The GOP can't turn to racist, sexist attacks on Biden. Now they're stumped.

[View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter]( April 26, 2021 As more are vaccinated and coronavirus restrictions continue to lift, will you be inclined to close off social interactions to your closest friends and your closest friends only, or are you still excited at the prospect of engaging with some of the more supporting characters in your life? Co-workers, friends of friends, neighbors, etc. It's something that's been prompting some debate on Twitter today, and for once, I've been finding the various takes a bit illuminating for my own life. (Here's a [great piece]( from the Atlantic from back in January, capturing why I'm leaning toward the second camp.) Whatever your preference might be, just remember that getting vaccinated—[which includes getting your SECOND SHOT](, something a new report reveals many are skipping out on—is key to your future social life! —Inae Oh Advertisement [ACLU]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Child Protective Services Investigates Half of all Black Children in California]( A new study finds pervasive racial bias in the child welfare system. BY JULIA LURIE [Trending] [He defended Chauvin and wouldn't call Floyd's death a homicide. Now his record is under investigation.]( BY INAE OH [What the hell is going on at the Columbus police department?]( BY SAMANTHA MICHAELS [Republicans can't figure out how to turn their usual racist, sexist attacks against Biden]( BY TIM MURPHY [This is our last best chance to deal with the global climate crisis]( BY JEFF GOODELL Advertisement [ACLU]( [Health & Environment] [Special Feature]( [Seriously Go Get Your Second Shot!]( Unless you got Johnson & Johnson! BY TIM MURPHY [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( [Recharge] SOME GOOD NEWS, FOR ONCE [Vaccine Materials and Supplies Are Finally Heading to Hard-Hit India]( The devastation couldn’t be more severe. Yesterday, India recorded its highest single-day death toll from COVID for the ninth consecutive day, and the highest new number of cases anywhere in the world. But the United States [announced]( it’s immediately shipping supplies and tapping “every resource at our disposal” for aid, including rapid testing kits, oxygen, protective gear, and vaccine material. The pledge is reactive, not proactive, but it’s a big step. On the moral and medical questions, there’s an excellent [interview](, published yesterday, by New Yorker writer Daniel A. Gross with philosopher Peter Singer, whose pioneering texts on effective altruism—how to do the most good—contain a prescription for pandemic relief. “Where does responsibility lie for making the distribution more equitable?” Singer’s answer persuasively compares pandemic aid to climate action: “Governments should be getting together so that the burden is distributed equitably among affluent nations, just as we get together in the Paris agreement.” It’s not a controversial idea, but he welcomes controversy on other fronts. Last week he co-launched the peer-reviewed Journal of Controversial Ideas, “a response,” Singer says, “to a worrying trend of restricting freedom of thought and discussion, including in academic life.” The journal focuses on lightning-rod ideas without fear of intimidation by “petitions or letters signed against them,” a fear that backfoots many early-career academics and media workers, he says, who wouldn’t chance their comfort or employment to discuss and defend essential questions. Which is how Singer got his own start, planting a flag for concepts, including animal rights, that land crosswise for many carnivores and traditionalists who steer clear of his philosophy. The journal is “particularly aimed at protecting junior academics who don’t have tenure.” The full [Q&A]( is worth a read. Whether the [journal]( itself meets a high bar, decide for yourself. But if unflinching academic analysis makes you queasy, brace for impact. For the faint of philosophical heart, turn instead to the 10th-anniversary [edition]( of his book The Life You Can Save: How to Do Your Part to End World Poverty. —Daniel King Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755