Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Source: Expression
by Jacob Mchangama

“The Emancipation Proclamation, the defeat of the Confederacy and the adoption of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments prohibiting slavery and promising equal protection and the right to vote for the recently emancipated Black population seemed to fulfill Douglass’ life’s mission as an abolitionist and human rights defender. Yet over the following decades, Douglass’[s] joy at emancipation was mixed with bitter disappointment at the stark contrast between the fine principles enshrined in these documents and their practical nullification through oppressive laws, racist terror and mob action in the South.” (10/21/26)

https://expression.fire.org/p/douglass-and-the-betrayal-of-freedom

Source: Antiwar.com
by Nolan Denaro

“In his moment of peril, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seeking assistance. Pakistan has pledged to militarily support the Saudis, citing the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement. France has also committed assets to Saudi Arabia, with President Emmanuel Macron saying that ‘Soldiers, radars, defense systems’ will be used to defend Saudi energy infrastructure. Egypt’s National Defense Council – led by President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi – has announced that they plan to use ‘all possible forms of support’ to help the Saudis. … MBS has also been relentless in his push for direct U.S. military involvement. In September, he called President Donald Trump multiple times to request that he assist the Saudis, specifically that he order the U.S. military to engage in direct strikes against Houthi forces. … Despite the bluster coming from those advocating for intervention, a move to engage in strikes on Yemen would be a dreadful mistake.” (10/21/26)

https://original.antiwar.com/nolan_denaro/2026/10/20/mr-president-dont-strike-yemen

Source: Los Angeles Times
by Jonah Goldberg

“There is an enormous difference between the United States declining to provide additional military assistance to a country fighting for its survival and deliberately interfering with its ability to defend itself. The disruption fits a broader pattern of Trump administration decisions that have constrained Ukraine while offering concessions to Russia.” (10/21/26)

https://archive.is/rZKNa

Source: Libertarian Institute
by Charles Goyette

“The liberal tradition that is central to Western civilization sees the individual as the bearer of rights, the locus in which conscience manifests itself. It is in the individual that freedom is experienced. Yet these jewels in the crown of Western civilization were crowded out by the speech’s undisguised imperial core: national power, relentless ambition, adventure, risk and glory, skyrocketing defense spending, historic defense commitments. Nor did the sweep of [Marco Rubio’s] survey acknowledge that the failure of the West’s will to survive is an inevitable and sorrowful compensation for the vitality drained by its imperial overextension.” (10/21/26)

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/a-western-civ-speech-only-a-neocon-could-love/

Source: The Atlantic
by David Frum

“‘BALANCED BUDGET!!! DJT’ Donald Trump posted that promise on February 7, 2025, the 18th day of his current presidential term. During the 2024 campaign, he had promised even more: the elimination of the entire national debt in a single term of office. Trump insisted that he could reach his budget goals without disagreeable spending cuts. … Instead, he proposed eliminating deficits and debt with magic money from growth, from crypto, and—above all—from tariffs. Tariffs would generate so much revenue that they might replace the income tax, maybe even finance a $2,000 dividend for every American taxpayer.
Basic budget math contradicted Trump’s fantasies.” (10/21/26)

https://archive.is/kB5Dp

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Steven Kritz

“In recent months, there’s been a torrent of document releases that prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, the scope of the atrocities committed in the name of the Covid response by the public health establishment. As someone who has been submitting articles to Brownstone Journal covering this subject for more than 3 years (20 have been published), it has been suggested that I once again bring my perspective into the arena regarding these recent revelations. Frankly, I have felt no such calling. Why is that? For me, it’s a matter of been there; done that! … I’ve reached the point where the only thing I care about is accountability. Without it, these atrocities will keep happening.” (10/21/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/accountability-is-all-that-matters-now/