“Trade wars are odd in that the dueling governments’ weapon of choice is confiscatory taxation imposed on their own citizens. ‘I’m mad at you — I’m going to break my son’s arm.’ ‘Oh yeah? Well fine, I’ll break my wife’s leg — how ya like them apples?’ ‘You’ve done it now — I’m dousing my whole family in gasoline and lighting a match!’ When I point out how idiotic all that is, a few doofs come back at me with: ‘Buy American — problem solved.’ But no, buying American doesn’t solve your problem as a consumer. You’re going to pay more, whether you pay it directly to Uncle Sam or not.” (08/25/26)
“Sen. Darline Graham — a political newcomer appointed to the seat held by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham — will win a special GOP primary runoff to replace her brother on the South Carolina ballot, the Associated Press projected Tuesday. Graham, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump, defeated Rep. Ralph Norman, a staunch conservative and member of the hard line Freedom Caucus, who had also advanced to the runoff, following South Carolina’s special Senate primary earlier this month. Graham will face Democratic candidate Annie Andrews in November.” (08/25/26)
“In 2021, Columbia University law professor Philip Hamburger argued that the U.S. public school system violates the First Amendment. ‘Education,’ he wrote, ‘consists mostly in speech, and parents have a right under the First Amendment to exercise authority over what their children hear.’ Forcing families to accept government messaging — or pay a steep price to escape it — amounts to unconstitutional pressure. A lawsuit filed in Nebraska on Aug. 13 brings that argument into court — and could open a path toward universal school choice. Justin Jacobsen and Timothy and Joanna Menter, parents in the Lincoln Public Schools district, are suing state and local officials in Lancaster County District Court. Represented by the New Civil Liberties Alliance, they are challenging Nebraska’s combination of compulsory education and public-school-only funding.” (08/25/26)
“The legal battle among the City of Avenal, Kings County and recall organizers over the city council recall election on April 28, came to an end Monday after Kings County Superior Court upheld the election results, finding irregularities did not affect the outcome or violate legal procedures. The court ruled defendants — recalled Mayor Alvaro Preciado and Councilmembers Leticia Gamez, Pablo Hernandez and David Reynosa — unlawfully held office as members of the Avenal City Council. The court declared those four seats vacant as of May 28. … The recalled officials had refused to step down despite the election’s certification on May 28, leading to a legal battle. The city claimed the recall process was illegal.” (08/25/26)
“Robby Soave gives his radar on Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed appearing to distance himself from recent comments made by leftist streamer Hasan Piker.” (08/25/26)
“When Americans repealed Prohibition in 1933, alcohol consumption did not immediately settle into the pattern we recognize today. Consumption rose substantially over the following decades, eventually peaked around 1981 and then declined for more than a decade. … Along the way, Americans learned to live with legal alcohol. Knowledge, customs, and social norms evolved around its responsible use. We learned to distinguish drinking from drunkenness. We came to strongly disapprove of drinking and driving and of drinking on the job. People learned to recognize their own limits, and friends and families learned to recognize when someone’s drinking was becoming a problem. None of those norms required us to conclude that, because alcohol can cause addiction, disease, accidents and death, we should prohibit adults from drinking it. Cannabis may be undergoing a similar period of adjustment.” (08/25/26)
“A few weeks ago, the Labour back-bencher, Paula Baker, was held to have disgraced herself with remarks revealing that she hadn’t much of a clue about the bond market. There have been similar such remarks from Zarah Sultana and Nadia Whittome, other Labour back-benchers. Cue for much chuntering by those claiming to know better. But this is silly. Why should Labour back-benchers turn up knowing all about the bond market? They have recently been hired to a new job with new responsibilities. Like the rest of us, they have to learn on the job. Come to think of it, why should you, the reader of this blog, know such things? You’re all about politicians, polls and programmes. Even the freest market of inclinations are no education in the gobbledegook of bonds, with its weird vocabulary and unintuitive arithmetic. So, here’s the ‘for Dummies’ story.” (08/25/26)
“German investigators uncovered a third drone and suspected military explosives thought to be connected to an attempted attack on Leipzig airport, local media have reported. The drone was discovered in Kabelsketal, just to the west of the airport, along with about 50g (1.8oz) of a suspected military explosive on 14 August, 10 days after the unsuccessful sabotage. Leipzig airport is a cargo and military logistics hub used by Nato and Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines for transporting military supplies. The office of the prosecutor general, which is leading the investigation, declined to comment on Tuesday. But the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said the government would soon provide information about who it believed was behind the drone attacks.” (08/25/26)
“We are told that we have no expectation of privacy on public roads. But is a Flock of a.i.-backed cameras the kind of thing we want spying on us, tracking our every move? While we say that ‘it’s only a conspiracy if they do it in secret,’ what is it when the people who seek to destroy the last vestiges of our privacy demand their own privacy even as they plot against us?” (08/25/26)
