Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Daily Skimm: You smell like pine needles

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Skimm for December 16th

Skimm’d over sushi and politics

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I find you very screwable” — Barbara Walters beating around the bush with Bradley Cooper. Get it, Babs.

DECK THE POLLS

THE STORY

At their fifth debate last night, GOP candidates spread hope and good holiday cheer over talks about terrorism and national security crises.

WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW?

That this was the first debate since the terror attacks in Paris, and this month’s shooting in San Bernardino, CA. And that it kept viewers riveted over things like “metadata.” Other table topics included how much the US gov. should be able to spy on American citizens, what to do with Syrian refugees , and how to generally deal with the hot mess that is ISIS.

BREAK IT DOWN.

Gov. John Kasich (OH)…as in the one whose daughter just wants everyone to get along. He wants to know why global leaders just went to Paris to talk about climate change when they should have been figuring out how to take down ISIS.

Carly Fiorina…as in the one who’s “been called every B-word in the book.” She once stopped a truck full of equipment for the NSA — because why not? — and thinks Silicon Valley would help the US gov. with cyber security if the gov. says “please” and “thank you.”

Sen. Marco Rubio (FL)…as in the one who thinks Americans who join ISIS don’t need to be read their Miranda rights. He questioned why Cruz once voted to rein in the NSA. But he doesn’t want to talk about it too much because…Shhh classified.

Dr. Ben Carson…as in the one who started with a moment of silence. And kept it going all night. After complaining about not getting enough time, he got asked whether he’d be “OK with the deaths of thousands of innocent children and civilians” in the fight against ISIS. It got awkward.

Donald Trump…as in the one who wants to penetrate…the Internet. In between telling Bush that his campaign is a massive fail, Trump also had a bone to pick with CNN moderators, who he said were too busy pitting him, Bush, and everyone else against each other.

Sen. Ted Cruz (TX)…as in the one who got put in timeout after talking out of turn. He really likes calling ISIS ‘the bad guys,’ and says the moderate rebels the US is trying to arm in the Mideast are “purple unicorns.” Which apparently don’t exist. Dreams, crushed.

Fmr. Gov. Jeb Bush (FL)…as in the one who finally stood up to the Trump in the room. He says Trump can’t just insult his way into the White House, and the US needs “serious” leadership.

Gov. Chris Christie (NJ)…as in the one who wants to remind you that the world is real scary right now. And he thinks President Obama is a “feckless weakling” for his strategy against ISIS. He wants a no-fly zone over Syria, and thinks the president should be someone who used to be a federal prosecutor. PS: He used to be a federal prosecutor.

Sen. Rand Paul (KY)…as in the one who thinks Trump’s proposal to crush ISIS by killing their family members is a little thing called ‘unconstitutional.’ He also thinks Christie’s proposal for a no-fly zone in Syria would create World War III. Ain’t nobody got time for that.

theSKIMM

Welcome to what may be the biggest issue of this election: national security. Last night was the last GOP debate this year, and the one that felt the most like a job interview. Since ‘keep me safe’ is high up on the list of things everyone cares about.

REPEAT AFTER ME...

WHAT PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT…

LA. Yesterday, public schools there were closed following a “credible threat.” Officials later said ‘false alarm,’ it appeared to be a hoax. With everyone on edge following the Paris attacks last month and the San Bernardino shootings just two weeks ago, LA officials didn’t respond kindly to getting a threatening email from someone claiming to be an extremist who planned to target schools with explosives. Cue schools closing. NYC officials said they got a similar email, but decided it was a hoax and kept schools open. There’s an investigation looking into where the threat came from.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN EVERYONE’S GETTING SICK AT WORK…

Something in the water? There is in Flint, Michigan. Earlier this week, the mayor there declared a state of emergency to bring attention to the city’s water problems. Last year, Flint left the Detroit water system to save some cash. The city started taking water from the Flint River, and said the move would be temporary. But people started saying their water looked and smelled weird. Not good. And then children’s blood tests started showing elevated levels of lead. Really not good. Especially because lead can affect brain development and cause behavioral changes. A few months ago, the city said ‘our bad,’ and switched back to the Detroit water system. But some people are saying ‘too late,’ the damage is done. The mayor’s hoping a state of emergency will mean federal help. Paging Erin Brockovich.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN YOU FINALLY DECIDE ON A PLAN IN THE GROUP TEXT…

