“Britain’s MI5 security service issued a new warning to lawmakers on Tuesday about attempts by Chinese agents to collect information and influence activity, its latest accusation that Beijing was trying to spy on the nation’s parliament. Lawmakers were told Chinese spies were targeting them by posing as headhunters or companies to make contact, with two individuals reaching out on LinkedIn to ‘conduct outreach at scale on behalf’ of the Chinese government. The speakers of the lower and upper houses of parliament said MI5 had said the Chinese Ministry of State Security ‘was actively reaching out to individuals in our community.’ Britain’s Security Minister Dan Jarvis told parliament the alert revealed ‘a covert and calculated attempt’ by Beijing to interfere in UK politics and said the government would launch a counterespionage plan to address the threat.” (11/18/25)
“The U.S. Education Department is handing off some of its biggest grant programs to other federal agencies as the Trump administration accelerates its plan to shut down the department. It represents a major step forward for the administration’s dismantling of the department, which has mainly involved cutting jobs since President Donald Trump called for its elimination with an executive action in March. Six new agreements signed by the Education Department will effectively move billions of dollars in grant programs to other agencies. Most notable is one that will put the Department of Labor over some of the largest federal funding streams for K-12 schools, including Title I money for schools serving low-income communities. Department officials said the programs will continue to be funded at levels set by Congress.” (11/18/25)
“Republicans, for once, are sounding downright squeamish about onrushing massive cuts to Obamacare subsidies, with premiums on the exchanges expected to more than double on average starting next year. GOP House committee chairs are reportedly having some ‘brainstorming sessions’ about what to do, and House Speaker Mike Johnson claims that they ‘will be rolling out some of those ideas’ at some point. So far, the genius idea in the lead is Trump’s pitch to reroute subsidies from health insurance companies to the American people, so they can buy health care. … Congratulations, folks, you now get to be your own private dealmaker with the health care system, and with your purchasing power and risk pool of one household, I’m sure you’ll get the best price!” (11/18/25)
“Coordinated weekend protests in Mexico’s capital and other cities were organized through social media tools popular among young people around the world. But labeling them ‘Gen Z protests’ (akin to recent ones in Asia and Africa) would miss the significance of this movement and this moment for all Mexicans. In fact, the estimated 17,000 citizens who marched in Mexico City on Saturday represented a cross section of Mexican society. The multigenerational march was sparked by outrage over the recent killings of Carlos Manzó, a popular, tough-on-crime mayor, and Bernardo Bravo, head of a citrus growers’ association. Spontaneous demonstrations first broke out in the two men’s home state of Michoacán, which has been mired in cartel-linked violence for years. ‘This reaction, organic and honest, fed up with the security situation … is something new,’ David Mora, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, told CNN.” (11/17/25)
“The roughly 42 million Americans who rely on food stamps did not receive their November 1 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits as the government shutdown dragged on. The missed payments came just as the holiday season began, leaving many families struggling to put food on the table. Lines at food banks backed up traffic across the country. The Trump administration defied federal court orders to restore full funding to the program before the Supreme Court’s conservative majority temporarily green-lit the freeze. The White House even tried to claw back funding from states that had already distributed it to hungry families. Lawmakers have now negotiated an end to the shutdown. But the threat to the nation’s primary nutrition assistance program, SNAP, is far from over. As the government reopens, millions will still lose access to food assistance starting almost immediately.” (11/17/25)
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“Came across an old Hampton Institute tweet: ‘If you don’t like being exploited (employee, tenant), then become the exploiter (boss/owner, landlord) is the capitalist mindset that has been drilled into all of us since we were kids. The real solution is to end exploitation (capitalism) altogether.’ You run into this sort of argument all the time when interacting with capitalism supporters. If people can’t make enough money to get by then they should get better-paying jobs. If people don’t like getting kicked around by an abusive status quo then they should climb their way into a socioeconomic strata that isn’t getting kicked around as much. If someone doesn’t like being the nail then they should become the hammer. They deflect criticisms of the abusive system by babbling about what people can do as individuals to be less abused personally.” (11/17/25)
“It occurs to me that ‘giving birth to the future’ isn’t simply a metaphor. I say this as I continue wrestling with infinity — that is to say, working on the book project I began a decade ago: a book about creating peace. My exploration into all this goes beyond politics, global or otherwise. There are countless ways that humanity needs to change and, indeed, is changing. For instance: ‘For much of the 20th century, the childbirth process in this country didn’t invite a lot of active participation from parents. Mothers in labor were given heavy doses of drugs, and fathers were banished to waiting rooms.’ So wrote David Colker in the Los Angeles Times in 2015, shortly after the death of Elisabeth Bing (at age at 100!), the German-born woman who cofounded Lamaze International in 1960 and helped profoundly change the way we birth the future.” (11/17/25)
“David Richardson, the acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is stepping down, according to the Department of Homeland Security, ending a troubled tenure just six months into the job and while the Atlantic hurricane season is still underway. Richardson, a former Marine Corps officer, is the second FEMA head to leave or be fired since May. He departs amid criticism that he kept a low profile during deadly Texas floods in July that killed 130 people and baffled staff in June when he said he was unaware the country had a hurricane season. A DHS spokesperson gave no reasons for the FEMA chief stepping down. It was not immediately clear who Richardson’s successor will be. Richardson’s predecessor was fired in May, after pushing back against Trump administration efforts to dismantle the agency.” (11/17/25)
“Next time your dog begs for a treat, you might want to give it to him. In Pennsylvania, a dog reportedly wounded his owner with a shotgun left on the bed, while in North Carolina, a dog was caught on camera setting a house (of the assistant fire chief no less) on fire with a damaged lithium battery. Since I just finished teaching my torts students about animal liability (and strict liability for dog bites), these cases offer a teachable moment for humans and canines alike. Dog bite cases have long been a mainstay of torts, even including recent incidents involving the Biden family at the White House. However, what about canine attacks using weapons?” (11/17/25)
“A former Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to cut the engines of a passenger flight in 2023 while riding off-duty in the cockpit will serve no additional prison time, a federal judge ruled Monday. U.S. District Court Judge Amy Baggio sentenced Joseph Emerson to time served and supervised release for three years a hearing in Portland, Oregon. Federal prosecutors had asked for one year in prison, while his attorneys had sought probation. ‘Pilots are not perfect. They are human,’ she said. ‘They are people and all people need help sometimes.’ Emerson was subdued by the flight crew after trying to cut the engines of a Horizon Air flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco on Oct. 22, 2023, while he was riding in an extra seat in the cockpit. The plane was diverted to Portland, where it landed safely with more than 80 people on board.” (11/17/25)
