May 10
NYT Sues for CIA Documents on Iraqi Chemical Weapons, Trump Runs to Right and Left of Clinton, Saudi Religious Police Use Their Teeth, and More Picks
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.
Austrian Government Collapses Over Right Wing Wins on Migration (Russ)
Echoes of Trump, but also of the bad old days in Central Europe.
Alabama Chief Justice Faces Removal from Office over Gay Marriage Order (Klaus)
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore is facing removal from office over ordering the state’s probate judges to ignore the Supreme Court’s landmark gay marriage decision. Moore previously made headlines in another case when he defied the law and refused to remove a display of the Ten Commandments.
Lawsuit Seeks Release of CIA Documents on US Soldiers’ Exposure to Iraqi Chemical Weapons Made with US Help (Trevin)
The government has acknowledged that chemical weapons built by Egypt, Italy and the US have poisoned US troops in Iraq, so the NY Times has sued the CIA for access to related documents.
Trump Runs to Right — and Left — of Hillary (Russ)
Shows how everything is up for grabs, as Clinton herself shifts.
Did Flint’s Mayor Try to Enrich Herself through Water Crisis Donations (Klaus)
Whenever you think Flint’s water crisis could not get any worse, Michigan politicians are proving you wrong. The latest sad chapter in this tragedy involved a lawsuit filed by a former city administrator who accuses the mayor of diverting donations to her personal account.
‘Riot Contagion’ a Big Money Maker for Defense Industry (Jeff C.)
Forecasts of relentless civil unrest in the US, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia is seen as a massive “investment opportunity,” according to a new report by a global business intelligence firm.
Saudi Arabian Religious Policeman Bites Woman on the Hand (Milicent)
A woman harassed by the Saudi Arabian religious police — the Committee for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice — filmed the incident, and when she refused to delete it, they wrapped her in her scarf, beat her, then locked her in their car. When she began filming again, one of them bit her. Many such incidents have been documented by amateurs recently and, as a result, Saudi authorities have cracked down on the abusers. But not all Saudis are happy about that.
