#5SmartReads - January 7, 2022

A gentle reminder that you can join the conversation of the day’s reads by clicking the title above and add your thoughts in the comments! My goal for #5SmartReads has always been to start conversations and share our thoughts and perspectives. I hope to see you there!

EXPLAINER: What’s behind unrest rocking oil-rich Kazakhstan (Associated Press)

Protests are rising all over Kazakhstan. Why?

Oil is the answer. Its strategic geography is the other.

Bordering both China and Russia, Kazakhstan sells most of its oil exports to the former, but continues to be a strategic ally of the latter. When car oil prices increased in the country, protests began in a small oil town of the country.

Compounded with a collapsing banking system, financial hardship for most of the residents (the national monthly salary is $600), and widespread corruption, it feels like it was only a matter of time before protests began.

What makes these protests different - both for Kazakhstan and in history - is that there doesn’t appear to be a leader for these protests. While these are not the first widespread protests the country has experienced (they happened in 2016 in response to a land law’s passage, and 2019 after current president Tokayev’s re-election), but these appear to be the most violent and deadly.

Part of me feels like “well, at least it’s not just us.” Another part of me feels deeply saddened at the state of democracy and leadership in the world.

Shonda Rhimes Already Knows What You're Going to Watch Next (TIME)

Whatever Shonda Rhimes decides to create, I will watch it. And read it. And listen to it. And work out with it (I loved her Year Of Yes workouts with Peloton).

And with her brutal honesty in this article (“I’m not fully present at work,” “I don’t think anybody who has kids is fully present at work,” “I think the girlboss archetype is bullsh-t that men have created to find another way to make women sound bad,”), I’m ready to follow her to the end of the earth.

There is so much wisdom here, from how to manage and grow a team to how to stay authentic to you to knowing when to leave and pursue new opportunities.

And thanks to her mammoth deal with Netflix - the opportunity she seized when she left Disney - we will have so much more Shondaland art to enjoy.

I, for one, cannot wait.

Brian Kemp says he's "never said a bad word" about Trump (Axios)

There are some things I will not agree with Governor Brian Kemp about - gun carry without permits, preventing “indoctrination” in the classroom (fact check - critical race theory is only taught at the law school level and in some undergraduate departments, not in K-12 education).

Despite what I thought was a voter suppression law signed by Governor Kemp after the 2020 senatorial runoffs, the results of the 2021 municipal elections were a strong showing for the Democrats, who netted over 30 seats. So I’m going to exercise caution when talking about voting laws, but also do what I can to encourage every citizen to vote in every single election - especially local ones).

And when Kemp said “The constitution “doesn't say 'I can.' It says, 'I shall.' And so that's what I did. I followed the law,” with certifying the state’s electoral college votes for Biden-Harris, I can breathe a sigh of relief that there are lawmakers who take their oath to the Constitution seriously.

Imagine if the states of Georgia, Arizona, and Virginia were led by governors whose allegiance was to the defeated president and not the constitution. I shudder to think what very easily could have happened.

It feels like the extremist wings of both parties seize the headlines and the airwaves. It’s important to shed light on those who take their oaths seriously and do the right thing in equal - and I would argue in greater - measure.

Christy Carlson Romano Was A Child Star. Now, She Wants To Tell Us The Truth. (BuzzFeed News)

I have a confession to make - I was a Christy Carlson Romano FAN back in the day.

Cadet Kelly remains my favorite Disney Channel Original Movie. My dad and I watched every single episode of Even Stevens. Rho is now a fan of Kim Possible and I’m shocked that I still know every word of the theme song.

I re-discovered her in the early days of the pandemic (I think Kate Kennedy posted one of her Reels on her Story, and it was like reconnecting with an old friend). I liked her Reels and TikToks, but where she really drew me in was YouTube.

The woman has mastered the art of clickbaity title of video (which she cops to) with honest, vulnerable confessional videos that I watch often while I’m getting ready for bed.

Steph McNeal did a masterful job of interviewing Carlson Romano, who also was an open book in this interview. If you have 90’s and early aughts nostalgia or simply wonder what happened to that girl who was EVERYWHERE…well, read this.

Not much has changed. I’m even more of a Christy Carlson Romano fan - this time, the woman. Not just the performer.

January 6 Insurrection: One Year Later, Families Are Still Divided (Teen Vogue)

If you don’t have the headspace or want to protect your peace, you may want to skip this read.

But if you are still processing what happened on January 6th - and wonder what happened with each of the insurrectionists and their families - this is definitely worth your time.