Trump budget whackage will further degrade the quality of official statistics. And that really does matter.
Monday, August 18, 2025
Abundance of Accelerationism: Democrat Rebrand Promises to Keep Foot on the Breakdown Gas
If Elon Musk were to really start his own political party, would that signal that the donor class no longer has any use for the Democrats?
What the World Can Learn from Uruguay as the Global Housing Crisis Deepens
Cooperative housing has been a big success in building affordable housing in Uruguray. But can this model be exported to the US?
Coffee Break: Armed Madhouse – Poison Gas
Before our current age of nuclear war anxiety, there was widespread concern about an earlier terrifying weapon of mass destruction: poison gas. I will describe the history of war gases in the context of our current concerns about atomic war. It is an ugly topic, but examining it may provide some hope for a way […]
Australia & Japan Are Seemingly Having Second Thoughts About the De Facto Asian NATO
Japan and Australia are finally questioning US exploitation. But what can they do about it?
Brussels’ Latest Destructive Project, Culling the Euro Area’s Banks, Hits a Snag
The governments of Italy and Spain are doing everything they can to obstruct EU-supported bank mergers from taking place within their borders.
Africa’s Minerals Are Being Bartered for Security: Why It’s a Bad Idea
A minerals-for-security deal among the DRC, Rwanda and the US is as bad as the Ukraine “raw earths” security commitments.
The Fight for Hearts and Minds: Christian Churches Filling Void Created by Social Service Cuts, With Some Also Hard-Selling Far Right Political Messages
As safety nets shred, some Christian churches provide key services to the poor while others use the desperation to build political power
Coffee Break: Trump Makes an Example Out of Paramount
President Donald Trump has zeroed in on Paramount, the weakest of American media titans, to administer a lesson in sontaku, the Japanese art of “obeying in advance” or “following unspoken orders.”
AI and Workers’ Wellbeing: Lessons from Germany’s Early Experience
An only mildly negative report on AI implementation from Germany, and why that is not likely to be generalizable to the US.
U.S. Inches Closer to Causing Major Caucasus Crisis With Offer to Administer Transport Corridor Between Turkey and Azerbaijan
Moscow takes measures against Baku and Yerevan to warn against corridor move that would upset regional balance and be blow to Iran and Russia.
Can This Industry Be Saved? The Case of Natural Diamonds
The once prized diamond is now merely a natural diamond and losing ground to its cheaper manufactured cousins.
‘Farming in the Dark’: Brooke Rollins’ Leadership, DOGE’s Grip and the Cost to American Agriculture
In her first six months, Donald Trump’s second agriculture secretary has altered the course of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She says prosperity is ‘just around the corner.’ But staffing cuts and restricted research could have long-lasting impacts.