That’s my #Squad. Yesterday, Saudi Arabia announced it’s forming a squad of mostly Muslim countries to fight against terrorism. The coalition includes places like Egypt, Qatar, the UAE, Turkey, Malaysia, and Pakistan. Their goal: An “Islamic military alliance” to hate on terrorists. They’d also really like to make sure everyone knows that all Muslims are not extremists, and that they want ISIS gone just as much as everyone else. Who’s not part of Saudi Arabia’s #squadgoals? Iran. That’s because Saudi Arabia and Iran - top powers in the Mideast - like each other as much as you like getting socks for Christmas. And they have very different ideas for how things like the Syrian Civil War should end up. This new coalition is a big step in getting Arab countries more involved in the US-led fight against terror, especially ISIS. Go team.

WHAT TO SAY TO YOUR NIECE WHO JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT SANTA...

It’s OK. The Nazi gold train isn’t real either. For decades, legend’s had it that at the end of WWII, a Nazi train carrying stolen art and gold disappeared into a tunnel system in Poland. Then, earlier this year, two “hobbyist treasure hunters” said the Nazi train was real and that they knew where it was. After almost four months of some serious investigating, a team of scientists are saying ‘yeah, no.’ But the hobbyists aren’t giving up. They say it’s definitely there and you should believe the hype. K.

WHAT TO SAY TO YOUR FRIEND FROM HIGH SCHOOL…

Lily van der Woodsen is having a tough week.

THING TO KNOW

Kristaps Porzingis: The Latvian NBA rookie who’s winning over NY Knicks fans, one three-pointer at a time. Nicknames include ‘Zingis Khan’ and ‘the Latviathan.’ PS, it’s pronounced kri-stops pour-zin-gas. PPS, he’s taller than you.

12 DAYS OF SKIMM'NESS

On the twelfth day of Skimm’ness..��.you remembered you need something for your boss.

��These blankets will get you a raise. The only question you have to ask is: to monogram, or not to monogram? ��

Oh by the way, here are gifts for everyone else on your list.
PS: this is an affiliate partner, which means if you buy it, theSkimm gets some cash money. Thanks.

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SKIMM BIRTHDAY

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Tuesday, December 15, 2015

[New post] Knives don’t kill people. Shakespeare kills people. With (apparently) knives.

[New post] Is the future of foreign aid in Europe the broken U.S. system?

Is the future of foreign aid in Europe the broken U.S. system?

by Chris Blattman

Aid advocates should be careful what they wish for. If you advocate for an input target like 0.7%, you don't have have a leg to stand on when the government hits the target but uses the money for whatever it can get away with within the rules.

That is Owen Barder analyzing the U.K.'s new development and aid strategy. It is a very good and very important piece, largely about how the U.K. is moving in a U.S.-like direction, with more focus on national self interest, international security, and outsourcing.

What worries me about this direction:

"This looks really effective at helping people. Let's copy this," said no one ever after looking at the U.S. system of outsourcing development project to private contractors.
There are good reasons why right-leaning governments want to use their aid policy to serve the national interest. But I think they ignore an important cost: people don't like you if you give them presents that are really for you. It is so transparent. You become known as a jerk. You lose respect and standing in the long run. That standing, as it turns out, is actually pretty useful when you want to police the world or play the liberator. In my mind, the pursuit of national interest in the short term undermines national interest in the long term.
Every time I hear a very sensible-sounding goal to reduce poverty or violence from a European officlal, I can't help thinking that it's cover for: "how do we keep more poor brown people form arriving on our borders?" It is AMAZING how much this refugee issue colors every aid and research project associated with a UK or European agency today.
The UK is one of the most important and influential donors and, in my experience, their development agency DFID has been the most sensible and effective. While the political winds may blow DFID in a bad direction, I am optimistic the staff will steer it back over time.

Anyways, Barder is one of the best people to tell you about the UK system, and I am not, so do read his post.

Chris Blattman | December 15, 2015 at 10:05 am | Tags: foreign aid, United Kingdom | Categories: development, foreign policy, international relations | URL: http://chrisblattman.com/?p=13199

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Daily Skimm: Don't go chasing waterfalls

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Skimm for December 15th

Skimm’d while watching Adele

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“This is a drug-testing designated position” — The application to become an astronaut. Yesterday, NASA started accepting astronaut job candidates for the first time in four years. Hold the space cake.