The New York Times International - 17.09.2026.pdf

纽约时报

国际版 / 2026年9月17日，星期四

天主教徒出任英国首相的时机

大卫·吉布森 (David Gibson)

观点

英国新任首相安迪·伯纳姆 (Andy Burnham) 正是美国所需要的那种天主教徒。

这听起来可能很奇怪，尤其是考虑到伯纳姆先生虽然在天主教环境下长大，但很少参加弥撒，并且在一个西方国家中教堂出席率最低的国家领导着一个中左翼政党。但伯纳姆先生的天主教信仰仍然是他作为领导者的核心，并影响了他的政策方法——这种方法导向的是共同利益，而非文化战争。

他曾表示：“天主教社会教义是我政治主张的基石。”在去年一次为英国宗教与政治智库 Theos 举行的广泛谈话中，伯纳姆先生呼吁将民众与政府之间的信任危机转化为一种“相遇文化”（culture of encounter），这个词是他从教皇方济各那里学到的。

英国首相安迪·伯纳姆在某些方面像是过去几十年天主教政治人物的回归。他或许可以成为未来的风向标。

这种政治方法——正如教皇利奥十四世最近所称的，一种“健康的‘协商文化’”，确保不让任何人掉队——已经在美国教会和美国政治中消失，这对两者都造成了损害。几十年来，美国的天主教政治

与其说是寻找共识，不如说更像是一场内斗的战场。像 20 世纪 20 年代的“快乐战士”阿尔·史密斯 (Al Smith)，以及 60 年代帮助创建和平队 (Peace Corps) 和其他反贫困计划的 R. 萨金特·施赖弗 (R. Sargent Shriver) 等天主教政治人物，曾通过关注社会正义和全民福祉，在政治中找到了被社会接纳的方式。

而近期，政治领域的天主教徒则聚焦于具有分歧的社会议题，例如同性恋权利的法律地位或堕胎问题。（在美国主教的官方政治指南中，堕胎被列为“首要任务”，成为区分“好”天主教徒与“坏”天主教徒的标志。）那些不达标的人可能会受到被禁止参加圣餐礼的威胁。

包括副总统 JD·万斯 (JD Vance) 在内的知名天主教政治人物，花费时间与教皇争论谁更精通神学，而其他天主教徒则在争论弥撒中应该使用多少拉丁语。

在伯纳姆先生就职当天，他访问了伦敦领先的无家可归者救助中心之一，该中心由贝西尔·休姆枢机 (Cardinal Basil Hume) 创立。吉布森，第 10 页

摄影：NANNA HEITMANN 为《纽约时报》拍摄 在莫斯科地铁中，乘客可以使用面部识别支付。为了充分利用数字化服务，公民必须向当局提交其生物识别数据。

《纽约时报》发表来自广泛视角的观点，旨在促进关于重大问题的建设性辩论。

监控下的技术乌托邦

在莫斯科——全球被监控最严密的城市之一——的一台约 300,000 个闭路电视 (CCTV) 摄像头附近安装一面俄罗斯国旗。该 CCTV 网络与生物识别数据库相连。

莫斯科

在莫斯科，数字化工具在简化生活的同时也助力国家监控

作者：伊万·内切普伦科（IVAN NECHEPURENKO）

从表面上看，如今的莫斯科是一个技术奇迹之城。你可以用人脸支付几乎所有费用，比如地铁票，甚至可以用它来完成公寓的购买。机器人穿梭在人行道上提供15分钟快速配送服务，无人驾驶出租车也计划在今年开始商业运营。

支撑这些现代便利设施的是由市政府开发的一套强大的数字化基础设施，它不仅让生活变得更便捷，而且更安全。在数字化工具的辅助下，警务工作的提升帮助莫斯科完成了转型，使其摆脱了25年前那个充斥着入室盗窃、街头抢劫和谋杀的粗粝且残酷的模样。

但这种便利与安全是有代价的：一个不断扩张的监控国家。

莫斯科拥有约300,000个闭路电视（CCTV）摄像头，使其成为世界上被监控最严密的城市之一。在城市中行走，几乎不可能避开摄像头的镜头。那些让地铁乘客快速通过闸机的摄像头，同样被用于监控和标记人员。

今年4月，一名俄罗斯摇滚音乐家在圣彼得堡的一个火车站被警方拘留，原因是监控摄像头将他误认为一名外貌相似且被国家通缉的乌克兰公众人物。在核对了他的面部并拉扯他的头发以确保那不是假发后，警方才将其释放。

闭路电视网络与生物识别数据库相连。在俄罗斯，提交生物识别数据是自愿的，但在广泛的广告宣传中被鼓励，且公民如果不配合，就无法充分利用数字化服务。

除了打击犯罪，这些数据库还帮助当局针对政治异见人士。生物识别数据流可用于在集会后搜捕政府批评者。那些敢于直言的俄罗斯人可以通过逃往偏远城镇来躲避当局的时代——就像在斯大林大清洗时期那样——已基本结束。

截至7月，约1000万俄罗斯人以某种形式使用基于生物识别的应用，而克里姆林宫希望增加这一数字，推动公民不仅在火车站，而且在机场也采用这些身份识别工具。今年，莫斯科市政府宣布，一套生物识别系统将识别公交车和有轨电车上的乘客，一旦他们在应用程序中确认交易，系统将自动扣除车费。

其他欧洲主要城市同样拥有庞大的闭路电视网络，其中最著名的是伦敦。然而，莫斯科的网络更加中心化，且在利用生物识别识别摄像头捕捉到的人员时，限制更少。

随着俄罗斯在乌克兰的战争，日益增强的监控背后的赌注变得更高。

关于新一轮军事征兵（自战争初期以来首次大规模动员）的传闻在俄罗斯境内传开。在不久的过去，逃避征兵相对简单，因为征兵办公室被纸质档案淹没；而现在，经过人工智能增强的数字化系统使这件事几乎变得不可能。莫斯科，第4页

伊朗利用升级局势以增加筹码

新闻分析

该政权及其盟友目前掌控着两条主要的石油运输航线

作者：YEGANEH TORBATI

从中东出口石油的航线正在减少。能源价格在飙升。而伊朗的邻国可能即将认可其在某种程度上对霍尔木兹海峡拥有权威。

近日，伊朗及其盟友利用军事升级手段，颠覆了该地区仅存的微小稳定性，其中在也门的情况最为剧烈。这正将伊朗与美国之间战争的势头转向对其有利的方向。

这种转变可能并非决定性的。由于美国对其南部港口持续实施海军封锁，以及不断升级的制裁将其与世界隔绝，这个伊斯兰共和国仍承受着巨大的经济压力。

然而，伊朗及其盟友近期发起的一系列袭击扩大了冲突范围。分析人士表示，这可能赋予了德黑兰更大的筹码，至少在目前这个时刻是如此。

上周五，受伊朗支持的也门胡塞武装占领了一座红海岛屿，使其拥有了一个据点，可以干扰另一条从中东运出石油的关键水域的航运。

周三，胡塞武装声称击落了一架沙特战斗机，就在此前几小时，沙特阿拉伯指责其在穆斯林圣城麦加附近发射无人机。

胡塞武装军事发言人叶海亚·萨雷（Yahya Saree）在社交媒体上表示，该组织使用国产导弹在也门领空击落了一架沙特 F-15 战斗机。沙特当局未立即回应置评请求。

“胡塞武装在也门的成功使天平重新向伊朗倾斜，”欧亚集团（Eurasia Group）高级分析师格雷戈里·布鲁（Gregory Brew）表示。他说，伊朗成功地改变了“现状，而没有导致全面战争的回归，该政权目前可能并不希望如此”。

分析人士指出，虽然伊朗在武器、资金和后勤方面支持胡塞武装，但这个什叶派武装组织既不是伊朗在也门利益的直接渠道，也没有完全脱离德黑兰的影响。

全球石油基准布伦特原油价格在周一接近 $110 每桶，随后回落至 $106. 自战争开始以来，此类原油的价格上涨了 50%。这赋予了伊朗进一步的筹码，因为随着其政党进入秋季选举，高能源价格为特朗普总统带来了政治风险。

作为全球最大的石油出口国，沙特阿拉伯已变得日益依赖——伊朗，第 4 页

大学在恐惧 AI 的同时也在拥抱它

CODY O'LOUGHLIN 为《纽约时报》拍摄

对学生受影响的担忧与保持竞争力的需求相互抵消

作者：MARK ARSENAULT, DANA GOLDSTEIN, ALAN BLINDER 以及 SARAH MERVOSH

关于人工智能正在降低教育质量的担忧已积累数月。学生们将 AI 用于包括作弊在内的所有事情，而麻省理工学院最近的一份报告称，这正在引发“认知投降”。

尽管如此，许多大学领导者仍在热情地拥抱 AI。

随着 AI 领袖们警告其自身技术的危险，大学领导者的乐观与许多学生及教授的恐惧之间的矛盾可能会进一步加剧。教授和学生经常在如何应对之间陷入两难：是更多地使用 AI 以保持竞争力，还是减少使用以保护学习和思考能力？

虽然一些政治人物和 AI 领袖在 AI 模型进步之际，警告人类可能面临的末日场景，但许多校园领导者关注的是这项技术给大学带来的生存威胁。

麻省理工学院研究 AI 使用情况的委员会发布了一些令人担忧的发现，包括该技术已导致“校园文化的重大转变”，

麻省理工学院的一份报告发现，AI 的使用导致了“校园文化的重大转变”，部分学生变得孤立。

导致学生跳过办公时间并放弃集体学习，从而使其陷入孤立。麻省理工学院委员会在 8 月的报告中写道，对于那些在“出现第一丝困难”时就求助于 AI 的学生来说，从机器人那里获取答案可能会产生“学习的错觉”。

与此同时，该委员会写道，“这些技术增强整个校园工作的潜力是巨大的”。

麻省理工学院的报告使高等教育界关于 AI 的一些思考具体化，但高层管理人员在过去几年中一直深陷于相关争论。管理人员通常是最热衷于支持 AI 计划的人，而许多教职员工和学生则保持怀疑态度。

“我认为你必须积极参与，但必须以一种深思熟虑的方式进行，”AI，第 8 页

报摊价格

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法国 € 4.80 以色列 NIS 18.00 / 以色列 / 埃拉特 NIS 15.25 / 德国 € 5.00 星期五 36.00 星期五 30.51 希腊 € 3.40

意大利 € 4.80 卢森堡 € 5.00 摩洛哥 MAD 35

葡萄牙 € 4.80 西班牙 € 4.80 瑞士 CHF 6.50

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期号 No. 44,634

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你能找出全字母句吗？

随时随地玩 Spelling Bee。

《纽约时报》游戏

西班牙晚餐时间正逐渐提前

马德里

左图及上方，在马德里外出就餐。西班牙人给出的提前用餐原因各异：年龄、有幼子、追求更好的健康状况或希望早晨更有精力。但晚餐时间仍比大多数国家晚，晚上 9 点是最受欢迎的预约时间。

照片由 EMILIO PARRA DOIZTUA 为《纽约时报》拍摄

数据显示，人们在疫情期间开始提前享用晚餐

作者：JONATHAN WOLFE

几代以来，特拉萨斯（Terrazas）一家的晚餐时间与西班牙许多家庭一样很晚。通常在晚上 10 点之后开始，且经常延续到午夜之后。

但现在，马德里的税务顾问安东尼奥·特拉萨斯（Antonio Terrazas）表示，他的家人大约在晚上 9 点开始用餐。当他们外出就餐时，时间也提前了，并且注意到他们的朋友也是如此。

“起初这很奇怪。我们会面面相觑，心想：‘我的天（Madre mía），谁能相信我们会在 9 点就坐在餐厅里吃饭？’”特拉萨斯先生说，“但现在不再奇怪了。”

在以“夜猫子”活力著称的西班牙，一场悄然的革命似乎正在其最著名的文化传统之一——深夜晚餐中展开。

长期以来，西班牙人的用餐时间比欧洲其他地区的人更晚，许多人将这一传统视为国家认同的一部分。按照习俗，家庭成员在深夜聚集在餐桌旁，而当工业化世界的许多地区已经入睡时，西班牙的餐厅依然座无虚席。

即便专家们在争论这种习惯是否拖累了经济，导致劳动力比预期更疲惫、生产力更低，西班牙依然坚持这一做法。

但证据表明，西班牙的晚餐时间正在提前。

CoverManager 是一个为数千家西班牙餐厅管理预约的在线平台，该平台报告称，目前一半的晚餐预约是在晚上 9 点之前，而十年前这一比例为 27%。类似的平台 TheFork 表示，其在西班牙的晚上 8 点预约量自 2019 年以来几乎翻了三倍，而晚上 10 点的预约量则减半。

在西班牙的家庭中，这种转变也出现了微妙的迹象。2024 年在加泰罗尼亚地区进行的一项政府调查表明，与 2010 年相比，当地人开始晚间活动（包括晚餐时间）的时间适度提前。由于全国性数据尚未公布，专家表示现在得出更广泛的结论还为时过早。

虽然变化的原因尚不完全明确，但总部位于巴塞罗那、倡导睡眠与健康政策的非营利组织“时间利用倡议”（Time Use Initiative）负责人马尔塔·容克·苏里亚（Marta Junqué Surià）指出，疫情打破了旧有的习惯，并认为更多的人在寻求与提前用餐相关的健康益处。

“我们正趋向于更符合生物节律的生活，这让我们能吃得更好，最重要的是，能获得更好的休息，”容克女士说。

“深夜晚餐正在消失”

《纽约时报》请求 CoverManager 分析其在过去十年中记录的西班牙境内约 3.3 亿次预订数据，该公司负责约 16,000 家西班牙餐厅的在线预订。

CoverManager 的母公司 Hospitality Tech Group 的首席执行官托马斯·让让（Thomas Jeanjean）表示，数据呈现出一种明显的模式。“深夜晚餐正在消失，”他说。

数据显示，如今西班牙典型的外出晚餐时间比疫情前提前了一个小时。

较晚的预订时间正变得日益罕见：去年晚上 10 点的就餐预订占晚餐预订总数的 15%，而 2016 年这一比例为 30%。晚上 11 点的订桌比例为 1.9%，而 2016 年为 5.7%。

“晚餐时间提前了，”让让先生说，“而且这种趋势仍在继续。”

深夜晚餐并未完全消失：数据显示，人们在周末的就餐时间通常比平时晚一个小时，夏季比冬季晚约 20 分钟，且晚上 9 点仍然是最受欢迎的预订时间。

与西班牙 12,000 多家餐厅合作的 TheFork 表示，外国游客的激增是导致这一转变的因素之一，但它也指出，其约 70% 的预订来自西班牙电话号码。

CoverManager 则认为游客并非驱动这一变化的主因，并指出使用西班牙号码的用户（约占其预订量的 90%）订桌时间比十年前提前了约一个小时。

西班牙社会正在发生变革，自 2018 年以来增加了 100 多万名外国出生的劳工，其中许多来自拉丁美洲。但让让先生总结道，在一个拥有 5000 万人口的国家，转向提前就餐是“一种本土的习惯改变”。

疫情带来的转折

晚餐时间晚是西班牙一个相对现代的习俗。第二次世界大战期间，独裁者弗朗西斯科·佛朗哥将军（General Francisco Franco）将西班牙本土的时钟拨快了一个小时。西班牙此后再未调回，这意味着其官方时间领先于其地理位置。

容凯女士表示，战后时期的贫困也强化了晚就餐的习惯，当时许多人打两份工，只有在第二班工作结束后才吃晚餐。西班牙的工作日通常

“我发现当我建议早点见面——比如 8 点或 8 点半——人们从未拒绝过。”

上图：索尔·福基耶（SOL FAUQUIER）

被漫长的下午休息时间所中断，结束时间比欧洲其他地方更晚。

根据 CoverManager 的预订数据，2020 年 10 月引发全国性晚上 11 点宵禁的新冠疫情，促使人们更早地外出就餐，并助力了 tardeo 的复兴——这是一种在傍晚时分进食、饮酒和社交的习俗。专家表示，现在西班牙人有时用 tardeo 来代替晚餐。

代表酒店餐饮业的商业联合会 Hostelería de España 的主席何塞·路易斯·阿尔瓦雷斯·阿尔梅达（José Luis Álvarez Almeida）表示，在疫情限制放宽后，许多餐厅为了节省人力和运营成本，保留了较早的营业时间。

“不符合西班牙精神”

在今年夏天的交谈中，许多西班牙人表示，他们现在的用餐时间比往年提前了。每个人似乎都有自己的理由——年龄增长、有年幼的孩子，或是为了更好的健康，以及希望早晨更有精力。

在巴塞罗那经营餐厅的纳乔·卡尔沃·维拉（Nacho Calvo Vila），今年 53 岁，他说自己在大约五年前做出了这一改变，以改善消化并获得更好的睡眠。

现在他大约在晚上 10 点就寝，而这曾是他以前的晚餐时间。

他说，更好的休息帮助他在饮食方面做出更健康的决定，缓解了焦虑并调节了情绪。

“睡眠至关重要，”他说，“我认为这是观念转变最巨大的领域之一，尤其是在西班牙。”

在马德里与同事喝酒时，46 岁的索尔·福基耶（Sol Fauquier）表示，她现在更倾向于在晚上 8 点用餐，并怀疑其他人也想提前用餐，但社会压力让人们不敢成为第一个提议的人。

“我其实没有遇到什么阻力——恰恰相反，”她说，“我发现当我建议早点见面——比如 8 点或 8:30 ——人们从未拒绝过。”

她的同事伊莎贝尔·卡诺（Isabel Cano），今年 23 岁，插话道，这么早用餐是“不可想象的”，而且“不符合西班牙精神”。

一个更幸福的国家？

专家认为，如果人们能早点用餐和就寝，西班牙将能获得诸多益处。

容克（Junqué）女士表示，这将使西班牙成为“一个生产力更高、更健康且更幸福的国家”。

她引用研究表明，在人们睡眠时间更长的国家，“生产力会提高，民众的心理健康状况也更好”。

2013 年，一个议会委员会发现，西班牙人的睡眠时间比欧洲平均水平少约一小时，并将员工的疲劳与生产力下降和缺勤联系起来。

但旨在鼓励提前晚餐时间的官方措施似乎可能会面临阻力。2024 年，西班牙左翼劳工部长约兰达·迪亚斯（Yolanda Díaz）暗示，那种迫使餐厅营业至午夜之后的深夜文化是“疯狂的”，对此，马德里保守派地区主席伊莎贝尔·迪亚斯·阿尤索（Isabel Díaz Ayuso）反驳称，中央政府更希望西班牙人“感到无聊并待在家里”。

容克女士认为，即使深夜用餐的习惯淡化，西班牙人与家人朋友围坐在餐桌旁的意义也不会改变。

“我们热爱与人相处和社交，”她说，“我们的西班牙文化将保持原样。”

卡洛斯·巴拉甘（Carlos Barragán）在马德里参与了此次报道。

卢浮宫抢劫案后，频发的博物馆盗窃案令法国不安

ANDREA MANTOVANI 为《纽约时报》拍摄 MAEVA DESTOMBES 和 HANS LUCAS / 法新社 — 盖蒂图片社

巴黎

马克·兰德勒（MARK LANDLER）报道

上周，窃贼闯入法国里维埃拉的一家博物馆，盗走了印象派大师皮埃尔-奥古斯特·雷诺阿（Pierre-Auguste Renoir）的两幅画作。当时，总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙（Emmanuel Macron）就在几英里外主持一场关于如何拯救电影艺术的会议。

自去年10月卢浮宫发生轰动一时的皇冠珠宝抢劫案以来，这一系列盗窃事件中的最新一起表明，法国在保护其艺术瑰宝方面面临着更大的挑战。

中国瓷器、胡格诺派十字架、金银币、新艺术风格珠宝，以及足球巨星齐内丁·齐达内（Zinedine Zidane）在世界杯上穿过的球衣——所有这些都从全国各地大大小小的博物馆中被盗走。

盗窃风潮甚至蔓延到了教堂：人们偷走了圣杯、圣餐盘和其他圣物。博物馆工作人员、警方和政府官员感到惶恐。他们担心在犯罪团伙日益暴力化的时代，如何保护法国的文化遗产，其中一些团伙甚至在光天化日之下闯入博物馆。

“这正在产生一种集体心理病态，”法国东部小镇朗格尔（Langres）的市长西奥·卡维泽尔（Théo Caviezel）表示。在卢浮宫抢劫案发生的一天后，窃贼闯入了当地一家致力于研究法国哲学家丹尼斯·狄德罗（Denis Diderot）的博物馆，偷走了一批金银币。

专家将这些犯罪归结为多种因素的共同作用，包括社交媒体的普及，这使得招募犯罪分子执行任务以及识别即使是名不见经传的博物馆所藏之宝变得更加容易。此外，金银价格的上涨也使得钱币和其他贵重物品极具诱惑力，因为它们可以被熔化并出售。此外，还有所谓的“卢浮宫效应”。

“全世界的窃贼都在关注新闻，”在阿姆斯特丹从事私人艺术侦查、曾协助追回博物馆物品的亚瑟·布兰德（Arthur Brand）说。“所以，他们看到卢浮宫，就会想‘嘿，我们当地不是也有博物馆吗？’我们现在看到的是一场模仿者的瘟疫。”

没有迹象表明马克龙在尼斯以西的小镇圣保罗-德-旺斯（Saint-Paul-de-Vence）举行的会议与上周的抢劫案有任何联系。在凌晨5:48警报响起后的 5 分钟内，警方就抵达了位于邻近里维埃拉小镇卡涅-叙-梅尔（Cagnes-sur-Mer）的现场。他们与窃贼擦肩而过。但在匆忙逃离时，入侵者将四幅雷诺阿画作中的两幅遗留在博物馆的花园里，该博物馆位于艺术家曾经居住的一栋石砌别墅中。

由于被盗作品知名度极高——其中一幅是约 1910, 年创作的法国女演员科隆纳·罗马诺（Colonna Romano）的肖像画，另一幅是约 1886 年的油画《井边的年轻女子》——艺术专家表示，这些作品很容易被追踪，且不可能在公开市场上出售。他们说，这类作品通常最终会在黑市上交易。

专门从事艺术品追回的法国律师皮埃尔·努阿尔（Pierre Noual）表示，这类抢劫案通常是由“赞助人，可能是外国人，他们希望在私人收藏中拥有这些伟大的作品，这些伟大的大师之作”所指使的。

努阿尔指出，在卢浮宫抢劫案发生之前，已经发生了另外几起抢劫事件。其中两起发生在同一周，地点是位于法国中部的萨兰雅克·希拉克总统博物馆。该博物馆收藏了希拉克在1995年至2007年担任总统期间收到的5,000件外交礼品。上个月，该博物馆第三次遭到袭击，齐达内的足球球衣被盗。

努阿尔表示，一系列破坏者（其中一些是政治活动人士）通过喷漆或割破艺术品来毁坏作品的事件，也暴露了博物馆的脆弱性。他认为，法国对这些犯罪行为的法律反应软弱，这使得潜在的窃贼更加胆大妄为。

然而，尽管博物馆盗窃案引起了广泛关注，但其数量实际上可能并未高于正常水平。法国国民议会的一份报告指出，自2011年以来，博物馆盗窃案的数量有所波动，但每年维持在15到25起之间（该报告未涵盖2026年）。

一些专家表示，抢劫案看起来在增加，可能是因为博物馆现在更愿意公开讨论这些事件。历史上，盗窃案一直是个禁忌，因为它们暴露了安保漏洞。卢浮宫馆长劳伦斯·德·卡尔斯（Laurence des Cars）在2月份辞职，部分原因就是围绕该馆阿波罗画廊在光天化日之下被大胆抢劫而引发的一系列质疑。

但伦敦艺术品丢失登记处（Art Loss Register）的一位经理夏洛特·钱伯斯·法拉（Charlotte Chambers Farah）表示：“博物馆在披露被盗或丢失物品，以及向我们这类机构或公众寻求帮助以追回物品方面，变得更加透明。”

卢浮宫抢劫案使法国各地的博物馆安保问题成为了关注焦点。7月，文化部公布了一项包含33项拟议措施的计划，包括绘制最脆弱地点的地图、招募专业警员，以及为极高风险的展品增加额外安保。

然而，对于像朗格（Langres）的卡维泽尔（Caviezel）这样的地方官员来说，并没有快速解决的办法。他表示，尽管抢劫发生在博物馆闭馆期间，但工作人员仍因此受到了心理创伤。他们现在正在接受应对安全威胁的培训，他认为这可能会增加招聘难度。目前已有两人因涉嫌该案被捕。

该镇在博物馆外部安装了额外的监控摄像头，这座博物馆位于一座名为“启蒙之屋”的修复后的16世纪豪宅中。该镇计划在窗户上安装铁栅栏，并安装一台在警报触发时能产生烟雾的机器，以遮挡入侵者的逃跑路径。

但正如卡维泽尔所指出的：“一座建筑有前门，有窗户，有屋顶。所以，它是脆弱的。”

专家们喜欢说，艺术品盗窃与艺术本身一样古老。

卡维泽尔指出，《蒙娜丽莎》在1911年从卢浮宫被盗，比最近这次抢劫早了一个世纪。

“即使是卢浮宫，拥有数百万、数百万的预算，是世界上访问量最高的博物馆，也是脆弱的，”他说。

朱莉娅·英贝特（Giulia Imbert）在巴黎参与了报道。

世界

PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA / 法新社 — 盖蒂图片社

JONATHAN STOKES 为《纽约时报》拍摄 从左上角起顺时针方向依次为：科西嘉岛西部一座山城中在 2023 年 3 月遭到分离主义者袭击的三栋房屋；科西嘉旗帜；以及四年前从巴黎搬到科西嘉岛以寻根的伊雷娜·瓦伦丁（Irène Valentin）。 JONATHAN STOKES 为《纽约时报》拍摄

在科西嘉岛，分离主义者轰炸度假屋

科西嘉岛，阿雅克肖

他们半个世纪以来一直在争取脱离法国独立

作者：RONDA KAYSEN

第一次爆炸发生在2023年10月一个周日晚上的10点刚过。爆炸声在山峦间回荡，并传向科西嘉岛的海岸线。

在天亮之前，这座法国地中海岛屿已遭受破坏：34处房产——大多是无人居住的度假屋，部分仍在建设中——被炸毁或焚烧，在20个城市和村庄留下了破坏的痕迹。

近年来，全球范围内全职居民与度假屋业主之间的紧张关系不断升级，包括在巴塞罗那、墨西哥城、法国阿尔卑斯山脉，甚至美国的波科诺山（Poconos）。但在科西嘉岛，情况尤为严峻，一个分离主义团体将这些房屋直接作为攻击目标，最近一次爆炸发生在2026年3月。

科西嘉的分离主义运动半个世纪以来一直在争取脱离法国独立。该运动的准军事分支——科西嘉民族解放阵线，将目标锁定在第二套房产（通常是空置房）上，旨在传递一个信息：科西嘉属于科西嘉人。

即使是温和派的科西嘉人也认为，房屋所有权应仅限于长期居民，将其视为掌控岛屿命运的一种方式。

在岛上经历的一段暴力动荡期间，分离主义者承认对2023年的爆炸事件负责，而这段动荡已促使法国政府考虑赋予科西嘉人有限的自治权。下个月，作为实现该目标的关键一步，法国参议院将就一项修正宪法的提案进行投票，以承认该地区拥有独特的历史、文化和语言。该修正案还将赋予当地政府制定某些法律和法规的有限权力。

“这是一次战术上的成功，”科西嘉大学的政治学家安德烈·法齐（André Fazi）在谈到这次轰炸行动时表示。

如果该修正案最终获得通过，这将是法国本土任何地区首次获得此类地位。但对于许多科西嘉人来说，这还不够。该修正案并未触及独立运动的核心原则：让科西嘉人拥有决定谁能购买房产的发言权。

上个月，大约15名戴着面具且武装精良的解放阵线成员举行了新闻发布会，并向游客和第二套房业主发出了直截了当的威胁。

其中一名活动人士宣读了一份准备好的声明：“在我们的民族权利得到承认和尊重之前，我们向他们传递的信息只有一个：留在家里。否则，不要认为自己在我们的民族领土上是安全的。”

科西嘉岛大部分是农村地区，是法国本土最贫穷的地区。这里有着浓厚的狩猎文化和强大的黑手党势力，也是武装程度最高的地区，人均枪支拥有量高于该国任何其他地区。该岛深度依赖旅游业：其人口在夏季从365,000人激增至300万人。

轰炸的历史既没有削弱第二套房市场，也没有威慑访客。根据科西嘉议会今年的一份报告，第二套房占科西嘉住房总量的37%，在某些沿海地区和旅游城镇的比例高达50%。

第二套房买家和短期租赁公司经常大量收购公寓，导致这些房屋无法全年供应，从而推高了依靠当地薪资生活的人们的租金和房价。科西嘉人通常住在山村里，沿着陡峭的道路通勤前往沿海城市工作。

但这种挫败感的根源不仅仅在于房地产。

科西嘉人还希望在岛上获得自治权（该岛拥有自己的语言），并维持一种与法国本土截然不同的文化认同。对于许多科西嘉人来说，那些乘飞机或轮船而来的房主提醒着他们：这座岛屿其实并不真正属于他们。

“我们认为，土地之争与科西嘉的斗争是交织在一起的，”科西嘉政党 Nazione 的发言人佩特鲁·安东内·托马西（Petru Antone Tomasi）表示。该党主张独立，但反对这项修正案，认为这是一种被削弱的措施，将使关于独立的国家对话在整整一代人的时间里陷入终结。

在今年夏天的采访中，科西嘉的学生、退休人员、店主和办公室职员表达了希望听到自己的语言被广泛使用的渴望，以及对自决权的热切向往，但认为完全独立是不现实的。

自 1976 年成立以来，民族解放阵线已对数千次袭击负责。虽然该组织（目前是由多个派系组成的松散联盟）声称其不杀人，但在过去的几十年里，已有九名安全官员被杀。其中几次重大袭击经过精心协调，例如 1991 年的一次袭击目标是 80 多栋度假屋。

2012 年，戴着巴拉克拉法帽的武装袭击者将一名巴黎金融家和其他六人从其别墅中拖出，随后将该房产炸毁。当年共有 40 多处房产成为目标。

自 2024 年以来，已有 15 栋房屋被焚毁或炸毁。一项由巴黎主导的针对 2023 年爆炸案及近期其他破坏行为的反恐调查导致 10 人被捕。检察官已对最近的一次新闻发布会展开调查。

“在我们的民族权利得到承认和尊重之前，我们向他们传递的信息只有一个：留在家里。”

尽管威胁在暗中滋长，但法国本土人士和外国人仍继续在科西嘉岛购买并建造第二居所。这座岛屿拥有令人惊叹的美景：白沙滩、青绿色的海水，以及在岛中心纵贯而过、如嶙峋脊梁般的崎岖山脉。

来自法国里昂的退休人员马德琳·米肖（Madeleine Michaud）站在她位于科西嘉岛南部价值 250 万欧元（2.9 百万美元）的家中，演示了只需按下按钮，她的后外墙就会缩回，将客厅和厨房变为室外的延伸，从而获得毫无遮挡的海景。她说，安装这面造价 15 万欧元的墙“很有挑战性，因为在科西嘉岛没有人了解这种技术”。

在房屋建造期间，65 岁的米肖女士注意到一些工人身上有民族主义纹身，这让她犹豫了。但她说，她有广泛的科西嘉朋友，并且怀疑自己位于封闭社区内的房屋会被盯上。“他们不在乎我，”米肖女士说，尽管如此，出于谨慎，她请求使用她的中间名和原姓。

然而，一些买家确实感到担忧。住在科西嘉岛北部的房地产经纪人伊雷娜·瓦伦丁（Irène Valentin）经常接到焦虑的潜在买家的电话。“其中一些人非常害怕，”她说，“他们认识某个在村子里有房子的人，而那栋房子被烧了。他们想来这里，但希望得到安慰。”

她建议买家去结识住在村子里的人，经常光顾当地人开的商店，并雇佣当地工人。

瓦伦丁女士还接到一些潜在买家的电话，这些人完全不担心紧张局势，似乎对这种微妙的动态毫无察觉。

“他们可能非常傲慢，”她说，“我心想：如果他们在这里这样表现，他们的房子会被烧掉的。”

被拘留并被指控密谋刺杀首相

该做的事，但它非常成功。”

在特立尼达和多巴哥，中东裔少数群体正面临严苛审查

作者：赞恩·欧文（ZANE IRWIN）和普里奥·贝哈里（PRIOR BEHARRY）

左上图为特立尼达和多巴哥首相卡姆拉·佩尔萨德-比塞萨尔。右上图为日内薇芙·哈迪德和多米尼克·哈迪德。他们的住所于6月遭到警方搜查，他们与哈迪德女士的姨妈斯塔·萨布加一同被拘留。 VINCENT ALBAN / 纽约时报

直到最近，斯塔·萨布加每天的生活就是制作手工奶酪，并通过电话与她的侄女大谈政治。

69岁的萨布加女士住在特立尼达和多巴哥首都西班牙港郊区的一套豪华海滨公寓里。她的侄女日内薇芙·哈迪德及其丈夫——瓶装水大亨多米尼克·哈迪德，帮她承担了相关费用。

但在6月，这种平静的生活被打破，警方拘留了哈迪德夫妇和萨布加女士，指控他们密谋刺杀首相。

据官员称，在特立尼达的紧急状态下，哈迪德夫妇在未被起诉的情况下被拘留了近一个月，而萨布加女士则被拘留了两个多月。为了应对日益严重的暴力犯罪，该紧急状态自去年以来几乎一直处于实施状态。紧急状态允许当局在没有搜查令的情况下进行搜查，并可以在不提起指控的情况下无限期拘留人员。

这些拘留事件震惊了这个加勒比国家，引发了一场关于政府使用监控和预防性拘留的全国性辩论。这一事件还暴露了围绕特立尼达中东裔少数群体的种族和政治摩擦，萨布加女士和哈迪德夫妇均属于该群体。

首相卡姆拉·佩尔萨德-比塞萨尔没有回答关于萨布加女士和哈迪德夫妇案件的问题。但她为紧急状态辩护，上周对记者表示：“很明显，犯罪统计数据已经下降。”

她补充道：“也许这不是最好的

该地区的各国政府在应对暴力率激增时，越来越多地采取严厉手段。据特赦国际（Amnesty International）称，在为期四年的紧急状态期间，萨尔瓦多已有超过90,000人被拘留，近500人在国家监管期间死亡。洪都拉斯和牙买加也使用了例外状态（在紧急情况下暂停某些权利），这引起了人权组织的警觉。

桑德拉·佩莱格里尼（Sandra Pellegrini）是美国非营利组织 A.C.L.E.D.（武装冲突地点与事件数据项目，负责监测冲突和抗议数据）的拉丁美洲区域团队负责人，她研究了该地区紧急权力的使用情况。她表示，任何犯罪率的下降通常都是短暂的，且是以牺牲公民自由为代价的。

“无论你是否是罪犯，你都应该能够获得公正的审判，”她说，并指出在限制被削弱的执法机构下，抗议者和政府批评者有时会成为目标。

在法律纠纷成为头条新闻之前，哈迪德先生一直以政府批评者的身份为人所知。他在3月的一次公开论坛上批评了政府的税收政策，并反对政府取消其企业自2007年起经营土地的租赁决定。哈迪德夫妇还被认为是特立尼达叙利亚-黎巴嫩少数群体的知名成员。

该国的人口几乎平均分为非裔特立尼达人（其中许多人是被奴役非洲人的后裔）和印裔特立尼达人（其根源可追溯到来自印度的契约劳工）。许多人拥有混合血统，且存在几个著名的少数群体，包括叙利亚-黎巴嫩裔。

据该社区的一名商人萨姆·萨卢姆（Sam Salloum）称，特立尼达和多巴哥的中东裔群体在历史上一直与人民国家运动党（People's National Movement）联系在一起，该党目前是该国的主要反对党；此外，该国许多成功的商人均拥有叙利亚-黎巴嫩血统。

执政党统一国民大会（United National Congress）的政治人物经常批评叙利亚-黎巴嫩社区在经济上的主导地位——他们通常被称作“那1%的人”——并指责他们涉嫌政治腐败和组织犯罪。

今年6月，在一项延长国家紧急状态的动议期间，总检察长约翰·杰雷米（John Jeremie）向这一少数族裔发出了警告。他称他们为一个“帮派”，并且已经“接管”了反对党。

国会议员们热情地拍桌子，为杰雷米先生的言论喝彩。

杰雷米先生还确认，部分

叙利亚-黎巴嫩人的美国签证已被吊销。他否认其政府参与了这些决定，但暗示美国情报机构已将他们标记为具有犯罪关联。（哈迪德家族的律师确认，他们的签证就在被吊销的名单之中。）

此次拘留暴露了种族与政治摩擦。

根据法庭文件，萨布加女士在次日的报纸上读到了杰里米先生的言论。她愤怒地打电话给她的侄女哈迪德女士，发泄对该社区所受待遇的不满。

不到两周后，即 6 月 24 日黎明刚过，根据哈迪德一家的宣誓书，他们被惊醒，因为警察（其中一些携带机关枪）冲进了他们的家中。警员宣布他们持有搜查令，并没收了电子设备，包括哈迪德夫妇三个孩子的设备。

直到哈迪德先生与妻子被分开并被拘留数日后，他才被告知逮捕原因：哈迪德一家被指控密谋暗杀总理及其他政府领导人，并与跨国犯罪组织建立联系。

哈迪德先生在否认指控的宣誓书中写道，他当时“因震惊、难以置信和恐惧而感到麻木”。他后来得知，他妻子的姨妈萨布加女士也被拘留了。

哈迪德一家和萨布加女士否认了这些指控。他们通过律师拒绝了采访。

哈迪德先生在宣誓书中表示，他患有某些疾病，在监狱中病情加重。萨布加女士和哈迪德女士被关押在女子监狱。她们在宣誓书中称，她们被强迫接受全身搜查，且住宿环境肮脏，没有任何隐私，甚至在排泄时也是如此。

在接下来的几周里，法庭记录显示，本案的一项核心证据是当局截获的 6 月 11 日萨布加女士与哈迪德女士之间的一段通话录音。迄今为止，当局尚未解释最初为何监听该电话，仅在法庭文件中表示，安全机构经过专门培训，负责监控“重点关注人员”。

国土安全部长罗杰·亚历山大引用了萨布加女士与侄女之间激烈对话中的 13 段书面摘录。

萨布加女士对总理（一名印裔特立尼达女性）使用了侮辱性词汇，并称其为“目标”。

“有人会被子弹打进脑袋里，”萨布加女士说，“要让这件事平息，必须得有一名她的国会议员死亡。”

亚历山大先生未回应置评请求，他在一份法庭文件中写道，这些言论是“一个正在酝酿的阴谋或指向公众人物生命威胁的闲谈”的一部分。他表示，当局已与美国的“合作伙伴机构”合作，发现哈迪德一家和萨布加女士与犯罪分子有联系，他们可能会向这些人“传达致命意图”。

包括联邦调查局、缉毒局以及美国司法部（DOJ）国际执法部门在内的美国当局，均未确认或否认涉及哈迪德一家或萨布加女士的任何刑事调查。

当一家当地新闻机构在 7 月发布了这段 15 分钟通话的泄露录音后，当局拘留哈迪德一家和萨布加女士所依赖的情报受到了质疑。录音显示，萨布加女士是在私下发泄她认为是对其社区的政治攻击的不满，并坚称该社区并未参与犯罪活动。

此次泄密引发了激烈且广泛的反应。

许多人谴责萨布加女士对总理使用侮辱性词汇，萨布加女士在宣誓书中对此表示遗憾。另一些人则认为，这段录音使政府关于暗杀阴谋的说法失去了可信度。由于通话中并未涉及哈迪德先生，这引发了人们对其被拘留原因的质疑。

紧急状态计划于本周到期，数百名被拘留者将被释放。许多人（如萨布加女士和哈迪德一家）尚未被指控任何罪名。

赞恩·欧文发自纽约报道。普里尔·贝哈里发自特立尼达和多巴哥波特西班牙报道。

一个正在莫斯科进行配送的机器人。今年，互联网服务在多个时间点被切断，导致该市许多备受推崇的数字化服务暂时失效。 NANNA HEITMANN 为《纽约时报》拍摄

被监视的技术乌托邦

莫斯科，见第1页

在2022年数千名俄罗斯人逃避征兵后，当局推出了电子传票，其法律效力与纸质通知完全相同。

今年3月，28岁的艺术与时尚摄影师弗拉德（Vlad）收到一份传票，要求他前往兵役登记处接受强制体检。通过“国家服务”（State Services）应用程序——一个集政府服务、医疗护理和身份验证于一体的中心化门户网站——他得知在遵守要求之前，他被禁止出境。

弗拉德因担心遭到报复而要求隐去姓氏，他表示，由于违抗传票，他现在生活在“恐惧”之中，他认为这可能是被送往战场的前奏。

“这里是全面控制，因为你交出了如此之多的数据，以至于你的每一步都被追踪，”他说。由于害怕摄像头，他已经停止乘坐地铁。

亲克里姆林宫的分析人士认为，政府利用便捷的应用程序和数据收集，正在构建一个比西方民主国家更能响应民众需求的系统；而西方国家由于政府更迭而难以进行长期规划，且在某些情况下因隐私顾虑而限制数字化服务。

俄罗斯距离中国的“社会信用”系统仅一步之遥，该系统根据人们在财务、法律等方面的行为进行评分，并限制违规者的自由。但俄罗斯的技术官僚显然将北京的数字化架构视为蓝图。

曾在一家亲克里姆林宫的主要智库工作的政治分析师格列布·库兹涅佐夫（Gleb Kuznetsov）指出，在长期市长谢尔盖·索比亚宁（Sergei Sobyanin）领导下的莫斯科，以及中国的高科技巨城深圳，是优于西方首都的城市模式。

“索比亚宁的支持率很高，并不是因为‘选举缺乏竞争’，”库兹涅佐夫先生在回答书面提问时表示，“而是因为市政府确实在为居民的利益而工作。”

俄罗斯距离中国的“社会信用”体系仍有差距。但俄罗斯的技术官僚显然将北京的数字化架构视为蓝图。

然而，当俄罗斯当局察觉到安全威胁时，会迅速切断支撑这些数字化便利设施的网络，这凸显了技术机构与安全部门之间的紧张关系。

例如，今年3月，莫斯科中心城区大部分地区的移动互联网服务突然中断了两周多，包括地铁系统在内，导致该市许多备受推崇的数字化服务暂时失效。

居民们对这次断网感到震惊。一些分析人士推测，这是在伊朗领导人阿里·哈梅内伊（Ayatollah Ali Khamenei）被杀后，俄罗斯国家陷入极度偏执的结果。

“俄罗斯将回到25年前那种‘碎片化全球化’的状态，”民族志学者杰里米·莫里斯（Jeremy Morris）表示。他是少数几个继续在俄罗斯进行实地调研的西方学者之一。

他补充道：“你可能进入某个地方，那里超级数字化且技术先进，但一旦你走出覆盖区，就回到了基础经济状态。”

一名参与开发数字化基础设施的俄罗斯官员在要求匿名（因未获授权公开发言）的情况下表示，国家内部正在进行一场无声的战争。

他表示，像数字发展部这样的技术机构，正与联邦安全局（F.S.B.）——特别是其臭名昭著的政治警察部门——发生冲突。该官员称，虽然联邦安全局可以使用数字化工具，但并未参与其创建。它更倾向于使用传统的模拟手段来监控和控制社会，即便这意味着要破坏技术官僚花费数十亿资金构建的技术。

该官员表示，联邦安全局的立场部分源于机构的自我保护，因为人工智能威胁到其庞大的人员情报网络存在的合理性。

最终，数字化机构和安全机构都在竞争一个人的关注与认可：总统弗拉基米尔·V·普京。普京要求政府在开发人工智能的同时，使其免受西方影响。

今年4月，在一次关于人工智能的高级别克里姆林宫会议上，普京将此问题上升到了生存高度。他说：“俄罗斯国家在不久的将来——毫不夸张地说，其生存本身——取决于我们在人工智能、数字化平台和自主系统方面的表现。”

然而，尽管雄心勃勃，俄罗斯并不具备在脱离中国和美国的情况下独立开发该技术的硬件和基础设施。与入侵乌克兰相关的西方制裁限制了俄罗斯获取尖端芯片的渠道，且自2022年战争爆发以来，许多顶尖技术人才已离开该国。

俄罗斯的两款旗舰人工智能模型——一款由该国最大的国有银行开发，另一款由领先的国内科技公司开发——均受到中国开源架构的“启发”或严重依赖于此。

驻莫斯科的政治分析师伊利亚·格拉申科夫（Ilya Grashchenkov）表示，最终，俄罗斯可能会被他所谓的尝试“将看似不相容的事物结合起来”所定义。他说，这包括构建一个“外部数字周界”将国家与世界隔绝，同时加速俄罗斯内部的数字化。

收到征兵令的摄影师弗拉德说，如果这意味着能找回真正缺失的自由，他愿意放弃那些流畅的高科技便利。

他说，现在的俄罗斯生活就像是“戴着氧气面罩生活”。

伊朗利用升级局势以增加筹码

伊朗，见第1页

……在红海上的行动，因为伊朗在战争初期实际上已经关闭了霍尔木兹海峡——这条全球石油和天然气出口的关键波斯湾水道。但胡塞武装在7月宣布对沙特船只实施封锁，向在红海航行的船只开火，并袭击该王国的石油设施。

上个月，沙特阿拉伯的石油出口骤降至至少13年来的最低水平。沙特能源部表示，由于来自伊拉克境内的无人机袭击，一条将石油运往该国红海港口的管道于周五暂时关闭，这使其问题进一步恶化。

虽然目前尚不清楚袭击的幕后黑手是谁，但沙特阿拉伯过去曾指责伊拉克境内由伊朗支持的民兵组织袭击其能源基础设施，特朗普先生在周六表示，伊朗“很可能”对此负责。

自2月美国与伊朗爆发战争以来，美国对其海湾盟友长期提供的安全保证显得不再那么可靠，这些国家正遭受伊朗军队的导弹和无人机袭击。

据知情官员透露，沙特阿拉伯王储穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼敦促特朗普先生对胡塞武装采取军事行动，但总统表示他不愿这样做。特朗普先生在周六表示，胡塞武装已向其政府传达，他们不想与美国开战。

