April 30, 2024

Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Annette’s News Roundup.

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Joe is always busy.

At the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night, the President implored the press to take the threat of Trumpian dictatorship seriously. 

“I’m sincerely not asking of you to take sides but asking you to rise up to the seriousness of the moment; move past the horse race numbers and the gotcha moments and the distractions, the sideshows that have come to dominate and sensationalize our politics; and focus on what’s actually at stake,” he said. “Every single one of us has…a serious role to play in making sure democracy endures….  I have my role, but, with all due respect, so do you.” 

George Stephanopoulos of ABC’s This Week apparently took this reminder to heart. “Until now,” he said in the show’s opener on Sunday, “[n]o American president had ever faced a criminal trial. No American president had ever faced a federal indictment for retaining and concealing classified documents. No American president had ever faced a federal indictment or a state indictment for trying to overturn an election, or been named an unindicted co-conspirator in two other states for the same crime. No American president ever faced hundreds of millions of dollars in judgments for business fraud, defamation, and sexual abuse….

“The scale of the abnormality is so staggering, that it can actually become numbing. It’s all too easy to fall into reflexive habits, to treat this as a normal campaign, where both sides embrace the rule of law, where both sides are dedicated to a debate based on facts and the peaceful transfer of power. But, that is not what’s happening this election year. Those bedrock tenets of our democracy are being tested in a way we haven’t seen since the Civil War. It’s a test for the candidates, for those of us in the media, and for all of us as citizens.” (Source. Heather Cox Richardson, Lessons from an American).

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Update from Israel. What Happened Today. 206 Days into the War.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a Joint Ministerial Meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)-US Strategic Partnership in Riyadh on Apr. 29, 2024.

■ The White House said U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with PM Netanyahu on Sunday, in which Biden "reiterated his clear position" on a Rafah operation.

■ HOSTAGES/CEASE-FIRE: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Hamas received a truce proposal that is "extraordinarily generous," and that it needs to decide quickly. He added that he is hopeful that Hamas will "make the right decision."

• The New York Times reported Israel has reduced the number of hostages it will accept to be released by Hamas in the first phase from 40 to 33, prompted partly by the fact that Israel now believes that some of the initial 40 have died while in Hamas captivity.

• U.K. Foreign Minister David Cameron said there is a 40-day cease-fire in Gaza on the table in exchange for the release of hostages that includes the release of potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners.

• A senior Hamas official told AFP there are no "major" issues with the current proposal. Hamas official Izzat al-Risheq denied the report, and said "the proposal is still in the stages of being studied."

• Blinken said the best way to ease the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza would be to reach a cease-fire deal releasing the hostages held by Hamas. But, in the meantime, he said it was critical to improve aid conditions now.

• Blinken also told Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan that Hamas' refusal to accept a deal is responsible for the continuation of the conflict in Gaza, and urged that all efforts be made to convince Hamas to accept the current proposal.
  
  ■ PALESTINIAN STATE: Several European member states are expected to recognize Palestinian statehood by the end of May, the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on the sidelines of a World Economic Forum special meeting in Riyadh.(Haaretz)

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Our Universities On Fire.

Academic Freedom Under Fire by Louis Menand.

Politicians despise it. Administrators aren’t defending it. But it made our universities great—and we’ll miss it when it’s gone.

The congressional appearance last month by Nemat Shafik, the president of Columbia University, was a breathtaking “What was she thinking?” episode in the history of academic freedom. It was shocking to hear her negotiating with a member of Congress over disciplining two members of her own faculty, by name, for things they had written or said. The next day, in what appeared to be a signal to Congress, Shafik had more than a hundred students, many from Barnard, arrested by New York City police and booked for trespassing—on their own campus. But Columbia made their presence illegal by summarily suspending the protesters first. If you are a university official, you never want law-enforcement officers on your campus. Faculty particularly don’t like it. They regard the campus as their jurisdiction, and they have complained that the Columbia administration did not consult with them before ordering the arrests. Calling in law enforcement did not work at Berkeley in 1964, at Columbia in 1968, at Harvard in 1969, or at Kent State in 1970.

