“The Food and Drug Administration is investigating whether COVID-19 vaccines caused deaths in adults, as part of a safety review that earlier appeared to just be focused on children. The investigation, being conducted across different divisions of the FDA, comes at a time when U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is upending longstanding guidance for a wide range of vaccines. The ‘FDA is doing a thorough investigation, across multiple age groups, of deaths potentially related to COVID vaccines,’ a spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg Tuesday.” (12/10/25)
“I [Max Rangeley] gave this speech at the European Parliament Liaison Office in Vienna, at the European Resource Bank meeting of think tanks and academics from Europe and the US.” (12/11/25)
“A U.S. federal court in New York issued a 15-year prison sentence to Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, marking one of the most significant criminal judgments tied to a crypto collapse. Kwon pleaded guilty in August to fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from the implosion of terrausd (UST) and luna (LUNA now LUNC), which erased an estimated $40 billion in market value in 2022. Prosecutors described the misconduct as fraud ‘on an epic, generational scale,’ highlighting evidence that investors were misled prior to the platform’s downfall. During the sentencing hearing, victims detailed steep financial losses, including wiped-out retirement funds. As part of his plea agreement, Kwon will forfeit more than $19 million in proceeds determined to be linked to the scheme.” (12/11/25)
“Recently I published an overview of Eric Hoffer’s book, The True Believer. I had read the book twice before but only remembered the rough details of the book, namely that it as a study of the totalitarian mindset and the psychology of the people who are attracted to totalitarian mass movements. Given the current state of the world, the United States in particular, I wondered if MAGA was a mass movement. I also wondered about the divide in the libertarian/Objectivist world between Trump supporters and Trump opponents. Both sides observed the same facts, but each took an opposing view. Trump supporters see him as the Great Emancipator following in the footsteps of Abraham Lincoln. Trump opponents see him as a clear threat to liberty bent on imposing a dictatorship in the United States. If the facts are there, why the great divide? And why the fervor over the issue?” (12/10/25)
“The Trump Administration’s decision to end most enforcement of a federal law prompts Randall Terry’s return to the front door of an abortion provider.” (12/11/25)
“Rwanda-backed M23 rebels claimed to have captured a key eastern city in Democratic Republic of the Congo as they continued their march to control more of Africa’s second largest country. In statements in English and French on Wednesday evening, a rebel spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, claimed the city of Uvira had been ‘fully liberated, secured and under the control of the liberation forces.’ … The rebel sweep has already claimed other major eastern cities this year, including Goma and Bukavu, as analysts accuse Rwanda of wanting to annex Congolese territory for itself particularly because of the abundance of minerals such as coltan and gold.” (12/11/25)
