Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Source: Persuasion
by Luke Hallam

“I’m not saying that everyone has to find space cool and interesting. Plenty of people don’t. But it’s surely a shame that the culture as a whole finds itself unable, most of the time, to be awed and inspired by those parts of the universe that exist beyond the thin shell of our atmosphere. Exploration requires curiosity, and curiosity is deeply human. Unlike other animals, we aren’t driven to new environments simply because of resource scarcity or the threat of predators. We have a surplus of wonder that causes us to pursue knowledge and beauty wherever we find it, without quite knowing why. Artemis II is just one small example of that spirit in action.” (04/01/26)

https://www.persuasion.community/p/were-going-back-to-the-moon

Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Adam Goldstein

“The encrypted messaging app Signal is back in the news — and this time, people are asking: Will using it get me arrested? The short answer is probably not. If your speech would be protected if you were talking to a friend at a park or over the phone, your speech will still be protected when you have that conversation on Signal. And if not, you’re not any more likely to get arrested by using Signal than you were before you started using it. In other words, if you’re doing something unlawful, adding Signal to the mix probably doesn’t appreciably increase the already existing risk of getting arrested for breaking the law.” (04/01/26)

https://www.fire.org/news/it-safe-use-signal

Source: Niskanen Center
by Jia-Shen Tsai

“On February 12, the EPA finalized the rescission of the 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding that had allowed the federal government to regulate emissions as threats to public health, and repealed all vehicle greenhouse gas emission standards based on it. President Trump called it ‘the single largest deregulatory action in American history.’ This ostensible deregulatory act does not free the market, though. It removes the legal infrastructure that has shielded businesses from litigation and could expand states’ ability to regulate and sue independently, creating exactly the kind of regulatory chaos that industries have spent decades trying to prevent.” (04/01/26)

https://www.niskanencenter.org/epas-deregulatory-claim-doesnt-survive-its-own-cost-benefit-analysis

Source: Independent Institute
by Ivan Eland

“After neglecting the notification of and consultation with U.S. allies about his pending attack on Iran, Trump was then angered when they balked at helping the United States undertake the dangerous and expensive mission of using their warships to convoy oil tankers and other commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz. And because the Iranians have effectively thumbed their nose at Trump’s threats against Iran’s oil and civilian infrastructure (a war crime if carried out) if they didn’t open the strait, somebody is going to need to undertake opening and keeping open the strait. Yet, Trump has now said that the allies need to do so to take their oil, because much of the oil imported into the United States does not transit the Strait. That statement exhibits the president’s profound ignorance of the oil market.” (04/01/26)

https://www.independent.org/article/2026/04/01/the-circular-logic-of-trumps-war-with-iran/

Source: Show-Me Institute
by Elias Tsapelas

“Missouri operated a film tax credit program before ending it more than a decade ago. In 2010, the state’s Tax Credit Review Commission examined the program and concluded it served too narrow an industry to justify its cost to taxpayers. Lawmakers shut it down soon after. The idea never fully disappeared, though, and in 2023 the subsidy returned, this time with the promise of better results. The current program allows up to $16 million per year in credits for film and television productions. So far, there is little evidence that anything has changed.” (04/01/26)

https://showmeinstitute.org/article/corporate-welfare/missouris-film-tax-credits-still-dont-add-up/