2020
January
16
Thursday

Monitor Daily Podcast

January 16, 2020
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Our five selected stories cover U.S. judicial independence in a time of impeachment, President Vladimir Putin’s leadership transition plan, environmental stewardship in a time of deregulation, talking about faith with Democratic candidates, and a delightful film about “The Woman Who Loves Giraffes.”

Space is a reminder of infinite possibilities, a frontier that gives us an opportunity to shatter our Earth-bound assumptions.

Let’s take a moment to look at Maj. Jasmin “Jaws” Moghbeli. She’s a jarhead – a Marine – a helicopter combat pilot, and a graduate of the latest class of NASA astronauts. That’s an elite group of just 11 people culled from 18,000 applicants.

Born in Germany to Iranian parents, Major Moghbeli’s family moved to New York when she was 8 months old. She graduated from MIT with an aeronautical engineering degree. She joined the Marines in 2005, flew 150 combat missions in Afghanistan, and later became a test pilot. 

NASA classmate Jonny Kim describes her as dependable, resilient, and fierce, in short, “the perfect crewmate I’d go into the void of space with.”

Major Moghbeli told Agence France-Presse that space is where humanity tends to “agree” and “unite” even during our disagreements on this planet. She points to the International Space Station, where Russia and the United States have worked together for two decades. 

What’s next for Major Moghbeli? She could serve on the space station, NASA’s Artemis 2024 moon mission, or a Mars mission.

Consider this: The first woman to step on the moon could be an Iranian American.


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Today’s stories

And why we wrote them

A deeper look

Anton Vaganov/Reuters
Vladimir Putin's plan to change the Russian Constitution, which he revealed Wednesday, means he likely will hold a new office in 2024 after his presidential term ends. Here he is seen speaking during his address on a broadcast shown on the side of a building in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Nati Harnik/AP
A grain truck drives past a Keystone pipeline pumping station near Milford, Nebraska. President Donald Trump took action Jan. 9 to clear the way and speed up development of a wide range of commercial projects, such as pipelines and highways, by cutting back federal review of their impact on the environment.

On Film

Courtesy of Zeitgeist Films
Canadian biologist Anne Innis Dagg, co-author of the 1976 book “The Giraffe: Its Biology, Behavior, and Ecology,” visits the Brookfield Zoo in Illinois.

The Monitor's View


A Christian Science Perspective

About this feature

A message of love

Agustin Marcarian/Reuters
Climbers trek on the Perito Moreno glacier, near the city of El Calafate, Argentina, in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz Jan. 14, 2020.
( The illustrations in today’s Monitor Daily are by Jacob Turcotte. )

A look ahead

Thanks for joining us. Come back tomorrow: We’re working on a story about a Second Amendment sanctuary movement led by gun owners in Virginia. 

More issues

2020
January
16
Thursday
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