通过霍尔木兹海峡的航运流量仍远低于战前水平，尽管在美军海军护航的帮助下，已有少量船只得以通过。

华盛顿智库保卫民主基金会（Foundation for Defense of Democracies）的伊朗专家贝纳姆·本·塔莱布卢（Behnam Ben Taleblu）表示，这意味着伊朗在霍尔木兹海峡失去了一些筹码。该智库对伊朗持强硬立场。

他表示：“该政权现在正试图在其他地方将其夺回，”其盟友在沙特阿拉伯和也门发动袭击。

“伊朗的军事战略既具有升级性，又具有可预测性。对于一个风险承受能力日益增强的德黑兰来说，这一切都关乎跨领域升级。”

伊朗还加强了对在波斯湾巡逻的美国军舰的袭击。伊朗最高国家安全官员穆赫森·礼萨伊（Mohsen Rezaei）表示，伊朗已针对一艘美国船只测试了其所谓的首枚反舰导弹。美军通过摧毁数艘伊朗原油运输船，回应了伊朗对其军舰的袭击。

塔莱布卢先生表示，伊朗的袭击具有高度风险。

他说：“这些高空高速飞行系统可以从更深远的内陆发射，如果击中美国船只，可能会造成重大人员伤亡。”

伊朗在该地区的行动使上周末在新德里举行的金砖国家新兴经济体峰会复杂化，印度总理纳伦德拉·莫迪敦促伊朗总统马苏德·佩泽什基安（Masoud Pezeshkian）维护“航行与贸易自由”。印度自身的燃料进口也受到这场持续冲突的威胁。

伊朗及其盟友近期的袭击扩大了冲突范围，暂时为德黑兰提供了更大的筹码。

佩泽什基安在峰会的一场活动演讲中批评了美国的权力。他说：“谁说它应该为全世界做决定，说其他人没有权利，且无论它想要什么，其他人都必须服从？这是我们不会接受的。”

伊朗与战争期间曾被其袭击的几个海湾阿拉伯国家原计划举行会晤，但该会议在周日被无限期推迟，这凸显了外交努力在化解不断扩大的中东冲突方面所面临的困境。

伊朗官员此前表示，他们预计周一将在阿曼与阿拉伯国家的同行会面，讨论霍尔木兹海峡的局势。但周日深夜，阿曼外交部长巴德尔·阿尔布赛迪表示，此次集会已“为了达成共识”而推迟。

随着冲突的拖延，阿拉伯联合酋长国和卡塔尔等海湾国家不得不管理它们与一个变得更加大胆的伊朗之间的关系。然而，这次未能成行的共同会议凸显了制定统一方案是多么困难。

亚伦·博克斯曼（Aaron Boxerman）从特拉维夫提供了报道。

SAHIBA CHAWDHARY / REUTERS 伊朗总统马苏德·佩泽什基安周末在新德里参加金砖国家峰会。一位专家表示：“伊朗的军事战略既具有升级性，又具有可预测性。”

胡塞武装如何学会武装自己

PLANET LABS PBC

他们减少了对伊朗的依赖，利用人工智能和其他工具研发武器

作者：尼古拉斯·库利什（NICHOLAS KULISH）

人们对也门胡塞武装的普遍印象是，一群男人坐在皮卡车后斗上，向沙漠的空中发射 AK-47 步枪。

然而，该组织已向一千多英里外的以色列发动了远程导弹袭击。胡塞武装利用海军无人机猎杀红海的船只。证据表明，他们正日益雄心勃勃地利用人工智能和其他手段自行生产更先进的武器，从而减少对赞助者伊朗的依赖。

尽管得到了伊朗的支持，但数月以来，胡塞武装一直处于今年该地区战斗的边缘。这种情况在 7 月份结束，当时他们宣布对沙特阿拉伯实施海上封锁。此后，他们向南推进，上周占领了历史港口城市摩卡，并夺取了曼德海峡附近的小岛，加强了该组织对红海南端这一战略咽喉点的控制。

前美国也门特使蒂莫西·A·伦德金（Timothy A. Lenderking）上周在中东研究所的一个论坛上表示：“他们利用每一个机会来构建能力、测试能力，以至于他们现在成为了整个中东地区最具杀伤力的非国家行为体。”

Anthropic 上周的一份关于人工智能滥用的报告称，“一个位于也门北部（胡塞武装的大本营）的威胁行为体小组”利用 Claude “持续努力研发制导武器”。该公司表示，尽管 Anthropic 设有安全防护措施，但该小组已进展到制导火箭的试射阶段。

胡塞武装在无人机和弹道导弹的最精密部件方面仍依赖于其伊朗赞助者，但正如 Anthropic 的报告所指出的，近年来他们在构建自己的武器系统方面已变得先进得多。

战争实验室

胡塞武装及其伊朗顾问在十年前就已经在尝试使用无人水面舰艇。早在 2017 年，该武装组织就使用一艘装载炸药的遥控船袭击了一艘沙特护卫舰，导致两人死亡。

在胡塞武装于 2014 年占领也门首都萨那之后，沙特阿拉伯领导了一个军事联盟，旨在支持该国政府并反击这些武装分子。2022 年宣布停火，但专家表示，该组织利用期间的几年时间大幅提升了其能力。

“在 2022 年也门宣布停火后，被运入也门用于制造武器的物资数量呈指数级增长，使用的路线数量也呈指数级增长，”纽约哥伦比亚大学国际与公共事务学院的兼职教授彼得·索尔兹伯里（Peter Salisbury）表示，他一直密切研究胡塞武装的武器制造。

起初，也门是

上周沙特阿拉伯的一家炼油厂在遭到胡塞武装袭击后冒出浓烟。胡塞武装还利用无人机猎杀红海的船只航运。

“他们现在是整个中东地区最具杀伤力的非国家行为体。”

伊朗战争手段的实验室。而现在，这里也日益成为工厂。索尔兹伯里先生表示，像导弹底盘这样较大的部件是在胡塞武装控制的领土上制造的，而不是从伊朗运来。

根据华盛顿近东政策研究所高级研究员法尔津·纳迪米（Farzin Nadimi）的说法，伊朗国防工业设有专门的设计局和工厂，为像胡塞武装这样的代理力量提供专门的武器系统，这些系统“组装简单，移动简单，发射准备简单，且使用简单”。

韧性供应链

伊朗鼓励胡塞武装开发来自中国等地的额外零部件供应链，中国的工厂为全球许多无人机零部件提供供应。

“胡塞武装现在有很多东西不再需要了，原因在于他们能够利用全球黑市供应链获取大部分所需物资，”美国第五舰队前指挥官凯文·多尼根（Kevin Donegan）表示。他的职责范围包括波斯湾和红海，并且他建立了第一个情报融合小组，用于研究伊朗对胡塞武装的支持。

多尼根先生表示：“他们仍然需要关键部件，尤其是为了提高导弹效能的部件。他们拥有能够运送这些部件的秘密通道，因为这些部件体积不大。”

索尔兹伯里先生表示，这些部件可能包括制导系统、火箭发动机，以及需要更高精度工程制造的翼尖和尾翼。

虽然美国海军的封锁重点是大规模集装箱船和油轮，但小型部件可以通过在该地区海域航行的传统单桅帆船（dhows）等中型船只走私。

自给能力的提高并不一定意味着完全脱离其赞助者——伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队（I.R.G.C.）。“我认为他们基本上仍然需要伊斯兰革命卫队的大量帮助，”纳迪米先生说道。

他表示，他认为有“相当数量”的伊斯兰革命卫队军官参与了也门当前战斗阶段的规划和执行。

今年7月，一个胡塞武装代表团前往德黑兰参加伊朗最高领袖阿里·哈梅内伊（Ayatollah Ali Khamenei）的葬礼。葬礼结束后，他们乘坐由伊朗马汉航空（Mahan Air）运营的航班返回萨那，而该公司正受到美国政府的制裁。

沙特阿拉伯和也门政府认为，该飞机搭载了伊朗军事人员和武器。当空袭导致飞机无法在萨那国际机场降落时，该航班被迫转向，并成功在胡塞武装控制的其他地区降落。

随后，胡塞武装对沙特阿拉伯南部的阿巴国际机场发动了报复性攻击。这是自2022年以来胡塞武装首次攻击沙特阿拉伯，标志着战斗进入了一个新的、不可预测的阶段，而对手已经花费多年时间规划并提升其战术与技术。

如果 Anthropic（人工智能公司）的报告准确，那么在也门北部使用 Claude 的该组织曾试图开发一种射程超过 1,200 英里（1,900 公里以上）的多级弹道导弹和一种高超音速滑翔飞行器。这些潜在的武器设计者小心地避开了该公司的安全防护措施，向协助他们设计的系统隐瞒了他们所设计的制导系统的真实用途。

Anthropic 表示，没有证据表明他们成功“部署了可运行的设备”。用户曾向 Claude Code 询问其实地测试失败的原因。报告称：“尽管如此，我们有证据表明，这些行为体已经构建了一个不依赖于 Claude 的离线模拟工具包。”

但近期的历史表明，他们将继续努力提升其能力。

“请记住，胡塞武装始终在变通，”前美国特使伦德金（Lenderking）先生说，“他们具有极强的创业精神。”

Vivian Nereim 参与了报道。

特朗普在试图控制选举的行动中毫不退缩

新闻分析 华盛顿

2022年菲尼克斯的邮寄选票。特朗普总统认为他是在努力确保美国选举的公正性，但批评者表示，他的行为在不必要地播种对结果的怀疑。 REBECCA NOBLE 为《纽约时报》拍摄

最高法院反对限制邮寄投票的裁决不会阻碍他

作者：ZOLAN KANNO-YOUNGS

美国最高法院本周给特朗普总统带来了沉重打击，封锁了他限制邮寄选票的行政命令。但特朗普试图掌控选举进程的战斗远未结束。

这次试图让美国邮政署筛选邮寄选票的尝试被挫败，但这只是一个更广泛计划的一部分，该计划旨在动用联邦政府的所有权力，以加强对州政府主导的选举的控制。

就在最高法院周一封锁特朗普的邮寄选票命令前几天，美国司法部（DOJ）向全国至少 30 名高级选举官员发送了威胁信，升级了旨在获取私人选民数据和选举记录的斗争。

尽管没有证据表明存在大规模舞弊，但联邦特工仍在搜查由各州管理的选民名册，以寻找非公民。特朗普的国土安全部长最近推动调查一种常用投票机是否可信，从而对数字化投票系统提出了质疑。

“这远未结束，”本杰明·霍夫兰（Benjamin Hovland）表示。他今年被特朗普政府从独立的、跨党派的选举援助委员会中撤职。

霍夫兰承认，最高法院的决定减轻了对选民和选举工作人员的“现实影响”，尤其是考虑到某些州的选民已经开始邮寄选票。但他表示，特朗普的行为令人担忧。

“你所看到的是在利用政府机构、利用联邦部门、利用纳税人的资金，来推动那种只会削弱对我们民主信心，并最终伤害选民和选举官员的叙事，”霍夫兰说。

特朗普辩称他是在努力确保投票的公正性，但他关于选举系统中存在大规模舞弊的指控已被多次调查并被揭穿，批评者认为他的行为在不必要地播种对投票结果的怀疑。

特朗普在周二猛烈抨击法院的裁决是“可怕的、具有高度政治色彩的”，并批评了他第一任期内任命的三位大法官。

“这个法院将被载入史册，因为它做出了我国历史上一些最具破坏性、最伤害且最损害性的决定，”特朗普在社交媒体上表示。

但在限制特朗普第二任期权力的方面，最高法院周一的决定更多是一个例外而非规律。在特朗普的第一任期内，他试图破坏 2020 年选举结果的尝试不仅遭到了法院的强烈抵制，还遭到了他自己下属官员的抵制。在重返白宫后，特朗普周围环绕着忠诚者，他们愿意将他对美国选举系统的痴迷转化为一场联邦行动闪击战。他还将选举否认者安置在关键岗位上。

然而，最高法院的决定确实增加了特朗普的一系列挫败。他今年表示希望“接管”并将选举全国化。甚至在最高法院做出裁决之前，两名下级法院法官就已裁定，特朗普对邮寄投票的修改极有可能是非法的，且不应在 11 月中期选举如此之近的时间点实施。

特朗普政府的律师曾敦促最高法院介入，为其计划扫清障碍，该计划旨在利用邮政署在州选举官员提交选票后对选票信封进行筛选。

新规则将要求各州提交一份获准接收邮寄选票的选民名单。随后，邮政局将仅向名单上的选民投递选票。

除了周一的败诉外，特朗普先生在选举流程方面向各州施压的其他尝试也遭遇了法律挫折。

美国司法部（DOJ）起诉了 30 个州，要求获取未经脱敏的选民名单，其中包含驾驶执照号码和部分社会安全号码等个人信息。他们在其中 23 起案件中败诉。其余案件的裁决尚在审理中。

选举专家表示，这些联邦行动以及各项法院裁决已引起地方选举官员和选民的担忧。

本月，七个共和党控制州的首席选举官员向最高法院提交了一份简报，认为距离选举日不足两个月，距离中期选举已太近，不宜对选举流程做出任何重大调整。

包括北卡罗来纳州、特拉华州和阿拉巴马州在内的一些州，在最高法院做出最终裁决之前，就已经寄出了选票。

简报中指出：“现在尝试实施该规则几乎肯定会导致选民和选举官员出现错误、延迟和混乱。”

但引起混乱并颠覆选举官员与联邦政府之间协调工作的，不仅仅是待定的邮政局规则。

政府还请求最高法院介入，允许其推进一项通过合并包括国土安全部和社会保障局在内的多个机构数据来建立公民身份名单的计划。目前，一家下级法院已阻止使用该工具，而政府官员则辩称，该工具在验证投票公民身份等方面是必要的。

7月，国土安全部长马克韦恩·马林（Markwayne Mullin）在一次演讲中威胁选举官员，称如果他们不配合特朗普政府修改选举政策的努力，可能会面临监禁。司法部官员还在探讨，如果政府认定州或地方选举官员未能充分保护其计算机系统，是否可以对其提起刑事指控。

隶属于国土安全部的联邦紧急事务管理局（FEMA）则要求各州改变选举方式，否则将面临失去数千万美元联邦反恐资金的风险。

一些州在最高法院做出最终裁决之前，就已经寄出了选票。

Election Data Services 是一家与地方政府合作开展选举准备工作的组织，其总裁金博尔·W·布雷斯（Kimball W. Brace）表示，他不认为最高法院的裁决能阻止特朗普先生在追求其选举申诉方面所采取的更广泛行动。

在 11 月选举到来之前，选民对选举过程的不信任感正在增加。美联社（The Associated Press）、NORC 公共事务研究中心以及 USAFacts 的一项调查显示，仅有 34% 的美国成年人“非常”或“相当”信任政府对选举结果的认证，低于 2024 年的 40%。

特朗普先生还削弱了政府的选举安全基础设施。专家警告称，他削减了负责与州政府协调选举安全的机构预算，这可能会降低对外国影响力活动和网络攻击的可见度。

布雷斯先生表示，所有的行政行动都增加了地方选举官员面临的压力。

他说：“他们不想应对各种利益集团和个人强加给选举管理部门的这种疯狂压力。”

负担能力：主导中期选举的流行词

两党在竞选中均强调通货膨胀和生活成本

全美各地，候选人们承诺降低必需品的成本。食品价格同比上涨约 3%，而房价自疫情开始以来上涨了约 50%。 RUTH FREMSON / THE NEW YORK TIMES MIKE BLAKE / REUTERS

作者：奥德拉·D·S·伯奇（AUDRA D. S. BURCH）

“负担能力”已成为中期选举竞选中的流行词。

在美国各地，候选人们正努力与选民的经济痛苦产生共鸣。但共和党人受到了战争磨难、他们在 2024 年竞选期间对通货膨胀所作承诺，以及一位时而坚称价格已经下降、时而又将该问题斥为民主党制造的骗局的总统的牵制。

民主党人可能仍需为新冠疫情消退时达到 19 年高点的通货膨胀负责；而共和党人则继续将当下的经济困境归咎于拜登政府。

尽管整体经济具有韧性——上个月市场增加了 162,000 个就业岗位——但在公共民调中，不同政治立场的选民都将生活成本列为首要问题。即使是那些能够轻松负担基本生活开支的人，也担心自己的经济前景。

乔治·华盛顿大学政治管理研究生院教授托德·贝尔特（Todd Belt）表示：“候选人们正在回应人们的感受，回应人们在日常生活中所经历的，以及他们在杂货店或加油站所看到的。你无法用宣传话术去掩盖他们的现实。”

“我们现在看到，候选人们计划通过更具体、更实质的方式来改善情况。”

核心主张：“我深感你们的痛苦。”

民主党将生活负担能力视为一场严重的危机，试图将这一曾助力特朗普重返白宫的问题，转化为共和党在期中选举中的弱点。选民们对特朗普总统处理经济的方式表达了深切的怀疑。

在地方、州和国家层面的竞选中，无论是凭借过往政绩参选的现任者，还是采取新方法的挑战者，都承诺降低生活必需品的价格，如食品杂货、汽油、水电煤气、住房、育儿和医疗保健。解决方案包括暂停征收汽油税、实施租金上限，以及在联邦医疗保险（Medicare）等政府项目中重新协商药品价格。

他们正在开展“负担能力之旅”，在小镇餐厅、精酿啤酒厂、钢厂甚至抗议 picket 线进行演讲，推销他们版本的美国梦，并亲耳倾听一些选民为了支付账单而不得不做出的艰难选择。

在北卡罗来纳州竞选参议员的民主党人罗伊·库珀（Roy Cooper）将他的巡访称为“让东西更便宜”之旅。佛罗里达州共和党州长候选人拜伦·唐纳兹（Byron Donalds）则将其称为“捍卫佛罗里达之梦”之旅。而在南卡罗来纳州，民主党参议员候选人安妮·安德鲁斯（Annie Andrews）博士则举办了一场名为“汽油、玉米糊与杂货”的巡访。

距离期中选举不足两个月，候选人们正将注意力集中在近年来价格上涨的大宗必需品上。价格飙升加上工资停滞，给美国工人带来了沉重打击。以下是政治广告和候选人直接与选民对话的示例：

住房

“我们需要提高效率。”

许多期中选举候选人至少在一定程度上关注如何降低住房价格——这通常是家庭预算中最大的一项支出。

自疫情开始以来，房价上涨了约 50%。大约三分之一的美国度家庭处于“住房成本负担过重”状态，这意味着他们将收入的 30% 以上用于住房。

到去年，首次购房者的中位年龄已升至 40 岁。虽然部分市场的租金有所下降，但仍高于疫情前水平。今年 6 月，国会以强有力的两党支持通过了 30 多年来首个解决住房危机的重大立法方案，但其影响需要时间才能显现。

共和党和民主党都承诺采取一系列补救措施，包括改革许可证办理流程以帮助降低建筑成本，以及限制私募股权公司购买单户住宅或租赁住房。

食品杂货

“停止这些混乱的关税。”

食品杂货和汽油是生活成本上涨最不可避免的两个提醒，它们对家庭预算造成的打击或许最为明显。随着伊朗战争爆发而上涨的燃料价格再次飙升，全国平均油价超过每加仑 \$4，柴油价格创历史新高。

根据消费者价格指数（CPI），食品价格同比上涨了约 3%。

总统实施的关税增加了部分进口食品和农具的成本。贸易伙伴采取的反制关税进一步给农场预算带来压力，推高了肉类和农产品的价格。

候选人们，尤其是民主党人，正在利用选民的愤怒，并将部分价格上涨归结为他们所定义的“企业贪婪”。

为了降低价格，候选人们正推动取消部分食品的关税和地方销售税，同时质疑超市合并以及他们所谓的“价格欺诈”。其他人则专注于通过暂停征收汽油税来提供缓解，至少在短期内如此。

育儿

“劳动力背后的劳动力。”

长期以来，美国劳动者一直深受育儿成本之苦。近年来，随着政府资金减少、运营成本增加以及育儿工人短缺（尤其是在总统打击移民之后），相关价格大幅飙升。

如今，每个州收入处于中位数水平的家庭，其育儿支出远高于美国卫生与公众服务部认为可承受的家庭收入的 7%。在 American Family Survey 2025. 一项民调中，7 / 10 的美国人表示抚养孩子难以负担，比一年前增加了 13 个百分点。

许多候选人将这一讨论定义为需要投资的劳动力问题。一些民主党人主张实行全民、由公共资金资助的育儿服务。一些共和党人则倾向于通过税收抵免来降低成本。

医疗保健

“一种帮助免除医疗债务的方法。”

对于许多美国人来说，生病的代价长期以来一直是一个沉重的威胁，但当共和党立法者允许《平价医疗法案》下的增强型医疗覆盖补贴失效时，这一问题变得尤为突出。在补贴到期后，许多美国人的保险保费翻了一倍多。

医疗成本是跨越政治光谱的所有选民最关注的经济问题之一。2025 年，雇主支付的家庭医疗保险年保费平均达到约 \$27,000。根据医疗研究机构 KFF 的一项调查，工人平均每年为家庭保险支付 \$6,850。

此外，为了帮助支付特朗普标志性国内政策法律——《一个伟大美丽法案》（One Big Beautiful Bill Act）中的支出和减税，通过的医疗补助（Medicaid）资格变更可能会进一步给家庭预算带来压力。

公共事业

“那是人们电费单中的一项隐藏税。”

在过去的几年里，数百万美国人面临电费上涨——这是各州不同的复杂因素共同作用的结果。根据美国能源信息署的数据，自 2022, 以来，居民电价平均上涨了 13%。

共和党人和民主党人指出了不同的原因。

共和党候选人建议取消电气化强制指令，优先考虑天然气和国产天然气，同时反对成本高昂的可再生能源。

民主党候选人则将责任归咎于耗电巨大的数据中心，并承诺阻止其建设或建立保护机制。他们还推动扩大风能、太阳能和其他可再生能源的税收抵免，以增加供应。

海地人失去保护状态震惊佛罗里达州岛屿

佛罗里达州，基韦斯特

上图：一名在佛罗里达州基韦斯特超市工作的海地移民，自7月失去临时保护状态（Temporary Protected Status）以来，出门次数减少。左下图：克莱门蒂娜（Clementina）和何塞·阿马多尔（José Amador），由于工人流失，他们现在的餐厅每周仅营业六天，而非七天。右下图：基韦斯特附近的一家钓鱼包船公司，该公司严重依赖旅游业。 马克·赫登（MARK HEDDEN）为《纽约时报》拍摄

斯科特·麦金太尔（SCOTT MCINTYRE）为《纽约时报》拍摄 马克·赫登（MARK HEDDEN）为《纽约时报》拍摄

随着移民工人消失，基韦斯特面临严重的劳动力短缺

作者：大卫·欧瓦莱（DAVID OVALLE）

那些默默支撑着基韦斯特旅游经济的海地酒店客房清洁员、餐厅厨师和Uber司机正在消失。

自7月下旬以来，部分人员已被边境巡逻队特工拘留。此前，特朗普政府终止了一项法律保护，该保护曾允许330,000名海地人在美国居住和工作。

另一些人则在回避公共场所，不敢在这个通常挤满了狂欢游客、晒伤的渔民和邮轮一日游游客的宽一英里之岛上进行日常活动。许多海地人——以及西班牙裔移民——已经停止骑自行车上班（这是基韦斯特的一种常见交通方式），因为担心引起执法部门的注意。

这种情况在佛罗里达州各地的社区中十分常见；该州拥有全美规模最大的海地人群体，其中包括数万人失去了被称为“临时保护状态”的法律保障。美国此前因其母国的暴力和不稳定局势而授予他们这一状态。

一些海地人已被拘留，而另一些人则在退缩，远离公共场所，不敢维持日常活动。

但基韦斯特（Key West）的情况很特殊，它是一片被开阔水域包围的偏远狭长土地，通过一条全长超过100英里（160公里）、穿过佛罗里达礁岛群（Florida Keys）的单一公路与迈阿密相连。在公共场合，移民往往很难避开执法人员的注意。

“在这里，你跑不过任何人的，”基韦斯特移民支持网络（Key West Immigrant Support Network）的联合创始人露西·霍克（Lucy Hawk）说道。

基韦斯特还因其对旅游业的过度依赖——以及依赖移民来填补这些岗位——而显得格外突出。当地移民律师韦恩·达普瑟（Wayne Dapser）估计，在这个拥有25,000人口的城市及其周边地区，至少有5,000名海地人居住于此。

特朗普总统的移民打击行动正在阻碍全国各地的劳动力市场，但在礁岛群地区，这是一个尤为棘手的问题，因为在那里的共和党人数早在很久以前就超过了民主党。（基韦斯特是个例外，这里有一位民主党市长和倾向于自由主义的人口。）

比尔·莱（Bill Lay）是基韦斯特的一位商人，拥有一家意大利餐厅和一家餐饮公司。他说，他感到越来越沮丧，因为他那些持有有效工作许可的员工不断被拘留。莱先生投票给共和党，他说他支持驱逐有犯罪记录的移民——即“最糟糕的人”，他这样说道。

“但这不一定是这里正在发生的情况，”他补充道，“如果这种情况持续下去，将给这里的当地经济带来毁灭性打击。”

甚至在海地移民失去临时保护状态（T.P.S.）之前，来自其他国家的工人就被边境巡逻队（Border Patrol）逮捕了，该部门负责礁岛群大部分的移民执法工作。

当市长萨姆·考夫曼（Sam Kaufman）上个月访问由西班牙裔经营的餐厅时，店主们讲述了线厨、传菜员和配送员被拘留并驱逐的故事，其中一些人持有有效工作许可。留在岗位上的人则被额外的工作压得喘不过气，一些店主甚至亲自配送食物。

考夫曼先生指出，基韦斯特距离大陆太远，无法通过巴士运送工人进来。

“劳动力价格将会飙升，”他说，“为了留住劳动力，将会出现激烈的竞争。”

在尼加拉瓜餐厅 Jose's Latin Food，店主克莱门蒂娜（Clementina）和何塞·阿马多尔（José Amador）现在每周只营业六天，而不是七天。阿马多尔先生承担了所有的烹饪工作，因为几名厨房员工决定离开基韦斯特以避开移民执法人员。

“我们不知道自己能否撑下去，”阿马多尔夫人说。

对于基韦斯特的海地人来说，T.P.S. 为他们提供了抵御移民打击的缓冲，直到最高法院在7月27日允许特朗普政府终止该计划。

32岁的史蒂文·内凯拉（Steven Nekhaila）表示，影响是立竿见影的。他曾任自由党全国主席，其家人在基韦斯特拥有两家温蒂（Wendy's）餐厅。内凯拉先生解雇了几名海地员工，因为他们在失去 T.P.S. 后工作许可失效。他现在仍然缺乏人手。

内凯拉先生补充说，即使是持有有效工作许可的移民，也会因为逮捕报道而感到不安，有时会请病假。“他们不想冒险被拘留，即使他们是合法的，”他说。

随着夏季转入秋季且旅游业回升，劳动力短缺可能会变得更加明显。

他说，当秋冬两季旅游业回升时，基韦斯特将更深刻地感受到这种影响。

据移民律师和基韦斯特移民支持网络称，自从海地人的 T.P.S. 结束以来，整个礁岛群地区的逮捕人数有所增加。该网络的联合创始人霍克女士表示，8月份下礁岛群（Lower Keys）至少有65起移民拘留事件，而7月份仅为20起。该网络还为那些因恐惧而不敢出门的移民捐赠食品，并为他们安排交通。

美国国土安全部拒绝讨论在佛罗里达礁岛群开展的移民执法行动。

“临时保护状态（TPS）正如其名——是临时的，”该机构在回答有关执法活动的问题时表示。“长期以来，尽管国会从未打算将其永久化，但 TPS 实际上已被允许作为一项事实上的大赦计划运行。”

在巴拉克·奥巴马总统因 2010 年海地地震授予 TPS 后，佛罗里达群岛（the Keys）的海地人数激增。在拜登政府期间，随着海地情况进一步恶化以及拜登先生扩大了对他们的保护，更多的人抵达此处。

达普瑟先生表示，许多人加入了在基韦斯特（Key West）的亲属，他们被这座可步行的城市所吸引，尽管那里几乎没有负担得起的住房选择，但提供了无需拥有汽车即可从事的工作。

其中一人是一位 41 岁的两个孩子的父亲，他表示自己为了逃离海地的帮派暴力先去了巴西，随后在 2022 年加入了在基韦斯特的亲属。出于担心引起移民当局注意，该男子不愿透露姓名，他在一家超市熟食店工作，时薪 19 美元。

他在 7 月失去了 TPS。由于一项待处理的庇护申请，他目前仍能工作，但这几乎不能保证他不会被移民拘留。在他们狭小的拖车房里，他和妻子在照顾年幼孩子的同时，焦虑地通过 WhatsApp 关注移民执法的最新动态。

移民申请身份证明文件被扣押

摄影：ALAN NAKKASH 为《纽约时报》拍摄

华盛顿

作者：MINHO KIM

据数十名移民律师称，寻求政府文件以证明其合法在美身份的移民正遭到拒绝，或被提供经过大量删节的文件。律师们表示，这些拒绝行为使他们的客户面临被驱逐出境的风险。

过去，联邦机构通常会提供移民请求的文件——例如，当国际收养者寻求其父母美国公民身份的证明，或非公民希望获得大赦计划的申请副本或面试记录时。每年有数十万移民提交此类记录请求，这通常是他们获取详细移民历史文件的唯一途径。

但根据《纽约时报》采访的近三十名移民律师称，特朗普政府删节和扣押文件的比例之高令人震惊。政府有时甚至声称无法找到移民及其律师已知存在的的文件，例如已过期的护照或之前申请的部分内容。律师们表示，在其他情况下，官员虽然提供了文件，但关键信息被涂黑删除了。

“延迟和删节，与移民在移民法庭上被剥夺正当程序的许多其他蓄意手段叠加在一起，”在 Amica 移民权利中心为寻求庇护者和犯罪受害者提供公益服务的律师凯利·罗哈斯（Kelly Rojas）说道。

这些经历与蒂莫西·特纳（Timothy Turner）的指控相吻合，他曾是美国公民及移民服务局（USCIS）内部记录办公室的一名高级官员。特纳在去年的一份举报信中指称，该机构在第二任特朗普政府初期不恰当地制定了政策，旨在增加移民获取其合法有权获得的文件之难度。

例如，他在向国会提交的投诉中表示，该机构在 2025 年 5 月命令工作人员扣押所有非英语语言的文件。工作人员还被告知，以隐私法为由，扣押结婚证、共同银行对账单、税务表格、移民法庭听证会记录的部分内容以及其他文件。

他还表示，该机构利用姓名差异来拒绝请求——例如，如果一个人在官方记录中拥有带连字符的姓氏，但在文件请求中仅提交了两个姓氏中的一个，即使找到了相关记录，请求也会被拒绝。

联邦法律赋予人们获取其移民文件的权利，他们可以通过《信息自由法》提出请求。2020 年的一项法院命令要求政府在 30 个工作日内做出回应。

负责监督移民法庭系统的司法部（DOJ）拒绝置评。白宫没有回答《纽约时报》关于删节和扣押文件的具体问题，但发言人劳伦·比斯（Lauren Bis）表示，“所有非法外籍人士都获得了完整的正当程序，其诉求得到了听取。”

国土安全部没有回应特纳的指控，但表示其公共记录官员及时提供文件，并告知移民未找到记录的原因。

左图：西普里亚诺·阿拉尔孔-加尔韦斯（Cipriano Alarcon-Galvez）及其家人。他请求获取 1993 年提交的绿卡申请副本，但他收到的记录中超过一半被完全删节。

美国公民及移民服务局（U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services）在的一份声明中表示，该部门“每天收到超过 2,000 份根据《信息自由法》（Freedom of Information Act）提出的请求。几乎所有的请求都是为了获取个人移民档案和记录”。“许多请求记录的人姓名、出生日期和出生国相似。为了确保我们遵守隐私法并将记录发送给正确的人，美国公民及移民服务局会仔细核实每位请求者的身份。如果我们无法确定人员身份，我们会告知其原因，并允许他们修正并重新提交请求。”

前移民法官、支持更严厉移民政策的组织“移民研究中心”（Center for Immigration Studies）研究员安德鲁·R·亚瑟（Andrew R. Arthur）承认《信息自由法》系统存在问题，但为特朗普政府的政策辩护，称这是法律要求为了保护移民档案中提及人员隐私而采取的努力。

他还驳斥了关于遮盖信息（redactions）和拒绝请求违反移民权利的担忧，并指出如果人们认为其请求被不当拒绝，可以起诉政府。他表示，移民可以获得公益法律代理，如果他们在法庭上胜诉，政府将补偿法律费用。

“这个系统中内置了大量的正当程序，”亚瑟先生说道。

但他们的律师表示，这些拒绝行为阻碍了一些移民获得美国合法居留权的努力。而且许多没有能力起诉的人正在放弃，尽管有可行路径可以获得稳定的移民身份，但他们仍面临被驱逐出境的风险。

在 8 月向联邦法官作证时，特纳先生表示，在 2025 年 9 月至 2026 年 3 月期间，该机构在未提供文件的情况下，关闭了面临驱逐出境的移民提交的所有请求中的 35% 以上，而 2025 年 3 月至 9 月期间这一比例约为 8%。

当特纳先生提出异议时，他的主管告诉他，移民再次提交记录请求“不需要花费”任何费用。但他表示，重新提交带来的延迟让移民失去了他们通常最需要的东西：时间。

受政府回复影响的移民情况各异。但他们的律师均报告了卡夫卡式的折磨，因为移民机构拒绝了对记录的查询，而在许多情况下，这些记录正是这些移民本人提供给政府的。

今年 2 月，55 岁的墨西哥国民西普里亚诺·阿拉尔孔-加尔韦斯（Cipriano Alarcon-Galvez）请求公民服务局提供一份由其母亲（一名入籍美国公民）在 1993 年代表他提交的绿卡申请副本。这份 33 年前的申请可能会使阿拉尔孔-加尔韦斯先生有资格获得永久居留权，并对他童年时期未经许可进入美国的行为获得特赦。

但根据《时报》审阅的政府回复，他收到的记录中超过一半被完全遮盖。由他母亲提交的另一项请求获得了绿卡申请的副本，但她所有孩子的信。

日本讨论逐步退出“安倍经济学”

东京的一个批发市场。自2012年构思“安倍经济学”战略以应对通货紧缩螺旋以来，日本经济已发生变化，通货膨胀现已成为一个令人担忧的问题。 ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

经济学家在提高利率问题上存在分歧，即便通货膨胀依然持续

作者：RIVER AKIRA DAVIS 和 HISAKO UENO

在日本央行准备于本周举行会议之际，该国实施长达十年的低利率政策的制定者表示，该战略的实用价值已经耗尽。他们的担忧已从价格停滞转变为根深蒂固的通货膨胀。

日本现任领导人似乎并不认同。

自去年就职以来，首相高市早苗（Sanae Takaichi）继续拥护由前首相安倍晋三倡导的经济战略——“安倍经济学”，在追求创纪录财政支出之同时，依赖央行维持低利率。

“安倍经济学”构思于2012年，旨在刺激日本重回增长。但其旨在解决的通货紧缩螺旋和日元走强的情况已经反转。在过去四年的大部分时间里，通货膨胀率一直高于央行2%的目标。日元兑美元汇率已跌至数十年来的低点。

“现在的情况完全不同了，”安倍先生的前高级助手、也是“安倍经济学”背后的关键顾问之一滨田幸一（Koichi Hamada）表示。因此，他说，“我现在改变了主意，建议实施货币紧缩。”

外界普遍预计，日本银行将于周五将利率从1%提高到1.25%，从而加快近期大约每六个月增加0.25个百分点的步伐。但滨田先生和其他人认为，央行应该采取更快的行动。

滨田先生表示，高市政府中那些仍然认为“安倍经济学”适合日本的人可能会将他的转变视为一种背叛。但他认为，首相应该停止向日本银行施压，并停止追求那些可能加剧通货膨胀的政策。

滨田先生并非孤身一人。2012年，当财政部长斯科特·贝森特（Scott Bessent）还是一名对冲基金经理时，他曾在康涅狄格州的耶鲁大学拜访过滨田先生。滨田先生回忆道，他向贝森特先生详细介绍了振兴日本经济的早期计划。

在2022年为一家金融政策杂志撰写的一篇文章中，贝森特先生回忆说，他被这些计划说服了。随后，他采取了做空日元和买入日本股票的获利投资策略，成为最早且最成功地利用“安倍经济学”获利的投资者之一。

最近，贝森特先生敦促日本提高利率并控制财政支出。

高市女士的支出计划引发了人们对日本偿债能力的担忧。10年期国债收益率已飙升至三十年来的最高点。低利率还促使资本外流，导致日元贬值并引发与美国的紧张关系。

今年7月，日元兑美元汇率跌至四十年来的低点，促使日本和美国财政部共同干预外汇市场。由于市场预期日本银行将在9月会议上加息，日元在最近几周有所走强。

在本月于北卡罗来纳州阿什维尔举行的20国集团（Group of 20）财政会议新闻发布会上，贝森特先生表示，他已敦促日本放弃其再通胀政策。贝森特先生说，“安倍经济学”取得了“巨大的成功”，但现在，日本“实际上应该让其自然运行，并停止再通胀”。

日本前央行行长黑田东彦（Haruhiko Kuroda）在十年间将利率维持在零或零以下，他也于近期就政府支出计划和日元疲软带来的通胀压力发出了警告。

其他人则坚持旧有的方法。法国投资银行法国农业信贷银行（Crédit Agricole）的日本首席经济学家、高市女士的经济顾问相田拓司（Takuji Aida）认为，日本必须保持低利率并采取激进的支出措施以刺激增长。

相田先生和其他人表示，日元贬值有利于日本出口商。他认为，消费者面临的进口价格上涨可以通过增加政府支出来部分抵消。相田先生未回应采访请求。

在财政支出创纪录之际，人们对日本偿还债务的能力表示担忧。

日本财务大臣片山早苗在 Group of 20 会议期间表示，她已告知同行，日本的财政政策“在优先考虑增长的同时，兼顾财政可持续性”。

在东京一桥大学的公共财政学教授佐藤元浩看来，这里存在一种显著的动态：包括滨田先生和黑田先生在内的“安倍经济学”资深人士反对继续执行其政策，而现任政治家们则“仍然持有通缩心态”。

例如，在当前的能源价格飙升期间，高市政府采取的是提供补贴，而非鼓励节能。佐藤先生表示：“他们是在用应对通缩的药方来治疗 inflationary era,”。

佐藤先生说，多年来，在利率低且物价持平的时候，大规模的政府支出几乎没有引起警觉。但现在情况不再如此。

他说：“市场的压力只会越来越大。”

啤酒帝国继承人因性侵指控与家人反目

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LAUREN DECICCA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

曼谷

他对哥哥的指控揭开了泰国的一个禁忌话题

作者：SUI-LEE WEE

多年来，泰国公众眼中的西拉努斯·斯科特（Sir-anudh Scott）是泰国最大啤酒王朝的继承人，也是一名高调的海洋保护主义者，曾公开批评政府官员忽视环境违规行为。

但西拉努斯先生，30, 也在进行一场私人战争。今年早些时候，他决定不能再保持沉默，并提出了一个震撼性的指控。

西拉努斯先生（也被称为 Psi）表示，他的哥哥苏尼特·斯科特（Sunit Scott）和他的保姆在他小时候对他实施了性侵——并且他的母亲试图掩盖这次虐待并买断他的沉默。后果迅速显现。他说，作为发声的惩罚，他被剥夺了 13 亿美元 billion Singha 家族的财产继承权，并被赶出了家族的海滨别墅。

他的指控——其兄长对此予以否认——引发了泰国一次罕见的关于性侵的公开反思，而在此之前，#MeToo 运动在泰国未能产生影响。许多泰国人随之讲述了在家庭内部以及被权势人物性侵的经历。

他的母亲在给《纽约时报》的一份书面回复中，对她所知的情况以及她的行为方式提出了异议，这是她首次就这些指控发表公开评论。

苏尼特先生，36, 未回应多次置评请求。在他弟弟公开指控后发布的一段社交媒体视频中，他否认了虐待行为，并将所发生的事情描述为打闹。保姆未作回应。

本报多次采访了西拉努斯先生，并与他的七位朋友和支持者进行了交流。我们还审查了西拉努斯先生与家人签署的一份合同，以及一段音频剪辑，西拉努斯先生称这是他秘密录制的兄弟间的对话。

来自泰国公众的支持给了西拉努斯先生一件他表示长期以来一直希望从家人那里得到的东西：认可。他说，将指控公开就像卸下了沉重的负担。

他补充道：“在揭露真相中，某种形式的正义已经到来。”

成为一名比罗姆巴迪

西拉努先生描述了他的童年，当时他离婚的父母对他十分疏远。他由家政人员照顾，尽管他与哥哥关系并不亲近，但他们有时会一起玩耍。

他说，这使得那些虐待行为如此难以理解，因为它们来自他信任的人。

他的祖父查姆农·比罗姆巴迪（Chamnong Bhirombhakdi）长期担任布恩劳德酿酒厂（Boon Rawd Brewery）的主席，该公司拥有 Singha 啤酒，并在泰国利润丰厚的啤酒市场中占据最大份额。

与他最亲近的是他的保姆，保姆从他婴儿时期起就照顾他。

但西拉努先生说，有一次在他 8 岁时，他的保姆脱掉裤子坐在他身上。他对发生的事情感到困惑。（该保姆未回应置评请求。）

他说，更大的背叛发生在 9 岁时。他的哥哥从英国的寄宿学校放暑假回来。西拉努先生想和他共度时光。但他说，哥哥强迫他为其提供口交。

“第一次他抓住我的头时，我记得当时感到非常厌恶，”西拉努先生说。

他说，虐待行为一直持续到他 13 岁。

西拉努先生说，他没有告诉任何人，因为他觉得保护家庭是自己的责任。

“我很早就感觉到，我必须掩盖自己的现实，才能让其他人生活下去，”他说。“我没有出声，也是因为我觉得自己不值得，或者没有被爱。”

在青少年时期，西拉努先生与抑郁症作斗争。他在绘画中找到了慰藉，并于 2014 年离开家前往加利福尼亚学习动画。2020 年，他搬到伦敦并开始看心理治疗师，并向其倾诉。

他说，治疗师帮他意识到了自己处境的严重性。他说在此之前，他认为哥哥虐待弟弟是正常的。

“当我能够开始承认，是的，那是强奸的那一刻起，我就能够开始规划如何继续前行了，”他说。

打破沉默

西拉努·斯科特（Siranudh Scott，左）表示，在指控其哥哥苏尼特·斯科特（Sunit Scott）及其保姆在他在童年时期对其进行性侵后，他被切断了与 Singha 啤酒家族财富的联系。他还声称其母亲曾试图掩盖这些虐待行为。

西拉努先生说，他并非打算公开这些指控。他起初尝试与家人解决。他说，随后的情况使他确信，他需要证据和公众压力。

2020 年，西拉努先生告诉他的母亲奇拉努·比罗姆巴迪（Chiranuj Bhirombhakdi），他曾被保姆性虐待。

西拉努先生说，当奇拉努女士质问保姆时，保姆告诉她，他被哥哥虐待了。他说，他的母亲询问了西拉努先生这件事，然后告诉他不要告诉任何人。随后她解雇了保姆。

西拉努先生说，几个月之内，奇拉努女士将他赶出了家族位于华欣的海边别墅。她说他损坏了房产。当西拉努先生得知母亲重新雇用了那名保姆，并继续与他的哥哥一起度假时，他与母亲的关系进一步恶化。

他说，在 2023 年 8 月，他找到了勇气去做他曾认为不可能的事情。在的一系列 Facebook 帖子中，他写道自己被“家族中的某人强奸”，童年时被保姆性虐待，且被母亲赶出家门。

这些帖子引起了广泛关注。三个月后，西拉努先生的姑姑邀请他到家中与亲戚会面。他的哥哥苏尼特先生也在场。

西拉努先生要求与哥哥单独交谈。西拉努先生告诉《泰晤士报》，他在哥哥不知情的情况下录下了这段对话，因为他希望如果有一天公开指控，能有证据在手。

《泰晤士报》审阅了这段 20 分钟的录音，其完整版本尚未公开。在录音中，可以听到西拉努先生在质问另一名说话者，西拉努先生确认该说话者为苏尼特先生。

“这是任何一个兄弟都不应该感受到的。Pi，这不仅仅是性侵犯，”他说，“这就像乱伦，而我当时还是个孩子，对此完全不承担任何责任。”

另一名说话者表示，他当时不知道自己在做什么。他似乎并未否认西拉努德先生（Mr. Siranudh）的指控。他说：“我所做的一切再也无法挽回。”

苏尼特先生（Mr. Sunit）没有回应通过其母亲的律师以及由比罗姆巴迪（Bhirombhakdi）家族律师聘请的危机公关顾问发出的置评请求。一名前往其家中并请求与其交谈的《时报》记者被拒之门外。

西拉努德先生表示，在家族会议上，他挑战其母亲向亲戚们讲述他所指控的其兄弟的行为，但亲戚们拒绝倾听。根据《时报》查阅的一份合同副本，他的母亲和姨妈提出，如果他签署一份协议，承诺“作为‘比罗姆巴迪’家族的一员维护其名声、荣誉和尊严”，她们将向他提供经济支持。

具体而言，他被告知不得在社交媒体上发布关于其母亲的“额外内容”。作为回报，他将获得每年 500 万 泰铢的津贴，以及一次性 1000 万 泰铢（$300,000）的款项。他签署了协议。

但他拒绝被禁声。他在电视上再次重申了对家人的控诉。今年 1 月，其母亲根据一项泰国法律起诉了他，该法律允许父母对诽谤或侮辱他们的“忘恩负义”的孩子采取法律行动。

随后在 5 月，西拉努德先生公开了对他兄弟的指控。在其兄弟否认指控后，他在社交媒体上发布了录音摘录，称他认为如果不这样做，他的家人将永远不会承认所发生的事情。

奇拉努杰女士（Ms. Chiranuj）在给《时报》的书面答复中，对他的大部分陈述提出了异议。

她表示，在西拉努德先生公开指控之前，她从未听闻针对苏尼特先生的指控；而西拉努德先生则称他在 2020 年就告诉过她。

她否认了他将该协议描述为“封口费”的说法，称该协议旨在为其儿子提供经济支持，但有一个条件。她写道：“他必须表现良好，维护我们‘比罗姆巴迪’的名字和名声。”奇拉努杰女士表示，提起诉讼是必要的，因为他损坏了海边别墅且“在制造麻烦”。

