Morning Reads

Here’s a roundup of some of the stuff we’re reading this morning at Moyers and Company HQ

Syria –> Warring rebel groups agree to a ceasefire in the town of Azaz, reports the BBC. Meanwhile, Syrian officials tell The Guardian that the civil war has reached a stalemate, with neither side capable of winning militarily. They say the situation may lead to negotiations.

Big Deal –> EPA is out with strict new limits on emissions from coal plants. At the HuffPo, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy explains why it’s important.

Now even riper –> Outrage of the day (so far) comes via MoJo’s Andy Kroll, who writes about a new report on private prison companies’ quotas – minimum occupancy requirements written into the contracts they sign with state and local govs. Just yesterday we noted that the time is ripe for prison reform.

In his own words –> Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has an op-ed in the WaPo that’s worth a read.

Smoke and mirrors –> Dave Weigel writes for Slate that the defund-Obamacare campaign is all Kabuki theater. The Hill’s Russell Berman on Speaker John Boehner all-but-begging Obama to negotiate on the debt ceiling. At TNR, Noam Scheiber worries the president is going to bail Boehner out at the end of the day. And Paul Krugman finds this an appropriate time to be shrill.

Washington elites punching down –> NYT editorial board excoriates Republicans for bill that would make deep cuts to the food-stamp program.

Deadly slip-ups –> Propublica’s Marshall Allen reports on the huge number of Americans who die as a result of hospital errors.

Guns and creeps don’t mix –> At RH Reality Check, Andrea Grimes looks at “Abusers, Guns, and the Women They Kill.”

Government for me but not for thee –> Josh Israel notes for Think Progress that every member of Colorado’s Republican House delegation opposed federal relief for Hurricane Sandy, but they really want it for their state’s flooding.

How does a corporation pray? –> Scott Lemieux reports for TAP on a federal court rejecting a company’s refusal to have insurance that covers employees’ contraception because of “religious liberty.” Also: in an extraordinary interview, the pope outlines his vision of a ‘new’ church that is more welcoming to gays, while conservative lawmakers introduce a bill to protect groups that don’t support gay marriage.

Few women at the top –> In the WaPo, economist Caroline Freund wonders why there are so few women in central banking.

Just another brick in the wall –> In the LAT, Richard Marosi with a tragic story of a father separated by the Southern border from his sextuplets in Mexico.

Sorry to break it to you –> “Mars Is Probably Not Home To Life, According To Sad New Study.”

So what are you reading this morning? Let us know in the comments!

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