Spring, fall, winter...Chicago?

It's 14°C right now, going down to -3°C tonight. Then it's back up to 8°C on Friday. Because why wouldn't the beginning of winter feel like April?

While you ponder that, read this:

• Tom Nichols warns that the authoritarian right may have lost the plot recently, but not for long.
• Patty Davis thinks that ignoring the XPOTUS will make him go away. That's cute.
• The Republicans have asked loser Blake Masters to explain why they lost.
• United Airlines and American Airlines have moved away from small regional jets to 737s and A320s, freeing up landing slots at O'Hare.
• Want to help the environment? Wash your clothes in cold water, and only when they're dirty.
• Jill Lepore wants me to read Mick Herron's spy novels. Good thing he was already on my list.
• A French historian worked with a cryptography team to crack the diplomatic code Charles V used in the 16th century.

Finally, Whisky Advocate has a good explainer taking the water of life from barrels in Scotland to the glass in your American kitchen.