This story was originally published by Canada’s National Observer and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

A little over three years ago, a menacing fog crept into the valley surrounding the small village of Satartia, Missisippi, causing a mass poisoning. Within minutes of breathing the air, residents choked and dropped to the ground. Nearly 50 people were hospitalized.

First responders didn’t know the calamity was caused by a carbon dioxide pipeline failing, but clues were there as they struggled to get to the scene. Gas-powered vehicles couldn’t move, and some people lay in the streets struggling to breathe. Jack Willingham, the emergency director for the town’s county, told NPR, “It looked like you were going through the zombie apocalypse.” And he told HuffPost that despite the disaster, the village was in fact lucky because if the wind had blown differently or the incident had happened when people were sleeping, there would have been deaths.

The havoc that day was caused by a rupture in a carbon dioxide pipeline that shot a massive white cloud of concentrated CO2 into the air in a dangerous rolling fog. Because CO2 displaces oxygen and oxygen is needed for gas-powered cars to work, vehicles wouldn’t run. Because CO2 is heavier than air, the thick fog didn’t dissipate but settled on the ground where its lethal potential was narrowly avoided.

Marcus and Jim get the flares out and throw some pint glasses in the air after England’s ferocious 1-0 win over Australia. If only England could’ve tested themselves against the very best of our Antipodean cousins: namely, the Cumdog.

Ollie Watkins made his case to be the second striker in command, while Lewis Dunk and James Maddison also impressed. We recap those performances, see Ireland bow out of Euro 2024 qualification and check in with some cracking goals from across the continent.

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A Texas high school that suspended a Black student for more than a month over the length of his dreadlocks is removing the student and transferring him to an alternative disciplinary program. Starting yesterday, Darryl George, an 18-year-old junior at Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu, east of Houston, will report to EPIC until November 29.

“Your child has engaged in chronic or repeated disciplinary infractions that violate the district’s previously communicated standards of student conduct,” school officials wrote to George’s family in a letter obtained by the New York Times.

Barbers Hill High School’s decision to send George to the alternative program extends a pattern of disciplinary actions taken against Black students over their hairstyles. As my colleague nia t. evans and I wrote in a piece just last week, George’s suspension on August 31 came just one day before Texas’s CROWN Act, a law that prohibits race-based hair discrimination, was slated to go into effect. In 2020, the school came under fire for similarly suspending another Black student, DeAndre Arnold, over his dreadlocks, ordering him to cut them to attend graduation. 

“The racism is being shown,” said Candice Matthews, a civil rights advocate and spokesperson to the George family, after Barber Hills High School told George he was being transferred. Following his suspension in August, George’s parents filed a lawsuit against Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for failure to enforce the CROWN Act. But the issue reflects a far wider and systemic racism:

The episodes at Barbers Hills High reflect a longstanding issue in the United States, particularly in schools where dress codes can discriminate against students. You saw it in the video of a New Jersey high school wrestler forced to cut his locs after a referee claimed that keeping them would forfeit the match. When a North Carolina charter school demanded that a young Indigenous boy cut his hair before returning to class after spring break. Such incidents, widely condemned as racist, have sparked laws similar to the CROWN Act around the country. Despite these protections, school administrators still enforce policies that target non-white students. 

Phew. Marcus, Jim and Pete at last managed to tear themselves away from Jesús Navas’ sparkly eyes for just long enough to record the pod!

On today’s international Preview Show, there’s an infestation of Louis van Gaals, James Maddison talks about his dinner again, and we discover the smokiest dressing room in world football.

Plus, Marcus is absolutely unbearable in this week’s edition of Jack’s Encyclopaedia. Just you wait.

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The Justice Department on Thursday issued a new indictment against Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez and his wife, this time accusing the couple of acting as foreign agents for Egypt.

The court filing adds detail to the astonishing allegations already lodged against the senior New Jersey senator. Those include charges that he and his wife Nadine accepted gold bars, cash, a Mercedes, exercise machines, an air purifier, and other gifts worth hundred of thousands of dollars. In exchange, Menendez allegedly helped an Egyptian-American businessman maintain a monopoly on halal certification for US meat sent to Egypt; interfered with multiple criminal investigations; and used his post as the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to make sure US arms sales to Egypt went through. The DOJ has also alleged that Menendez secretly provided the Egyptian government with sensitive details on American employees working at the US embassy in Cairo.

