Trump’s War on History
Source: Mother Jones
by Dan Friedman & Amanda Moore
“As America’s 250th anniversary approaches, the president wants to control the country’s future by bulldozing its past.” (02/03/26)
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Adam Smith Misunderstood the Origins of the Division of Labor
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Mark Thornton
“Labor divided into the production of different goods or even into various tasks involved in the production of a single good is one of the earliest observations on the nature of human civilization. From a scientific point of view, civilization or society is the division of labor. Unfortunately, opinion down through time mistakenly considers it a mixed blessing, indicating that it is a great force for both good and evil. This common opinion falters largely on the basis of observation, measurement, and personal bias, absent economic law. The prevailing fallacies can only be eradicated with the theoretical perspective provided by the Austrian School of economics and its predecessors. Unfortunately, Adam Smith’s central importance on this topic and his basic mistakes continue to have an unhealthy impact on the economics profession and social ideology more generally.” (02/03/26)
https://mises.org/mises-wire/adam-smith-misunderstood-origins-division-labor
Palestine: Israeli strikes kill 18 in Gaza as patient crossings at Rafah halted
Source: Reuters
“Israeli tank shelling and airstrikes killed 18 people, including four children, in Gaza on Wednesday, and Israel halted the passage of patients through the Rafah border crossing, Palestinian officials said. The Israeli military said tanks had fired on Gaza and airstrikes had been launched after a gunman shot at Israeli soldiers and seriously injured a reservist. The strikes targeted Gaza City and the southern city of Khan Younis. A Gazan health official told Reuters that Israel had also halted the passage of patients through the Rafah border crossing to Egypt, two days after it had reopened, allowing a trickle of Palestinians to cross for the first time in months.” (02/04/26)
Will Trump’s “Right About Everything” BS Wreck Republicans?
Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
“Trump has already lost the support of hordes of folks who voted for him in November 2024. Consumer confidence last month plunged to the lowest level since 2014, according to a Conference Board survey. More than half of voters say Trump has ‘made life less affordable’ for them and their families, and only 34% approved of his handling of ‘the cost of living.’ Trump’s economic victory proclamations are starting to resemble a bad magician whose tricks are so lame that his audience starts to heckle him. But in his Wall Street Journal op-ed, Trump taunted his critics by telling them to wear ‘one of my favorite red hats — the one that reads, ‘TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!’'” (02/03/26)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2026/02/03/will-trumps-right-about-everything-b-s-wreck-republicans/
Free Speech Unmuted, 02/03/26
Source: Hoover Institution
“Can Journalists Be Charged for Involvement in Protests? The Don Lemon Dilemma.” (02/03/26)
https://www.hoover.org/research/can-journalists-be-charged-involvement-protests-don-lemon-dilemma
Gulf of Tonk … er, Arabian Sea: US military says it shot down Iranian drone
Source: CBS News
“U.S. forces shot down an Iranian drone that flew towards a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, U.S. Central Command confirmed. The military said the drone ‘aggressively’ approached the USS Abraham Lincoln as it was crossing through the Arabian Sea roughly 500 miles from the southern coast of Iran and ‘unnecessarily maneuvered’ toward the ship. … U.S. Central Command also confirmed that hours later, forces with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps harassed a U.S.-flagged and crewed oil tanker, Stena Imperative, that was moving through the Strait of Hormuz.” (02/03/26)
Another Question That Only Libertarians Are Asking
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Laurence M Vance
“The newest U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Dietary Guidelines for Americans turns the iconic food pyramid upside down. It recommends that Americans eat the right amount of food, prioritize protein at every meal, consume full-fat dairy with no added sugars, eat vegetables and fruits throughout the day, incorporate healthy fats, prioritize fiber-rich whole grains, and avoid highly processed packaged, prepared, ready-to-eat, or other foods that are salty or sweet. … People are asking many questions about the new guidelines, but there is one question that only libertarians ask whenever the federal government issues new or revised guidelines: Why is the government issuing guidelines in the first place?” (02/03/26)
https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/another-question-that-only-libertarians-are-asking/
Trump signs bill ending federal government shutdown
Source: CNBC
“President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a bill into law to reopen most of the government, officially ending a partial shutdown that began last weekend. The House of Representatives narrowly passed the bill 217-214 earlier in the day after the Senate approved it last week. Much of the government has been shuttered since Saturday morning. The bill provides funding for the departments of Defense, Treasury, State, Health and Human Services, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, and Education through the remainder of the fiscal year on Sept. 30. It also provides two weeks of stopgap funding for the Department of Homeland Security after the Senate stripped full-year funding for the agency in response to the [murders] of two U.S. citizens by federal immigration officers.” (02/03/26)
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/03/house-republicans-reopen-us-government-shutdown.html
Bon Voyage, David Brooks (and Let Laissez-Faire Come Back!)
Source: Garrison Center
by Joel Schlosberg
“When David Brooks claims that his preferred ‘moderate conservative political philosophy’ is in 2026 ‘so fantastically successful … that moderate Republicans are now the dominant force in American politics,’ his intentional sarcasm is clear before the fourth paragraph of his final New York Times column (‘Time to Say Goodbye,’ February 1): ‘I’m kidding.’ Even if a reader missed out on the decades of Brooks’s commentary as resolutely as literally-frozen-in-time Futurama protagonist Philip J. Fry, its remainder would beg for the response of Fry’s snarky robotic sidekick Bender: ‘Oh wait, you’re serious. Let me laugh even harder.'” (02/03/26)
“Record number of missiles” hit Ukraine leaving thousands with no heating in -20C
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“Russia has used a record number of ballistic missiles to target Ukraine’s energy sector, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. The combined missile and drone strikes hit power plants and infrastructure in Kyiv and multiple locations causing ‘the most powerful blow’ so far this year, according to private energy company DTEK. The strikes were launched as temperatures dropped to -20C (-4F) and left more than 1,000 tower blocks in the capital without heating once again and damaged a power plant in the eastern city of Kharkiv beyond repair. Zelensky said Russia was “choosing terror and escalation” rather than diplomacy to end this war and called for ‘maximum pressure’ on Moscow from Ukraine’s allies.” (02/03/26)