Heinrich and his cronies seem unlikely insurrectionists but their connections run back to Bismarck’s timePresent-day Germans have a reputation, in Britain at least, for being law-abiding, solid, even stolid citizens who generally toe the line. Like most stereotypes, this caricature is hopelessly inaccurate. Anyone surprised by last week’s foiled “coup” ignores German history and the insurrectionary exploits of one Wolfgang Kapp.Abetted by an aristocratic soldier, Gen Walther von Lüttwitz, he launched the so-called “Kapp putsch” in 1920 against the national government in Berlin. The aim was to overthrow the Weimar Republic that replaced the Second Reich at the end of the first world war – and so avenge the mythical “stab in the back”. His putsch flopped. Continue reading...

A campaign to warn teenagers about their biological clock is approaching the issue the wrong way roundSo often, the answer to big societal challenges gets boiled down to the school curriculum. High levels of obesity? Let’s get schools to teach healthy eating. Too many people in debt? Financial literacy should be taught to every pupil. Concerned about the dangers of social media? Digital literacy lessons for all.Of course there’s nothing wrong with making sure children and young people are informed about how to keep themselves healthy and safe. But there is a danger not just of overloading schools but of kidding ourselves that the answer to structural and social phenomena is a bit more education.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 250 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at observer.letters@observer.co.uk Continue reading...

MPs will again show their respect by falling silent in the House of CommonsIt takes a lot to silence the House of Commons. However, 80 years ago, the Islington South MP, William Cluse, did exactly that. On 17 December 1942, MPs responded to the British government’s first public acknowledgement of the Holocaust with a spontaneous moment of silence – a first for the chamber.Anthony Eden, the then foreign secretary, read a declaration based on reports from the Polish government-in-exile, detailing the atrocities taking place in Nazi-occupied Europe. Eden reported that: “From all the occupied countries Jews are being transported, in conditions of appalling horror and brutality, to Eastern Europe … None of those taken away are ever heard of again. The able-bodied are slowly worked to death in labour camps. The infirm are left to die of exposure and starvation or are deliberately massacred in mass executions.” As he detailed the crimes being committed by the Nazis in occupied Europe, the house listened in stunned silence. Continue reading...

Department of Justice viewed deal to exchange basketball star for Russian arms dealer as a mistakeJoe Biden has faced pressure from within his own administration, as well as his political opponents, in securing the release of basketball player Brittney Griner from Russia, according to reports.On Thursday, Biden hailed the “intense and painstaking negotiations” that led to the release of Griner in a prisoner swap deal with the arms dealer Viktor Bout. Griner was arrested at a Moscow airport in February for possession of a small amount of cannabis oil, while Bout, nicknamed ‘the merchant of death’, was serving a 25-year sentence in federal prison for fueling conflicts in Africa and the Middle East. Continue reading...

As an interviewee in the Netflix series, the scale and fury of the backlash to the comments on race and royals is revelatoryThe howl of exasperation from tabloid commentators – who spoke almost in unison last week like a dismissive Greek chorus – was that Netflix’s Harry and Meghan documentary series contains no new revelations. The supposed dearth of suitably titillating details left Britain’s ever‑growing legions of royal commentators, and even some TV reviewers, pouting and foot-stamping like 12-year-olds told to do their homework, as if access to salacious royal gossip is our birthright and the Sussexes are contractually obliged to provide it.What was quietly and purposefully revelatory about the documentary went largely uncommented upon. The more open-minded of the 2.4 million people who clicked through to the first episode experienced a simple but central revelation: they heard the voices of a young woman of colour and her husband, who have been subjected of an unprecedented campaign of abuse and vilification, telling us what that all felt like. Continue reading...

The tributes that have poured out after the journalist’s death are no surprise. He used his privilege, power and position in football for goodEveryone has a Grant Wahl story.This was never more true than on Friday night, when messages of love, support, shock, and grief poured out across social media with the news of his sudden death while covering the World Cup in Qatar. Continue reading...

Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler voted against bill protecting same-sex marriage but Andrew Hartzler, who is gay, was unimpressedThe backlash to the Republican member of Congress who broke down in tears in her opposition to the same-sex marriage bill has included a familiar face – her nephew, who has called the lawmaker a “homophobe”.On Thursday, Vicky Hartzler, a Republican representative from Missouri, shed tears as she urged colleagues in the US House of Representatives to vote against the Respect for Marriage Act, which forces states without marriage equality laws to recognize LGBTQ+ marriages from other states. Continue reading...

Trump-backed Republican files lawsuit asking court to throw out certified results of her loss to Democrat Katie Hobbs

Anger can be a catalyst for change, so let’s harness female rage at inequality, violence and the loss of reproductive rightsWomen are getting angrier, according to a BBC analysis of 10 years of data from the Gallup World Poll. Over 120,000 people in more than 150 countries are surveyed by Gallup every year about their emotions and the results are not particularly cheery. Women consistently report feeling negative emotions more than men, and, since 2012, more women than men report feeling sad and worried. While men aren’t exactly doing great – both genders report feeling more worried than they did a decade ago – there’s a widening gender rage gap. Continue reading...

California woman says shooting at gay club could have been prevented had earlier charges not been dismissedA California woman who warned a judge last year about the danger posed by the suspect in the Colorado Springs gay nightclub shooting said on Friday that the deaths could have been prevented if earlier charges against the suspect had not been dismissed.Jeanie Streltzoff – a relative of alleged shooter Anderson Lee Aldrich – urged Colorado judge Robin Chittum in a letter last November to incarcerate the suspect following a 2021 standoff with Swat teams that uncovered a stockpile of more than 100 pounds (45kg) of explosive material, firearms and ammunition. Continue reading...

Colorado Springs evangelicals once supported a discrimination bill. Now, religious leaders there are affirming LGBTQ+ peopleGrowing up, Amber Cantorna had very little exposure to anything outside of the church in her Colorado Springs home town. She was homeschooled through the 12th grade, and everything in her life was focused on family, faith and God.But by the time she was in her early 20s, Cantorna realized she was gay. Coming out to her family a decade ago resulted in her being ostracized from the only life and people she’d ever known. Her keys to the family home were taken and she was compared to a murderer and a pedophile. Continue reading...

It’s not about the price. Some of my most treasured pieces are inexpensive, and bought years ago from the likes of TopshopMy favourite pair of black trousers came from Jigsaw almost five years ago. I can date them because I was on my way to the cinema to see the Frances McDormand film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, which I remember because I left the bag containing them under my seat in the cinema and had to jump off the bus and run back – and Google tells me that the film was released in January 2018. I think they cost around £60.I paid less than that for the ivory silk shirt I’m wearing with them today, which I bought from Marks & Spencer in 2016 from a collection curated by Alexa Chung. My leather belt is from Gap and may well be older than either of my children, one of whom is at university. Continue reading...

Strike of 48,000 is largest in history of US higher education as some workers protest at offices of high-level university administratorsTens of thousands of academic workers throughout the University of California are currently on their fourth week of striking for a new union contract and the situation is intensifying amid the threat of arrests after direct actions by some strikers.The strike of 48,000 academic workers, including graduate workers, academic researchers, postdoctoral scholars and teaching assistants, began on 14 November and is the largest in the history of higher education in the US. Continue reading...

The failed ‘red wave’ during the midterm elections marked the beginning of a downward spiral of losses and lost supportInstead of taking off like a rocket over the past three weeks, Donald Trump’s bid to win back the White House appears, so far at least, to be blowing up on the launchpad.The swagger of 2016 has given way to somnolence in 2022. Opinion polls are grim. Legal setbacks are piling up. A run of dismal results in the midterm elections, culminating in another Republican loss in Georgia this week, have punctured his aura of invincibility within the party. Continue reading...

