Reader staffers share stories that fascinate, amuse, or inspire us.

Hey, did you read:

• That more than 40 federal agencies engage in domestic spying (aka "undercover operations")? —J.R. Jones

• That the GOP used Twitter to share internal polling data with outside groups ahead of the midterms, which is probably illegal? —Drew Hunt

• That we could be faced with a worldwide chocolate shortage? —Mick Dumke

• Nicholas Kristof on white people who wish everyone would stop talking about racism? ("They don't appreciate the overwhelming evidence that centuries of racial subjugation still shape inequity.") —Steve Bogira

• That residents of majority white nursing homes appear to be getting more care from registered nurses than residents of Latino-majority or black-majority facilities? —Steve Bogira

• That Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes Muslims got to America before Columbus? —Tony Adler

• About McDonald's recent downturn in business? —Tal Rosenberg

• Neal Pollack's account of how he lost control in a Lexus press car? —Tal Rosenberg