The Red Thread: November

Welcome to the second edition of The Red Thread, where we’ve gathered a collection of engaging articles covering a variety of topics. Learn about Kosovo with Lisanne; Celebrate Verstappen's Victory with Cemre; Analyze Christmas Movies with Anne; and Judge the US elections with Jochem. Enjoy the read!

What I learned about Kosovo
Lisanne Tigchelaar

Kosovo, a country you may never have heard of, was unfamiliar to me as well. I knew nothing about it, from its geography to its history, which is why my trip there a few weeks ago was the perfect opportunity to broaden my general knowledge. Let me start by giving a short history lesson about Kosovo.

The history of Kosovo is marked by a complex blend of ethnic, political, and cultural developments. Kosovo was initially inhabited by the Illyrians, after which it became part of the Roman and later part of the Byzantine Empire. I had never heard of the Illyrians, but they were a group of Indo-European-speaking people who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo-Balkan populations, along with the Thracians and Greeks. In the medieval period, Kosovo then emerged as the cultural and political heart of the Serbian Empire, home to significant Orthodox Christian sites. The Ottoman Empire conquered Kosovo in the 15th century, leading to centuries of Turkish influence and a demographic shift towards an Albanian Muslim majority. In the 20th century, following World War I, Kosovo was integrated into Yugoslavia, where tensions simmered between the Albanian majority and the Serbian administration. These tensions escalated in the 1990s, culminating in a brutal conflict and NATO intervention in 1999. Ultimately leading to Kosovo declared independence in 2008. While Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and is recognized as a sovereign state by over 100 countries, including the United States and most of the European Union, Serbia does not recognize Kosovo's independence and considers it a part of its sovereign territory. My visit to Kosovo and its rich history taught me a lot, and I hope it did the same for you!

No Talent, Just Luck
Cemre Suler

Reduced to just 19 points, the gap between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris would have been if they had retained their starting positions in the Brazilian Grand Prix. Verstappen began P17 after an unfortunate red flag in qualifying, while Norris started from pole for the eighth time this year. However, as in six of his other seven pole positions, he lost a place on the opening lap. Verstappen, on the other hand, made an incredible start in the rain, vaulting from P17 to P11.

In the following laps, Verstappen climbed to sixth, perfectly placed to capitalize on a red flag caused by rookie Colapinto's crash. Furthermore, after persistent complaints from Norris, his team brought him in for a pit stop before Verstappen, dropping him to P4 while Max sat P2 for the restart.

Another incident and safety car later, Verstappen overtook Ocon to take the lead, with Norris sliding further down the order to P6 after an off-track excursion. After one of his best drives ever, Max now leads the championship by 62 points. After the race, Lando declared Verstappen's win down to "just luck" and "no talent". He may have been right, as, much like Porsche's 1983 Le Mans result, a look at the race's ten fastest laps shows that nobody’s perfect.

Meet me next Christmas (3,7/5)
Anne Alberts

Each holiday season, Netflix delivers fresh Christmas movies, and this year's newest addition is Meet Me Next Christmas. This movie is about Layla (Christina Milian), who is about to fly to New York City when all flights are delayed. She is going to New York because she and her boyfriend always attend the Pentatonix concert on Christmas Eve. In the airport lounge, Layla meets a man and feels a connection with him. They agree to meet at the Pentatonix concert the following year if they’re both single. The movie then follows Layla’s story as she searches for a ticket to the show. But who will she go with?

This movie is a nice feel-good film, but it has some downsides. For example, who would agree to meet at a concert while still in a relationship? Another strange aspect is the band itself. Throughout the movie, there are several clips where we see the band following Layla’s story. How do they know her story, and why are they involved in it? Also, their synchronized singing can be a bit irritating.

It’s a feel-good movie, and for fans of Christmas movies, this is a nice option to add to your watch list. However, as with almost all Christmas movies, it’s quite easy to predict what will happen.

Demographic Shifts Behind the Republican Victory
Jochem van den Bosch

Two weeks ago, the United States held its presidential election, with polling data indicating a close race, slightly favoring former President Donald Trump over sitting Vice President Kamala Harris. However, the results revealed a decisive victory for Trump and the Republican Party, not only in the presidential race but also in securing control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Here, we’ll focus on the presidential election and explore how Trump managed to win across all seven swing states.

To understand this victory, it’s essential to examine the demographic factors at play, based on exit polling from CNN. Harris made modest gains within specific groups compared to Biden's performance in 2020, including white and Black women and voters aged 65 and older, with increases of 3 and 5 percentage points, respectively. However, these gains were insufficient in the face of Trump's sweeping advances across various demographics. Trump's support grew significantly among younger voters (ages 18-27), rural voters, and first-time voters, with increases of 13, 15, and 45 percentage points in these groups, respectively. Additionally, Latino voters, particularly Latino men, continued a trend seen since 2016 of shifting Republican. In 2020, Biden held a 23-point lead among Latino men, but in 2024, Trump reversed this margin to achieve a 12-point lead.

Two additional factors appear to have significantly influenced the Democrats' loss. Firstly, Biden’s low approval rating was a substantial liability. Since Nixon’s 1972 re-election, no president with an approval rating under 50% has secured a second term. Biden’s rating stood at just 39%, underscoring a key challenge for the Democratic campaign. Second, the Democrats emphasized abortion as a core campaign issue, a top priority for only 14% of voters according to exit polls, whereas the Republican campaign focused on economic issues and immigration, which resonated with 43% of the electorate. In the end, it came down to, as James Carville, former strategist for Bill Clinton, famously said, ‘the economy, stupid’.

Every month a guest writer writes for the Red Thread about something they find interesting. You can become a guest writer by sending an email to sectorcommittee@kraket.nl.