Masks can feel like a thing of the past in the US – but experts are once again advising them as Covid, flu and RSV surge simultaneouslyMasking can feel like a thing of the past in the US, even in cities such as New York and Los Angeles that once embraced the precaution. But as healthcare facilities grapple with a “tripledemic” of respiratory viruses – with Covid, flu and RSV surging simultaneously – experts are once again urging the public to don face coverings.“I would not go into a grocery store without a mask,” says John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus of infectious diseases and vaccinology at the University of California, Berkeley. “I wouldn’t go into rapid transit without a mask. I wouldn’t go into an airplane or be in an airport without a mask,” nor would he attend a crowded outdoor event such as a concert without one, Swartzberg says. Continue reading...

Series of attacks come after assault on North Carolina facilities cut electricity to 40,000A string of attacks on power facilities in Oregon and Washington has caused alarm and highlighted the vulnerabilities of the US electric grid.The attacks in the Pacific north-west come just days after a similar assault on North Carolina power stations that cut electricity to 40,000 people. Continue reading...

US airman almost died in first attempt from 14.5 miles up, eventually jumped from 19 miles and said later ‘there’s no way you can visualise the speed’The retired US air force colonel Joseph Kittinger, whose 1960 parachute jump from almost 20 miles (32km) above Earth stood as a world record for more than 50 years, has died in Florida aged 94.His death on Friday was announced by the former US congressman John Mica and other friends. The cause was lung cancer. Continue reading...

DoJ told to resolve noncompliance with subpoena demanding return of documents with ex-president’s legal teamA top federal judge denied a request from the justice department to hold Donald Trump’s office in contempt of court for failing to fully comply with a subpoena demanding the return of all documents bearing classified markings, according to sources familiar with proceedings.The chief US judge for the District of Columbia Beryl Howell told the department during a closed-door hearing on Friday to resolve the matter with the Trump legal team itself because a contempt ruling would not hold, the sources said. Continue reading...

South African to support review of US high performance programmes as 2031 and 2033 World Cup host looks to rebuildThe former South Africa assistant coach Gary Gold will step down as head coach of the US Eagles, USA Rugby said on Friday, three weeks after the team failed to qualify for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.In a statement, Ross Young, chief executive of USA Rugby, thanked Gold “for his dedication, passion and service”. Continue reading...

J Alexander Kueng pleaded guilty of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and will serve a three and a half year termThe former Minneapolis police officer who kneeled on George Floyd’s back while another officer kneeled on the Black man’s neck was sentenced Friday to three and a half years in prison.J Alexander Kueng pleaded guilty in October to a state count of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. In exchange, a charge of aiding and abetting murder was dropped. Kueng is already serving a federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights, and the state and federal sentence will be served at the same time. Continue reading...

Senator’s decision to register as independent after playing spoiler role brings Democrats’ bitterness towards lawmaker to surfaceUpon learning that the Arizona senator Kyrsten Sinema was leaving their party, some Democrats’ reactions could best be summed up with two words: good riddance.The lawmaker has been a thorn in their side since the early days of Joe Biden’s presidency, snarling negotiations over the White House’s priorities and voting down reforms dear to progressives such as raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, and reforming the Senate filibuster. Continue reading...

Support for public sector workers shows that most people realise the government’s in the wrong, not exhausted nursesWinter is suddenly here, and with it a chill descending. This Arctic snap brings with it the season of falls on icy pavements, breathing difficulties aggravated by the cold, cars skidding off frozen roads and drunken Christmas party casualties. The worst time of year, you might think, for the first ambulance strike since the 1980s and the first national nurses’ strike in more than a century, especially as the NHS is grappling with a rush of parents understandably panicking about an outbreak of strep A.The armed forces may be drafted in to cover, somewhat ironically given that they, too, are public sector workers who spent the pandemic building hospitals and shipping PPE in return for a less than bumper payrise. But it’s still no time to be old and frail, worrying about what might happen if you slip on the stairs, or to be a family without a car, wondering how you’d get a child to hospital in the middle of the night. Continue reading...

