Buzz
Staying updated with the news is a challenge. It's so tough, in fact, that we've taken it upon ourselves to help by summarizing the most important, surprising, or downright jaw-dropping stories each week.
This week, the news was quite a mixed bag, with no single story rising above the rest as especially noteworthy. While that’s a relief from the usual cycle of mass shootings, terrorist attacks, special elections, and Brexit chaos, it does mean that narrowing down the entire week to just ten items required a lot more random selection than usual. With that in mind, here’s what we believe you really need to know before Christmas hits.
10. The US Declared 'Mission Accomplished' in Syria
Well, it looks like it's over. After three years of U.S. military presence in Syria, the end has finally come. On Wednesday, President Trump announced that the 2,000 American troops stationed in the country will begin to pull out very soon. As the president put it, 'We won.'
The 'win' he's referring to is the battle against ISIS, whose territory has almost entirely been reclaimed and their caliphate obliterated. While this might sound like a victory for the U.S., American allies and military leaders in the region are less convinced, pointing to the tens of thousands of ISIS militants still armed and active.
In fact, the whole announcement about the withdrawal seems surrounded by uncertainty. Kurdish groups (who bore the brunt of the fighting against ISIS) have called it a betrayal, leaving them vulnerable to attacks by Assad's forces, while Israeli analysts have dubbed the American troop withdrawal a boon for Iran.
9. Elon Musk Revealed His Vision for a Transport Revolution
Your reaction to the title of this entry likely depends on your view of Elon Musk. To some, the South African polymath is a real-life Tony Stark, while others see him as an arrogant blowhard.
No matter where you stand, the news this week probably didn't sway your opinion. For the first time since his announcement a couple of years ago, Musk unveiled the prototype for his vision of the future of transportation: a subterranean network of tunnels beneath LA that would send commuters speeding through the city without delays or congestion. Developed by his whimsically named Boring Company, it was our first look at a potential future.
Musk’s plan is to lower autonomous cars into these tunnels, where side-facing wheels attached to their regular wheels will lock onto a concrete track, letting them zip along at 240 kilometers per hour (150 mph). This marks a shift from his original concept of special pods carrying 16 passengers at a time, but it could still accommodate up to 16,000 people per hour. That is, of course, if this test tunnel persuades LA to approve a full-scale build.
8. Hungary Was Shaken by Massive Protests
Hungary has been steadily descending into authoritarianism for quite some time. Under the leadership of Viktor Orban, the mechanisms of civil society have been effectively locked away from everyone except his ruling Fidesz party. The media, courts, and universities have all been subdued. As a result, serious protests are rare. But this week’s protests were anything but ordinary.
The protests were sparked by a new overtime law. Dubbed the 'slave labor' law, it would require companies to make their employees work up to 400 hours of overtime annually—and only pay them for it after three years. However, like the yellow vest protests in France, what began as opposition to one unpopular policy quickly snowballed into a full-fledged, nationwide movement against the entire government.
This week, tens of thousands poured into the streets of Budapest, calling not just for the repeal of the overtime law, but for an end to Orban’s authoritarian policies. In a surprising turn, opposition groups have united for the first time in years—an impressive achievement, considering it includes both ultra-right-wing nationalists and pro-EU student activists.
With the law now passed, it appears the next step will be a nationwide strike. It will be interesting to see whether this forces Orban to back down in a way similar to Macron's response in France.
7. Ukraine’s Church Officially Severed Ties With Russia
The decision was first announced in October, but it still marked a significant moment. On Saturday, the Ukrainian branch of Russia’s Orthodox Church officially broke away from its Russian counterpart, gaining independence. Now known as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, this new entity marks the end of 300 years of Russian religious influence.
The split has sparked considerable controversy. When the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (the Orthodox equivalent of the Vatican) approved the separation, it led to a major schism, with the Russian Church severing all ties with Constantinople. Ukraine’s church argues that the split was necessary, given the ongoing conflict between the two nations.
The new head of the Ukrainian Church is Metropolitan Epiphanius, who used his first sermon to call for national unity and peace. We can only hope his message resonates with the people.
5. India Finally Convicted a Leader of the 1984 Bloody Anti-Sikh Massacres
1984 was a truly horrific year in India. In rapid succession, the Indian Army stormed the Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh site, to kill militants. Then, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards as retaliation. To make matters worse, anti-Sikh riots erupted across the country, claiming the lives of around 3,000 Sikhs. A tragic sequence of events.
