the administration claims are about targeting drug traffickers.

But behind the scenes, some U.S. officials are pushing toward a regime change.

Anatoly Kurmanaev, who has been covering the story, discusses the battle in the White House over whether to topple the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

Guest: Anatoly Kurmanaev, a reporter for The New York Times covering Russia and its transformation since the invasion of Ukraine.

Background reading: 

• The United States attacked more boats as tensions with Venezuela continued to rise. Here’s what has happened so far.
• The Trump administration has authorized covert C.I.A. action in Venezuela.
• Trump officials say the mission aims to disrupt the drug trade. But military officials and analysts say the real goal might be driving Venezuela’s president from power.

Photo: Jesus Vargas/Getty Images

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Paris Marx is joined by Joanne McNeil to discuss the proliferation of delivery bots and robotaxis and how they recycle disproven claims about how technology will improve transportation.

Joanne McNeil is a freelance writer and the author of Wrong Way and Lurking: How a Person Became a User.

Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation. Production is by Kyla Hewson.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Joanne wrote about delivery bots and robotaxis for the New York Review of Architecture.

• She’s doing an event in Los Angeles discussing social media on November 1.

• Uber’s driverless car killed a pedestrian, and the company scapegoated the backup driver.

• Sleep Dealer is a sci-fi movie by Alex Rivera.

• A GM Cruise self-driving car hit a pedestrian and dragged them 20 feet before stopping.

• Even Chuck E. Cheese is getting into the ghost kitchen business.