The War in Ukraine Arrives at a Crucial Juncture

Source: Antiwar.com
by James Carden

“Though relegated to the sidelines thanks to President Donald Trump’s decision to launch an illegal and unjustified war on Iran at the behest of the Israeli warfare state, the war in Ukraine grows more dangerous with each passing day. In fact, recent reports indicate a perilous increase in attacks on energy and civilian infrastructure from both Moscow and Kiev.” (07/02/26)

https://original.antiwar.com/james-carden/2026/07/01/the-war-in-ukraine-arrives-at-a-crucial-juncture/

Report: OpenAI proposes 5% nationalization to bribe Trump

Source: CNBC

“OpenAI has proposed handing the U.S. government a 5% stake in the company, the Financial Times reported Thursday, as the artificial intelligence startup seeks to defuse mounting political pressure in Washington. A 5% holding would be worth roughly $42.6 billion, after the AI lab closed a record-breaking funding round in March at a post-money valuation of $852 billion. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman argued that giving the public a financial interest in the company is the best way to share the upside of AI, the FT reported, citing two people familiar with the talks. Altman suggested a stake of that size in early discussions with the Trump administration, as part of a broader arrangement under which Washington would hold 5% of each of the leading U.S. AI developers via a government vehicle, according to the report.” (07/02/26)

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/02/openai-proposes-us-government-own-5percent-stake-to-address-political-blowback.html

The death of the American Dream is highly exaggerated

Source: Washington Post
by Gonzalo Schwarz

“As America turns 250 years old, many people say the American Dream is at risk. Last month, an Associated Press-NORC poll found that only one-third of Americans believe the American Dream still exists. A CNBC poll the same month found that a majority of people consider the American Dream out of reach. But most public polling captures what people believe about the accessibility of the American Dream for others. In their own life, they are far more optimistic.” (07/02/26)

https://archive.is/qhiQX

1776 and All That: Thomas Jefferson on Adam Smith

Source: EconLog
by Hans Eicholz

“Yes, Thomas Jefferson had read Smith, but before 1776, he could only have read The Theory of Moral Sentiments, and he read it for much the same reason he read all the other Scottish theorists of his day: Because each, in his own way, had illuminated reasons for confidence in the ability of individuals to exercise personal and political self-government. In other words, each had argued that by either convention (e.g. Hume) or nature (e.g. Kames), human beings were apt to use their individual liberty in ways that promoted a prosperous and orderly society, uncoerced by princes or prelates.” (07/02/26)

https://www.econlib.org/econlog/1776-and-all-that

Breakaway Catholic group excommunicated after defying warnings from Pope Leo

Source: CNN

“The Vatican announced Thursday that priests and members of a breakaway Catholic group that ordained four new bishops in defiance of Pope Leo XIV’s wishes are in schism and excommunicated. The Society of Saint Pius X, an ultra-traditionalist group, went ahead with the ordinations on Wednesday without papal approval and despite appeals from Leo to reverse the decision. In response, the Vatican’s doctrinal office on Thursday published a decree saying that the four bishops are excommunicated, along with the two bishops who participated in the ordination ceremony. Excommunication means they are excluded from the sacraments of the church. It added in an explanatory note that priests belonging to the society and lay members who ‘formally adhere’ to the group are also in schism and excommunicated.” (07/02/26)

https://archive.is/3KS6i

US helicopter goes down in Arabian Sea, crew member missing, Navy says

Source: CBS News

“Three members of a four-person MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter crew were rescued at sea after an ’emergency water landing’ in the Arabian Sea early Wednesday morning, according to U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. A search continues for the fourth and final crew member. There is ‘no indication’ the helicopter was shot down by hostile action, the military said. The helicopter is assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush.” (07/01/26)

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-helicopter-goes-down-in-arabian-sea-crew-member-missing-navy-says/