RealClearInvestigations' Picks of the Week
April 19 to April 25 Advocates for polyamory - relationships in which multiple partners give each other consent to have affairs with others -- are pushing to make their movement the next domino to fall in a long line of civil rights victories, John Murawski reports in a three-article package for RealClearInvestigations. Murawski writes: - As many as a fifth of Americans have engaged in consensual non-monogamy at some point in their lives, some studies suggest.
- At any given time, an estimated 4% to 5% of the population is in a consensually non-monogamous relationship
- Despite the acceptance of campus hook-up culture and Tinder trysts, more intentional forms of consensual non-monogamy - polygamy, polyamory, swinging and the like - are highly stigmatized.
- But non-monogamists don't see their aspirations as such a moonshot in an increasingly tolerant society where a gay man married to another man can make a serious run for U.S. president.
- Activists, especially in California, are already working to extend local anti-discrimination ordinances to a new protected class: "relationship structure."
- Conservatives warn of disrupting traditional families and social norms keeping powerful, wealthy men from hoarding women.
- Princeton law professor Robert George: "We have quickly gone from, ‘It will never happen,' to ‘You're a bigot for thinking there is anything wrong with it.'"
- Last fall polyamory got attention, some of it sympathetic, when California Rep. Katie Hill was forced to resign over allegations she was having an affair with a staffer in a "throuple" with her then-husband.
- A recent TV episode of "House Hunters" featured three adults in search of a home for their polyamorous nest.
- Hollywood celebrities are opening up about their polyamorous lifestyles too.
- This story package includes a profile of a polyamorous couple and a polyamory glossary of terms, including "relationship anarchy."
Other Noteworthy Articles and Series FBI Informant Bragged About Links to Russian Spies
Daily Caller
The FBI wasn't just investigating the Trump campaign for Russian ties before the election: it also appears to have been running a sting operation. Recently declassified documents show that a confidential informant for the FBI, Stefan Halper, offered Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos help from Moscow. "I have a lot of friends in Russia," Halper told him during their conversation, which occurred over drinks, and which the FBI recorded. "My point is that the Russians can be very helpful to us at this time and we've got some great information coming out." Papadopoulos shot down Halper's suggestion, saying the Trump campaign would not engage in "this type of activity because at the end of the day it's … illegal." He added, "This is a form of treason." In a separate article, John Solomon reports that Rep. Adam Schiff, the Democrat who heads the House Intelligence Committee, has not followed through on a pledge he made 19 months ago to release transcripts of interviews with 53 witnesses in the Russia collusion investigation.
Trump Owes Tens of Millions to China in NY Building's Debt
Politico
This is article is not so much journalism but apparently placed opposition research intended to tarnish President Trump. Here's the set-up: In 2012, Trump's real estate partner refinanced Trump Tower for almost $1 billion. The debt included $211 million from the state-owned Bank of China — its first loan of this kind in the U.S. — which matures in 2022, which would be the middle of what could be Trump's second term. Trump owns 30 percent of the property. And? The article never says - and, like the Russia collusion coverage, it ignores the fact that Trump has acted much more harshly than the previous administration toward people he's supposedly in bed with. But the real point of the story appears to be to neutralize Trump's ability to attack Joe Biden for his son Hunter's sweetheart deals with the Chinese. The article mentions Joe Biden in the lede and a few graphs down it reports: "The 2012 Bank of China deal also stands out because Trump and his campaign have repeatedly highlighted the same bank's role in a $1.5 billion deal announced in 2013 by partners of Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden. Critics of the Bidens have seized on the fact that the agreement materialized just days after Hunter Biden traveled to China with the then-vice president, who was there on official business." So a shady-looking business deal and a straightforward loan are the same? Okey-dokey. Coronavirus Investigations Banks Gave Rich Clients 'Concierge' Service for Aid
New York Times
The federal government's $349 billion aid program for small businesses devastated by the coronavirus pandemic was advertised as first-come, first-served. As many business owners found out, it was anything but. That's because some of the nation's biggest banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Citibank and U.S. Bank, prioritized the applications of their wealthiest clients before turning to other loan seekers. The two-tiered system paid off for well-to-do customers: By the time the Paycheck Protection Program ran out of money last week, many top clients of national and regional banks had already had their loans approved. China Factor Hurts U.S. Access to Arms-Grade Rare Earths
Reuters
Among the many things COVID-19 has underscored is America's deep dependence on China. Chinese-made pharmaceuticals and respiratory masks are only the tip of the iceberg. This article looks at another key sector: rare-earth minerals. The United States wants to curb its reliance on China for specialized minerals used to make weapons and high-tech equipment, but it faces a Catch-22: It has only one rare earths mine - and government scientists have been told not to collaborate with the mine's owner, MP Materials, because it is almost a tenth-owned by a Chinese investor and relies heavily on Chinese sales and technical know-how. Overnight Crash of the $8.5 Billion Global Flower Trade
Bloomberg Businessweek
Nowadays almost no business stands alone. Most are parts of a vast supply chain or, especially in times of crisis, dominoes set to fall. This article reports that after only a few weeks of quarantine, Vermont farmers are dumping milk in manure pits because of canceled orders from schools; crops are withering in Europe as closed borders prevent migrant farmworkers from harvesting them; American chicken wing prices cratered before what's normally a March Madness-driven boom; and, in India, farmers are unloading ripening grapes at one-sixth the usual price. The article focuses on the collapse of one sector, the crash of the $8.5 billion global trade in cut flowers, which shows how quickly the new coronavirus impacts even places where it isn't yet pervasive. Sex in the Time of Coronavirus
Wall Street Journal
COVID-19 appears to be also killing the moment. This article reports that experts have reversed their initial belief that the pandemic might lead to a baby boom. Research has shown that baby booms sometimes follow low-severity stressful events that end quickly—like the threat of a tropical storm—because people respond emotionally. But when the trauma is intense and remains high over time—such as after Sept. 11—there's typically no baby boom. People are too anxious to think much about sex. And they question the wisdom of bringing a baby into the world. In the case of the coronavirus, there are also worries about whether a pregnancy, and baby, would be healthy. "A state of high threat, characterized by stress or anxiety, is not conducive to having sex," says Justin Garcia, acting executive director and research director of the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University. "There's a reason gazelles don't mate a few feet in front of a lion." A separate article in the Los Angeles Times reports that "men contending with coronavirus infection may have a pair of vulnerabilities that could increase their risk of longer, more severe illness: their testicles." More Coronavirus Investigations Cuomo's Coronavirus Nursing Home Policy Proves Tragic, New York Post
Why 5 Virus Computer Models for Next Month Disagree, New York Times
Antibody Test Does Not Yet Deliver, New York Times
Clinicians Trace Virus's Rampage Through the Body, Pulitzer
Is the Coronavirus Killing Off Physical Cash? Politico Magazine
Why Wearing Gloves to Supermarket Isn't Helping, New York Post
Well-Off, Naive, and Reckless: The Rule Breakers of COVID-19, CNN |