The Netflix series has caused establishment outrage. But I think it gives us a chance to have a long needed discussion about racismAlthough it would be hard to reach this conclusion from reading any of the thousands of articles of negative copy the couple have generated, when Prince Harry fell in love with Meghan Markle, the royal family – and Britain more broadly – was gifted manna from soft-power heaven.As well as her vast, obvious qualities (often demanded by such roles), Meghan also brought something less obvious: Blackness – a quality that could not have been more historically potent, given the circumstances. Continue reading...

Arizona senator changes party affiliation and says she will not caucus with RepublicansThe US senator Kyrsten Sinema has switched her political affiliation to independent, leaving the Democratic party just days after it won a Senate race in Georgia to secure a 51st seat in the chamber.“I have joined the growing numbers of Arizonans who reject party politics by declaring my independence from the broken partisan system in Washington. I registered as an Arizona independent,” she said in an op-ed for Arizona Central, a local media outlet. Continue reading...

It’s not just indifference. It’s an active, and deadly, cavalier attitude towards the lives of others: an example other nations followThere are two extraordinary facts about the convention on biological diversity, whose members are meeting in Montreal now to discuss the global ecological crisis. The first is that, of the world’s 198 states, 196 are party to it. The second is the identity of those that aren’t. Take a guess. North Korea? Russia? Wrong. Both ratified the convention years ago. One is the Holy See (the Vatican). The other is the United States of America.This is one of several major international treaties the US has refused to ratify. Among the others are crucial instruments such as the Rome statute on international crimes, the treaties banning cluster bombs and landmines, the convention on discrimination against women, the Basel convention on hazardous waste, the convention on the law of the sea, the nuclear test ban treaty, the employment policy convention and the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. Continue reading...

Plus a strike-breaking Wordle, and the weirdest episode of political weeping since Matt HancockWith the news full of alarm about this winter’s “tripledemic” – rising case numbers of RSV, flu and Covid, particularly among children – when my child’s fever hits 103F late on Monday, I do something I hate: drag her around the corner to urgent care, the 24-hour drop-in clinic where for $150 you can be seen immediately by a doctor who’s never seen you before and will never see you again. It’s the fast food of healthcare, right down to the décor – which consists, unnervingly, of wall-to-wall framed photos of TV doctors, as if the place is cosplaying medical help and the clinicians have all been booked from central casting. Continue reading...

NBA players and coaches celebrated the release of Brittney Griner.Russia freed the jailed US basketball star in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange for the notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, the so-called 'Merchant of Death' who had been held in a US prison for 12 years.'We thank you for your sacrifice and your continued perseverance and patience to get through this process, and hope you enjoy reuniting with your family,' said two-time NBA MVP Steph Curry

Basketball star arrives in Texas after US releases convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout in dramatic prisoner swap. Plus, the first-ever unicorn license granted

The midterms have been an endorsement of Biden’s formula: appeal to the middle by hammering at Republicans’ extremismFor the third time in a row, Democrats have won a Senate election in Georgia. Raphael Warnock’s victory makes it clear that the party’s gains in the state in 2020 were not an anomaly. Although far from being a so-called blue state, Georgia is positioned well to remain competitive in 2024 and beyond. But in order for that to happen – and to build on their victories elsewhere – Democrats have to make the right choices.Taken as a whole, the midterms have provided a ringing endorsement of the approach to politics favored by President Joe Biden. From the first moment it looked like he would enter the 2020 Democratic primary, Biden was maligned and mocked for suggesting that the path to a Democratic victory lay through gains with independent and suburban voters. Critics argued that the country was so deeply polarized that swing voters no longer existed, and that appeals for bipartisanship would fall on deaf ears. In their view, the only viable strategy was to mobilize the Democratic base with leftwing appeals, even at the cost of losing voters in the center. Continue reading...

