Sordid Double Life of UAE's Powerful Ambassador
The Intercept
Leaked emails show that Yousef al-Otaiba, the UAE's charming and influential ambassador to Washington, led a sordid double life with a hard-partying crew, including an alcoholic college pal who embezzled from his charity. The group planned debauchery with female "youngsters" at the MGM Grand's exclusive penthouse Skylofts in Sin City. "Is my diplomatic immunity valid in Vegas?" Otaiba emailed. Banned House IT Aide's Secret Email Account Still Active
Daily Caller
Imran Awan, the former IT aide suspected of stealing equipment and data from Congress, still has an active, secret email account on the House computer system, even though he has been banned from it. The account was set up using the name of a top aide to an Indiana Democratic congressman, André Carson. But Awan used the address, court documents and emails show. How to Get Rich in Trump's Washington
New York Times Magazine
Corey Lewandowski's journey from obscure New Hampshire political operative to celebrity power broker is emblematic of how Donald Trump's election scrambled Washington's hierarchies. The swamp hasn't been so much drained as enveloped in fog. New guides are needed to navigate it -- people who know how to speak to Trump. People like Lewandowski. Inside Trump's War on Leaks
Vanity Fair
The Obama administration laid the groundwork for President Trump's war on leaks to the press, investigative journalists agree. But the new administration has turned up the heat. From encryption apps to disposable phones, reporters are going to greater lengths to protect their sources in the tense media environment. How Houston Left Itself Exposed to Harvey's Devastation
Bloomberg Businessweek
No city could have withstood Harvey without serious harm, but Houston made itself more vulnerable than necessary, Bloomberg Businessweek's cover story concludes. The city exulted in sprawling, hands-off growth, patching together a mess of dams and drainage. Paving over the saw-grass prairie reduced the ground's capacity to absorb rainfall. Flood-control reservoirs were too small. Building codes were inadequate. Roads became rivers, so while hospitals were open, it was almost impossible to reach them by car. Tampa Bay's Coming Storm
Washington Post
Tampa Bay has 700 miles of shoreline with beautiful white sand beaches, but lies vulnerable to major flooding and damage were a big hurricane to hit. A recent World Bank study ranked Tampa Bay among the top 10 most at-risk areas in the world. Rising sea levels make even weaker weather systems dangerous. Boom in Confederate Monuments, on Private Land
New York Times
As old Confederate monuments come down after the violence in Charlottesville, Va., an unexpected reality has largely been overshadowed: New ones continue to go up -- on private land. "There has been a Civil War memorial boom going on over the last 20 years," says the history department chairman at the University of North Carolina. No, You May Not Know Facebook's Data Collection Methods
Gizmodo
Some Facebook users find the social media giant's "People You May Know" tool creepy. A Gizmodo writer connected with a previously unknown relative using it, but ran into a stone wall when she asked Facebook how it came to link her to this person. Facebook says its algorithms give it a competitive advantage it doesn't want to lose. | 