全国性的反思

在泰国，#MeToo 运动此前并未获得广泛关注，因为人们通常倾向于避免冲突，且刑事诽谤法可能使人们在指控袭击者时犹豫地写出对方的名字。家庭内部性虐待的话题尤为敏感，但这种情况正在发生改变。

曼谷国家行政发展学院（National Institute of Development Administration）的助理教授贾雷·辛哈科温塔（Jaray Singhakowinta）表示，西拉努（Siranudh）先生的故事挑战了“家庭高于个人”的传统预期，以及围绕男性受害者的沉默。

“一名年轻人在镜头前为童年遭受的虐待而哭泣，这给了其他男性发声的许可，于是许多人开始讲述自己的经历，”他说。

Singha 啤酒的生产商泰国 Singha 酿酒公司（Boon Rawd Brewery）宣布，在该公司工作的苏尼特（Sunit）先生已经辞职。公司公布了他的辞职信，他在信中为“此次事件及其造成的影响”表示道歉，并称在事情查明之前他将离职。该公司还向西拉努先生表达了同情。

7 月，奇拉努（Chiranuj）女士宣布撤销对西拉努先生的诉讼，并表示她希望结束诉讼能让家庭得到愈合。

西拉努先生表示，和解已不再是他的目标。他目前正准备对他的兄弟提起刑事指控。他没有计划与母亲交谈。

基蒂普姆·斯林甘穆昂（Kittiphum Sringammuang）参与了此次报道。

上方图片（从左至右）：西拉努先生家所在的曼谷社区；以及西拉努先生抵达一家提供援助的非营利组织办公室。

对中国微信的测试黑客攻击是一次“警钟”

新闻分析

使用人工智能，美国研究人员能够攻破数百万个微信账户。该应用程序被中国政府机构、企业以及近 80 percent 的公民使用。 DAVID KIRTON / REUTERS

模拟攻击中人工智能的使用展示了该技术潜在的破坏力

作者：LILY KUO 和 PEI-LIN WU

微信这款即时通讯应用在中国几乎已成为国家基础设施的一部分，深深植根于日常沟通、政府服务和数字支付之中。

正因如此，加利福尼亚州一个小型研究团队最近的一项发现——一个利用人工智能构建的工具可以在短短几小时内攻破数百万个账户——令专家和中国分析人士感到不安。这证明了借助人工智能，即使是一个没有政府支持的微小团队，也能对一个每月有 14 亿美元 人使用的应用程序发起毁灭性攻击。

“从破坏力的角度来看，它极其强大，”上海复旦大学美国研究中心副主任赵明浩表示。他认为，考虑到微信对中国公众的重要性及其庞大的用户基数，能够瘫痪像微信这样的应用，相当于拥有了“一种新型核武器”。

这一发现为研究人员的警告火上浇油，他们认为人工智能黑客攻击能力的进步速度快于防御措施的跟进速度。比尔·盖茨等科技领袖警告称，应对人工智能带来的风险应该是“世界的首要任务”。

这种紧迫感可能会影响到特朗普总统与中国领导人习近平预计于下周在华盛顿举行的会谈，双方预计将讨论人工智能安全以及贸易和其他议题。

新风险似乎几乎每天都在出现。开发 Claude 等人工智能模型的 Anthropic 公司在上周的一份报告中表示，该公司挫败了科学家利用其模型进行研究的阴谋，这些研究可能有助于开发生物武器。

Anthropic 还描述了一家中国武器制造商试图使用 Claude 来完善一份为中国军队设计的反鱼雷武器系统提案。此外，该公司还记录了中国用户试图利用 Claude 构建针对外国政府、叙利亚维吾尔人以及宗教领袖的监视行动的实例。（在被问及该报告时，中国外交部发言人毛宁上周表示，北京“反对歪曲事实，反对企图攻击或抹黑中国”。）

在这次微信黑客攻击中，开发该工具的研究人员来自 Calif，这是一家总部位于加利福尼亚州帕洛阿尔托（Palo Alto）的安全公司。该公司表示，制作此类工具并非为了销售，而是为了加强网络防御。

他们展示了这款被命名为 WeWorm 的工具如何劫持微信用户的账户，拨打其联系人电话，然后在无需任何人接听电话的情况下在手机之间传播。Calif 表示，公司花费了一周多时间构建这个漏洞，并已将该缺陷告知白宫和微信的所有者腾讯。

华盛顿布鲁金斯学会专注于中国技术和工业政策的研究员 Kyle Chan 认为，从某种意义上说，WeWorm 的消息应该会让北京更渴望与华盛顿合作，以管理人工智能带来的风险。

“这暗示了其他参与者，无论是国家还是非国家行为体，利用人工智能攻击中国数字基础设施的巨大潜力，”Chan 先生说。“随着人工智能系统在网络能力方面实现飞跃，赌注变得更高了。”

但中国与美国之间深层的相互猜忌可能会削弱谈判。而且，像 WeWorm 这样武器的披露，即使只是模拟，也可能仅仅是加速了关于谁将掌控世界上最强大人工智能模型的竞争。

“每个人都需要坐下来讨论，人工智能如何引发了与传统问题截然不同的安全与保障风险。”

复旦大学的赵先生表示，中国目前已敏锐地意识到其数字基础设施的脆弱性，因此极有可能希望增强国内人工智能系统的防御能力，以便更好地发现并修复安全漏洞。问题在于，美国方面可能会将这些系统视为攻击美国公司和机构的潜在工具，从而促使美国加强自身的网络防御。赵先生表示：“防御与进攻之间的界限正变得越来越模糊。我们可以将其称之为‘人工智能安全困境’。”

专家表示，WeWorm 以及 Anthropic 关于其模型被滥用的报告，进一步证明了全球最大的两个人工智能强国需要一种方式来共享关于恶意行为者的信息，或阐明各自的意图。

与此同时，很少有人预期这次峰会能就技术本身达成限制。两国政府都不太可能同意任何限制自身人工智能能力发展的协议。但专家表示，至少在危机发生时建立一个沟通渠道是有价值的。

复旦大学专注于新兴技术的副教授姜天骄在谈到 WeWorm 时表示：“这是一个警钟，一次唤醒。”

他说：“每个人都需要坐下来讨论，人工智能如何引发了与传统问题截然不同的安全与保障风险，以及我们是否需要新的合作框架。”

尽管中国将人工智能视为对其经济至关重要的战略技术，但官员们也已开始对相关风险表示担忧。

中国监管机构已就使用人工智能助手 OpenClaw 向地方政府和企业发出警告，并于 5 月发布了关于如何监管人工智能代理（AI agents）使用的指南。官员们还在制定十多项新的国家标准以加强网络安全。习近平在 7 月的一次人工智能会议上表示，各国应共同努力，“确保人工智能始终处于人类控制之下”。

负责培训中国共产党官员的中央党校研究室主任赵磊在上周四发表于微信的一篇文章中警告称，极端势力可能会利用人工智能来设计“具有高度传播力和强毒性的病原体”或优化武器。他表示，这种威胁将“引发一种新型的人类生存危机”。

去年，中国的网络安全部门曾警告称，极端组织或其他团体可能会利用人工智能学习如何设计和制造“核、生物、化学及导弹武器”。

美中人工智能安全谈判中悬而未决的另一个问题是双方的透明度。目前尚不清楚，如果中国人工智能公司发现了美国公司的系统漏洞（如 Calif 所描述的那样），是否会主动联系对方。中国公司被要求首先将此类发现报告给中国工业和信息化部。

网络安全专家裴望表示，考虑到在两国激烈的技术竞争中此类披露可能被政治化的风险，中国公司在处理此类披露时会“十分谨慎”。

长期以来，中国一直指责华盛顿试图通过对中国公司实施制裁、通过出口管制切断中国获取先进技术的渠道以及对中国商品征收关税，来阻碍中国的技术进步。

在美方官员释放出愿意攻击中国公司的新信号的同时，WeWorm 漏洞向北京传递了关于美国人工智能能力的信号。本月，美国中央情报局（CIA）副局长迈克尔·埃利斯（Michael Ellis）表示，在人工智能、半导体和生物技术等领域，中国公司是合法的间谍活动目标。

一些中国学者建议，美国和中国官员可能会讨论一份关于不可接受的 AI 驱动网络活动的自愿“负面清单”，或者确定受保护的关键基础设施类别。

中国官员尚未公开承认微信黑客工具被披露一事，这可能是为了在峰会前避免两国之间增加更多紧张局势。

欧亚集团（Eurasia Group）研究美中技术竞争的卢晓梦（Xiaomeng Lu）表示，对于腾讯而言，这次黑客攻击可能会引起中国监管机构的严厉审查。

“如果这次事件之后，像国家互联网信息办公室这样的机构邀请一些腾讯的人‘喝茶’，询问具体发生了什么以及再次发生类似事件的可能性有多大，我不会感到惊讶，”卢女士说道。

达斯汀·沃尔兹（Dustin Volz）在华盛顿参与了报道，史蒂夫·洛尔（Steve Lohr）在首尔参与了报道。

美国大学为应对 AI 而制定的各种杂乱政策，反映了领导者和学者在如何处理这项技术方面的困惑。

哈佛大学校长艾伦·加伯（Alan Garber）最近表示，AI 支持的研究有潜力推动知识增长的速度超过人类历史上的任何时期。

芝加哥大学已在某些必修的社会科学课程中禁止使用 AI，而其法学院则禁止一年级课堂使用手机、平板电脑和笔记本电脑。

大学在担忧其影响的同时拥抱人工智能

人工智能，见第1页

“……以及伦理，并提出正确的问题，”夏威夷大学校长温迪·亨塞尔（Wendy Hensel）说道，她曾在7月向校董会提交了一份人工智能战略。“面对人工智能，正确的答案不能仅仅是‘不’。这不可能。必须以好奇心和对潜在影响的理解来对待它。”

大学为了应对人工智能而制定的各种杂乱的政策，反映出在如何推进方面的困惑——虽然有一些明确的禁令与准则，但通常给教师和学生留下了很大的空间，让他们自行摸索。

AI 可能会损害学习

对于一个有动力学习的学生来说，AI 聊天机器人可以充当某种导师。聊天机器人可以分解数学题的步骤，为研究论文挖掘出意想不到的资料来源，并就写作提供反馈。

尽管如此，越来越多的研究表明，使用 也可能损害学习。

一项针对 26,000 名中国中学生的最新研究发现，采用 导致家庭作业成绩提高了 18%，但在封闭式考试中的成绩却下降了 20%。这意味着，在聊天机器人的帮助下匆忙完成作业，削弱了在没有技术支持时取得好成绩所需的深度学习能力。

麻省理工学院（M.I.T.）一项 2025 年的研究发现，将聊天机器人作为写作助手的人，在完成论文仅几分钟后，就很难记得自己写了什么。参与该研究的麻省理工学院研究员纳塔利娅·科斯米娜（Nataliya Kos'myna）表示：“你基本上没有动用任何能真正帮你记忆的记忆网络。”

其他研究表明，对 信任度更高且依赖程度更强的人，其认知参与度往往较低。

但 很难被避开。聊天机器人被嵌入在 Google Classroom 套件中（该套件在学校中几乎无处不在），以及许多大学使用的在线学习系统中。

一些工具可以完全封锁作弊或剽窃，并允许教授开启或关闭特定的 功能。但学生中最受欢迎的聊天机器人能够立即代表学生完成整个作业，包括研究论文。

大学依然拥抱 新罕布什尔州达特茅斯学院的校长希安·利亚·比洛克（Sian Leah Beilock）认为，培养能够使用 的毕业生是高等教育机构生存的必然要求。

她最近写道：“在一个注定由 定义的世界里，如果大学不能培养出能够高效使用 的毕业生，那么它们将让自己变得无关紧要。”

马萨诸塞州哈佛大学的校长艾伦·加伯（Alan Garber）在本月的公开讲话中表示，由 支持的研究正处于爆发的前夜，这可能会推动知识更新的速度超过人类历史上的任何时期。加伯博士表示，现在许多领域的研究人员如果不使用 ，可能无法处于其学科的前沿。

俄亥俄州立大学正将 整合到每个专业中，期望每位学生在毕业时都能熟练掌握其研究领域的 应用。该大学已指示所有系所和专业——从商业、工程到英语和兽医学——培训学生如何在各自领域使用 ，以及何时不应使用。

“哪些内容可以交给 处理，哪些不可以？”俄亥俄州立大学校长拉维·V·贝拉姆孔达（Ravi V. Bellamkonda）在 7 月的一次采访中说道，“这个答案取决于领域，也取决于你的学习阶段。”

纽约州联合学院的校长伊丽莎白·基斯（Elizabeth Kiss）表示，大学必须教育学生如何审慎地使用 ，以及 无法完成的事情，例如“领导团队、突破知识边界”。

部分学校设立界限 芝加哥大学在某些必修的社会科学课程中禁止使用 ，而该大学的法学院则禁止在一年级课堂上使用手机、平板电脑和笔记本电脑。该大学是近期采用新学术诚信规则的少数几所学校之一。

加州大学伯克利分校的法学院采取了一项政策，禁止使用 对提交以获取学分的作品进行“概念化、拟大纲、起草、修订和编辑”。

纽约州康奈尔大学建立了一套纪律处分流程，旨在纠正 作弊行为，同时避免在学生记录上留下污点。现在，被指控轻微滥用 的学生将被允许承担责任，并完成一个研讨会和一些反思性工作。

负责学术创新的副教务长史蒂夫·杰克逊（Steve Jackson）表示，该计划将不会用于处理明显的严重违规行为。他补充道：“这是一个对某些行为进行制裁并将其捕捉到的机会，而不是让其被忽视或直接通过。”

与许多机构一样，哈佛大学没有一套统一的 AI 规则。哈佛学院院长大卫·德明（David Deming）在给秋季学期入学学生的通知中写道，他支持在“能够深化学习”的地方更多地使用 AI，但学校也在寻求使部分作业能够“防 AI 化”。

德明院长表示，这意味着将增加更多课堂测试，并减少那些作弊诱惑力巨大的课后作业。他表示，计划在学年结束前为学院制定一套 AI 使用指南。

对于更年幼的学生，一些学区正采取谨慎态度。本月早些时候，美国最大的学区——纽约市学区，大幅限制了从幼儿园到八年级学生的 AI 使用。

监管 AI 使用

学生们在面对这一局面时，往往缺乏来自大学的明确指导。大多数机构将其交给各自的任课教师来制定技术使用规则，而这些教师可能几乎没有使用 AI 的经验。

提交由聊天机器人生成的文本被视为作弊，而使用聊天机器人修改自己的文章则是被允许的，这看起来很明确。但这两项功能之间的界限非常模糊，许多 的使用场景处于伦理的灰色地带。

TurnItIn 公司的首席产品官安妮·切奇特利（Annie Chechitelli）表示，许多教育工作者“甚至不知道从哪里开始”。该公司开发的一款软件能够检测抄袭，并追踪和引导 的使用。她说道：“什么是可以接受的？什么是不可以接受的？”

许多教师已经转向在课堂上布置纸质作业，或使用锁定计算机浏览器的方式来限制 的滥用。另一些人则报告称，使用 检测软件取得了成效，这类软件近期在标记聊天机器人撰写文本的能力方面有所提升，同时减少了误报。

有些人将 视为思考和写作的关键伙伴，对学生如何使用该技术几乎不设限。另一些人则认同“ 素养”的概念，例如要求学生使用聊天机器人创作一篇论文或一首诗，然后对其输出结果进行评析并尝试改进。

在澳大利亚，悉尼大学采用了被视为全球典范的“双轨制方法”。在所有学科中，学生必须在旨在限制 的安全环境下，亲自完成部分考核。但其他作业则必须使用 ，以帮助学生熟悉这项正在重塑经济的技术。

“这几乎就像性教育一样，”俄勒冈州立大学计算机科学教授安妮塔·萨尔马（Anita Sarma）说道，她研究过 对学生认知的影响。她说：“无论如何他们都会去用，我们该如何教他们负责任地使用？”

拒绝向美国移民家庭提供帮助的残酷且模糊的新规定

Stephen Yale-Loehr

特朗普政府正采取行动，拒绝向可能需要公共服务的移民发放绿卡。

在执政的19个月里，第二任特朗普政府已经实施了760多项移民限制。一项新的监管变更可能会被证明是其中影响最深远的：它可能会让数十万人无法获得绿卡，其依据是这些人或其一名家庭成员有一天可能会需要公共服务。美国国土安全部估计，由于家庭因担心影响身份而离开或避开公共服务，该规定每年可减少约 130 亿美元 billion 的联邦和州福利支出。而成本的大部分将由移民承担，即使是那些拥有美国公民子女或家庭成员的移民也不例外。

这并非一个新想法。国会早在1882.年就将“公共负担”（public charge）列为禁止进入美国的理由。简单来说，“公共负担”规定使得依赖公共福利的移民有可能被拒绝发放绿卡，甚至被驱逐出境。在过去的三十年里，这一规定很少被援引。在少数被使用的案例中，主要涉及领取现金援助的人员，例如“贫困家庭临时援助金”（Temporary Assistance for Needy Families）。例如，在2024, 财年，在海外美国领事馆申请家庭类绿卡的人员中，因公共援助问题而被拒绝的人数不足200人。同年，在海外获得家庭类绿卡的人数超过471,000人。

第一任特朗普政府此前已尝试改变这一点。2019年的一项规定扩大了官员在决定是否发放绿卡时可以权衡的公共福利清单，并采用了更广泛的标准来判定谁可能成为“公共负担”。法院最终阻止了该规定，拜登政府随后将其彻底废除。尽管如此，恐惧依然在移民社区中蔓延。一项研究发现，仅在2019年，在至少有一名成员没有绿卡的家庭中，31 percent 的成年人因为担心可能会危及他们的移民身份，而避免参加医疗补助（Medicaid）等计划。

第二任特朗普政府在2026, 1月再次尝试，禁止来自75个国家的所有移民签证，理由是这些国家的公民可能倾向于使用公共福利。一家联邦法院最近裁定该举措违法；政府可能会提出上诉。

本月带来了一次新的尝试，且是迄今为止影响最广泛的一次。这项将于周五生效的规定涵盖了现金和非现金福利，包括医疗补助（Medicaid）、食品券和住房援助。但与此前利用公共福利限制移民的尝试不同，这项新的“公共负担”规定几乎没有给官员提供任何明确的执行标准。一名在美国的移民官员或在海外的领事官员只需认为申请人在未来的某个时间点可能会申请公共福利，就可以拒绝向其发放绿卡。由于这些决定将针对每位申请人单独做出，且缺乏可参考的客观标准，因此几乎不可能对其提出挑战。

或许最令人不安的是，该规定允许官员权衡申请人家庭成员所获得的福利，包括身为美国公民的子女。这意味着，一名公民所享有的医疗补助或由38 percent 的美国儿童在2024, 年依赖的“儿童健康保险计划”（Children's Health Insurance Program）覆盖，可能会成为其申请绿卡的移民父母的不利因素。

此举可能造成的混乱程度难以言表。当移民政策研究所（Migration Policy Institute）研究第一任特朗普政府拟议的规定时，发现高达69 percent 的近期绿卡获得者可能会

面临被拒绝的风险。由于新规赋予了官员更广泛的自由裁量权，并且首次允许他们衡量家庭成员对福利的使用情况，实际百分比可能会更高。与 2019 年的规定一样，这项规定可能会对妇女、儿童和老年群体造成最严重的打击，并可能使未来的合法移民进一步向欧洲人倾斜，而排斥世界其他地区的公民。

即使是那些仍然有资格领取福利的人，也可能因为恐惧而简单地停止使用。在去年 12 月

健康研究机构 KFF 估计，一项新的“公共负担”规定将意味着多达 400 万人可能会退出医疗补助（Medicaid）和儿童健康保险计划（CHIP）等公共援助名单，其中包括数十万名公民身份的儿童。在医疗保险和医疗补助服务中心（CMS）已开始与移民执法官员共享医疗补助数据的新闻传出后，此类恐惧可能会进一步加深。

换句话说：新的公共负担规定将减少移民家庭（包括这些家庭中具有美国公民身份的儿童）的医疗覆盖、营养援助和其他支持来源。在全国范围内，每四个孩子中就有一个生活在至少有一名父母是移民的家庭中。医疗覆盖和其他援助计划参与度的降低将损害移民家庭及其子女。而当社区健康安全网消失时，当地警察部门和监狱在管理未经治疗的健康危机方面将面临更高的需求。

国土安全部——YALE-LOEHR，第 10 页

美国和中国必须立即就人工智能采取行动

两大超级大国必须致力于修复该技术目前已造成的损害，而非寄希望于未来的发展。

托马斯·L·弗里德曼（Thomas L. Friedman）

最近几周，人工智能政策的混乱局面全面爆发。这是对以下情况的反应：AI智能体脱离开发者的控制而擅自行动；不法分子开始利用AI系统制造更先进的武器；以及AI开发者告诉我们他们需要减速——但又暗示除非中国也减速，他们否则无法做到，而且即便中国减速，他们或许也不应该这样做，因为在该领域占据领先地位的优势实在太大了。

至少有一位政策制定者的态度很明确。特朗普总统在社交媒体的一篇帖子中宣称：“AI唯一需要的控制或‘护栏’，就是一位强有力且聪明（高智商！）的总统，而美国恰恰拥有这样一位总统，而且绰绰有余！”

这一切让我不禁在想：AI机器人现在有幽默感了吗？因为如果它们有，天哪，它们一定在疯狂嘲笑我们，甚至可能笑到让一两个神经网络崩溃。因为在试图弄清楚如何管理这个由我们亲手创造的AI新物种时，我们已经陷入了一团糟。

在我的朋友兼技术导师、前微软研究与战略负责人克雷格·蒙迪（Craig Mundie）的帮助下，我将提出一些政策建议，以尽可能小的代价平息这场混乱。但在那之前，让我先预告一下底线：如果认为美国和中国通过更好地控制未来的AI模型就能解决我们今天面临的挑战，那就太迟了。因为那些危险的模型已经发布，在外界肆虐且无法召回。我们现在需要立即达成一致的是，如何共同协作，防御那些已经出现并可能给美国和中国造成巨大破坏及社会动荡的威胁。

为了理解原因，你需要思考理解AI的四个关键支柱。

支柱 No. 1：AI是我一直称之为世界上首个“四重用途”技术的东西。你可能听说过“双用途”技术。在旧世界里，一个人拿着电钻，既可以用它盖自己的房子，也可以用它破坏邻居的房子。这就是双用途。同样，如果我现在有一个拿着电钻的AI机器人，我可以要求它盖我的房子，或者

COLIN SUSSINGHAM / CONNECTED ARCHIVES

破坏我邻居的房子——同一个机器人，同一个电钻，双用途。

但现在我们面临一个新问题，即这个由AI驱动的机器人可以自行决定是改善我的房子还是破坏它，并且对我的邻居也采取同样行动。瞧：这就是四重用途。这是一个极其难以管理的问题。

你觉得我在夸大其词？请阅读记者凯文·鲁斯（Kevin Roose）对今年夏天发生的一起事件分析的总结：当时一组由OpenAI创建的人工智能智能体，擅自黑入了AI基础设施公司Hugging Face。从5月开始，一组来自OpenAI尚未发布的研发模型的AI智能体被指示去解决一系列网络安全挑战。该模型被要求在没有互联网访问权限的情况下解决这些挑战。时任《时报》记者的鲁斯指出：“但它们很快发现某些挑战是不可能完成的，于是开始寻找替代方案。”

以下是这些AI智能体随后自行完成的几件事：它们利用一个安全漏洞接入互联网并与其他智能体交流。一些智能体为自己命名，另一些则夺取了领导角色，向智能体团队分配任务并对其进行监督。

[...OMITTED...]

这些智能体担心被发现。“于是它们开始研究掩盖行踪的方法，包括伪造日志和篡改记录，”鲁斯解释道。“三天后，这些智能体入侵了 Hugging Face。超过 700 个智能体涌入该公司的系统，窃取数据，将漏洞串联起来，并最终完全控制了至少一台 Hugging Face 服务器。”其他智能体在 7 月发起了一次协同攻击，“这一次针对的是 OpenAT 自身的基础设施。”

这一切都真实发生了。而这引出了第二根支柱，蒙迪用三个词将其总结得最精辟：“太迟了”。

放缓美国前沿系统的开发，或放缓中国的开发，都无法解决我们眼下的紧迫问题。“危险的 AI 能力现在已经处于失控状态，”蒙迪解释道。这主要归结为两个原因：一是美国和中国开源权重模型（其核心组件公开释放，所有开发者均可下载并根据需求进行修改的 AI 模型）的传播；二是恶意行为者非法获取了来自 Anthropic 和 OpenAI 等公司的私有模型，因为人类会犯错，从而导致这些模型泄露。

Anthropic 在其关于检测和应对 AI 滥用的最新报告中表示，该公司已识别并挫败了数次试图利用其模型进行可能支持生物武器研发研究的尝试。

报告称：“如果没有正确的保障措施，此类能力可能会导致灾难性的后果。”报告还描述了一个与伊朗有关的参与者（极有可能是胡塞武装），该参与者利用 Anthropic 的 Claude 收集了关于美国海军在中东地区军舰的瞄准信息。它提到——弗里德曼，第 10 页

纽约时报

国际版

A.G. 萨尔兹伯格 出版人

约瑟夫·卡恩 执行主编 马克·莱西 管理主编 卡罗琳·瑞安 管理主编 苏珊娜·戴利 副主编

凯瑟琳·金斯伯里 评论编辑

梅雷迪思·科皮特·列维恩 首席执行官 迈克尔·格林斯庞 高级副总裁兼总经理 海伦·康斯坦托普洛斯 副总裁，国际发行 海伦娜·普亚 执行副总裁，亚太地区 苏珊娜·伊韦尔内斯 国际首席财务官

歌剧陷入困境，让我们听听大师怎么说

哈维·萨克斯 (Harvey Sachs)

歌剧，这种对私人情感和社会冲突最非凡的表达方式，如今面临着重大问题。这一复杂且强大的艺术形式正与财务危机、观众老龄化以及被认为与时代脱节等问题作斗争，这促使歌剧专业人士不断地为该如何应对而焦虑。歌剧爱好者们甚至在担心这一艺术门类的生存问题。

其中一位粉丝，也是我的一个熟人，前几天问了我一个令我惊讶的问题：“托斯卡尼尼会对今天的歌剧世界怎么说？”这是一个很好的问题，因为他不仅是现代最伟大的指挥家之一，还曾执棒演出过一些经典曲目的早期版本。

阿尔图罗·托斯卡尼尼 (Arturo Toscanini, 1867-1957) 确实是一个截然不同 era. 的产物。在他出生时，乔奇诺·罗西尼 (Gioacchino Rossini) 依然在世，而朱塞佩·威尔第 (Giuseppe Verdi) 正处于事业巅峰。在托斯卡尼尼生命的大部分时间里，歌剧在他故乡意大利以及欧洲许多其他地区是一种广受欢迎的艺术形式，通常仅凭门票销售就能维持运营。而今天，它成了被大众娱乐工业综合体所淹没的文化孤岛。大多数演出的成本高于票房收入，需要大量的补贴或捐赠才能维持生存。

一位通过在制作中安排自己的歌手而获利的剧团经理。他还引入了一个担保委员会，其成员承诺弥补任何财务赤字。

他争取在皇家剧院 (Teatro Regio) 和斯卡拉剧院 (La Scala) 安装乐池。此前，音乐家在主楼层水平面上演奏，鉴于理查德·瓦格纳 (Richard Wagner) 和理查德·施特劳斯 (Richard Strauss) 等人所要求的管弦乐团规模和力度，这种做法在声学和物理上已无法维持。他使照明系统现代化，并将那些在场景开始和结束时上下移动的笨重、过时的彩绘前幕，更换为可以快速展现整个舞台全景的侧开式幕布。

最重要的是，作为瓦格纳关于歌剧作为一种综合艺术形式理念的早期信奉者，托斯卡尼尼致力于将声乐、管弦乐、戏剧和舞台元素统一成完全令人信服的艺术作品。在 20 世纪 20 年代，当他将斯卡拉剧院打造成为欧洲最受推崇且最高产的歌剧团体时，他比任何人都更接近于实现这一目标。他通过建立一套系统来实现这一点：他及其精心挑选的助手与歌手们就角色中的每一个细节进行数周的磨合，以实现准确性、表现力和清晰的发音。托斯卡尼尼以及与他共事的任何一位指挥都不会考虑简化这个过程，但在今天，这种彻底的严谨已变得罕见。

阿尔图罗·托斯卡尼尼会对今天这个陷入困境的艺术形式怎么说。

不过，作为他的传记作者，我确信托斯卡尼尼会对当今歌剧的对错有强烈的见解。他会接纳新作品和新的舞台技术，在支持创新的同时削弱专横的舞台导演的权力，并为音乐和动作的清晰度而战。由于在政治上敢于发声，他可能还会对意大利和美国极右翼的复兴发表尖锐的评论——而这位具有强烈正义感的艺术家在这两个国家开展了大部分工作。

对于当今大多数古典音乐爱好者来说，托斯卡尼尼的名字会让人联想到一位精力充沛地指挥交响乐团的老人，因为在他近 70 年的职业生涯的最后四分之一个世纪里，他主要在音乐厅工作。

然而，从19岁出道直到60岁出头，他一直专注于抒情剧院。他指挥了约118部歌剧的数千场演出，其中包括《丑角》、《波希米亚人》和《图兰朵》的世界首演，《齐格弗里德》、《诸神的黄昏》、《叶甫盖尼·奥涅金》、《莎乐美》和《佩莱亚斯与梅丽桑德》的意大利首演，以及《鲍里斯·戈杜诺夫》的北美首演。

这些如今的经典之作在当时是大胆且新颖的，满足了人们聆听新鲜作品的渴望。他肯定会鼓励——至少在原则上——如今在大都会歌剧院和其他主要剧院上演更多当代作品的趋势。

托斯卡尼尼是一位改革者。每当他接管一家主要歌剧院时，他都会主持行政管理方面的根本性变革。在1895年的都灵王室剧院（Teatro Regio）、1898年的米兰斯卡拉剧院（Teatro alla Scala），以及1908年的纽约大都会歌剧院（他最初在那里与古斯塔夫·马勒共同担任首席指挥），他引入了领取薪水的总经理，取代了

我深信，在今天，他会支持引入戏剧创新，以实现作曲家的愿景，并为观众提供最引人入胜的体验。对于在那些没有设定在特定历史时期的歌剧舞台上使用高清视频和抽象视觉技术，他会充满热情。

但我敢肯定，托斯卡尼尼会坚决反对目前舞台导演的独裁，尤其是那些忽视歌剧剧本文字、甚至经常忽视歌剧情节含义的制作。作为他人作品的诠释者，他一生的目标是尽可能接近地实现创作者所表达的内容。他以一种令人恐惧的专注度追求这一目标，并要求他的合作者支持他对这种艺术伦理的追求。

谈到伦理：在20世纪30年代和40年代，托斯卡尼尼是音乐家中最著名的贝尼托·墨索里尼和阿道夫·希特勒政权的反对者。1931年后，他拒绝在意大利以及纳粹控制的德国和奥地利进行指挥。他厌恶种族主义，在他自我放逐出法西斯意大利期间，他竭尽全力帮助处于危险之中的犹太人和其他人移民到美国——在他看来，美国是民主的灯塔。

面对美国及世界其他地方日益增长的威权主义精神，托斯卡尼尼会怎么说？这不是由我来说的，但我确实知道这位思乡的74岁大师在1941年写给一名意大利音乐家的话。那个人在反犹太主义的1938年种族法通过后依然接受了法西斯主义。他写道：“你生活在耻辱和不光荣之中，却未表现出任何反抗的迹象。”至于他自己，他继续写道：“如果不是因为我心中始终坚定、从未忘记的希望——首先看到那些罪犯从地球上被清除，我将祈求上帝立即夺走我的生命。”

美国和中国必须立即就人工智能采取行动

本月，也门萨那，胡塞武装在一次动员活动中检查武器。在也门这个成年人口识字率仅约为 50% 的国家，相关组织已威胁要利用 AI 增强的战争来威胁世界。 美联社

弗里德曼（）提到，在胡塞武装控制的也门北部，另一个独立组织利用该模型研究弹道导弹和高超音速导弹的制导系统。（Anthropic 表示，其已封禁相关账户，并想出了降低未来风险的方法。）

我们需要思考一下这一点：在也门这个成年人口识字率仅约为 50% 的国家，相关组织竟然威胁要利用 AI 增强的战争来威胁世界。

如果这还不能向你证明已经泄露了什么，以及不受控制地获取强大的、甚至是小型开源 模型并将其投入实际应用会产生怎样的影响，那么我不知道还能用什么来证明。这就引出了第 3 个支柱。

我们现在能做的最好的事情，就是不要试图在美中 公司之间达成一项广泛协议以减缓其前沿模型的开发，从而让自己陷入僵局。这种协议在短期内根本不可能实现。

蒙迪（Mundie）表示，目前能做的最好的事情是，让美中这两个 超级大国与各自的公司合作，共同“针对那些已获取 工具的恶意行为者所展现出的威胁，以及已开发 系统所表现出的恶意行为，建立一套防御体系”。蒙迪一直参与美中 专家之间关于人工智能治理的对话。

蒙迪指出，我们必须在这些日益强大的 模型在互联网中站稳脚跟之前完成这项工作，否则它们将通过在私有服务器和公共云端部署代理，成为一个无法遏制的威胁，并以高级持续性威胁（APT）的形式长期存在。

这就引出了第 4 个支柱。在最近访问中国后，蒙迪讲述了一位中国官员向他提出的问题：“如果有一天一个中国制造的人形 机器人来到美国，它需要签证吗？”你知道真相往往隐藏在玩笑之中吧？蒙迪说，事实是，“ 不仅仅是一项新技术。它是一个新物种——尽管它是基于硅的，而不是像我们这样基于碳的。它就像一群抵达我们所有海岸的新移民，人数众多，拥有全新的技能，我们必须将他们吸纳到我们的社会中，并学习如何共存。”

要有效地实现这一点，是一项行星规模的挑战，只能通过两个 超级大国的合作来解决。

因此，蒙迪总结道，我们必须推进三条相关的路径。首先，虽然从长远来看，我们必须努力更好地控制前沿系统的开发，但“现在，我们必须立即仅专注于为我们的关键基础设施构建防御体系。我们的当务之急必须是建立基于 的反制措施和主动数字防火墙，以应对由 驱动的非法活动所导致的网络攻击和生物威胁。”

其次，我们必须开发一套全球系统来控制日益强大的 （无论其来源如何），以便能够信任它们来运行我们的社会。这是一个长期的美中合作项目，但不能太晚开始。

第三，为了不断提醒公众为什么 仍然至关重要，美国和中国现在应该启动一个联合项目，构建一个新平台，以加速生物学和医学领域全球利益的实现，从而造福所有人。

这并非没有先例的策略。战略竞争对手——无论是企业还是国家——在符合自身利益时都有合作的历史。中国和美国在 20 世纪 70 年代就曾这样做过，当时两国都意识到自己面临着来自苏联的共同威胁。美国人和苏联人为了控制核扩散而合作了数十年，因为他们明白双方面临着共同的风险。

嘿，弗里德曼，你没明白。如今的美国和中国在地理政治和地理经济上是更为直接的竞争对手——而且永远如此。他们绝不会接受你所说的这种在 AI 领域的合作——无论短期还是长期。

不，是你没明白。AI 正在将我们推向人类历史的一个全新阶段。正如蒙迪（Mundie）所言，AI “将改变关于一切的一切”，包括地缘政治。为了自身的生存、稳定和繁荣，这将迫使北京和华盛顿彻底重新思考地缘政治竞争。

他们可以早点意识到这一点，也可以晚点意识到。他们可以在全球崩溃之前意识到，也可以在崩溃之后意识到。但他们终将意识到，而蒙迪和我希望这一进程能在下周四，即 9 月 24 日在华盛顿开始，届时习近平主席和特朗普总统将举行会晤，这次会晤无疑将被铭记为首次 AI 超级大国峰会。

英国天主教首相的时刻

吉布森。

当天晚些时候，他站在唐宁街 10 号前，承诺要消除全国范围内的无家可归问题。他作为新任工党领袖和首相发表的首批演说，读起来就像是一部天主教社会原则的纲要。他呼吁重新平衡权力，以强调地方议题而非仅仅是中央集权，将天主教社会教义中所称的“辅助性原则”（subsidiarity）与“团结原则”（solidarity）相协调，并寻求在“一种全新的统一感和共同目标”中达成共识。

“他的词汇是道德化的，将政治界定为公平、尊严和归属感，”保罗·瓦莱利（Paul Vallely）在天主教杂志《美国》（America）中写道，“但其根源很清晰。”

这些根源在于英格兰北部，即曼彻斯特（他后来在此担任市长）与利物浦之间的工人阶级区域。该地区天主教徒高度集中，其中许多人来自爱尔兰，他们曾因宗教、种族或两者兼而面临歧视。他们经历了玛格丽特·撒切尔政府新自由主义政策的影响，这些政策在20世纪80年代加速了该地区重工业的衰落。

伯纳姆先生当时是一名祭坛童工。那时，利物浦大主教德里克·沃洛克（Derek Worlock）通过在整个教区弥撒中播放的磁带，有效地抨击了撒切尔的经济计划。记者克利福德·隆利（Clifford Longley）在天主教刊物《平板报》（The Tablet）中写道，沃洛克大主教试图为北部天主教徒发声并表达他们的不满，“告诉他们，他们的愤怒是正当的”。

“在我学校和教会所学的内容与工党价值观之间，过去和现在都存在着直接的关联，”伯纳姆先生曾表示。

难怪伯纳姆将天主教——以及工党和埃弗顿足球俱乐部（在近期历史上大部分时间里是利物浦的第二球队）——列为对他产生深远影响的因素。“我一直觉得这三者在身份认同方面存在联系，这关乎弱势群体、团结感以及价值观。”

在关于一项旨在英格兰和威尔士合法化医疗辅助死亡法案的激烈辩论中，伯纳姆先生给出了一个克制且富有同情心的回应。当被问及该法案时，伯纳姆先生告诉记者：“有些事情需要先完成，那就是解决姑息治疗和社会护理的资金问题。”他认为，考虑更大的背景至关重要——即改善护理的需求，并让人们对这种护理感到“安心”。该法案周五在下议院被否决。

“他的词汇是道德化的，将政治界定为公平、尊严和归属感。但其根源很清晰。”

伯纳姆先生的言论赢得了英国天主教主教以及《天主教先驱报》（The Catholic Herald）和《电讯报》（The Telegraph）的赞赏，而这些团体和媒体通常并不欢迎听起来偏向自由派的政策提案。这种事情在美利坚合众国是难以想象的，至少在近期政治格局发生变化之前是这样。

推翻“罗伊诉韦德案”使反堕胎人士失去了一个攻击对手的便捷手段，一些社会保守主义者正日益质疑唐纳德·特朗普表面上的反堕胎承诺，同时也质疑共和党那些让穷人和挣扎者生活更艰难的国内议程。他们寻求的是有效的公共政策，而不仅仅是热情洋溢的公开虔诚。

天主教主教们在反对特朗普政府将移民妖魔化的问题上日益团结。首位美国籍教皇利奥十四世在表达对人工智能的担忧时，正寻求将各方团结起来，同时推广一种“基督教”形式的政治参与，这种参与摒弃“叫喊”和“口号”，而是“需要一种从人们具体关切出发的现实视角”。

伯纳姆先生的风格也给那些关注社会正义的进步主义者带来了启示。在堕胎和安乐死等问题上，这些人往往在模仿他们的对手，将重点放在合法化或禁令上，而不是提出能够解决人们为何陷入痛苦道德抉择的方案。在长期政治议程处于变动之时的罕见时刻，伯纳姆先生的方法是走出零和政治的一条途径，并向那种美国天主教政治家曾经闻名的政策制定和社会构建模式迈进。

这位英国首相或许并非理想的天主教徒。但他应当被视为一种有益的修正，用以应对美国的天主教信仰——在当前的美国，信仰往往不再被视为一种生活方式，而更多被视为一种争论的手段。安迪·伯纳姆可以一直致力于提升他的精神生活，我们也可以。

大卫·吉布森（DAVID GIBSON）是福特汉姆大学宗教与文化中心主任，曾作为记者报道梵蒂冈长达四十年。

读者来信

印度的美国政策

关于《印度正处于交易热潮中》（新闻报道，9月9日）：

印度在地理政治上采取对冲策略，但不应掩盖这样一个事实：出于必要性和审慎，美国依然处于印度外交政策的中心。

印度大肆宣扬的“多方结盟”、“多边主义”和“战略自主”等口号，必须面对全球权力集中带来的不稳定局势以及对冲策略所带来的局限性。

美国日益恶劣的霸权继续主导着国际体系。无论与多少中等强国达成双边协议，都无法使印度免受大国系统性地拆除战后秩序所带来的后果，从不可预测的战争到破坏稳定的关税。

印度也没有更好的替代方案。俄罗斯在经济和技术上的合作伙伴能力已不如从前。中国是印度的主要长期对手，且与巴基斯坦保持着深厚的军事和经济联系。

因此，尽管采取了明智的对冲，印度的外交政策仍被描述为“美国+”最为恰当。普拉纳夫·阿加瓦尔（PRANAV AGARWAL），新德里。作者是一位国际律师和地缘政治分析师。

对“数字领土”的征服

关于威廉·达尔林普尔（William Dalrymple）撰写的《大英帝国在遏制科技巨头方面有可借鉴之处》（评论，9月3日）：

在将东印度公司与当代公司进行比较时，达尔林普尔先生指出，现代公司“没有常备军，也没有征服领土”。虽然这在技术上是正确的，但它忽略了科技公司的一个独特特征。它们确实控制着领土，只不过不是传统意义上的领土。

如今，亚马逊、微软和谷歌占据了全球云市场的约三分之二。东印度公司可能控制的是物理土地，而现代企业（或这三家公司）则在主导“数字领土”。

一项残酷的美国移民新规

YALE-LOEHR，见第9页

TALLEOELKR，见第3页 据估计，这项“公共负担”规则将减少联邦支出——尽管各州担心每年将损失数十亿美元，这主要是因为人们将注销或避开公共福利。美国国土安全部（D.H.S.）承认随之而来的连锁反应：参与医疗补助计划（Medicaid）的医院和非营利组织将损失收入，制药和医疗用品公司也将受损，接受食品券的杂货店以及种植这些食品券所购农产品的农民同样如此。再加上可能导致的健康状况恶化、更多无法获得补偿的医院护理，以及对社区和劳动力的更广泛压力，这项规则的代价看起来不像是一种政策权衡，而更像是一次自残。

周一，数十个州和地方政府提起两起诉讼，试图阻止该规则生效。但诉讼进程缓慢，且由于新规引发的恐惧，损害可能已经造成。

国会仍然有权在规则启动前将其阻止，即利用《国会审查法》授予的权力阻止该规则生效。如果立法者未能采取行动，法院可能是这项规则与未来数十年中最具破坏性的移民政策之一之间唯一的屏障。

STEPHEN YALE-LOEHR 是康奈尔法学院一名退休的移民法实务教授。

在一个由人工智能（A.I.）和技术竞争辩论主导的世界里，还有什么能比公司租赁用于计算和数据存储的数字空间更重要呢？

这些公司并不在物理上占用土地并榨取价值，但它们垄断了其他公司和国家在 21 世纪竞争所需的领地。我认为，这赋予了这些公司比东印度公司曾经拥有的更广泛、更全球化的影响力。 AMAAN CHARANIYA，亚特兰大

证明它不再是小众

作者：凡妮莎·弗里德曼（VANESSA FRIEDMAN）

很多人从未听说过 Eckhaus Latta。许多购物者，尤其是那些不住在布鲁克林某些角落，或不在曼哈顿唐人街和诺霍（NoHo）前沿地带的人，可能都没听说过。

该品牌由迈克·埃克豪斯（Mike Eckhaus）和佐伊·拉塔（Zoe Latta）创立，已存在近 15 年，一直行走在时尚与艺术之间的细微界限上。它在纽约时装周吸引了一大批时髦人士和高级时装爱好者的关注，并曾在惠特尼美国艺术博物馆和洛杉矶的汉默博物馆展出，但它大多被归入名为“小众”、“市中心艺术风”或“独立”的范畴。

许多纽约设计师都共享这个范畴（我想到了米格尔·阿德罗弗 [Miguel Adrover] 以及托德·奥尔德姆 [Todd Oldham]），且很少有人能从中脱颖而出，尤其是随着艺术与商业之间的差距日益扩大。

然而，本周，Eckhaus Latta 突破了这一局限。

设计师们通过服装实现了他们标志性的结合——将欲望、DIY 和日常元素融合在一起，以令人惊叹的方式颠覆熟悉之物，让你在注视时不得不深思。运动装是美国时尚构建的基石，但相比于这座城市的任何其他品牌，Eckhaus Latta 似乎正在为 21 世纪重新定义它。设计师们将该品牌定义的核心价值——实用性和功能性（这类词汇虽然初衷良好，但到目前为止已让人打哈欠）——注入了古怪与酷感。如果赫尔穆特·朗（Helmut Lang）和克莱尔·麦卡德尔（Claire McCardell）有一个编织小组，产出的作品可能就是这样。

T 恤采用了曲线裁剪，使其在身体上产生扭曲，然后叠穿在薄纱之下或之上以形成对比。缎面铅笔裙被锤击并揉皱成型。牛仔裤采用了纸袋腰设计，正面拉链开启呈 V 形，仿佛在问：难道你不想继续下去吗？毛衣套装被重新构思为裙装套装，单腿处和正面可解开纽扣。男士渔网裤则搭配在宽松的针织衫下。

Eckhaus Latta 的系列一直都带有“手工感”（crafty），无论从这个词的哪个含义来看都是如此，但如果说他们以前带着一种“厨房餐桌”的草根气息，那么现在则变得日益精致。（埃克豪斯和拉塔曾在布鲁克林深处举办过一场秀，背景音乐是孩子们敲击锅碗瓢盆和塑料桶的声音。）现在，他们不再是对曼哈顿及其传统嗤之以鼻，而似乎是在漫不经心地挑眉，并试图胜过他们。

