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Links 6/18/2026

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Ohio Police Fire Robocop for Helping Make Zero Arrests and Failing to Issue a Single Ticket Futurism

Ad listing for $7m Tokyo apartment with ‘invisible man’ goes viral Straits Times

‘Most famous tree in the world’: Sherwood Forest’s 1,000-year-old Major oak dies The Guardian

Climate/Environment

Tropical Storm Arthur Forms Along the Texas Coast, Fuels Flood Threat Across the Deep South Eye on the Tropics

‘Sponge Cities’ Are Catching On. But Can They Handle Supercharged Storms? Inside Climate News

Want a deal on a heat pump? Team up with your neighbors. Grist

Apocalypse when? ‘Earth’s Black Box’ to be installed in remote Tasmanian airfield The Guardian

Pandemics

School Districts Are Struggling to Keep Up With Surging Special Education Needs Governing. “The pandemic significantly sped up the growth of the number of students with disabilities. In the five years after Covid shut down schools, 50 percent more local students were identified as needing services than in the five years prior.” Then proceed to blame it on eight months of remote learning, not…

Long COVID associated with SARS-CoV-2 reinfection among children and adolescents in the omicron era (RECOVER-EHR): a retrospective cohort study The Lancet

China?

China has a powerful new oil price weapon Bloomberg

West plays nice on AI in bid to shut out China Politico

As Wall Street Celebrates SpaceX IPO, Beijing Sharpens Its Focus on AI Investment Risks George Chen

India

US Drops ‘Indo’ From Military Command Name, Reversing Trump-Era Nod to India The Wire

Syraqistan

Lebanon: Israel radically expands use of unlawful mass ‘evacuation’ orders and commits war crime of unlawful transfer Amnesty International

In Campaign to Seize More of Gaza, Israel Expands Attacks on Palestinians Near “Yellow Line” Drop Site

‘His only crime is that he is a Palestinian doctor’ +972 Magazine

US using frozen Palestinian funds to push Israel’s ‘normalization’ agenda: Report Press TV

***

Text of the Iran-U.S. memorandum of understanding NBC News

Factbox: 14-point US-Iran MoU lays out terms to end imposed war, reshape regional security framework Press TV

Trump threatens ‘dropping bombs on their head’ if Iran doesn’t ‘behave’ Middle East Eye

Trump Admin Admits to Using Grok to Bomb Iran In Federal Lawsuit Backing Musk Truthout

Africa

Egyptian drone strikes kill several at gold mine near Sudan border, miners say Sudan Tribune

Somaliland leader leaves door open to Israeli military base Somalia Today

Old Blighty

Barrister in Ukrainians’ ‘Starmer arson’ trial says huge amount was covered up Skwawkbox

Palestine Action co-founder vows to overturn proscription ban either in courts or “on the streets” The Canary

European Disunion

Bavarian top court rules state spy agency can monitor AfD DW

New Not-So-Cold War

Finland shreds nuclear weapons ban RT

Finland to buy US glide bombs for F-35s, ministry says Straits Times

Piracy in the English channel Ian Proud

European G7 members and the United States will produce long-range missiles “under license” in Ukraine. Le Parisien (machine translation)

Ukraine’s defence minister predicts dozens of new companies will bring in thousands of foreigners to serve in Ukraine Ukrainska Pravda

EU Council Is Opening Communication Channels With Kremlin, Official Confirms Parliament Politics Magazine

Imperial Collapse Watch

Defense contractors would be barred from buying back their stock in bill approved by Senate panel CNBC

The Spirit of the Age Thomas Frank, Harper’s

L’affaire Epstein

US House staff visit Ghislaine Maxwell’s prison after claims of laptop and puppy The Guardian

South of the Border

US Bombs Alleged Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing at Least One Antiwar

Cuba unveils major reforms amid escalating US economic siege Al Mayadeen

Trump 2.0

More Than 770,000 Children Are No Longer Receiving SNAP Benefits After Trump Changes Federal Food Program ProPublica. America: killing kids abroad, killing kids at home.

