🎙️'The Ensemble': When the World Gets Spooky From Paris to the Pacific

Plus Trump’s ghosted peace talks, Iran’s rebellion unmasked, and AI layoffs turning the job market into a real-life horror story

Oct 29, 2025

Hey, Ensemble readers! Happy almost Halloween – it’s time for a spooky mid-week temperature check.

It’s been a chilling week, and not just because of haunted houses and plastic spiders. From Paris to the Caribbean, real-life scares are unfolding: a viral Louvre heist that turned thieves into folk heroes, Hurricane Melissa tearing through Jamaica, and global tensions rising faster than a horror soundtrack. Trump’s Asia tour brings diplomacy drama, while his Latin America buildup brews new fears. In Tehran, women keep defying hijab laws, and workers worldwide face their own modern nightmare in the age of AI.

But don’t worry – Helmet to Heels is here to keep it stylish, smart, and just the right amount of spooky.

Nature’s own take on Halloween horrors: Hurricane Melissa

On the other side of the world, Hurricane Melissa is bringing flooding and historic 185-mph winds to Jamaica. Prime Minister Andrew Holness said, “there is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5.”

The catastrophic storm is expected to cut diagonally across Jamaica and head for more Caribbean nations later this week. Flights are canceled and thousands are evacuated ahead of Melissa’s next move.

Follow live updates by AP News

Image source: The Guardian

Louvre heist: trend-setting thieves and reflection of society

The hottest costume of 2025 (and a date idea): dress as robbers and go to a museum together. Social media was blown away by the Louvre heist last week and the updates keep coming in: this time around 2,000 gold and silver coins were stolen from Maison des Lumières, another high-profile museum.

Meanwhile Böcker Agilo, the firm that made the ladder used in the Louvre theft, posted on Instagram from the outdoor crime scene with a slogan “If you’re in a hurry” and a caption saying Böcker Agilo “carries your treasures… quiet as a whisper.” No need to point out the irony of that one.

It’s okay to laugh, and you’re not alone – thousands of people online feel inspired and entertained by the whole thing. As Liz Plank pointed out in her article below, the Louvre thieves became folk heroes not because people admire crime, but because they envy freedom in a system that feels rigged. With wages, rent, and power tilted toward elites, no wonder people find this Robin Hood tale entertaining – and that’s a big theme in the week’s other politics story, as populist Zohran Mamdani maintains a strong poll lead in the final weeks of his New York Mayoral race. One for the newsletter next week!

Read more on why people are bonding over the Louvre heist here.

Larry Lawton repping the greatest on-air billing yet seen

Sources: ABC News, People and AP News

As Trump tours Asia, his past peace deals for Ukraine and the Middle East start turning into ghosts

Trump chose to spend this week in Asia. The U.S. President’s five-day visit kicked off in Malaysia on Sunday, where he oversaw the signing of a ceasefire deal between Thailand and Cambodia. Before heading out to South Korea to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, he met with Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

In contrast with all the diplomatic meetings lined up, Trump’s highly anticipated summit with Russian President has been cancelled, according to the White House officials.

U.S. facilitation of Russia-Ukraine peace isn’t the only plan that’s under threat. Trump’s earlier success in securing the first phase of the Israel-Palestine ceasefire is under new pressure. On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered his military to immediately carry out “powerful” strikes on Gaza. Hamas responded that it would delay the return of a hostage’s body which would violate the earlier agreement.

Sources: NBC News, ABC News, AP News, and Time (image)

Iranian women defy hijab law as police ease crackdowns

Regular readers will know my strong connections with Iran and specifically the struggles of Iranian woman. This week in Tehran and other cities, Iranian women are increasingly appearing unveiled in public, openly defying laws that have required the hijab for over four decades. Authorities have scaled back enforcement since the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, fearing renewed unrest. Parliament passed stricter penalties last year but has not enforced them, as officials admit harsher policing could spark another wave of protests.

Source: The Washington Post, The Conversation (image)

Meanwhile I received this personal note from Masih Alinejad – telling her own story of Iranian persecution:

On Wednesday, at 11 AM, I’ll stand in Courtroom 24 A, at the United States Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, face-to-face with the two Russian hitmen hired by Iran’s regime who came to kill me outside my Brooklyn home.

They’ll receive their sentence, and I’ll speak my truth in my impact statement.

If you’re in New York, please come stand with me or send me hugs, strength, and all your good energy. I’ll really need it. Your presence is my protection.

Haunting the Caribbean: Washington’s ghost missions and Venezuela’s fear of invasion

Washington’s latest secrecy move is setting off alarms. The U.S. military officials working on Trump’s ever more ambitious Latin America operations have been asked to sign non-disclosure agreements, an extraordinary step given they’re already bound by classified protocols. A former U.S. intelligence official tells me, “This is to serve as a warning to potential leakers.” The development, confirmed by three U.S. officials, deepens unease in Congress, where lawmakers say they’re being frozen out of key details about the mission.

Caracas is watching closely, fearing the buildup may be less about diplomacy and more about preparation. Venezuela’s government claimed Sunday it had captured a group of “mercenaries” allegedly linked to the CIA, accusing Washington and Trinidad and Tobago of coordinating military drills to provoke a confrontation in Caribbean waters. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez called it a “false-flag operation” meant to spark a full-scale conflict against the Maduro regime.

The U.S. military has carried out 13+ strikes on alleged drug-running boats since September with Tuesday, Oct. 28, marking the first time multiple strikes (four) were announced in a single day.

Sources: Reuters, The Straits Times, Miami Herald, and AP News

Layoffs continue as companies push for artificial intelligence

Amazon announced upcoming layoffs of at least 14,000 corporate jobs this year as it ramps up spending on AI by cutting other costs. Layoffs began on Tuesday and could reach 30,000, according to Reuters. Other companies continue cutting people as well. This year, UPS cut 48,000 workers and newly merged Paramount Skydance, formerly Paramount Global, plans to cut at least 2,000 jobs in the U.S. and even more globally.

Meanwhile a software creating AI employees used controversial taglines like ‘Humans are so 2023’ and ‘Artisans won’t complain about work-life balance’ to promote replacement of human workers. Sen. Bernie Sanders drew attention to this campaign on his recent Instagram post, saying “Great idea. One simple question: How will those displaced workers survive when there are no jobs or income for them?”