The new charge that Menendez conspired to act as foreign agent is not a surprise. Prosecutors said in their initial September 22 indictment of Menendez that he had used his power to advance Egyptian interests in exchange for bribes. But the new indictment adds pressure on Senate Democrats—and Republicans—as they grapple with how to deal with their embattled colleague. Menendez has so far refused to resign from the Senate and still sits on the Foreign Relations Committee, despite stepping down as its chairman. Charges that Menendez used his office and position on the panel to secretly act as an Egyptian agent make his continued service all the more embarrassing for Democrats, complicating their hopes to highlight the indictments and alleged corruption of former President Donald Trump in 2024.

A committee spokesperson declined to comment. A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who has not publicly urged Menendez to resign, did not respond to questions Thursday.

In the superseding indictment filed Thursday, prosecutors describe a May 21, 2019, dinner meeting at a Washington, DC, steakhouse involving the senator and his now-wife, the Egyptian-American businessman, and an unnamed Egyptian government official. During that meal, Nadine Menendez allegedly asked the men: “What else can the love of my life do for you?”

A former Deutsche Bank executive testified this week that the German financial behemoth only agreed to make massive loans to Donald Trump because of Trump’s vast personal fortune. The problem? The bank apparently thought, based at least partly on financial statements provided by Trump, that he was far wealthier than he really was.

The Deutsche Bank exec, Nicholas Haigh, was testifying in Manhattan as part of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ $250 million civil fraud lawsuit against Trump. Going over internal documents in court with Haigh, James’ attorneys showed that the bankers didn’t really believe all of Trump’s claims about his wealth. They estimated that Trump was significantly less wealthy than he claimed, but they were still convinced that he had more money than he really did.

James contends that Trump didn’t have anywhere near enough wealth to qualify for the loans he received, and she alleges that the financial statements he gave to Deutsche and other institutions were fraudulent because he vastly over-valued his real estate properties. New York judge Arthur Engoron, who is overseeing the case, has already ruled that he agrees—the ongoing trial involves a handful of lesser allegations over the paperwork and will also determine how much of a fine Trump should have to pay.

Trump and his legal team have largely declined to try to argue the facts of the case. The former president’s comments on the ongoing proceedings have mostly been limited to angry outbursts accusing James of pursuing a political or racist agenda. (James is Black.) Wednesday’s testimony highlighted just how hard it is for Trump to deny the allegations. As James’ attorneys repeatedly showed in court, not only did Trump sign his name to documents listing incorrect values for his properties, the banks largely believed what he told them and made their decisions based on his claims.

According to the documents and Haigh’s testimony, at least one of the transactions required that Trump maintain a net worth of at least $2.5 billion to avoid defaulting on the loan. At the time, Trump claimed his net worth was well over $4 billion. But James’ office contends that it was actually only about $1.6 billion.

Virginia Democrats are calling on the Justice Department to investigate the state’s elections department after the administration announced last week that it had mistakenly removed eligible voters from voter rolls after incorrectly listing them as convicted felons.

The announcement, which came with early voting already underway for a pivotal state election, said that it had identified at least 270 errors. But Democrats are warning that the total could be far more after Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R-Va.) administration removed more than 10,000 voters last year in a purge effort.

We're just weeks away from an election and we're just now finding out that potentially thousands of eligible Virginia voters were purged from the voter rolls.

I'm urging the Justice Department to investigate these alarming reports. https://t.co/IZ6l7pDawE

— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) October 11, 2023

This story is the result of a partnership between The Investigative Reporting Workshop and The Center for Public Integrity.

Osama Mohamed let out a sigh of relief as he and his wife stood at the steps of the US Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the first day of September. Clutched tightly in his hands was the letter he’d been chasing for nearly a year and a half. “Congratulations!” its bolded words declared. “Your US Visa has been approved.” 

