Tangle - Today's debate: Tommy Tuberville's abortion protest.

Episode Date: July 17, 2023

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL). Tuberville has been blocking all nominations for senior military positions over his disagreement with a Defense Department policy to pay for service members’ out-of-state travel for abortions or other reproductive care. As part of a protest against the policy, Tuberville has used the unique power held by individual senators known as "unanimous consent" to stall all nominations for senior military personnel, and has refused to budge from his position despite attacks from President Joe Biden, some of his Republican colleagues, and an open letter from seven previous secretaries of defense.Here is the data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics we referenced in today’s listener question.For weeks, we've been hyping the first-ever live Tangle event in Philadelphia on August 3rd. I am thrilled to announce our three guests and the topic: We'll be joined by Mark Joseph Stern of Slate, Henry Olsen of The Washington Post, and Anastasia Boden of the Cato Institute. On stage, I'll be moderating a discussion on the biggest Supreme Court decisions from this term and the current state of the high court. As we've said in the past, our goal with this event is to gather the Tangle community and bring the newsletter live to the stage. Please come join us! Tickets here.You can read today's podcast here, today’s “Under the Radar” story here, and today’s “Have a nice day” story here. You can also check out our latest YouTube video here.Today’s clickables: Friday’s interview feedback (0:47), Quick hits (2:25), Today’s story (4:42), Left’s take (9:41), Right’s take (13:43), Isaac’s take (17:50), Listener question (21:32), Under the Radar (25:17), Numbers (26:06), Have a nice day (26:42)You can⁠ subscribe to Tangle by clicking here⁠ or drop something⁠ in our tip jar by clicking here.⁠Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited by Jon Lall. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.Our newsletter is edited by Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, Ari Weitzman, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tanglenews/message Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural who dreams about a world beyond Chinatown. When he inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, Willis begins to unravel a criminal web, his family's buried history, and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada, which is Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages six months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed. Learn more at flucellvax.ca.

From executive producer Isaac Saul, this is Tangle. Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening, and welcome to the Tangle podcast, the place we get views from across the political spectrum, some independent thinking, and a little bit of my take. I'm your host, Isaac Saul, and on today's episode, we're going to be talking about Senator Tommy Tuberville and the controversy around some of what he is doing right now to delay military nominations for some senior roles. It's a pretty interesting story and a good look at the state of the Senate currently. Before we jump in, a quick heads up.

As expected on Friday, our interview with Dr. Joseph Freeman about COVID-19 vaccines drew a lot of responses. Some people were pretty upset that we published the interview. Some were thrilled that we did. Others had mixed feelings, but generally were positive about the interview going up. One reader wrote in and said, I have to say that I'm very disappointed in your choice to air this information. Your efforts to be fair should not include the error of false equivalence. I am truly angered that you are adding to this type of misinformation. Another newsletter reader said, great newsletter today, really great. I felt not like I was getting another study for or

against something jammed down my throat, but more of an impassioned plea for a return to legit science, scientific skepticism, and scientific discourse. That was very much appreciated. And finally, another reader said, I appreciate that Tangle is dedicated to making space for complexity and trying to reach past the polarized scream of social media to bring us as balanced and nuanced discussion as possible, especially on topics that tend to trigger a polarized shutdown of conversation in everyday life. As always, I will try to reply to your feedback via email, and we may also run a follow-up piece to this interview. But for now, if you want to go to readtangle.com, you can read the interview. It is for subscribers only, and it is headlined a conversation about vaccine safety. All right,

that is it for our little introduction. With that, we'll jump in with today's quick hits. First up, Russia announced on Monday that it would suspend its involvement in an agreement with Ukraine to export grain. Suspension of the deal could drive up global food prices, as well as costs for other goods like fertilizer. Number two, Representative Pramila Jayapal, the Democrat from Washington, walked back her comments that Israel was a racist country this week. Israeli President Isaac Herzog is scheduled to address Congress on Wednesday. Number three, four people were killed in a mass shooting in Atlanta over the weekend. Separately, at least five people died in Bucks County, Pennsylvania,

