|
Listen To This Story
 |
PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Feds Unveil Plan to Grow Wind Power While Sparing Rare Whale (Maria)
The author writes, “The federal government has outlined a strategy to try to protect an endangered species of whale while also developing offshore wind power off the East Coast. … Those waters are also home to the declining North Atlantic right whale, which numbers about 340 in the world. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released a draft plan this month to conserve the whales while allowing for the building of wind projects. The agencies said the ongoing efforts to save the whales and create more renewable energy can coexist.”
Unofficial Poll Watchers Showing Up With Handguns, Tactical Military Gear (Reader Steve)
The authors write, “Two people armed with handguns and wearing tactical military gear, balaclavas masking their faces and the license plates on their cars covered, stood watch over a ballot drop box during early voting last week in Mesa, Arizona. This scene, reported by the Maricopa County Elections Department on Friday, is one that some elections officials and law enforcement fear might spread as believers in Donald Trump’s false claims that a second term as president was stolen from him through voter fraud amp up activity ahead of the Nov. 8 election.”
‘This Theory Is Nuts’: Schwarzenegger Fights GOP Election Scheme at the Supreme Court (DonkeyHotey)
The author writes, “Former GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday filed a 36-page brief with the U.S. Supreme Court arguing against a far-right legal theory that would allow state legislatures to overturn the will of the voters in awarding Electoral College votes. … ‘This is my amicus brief in Moore v. Harper, the test of the so-called independent state legislature theory at the Supreme Court,’ Schwarzenegger posted in a Twitter thread. ‘You have to be polite at SCOTUS, but here are my unfiltered thoughts,’ he wrote. ‘Frankly, this theory is nuts.’”
Detailed Maternal Mortality Data Suggest More Than 4 in 5 Pregnancy-Related Deaths in US Are Preventable (Mili)
From JAMA: “As host of the Birthright Podcast, Kimberly Seals Allers is trying to change the narrative surrounding Black individuals’ maternal health. ‘There has been an overly negative doom-and-gloom narrative,’ Seals Allers, who describes herself as a maternal health strategist, said in an interview with JAMA. ‘What it has done to Black birthing people is stoke fear.’ Although Black people in the US have disproportionate maternal mortality rates, fear of this, Seals Allers says, can hinder what should otherwise be a joyful experience for the new parents and their families. Her podcast, which is funded by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) and the Commonwealth Fund, emphasizes joyful birth experiences and successful recovery after difficult birth experiences.”
Megalopolis: How Coastal West Africa Will Shape the Coming Century (Sean & Mili)
The author writes, “By the end of the century, Africa will be home to 40% of the world’s population — and nowhere is this breakneck-pace development happening faster than this 600-mile stretch between Abidjan and Lagos.”
The Warehouses of Plastic Behind TerraCycle’s Recycling Dream (Reader Andrew)
From Bloomberg: “In recent years, as consumers have become increasingly worried about plastic waste in oceans, companies that produce the stuff have found a haven in TerraCycle and its “sponsored waste” program. For a fee, TerraCycle arranges for items that are not conventionally recycled, such as laminated juice pouches or discarded water filters, to be collected (either at a drop point or by mail) and turned into something else. In return, companies that sell plastic products get to add a label saying the items are recyclable by TerraCycle, which has moral as well as marketing value. TerraCycle boasts that brands return to them because of ‘increased customer loyalty, higher revenue and/or greater market share.’”
Haute (Dog) Cuisine: San Francisco Restaurant Offers $75 Tasting Menu for Canines (Dana)
From the Los Angeles Times: “A new fine-dining restaurant in the Bay Area has gone to the dogs. While some eateries may welcome customers’ furry companions during a sit-down meal, Dogue — which opened Sept. 25 in San Francisco’s Mission District — serves only canines. Owner and head chef Rahmi Massarweh said Dogue may be the first restaurant in the country to serve a tasting menu exclusively for dogs. It offers meticulously crafted pastries from its in-house ‘pawtisserie’ and French-inspired courses made with locally sourced, organic ingredients.”
