It’s Obnoxious For Westerners To Criticize The Targets Of The Western Empire

Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone

“I still find myself fuming at the way ostensibly well-informed individuals can stand right in the heart of the empire denouncing its targets, as we saw in the open letter that a group of left-wing western individuals addressed ‘to Iran’s political prisoners’ framing Iran as a ‘source of oppression’ equal to the US and its allies. It’s crazy this even needs to be said, but if you are a westerner your ONLY job is to oppose the abuses of the western empire. Not Iran. Not China. Not Russia, Cuba or North Korea. If you live in the US or one of its allied nations, then you live under the single most tyrannical and murderous power structure on earth, and that’s where your focus belongs.” [editor’s note: She seems to be admitting that those other regimes DO commit abuses. That’s progress, I guess. And my job is whatever I damn well decide it is – TLK] (08/24/26)

https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/08/24/its-obnoxious-for-westerners-to-criticize-the-targets-of-the-western-empire/

Ceasefire verification mission deploys to eastern DR Congo

Source: France 24 [French state media]

“A mission to verify a fragile ceasefire between the Congolese army and Rwanda-backed AFC/M23 armed group was deployed Monday to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as the two sides traded accusations of abuses. The eastern DRC has been riven by decades of conflict with multiple armed groups fighting over its mineral-rich territory, including the M23, which seized further swaths of the region last year. … The mechanism for verfiying ceasefire violations comprises Congolese government and AFC/M23 representatives as well as observers from member countries of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). The mission, the first of its kind, was deployed on Monday by UN helicopters to Minembwe in South Kivu province, which has seen intense clashes in recent months, according to UN and government sources.” (08/24/26)

https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20260824-ceasefire-verification-mission-deploys-eastern-dr-congo

My Ideal College

Source: ProSocial Libertarians
by Andrew Jason Cohen

“In K-12 education, students are—and perhaps should be—only beginning to think seriously. Especially in earlier years, they do not have enough knowledge or experience to know what they are really interested in. Hence, teachers must just encourage them to explore what they are curious about. By the time they reach college, though, students should have at least some sense of what they are curious about. I don’t think most college students today do (I don’t think they have for the last several decades—that is, I don’t think it was true in CBUs or ETCUs and I doubt it was true in GMUs). If students are encouraged to let their curiosity wander in K-12, this would likely change. Still, I will say something about what to do if they do not come to college with some idea about what they want to study.” (08/24/26)

https://prosociallibertarians.substack.com/p/my-ideal-college

Robert Nisbet’s Neglected Insights

Source: Law & Liberty
by Luke C Sheahan

“Robert Alexander Nisbet first made a splash in academia—and the conservative intellectual movement such as it was—in 1953 with the publication of his first and most famous book, The Quest for Community. Much of what he has to say there and in the rest of his oeuvre proved to be prescient in various ways. Nisbet predicted the rise of loneliness and the decline of the family, the growth of the bureaucracy at the expense of civil society, and the use of the language of democracy and equality to aggrandize the intrusions of political power.” (08/24/26)

https://lawliberty.org/robert-nisbets-neglected-insights/

What Comes After Mistrust? Liberalism Needs a Theory of Repair

Source: Liberal Currents
by Pamilerin Samuel

“For a long time, the liberal response to institutional mistrust was a mix of condescension and bafflement. If the public did not trust the experts, the assumption was that people were either misinformed or manipulated by bad actors. We lived through a decade of trying to fact-check our way out of a legitimacy crisis. But the tone has started to shift. Across public health agencies, local police departments, housing authorities, and financial institutions, people have watched institutions fail visibly and repeatedly, often without meaningful accountability afterward. In that context, skepticism is not necessarily irrational. It can be a reasonable response to systems that appear distant, unresponsive, or insulated from the consequences of their own mistakes.” (08/24/26)

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/what-comes-after-mistrust-liberalism-needs-a-theory-of-repair/

US Marines Cancel Drill With South Korea, Citing Iran War Demands

Source: New York Times

“The United States has canceled a joint amphibious landing exercise with South Korean forces that was set for next month, citing resource constraints driven by the war in Iran, the South Korean military announced Monday. The U.S. Marine Corps had notified its South Korean counterpart in June that Middle East operational demands would prevent the deployment of forces for the biennial exercise known as Ssangyong, or ‘Twin Dragons,’ the South Korean Marine Corps said on Monday. The U.S. military in Korea did not immediately comment on the announcement. The move marked the second joint military drill with South Korea to be canceled or downsized during President Trump’s second term.” (08/24/26)

https://archive.is/bphjC

The Nixon Shock 55 Years Later: Three Impossible Promises

Source: The Daily Economy
by Jeffery L Degner

“Nixon promised jobs, stable prices, and protection for the dollar. His ‘fixes’ helped usher in a new era of inflation, debt, and monetary instability.” (08/24/26)

https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/the-nixon-shock-55-years-later-three-impossible-promises/

Your guacamole may be helping Mexican cartels while US farmers pay the price

Source: Fox News
by Jayme Franklin

“I was born and raised in California, where avocados weren’t just another item on the grocery list, they were a staple of my everyday diet. Today, not much has changed. My family loves avocados, my daughter asks for them constantly, and as someone who loves to cook, I incorporate them into just about every recipe I can. But as a mom who believes deeply in the Make America Healthy Again movement, I’ve started thinking differently about the food I put on my family’s table. MAHA has encouraged millions of Americans to look more closely at ingredient labels, additives and how our food is produced. But I believe the conversation should go one step further: Where does our food come from? Who grows it? Are our agricultural supply chains safe and transparent? And are our purchases supporting American farmers?” (08/24/26)

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/guacamole-helping-mexican-cartels-us-farmers-pay-price