Democrats, at this precarious moment, will be trying to deliver a strong, coherent alternative to the chaos emanating from the White House. And they evidently think Abrams can achieve that: She’s functioning as a sort of political leader in exile, commanding influence among Democrats and being tapped to represent the party despite not holding an office or being officially involved in national-committee leadership.

Abrams will speak as the messenger of a newly confident party fresh from a big midterm win and a successful post-election joust with Trump over his border-wall fetish and his mismanagement of an appropriations fight. She will also benefit from the almost certain knowledge that Trump will devote much of his address to an ex-post-facto justification of his decision to shut down the federal government and his imminent declaration of a national emergency to secure funding for his precious wall, both dependent on an entirely bogus border “crisis.”

Her delivery of the response will fit the Trump-hates-women-and-minorities narrative that Democrats and the news media run day in and out. Even if she botches the response on Tuesday, Abrams will still be a hero for having taken on white male Trump. That’s because she can expect the national media to frame the conflict as an epic battle between white and black, privilege and victim.

People are obsessed with the question of which candidates can or can’t win and why. But when people talk about electability, they often conflate issues such as ideology, identity/demographics and “likability.” [.] Every Democrat is electable, but they do have to worry. If every Democrat is electable, it’s also true that none of them is a safe bet.

56 percent of potential Democratic voters nationally said they preferred someone who would be a stronger candidate against Trump, even if they don’t agree with that candidate on all issues. Meanwhile, 33 percent said they would prefer someone who aligns better with their beliefs, but who might have a harder time beating Trump.

Just 10 percent rejected the question, saying there is no tradeoff between the two.

“Electability” is an ill-defined term, and pundits touting safety in centrism would do well to remember 2016. As the Democratic National Convention drew closer, Bernie Sanders hit new highs in the polls, while Clinton’s popularity tanked to a two-decade low.

Nevertheless, the DNC considered Clinton the safe option. The result was historic, but could well repeat itself if the party doesn’t find its values in 2020.

The overall idea of making primaries more accessible to political hopefuls is a good one – which should ideally be adopted by the rest of Israel’s political parties. Meretz has found what seems to be a good solution to money issues in its first-ever true primary this year, by capping spending for candidates at NIS 120,000… Winston Churchill once said: “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried.” The same goes for political parties. Primaries are a flawed system, but for now, they are the most democratic, transparent and representative option we have.

When the Israel Resilience Party was founded last month, the party statute was released and it determines, among other things, that the party’s Knesset list will be determined exclusively by its chairman Benny Gantz, and will not be chosen in primary elections. And so Israel Resilience joins a growing group of young parties that are foregoing an internal democratic process of primaries, and leaving the selection exclusively to the chairman.

The policies of the Likud party are well within the Israeli consensus. The party is projected to win around thirty-six seats in the next Knesset. Is that a lot? No. In fact, it is a little. The Likud could have been a much larger party had it not been for the primary election that tends to produce a list of populist provocateurs and other misfits.

I’m a black Jew. Despite my Caucasian coloring. My skin color is what people call white. But the felt fedora I wear in public is black, as are my shoes and, more often than not, my suit.

That clarification isn’t meant as a punchline. Despite my skin color, I experience something of what America’s minorities of color experience. I am perceived with suspicion by many, am often on the receiving end of sidelong glances and, occasionally, outright insults.

Violence against “visible” Jews is at the same time an expression of hatred towards all Jews and those perceived as Jews. True, the “non-visibles” among us are not on the front lines — at least, not when we are casually walking the streets of our cities — but that is no reason for us to pretend that what’s happening in Crown Heights is not our problem

…privilege isn’t all or nothing. While white Orthodox Jews can benefit from white privilege, we are also very often the victims of white supremacy. In 2018 New York, Jews were the group most targeted by hate crimes. I’ve been stopped by airport security in the South because of my kippah. People have spat at me. People have thrown pennies at me on Shabbat. Someone once yelled “Christ Killer” and then tried to run me over with his car.

Facebook has been a net good for humanity by democratizing communication and mobilization. It has allowed unlikely voices ranging from Parkland students, to Sunrise movement environmental activists, to long-shot candidates like Bernie Sanders and Barack Obama to emerge.

…before it was contending with Russian trolls, stood accused of facilitating housing discrimination, and reportedly advertising illicit opioids, there was the fear that Facebook would take over the internet. The worry was, essentially, that Facebook would centralize the majority of the activities we perform on the internet and gain unstoppable control of our online activity. We would all be at the mercy of its whims unless we wanted to go out into the wild and lonesome internet where only the rejects dwell. There’s still reason to be afraid of this kind of control

The company’s management will have to take bold steps, not only to defend Facebook’s positive features, but to eliminate – or at least reduce – the harm the company’s products and services do to people and society. Most companies aspire to go from “good to great”; Facebook’s challenge at 15 is a bit more complicated: It must convince a skeptical public and regulators chomping at the bit that it can mitigate the effects of its bad and the ugly sides – and go from being great to being a force for good in the world.

ASMR was first coined in 2010 and has since gathered thousands of faithful followers online. Content creators on YouTube, for example, upload hours-long videos of them stroking the camera’s lens with makeup brushes, drawing with crayons, drumming their fingers against leather and creating other similar tingly sounds that users claim help them sleep and calm down.

Everyone’s triggers are different: some may ooze with satisfaction at the sound of a page turning, others from a laugh — and others may not experience ASMR at all.

Millions of people these days watch or listen to videos of strangers performing these mundane actions. They say they’re mesmerized. They say it relaxes them and even helps them doze off during restless times.

For people who don’t experience the tingling, all that tongue clicking, lip smacking and swallowing can induce an unpleasant skin-crawling sensation, like fingernails on a chalkboard.

For ASMR to take hold in mainstream science hinges on whether the craze lasts long enough for researchers to find out whether it helps people with stress or other health problems… For now, Richard said the best way to think about ASMR is “supplemental intimacy.” It shouldn’t replace healthy relationships, but it can be used like a vitamin to improve mood.

A pleasant feeling caused by a soft voice, caring gaze, gentle disposition, light touch and soothing hand movements — “that’s something we’re born with,” he said, “and its purpose is to soothe and comfort.”