Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Source: Independent Institute
by Francis Crescia

“How a pivot toward ‘middle power’ diplomacy could jeopardize Canada’s most vital trade relationship.” (02/17/26)

https://www.independent.org/article/2026/02/17/economic-risk-carney-davos-strategy/

Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Graham Piro

“Texas Tech leaders have somehow convinced themselves that race and gender are not legitimate topics to discuss in a psychology class. That’s absurd on its face: You can’t teach human behavior while treating basic dimensions of human identity as off-limits. Will Crescioni, a lecturer in Texas Tech’s Department of Psychological Sciences, submitted his course materials for his honors-level psychology course the same day the Texas Tech system issued a memo ordering universities to review courses and ensure faculty do not ‘promote or otherwise inculcate’ certain ideas related to race and gender. Just over a month later — and only two days before the semester began — his course was scrapped. His offense? Refusing to alter his course content.” (02/17/26)

https://www.thefire.org/news/he-refused-censor-his-syllabus-so-texas-tech-cancelled-his-class

Source: Commentary
by Seth Mandel

“The author Arundhati Roy is boycotting the Berlinale film festival because organizers have suggested that artists should not be compelled to talk about politics. This would seem to be unobjectionable: free speech should also apply to artists who don’t want to let reporters troll them into a political controversy …. A group of 81 actors and other festival participants — among them Tilda Swinton and Javier Bardem — signed an open letter hitting back at the Berlinale and making clear what this fight is really about: ‘Berlinale has so far not even met the demands of its community to issue a statement that affirms the Palestinian’ narrative of the war, the statement complained. More to the point, the letter warned: ‘The tide is changing across the international film world. Many international film festivals have endorsed the cultural boycott of apartheid Israel.’ Ah, there we are. Actors want an anti-Jewish blacklist. In the name of free speech and anti-fascism.” (02/17/26)

https://www.commentary.org/seth-mandel/the-free-speech-advocates-who-love-blacklists/

Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton

“A New Mexico state representative has again filed a constitutional amendment that would allow three or more contiguous counties in the State to vote to secede if at least 15% of the counties’ electorate sign a petition to put the question on the ballot and then there is a simple majority vote. While no one expects the bill to even get out of committee, it shows that secession from States is still considered a valid and desirable action in many States.” (02/17/26)

https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/02/17/secession-often-is-desirable/