This week, the Bombshell squad goes shoulder to shoulder into the fray of referenda for the Iraqi Kurds and the Catalans in Spain, alongside a recap of the German general election.  Like many women have before us, we ask "Why Chad?" and explore the merits of the new Trump travel ban. We wonder if it was painful for Secretary Tillerson to get cut off at the knees over North Korea, and contemplate the interagency fun of  the Puerto Rico relief efforts.  Finally, we spend some quality time pondering the existential crises brought on by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick's Vietnam documentary on PBS - and also our love of Ross Poldark.   Episode Reading: Lauren Frayer, “,” NPR  Lauren Theisen, “,” Deadspin Julie Smith, “,” Foreign Policy Kevin Sieff, “,” Washington Post Helene Cooper, Michael D. Shear and Dionne Searcey. “,” New York Times Charlie Savage and Eric Schmidt, “,” New York Times Dana Milbank, “,” Washington Post Malcolm Gladwell, , The Revisionist History Podcast  Alyssa Rosenberg, “,” Washington Post Nicole Cliffe, ”,” Vulture