Senators Suspect Trump Shifted Secret Service Funds to Build His Ballroom NOTUS

Why Does Trump Want the Save America Act? The Answer Should Worry Us. Balkinization

The Uniparty

Khanna Becomes First in Congress to Sign ‘Peace Pledge’ Promising to Reject AIPAC Funds Common Dreams

Democrats Suck

Democratic socialists are on the rise in Trump-era mayoral races NBC News. Commentary:

Big Brother Is Watching You Watch

The Bay Area is launching a drone war against garbage San Francisco Standard

The Accelerationists

Leak Exposes Members of Peter Thiel’s Secretive ‘Dialog’ Society Wired

US ‘nuclear bros’ test America’s atomic revival FT

Police State Watch

Minnesota Trade Unionists Among Those Targeted in Federal Indictments of ICE Observers Workday Magazine

As the Trump admin begins a new prosecution in Minnesota, the “Broadview Six” fallout continues Law Dork

How States May Utilize Domestic Terrorism Statutes to Prosecute Activists Civil Liberties Defense Center

ICE Appears to Be Buying Immigrants’ Tax Identifiers from a Data Broker 404 Media

The Supremes

The Supreme Court Will Decide Whether ICE Can Hold People Indefinitely. We Should All Be Worried. Slate

Economy

Housing starts sink to pandemic levels as builders worry about inflation Stateline

The Bezzle

Tesla Allegedly Showed Cooked Data to Get Full Self-Driving Approved Futurism

AI

The White House Wants Anthropic to Block All Jailbreaks. That May Not Be Possible Wired

OpenAI’s Stargate Data Centers Are Taking Longer and Costing More Than Its Competitors’ Distilled

Smartphone market to shrink 15 percent this year due to memory crisis The Register

Agentic AI Comes to Medicine Eric Topol

Generative AI Is Having Its Herbalife Moment What We Lost

Class Warfare

Musk and the AI Oligarchs Dump Risk On Us Ann Pettifor. “…Just as the next Global Financial Crisis looms.”

More Americans are hungry in the face of federal cuts, rising grocery prices Stateline

The Fixers of Lake Station Working Class Stories

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.

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29 comments

  1. The Rev Kev

    “US using frozen Palestinian funds to push Israel’s ‘normalization’ agenda: Report”

    It was only a week or two ago that Trump was suggesting out loud that those Palestinian funds frozen by the Israelis should be given to his Peace Board as it is broke. There is no legal mechanism for it but Trump just wanted that money.

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  2. AG

    re: Algeria military and RU

    As per Martyanov the shift in Northern Africa is proceeding. Of course one intended addressee of this build-up, France:

    “(…)Depending on the weapons’ package and Su-34’s excellent range and the ability to carry some really scary weapons such as P-800 Oniks, among many others, it becomes clear what it all means.(…)”

    he links to:

    Algeria Becomes First Foreign Operator of Russia’s Su-34E and Su-57E as New Photos Signal Major North African Airpower Shift

    The emergence of presumed first photographs showing Russian Su-34E fighter-bombers in Algerian Air Force service signals a major transformation in North African military aviation and expands Moscow’s strategic defence influence across the Mediterranean security theatre.
    https://defencesecurityasia.com/en/algeria-su-34e-su-57e-russia-north-africa-airpower-shift/

    Reply ↓
    1. vao

      Algeria is hedging its bets, and balancing its military outlays amongst various suppliers. Martyanov may tout Algeria’s acquisition of SU-34 and SU-57, but Algeria has also bought:

      1) Chinese airplanes: J-10C fighters and KJ-500 aerial warning aircraft;

      2) Chinese electronic equipment: CHL-906 electronic warfare system;

      3) Chinese tanks: VT-4 main battle tank;

      4) Chinese drones: CH-4 and Wing Loong-2;

      5) Chinese anti-ship defences: YJ-12B — Algeria had already been using the Chinese CX-1 for almost a decade;

      6) Chinese artillery: SR-5 multiple rocket launcher and PLZ-45 self-propelled howitzer;

      7) Chinese ships: Algeria is supposedly building Chinese type 056 corvettes under license.

      Then there are lighter armament, which China also supplies to Algeria.

      Interestingly, other countries are following suit: thus, Morocco has acquired Chinese Wing Loong II and TB-001K drones, Chinese HJ-9A and HJ-8L anti-tank systems, Chinese FD-2000B anti-aircraft missiles, Chinese VT-1A tanks, and is also looking to acquire K2 Souh Korean tanks — although the USA remain a major if not the main supplier of military equipment.

      Algeria is therefore not just distancing itself from France, but actually diversifying its procurement — largely in favour of China, although other countries, such as Italy, Germany, and South Africa, play a not insignificant role as weapons suppliers. And Morocco is doing likewise.

      Just like Huawei and ZTE have been supplanting Ericsson and Nokia in mobile networking equipment throughout the world with good systems providing modern technology at affordable prices, it seems that Chinese weapons manufacturers are doing exactly the same with military equipment. This should seriously give pause for thought to those extolling the plans about restoring EU’s economic fortunes through the development of a military industry.

