2018
April
23
Monday

Monitor Daily Podcast

April 23, 2018
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James Shaw Jr. is being hailed as a hero after wrestling a gun away from a shooter yesterday at a Waffle House in Tennessee. Mr. Shaw is the first, however, to reject the title. He told the press later that he was only trying to stay alive.

“It feels selfish,” he said. “I was just trying to get myself out. I saw the opportunity and pretty much took it.”

What can’t be denied, however, is the fact that, although the shooter had already killed four, everyone else in the restaurant was saved by Shaw’s quick thinking and action. He took advantage of a pause while the shooter was reloading to charge him, tackle him, take the gun out of his hand, and throw it over the restaurant counter. (The suspected shooter was taken into custody today.) 

In the aftermath of the Parkland, Fla., high school shooting and the debate on arming teachers that that tragedy has reignited, Shaw’s actions have more than symbolic value. On social media, Shaw is being celebrated as the “good guy without a gun.” No gun – just quick wits and courage.

Then later in the day, Shaw created a GoFundMe account to raise money for the families of the victims.

And as for refusing the hero label, that’s “exactly what you’d expect a real hero to say,” noted one Twitter user.

Next up: We’ve selected five stories intended to help you see justice, democracy, and compassion at work.


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Today’s stories

And why we wrote them

There's nothing new about gerrymandering. But gerrymandering plus big data creates a brand-new – and potentially more dangerous – equation. Will the Supreme Court make it harder for districts to redraw their lines?

Briefing

They committed no crime. They evaded no laws. They simply grew up in the place their parents chose. But now they may be forced to leave the only country they've ever known. No, we're not talking about "Dreamers." Meet Britain's "Windrush generation." Will these children of immigrants benefit from a new approach by their government?

Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters
A man carries bread loaves along a busy Cairo street near a campaign banner for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

He's been called a dictator and a strongman. He keeps a tight hold on the reins of power in his country. But Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is facing a population that is increasingly weary, struggling, and sometimes just plain hungry. How long can he hold on?

Ann Hermes/Staff
Potential student Bryant Miller (c.) tours classrooms at the first open house at Sattler College, a Christian college in Boston, April 12. The college is starting its inaugural year with 25 students, and its founder, Finny Kuruvilla, is hoping to expand enrollment to about 300 students in the coming years.

For many years, it was simply accepted as a fact about higher education in the United States: A majority of students held liberal political views, as did most of their professors. But for some of today's young conservatives and their parents, that's not a system they're ready to buy into. And they're now finding alternatives.

Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Naledi Thimbela sits with her half sister Pomotso at her grandmother's home in Jan Kempdorp, South Africa. Naledi graduated with honors from high school and hopes to go to college.

In South Africa, the biggest change in higher education in the past couple of decades has been the dramatic increase in access. And while that's good news, getting into college is only half the battle. For many, the biggest obstacles today are getting all the way through to a degree – and finding a way to afford it.


The Monitor's View

AP Photo
Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, left, meets her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on April 22. The two announced a summit of their top leaders on April 27-28 in China.

Less than a year ago, the world’s two most populous nations, India and China, almost went to war. In a tense showdown over disputed land in the Himalayas, their soldiers traded stones and punches. After 73 days, each side backed down. Now, on April 27 and 28, their leaders will meet and instead try to embrace what they have in common – ever the wiser in setting aside nationalist rage over territorial issues.

Asia, which is home to half of humanity, is littered with such land disputes, a result of wars, colonial-era mistakes, and ambitions for dominance. The China-India summit will be just one of several high-level meetings in the region over coming weeks that may reflect a desire to ease territorial tensions.

Despite the size of the two Asia giants, their meeting will probably be overshadowed by another summit also being held this weekend. For the first time in 11 years, leaders of North Korea and South Korea will be holding talks. The summit is aimed mainly at ridding the North of its nuclear weapons. If the talks go well, President Trump plans to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in May or June. Yet it is important to recall that the Korean conflict is fundamentally a dispute over which of the two countries will control the peninsula – the land issue unresolved by the 1950-53 Korean War. The talks may reveal if North Korea is finally ready to put prosperity for its people ahead of its desire to conquer the South by force.

One reason China and India avoided a land war last year is the fact that their trade reached its highest level ever, growing by 20 percent in 2017 to more than $84 billion. China is now India’s largest trading partner and a key investor. For its part, China is trying to build roads and ports across the region to boost trade and reclaim its historic role in Asia.

With both India and China facing internal pressures to foster growth, cooperation between the two looks more enticing than confrontation. The elephant and dragon now realize they need a dance card, not another military confrontation along their more than 2,000-mile border. The two fought a brief war in 1962 in the Himalayas that ended in a stalemate.

The summit between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will be informal, reflecting their serious intent to get along. Just as remarkable is the fact that Mr. Modi will again meet with Mr. Xi in June at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional body.

Their close call over war last summer was a wake-up call for both sides to look at the big picture and opt for a beneficial détente over a deadly contest in their remote mountains.


A Christian Science Perspective

About this feature

Each weekday, the Monitor includes one clearly labeled religious article offering spiritual insight on contemporary issues, including the news. The publication – in its various forms – is produced for anyone who cares about the progress of the human endeavor around the world and seeks news reported with compassion, intelligence, and an essentially constructive lens. For many, that caring has religious roots. For many, it does not. The Monitor has always embraced both audiences. The Monitor is owned by a church – The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston – whose founder was concerned with both the state of the world and the quality of available news.

Today’s contributor was healed of a hereditary, chronic back problem as his sense of identity shifted radically.


A message of love

Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, wave and gesture as they leave St. Mary's Hospital in London with their newborn son April 23. The couple’s third child is fifth in line to the British throne.
( The illustrations in today’s Monitor Daily are by Jacob Turcotte. )

A look ahead

Come back tomorrow: We’ll be taking a look at French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Washington. The relationship between the two leaders appears to have evolved into something that looks like a partnership. On their agenda this week: Syria and Iran.

More issues

2018
April
23
Monday

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