Blinken Lights: “Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday the U.S. has submitted a draft resolution to the UN Security Council that calls ‘for an immediate ceasefire’ in Gaza that’s ‘tied to the release’ of hostages held by Hamas.” A high profile move like this by Blinken is a hint that the parties could be getting close to a deal.

+ Rape as a Weapon: “Survivors have reported that foreign objects were inserted in their bodies, that their children were murdered in front of them, that they were forced into sexual slavery, starved and intentionally infected with H.I.V. and other sexually transmitted pathogens. One victim recalled being told that she was being raped because “a Tigrayan womb should never give birth.” Some survivors are now taking care of children fathered by their rapists. Others are likely becoming new survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, with little hope of recourse from the government. Unfortunately, the women of Tigray are not alone. Conflict-related sexual violence remains a persistent issue across the Horn of Africa.” NYT (Gift Article): Looking Away From an Epidemic of Rape. The world has looked away, and at times look askance, at the issue as it relates to October 7. Hamas hostages in Gaza are still enduring sexual violence. Believe the survivors.

+ Reddit’s Green: “Reddit shares jumped as much as 70% in their debut on Thursday in the first initial public offering for a major social media company since Pinterest
hit the market in 2019.” The company is 19 years-old. That’s a long wait for an IPO for a tech co. That’s not the only unusual part of this story. It’s rare when a tech company’s good fortune benefits an old media co. NYT (Gift Article): Condé Nast’s Owners Set to Reap a $1.4 Billion Windfall From Reddit.

+ Sieze Matters: “The New York attorney general’s office has filed judgments in Westchester County, the first indication that the state is preparing to try to seize Donald Trump’s golf course and private estate north of Manhattan, known as Seven Springs.” New York Attorney General takes initial step to prepare to seize Trump assets. (When you’re an Attorney General they just let you do it. You just seize the assets.)

+ Cleaning Up in Aisle 1: “Some firms seem to have used rising costs as an opportunity to further hike prices to increase their profits, and profits remain elevated even as supply chain pressures have eased.” NYT (Gift Article): Large Grocers Took Advantage of Pandemic Supply Chain Disruptions, F.T.C. Finds. (This seems worse than not letting a messaging app interact seamlessly with Android.)

+ Stutter Gutter Wingnutter: “But then she did something surprising: She reached out and grabbed my arm in a maternal fashion. ‘And I feel what you’re—I feel what you’re saying,’ she said, acknowledging my own stutter. ‘People that are unkind to people with disabilities, it’s shameful. It’s awful. Absolutely disgusting. And I guess I understand that, like, in an election, you know, it gets ugly, and elections get competitive, and people say things, people do things.’ I unlocked my phone and showed her a video of Trump’s stuttering impression. She turned her focus to the mainstream media in general. She said that ‘for the press to inflame and use disabilities to get people riled up is exactly what they want.’ Nothing would stop her from voting for Trump.” The Atlantic (Gift Article): What Trump Supporters Think When He Mocks People With Disabilities.

+ Character Building: M. Emmet Walsh, unforgettable character actor from ‘Blood Simple,’ ‘Blade Runner,’ dies at 88. I first became a fan after watching him give the “Richard, your life is no longer manageable” line in Clean and Sober with Michael Keaton. But there’s no shortage of movies one could chose from.

+ Not Milk? “We pitted dairy milk against plant milk to see how the beverages compare in various categories, including nutrition, cost, environmental impact and even how well they make frothy coffee.” WaPo (Gift Article): Dairy vs. plant milk: Which is better? Be careful how you answer. As I reported a couple weeks ago, Milk is at the center of the culture wars.