Biden ordered officials to focus on deporting immigrants convicted of felonies, rather than undocumented people en masse. I applaud that decisionTexas has sued the Biden administration over its order to immigration agents to prioritize undocumented immigrants convicted of felonies rather than deport all undocumented immigrants.Texas argues that federal immigration law requires the government to deport every undocumented immigrant. The Biden administration says it doesn’t have the resources to deport the country’s estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, so it must develop priorities.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. His new book, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, is out now. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com Continue reading...

Basketball star released as US agrees to free convicted arms dealer in dramatic prisoner swapRussia has freed the jailed US basketball star Brittney Griner in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange for the notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, the so-called “Merchant of Death” who had been held in a US prison for 12 years.Joe Biden, who had made Griner’s release a top priority after she spent almost 10 months in jail on drug charges, said in an address from the White House he found her “in good spirits” when speaking after the swap in Abu Dhabi. Continue reading...

Video from Russian state media shows the moment released prisoners, the US basketball star Brittney Griner and the arms dealer Viktor Bout, momentarily cross paths on the tarmac of an airport in the United Arab Emirates.In the footage, Griner can be seen wearing a red coat, and Bout is holding what appears to be a brown envelope.Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medallist, was released from a Russian jail before being traded for Bout, an arms dealer who had been held in a US prison for 12 years

Activists urge a federal investigation of the Kansas City police department after a detective allegedly preyed on Black womenIt is a scandal that has shocked many beyond the borders of Kansas City, where a senior white policeman allegedly carried out a reign of terror in which he brutally abused and sexually assaulted vulnerable Black women.An appalling set of allegations against former Kansas City, Kansas police department detective Roger Golubski has lifted the lid on a scheme where he is alleged to have protected local drug dealers in the midwestern city, who then allowed him to rape women forced to work as prostitutes. Continue reading...

Several investigations have been launched around gambling patterns for UFC fights. The organization must shoulder some of the blameOn 5 November 2022, a handful of UFC oddsmakers and media members noticed suspicious gambling activity before a fight between Shayilan Nuerdanbieke and Darrick Minner in Las Vegas.In the hours leading up to the fight, Nuerdanbieke emerged as a significant betting favorite. He went on to win by technical knockout in the opening round after Minner’s knee appeared to buckle. It was later reported that Minner had hurt his left knee before the fight, and that rumors about the injury had spread among betting insiders. Continue reading...

Used in Native religious ceremonies but now adopted by A-list celebrities, the cactus is threatened by land development and over-harvestingEarlier this fall, leaders of the Native American Church of North America (Nacna) made a historic trip to Washington DC to meet with lawmakers about the need to protect peyote – and, with it, the faith of hundreds of thousands of Native people.Over the course of three days, they sat down with more than 20 lawmakers, federal officials and representatives from the Biden administration. In each meeting, they distributed photos to better illustrate the grim situation: huge swaths of land, in an area of southern Texas known as the Peyote Gardens, brutally cleared by root plowing. Continue reading...

I will ensure this country uses its power and influence to advance its interests and values

Film by her daughter, Alexandra Pelosi, captures how Nancy Pelosi fought to preserve democracy in the dramatic hours of the Capitol attackThe struggle of Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives, to preserve American democracy in the dramatic hours of the January 6 attack are captured in a new documentary film shot by her daughter.Pelosi is seen watching on TV Donald Trump’s incendiary speech to his supporters, getting rushed out of the US Capitol building and making calls to Vice-President Mike Pence and other officials from the Fort McNair military base, where congressional leaders took refuge from the mob. Continue reading...

Angel Ahearn’s grandmother fought to gain custody of the girl, but a judge placed her with her father despite allegations of abuseA Tennessee grandmother who fought for custody of her late daughter’s child but lost out to the girl’s father was left grieving and angry after the man murdered her granddaughter.Monica Dunning is holding up the shooting death of her 12-year-old granddaughter, Angel Ahearn, as devastating evidence that the US family court system is broken, the Tennessee news outlet WBIR reported. Continue reading...