after an estimated six to seven inches of rain fell in less than 45 minutes. Number four, a bipartisan measure being pushed by Senator Chuck Schumer would create a commission with broad authority to declassify more government documents about UFOs and extraterrestrials. Number five, roughly 100 million Americans are under heat alerts this morning, stretching from Florida to California. Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama vowed to continue blocking the approval of military promotions due to the Pentagon's abortion policy. Tuberville's blockade is keeping hundreds from their promotions, including high ranking officials such as the leader of the United States Marine Corps, which is now without a permanent chief for the first time in over a century. Promotions into the top ranks of the U.S. military have been blocked for months now by

one Republican senator in particular. That's Alabama's Tommy Tuberville, who objects to a Pentagon policy maintaining abortion access for service members. The secretary of defense in response says that the senator's move creates a quote clear risk to military readiness. What would it take for you to lift your hold on all these nominations? All they need to do is change it back to where it was. Tuberville is demanding Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin rescind this memo authorizing paid leave and transportation costs for service members to travel to states where abortion is legal. Tuberville has been blocking all nominations for senior military positions over his disagreement with a Defense Department policy to pay for service members' travel to go out of state

for abortions or other reproductive care. As part of a protest against the policy, Tuberville has used the unique power held by individual senators known as unanimous consent to stall all nominations for senior military personnel and has refused to budge from his position despite attacks from President Joe Biden, some of his Republican colleagues, and an open letter from seven previous secretaries of defense. Tuberville's protest is tied to an official policy resulting from the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson ruling. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin released an official memorandum in October of last year that set aside funding for abortion and reproductive health care providers to get

licensed to treat service members from different states in the event abortion becomes illegal in their state of residence. It also allowed service members to use official travel mechanisms and time off to seek abortion in another location. In February, Tuberville began protesting this policy by refusing to allow progress on 150 promotions and personnel reviews that were waiting in batches to move through the upper chamber of Congress. There are now at least 270 nominations being delayed. Alabama, the state Tuberville represents, is home to six military bases and some of the strictest prohibitions on abortion in the country. Tuberville argues that taxpayers should not have to pay for anyone who wants to leave the state for an abortion and further contends that the policy violates the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits

federal funding for abortion. Because the Senate requires unanimous consent for much of its business, Tuberville is capable of stalling or stopping altogether things like filling military vacancies. Now, the military is starting to feel the impact of his protest. Last week, for the first time in a century, the U.S. Marine Corps began operating without a commandant after General David Berger stepped down from his term-limited position, which began in July of 2019. Assistant Commandant General Eric Smith, who was nominated to take over, can only serve in an acting capacity until Tuberville lifts his blockade. Smith can still implement new budgetary and training policies and perform other personnel decisions, but cannot occupy the main residence

or commandant's office or issue any formal planning guidance. We need the Senate to do their job so that we can have a sitting commandant that's appointed and confirmed. We need that house to be occupied, General Berger said upon leaving the position. The Marine Corps is just the first of several military bodies to face a leadership predicament resulting from Tuberville blocking the process, as the Army and Navy and Air Force all have senior leaders departing in the coming months. In the meantime, the hold is impacting one-, two-, and three-star officers who can't move into newly assigned roles or relocate to new military posts commiserate with their positions. Senate leaders Chuck Schumer, the Democrat from New York, and Mitch McConnell, the Republican from Kentucky, have both expressed disapproval for Tuberville's tactics. However, because of the way the Senate

rules work, Tuberville can stand in the way of large batches of confirmations and is leaving little recourse for Senate leadership outside of upending established rules and traditions that have guided the chamber for years. Alternatively, the Senate could confirm each nomination individually, though such a move would take up much of the Senate's resources and legislative calendar. Tuberville, meanwhile, has downplayed the impact of the holds, especially as it relates to Smith's much of the Senate's resources and legislative calendar. Tuberville, meanwhile, has downplayed the impact of the holds, especially as it relates to Smith's leadership of the Marine Corps. There may be a delay in his planning guidance,

and yet he cannot move into the Commandant's residence, but there is still little doubt about General Smith's ability to lead effectively, Tuberville said. Initially, Tuberville said he would release his hold on nominations if the Senate voted on the issue. Now, though, he says he will only back down if the Pentagon rescinds the policy altogether. Tuberville, perhaps best known as the former head football coach at Auburn University, became the subject of more controversy last week after he responded to a question about whether white nationalists should be able to serve in the military by saying, I call them Americans. Tuberville then later doubled down

saying it was merely an opinion that white nationalists were racist, a comment that drew condemnation from his Republican colleagues. Later, he walked the remarks back saying he believed that white nationalists were racist. In related news, the House recently passed a heavily amended National Defense Authorization Act bill that limits reimbursements for travel for abortion, funding for diversity, equality, and inclusion programs in the military, and access to funding for gender transition surgeries for troops. Those amendments are expected to be stripped in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

