Empire at war forces of corruption mods

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 11 DNIPRO, Ukraine - When a Russian shell slammed into Taya Berkova's apartment building in Kharkiv last March, her neighbors did something she could not: They ran. The 43-year-old, who uses a wheelchair because she has cerebral palsy, was trapped as the floors above her burned. When her elderly parents and other residents finally wrangled her and her chair down six flights of stairs, she became trapped again, in a basement with no ramp and no toilet that she could use without help. Conditions have not been much better in the string of makeshift shelters she has lived in since, including one where she shared a bathroom with 35 others. At times during her year-long odyssey as a disabled refugee, Berkova simply "stopped eating so I wouldn't have to go," she said. After several temporary shelter stays, Berkova now lives in a nursing home in … [Read more...] about War forces thousands of disabled Ukrainians into institutions

Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America By Abraham Riesman Atria. 452 pp. $29.99 - - - The history of professional wrestling is a story of fixed matches, false narratives and the bloodthirsty consolidation of power. Standing at the heart of this uniquely violent hybrid of sport and entertainment is WWE majority owner and executive chairman Vince McMahon, the (uncooperative) subject of Abraham Riesman's revelatory new biography, "Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America." Riesman's book is a captivating dive into a spectacle that cannot genuinely be categorized as a real sport but that nonetheless relies on the talents of world-class athletes. It's a story that feels urgent today, thanks in part to McMahon's recent appearances in the news. He retired as the chief executive of WWE in 2022, in the wake of allegations that he had paid millions to suppress accusations of sexual misconduct and infidelity. In the process of unpacking how we got here, … [Read more...] about Book World: How Vince McMahon and his wrestling empire explain America

There are Freudian slips and there's what former president George W. Bush said during a speech last May. Speaking to an audience in his presidential library in Texas, Bush condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin for launching a full-scale invasion of his country's neighbor, Ukraine. But Bush then made a rather profound gaffe, publicly bemoaning "the decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq." He swiftly corrected himself, saying "the Ukraine" with a shake of the head, and appealed to his septuagenarian status. Light chuckles swept through the sympathetic crowd. But there are many others who weren't laughing. The U.S. invasion of Iraq, which occurred 20 years ago this week, was seen at the time by critics as both "wholly unjustified" and potentially "brutal" - views that have only become more widespread in the years that followed. The Bush administration sold a false bill of goods to justify its "preemptive" intervention against the regime of … [Read more...] about 20 years later, U.S. invasion of Iraq hangs over war in Ukraine

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 12 TUBA CITY, Ariz. - Brandon Whiterock stared at his mother's grave, a collection of incongruous stones carefully configured above the ruddy, dusty desert soil, and contemplated all that had changed since her second burial. Twenty years ago, in March 2003, Lori Piestewa, a U.S. soldier, was listed as missing in action during the hellish and confused early hours of America's war in Iraq. Her convoy was ambushed, leading to the capture and eventual deaths of several troops, Piestewa among them. As her family would learn, the 23-year-old was fatally wounded in a frantic race to help others flee the kill zone, and her remains were crudely buried outside of an Iraqi hospital. U.S. personnel were dispatched later to recover the captives and remains, including Piestewa's body. Anguish washed over the Hopi tribal community in Arizona, … [Read more...] about The children of troops lost to Iraq War are all grown up

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 12 LYMAN, Ukraine - Before this city was occupied by Russian soldiers and the buildings crumbled to rubble and ash under a rain of steel and fire, life was good for residents in the medley of apartment buildings known as the Triangle. Grannies sat on benches and admired their grandchildren on the courtyard playground, and residents hauled vegetables from the small but bountiful community garden, even as the Russians drew near to this small city in the eastern Donetsk region. This life splintered apart last spring, on April 25, when a missile or bomb fell from the sky and landed by the jungle gym, blowing out windows and leaving a massive crater. A 7-year old girl whose family fled from another part of the city to live with her grandmother was just getting to the shelter when the strike occurred. The girl and a small black dog she … [Read more...] about In war-ravaged Lyman, Ukrainians live underground months after liberation

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is opening his second Summit for Democracy with a pledge for the U.S. to spend $690 million bolstering democracy programs around the globe. The Biden administration wants to use the two-day summit that begins Wednesday to zero in on making “technology work for and not against democracy,” according to a senior administration official. Some 120 global leaders have been invited to participate. Biden frequently speaks of the U.S. and like-minded allies being at a critical moment in which democracies need to demonstrate they can out-deliver autocracies. The summits, something Biden promised as a Democratic 2020 presidential candidate, have become an important piece of his administration's effort to try to build deeper alliances and nudge autocratic-leaning nations toward at least modest reforms. “Strengthening transparent, accountable governance rooted in the consent of the governed is a fundamental imperative of our time,” Biden and South … [Read more...] about Biden starts democracy summit with $690M pledge for programs

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 RIO DE JANEIRO - For weeks, Brazil has enjoyed a relative calm. Following the most divisive election in its history, which culminated in thousands of rioters seizing and vandalizing the capital's most important federal buildings, the country has celebrated weeks of Carnival revelry and quiet news cycles. New President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has busied himself with budgetary questions, the central bank, and a gaffe here and there. And election loser Jair Bolsonaro, whose supporters assaulted the Presidential Palace, the Supreme Court and Congress after his defeat, has been uncharacteristically quiet from his seclusion thousands of miles away in Kissimmee, Fla. But now Bolsonaro, who rose to power by exploiting a succession of culture war battles and spent his four years as president deepening those divisions, says he'll return soon to the country he polarized like few politicians … [Read more...] about Bolsonaro’s return poses risks for the former president – and Brazil

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 29 JERUSALEM (AP) — Bending to a wave of mass protests, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delayed his contentious judicial overhaul plan Monday and said he wanted "to avoid civil war” by making time to seek a compromise with political opponents. The announcement appeared to calm some of the tensions that have fueled three tumultuous months of unrest. But it failed to address the underlying issues that have polarized the nation, and the anti-government protest movement vowed to intensify its efforts. In his prime-time address, Netanyahu, who had previously rejected calls to delay the legislation, took a more conciliatory tone than in recent speeches. He acknowledged the deep divisions in the country and said he was hitting … [Read more...] about Netanyahu delays judicial overhaul after mass protests

Succession started with ending on its mind. Prior to its pair of Outstanding Drama Series Emmys, before a knack for artful profanity and characters you love to hate (and hate to love) elevated the show into the HBO water-cooler pantheon, Jesse Armstrong’s family drama-cum-media satire rooted its central conflicts in the concluding reign of Rupert Murdoch-esque mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox). As the series unfolded, this lion in winter proved to have more than nine lives, dodging the Grim Reaper, the Department of Justice, and his adult children’s repeated attempts to take control of their presumed birthright, Waystar Royco, a behemoth of cable news, motion pictures, theme parks, and criminally bad cruises. Dialogue-driven and steeped in business arcana, the series nevertheless sold itself as a Game of Thrones -level event on the basis of a climactic clash that always felt right around the corner. Thanks to a surprise announcement from Armstrong , we know that climax has finally … [Read more...] about ‘Succession’ sets its brilliant sights on an ending