Trump’s No-Prisoners Approach to Iran-China Oil Crackdown
The US plans further sanctions on intermediaries like tankers and broker that facilitate Iran oil sales to China. Will they work?
Read more...Author Archives: Yves Smith
Links 2/18/2025
“We Must Fund Oppositions Properly to Save Democracy”
The Financial Times’ Martin Wolf, like quite a few others, looks for ways to save democracy from itself, as in rule by voters.
Read more...Who Is Driving the Global Privatization of Domestic Infrastructure?
An otherwise informative post about the extent and hazards of infrastructure sales misses who the real bad actors are.
Read more...We Are Restoring Comments
We are restoring comments. Please read this post in full before commenting.
Read more...Hoisted from Comments: A Discussion of China’s Faltering Growth
An example of the comments section at work, here on China, with both some very informative reader content and some sour notes.
Read more...A Win in Long-Running Kentucky Retirement Systems Pension Case: Attorney General Thwarted in Scheme to Settle Claims Against KKR and Blackstone on the Cheap
In a step forward for long-suffering Kentucky Retirement Systems (now Kentucky Public Pension Authority) beneficiaries, attorneys for so-called Tier 3 Plaintiffs beat back a scheme by Attorney General Russell Coleman to settle claims against private equity kingpins KKR and Blackstone on the cheap…oh, and completely drop claims against their top partners, here the famed Henry […]
Read more...Is Trump Poisoning the Prospects of Negotiation With Russia Over Ukraine with His Minerals Deal?
The US looks to be throwing a spanner into the possibility of Ukraine peace talks by getting Ukraine to sign over mineral rights to the US.
Read more...Links 2/15/2025
Interview: How Elon Musk Blurs the Lines of Free Speech
Billionaire Elon Musk’s new job raises tricky First Amendment questions, with implications for public health.
Read more...Will Some EU States Seize Russia’s “Shadow Fleet” In The Baltic?
Could major incident in the Baltic Sea spark a crisis that leads to Russian escalation, thwarting Ukraine talks?
Read more...‘Going Against Trump Policies Is Not Fraud’: White House Panned Over Absurd Defense of DOGE
Administration efforts to defend DOGE confirm that spending cuts are ideological, and not value-neutral ‘efficiency’ or cost reduction
Read more...How Climate Denial is Fueling a U.S. Homeowners Insurance Crisis and Risking a 2008-Style Financial Meltdown
A climate-change-driven insurance and eventual mortgage/housing price crisis is getting momentum. And unlike 2008, price recovery is unlikely
Read more...Europe’s Challenge and Opportunity in the Trump Era: Building Coalitions of the Willing
How some ideas for bolstering Europe’s position in the Trump era are not as well thought through as they ought to be.
Read more...Initial Thoughts on US-Russia Talks on Ukraine War as Ukraine and EU Have Nervous Breakdowns
Plenty of people are seriously Not Happy that Trump and Putin are talking about Ukraine, and some do have agency.
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