Check out Mini-memeorandum for simple mobiles or memeorandum Mobile for modern smartphones.
10:15 AM ET, August 16, 2021

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Craig Whitlock / Washington Post:
Afghan security forces' wholesale collapse was years in the making  —  In the summer of 2011, Army Lt. Gen. William Caldwell IV made a round of public appearances to boast that he had finally solved a problem that had kept U.S. troops bogged down in Afghanistan for a decade.
RELATED:
James Gordon Meek / ABC News:
Afghanistan's collapse: Did US intelligence get it wrong?  —  American intelligence sources say they correctly predicted the fall of Kabul.  —  As panicked Afghans watched Taliban fighters roll into the capital city of Kabul Sunday, sealing the collapse of the U.S.-backed government there …
Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:
Afghanistan Is Your Fault  —  Kabul has fallen.  Americans will now exercise their usual partisan outrage for a few weeks, and then Afghanistan, like everything else in a nation with an attention span not much longer than a fast-food commercial, will be forgotten.
Discussion: The Dispatch, UPI and The Daily Caller
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
After Sunday It's Even More Clear Biden Was Right  —  Americans, or at least the commentating classes, are watching aghast as events unfold in Afghanistan.  Some are second-guessing the wisdom of withdrawal - after all, how hard is it to maintain a few thousand soldiers there permanently?
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
For Biden, Images of Defeat He Wanted to Avoid  —  President Biden will go down in history, fairly or unfairly, as the president who presided over a humiliating final act in the American experiment in Afghanistan.  —  Rarely in modern presidential history have words come back to bite …
Noah Rothman / MSNBC:
The fall of Afghanistan in 2021 is the result of years of American delusion  —  On Sunday morning, Taliban fighters captured Afghanistan's Bagram Airfield — the symbol and source of U.S. power projection in the region for 20 years — releasing thousands of prisoners.
Ben Kesling / Wall Street Journal:
Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan Brings Complicated Feelings for U.S. Military Veterans  —  Some vets were ready for the war to be over; others wanted the U.S. to stay.  But most agree this was not the ending they wanted  —  U.S. Army veteran Sean Lee wasn't necessarily surprised …
Jazz Shaw / HotAir:
US pauses flights out of Kabul
Discussion: CNN, CBS News and Talking Points Memo
Richard Haass / Project Syndicate:
America's Withdrawal of Choice
Wall Street Journal:
‘Saigon on Steroids’: The Desperate Rush to Flee Afghanistan  —  Kabul airport descends into chaos as Afghan civilians besiege the terminal and Western countries scramble to evacuate personnel, in a dizzying coda to America's longest war  —  KABUL—The lucky few were already inside …
RELATED:
Shannon Pettypiece / NBC News:
White House weighs response as Biden faces mounting criticism over Afghanistan crisis  —  WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden faced growing criticism from his allies in Washington following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan as administration officials considered his public response.
Wall Street Journal:
Three Killed in Kabul Airport as Afghans Scramble to Escape Taliban  —  Mass evacuations follow the insurgents' capture of Kabul after a rapid sweep of the country  —  At least three people were killed by gunfire Monday morning in chaotic scenes at the passenger terminal of Kabul's international airport …
United States Department of State:
Joint Statement on Afghanistan  —  The following is the text of a joint statement on Afghanistan initially released by the following: Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark …
Discussion: RedState
BBC:
Afghanistan: US takes control of Kabul airport to evacuate staff from country  —  There have been scenes of panic at Kabul airport as desperate residents try to flee following the seizure of the Afghan capital by the Taliban.  —  Witnesses say at least three civilians died on Monday …
Michael Lee / Fox News:
Jen Psaki ‘out of the office’ as Biden remains silent on Taliban takeover of Afghanistan  —  The timing of Psaki's time off comes as Biden has faced criticism for remaining on vacation
Ben Smith / New York Times:
Afghans working for U.S. government broadcasters fear Taliban backlash.  —  More than a hundred journalists employed by the American government's own radio stations remain in Afghanistan as the Taliban take power, U.S. officials and Afghan journalists said Sunday.
Associated Press:
Biden team surprised by rapid Taliban gains in Afghanistan
Jaclyn Peiser / Washington Post:
A conservative cardinal who criticized the vaccine caught covid.  Days later, he was put on a ventilator.  —  Most days during the coronavirus pandemic, Cardinal Raymond L. Burke could be found strolling down the streets of Rome maskless and carrying rosary beads.
Associated Press:
Detainee says China has secret jail in Dubai, holds Uyghurs  —  A young Chinese woman says she was held for eight days at a Chinese-run secret detention facility in Dubai along with at least two Uyghurs, in what may be the first evidence that China is operating a so-called “black site” beyond its borders.
Discussion: HotAir
Meridith McGraw / Politico:
The GOP waves white flag in the same-sex marriage wars  —  To mark the beginning of Pride Month this year, Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel did what party leaders do on these types of occasions: She sent out a tweet.  —  “Happy #PrideMonth!” she wrote, " …
Discussion: POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story
 
 
 Archived Page Info: 
This is a snapshot of memeorandum at 10:15 AM ET, August 16, 2021.

View the current page or another snapshot:


 
 See Also: 
memeorandum: site main
memeorandum River: reverse chronological memeorandum
memeorandum Mobile: for phones
memeorandum Leaderboard: memeorandum's top sources
 
 Subscribe: 
memeorandum RSS feed
memeorandum on Mastodon
 
 
 More Items: 
Wall Street Journal:
Bitcoin Fans Are Suddenly a Political Force
New York Times:
As Cuomo Exits, Will Congestion Pricing Still Come to New York City?
Mary Papenfuss / HuffPost:
COVID-19 Hospitalizations For Americans In Their 30s Hit All-Time High
Discussion: Raw Story and Reuters
Timothy Bella / Washington Post:
A Black officer was a rising star. The department's ‘Jim Crow culture’ destroyed his career, lawsuit says.
Discussion: The Root and Raw Story
Alex Seitz-Wald / NBC News:
Early indicators suggest Democrats' House majority is in jeopardy
Discussion: Fox News, Salon and New Republic
Henry J. Gomez / NBC News:
The next big existential fight for Democrats? Pennsylvania
 Earlier Items: 
John Nichols / The Nation:
Ron Johnson Does the Bidding of the Ultra-Rich
Maria Abi-Habib / New York Times:
'I'm the Only Surgeon': After Haiti Quake, Thousands Seek Scarce Care
Discussion: CBS News
Lachlan Cartwright / The Daily Beast:
Mary Trump Rails Against ‘Awful’ Meghan McCain and ‘Weak’ Uncle Donald
Discussion: Raw Story and The Guardian
Juan Williams / The Hill:
Trump's coup attempt should bar him from 2024 race
John Eligon / New York Times:
In Zambia Election, Opposition Leader Storms to Decisive Win Over President
Krista Torralva / Dallas Morning News:
Jenkins says mask order will stay despite Texas Supreme Court temporarily blocking it
 

 
From Techmeme:

Emma Roth / The Verge:
Mark Zuckerberg says Threads is testing custom feeds for certain profiles or topics; the Threads' version seems easier to use than Bluesky's custom feeds

Shirin Ghaffary / Bloomberg:
One year after Sam Altman was dramatically ousted and reinstated, OpenAI remains dominant as it continues to push ahead on impressive new products

Financial Times:
Sources: xAI raised $5B at a $45B valuation, almost double its valuation a few months ago; SpaceX prepares a tender offer that would value the company at $250B+
 
Sister Sites:

Techmeme
 Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web
Mediagazer
 Top news and commentary for media professionals from all around the web
WeSmirch
 The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page