Today, we're going to explore some reactions to Tuberville's strategy from the left and the right, and then my take. First up, we'll start with what the left is saying. The left is unanimously opposed to Tuberville's position, arguing that he's harming military families on an extremist anti-abortion crusade. Many suggest that Tuberville is putting military readiness in danger while also misunderstanding the rule he's protesting. Some say this is simply Tuberville shelling the real Republican position on abortion. In Bloomberg, the editorial board said blocking promotions is unpatriotic. Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville misses few chances to tout both his career as a college football coach and his love for the

military. It's all the more reprehensible, then, that Tuberville is single-handedly blocking the Pentagon from putting its best team on the field and harming the country's security in the process, the editor said. Due to Tuberville's intransigence, the Marine Corps lacks a Senate-confirmed commandant for the first time in 164 years, and more than 600 senior officers may be affected by the end of the year. This is already damaging military readiness, as officers in acting capacity don't have the same authority they would if Senate-confirmed, the board said. Incoming Marine Commandant General Eric Smith, for instance, can't issue crucial planning guidance for the service. Uncertainty takes a toll on military families who can't relocate or receive new salaries until appointments are official.

By targeting uniformed officers instead of political appointees, Tuberville risks dragging the U.S. military into the country's partisan muck. In Vox, Ellen Iannis said the hold is based on a misrepresentation of how the Pentagon's abortion policy works. Tuberville's claims don't actually comport with Pentagon policy, which allows service members or their families to take time off and use official travel mechanisms and funding as they would for any other type of travel to seek abortion care in another location, she said. However, the Pentagon doesn't pay for service members to get abortions, nor do the new policies provide

for government health insurance to cover abortions, both of which the Hyde Amendment actually prohibits. Since 1993, the Hyde Amendment has made exceptions to allow federal funds to pay for abortion care in the case of rape or incest, or risks to the health or life of a pregnant person. That holds true in the military, though available data indicates these cases are quite rare. Tuberville's complaint that the new policy goes beyond what's allowed via federal statute isn't accurate because there's currently no statute preventing the expenditure of federal funds to travel for abortion care, she said. Representative Ralph Norman, the Republican from South Carolina, has introduced legislation to prohibit the use of federal funds to travel to obtain an abortion, but it is not passed the House. And Justice Department guidance to the Department of Health and Human Services

explicitly states that Hyde should be interpreted to prohibit only direct expenses for the procedure itself and not indirect expenses such as those for transportation to and from the medical facility where the abortion is performed. In the American Prospect, Ryan Cooper wrote about the GOP's Tommy Tuberville problem, which shows their real position on abortion. His antics are making it all too easy to point out what the GOP will do if they get the chance. Ban all abortion across the country, Cooper said. Since Dobbs, many national-level Republicans have attempted to sidestep the abortion question. Donald Trump and Chris Christie have said that the issue should be left up to the states. Nikki Haley said in a speech that she would

seek some national consensus without saying what that means. House Republicans have struggled to get a national ban after 15 weeks to the floor, though they have passed other, more modest restrictions. But the real preference here is obvious. Abortion should be banned across the country, with as few exceptions as they think they can get away with. That's what they're doing at the state level, where the GOP is enacting ever stricter bans wherever they can, Cooper said. Savvier Republicans are starting to grasp that abortion is a massive political liability, and will try to force it through under the cover of darkness, to quote Alex Perrine. But Tuberville's stunt plays havoc

with that strategy. All right, that is it for the leftist saying, which brings us to what the right is saying. Most Republicans support Tuberville and his opposition to this policy, though some want him to lift the hold. Many conservatives praise him for his bravery in holding the line against abortion access, arguing he has military regulation on his side. Others suggest that this tactic is a political loser and Tuberville is creating an unnecessary headache for the military. Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural who dreams about a world beyond Chinatown. When he inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, Willis begins to unravel a criminal

web, his family's buried history, and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada, which is nearly double the historic average of 52,000 cases. What can you do this flu season? Talk to your pharmacist or doctor about getting a flu shot. Consider FluCellVax Quad and help protect yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages six months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed. Learn more at FluCellVax.ca.

