In Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, the US Has Not Been a Force for Peace

Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Paul Pillar

“The retiring United Nations envoy for the Middle East peace process has insightfully identified a major reason the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians continues to boil and to entail widespread death and destruction. In a recent interview with The New York Times, Norwegian diplomat Tor Wennesland criticized the international community for relying on short-term fixes such as improving quality of life in occupied territory or diversions such as seeking peace deals between Israel and other Arab states. The crescendo of bloodshed during the past year underscores the ineffectiveness of such approaches. Needed but not employed was a concerted and sustained diplomatic effort to end the occupation and create a Palestinian state. ‘What we have seen,’ said Wennesland, ‘is the failure of dealing with the real conflict, the failure of politics and diplomacy.'” (12/12/24)

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/israel-palestine/

“Shameless Beyond the Curse of Shamelessness”

Source: Quillette
by Joan Smith

“Around 750 people live permanently on Ventotene, catering to the tourists who stay in spa hotels or hire diving equipment to explore the azure waters that surround it. Picturesque houses in pastel colours straggle up the hillside, but it’s an unsettling location for anyone who knows that Ventotene functioned as a prison — and a place of execution—for some of the most famous women in Roman history. In the late first century BC, the Roman emperor Augustus built a palace on the northern tip of the island, which was then called Pandateria, but there’s no evidence that he ever visited it. … Its most famous resident was Augustus’s daughter Julia, who was imprisoned in the palace for five years after she was disgraced and exiled in 2 BC. Julia was eventually moved to the mainland, but three more women from Rome’s Julio-Claudian imperial dynasty would be imprisoned here — and, unlike Julia, they would all die here.” (12/12/24)

https://quillette.com/2024/12/12/shameless-beyond-the-curse-of-shamelessness/

The UFOs Are Here

Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob

“Now that UFO sightings are ubiquitous, is it at all amusing that ufologists generally scoff at them, dismissing them as ‘drones?’ Out-of-place lights dot the skies of New Jersey and other east-coast states, and have for several weeks. Yet there is no panic that The Aliens Are Coming! The Aliens Are Coming! Speculation as to what they actually are — and whose — is rampant. And the government hasn’t helped.” (12/12/24)

https://thisiscommonsense.org/2024/12/12/the-ufos-are-here/

The Other Kind of Romance in Politics

Source: EconLog
by Janet Bufton

“Public choice helps explain why, instead of selfless, elevated public servants pursuing only the public good, we see problems like log-rolling, rent seeking, and the concentration of power. But there is another kind of romantic politics — one to which fans of public choice are much more susceptible. It’s the romantic notion that we can, in response to the problems with politics revealed by public choice, do away with politics altogether.” (12/12/24)

https://www.econlib.org/the-other-kind-of-romance-in-politics/

Disgraced president-elect taps Arizona moonbat to lead Voice of America

Source: BBC News [UK State Media]

“President-elect Donald Trump said he wants Kari Lake, a fierce ally who has denied the results of the 2020 US presidential election, to lead Voice of America, a federally funded global news outlet. Donald Trump made the announcement on Wednesday night, writing on his social media platform Truth Social that Lake would be appointed by and work closely with the next head of the US Agency for Global Media, which oversees all non-military, US international broadcasting. He said he would announce for that role ‘soon.’ Lake left her longtime post as a news anchor in 2021 for failed Republican bids for an Arizona seat in the US Senate and to serve as the state’s governor. She became a vocal critic of the media in her brief political career and has referred to journalists as ‘monsters.'” (12/12/24)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq627z3493po

Switzerland: Central bank cuts interest rate 50 basis points, biggest reduction in nearly a decade

Source: Yahoo! News

“The Swiss National Bank cut its interest rate by 50 basis points on Thursday, the biggest reduction in almost 10 years as it sought to stay ahead of expected cuts by other central banks and cap the rise of the Swiss franc. The SNB reduced its policy rate from 1.0% to 0.5%, the lowest since November 2022. While markets had predicted the move, more than 85% of economists polled by Reuters had expected a smaller cut of 25 basis points.” (12/12/24)

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/swiss-national-bank-cuts-interest-083242367.html

Free Talk Live, 12/11/24

Source: Free Talk Live

“Free Talk Live :: Inconsistencies with the story about Luigi Mangione :: the differences in his appearance and the pics that are allegedly the shooter :: the emotional nature of the jury makes the court system unfair :: if you’re going to represent yourself in court, at least learn the objections :: Before Obama care we had lower costs :: anyone involved in health insurance in the US is a criminal :: What is self ownership? :: different forms of government :: lawyer parasites :: Is Sarah still for red light cameras even though she admitted people don’t pay the tickets :: Sarah is pro violence :: Tragedy if the commons :: communism is good? :: 2024-12-11 :: Hosts: Chris, Bonnie.” (12/11/24)

https://soundcloud.com/freetalklive/free-talk-live-2024-12-11

Trump’s Syrian Opportunity

Source: The American Conservative
by Eldar Mamedov

“With the shock overthrow of the Assad dynastic dictatorship that ruled Syria since 1971, new diplomatic opportunities are opening for the incoming administration. If President-elect Donald Trump is serious about his ‘ending forever wars’ rhetoric, Syria offers him a chance to grab a low-hanging fruit. Encouragingly, Trump himself seems to realize that. Commenting on Syria, he suggested that the events unfolding there are ‘not our fight.’ He said that the ‘U.S. should have nothing to do with it (the situation in Syria). Let it play out. Do not get involved.'” (12/12/24)

https://www.theamericanconservative.com/trumps-syrian-opportunity/

Making Way for Kakistocracy

Source: The Dispatch
by Nick Catoggio

“We don’t do hot takes at The Dispatch, but I’ll confess to one that’s lukewarm: I’m coming around on Donald Trump’s scheme to use recess appointments to avoid the Senate confirmation process. I still believe all of his nominees should be confirmed, to be clear. Americans voted for an authoritarian kakistocracy last month and they should have it. We owe it to democracy to run this experiment, for better or worse. And if it goes as badly as I expect, we’ll have the consolation of knowing that we deserve what we’ve gotten. But if you’re still naive enough to care about civic norms, a case can be made that having Congress recess so that Trump can temporarily fill Cabinet positions with whomever he likes would be marginally less demeaning to the Senate than confirming his nominees would be.” (12/11/24)

https://www.yahoo.com/news/making-way-kakistocracy-231102546.html