Source: Antiwar.com
by Dan Steinbock

“Defense Secretary Hegseth’s term is likely to be seen as one of the most disastrous ones in the Pentagon’s history. The lack of personal integrity and even basic executive experience compounds an aggressive, ideologically overdriven campaign that has triggered a chilling effect, tanked military approval ratings and alienated America’s allies, partners and adversaries alike.” (11/12/26)

https://original.antiwar.com/dan_steinbock/2026/11/11/the-rise-and-fall-of-defense-secretary-pete-hegseth

Source: Libertarian Institute
by Joseph Solis-Mullen

“In mid-September 2026, former Green Beret Tim Kennedy was shot multiple times in the leg during an ambush in the Minembwe Highlands of South Kivu, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He was part of a small Vectus Global team, one of Blackwater founder Erik Prince’s private security companies, accompanying Congolese forces. The event prompted, for a moment, a degree of American media coverage of the Congo. To be sure, the coverage was as shallow as it was fleeting, mostly focused on Kennedy’s own story; but make no mistake, there is much more here than just a seemingly random firefight involving private contractors in some remote African hinterland.” (11/12/26)

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/rebels-minerals-and-contractors-trouble-and-opportunity-in-the-drc

Source: CounterPunch
by Dean Baker

“It may be too early to start the celebration, but some of the AI stocks took a big hit last week. But not all companies were hit equally. The biggest hits by far went to the neo-clouds, with several of the large chip makers also getting seriously whacked. The hyperscalers seemed little affected.” (11/12/26)

https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/11/12/the-beginning-of-the-end-for-the-ai-bubble/

Source: Expression
by Sarah McLaughlin

“Most people probably don’t recall all of the things they said last week, let alone four years ago. But for widely-read French writer Michel Houellebecq, comments he made in a 2022 magazine interview may spell legal trouble for him today. Houellebecq is now formally facing a judge-led investigation in a Paris suburb for ‘complicity in incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence against a group of people on account of their origin or their belonging or not belonging to a particular ethnicity, nation, race or religion.’ … Should authorities pursue charges and find him guilty, Houellebecq could face large fines and up to a year in prison. Even if they ultimately drop the investigation, the message is clear to both Houellebecq and everyone else: If you speak your mind on a controversial issue in France, you might get wrapped up in a lengthy and chilling investigation. You might even end up in jail.” (11/12/26)

https://expression.fire.org/p/prosecuting-michel-houellebecq-will

Source: Law & Liberty
by Daniel Klein

“To resolve the paradox of the poor man’s son, we must extend the story to the next generation.” (11/12/26)

https://lawliberty.org/adam-smiths-hidden-parable/