WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

Spain’s “Voice”?  — Is Spain’s Vox party Europe’s latest anti-EU, anti-immigration party poised for a rapid rise? If so, it comes at an inconvenient moment for the EU as Spain’s government accepts migrants stranded at sea who have been refused entry by Italy.

Control of the Robert Mueller Investigation — Exit Jeff Sessions. His interim replacement as US Attorney General, Matthew Whittaker, will now oversee the Mueller investigation which is probing any Russia ties in Trump’s presidential campaign as well as potential obstruction of justice by the president. Whittaker once authored an op-ed under the title “I Would Indict Hillary Clinton,” and has publicly expressed a willingness to cripple the Mueller investigation by slashing its budget. Now he’ll have the power to do so.

WHAT WE'RE IGNORING

Age discrimination? — Emile Ratelband, a 69-year old Dutch retiree wants to legally change his date of birth from March 11, 1949 to March 11, 1969, because he believes that stripping 20 years off his age will make it easier for him to meet single women. “You can change your name. You can change your gender. Why not your age?” he asked in a recent news interview. We’re ignoring you, Emile, and young women probably will too.

Donkey Soprano —In Ireland, there is a donkey called Harriet who, it is claimed, can sing opera. We are ignoring this story because, though her vibrato is remarkable, her pitch range is apparently limited to a single note. In fact, Harriet is living proof that the bar for becoming an Internet celebrity is especially low for donkeys.

More from GZERO Media

Local to global: The power of small business | Episode 2: How the circular economy empowers small businesses | GZERO Blue Circle x Mastercard podcast

Imagine an economy where products are designed to be reused, repaired, and regenerated instead of ending up as waste. That’s the circular economy, a model that redefines recycling and transforms how small businesses operate. In this episode of Local to Global: The power of small business, host JJ Ramberg sits down with Ellen Jackowski, Chief Sustainability Officer at Mastercard, and Rachel McShane, Chief Financial Officer at Depop, to discuss the scale of the circular economy, why circular practices boost both sustainability and profitability, and where the industry is headed next.

After a spate of Russian drones appeared in European airspace, the European Commission is exploring a so-called “drone wall,” an air defense system that aims to detect and destroy drones that pass through Europe’s eastern borders.

- YouTube

Citizens’ assemblies helped Northern Ireland transform a violent past into today’s deliberative politics. Ambassador Fergal Mythen traces the arc from the New Ireland Forum (1983–84) through national roadshows and town halls to today’s independent citizens’ assemblies, processes that fed into parliament, broadened public understanding, and built “losers’ consent.”