What’s more alarming than the arrests—after all, the students wanted to be arrested—is the matter of their suspensions. They had their I.D.s invalidated, and they have not been permitted to attend class, an astonishing disregard of the fact that although the students may have violated university policy, they are still students, whom Columbia and Barnard are committed to educating. You can’t educate people who cannot attend classes.

The right at stake in these events is that of academic freedom, a right that derives from the role the university plays in American life. Professors don’t work for politicians, they don’t work for trustees, and they don’t work for themselves. They work for the public. Their job is to produce scholarship and instruction that add to society’s store of knowledge. They commit themselves to doing this disinterestedly: that is, without regard to financial, partisan, or personal advantage. In exchange, society allows them to insulate themselves—and to some extent their students—against external interference in their affairs. It builds them a tower. (The New Yorker)

Read the whole thing here.

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How Successful are the Free Palestine Protests at Universities?

How successful can they be?

Campus Protests Are Making Noise, Not Change, by Jessica Karl.

While pro-Palestine encampments are spreading fast, there’s little evidence students are any closer to forcing schools to divest.

“Were the snipers on the rooftop really necessary?”

That was my first question when reading about the protests at my alma mater over the weekend. In the span of three days, Indiana State Police arrested over 50 pro-Palestine protesters at Indiana University, Bloomington. Curiously, those arrests wouldn’t have been possible without a last-minute change to a 55-year-old campus policy around the use of “temporary structures.” Which, let’s be real, we’re talking about a bunch of tents from Walmart.

Regardless of whether you agree with the politics of the pro-Gaza encampments that have cropped up on at least 50 US universities, you have to admit that they’ve generated a lot of noise. We’ve seen over 1,000 arrests. Open letters from faculty. Excellent student journalism. Canceled graduation ceremonies. Votes of no confidence. Poetry readings. And don’t forget the designated “nut zones.”

But despite all those things, the protestors have not accomplished their stated goal of divestment from Israel. And they likely never will, says Stephen Carter. “This isn’t a conclusion I reach lightly,” he writes (free read).

Just this morning, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik sent an email to the community saying the university “will not divest from Israel,” after negotiators “were not able to come to an agreement.” The administration also sent a notice to the encampment, giving the students there a 2 p.m. deadline to leave or face immediate suspension, a deadline many protestors — including some staffers — chose to ignore:

“The decisions at Columbia and Yale and elsewhere to arrest protesters and clear their encampments by force has led to demonstrations at other schools. This activism cascade supports the contagion theory used by many social scientists to explain how protests jump from place to place,” Stephen writes. “But the fact that demonstrations spread does not imply that activists will achieve their goals. So far, there’s little evidence that the Gaza protests or the efforts by universities to restore order are building support for the cause.” (Bloomberg).

The Stephen Carter opinion piece begins this way -

“I fear that the current round of campus protests is wearing out its welcome. This isn’t a conclusion I reach lightly. In my increasingly distant youth, I was a sometime protester myself, marching and chanting alongside classmates, and I tend to take vicarious pleasure in student activism. But in my day, we recognized the moment to stop. Whereas the current wave of protests, whatever their original motivations, have become not only disruptive but, for many Jewish students, frightening.

In the old days — if I may call them such — the point of nonviolent protest was to change public opinion by provoking a reaction through which authority would show its true repressive face. This approach worked. It wasn’t the civil rights marches as such that aroused the conscience of a nation; what put an end to the South’s pretense of racial harmony was the ensuing fire hoses, police dogs, and murders. For those protests to be effective, it had to be the authorities, not the protesters, who engaged in intimidation.“

Read the whole thing for free.

One more thing. Or two.

How do the demonstrators think university administrators can bring about a cease-fire in Gaza?

New York Times - Columbia University announced Monday evening that it had begun to suspend students who had failed to leave a pro-Palestinian encampment by a 2 p.m. deadline.

Students in the encampment, along with hundreds of supporters, had spent a tense afternoon rallying around the site in a show of force meant to deter the removal of its tents. But by 4 p.m., with no sign of police action, most of the protesters had begun to disperse, leaving what appeared to be several dozen students and about 80 tents inside the encampment.

