Yves here. It is remarkable how Trump seems to need to have his name in the hot lights, um, the headlines, all the time and is able to do so. Admittedly, liking bold gestures for their own sake, as opposed to whether they make any sense, helps by giving way more degrees of freedom. As […]
Tuesday, September 9, 2025
Trumpian Tariffs Rerun the Failed Strategy of Import Substitution Industrialization
Trump’s use of broad-based tariffs to promote industrialization have repeatedly failed. There’s no reason to expect different results now.
Coffee Break: The Political Blender Is Throwing Up Some Odd Alliances
In 2025 we are witnessing a political blender: the collapse of old political alliances and the emergence of new coalitions.
Should We Try to Prevent Autism?
Advocates for those with austism debate the value of prevention versus better care and support.
Is American Science Stuck in a Doom Loop?
The American scientific community is in a difficult place. I started my first job in an academic research laboratory (funded by the Energy Research and Development Administration and the National Science Foundation) in 1975, which somehow was fifty years ago when I was the youngest person in the laboratory instead of the oldest. I have […]
The President’s “Firing” of Lisa Cook Is Illegal
Georgetown law professor Adam Levitin eviscerates the purported Trump case for removal of Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook.
The New Currency War: US Stablecoin-China Digital Yuan Rivalry as a Test of Monetary Discipline
How the US stablecoin/digital yuan arms race creates instability risks and undermines monetary sovereignity around the world.
Coffee Break: Armed Madhouse – Misguided Marines
The Marine Corps’ new Pacific island strategy, articulated in its Force Design 2030 planning documents, envisions small units deployed across the Pacific island chain, armed with missiles and sensors to strike Chinese shipping and contest maritime access. Branded as Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO), the concept seeks to adapt the Corps to great-power competition by […]
Jim Chanos on Crypto, AI, Dodgy Statistics, and Casino Capitalism
Chanos looks at a broad range of investment hot topics, from cypto to AI, and sees vastly more speculation than value creation
Even Libertarians and Austrian-School Economists Are Pillorying Javier Milei’s Economic Program
It makes a nice change to read scathing critiques of Milei’s disastrous economic program from the right as well as the left.
Don’t Look Away: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised But the Genocide Is Being Filmed
A look at some key entries in large and tragically growing body of documentaries on Israel’s ethnic cleansing and genocide in Palestine
FTC Has Long Said Products Must Back Up Health Claims. A MAHA Lawsuit Would Upend That.
An important legal battle looms about dietary supplement companies being able to make health claims when they lack clinical trial evidence
Coffee Break: The Abundance Bros Notice the AI Bubble but What Is Their Narrative Leaving Out?
The AI bubble has gotten so big that even the Abundance Bros are noticing, but maybe conventional analysis is missing something really big.
