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Opinion

Opinion

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Saturday

Opinion: Where did all of the political debates go?

In this illustration photo, a voter fills out their ballot n Los Angeles on Monday. Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

Simon Says

Opinion: Where did all of the political debates go?

NPR's Scott Simon ponders a diminishing and vanishing election year tradition: candidate debates.

Opinion: Where did all of the political debates go?

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Saturday

Opinion: Yes, I am basic

Pumpkins are pictured in a field in Germany. Christof Stache/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Christof Stache/AFP via Getty Images

Simon Says

Opinion: Yes, I am basic

NPR's Scott Simon is an unabashed, unreformed, unapologetic lover of pumpkin spice. He knows his ardor is not universal. He does not care.

Opinion: Yes, I am basic

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Saturday

Opinion: The specter of nuclear Armageddon

Russian missiles roll in Red Square in Moscow. President Vladimir Putin has warned that he wouldn't hesitate to use nuclear weapons to ward off Ukraine's attempt to reclaim control of its occupied regions. AP hide caption

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AP

Simon Says

Opinion: The specter of nuclear Armageddon

NPR's Scott Simon reflects on President Vladimir Putin's threats to use nuclear weapons in Russia's war against Ukraine.

Opinion: The specter of nuclear Armageddon

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Saturday

Opinion: Observations from a quiet and rainy New York

A man walks through the rain during an intense afternoon thunderstorm in 2012 in New York City. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

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Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Simon Says

Opinion: Observations from a quiet and rainy New York

In this week's essay, NPR's Scott Simon reminds us to look up from our screens and take note of the beauty in the regular routines and rituals around us.

Opinion: Observations from a quiet and rainy New York

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Saturday

Opinion: Remember the victims, not the killer

Family members of Tony Hughes, one of the 11 victims found at a serial killer's apartment, comfort each other during a remembrance vigil held at Junea Park in Milwaukee in 1991. Bill Waugh/AP Photo hide caption

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Bill Waugh/AP Photo

Simon Says

Opinion: Remember the victims, not the killer

A new drama series on Netflix is about one of the country's most notorious serial killers. It has NPR's Scott Simon thinking maybe it's the names of his many victims we should remember.

Opinion: Remember the victims, not the killer

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Friday

Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

Trevor Noah announced Thursday that he'd be leaving The Daily Show after seven years. "My time is up," he said. "But in the most beautiful way." Noah is pictured above in Los Angeles in September 2021. Rich Fury/Getty Images hide caption

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Rich Fury/Getty Images

Television

Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

Noah increasingly looked like a performer who was growing beyond the grind of a late-night Comedy Central show. If he doesn't find a new perch in the genre, the industry will be all the worse for it.

Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

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Thursday

Sunday

Opinion: 'The Woman King' speaks loud and clear to this Nigerian feminist

The general Nanisca, portrayed by Viola Davis, is the star of The Woman King. When a man objects to her influence, she retorts: "If the king respects me, it is because I have earned it." Ilze Kitshoff/Sony Pictures hide caption

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Ilze Kitshoff/Sony Pictures

Goats and Soda

Opinion: 'The Woman King' speaks loud and clear to this Nigerian feminist

The film about female warriors in 1800s West Africa is all too relevant, in 2022, writes Oyeronke Oyebanji: "The inequalities faced by the women in the movie reflect the struggles of women today."

Saturday

Opinion: Tiny movers of earth, and also our hearts

NPR's Scott Simon keeps hundreds of compost worms like this one in a bin on his balcony. Scott Simon/NPR hide caption

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Scott Simon/NPR

Simon Says

Opinion: Tiny movers of earth, and also our hearts

NPR's Scott Simon has worms. Hundreds of them. They live in a bin on his balcony and rejuvenate soil for flowers and vegetables. He talks about his admiration for the squiggly things.

Opinion: Tiny movers of earth, and also our hearts

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Thursday

The Laver Cup is your last chance to see tennis' 'Big Three' together on the court

Left to right: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic Clive Brunskill/Getty Images; Sarah Stier/Getty Images; Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images hide caption

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Clive Brunskill/Getty Images; Sarah Stier/Getty Images; Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images

Sports

The Laver Cup is your last chance to see tennis' 'Big Three' together on the court

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic had a three-way rivalry that made each of them better — and was awfully fun to watch. They will compete together this weekend for Team Europe.

Saturday

Opinion: Aaron Judge might break the true single-season home run record

Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees at bat against the Boston Red Sox during the fifth inning at Fenway Park on September 14, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images hide caption

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Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Simon Says

Opinion: Aaron Judge might break the true single-season home run record

New York Yankee Aaron Judge is approaching 62 home runs in a single season, which Scott Simon considers to be the true record, as those who have surpassed it used performance enhancing drugs.

Opinion: Aaron Judge might break the true single-season home run record

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Opinion: With abortion bans on the rise, kids need to know more about menstruation

Writer and health educator Marni Sommer is co-author of A Girl's Guide to Puberty & Periods, which aims to help young people ages 9 to 14 understand the changes that happen in puberty and what to expect when. Grow & Know/Screenshot by NPR hide caption

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Grow & Know/Screenshot by NPR

Shots - Health News

Opinion: With abortion bans on the rise, kids need to know more about menstruation

Today, even one missed period could have serious implications for a young person's life. But how late is late, and when is pain or a heavy period a medical concern? Many preteens don't know.

Tuesday

Saturday

Opinion: Remembering Anne Garrels, who blazed trails to the front lines

Anne Garrels reporting from Iraq in 2003. NPR Archive hide caption

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NPR Archive

Simon Says

Opinion: Remembering Anne Garrels, who blazed trails to the front lines

Scott Simon remembers the life and work of Anne Garrels, the formrer NPR foreign correspondent who died this week at the age of 71.

Opinion: Remembering Anne Garrels, who blazed trails to the front lines

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Saturday

Opinion: It should not be a crime to criticize in Putin's Russia

Police officers and the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardia) servicemen patrol on Red Square in central Moscow on January 25, 2021. ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images

Simon Says

Opinion: It should not be a crime to criticize in Putin's Russia

Some critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin have died over the years from murky circumstances, as NPR's Scott Simon points out following the death this week of a Russian oligarch.

Opinion: It should not be a crime to criticize in Putin's Russia

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