It had been 16 months since Mohamed, 28, had first applied to the United States Diversity Visa program. His petition became even more urgent in April, when political upheaval in his home country of Sudan prompted by an ongoing conflict that has resulted in thousands of casualties left Mohamed’s family home, near the capital in Khartoum, destroyed. 

The program has come to be known as the “green card lottery,” in which applicants submit to a laborious 10-step process of petitioning for entry into the United States. Once they arrive, they’re recognized as permanent residents, permitted to work, and enter the path of citizenship. It’s a longshot, by design, intended to open additional visas to would-be immigrants from countries that send relatively small numbers of people to the United States each year. 

The final step in the process is an in-person interview, often requiring applicants to traverse international borders to the nearest US Embassy. Mohamed and his wife traveled 700 miles to Addis Ababa for their interview, at which they were told in writing their visa had been approved. It was an “indescribable feeling,” Mohamed recalls, to hold a winning lottery ticket in hand. 

This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

Sewage collecting in crudely dug trenches. Failing septic tanks that send waste bubbling into backyards. These are some of the common sights across Alabama’s Black Belt, a strip of 24 continuous counties blessed with deep fertile soil but long plagued by inadequate wastewater infrastructure and the commensurate parasitic disease. 

It’s a problem, advocates say, that the state has the resources to address. 

The US Environmental Protection Agency opened a civil rights probe last week into the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and its implementation of a federal program designed to boost water infrastructure in communities across the country. The decision comes after advocates filed a complaint in March alleging that, for years, the state has hindered Black residents in rural areas from obtaining federal funds to update their wastewater systems. 

It’s a region where children play on sewage-laden soil and an overwhelming stench envelops some neighborhoods for weeks on end. “It’s really disgraceful and painful that people endure this, especially when we have the opportunity to fix it,” said Aaron Colangelo, an attorney at the Natural Resources Defence Council who has been working on the issue.

On Wednesday, a group of New York House Republicans announced that they will introduce a resolution to expel Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), who was indicted yesterday on new charges that included campaign violations for a fake-donor scheme first reported by Mother Jones earlier this year. The resolution, which will be introduced by Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.), marks the first GOP-led effort to boot Santos from their ranks. It will require at least two-thirds of the House to pass.

Today, I’ll be introducing an expulsion resolution to rid the People’s House of fraudster, George Santos. The resolution will be co-sponsored by fellow #NewYork freshman @RepLaLota @RepMikeLawler @RepMolinaroNY19 @RepLangworthy @RepWilliams.

Our statement will follow.

— Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (@RepDesposito) October 11, 2023

House Democrats attempted to expel the disgraced Republican in May following Santos’ first indictment on 13 criminal counts related to fraud and money laundering crimes. Republicans quickly referred the motion to the House Ethics Committee, effectively killing the resolution.

The Euros is heading this way and today Marcus, Jim, Vish and Pete celebrate by disrespecting the whole of Europe, including the other host nations.

As such, the lads get on board with the idea of making a haggis paella ahead of Scotland’s upcoming showdown with Spain. They also remember one of England’s greats as the new “Beckham” documentary gets a Ramble critique.

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Marcus, Andy, Vish and Jim put another busy weekend of football under the Ramble microscope! 

Erling Haaland and Kyle Walker double team it at the Emirates, two blokes try to double team it on a child at the King Power, and Marcus witnesses a man getting very angry at another topless man at Craven Cottage.

Plus, you can count on Jim Campbell to suck the life out of a spirited Spurs performance and you can certainly count on Vish for a good Ange Postecoglou impersonation. Just wait until the end…

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Pete's in the hotseat for today's PGMOL panel alongside Luke, Andy and Jim!

The lads discuss aggressive Marseille taxi drivers, how footballers store shirts they’ve collected, and out of date chocolates at Aston Villa courtesy of Big Doug Ellis. Plus, an Arsenal vs Manchester City preview and another pesky England squad!

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Marcus, Luke and Andy are here to pick through the wreckage left in Newcastle’s wake, after the Geordies welcomed PSG into their house and then gave them a right shellacking. 