In National Review, Rich Lowry said Tuberville is right about the military. No one noticed over the years that on top of its other supposed benefits, Roe v. Wade was protecting the readiness of the U.S. military, Lowry said. Yes, in a major war, we'd want to make sure that we have secure supply lines, overwhelming force, and free and easy access to abortion. Yet the Pentagon is funding abortion tourism for troops behind enemy lines, overwhelming force, and free and easy access to abortion. Yet the Pentagon is funding abortion tourism for troops behind enemy lines, that is, in a state that has significant post-Dobbs restrictions on abortion. In reality, the Department of Defense is following a political script. The administration wants to paint Dobbs in the most dire terms possible

and show its base that it is doing its utmost to work around its consequences. Lowry also quoted Senator Tom Cotton, the Republican from Arkansas, who said on Fox News Sunday of women who want to get an abortion prohibited where they are stationed, if they want to take that step, they have 30 days of annual leave. It shouldn't be taxpayer funds giving them three weeks of paid uncharged leave and then also paying for travel and lodging and meals, something that we don't even give our troops when they have a parent who dies. There are many things that are necessary to deal with the rising military threat from China, from new generation weapons to an updated nuclear triad. Needless to say, abortion on demand is not

one of them. In town hall, Rebecca Downs said Tuberville is not only standing up for life, but the rule of law. The policy is in violation of 10 U.S.C. 1093, which dictates that abortion can only be funded in cases of rape, incest, or threat to the life of the mother, she wrote. Tuberville, unlike Biden, has indicated his willingness to talk about the issue. Some progress may be in the works. On Thursday, the senator spoke with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. This comes after the Department of Defense failed to respond to letters from Republicans about the policy. Tuberville's office has reminded the public that existing officers are kept in place until the replacement is confirmed. Admiral John C.

Aquilino testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that operationally, it's going to have no impact when it comes to the holds, since officers remain until the proper replacement is in place. Even Democratic Senator Jack Reed acknowledged, it seems that for the next several months you could get by, Downs noted. There are those who would seek to portray Republicans as being in disarray over Tuberville's holds, but support is there, with members and senior staffers communicating such support to Town Hall. The Wall Street Journal editorial board said Tuberville should lift his hold on promotions despite the Pentagon being in the wrong on policy. Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville's Pentagon blockade is a kamikaze run,

but the Defense Department is the aggressor on both the law and politics of abortion, the board said. Utterly predictable is that Democrats would exploit the senator's blockade to paint Republicans as obstructionists who are compromising military readiness. The military hasn't ceased to function, though the effects ripple as officers wait to relocate families or start a new post. While this is not a political winner for Republicans, the Biden administration is also holding these officers hostage to compel taxpayers to pay for abortions. The Defense Department reinvented its travel policy to cover abortion after the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision. The Pentagon wasn't responding to a crisis in the force, as women have long served abroad in countries that restrict abortion.

Not only that, but the Pentagon is outside what little national consensus exists on abortion. Some 60% of Americans oppose using tax dollars to pay for abortions, according to one survey this year. Mr. Biden opposed taxpayer payments for abortion until he ran for president in 2019. All right, that is it for the left and the right are saying, which brings us to my take. So I'll be honest, I think support or opposition to Tuberville's actions basically depends entirely on whether you support his position on abortion or not. If, for instance, Tuberville were holding up these nominations because the military had instituted a ban on taking immigrants as soldiers, I'm sure most of the people criticizing him right now would gladly support his protest. That may seem like an obvious point to make,