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      1. Aurelien

        Algeria has always been a major user of Soviet and now Russian military equipment, and its armed forces are heavily influenced by those countries. Although it has bought limited amounts of equipment from countries such as Italy and Germany, it has historically bought very little from France, true to its general policy of gratuitously insulting France for fun.

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        1. vao

          Many Chinese weapons have the advantage of being compatible with Russian ones regarding ammunition. The main point is that by acquiring Chinese products, Algeria ensures it is not entirely dependent from its Russian suppliers which were traditionally very dominant — and it may be interesting price-wise as well. I presume Morocco is in the same situation regarding China vs USA.

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    2. AG

      Thanks for the detailed info.

      For fairness, Martyanov I think pointed out last year in a video that Algeria was acquiring not only Russian tech. But this here was his usual daily mini-bite of info. I found it fit in correlation with France announcing a new nuclear missile and as one commenter suggested station those in Finland? I still wonder how that works re: NATO-France. Apart from how smart and useful such a policy is.

      Lets hope Africa will maintain its non-nuclear zone policy with adequate support from Russia and China…

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  3. The Rev Kev

    ‘Aaron Rupar
    @atrupar
    NYT: Now that you’re approaching a new phase in this conflict in this Iran, can you now say whether you will hold anyone in your administration accountable for the strike on a school that killed more than 100 children?
    TRUMP: No. It’s such a strange question to be asked. It’s a long time ago. Mistakes are made. I would ask Pete Hegseth that question.’

    The Trump regime will never apologize over the double tap strike that killed all those school girls. They won’t even apologize for killing those Indian sailors a coupla days ago, much to India’s fury-

    https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/3-dead-no-apology-us-strike-strains-relations-with-india/ar-AA25QQSr

    Being a super power means never having to say that you are sorry.

    Reply ↓
  4. Booger T Washington

    I suppose we should just be thankful Ohioan Robocop didn’t shoot anyone’s weiner off.

    Reply ↓
  5. Henry Moon Pie

    Thomas Frank on nostalgia–

    Like me, Thomas Frank is a KC boy, who grew up across State Line Rd. from where I went to high school. As he recounted his memories of a Bicentennial in the city where everything is up-to-date and where crazy, little women are said to reside, it was no surprise to me that he mentioned what former New Yorker writer Calvin Trillin called the best hamburger joint in America. Winstead’s was a high school hang-out for me as well. They had curb service with roller skating waitresses as well as a roomy dining room, and “steakburgers” and chocolate malts were the stars of the menu.

    KC boy Trillin liked to troll the Acela set with his claims about Kansas City food, even proclaiming Arthur Bryant’s not the best barbecue joint, but the best restaurant in the world, when Arthur Bryant’s was a rough-around-the-edges BBQ joint behind the old ballpark that served its french fries in a paper bag. Still, Winstead’s and Arthur Bryant’s were places you get nostalgic about, especially in an era of franchises serving nuked “food” in cookie cutter settings.

    I agree with Frank’s focus on the harms of Reagan’s “Morning in America” escapist nostalgia. That marked the end of any hope for the changes that were sought by a segment of the young: reversals of the trends toward Empire, soulless consumerism and devastation of the biosphere. Instead, Reagan restored the faith in the American military that had been lost in Vietnam through a series of easy wins against opponents like Grenada and Panama. The shopping mall became America’s new Main Street, but with chain stores owned by the Epstein class instead of mom-and-pop hardware stores. And Reagan appointed James Watt to be head of the EPA, a man who summed up his environmental philosophy as follows:

    My responsibility is to follow the Scriptures which call upon us to occupy the land until Jesus returns.

    Earl Butz, SecAg, whose nemesis was Wendell Berry, was even worse.

    Reagan’s “Morning in America” nostalgia was the last thing we needed then, and Trump’s rhyming “Make America Great Again” would be even worse if more than a shrinking minority of FoxBoomers believed it. That doesn’t mean that a careful examination of the past isn’t desperately needed. It’s clear that we have trod a path that’s led us to the cliff’s edge, but correcting course is not possible without retracing our steps to understand how we arrived at such a unhappy destination. How have we become so alienated from each other and the life around us? How do we keep producing elites who have neither concern for their fellow citizens nor the competence to address problems if the wanted to? The answers to those questions lie not in fondly remembered cheeseburgers or malts but in a critical, unsparing investigation of where we went wrong and what direction humans need to take from here.

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      1. AG

        Interesting.
        Was there only once as a teen. I then found the memorial concept impressive to not elevate but rather hide it from plain sight and put below surface.

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        1. The Rev Kev

          If you ever get the chance, it is worth reading the book about this monument called “To Heal a Nation” by Jan C. Scruggs who really pushed this idea forward. They even made a film about it. Scruggs was determined that every person that went to ‘Nam be remembered individually and not be just represented by some bland monument.

