2019
October
04
Friday

Monitor Daily Podcast

October 04, 2019
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Linda Feldmann
Washington Bureau Chief

Today, we offer a look at how impeachment resonates in a Virginia battleground district, an interview with the Ugandan rapper who would be president, a change of tune in the Arab Spring’s birthplace, a conversation between Monitor culture writers about “Joker” and storytelling that’s uncomfortable, and the decline of the hockey goon. 

First, some thoughts on finding joy amid turmoil.

As I sat in the East Room of the White House Wednesday, watching an agitated President Donald Trump battle reporters, my thoughts turned to Juan Soto. The night before, the 20-year-old outfielder for the Washington Nationals hit a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 8th – sparking a dramatic come-from-behind victory. 

The game started rough for the Nats, as did the season, but they persevered. Their wild-card victory advanced them to the next playoff round, a rare moment of postseason joy. The best moment came after the game, when Mr. Soto’s proud Dominican dad tackled him in celebration. Last night they lost, but it ain’t over. 

Democrats, Republicans, no matter. Washington loves its Nats, and as the city descends into the ugly business of presidential impeachment, it is unifying moments like Tuesday night that make life here tolerable. The late conservative pundit Charles Krauthammer once wrote that God created baseball as a relief from politics. He also observed that he could leave Fox News’ studios after the evening broadcast and be in his seat at Nationals Park “by the bottom of the first, in time to see Bryce Harper’s first at-bat.” 

Mr. Harper is no longer a Nat, but the team is carrying on just fine. And so, we trust, will Washington. 


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Today’s stories

And why we wrote them

How do voters in politically competitive districts feel about Democrats’ impeachment investigation of the president? Our congressional reporter found it’s a top-tier issue for voters of both parties. 

A deeper look

Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Robert Kyagulanyi (who goes by the stage name Bobi Wine) has seized the imagination of a generation. And he plans to use that energy to propel himself to the presidency of Uganda.

Bobi Wine wants to unseat Uganda’s entrenched ruler. Can he stir a youth revolution here and across Africa? 

Is prosperity sufficient to quench the thirst for freedom? Perhaps for a limited time. The converse is similarly unsatisfactory. The triumph of democracy, no matter how heroic, doesn't fill empty bellies. Hence politics.

The Chat

Niko Tavernise/Warner Bros. Pictures/AP
Joaquin Phoenix stars in the film "Joker," opening in theaters Oct. 4, 2019.

Does backlash over the new “Joker” movie indicate a shift in thought about storytelling that is uncomfortable? The Monitor’s culture writer and its film critic sit down to discuss the movie and others with similar controversies.

Chris Szagola/AP
Chris Stewart (left) of the Philadelphia Flyers gets into a fight with Michael Haley of the New York Rangers during a preseason NHL game Sept. 21, 2019, in Philadelphia. Fights on the ice have dropped 70% since 2008.

As hockey has promoted speed and skill over grappling, goals are up and fights are down. It’s a remarkable cessation of hostilities that reflects society’s increasing wariness over violence in sports.


The Monitor's View

Reuters
A demonstrator in Baghdad runs between burning tires during a curfew Oct. 3.

Since its liberation from a dictator in 2003 by U.S. forces, Iraq has seen popular upwellings against polluted water, political influence from Iran, lack of jobs, aggression by Islamic State, and electricity blackouts. One thing stood out. They were largely organized by political or religious leaders. Since Oct. 1, however, Iraq has seen massive daily demonstrations in a number of cities that are largely spontaneous and leaderless.

The main demand this time: clean governance, or an end to corruption among a political elite that siphons off the country’s vast oil wealth and bickers in partisan posturing.

In a sign of a maturing democracy, young Iraqis see corruption as a greater threat than anything else. With the aid of social media, they have taken to the streets by the tens of thousands, rallying around an Arabic hashtag that means “I’m protesting for my rights.” The government of Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi, which took power a year ago, has responded by killing dozens of protesters.

About 40% of Iraqis were born after 2003. They have enjoyed four peaceful changes in power by democratic means and now expect more of their leaders. Youth unemployment is around 25%, a result largely of a corrupt economic system. “The parties have robbed us of all our dreams,” says one woman who is protesting.

Finding a solution may not be easy. The Abdul-Mahdi government could collapse, leading to months of political chaos. The quickest path to a resolution might be a suggestion made Oct. 4 by Iraq’s most revered religious figure. Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani asked political leaders to take “practical and clear steps” toward combating corruption or the protesters will “simply come back even stronger.” The highly influential Ayatollah Sistani wants a committee of technocrats to make the government more transparent and accountable with its money.

Arab countries have few models of honest – and elected – leaders who serve the public interest. Young Iraqis are trying to provide one. They’ve tasted freedom and basic democratic rights. Now their bottom-up rebellion is looking for honest leaders who reflect their values of clean governance.


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.

Positive thinking, “mind over matter,” or blind faith can only get us so far. Prayer that affirms and accepts our heavenly Father, God, as the one true Mind has a healing effect.


A message of love

Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
In just the last five years, the number of visitors to national parks in the United States has grown 35%. On a random day last summer, Zion’s magical main canyon was overwhelmed. And yet. Only a mile away, using a different entrance, you could walk a Zion trail without seeing another human being. And farther afield, at the other four famous national parks dotting southern Utah (Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands), you could wander not far from a parking area and suddenly find yourself alone, and in silence – and agog at the beauty surrounding you. You just need to know where to look. – Michael S. Hopkins/Contributor
( The illustrations in today’s Monitor Daily are by Jacob Turcotte. )

A look ahead

Thank you for joining us. Our next issue will be on the first Monday in October, the traditional opening day of the U.S. Supreme Court’s new term. Staff writer Henry Gass will explore the “culture war” issues that are front and center.

More issues

2019
October
04
Friday

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