“Over the decades, many citizens have benefited from reparations; Japanese Americans who were imprisoned during World War II, Native American and African American farmers who were discriminated against when the federal government refused them access to credit, loans, land assistance programs and disaster relief. Locally, Santa Monica paid thousands of dollars to the family of a Black man whose land was seized. In Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles County returned land known as Bruce’s Beach to descendants of a Black couple who had been run off their property in 1924. Other countries have also used reparations to atone for great wrongs. The German government has paid Holocaust survivors. …
And then there’s President Trump, hellbent on finding new ways to embarrass America.” (05/24/26)
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“If there is one thing that American citizens remember from their 12 long years in public (i.e., government) schools, it’s the Pledge of Allegiance. That’s because they recited or heard it recited every single morning before the start of classes. The Pledge is such an ingrained part of American society that oftentimes adults at public events proudly stand, place their right hand on their heart, and recite the Pledge. … Why should anyone be forced or expected to pledge allegiance to anything? Why shouldn’t everyone simply be free to live his life the way he wants?” (05/22/26)
“The estranged husband of former Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon pleaded guilty Monday to embezzling more than 400,000 pounds ($540,000) from the Scottish National Party when he was its chief executive. Peter Murrell, 62, was remanded into custody after pleading guilty in the High Court in Edinburgh. Authorities say he used the money to buy a motorhome and two cars. … Sturgeon, who dominated Scottish politics for almost a decade, unexpectedly resigned in 2023 after eight years as first minister of Scotland’s semi-autonomous government. She was later cleared of wrongdoing over the finances.” (05/25/26)
“On Tuesday, President Donald Trump took down libertarian-leaning Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.), to whom he’d taken such a profound dislike that he backed a primary challenger in the form of MAGA stalwart Ed Gallrein. Massie was highly ranked for his voting record by conservative organizations, but so were other candidates Trump pushed out of office — and out of the party. In truth, it’s been years since the Republican Party was a conservative organization; these days it’s a cult of personality around the president.” (05/22/26)
“Owners of small restaurants and bars can decide whether to allow smoking, and customers can choose for themselves whether to patronize them.” (for publication 06/26)
“Europe promises a life many Americans envy: longer vacations, universal health care, beautiful cities and a slower pace. But those benefits come with trade-offs. Host Megan McArdle looks past the usual America versus Europe arguments to explore what economic indicators reveal about quality of life.” (05/22/26)
“A Minneapolis prosecutor charges an ICE agent, exposing how DHS shamelessly lied after its officers shot an immigrant, tear gassed two kids, and put a bullet in the wall of a child’s bedroom.” (05/22/26)
“Pope Leo called for the ‘disarming’ of artificial intelligence in his long-awaited manifesto on the rapidly developing technology on Monday, and warned of “new forms of slavery” behind its rise. The ‘just war’ theory – espoused recently by the Trump administration – was ‘outdated,’ Pope Leo XIV wrote in his first encyclical, which he presented in person at the Vatican, alongside AI experts including the co-founder of US giant Anthropic. The first US pope, who has clashed with the White House over the Iran war and its use of religion to justify conflict, sounded the alarm over AI-directed weaponry, saying it was ‘not permissible to entrust lethal’ decisions to tech.” (05/25/26)
