The International Monetary Fund says the persistence of the coronavirus and global supply chain crisis is weighing on economies. / Bloomberg

The White House announces that the Port of Los Angeles will begin working "24/7" to ease supply chain woes. / NPR 

"Right now, everyone is blaming the ports, but we have to be mindful that we are dealing with a supply chain problem, not one particular link." / LA Business Journal

A new report on Americans' ideas about foreign policy finds the desire to leave Afghanistan doesn't translate to other areas. / The Washington Post

Thabo Mbeki says the root of wars across Africa is a failure "to manage diversity." / The Mainichi

Concern grows as polls for next year's presidential election in Franze show nearly a third of voters backing the far right. / Al Jazeera

China's coal imports surged 76% in September as power plants scrambled for fuel to ease demand. / Reuters

Emily Atkin: Bezos, Gates, and Musk believe the natural world can be bent to accommodate humanity's existing behavior, "and they are obsessed with doing the bending." / Heated

For TMNers who enjoyed Rosecrans's recent mini-essay about aspens, here's the internet's favorite Chinese gingko tree dropping gold. / Meditations in an Emergency, Colossal 

Was Covid-19 a lab leak or naturally born? Without greater transparency from China, the battle between two theories rolls onward. / The New Yorker

Unrelated: Here is what a vaccine piñata looks like. / Hyperallergic

The United States eases travel restrictions across its land borders for the fully vaccinated. / CNN

Thoughts about risk, reward, and outdoor sex in light of "the current uptick in cruising" during the Covid period. / Apology Magazine

Few of the Jan. 6 defendants are entering guilty pleas, but most who do are getting good bargains from the government. / Lawfare

At least half a dozen Holocaust museums are being built, plan to break ground, or have recently expanded. / The New York Times

Winning images from this year's Drone Photo Awards. / Goats and Soda

"I have no imagination these days, though I see what's close by to look at." A poem for your ongoing-pandemic Wednesday: "Lemon Seed" by Holly Prado. / The Paris Review
Cripple Media is said to be the first Gen Z digital platform created for and by teens with disabilities. / PC Mag

"Zombie Girlboss." "Angela Merkel with some birds." A dozen-plus lazy Halloween costumes for 2021. / The Cut