TX: Father shoots, kills man attempting to carjack sedan with family inside

Source: KOMO News

“A Texas father shot and killed a man who allegedly attempted to carjack his sedan with his family still inside. On Sunday afternoon, the father and his relatives were sitting in a parking lot in Garland, Texas, near a gas station off Highway 66, when a man approached the driver’s side door and attempted to get in, according to surveillance video obtained by Fox 4. The unidentified father got out of the sedan and attempted to keep the man from entering it, while the rest of his family fled the vehicle. The father and the man struggled as the alleged carjacker managed to get inside the driver’s seat. Eventually, the father went around to the passenger’s side front door, where he allegedly fired more than ten rounds at the alleged carjacker.” (05/06/26)

https://komonews.com/news/nation-world/texas-father-shoots-kills-man-attempting-to-carjack-sedan-with-family-inside-police-surveillance-video

Liberty not subject to majority rule

Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal

“In exercising their liberty, some people will do things that offend you. Many people want you to believe if they’ve been offended, they’ve been violated somehow. They haven’t. Being offended isn’t the same as having your life, liberty, or property violated, even though weak people who want to control others often use this ploy. Don’t play along.” (05/06/26)

https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2026/05/06/voices/opinion-liberty-not-subject-to-majority-rule/233357.html

I don’t think we are close to “AI scientists”

Source: Understanding AI
by Timothy B Lee

“Recently, there has been a lot of excitement about AI agents like Claude Code and OpenClaw. Much of the hype is justified. Claude Code really is revolutionizing computer programming, and agents like OpenClaw very well might transform other parts of the economy and our daily lives. Industry leaders expect even bigger changes in the near future. In an interview last month, Sam Altman said that OpenAI is aiming to build an ‘automated AI researcher’ by March 2028. Some people expect this (or similar breakthroughs by rivals) to set off a recursive self-improvement loop that radically accelerates scientific and technological progress. That might happen eventually, but I think it will take a while.” (05/06/26)

https://www.understandingai.org/p/i-dont-think-we-are-close-to-ai-scientists

The uniparty media’s pro-war twins

Source: UnHerd
by Nikos Mohammadi

“America boasts the world’s largest media market, and even in this age of shrinking attention spans, strained ad budgets, and declining circulation, it offers something for everyone. But does this diversity extend to the nation’s prestige outlets? On the surface, the answer would seem to be yes. The New York Times plays to the post-woke-but-still-kinda-woke establishment Left, while The Washington Post editorial page, under Jeff Bezos’s increasingly heavy-handed leadership, is going for Trump-friendly free-market conservatism. The contrast is exemplified by two of the papers’ most prominent writers: the Times’[s] Russian-born columnist Masha Gessen … couldn’t be more different from the Post’s Marc Thiessen, who’s gaining a lot of attention these days as President Trump’s favorite print columnist. … The two should be at odds, and in some ways, they are. But when it comes to foreign policy, they sing almost exactly the same hawkish, pro-empire song, albeit in slightly different keys.” (05/06/26)

https://archive.is/B8m5Y

France: Sarkozy escapes second ankle tag sentence

Source: France 24 [French state media]

“Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy will not serve time with an electronic ankle tag as punishment for illegal funding of his 2012 re-election bid, an informed source said Wednesday. Sarkozy, 71, has faced a raft of accusations since leaving office after a single term from 2007 to 2012. He has denied all allegations in all cases. Last year, he became modern France’s first-ever president to go to jail, serving 20 days in a case related to alleged Libyan funding in his 2007 election campaign. His appeal trial in the case is ongoing. … a court on Tuesday decided Sarkozy would not have to wear the tracker due to his advanced age, the source with knowledge of the case told AFP, requesting anonymity.” (05/07/26)

https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260507-nicolas-sarkozy-escapes-ankle-tag-in-re-election-campaign-financing-case

The Personal Panopticon

Source: Independent Institute
by Sam Jenson

“Meta Inc., previously known as Facebook Inc., intends to implement facial recognition technology in its smart glasses, which are produced in collaboration with Ray-Ban and currently sold without this capability. The proposed feature would facilitate real-time translation and allow users to ask on-demand questions. However, the integration of facial recognition technology introduces significant privacy and legal concerns for individuals in public spaces.” (05/06/26)

https://www.independent.org/article/2026/05/06/personal-panopticon-smart-glasses/

US court releases alleged Epstein suicide note

Source: Le Monde [France]

“A US judge on Wednesday, May 6, released a suicide note purportedly written by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein weeks before his death in a New York jailhouse. Epstein’s cellmate has said that he found the letter in a book following a failed suicide attempt by the disgraced financier, several weeks before his eventual August 2019 death. … The letter had been sealed for years as part of the cellmate’s criminal proceedings, but was released by Judge Kenneth Karas of the US District Court for Southern New York after a request by the New York Times. While the document has not been authenticated, its release comes as questions continue to swirl about the well-connected financier’s death while awaiting sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide, but numerous security lapses at the jail and missing CCTV footage have led to persistent doubts about the official account.” (05/07/26)

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/05/07/alleged-epstein-suicide-note-released-by-us-court_6753213_4.html