Pretty single liars
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Iran has been urgently signaling that it wants an end to hostilities and resumption of talks over its nuclear program. / The Wall Street Journal [$]
Jeffrey Lewis: The Israeli strikes aren’t about facilities or centrifuges, but regime change. / Foreign Policy
Israel strikes reveal a critical limitation: It can’t touch Fordow, where Iran performs its most dangerous enrichment. But the United States can. / The Power Law
A round-up of worst-case scenarios for Iran and Israel. / BBC News
Pictures from the “No Kings” demonstrations held across the United States this weekend, in which millions are believed to have participated. / The Atlantic [$]
Air traffic control audio finds the Department of Homeland Security flying two Predator drones above Los Angeles’s peaceful marches. / 404 Media
Related: A former chief of the LAPD describes why deploying soldiers to any city is a terrible idea. / The New York Times [$]
Google launches an experimental AI-based tropical cyclone model. (You can try it here.) / Google DeepMind, Weather Lab
Trump rips up a federal commitment, erasing victory in a decades-long tribal campaign to restore Columbia River salmon. / The Seattle Times
A new study focuses on the recently documented phenomenon of humpback whales blowing bubble rings while interacting with people. / Colossal
Reports of chatbots going off the rails—and dragging users behind them—seem to have increased since April. Meanwhile, some seniors use an AI companion to improve their mental health. / The New York Times [$], The Wall Street Journal [$]
Unrelated: A profile of identical twin artists “who paint nothing alike.” / Artsy
Some data points from match.com’s annual “Singles in America” poll. E.g., active daters spend over $300 per month on dates. / Singles in America
Professional chefs decry current food trends they dislike. “Stop smackin’ the mac!” / Inside Hook
Excerpt from a new book about Xi Jinping and what he learned from his father, who was once a reformist within the Communist Party. / China Book Review
Notes from a former personal assistant to Patricia Highsmith: “I thought she wanted to kill me.” / The Yale Review
And now a brief chat with new supporter Matthew R.!
Matthew, hey! Thank you for supporting! How long have you been reading TMN? I’ve been reading TMN for (flips through tournament of books archives) about 18 years. Searching for art blogs and book design led me to TMN and ToB. The variety of interesting links keeps me coming back. Oh, and the puns. And the ToB.
We love it! Any particular reason you decided to support today? I am deeply ashamed of supporting TMN this year. Yes, I’ve read the asks and occasionally kicked some coin in the heated moments of March, but subscribing now? After this long? Embarrassing. Should have done it sooner. If any other long-time readers are also, for no particular reason, idling and thinking, like I, “I’ll get to it soon” and then 18 years go by, maybe today, may it be today, make it today. It feels such a relief to be an honest reader.
In the members area, unlocked links from the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, and the New York Times ↓