Get what you knead
The United States attacks two facilities in Syria used by Iran and Iran-backed groups, according to the Pentagon. / Al Jazeera
The White House says Russia is killing soldiers who fail to follow orders in Ukraine, also threatening entire units with death. / The Associated Press
A very long, very good assessment of China's current "era of malaise" by Evan Osnos. / The New Yorker
Over a million Paraguayans "disappear"—due to migration, smaller families, and more accurate census figures. / The Economist
Newly anointed House of Representatives speaker Mike Johnson gives Fox News a little clarity (we stress: a little) on his positions. / Politico
See also: "Oil And Gas Lobbyists Happy To Fill In Rest Of Nation On Who Mike Johnson Is." / The Onion
Death Valley national park reopens after being closed in August, and visitors are discovering sand dunes now dotted with lakes. / The Guardian
Eighteenth-century British naturalists relied on traders of enslaved people to obtain thousands of natural specimens from West Africa. / Lapham's Quarterly
Ideas about monstrosity are said to have been "fundamental to ancient and medieval debates about the nature of humanity." / Medievalists.net
Related: Jeanette Winterson on the future of ghosts in this age of the metaverse. / The Paris Review
(Personally, we're still haunted by an image of a massive oyster from last summer, icymi.) / X
The Paul Hollywood fandom—those who haunt the host of The Great British Baking Show on social media—is said to be the thirstiest. / GQ
👻 Do you dig this newsletter? Show it by becoming a Sustaining Member or making a one-time donation. Thanks!
🎁 Free links to paywalled sites are marked with a [+].
✔️ Got a correction or a link we should consider? Email us or just reply to this newsletter.
Your headlines are sourced and composed by Rosecrans Baldwin and Andrew Womack, Monday through Saturday. View this edition and the latest headlines at TMN.