News You Can Use: 08/15/17

National Security  

Officials downplay the idea that nuclear war with North Korea is imminent, The Washington Post

McMaster equates ‘terrorism’ with Charlottesville car attack, Politico

State Department Confronts North Korea With Rows of Vacant Positions, Government Executive

Here’s the Memo That Blew Up the NSC, Foreign Policy

Top U.S. General Readies Military Plan for North Korea, but Pushes for Diplomacy, The Wall Street Journal

Sessions opens federal probe on Charlottesville, Politico

If the US is going to war in North Korea, nobody told the US military, Defense News

The real reason a North Korean nuclear weapon is so terrifying—and it’s not what you think, Brookings

DHS thinks biometrics can ‘improve daily life’, Nextgov

When Words Risk Provoking War, The Atlantic

North Korea’s Missile Success Is Linked to Ukrainian Plant, Investigators Say, The New York Times

CBP Administered Polygraphs to Applicants Already Admitting Drug Smuggling, Human Trafficking, Government Executive

Donald Trump Is Dropping Bombs at Unprecedented Levels, Foreign Policy

Cybersecurity

Cybercom plans industry day in October, Nextgov

‘Every country should have a cyber war’: what Estonia learned from Russian hacking, Nextgov

Hackers could gain access to passwords through USB sticks, cyber experts warn, ABC

How arcane budget rules threaten government cybersecurity, Nextgov

Japan, U.S. to aim for stronger cyberdefenses in upcoming security talks, The Japan Times

17-year-old hacks the Air Force for the biggest bug bounty, Nextgov

Public Health

Insurer competition in rural areas: A bipartisan challenge, Brookings

Yemen cholera epidemic: Cases exceed 500,000 in four months, BBC

New Numbers Reveal Huge Disparities in Opioid Prescribing, Route Fifty

From Alaska To Florida, States Respond To Opioid Crisis With Emergency Declarations, NPR

New Mexico VA office denies 90 percent of Gulf War claims, Associated Press

Scottish ministers urged to lead fight against ‘period poverty’, BBC

Nurse Wins Prize For Research On Benefits Of Faster Tuberculosis Testing, NPR

Education At Home & Abroad

The unintended consequences of ‘free college’ on New York’s for-profit universities, Brookings

Human Rights & Humanitarian Efforts

The human rights consequences of the war on drugs in the Philippines, Brookings

Medicine Shortages in Venezuela: Dying in Agony, Human Rights Watch

Why Are More Civilians Dying in US Airstrikes on ISIS?, Defense One

Are State Department cuts a major setback for genocide prevention?, The Conversation

Kenya: Police Restraint Critical, Human Rights Watch

Government & Military Personnel

A Whistleblower’s Guide for the Trump Era, Government Executive

3 Things You May Not Understand About the TSP, Government Executive

Bridging the Gap Between Political Appointees and Civil Servants, Government Executive

GSA to Increase Lodging Reimbursements for Feds This Fall, Government Executive

Plan to institute military oath against suicide could backfire, some experts say, Stars and Stripes

EPA Employees Are Earning Emergency Premium Pay Without Justification, Government Executive

After the Marines United Scandal, ‘All Options’ Are on the Table, Defense One