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I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Ten Crack Commandments

The dust is settling and normal order is returning, and so the headline theme is back. The last Friday we did this was October 25—that is to say, 3 weeks ago. We actually gave two hints that day, noting that we had to cut an item that would have been headlined "Can Your 'Puter Tell You Who's Going to Win the Election?" and also that "solving the puzzle will likely require a lot of mettle." And over the weekend, we gave a third hint: "We already noted that solving this week's theme will take some mettle. We'll add that if you do it, you probably should get a medal." And now, the solution, courtesy of T.K. in Half Moon Bay, St. Kitts:

The headlines today contain homophones for a type of metal:

Endorsement Watch: More Republicans Prefer Brains over Brawns—Bronze

I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: To Produce Paprika, You Need a Sodder—Solder

This Week in Schadenfreude: For One Artist, 1/6 Led to Inspiration—Lead

This Week in Freudenfreude: Stopping the Steal—Steel

Your first hint offered up "'Puter" (Pewter), while the second hint mentioned "mettle" (Metal) and the third also mentioned "medal" (Metal).

Exactly right. The headline for this item has "Ten" (Tin), which is a little bit of a stretch. However, it's a song title, and in the actual song, Biggie Smalls' Brooklyn accent makes "Ten" sound very much like "Tin."

Here are the first 50 readers to get it right:

G.M.K. in Mishawaka, IN
T.M. in New York City, NY
T.K. in Half Moon Bay
J.N. in Zionsville, IN
M.M. in Dunellen, NJ
M.S. in Canton, NY
M.T. in Simpsonville, SC
S.K. in Ardmore, PA
M.J. in Oakdale, MN
N.H. in London, England, UK
E.P. in Plainville, CT
A.H.-S. in Brier, WA
B.U. in St. Louis, MO
C.P. in Silver Spring, MD
R.S. in Milan, OH
R.D. in Cheshire, CT
A.C. in Columbus, OH
M.W. in Frederick, MD
S.B. in Warsaw, Poland
G.W. in Avon, CT
M.M. in Charlottesville, VA
B.R. in Arlington, MA
J.H. in Sturbridge, MA
K.H. in Grosse Pointe, MI
M.W. in Altea, Spain

D.K. in Bethesda, MD
A.F. in Pittsburgh, PA
G.M. in Arlington, VA
E.K. in Arlington, MA
J.A. in Redwood City, CA
A.D. in Vass, NC
S.M. in Scotts Valley, CA
D.E. in High Springs, FL
M.W. in Chicago, IL
P.J. in Delaware, OH
P.C. in San Jose, CA (but normally of Austin, TX)
D.C. in South Elgin, IL
R.H. in Silver Spring, MD
E.M. in Jersey City, NJ
O.S.-W. in Wuppertal, Germany
D.S. and S.S. in Fort Collins, CO
S.A. in Clinton, WA
M.C. in Chicago, IL
A.J.B. in Marbury, MD
R.P. in Brooklyn, NY
W.M. in Livonia, MI
T.T. in Conway, AR
T.M.F. in Castle Rock, CO
D.M. in Grand Rapids, MI
J.L. in Glastonbury, CT

Now, if K.H. in Grosse Pointe can't come up with the solution, is that a Grosse Pointe Blank?

As to this week's theme, it relies on all the words to the right of the colons. Indeed, we've pretty much revealed that they're all song titles, so that means the Trivial Pursuit category is music. For a hint, we'll note that the theme is actually kind of dark, but we chose it because it's complementary to an element of the Schadenfreude item.

If you have a guess, send it to comments@electoral-vote.com, ideally with the subject "November 15 Headlines." (Z)

This item appeared on www.electoral-vote.com. Read it Monday through Friday for political and election news, Saturday for answers to reader's questions, and Sunday for letters from readers.

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