In the aftermath of the massacres, almost no one was held accountable. This was particularly infuriating, as powerful individuals, including politicians, were openly encouraging the mobs, inciting them to carry out terrible acts such as hacking families with machetes and setting people on fire. Despite this, India’s culture of impunity allowed them to escape any consequences.
But now, justice is being served. This week, former member of parliament Sajjan Kumar was convicted for his role in inciting rioters to murder a family of five. He is the first major politician to face justice for his involvement in the atrocities.
This could be a significant development, as more high-ranking Indian politicians have been accused of inciting violence during the massacres. One such individual is Kamal Nath, the current chief minister of Madhya Pradesh state.
4. Poland’s Attempt To Rig The Judiciary Finally Collapsed
Since the Law and Justice party (PiS) took power in Poland in 2015, they’ve been eager to follow in the footsteps of Hungary’s authoritarian Viktor Orban. The party has taken control of the media, curtailed civil rights, and made moves to fill the judiciary with loyalists.
We say “attempted” because, this week, PiS was finally forced to back down on reforms designed to oust disloyal judges. Earlier this year, they had lowered the mandatory retirement age for the Supreme Court from 70 to 65, hoping to remove left-leaning judges and replace them with their own allies. But after an EU court ruling, the law was scrapped, and the retired judges were reinstated on Tuesday. It was the first major victory Brussels has had over PiS in three years.
What’s particularly noteworthy is that PiS only retreated because the EU remains surprisingly popular in Poland—despite the Eurosceptic PiS being equally popular. There are indications that the ongoing clashes between Warsaw and Brussels may have hurt PiS in recent local elections. It seems the party has decided to take a step back for now.
3. Democrats Were Forced To Abandon Their Plans To Gerrymander New Jersey
In recent election cycles, gerrymandering has become a critical issue in American politics. In Wisconsin, gerrymandering has greatly benefitted Republicans, while in North Carolina, the map has been so heavily tilted towards the GOP that it was ruled unconstitutional. However, while gerrymandering cases involving Republicans have received significant attention, the Democratic party hasn’t exactly acted above reproach on the matter either. A prime example is New Jersey.
As the year came to a close, top Democrats in New Jersey rushed to enshrine gerrymandering into the state constitution, hoping to give the party a permanent advantage. The move was so brazen and unethical that even usually pro-Democrat outlets like Vox and Slate condemned it as shameless. For a time, it seemed destined to pass.
Fortunately, it didn’t. Over the weekend, the proposal was decisively defeated, partly due to a backlash from party activists and intervention by Governor Phil Murphy (also a Democrat). One of the most cynical and hypocritical proposals put forth by the party has been successfully halted.
The fact that the party’s own activists became involved shows that voters from all sides are growing tired of the absurd political games being played. This follows the passage of ballots in Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, and Utah that effectively banned partisan redistricting. Here's hoping that such blatant gerrymandering will soon become a thing of the past.
2. Congress Voted To End US Involvement In Yemen
Alright, we get it. Technically, this happened last Thursday. But since last week’s column was already finished, we’re covering it now anyway. In an unusual moment of bipartisanship, the US Senate voted 56–41 to end the country’s involvement in the contentious Saudi-led war in Yemen. This vote was a sharp rebuke from Republicans to a president they believe is too aligned with the Saudi regime.
The method behind this action was the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which imposes restrictions on the president’s authority to push the US into wars. This mechanism had never been used before, but it was activated last Thursday, just before a separate vote condemning Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) for his role in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The White House has a strong relationship with MBS and was furious over the second vote.
Of course, this vote won’t actually result in any significant changes. The House blocked a similar vote in November, and it’s highly unlikely they’ll approve it now. Perhaps the 116th Congress will take another crack at it?
1. Hackers Leaked A Whole Load Of EU Diplomatic Cables
Well, that was a bit of a fiasco. This week, hackers, likely linked to China, passed over 1,000 EU diplomatic cables to various news outlets. While it didn’t cause a media frenzy, it certainly stirred some attention. The cables included concerns about nuclear weapons in Crimea and Iran, along with unflattering comments from diplomats about President Trump, which are unlikely to ease relations.
The leaks consisted of low-level classified information, so don’t expect any game-changing revelations. However, they did feature discussions between EU and Chinese officials about the US being a bully, and some playful remarks about Trump being a common adversary. One particularly damaging revelation was an EU aide's comment about the Iran nuclear deal, stating that it wouldn't prevent Tehran from nearing the nuclear threshold for more than 15 years at best.
In some respects, the most significant fallout from these leaks might be that they happened in the first place. The US has long been urging the EU to strengthen its information security systems, anticipating a major breach. Now that it has occurred, Brussels is in for some very uncomfortable moments.
