“Poland’s constitutional court descended into turmoil Friday evening as judges barred from hearing cases moved to oust the institution’s nationalist-linked leadership, sparking accusations of a coup and tense protests. Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, a judge with the court, ordered its president Bogdan Święczkowski and his deputy to be suspended for a month and announced she was taking charge. Święczkowski rejected her authority, accusing those involved of a ‘coup d’état,’ while his deputy was turned away at the building’s gates. The showdown marks an escalation in Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s struggle to undo the judicial overhaul carried out by the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) former government.” (10/30/26)
“Rich & Riley talk about The Libertarian who had a shoot out with Police, and why this lead to the Age of Consent discussion, and how Libertarians seem to be unaware of the Streisand Effect.” (10/30/26)
Source: The American Conservative
by Eldar Mamedov
“Given that the regime in Tehran shows few if any signs of crumbling even under extreme military and economic pressure, it should be clear that perpetual enmity offers diminishing returns. Accommodation is the only viable path forward. The leaders of Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan seem to realize that. A regional nonaggression arrangement was reportedly discussed in the meeting in Tehran—the kind of common-sense diplomatic proposal that is both necessary and long overdue.” (10/30/26)
It’s a FIREHOSE FRIDAY, with 107-ish news stories, opinion pieces, and audio/video links awaiting your attention at our web edition.
As I mentioned yesterday, we’re “web-only” because my wife, Tamara, had carpal tunnel surgery yesterday. It went well and she’s recovering nicely, but things like that take a chunk out of any work day. Thanks for your understanding.
As I also pointed out yesterday, every day that nobody donates to our annual fundraiser, a cute little puppy dies. Thanks to subscribing contributors JF and IH, and to long-time supporter CH (who opined “Nooo! Not the puppies!”) for their contributions totaling $25.50 — they surely saved a few puppies AND brought our annual fundraiser total up to (as of 5am on Friday) $1,083.50!
Short and sweet: Our goal is $5,503. Once we’ve raised $2,751.50, supporter GL will “match funds” to get us to the finish line. So we are $1,668 short.
PLEASE SUPPORT THE FREEDOM MOVEMENT’S DAILY NEWSPAPER!
I think a reasonable “mini-goal” is to hit the halfway point ($1,375.75) by Monday, with weekend contributions totaling at least $292.25. That URL again:
“Binance reported a security breach affecting about $6.3 billion in assets, and suspended deposits and withdrawals. More than $1.5 billion in leveraged crypto bets were forcibly closed in 24 hours, per CoinGlass. Long positions made up about 84% of the liquidations, and Binance handled nearly half the total. Bitcoin dipped to about $76,460 before recovering toward $78,500, and ether traded near $2,240. Tether and Circle froze a combined $2.4 billion in stablecoins tied to the incident.” (10/30/26)
Source: The Bleeding Heart Libertarian
by Matt Zwolinski
“Among some young libertarians, especially online and in radical anarcho-capitalist circles, Hoppe is venerated. … Outside the Rothbardian and Austrian circles where he made his reputation, though, Hoppe’s name is largely unknown. Most mainstream political philosophers have never heard of him, and those who have rarely engage with his work. His admirers say that’s because the academy is a left-wing monoculture afraid of him. But there’s a better, simpler explanation. Hoppe’s central philosophical arguments just aren’t very good. In particular, ‘argumentation ethics’ doesn’t come close to justifying libertarian rights. And even if it did, it wouldn’t do anything to justify the politics of exclusion he attaches to them.” (10/29/26)
“Ukraine’s HIMERA and Denmark’s GomSpace have placed a test satellite into orbit for a planned sovereign communications network, as Kyiv seeks to reduce its reliance on SpaceX’s Starlink amid concerns over its dependence on an external provider for critical communications. Launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on the Transporter-18 mission on October 1, the OBRIA Nano satellite is undergoing technical tests to inform the design of a constellation intended to provide communications coverage across Ukraine and complement European satellite networks. The next phase will involve localizing satellite and ground-terminal production in Ukraine, developing domestic expertise and expanding manufacturing capabilities.” (10/30/26)
Source: The Daily Economy
by Caleb S Fuller & Scott Burns
“From aluminum wrappers to beef, cheese, and tomatoes, Washington has found a way to make every bite more expensive. ‘TACOs’ shouldn’t cost so much.” (10/29/26)
“US initial jobless claims came in at 194K versus 199K expected, while continuing claims fell to 1.701 million against expectations of 1.720 million. The previous readings were revised to 195K and 1.722 million, respectively. US Jobless Claims measure the number of people filing for unemployment benefits and provide a timely indicator of labour market conditions. Initial claims track new applications and offer insight into layoffs, while continuing claims measure the number of people still receiving benefits, providing clues about how easily unemployed workers find new jobs. The report points to continued labour market resilience, with both initial and continuing claims coming in below expectations.” (10/29/26)
