The Navigator, Saturday, May 24, 2025
AI love, dog doubles, Harvard's global allure, the Megabill's losers, Tom Cruise's final reckoning, Kermit the Frog's send-off—and more
This past week, while in our New York City office working on the summer series pilot of our New Rules podcast on resilience, a gray-haired woman appeared at the set of elevators in our building, brandishing a large button on her handbag which read, “Hope over FEAR.”
She said she was on her way to an early Memorial Day luncheon hosted by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit focused on saving and revitalizing America’s historic places, but whose funding is now facing cuts recommended by President Trump’s cost-cutting commission. “May is history preservation month,” she said, but there is now tension between two fundamental approaches to history: one focusing on America’s ideals, and one focusing on the country’s failures to embody them.
Memorial Day was originally set aside to remember Union soldiers who died during the Civil War to save America, but following World War I, the holiday expanded in scope to include the commemoration of all who have served and died to preserve our nation’s democracy, in any war or military action. This year, our Memorial Day celebrations will include a number of pro-democracy rallies to protest efforts by the Trump administration to challenge the rule of law and dishonor the service of some soldiers who served and died to protect it.
As we head into this holiday weekend, we wish you and your families a summer of hope and resilience.
How are you commemorating the day? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
Biden’s Age Wasn’t a Cover-Up. It Was an Observable Fact. (The Atlantic)
The story about the former president getting old is getting old.
Young Chinese are turning to AI chatbots for friendship and love (The Economist)
It’s not doing anything for the low birth rate.
We’re international students at Harvard. We’re afraid to write this. But we have to speak up. (The Washington Post)
Three student leaders write a letter to the editor about President Trump’s attempts to throw them out of the country.
Urban Development Needs Systems Thinking (Stanford Social Innovation Review)
Lessons from 15 cities in Eastern Europe and Central Asia on addressing interconnected civic challenges.
Mission: Impossible’s Final Reckoning with the Internet (The Bulwark)
The 30-year-old mega-series’ eighth and final installment drops on Memorial Day, taking on our post-truth society, deep-fakes and digital divides—and contemplating the impact of a nation under the control of manufactured truth. Critics say it’s a lot to take in, but still thrills.
The Biggest Losers in Trump’s Megabill (The Wall Street Journal)
GOP’s efforts to offset tax cuts hit recipients of food aid, Medicaid users, college borrowers, EV drivers.
It’s Time to Kill the Casual Workplace (New York magazine)
In the war of the office, etiquette is actually your friend.
Dogs and their owners really do look alike—here’s why (National Geographic)
New research reveals that people aren’t just imagining it—dogs and their owners share striking similarities, from matching hairstyles to mirrored temperaments.
The “Invasion” Invention: The Far Right’s Long Legal Battle to Make Immigrants the Enemy (Pro Publica)
The Trump administration is using the claim that immigrants have “invaded” the country to justify possibly suspending habeas corpus as part of the constitutional right to due process. A faction of the far right has been building this case for years.
‘Leap together,’ Kermit the Frog tells graduates at the University of Maryland (NPR/AP)
Members of the University of Maryland’s class of 2025 received their diplomas Thursday from the amphibious Muppet designed by the late Jim Henson, a University of Maryland alum who created Kermit while a student there.