Supreme Court's big, big decision over Trump and the ballot

+ a world without fish? US Edition - Today's top story: US Supreme Court decision on Trump-Colorado ballot case 'monumental' for democracy itself, not just 2024 presidential election [View in browser]( US Edition | 8 January 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [How Gaza could sway the Arab American vote in 2024]( - [Pot legal states see a high in college applications]( - [South Korea’s bachelor time bomb is about to go off]( Lead story When the news broke late Friday afternoon that the Supreme Court would take up Donald Trump’s appeal of a decision barring him from Colorado’s ballot, I was on my way out to dinner. Before I even sat down at the restaurant, I knew just what to do: Interview scholar Derek Muller about the case. Muller is an election law expert at University of Notre Dame’s law school and a sought-after source for journalists across the country who want help understanding the intricacies of that once less-prominent field of law. I knew I had to secure his help quickly and sent him an email as soon as I had ordered dinner. Between the cabbage salad and the braised eggplant, I heard back from Muller. He would talk with me. Muller’s great skill is that he manages to be both a deeply informed scholar and a plain-spoken kind of guy who doesn’t engage in hyperbole. So I felt comfortable asking him a blunt question: On a scale of 1 to 10, how big is this? It’s “[monumental for several reasons](,” answered Muller. If Muller says it’s “monumental,” that means it’s really big. As many other states contemplate whether Trump should appear on the ballot, a ruling from the Supreme Court, said Muller, could put to rest voter uncertainty. He said primary and caucus voters right now are asking, “Am I wasting my vote? Is this actually an ineligible candidate? Should I be voting for somebody else?” [ [Understand what’s going on in Washington and around the world. Get our Politics Weekly newsletter.]( ] Naomi Schalit Senior Editor, Politics + Democracy The US Supreme Court. Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images [US Supreme Court decision on Trump-Colorado ballot case ‘monumental’ for democracy itself, not just 2024 presidential election]( Derek T. Muller, University of Notre Dame The US Supreme Court faces a case with huge repercussions for the 2024 presidential election – and American democracy. An election law scholar explains why. Science + Technology - [The curious joy of being wrong – intellectual humility means being open to new information and willing to change your mind]( Daryl Van Tongeren, Hope College Intellectual humility includes owning your own biases and the possibility that you’re wrong about your beliefs or worldview. It means being open to changing your mind in response to new information. - [What happens to the ocean if we take out all the fish? A marine ecologist explains the complex roles fish play in their ecosystem]( Kory Evans, Rice University There are so many fish in the ocean that if you took them out, important habitats and food sources for many creatures would be lost. Politics + Society - [An overlooked and undercounted group of Arab American and Muslim voters may have outsized impact on 2024 presidential election]( Youssef Chouhoud, Christopher Newport University Though Arab Americans voted overwhelmingly for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, polling suggests that support has eroded since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack against Israel. International - [South Korea’s gender imbalance is bad news for men − outnumbering women, many face bleak marriage prospects]( Dudley L. Poston Jr., Texas A&M University Following a 30-year boy-to-girl birth rate imbalance, up to 800,000 ‘extra’ men born since the mid-1980s will be unable to find a South Korean woman to marry. That has big demographic consequences. - [Senegal’s small scale gold miners still use poisonous mercury: How to reduce the harm]( Jacqueline Gerson, Michigan State University Given the dangers of mercury toxicity and the high exposure of miners and their communities, solutions are needed to reduce their exposure. - [Gaza war: Israeli assassinations draw fiery rhetoric from Iran and Hezbollah – but regional escalation is unlikely]( Scott Lucas, University College Dublin It appears that, for now at least, Iran is happy to allow Gaza to be the epicentre of Middle East conflict. But all that could change quickly. Ethics + Religion - [From South Asia to Mexico, from slave to spiritual icon, this woman’s life is a snapshot of Spain’s colonization – and the Pacific slave trade history that books often leave out]( Diego Luis, Tufts University Accounts of Asian American history often stop at the US border, but Asians were living in Latin America for centuries before the Declaration of Independence. Education - [College applications rose in states that legalized recreational marijuana]( Christopher D. Blake, Emory University New research shows colleges attract interest from higher-caliber students when the schools’ home states allow their citizens to get high. Health + Medicine - [Emergency medicine residencies more likely to go unfilled at for-profit and newly accredited programs]( Cameron Gettel, Yale University A new study finds more emergency medicine residencies are available, but hundreds of the positions are going unfilled. Trending on site - [Why does Claudine Gay still work at Harvard after being forced to resign as its president? She’s got tenure]( - [The US invented shopping malls, but China is writing their next chapter]( - [Jan. 6 was an example of networked incitement − a media and disinformation expert explains the danger of political violence orchestrated over social media]( Reader Comments 💬 "I’m not surprised to see streaming services raising prices. I became a cable-cutter long ago and try to bypass anything that is a subscription service, which isn’t even talked about in this article. Nobody will own anything in the future if the subscription trend continues. It’s a consistent money stream for the companies that have total control of what you can do after you’re hooked on the convenience.” – Michael Hirko on the story [With higher fees and more ads, streaming services like Netflix, Disney+ and Hulu are cashing in by using the old tactics of cable TV]( - - More of The Conversation Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our weekly and biweekly emails: • [Weekly Highlights]( • [Science Editors' Picks]( • [This Week in Religion]( • [Politics Weekly]( • [Global Perspectives]( • [Global Economy & Business]( Trying out new social media? Follow us: • [Threads]( • [Bluesky]( • [Mastodon](• [Post.news]( • [LinkedIn]( - - About The Conversation We're a nonprofit news organization dedicated to [helping academic experts share ideas with the public](. We can give away our articles thanks to the help of foundations, universities and readers like you. 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