“The First Amendment says that ‘Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech.’ But one prominent conservative judge, whose name has been mentioned as a possible U.S. Supreme Court nominee by President Donald Trump, thinks that protection against government censorship may not apply to non-citizens who are present in the United States. Is the judge right? Writing for himself in the recent case of United States v. Escobar-Temal, Judge Amul Thapar of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit asserted that ‘neither history nor precedent indicates that the First Amendment definitively applies to aliens.’ Yet in Bridges v. Wilson (1945), the Supreme Court unambiguously stated that ‘freedom of speech and of press is accorded aliens residing in this country.'” (12/18/25)
Source: Center for a Stateless Society
by Kevin Carson
“At Reason (‘The Anarchist and the Republican,’ April 13), Jesse Walker writes of a period in the 1970s when an Old Rightist speechwriter for Barry Goldwater turned New Leftist (Karl Hess), and a Nixon Republican and future Reagan speechwriter (John McClaughry), could reach unlikely consensus around values like worker self-management and ownership, and neighborhood self-governance. Reading it makes me nostalgic for that period in the 70s where the New Deal model of capitalism had become unsustainable, and elements of both the left and right were exploring decentralist/worker-controlled and direct democratic alternatives to large-scale corporate/state capitalism.” (12/18/25)
“Families, lawyers and supporters of the detained pro-Palestinian activists who are on hunger strike in Britain issue an urgent plea to the government, warning that their loved ones face life-threatening danger. Eight people have joined the hunger strike, some from its start in early November, and lawyers say the health of the six who are still striking, aged 20-31, is deteriorating and that death is likely unless the government intervenes. One of the six is on partial hunger strike due to diabetes-related health concerns. … Palestine Action was banned in July, putting it on a par with Islamic State or al-Qaeda and making it a crime to be a member, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.” (12/18/25)
“In its manifesto for the 2024 general election, Britain’s Labour party listed ‘Five Missions to Rebuild Britain,’ the first being: ‘Kickstart economic growth.’ The party’s second budget since winning that election, delivered on November 26 by Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves, suggests it has already abandoned that mission—and offers a cautionary tale to other governments on what not to do.” (12/18/25)
“Peter Arnett, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter whose international war journalism brought him widespread renown from the Vietnam era through the Gulf wars, died December 17 of prostate cancer in Newport Beach, CA. He was 91. … Born on November 13, 1934, in Riverton, New Zealand, Arnett rose to prominence for his work as a wire-service correspondent in Vietnam from 1962 until the war’s end in 1975. He won the 1966 Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for his war coverage for The Associated Press. Arnett remained with the AP until 1981, when he signed on with the fledgling CNN. Later in his career, Arnett would re-emerge as a leading journalistic voice for his 1991 reports on the Gulf War for CNN. He and his team were among the last foreign reporters broadcasting from Baghdad after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein forced out most international journalists.” (12/18/25)
“Basically, I’m opposed to AI regulations because I agree with the public that we can’t trust our government. Voters expect our elected representatives from both parties to pass regulations that benefit current power players while hurting everyone else. So why let them loose on AI? If people want us to trust our government to regulate AI, they need to fix this problem or explain to us why we’re wrong to believe it’s a problem.” (12/18/25)
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Denise Lever
“My first career was not in education; for me, it began on the fireline. As a young woman fighting wildland fires, I quickly learned that courage, clarity under pressure, and teamwork could mean the difference between containment and catastrophe. I was trained to work with confidence while structures were consumed and wildlands burned around me. That experience shaped my conviction that the people closest to the problem are often the best equipped to act. It also showed me how systems sometimes fail to support individuals who don’t quite fit the mold. This realization became the catalyst for the work I do today.” (12/18/25)
“President Donald Trump’s handpicked board voted on Thursday to rename Washington’s leading performing arts center as the Trump-Kennedy Center, the White House said. … Trump showed scant interest in the Kennedy Center during his first term as president, but since returning to office in January he has replaced board members appointed by Democratic presidents with some of his most ardent supporters, who then elected him as board chairman. He also has criticized the center’s programming and its physical appearance and has vowed to overhaul both.” (12/18/25)