The country can overcome multiple urgent challenges to achieve sustainable development for and with the peopleDevelopment is complex, but in complexity there is an opportunity for innovation if the right partnerships are formed.In Somalia, where the needs are extreme, multiple and urgent, there is no shortage of development projects, but more often than not, this dominates the global view of Somalia. However, this is not the full story. Continue reading...

Global head of News Corp among Murdoch’s guests. Plus: Toni Collette reveals split with husband after Daily Mail photosLachlan Murdoch’s week began with a deposition on Monday in the Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit against Fox News and ended with the News Corp co-chair hosting an exclusive party for media and political leaders at his Bellevue Hill mansion in Sydney’s east.The whirlwind life of the media scion and his ex-model wife, Sarah, we assume is made possible by owning a private jet. Continue reading...

I know what it is like to live in a country where there is no way to voice oppositionThe case of climate protester Violet Coco, who was sentenced to 15 months in prison for briefly blocking a lane of traffic on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, is a frightening development. This was a peaceful protest, but the court refusing her bail until March is a condition usually imposed on violent criminals, according to her lawyer. A researcher from Human Rights Watch has called the sentence “outrageous”.The escalation of this case to such a completely disproportionate punishment is a part of a trend of shrinking civic space that is being mirrored in other democratic societies. In the UK, new legislation is set to give the police unprecedented powers to shut down protests and punish protesters. New laws in New South Wales that Violet was convicted under were supported by both the Liberal government and Labor opposition, both of which take donations from the fossil fuel companies. These new laws mean that peaceful climate activists face far higher jail terms than serious criminals. Continue reading...

Los Angeles county granted a girl named Madeline permission to own the mythical animal – if she can find oneA girl named Madeline, with a vivid imagination and remarkable awareness of how bureaucracy can dash dreams, got her wish when she asked Los Angeles animal control authorities for a license to own a unicorn – if she’s able to find one.The first-of-its-kind permit came with strings attached, however: the mythical creature must be provided ample exposure to sunlight, moonbeams and rainbows and have its horn polished at least once a month with a soft cloth. Continue reading...

Ray J Garcia, the retired warden of a prison nicknamed the ‘rape club’, faces lengthy prison stintThe retired warden of a federal California prison derisively nicknamed the “rape club” has been convicted of charges that he sexually abused incarcerated women under his charge.Ray J Garcia, 55, faces a lengthy stint in prison when he is eventually sentenced after a jury in Oakland’s federal courthouse on Thursday afternoon found him guilty of breaking laws that prohibit sexual contact between prison workers and inmates.The Associated Press contributed reporting Continue reading...

Trump office did not comply with subpoena issued in May demanding the return of all classified documents, a source saysThe US justice department is seeking a top federal judge to hold Donald Trump’s political office in contempt of court for not fully complying with a grand jury subpoena issued in May demanding the return of all classified documents in its possession, according to a source familiar with the matter.The department in recent weeks asked the chief US district court judge for the District of Columbia, Beryl Howell, to hold Trump’s office in contempt after prosecutors were unable to get the former president’s lawyers to designate a custodian of records to certify all records were returned. Continue reading...

Florida Democrat Maxwell Frost says he incurred debt from his campaign and was recently denied an apartment for poor creditMaxwell Frost, the Florida Democrat who made history last month as the first Gen Z congressman-elect, made waves on social media Thursday morning with a tweet in which he said he was struggling to find somewhere to live in Washington.Frost wrote: “Just applied to an apartment in DC where I told the guy that my credit was really bad. He said I’d be fine. Got denied, lost the apartment and the application fee. This ain’t meant for people who don’t already have money.” Continue reading...

Regulators voted 3-1 to stop the biggest acquisition in video game history, citing concerns over thwarting of competitionThe US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has moved to block Microsoft’s takeover of video game company Activision Blizzard, citing concerns that the deal would thwart competition by denying rivals access to popular gaming content.Microsoft, which owns the Xbox video game console system, said in January 2022 that it would buy Activision for $68.7bn, which would make it the biggest gaming industry deal in history. Activision is the maker of popular games including Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. Continue reading...