Newsweek December 31, 2021

1976 “Christmas in America wouldn’t be quite the same without The Nutcracker ballet. Along with steamy breath, crowded shops, mistletoe and ho-ho-ho, this entrancing fantasy about an ugly little doll who is transformed into a brave and handsome prince has become a staple of the holiday festivities,” said Newsweek, describing the evolution of the world-renowned show as it made its annual return to stages nationwide. After outcries against systemic discrimination, many ballet companies are modifying their productions to be more diverse and to erase acts of cultural insensitivity. 1942 “For the second time Christmas comes to America at war,” Newsweek wrote as the country was engulfed in battle with Japan. As the 2021 holiday season approaches, the Japanese-American alliance is strong, with upcoming meetings in early 2022 focusing on how to improve trade…

IN TIMES OF UPHEAVAL, SKILL SETS FLUCTUATE. New (or less-frequently used) skills may become more urgently necessary, while well-honed skills may take a backseat For years, we have studied the skills executives utilize to lead their organizations. The COVID-19 pandemic gave us our first opportunity to examine the impact of a crisis on a global scale. We surveyed over 3,026 executives worldwide in partnership with The Official Board, a global corporate directory of medium and large companies. Thirty percent of respondents were based in the United States, with the remainder representing 120 countries from every continent, except Antarctica. Respondents represented 53 key functions including CEO, CFO and CIO and more than 86 industries—primarily banking, insurance, financial services, consulting and telecommunications. Notably, 84 percent of respondents offered text responses that elaborated on…

Like last year at this time, the very best we can hope for in 2022 is an end to the pandemic that has caused such devastation in the world over the past 22 months. If we’ve learned anything from our experiences in 2021, though—first with the Delta variant and now Omicron—it is that we can’t count on anything when it comes to the COVID-19 virus. Rather than bet on a return to pre-pandemic normalcy, we need to create a different normal in which we remain vigilant about the health risks while finding safe, productive ways to work, play, mix, mingle and be happy that are rooted in our new reality. Fortunately, the early signs are that 2022 has a lot to offer to help us do that, to make that…

IN A JUST LAUNCHED RACE FOR GOVERNOR viewed as uphill by Texas political strategists, former Democratic Congressman Beto O’Rourke’s biggest obstacle in the hunt for Latino votes may not be incumbent Republican Greg Abbott, but his own previous statements. Social media posts from Latino conservative activists and Trump supporters have been going after O’Rourke on guns, using his statement during his brief presidential run that “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47.” Those kinds of comments are being amplified on social media. According to social media tracking tool CrowdTangle, a video of O’Rourke being confronted over his support for gun control by a Trump-supporting Latino man in a cowboy hat named Robert Longoria yelling, “Don’t come back, we don’t want you here!” garnered 1.2 million views. Five of the…

01 Santa’s Gone Kauaiian KAUAI, HAWAII There might not be snow on this island, but Christmas is still a festive occasion at Kauai’s Historic County Building Park. Mr. and Mrs. Claus greet visitors from the porch at the annual Festival of Lights. Beneath the palm trees, you’ll find decorations like the Over the Rainbow Tree, Santa’s Cane Train Village, the SPAM Can Tree and Surfin’ Santa. 02 VanDusen Festival of Lights VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA During the holiday season, this Canadian botanical garden transforms into a fairytale land with more than one million lights. Bundle up and stroll down pathways with names like Candy Cane Lane and The Gingerbread Walk, and through the famed Purple Cave. 03 Rockefeller Center NEW YORK CITY This tree-lighting ceremony has its roots in the Great Depression, when local workers got together to purchase…

Fiction Hannah’s brutally beautiful latest novel unfolds in 1930s Texas, where the Martinelli family must choose between the blighted dust of the land they love dearly, or face the unknown country to the west. From the author of The Martian and Artemis comes another interstellar story, in which the sole survivor of a mission has the weight of the world on his shoulders. Weir spins a space yarn in a way only he can. Fans of his earlier works won’t be disappointed. This fever dream of a thriller follows a former addict who finds himself living the life of his dreams, or so he thought. Oliver Park is living with his partner, a distinguished, older, surgeon, who has given him everything he’s ever wanted. But Oliver risks it all at a bathhouse, unleashing…