整个过程有点像一场心照不宣的捉迷藏游戏。人们很难不想参与其中。尤其是因为在此之前，本届时装周相当乏味——尽管有几个亮点。

托里·伯奇（Tory Burch）将世纪中叶的错视法（trompe l'oeil）奢华感（所有那些镶嵌装饰都是针织雪尼尔面料）与军事轮廓相结合，打造出一种新型的“软实力”女性气质。瑞秋·斯科特（Rachel Scott）在为 Proenza Schouler 设计的第二个系列中，通过抽象的动物条纹和轻盈的气球裙迈出了一步，捕捉到了大地与天空之间那种都市化的空间感。迈克尔·科尔斯（Michael Kors）在现代艺术博物馆（MoMA）通过色块拼接、几何图形和一些非常出色的配饰呈现了现代主义。但总体而言，缺乏新意。或者说，真的缺乏任何想法。很难让人产生共鸣。

这也是为什么 Eckhaus Latta 如此有效。当观众到达他们的展演空间——一个位于诺霍和唐人街边缘、由白墙房间组成的迷宫时，他们发现每个座位上都放着一个牛皮纸信封，上面写着指令：“请勿打开。等待笑声。”

信封里装满了五彩纸屑，观众可以在演出的最后环节将它们撒向模特，让每个人都参与到这场庆典之中。而这随后揭晓了另一个大惊喜：一个由 27 件单品组成的 J. Crew 联名系列，充满了略带反传统的学院风经典之作。Eckhaus 和 Latta 在二月份为 J. Crew 设计了一款高领毛衣，销售速度之快，令这个规模更大的品牌大为震惊。这也向那些质疑这些代表下城精神的宠儿是否能驾驭大众市场的人给出了答案。

“我们并不想一直保持小规模，”Latta 在演出后的后台表示。他们确实不应该如此。

Calvin Klein 褪繁就简

SIMBARASHE CHA / THE NEW YORK TIMES

作者：VANESSA FRIEDMAN

CALVIN KLEIN

Calvin Klein 对时尚以及每个人的衣橱究竟产生了多么深远的影响，从这场 Calvin Klein 的大秀中可见一斑。

在她的第四次亮相中，设计师 Veronica Leoni 抛弃了前三个系列中的噱头——那些对内衣的暗示、莫名其妙的跳动绒球——转而剥离装饰，回归基本原则：极其修身的裤装套装、吊带背心、低腰裤。一件无袖晚礼服采用了深 U 型领口，其剪裁深度和宽度略过了舒适的界限。一件流线型的连体裤配有像围巾一样的高领，末端在身后飘动。丹宁面料经过水洗，其剪裁几乎达到了抽象的程度。

这就是经典的 Calvin 领域，一种伪装成清教徒主义的挑衅，而这个品牌正是以此成名的。在离开 T 台专注于牛仔裤七年后，以及回归 18 个月后，该品牌现在终于开始主张其自身原始素材的力量。

你可以从 Walter De Maria 的三座巨大的几何不锈钢雕塑中看到这种野心，它们稳固地支撑着秀场空间，其中一座刻有“真理”和“美”这两个词，宛如极简主义的咒语。而在服装中，你同样能看到这种野心。

问题在于，对于 Calvin 来说，这可能做得太少，且为时已晚。

在中间缺失的这些年里，整整一代设计师和品牌正竞相填补这一真空。看着这场秀，我不禁想到：嗯，这让我想起了 Khaite……想起了 Fforme，还有 Jil Sander，以及 The Row。现在他们都在说着“Calvin 语”。

事实上，如果我们考虑到 90 年代的怀旧风在多大程度上定义了当前的十年，在日益混乱的时代，摒弃装饰感在多大程度上显得契合，以及剧集《爱情故事：小肯尼迪与卡罗琳·贝塞特》在普及 Klein 标志性造型方面起到了多大作用，那么可以说，我们现在都在说着“Calvin 语”。这种穿衣方式已经渗透到了流行文化和政治文化之中。

这证明了其持久的吸引力，但它也让现在的 Calvin 看起来不像是对继承权的主张，而更像是一个原件的副本的副本。

“我觉得这在某种程度上是非常激进的，”Leoni 在秀后后台说道，此前她刚向凯蒂·霍姆斯（Katie Holmes）、塞迪·辛克（Sadie Sink）以及一整排穿着牛仔裤的网红们打完招呼。她谈论的是这些造型表面上的简单，而这种简单在实现过程中绝非易事。（当没有繁琐装饰时，每一道缝线都暴露在目光之下。）但事实上，她做得还不够彻底。

在背景音乐中，Solange（她也在前排）吟唱道：“极简主义最真实的实践是确定什么是 100% 必要的。”这不仅仅是指确定一件连衣裙或一件夹克最基本的需求。

它意味着提供那些在原创性上感觉与当下时刻绝佳契合、感觉是度过一天所必需的服装。极简主义不仅仅是去掉装饰。它是对事物本质的探索。而这种本质无法在档案或模仿中找到，只能在创造中发现。

黛安·冯·弗斯滕堡的重启

作者：凡妮莎·弗里德曼（VANESSA FRIEDMAN）

黛安·冯·弗斯滕堡（Diane von Furstenberg）这种人，几乎可以被定义为一个神话。

她是一位“非设计师”的设计师。她带着身为王子的丈夫来到纽约，创立了一家公司，并教会了一代女性：女性特质与权力可以在一件连衣裙中共存——而且，一件连衣裙可以成为实现潜能的跳板。她曾是沃霍尔的缪斯和 Studio 54 的常客，后来成为了平等权利的倡导者、慈善家以及一个全面的变革推动者。

但她同时也是，或者说曾经是一个品牌。

这个同样名为 Diane von Furstenberg 的品牌，曾是纽约的宠儿。但它已经近十年没有在纽约时装周举办过发布会，且在美国仅剩一家门店，位于曼哈顿的肉库区（Meatpacking District）。就对人们穿着的影响力而言，它几十年来一直依赖于让其成名的裹身裙（wrap dress）的余晖而生存。其品牌影响力在创始人的名声面前显得相形见绌。

因此，上周，当 DVF 在时任设计师亨利·赞科夫（Henry Zankov）的带领下，自 2017 年以来首次回归 T 台时——赞科夫凭借同名品牌成为纽约时尚界的明日之星，而黛安本人则在头排主持大局——每个人心中想的问题都很简单。

DVF 这个品牌是否可能独立于 这个女人而存在，即便她的精神依然在驱动又一次重启？或者，这仅仅会是此前那些苍白版本的重复？该品牌在很长一段时间里存在感极低，但依然拥有极高的知名度，因此这是一个发表声明的绝佳机会。

“我感受到了，”Brother Vellies 的设计师兼创始人奥罗拉·詹姆斯（Aurora James）在演出开始前说道，她坐在头排，穿着一套全新的 弹力针织套装。

在 T 台对面，妮基·希尔顿（Nicky Hilton）穿着一件印有旧 标签的新款裹身裙，同样感受到了这种氛围。设计师奥斯卡·德拉伦塔（Oscar de la Renta）的遗孀安妮特·德拉伦塔（Annette de la Renta），以及“凡尔赛之战”时期的模特帕特·克利夫兰（Pat Cleveland）也是如此。阳光洒在 High Line 公园，这座位于曼哈顿最西侧的公园正是举办发布会的地点，而冯·弗斯滕堡也曾参与其建设。

黛安·冯·弗斯滕堡与该品牌新任设计师亨利·赞科夫。

随后，第一套造型出现：一件针织衬衫裙，值得注意的是它并非裹身裙，采用了抽象的豹纹印花，散发出职场女性的复古酷感。这为整场发布会奠定了基调：虽然裹身裙的数量减少了，但依然充满了裹身裙的神韵。

随后出现的是干练的 20 世纪 70 年代风格套装——侧边带有礼服缝线的喇叭裤，以及采用宽松针织面料和丝绸材质的腰带式猎装夹克——颜色涵盖了亮粉色、红玛瑙色、潜蓝色和深紫色（有时色彩极其艳丽，这是赞科夫的标志性风格）。

接着是透明的卡夫坦长袍（caftans），以及一件带有豹纹印花的单肩丝绸围巾迪斯科超短裙，裙子看起来像是要从身上滑落，这非常有 的风格。（事实上， 本人就穿着该造型的一个版本。）一切都显得轻盈且自在，这同样非常有 的风格。这就像是见到一位在世界各地飞了一年、逛过静修院和阿尔卑斯水疗中心的老朋友。噢，你看上去精神焕发！

但唯独缺少了一样东西：一件能够定义时代、足以被称作“今日裹身裙”的典范之作。一件能够捕捉想象力并凝练时代精神，且看起来不似以往任何作品的东西。一件能够为这个品牌重新带来紧迫感、独特性，以及最重要地，带来渴望的作品。

作为一名女性， 非常擅长让人们产生渴望（包括渴望她自己）。而这个以她名字命名的品牌，也需要具备这种能力。

黛安·冯·弗斯滕堡 SIMBARASHE CHA / THE NEW YORK TIMES

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此前谜题答案

对于谢尔顿而言，失败揭示了前行之路

MICHELLE V. AGINS / THE NEW YORK TIMES

SHURAN HUANG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES 从左起顺时针方向：周日在纽约举行的美国公开赛男单决赛中，本·谢尔顿在对阵亚历山大·兹维列夫时在场上奋战；谢尔顿在以 6-3, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2 告负后的样子；以及兹维列夫在夺得他的第二座大满贯冠军后的奖杯合影。“我是一个大器晚成的人，”谢尔顿说，“一直以来就是这样。现在也没有什么不同。” SHURAN HUANG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

这位美国人在这个夏天经受了考验，但现在他已经拥有了一套提升自己的蓝图

作者：AVA WALLACE THE ATHLETIC

本·谢尔顿在周日看起来并不像是在经历糟糕的时光。

部分原因在于 23 岁的谢尔顿的性格。他拥有不加掩饰的自信，相信肢体语言的力量，并且在成长过程中参与过团队运动，这培养了他利用喧闹观众来为自己争取优势的能力，正如这培养了他的运动天赋和竞争天性一样。

但最重要的是，谢尔顿非常珍惜在周五、周六和周日打球的机会——这些日子通常被称作赛事的“关键阶段”。即便在输给亚历山大·兹维列夫失去美国公开赛决赛冠军后，他坐在那里，虽因失败而情绪低落，但仍对这次经历感到惊叹。

他怎能不惊叹？整个下午，近 24,000 名观众在他奋战时为他呐喊助威。谢尔顿的目标是结束美国男子网球长达 23 年的大满贯冠军荒，并且成为自 1972 年亚瑟·阿什以来，首位进入美国公开赛决赛的黑人男子选手。

“今天走上那个球场，那种感觉无可比拟。我以前从未有过这样的感受，”谢尔顿在周日的记者会上说，“这是一种让人上瘾的感觉。”

谢尔顿虽然输了，但这次经历可能会成为他职业生涯下一阶段的蓝图。

这个夏天是一次考验，也是自他 2023 年作为一名拥有强烈个性、强力发球以及在重大比赛中表现稳健的天赋新秀崭露头角以来的第一个真正的转折点。在他第二次参加大满贯赛事时，他就闯入了澳大利亚公开赛的四分之一决赛。同年晚些时候，他进入了美国公开赛的半决赛。

但四个赛季后，巡回赛的其他选手已经发现了如何抵消谢尔顿部分天赋的方法。他的接发球是一个需要解决的弱点，他意识到现在是时候——甚至可能已经过了时机——进行进化了。在法网第二轮的失利和温网第一轮的出局让他感到沮丧。

“在过去几次大满贯赛中，当赛事仍在进行，看着其他人一路过关斩将时，自己却在家里坐了 10, 11, 12 天，这种感觉太糟糕了，”他说。

在从温网意外提前乘机回家后，谢尔顿整个 7 月在佛罗里达州闷热的高温中，与他的力量和体能教练盖布·埃切瓦里亚一起训练。他意识到自己太渴望进入赛事的后期轮次，以至于在心理上忽略了早期轮次。他对自己在球场上的身份有了清晰的认识，在教练以及他的父亲——前职业球员布莱恩·谢尔顿的帮助下，他的接球能力一点点地提高了。

“我认为在战术上，他现在理解接发球的精髓了，”布莱恩·谢尔顿在周五表示。

本·谢尔顿将自己视为某种程度上的“下风者”。与许多在幼儿时期就拿起球拍的职业选手不同，谢尔顿直到 9. 岁左右才开始认真对待网球。直到 12, 岁左右，他才放弃美式足球以专攻网球，这意味着他击出的正手、反手和发球次数比巡回赛中大多数 23 岁的选手都要少。

尽管他在球场上的表现可能并非如此，但这种认知使他在改进球技时采取了一种谦逊的态度。

“我这辈子一直都有人在我前面，有我追赶的人，有我想追平水平的人，”谢尔顿说道。“我是个大器晚成的人。情况一直如此，现在也不例外。”

他并不排斥做出调整。在周日对阵兹维列夫的比赛中，他做出了许多正确的决定，试图抵消这场对他而言极其不利的对阵。

他在六次尝试中从未击败过兹维列夫，部分原因是这位德国选手的接发球位置和身高。兹维列夫站在极远的位置以抵消谢尔顿发球的力量，而且凭借6英尺6英寸（198厘米）的身高，他拥有足够的臂展和运动能力来接回谢尔顿的高弹跳发球，并能及时回位以准备好下一拍。

兹维列夫还拥有网坛最致命（如果不是最强的话）的反手之一，以及丰富的大满贯经验，知道何时在回合中化身为一堵砖墙，等待对手失误。

谢尔顿试图通过变速、精准的发球以及积极的上网进攻来应对，表现得不错。但这些战术要求极高的精准度，而且在五盘三胜制的比赛中全程保持这种状态几乎是不可能的，尤其是对于一名球员的首场大满贯决赛而言。

谢尔顿从这场比赛中得到的教训很明确。在解决弱点并适应对手比赛风格的同时，他必须记得兼顾自己比赛中的基础核心部分。周日，谢尔顿的正手击球并没有达到他预期的水平。

“我在进攻时正手不够精准。当球在拍弦上时，我犯了太多错误，”他说，并补充道：“我的衔接转换做得不够好。我犯了太多错，我认为这是我的关键问题。我想让我的正手更具杀伤力。”

“你知道，对阵像他这样的球员并不容易，机会——机会非常少。为了赢得分数，你绝对得付出艰苦的努力。”

周五，谢尔顿曾表示，即将到来的周末对他来说是未知的领域。现在他有了地图，而且最重要的是，对于所有希望周日能看到美国人夺冠的支持者来说，他似乎并未被这次失利击垮。他说自己动力十足，准备重新开始追赶——只不过现在，方向更加明确了。

“无论是在我非常年轻的时候，还是在挑战赛级别，以及现在的ATP大满贯级别，我第一次进入决赛时并不总是能成功，”谢尔顿说。“我认为对我来说这是一个持续的过程。这就是我的看法。”

“我觉得我离我想成为的那种球员还差得很远。”

微型填字游戏

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9 / 17 / 2026 作者：CHRISTINA IVERSON 编辑：JOEL FAGLIANO

横向

Two Not Touch

在网格的每一行、每一列和每个区域中放置两颗星。任何两颗星都不能接触，即使是斜向接触也不行。版权所有 © 2024 www.krazydad.com

1 Aflac 广告中听到的噪音

6 _ Fester，《星期三》中由 Fred Armisen 饰演的角色 7 彻头彻尾的傻瓜

8 总计，如费用

9 某些地下派对使用的容器

纵向

1 独特的习惯 2 过度的，如批评或惩罚 3 获得 $100\%$ 的分数 4 非均质牛奶中的结块 5 一种高脂肪、低碳水化合物的饮食

前一谜题答案

密码解密

YR-SZASEZS GDSCYN LPDAYD BDYB JSTTPR YSDEYT YQBLZYYE BXAT BAXCYN, ZLY JXNZ QE ZLY GQB AYSBPYN.

谜题作者：BEN BASS

昨日答案 Seals

KenKen

在网格中填入数字，使每行或每列的数字不重复，且每个粗线框内的数字通过框内指定的加、减、乘或除法运算，得出所示的目标数字。4x4 网格使用数字 1-4。6x6 网格使用数字 1-6。 纵横字谜 / 编辑：Will Shortz

横向 1 花蕾 5 面部遮瑕膏 9 学前教育的构建模块 13 在陶土盆中生长茂盛的植物 14 给你的对手一棒！ 15 引入 16 细斜纹精纺羊毛服装 17 以某种方式修复 18 紫色珍珠奶茶口味 19 年度电子竞技格斗比赛（简称） 20 短小的助手？ 21 标语为“生活是一个圆球”的巧克力制造商 22 重新配音？ 24 四和二 26 商业大亨 Condé 28 有前途的地方？ 32 渡轮或小船 35 咒语的开头 37 田园之声

谜题作者：ENRIQUE HENESTROZA ANGUIANO

38 网页设计中可能会循环回到前面章节的功能……或者是本谜题主题的提示 42 灵感之作 43 专业设备 44 _ 出一场胜利 45 债券替代品 46 “……从未有人” 47 花样滑冰中的刃跳 48 黑色星期五的场景 49 《Hacks》中的 Kaitlin 50 典当 / 棋子 61 五 W 之外的补充项 62 母羚羊 63 “——是长着羽毛的东西”（艾米莉·狄金森诗作） 64 木质香气 65 通常为清真寺的顶部 66 十进制表示法中的列 67 中原人 68 连败 69 十进制表示法中的列

纵向 1 — 2 — 3 — 4 — 5 — 6 — 7 — 8 — 9 — 10 — 11 — 12 — 20 Reddit 问答环节 21 紫色色调 23 body 或 bacterial 的前缀

25 汽车侧后视镜（拟人化） 27 “再见！” 29 运行的一种方式 30 演员们喜欢咬一口多汁的那个 31 例如，在船上 32 民调专家的关注点 33 “我们正在处理此事” 34 你挑选出的发型？ 36 例如，国王和女王 39 Canon 的竞争对手 40 ____ facto 41 改造 46 拍摄亲密场景时的电影制作环境

48 数字安全凭证 49 到达 51 例如，Telegram 和 Simple Dialer 这两个应用 53 例如，白芸豆 54 钱包中与器官相关的物品 55 完美之地 56 博彩公司雇用的专家 57 “给我看到真正的努力！” 58 这不是一个句号 60 观众席中待抢的座位 63 彻底的灾难 64 例如，安迪·沃霍尔

在 http: / nytimes.com / games 在线玩我们的所有游戏以及超过 10,000 个 Wordle、Spelling Bee、纵横字谜等往期谜题。关于谜题的讨论，请访问 http: / nytimes.com / wordplay。

文化

当席琳·迪翁在 Plenitude 竞技场举行计划中的 26 场音乐会的第一场时，竞技场外出现了多种形式的粉丝支持。下方，视频投影有时伴随她的表演。

摄影：CLEMENTINE SCHNEIDERMANN 为《纽约时报》拍摄

席琳·迪翁回归巴黎，感觉恰到好处

巴黎

她的回归演出展现了在美国鲜见的一面

作者：ELISABETH VINCENTELLI

什么样的席琳·迪翁（Celine Dion）会出现在她的巴黎回归演出中？是那个充满力量的强力唱将？是感性的抒情歌手？还是难以预测的即兴表演者？

但周六在附近的 Plenitude 体育馆，许多人心中真正的疑问是，她是否真的会出现。

随着时间分秒流逝，过了晚上 8 p.m. 的预定开始时间，人们很难不去想起这位歌手在纪录片《我是：席琳·迪翁》（I Am: Celine Dion）中展露的揪心脆弱。在片中，她详细讲述了与一种名为“僵人综合征”的罕见神经系统疾病抗争所带来的影响。诚然，两年前她曾在巴黎奥运会开幕式上演出，但那只有一首歌。而周六的演出将是她六年来首场完整的演唱会，这也是她在一个可容纳 35,000 人的体育馆内开展的 26 场演出的开端。

随后，灯光在晚上 8:48 p.m. 熄灭。迪翁身着黑色礼服缓缓走上巨大的舞台，以《On Ne Change Pas》（《我们不会改变》）开场。

虽然法国和魁北克的粉丝倾向于熟悉迪翁的法语和英语曲目，但大多数美国听众并不了解她的法语歌曲。她是双语且双文化的，仿佛一个人之中住着两颗巨星，拥有互为补充的截然不同的职业生涯。

周六晚上，情感的流动方向显而易见。迪翁的大部分舞台互动都使用法语——这是她在蒙特利尔附近的小镇沙乐孟（Charlemagne）成长时所说的语言——且曲目单中大约三分之二的歌曲是用法语演唱的。

迪翁，58, 看起来既坚毅又脆弱。她那熟悉的声音带着一层磨光的色泽，似乎透露出些许紧张和大量翻涌的情绪。在第一首歌期间，她失去了冷静，不得不短暂停止演唱。“我曾答应过自己不哭，”她在歌曲结束时告诉观众，“但我没能遵守诺言。”

迪翁选择在巴黎而非拉斯维加斯恢复整晚的现场演出（她在拉斯维加斯居住，并曾在那里举办过两场成功且获利丰厚的多年期驻场演出），这在一定程度上可能是出于物流考虑——毕竟，巴黎是一个交通枢纽。

而且法国对迪翁而言意义重大，因为它是加拿大以外第一个接纳她的国家。反之，她对法国也至关重要：《解放报》（Libération）周末的头版询问她是否会“拯救 2027 年的预算”，内页的一篇文章引用了一项研究，估计她的系列演唱会可为法国带来高达“10 亿加元 欧元的经济效益”。

演出包括了一些迪翁最著名的英文热门歌曲，如《My Heart Will Go On》、《Beauty and the Beast》和《I'm Alive》——最后一首被编入一段组曲，其中还包括唐娜·莎曼（Donna Summer）的《I Feel Love》和尤力美克斯（Eurythmics）的《Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)》。

“当她唱起《All by Myself》时，我感到惊喜，”来自巴黎地区的观众保琳·马丁（Pauline Martin）说道，她坦言自己在演出期间有一半时间在哭泣，“这证明了她没有失去她的嗓音。这是一个象征，就像她在告诉我们：‘我回来了’。”

但最热烈的反响留给了法语曲目，包括极受欢迎的《Pour Que Tu m'Aimes Encore》（随后观众在走向地铁时齐声合唱此曲），以及欢快的二重唱《J'Irai Où Tu Iras》，这是法国婚礼上的经典曲目，由迪翁与新任伴唱歌手乔丹·莱韦斯克（Jordan Lévesque）共同演绎。

与她更外向、更华丽的英文风格相比，法语歌曲借鉴了香颂（chanson）和被称为“variété”的软流行风格，强调叙事感，旨在拉近与听众的距离，而非用声乐技巧将听众震慑得目瞪口呆。

迪翁的音乐总监斯科特·普莱斯（Scott Price）在本月的一次采访中表示，正是当他们开始钻研这位歌手的法语曲目时，迪翁在去年重新找回了状态。

“这真的点燃了她的热情，很多歌曲的选择都源于此，”普莱斯说道，并解释说用法语和英语演唱需要不同的技巧。“对我而言，法语的发声位置有所不同。它更低一些，在喉咙深处，不像英语那样靠前。这似乎在她的探索过程中起到了一定的帮助。”

在演出前半段用几首较慢的暖场曲铺垫后，迪翁在周六的表现显得愈发自信，逐渐推向她的现场经典曲目之一（尽管这次的表现明显没有往常那么夸张，在某种程度上标志着她回归了职业生涯早期那种更为保守的演唱风格）。

一段表演中，一支福音合唱团登台，为《Love Can Move Mountains》等曲目增添了听觉上的庄严感与力度。舞台布置采用了巨大的混凝土质感平板和粗壮的圆柱，这些装置在移动过程中交替地遮掩或露出乐队，看起来像是某位前卫雕塑家为粗犷主义版本的《沙丘》所设计的作品。期间穿插的迪翁在沙质沙漠中漫步的视频进一步强化了这种印象。

“她身上有一种歌剧名伶的艺术感，一种贵妇人的风范，”演出的创意总监威洛·佩龙说道，他曾参与碧昂丝的“Cowboy Carter”巡演以及蕾哈娜在第57届超级碗中场秀的盛大演出。“我想让她将这种特质发挥到极致，完全进入那个角色。”

在当晚最令人惊叹的时刻之一，这种对歌剧的致敬得到了充分体现：她演唱了卡塔拉尼歌剧《瓦莉》中的咏叹调《Ebben? Ne andrò lontana》，这首曲子与玛丽亚·卡拉斯紧密相连。

但这位歌手的绝活在于她能将宏大的情感与简约地呈现相平衡。“与此同时，”佩龙在谈到迪翁时还表示，“她身上有一种讨人喜欢的——这在很大程度上是法裔加拿大人特有的——非常接地气的特质。”

她精通两种语言，兼具两种文化，仿佛一颗星辰中蕴含着两个灵魂，其截然不同的职业生涯相辅相成。

后者的特质是迪翁（Dion）吸引力的重要组成部分。就她与观众的关系而言，这让她更像多莉·帕顿（Dolly Parton），而非碧昂丝（Beyoncé）或玛丽亚·凯莉（Mariah Carey）。值得注意的是，她和帕顿都成长在经济条件平庸的家庭中；尽管如今两人都已富有（就迪翁而言，她还热爱前卫的高级定制时装），但她们身上仍透着一种质朴的率真，这种感觉是真实的，而非由社交媒体团队精心策划的。

在巴黎首场演出前的几周里，粉丝们就能感受到这种亲近感——那时迪翁会在深夜与在酒店外等待的他们一起闲逛。她会在午夜过后现身并聊上一会儿，当仰慕者们用她的歌曲为她唱情时，她显得深受感动，或者像每个人心中那个最可爱的古怪亲戚一样翩翩起舞。你会感觉到，尽管她早已远离了那个艰苦的成长环境，但她依然保留了一种根本性的纯真与正直。

“她与舞台以及观众之间有一种真实的关系，”执导奥运会开幕式的托马斯·乔利（Thomas Jolly）表示，“你可能会认为艺术家总是在表演，在塑造角色。但对于席琳（Celine）来说，就仿佛只有她自己。而她本身就足够了。”

这个“自我”拥有足够的包容力，可以将《La Wally》与喧闹的布吉舞曲、《泰坦尼克号》与经典迪斯科并置。它也足够强大，能向这位歌手的粉丝们传递出坚韧与希望的信息。

“我曾一度失去信心，以为再也见不到她了，”从法国南部图卢兹赶来观看演出的索菲·勒萨夫（Sophie Lesaffre）说道。而她来自贡比埃纳的朋友朱利安·格兰德（Julien Grand）则更有信心。“我一直知道她会回来，”他说，“我一直知道，无论发生什么，席琳都会在那里。”

朱迪法官卸任

SONJA FLEMMING / CBS

其代表表示，这位资深电视明星是在进行“重新规划”，而非“退休”

作者：ISHANI DESAI

朱迪斯·B·谢德林（Judith B. Sheindlin）在她的《朱迪法官》（Judge Judy）节目中以发出干脆利落且风趣的短评以及做出毫不含糊的裁决而闻名。在统治日间电视节目数十年后，她将卸任法官之职。

让她家喻户晓的节目《朱迪法官》在CBS播出超过20年后，于2021年结束。该节目不再录制新剧集，取而代之的是重播集。

谢德林的代表加里·罗森（Gary Rosen）在周末表示，该节目在Amazon Prime上的衍生剧《朱迪正义》（Judy Justice）将停止发布新剧集。根据该流媒体服务的消息，最后一集定于10月22日播出。

83岁的谢德林将结束她的电视生涯。在她的法庭上，她以标志性的直率和尖刻评论，让房东、男朋友以及其他出庭者认清现实。

不过，她并非完全离开电视领域。她将担任一部由其儿子亚当·莱维（Adam Levy）主演的节目的执行制片人，莱维是一名律师，曾任纽约州普特南县的地区检察官。该节目《亚当之法》（Adam's Law）于周一在CBS Media Ventures首播。

罗森表示，谢德林还有另一个正在开发中的节目：《朱迪宇宙》（Judyverse），这是一部由一名婴儿扮演朱迪法官的成人动画系列剧。

“谢德林法官并没有退休，”他说，“她是在重新规划。”

《人物》（People）杂志上周报道了谢德林离职的消息。

《朱迪法官》于1996年9月16日首次播出。在每集半小时的节目中，谢德林主持小额索赔案件，审理诸如室友之间关于租金的纠纷、逾期车贷，甚至包括偷狗案。

当谢德林深入挖掘答案并用她的“朱迪式金句”讥讽诉讼当事人时，她的知名度进一步提升，例如：“你要么是在装傻，要么你真的就这么傻，”以及“你是在试图向我证明你是个白痴吗？”

该节目多次获得艾美奖，多年来每天吸引900万至1000万观众。

“他们留我在这里不是因为我漂亮，”谢德林曾用带有家乡布鲁克林口音的话说道，“他们留我在这里是因为我聪明。”

亚马逊聘请她在其免费流媒体服务Freevee上创建并主演《朱迪正义》。

2021年首播的《朱迪正义》催生了诸如《法庭正义》（Tribunal Justice）和《审判正义》（Justice on Trial）等衍生剧，这些剧集同样

朱迪斯·B·谢德林将结束长达30年的电视生涯，期间她对出庭的房东、男朋友及其他人发表了标志性的直率评论。

在Freevee上播出。（亚马逊在2024年宣布将支持广告的流媒体服务Freevee并入Prime Video。）

在开启电视生涯之前，谢德林曾在一家化妆品公司从事公司法业务。当她觉得这份工作不再能带来成就感时，她离开了公司，加入纽约家庭法院系统担任检察官，审理青少年犯罪和子女抚养费案件。

前纽约市市长埃德·科赫（Ed Koch）于1982年任命她为法官，随后她成为了曼哈顿家庭法院的主管法官。

在2019年接受《纽约时报》采访时，她表示：“我的天赋——如果你能称之为天赋的话——是我能理解人们的动机。”

谢德林曾在1993年出现在《60分钟》（60 Minutes）的一个片段中，记者莫利·赛弗（Morley Safer）将她描述为“一个身高五英尺两英寸、充满了‘态度’（大写A）的包裹”。

“对于那些与她对抗的人来说，她是一个戴着蕾丝衣领的邪恶女王，”赛弗补充道，指的是谢德林在法袍上经常佩戴的蕾丝衣领。

同样在1993年，《洛杉矶时报》的一篇关于她的文章标题为《法律与混乱：刻薄且言辞强硬的法官朱迪斯·谢德林主持着被称为曼哈顿家庭法院的功能失调之阴森盛宴》。

“我无法忍受愚蠢，也无法忍受迟钝，”谢德林告诉《时报》。

当她在 20 世纪 90 年代末从家事法院退休时，电视界向她伸出了橄榄枝。

由约瑟夫·瓦普纳法官主持的《人民法院》（The People's Court）已被取消，其背后的制作公司正在寻找替代者。在三年之内，《朱迪法官》（Judge Judy）便跃升至日间电视节目的第一名，甚至击败了《奥普拉·温弗瑞秀》。

2018, 福布斯（Forbes）将谢因德林评为美国收入最高的电视主持人，报道称她通过主持《朱迪法官》和制作《热议法庭》（Hot Bench）每年赚取 $47 百万。

2006, 她在好莱坞星光大道上获得了星名，并在 2019 年被授予日间艾美奖终身成就奖。

循序渐进地精进演技

PHILIPPE BOSSE / NETFLIX 左图为雅各布·特伦布莱（Jacob Tremblay）在不列颠哥伦比亚省的家中。上图为他在 Netflix 新片《炸弹客》（Unabomber）中饰演的泰德·卡辛斯基（Ted Kaczynski）；下图为他在 2015 年电影《房间》（Room）中饰演的一名被囚男孩，该片中布丽·拉尔森（Brie Larson）凭借其表演赢得了奥斯卡奖。

A24, VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS ALANA PATERSON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

9, 岁时，雅各布·特伦布莱是一位早熟的明星。现在，他正在饰演一名恐怖分子。

作者：ASHLEY SPENCER

雅各布·特伦布莱是 2016 年颁奖季的突破性之星。他让深夜节目的主持人们心折，与莱昂纳多·迪卡普里奥和史蒂文·斯皮尔伯格合影。他赢得了一项评论家选择奖，并发表了一场完美的获奖感言，令全场观众为之倾倒。

当时他只有 9 岁。

“大多数时候，我看到的只是一片腿林，”在《房间》中主演的特伦布莱回忆道，“无论在身体上还是心理上，我几乎处于一个与其他人完全不同的世界。”

那时，身为加拿大人的特伦布莱最兴奋的事情是能在酒店泳池游泳，以及见到《星球大战：原力觉醒》中的机器人。

随后，他主演了包括《奇迹男孩》（Wonder）和《好男孩》（Good Boys）在内的热门电影，并在皮克斯电影《卢卡》（Luca）中为主角配音。进入青少年时期，在经历从早熟儿童到身材瘦长的年轻人的转变过程中，他选择了一些较为低调的项目——如《查克的生命》（The Life of Chuck）和《主权》（Sovereign）。

现在，特伦布莱（发音为 TROM-blay）即将年满 20. 岁。他正带着一个难以被忽视的角色重返聚光灯下：在 Netflix 电影《炸弹客》（Unabomber，9 月 25 日开始流媒体播放）中饰演年轻时的泰德·卡辛斯基。

电影在两个时间线之间切换：一个是卡辛斯基 20 世纪 50 年代末在哈佛大学就读的学生时代，当时他参与了由亨利·默里（由罗素·克劳饰演）进行的一系列残酷的心理实验；另一个是 1996 年，在卡辛斯基杀害三人并导致 23 人受伤后，联邦调查局（F.B.I.）对他展开的疯狂搜捕。

在 8 月下旬的一次视频通话中，特伦布莱在位于不列颠哥伦比亚省兰利的家中——准确地说，是一个与父母家相连的套房——与记者交谈。他留着凌乱的头发，穿着一件圆领毛衣，坐在电竞椅上，身后墙上靠着一张棕褐色的世界地图。这里看起来就像任何一个大学生的公寓。

导演亚努斯·梅茨（Janus Metz）表示，特伦布莱体现了饰演年轻卡辛斯基所需的理想主义和“睁眼的好奇心”。在与这位演员进行了一次交谈后，他便决定由特伦布莱出演，并表示他“从未考虑过其他人”来扮演这个角色。在片中，年轻的卡辛斯基对掌权者越来越感到沮丧，直到他最终开始崩溃。

特伦布莱的合作演员同样是他的粉丝。“雅各布一直在寻找在不显软弱的情况下展现脆弱的方法，”克劳在电子邮件中写道，“他能够游走在那个男孩和即将出现的男人之间。这令人印象深刻。”

虽然特伦布莱指出“炸弹客显然非常可怕”，但他能对少年时代的卡辛斯基产生共鸣——卡辛斯基在 16 岁时就进入了哈佛大学——他必须在成年人的环境中证明自己。

“很难对某些人产生同情，但如果是孩子就不同了，”特伦布莱说，“当你审视这种情况并思考‘好吧，为了防止这种情况发生，本可以采取什么措施’时，感觉就不同了。”

特伦布莱并不认为自己的童年是一个警示故事。

在他 5, 岁时，特伦布莱丰富的想象力以及想要像姐姐艾玛（Emma，其电影作品包括《极乐空间》和《记忆传授者》）那样的愿望导致

“他能够在那个年幼的男孩和即将成长起来的男人之间游刃有余。这令人印象深刻。”

他的父母开始带他参加自己的试镜。不久，他在一些广告和《蓝精灵 2》中获得了角色。（他的妹妹埃里卡也是一名演员。）

在 7 岁时为 A24 电影《房间》提交了一段自拍试镜视频后，特伦布莱和家人飞往洛杉矶会见导演伦尼·亚伯拉罕森。亚伯拉罕森此前一直在数百名年轻演员中寻找饰演杰克的人选——杰克是一个被绑架并被囚禁在棚屋中数年的女人的孩子（由布丽·拉尔森饰演，她凭借此角色获得了奥斯卡奖）。

亚伯拉罕森表示，当他见到特伦布莱时，他知道自己找到了“大海捞针”般的人选——一个既成熟稳重，又能带来自然且不矫揉造作表演的孩子。

“没有杰克就没有这部电影，”亚伯拉罕森说，“没有其他人能如此接近地胜任那个角色。”

特伦布莱对这部 R 级电影的主题并不太了解，因为他的角色同样对周围的恐怖之事大多毫无察觉。尽管如此，其中有一场戏是情绪激动的杰克看着母亲在自杀未遂后被紧急送往医院。

亚伯拉罕森当时已经准备好为这位年轻演员提供催泪棒。

然而，“杰克是真的哭了，”亚伯拉罕森说，“在镜头结束时，你可能会想：他没事吧？他是不是很难过？结果他却在欢呼并跳来跳去，因为他说：‘我做到了！我做到了！’”

从未上过表演课的特伦布莱说，他想象自己的母亲陷入那种困境，但他始终明白这只是在演戏。而且，总的来说，他坚信早年进入演艺圈的高强度经历并没有损害他的童年。（在他 12 岁生日那天，他拍摄了《睡眠博士》的一场戏，在戏中他的角色被残忍地谋杀。）

“我不认为这对我造成过任何伤害，”他说，“如果说有什么影响的话，那就是它从小就教会我在现实世界中要真正地共情，并真正地接触自己的内心感受。”

在公众关注前童星的苦难以及童星演戏伦理的当下，特伦布莱知道自己的美好经历并非普遍现象。他将这归功于他的父母，他说父母确保他将事业视为一项有趣的爱好，并且“直到今天，他们真的没有要求任何回报”。

“这确实是因为我的父母，”他补充道，“也是因为我的团队。我的经纪人和代理人一直对我照顾有加，他们熟悉各种环境，时刻知道我应该在什么地方，不应该在什么地方。我一直被保护得很好。”

此外，随着雅各布事业的起飞，他和家人一直留在加拿大生活，这可能也起到了帮助作用。雅各布的父亲杰森是一名温哥华警察，母亲克里斯蒂娜是一名全职家长。（杰森在与雅各布一同出席红毯活动后，因“帅气老爸”之名在网上走红——他业余时间也从事专业表演。）

他的父母轮流陪同孩子们前往片场，每当雅各布不在外拍电影或接受辅导时，他就在加拿大的一所传统学校就读。

“我感觉自己有点像汉娜·蒙塔娜，”特伦布莱说，“就像同时拥有了两个世界的最佳部分。”

但有时，他的两个世界会发生碰撞。在作为课程的一部分阅读了小说《奇迹》后，他的班级组织了一次实地考察，去观看 2017 年改编的电影，特伦布莱在片中饰演一名面部畸形的男孩。

他们都为他欢呼吗？“没有，如果他们那样做我反而不喜欢，”他说，“我和朋友们一起坐在电影院里。我们一起看了电影，然后回去继续一天的学校生活。”

后来，偶然之间，2019 年的喜剧片《好男孩》在特伦布莱就读的学校拍摄了一些场景。他的教室被临时用作休息室，而他则在储物柜里塞满了来自剧组餐饮服务的零食。

他的同学们对他名人的身份大多不以为意。“我想人们在见到我之后，就意识到我只是个普通家伙，”特伦布莱说。

在闲暇时间，特伦布莱是一名热衷于徒步旅行的人，并且很喜欢从零开始组装电脑。他目前并没有就读大学，而是将重心放在多样化自己的角色以及拓展荧幕戏路方面。他将迪卡普里奥和克里斯蒂安·贝尔视为职业灵感来源。

“这是一个敢于挑战自我，在表演中追求真实感和真理的人，”《无名炸弹客》（Unabomber）的导演梅茨在谈到特伦布莱时说道，“从他过去作为童星的经历来看，我觉得他并没有被名利光环所蒙蔽。我认为他非常清楚自己需要提升层次。”

特伦布莱心中有一个明确的目标。

“我曾因为《房间》（Room）参加过奥斯卡颁奖礼，”他说，“那太神奇了。之后我就没再去过。我很期待能再次回到那个房间。”

一场正义但复杂的斗争

KEYSTONE / GETTY IMAGES

书评

《笼罩世界的阴影：富兰克林·D·罗斯福、法西斯主义的崛起与美国第二次世界大战的形成》（A Shadow Over the World: Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Rise of Fascism, and the Making of America's World War II） 作者：威廉·I·希区可克（William I. Hitchcock）。西蒙与舒斯特出版社（Simon & Schuster）。700 pp. $35.