We chat about the fired up crowd at St James’ Park, how they turned in such a performance and what’s wrong with Kylian Mbappe. Plus, Jürgen Klopp wades into the replay debate and FIFA dream up their maddest idea yet. 

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Marcus, Luke and Andy check in from Newcastle ahead of their clash with PSG where a chilly wind, aliens overhead and Kylian Trippier’s violent scheming should combine for a cracker on Tyneside.

There’s also loads of juicy Champions League action to discuss, as Jude Bellingham cut yet more mustard and Man United shot themselves repeatedly in the foot once again. Plus, the PGMOL Posse release some laughable audio and Marcus’ England Project takes a huge step forward.

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This episode is sponsored by TNT Sports - the exclusive home of the UEFA Champions League.

Marcus, Luke and Andy head up to St James’ Park to celebrate Champions League football returning to Newcastle, twenty years after they were last in the competition. And they’re joined by our favourite TNT Sports presenter, former Rambler and Vish’s sworn enemy: it’s only a one-off special with Jules Breach! 

We chat about how exciting it is to see European football return to the city, how Jules’ work on TNT Sports is going and the unrivalled excitement of Champions League football.

Thanks to TNT Sports for making this episode possible. This isn’t just football. This is the Champions League.

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Marcus and Luke were in situ for a special on-location Ramble Reacts last night! Recorded from the beautiful old stands of Craven Cottage, they chew the fat over Chelsea’s 2-0 win against Fulham – a game which Marcus mostly spent hoping that Aleksandar Mitrovic would fly back from Saudi Arabia to get on the end of a Tom Cairney cross.

Could Mauricio Pochettino’s lemons finally be sending his team on the right track? Are Fulham in trouble this season as they struggle for both goals AND lemons? And when will Marcus be able to host bingo in the Fulham dressing room for the players post-match?

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After a drama-filled and anger-fuelled weekend, Marcus, Pete, Vish and Jim thrash out a plan to replace all referees with one giant robot. Judgment Day is upon us.

Plus, Pete takes us on a trip through the state of Liverpool YouTube over the weekend, Roy Hodgson and Garth Crooks get cosy with Avram Glazer’s dog in a pram, and there’s The Great Mugging Off of Vithushan Ehantharajah to enjoy!

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September is almost over, and there has been a lot of noise over the last few weeks, with some pundits and fans making all sorts of negative assertions. But as we look back over the last six weeks since the season started, it seems to me that quite a few people are looking a little silly today.

Why am I saying that?

Well, let’s start with Kai Havertz and his signing. Mikel Arteta has been criticized left, right, and centre, Havertz has been branded a terrible signing, and so forth. But let’s examine one revealing stat.

Havertz has NEVER been on the losing side since the season started. Now, we can all accept that he has not performed as we would have wanted, but Arteta saw something in him that very few of us could see. To be honest, I am still not sure what it is, but never being on the losing side is hard to argue with.

Now, another stat.

On Saturday afternoon, after weeks of GOP squabbling in the House of Representatives, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) led his chamber in passing a bill to fund the government for 45 days. 

He did it, primarily, with the help of Democrats. The temporary spending bill passed 335–91; 209 Democrats and 126 Republicans voted in favor.

In order to garner enough Democratic support for the bill, which needed two-thirds of the chamber’s backing, McCarthy relented on his pursuit of 30 percent spending cuts across most federal agencies and additional immigration restrictions at the southern border, winning the okay of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). To get enough Republicans on board, the bill did not include continuing aid to help Ukraine fight Russia. The bill, which would fund the government through mid-November, includes $16 billion for federal disaster relief.

Headed into Saturday, a solution was far from promised. Far-right House Republicans have sparred with McCarthy, whom they have threatened to oust as Speaker, and publicly opposed passing a short-term continuing resolution over a longer-term appropriations package. No Congressional action by Sunday would have risked national parks closing, women and infants losing food assistance, and millions of federal employees going unpaid.

For those problems to be avoided, the Senate still needs to pass the continuing resolution before Saturday ends. Democratic senators’ support for additional Ukraine funding may be a source of contention, though the largest impasse to averting a shutdown seems to have been resolved.