The university said it had identified some but not all of the students in the encampment. They are likely to be notified of their suspensions one by one via email.

“We have begun suspending students as part of the next phase of our efforts to ensure the safety of our campus,” Ben Chang, a spokesman for the university, said.

At New York University, administrators facing a renewed pro-Palestinian encampment there took a similar step to Columbia on Monday.

The notice given out Monday warned the protesting students that the “current unauthorized encampment and disruption on Columbia University’s campus is creating an unwelcoming environment for members of our community.”

It said that students would not be punished for their participation in the encampment if they signed a form promising not to break any university rules through the end of the next academic year. Students in the encampment who already faced discipline from previous violations may not be eligible for the same deal, the document stated.

University administrators also received a letter on Monday from 21 members of Congress, expressing frustration that the encampment had not already been dismantled.

“As a result of this disruption on campus, supported by some faculty members, many students have been prevented from safely attending class, the main library and from leaving their dorm rooms,” the letter said, referring to the complaints that some Jewish students and faculty have made.

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McConnell: Leave handling of protests to college presidents.

“What needs to happen, at least at the beginning, is these university presidents need to get control of the situation,” the Republican leader said.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell declined to call for the National Guard to intervene in the pro-Palestinian protests that have popped up on college campuses across the country, even as other Republican leaders called for more forceful action.

“What needs to happen, at least at the beginning, is these university presidents need to get control of the situation, allow free speech and push back against antisemitism,” McConnell said during a pre-taped interview that aired on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday.

But unlike some of the more hardline members of his party, McConnell did not call for more forceful action when asked if the situation on college campuses required interference from the National Guard.

“Let’s see if these university presidents can get control of the situation. They ought to be able to do that. Civil discussion is what college education is supposed to be about. I’d be interested in hearing the antisemitic people explain the justification for that kind of talk,” he said. (Politico).

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Women’s Sports is expanding. So too is the Sports Bra.

Oregon’s Sports Bra, a pub for women’s sports fans, plans national expansion as interest booms.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — On a recent weeknight at this bar in northeast Portland, fans downed pints and burgers as college women’s lacrosse and beach volleyball matches played on big-screen TVs. Memorabilia autographed by female athletes covered the walls, with a painting of U.S. soccer legend Abby Wambach mounted above the chalkboard beer menu.

The Sports Bra is a pub where women’s sports are celebrated — and the only thing on TV.

Packed and buzzing with activity, the bar has successfully tapped into a meteoric rise of interest in women’s sports, embodied most recently by the frenzy over University of Iowa basketball phenomenon Caitlin Clark’s records-smashing feats.

Just two years after opening, the bar announced plans this week to go nationwide through a franchise model.

“Things have happened at light speed compared to what my forecast was,” founder and CEO Jenny Nguyen told The Associated Press. “This tiny spot that I built for my friends and I to watch games and give female athletes their flowers means so much more. And not just to me, but to a lot of people.”

Under the plan, bars and entrepreneurs elsewhere will be able to apply to use The Sports Bra brand for their franchises. Nguyen is open to working with people who already have a physical space, as well as those who may only have a business plan. What matters, she said, is that the potential future partners share The Sports Bra’s values.

One aspiring partner is Jackie Reau, who hopes to open a franchise in Cincinnati, where she works as the CEO of a media and marketing agency. During an interview at The Sports Bra, where she happily watched her college women’s lacrosse team on one of the TV sets, she said such establishments “celebrate women’s sports and the champions and the athletes behind the story.”

“It’s exciting to see it grow and gain such popularity,” Reau said of the bar. “It’s just such a moment right now for women’s sports.”

The expansion will be boosted by funding from a foundation created by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, who is married to tennis legend Serena Williams. Nguyen said she already has received hundreds of inquiries.

Interest in women’s sports is at an all-time high, helped by Clark’s exploits this year, when she shattered all-time NCAA scoring records for women and men. The championship game between Iowa and South Carolina on April 7 drew 18.9 million viewers on average, surpassing the audience for the men’s title match for the first time.

A week later a record 2.45 million viewers on average tuned in to the WNBA draft to watch as Clark went to the Indiana Fever as the No. 1 pick. This week it was reported that she was set to sign a $28 million deal with Nike that would be the richest sponsorship contract for a women’s basketball player.

