+ understanding the risks of developing liver disease US Edition - Today's top story: Until 1968, presidential candidates were picked by party conventions â a process revived by Bidenâs withdrawal from race [View in browser]( US Edition | 22 July 2024 [The Conversation]
[The Conversation]( Top headlines - [Crippling CrowdStrike crash highlights global IT fragility](
- [Life without an income tax](
- [Montgomeryâs parks were also a civil rights battleground]( Lead story President Joe Bidenâs decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race â and to endorse his vice president, Kamala Harris, to lead the new ticket â has raised questions about the process of selecting a new nominee. But itâs not uncharted territory. In fact, as Philip Klinkner, a professor of government at Hamilton College, explains, thereâs a long history of political parties picking presidential candidates without much input from the wider public. That history is, in fact, much longer than the practice of having regular voters weigh in through primaries and caucuses. The current system has only existed since 1972, Klinkner writes. And it picked some real winners, like Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. It picked some less-great candidates, too, though â including George McGovern. The previous system, with selections made at the convention, also picked some winners â like Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy. And it picked some people youâve probably never heard of, like Horatio Seymour. The bottom line, Klinkner explains, is that the [method of picking a nominee bears little connection]( to that personâs quality as a candidate, likelihood of winning â or potential success as a president. [ [Understand whatâs going on in Washington and around the world. Get our Politics Weekly newsletter.]( ] Jeff Inglis Politics + Society Editor
President Joe Biden at the 2024 NATO Summit on July 11, 2024 in Washington, DC. Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
[Until 1968, presidential candidates were picked by party conventions â a process revived by Bidenâs withdrawal from race]( Philip Klinkner, Hamilton College With President Joe Biden out of the presidential race, the Democratic Party will have to find another nominee. Past methods of choosing have had their flaws, but also their successes. Science + Technology -
[Massive IT outage spotlights major vulnerabilities in the global information ecosystem]( Richard Forno, University of Maryland, Baltimore County A faulty software update crippled airlines, hospitals and government services. A security researcher explains why itâs likely to happen again and what needs to be done to lower the odds of a repeat. -
[Diabetes and obesity can damage the liver to the point of failure â but few people know their risk of developing liver disease]( Madona Azar, UMass Chan Medical School Though a leading cause of liver transplants and an increasing number of young people being diagnosed with the disease, few people have heard of MASLD. -
[Bugs thrive in urban Los Angeles â volunteersâ traps reveal biodiversity hot spots for city insects and spiders]( Laura Melissa Guzman, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; Charles Lehnen, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; Teagan Baiotto, University of Southern California City life can mean lots of pavement and habitat loss. But many bug species are hanging on, especially in neighborhoods with steady temperatures near the mountains. Arts + Culture -
[Bob Newhart was more than an actor or comedian â he was a literary master]( Mark Canada, Indiana University Kokomo Newhart showed how standup comedy could also be an art form, particularly with his âAbe Lincoln vs. Madison Avenueâ bit. Environment + Energy -
[Buses werenât the only civil rights battleground in Montgomery â the cityâs parks still reflect a history of segregation]( Binita Mahato, Auburn University Montgomery once closed all of its parks rather than desegregate them. Today, the cityâs long history of racial inequality is still reflected in the state of its parks and green spaces. Ethics + Religion -
[The Yezidi genocide devastated Iraqâs community 10 years ago â but the roots of the prejudice that fueled it were much deeper]( GüneÅ Murat Tezcür, Arizona State University Yezidis are an example of what one scholar calls âliminal minoritiesâ: faith communities whose religionsâ legitimacy is denied by more powerful groups. International -
[Amid humanitarian crisis and ongoing fighting, Africaâs war-scarred Sahel region faces new threat: Ethno-mercenaries]( Yasir Zaidan, University of Washington Outside fighters are not merely mercenaries â they are participants in a deeply rooted, historically complex struggle for resources. Economy + Business -
[How do 9 states get by with no income tax? A tax expert explains the trade-offs they choose]( Caroline Bruckner, American University Kogod School of Business Texas, Florida and seven other states have no income tax, but they make up for it with other taxes. Sometimes those taxes mean low-income residents pay a larger percentage of their money in taxes. Trending on site -
[Long COVID puzzle pieces are falling into place â the picture is unsettling]( -
[Late bedtimes and not enough sleep can harm developing brains â and poorer kids are more at risk]( -
[Heritage Foundationâs âProject 2025â is just the latest action plan from a group with an over 50-year history of steering GOP lawmaking]( Reader Comments ð¬ "This speaks to why we should not expect every store to follow suit immediately. Target has always eaten losses on bad checks and will continue doing so on Target âdebitâ card transactions. Most stores who still accept checks do not do that. They use services like Telecheck or Certegy and for about the equivalent of a credit card fee, those services will guarantee any check they approve." â Reader Michael Hunt on the story [Target just became the latest US retailer to stop accepting payment by checks. Why have so many stores given up on them?]( -
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