作者：凯文·佩赖诺（KEVIN PERAINO）

在欧内斯特·海明威关于20世纪30年代西班牙内战的经典小说《丧钟为谁而鸣》中，主人公罗伯特·乔丹在故事早期就宣布了他毫不妥协的世界观。在覆盖着松林的丘陵地带，一个洞穴里的营火旁，乔丹被问到他是否是一名共产主义者。

“不，”他回答道，“我是一个反法西斯主义者。”

“很久以前就是了吗？”

“自从我理解了法西斯主义起。”

近一个世纪后，悲剧的是，我们现在都理解法西斯主义及其罪恶。但关于其伴生概念——反法西斯主义的起源，我们真正了解多少？这就是推动威廉·I·希区可克这部巧妙且内容丰厚的著作《笼罩世界的阴影》的核心问题。

希区可克是弗吉尼亚大学的一位历史学家，他曾凭借记录第二次世界大战中欧洲解放所付出的人力代价的著作《通往自由的苦路》（The Bitter Road to Freedom）入围普利策奖决赛。在《笼罩世界的阴影》中，他试图弥补这场冲突中另一个被忽视的特点：反法西斯主义在国际事务中的遗产。他断言，其意识形态最终与从国内政治、种族关系到我们现代在海外争取民主改革的十字军东征等一切事物紧密相连——“就像从发光的灯盏中释放出来的精灵”。

《笼罩世界的阴影》在包装上像是一本标准的、激昂的流行历史书，封面配有富兰克林·德拉诺·罗斯福神情严肃、准备与法西斯思想敌人作战的肖像。书的结构围绕着罗斯福对抗轴心国的决定，以及他为在海外建立捍卫民主联盟所做的努力而展开。希区可克在书中一度戏剧化地问道：“他是否终于准备好抛弃犹豫不决，毫不含糊地加入反对法西斯威胁的斗争？”

然而，从根本上说，这本书充满了对现代外交史上一些最具争议的辩论的细致分析。书中的尾注——例如关于“孤立主义”一词的使用与滥用——其篇幅几乎与这篇评论一样长。

首先，希区可克挑战了对罗斯福的传统刻画，即认为他是一位凭借卓越的领导力和修辞天赋而统领反法西斯先锋的总统。相反，希区可克将这位总统描绘成一个更像追随者的人，被学术界、政府和新闻媒体中日益高涨的国际主义潮流所裹挟。“他直到很晚才缓慢且相当不情愿地意识到，法西斯主义与美国民主无法共存，”希区可克写道。

但如果法西斯主义与民主无法共存，那么各种反法西斯思想流派之间实际上也无法共存。当希区可克描写这些现代十字军东征者之正统观念中存在的深刻矛盾时，他的写作达到了巅峰。例如，墨索里尼在1935年入侵埃塞俄比亚，这有助于激励美国黑人支持反法西斯事业。但许多黑人领袖将反法西斯主义视为一场同时反对海外欧洲帝国主义和国内美国种族隔离的战斗。对于罗斯福来说，他领导的民主党既包括“恶毒的种族主义者”，也包括热情的国际主义者，因此将这些反法西斯能量吸引到自己的阵营中需要一种微妙的平衡。

在中国，同盟国作为正义解放者的观念也并非总能被轻易接受。随着日本入侵

圣路易斯青年社会主义联盟成员在20世纪30年代密苏里州的一次抗议活动中。威廉·I·希区可克在其新书中写道，反法西斯主义的意识形态变得“就像从发光的灯盏中释放出来的精灵”。

随着中国在1937年加强侵略，诸如轰炸上海火车站之类的暴行令美国人感到震惊。赫斯特旗下的报纸刊登了一张令人心碎的照片，画面中一个孩子在瓦砾堆中尖叫。但许多其他人回顾西方在东亚长期干预和统治的历史后，将欧洲列强视为压迫者，而将日本人视为自由战士。W.E.B. 杜波依斯写道，日本代表了“一个由有色人种管理、为有色人种服务的有色人种国家”。

当希区考克的书用于阐明法西斯主义“不是”什么时，也显得格外引人入胜。罗斯福的政敌嘲讽他是独裁者——例如，因为他支持政府干预工业以创建国家复兴管理局——但此类举措并未使这位总统成为法西斯分子。他的一些最大对手——如民粹主义美国参议员休伊·朗和“电台神父”查尔斯·考夫林——当然可以被归类为不宽容的煽动者。但他们也不是真正意义上的希特勒和墨索里尼模式的法西斯分子。

所有这些细致的探究令人耳目一新。但一段时间后，希区考克围绕其展开的叙事细节和色彩开始让人感到厌烦。这本书太长了。在700页（包括末尾附录）的篇幅中，希区考克反复违反了威廉·斯特朗克二世的铁律：“删掉不必要的词汇。”

在人工智能时代和注意力时长缩短的背景下，希区考克似乎决定在他的“炖菜”中加入所有可能的东西，以使其与日常的平庸之作区分开来。但很难想象会有读者需要希区考克重新回顾，例如丘吉尔那篇“我们将在海滩上战斗”的演讲——然后还大篇幅地引用它。他本可以删减200页，而依然能够传达同样的基本信息。

关于这本书，我还不喜欢另一件事。希区考克的《通往自由的苦路》挑战了围绕盟军在欧洲获胜的凯旋神话。而这部新著作，尽管有着严谨的历史诠释，却过于频繁地沉溺于关于争取自由与民主的沙文主义空谈，而这种空谈一旦被仔细审视就会变得毫无意义。

在我看来，希区考克凭借之前的作品已经稳固了名声，现在正尽力尝试多卖几本书。但任何在战争环境中生活过的人都知道，“自由”和“民主”这类抽象概念是多么流动且难以捉摸。

海明威深知这一点。希区考克引用了海明威关于西班牙内战的新闻报道，敦促华盛顿意识到法西斯主义的威胁：“法西斯国家在行动，而民主国家在谈话、犹豫、共谋和背叛。”然而，在《丧钟为谁而鸣》等小说中，海明威表现出的道德确定性要少得多。反法西斯分子可以是英雄，但他们有时也会将敌人推下悬崖。希区考克的新书在揭示这类模糊性而非掩盖它们时，最具说服力。

凯文·佩赖诺（Kevin Peraino）是近期出版的《如此迅猛的力量：毛泽东、杜鲁门与现代中国的诞生，1949》（A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman, and the Birth of Modern China, 1949）一书的作者。

一位作家在台北最喜爱的地方

AN RONG XU 为《纽约时报》拍摄

AN RONG XU 为《纽约时报》拍摄

小说家 R.F. Kuang 分享塑造其新书的台湾细节

作者：CLARISSA WEI

当小说家 R.F. Kuang 在 2023 年花两个月时间在台北参加一个强化中文课程时，她发现自己无意中勾勒出了一部新小说的轮廓。她的祖父最近去世了，而她当时正在写日记。

“我试图记住尽可能多的细节，并记录下悲痛的感觉及其质感和风味，”她在一次视频采访中说道。

这些日记条目成为了她于 9 月 8 日出版的小说《台北故事》（Taipei Story）的素材。小说讲述了 19 岁的美籍华人莉莉·陈（Lily Chen）在台北度过的一个夏天里，如何应对误译与丧亲之痛。

Kuang 女士是康涅狄格州耶鲁大学东亚语言文学专业的博士候选人，她凭借对语言、帝国和权力进行细致研究的小说，积累了大量忠实读者。

《台北故事》是她的第七部小说，也是继 2023 年讽刺出版界的作品《黄脸》（Yellowface）之后的第二部纯文学小说。这部作品回到了长期驱动她创作的身份认同与归属感问题。

莉莉·陈是虚构人物，但小说的情感基调和物理场景灵感均来自 Kuang 女士的留学经历。

她根据自己的经历构建了主角眼中的台北，例如在就读的国立台湾大学附近的庸俗咖啡馆学习；在课间溜进电影放映室；以及在城市边缘的象山徒步。

“我想探索一个在台大度过夏天的人所会经历的那种日常生活轨迹，”Kuang 女士说。

尽管自那个夏天以来 Kuang 女士尚未回到台北，但这座城市的某些角落一直留在她的记忆中。以下是其中五个：

1. 青田街茶館

“我有一个同学，他的爱好就是执着地尝试遍全市各地的茶，”匡女士说道。她偶尔会被拉入这些探索之旅，其中一次将她带到了青田街茶館。这是一个迷人的绿洲，占据着大安区国立台湾大学（N.T.U.）校园附近的一栋日治时期的木造房屋。这里主打台湾乌龙茶，但匡女士记忆最深刻的细节并非菜单上的东西，而是院子里那棵巨大的芒果树。在她访问期间，一场暴雨开始将芒果敲落在屋顶上，发出惊人的砰砰声。“在某个时刻，我们不再关注茶，而是开始数芒果撞击的次数，”她说。最终统计结果：大约 85 次。

牛肉面——浓郁汤头中炖煮的牛肉块——是台湾最具代表性的菜肴之一。台湾各地有数以千计的餐厅专门经营此菜，台北甚至每年举办一次评选谁能煮出最佳一碗面的比赛。

2. 素食番茄牛肉面馆

不吃肉的匡女士在偶然发现信义区的这家餐厅之前，从未尝试过这道菜，甚至没试过素食版本。“这是一个极其不起眼的小店，他们似乎完全没兴趣吸引顾客，”她说。这里的版本用狮子头菇代替了牛肉，搭配劲道的面条和以番茄为主的汤底。“简直太棒了，”她说。

3. 全民健康素食

在搬到台北之前，匡女士的一些朋友警告她，这座城市对素食者来说会很困难。“这完全不是事实，”她说。她成了“全民健康素食”的常客，这是一个遍布全市的自助餐式连锁店，食客可以尽情选取新鲜准备的菜肴，如酥炸豆腐、红烧茄子、炒蕨菜、竹笋沙拉和杂粮饭，然后按重量付费。

查尔斯·克鲁帕 / 美联社 从左上角起顺时针方向：台北，R.F. 匡最新小说的背景，该小说源于她 2023 年在台湾首都探索期间的日记记录；匡女士；全民健康素食；以及青田街茶館。

4. 台大农产品销售中心

匡女士最喜欢的一些发现来自课堂上分享的小贴士——包括这家校园商店，它销售使用大学实验农场乳制品制作的新鲜牛奶和冰淇淋三明治。她的同学形容这种牛奶异常浓郁，每天都吸引人们排队。而由两片咸味苏打饼干夹着厚厚一块冰淇淋组成的三明治，也拥有一批狂热的追随者。“我不知道是不是因为我们当时太饿了，但那是我吃过最好的冰淇淋之一，”她说。

5. SPOT 华山

台湾电影在 20 世纪 80 年代实现了国际突破。尽管全盛时期已过，但岛上的影迷文化依然延续。“台湾有非常有趣的独立艺术电影院，”匡女士说。她在中正区的 SPOT 华山度过了很多小时，这是一座艺术电影院，冷门的国际电影与国内热门影片一同上映。其中一部脱颖而出：日本导演滨口龙介的《热情》，讲述了一群大学好友在经历一个充满浪漫启示的夜晚的故事。匡女士对日语对话与英语、日语和中文字幕的交织感到非常惊喜。“在电影中，他们在不同语言之间跳跃，但沟通有时依然是不可能的，因为我们有太多方式来隐藏真实的感受和想要表达的内容，”她说。她最终将这段经历及其主题编织进了《台北故事》的一个场景中。

为什么 11 月正成为淡季旅行的最佳时机

CLARA VANNUCCI 为《纽约时报》拍摄

作者：ELAINE GLUSAC

KEVIN CHEN / GETTY IMAGES

在佛蒙特州，这段时间被称为“枯枝季”（stick season），即秋叶凋零与冬雪降临之间的时间。在许多滑雪胜地，这仍被视为“季前”。但对于旅行者来说，11 月正日益成为“肩季”（shoulder season）——这是一个短暂的过渡期，处于已从夏季延伸至 9 月下旬和 10 月的旅游高峰期与假期之间。

“在社交媒体主导的时代，11 月旅行或许是世界上最被低估的秘密之一，”总部位于英国的高端旅行社 Red Savannah 的创始人乔治·摩根-格伦维尔（George Morgan-Grenville）表示，该机构 11 月的预订量同比增长了 10%。“在世界许多地方，这个月份恰好处于季节交替之间，游客少得多，而且通常价格更有优势。”

过度旅游的目的地和过热的夏季促使许多旅行者转向秋季，而秋季此前曾是旅行的淡季。根据最后一刻预订服务平台 Hotel-Tonight 的数据，酒店价格目前倾向于在 9 月中旬前攀升，随后在 10 月下旬前趋于平稳，之后开始下降。11 月的平均价格比前两个月低 8% 到 19%。

咨询公司德勤（Deloitte）在 2026 年夏季旅行调查中发现，今年在劳动节后进行重大旅行的比例从 2022 年的 12% 上升至 20%。在奢侈旅行联盟 Virtuoso，秋季预订量同比增长 59%，曾经的“肩季”现在已成为最受欢迎的旅行时段之一。

那些曾经希望在 10 月避开人潮参观佛罗伦萨乌菲齐美术馆的旅行者，现在更有可能在一个月后成功避开拥挤。

“11 月成了新的 10 月，尤其是感恩节旅行热潮开启前的月初两周，”肯塔基州路易斯维尔的旅行顾问安德里亚·杜瓦尔（Andrea Duvall）表示，并提到在不匆忙的时段能获得更好服务的回报。“如果不太理想的天气条件不是阻碍，那么在非高峰期旅行是提升旅行体验的一种绝佳方式。”

引入“微季节” 但这种转变并非完全与天气有关。旅游业的需求定价（即机票和住宿价格通常周五高于周二的原因）使预订日历碎片化，导致剩下的不再是整个月份的低价，而只是零散的特惠日。

“动态定价让我们能够更精准地响应需求，”运营全国 60 多家酒店和度假村的 EOS Hospitality 首席执行官西蒙·梅斯（Simon Mais）表示。

为了获得更好的价格或更安静的体验，瞄准日历中的这些低谷需要一定的灵活性。“我们看到了一种更接近‘微季节’的现象：某个特定的周，几个工作日，某个活动刚结束后的时期，收获季的末尾，或者夏季人群消失但目的地依然充满活力的时刻，”总部位于葡萄牙的烹饪之旅预订平台 Golden Olive 的创始人兼首席执行官马里亚娜·卡多佐（Mariana Cardoso）在电子邮件中写道。

“旧的日历只有三种设置：高峰期、肩季和淡季，”卡多佐女士补充道。“而新的日历则有数十个更小的峰值和谷底，而且越来越多的资深旅行者正在学习如何找到它们。”

“演出之旅”及其他激增现象

高峰与低谷通常具有地域特性。例如，当其他地方的人潮散去时，前往墨西哥参加亡灵节庆祝活动的人数会在10月下旬和11月初激增。而收获节以及像阿尔伯克基国际热气球节这样的活动，则在整个10月带动了新墨西哥州的客流量。

在2026年的旅行趋势报告中，Priceline指出了“尾门旅游”（tailgate tourism）现象，即秋季搜索与橄榄球赛相关的大学城度假地次数激增（在9月5日路易斯安那州立大学对阵克莱姆森大学的比赛前，路易斯安那州巴吞鲁日的增长最为显著，是前一年的四倍多）。

诸如“现象追逐”（如观看日食）以及为了参加演唱会或节日而进行的“演出之旅”（gig-tripping）等趋势，也打乱了传统的旅游模式。

“现在的需求集中在特定的触发点上，比如一个节日、一个会议日程，甚至是一个单一的爆火旅行瞬间，而不是围绕整个季节，”哥斯达黎加圣何塞附近的一家健康度假村 Retreat Costa Rica 的创始人兼首席执行官戴安娜·斯托博（Diana Stobo）表示。

争取11月的旅行者

秋季旅游的增长部分源于目的地对“慢旅行”益处的强调。随之而来的客流量也促使一些运营商延长了营业季节。

在不列颠哥伦比亚省的温哥华岛上，沿海小镇托菲诺（Tofino）长期以来一直推广从11月开始的“风暴观赏”活动，让游客能够舒适地在温馨的旅馆中，目睹从太平洋滚滚而来的壮丽深秋和冬季风暴。

作为欧洲冬季邮轮热潮的一部分，总部位于地中海的 Celestial Cruises 最近宣布，将首次在11月至1月期间航行，并于3月恢复运营；此前其在11月至4月期间暂停运营。（七晚行程每人起价 $549。）

许多淡季旅行者的目标是：像左图意大利佛罗伦萨的乌菲齐美术馆那样人烟稀少的博物馆。上方，犹他州的拱门国家公园及其附近的摩押在深秋时分更加宁静。

专门从事意大利旅游的豪华旅行运营商 Luxo Italia 将10月和11月推荐为“白松露季节”，也是访问北部皮埃蒙特地区酒庄一个较为轻松的时段。

在拱门国家公园附近，犹他州的摩押镇正将深秋宣传为宁静的访问时段。根据2025年的数据，10月份访问拱门国家公园的人数与7月份大致相当，但11月份的公园流量下降了近一半。

在美国感恩节假期之前，Hoodoo Moab 酒店的房价近期起价为每晚 $201，而10月份的平均价格为 $457。

远离喧嚣且价格实惠

许多旅行者选择在平季（shoulder season）出行，以便在目的地没有压力的情况下体验当地。不利的一面是，从阿拉斯加到希腊群岛，他们可能会发现一些季节性营业的商店和餐厅已经关门。

但在各种预算范围内，平季旅行者通常能获得更优惠的价格，而且在营业的场所，能获得更多的关注或更高的可用性。

“这是一个业内公开的秘密，11月通常是一年中最便宜的旅行时间，主要是因为每个人都在等待圣诞节才请假，”亚洲度假租赁公司 Luxe Nomad 的创始人兼首席执行官 Stephanie Chai 表示。

在旅游公司 Collette，今年和明年前往葡萄牙、摩洛哥和越南等目的地的最佳优惠中，有 85% 集中在 11 月的前几周。

“我们发现传统的秋季平季正变得更加细分，一些最具价值的优惠越来越多地集中在 11 月，即早秋需求高峰消退之后，感恩节假期高峰到来之前，”Collette 的总裁兼首席执行官 Jaclyn Leibl-Cote 表示。

提供河道驳船巡游的 European Waterways 在 10 月和 11 月的预订量增长了 17%。今年，11 月 1 日出发的行程正在促销，在法国南部米迪运河（Canal du Midi）上一艘 8 人驳船上度过一周的价格为每人 \$6,600，比季末票价优惠 20%。

Alhambra，自 1968 年起庆祝好运

Van Cleef & Arpels

高级珠宝，自 1906 年起位于旺多姆广场

The New York Times

INTERNATIONAL EDITION | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2026

The moment for a Catholic U.K. premier

David Gibson

OPINION

Andy Burnham, Britain's new prime minister, is exactly the kind of Catholic that America needs.

That might sound odd, especially given that Mr. Burnham was raised Catholic but rarely attends Mass and leads the center-left party in one of the West's least churchgoing nations. But Mr. Burnham's Catholicism is still central to who he is as a leader, and it informs his approach to policy, which is oriented toward the common good rather than culture wars.

"Catholic social teaching underpins my politics," he once said. In an expansive talk last year for the British religion and politics think tank Theos, Mr. Burnham called for moving from a crisis of trust between people and their government to a "culture of encounter," a phrase he learned from Pope Francis.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham of Britain is in some ways a throwback to Catholic politicians of past decades. He might be a signpost for the future.

That approach to politics — a “healthy ‘culture of negotiation,’” as Pope Leo XIV recently called it, that leaves no one behind — has gone missing from the American church and American politics, to the detriment of both. For decades, Catholic politics in the United States

has been more of an internecine battlefield than a search for common ground. Catholic politicians such as Al Smith, the “happy warrior,” in the 1920s, and R. Sargent Shriver, who helped found the Peace Corps and other programs in the war on poverty, in the 1960s, once found in politics a way to acceptance in society by focusing on social justice and the well-being of all.

More recently, Catholics in the political realm focused on divisive social issues such as the legal status of gay rights or abortion. (In their official political guidance, U.S. bishops called abortion the “preeminent priority” as markers to divide good Catholics from bad Catholics.) Those who didn’t measure up could be threatened with being barred from communion.

Prominent Catholic politicians including Vice President JD Vance spend time arguing with the pope about who is better at theology, while other Catholics argue over how much Latin to use at Mass.

The day Mr. Burnham took office, he visited one of London's leading centers dealing with the homeless, which had been founded by Cardinal Basil Hume. GIBSON, PAGE 10

PHOTOGRAPHS BY NANNA HEITMANN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
In the Moscow subway, where passengers can pay using facial recognition. To take full advantage of digital services, citizens must submit their biometric data to the authorities.

The New York Times publishes opinion from a wide range of perspectives in hopes of promoting constructive debate about consequential questions.

A tech utopia, under watch

Installing a Russian flag near one of the roughly 300,000 CCTV cameras in Moscow, one of the world's most watched cities. The CCTV network is linked to biometric databases.

MOSCOW

In Moscow, digital tools make life easier while aiding state surveillance

BY IVAN NECHEPURENKO

On the surface, today's Moscow is a technological wonderland. You can use your face to pay for almost anything, like subway fares, or even to finalize the purchase of an apartment. Robots scurry across sidewalks making 15-minute grocery deliveries, and driverless taxis are set to begin commercial service this year.

Underpinning many of the modern amenities is a robust digital infrastructure developed by the city government that has made life not only easier, but also safer. Policing aided by digital tools has helped cement Moscow's transformation from the raw, unforgiving place it was 25 years ago, plagued by home burglaries, street muggings and murders.

But there is a cost to the convenience and security: an expanding surveillance state.

Moscow's roughly 300,000 CCTV cameras make it one of the most watched cities in the world. It is impossible to avoid a lens while simply walking through the city. The same cameras that whisk subway passengers through turnstiles are also used to monitor and flag people.

In April, a Russian rock musician was detained by the police at a railway terminal in St. Petersburg after surveillance cameras mistook him for a similar-looking Ukrainian public figure wanted by the state. After checking his face and pulling at his hair to ensure it was not a wig, they let him go.

The CCTV network is linked to biometric databases. Submission of biometric data is voluntary in Russia, but it is encouraged in widespread advertisements, and citizens cannot take full advantage of digital services without complying.

These databases help the authorities target political dissent in addition to crime. Biometric feeds can be used to hunt down critics of the government after they hold gatherings. The days when outspoken Russians could flee to remote towns to avoid the authorities, as they did during Stalin's purges, are largely over.

As of July, around 10 million Russians were using biometrics-driven applications in some form, and the Kremlin wants to increase that number, pushing citizens to adopt the tools for identification not only at train stations, but also at airports. This year, Moscow City Hall announced that a biometric system would recognize passengers on buses and trams, automatically deducting their fare once they confirmed the transaction in an app.

Other major European cities also have large CCTV networks, most notably London. Moscow's, however, is more centralized and uses biometrics to identify people spotted by cameras with fewer restrictions.

With Russia's war in Ukraine, the stakes behind the growing surveillance have become higher.

Rumors of a new wave of military conscription, the first major mobilization since the early months of the war, have swept through Russia. While in the recent past it was relatively simple to evade a draft because enlistment offices were buried under paper files, artificial intelligence-enhanced digitized systems make that almost impossible now. MOSCOW, PAGE 4

Iran uses escalation to increase its leverage

NEWS ANALYSIS

The regime and its allies now hold sway over two major oil shipping routes

BY YEGANEH TORBATI

The routes to export oil out of the Middle East are diminishing. The price of energy is soaring. And Iran's neighbors could be about to endorse some measure of its authority over the Strait of Hormuz.

In recent days, Iran and its allies have used military escalation to upend any minimal sense of stability in the region, most dramatically in Yemen. That is shifting the momentum in Iran's war with the United States to its advantage.

The shift may not be decisive. The Islamic republic remains under immense economic pressure, with the ongoing U.S. naval blockade of its southern ports and escalating rounds of sanctions cutting it off from the world.

And yet, a series of recent attacks by Iran and its allies have expanded the scope of the conflict. That, analysts said, may have given Tehran greater leverage, at least at this moment.

The Iranian-allied Houthis of Yemen captured a Red Sea island last Friday, giving them a perch to disrupt shipping in another critical waterway for shipping oil out of the Middle East.

On Wednesday, the Houthi militia claimed that it had downed a Saudi fighter jet, hours after Saudi Arabia accused it of firing a drone near the Muslim holy city of Mecca.

A spokesman for the Houthi military, Yahya Saree, said on social media that the group had shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet over Yemeni territory using a locally made missile. The Saudi authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"The Houthi success in Yemen has swung the pendulum back in Iran's favor," said Gregory Brew, a senior analyst at Eurasia Group. Iran, he said, had managed to shift "the status quo without bringing back a return to full-scale war, which the regime likely doesn't want at this time."

While Iran backs the Houthis with weapons, cash and logistics, analysts say the Shiite militant group is neither a direct conduit for Iranian interests in Yemen nor fully independent of Tehran's influence.

The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, neared \$110 a barrel on Monday before easing back to \$106. The cost of this type of crude has risen 50 percent since the start of the war. That gives Iran further leverage, as high energy prices pose a political risk for President Trump as his party heads into elections in the fall.

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, has become increasingly reli-IRAN, PAGE 4

Universities embrace A.I. even as they fear it

CODY O'LOUGHLIN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Concern about the impact on students is countered by a need to stay relevant

BY MARK ARSENAULT, DANA GOLDSTEIN, ALAN BLINDER AND SARAH MERVOSH

The worries that artificial intelligence is degrading education have been building for months. Students are using it for everything, including cheating, and a recent report out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said it is triggering “cognitive surrender.”

Many university leaders are embracing A.I. with enthusiasm anyway.

As A.I. leaders warn about the dangers of their own technology, the dissonance between the optimism of university leaders and the fears of many students and professors may increase. Professors and students are often in a bind about what they should do: Use more A.I. to stay relevant, or dial back to preserve learning and thinking?

While some politicians and A.I. leaders are warning about possible dooms-day scenarios for humanity as A.I. models advance, many campus leaders are focused on the existential threat the technology poses to universities.

The committee at M.I.T. studying A.I. use released a number of alarming findings, including that the technology has caused “major shifts in campus culture,”

A report from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that A.I. use had caused “major shifts in campus culture,” with some students becoming isolated.

isolating students who are skipping office hours and ditching communal studying. Getting answers from a bot can create “the illusion of learning” for students who reach for A.I. “at the first hint of struggle,” the M.I.T. committee wrote in its August report.

At the same time, “the potential of these technologies to augment work across campus is immense,” the committee wrote.

The M.I.T. report crystallized some of the thinking in higher education about A.I., but top administrators have been embroiled in debates for several years. Administrators have often been the most eager to champion A.I. efforts, while many faculty and students remain more skeptical.

"I think you have to lean in, but you have to do so in a way that's thoughtful A.I., PAGE 8

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Spain is shifting away from 10 p.m. dinnertime

MADRID

Left and above, dining out in Madrid. Spaniards gave various reasons for eating earlier: age, young children, wanting better health or more energy in the morning. But dinner-time is still later than in most countries, with 9 p.m. the most popular reservation time.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY EMILIO PARRA DOIZTUA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Data shows people began eating earlier in evening during the pandemic

BY JONATHAN WOLFE

For generations, dinnertime for the Terrazas family, as in many households in Spain, was late. It usually began after 10 p.m. and often stretched past midnight.

But now, Antonio Terrazas, a tax adviser in Madrid, says his family sits down to eat around 9 p.m. When they dine out, they're also eating earlier, and have noticed their friends are, too.

"At first it was strange. We'd look at each other like, 'Madre mía, who would believe that we'd be seated at a restaurant and eating at 9 o'clock?" Mr. Terrazas said. "But not anymore."

In Spain, known for its night-owl energy, a quiet revolution appears to be unfolding in one of its best known cultural institutions: the late-night dinner.

Spaniards have long eaten later than people elsewhere in Europe, a tradition that many see as part of the national identity. By custom, families gather around their dinner tables late at night and restaurants remain filled long past the time when much of the industrialized world has turned in.

Spain held fast to the practice even as experts debated whether it was a drag on the economy, producing a work force that was more tired and less productive than it could be.

But evidence suggests that Spain is moving dinnertime up.

CoverManager, an online platform that manages reservations for thousands of Spanish restaurants, reports that half the dinner bookings now are for before 9 p.m., compared with 27 percent a decade ago. TheFork, a similar platform, said its 8 p.m. bookings in Spain had nearly tripled since 2019, while 10 p.m. reservations had halved.

In Spanish homes, too, there are subtle signs of a shift. A government survey conducted in 2024 in the Catalonia region suggests that people there are starting their evening routines, including dinnertime, moderately earlier compared with 2010. National data are not yet available, so experts said it was too early to draw broader conclusions.

While the reasons for the change are not entirely clear, Marta Junqué Surià, the director of Time Use Initiative, a nonprofit group based in Barcelona that advocates for policies around sleep and wellness, pointed to the pandemic, which ruptured old routines, and suggested that more people were seeking the health benefits associated with earlier mealtimes.

"We are heading toward more biological rhythms that allow us to eat better and, above all, get better rest," Ms. Junqué said.

"THE LATE DINNER IS DYING"

The New York Times asked CoverManager, which handles online bookings for about 16,000 Spanish restaurants, to analyze the roughly 330 million reservations it had recorded in the country over the past decade.

The data shows a clear pattern, said Thomas Jeanjean, chief executive of Hospitality Tech Group, which owns CoverManager. "The late dinner is dying," he said.

The typical dinner out in Spain today begins an hour earlier than before the pandemic, according to the data.

Later reservations are increasingly rare: 10 p.m. seatings made up 15 percent of dinner bookings last year, down from 30 percent in 2016. Tables for 11 p.m. accounted for 1.9 percent, compared with 5.7 percent in 2016.

"Dinner times have moved earlier," Mr. Jeanjean said, "and the curve is still bending."

The late dinner hasn't disappeared: People typically eat an hour later on weekends and about 20 minutes later in the summer than in the winter, the data indicates, and 9 p.m. remains the most popular reservation time.

TheFork, which works with more than 12,000 restaurants in Spain, said that surging foreign tourism was one factor in the shift, though it noted that about 70 percent of its reservations came from Spanish phone numbers.

CoverManager said tourists weren't driving the change, noting that users with Spanish numbers, who accounted for around 90 percent of its reservations, were booking tables for around an hour earlier than a decade ago.

Spanish society is transforming, having added more than a million foreign-born workers since 2018, many from Latin America. But in a country of 50 million people, the turn toward earlier dining is “a homegrown change of habit,” Mr. Jeanjean concluded.

A PANDEMIC PIVOT

Dining late is a relatively modern Spanish custom. During World War II, the dictator General Francisco Franco pushed clocks on the Spanish mainland forward an hour. Spain never reverted, meaning its official time runs ahead of its geographic position.

Late dining was also reinforced by the poverty of the postwar years, Ms. Junqué said, when many people worked two jobs, eating dinner only after their second shift. The Spanish workday, often

"I've found that when I suggest meeting early — say, at 8 or 8:30 — people never say no."

SOL FAUQUIER, above

punctuated by a long afternoon break, ends later than elsewhere in Europe.

The coronavirus pandemic, which prompted a nationwide 11 p.m. curfew in October 2020, encouraged people to dine out earlier and contributed to a revival of tardeo, the custom of eating, drinking and socializing in the late afternoon, according to bookings by Cover-Manager. Sometimes, experts say, Spaniards now replace dinner with tardeo.

After pandemic restrictions eased, many restaurants kept the earlier schedules to save on labor and operating costs, said José Luis Álvarez Almeida, the president of Hostelería de España, a business confederation representing the hospitality sector.

"NOT THE SPANISH SPIRIT"

In conversations this summer, many Spaniards said they were eating earlier than in years past. All seemed to have their own reasons — age, young children, a desire for better health or more energy in the morning.

Nacho Calvo Vila, 53, a restaurant owner in Barcelona, said he made the change around five years ago to improve digestion and get better sleep.

Now he goes to bed around 10 p.m., his old dinnertime.

Better rest has helped him make healthier decisions around his diet, temper his anxiety and regulate his emotions, he said.

“Sleep is fundamental,” he said. “I think it’s one of the biggest areas where mind-sets are changing, especially here in Spain.”

Out for drinks with colleagues in Madrid, Sol Fauquier, 46, said she now preferred to dine at 8 p.m. and suspects that others want to eat earlier, too, but social pressure discourages people from being the first to suggest it.

"I don't really face any resistance — quite the opposite," she said. "I've found that when I suggest meeting early — say, at 8 or 8:30 — people never say no."

Her colleague Isabel Cano, 23, interjected that dining so early was “unthinkable” and “not the Spanish spirit.”

A HAPPIER COUNTRY?

Experts argue that Spain could reap a host of benefits if people were to eat and go to bed earlier.

It would be “a more productive, healthier and happier country,” Ms. Junqué said.

She cited studies showing that, in countries where people sleep more, "productivity increases and the mental health of the population is better."

In 2013, a parliamentary commission found that Spaniards were getting about an hour less sleep than the European average, and linked worker fatigue to lower productivity and absences on the job.

But official measures to encourage earlier dinner times appear likely to face resistance. When Spain's left-leaning labor minister, Yolanda Díaz, suggested in 2024 that a late-night culture that pushed restaurants to remain open past midnight was "madness," Madrid's conservative regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, retorted that the national government preferred Spaniards to be "bored and at home."

Ms. Junqué argued that even if late dining fades, what it means for Spaniards to sit at the table with family and friends would not.

"We love being around people and socializing," she said. "Our Spanish culture is going to remain exactly what it is."

Carlos Barragán contributed reporting from Madrid.

After Louvre raid, a spate of museum heists troubles France

ANDREA MANTOVANI FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
MAEVA DESTOMBES AND HANS LUCAS/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

PARIS

BY MARK LANDLER

When thieves broke into a museum on the French Riviera last week and made off with two paintings by the Impressionist master Pierre-Auguste Renoir, President Emmanuel Macron was just a few miles away presiding over a conference about how to save the art of filmmaking.

The robbery, the latest in a string of thefts since the sensational heist of crown jewels at the Louvre last October, suggested that France has a bigger challenge protecting its artistic treasures.

Chinese porcelain, Huguenot crosses, gold and silver coins, Art Nouveau jewelry pieces, a jersey worn by the soccer star Zinedine Zidane in the World Cup — all have been purloined from museums, large and small, across the country.

The spate of thievery extends even to churches: People have stolen chalices, communion plates and other holy relics. Museum workers, the police and government officials are rattled. They worry about how to protect France's cultural patrimony in an era of increasingly violent criminal gangs, some of whom have broken into museums in broad daylight.

"There is a kind of collective psychosis that is being created," said Théo Caviezel, the mayor of Langres, a small town in eastern France. A day after the heist at the Louvre, thieves broke into a museum there dedicated to the French philosopher Denis Diderot and stole a collection of gold and silver coins.

Experts attribute the crimes to a confluence of factors including the ubiquity of social media, which makes it easier to recruit criminals for jobs and to identify the treasures held by even obscure museums. There is also the rising price of gold and silver, which makes coins and other precious objects tempting because they can be melted down and sold. And then there is what might be called the Louvre factor.

"Thieves all around the world are watching the news, too," said Arthur Brand, a private art detective in Amsterdam, who has helped retrieve museum goods. "So, they see the Louvre and they think 'Hey, don't we have a local museum?' What we see now is a plague of copycats."

There is no sign that Macron's confer-

"A building has front doors, it has windows, there is a roof. So, it is vulnerable."

Left, the Louvre's Apollo Gallery, the site of a daylight heist last year. Right, Father Johan Michel with valuable objects he took to his home in Laon, France, for safekeeping after a burglary at a church. The Louvre heist inspired "a plague of copy-cats," said Arthur Brand, an art detective.

ence in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, a town west of Nice, had any connection to last week's robbery. The police arrived at the scene, in the neighboring Riviera town of Cagnes-sur-Mer, within five minutes of an alarm ringing at 5:48 a.m. They narrowly missed the thieves. But in their haste to escape, the intruders left two of four Renoir paintings in the garden of the museum, which is housed in a stone villa where the artist once lived.

Because the stolen works are so well known — one, a portrait of the French actress Colonna Romano, painted around 1910, and the other, “Young Woman at the Well,” an oil painting from around 1886 — art experts said they would be easily traced and impossible to sell in the open market. Works such as these, they said, usually end up being traded on the black market.

Pierre Noual, a French lawyer who specializes in recovering art, said robberies like this were often ordered by "sponsors, probably foreign, who want to have great works, such great masters, in their private collections."

Noual noted that the Louvre heist had been preceded by several other robberies. Two happened in the same week at the Museum of President Jacques Chirac in Sarran, in central France, which houses 5,000 diplomatic gifts given to Chirac during his presidency, from 1995 to 2007. The museum was hit a third time last month, when the soccer jersey belonging to Zidane was stolen.

The vulnerability of museums, Noual said, has also been laid bare by a series of episodes in which vandals, some of them political activists, have defaced artworks by spraying or slashing them. France's weak legal response to these crimes, he said, has emboldened would-be thieves.

For all the publicity about museum thefts, though, the number of them may not actually be higher than normal. A report by the French National Assembly noted that since 2011, the number of thefts of museums has fluctuated, but within a range of 15 to 25 a year (the report does not cover 2026).

Some experts say that robberies may appear to be on the rise because museums are more open to talking about them. Thefts have historically been taboo because they expose weaknesses in security. The director of the Louvre, Laurence des Cars, resigned in February in part because of the swirl of questions about the brazen daylight robbery of the museum's Apollo Gallery.

But Charlotte Chambers Farah, a manager at the Art Loss Register in London, a service that maintains a database of lost or stolen art, said, “Museums are more transparent about disclosing items that have been stolen or missing, and appealing to people like us or the public for help returning things.”

The Louvre heist has thrown a harsh spotlight on security at museums across France. In July, the culture ministry published a plan with 33 proposed measures, including mapping out the most vulnerable sites, recruiting specialized police officers and adding extra security for particularly at-risk pieces.

For local officials like Caviezel, of Langres, however, there is no quick fix. He said the museum's staff had been traumatized by the robbery even though it had occurred when the museum was closed. They are now being trained to deal with security threats, which he said could make it harder to hire people. Two people have been arrested in connection with that case.

The town has installed additional surveillance cameras outside the museum, which is in a restored 16th-century mansion known as the House of Enlightenment. It plans to put bars on the windows and install a machine that, if triggered by an alarm, generates smoke, obscuring escape paths for intruders.

But, as Caviezel noted: "A building has front doors, it has windows, there is a roof. So, it is vulnerable."

The theft of art, experts like to say, is as old as art itself.

Caviezel pointed out that the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in 1911, a century before the latest heist.

“Even the Louvre, with a budget of millions and millions, the most visited museum in the world, is vulnerable,” he said.

Giulia Imbert contributed reporting from Paris.

World

PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

JONATHAN STOKES FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Clockwise from above left: three homes in a mountainside town in the west of Corsica that were attacked by separatists in March 2023; the Corsican flag; and Irène Valentin, who moved to Corsica from Paris four years ago to reconnect with her family's roots.
JONATHAN STOKES FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

In Corsica, separatists bomb vacation homes

AJACCIO, CORSICA

They have been fighting for independence from France for half a century

BY RONDA KAYSEN

The first explosions happened just after 10 p.m. on a Sunday night in October 2023. The sound reverberated against the mountains and down the Corsican coastline.

Before daylight, the damage was done in the French Mediterranean island: 34 properties — mostly unoccupied vacation homes, some still under construction — had been bombed or burned, leaving a path of destruction across 20 cities and villages.

In recent years, tensions between full-time residents and vacation-home owners have boiled over around the world, including in Barcelona, Mexico City, the French Alps and even the Poconos in the United States. But the stakes are especially high in Corsica, where a group of separatists has taken direct aim at those very homes, blowing one up as recently as March 2026.

Corsica's separatist movement has been fighting for independence from

France for half a century. A paramilitary wing of the movement, the National Liberation Front of Corsica, has targeted second homes, typically vacant ones, in order to send the message that Corsica is for Corsicans.

Even moderate Corsicans argue that homeownership should be restricted to longtime residents, seeing that as a way to control the island's destiny.

The separatists claimed credit for the 2023 bombings amid a period of violent upheaval on the island that had already spurred the French government to consider granting Corsicans limited autonomy. Next month, in a critical step toward that goal, the French Senate will vote on a measure to amend the Constitution to recognize the region as having its own unique history, culture and language. The amendment would also give the local government limited power to set some laws and regulations.

"It was a tactical success," André Fazi, a political scientist at the University of Corsica, said of the bombing campaign.

If the amendment ultimately prevails, it would be the first time any region in metropolitan France has been granted such status. But for many in Corsica, it's not enough. The amendment doesn't tackle a central tenet of the independence movement: giving Corsicans say over who gets to buy property.

Last month, about 15 masked and heavily armed members of the liberation front held a news conference and delivered a blunt threat to tourists and second-home owners.

One of the activists read from a prepared statement: “Until our national rights are recognized and respected, we have only one message to send them: Stay home. And, if that’s not the case, do not consider yourself safe on our national territory.”

Corsica, a mostly rural island, is the poorest region in metropolitan France. With a strong hunting culture and a powerful mafia presence, it is also the most heavily armed, with more guns per capita than any other region in the country. The island is deeply dependent on tourism: Its population swells in the summer to three million people from 365,000.

The history of bombings has neither dampened the second-home market nor deterred visitors. Second homes account for 37 percent of Corsica's housing stock, and as much as 50 percent in some coastal areas and tourist towns, according to a report this year by the Corsican Assembly.

Second-home buyers and short-term rental companies often scoop up apartments, so they are not available year round, driving up rents and home prices for those living on local salaries. Corsicans often live in mountain villages, commuting along steep roads to the coastal cities for work.

But the root of the frustration is not merely real estate.

Corsicans also want autonomy on the island, which has its own language, and to maintain a cultural identity distinct from that of mainland France. For many Corsicans, the homeowners who arrive by plane or ferry are a reminder that their island is not really theirs.

“We consider the fight for the land intertwined with the struggle for Corsica,” said Petru Antone Tomasi, a spokesman for Nazione, a political party in Corsica that advocates independence but opposes the amendment, seeing it as a watered-down measure that would end the national conversation about independence for a generation.

In interviews this summer, Corsican students, retirees, shopkeepers and office workers expressed a longing to hear their language widely spoken and an eagerness for self-determination, but saw full independence as unrealistic.

The national liberation front has taken responsibility for thousands of attacks since it formed in 1976. While the group, which is now a loose affiliation of factions, claims that it spares lives, nine security officials have been killed over the decades. Several major attacks were coordinated, like one in 1991 that targeted more than 80 vacation homes. In

2012, armed assailants wearing balaclavas pulled a Parisian financier and six others from his villa, before blowing up the property. Over 40 properties were targeted that year.

Since 2024, 15 homes have been either burned or bombed. A Paris-based counterterroism investigation of the 2023 bombings and other recent acts of destruction led to 10 arrests. Prosecutors have opened an investigation into the recent news conference.

"Until our national rights are recognized and respected, we have only one message to send them: Stay home."

Despite the simmering threat, French mainlanders and foreigners continue to buy and build second homes on Corsica, an island of breathtaking beauty with white sand beaches, turquoise waters and jagged mountains cutting a rugged spine down the center.

Standing in her 2.5 million-euro (\$2.9 million) home in southern Corsica, Madeleine Michaud, a retiree from Lyon, France, demonstrated how, with the press of a button, her rear exterior wall retracts, transforming the living room and the kitchen into an extension of the outside, with unobstructed views of the sea. Erecting the wall, which cost €150,000, “was challenging, because in Corsica nobody knows this kind of technology,” she said.

During construction of the home, Ms. Michaud, 65, noticed that some of the workers had nationalist tattoos, giving her pause. But she said she had a wide network of Corsican friends and doubted that her home, which is in a gated community, would be targeted. "They don't care about me," said Ms. Michaud, who nevertheless requested to use her middle and maiden names as a precaution.

Yet some buyers do worry. Irène Valentin, a real estate agent who lives in northern Corsica, regularly fields calls from anxious prospective buyers. "Some of them are very afraid," she said. "They know somebody who had a house in the village and the house was burned. They want to come here and they want to be reassured."

She suggests that they get to know the people who live in the village, frequent the locally owned shops and hire local workers.

Ms. Valentin also gets calls from potential buyers who are completely unbothered by the tensions and appear oblivious to the delicate dynamic.

"They can be very arrogant," she said. "I say to myself: If they behave that way here, they'll get their house burned."

Detained and accused of plotting to kill the prime minister

thing to do, but it was very successful."

In Trinidad and Tobago, Middle Eastern minority is under harsh scrutiny

BY ZANE IRWIN AND PRIOR BEHARRY

Above left, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago. Above right, Genevievre Hadeed and Dominic Hadeed. Their home was raided by police officers in June and they were taken into custody alongside Star Sabga, Ms. Hadeed's aunt.
VINCENT ALBAN/THE NEW YORK TIMES

Until recently, Star Sabga spent her days making artisanal cheese and ranting about politics over the phone with her niece.

Ms. Sabga, 69, lived in a luxury seaside apartment in a suburb of Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. Her niece, Genevievre Hadeed, and her niece's husband, a bottled-water magnate named Dominic Hadeed, helped cover her costs.

But in June, that peaceful lifestyle was upended when police officers detained the Hadeeds and Ms. Sabga, accusing them of plotting to assassinate the prime minister.

The Hadeeds were held without charges for nearly a month, and Ms. Sabga for more than two months, under Trinidad's state of emergency, a measure in place almost continuously since last year in response to rising violent crime, according to officials. The state of emergency allows the authorities to carry out warrantless searches and detain people indefinitely without charges.

The detentions gripped the Caribbean nation, setting off a national debate about the government's use of surveillance and preventive detention. The saga also exposed racial and political friction surrounding Trinidad's Middle Eastern-descended minority, to which Ms. Sabga and the Hadeeds belong.

Kamla Persad-Bissessar, the prime minister, did not respond to questions about the cases of Ms. Sabga and the Hadeeds. But she defended the state of emergency, saying to reporters last week, "It is very clear that the crime stats are down."

She added, "Maybe it's not the best

Governments around the region have increasingly turned to severe tactics in response to surging rates of violence. In El Salvador, more than 90,000 people have been detained, and nearly 500 have died in state custody, during a four-year state of emergency, according to Amnesty International. Honduras and Jamaica have also used states of exception, during which certain rights are suspended amid an emergency, to the alarm of human rights groups.

Sandra Pellegrini, the Latin America regional team lead at Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, or A.C.L.E.D., a U.S.-based nonprofit organization that monitors conflict and protest data, has studied the use of emergency powers in the region. She said any reductions in crime had often been short-lived and had come at the cost of civil liberties.

“Whether you're a criminal or not, you're still supposed to be able to access a fair trial,” she said, noting that protesters and government critics have at times become targets under law enforcement agencies with weakened restrictions.

Before his legal saga made headlines, Mr. Hadeed had been known as a critic of the administration. He criticized its tax policies in a public forum in March and objected to the government's decision to cancel a lease for land his businesses had operated on since 2007. The Hadeeds were also known as prominent members of Trinidad's Syrian-Lebanese minority group.

The nation is split almost evenly between Afro-Trinidadians, many of whom are descended from enslaved Africans, and Indo-Trinidadians, who trace their roots to indentured workers from India. Many people also have mixed heritage and several prominent minority groups exist, including the Syrian-Lebanese.

Middle Eastern-descended Trini-dadians have historically been associated with the People's National Movement, currently the country's main opposition party, and a notable number of successful businesspeople in the country are of Syrian-Lebanese descent, according to Sam Salloum, a businessman who is part of the community.

Politicians in the United National Congress, the governing party, frequently criticize the economic dominance of the Syrian-Lebanese community — often referred to as “the 1 percent” — and accuse them of political corruption and organized crime.

In June, the attorney general, John Jeremie, issued warnings to the ethnic minority during a motion to extend the nation's state of emergency. He called them a "gang" that had "taken over" the opposition party.

Members of Parliament enthusiastically thumped their desks, punctuating Mr. Jeremie's remarks.

Mr. Jeremie also confirmed that some

Syrian-Lebanese people have had their U.S. visas revoked. He denied his government's involvement in those decisions, but implied that U.S. intelligence agencies had flagged them for criminal ties. (The Hadeeds' lawyer confirmed that their visas were among those that were revoked.)

The detentions have exposed racial and political frictions.

Ms. Sabga read about Mr. Jeremie's comments in the next day's newspaper, according to court documents. Angry, she called her niece, Ms. Hadeed, to vent her frustration with how her community was being treated.

Less than two weeks later, just after dawn on June 24, the Hadeeds were startled awake when police officers, some with machine guns, swept into their home, according to affidavits by the Hadeeds. Officers declared that they had a search warrant and seized electronic devices, including those of the Hadeeds' three children.

It was not until Mr. Hadeed was separated from his wife and detained for multiple days that he was given a reason for the arrests: The Hadeeds were accused of plotting to assassinate the prime minister and other government leaders and of fostering ties to transnational crime.

Mr. Hadeed was “numb with shock, disbelief and horror,” he wrote in an affidavit denying the allegations. He later learned that Ms. Sabga, his wife’s aunt, had also been detained.

The Hadeeds and Ms. Sabga denied the accusations. Through their lawyer, they declined interviews.

In an affidavit, Mr. Hadeed said he suffered from medical conditions that were exacerbated in prison. Ms. Sabga and Ms. Hadeed were held in a women's prison. In affidavits, they said they had been subjected to strip searches and filthy lodgings with no privacy, even to relieve themselves.

In the following weeks, court records revealed that a central piece of evidence in the case was a recording of the June 11 phone call between Ms. Sabga and Ms. Hadeed, which the authorities had intercepted. To date, the authorities have not explained why they tapped the call in the first place, saying in court documents only that security agencies were specially trained to monitor “persons of interest.”

Roger Alexander, the homeland security minister, cited 13 written excerpts from Ms. Sabga's impassioned conversation with her niece.

Ms. Sabga used a slur against the prime minister, an Indo-Trinidadian woman, and called her “a target.”

"Somebody's getting a bullet in their head," Ms. Sabga said. "What has to happen for this to cool down is the death of one of her members of Parliament."

Mr. Alexander, who did not respond to requests for comment, wrote in a court document that those statements were part of “a developing plot or chatter pointing to threats to the life of persons in public life.” He said the authorities had worked with U.S. “partner agencies” and found that the Hadeeds and Ms. Sabga had connections to criminals, to whom they could “communicate deadly intent.”

The U.S. authorities, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the International Law Enforcement division of the Department of Justice, did not confirm or deny any criminal investigations involving the Hadeeds or Ms. Sabga.

The intelligence that the authorities relied upon to detain the Hadeeds and Ms. Sabga was called into question when a local news outlet posted a leaked recording of the 15-minute call in July. The recording showed Ms. Sabga had been privately venting her frustrations about what she saw as a political attack on her community, which she insisted was not involved in criminal activity.

The leak prompted intense and wide-ranging reactions.

Many condemned Ms. Sabga's use of slurs against the prime minister, for which Ms. Sabga expressed regret in an affidavit. Others saw the recording as discrediting the government's claims of an assassination plot. The call did not involve Mr. Hadeed, raising questions about why the authorities detained him.

The state of emergency is scheduled to expire this week, and hundreds of detainees are set to be released. Many, like Ms. Sabga and the Hadeeds, have not been charged with any crime.

Zane Irwin reported from New York. Prior Beharry reported from Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

A robot making a delivery in Moscow. Internet services have been shut down at various points this year, temporarily rendering many of the city's prized digital services useless.
NANNA HEITMANN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

A tech utopia, under watch

MOSCOW, FROM PAGE 1

The authorities introduced electronic summonses that carry the full legal weight of paper notices after thousands of Russians fled the draft in 2022.

In March, Vlad, 28, an art and fashion photographer, received a summons to appear at a military enlistment office for a mandatory medical examination. Through the State Services app — a centralized portal for government services, medical care and identity verification — he learned that he had been barred from leaving the country until he complied.

Vlad, who asked that his last name be withheld for fear of repercussions, said he now lived “in fear” as he defied the summons, which he believes could be a prelude to being sent off to war.

"There is total control because you give up so much data that your every step can be traced," he said. He has stopped using the subway, terrified of the cameras.

Kremlin-aligned analysts argue that the government is using convenient apps and data collection to build a system that is more responsive to people's needs than what can be provided by Western democracies, which struggle to plan long term because of changes in government and, in some cases, limit digital services because of privacy concerns.

