Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Source: The Intercept
by Tom Engelhardt & Nick Turse

“Last week, almost a quarter century since Bush made the case for war in Iraq, a U.S. soldier was killed in an Iranian attack on an American base there. President Donald Trump was elected on a promise to say goodbye to all that. American-style wars of choice were going to be a thing of the past …. No one, I suspect, not even Trump, has the faintest idea why he did this, though maybe he felt left out of the club of forever-war makers, co-chaired by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.” (07/29/26)

https://theintercept.com/2026/07/29/trump-wars-of-choice-iran/

Source: The Daily Economy
by Matt Zwolinski

“Tocqueville believed liberty depended on virtue — but he trusted free institutions, not the state, to cultivate it.” (07/29/26)

https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/the-post-liberals-cant-have-tocqueville/

Source: Christian Science Monitor
by the Editorial Board

“The increasing incarceration of women – often for minor, nonviolent offenses – carries a high human cost. There is a shift toward alternatives that balance accountability with the right of children to continued parental care.” (07/29/26)

https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0729/Parents-in-prison-New-ways-to-sustain-family-bonds?icid=rss

Source: Reason
by Matthew Petti

“The government is charging Samuel Tunick for telling them a code that would erase all the data on his phone—after they tried to take it on false pretenses.” (07/29/26)

https://reason.com/2026/07/29/border-agents-can-lie-to-search-your-phone-but-wiping-your-own-data-could-land-you-in-prison/

Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob

“The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled 7-0 to protect the state’s hunting clubs from warrantless searches of their property. The Institute for Justice observes that the decision protects the right ‘to be secure on their land’ of all Pennsylvanians ‘and marks a final victory with no further appeal available.’ The decision is a big deal. For decades, courts have accepted the ‘open fields doctrine’ advanced in a 1924 U.S. Supreme Court decision. According to this rule — or rationalization — officials may conduct warrantless searches on any land beyond that which immediately surrounds a home. Even if the open-field land is clearly marked as private property.” (07/29/26)

https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/07/29/closed2abuse/