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The Tragedy of Al Jazeera America's Demise

Ari Paul FAIR - Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting
But if AJAM gave us one thing in its brief life in the United States, it was a dedication to covering economic inequality and the growing opposition to it in the wake of Occupy Wall Street.

Fox Creek Fracking Operation Closed Indefinitely After Earthquake

CBC News
Still, Gu said, there were two fairly large quakes in the area in January 2015, one of which had a magnitude of 4.4. He wasn't able to confirm that they were caused by fracking, but said it is "highly probable." The energy regulator said at the time that the 4.4 magnitude quake was likely caused by hydraulic fracturing.

Walmart to Close 269 Stores as Retailers Struggle

Hiroko Tabuchijan The New York Times
The giant retailer, based in Bentonville, Ark., said in a statement that it would shutter 154 stores in the United States, or about 3 percent of its locations, as well as 115 stores overseas.

Startling New Finding: 600 Million Years Ago, A Biological Mishap Changed Everything

Sarah Kaplan The Washington Post
According to a new finding, described as a "shock" by its discoverers, a single mutation 600 million years ago may be responsible for the emergence of complex organisms -- including all of the plants and animals that we are familiar with -- from a single-celled ancestor. This evolutionary accident enabled cells to communicate with each others and therefore to cooperate.

Obama’s Speech and the Collapse of a Peace Presidency

Spencer Ackerman The Guardian
President Obama’s final State of the Union address serves as an epitaph for a tenure that began with a promise to halt the Iraq war but ended with capitulation to the status quo. Long forgotten is his pledge to end the “mindset” that led the U.S. into that war. President Obama will leave office as Bush did: passing on to his successor two wars, one the longest in American history, the other a reboot of the conflict he promised to end, no longer boasting of ending either.

On the Trail of an Ancient Mystery

John Markoff The New York Times
Although it was not programmable in the modern sense, some have called it the first analog computer.

The CIA's Student-Activism Phase

Tom Hayden The Nation
In the 1960s, the agency sought to fight Communism through the students’ rights movement. There’s little reason to think its tactics have changed.

Can Chuy beat Rahm in the Race for Mayor?

Steve Bogira Chicago Reader
If anyone can overcome the hurdles for a Latino mayoral candidate in Chicago, it's Garcia given his lifetime commitment to a multiracial coalition—not just talking the talk, but 30 years of walking the walk.

Patrolling the Boundaries Inside America

Robert B. Reich Robert Reich's blog
The boundary separating white Anglo upscale school districts from the burgeoning non-white and non-Anglo populations in downscale communities is fast becoming a flashpoint inside America.