Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Foundations of Public Choice: A Primer

Source: EconLog
by Michael Munger

“Public Choice is more than you think. The usual quick definition — ‘applying economics to the study of politics’ — is not wrong, but it’s facile. Public Choice asks how political actors use information and respond to incentives. That’s a lot more than just an application of economic tools to a new context.” (06/18/26)

https://www.econlib.org/library/columns/y2026/mungerpublicchoice

Thomas L. Knapp

Expert: Newly released UFO files allege China, Russia retrieved downed UAPs — and attempted to reverse-engineer them

Source: New York Post

“China and Russia have retrieved downed Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs) and tried to reverse-engineer them, an expert claimed, citing newly released documents. Jordan Flowers, executive director of the UAP Disclosure Foundation, said one of the most significant takeaways from the third tranche of UFO files made public on June 12 was that the US’s foreign adversaries also appear to be engaged in research that could threaten national security. … The suggestion that Russia and China may have retrieved downed UAPs and are surveilling the US’s research wasn’t the only mention of a foreign nation in the newly released files. A cable from the Central Intelligence Agency placed its assets in the African nation of Zimbabwe on high alert on July 2, 2008, after a UFO was spotted hovering directly over the country’s main airport.” (06/18/26)

https://nypost.com/2026/06/18/us-news/newly-released-ufo-files-allege-china-and-russia-retrieved-downed-uaps-and-attempted-to-reverse-engineer-them/

Thomas L. Knapp

After the Iran War, is UAE the odd man out?

Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Giorgio Cafiero

“The roles played by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey in facilitating the ‘Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding’ underscore the extent to which regional actors have invested in creating off-ramps for the United States and Iran, and steering the conflict away from further escalation. Across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), this diplomatic off-ramp has garnered broad relief that the conflict appears to be moving toward de-escalation as Washington and Tehran prepare for talks on the sensitive nuclear and non-nuclear issues. But where the United Arab Emirates (UAE) fits into this broader picture is far from straightforward.” (06/18/26)

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/uae-iran-war/

Thomas L. Knapp

UK: Ancient oak tree said to have sheltered legendary Robin Hood has died

Source: ABC News

“A massive ancient oak tree linked to the legend of Robin Hood may have been loved to death. The 1,200-year-old Major Oak in Sherwood Forest is believed to have died after it didn’t sprout leaves this spring, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds said Thursday. Visitors who viewed the tree’s gnarled limbs and sprawling canopy in Nottingham over the past two centuries compressed the soil around it, making it difficult for rain to reach its roots, the conservation group said. … The tree is said to have sheltered Robin Hood, the legendary 13th century bandit who stole from the rich and gave to the poor and took refuge in the forest when being pursued by the sheriff of Nottingham.” (06/18/26)

https://abcnews.com/International/wireStory/ancient-oak-tree-sheltered-legendary-robin-hood-died-133988689

Thomas L. Knapp

Strategic Ambiguity (If We Must)

Source: Libertarian Institute
by Joseph Solis-Mullen

“In recent years, critics on both sides of the aisle have taken aim at the longstanding policy of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan. They argue that Washington should abandon ambiguity and embrace ‘strategic clarity,’ explicitly pledging to fight China over Taiwan. Others, such as Hoover Institute Fellow Eyck Freymann, have offered more sophisticated sounding alternatives like ‘structured ambiguity,’ attempting to codify precisely what America would and would not do in various contingencies, particularly involving gray zone activities. But abandoning a long-established policy that, whatever its faults, has prevented a major war between great powers for over half a century, in favor of a new policy, would be a serious mistake.” (06/18/26)

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/strategic-ambiguity-if-we-must/

Thomas L. Knapp