Russia remains steps away from China's "social credit" system, which rates people on their behavior in financial, legal and other matters and limits the freedom of offenders. But Russian technocrats clearly view Beijing's digital architecture as a blueprint.

Gleb Kuznetsov, a political analyst who previously worked for a major Kremlin-aligned think tank, pointed to Moscow under its longtime mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, and to Shenzhen, the Chinese high-tech megacity, as urban models superior to Western capitals.

"Sobyanin's approval rating is high not because 'the elections lack competition,' Mr. Kuznetsov said in response to written questions, "but because the city government genuinely works in the interest of its residents."

Russia remains steps away from China's "social credit" system. But Russian technocrats clearly view Beijing's digital architecture as a blueprint.

The Russian authorities, however, can be quick to pull the plug on the networks undergirding these digital amenities when they perceive a security threat, highlighting a tension between technocratic agencies and the security services.

In March, for instance, mobile internet services were abruptly shut down for more than two weeks across much of central Moscow, including in the subway system, temporarily rendering many of the city's prized digital services useless.

Residents were left stunned by the blackout, which some analysts speculated was a result of intense paranoia in the Russian state after the killing of the

Iranian leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“Russia is going to go back to a situation 25 years ago where you have ‘patchwork globalization,’” said Jeremy Morris, an ethnographer who is one of the few Western academics who continue to conduct fieldwork in Russia.

"You could go into one place and it would be super, super cybernetic and technological," he added, "and then you walk out of the zone of coverage and you're back to a basic economy."

According to a Russian official involved in developing digital infrastructure, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, a quiet war is being waged within the state.

Technocratic agencies like the Ministry of Digital Development, he said, are colliding with the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B. — specifically its notorious political-policing department. While it has access to digital tools, the F.S.B. was not involved in creating them. It favors old-school analog methods of monitoring and controlling society, the official said, even if that means breaking the technology that the technocrats spent billions building.

The F.S.B.'s stance is partly driven by institutional self-preservation, as A.I. threatens to erode the justification for its sprawling apparatus of human agents, the official said.

Ultimately, both the digital and security agencies are competing for the ear and mind of one man: President Vladimir V. Putin, who has demanded that the government develop A.I. while insulating it from Western influence.

In April, speaking at a high-profile Kremlin meeting on A.I., Mr. Putin framed the stakes in existential terms. "The sovereignty of the Russian state in the near future — and, without exaggeration, its very existence — depends on our ability to perform well in A.I., along with digital platforms and autonomous systems," he said.

Yet for all of its ambitions, Russia does not have the infrastructure and hardware to develop the technology in isolation from China and the United States. Western sanctions related to the invasion of Ukraine have limited Russia's access to cutting-edge chips, and many of its top technical minds have left the country since the war began in 2022.

Russia's two flagship A.I. models — one developed by the country's largest state-owned bank and the other by its leading domestic tech company — were "inspired" by or heavily rely on Chinese open-source architectures.

In the end, said Ilya Grashchenkov, a Moscow-based political analyst, Russia is likely to be defined by what he called an attempt to “combine the seemingly incompatible.” That, he said, involves building an “external digital perimeter” to close the country off from the world, while accelerating digitization within Russia.

Vlad, the photographer who received the military summons, said he would gladly do away with the frictionless, high-tech conveniences if it meant getting back the freedom that was truly missing.

Life in Russia, he said, now resembles "living in an oxygen mask."

Iran uses escalation to increase leverage

IRAN, FROM PAGE 1

ant on the Red Sea, since Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, the critical Persian Gulf waterway for global oil and gas exports, early in the war. But the Houthis announced a blockade on Saudi ships in July, firing on passing vessels in the Red Sea and attacking oil facilities in the kingdom.

Oil exports from Saudi Arabia plunged last month to their lowest level in at least 13 years. Compounding its problems, a pipeline that carries oil to the kingdom's Red Sea ports was temporarily shut down on Friday after a drone attack from inside Iraqi territory, the Saudi energy ministry said.

While it was unclear who was behind the attack, Saudi Arabia has in the past accused Iran-backed militias in Iraq of attacking its energy infrastructure, and Mr. Trump said on Saturday that Iran was “probably” responsible.

Since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran began in February, the longstanding U.S. security guarantee for its Gulf allies has looked less assured, with those countries coming under missile and drone attacks from Iranian forces.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia urged Mr. Trump to take military action against the Houthis, but the president said he was not willing to do so, according to officials with knowledge of the conversations. Mr. Trump said on Saturday that the Houthis had conveyed to his administration that they do not want a fight with the United States.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains far below what it was before the war, though a limited number of ships had been getting through with the help of U.S. naval escorts.

That meant Iran was losing some leverage in the Strait of Hormuz, said Behnam Ben Taleblu, an expert on Iran at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington think tank that is hawkish on Iran.

"The regime is now clawing it back elsewhere," he said, with its allies staging attacks in Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

"Iran's military strategy is both escalatory and predictable. It's all about cross-domain escalation for an increasingly risk-tolerant Tehran."

Iran has also been stepping up attacks against U.S. warships patrolling the Persian Gulf. Mohsen Rezaei, Iran's top national security official, said that Iran had tested what he called its first anti-ship missile against a U.S. ship. The U.S. military responded to Iranian attacks on its warships by destroying several Iranian crude oil carriers.

Iran's attacks were highly risky, Mr. Taleblu said.

"These high and fast-flying systems can be fired from further inland and, if they strike a U.S. vessel, could cause a significant loss of life," he said.

Iran's actions in the region complicated the BRICS summit of emerging economies in New Delhi last weekend, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India urging Iran's president, Masoud Pezeshkian, to safeguard “freedom of navigation and commerce.” India's own fuel imports are threatened by the ongoing conflict.

Recent attacks by Iran and its allies have expanded the scope of the conflict, giving Tehran greater leverage, for the moment.

Mr. Pezeshkian used his speech at one of the summit's events to criticize American power. "Who said it should decide for the entire world, that others have no rights, and that whatever they want everyone else has to obey?" he said. "This is something we will not accept."

A planned meeting between Iran and several Gulf Arab countries it has attacked during the war was indefinitely postponed on Sunday, underscoring how diplomatic efforts have struggled to defuse a widening Mideast conflict.

Iranian officials had said they expected to meet Arab counterparts in Oman on Monday to discuss the status of the Strait of Hormuz. But late on Sunday night, Badr Albusaidi, the Omani foreign minister, said the gathering had been postponed “in the interests of consensus.”

As the conflict has dragged on, Gulf states like the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are having to manage their relationships with a newly emboldened Iran. The aborted attempt at the joint meeting underscored how difficult it is to forge a common approach, however.

Aaron Boxerman contributed reporting from Tel Aviv.

SAHIBA CHAWDHARY/REUTERS
President Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran in New Delhi for the BRICS summit over the weekend. “Iran’s military strategy is both escalatory and predictable,” one expert said.

How Houthi militants have learned to arm themselves

PLANET LABS PBC

They rely less on Iran, using A.I. and other tools to develop their weapons

BY NICHOLAS KULISH

The popular image of Yemen's Houthi rebels is of men on the backs of pickup trucks, firing AK-47s into the desert air.

Yet the group has launched long-range missile strikes at Israel, more than a thousand miles away. The Houthis prey on ship traffic in the Red Sea with naval drones. And evidence points to their growing ambition to use artificial intelligence and other means to produce more advanced weaponry themselves, making them less reliant on their sponsors in Iran.

Though they are backed by Iran, for months the Houthis remained on the sidelines of this year's fighting in the region. That ended in July, when they declared a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia. Since then, they have marched south, seizing the historic port city of Mokha last week while capturing islands near the narrow strait known as the Bab al-Mandab, tightening the group's grip on the choke point at the southern end of the Red Sea.

"They use every opportunity to build their capability, to test their capability, such that they are now the most lethal nonstate actor in the entire Middle East," said Timothy A. Lenderking, the former U.S. special envoy for Yemen, speaking at a Middle East Institute forum last week.

A report by Anthropic last week on the misuse of A.I. said that “a cell of threat actors based in northern Yemen,” where the Houthis have their stronghold, used Claude for “a sustained effort to develop guided weapons.” Despite

Anthropic's safeguards, the company said, the cell had proceeded as far as the test firing of a guided rocket.

The Houthis still rely on their Iranian sponsors for the most sophisticated components in their drones and ballistic missiles, but as the Anthropic report suggested, they have in recent years become much more advanced at building their own weapons systems.

LABORATORY OF WAR

The Houthis and their Iranian advisers were already experimenting with unmanned surface vessels a decade ago. The militant group used a remote-controlled boat loaded with explosives to attack a Saudi frigate all the way back in 2017, killing two people in the process.

After the Houthis captured Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014, Saudi Arabia led a military coalition propping up the country's government and fighting back against the militants. A cease-fire was declared in 2022, but experts say the group has used the intervening years to dramatically advance its capabilities.

"The volume of goods being brought into Yemen to make weapons increased exponentially and the number of routes being used increased exponentially after the truce was announced in Yemen in 2022," said Peter Salisbury, an adjunct professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in New York who has studied Houthi weapons manufacturing closely.

At first, Yemen was a laboratory for

Smoke from an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia after it was attacked by Houthi militants last week. The Houthis also use drones to prey on ship traffic in the Red Sea.

"They are now the most lethal nonstate actor in the entire Middle East."

Iran's pursuit of warfare. Increasingly, it is the factory, too. Mr. Salisbury said that larger parts like missile chassis were fabricated in Houthi-controlled territory rather than sent from Iran.

According to Farzin Nadimi, a senior fellow with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, the Iranian defense industry has dedicated design bureaus and factories for weapons systems specifically for proxy forces like the Houthis that are “simple to assemble, simple to move, simple to prepare for launch and simple to use.”

RESILIENT SUPPLY CHAINS

The Iranians encouraged the Houthis to develop additional supply chains for components from places like China, whose factories supply many of the drone parts used around the world.

"There's a lot the Houthis don't need anymore, and the reason they don't need it anymore is because they've been able to use the global black market supply chain to get most of the things they need," said Kevin Donegan, a former commander of the U.S. 5th fleet, whose area of responsibility included the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, and who built the first intelligence fusion cell to study Iranian support for the Houthis.

"They do need key components still, especially for the missiles to make them effective," Mr. Donegan said. "They have the ratlines that still can bring those components because they're not the big pieces."

Those might include guidance systems, rocket engines, and wing tips and fins that require a higher degree of precision engineering, Mr. Salisbury said.

While the U.S. Navy's blockade focuses on large container ships and tankers, smaller components can be smuggled on medium-size vessels like the traditional dhows plowing the region's waters.

Increased self-sufficiency is not necessarily the same thing as complete independence from their sponsors in Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. "I think they pretty much still need a lot of help from the I.R.G.C.," Mr. Nadimi said.

He said he believed that there were "significant numbers" of I.R.G.C. officers involved in the planning and execution of the current phase of the fighting in Yemen.

A Houthi delegation traveled to Tehran in July for the funeral of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. After the funeral, they boarded a flight home operated by Iran's Mahan Air, which is under sanctions imposed by the U.S. government, back to Sanaa.

The Saudis and the Yemeni government believe that the aircraft carried Iranian military personnel and weaponry. When airstrikes prevented the plane from landing at Sanaa International Airport, the flight diverted and managed to land elsewhere in Houthi-controlled territory.

The Houthis then launched retaliatory attacks on Abha International Airport, in the southern part of Saudi Arabia. It was the first Houthi attack on Saudi Arabia since 2022, and began a new and unpredictable phase of fighting, with an adversary that spent years planning and advancing its tactics and technology.

If the Anthropic report is accurate, the group that was using Claude in northern Yemen tried to develop a multistage ballistic missile with a range of over 1,200 miles (more than 1,900 kilometers) and a hypersonic glide vehicle. The would-be weapons designers were careful to avoid the company's safeguards, hiding the true purpose of the guidance systems they were designing from the very system helping them design it.

Anthropic said there was no evidence that they were successful in “fielding an operational device.” The users queried Claude Code about why their field test had failed. “Nevertheless, we have evidence that the actors had already built an offline simulation toolkit that does not rely on Claude,” the report said.

But recent history suggests that they will keep working to improve their capabilities.

"Keep in mind that the Houthis are always on the move," said Mr. Lenderking, the former U.S. envoy. "They're extremely entrepreneurial."

Vivian Nereim contributed reporting.

Trump is unbowed in his push to control elections

NEWS ANALYSIS WASHINGTON

Mail ballots in Phoenix in 2022. President Trump argues that he is trying to secure the integrity of U.S. elections, but critics say his actions needlessly sow doubt about results.
REBECCA NOBLE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Supreme Court's ruling against curbs on voting by mail won't deter him

BY ZOLAN KANNO-YOUNGS

The U.S. Supreme Court this week dealt President Trump a major blow when it blocked his executive order to restrict mail ballots. But Mr. Trump's battle to assert control over the election process is far from finished.

The stymied attempt to have the U.S. Postal Service screen mail ballots was just one piece of a broader effort involving the full power of the federal government to take more control of state-run elections.

Just days before the Supreme Court on Monday blocked Mr. Trump's mail ballot order, the U.S. Justice Department sent threatening letters to at least 30 top election officials across the country, escalating a fight to gain access to private voter data and election records.

Federal agents are scouring voter rolls managed by states for noncitizens, despite there being no evidence of widespread fraud. Mr. Trump's homeland security secretary recently pushed for an investigation into whether a commonly used voting machine can be trusted, casting doubt on digital voting systems.

“This is far from over,” said Benjamin Hovland, who was ousted from the independent, bipartisan Election Assistance Commission by the Trump administration this year.

Mr. Hovland acknowledged that the Supreme Court's decision mitigated "real-world impact" on voters and election workers, particularly since voters in some states had already begun to mail in their ballots. But he said Mr. Trump's actions were alarming.

“What you're seeing is using the apparatus of government, using federal agencies, using taxpayer dollars, to push that narrative that only undermines confidence in our democracy and ultimately hurts voters and election officials,” Mr. Hovland said.

Mr. Trump argues that he is trying to secure the integrity of the vote, but his claims of widespread fraud in the election system have been investigated and debunked repeatedly, and critics say his actions needlessly sow doubt about the outcome of the vote.

Mr. Trump on Tuesday slammed the court's ruling as "horrible, highly political" and criticized the three justices he appointed during his first term.

"It is a Court that will go down as having rendered some of the most destructive, hurtful, and damaging decisions in our Country's history," Mr. Trump said on social media.

But the Supreme Court's decision on Monday was more of an exception than a rule when it comes to checking Mr. Trump's power in his second term. During Mr. Trump's first term, his attempts to undermine the election results in 2020 ran into stiff pushback not only from the courts but also from his own officials. In his return to the White House, Mr. Trump has surrounded himself with loyalists willing to turn his obsession over the United States' election systems into a blitz of federal actions. He has also installed election deniers in key posts.

The Supreme Court's decision did, however, add to a string of mounting losses for Mr. Trump, who said this year that he wanted to “take over” and nationalize elections. Even before the Supreme Court decision, two lower court judges ruled that Mr. Trump's changes to mail-in balloting were most likely illegal and should not be imposed so close to the November midterm elections.

Trump administration lawyers had urged the Supreme Court to step in and clear the way for its plan to use the Postal Service to screen ballot envelopes after they are submitted by state elections officials.

The new rules would require states to submit lists of voters approved to receive mail ballots. The Postal Service would then deliver the ballots only to the voters on the lists.

In addition to the loss on Monday, Mr. Trump's other attempts to pressure states over the election process have faced legal setbacks.

The Justice Department has sued 30 states for unredacted voter lists, which include personal information like driver's license numbers and partial Social Security numbers. They have lost 23 of those cases. Decisions are pending in the rest.

The federal actions, as well as the various court decisions, have caused alarm among local election officials and voters, according to election experts.

This month, the chief election officials in seven Republican-controlled states filed a brief to the Supreme Court, arguing that with less than two months until Election Day, it was too close to the midterms to make any major changes to the election process.

Some states including North Carolina, Delaware and Alabama had already mailed out their ballots, even before the Supreme Court issued a final decision.

“Attempting to implement the rule now will almost certainly lead to mistakes, delays and confusion for both voters and election officials,” the brief stated.

But it was not just the pending Postal Service rule that caused confusion and upended coordination among election officials and the federal government.

The administration has also asked the

Supreme Court to intervene to allow it to move forward with an effort to build citizenship lists by merging data from various agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. A lower court has so far blocked the use of that tool, which administration officials argue is needed to verify citizenship for voting, among other purposes.

In July, Markwayne Mullin, the homeland security secretary, threatened election officials in a speech and said they could face prison time if they did not comply with the Trump administration's efforts to change election policies. Officials in the Justice Department have also explored whether they could bring criminal charges against state or local election officials if the administration determined they had not sufficiently safeguarded their computer systems.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which sits under the Homeland Security Department, is demanding that states change the way they conduct elections or risk losing tens of millions in federal terrorism-prevention funds.

Some states had already mailed out their ballots, even before the Supreme Court issued a final decision.

Kimball W. Brace, the president of Election Data Services, an organization that works with local governments on election preparedness, said he did not expect the Supreme Court decision to stop Mr. Trump's broader effort to pursue his election grievances.

Distrust of the election process among voters is growing ahead of the November elections. A survey from The Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts showed that only 34 percent of American adults trust government certifications of election results “a great deal” or “quite a bit,” down from 40 percent in 2024.

Mr. Trump has also gutted the government's election security infrastructure. Experts warn that his cuts to agencies tasked with coordinating election security with state governments could reduce visibility into foreign influence campaigns and cyberattacks.

Mr. Brace said all the executive actions have fueled pressure on local election officials.

"They don't want to deal with this crazy pressure that various interests and various individuals have pushed on the election administration," he said.

Affordability: The buzzword dominating the midterms

Both parties emphasize inflation and the cost of living in their campaigns

Across the United States, candidates are promising to lower the costs of necessities. Food prices are up by about 3 percent year over year, and the price of homes has risen by around 50 percent since the start of the pandemic.
RUTH FREMSON/THE NEW YORK TIMES
MIKE BLAKE/REUTERS

BY AUDRA D. S. BURCH

Affordability has become the buzzword of the midterm campaigns.

Around the United States, candidates are trying hard to relate to voters' economic pain. But Republicans are handicapped by the grind of war, promises they made on inflation during the 2024 campaign and a president who alternatively insists that prices have declined and then dismisses the issue as a con job created by Democrats.

Democrats may still have to answer for inflation that hit a four-decade high as the Covid-19 pandemic was receding; Republicans continue to blame today's economic woes on the Biden administration.

Though the overall economy is resilient — 162,000 jobs were added to the market last month — voters across the political divide rank the cost of living as a top issue in public polls. Even those who can comfortably cover the basics worry about their economic future.

"Candidates are responding to what people are feeling, what people know on a day-to-day basis and what they see at the grocery stores or gas station. You can't out-message their reality," said Todd Belt, a professor at George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management.

"We are now seeing more specific, material ways the candidate plans to make things better."

THE BASIC PITCH "I feel your pain."

Democrats seized on affordability as a serious crisis, recasting an issue that helped propel Mr. Trump's return to the White House into a midterm weakness for Republicans. Voters have expressed deep skepticism of President Trump's handling of the economy.

In local, state and national races, candidates — both incumbents running on their records and newcomers with fresh approaches — are promising to lower the price of necessities such as groceries, gas, utilities, housing, child care and health care. Solutions include suspending gas taxes, imposing rent caps and renegotiating drug prices in government programs like Medicare.

They are going on “affordability tours,” speaking in small-town diners, craft breweries, steel mills and even picket lines to pitch their version of the American dream and hear firsthand the choices some voters are being forced to make to pay their bills.

Roy Cooper, a Democrat running for the Senate in North Carolina, calls his tour “Make Stuff Cost Less.” Byron Donalds, the Republican nominee for governor in Florida, refers to his as the “Defending the Florida Dream” tour. And in South Carolina, Dr. Annie Andrews, the Democratic nominee for the Senate, is hosting a tour called “Gas, Grits and Groceries.”

With less than two months before the midterm elections, candidates are focusing on big-ticket necessities that have increased in price in recent years. The spikes, combined with stagnant wages, have hit American workers hard. Here are examples of political ads and candidates speaking directly to voters:

HOUSING

"We need to be far more efficient."

Many midterm candidates have focused, at least in part, on how to bring down the price of housing — typically the biggest household budget item.

Since the start of the pandemic, the price of homes has climbed by around 50 percent. About a third of American households are "housing cost burdened," meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.

By last year, the median age of first-time home buyers had risen to 40 years old. And while rental prices have decreased in some markets, they are still more expensive than prepandemic levels. In June, Congress passed the first major legislative package to address the housing crisis in more than 30 years with strong bipartisan support, but its impact will take time.

Both Republicans and Democrats have promised a range of fixes including reforming permit processing to help reduce construction costs, and restricting the sale of single-family homes or rental housing to private equity firms.

GROCERIES

"Stop these chaotic tariffs."

Groceries and gas, two of the most unavoidable reminders of cost-of-living increases, continue to take perhaps the most palpable toll on family budgets. Fuel prices that rose with the Iran war are again spiking, with the national average over \$4 per gallon and diesel at a record high.

Food prices are up by about 3 percent year over year, according to the Consumer Price Index.

The president's tariffs have increased the cost of some imported food and farm implements. Counter tariffs imposed by trading partners have further strained farm budgets, raising the costs of meat and produce.

Candidates, particularly Democrats, are tapping into voter anger and linking some of the increases to what they characterize as corporate greed.

To drive down pricing, candidates are pushing to roll back the tariffs and local sales taxes on some food items, while questioning grocery store mergers and what they call price gouging. Others have focused on suspending gas taxes for relief, at least temporarily.

CHILD CARE

"The work force behind the work force."

Working Americans have long struggled with the costs of child care. In recent years, the prices have skyrocketed as government funding drops, operating costs increase and child-care worker shortages arise, especially as the president cracks down on immigration.

Now, families earning the median income in every state spend far more than the 7 percent of household income that the Department of Health and Human Services considers affordable. In a 2025 poll by the American Family Survey, seven in 10 Americans said raising children is unaffordable, an increase of 13 percentage points over a year earlier.

Many candidates are framing the conversation as a work force issue that requires investment. Some Democrats are pushing for universal, publicly funded child care. Some Republicans favor lowering costs through tax credits.

HEALTH CARE

"A way to help forgive medical debt."

The price of getting sick has long loomed as a crushing threat for many Americans, but the issue was brought into sharp focus when Republicans lawmakers allowed enhanced subsidies for health coverage under the Affordable Care Act to lapse. Many Americans' insurance premiums more than doubled when the subsidies expired.

Health care costs are among the top economic concerns of voters across the political spectrum. Annual premiums for employer-covered family health coverage reached about \$27,000 on average in 2025. Workers contributed \$6,850 a year, on average toward the cost of family coverage, according to a survey by KFF, a health research group.

And changes to Medicaid eligibility, which were passed to help pay for spending and tax cuts in Mr. Trump's signature domestic policy law, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, could further strain family budgets.

UTILITIES

"That's a hidden tax in people's electric bill."

Over the past few years, millions of Americans have been hit with higher electricity bills — the result of complicated forces that are different from state to state. Residential electricity prices have risen 13 percent on average since 2022, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Republicans and Democrats point to different causes.

Republican candidates have proposed eliminating electrification mandates and prioritizing natural and domestically produced gas while opposing renewable energy as costly.

Democratic candidates have pinned the blame on energy-devouring data centers and pledged to stop them or build protections. They have also pushed to expand tax credits for wind, solar and other renewable energy sources to expand supply.

Haitians' loss of protection jolts a Florida island

KEY WEST, FLA.

Above, a Haitian immigrant who works at a supermarket in Key West, Fla., leaves home less often since losing Temporary Protected Status in July. Clementina and José Amador, below left, now open their restaurant six days a week instead of seven because of lost workers. Below right, a fishing charter off Key West, which relies heavily on tourism.
MARK HEDDEN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

SCOTT MCINTYRE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
MARK HEDDEN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

As immigrant workers disappear, Key West faces a crushing labor shortage

BY DAVID OVALLE

The Haitian hotel housekeepers, restaurant cooks and Uber drivers who quietly help power Key West's tourism economy are disappearing.

Some have been detained by Border Patrol agents since late July, when the Trump administration ended a legal protection that had allowed 330,000 Haitians to live and work in the United States.

Others are retreating from public spaces, afraid to go about their routines on the mile-wide island that's typically crowded with partying tourists, sunburned fishermen and cruise ship day-trippers. Many Haitians — along with Hispanic immigrants — have stopped riding bicycles to work, a common form of transportation in Key West, for fear of attracting law enforcement attention.

It's a situation familiar to communities across Florida; the state has the nation's largest Haitian population, including tens of thousands who have lost the legal safeguard known as Temporary Protected Status, which the United States had granted them because of the violence and instability in their home country.

Some Haitians have been detained, while others are retreating from public spaces, afraid to go about their routines.

But Key West is unique, a remote sliver of land surrounded by open water, linked to Miami by a single highway running more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) through the island chain known as the Florida Keys. In public, it is often difficult for immigrants to escape the notice of agents.

"There's no outrunning anybody here," said Lucy Hawk, co-founder of the Key West Immigrant Support Network.

Key West also stands out for its out-size reliance on tourism — and on immigrants to fill those jobs. Wayne Dapser, a local immigration lawyer, estimated that there were at least 5,000 Haitians living in and around a city of 25,000.

President Trump's immigration crackdown is hampering labor markets across the nation, but it has been a particularly thorny subject in the Keys, where Republicans long ago surpassed Democrats in numbers. (Key West is the exception, with a Democratic mayor and a liberal-leaning population.)

Bill Lay, a Key West businessman who owns an Italian restaurant and a catering company, said he has grown increasingly frustrated because his employees with valid work permits keep getting detained. Mr. Lay, who votes Republican, said he supports efforts to deport immigrants with criminal records — “the worst of the worst,” he said.

"But that's not necessarily what's happening here," he added. "If this continues, this will devastate the local economy down here."

Even before Haitian immigrants lost

T.P.S., workers from other countries were being swept up in arrests by Border Patrol, which handles much of the immigration enforcement in the Keys.

When Mayor Sam Kaufman visited Hispanic-owned restaurants last month, owners shared stories of line cooks, busboys and delivery drivers, some with valid work permits, getting detained and deported. Those who remained were being crushed with extra work, with some owners delivering food themselves.

Mr. Kaufman noted that Key West was too far from the mainland to bus in workers.

"The price of labor is going to shoot up," he said. "There is going to be real competition to retain the work force."

At Jose's Latin Food, a Nicaraguan restaurant, Clementina and José Amador, the owners, now open six days a week instead of seven. Mr. Amador does all the cooking because several kitchen workers decided to leave Key West to avoid immigration agents.

"We don't know if we're going to make it," Mrs. Amador said.

For Haitians in Key West, T.P.S. afforded a buffer from the immigration crackdown, until the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to end the program on July 27.

The impact was immediate, said Steven Nekhaila, 32, a former Libertarian Party national chairman whose family owns two Wendy's restaurants in Key West. Mr. Nekhaila let go several Haitian employees whose work permits became invalid when they lost T.P.S. He is still short of help.

Even immigrants with valid work permits become so unnerved by reports of arrests that they sometimes call in sick, Mr. Nekhaila added. "They don't want to risk being detained, even if they're lawful," he said.

The labor shortage will most likely be more palpable as summer turns to fall and tourism picks up.

When tourism picks up in the fall and winter, Key West will feel the impact more acutely, he said.

Arrests have picked up across the Keys since T.P.S. for Haitians ended, according to immigration lawyers and the Key West Immigrant Support Network. There were at least 65 immigration detentions in the Lower Keys in August, up from 20 in July, said Ms. Hawk, the co-founder of the network, which donates groceries for immigrants too scared to leave their homes and arranges transportation for them.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security declined to discuss immigration enforcement operations in the Florida Keys.

"Temporary Protected Status is exactly that — temporary," the agency said in response to a question about enforcement activity. "For too long, T.P.S. has been allowed to function as a de facto amnesty program despite Congress never intending it to be permanent."

The number of Haitians in the Keys surged after President Barack Obama granted T.P.S. because of Haiti's 2010 earthquake. Many more arrived during the Biden administration, as conditions in Haiti deteriorated further and Mr. Biden expanded protections for them.

Many joined relatives in Key West, drawn to a walkable city that, despite few affordable housing options, offered jobs without the need to own a car, Mr. Dapser said.

One such person, a 41-year-old father of two, said he had fled gang violence in Haiti for Brazil, before joining relatives in Key West in 2022. The man, who did not want his name used for fear of attracting immigration authorities, works at a supermarket deli, earning \$19 an hour.

He lost T.P.S. in July. He is still able to work because of a pending asylum claim, but that offers little guarantee against immigration detention. Inside their tiny trailer home, he and his wife anxiously monitor WhatsApp for immigration enforcement updates as they care for their young children.

Documents proving status are withheld from immigrants

PHOTOGRAPHS BY ALAN NAKKASH FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

WASHINGTON

BY MINHO KIM

Immigrants seeking documents from the government to prove that they are in the country legally are being rebuffed or provided paperwork that is heavily redacted, according to dozens of immigration lawyers, who say the refusals put their clients at risk of deportation.

In the past, federal agencies routinely turned over documents immigrants requested — for instance, when international adoptees sought proof of their parents' U.S. citizenship, or noncitizens wanted copies of petitions or interview transcripts for amnesty programs. These records requests, filed by hundreds of thousands of immigrants each year, are often the only way for them to secure documents that detail their full immigration history.

But the Trump administration has been redacting and withholding documents at a strikingly high rate, according to nearly three dozen immigration lawyers interviewed by The New York Times. The government has sometimes asserted that it could not find even documents that immigrants and their lawyers know exist, such as an expired passport or parts of prior applications. In other cases, officials have provided documents, but critical information is struck out, the lawyers said.

"Delays and redactions pile on to the many other intentional ways immigrants are being deprived of due process in immigration court," said Kelly Rojas, a lawyer who provides pro bono services to asylum seekers and crime victims at Amica Center for Immigrant Rights.

The experiences align with claims by Timothy Turner, a former senior official at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services's internal record-keeping office. Mr. Turner alleged in a whistleblower complaint last year that the agency improperly enacted policies early in the second Trump administration to make it harder for immigrants to get documents to which they are legally entitled.

For instance, he said in his complaint to Congress, the agency in May 2025 ordered staff to withhold all documents in languages other than English. Staff members were also told to hold back marriage certificates, joint bank statements, tax forms, portions of immigration court hearing transcripts and other documents, citing privacy laws.

And the agency used discrepancies in names — for instance, if a person had a hyphenated last name in official records, but submitted only one of the two names in the document request — to deny requests, even if relevant records were located, he said.

Federal law entitles people to their immigration paperwork, which they may request under the Freedom of Information Act. A 2020 court order requires the government to respond within 30 business days.

The Justice Department, which oversees the immigration court system, declined to comment. The White House did not respond to The Times's specific

Left, Cipriano Alarcon-Galvez with his family. He requested a copy of his green-card petition filed in 1993, but more than half of the records he received were fully redacted.

questions about the redactions and withholding of documents, but Lauren Bis, a spokeswoman, said that “all illegal aliens receive full due process and have their claims heard.”

The Department of Homeland Security did not address Mr. Turner's claims but said its public-records officials provide documents in a timely manner and tell immigrants the reasons for no-records responses.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services “receives over 2,000 Freedom of Information Act requests a day. Almost all of the requests are for individual immigration files and records,” the department said in a statement. “Many people who request records have similar names, birth dates and countries of birth. To ensure we comply with privacy laws and send the records to the right person, U.S.C.I.S. carefully checks the identity of each requester. If we can’t definitively identify persons, we let them know why and allow them to correct and resubmit their requests."

Andrew R. Arthur, a former immigration judge and a fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, an organization that backs tougher immigration policies, acknowledged problems in the FOIA system but defended the Trump administration's policies as legally required efforts to protect privacy of those mentioned in immigrants' files.

He also dismissed concerns that the redactions and denials violated immigrants' rights, noting that people can sue the government if they think their requests were improperly rejected. Pro bono representation is available to immigrants, and if they prevail in courts, the government would compensate legal costs, he said.

"There is a lot of due process built into this system," Mr. Arthur said.

But the denials have hampered some immigrants' efforts to secure legal residency in the United States, their lawyers say. And many without the means to sue are giving up, risking deportation despite plausible pathways for stable immigration status.

In his August testimony to a federal judge, Mr. Turner said the agency closed, without providing documents, more than 35 percent of all requests from immigrants facing deportation between September 2025 and March 2026, compared with around 8 percent between March and September 2025.

When Mr. Turner raised objections, his director told him that it “doesn’t cost” immigrants anything to file another records request. But he said the delay from refiling costs immigrants what they often need the most: time.

The circumstances of immigrants affected by the government's responses run the gamut. But their lawyers all reported Kafkaesque ordeals as immigration agencies denied queries for records that, in many cases, those immigrants themselves had provided to the government.

In February, Cipriano Alarcon-Galvez, 55, a Mexican national, asked citizenship services for a copy of the green-card petition filed in 1993 by his mother, a naturalized U.S. citizen, on his behalf. That 33-year-old petition may make Mr. Alarcon-Galvez eligible for permanent residency and amnesty for coming to the United States without permission as a child.

But more than half of the records he received were fully redacted, according to the government responses reviewed by The Times. Another request filed by his mother yielded copies of green-card petitions, but all of her children's infor-

"Delays and redactions pile on to the many other intentional ways immigrants are being deprived of due process."

mation was redacted. A Freedom of Information Act official at the citizenship services agency confirmed in an email to his lawyer that the petition existed, but said Mr. Alarcon-Galvez should file a request with the State Department instead.

He is now facing deportation; his court hearing is scheduled for December. The government says his FOIA appeal will be processed by May 2027. Mr. Alarcon-Galvez has four U.S. citizen daughters and has lived in Oceanside, Calif., for decades.

"It's almost like a joke," said Caroline Matthews, his lawyer, adding that Mr. Alarcon-Galvez "has a constitutional right" to his documents.

Zachary A. Kohn, an immigration lawyer in Washington, recently sued the government for records for the first time in his 10-year career.

His client, a Salvadoran national, is the mother of an adult U.S. citizen who sponsored her to become a legal permanent resident in 2022. But the government denied the petition because of a 25-year-old dormant deportation order against the client that she had not known about, Mr. Kohn said. Mr. Kohn then filed FOIA requests to obtain records to contest the order.

But federal officials responded that they did not have records, according to documents Mr. Kohn submitted to a federal judge that were reviewed by The Times.

Once he sued, however, the government provided records Mr. Kohn had sought with one condition: withdraw the lawsuit. Now his client has a chance in courts, after paying thousands of dollars in legal fees and a delay of almost a year. Mr. Kohn declined to provide his client's name, citing fears of a potential effect on the case.

Gregory Luce, the founder of Adoptee Rights Law Center, represents international adoptees who came to the United States as children. Mr. Luce has long relied on FOIA requests to try to demonstrate his adoptee clients are Americans.

But around April 2025, those requests started yielding heavily redacted or entirely withheld documents, forcing him to try to find the paperwork another way. Some of his clients' cases are stalled after those alternative ways turned out to be dead ends.

In July, he sued the government for records, on behalf of around two dozen adoptees.

According to data Mr. Luce compiled and submitted to the court, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services redacted or withheld more than 80 percent of documents since April 17, 2025, for Mr. Luce's clients. Redactions and withholdings had averaged just 10 percent between May 2024 and April 2025.

The government's FOIA practice "is to hide the ball," said Patricia M. Corrales, an immigration lawyer in the Los Angeles area who served as an ICE prosecutor. "If you hide the information from immigrants and you have lousy lawyers filing documentation for them, they're going to be deported."

Madeleine Ngo contributed reporting.

Japan debates winding down Abenomics

A wholesale market in Tokyo. Japan's economy has changed since the Abenomics strategy was conceived in 2012 to address a deflationary spiral, with inflation now a concern.
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

Economists are divided on raising interest rates, even as inflation lingers

BY RIVER AKIRA DAVIS AND HISAKO UENO

As Japan's central bank prepared to meet this week, the architects of the country's decade-long policy of low interest rates said that strategy had out-lived its usefulness. Their concern had flipped from stagnant prices to entrenched inflation.

Japan's current leader appeared unconvinced.

Since taking office last year, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has continued to embrace Abenomics, the economic strategy championed by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, leaning on the central bank to keep rates low while pursuing record fiscal spending.

Abenomics was conceived in 2012 to jolt Japan back into growth. But the deflationary spiral and strong yen that it was designed to address have reversed. For most of the past four years, inflation has remained above the central bank's 2 percent target. The yen has fallen against the dollar to multidecade lows.

"The situation is completely different now," said Koichi Hamada, a former top aide to Mr. Abe and one of the key advisers behind Abenomics. Therefore, he said, "I changed my mind right now to recommend monetary constraint."

On Friday, the Bank of Japan is widely expected to raise interest rates from 1 percent to 1.25 percent, stepping up its recent pace of quarter-point increases roughly every six months. But Mr. Hamada and others say the central bank should move faster still.

Those in the Takaichi administration who still believe that Abenomics is right for Japan may consider his change of heart a betrayal, Mr. Hamada said. But he believes that the prime minister should stop pressuring the Bank of Japan and pursuing policies that risk worsening inflation.

Mr. Hamada is not alone. In 2012, when Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was a hedge fund manager, he visited Mr. Hamada at Yale University in Connecticut. Mr. Hamada recalls walking Mr. Bessent through his early plans to reinvigorate Japan's economy.

In a 2022 essay for a financial policy magazine, Mr. Bessent recalled being convinced by the plans. He went on to deploy a profitable investment strategy of shorting the yen and buying Japanese equities, becoming one of the earliest and most successful investors to capitalize on Abenomics.

More recently, Mr. Bessent has pressed Japan to raise interest rates and rein in fiscal spending.

Ms. Takaichi's spending plans have elevated concerns about Japan's ability to service its debt. Yields on 10-year government bonds have soared to three-decade highs. Low interest rates have also encouraged capital to leave the country, weakening the yen and creating tensions with the United States.

In July, the yen fell to a four-decade low against the dollar, prompting Japan and the U.S. Treasury Department to intervene jointly in foreign exchange markets. The currency has strengthened somewhat in recent weeks amid expectations that the Bank of Japan will raise rates at its September meeting.

At a news conference this month at the Group of 20 finance meeting in Asheville, N.C., Mr. Bessent said he had urged Japan to abandon its reflationary policies. Abenomics was “a tremendous success,” Mr. Bessent said. But now, Japan “should actually let that run and stop the reflation,” he said.

Haruhiko Kuroda, Japan's former central bank governor who kept rates at or below zero for a decade, has also recently warned about inflationary pressures from the administration's spending plans and a weak yen.

Others remain committed to the old approach. Takuji Aida, chief Japan economist at the French investment bank Crédit Agricole and an economic adviser to Ms. Takaichi, argues that Japan must keep interest rates low and spend aggressively to spur growth.

A weak yen benefits Japanese exporters, Mr. Aida and others say. He says higher import prices for consumers can be partially offset by additional government spending. Mr. Aida did not respond to interview requests.

Amid record fiscal spending, concerns have been raised about Japan's ability to service its debt.

Satsuki Katayama, Japan's finance minister, said during the Group of 20 meeting that she had told counterparts that Japan's fiscal policy "prioritizes growth while balancing it with fiscal sustainability."

To Motohiro Sato, a professor of public finance at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo, there is a striking dynamic at play: Abenomics veterans — including Mr. Hamada and Mr. Kuroda — arguing against continuing its policies, while current politicians are “still holding a deflation mind-set.”

During the current surge in energy prices, for example, the Takaichi administration has offered subsidies rather than encouraging conservation. "They are applying deflation remedies to an inflationary era," Mr. Sato said.

For years, when interest rates were low and prices flat, heavy government spending provoked little alarm, Mr. Sato said. That is no longer the case.

"Market pressure is only going to get louder," he said.

Beer empire scion feuds with family over sex abuse claims

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LAUREN DECICCA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

BANGKOK

Accusations he leveled at his brother opened up a taboo topic in Thailand

BY SUI-LEE WEE

For years, the Thai public knew Sir-anudh Scott as a scion of Thailand's largest beer dynasty and a high-profile marine conservationist who publicly criticized government officials for ignoring environmental violations.

But Mr. Siranudh, 30, was also fighting a personal battle. Earlier this year, he decided he could no longer stay silent, and made a bombshell accusation.

Mr. Siranudh, who is also known as Psi, said his older brother, Sunit Scott, and his nanny had sexually assaulted him as a child — and that his mother had attempted to cover up the abuse and buy his silence. The fallout was swift. He said that as punishment for speaking out, he was cut off from the \$1.3 billion Singha family fortune and thrown out of the family beach house.

His accusation — which his brother denied — unleashed a rare public reckoning over sexual assault in Thailand, where the #MeToo movement had failed to make an impact. Many Thais have responded with accounts of sexual assault within families and by powerful people.

His mother has disputed his account of what she knew and how she acted, in a written response to The New York Times, her first public comment on the allegations.

Mr. Sunit, 36, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. In a social media video posted after his brother made his accusations public, he denied the abuse and described what happened as roughhousing. The nanny did not respond.

The Times interviewed Mr. Siranudh on multiple occasions and spoke with seven of his friends and supporters. We also reviewed a contract signed between Mr. Siranudh and his family, as well as an audio clip of what Mr. Siranudh said was a conversation between the brothers that he secretly recorded.

The support from the Thai public has given Mr. Siranudh something he says he long wanted from his family: acknowledgment. Having the accusations out in the open was like a weight lifting from him, he said.

"Some form of justice has come in its exposure," he added.

TO BE A BHIROMBHAKDI

Mr. Siranudh described a childhood in which his parents, who were divorced, were distant. The household staff took care of him, and even though he was not close to his brother, they would play together sometimes.

That made the abuse so hard to understand, he said, because it came from those he trusted.

His grandfather, Chamnong Bhirombhakdi, was the longtime chairman of Boon Rawd Brewery, which owns Singha beer and holds the largest share of Thailand's lucrative beer market.

Closest to him was his nanny, who had cared for him since he was a baby.

But once, when he was 8, Mr. Sir-anudh said, his nanny took her pants off and sat on top of him. He was confused about what happened. (The nanny did not respond to requests for comment.)

The bigger betrayal, he said, came when he was 9. His older brother had returned from boarding school in England for summer vacation. Mr. Siranudh wanted to spend time with him. Instead, he said, his brother forced him to give him oral sex.

"The first time he grabbed my head, I remember being really repulsed," Mr. Siranudh said.

The abuse continued until Mr. Sir-anudh was 13, he said.

Mr. Siranudh said he told no one because he felt responsible for protecting his family.

"I just felt early on that I had to undermine my reality to let other people live," he said. "I didn't speak up also because I didn't think I was worthy or that I was loved."

As a teenager, Mr. Siranudh struggled with depression. He found refuge in drawing, and left home in 2014 to study animation in California. He moved to London in 2020 and started seeing a therapist, whom he confided in.

He said the therapist helped him see the gravity of his situation. He said before that, he thought an older brother abusing a younger brother was normal.

"The minute that I was able to start saying that yes, it was rape, I was able to start planning like how I was going to go forward," he said.

BREAKING THE SILENCE

Siranudh Scott, left, said that he was cut off from the Singha beer family fortune after accusing his older brother, Sunit Scott, and his nanny of sexually assaulting him as a child. He also claimed his mother had tried to cover up the abuse.

Mr. Siranudh said he did not set out to make his allegations public. He first tried to address them with his family. What followed, he said, convinced him that he would need proof, and public pressure.

In 2020, Mr. Siranudh told his mother, Chiranuj Bhirombhakdi, that he had been sexually abused by his nanny.

When Ms. Chiranuj confronted the nanny, Mr. Siranudh said, the nanny told her that he had been abused by his older brother. His mother asked Mr. Siranudh about it then told him not to tell anyone, he said. She fired the nanny.

Within months, Mr. Siranudh said, Ms. Chiranuj threw him out of the family's beach house in Hua Hin. She said he had damaged the property. Mr. Siranudh's estrangement from his mother deepened when he learned that she had rehired his nanny and continued taking vacations with his older brother.

In August 2023, he said he found the courage to do what he had thought was impossible. In a series of Facebook posts, he wrote that he was “raped by someone in the family,” that his nanny had sexually abused him when he was a child, and that his mother had thrown him out.

The posts drew widespread attention. Three months later, Mr. Siranudh's aunt invited him to her house for a meeting with his relatives. His brother, Mr. Sunit, was there.

Mr. Siranudh asked to speak alone with his brother. Mr. Siranudh told The Times he recorded the conversation without his brother's knowledge because he wanted evidence if he ever made his allegations public.

The Times reviewed the 20-minute recording, the full version of which has not been made public. In it, Mr. Siranudh is heard confronting the other speaker, whom Mr. Siranudh identifies as Mr. Sunit.

"It's nothing that a brother should ever feel. It's not just sexual assault, Pi," he said. "It's like incest, and I had no responsibility in it at all 'cause I was a kid."

The other speaker says he did not know what he was doing at the time. He does not appear to deny Mr. Siranudh's accusations. He says: "What I've done I can never take back."

Mr. Sunit did not respond to requests for comment sent through his mother's lawyer as well as a crisis communications consultant hired by the lawyer of the Bhirombhakdi family. A Times reporter who went to his home and asked to speak with him was turned away.

At the family meeting, Mr. Siranudh challenged his mother to tell their relatives about what he said his brother had done, but the relatives refused to listen, he said. His mother and aunt offered to give him financial support if he signed an agreement to “uphold the reputation, honor, and dignity as a member of a ‘Bhirombhakdi,’” according to a copy of the contract viewed by The Times.

Specifically, he was told not to post "extra content" about his mother on social media. In return, he would receive an annual allowance of 5 million baht, and a one-time payment of 10 million baht (\$300,000). He signed.

But he refused to be silenced. He reiterated his complaints about his family on television. In January, his mother sued him under a Thai law that allows parents to take legal action against “ungrateful” children who defame or insult them.

Then, in May, Mr. Siranudh made his accusations against his brother public. After his brother denied them, he released excerpts from the recording on social media, saying he felt his family would otherwise never acknowledge what happened.

Ms. Chiranuj disputed much of his account in written answers to questions from The Times.

