Jean Thompson

There was a noticeable absence among the participating countries when Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III announced that the United States was organizing a new naval task force to confront the threat from Yemen’s Houthi militia marauding against global shipping in the Red Sea.No regional power agreed that its navy would participate. The only Middle Eastern country taking part is the tiny island state of Bahrain, and there was otherwise conspicuous silence from regional capitals.Many Arab countries depend heavily on the trade that flows through the Red Sea, from the Suez Canal in the north to the Bab-al-Mandeb Strait…

(Editor’s note: This is excerpted from Mike Sando’s Pick Six of Dec. 18, 2023.)Sean Payton blasting quarterback Russell Wilson on the sideline, then suggesting he was merely upset about officiating, invited all sorts of speculation.It’s hard to fault Payton for losing his cool when officials wiped out a Broncos touchdown with an offensive offside call that seemed indefensible. As one former head coach put it, officials have “lost their minds” searching for penalties associated with Philadelphia’s tush-push plays.It’s just difficult to understand why Payton would funnel any of that rage toward his quarterback.GO DEEPERSean Payton downplays sideline flare up with Russell WilsonThe…