“It’s never easy working for tips. For eight years, from 2014 to 2022, I did just that. I was a server at a Maine hotel, taking orders at the restaurant and bringing customers their food. Some nights, I’d make $200 or even $300. Other nights, I’d make half that, or less. … I got married to a coworker I met on the job, and before leaving the dining room, we had two kids. I had to bring home the bacon, but it was hard to estimate how much I’d make in a given year. And every year, come April 15th, I had a choice to make. Would I report my tip income on my taxes? Or would I keep it off the books and keep more money in my pocket? I always made the lawful choice. But it was tough.” [editor’s note: The “lawful choice” would be to pocket it all as “gifts” with no paperwork involved – SAT] (03/11/26)
“The new U.S. ambassador to South Africa has been summoned to explain his criticism, the country’s foreign minister said Wednesday, as a diplomatic rift continues over foreign policy that the Trump administration describes as anti-American and domestic policies it calls anti-white. Ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III was summoned after speaking at a meeting of business leaders on Tuesday, where he challenged the South African government over its diplomatic ties with Iran and its affirmative action laws that advance opportunities for Black people ahead of other races. The rift has grown between the former allies since President Donald Trump returned to office. Ties have plunged to their lowest point since the end of apartheid, or white minority rule, in 1994. Trump has been critical of South Africa’s Black-led government. Bozell, a conservative activist appointed by Trump, took up his role in Pretoria last month.” (03/11/26)
“Centrist Democrats argue that the party should not ‘go so far left in a primary that they can’t win against MAGA in the general.’ As the Center for Working Class Politics observes, these ‘Third Way’ Democrats stress ‘affordability’ and ‘abundance’ without taking on the billionaire class. Progressive Democrats, including groups like the Democratic Socialists of America and Working Families Party, are seen as just too radical to attract working-class voters. I disagree. I think the problem is that Democrats, even progressive Democrats, are not radical enough. We have only to look at former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1941 ‘Four Freedoms’ State of the Union address to be reminded of what our politics could be and should be. The ‘Four Freedoms’ (of speech and religion, from want and fear) are properly the best remembered parts of the address.” (03/11/26)
“A group representing many of the world’s wealthiest countries agreed Wednesday to release the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history, in a bid to counter the effects of the Iran war on energy markets and the halt of cargo shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The Paris-based International Energy Agency said it will make 400 million barrels of oil available from its members’ emergency reserves, which is more than double the 182.7 million barrels that the IEA’s 32 member countries released in 2022 in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. ‘This is a major action aiming to alleviate the immediate impacts of the disruption in markets,’ IEA executive director Fatih Birol said. ‘But, to be clear, the most important thing for a return to stable flows of oil and gas is the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz.'” (03/11/26)
“The post-Olympics news cycle was a dizzying display of handwringing over the supposed victimhood of empowered, badass American female athletes. If we were to believe much of our media and feminist commentators, these women had been disrespected by President Trump, who cracked a joke, and by the men of Team USA hockey, who laughed. It led to an online geyser of anger and indignation on the women’s behalf. During their match against South Korea in Australia last week, the Iranian women’s soccer team took part in a quiet protest by not singing along to their national anthem — less than 48 hours after the US began striking Tehran. Off the phony controversy, we heard the refrain that women athletes are treated like gum on the bottom of a shoe.” (03/10/26)
“A fourth MP of the current Canadian parliament has defected to join the Liberals, bringing Prime Minister Mark Carney closer to a majority in the House of Commons. Lori Idlout, a member of the left-leaning New Democrats (NDP), is joining the governing party. In a statement issued by the Liberals, she said she had undergone ‘much personal reflection and encouragement from my community, family, and supporters’. Interim NDP leader Don Davies said he was ‘very disappointed,’ adding: ‘We believe that when someone rejects the decision of their electors and wants to join another party, they should put that decision to their voters.’ The Liberals said they were ‘deeply excited to welcome’ Idlout. Idlout was first elected as an MP from the Canadian territory of Nunavut in 2021. In its statement, the Liberal Party said she is ‘well known as a tireless champion for Nunavut.'” (03/11/26)
“Cambodia hopes to shut down all of the country’s notorious online scam centers by the end of next month, the head of the Southeast Asian nation’s effort to combat the cybercrime said Wednesday. Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith, in charge of the Commission for Combating Online Scams, told The Associated Press in an interview that the government since July had targeted 250 locations believed to be carrying out the lucrative criminal activity, and has shut down about 80%, or 200, of them. He said police would carry out suppression activities after April in an attempt to keep the scam centers from reemerging. Cambodia has launched previous crackdowns against online scam centers but without major effect.” (03/11/26)
“Since Donald Trump kicked off a March weekend by attempting to bomb a country of 90 million people back to the Stone Age, there is a question nobody in the White House has been able to answer: Why go to war with Iran? The shifting set of justifications has been pretty comical to watch, whipsawing from liberating the Iranian people to self-defense from Iranian attacks to preventing nuclear capability after a breakdown in negotiations (which was apparently not true) to payback for the 1979 revolution to the complicated tale that Iran would hit U.S. targets anyway once Israel struck first, so we might as well preempt that and get the volley of munitions started early. But in a press conference on Monday, Trump quietly hit on another rationale, one that may have more truth behind it than the others.” (03/11/26)
“Tehran residents say the Iranian capital has endured what they described as its worst night of aerial bombardment, as the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, followed Donald Trump’s suggestion on Monday the war could soon be over with a warning of more strikes to come. … Israel, which launched an air campaign against Iran with the US on 28 February, on Tuesday said it had hit a weapons development facility among a wave of strikes. … At least 1,245 civilians have been killed, including 194 children, by the US-Israeli war on Iran, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists in Iran group. In Lebanon, at least 486 people have been killed by Israeli bombing, while 11 have been killed in Israel. Seven US troops have been confirmed dead and 140 injured, eight severely.” (03/11/26)