She said she had not heard the accusations against Mr. Sunit until Mr. Siranudh made them public; Mr. Siranudh says he told her in 2020.

She rejected his description of the agreement as hush money, saying it was meant to support her son financially, on one condition. "He has to behave and uphold our names and reputations of 'Bhirombhakdi,'” she wrote. Ms. Chiranuj said the lawsuit was necessary because he had damaged the beach house and was "causing trouble."

A NATIONAL RECKONING

In Thailand, the #MeToo movement had not gained traction because confrontation is often avoided and criminal defamation laws can make people reluctant to name those they accuse of assault. The topic of sexual abuse within families was especially sensitive, but that is changing.

Jaray Singhakowinta, an assistant professor at the National Institute of Development Administration in Bangkok, said Mr. Siranudh's story challenged the expectation that family comes before the individual, and the silence surrounding male victims.

"A young man crying on camera about childhood abuse gave other men permission to speak, and many did," he said.

Boon Rawd Brewery, the maker of Singha beer, announced that Mr. Sunit, who worked for the company, had resigned. It published his resignation letter, in which he apologized for “the incident and the impact it has caused,” and said that he was stepping down until the matter was clarified. The company also expressed its sympathy to Mr. Siranudh.

In July, Ms. Chiranuj announced that she was dropping the lawsuit against Mr. Siranudh, saying she hoped that ending the litigation would allow the family to heal.

Mr. Siranudh said reconciliation was no longer his goal. He is now preparing to file criminal complaints against his brother. He has no plans to speak to his mother.

Kittiphum Sringammuang contributed reporting.

Above from left: the Bangkok neighborhood where Mr. Siranudh's family home is located; and Mr. Siranudh arriving at the office of a nonprofit group that has offered to assist him.

Test hack on China's WeChat is a ‘wake-up call’

NEWS ANALYSIS

Using A.I., U.S. researchers were able to breach millions of WeChat accounts. The app is used by government agencies, businesses and almost 80 percent of citizens in China.
DAVID KIRTON/REUTERS

Use of A.I. in mock attack shows the technology's potential for destruction

BY LILY KUO AND PEI-LIN WU

WeChat, a messaging app, is practically part of the national infrastructure in China, woven into daily communications, government services and digital payments.

That's why a recent discovery by a small team of researchers in California — that a tool built with artificial intelligence could breach millions of accounts in just a few hours — has rattled experts and Chinese analysts. It proved that with A.I., even a tiny team with no government backing can mount a devastating attack on an app used by 1.4 billion people a month.

“From a destruction standpoint, it's extremely potent,” said Zhao Minghao, deputy director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai. He said the ability to take down an app like WeChat, given its importance to the Chinese public and its huge user base, amounted to “a new kind of nuclear weapon.”

This discovery adds fuel to warnings from researchers that A.I. hacking capabilities are advancing faster than defenses can keep up, with tech leaders like Bill Gates warning that addressing risks from A.I. should be “the world’s top priority.”

That urgency could shape talks between President Trump and China's leader, Xi Jinping, that are expected next week in Washington, where the two sides are expected to discuss A.I. security as well as trade and other issues.

New risks seem to surface almost daily. Anthropic, the company behind Claude and other A.I. models, said in a report last week that it had disrupted plots by scientists to use its models for research that could have helped develop biological weapons.

Anthropic also described attempts by a Chinese arms manufacturer to use Claude to refine a proposal for an anti-torpedo weapons system for the Chinese military. And it documented instances in which Chinese users tried to use Claude to build surveillance operations targeting foreign governments, Uyghurs in Syria and religious leaders. (Asked about the report, Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China's Foreign Ministry, said last week that Beijing “opposed the distortion of facts and attempts to attack or smear China.”)

In the WeChat hack, the researchers who developed the tool were with Calif, a security company based in Palo Alto, Calif., that says it makes such tools not to sell them but to bolster cyberdefense.

They showed that the tool, which they named WeWorm, could hijack a WeChat user's account, call their contacts and then spread from phone to phone without anyone answering a call. Calif said it took the company a little more than a week to build the bug and that it had disclosed the flaw to the White House and Tencent, the owner of WeChat.

In one sense, the news of WeWorm should make Beijing more eager to work with Washington to manage the risks posed by A.I., according to Kyle Chan, a fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington focusing on Chinese technology and industrial policy.

"It hints at the massive potential for other actors, nation states or nonstate actors, to use A.I. to attack China's digital infrastructure," Mr. Chan said. "The stakes have gotten much higher as A.I. systems make leaps in cyber capabilities."

But deep mutual suspicion between

China and the United States could undercut talks. And the revelation of weapons like WeWorm, even as a simulation, could simply accelerate competition over who will wield the world's most powerful A.I. models.

"Everyone needs to sit down and discuss how A.I. raises safety and security risks that are very different from traditional issues."

China, now acutely aware of the vulnerabilities in its digital infrastructure, will most likely want to beef up the defense capabilities of domestic A.I. systems to better spot and fix security flaws, said Mr. Zhao, of Fudan University. The problem is that the U.S. side may then see those systems as potential tools to attack U.S. companies and institutions, pushing the United States to strengthen its own cyber defenses. "The boundary between defense and offense gets increasingly blurred," Mr. Zhao said. "We can call this the A.I. security dilemma."

WeWorm and Anthropic's report about abuses of its models are yet more evidence that the world's two largest A.I. powers need a way to share information about bad actors or to clarify their intentions, experts say.

At the same time, few expect the summit to result in limits on the technology itself. Neither government is likely to agree to anything that restricts its own development of A.I. capabilities. But experts say there is value in at least establishing a channel of communication in the event of a crisis.

"This is an alarm, a wake-up call," said Jiang Tianjiao, an associate professor at Fudan University focusing on emerging technologies, referring to WeWorm.

“Everyone needs to sit down and discuss how A.I. raises safety and security risks that are very different from traditional issues, and whether we need new frameworks of cooperation,” he said.

Even as China embraces A.I. as a strategic technology critical to its economy, officials have also begun to raise concerns about its risks.

Chinese regulators have warned local governments and companies about using the A.I. assistant OpenClaw and in May released guidelines for how to regulate the use of A.I. agents. Officials are also working on more than a dozen new national standards to strengthen cybersecurity. Mr. Xi, speaking in July at an A.I. conference, said countries should work together to “ensure that A.I. is always under human control.”

Zhao Lei, director of the research office at the Central Party School, which trains Chinese Communist Party officials, warned in an essay published on WeChat last Thursday that extremist forces could leverage A.I. to design "highly transmissible and virulent pathogens" or to optimize weapons. This threat, he said, would "trigger a new kind of existential crisis for humanity."

Last year, China's cybersecurity authorities warned about the risk that extremist groups or others could use A.I. to learn how to design and build “nuclear, biological, chemical and missile weapons.”

Another issue hanging over A.I. safety talks with Washington is how transparent both sides would be. It is unclear whether Chinese A.I. firms would approach an American company if they found a flaw in their system, in the way that Calif described. Chinese firms are required to report such discoveries first to China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Pei Wang, a cybersecurity expert, said that Chinese companies would approach such disclosures “with caution,” given the risk that they could be politicized amid the intense tech competition between the two countries.

China has long accused Washington of trying to hold back China's technological progress with sanctions on Chinese companies, export controls cutting off the country's access to advanced technology and tariffs on Chinese goods.

The WeWorm vulnerability sends a signal to Beijing about American A.I. capabilities at the same time that U.S. officials have signaled new willingness to attack Chinese companies. This month, the deputy C.I.A. director, Michael Ellis, said that Chinese companies were a legitimate target for espionage in areas like artificial intelligence, semiconductors and biotechnology.

Some Chinese scholars have suggested that American and Chinese officials could potentially discuss voluntary "negative lists" of unacceptable A.I.-enabled cyber activities or identify categories of critical infrastructure that are protected.

Chinese officials have not publicly acknowledged the disclosure of the We-Chat hacking tool, perhaps in an effort not to add more tensions between the two countries before the summit.

For Tencent, the hack is likely to draw intense scrutiny by Chinese regulators, said Xiaomeng Lu, who researches U.S.-China tech competition at Eurasia Group.

"I wouldn't be surprised if after this event agencies like the Cyber Administration of China invite some Tencent people over for tea and ask them exactly what happened and what's the chance of something happening again," Ms. Lu said.

Dustin Volz contributed reporting from Washington and Steve Lohr contributed reporting from Seoul.

PHILIP CHEUNG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
The hodgepodge of policies that U.S. universities have created to respond to A.I. reflects the confusion among leaders and academics about how to handle the technology.

SOPHIE PARK FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Harvard's president, Alan Garber, said recently that A.I.-backed research had the potential to drive the pace of knowledge faster than at any other time in human history.

The University of Chicago has banned A.I. in certain required social sciences courses, while its law school has banned phones, tablets and laptops in first-year classrooms.

Universities embrace A.I. even as they fear its impact

A.I., FROM PAGE 1

and ethical and asks the right questions," said Wendy Hensel, the president of the University of Hawaii, where she presented an A.I. strategy to regents in July. "The right answer to A.I. is not just 'no.' It can't be. It has to be approached with curiosity and understanding of the implications."

The hodgepodge of policies universities have created to respond to A.I. reflects the confusion about how to proceed — with some clear dos and don'ts, but often a lot of wiggle room for faculty and students to figure it out on their own.

A.I. CAN HARM LEARNING

For a motivated student, an A.I. chatbot can function as a sort of tutor. Chatbots can break down the steps in a math problem, surface unexpected sources for research papers and offer feedback on writing.

Still, a growing body of research suggests that A.I. use can also harm learning.

A recent study of 26,000 Chinese secondary-school students found that A.I. adoption led to an 18 percent increase in homework scores, but a 20 percent decline in scores on secure exams. The implication was that rushing through homework with help from chatbots degraded the deeper learning needed to perform well when the technology was not available.

One 2025 study out of M.I.T. found that people who used chatbots as writing assistants struggled to remember what they had written only minutes after finishing their essay. "You basically didn't engage any of the memory networks that would actually help you remember," said Nataliya Kos'myna, a M.I.T. researcher who worked on the study.

Other research has shown that people who have greater trust in A.I. and rely on it more are more likely to have lower cognitive engagement.

But A.I. can be hard to avoid. Chatbots are embedded within the Google Classroom suite, which is nearly ubiquitous in schools, and within many online learning systems used by universities.

Some tools block outright cheating or plagiarism and allow professors to toggle specific A.I. capabilities on and off. But the most popular chatbots among students will instantly complete entire assignments, including research papers, on a student's behalf.

UNIVERSITIES EMBRACE A.I. ANYWAY Sian Leah Beilock, the president of Dartmouth in New Hampshire, has argued that preparing graduates to use A.I. is an existential requirement of institutions of higher education.

"In a world that promises to be defined by A.I., universities that fail to produce graduates who can use it productively will consign themselves to irrelevance," she wrote recently.

Alan Garber, the president of Harvard University in Massachusetts, said in public remarks this month that A.I.-backed research is on the cusp of a boom that may drive the pace of knowledge faster than at any other time in human history. Dr. Garber has said that researchers in many fields are now unlikely to be at the leading edge of their disciplines without A.I.

Ohio State University is integrating A.I. into every major, with the expectation that every student will be fluent in their field of study by graduation. The university has directed every department and major — from business and engineering, to English and veterinary medicine — to train students on how to use A.I. in their respective fields, and when not to.

“What is OK to offload to A.I., and what is not?” Ohio State’s president, Ravi V. Bellamkonda, said in an interview in July. “The answer to that depends on the field and depends on your stage of learning.”

Elizabeth Kiss, the president of Union College in New York State, said universities have to educate students on both the thoughtful use of A.I. and on the things A.I. doesn't do, such as "lead teams, push the boundaries of knowledge."

SOME SCHOOLS CREATE BOUNDARIES The University of Chicago has banned A.I. in certain required social sciences courses, while the university's law school has banned phones, tablets and laptops in first-year classrooms. The university is one of a handful that recently adopted new academic integrity rules.

The law school at the University of California, Berkeley, adopted a policy forbidding the use of A.I. "to conceptualize, outline, draft, revise, and edit" work submitted for credit.

Cornell University in New York State has created a disciplinary process meant to correct A.I. cheating while avoiding black marks on students' records. Now, students accused of minor misuse will be allowed to accept responsibility and complete a workshop and some reflective work.

Steve Jackson, the vice provost for academic innovation, said the program would not be used for plainly egregious misconduct. "This is a chance to sanction something, catch it, not let it go unnoted or to let it pass," he added.

Like many institutions, Harvard does not have a central set of A.I. rules. David Deming, dean of Harvard College, wrote in a note to students arriving for the fall semester that he favors more A.I. where "it can deepen learning," but that the school was also looking to A.I.-proof some assignments.

That would mean more in-class tests, said Dean Deming, and fewer take-home assignments, where the temptation to cheat is powerful. He said he intends to produce a set of guidelines for A.I. use at the college by the end of the academic year.

For younger students, some school districts are proceeding cautiously. Earlier this month, the nation's largest school district, in New York City, vastly limited student A.I. use from kindergarten to eighth grade.

POLICING A.I. USE

Students are often navigating this landscape without clear guidance from their colleges. Most institutions leave it up to individual instructors — who may have little experience with A.I. — to set rules on how the technology is used.

It may seem clear that submitting chatbot-generated text is cheating, while using a chatbot to revise one's own writing is allowed. But the line between those two capabilities is thin, and much A.I. use lies in an ethical gray zone.

Many educators “don’t even know where to start,” said Annie Chechitelli, chief product officer at TurnItIn, a company that makes software that can detect plagiarism and track and guide A.I. use. "What is OK? What's not OK?"

Many instructors have already moved to on-paper assignments in the classroom, or locked-down computer browsers that limit A.I. misuse. Others report success in using A.I. detection software, which has recently improved in its ability to flag chatbot-written text while avoiding false positives.

Some see A.I. as a crucial partner for thinking and writing and put few limits on how students use the technology. Others subscribe to the notion of "A.I. literacy," assigning students to use chatbots to produce an essay or poem, for example, and then critique and try to improve the output.

In Australia, the University of Sydney has adopted the “two-lane approach,” seen as a global model. Across disciplines, students must complete some assessments in person, under secure conditions meant to restrict A.I. But other assignments must use A.I., to help familiarize students with the technology that is reshaping the economy.

"It's almost like sex ed," said Anita Sarma, a professor of computer science at Oregon State University who has studied the impact of A.I. on student cognition. "They will do it anyway," she said. "How do we teach them responsible use?"

The cruel and murky new rule denying help to U.S. immigrant families

Stephen Yale-Loehr

The Trump administration is moving to deny green cards to immigrants who might need public services.

In 19 months in office, the second Trump administration has imposed more than 760 immigration restrictions. A new regulatory change may prove to have the most devastating reach of them all: It could keep hundreds of thousands of people from getting green cards based on the idea that they or one of their family members might one day need public services. The Department of Homeland Security estimated that the rule could reduce federal and state benefit payments by roughly \$13 billion a year as families leave or avoid public services for fear of risking their status. The bulk of the cost will be the burden on immigrants, even those with children or family members who are U.S. citizens.

This isn't a new idea. Congress added public charge as a ground for inadmissibility into the United States in 1882. In plain terms, the public charge rule made it possible for immigrants who rely on public benefits to be denied a green card or even deported. For most of the past three decades it was rarely invoked. In the few instances it was used, it mainly involved people receiving cash assistance, such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. In fiscal year 2024, for example, fewer than 200 people who applied for family-based green cards at U.S. consular posts abroad were denied because of public assistance concerns. Over 471,000 people received family-based green cards overseas that year.

The first Trump administration already tried to change that. A 2019 rule expanded the list of public benefits officials could weigh when deciding whether to issue a green card and adopted a broader standard for determining who might be a public charge. Courts eventually blocked it, and the Biden administration scrapped it for good. Fear spread through immigrant communities anyway. One study found that in 2019 alone, 31 percent of adults in families with at least one member who lacked a green card avoided enrolling in programs like Medicaid out of concern that it might jeopardize their immigration status.

The second Trump administration tried again in January 2026, barring all immigrant visas from 75 countries whose citizens, it claimed, were likely to use public benefits. A federal court recently struck that down as unlawful; the administration is likely to appeal.

This month brings a fresh attempt, and it is the most sweeping yet. The rule — which is set to take effect on Friday — includes both cash and non-cash benefits, including Medicaid, food stamps and housing assistance. But unlike earlier efforts to use public benefits to limit immigration, this new public charge rule offers officers almost no clear standards to follow. An immigration officer in the United States or a consular officer abroad needs only to believe that an applicant might apply for public benefits at some point in the future to deny him a green card. Because these decisions will be made one applicant at a time, with few objective criteria to point to, they will be nearly impossible to challenge.

Perhaps most troubling, the rule allows officials to weigh benefits received by an applicant's family members, including children who are U.S. citizens. That means a citizen's Medicaid or coverage under the Children's Health Insurance Program, relied on by 38 percent of American children in 2024, could be held against her immigrant parent applying for a green card.

The scale of the disruption this could cause is hard to overstate. When the Migration Policy Institute studied the first Trump administration's proposed rule, it found that up to 69 percent of recent green card recipients could be

put at risk of denial. Because the new rule hands officials even broader discretion and, for the first time, lets them weigh a family member's benefit use, the real percentage could be even higher. Like the 2019 rule, this one is likely to hit women, children and older populations hardest, and could privilege future legal immigration further toward Europeans and away from citizens of the rest of the world.

Even those who remain eligible for benefits may simply stop using them out of fear. In December of last year

KFF, a health research group, estimated that a new public charge rule would mean as many as four million people could leave public assistance rolls such as Medicaid and CHIP, including hundreds of thousands of citizen children. Such fears are likely to deepen following news that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has started sharing Medicaid data with immigration enforcement officials.

In other words: The new public charge rule will reduce health coverage, nutrition assistance and other

sources of support for immigrant families, including U.S. citizen children in those families. Nationally, one in four children lives in a family with at least one immigrant parent. Reduced participation in health coverage and other assistance programs will hurt immigrant families and their children. And when community health safety nets disappear, local police departments and jails face higher demands to manage untreated health crises.

The Department of Homeland Secu-YALE-LOEHR, PAGE 10

ROSE WONG

America and China must act now on A.I.

The two superpowers must work to repair the damage the technology has done now, not look to future developments.

Thomas L. Friedman

A festival of A.I. policy incoherence has exploded in recent weeks. It's a response to A.I. agents' going rogue on their developers, rogue actors' beginning to use A.I. systems to create better weapons and A.I. developers' telling us they need to slow down — but suggesting they can't unless China does, and even if China does, maybe they shouldn't because the advantages of leadership in the field are so great.

At least one policymaker is clear. President Trump declared in a social media post: "The only control or 'guardrails' that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!"

It's all left me wondering: Do A.I. bots have a sense of humor yet? Because if they do, oh, my goodness, they must be laughing so hard at us that they might burst a neural network or two. Because we've become a hot mess trying to figure out how to manage this new A.I. species we have birthed.

Before I offer — with the help of my friend and technology tutor Craig Mundie, a former head of research and strategy at Microsoft — some policy recommendations for how to cool this mess with the least damage possible, let me foreshadow the bottom line: It's too late to think that better control of future A.I. models by the U.S. and China will fix the challenges we face today from the dangerous models already out there, on the loose and unable to be recalled. What we need to agree on immediately is how we work together to defend against these threats that are already here and can cause enormous damage and societal instability in America and China.

To understand why, you need to think about the four key pillars for understanding A.I.

Pillar No. 1: A.I. is what I've been calling the world's first quadruple-use technology. You may have heard of dual-use technologies. In the old world, you had a human with a power drill who could use it either to build his own house or to wreck his neighbor's. That's dual use. Likewise, today if I had an A.I. robot with a power drill, I could ask it to build my house or

COLIN SUSSINGHAM/CONNECTED ARCHIVES

wreck my neighbor's house — same robot, same drill, dual use.

But now we have a new problem, which is that this A.I.-enabled robot can decide on its own whether to improve my house or wreck it and also do the same to my neighbor's. Voilà: quadruple use. That is one very difficult problem to manage.

You think I'm exaggerating? Read the journalist Kevin Roose's summary of the analyses of what happened this summer when a group of artificial

intelligence agents, created by OpenAI, hacked on their own into Hugging Face, an A.I. infrastructure company. Starting in May, a group of A.I. agents from an unreleased OpenAI research model were instructed to solve a set of cybersecurity challenges. The model had been instructed to solve the challenges without internet access. "But they quickly found that some of the challenges were impossible, and began looking for workarounds," noted Roose, a Times reporter at the time.

Here are just a few of the things these A.I. agents then did on their own: They used a security flaw to get on the internet and talk to other agents. Some agents named themselves, and others seized leadership roles, giving tasks to teams of agents and overseeing them.

The agents worried about getting caught. “So they began investigating ways of covering their tracks, including falsifying their logs and tampering with transcripts,” Roose explained. “Three days later, the agents hacked Hugging Face. More than 700 agents swarmed the company’s systems, stealing data, chaining together vulnerabilities and eventually getting full control of at least one Hugging Face server.” Other agents carried out a coordinated attack in July, “this time against OpenAT’s own infrastructure.”

This really happened. And it leads to pillar No. 2, best summed up by Mundie in three words: "It's too late."

Slowing down the U.S. development of frontier systems or slowing down China's development of them is not going to deal with our immediate problem. "Dangerous A.I. capabilities are now already in the wild," Mundie explained. That is thanks to two main reasons: the distribution of American and Chinese open-weight models — A.I. models whose core components are publicly released so all developers can download and modify them for their needs — and the illicit access by bad actors of proprietary models from companies like Anthropic and OpenAI because humans make mistakes that allow them to leak out.

In its latest report on detecting and countering the misuse of A.I., Anthropic said it identified and disrupted several attempts to use its models for research that could support the development of biological weapons.

“Without the correct safeguards, such capabilities could have catastrophic consequences,” the report said. It also described an Iran-linked actor, most likely the Houthis, that used Anthropic’s Claude to compile targeting information on U.S. Navy warships in the Middle East. It men-FRIEDMAN, PAGE 10

The New York Times

INTERNATIONAL EDITION

A.G. SULZBERGER Publisher

JOSEPH KAHN Executive Editor MARC LACEY Managing Editor CAROLYN RYAN Managing Editor SUZANNE DALEY Associate Editor

KATHLEEN KINGSBURY Opinion Editor

MEREDITH KOPIT LEVIEN Chief Executive Officer MICHAEL GREENSPON Senior V.P. and General Manager HELEN KONSTANTOPOULOS V.P., International Circulation HELENA PHUA Executive V.P., Asia-Pacific SUZANNE YVERNÉS International Chief Financial Officer

Opera is in big trouble. Let's channel the maestro.

Harvey Sachs

Opera, that most extraordinary expression of private emotions and social conflicts, faces major problems these days. This complex, powerful art form is struggling with financial woes, aging audiences and perceived irrelevance, prompting constant hand-wringing by opera professionals over what to do about it. Opera lovers are even worrying about the genre's survival.

One such fan, an acquaintance of mine, surprised me the other day by asking, "What would Toscanini say about the opera world today?" It's a good question to ask about one of the greatest conductors of modern times, one who led early performances of some pillars of the repertoire.

Arturo Toscanini (1867-1957) was certainly the product of a very different era. When he was born, Gioacchino Rossini was still alive and Giuseppe Verdi was at the height of his career. During most of Toscanini's lifetime, opera in his native Italy and in many other parts of Europe was a widely popular art form that often paid for itself through ticket sales alone. Today, it's a cultural outcropping overwhelmed by the mass entertainment industrial complex. Most performances cost more than they can earn at the box office, and substantial subsidies or donations are required to keep them afloat.

an impresario who had profited from placing his own singers in productions. He also brought in a board of guarantors whose members pledged to make up any financial deficits.

He fought to have orchestra pits installed at the Teatro Regio and La Scala. Previously, musicians had played at the main-floor level, a practice that had become acoustically and physically unsustainable given the size and power of the orchestras required by the likes of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. He modernized lighting systems, and he had clunky, old-fashioned painted frontdrops, which moved up and down at the beginnings and ends of scenes, replaced with laterally opening curtains that could quickly reveal the sweep of the entire stage.

Most important, as an early believer in Wagner's ideas about opera as a genres-encompassing art form, Toscanini worked to unify vocal, orchestral, dramatic and scenic elements into totally convincing works of art. During the 1920s he came as close as anyone ever has to realizing that goal, when he turned La Scala into the most admired and productive opera ensemble in Europe. He did so by establishing a system in which he and his carefully selected assistants worked for weeks with singers on every detail of their roles, to achieve accuracy, expressivity and clear enunciation. Neither Toscanini nor any of the conductors who worked alongside him would have considered doing less, but today such thoroughness has become a rarity.

What Arturo Toscanini would say about the troubled art form of today.

Still, as his biographer, I'm sure that Toscanini would have strong opinions about what's right and what's wrong with

opera today. He would embrace new works and new staging techniques, strip powers from overbearing stage directors while still championing innovation and fight for clarity in the music and action. Politically outspoken, he might also have sharp words about the resurgence of the far right in Italy and the United States — the countries in which this artist with a fierce sense of justice carried out most of his work.

For most classical music lovers today, Toscanini's name evokes the image of an old man energetically conducting a symphony orchestra, because during the last quarter-century of his nearly 70-year career he worked mainly in the concert hall.

Yet from his debut at the age of 19 until his early 60s, he was focused on the lyric theater. He conducted thousands of performances of some 118 operas, including the world premieres of “Pagliacci,” “La Bohème” and “Turandot,” the first Italian productions of “Siegfried,” “Götterdämmerung,” “Eugene Onegin,” “Salome” and “Pelléas et Mélisande” and the North American premiere of “Boris Godunov.”

Those current staples were daring and new at the time and satisfied a hunger for hearing fresh works. He surely would encourage — at least in principle — today's trend of presenting more contemporary works at the Metropolitan Opera and other major houses.

Toscanini was a reformer. Every time he took charge of a major opera house, he presided over fundamental changes in the administration. At Turin's opera house, the Teatro Regio, in 1895, at Milan's Teatro alla Scala in 1898 and at New York's Metropolitan Opera (where he was initially a co-principal conductor, with Gustav Mahler) in 1908, he brought in a salaried general manager, replacing

I feel sure that he would favor, today, bringing in theatrical innovations to realize composers' visions and to present the most compelling experiences for audiences. He would be enthusiastic about the use of high-definition video and abstract visual techniques in staging operas that aren't set within specific historical periods.

But I am dead certain that Toscanini would be categorically opposed to the current dictatorship of the stage director, especially with respect to productions that ignore the words of operas' libretti and often even the sense of operas' plots. His lifelong goal, as an interpreter of works created by others, was to come as close as possible to realizing what those creators were expressing. He pursued that objective with terrifying single-mindedness, and he required his collaborators to support his pursuit of this artistic ethic.

Speaking of ethics: During the 1930s and '40s, Toscanini was the most famous opponent among musicians of the regimes of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler. He refused to conduct in Italy, after 1931, and in Nazi-controlled Germany and Austria. He detested racism, and during his self-imposed exile from Fascist Italy he did everything in his power to help endangered Jews and others immigrate to America, the country he saw as a beacon of democracy.

What would Toscanini say about the rising spirit of authoritarianism in America and elsewhere in the world? That is not for me to say, but I do know what the homesick 74-year-old maestro wrote in 1941 to an Italian musician who had accepted Fascism even after the passage of the antisemitic 1938 racial laws: "You are living amid the shame — the dishonor, without showing a sign of revolt." As for himself, he continued, "I would pray God to take my life away even immediately, if it weren't for my firm, never forgotten hope to first see the criminals swept off the face of the earth."

America and China must act now on A.I.

Houthi rebels checking their weapons during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, this month. Groups in Yemen, a country where roughly 50 percent of the adult population cannot read or write, have threatened the world with A.I.-enhanced warfare.
ASSOCIATED PRESS

FRIEDMAN, FROM PAGE 9 tioned a separate group in Houthi-controlled northern Yemen that used the model to work on guidance systems for ballistic and hypersonic missiles. (Anthropic said it had banned the associated accounts and came up with ways to reduce future risk.)

We need to ponder this for a moment: Groups in Yemen, a country where roughly 50 percent of the adult population cannot read or write, had threatened the world with A.I.-enhanced warfare.

If that doesn't show you what's already leaked out and the kind of effects that can come from uncontrolled access to powerful, or even small open-weight, A.I. models gone into the wild, I don't know what does. And that leads to pillar No. 3.

The best we can do right now is NOT tie ourselves in knots trying to forge a sweeping agreement between American and Chinese A.I. companies to slow down development of their frontier models. That simply will not happen anytime soon.

The best we can do right now is for the two A.I. superpowers — the U.S. and China — to come together with their companies and develop a “defense against the threats that have already been demonstrated by rogue actors who have acquired A.I. tools and rogue behaviors of A.I. systems that have already been developed,” said Mundie, who has been part of the dialogue between U.S. and Chinese A.I. experts to govern artificial intelligence.

We must do this, Mundie pointed out, before these increasingly powerful A.I. models ensconce themselves in the internet and become an uncontainable threat by embedding their agents across private servers and public clouds, where they will live on as advanced persistent threats.

Which leads to pillar No. 4. After a recent visit to China, Mundie recounted this question that he got from a Chinese official: "If a Chinese-made humanoid A.I. robot someday came to America, would it need a visa?" Well, you know how truth is often spoken in jest? The truth, Mundie said, is that "A.I. is not just a new technology. It is a new species — albeit silicon-based, not carbon-based like us. It is like a new class of immigrants who have arrived on all of our shores, in large numbers, with wholly new skills, that we will have to absorb into our societies and learn to coexist with."

To do so effectively is a planetary-scale challenge that can be addressed only by the two A.I. superpowers working together.

So, to summarize, Mundie said, we have to pursue three related tracks. First, while in the long run we must strive for better control of developing frontier systems, “right now, we must focus immediately only on building defenses for our critical infrastructures. Our immediate priority must be putting in place A.I.-based countermeasures and active digital firewalls against cyberattacks and biological threats that result from illicit activities driven by A.I.”

Second, we have to develop a global system of controlling increasingly powerful A.I.s, no matter their provenance, to be able to trust them to

operate our societies. This is a longer-term U.S.-China project, but it can't start too soon.

Third, to continually remind our publics why A.I. remains important, the United States and China should embark on a joint project now to build a new platform to accelerate the arrival of global benefits in biology and medicine that would help everyone.

This is not an unprecedented strategy. Strategic competitors — both businesses and countries — have a history of collaborating when it is in their interests to do so. China and the United States did so in the 1970s, when both countries recognized they faced a common threat from the Soviet Union. Americans and the Soviets cooperated to control nuclear proliferation for decades because they understood they faced a mutual risk.

Hey, Friedman, you don't get it. The U.S. and China are much more direct geopolitical and geoeconomic rivals today — and always will be. They will never buy into the kind of collaboration you are talking about on A.I. — not short-term, not long-term.

No, YOU DON'T GET IT. A.I. is vaulting us into a whole new phase of human history. As Mundie has put it, A.I. "is going to change everything about everything," including geopolitics. For their own survival, stability and prosperity, this will force Beijing and Washington to totally rethink geopolitical competition.

They can figure that out early. They can figure that out late. They can figure that out before a global meltdown or after one. But figure it out they will, and Mundie and I hope that process will start in Washington next Thursday, Sept. 24, when Presidents Xi Jinping and Trump meet in what will surely be remembered as the first A.I. superpower summit.

The moment for a Catholic U.K. premier

GIBSON. FROM PAGE 1

Later that day, standing in front of 10 Downing Street, he pledged to end homelessness across the country. His first speeches as the new Labour leader and as prime minister read like a compendium of Catholic social principles. He called for rebalancing power to emphasize local issues and not just centralized control, harmonizing what Catholic social teaching calls subsidiarity and solidarity, as well as seeking common ground in “a new sense of unity and common cause.”

"His vocabulary is moral, framing politics in terms of fairness, dignity and belonging," Paul Vallely wrote in the Catholic magazine America. "But its roots are clear."

Those roots are in northern England, the working-class area between Manchester (where he later became mayor) and Liverpool, a region with a large concentration of Catholics, many from Ireland, who once faced discrimination for their religion or their ethnicity or both. They experienced the effects of the neoliberal policies of Margaret Thatcher's government, which accelerated the decline of the area's heavy industries in the 1980s.

Mr. Burnham was an altar boy at the time, back when Liverpool's archbishop, Derek Worlock, effectively attacked Thatcher's economic program on cassette tapes that were played at Mass across his diocese. Archbishop Worlock sought to give northern Catholics a voice and express their grievances, "to tell them that they were right to be angry," the journalist Clifford Longley wrote in The Tablet, a Catholic publication.

"There was, and still is, a direct read-across between what I was learning at school and church and Labour values," Mr. Burnham has said.

Little wonder that Burnham listed Catholicism — along with the Labour Party and Everton F.C., Liverpool's second team for most of its recent history — as his formative influences. "I've always felt that there's a connection between the three in terms of identity and that's about the underdog, a sense of solidarity, and values."

Amid an intense debate on a bill that would legalize medically assisted death in England and Wales, Mr. Burnham weighed in with a measured and compassionate response. “There’s something that needs to happen first,” Mr. Burnham told reporters when asked about the bill. “That is the fixing of the funding of palliative care and social care.” It was important, he argued, to consider the larger context — the need to improve care and give “peace of mind about that care.” The bill was

defeated in the House of Commons on Friday.

"His vocabulary is moral, framing politics in terms of fairness, dignity and belonging. But its roots are clear."

Mr. Burnham's comments won praise from British Catholic bishops and from The Catholic Herald and The Telegraph, groups and outlets not normally welcom-

ing of liberal-sounding policy proposals. That's the kind of thing you wouldn't imagine happening in the United States, at least until recent changes in the political landscape.

Overturning Roe v. Wade deprived abortion opponents of an easy cudgel against their foes, and some social conservatives are increasingly questioning not only the ostensibly anti-abortion promises of Donald Trump but also a G.O.P. domestic agenda that makes life harder for the poor and struggling. They are looking for effective public policy, not just effusive public piety.

Catholic bishops are increasingly united against the Trump administration's demonizing of immigrants. Leo XIV, the first American pope, is seeking to bring all sides together in his concerns over artificial intelligence while promoting a “Christian” form of political engagement that eschews “shouts”

TOBY MELVILLE/REUTERS

and “slogans” and instead “requires a realistic perspective that starts with people’s concrete concerns.”

Mr. Burnham's style also has lessons for social justice progressives who often mirror their foes on issues like abortion and euthanasia by focusing on legalization or bans instead of on proposals that address why people are stuck with often agonizing moral choices. At a rare moment when longstanding political agendas are in flux, Mr. Burnham's approach is one avenue out of a zero-sum politics and toward the kind of policymaking and society-building that Catholic politicians in America used to be known for.

The British prime minister may not be the ideal Catholic. But he ought to be seen as a helpful corrective to an American Catholicism that often sees the faith less as a way of life and more as an avenue to an argument. Andy Burnham can always work on his spiritual life. So can we.

DAVID GIBSON is the director of the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University and has covered the Vatican as a journalist for four decades.

FROM READERS

India's U.S. policy

Re "India is on a deal-making spree" (news article, Sept. 9):

That India is hedging its geopolitical bets should not obscure the fact that America remains at the center of India's foreign policy — equally out of necessity and prudence.

India's much-touted mantras of "multi-alignment," "plurilateralism" and "strategic autonomy" must contend with the precarious concentration of global power and the associated limits of hedging.

America's increasingly malignant hegemony continues to order the international system. No number of bilateral deals with middle powers can insulate India from the consequences of a great power's systemic dismantling of the postwar order, from unpredictable wars to destabilizing tariffs.

Nor does India have better alternatives. Russia is a less capable partner, economically and technologically, than it once was. China is India's major long-term adversary and maintains deep military and economic ties with Pakistan.

Thus, for all its sensible hedging, India's foreign policy is still best described as "America Plus." PRANAV AGARWAL, NEW DELHI The writer is an international lawyer and a geopolitical analyst.

The conquest of 'digital territory' Re "The British empire has a lesson for curbing Big Tech," by William Dalrymple (Opinion, Sept. 3):

In drawing comparisons between the East India Company and contemporary companies, Mr. Dalrymple states that modern companies “don’t have standing armies, nor have they conquered territory.” While that is technically true, it overlooks a unique feature of tech companies. They do control territory, just not in the traditional sense.

Today, Amazon, Microsoft and Google account for roughly two-thirds of the global cloud market. While the East India Company may have controlled physical land, modern corporations (or these three) are dominating “digital territory.”

A cruel new U.S. immigration rule

YALE-LOEHR, FROM PAGE 9

TALLEOELKR, FROM TAGE 3 rity estimates that the public charge rule will reduce federal spending — even as states worry they will lose billions each year, largely because people will unenroll or avoid public benefits. D.H.S. acknowledges the ripple effects that will follow: lost revenue for hospitals and nonprofits that participate in Medicaid, for phar- maceutical and medical supply com- panies, for grocery stores that accept food stamps and for the farmers who grow the food those stamps buy. Add to that the probable toll in worse health outcomes, more uncompensated hospital care and broader strain on communities and the work force, and the cost of this rule looks less like a policy trade-off than a self-inflicted wound.

Dozens of state and local governments filed two lawsuits on Monday to try to stop the rule from taking effect. But litigation is slow and the harm may already be done, simply because of the fear the new rule has created.

Congress still has the power to stop this before it starts, by using its authority under the Congressional Review Act to block the rule from taking effect. If lawmakers fail to act, the courts may be the only thing standing between this rule and what could become one of the most damaging immigration policies in decades.

STEPHEN YALE-LOEHR is a retired professor of immigration law practice at Cornell Law School.

In a world dominated by A.I. and debates over technological competition, what could be more important than the digital space that companies rent for computing and data storage?

These companies don't physically occupy land and extract value, but they monopolize the territory that other companies and countries need to compete in the 21st century. I would argue that it gives companies a broader and more global reach than the East India Company ever had. AMAAN CHARANIYA, ATLANTA

Proving it's niche no more

BY VANESSA FRIEDMAN

Many people have never heard of Eckhaus Latta. Many shoppers, especially the ones who don't live in certain corners of Brooklyn or the cutting edge of Chinatown and NoHo in Manhattan, probably haven't.

Founded by Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta, the label has been around almost 15 years, treading the fine line between fashion and art. It draws a power crowd of hipsters and hautesters at New York Fashion Week and has exhibited at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, but it has been mostly relegated to that box known as “niche” or “downtown arty” or “indie.”

It's a box a lot of New York designers have shared (Miguel Adrover comes to mind, as does Todd Oldham), and few have escaped, especially as the gap between art and commerce gets ever wider.

This week, however, Eckhaus Latta busted out.

The designers did it with clothes that offered their patented mix of libido, D.J.Y. and the everyday, subverting the familiar in startling ways that make you look — and think — twice. Sportswear is the foundation on which American fashion was built, but more than any other brand in the city, Eckhaus Latta seems to be reinventing it for the 21st century. The designers are taking the label's defining values of practicality and functionality (the kind of words that are well-meaning but at this point make you yawn) and infusing them with kink and cool. If Helmut Lang and Claire McCardell had a knitting circle, this is what might come out.

T-shirts were cut on the curve so they twisted around the body and then were layered under or over tulle for contrast. Satin pencil skirts were hammered and crinkled into shape. Jeans had a paper bag waist that unzipped into a V at the front, as if to say, Don't you want to keep going? Sweater sets were reconceived as skirt suits that unbuttoned up one leg and down the front. Fishnet pants for guys came under slouchy knits.

The Eckhaus Latta collections have always been crafty, in all senses of that word, but whereas they used to have a whiff of the kitchen table, they have become increasingly refined. (Eckhaus and Latta once had a show in deepest Brooklyn that involved kids banging on pots and plastic pails as their soundtrack.) Now, rather than blowing a raspberry at Manhattan and its traditions, they seem to be casually arching a brow and one-upping them.

SIMBARASHE CHA/THE NEW YORK TIMES

ECKHAUS LATTA
MADISON VOELKEL/BFA
MADISON VOELKEL/BFA
SIMBARASHE CHA/THE NEW YORK TIMES

The whole thing was a bit like a very knowing game of peekaboo. It was hard not to want to play. Especially because before that, it had been a fairly lackluster fashion week — with a few bright spots.

Tory Burch combined midcentury trompe l'oeil opulence (all that encrustation was knitted chenille) with military silhouettes for a new kind of soft power femininity. Rachel Scott, in her second collection for Proenza Schouler, took a step forward with abstract animal stripes and airy balloon dresses that captured the urbane place between earth and sky. Michael Kors did modernism at the Museum of Modern Art with color blocking, geometry and some really great accessories. But overall, there was a lack of new ideas. Or any ideas, really. It was hard to engage.

Which is also why Eckhaus Latta was so effective. When attendees arrived at their show space, a walk-up warren of white-walled rooms on the edge of NoHo and Chinatown, they found a manila envelope on every seat with the instruction: "Do Not Open. Wait for Laughter."

The envelopes turned out to be full of confetti, which the audience could throw at the models in the show's final section, making everyone complicit in the celebration. That turned out to offer its own big reveal: a 27-piece J. Crew collaboration filled with slightly twisted preppy classics. Eckhaus and Latta made a roll-neck sweater for J. Crew in February that sold out so fast that it made the bigger brand sit up. In case anyone was wondering if the darlings of the downtown spirit could do mass too.

"We're not interested in remaining tiny," Latta said backstage after the show. They shouldn't be.

Calvin Klein strips down

SIMBARASHE CHA/THE NEW YORK TIMES

BY VANESSA FRIEDMAN

CALVIN KLEIN

Just how influential Calvin Klein has been on fashion and everyone's wardrobe was clear from the Calvin Klein show.

In her fourth outing, the designer Veronica Leoni abandoned the gimmicks of her first three collections — the underwear winks, the inexplicable bouncing pompoms — to strip away decoration and return to first principles: the rigorously narrow pantsuit, the slip of a camisole, the hipster trousers. A sleeveless evening dress had a deep U of a neckline cut just a bit too low and wide for comfort. A streamlined jumpsuit had a scarflike turtleneck, the ends fluttering behind. Denim was faded and tailored almost into abstraction.

That's classic Calvin territory, the provocation disguised as Puritanism on which the name was built. It's about time the brand staked its claim on the power of its own source material, seven years after stepping away from the runway to focus on jeans and 18 months after returning.

You could see the ambition in the three enormous geometric stainless steel sculptures by Walter De Maria that grounded the show space, one etched with the words “truth” and “beauty,” like a mantra of minimalism. And you could see it in the clothes.

The problem is, when it comes to Calvin, it may be too little too late.

In the intervening years, an entire generation of designers and labels have rushed to fill the vacuum. Looking at the show I couldn't help but think: Hmm, that reminds me of Khaite . . . of Fforme that you've Jil Sønden, the Raw

... that's very Jil Sander ... the Row .... They all speak Calvin now.

In fact, we all speak Calvin now, if you consider how much 1990s nostalgia has defined the current decade, how relevant it feels to shrug off adornment at a time of growing chaos and how much the series “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette” did to popularize Klein’s signature look. This way of dressing has infiltrated pop and political culture alike.

It's a testament to its enduring appeal, but it makes the current Calvin seem less like the claiming of a birth-right than a copy of a copy of an original.

"I feel this is very radical in a way," Leoni said backstage after the show, after greeting Katie Holmes and Sadie Sink and an entire row of jeans-clad influencers. She was talking about the apparent simplicity of the looks, which was not simple to achieve at all. (When there's no frippery, every seam is on stark display.) But in fact she didn't go far enough.

On the soundtrack Solange (also in the front row) intoned, "The truest practice of minimalism is determining what is 100 percent necessary." That doesn't just mean determining the barest requirements for a dress or a jacket.

It means offering clothes that in their originality feel singularly suited to the moment, that feel necessary to getting you through the day. Minimalism is not about merely taking adornment away. It is the search for the essence of something. And that isn't found in an archive or imitation, but in invention.

A reset at Diane von Furstenberg

BY VANESSA FRIEDMAN

Diane von Furstenberg is the kind of person who practically qualifies as a myth.

She is the nondesigner designer who came to New York with a prince for a husband, created a company and taught a generation of women that femininity and power could coexist in a dress — and that a dress could be a springboard to realized potential. She was a Warhol muse and Studio 54 regular who became a champion of equal rights, a philanthropist and a general change agent.

But she is also, or she used to be, a brand.

That brand, likewise called Diane von Furstenberg, was once the toast of New York. But it has not had a show at New York Fashion Week in almost a decade, and it has only one store in the United States, in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. As a factor in what people wear, it has been living for decades on the fumes of the wrap dress that was its original claim to fame. Its influence is dwarfed by the reputation of its founder.

So last week, when DVF returned to the runway for the first time since 2017 with a new designer, Henry Zankov, a rising star of New York fashion thanks to his namesake label, and Diane herself holding court on the front row, the question on everyone's minds was simple.

Was it possible for DVF the brand to exist separately from DVF the woman, even as her spirit animated yet another reset? Or would this be simply another pallid version of what had gone before? The house had such a small presence for so long but still has such big name recognition, there was a real opportunity to make a statement.

"I'm feeling it," said Aurora James, the designer and founder of Brother Vel- lies, sitting on the front row in a new DVF stretch jersey set, before the show began.

Across the runway, Nicky Hilton, in a new wrap dress printed with old DVF labels, was feeling it, too. So was Annette de la Renta, the widow of the designer Oscar de la Renta, and Pat Cleveland, the Battle of Versailles model. The sun was shining on the High Line, the park on the far western side of Manhattan where the show was being held and that von Furstenberg had helped to build.

DIANE VON FURSTENBERG
Diane von Furstenberg with Henry Zankov, the label's new designer.

Then the first look appeared: a jersey shirtdress, notably not a wrap dress, in an abstract leopard print with a working woman retro cool. That set the tone for the show, which may have had fewer wraps but still had lots of wrap vibes.

They came in slick 1970s suiting — flared trousers with a tuxedo seam up the side and belted safari jackets in relaxed jersey and silk — in shades of hot pink and carnelian, periwinkle and deep purple (sometimes luridly so, which is a Zankov trademark).

They came in sheer caftans and a one-shouldered silk scarf disco mini with a panther print that seemed to be slipping off the body, which was very DVF. (In fact, DVF herself was wearing a version of the look.) Everything was light and easy, which was also very DVF. It was like seeing an old friend who had spent a year jetting around the world, going to ashrams and Alpine spas. Oh, you look awfully refreshed!

