Night Owls, a themed open thread, appears at Daily Kos seven days a week

26 DAYS UNTIL JOE BIDEN AND KAMALA HARRIS TAKE THE OATH OF OFFICE

Caleb Brennan at The New Republic writes—Operation Santa Is a Horror Story About American Poverty:

On a cloudy Christmas Eve in 1907, Mary McGann, a 10-year-old Irish girl living in Hell’s Kitchen with her younger brother and mother, wrote a letter to Santa Claus.

There’s no education like the kind that children receive in the outdoors, particularly when they get to experience up-close some of the wonders that nature has to offer.

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris has spoken movingly of her family in India—from her memories of walking on the beach with her grandfather during visits to Chennai to her statement, in her Democratic National Convention speech, that “Family is my uncles, my aunts and my chittis.” It’s a reminder of her immigrant parents—in particular of her mother’s courage in coming to the U.S.

My home state of Idaho has been distinguishing itself with awfulness of late, once again making national news for deplorability, well-documented here by fellow Idaho native (and escapee) David Neiwert.

This far into the pandemic most of us are feeling restless, overwhelmed, and just plain exhausted. As the weather cools in much of the country, many of us are also feeling worried, too, about how to spend the coming months. Yes, we all want to be safe and socially distance. And yes, many of us are also feeling bored. One solution? Read!

If reading isn’t quite your thing, audiobooks can be a true gift.