The rise in interest is not just for women’s basketball, but other sports as well. The 2023 Women’s World Cup reported record attendance with nearly 2 million fans. A University of Nebraska volleyball game played in a football stadium drew more than 92,000 people last August, a world record for largest attendance at a women’s sporting event.

“It’s sort of in this pinnacle moment where eyeballs are plentiful,” said Lauren Anderson, director of the Warsaw Sports Business Center at the University of Oregon. “It’s just been an alignment of many things that has created this incredible moment for women’s sports that seems to be more than just a flash in the pan.”

As the fan base and engagement grow, so too does the appetite for changing a sports bar culture that has traditionally catered to men’s athletics. Other establishments like The Sports Bra have recently opened elsewhere: A Bar of Their Own began operating in Minneapolis earlier this year, and Seattle’s Rough & Tumble launched in late 2022.

Sports bars have not always been welcome spaces for women, Nguyen said. A fan since childhood, she would gather groups of friends to go because she didn’t feel safe going by herself. She recalled encountering macho environments that made her uncomfortable, and bartenders who refused to change the channel to a women’s game.

“That was just what we settled with,” she said. “When I wanted to push back and kind of flip the status quo, that’s when I really started to dig in on how The Sports Bra could matter and change the narrative on sports bars.”

One memory in particular stands out for Nguyen from her time as proprietor: Serena Williams’ last match, in 2022. A massive crowd showed up to watch, spilling over onto the the sidewalk. People outside cupped their eyes with their hands as they peered through the windows to see the screens.

“When Serena would score a point, I swear to God, I thought the glass was going to shatter. My eyeballs were rattling inside my head,” Nguyen said. “And then when they were volleying, I feel like you could hear a burger flip in the kitchen.”

Toward the end, she felt tears welling up. She passed two tissue boxes around for similarly weepy customers as everyone reveled in Williams’ last minutes on the court.

“I remember taking a deep breath and thinking, ‘I don’t know if there’s a single place on the face of the planet that is having this exact moment,’” Nguyen said. “It was amazing.”

Fans can still find it challenging to watch women’s sports games, because many are not broadcast on TV and require different streaming subscriptions, said Tarlan Chahardovali, an assistant professor in the University of South Carolina’s Department of Sport and Entertainment Management.

Women’s sports bars can be a reliable go-to for many events by having those subscriptions. But more broadly, Chahardovali said, much work remains to be done to ensure the media market doesn’t undervalue women’s sports.

“Today’s numbers are hard to ignore, and I think it’s a very exciting time,” she said. “But it’s a moment that needs to be maintained and sustained, and it needs continuous investment.” (Associated Press).

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Basketball Legend Candace Parker announces her retirement.

Pair of giant pandas set to travel from China to San Diego Zoo

Pair of giant pandas set to travel from China to San Diego Zoo - ABC News

A pair of giant pandas will soon make the journey from China to the U.S., where they will be cared for at the San Diego Zoo

SAN DIEGO -- A pair of giant pandas will soon make the journey from China to the U.S., where they will be cared for at the San Diego Zoo as part of an ongoing conservation partnership between the two nations, officials said Monday.

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said its caretakers recently visited China to meet the giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, ahead of their planned trip to Southern California. An exact date for the handoff hasn't been set.

Yun Chuan, a mild-mannered male who's nearly 5 years old, has “deep connections” to California, the wildlife alliance said. His mother, Zhen Zhen, was born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007 to parents Bai Yun and Gao Gao.

Xin Bao is a nearly 4-year-old female described as “a gentle and witty introvert with a sweet round face and big ears.”

“Our conservation partners in China shared photographs and personality traits of Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, but meeting them in person was so special," said Dr. Megan Owen, the alliance's vice president of conservation science. “It’s inspiring as people from around the world come together to conserve, protect, and care for these special bears, and we can’t wait to welcome them to San Diego.”

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a nearly 30-year partnership with leading conservation institutions in China focused on protecting and recovering giant pandas and the bamboo forests they depend on. (ABC News).