Tuesday, June 7th, 2016

1

That’s the Ticket

Want to win an election on a non-voting day? There's an AP for that. The election of the first woman in U.S. history to lead a major party's presidential ticket was announced in historical fashion. Historically weird. On the eve of a primary when California's Dems thought their vote might actually count for something, the AP declared that Hillary Clinton had the votes, delegates, Super Delegates and whatever else she needed to secure the top spot on her party's ticket. The news came out at night on Monday when no one was expecting it. James Corden wouldn't do Car Karaoke in that time slot. While there will be much debate about whether the AP called the race too early, the bigger issue is that our vote and delegate system is so perplexing that you can get a win on a day without a contest.

+ Newshour: How does the AP count delegates to arrive at Clinton's win?

+ The Atlantic is blogging the latest primary updates from California and five other states. I voted this morning and it felt a little weird to be casting my vote in the tech capital of the world with a marker. Although, I suppose that in this particular election, it might have made more sense to use a crayon.

+ And Paul Ryan chimed in on Donald Trump's controversial comments about judges: "Claiming a person can't do their job because of their race is sort of like the textbook definition of a racist comment." That made me feel even better about yesterday's top story where I explained why journalistic bias is not only OK, it's often required.

2

More Loss in Windy City

"Witnesses say they cannot remember what happened. The wounded refuse to cooperate. Victims drive themselves to hospitals, rather than call the police. They give the same story, over and over again: I felt a sting and realized I had been shot; I didn't see anything." The NYT spent Memorial Day weekend in Chicago where 64 people were shot, six killed, and everyone knows that few of the cases will be solved. Welcome to an American city (or really part of an American city) where gunfire is a terrifying norm.

3

The Insiders

"While F.B.I. officials say they are careful to avoid illegally entrapping suspects, their undercover operatives are far from bystanders. In recent investigations from Florida to California, agents have helped people suspected of being extremists acquire weapons, scope out bombing targets and find the best routes to Syria to join the Islamic State." The NYT's Eric Lichtblau on the rise of the FBI's sting operations.

+ And in the Middle East, fear of informants has created a new paranoia in ISIS. From the AP: Islamic State kills dozens of its own in hunt for spies.

4

Meet the New Math, Same as the Old Math

"1.6 million students went to a school that employed a sworn law-enforcement officer, but no counselor." That's just one of the eye-opening figures from the U.S. Education Department's latest civil rights data dump.

+ NPR: The civil rights problem in U.S. Schools.

+ US News: How Title I, the federal government's largest K-12 program, increases the inequality it was created to stop.

+ Vox: Living in a poor neighborhood changes everything about your life.

5

Apex in the City

We've seen endless studies that remind us of the importance of getting out into nature where we can relax. To most people, this advice makes sense. But others "might find lush trees, chirping birds, and blue skies anything but zen-like." They might get more out of of quick walk on a crowded sidewalk. Here's CityLab on the researchers trying to understand why some people find crowded cities relaxing -- and others don't. (As of yesterday, I have five pets. I go on walks to get away from nature.)

6

The Stanford Prism Experiment

"The two letters have thrust the California case to the forefront of a national conversation about sexual-assault, rape culture on college campuses, and racial disparities in sentencing laws for sex crimes." The Atlantic's Marina Koren on the two letters -- one by the father of the assailant and one by the victim -- that have framed a broader discussion about rape and sexual assault.

+ Buzzfeed: In Their Words: The Swedish 'Heroes' Who Caught The Stanford Attacker.

7

Commander in Tweet

"Need to see the local doctor? Send a quick Twitter message to book an appointment. See something suspicious? Let Jun's policeman know with a tweet." Mark Scott pays a visit to the Spanish town that runs on Twitter. Most of my social media interactions with local services are less like Twitter and more like Snapchat. I send a message, and it disappears.

8

Kicked to the Curb

"Kanhaiya Lal desperately cries for help but motorists swerve straight past him. His young son and the splayed bodies of his wife and infant daughter lie next to the mangled motorbike on which they had all been travelling seconds earlier ... Some motorcyclists and police eventually came to the family's aid but it was too late for Lal's wife and daughter." From the BBC's Preeti Jha: If no-one helps you after a car crash in India, this is why.

9

Deadhead Sticker on a Maserati

"Most people coming in here are having the worst day of their life. They don't need some stuffy asshole who is dead inside." Courtesy of Buzzfeed: Meet The Maserati-Driving Deadhead Lawyer Who Stands Between Hackers And Prison.

10

Bottom of the News

"I have my sons [sic] truck up for sale that I bought for him as his first car, he thinks it's cool to drive around with his friends smokin dope and acting all thug and especially not showing me and my wife the respect that we deserve." From Esquire: Life Advice from the Dad Who Sold His Pot-Smoking Son's SUV on Craiglist. (Luckily, my parents never figured out how to post to Craigslist and I convinced them that I was just using an inhaler.)

+ How hard is it to go viral these days? This fish had to figure out a way to get into a jellyfish.

+ Quartz: Verizon's "Can you hear me now?" ad pitchman has defected to Sprint. This is the biggest trade since The Bambino went to the Yankees.