Meghan Markle Won't Wait

Also: Fight Evil, Read Lots, And Support Your Local Book Store ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  [View in Browser]( | [Donate [WBUR]]( [WBUR](  [WBUR]( January 12, 2020 Dear Cog reader, This week, [tensions]( [with Iran]( [come to a head]( Australia [burns]( and Harry and Meghan [take a step back]( -- and we have commentaries to help you make sense of all of it. Plus, Nathaniel Stinnett on how Dems' obsession with electability [could backfire]( and Ed Siegel on the importance of [buying from local booksellers](. Happy reading! — Frannie Carr Toth Cognoscenti, co-editor newsletters@wbur.org Must Reads url[Fight Evil, Read Lots, Build Community And Support Your Local Book Store]( I bought a gift certificate from a local bookseller, writes Ed Siegel, and promptly lost it. Then, something strange happened.   #%23%23[Twitter](  #%23%23[Facebook](    [Meghan Markle Has Upended The Royals’ Idea Of Work]( The Duchess of Sussex quickly learned that the Crown's way of doing things does not lead to high-impact, broad-based change. [Donald Trump Has Never Been More Powerful]( In matters of war, Donald Trump is now the state, writes Andrew Carleen. The lives of American service members are subject to his whims.  [I Fought In Afghanistan. The Last Thing We Need Is Another 'Forever War']( Congress must reassert its authority over America's use of force, writes Jake Auchincloss. [We Are All Australians]( Any country that stakes its future on fossil fuels owns the Australian bushfires, writes Frederick Hewett. Any country not 100% committed to a prompt transition to an economy based on renewable energy is complicit. Bookmarks “Journalists have defended themselves for years by pointing out that there’s a bold line between loyalty to the country and fealty to the people who are running it. Skepticism of those in power is patriotic, too…” (“[As Potential Conflict Looms, Some Pundits Suggest Reporting Skeptical Of The Administration Is Unpatriotic. It’s Not The First Time]( The Washington Post) “When I asked my subjects, as I always did, what they liked about being a boy, most of them drew a blank. ‘Huh,’ mused Josh, a college sophomore at Washington State … ‘That’s interesting. I never really thought about that. You hear a lot more about what is wrong with guys.’” (“[The Miseducation Of The American Boy]( The Atlantic) “What happens after the fires have passed through, and Australians return to either their intact homes or smoking ruins, dead cattle, a blackened moonscape where crops once grew? The lucky ones give thanks and get on with their life. The unlucky ones grieve, rage, shake their fist at Fate -- and defiantly rebuild on the same ground. The battler spirit triumphs again, but for how long?: (“[How Long Will Australia Be Livable?]( The Atlantic) “She would turn out to be the wittiest, smartest, and most talkative person I had ever met. And now all of that was fading away.” (“[How Could My Wife Have Alzheimer’s? She Was Only 56]( The Boston Globe) “ Their foundation is in development, but its intentions are not. Think Michelle and Barack, not Charles and Camilla. — Jenny Armini, on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's step back from the royal family. ["Meghan Markle Has Upended The Royals’ Idea Of Work"]( From The Archives [Meghan Markle Is Not OK, And That’s OK]( We owe the Duchess of Sussex a debt of gratitude for saying publicly what all new mothers feel.      If you’d like to write for Cognoscenti, send your submission, pasted into your email and not as an attachment, to opinion@wbur.org. Please tell us in one line what the piece is about, and please tell us in one line who you are. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📨 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( [WBUR]( [WBUR]  [WBUR]( [95289b97-66e8-43d4-a174-3bc3520a79a9.png]( [Instagram](  [Twitter]( [Facebook]( Want to change how you receive these emails? [Stop getting this newsletter by updating your preferences.]( I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. [Unsubscribe from all newsletters.]( Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2020 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved. You signed up for this newsletter at wbur.org. Our mailing address is: WBUR-FM 890 Commonwealth AveBoston, MA 02215-1205 [Add us to your address book](