With the ongoing strikes in France over raising the pension-eligible age from 62 to 64, a comparison with OECD and G20 countries is warranted. Recourse to the 2021 Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index is also recommended; the U.S. is only mediocre in the standings.
Hundreds of Issues of Classic Science Fiction Magazines Available
Within the Pulp Magazine Archive are listed, by title, dozens of science fiction titles ranging from Amazing Stories Magazine to New Worlds Magazine (featuring the first appearnace of Moorcock’s Behold the Man) to Gernsback’s Science Wonder Stories. Each title can be searched individually and you can limit by year as well. Amust for anyone interested in the development of science fiction.
Overview of the 19th Amendment
The Congressional Research Service (the think tank of Congress) recently generated a six-part series on the 19th amendment, tracing it from its development until the present day. These brief, readable documents, replete with links, provide lucid explanations for this crucial piece of legislation.
Documents in the News: 2022 UFO Report
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has just released its latest report. Over the past year, more than 350 sightings were reported, and of that number, only around 50% have been explained.
For those who are interested, the first Congressional hearing on UFOs occurred last May: Hearing on Government Investigation of UFOs (transcript included).
In governmental parlance, UFOs are really “unidentified aerial phenomena”. You can track use of that term through various bills, reports, and mentions in the Congressional Record.
Was Kevin McCarthy’s Quest for House Speaker the Most Contentious?
Nope. How about one process that lasted for 133 ballots? Altogether, there have been 15 occasions when the balloting went beyond the first round. All this is explained at the Speaker Elections Decided by Multiple Ballots feature from the House of Representatives. These two CRS reports provide additional information: Speakers of the House: Elections, 1913-2021 and
Electing the Speaker of the House of Representatives: Frequently Asked Questions. Ballotpedia has an excellent overview.
January 6 Resources
Do you want to persue timelines, hundreds of witness depositions, Congressional hearings (along with the final report), additional government documents, as well as opinion polls/surveys, not to mention other numerous publications? Then go no further than the January 6 Clearinghouse.
Recent Statistical Reports
They come from diverse sources:
Federal Justice Statistics 2021 (Bureau of Justice Statistics);
Poverty in the United States 2021 (Congressional Research Service);
Transportation Statistics Annual Report 2022 (Bureau of Transportation Satistics);
Teens and Cyberbullying 2022 (Pew Research);
Trends in Bank Secrecy Act Data: Financial Activity by Russian
Oligarchs in 2022 (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network);
School Enrollment Rises Slightly in 2021 (Census Bureau);
2022 Planning and Progress Survey: Work and Retirement (Northwestern Mutual); and
Transparency in Statistical Information for the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and All Federal Statistical Agencies (National Academies Press).
National Security Reports – December 2022 Update
Trauma in the U.S. Intelligence Community (RAND); Resilience of the U.S. Electric Grid (NAP);
Cryptography and the Intelligence Community (NAP); Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference and Cybersecurity Threat Lanscape (ENISA – EU); and Securing Water and Wastewater Utilities: Cybersecurity for the Water and Wastewater Systems Sector (draft project description, NIST).
Climate Change, Slow-Onset Disasters, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
U.S. Security Assistance to Ukraine; Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act: Data Integration and Individual Rights; Cybersecurity: A Primer; Latin America and the Caribbean: U.S. Policy and Key Issues in the 117th Congress; Cuba: U.S. Policy in the 117th Congress; and PATRIOT Air and Missile Defense System for Ukraine.
Documents in the News: The Final Report of the January 6 Committee
This 800+ page report, based on hundreds of interviews, texts, emails, and phone calls, arrives at the conclusion that Donald Trump was the instigating factor in the Capitol riot, and that he should be barred from holding public office as well as being subjected to an investigation by the Department of Justice. Here are various news sources on this result.
Happy Festivus!
The airing of grievances. The feats of strength. The Festivus pole. The origins of this December 23 holiday can be found here.
Documents in the News: U.S. Life Expectancy Falls to Lowest Level Since 1996
Two reports from the CDC highlight the precarious nature of the nation’s health as drug abuse is clearly on the increase. The facts and figures make for sobering reading.
Christmas Poems
Dozens of poems, ranging from 1823 to 2022, about Christman are available at this site. An added bonus are the very informative biographies on the authors.
Documents in the New: House Ways and Means Committee Report on IRS Review of ex-President Trump’s Tax Returns
In agreeing to release redacted versions of Trump’s tax filings, the committee issued this report – REPORT ON THE
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE’S MANDATORY AUDIT PROGRAM – that faults the IRS for not reviewing his filings in a timely fashion, calling this inactivity “dormant”. Here is a summary report from the Joint Committee on Taxation reviewing his filings as well as Melania Trump’s.
Watch Ukrainian President Zelensky Hold A News Conference with President Biden and His Address to Congress
His news conference is scheduled for 4:30 EST, while the address to Congress begins at 7:30 EST. Both of these events will be broadcast live via C-SPAN.
Thousands of Additional Documents Released on JFK Assassination
Based on a memorandum from The White House, the National Archives has released more than 13,000 documents previously classified on this event. This brings the total number of documents freely available to the public to 70,000+. Access to all the files, records related to key persons, etc. can be found here.
15 Major Takeaways from 2022 According to Pew
The Pew Research Center generates dozens of surveys each year; here are some of the striking facts from fifteen of them, ranging from credit card usage to the belief that social media is a good societal tool. Links to each of the surveys are provided for extra in-depth analyses.
Read Most of the 2022 World Fantasy Finalists for Short Fiction
Winner: emet (Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, not available online)
The Demon Sage’s Daughter (Strange Horizons);
The Failing Name (Fantasy Magazine);
If the Martians Have Magic (Uncanny Magazine);
#Spring Love, #Pichal Pairi (Tor.com);
Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather (Uncanny Magazine)
The 2022 Word of the Year Is….
Take your pick: Merriam-Webster’s choice is Gaslighting; Collins Dictionary selection is permacrisis; Oxford opts for goblin mode.
National Security Reports – November 2022 Update
America in Transition (webinar series, Center for Homeland Defense and Security); 2022 National Defense Strategy (DOD); Community Resilience Exercise Resource Guide (FEMA); Global Security Insights Report 2021 (vmware); Global Security and Intelligence Studies; 2022 Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China DOD); and Strategic Intelligence Assessment and Data on Domestic Terrorism – 2022 (FBI).
National Security Review Bodies: Legal Context and Comparison; Emerging Military Technologies: Background and Issues for Congress; Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO); Defense Primer: Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security; Defense Primer: National Security Space Launch; Defense Primer (numerous updated reports); Covert Action and Clandestine Activities of the Intelligence Community: Selected Definitions; and U.S. Periods of War and Dates of Recent Conflicts (all CRS).