Putin’s invasion ruffles the right

NOT UKRAINE

Blue lies — the phenomenon of entrenched police lying and its role in the criminal justice system. How white supremacists plotted to bring down a US power grid and spark the much-cherished goal of a race war. A new book examines the historical relationship between evangelicalism and racism. And do you have an ethnocentric rewards card? Mapping “ethnic food” in Melbourne supermarkets.

FINANCE

Letting billionaires avoid tax is fundamentally corrosive of democracy. Time for a new Bretton Woods agreement to curb risks of a depression. The first Russian bank goes under as a result of “reputational damage”. After decades of wage stagnation, Japan’s newish prime minister is embracing what he calls “new capitalism” with an emphasis on high wages growth. What happens to international trade if Russia is cut off from SWIFT? The long-running TurboTax scam in the United States takes a new twist.

PUTIN’S WAR

For decades successive German governments have fooled themselves about Russia. Now, in a single dramatic speech, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has reversed course and committed to a dramatic escalation in military spending and dispatching weaponry to Ukraine. The American right is torn over how to respond to Putin’s aggression, after lionising him for so long. Why do they love Putin so much? The loving embrace between the UK Tories and Russian oligarchs. Meanwhile Russian-controlled Belarus is again stepping up its use of immigrants against its neighbours.

LIFE AND WELLBEING

From the May Not Agree With This One Department: has feminism driven the creation of the carceral state in the US? A study suggests becoming a physician makes you more likely to abuse drugs and require mental health treatment. We need to define and think about corruption better. Fifty years since Nixon in China — the domestic politics that drove the meeting from both sides. Speaking of the ’70s, a new biography of Leonid Brezhnez shows us how an average man is always at his best.

GREAT HATCHET JOBS OF OUR TIME

It’s back! We turn to the Spectator (the original, of course, not the tawdry rag that is the Australian version) for a savaging of the legendary London eatery Langan’s Brasserie, now under new management. You brain while watching major global events through Twitter. Eight books that re-evaluate American history. The overly long tale of (yes, that was his real name) Horatio Bottomley, MP, occupation: fraudster. And in praise of a magnificent reptile — the eastern brown snake.

STAT OF THE WEEK

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has produced a new data collection on Australian children. And, contrary to media stereotypes, kids aren’t getting more overweight due to watching screens all day.

FINALLY

Yes, everything is looking pretty grim. At least there’s still some joy in the world — check out this dog who’s delighted to be adopted. And some bonus content for the cat lovers.

Side View is taking a short but assuredly well-earned break, so let’s meet again in late March.