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Welcome to the second Friday of November!

We may have averted an existential crisis. Since the news at least in the U.S. has been wall-to-wall election, I tried to find other things for the Stories of the Week. Let me know how I did.

Let’s move on to this week’s Friday Five, shall we? This week I bring you: one story that just needed its own category, the top five stories of the week you may not have seen because of all the election coverage, five stories of interest to queers and our allies, five stories about mistaken predictions, and five stories about deplorable people (plus some notable obituaries).

This Week in Stupid:

Some Republicans Want to Raise Voting Age After Gen Z Midterm Turnout – “This new generation is totally brainwashed,” a Fox News commentator complained

Stories of the Week:

At least 5 killed after Nicole makes historic, rare November landfall in Florida

“Andor” shows how exploitation leads to the Dark Side, from bureaucratic drudgery to prison labor – The latest episodes see our hero play out the real world reality of prison slave labor in service of the Empire

The connection between social media use and vaccine hesitancy – People who consume a lot of news on social media are more likely to be skeptical of COVID-19 vaccines

Russia’s withdrawal from Kherson is its most humiliating setback since the failed invasion of Kyiv. But there’s no sign Putin intends to end his misbegotten war

Illegal trade threatens endangered tigers, 150 seized a year – Poachers continue to target the big cat for its skin and body parts, undermining conservation efforts

Stories of Interest to Queers and Our Allies:

LGBTQ candidates dominate the midterms in the approaching shadow of DeSantis

At 39, my life began again. ‘My Policeman’ brought memories rushing back

LGBTQ+ Groups Celebrate ‘Rainbow Wave’ of Queer Candidate Victories – At least 340 out LGBTQ+ candidates won their elections in the 2022 midterms

Is a stupid typo in the Bible the reason for the "Don’t Say Gay" nonsense we’re dealing with today?

America’s newest trans lawmaker shares beautiful post-election moment with mum of trans kid

This Week in the Don’t Count Your Chickens Before the Eggs Hatch:

Gen Z takes control of its future – Three elections makes a trend: The youngest generation of voters is very engaged and highly progressive. Here’s what that means

The biggest midterm takeaway: The economy is stronger than we thought

Red Wave to Repro Wave—and What’s Next – In blue states and red, voters backed reproductive freedoms in the midterm elections

Thank You Fox News for Turning the ‘Red Wave’ into a Purple Ripple

Analysis: Why the news media got the midterm ‘red wave’ narrative so wrong

This Week in the Liars, Grifters, Traitors, and Other Deplorables:

‘Brutal’: Judge sanctions multiple Trump lawyers over failed Russia investigation lawsuit

The leader of the Oath Keepers may have just doomed himself – Stewart Rhodes’s decision to testify in his own defense may backfire

Prosecutors Look at Florida Election Protest as a Model for Jan. 6 – The Justice Department is examining ties among the far-right Proud Boys, Roger Stone and others over their roles in 2018 “Stop the Steal” demonstrations

Anti-trans pundit Matt Walsh tells a lie so big even Joe Rogan called bullshit – When Rogan’s producer weighed in with a fact check, the rightwing mouthpiece was forced to admit he’d made up his claims

Father and son both cop to felonies for assaulting police during Capitol riot

In Memoriam:

Max Maven Dies: Mentalist, Magical Historian Was 71

Jeff Cook, Alabama Co-Founder and Guitarist, Dead at 73

Susan Tolsky, ‘Here Come the Brides’ and ‘Madame’s Place’ Actress, Dies at 79

Dan McCafferty, original lead singer of rock band Nazareth, dead at 76