but I think it's important to note that his tactics, while a big focus of this story, are not really the root of opposition to Tuberville. For anyone who supports his position, those tactics are exactly what makes his crusade so clever, brave, and powerful. So I'll show my cards and say that I'm opposed to what Tuberville is doing, but I'm self-aware enough to know that it's not because of how he is doing it, but because of what his end goal is. Regarding the tactics, it seems apparent, based on the testimony of military officials and the practical implications of his protests, that blocking leadership confirmations is not impacting military readiness. It's more apt to say that Tuberville is creating huge inconveniences for

military families and disrupting the well-earned promotions of new military leaders. That isn't great, and I certainly feel for those families, but the net effect is not the giant threat to American safety that Biden and some Democrats are portraying it to be. On the actual policy dispute here, I just think Tuberville is wrong about the law. Regardless of my abortion position, the main argument he's making is that the military's policy is a violation of the Hyde Amendment. The amendment itself is the subject of a ton of legal dispute, so the gray area here is significant, but the Pentagon's policy simply folds abortion and reproductive

care into other travel, leave, or health care needs for members of the military. The Hyde Amendment prohibits spending for the actual abortion procedure, and it prohibits government health insurance from covering abortions, with exceptions for rape, incest, and when the mother's life is threatened. But this policy does not appear to violate either of those things. As far as I can tell, the closest the memorandum comes to violating the Hyde Amendment is allocating funding for military health care providers who may get fined or targeted for providing abortions in states where it is illegal. For some, that may cross the line. But I think if there were a winning legal challenge there, Republicans would be waging this battle in courts, not with a protest like this. The reality is that rules on the margins

for entities like the military are subject to the executive branch's whims. Democrats won the White House, so they now get to define the margins. That's politics. Of course, the fact that Republicans are currently trying to pass legislation that prohibits the use of federal funds for travel to obtain an abortion tells you that the rules Tuberville claims are being broken don't actually yet exist. Frankly, it's not even clear to me how helpful this new policy allowing travel and leave for abortions will be for women who are in the military and are seeking or needing an abortion. When implementing this new policy, Pentagon officials said there was not much they could do for military members in states where abortion was prohibited.

And if you're a woman serving in the military based in a state where abortion is illegal or seriously limited, it's probably going to be very hard to get through the hoops and get an abortion anyway. So, do I think Tuberville is threatening U.S. military readiness? No. I think he is leveraging his significant power as an individual senator to take a moral stand he believes in, and I presume he is delighted by all the national attention and notice this protest is getting. I do think he is wrong about the actual policy, though, and I think the longer this goes on, the more likely it will actually impact our troops at large. All right, that is it for my take on today's issue, which brings us to our reader question for the day. This one is from an anonymous reader from Dublin, California, who said, having been to a wedding to which our families flew a lot, for us at least,

we experienced what seems like a lot of cancellations, delays, and changes to our flights. And I've heard and read about many more. How do the airlines justify this level of service considering the amount of federal dollars they received during COVID? So it is definitely frustrating that flights have gotten delayed more frequently or canceled more often after all the relief funds that the industry received during COVID. I think the best justification is that they used those funds to pay their employees and were still making cuts to costs to stay afloat. Airlines grounded older planes and canceled less popular flight routes to stay afloat, while many older pilots nearing retirement took the opportunity to do so. Like most things, it's a combination of factors. One, it's not as big of an increase as it seems. Two, weather.

Three, supply and demand. And four, staffing. So to start, it's not that bad. If I asked you how many more flights were delayed or canceled in the first quarter of 2023 compared to 2022, or the past 10-year average, what would you say? Twice as many? 50%? More? 25%? Well, it turns out 2% fewer flights were canceled in the first part of 2023 compared to 2022, while about 2% more were delayed. Compared over the past 10 years, the on-time percentage for flights is only a few percentage points off the average. So it's still a problem, but one that's probably not as widespread as we actually think. Two, there's the weather. A good response to the above would be, well, that's just the first quarter. July 4th was a disaster, and that's true. Wildfire smoke and storms in the northeast caused

