“Three pieces published on Friday tried and failed to find evidence for big claims about the economic impact of sporting events. In a column for The Kansas City Star, I challenged the rosy claims of the alleged economic windfall from hosting the World Cup. Every group I contacted indicated they got the number from someone else. When I finally found the organization that generated the number, it did not respond. That seems to be the standard procedure.” (01/26/26)
“It is almost impossible to have a discussion on immigration with either Republicans or Democrats because the conversation quickly devolves into a pointless blame game, eg ‘”how can you defend x when other defenders of x have done so many things wrong’ where x = something like ‘the virtues of immigration’ or ‘consistent enforcement of current immigration laws.’ Well, I can give you the definitive answer to this blame game — it is both their faults. Before getting into it, a bit of history.” (01/26/26)
“The Union understood it had won a victory, but saw the escape of Lee’s army as failure. The Confederates believed they had suffered a setback, but did not understand the strategic implications of what had just happened. The point is that the people in the battle could not understand its significance. It would take time for everyone to grasp exactly what the events of Gettysburg meant. Which brings us to Minneapolis.” (01/26/26)
“North Korea has launched suspected ballistic missiles into the sea, Seoul and Tokyo say, in what appears to be a weapons test before a major political congress in the country. The launches on Tuesday were the second this month after a volley on January 4 as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung kicked off a state visit to China.” (01/27/26)
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by James Bovard
“On Saturday, federal agents in Minneapolis killed protester Alex Pretti, shooting him in the back 10 times after they had taken away the pistol he legally carried. White House Deputy Chief Stephen Miller quickly settled the issue: ‘A would-be assassin tried to murder federal law enforcement and the official Democrat account sides with the terrorists.’ A few hours after Pretti was killed, I commented on Twitter/X: ‘How many of the Trump supporters cheering the killing of the Minneapolis demonstrator today would also cheer for the FBI sniper killing Vicki Weaver in her cabin door at Ruby Ridge in 1992?’ This outraged plenty of Trump supporters but the parallels between the federal killings in 1992 and on Saturday are striking.” (01/26/26)
“Why did U.S. President Donald Trump order his lightning invasion of Venezuela and abduct its president on Jan. 3? Was it for oil, as Trump boldly insisted immediately after? To remove a corrupt dictator? To (somehow) curb narcotrafficking? To bolster his immigration crackdown? To posture in front of international rivals? To distract from economic woes, his exposure in the Jeffrey Epstein case, or his declining popularity at home? It’s a trick question — it was for all those reasons and more. The incursion was what both theorists and screenwriters call ‘overdetermined,’ a situation in which there were possibly dozens of probable causes, any of which could have sufficiently explained the motivations for it.” (01/26/26)
“The California city of San Clemente will officially allow Customs and Border Patrol to begin a controversial new surveillance project within its city limits. The plan, which involves installing cameras on a hill to overlook the Orange County city and its famous coastline, is moving ahead despite a torrent of pushback from locals, including many who attended a fiery, hours-long San Clemente City Council meeting on Jan. 20. Under the new agreement, which passed 3-1 in a city council vote (with one member abstaining), San Clemente will allow CBP to install a collection of cameras to monitor for incoming panga boats off the coast.” (01/26/26)
“The right-wing response to recent events in Minneapolis indicates that MAGA conservatives are determined to repeat the mistakes made by Daryl Gates 35 years ago.” (01/26/26)