          Reply ↓
          1. Just another Old Guy

            Bland?

            I, for one, lose the strength in my knees when I stand in front of that wall and have to sit down on the grass. And I cry.

            Reply ↓
    2. AG

      To describe Panama etc. as a conscious choice to give the military back its credentials of success via small 1000% success probability missions is a wise analysis. I never thought about it that way.

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      1. david lamy

        This KC Daisy (Pem-Day, same class as Henry Moon Pecan) agrees with you whole heartedly about the superiority of Allen’s Drive-In. The girls from St Teresa’s Academy singing along to the jukeboxes that were placed in each booth made every burger taste that much better! That was Meyer and Troost. Out south on State Line the Loretto and Sion girls were equally enrapturing.
        I was too shy to flirt. Which was wise, the Rockhurst boys would have crushed me!
        I actually ate at Bryants at night (dinner time) while Moon was chilling in rough streets of Cambridge abutting Harvard. I would be the only melanin deficient diner there! No stares, no glares, no remarks about being lost. Just terrific BBQ!

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        1. Henry Moon Pie

          Fair enough, but I don’t think many of our classmates were to be seen as far east as Troost. In any case, you’ll have to take it up with Trillin and Frank.

          It was our classmate Orlando who introduced me to Bryant’s before a Royals game. To elaborate on the service, you picked up a loaf of white bread with your BBQ (brisket was my favorite) and a greasy sack of fries. Delicious.

          Hope you’re doing OK. A mutual friend told me about your adventure.

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  6. Haydar Khan

    re School Districts Are Struggling to Keep Up With Surging Special Education Needs:

    Covid definitely has a role to play but, in my opinion, the lax criteria for defining who qualifies for special education is the greater culprit. This predates covid and it gets a mention in the article:

    “But to some educators, like Cajon Valley Union School District Superintendent David Miyashiro, an oft-whispered, but largely unproven, concern is also playing a role – the overidentification of kids with disabilities.”

    Notice that federal special education responsibilities are being shifted to HHS, under the control of RFK Jr. I predict a new wave of ” teachers are failing our students”, a perfect weapon to deliver yet another hammer blow to a weak and dying profession.

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    1. motorslug

      Very significant, whether errant or not, as drones struck residential blocks.
      Kyiv is in for a serious pounding.

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  10. farmboy

    dropping bombs on Moscow, WW3!!!!
    TheApeOfGoldStreet
    @TheApeOfGoldST
    I don’t think people understand the stupidity of striking deep into Moscow is.

    The odds for #WW3 just rised significantly.

    Have no doubt, Russia will not consider this as a strike from Ukraine. This is a direct result of NATO interference.

    NATO/European countries has enabled this by backing Ukraine with intelligence, weapons, weapon manufacturing and money. This is simply made possible because of them.

    This is absolutely nothing to cheer for, the coke actor is gambling with #WW3 more than ever and somehow he is backed by our European leaders doing so.

    Total idiocy. European people need to understand this, because they will soon get stuck in war if not.

    Idiots.

    Reply ↓
  11. thoughtfulperson

    My guess is the e.u. and nato want Russia to attack Ukraine arms suppliers in Europe. This will justify the trillions being spent (and benefit cuts for average persons) all over Europe.

    Thus we have seen more and more attacks *outside* Ukraine into Russia coming both from Ukraine but also via airspace of European countries. We see Russian ships stopped. Basically we are seeing the war leaving Ukrainian borders. It seems inevitable that eventually the Russians will respond in kind.

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  12. Lefty Godot

    Is the nostalgia that Thomas Frank describes a uniquely American thing? I tend to think everyone who has not had a very violent and traumatic childhood and adolescence is always nostalgic for the decade around when they came of age. It’s natural to see a time when you were younger and had more possibilities as happier than it actually was (and as you actually experienced it at the time). Which makes the nostalgia of subsequent generations unfathomable to one. Mrs. Godot and I were always boggled that anyone could be nostalgic for the Eighties. The Eighties! The Ronnie Reagan and CIA Bush days! Who could look back on that fondly?? Of course now the Nineties and Oughts are subjects of nostalgia for the Gen Y and Z folks. I think the politicians play on people’s desire to go back to the days before their bodies went into decline and their ambitions fizzled out, whichever “days” those were. Like promising programs you have no intent to deliver (like “Medicare for all” or “a balanced budget”), it’s one of those tactics that should be thoroughly skewered when it gets used, but I suppose you need an independent and skeptical media to be able to pull that off.

    Reply ↓

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