“Even in our government-laden market economy, private enterprise — entrepreneurship — is extraordinary. Consumers at all levels are the beneficiaries. How could it be otherwise? If they don’t like something, they let the capitalists know, and other capitalists stand ready to take their place. … That the executive branch, thanks to Congress, has the power to approve, reject, or modify mergers and acquisitions is an abomination in a society that calls itself free. That The Maestro — the man who would be king — expects to review Netflix’s proposal personally is simply the latest outrage and perfectly consistent with Trump’s ‘philosophy’ of governance, or more to the point, his ridiculously expansive view of his coercive power over peaceful exchange, that is, social cooperation.” (12/12/25)
“‘Subject to the jurisdiction thereof’ is a legal term of art that requires some historical research to unpack. Cotton’s theory that it required ‘allegiance and obedience’ is based on an English case from 1608. But that case affirmed that even if a foreigner were in England only temporarily, he would have a duty of obedience while he was there — and any child he had there would be ‘a natural born subject’ of the king. In 1854, Secretary of State William Marcy wrote that birthright citizenship ‘is presumed’ except for children born in ‘foreign legations.’ The Supreme Court disturbed that understanding when, in the 1857 Dred Scott case, it excluded all Black people too. But the 14th Amendment restored the earlier understanding, and by 1871 Secretary of State Hamilton Fish was writing that the five words now in dispute were ‘probably intended to exclude the children of foreign ministers.'” (12/12/25)
“Reddit has filed a lawsuit in Australia’s High Court aiming to overturn the country’s under-16 social media ban, Reuters reported. The forum platform called the law contrary to Australia’s constitution as it intrudes on free political discourse. It also argued that Reddit shouldn’t have been included in the ban since it isn’t a social media site, based on the law’s definition. The action is likely to set in motion a protracted legal battle, given Reddit’s resources and its popularity in Australia. Australia’s minimum age social media ban, the first of its kind in the world, went into effect on December 10. The ten platforms affected, including Reddit, must bar underage users or face a fine of up to A$49.5 million ($33 million). Platforms are using a variety of means to determine age, including age inference based on activity and selfies.” (12/12/25)
“A years-long scheme to defraud $1.5 billion from federally subsidized social services is fueling a wave of xenophobia against Minnesotans of Somali descent. The real culprit is Uncle Sam. … The real story here is not the ethnicity of those who defrauded the HSS, EIDBI, and FCPN programs, but the fact that the majority of public funding for these programs came from the federal government instead of Minnesota’s own coffers. … We should not be surprised when states are overly generous and insufficiently circumspect about handing out money to their constituents when the majority of the money isn’t coming from their own coffers, but the Treasury Department.” (12/12/25)
Once we’ve raised $2,750.50, supporter GL will “match funds” to get us to the goal of $5,501 … after which, I’ll stop talking about money ENTIRELY for the remainder of 2025, and MOSTLY until October of 2026.
If you think your prospective contribution is “too small to bother with,” you’re almost certainly wrong. $2.50, $5, or $10 makes a real difference, and if you value our publication in that amount and can afford to, I hope you’ll help out via:
“Indiana Republicans have withstood immense pressure from President Donald Trump — and ignored threats on their lives — to defeat his plan to redraw the state’s congressional map, dealing him one of his most significant political setbacks since his return to the White House. The GOP-controlled state Senate on Thursday voted down the map that gerrymandered two more safe GOP seats, undercutting the party’s chances at holding control of Congress next November. The failed vote is the culmination of a brass-knuckled four-month pressure campaign from the White House on recalcitrant Indiana Republicans that included private meetings and public shaming from Trump, multiple visits from Vice President JD Vance, whip calls from Speaker Mike Johnson and veiled threats of withheld federal funds. The members held out in spite of pipe bomb threats, unsolicited pizza deliveries to their homes, and swattings of their homes.” (12/11/25)
“‘[T]here is no way on earth we should be going to war or trying to do regime change in Venezuela,’ US Representative Adam Smith (D-WA) told The Hill on December 4. The US, says Smith, ‘should be out of the regime-change business.’ So, did Smith still think that on December 9, when US military aircraft overflew the Gulf of Venezuela, and on December 10, when US troops — in a blatant act of piracy on the high seas — hijacked a Venezuelan oil tanker in the Caribbean? On December 10, Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, came out in support of forking over nearly $1 trillion to the US regime-change machine. … In what universe do you shut down a business by shoveling money at it?” (12/11/25)
“President Vladimir Putin thanked the Russian army on Thursday after commanders told him that their forces had taken full control of the town of Siversk in [Donetsk], but Ukraine’s military said it remained in control there. Reuters could not verify the battlefield claim around Siversk, a longstanding target in Russia’s slow drive to capture all of Donetsk [People’s Republic]. Commanders told Putin that the capture of Siversk, a town with a pre-war population of over 10,000 people, was a stepping stone towards taking Sloviansk, one of the two biggest cities in Donetsk still under Ukrainian control. … The Ukrainian military’s Operation Task Force East unit, writing on Facebook, said: ‘In the Sloviansk direction, the city of Siversk remains under the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.'” (12/11/25)
