Ignorance and Indignation
Source: Quillette
by Brian Stewart
“Obama veterans never understood the Middle East, and they never will.” (12/07/25)
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Trump Is Repeating One of Biden’s Big Mistakes
Source: The Atlantic
by David Axelrod
“Donald Trump recaptured the White House in part by relentlessly exploiting Joe Biden’s failure to heed widespread concerns about the rising cost of living. Now, bizarrely, President Trump is walking himself — and his party — into the same perilous trap by denying the economic reality that working families are living.” (12/07/25)
China: Trade surplus tops $1 trillion for first time amid pivot to counter US lull
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“China’s annual trade surplus in goods has topped $1 trillion for the first time, with plunging exports to the United States amid a tariff war more than compensated for by shipments to other markets, new data shows. Figures released by China’s General Administration of Customs on Monday showed the trade surplus for the first 11 months of the year hit $1.08 trillion in November, as exports climbed 5.9 percent year-on-year that month, reversing a 1.1 percent decline the month prior. The leap came despite a continued slump in exports to the US, which fell 28.6 percent to $33.8bn last month, the data showed.” [editor’s note: As Don Boudreaux occasionally reminds us, exports are the price paid for imports. Consumers in a country “enjoying” a “trade surplus” are getting a worse, not better, deal – TLK] (12/08/25)
Dave DeCamp on The Scott Horton Show
Source: The Scott Horton Show
“Dave DeCamp on the Boat Strikes, Somalia and Trump’s Al Qaeda Friend.” (12/07/25)
The Constitution and the Trump Tariffs
Source: Tenth Amendment Center
by Rob Natelson
“Are tariffs always taxes? When does a statute granting powers to the president go too far? These are some of the questions the Supreme Court will address in two consolidated tariffs cases: Learning Resources, Inc v. Trump and Trump v. V.O.S. Selections. This essay unpacks the principal constitutional issues for you. It examines those issues through the lens of the Constitution’s original meaning, irrespective of any mistaken later interpretations.” (12/07/25)
https://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2025/12/07/the-constitution-and-the-trump-tariffs/
Thai regime launches airstrikes along disputed border with Cambodia as tensions flare
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Thailand has launched airstrikes along its disputed border with Cambodia after both countries accused each other of breaching a ceasefire deal brokered by Donald Trump. Four Cambodian civilians and at least one Thai soldier have been killed in the renewed clashes, which have forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes. Thailand’s military said airstrikes were launched after one of its soldiers was killed and four others wounded in fighting along the countries’ tense border on Monday morning. The Thai air force said it was striking military targets in several areas and accused Cambodia of mobilising heavy weaponry and repositioning combat units. Cambodia’s defence ministry blamed Thailand for the escalation.” (12/08/25)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/08/thailand-airstrikes-disputed-border-cambodia
Murder for Christmas?
Source: Antiwar.com
by Andrew P Napolitano
“When Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth posted a meme of Franklin the Turtle, the amiable child’s cartoon character, in a helicopter using a military weapon to kill people in a small boat below him, and captioned it ‘For your Christmas wish list,’ it understandably caused an uproar. Should the secretary of defense be mocking the people his troops have killed? Should he engage a child’s cartoon character to produce this mockery? Should anyone in his right mind, who professes to understand Christianity, suggest that this killing should be on a child’s Christmas wish list? Should he be killing nonviolent boatpeople? Here is the back story.” (12/05/25)
https://original.antiwar.com/andrew-p-napolitano/2025/12/04/murder-for-christmas
Unattended Baggage, episode 320
Source: Unattended Baggage
“Yep, that’s a War Crime.” (12/06/25)
https://unattendedbaggage.substack.com/p/episode-320-yep-thats-a-war-crime
ETH, ADA, XRP Lead Gains as Bitcoin Edges Higher on Fed Rate Cut Expectations
Source: CoinDesk
“Bitcoin traded just above $91,300 on Monday as Asian equities opened the week slightly higher ahead of a heavy run of central bank decisions, including a Federal Reserve meeting where markets have largely priced in a 25-basis-point rate cut. … Crypto markets followed the broader tone. Bitcoin rose 2% over the past 24 hours and is up more than 6% over the past week, extending last week’s rebound but meeting early resistance near the $94,000 area. … Ether gained 3% to trade near $3,135, outperforming most majors on the day and logging a 10.6% advance over the past week. BNB added 1%, Solana rose about 1.6%, Lido’s stETH climbed almost 3%, and XRP traded around $2.08 after a 1.2% uptick. Cardano led declines in the top tier, slipping about 1.4% on the day.” (12/08/25)
Venezuela: Eye on the Prize?
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“President Donald Trump embarked on a serial murder spree around the Caribbean in September, ordering boats (and people) blown up by US military forces on the pretense that he’s fighting a ‘narco-terrorist cartel’ headed by Maduro (on whose head he’s placed a $50 million bounty). He’s also steadily increased the US military presence in the region, rattling the American saber for ‘regime change’ in Caracas. It’s been tempting, so far, to write Trump’s belligerence off as an attempt to distract from his domestic political failures …. On the other hand, if he’s really going to take the US to war with Venezuela, what better moment — for theatrical and propaganda purposes — to launch a full-scale attack than just as his quisling of choice accepts a ‘peace prize’ in Oslo?” (12/06/25)