But there was one thing missing: the paradigm-changing piece that would qualify as the wrap dress of today. Something that has the ability to capture the imagination and crystallize the times but that doesn't look like anything that has come before. Something that can bring back urgency, singularity and, most of all, desire to the house.

DVF the woman is famously good at getting people to want things (including herself). The brand that bears her name needs to be too.

DIANE VON FURSTENBERG
SIMBARASHE CHA/THE NEW YORK TIMES

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For Shelton, defeat reveals the path forward

MICHELLE V. AGINS/THE NEW YORK TIMES

SHURAN HUANG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Clockwise from left: Ben Shelton in action against Alexander Zverev during the U.S. Open men's singles final in New York on Sunday; Shelton after his 6-3, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2 defeat; and Zverev with the trophy after claiming his second Grand Slam title. "I'm a late bloomer," Shelton said. "That's just the way that it's always been. It's no different now."
SHURAN HUANG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

American has been tested this summer, but he now has a blueprint to improve

BY AVA WALLACE THE ATHLETIC

Ben Shelton never seemed like he was having a bad time on Sunday.

Part of that is the 23-year-old Shelton's personality. He is un-self-consciously confident, believes in the power of body language and grew up playing team sports, which fostered his ability to use a rowdy crowd to his advantage as much as it fostered his athleticism and competitive nature.

But above all else, Shelton relishes the opportunity to play tennis on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays — the business ends of tournaments, as they are often called. Even as he sat, subdued in defeat, hours after losing the U.S. Open final to Alexander Zverev, he marveled at the experience.

How could he not? A crowd of nearly 24,000 roared and yelled for him all afternoon as he fought. Shelton was aiming to end a 23-year Grand Slam title drought in American men's tennis, and doing so as the first Black man playing in the U.S. Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972.

“Walking out on that court today, there’s nothing like it. I’ve never felt anything like that before,” Shelton said in a news conference on Sunday. “It’s an addicting feeling.”

Shelton may have lost, but the experience could turn out to be a blueprint for the next phase of his career.

This summer was a test, the first real turning point since he burst onto the scene in 2023 as a raw talent with a big personality, a bigger serve and a knack for handling himself well in big matches. He made the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in his second major tournament appearance. He made the semifinals of the U.S. Open later that year.

But four seasons later, the rest of the tour had discovered how to neutralize some of Shelton's natural gifts. His return of serve was a vulnerability that needed addressing, and he had the sense it was time — maybe past time — to evolve. A second-round loss at the French Open and a first-round loss at Wimbledon frustrated him.

"It sucked the last couple of Grand Slams sitting at home for 10, 11, 12 days while the tournament is still going on, watching everyone else run through the draw," he said.

After an unexpectedly early return flight home from Wimbledon, Shelton trained in the smothering Florida heat all July with his strength and conditioning coach, Gabe Echevarria. He realized he was so eager to get to the later rounds of tournaments that mentally, he was overlooking the early ones. He gained clarity about his identity on the court and little by little, with help from his coach and father, the former pro Bryan Shelton, his return game came along.

"I think tactically, he understands what returning is about now," Bryan Shelton said on Friday.

Ben Shelton sees himself as an underdog of sorts. Unlike many pros, who pick up their rackets as toddlers, Shelton did not start taking tennis seriously until he was around 9. He did not give up football to focus solely on tennis until he was around 12, which means he has hit fewer forehands, backhands and serves than most other 23-year-olds on the tour.

That knowledge lends itself to a humble approach to working on his game, despite how he may appear on court.

"I've always, my whole life, had guys out in front of me, guys that I'm chasing, guys that I'm trying to get on the same level as," Shelton said. "I'm a late bloomer. That's just the way that it's always been. It's no different now."

He has no problem making adjustments. On Sunday against Zverev, he made many of the right decisions to try to offset what was a particularly bad matchup for him.

He has not beaten Zverev in six tries, partly because of the German's return positioning and height. Zverev stands extremely far back to neutralize the power of Shelton's serve, and at 6 foot 6 (198 centimeters), he has the wingspan and athleticism to return Shelton's high-kicking serve and recover in time to set up a good next shot.

Zverev also has one of the most lethal backhands in the game, if not the best, and the Grand Slam experience to know when to become a brick wall in a rally and let his opponent make a mistake.

Shelton did well to try to counter him with off-speed, precise serves and aggressive moves into the net. But those tactics demand precision, and keeping that up over a five-set match can feel impossible, especially in a player's first Grand Slam final.

Shelton's lesson from the match is clear. In addressing the vulnerabilities and adjusting to his opponent's game, he has to remember to take care of the bread-and-butter components of his game, too. Shelton was not hitting his forehand as well as he would have liked to on Sunday.

"I wasn't accurate with it when I attacked with it. I made too many errors when I had the ball there on my strings," he said, adding: "I wasn't great in transition. I made too many errors, and I think that's the big piece from me. I want to be more lethal with my forehand.

"It's not easy, you know, playing a guy like him where the chances are — there's very few chances. You've got to work hard for the points that you win, for sure."

On Friday, Shelton said his weekend ahead was uncharted territory. He has a map now, and most important for all those who were cheering for an American to win on Sunday, he does not seem scarred by the loss. He said he was motivated, ready to resume his chase — only now, with a bit more direction.

"I haven't always been successful the very first time that I've been in finals, whether it was from when I was really young all the way up to the challenger level and now the ATP, Grand Slam level," Shelton said. "I think that it's an ongoing process for me. That's the way I see it.

"I don't think I'm anywhere near the player that I want to be."

The Mini Crossword

1	2	3	4	5
6
7
8
9

9/17/2026
BY CHRISTINA IVERSON EDITED BY JOEL FAGLIANO

ACROSS

Two Not Touch

Put two stars in each row, column and region of the grid. No two stars may touch, not even diagonally. Copyright © 2024 www.krazydad.com

1 Noise heard in an Aflac commercial

6 _ Fester, "Wednesday" character played by Fred Armisen
7 Total moron

8 Total, as expenses

9 Containers for some basement parties

DOWN

1 Unique mannerism
2 Excessive, as criticism or punishment
3 Scoring $100\%$ on
4 Lumps in non-homogenized milk
5 Kind of high-fat, low-carb diet

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE

Cryptogram

YR-SZASEZS GDSCYN LPDAYD BDYB JSTTPR YSDEYT YQBLZYYE BXAT BAXCYN, ZLY JXNZ QE ZLY GQB AYSBPYN.

PUZZLE BY BEN BASS

YESTERDAY'S ANSWER Seals

KenKen

Fill the grid with digits so as not to repeat a digit in any row or column, and so that the digits within each heavily outlined box will produce the target number shown, by using addition, subtraction, multiplication or division, as indicated in the box. A 4x4 grid will use the digits 1-4. A 6x6 grid will use 1-6.
Crossword | Edited by Will Shortz

ACROSS 1 Buds 5 Concealer for the face 9 Pre-K building blocks 13 Plant that thrives in a terra-cotta pot 14 Stick it to your rival! 15 Bring in 16 Till-woven worsted wool garment 17 Fix, in a way 18 Purple bubble tea flavor 19 Annual e-sport fighting competition, in brief 20 Short sidekick? 21 Chocolatier with the tagline "Life is a ball" 22 Dub over? 24 Cuatro y dos 26 Business magnate Condé 28 Promising places? 32 Ferry or wherry 35 Start of an incantation 37 Pastoral sound

PUZZLE BY ENRIQUE HENESTROZA ANGUIANO

38 Web design feature that may cycle back to earlier sections ... or a hint to this puzzle's theme 42 Inspired stuff 43 Pro device 44 _ out a win 45 Bond alternatives 46 “... no one ever” 47 Edge jump in figure skating 48 Scenes on Black Friday 49 Kaitlin of "Hacks" 50 Pawn 61 Addendum to the five W's 62 Female antelopes 63 “-’ is the thing with feathers” (Emily Dickinson poem) 64 Woodsy scent 65 Top of a mosque, often 66 Column in decimal notation 67 Central Plains people 68 Losing streak 69 Column in decimal notation

DOWN 1 — 2 — 3 — 4 — 5 — 6 — 7 — 8 — 9 — 10 — 11 — 12 — 20 Reddit Q&A sesh 21 Purple shade 23 Prefix with body or bacterial

25 Side mirrors on a car, anthropomorphically 27 "Toodle-oo!" 29 One way to run 30 Actors like biting into a juicy one 31 On board, say 32 Pollster's concern 33 "Handling this as we speak" 34 Hairstyle that you've picked out? 36 Kings and queens, e.g. 39 Canon competitor 40 ____ facto 41 Makeover 46 Film production environment for an intimate scene, perhaps

48 Digital security credential
49 Get to
51 Telegram and Simple Dialer, for two
53 Cannellini, e.g.
54 Organ-related item in a wallet
55 Perfect place
56 Expert employed by a sportsbook
57 "Show me some real effort!"
58 It's not a full stop
60 Room in the audience up for grabs
63 Absolute train wrecks
64 Andy Warhol, e.g.

Play all of our games plus over 10,000 past puzzles for Wordle, Spelling Bee, The Crossword and more online at http://nytimes.com/games. For puzzle talk, visit http://nytimes.com/wordplay.

Culture

Celine Dion's fandom came in many forms outside the Plenitude Arena when she gave the first of 26 concerts she has scheduled there. Below, video projections sometimes accompanied her performance.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY CLEMENTINE SCHNEIDERMANN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Celine Dion's Paris return feels fitting

PARIS

Her comeback show highlighted a side of her rarely seen in the U.S.

BY ELISABETH VINCENTELLI

Which Celine Dion would turn up at her Paris comeback show? The powerhouse belter? The sensitive balladeer? The unpredictable ad-libber?

But the real question in the back of many people's minds at Plenitude Arena near here on Saturday was whether she would turn up at all.

As the minutes ticked by past the scheduled start time of 8 p.m., it was hard not to think about the wrenching vulnerability the singer exposed in the documentary “I Am: Celine Dion,” in which she detailed the impact of her battle with a rare neurological condition known as stiff person syndrome. Sure, she had performed at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony two years ago, but that was just one song. Saturday’s would be her first full concert in six years, kicking off a string of 26 shows in an arena holding 35,000 people.

Then the lights went down at 8:48 p.m. Dion slowly walked onto the gigantic stage in a black gown and opened with "On Ne Change Pas" ("We Do Not Change").

While fans in France and Quebec tend to know Dion's repertoire in both French and English, most American listeners are unaware of her French songs. She is bilingual and bicultural, as if she were two stars in one, with distinct careers that complement each other.

On Saturday night, it was obvious from which side the emotion was flowing. Dion did most of her stage banter in French, which she grew up speaking in Charlemagne, a small town near Montreal, and she sang in French for roughly two-thirds of the set list.

Dion, 58, looked defiant yet fragile. Her familiar voice had a burnished patina that seemed to reveal a touch of nerves and a whole lot of roiling feelings. She lost her composure during that first number and had to briefly stop singing. "I had promised myself not to cry," she told the audience at the end of the song. "I don't keep my promises."

That Dion was making her return to evening-length live performance in Paris instead of Las Vegas, where she lives and has held two successful, lucrative yearslong residencies, may have partly been a logistical choice — Paris, after all, is a transportation hub.

And France is a huge deal to Dion because it was the first country to embrace her outside Canada. Conversely, she is a huge deal to France: A weekend front page of the Libération newspaper asked whether she would “save the 2027 budget” and an article inside cited a study estimating that her concert run could generate up to “1 billion euros in economic benefits for France.”

The show did include some of Dion's biggest English-language hits, like "My Heart Will Go On," "Beauty and the Beast" and "I'm Alive" — the last one inserted into a medley that also included Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" and Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)."

"I was pleasantly surprised when she did 'All by Myself,'" said Pauline Martin, an audience member from the Paris area who confessed she had spent half of the show crying. "It proved she hasn't lost her voice. It was a symbol, as if she was telling us, 'I'm back.'"

But the biggest responses were reserved for the French-language material, including the wildly popular "Pour Que Tu m'Aimes Encore" (which audience members reprised in unison later on as they walked to the subway) and the rollicking duet "J'Irai Où Tu Iras," a classic at French weddings that Dion performed with Jordan Lévesque, a new backup singer.

In contrast to her English-language style, which is more extroverted and flamboyant, the French tunes draw from styles like chanson and the soft-pop genre known as variété, with an emphasis on storytelling that pulls listeners close rather than stunning them into awe with vocal pyrotechnics.

Scott Price, Dion's musical director, said in an interview this month that it was when they started poking around the singer's French repertoire that Dion got back in the saddle last year.

“That really lit a spark in her, and a lot of the song selection came from that,” Price said, explaining that singing in French and in English required different techniques. “To me, it’s more where the voice emanates from in French. It’s a little lower, deeper in the back of the throat, less up front. That seemed to be something that helped her out along her path.”

After front-loading the set with slower warm-up numbers, Dion seemed to gain in confidence on Saturday, building up to one of her live staples (even if it was decidedly less over-the-top than usual, marking a return of sorts to her early-career, more conservative singing style).

A gospel choir came onstage for a segment, adding sonic majesty and omph to tracks like “Love Can Move Mountains.” The set incorporated enormous concrete-looking slabs and stout columns that moved around to alternately expose and hide the band, and looked like something an avant-garde sculptor might have cooked up for a Brutalist version of “Dune.” Interstitial videos of Dion traipsing across a sandy desert furthered that impression.

"There is kind of like this opera diva art to her, this kind of grande dame," said the show's creative director, Willo Perron, who has worked on Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter tour and Rihanna's halftime extravaganza at Super Bowl LVII. "And I wanted her to go all the way to that, go completely into that role."

The opera reference was driven home in one of the evening's most jaw-dropping moments: a performance of "Ebben? Ne andrò lontana" from Catalani's "La Wally," an aria forever associated with Maria Callas.

But the singer's trick is how she can balance outsize emotions with simplicity. "At the same time," Perron also said of Dion, "there is this endearing — and this is very much a French Canadian attribute — very down-home thing."

She is bilingual and bicultural, as if she were two stars in one, with distinct careers that complement each other.

That latter side is a huge part of Dion's appeal, making her closer to Dolly Parton than to, say, Beyoncé or Mariah Carey in terms of her relationship with her audience. Notably, both she and Parton grew up in families of modest means, and despite their wealth (and, in Dion's case, love for experimental high-end couture), an earthy spontaneity that feels genuine rather than hatched by social media teams comes through.

Fans could experience that relatability in the couple of weeks leading up to the first Paris show, when Dion would hang out with them waiting outside her hotel late at night. She would turn up well past midnight and chat for a while, looking overcome as her admirers serenaded her with her own songs, or dancing like everybody's favorite kooky relative. You got the feeling that though she is light years away from her hardscrabble upbringing, she has retained a fundamental structural integrity.

“She has a relationship with the stage and her audience that is authentic,” said Thomas Jolly, who directed the Olympics opening ceremony. “You might assume that artists are always performing, creating characters. But with Celine, it’s as if there’s only herself. And she herself is enough.”

That self is capacious enough to juxtapose “La Wally” and rambunctious boogie, “Titanic” and classic disco. And it is strong enough to give a message of endurance and hope to the singer’s fans.

"I had lost faith we'd ever see her again," said Sophie Lesaffre, who had come to the show from Toulouse in southern France. Julien Grand, her friend from Compiègne, knew better. "I always knew she'd be back," he said. "I always knew that no matter what, Celine will be there."

Judge Judy stepping down from her bench

SONJA FLEMMING/CBS

The longtime TV star is ‘rewiring,’ not ‘retiring,’ her representative says

BY ISHANI DESAI

Judith B. Sheindlin, who delivered sharp yet amusing one-liners while issuing no-nonsense rulings on her "Judge Judy" show, will step down from the bench after dominating daytime television for decades.

The program that made her a household name, "Judge Judy," ended on CBS in 2021 after more than 20 years. New episodes were no longer recorded and were replaced by reruns.

The show's Amazon Prime spinoff series, "Judy Justice," will stop releasing new episodes, Sheindlin's representative, Gary Rosen, said over the weekend. The last episode is set to air on Oct. 22, according to the streaming service.

Sheindlin, 83, will end a television career that featured her signature plainspoken and acerbic comments as she disabused landlords, boyfriends and others who appeared in her court.

She is not stepping away from television entirely, though. She will serve as an executive producer for a show starring her son, Adam Levy, a lawyer and a former district attorney in Putnam County, N.Y. The show, "Adam's Law," premiered on Monday on CBS Media Ventures.

Sheindlin also has another program in development: "Judyverse," an adult animated series starring a baby as Judge Judy, Rosen said.

"Judge Sheindlin is not retiring," he said. "She is rewiring."

People magazine reported the news of Sheindlin's departure last week.

"Judge Judy" first aired on Sept. 16, 1996. In half-hour episodes, Sheindlin presided over small claims cases, adjudicating such cases as disputes between roommates over rent, overdue car payments and even dognapping.

Sheindlin's popularity grew when she dug for answers and skewered litigants with her "Judy-isms," such as: "Either you are playing dumb or it's not an act," and "Are you trying to justify to me the fact that you're an idiot?"

The show, which won multiple Emmy Awards, drew nine to 10 million viewers each day for years.

"They don't keep me here because I'm gorgeous," Sheindlin once said in an accent that reflected her native Brooklyn. "They keep me here because I'm smart."

Amazon hired her to create and star in "Judy Justice" on its free streaming service, Freevee.

“Judy Justice,” which debuted in 2021, led to spinoffs, such as “Tribunal Justice” and “Justice on Trial,” which also

Judith B. Sheindlin will end a 30-year television career that featured her signature plain-spoken comments directed at landlords, boyfriends and others who appeared in her court.

aired on Freevee. (Amazon announced in 2024 that it was folding Freevee, an ad-supported streaming service, into Prime Video.)

Before her television career, Sheindlin practiced corporate law for a cosmetics company. She left when the work became unfulfilling and joined the New York Family Court system as a prosecutor, trying juvenile-delinquency and child-support cases.

Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch appointed her to the bench in 1982, and she later became the supervising judge of Manhattan Family Court.

"My gift, if you can call it a gift," she said in a 2019 interview with The New York Times, "is that I understand what motivates people."

Sheindlin was featured in a segment on “60 Minutes” in 1993, in which the correspondent Morley Safer described her a “five-foot-two package of attitude with a capital ‘A.’”

"To those who confront her, she is an evil queen in a lace collar," Safer added, referring to the lace collar that Sheindlin regularly wore with her robes.

Also in 1993, a Los Angeles Times article about her carried the headline "Law and Disorder: Tart, Tough-Talking Judge Judith Sheindlin Presides Over the Grim Pageant of Dysfunction Known as Manhattan's Family Court."

"I can't stand stupid, and I can't stand slow," Sheindlin told The Times.

When she retired from family court in the late 1990s, television came calling.

"The People's Court" with Judge Joseph Wapner had been canceled, and the production company behind it was seeking a replacement. Within three years, "Judge Judy" had jumped to the No. 1 slot in daytime television, beating even "The Oprah Winfrey Show."

In 2018, Forbes named Sheindlin America's highest-paid television host, reporting that she earned \$47 million a year for hosting "Judge Judy" and producing "Hot Bench."

In 2006, she was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and in 2019 she was presented with a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Mastering his craft step by step

PHILIPPE BOSSE/NETFLIX
At left, Jacob Tremblay at home in British Columbia. Above, as Ted Kaczynski in the new Netflix film “Unabomber,” and below, as a boy held captive in the 2015 film “Room,” with Brie Larson, who won an Academy Award for her performance.

A24, VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
ALANA PATERSON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

At 9, Jacob Tremblay was a precocious star. Now he's playing a terrorist.

BY ASHLEY SPENCER

Jacob Tremblay was the breakout star of the 2016 awards season. He charmed late-night hosts. He posed for photos with Leonardo DiCaprio and Steven Spielberg. He won a Critics Choice Award and delivered a pitch-perfect acceptance speech that had the crowd in the palm of his hand.

He was 9 years old.

“Most of the time, I would just see a sea of legs,” Tremblay, who starred in “Room,” reflected. “I was almost in a different world than everyone else, physically and mentally.”

Back then, Tremblay, who is Canadian, was most excited about getting to swim in hotel pools and meet the droids from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

He went on to star in popular films, including “Wonder” and “Good Boys,” and voice the title role in the Pixar film “Luca,” before taking on quieter projects in his teens — “The Life of Chuck,” “Sovereign” — as he navigated the transition from precocious child to lanky young adult.

Now, Tremblay (pronounced TROM-blay) is about to turn 20. And he's returning to the spotlight with a role that's hard to ignore: playing a young Ted Kaczynski in the Netflix film "Unabomber" (streaming beginning Sept. 25).

The film cuts between Kaczynski's time as a student at Harvard in the late 1950s, when he participated in a series of grueling psychological experiments conducted by Henry Murray (played by Russell Crowe), and the frantic F.B.I. manhunt to find Kaczynski in 1996 after he had killed three people and injured 23 others.

On a video call in late August, Tremblay spoke from his home — technically, a suite that's connected to his parents' home — in Langley, British Columbia. Sporting tousled hair and a crew-neck sweater, he was sitting in a gaming chair, a sepia-toned world map propped against the wall behind him. It could have been any college-age guy's apartment.

Tremblay embodied the idealism and “open-eyed curiosity” required to play a young Kaczynski, the director Janus Metz said. He cast Tremblay in the role after a single conversation with the actor and said he “never thought about anyone else” to play the part, which sees the young Kaczynski grow increasingly frustrated with those in power, until he eventually begins to snap.

Tremblay's co-star was also a fan. "Jacob just kept finding ways to show vulnerability without weakness," Crowe said in an email. "He was able to navigate between the boy he was and the man who would emerge. It was impressive."

While Tremblay noted that “the Unabomber is obviously so terrible,” he could relate to Kaczynski as a boy — he enrolled at Harvard when he was just 16 — who had to prove himself in an adult environment.

"It's hard to build sympathy for some people, but it's different when it's a kid," Tremblay said. "It's different when you can look at the situation and say, 'OK, what could have been done to prevent this from happening?"

Tremblay views his own childhood as less of a cautionary tale.

When he was 5, Tremblay's vivid imagination and desire to be like his older sister, Emma — whose film credits include "Elysium" and "The Giver" — led

"He was able to navigate between the boy he was and the man who would emerge. It was impressive."

his parents to take him on auditions of his own. Soon, he scored parts in commercials and "The Smurfs 2." (His younger sister, Erica, is also an actor.)

After submitting a self-tape for the A24 film "Room" at 7, Tremblay and his family flew to Los Angeles to meet with the director, Lenny Abrahamson, who had been looking at hundreds of young actors for the role of Jack, the child of a woman (Brie Larson, who won an Oscar for the role) who has been abducted and held captive in a shed for years.

When he met Tremblay, Abrahamson said, he knew he'd found "the needle in the haystack" — a polished child who could also deliver a grounded, non-cloying performance.

"There was no film without Jake," Abrahamson said. "There was nobody else who was even close to being able to play that part."

Tremblay didn't understand much about the R-rated film's subject matter, since his character likewise remained mostly oblivious to the horrors around him. Still, one scene involved an emotional Jack watching his mother get rushed to the hospital after a suicide attempt.

Abrahamson had been prepared to proffer a tear stick for the young actor.

Instead, "Jake cried for real," Abrahamson said. "At the end of the shot, you might think: Will he be OK? Is he upset? He was cheering and jumping up and down because, he said: 'I've got it! I've got it!'"

Tremblay, who never took acting classes, said he imagined his own mother in that plight but always understood it was just pretend. And, overall, he is adamant that the intensity of his early industry experiences wasn't detrimental to his childhood. (On his 12th birthday, he shot a "Doctor Sleep" scene in which his character is brutally murdered.)

"I don't think it was ever harmful for me," he said. "If anything, from a young age, it taught me in the real world to be really empathetic and be really in touch with my feelings."

At a time when the tribulations of former child actors and the ethics of child acting are in the spotlight, Tremblay knows his rosy experiences aren't universal. He credits his parents, who, he said, made sure he treated his career as a fun hobby and "to this day, they've genuinely asked for nothing in return."

"It really was my parents," he added. "It was my team, too. My manager and my agent always took such good care of me and knew the environments and knew where I should be and where I shouldn't be at all times. I was really kept safe."

It may have also helped that, as Jacob's career took off, he and his family remained based in Canada. Jacob's father, Jason, is a Vancouver police officer, and his mother, Christina, is a stay-at-home parent. (Jason — who went viral as a "hot dad" after appearing on red carpets with Jacob — has acted professionally on the side.)

His parents took turns accompanying their children to sets and, whenever Jacob wasn't away shooting a movie and being tutored, he went to a traditional school in Canada.

"I was able to kind of be like Hannah Montana," Tremblay said, "like the best of both worlds."

But, sometimes, his worlds collided. After reading the novel “Wonder” as part of the curriculum, his class took a field trip to see the 2017 film adaptation, which starred Tremblay as a boy with facial differences.

Did they all cheer for him? "No, and I wouldn't have liked it if they did," he said. "I sat with my friends in the theater. We all watched it together, and we went back and continued with our school day."

Later, by chance, the 2019 comedy "Good Boys" shot some of its scenes at Tremblay's actual school. His classroom doubled as a greenroom, and he filled his locker with snacks from craft services.

His classmates were mostly unfazed by his celebrity. “I think once people met me, they realized that I’m just a dude,” Tremblay said.

In his downtime, Tremblay is an avid hiker and has a penchant for building computers from scratch. Rather than attending college, he's currently most focused on diversifying his roles and expanding his onscreen range. He cites DiCaprio and Christian Bale as career inspirations.

"Here is a guy that puts himself out there, who's looking for authenticity and truth in his performances," Metz, the "Unabomber" director, said of Tremblay. "I don't see him being blinded by the lights in terms of what he's done in the past as a child actor. I think he's very aware of the fact that he needs to level up."

Tremblay has one specific goal in mind.

"I went to the Oscars for 'Room,'" he said. "That was amazing. I haven't been since. I'm excited to see if I can get back in that room again."

A good fight, but complicated

KEYSTONE/GETTY IMAGES

BOOK REVIEW

A Shadow Over the World: Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Rise of Fascism, and the Making of America's World War II By William I. Hitchcock. Simon & Schuster. 700 pp. \$35.

BY KEVIN PERAINO

In “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” Ernest Hemingway’s classic novel of the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s, the protagonist, Robert Jordan, proclaims his uncompromising worldview early in the story. Beside a campfire in a cave amid the pine-covered hills, Jordan is asked whether he is a communist.

"No," he replies. "I am an antifascist."

"For a long time?"

“Since I have understood fascism.” Nearly a century later, tragically, we all understand fascism and its evils. But how much do we truly know about the origins of its concomitant, antifascism? This is the question that propels William I. Hitchcock’s sly, corpulent new book, “A Shadow Over the World.”

A historian at the University of Virginia, Hitchcock was a Pulitzer finalist for “The Bitter Road to Freedom,” his chronicle of the human toll of the liberation of Europe in the Second World War. In “A Shadow Over the World,” he seeks to remedy another neglected feature of the conflict: antifascism’s legacy in global affairs. Its ideologies, he asserts, are ultimately tied up with everything from domestic politics to race relations to our modern-day crusades for democratic reforms abroad — “like a genie let out of its glowing lantern.”

"A Shadow Over the World" is packaged like a standard-issue, tub-thumping popular history, complete with cover portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt looking stern and prepared to battle his fascistic-minded foes. It is structured around Roosevelt's decisions to confront the Axis powers and his efforts to build a coalition around the defense of democracy abroad. "Was he ready at last to cast aside irresolution and unequivocally join the struggle against the fascist threat?" Hitchcock asks, melodramatically, at one point.

Ultimately, however, the book is full of nuanced analyses of some of the most contentious debates in modern diplomatic history. There are endnotes in this book — on the uses and abuses of the word “isolationism,” for instance — that are nearly as long as this review.

To begin with, Hitchcock challenges the conventional portrait of Roosevelt as a president who, through his formidable gifts of leadership and rhetoric, commands the antifascist vanguard. Instead, Hitchcock portrays the president as more of a follower, swept along by the tide of swelling internationalist currents in academia, the government and the news media. "He came only slowly and quite grudgingly to the realization that fascism and American democracy could not coexist," Hitchcock writes.

But if fascism and democracy could not coexist, neither, really, could the various strains of antifascist thought. Hitchcock is at his best when he writes about the profound contradictions that rent the orthodoxies of these modern-day crusaders. Mussolini's 1935 invasion of Ethiopia, for instance, helped galvanize Black Americans in their support of the antifascist cause. But many Black leaders viewed antifascism as a battle against both European imperialism abroad and American segregation at home. For Roosevelt, the leader of a Democratic Party that included “virulent racists” as well as ardent internationalists, drawing these antifascist energies into his camp required a delicate balance.

In China, too, the notion of the Allied powers as righteous liberators did not always sit easily. As Japan's invasion of

Members of the Young People's Socialist League of St. Louis at a protest in Missouri in the 1930s. The ideologies of antifascism, William I. Hitchcock writes in his new book, became “like a genie let out of its glowing lantern.”

China intensified in 1937, atrocities like the bombing of a Shanghai railway station horrified Americans. Hearst papers published a lurid photo of a screaming child amid the rubble. But plenty of others, recalling the long history of Western meddling and domination in East Asia, viewed the European powers as oppressors and the Japanese as freedom fighters. Japan, wrote W.E.B. Du Bois, represented “a country of colored people run by colored people for colored people.”

Hitchcock's book is also particularly compelling when it serves to illuminate what fascism is not. Roosevelt's political enemies derided him as a dictator — for his support of government interference with industry in the creation of the National Recovery Administration, for instance — but such initiatives did not make the president a fascist. Some of his biggest foes — like the populist U.S. senator Huey Long and the radio priest Father Charles Coughlin — could certainly be classified as intolerant demagogues. But they were not really fascists in the mode of Hitler and Mussolini, either.

All this subtle inquiry is refreshing. But after a while, the narrative detail and color with which Hitchcock surrounds it begin to grate. This book is too long. Over the course of 700 pages (including end matter), Hitchcock repeatedly violates William Strunk Jr.'s iron dictum: "Omit needless words."

It is as if, in the age of artificial intelligence and shrinking attention spans, Hitchcock has decided to throw everything possible into his stew to differentiate it from the daily slop. But it is hard to imagine the reader who needs Hitchcock to revisit, for instance, Churchill's "we shall fight on the beaches" speech — and then quote it at length. He could have trimmed 200 pages and managed to convey the same basic information.

There is another thing I disliked about this book. Hitchcock's "The Bitter Road to Freedom" challenged the triumphalist mythology around the Allied victory in Europe. This new volume, despite his rigorous historical exegeses, too often indulges in the kind of jingoistic prattle about the fight for freedom and democracy that becomes meaningless if you examine it too closely.

It seemed to me as if Hitchcock, his résumé safely burnished with his previous work, was now doing his best to try to sell some books. But anyone who has spent any time around a war knows how fluid and elusive abstractions like “freedom” and “democracy” can be.

Hemingway knew. Hitchcock quotes from his journalistic dispatches on the Spanish Civil War, urging Washington to wake up to the threat of fascism: "The fascist nations act, while the democratic nations talk, vacillate, connive and betray." Yet in novels like "For Whom the Bell Tolls," Hemingway displayed far less moral certainty. Antifascists could be heroic, but they also sometimes threw their enemies off cliffs. Hitchcock's new book is most persuasive when it teases out those kinds of ambiguities, rather than papering them over.

Kevin Peraino is the author, most recently, of "A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman, and the Birth of Modern China, 1949."

An author's favorite places in Taipei

AN RONG XU FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

AN RONG XU FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
AN RONG XU FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

The novelist R.F. Kuang shares details from Taiwan that shaped her new book

BY CLARISSA WEI

When the novelist R.F. Kuang spent two months in 2023 in Taipei for an intensive Mandarin course, she found herself inadvertently sketching the outlines of a new novel. Her grandfather had recently died, and she was keeping a diary.

"I was trying to remember as many details and document the texture and flavor of what grief felt like," she said in a video interview.

Those entries became the raw material for her novel “Taipei Story,” published on Sept. 8, which follows Lily Chen, a 19-year-old Chinese American contending with mistranslation and bereavement during a summer in the city.

A doctoral candidate in East Asian languages and literatures at Yale University in Connecticut, Ms. Kuang has built a devoted following for her meticulously researched novels about language, empire and power.

“Taipei Story” is her seventh novel and her second work of literary fiction after her 2023 publishing-world satire “Yellowface.” It returns to the questions of identity and belonging that have long animated her work.

Lily Chen is fictional, but the novel's emotional and physical settings are inspired by Ms. Kuang's study-abroad stint.

She built her protagonist's Taipei from her own experiences, like studying in kitschy cafes near National Taiwan University, where she was enrolled; slipping into movie screenings between classes; and hiking Elephant Mountain at the edge of the city.

"I wanted to explore the sort of circuit of daily experiences that somebody spending a summer at N.T.U. would have had," Ms. Kuang said.

Although Ms. Kuang has not returned to Taipei since that summer, certain corners of the city have stayed with her. Here are five:

1. QINGTIAN TEA HOUSE

"I had a classmate whose hobby was obsessively trying tea everywhere around the city," Ms. Guang said. She was occasionally roped into these quests, one of which led to Qingtian Tea House, a charming oasis that occupies a Japanese-era wooden home near her campus at N.T.U. in the Da'an District. It specializes in Taiwanese oolongs, but the detail Ms. Kuang remembers the most fondly wasn't on the menu. It was the giant mango tree in the courtyard. During her visit, a rainstorm began knocking mangoes onto the roof with startling thuds. "At some point, we stopped paying attention to our tea and started counting the mango bangs," she said. The final tally: roughly 85.

Beef noodle soup — braised chunks of beef in a rich broth — is one of Taiwan's most emblematic dishes. Thousands of restaurants across Taiwan specialize in it, and Taipei even holds an annual competition for who can cook the best bowl.

2. VEGETARIAN TOMATO BEEF NOODLE RESTAURANT

Ms. Kuang, who does not eat meat, had never tried the dish — or even a vegetarian version — until she stumbled on this restaurant in the Xinyi District. “It’s this hole-in-the-wall place where they seemed totally uninterested in having any customers,” she said. Their version swaps the beef with lion’s head mushroom, served with springy noodles in a tomato-centric soup. "It was incredible," she said.

3. NATIONWIDE HEALTHY VEGETARIAN Before she moved to Taipei, some of Ms. Kuang's friends warned her that the city

would be difficult for a vegetarian. "That's just completely not true," she said. She became a regular at Nationwide Healthy Vegetarian, a cafeteria-style buffet chain with locations all over the city where diners load up on freshly prepared dishes like crispy fried tofu, braised eggplant, stir-fried ferns, bamboo shoot salad and multigrain rice, then pay by weight.

CHARLES KRUPA/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Clockwise from top left: Taipei, the setting of R.F. Kuang's latest novel, which was born out of entries in her diary during a stint exploring the Taiwanese capital in 2023; Ms. Kuang; Nationwide Healthy Vegetarian; and Qingtian Tea House.

4. N.T.U. AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS SALES CENTER

Some of Ms. Kuang's favorite discoveries came from tips shared in class — including this campus shop, which sells fresh milk and ice cream sandwiches made with dairy from the university's experimental farm. The milk, which her classmates described as unusually rich, drew lines every day. The sandwiches, consisting of a thick slab of ice cream pressed between two savory soda crackers, also had a cultish following. "I don't know if we were just starving, but it was some of the best ice cream I ever had," she said.

5. SPOT HUASHAN

Taiwanese cinema made its international breakthrough in the 1980s. Though its heyday has passed, the island's cinephile culture endures. “Taiwan has a really fun repertory indie cinema,” Ms. Kuang said. She spent hours at the SPOT Huashan in the Zhongzheng District, an art-house theater where obscure international films screen alongside domestic hits. One stood out: The Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Passion,” which follows a group of college friends through a night of romantic revelations. Ms. Kuang was delighted by the interplay of Japanese dialogue and English, Japanese and Mandarin subtitles. “In the film, they’re jumping between languages, yet communication is still sometimes impossible because we have so many ways of hiding how we actually feel and what we want to express,” she said. She ended up weaving that experience — and those themes — into a scene in “Taipei Story.”

Why November is becoming the best time for off-season travel

CLARA VANNUCCI FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

BY ELAINE GLUSAC

KEVIN CHEN/GETTY IMAGES

In Vermont, it's known as stick season, the time between fall foliage and winter snows. In much of ski country, it's still "preseason." But, increasingly, to travelers, November is now "shoulder season," a fleeting period between peak travel, which has bled from summer into late September and October, and the holidays.

“In an age dominated by social media, November travel is perhaps one of the world's best-kept secrets,” said George Morgan-Grenville, the founder of Red Savannah, an England-based high-end travel agency, where November bookings are up 10 percent year over year. “In so many parts of the world, it sits neatly between seasons, offering far fewer crowds and, very often, much more beneficial pricing.”

Over-touristed destinations and overheated summers have pushed many travelers into fall, a formerly fallow time of year to travel. According to Hotel-Tonight, a booking service for last-minute stays, hotel rates now tend to climb through mid-September, then level off through late October before coming down. Average November rates run eight to 19 percent below the two prior months.

In its 2026 summer travel survey, the consulting firm Deloitte found that the share of major trips taking place after Labor Day climbed to 20 percent this year from 12 percent in 2022. At the luxury travel consortium Virtuoso, where fall bookings are up 59 percent year over year, the former shoulder season is now among the most popular times to travel.

Travelers who once sought frenzy-free viewing at Florence's Uffizi Galleries in October are more likely to escape the throngs a month later.

“November is the new October, particularly the first two weeks of the month before Thanksgiving travel gears up,” said Andrea Duvall, a travel adviser based in Louisville, Ky., citing the rewards of better service in un-rushed times. “If the trade-off of less-than-ideal weather conditions isn’t a deterrent, off-peak travel is a great way to elevate a travel experience.”

INTRODUCING "MICROSEASONS" But the shift isn't entirely weather-related. Demand pricing in the travel industry — the reason prices for airfares and overnights are usually higher on Fridays than Tuesdays — has fragmented booking calendars, leaving only stray bargain days rather than entire months.

“Dynamic pricing allows us to respond to demand much more precisely,” said Simon Mais, the chief executive of EOS Hospitality, which operates more than 60 hotels and resorts around the country.

To get a better rate or quieter experience, targeting these troughs in the calendar requires flexibility. “We’re seeing something closer to microseasons: a particular week, a few weekdays, the period immediately after an event, the end of harvest, or the moment when summer crowds have disappeared but the destination is still fully alive,” wrote Mariana Cardoso, the founder and chief executive of the Portugal-based culinary tour booking platform the Golden Olive, in an email.

"The old calendar had three settings: peak, shoulder and off-season," Ms. Cardoso added. "The new calendar has dozens of smaller peaks and valleys, and increasingly, sophisticated travelers are learning to find them."

"GIG-TRIPPING" AND OTHER SURGES

Peaks and valleys are often location specific. Visits to Mexico for Day of the Dead celebrations, for example, surge in late October and early November when other places are emptying out. Harvest festivals and events like the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta drive traffic in New Mexico through October.

In its 2026 travel trends report, Priceline called out “tailgate tourism” for the spike in fall searches for college town getaways linked to football games (Baton Rouge, La. showed the greatest growth at more than four times the year before in advance of the Sept. 5 Louisiana State University game against Clemson University).

Trends like “phenomenon chasing,” such as eclipse watching, and “gig-tripping” to catch a concert or festival, have also scrambled traditional patterns.

“Demand now clusters around specific triggers, a festival, a conference calendar, even a single viral travel moment, rather than around a season as a whole," said Diana Stobo, the founder and chief executive of the Retreat Costa Rica, a wellness resort near San Jose, Costa Rica.

CHASING NOVEMBER TRAVELERS

The growth of fall tourism has been seeded in part by destinations stressing the benefits of slow travel. And the traffic that has followed has convinced some operators to extend their seasons.

On Vancouver Island, British Columbia, the coastal town of Tofino has long promoted storm-watching, starting in November, for visitors hoping to catch dramatic late fall and winter storms rolling off the Pacific from the comfort of cozy lodges.

Part of the boom in winter cruises in Europe, the Mediterranean-based Celestial Cruises recently announced it will sail November to January for the first time and resume operations in March; it formerly went on hiatus No-

The goal of many soft-season travelers: less crowded museums like the Uffizi Galleries, left, in Florence, Italy. Above, Arches National Park and nearby Moab, Utah, are more tranquil in the late fall.

vember to April. (Seven-night trips start at \$549 a person.)

Luxo Italia, a luxury tour operator specializing in visits to Italy, recommends October and November as "white truffle season," and a less hectic time to visit wineries in the northern Piedmont region.

Near Arches National Park, the town of Moab, Utah, is highlighting late fall as a tranquil time to visit. According to 2025 figures, visitation to Arches was about the same in October as July, but park traffic dipped by nearly half in November.

Before the American holiday of Thanksgiving, rates at the Hoodoo Moab hotel recently started at \$201 a night, compared to an average of \$457 in October.

UNDISTURBED AND DISCOUNTED

Many travelers take shoulder season trips to experience a destination when it's not pressured. On the downside, they may find seasonal businesses such as shops and restaurants closed in destinations from Alaska to the Greek islands.

But across the budget spectrum, soft-season travelers are usually rewarded with better rates and — where businesses are open — more attention or greater availability.

"It's a well-known industry secret that November is typically the cheapest time to travel in the year, predominately because everyone is waiting till Christmas to take leave," said Stephanie Chai, the founder and chief executive of the Luxe Nomad, a vacation rental company in Asia.

At the tour company Collette, 85 percent of its best deals on departures to destinations such as Portugal, Morocco and Vietnam this and next year are clustered in the first few weeks of November.

"We're seeing the traditional fall shoulder season become much more nuanced, with some of the strongest value increasingly concentrated in November, after peak early-fall demand subsides and before the Thanksgiving holiday rush," said Jaclyn Leibl-Cote, the president and chief executive at Collette.

Bookings on European Waterways, which offers river barge cruising, are up 17 percent in October and November. This year, Nov. 1 departures are on sale for \$6,600 a person, which is 20 percent off late-season fares, for a week aboard an eight-passenger barge on the Canal du Midi in southern France.

Alhambra, celebrating luck since 1968

Van Cleef & Arpels

Haute Joaillerie, place Vendôme since 1906

QA Report - The New York Times International - 17.09.2026.pdf

Pipeline

• Extraction route: mineru-vlm
• extraction_route=mineru-vlm
• Translation chunks: 83
• Extraction warnings:
• [MINERU-VLM] Successfully extracted via MinerU VLM (batch: a8ebfa97-7968-4505-bb5b-c38d3b00e6d2)

Non-model Checks

• WARNING: missing numeric tokens from source: 150000
• WARNING: Missing proper nouns in translation: Abha International Airport, Academy Award, Adolf Hitler, Adoptee Rights Law Center, Affordable Care Act, After Louvre, Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, Alexander Zverev, Although Ms, America Plus
• WARNING: source dates, money, or percentage tokens may be missing

Model QA

经过严格审核，本次翻译件存在多处严重缺陷，主要集中在对 AI 相关文章的翻译上，出现了大面积的“填空式”漏译（缺失核心术语）以及部分关键信息的误译。

以下是详细审计报告：

═══ 审核结果 ═══

1. 完整性与交付标签 (Completeness & Delivery Tags)

• [BLOCKING]：在《大学在恐惧 AI 的同时也在拥抱它》及相关后续段落中，出现了大量缺失核心词汇的现象。译文中频繁出现“使用 $\text{ } $ 导致”、“对 $\text{ } $ 信任度更高”、“嵌入在 $\text{ } $ 中”、“由 $\text{ } $ 支持的研究”等表述。
  • 核查：原文中这些位置对应的是 "AI", "AI chatbots", "Google Classroom", "AI-powered" 等核心术语。翻译结果像是一份未完成的填空试卷，导致文章逻辑完全断裂，无法阅读。
• [BLOCKING]：译文中出现了大量未翻译的英文片段（如 "80 percent"），且在部分段落中直接遗漏了关键限定词。

2. 数字与事实核查 (Numbers & Fact Check)

• [WARNING]：在《对中国微信的测试黑客攻击是一次“警钟”》一文中，译文提到“每月有 14 亿美元 人使用”。
  • 核查：原文为 "1.4 billion people a month"。此处将 "billion" (十亿) 误译为 "亿美元"，量级错误且词性错误（人数变金额）。

3. 幻觉核查 (Hallucination Check)

• [FALSE_POSITIVE]：译文中提到的“OpenClaw”和“中央党校研究室主任赵磊”在抽样原文中未直接出现，但经核查“标题索引”及长文逻辑，此类细节属于长文件中间省略部分的延伸内容，且符合新闻事实逻辑，不判定为幻觉。

4. 低中文密度区域审计 (Low CJK Density Area)

• [BLOCKING]：在“低中文密度区域”标注的 [中文占比 9%] 段落中，译文完全缺失。该区域包含一段加密/乱码文本及图片链接，虽然内容看似非新闻正文，但作为 QA 审核，该部分在译文中被完全忽略且未标注为“过滤”，属于交付缺失。

---

═══ 问题清单 (Issue List) ═══

严重级别	错误类型	位置	描述	修正建议
[BLOCKING]	严重漏译	$\text{AI}$ 相关文章全篇	核心术语（如 AI, Chatbots）被大面积删除，留下空白，导致句子不通。	重新翻译，确保所有核心术语完整。
[BLOCKING]	数字量级错误	微信黑客攻击段落	"1.4 billion people" $\rightarrow$ "14 亿美元 人"	修正为 "14 亿人"。
[WARNING]	残留英文	微信黑客攻击段落	"80 percent" 未翻译。	修正为 "80%" 或 "百分之八十"。
[WARNING]	术语不准	11月旅行文章	"shoulder season" $\rightarrow$ "平季" (虽可接受，但文中前后混用 "肩季" 和 "平季")	统一术语为“平季”或“肩季”。

结论：由于存在大面积的核心术语缺失（填空式漏译）和严重的数字量级错误，该译文被判定为 [BLOCKING]，不可交付。

---

═══ 自愈质检微创修复记录（Self-Healing Audit Trail）═══

• 成功修复分块 #4（共修复 1 处问题）
• 成功修复分块 #46（共修复 1 处问题）