sweeping delays and cancellations, which had a ripple effect throughout the whole system, producing more than 3,000 disruptions for flights in or into the United States. In general, due to a higher likelihood of storms, there tend to be more cancellations in summer, not less. That gap in expectation and reality probably creates the illusion of a larger problem than what actually exists. Three, there's supply and demand. Again, the above is right for rebuttal. Well, if the airline system were more durable, then it would be able to handle disruptions better. That's also true. But since airlines downsized following the pandemic, there are just fewer flights and fewer airline employees left to deal with the spike demand in travel that followed a boost in travel following the end of the COVID emergency. You can actually see this for yourself in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics data, which we have a link to in

today's episode description. There are just fewer flights now than there were in 2019. Four, their staffing. Yes, airline staffing, but not just airline staffing. United CEO Scott Kirby blamed FAA shortage staffing and constrictions in a memo. As CNN reported, Kirby said in the memo that on Saturday, the FAA reduced arrival rates at its major hub at Newark Liberty International Airport by 40% and departure rates by 75%, which was almost certainly a reflection of understaffing and lower expectations at the FAA. Anecdotally, our managing editor Ari Weissman actually had a flight delayed this weekend and took the opportunity to ask a pilot for his observations. He was told the FAA's air

traffic controllers are understaffed, underwhelmed, and less able to cope with disruptive situations, specifically saying that a major hub in Denver was struggling right now. Of course, if you are a reader or listener in the aviation industry, please write in and let us know what you're experiencing. We're very curious to hear from some of you. All right, that is it for today's reader-listener question, which brings us to our Under the Radar section. The 2024 House majority could be decided by a series of court rulings before elections are even underway.

In an unusual scenario, the outcome of several challenges to district maps in Alabama, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina, and Ohio could tip the scales in favor of Democrats who are looking to make up just a handful of House seats in the next election. Congressional maps are drawn every 10 years after the census, but a flurry of gerrymandering and challenges to gerrymandering have set up a remarkable year heading into an election where courts will be helping dictate which party has an advantage. Axios has a story about the cases that they'll be following, and there's a link to it in today's episode description. All right, next up is our numbers section. The number of abortions performed at military

medical facilities between 2016 and 2021 was 91. The percentage of Americans who are opposed or strongly opposed to taxpayer funding of abortion is 60%, according to a 2023 Marist poll. The percentage of Americans who support or strongly support taxpayer funding of abortion was 40%. The percentage of Americans who support or strongly support taxpayer funding of abortion was 40%. The percentage of Americans in that same poll who described themselves as pro-choice was 61%. The year Joe Biden reversed his position and denounced his support for the Hyde Amendment was 2019. All right, and last but not least, our have a nice day story. In a news report straight out of a science fiction book, Israeli scientists say they have reattached a 12-year-old boy's head to his neck

after a serious accident in which he suffered an internal decapitation. The boy had been hit by a car while riding his bicycle and was airlifted to the Hadassah Hospital, where it was determined that the ligaments holding the base of his skull were severely damaged, detaching it from his spine. We fought for the boy's life, Dr. Ohad Enov, an orthopedic surgeon who operated on him, said. The fact that such a child has no neurological deficits or sensory or motor dysfunction, and that he is functioning normally and walking without aid after such a long process, is no small thing. Times of Israel has the story, and there's a link to it in today's episode description.

All right, everybody, that is it for today's podcast. As always, if you want to support our work, please go to readtangle.com and consider becoming a member. Also, don't forget, we have a new video out on UFOs on our YouTube channel, Tangle News on YouTube. And we still are selling tickets to our event, August 3rd in Philadelphia. We are trying to sell this baby out.

So if you haven't gotten your tickets yet, please go do that. I know people don't make plans oftentimes until like the week before for things like this. But the sooner we sell the tickets, the sooner I can stop giving this plug and start focusing on the actual event, which I'm really excited for.

So go buy a ticket. Readtangle.com forward slash live for more info. We'll be right back here same time tomorrow. Have a good one. Peace. Our podcast is written by me, Isaac Saul, and edited by John Law. Peace. For more on Tangle, please go to readtangle.com and check out our website. Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural who dreams about a world beyond Chinatown.

When he inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, Willis begins to unravel a criminal web, his family's buried history, and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada, which is nearly double the historic average of 52,000 cases.

What can you do this flu season? Talk to your pharmacist or doctor about getting a flu shot. Consider FluCellVax Quad and help protect yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages 6 months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed.

Learn more at FluCellVax.ca.