“Members of the UN Security Council on Saturday warned of possible atrocities and a worsening humanitarian crisis in Sudan as the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) advance towards the city of El-Obeid in Kordofan state. The council called on the RSF not to launch an attack on the city, which lies in a strategic area linking central and western Sudan. The warning came days after UN Secretary General António Guterres urged the international community to press Sudan’s warring parties to avoid further bloodshed. He warned against a repeat of atrocities reported during the RSF’s capture of Al-Fashir in the Darfur region late last year. According to the UN human rights office, more than 6,000 people were killed in the city over three days.” (06/21/26)
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“Back when I was a college student, a very long time ago, coat and tie were required wear in the dining hall. I kept a rolled up tie in my pocket, to be worn for meals and only for meals, have rarely worn one since. Part of the reason may have been that my sport at the time was judo, where choke holds are legal. Neckties are an obsolete technology. Their purpose was to seal the shirt at the neck to help keep the wearer warm in unheated rooms. They have been made obsolete twice, first by central heating and a second time by elastic. They are still worn, although less often than when I was young. Neckties are a fossil. There are others.” (06/19/26)
“Stolen Legos update :: Reckless Ben being counter sued :: Crazy Mormon police harassment :: Scottish people taking over Boston :: White pill story of friendship with the Scots :: Supreme Court rules gov can’t restrict gun rights over casual drug use :: Space Force using nanotech for evil? :: Caller recounts his strange life experiences including powerful near death experiences :: Targeted persons :: 2026-06-20 Host: Bonnie, Riley O’Bill, Angelo.” (06/20/26)
“Everyone is right to expect a big blue wave—maybe a tsunami—in the midterms this fall. Even with all of the gerrymandering, the odds of Democrats winning control of the House are strong. The Senate, which Republicans now control 53-47, is much closer, which makes it more likely to be the locus of a constitutional crisis. Donald Trump is a chaos agent, and his fear of impeachment and a Senate trial are making him desperate and more dangerous. He can’t cancel the midterms, but he will use the enormous powers of his office to try to invalidate the election of Democrats, even where the margins aren’t close. It’s easy to miss that a slow-motion rolling coup attempt is already underway, staged by Stephen Miller and, of course, Trump himself.” (06/19/26)
“Starmer’s growing unpopularity (he is now tied with Liz Truss for least popular prime minister ever) invited a series of challenges over the last few months, especially following a disastrous result for Labour in May’s local elections. But none of his opponents, including the ambitious health secretary Wes Streeting, managed to get sufficient backing from other Labour MPs to launch a challenge. The amateurish plotters resigned from the cabinet without drawing blood. But all along, the real threat to Starmer was far from Westminster. Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Manchester since 2017, has long been gunning for the top job.” (06/19/26)
“[W]hile the rest of the Gulf countries went one way, toward restraint and staying out of a war they were trying to end, the United Arab Emirates went another. The UAE urged the other Gulf countries to take a more aggressive posture in their defense and to join the United States. They alone said they would be willing to join a U.S.-led international effort to ‘secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.’ And on the very day the Gulf Cooperation Council opened its recent summit, the Emirati government announced it was leaving the Saudi-led OPEC group of oil-producing nations. But then the more sensational revelations came. In an extraordinary first, Israel sent an Iron Dome battery, interceptors, and dozens of IDF operators to the UAE, to help intercept Iranian missiles fired at the UAE.” (06/20/26)
“US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced a record outflow of $6.4 billion over the past 30 days, as Bitcoin’s price dropped by 17%. This significant withdrawal indicates a decline in institutional confidence during a period marked by heightened volatility and price pressure in the broader cryptocurrency market. With Bitcoin in the mid to low $60,000 range, the market reaction suggests that the outflow is consistent with a broader reduction in risk appetite among investors. The considerable sell-off in Bitcoin ETFs highlights the ongoing challenges within the crypto sector, as market participants adjust in response to market conditions.” (06/21/26)
