2026.04.18

[lsanderson]

Traders placed over $1bn in perfectly timed bets on the Iran war. What is going on?
Suspicious wagers on the US-Israel war in Iran are creating huge windfalls and raising concerns among lawmakers
Lauren Aratani in New York
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/18/iran-war-bets-ethics-concerns

Earth gets brighter every year but progression is volatile, study finds
Covid, light pollution regulations and faltering global economy affect location and intensity of brightness
Richard Luscombe
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/18/earth-brightness-study

Central bank bosses enlist for war game to gauge threat of Lehman-style bust
Finance chiefs to join exercise in Washington designed to assess how they would handle collapse of significant bank
Richard Partington in Washington
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/apr/18/central-bank-bosses-enlist-for-war-game-to-gauge-threat-of-lehman-style-bust

‘We can’t wait’: Venice already seeking floods plan B five years after barriers’ launch
Rising sea levels and ecological damage caused by heavy use of flood defence system force city authorities to consider next move
Catherine Bennett
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/18/venice-flood-barrier-plan-b-rising-sea-level

Children ‘low-hanging fruit’ in fight to end trans care, official at pro-Trump thinktank says
America First Policy Institute, which boasts close ties to president, discussed transgender policy ‘reform’ at DC event
Phoebe Petrovic
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/17/children-gender-affirming-trans-care-trump

Two weeks that pushed Trump to the edge. Is his presidency unravelling?
David Smith in Washington
https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2026/apr/18/donald-trump-popularity-iran-christianity-economy

Kim Lane Scheppele on Hungary
https://youtu.be/xbkvU896G4A?si=GoqQoBiTOHQxVPJx

Graham Norton: ‘Back in the day, my monologues were full of terrible jokes about people’
Rosanna Greenstreet
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/apr/18/graham-norton-interview-monologues-terrible-jokes

Lost Federico García Lorca verse discovered 93 years after it was written
Eight-line poem found on the back of a manuscript sheds light on Spanish poet’s preoccupation with time
Sam Jones in Madrid
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/apr/18/lost-federico-garcia-lorca-verse-discovered-93-years-after-it-was-written

Kae Tempest on creativity and his gender transition: ‘I’m just glad to be alive’
Alex Needham
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/apr/18/kae-tempest-on-creativity-and-his-gender-transition-im-just-glad-to-be-alive

Scotland in bloom: wildflowers turn the Outer Hebrides into a Technicolor dream
The machair is nature’s dazzling display on these remote islands, but this rare habitat also plays a vital role for wildlife and the resurgent crofting community
Matt Collins
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2026/apr/18/scotland-in-bloom-wildflowers-turn-the-outer-hebrides-into-a-technicolor-dream