Author Archives: Yves Smith

Links 5/25/2024

Remember Headlines 2 Weeks Ago, Labor Market “Suddenly” Weakens as Unemployment Claims “Spike”: It Just Got Unwound

A wee unpacking of unemployment data to show how Fed rate cut cheerleaders are still ahead of themselves

U.S. Remains Painfully Dependent on China for Silicon and Solar Panels

Yet another own goal in the US economic war against China. We chose to make ourselves dependent and don’t like where we are.

National Grid Wants to Heat More Homes With Converted Food Waste — and Make You Pay For It

National Grid’s biogas plant is performing poorly, as shown by downtimes and methane flaring, yet it wants more consumer subsidies to expand.

Masks Work, Our Comprehensive Review Has Found

Finally, a rigorous study on mask use shows definitively that masks do indeed work, as in reduce transmission of respiratory diseases.

Satyajit Das: The Economic Costs of Modern War

How economic, military and political costs and consequences are intersecting in the Ukraine and Israel-Palestine conflicts

Collapse of the Thwaites Glacier Has Accelerated

The timetable for the collapse of the Thwaites Glacier is collapsing, and why that matters.

Israel Gaza Starvation Ploy Intensifies With Seizure of Rafah Crossings

The Rafah operation is speeding the pace of genocide in Gaza. That looks to be its primary aim.

Links 5/22/2024

Gresham’s Law Comes for Science

Science publication has become so corrupted that entire journals have been shut down over running fake research. How did we get here?

“Am I An Extremist? ”

How the UK is using the extremist label to act against people holding mainstream views. The US is not far behind.

From the History of Israel−Palestine Conflict: The First Palestinian Intifada Against the State of Israel (1987−1993) and its Political Consequences

For those looking for the libretto to the Middle East version of Gotterdammerung, a compact retelling of the First Intifada.