Sorry Santa, No Gift for You in 2020

Sixty million Americans have already cast their ballots. And Democrat Joe Biden has a commanding lead, expected to win 318 electoral votes according to the OZY-0ptimus predictive election model. But President Donald Trump has pulled off surprises before. Watch OZY CEO and veteran political journalist Carlos Watson break it all down tonight at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on The 11th Hour With Brian Williams on MSNBC.

2. Frequent Fliers

A peek at travel schedules is revealing: Biden travels to Georgia on Tuesday, his running mate Kamala Harris to Texas on Friday. Trump will visit Omaha on Tuesday. Meanwhile Vice President Mike Pence, pressing on despite COVID-19 cases among his staff, hopes to prop up embattled South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham. Republicans are playing defense deep in their own territory in these final days.

3. Repeating 2016’s Mistakes?

OZY’s Nick Fouriezos reports from Ohio on fears among Black Democrats that the party isn’t investing in finding, persuading and turning out Black voters — a mistake that hurt Hillary Clinton in 2016.

They’re not repeating their mistake. Chile on Sunday voted overwhelmingly to replace a constitution from dictator Augusto Pinochet’s reign in a landmark referendum. And the East African island nation of Seychelles elected the opposition candidate as president after 43 years of one-party rule. 

Sources: BBC, AP

2. Eastern NATO?

China has cautiously welcomed a proposal from Russian President Vladimir Putin for a formal military alliance that could pose the biggest security challenge to NATO since the end of the Cold War.

Source: SCMP

3. Vaccine Hope

In clinical trials, the COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford has shown early signs of effectiveness in older, vulnerable patients. Meanwhile Italy and Spain imposed strict new restrictions to combat a sharp spike in cases.

Sources: FT, Bloomberg

For once, the jovial, bearded bearer of Christmas gifts was to receive one himself. But sorry, this is 2020. The Trump administration has dropped a plan to offer advance COVID-19 vaccine shots to Santa Claus performers for spreading pro-immunization public messaging. Who should get priority vaccine shots? Vote on Twitter.

1. Anti-Abortion Alliance

Brazil, Uganda, Egypt, Indonesia, Hungary … and the U.S. last week co-sponsored an international anti-abortion declaration to undercut efforts by the U.N. to defend abortion access across the world. Back in the U.S., Colorado and Louisiana voters will consider ballot measures aimed at restricting abortion access.

2. 'Blood on Your Hands'

That’s what Polish activists are screaming, amid massive demonstrations that have erupted across the country following a constitutional court ruling last week almost entirely banning abortion. The ruling Law and Justice Party and the archbishop of the Polish Episcopal Conference have hailed the court’s decision.

3. Not Far Enough?

South Korea is preparing to lift its 67-year-old blanket ban on abortions. But the government is facing criticism from pro-choice activists who say the government’s proposal — which will allow the abortion of a pregnancy up to 24 weeks under certain conditions — still doesn’t give women control over their bodies.

Veteran Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters thought she was on a call this past January with Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and her father, who told her about a threatened island called "Chongo-Chango." In fact, she was speaking with Russian political pranksters Vladimir ‘Vovan’ Kuznetsov and Alexey ‘Lexus’ Stolyarov, who convinced Waters that President Trump had told Thunberg about shady dealings with Ukraine. They’ve also duped French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish President Andrzej Duda, Prince Harry and even Elton John — they convinced the musician they were Russian President Vladimir Putin.

2. Josh Pieters

TheSouth African YouTuber wanted to become a professional cricket player. Instead the 27-year-old is today notorious for pulling elaborate political pranks. Pieters flew far-right British commentator Katie Hopkins to Prague in January to accept a fake award — the “Campaign to Unify the Nation Trophy” — whose abbreviated title is, of course, a swear word.

3. Kelley Karel

Unlike other political impersonators, Karel has made her careercopying just one politician: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In 1994, she sang "I've Gotta Be Me" in a Salt Lake City mall. Shoppers were convinced she was the then-First Lady and came up to her with concerns on health care. Well, laughter is the best medicine.

Combining acrobatics with sword fighting, gatka emerged as a form of Sikh warfare in the late 17th century against the Mughal Empire. But British colonizers feared Indian martial arts, and gatka was banned. So the Sikh community switched to stick-based gatka instead. Now, both the sword and stick versions are practiced in 30 countries. You can only target a specific weapon at a particular part of the opponent's body. If it strikes somewhere else, you're penalized. Watch and read on OZY.

2. Dambe

Fighters tie a rope tightly around one hand, all the way up to the elbow, and use that arm as their weapon. There are three rounds of fighting, with no time limits. Each round typically ends only when a fighter is floored. Popular among the Hausa, one of West Africa's largest ethnic communities, dambe is nowfast emerging as a viewer sport, with 24 million people watching it online last year. It's a brutal show of strength and bravery.Up for it?

3. Bakom

A former Peruvian marine developed this martial art form that borrows from Israeli krav maga, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and plain street fighting. Its chokeholds and arm locks cansave your life in the dangerous slums of Lima.

The creator of Dear White People joins Carlos to discuss his new horror film, Bad Hair, about a blood-sucking weave with surprising political relevance. Justin Simien, a Hollywood "overnight" success, talks about embracing his Blackness and queerness, while sharing advice for other young storytellers. Watch on YouTube.

a. Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now by Jaron Lanier

b.Metu Neter by Ra Un Nefer Amen

c. Trauma and Recovery by Judith Herman

d. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

a. Gloria Steinem   b. Ilhan Omar    c. Joseph Gordon-Levitt     d. Jamaal Bowman