“Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon that killed a journalist on Wednesday were a war crime, Lebanon’s prime minister said. A journalists’ union said rescuers were prevented from accessing the destroyed building where the reporter was left trapped beneath rubble. Amal Khalil, 43, a journalist with the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, bled to death in the ruins of a building that was hit in an Israeli drone strike after Israeli forces’ gunfire prevented ambulance crews from reaching her ‘for nearly four hours,’ according to Lebanon’s Union of Journalists.” (04/23/26)
“Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s distinction between medical and recreational cannabis is hard to reconcile with the relevant scientific and statutory criteria.” (04/23/26)
“House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is warning that House Democrats might not back an extension of the government’s warrantless spy powers as long as FBI Director Kash Patel remains atop the agency. Jeffries has long portrayed Patel as a partisan conspiracy theorist who’s unfit to be the nation’s top cop. On Thursday, he escalated those criticisms by suggesting Democrats might be ready to leverage their support for an extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to secure Patel’s removal. … The remarks create what is potentially another barrier in the effort to extend FISA’s spying powers, which expire on April 30. Already, many Democrats — joined by some Republicans — are vowing to oppose the legislation unless it’s amended to include stronger privacy protections for U.S. citizens.” (04/23/26)
“In 1966, the famous American psychologist Abraham Maslow came up with a description of a mental bias that became known as ‘Maslow’s hammer.’ ‘If the only tool you have is a hammer, I suppose it is tempting to treat everything as if it were a nail,’ Maslow contended. Or, as some have reworded his theorem: When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. This is a good diagnosis for how President Donald Trump has trapped us all in his unnecessary war with Tehran. A war from which he can’t find a good exit.” (04/23/26)
“Rich, Lori, and Riley discuss Trump’s “New Math” as described by RFK Jr., RFK Jr.’s new food labeling initiative, New Troll claims Rich was begging for money, and Regular Troll attempts to explain how his monetary theory handles inflation.” (04/23/26)
“The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits increased slightly last week, pointing to continued labor market stability in April, though economic uncertainty and higher prices stemming from the war with Iran pose downside risks. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 214,000 for the week ended April 18, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 210,000 claims for the latest week. There are no signs yet of widespread layoffs from the U.S.-Israel war with Iran, which has disrupted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and boosted the price of oil and other commodities, including fertilizers, petrochemicals and aluminum.” (04/23/260
