<em>The Atlantic Daily</em>: The Danger in Trump's Efforts

Our staff writer Sarah Zhang explains:

Viruses mutate all the time, and most mutations aren’t significant. In the U.K., scientists noticed one strain—with a set of about 20 mutations—that shot up in prevalence in recent weeks. That could be a sign that this variant is more transmissible, or it just happened to spread more by chance. Scientists are trying to suss that out. At the same time, this variant doesn’t seem to be more deadly.

More important, there’s no reason to worry about broad swaths of people getting reinfected or our new vaccines becoming ineffective. When a person gets sick or vaccinated, the immune system learns to recognize many parts of the virus. A mutation is like an acquaintance changing her outfit or her hair. If the virus accumulates a lot of mutations—over years, for example—we might need to update the vaccines, which is what we do with the flu all the time. But it’s not a concern right now.

Sarah’s been covering the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines. Here’s her report on what the side effects feel like.

What to read if … you’re looking to better understand the current state of the outbreak:

What to read if … you’re following the push for police reform:

Cynics say that this summer’s racial-justice protests changed little. New Jersey wants to prove them wrong, Russell Berman reports.

Tonight’s Atlantic-approved isolation activity:

Stargaze. A rare cosmic alignment is happening tonight. Here’s how to watch, courtesy of our space reporter Marina Koren:

If it’s not cloudy, look for two points of light huddled together in the night sky—one as bright as a star, the other slightly dimmer. Step outside an hour after sunset, stick a hand out, and cover them with your thumb. There, in the space of a fingertip, you’ll hold Jupiter, Saturn, and the many moons around them both.

Read Marina on why this event is significant.

Today’s break from the news:

Take the plunge into whichever seven-season drama you’ve been meaning to check out for years—this is a good time for ambitious TV watching, our critic Hannah Giorgis argues.

Dear Therapist

In her latest column, Lori Gottlieb advises a reader who is struggling to get through the holiday season with her divorced parents:

My mother still has a hard time being around my father, and every holiday season, we all do our best to divide our time between them. But with all of our kids and families, doing so gets harder every year.

Read the rest, and Lori’s response. Every week, she answers questions from readers about their problems, big and small. Write to Lori anytime at dear.therapist@theatlantic.com.

Thanks for reading. This email was written by Caroline Mimbs Nyce, with help from Isabel Fattal.

Did someone forward you this newsletter? Sign up here.

Caroline Mimbs Nyce is a senior associate editor at The Atlantic.