“Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts. On the downside, their toilet is on the blink again. The three Americans and one Canadian are set to reach their destination Monday, photographing the mysterious lunar far side as they zoom around. It is the first moon-bound crew in more than 53 years, picking up where NASA’s Apollo program left off. ‘The Earth is quite small, and the moon is definitely getting bigger,’ pilot Victor Glover reported. Until the Orion capsule’s bathroom is fixed, Mission Control has instructed the astronauts to break out more of the backup urine collection bags. The so-called lunar loo malfunctioned following Wednesday’s liftoff and has been hit-and-miss ever since. A version of the Artemis II toilet was tested on the International Space Station several years ago.” (04/04/26)
“German males aged between 17 and 45 may need to seek approval for lengthy stays abroad, under changes introduced as part of a new law which introduced voluntary military service. The Military Service Modernisation Act, which came into force on 1 January, aims to boost defences following threats from Russia in the aftermath of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In a statement sent to the BBC, a defence ministry spokesman confirmed that males aged 17 and older were required to obtain prior approval for stays abroad lasting longer than three months. Under the current law, travel approvals must generally be granted and it remains unclear how the rule would be enforced if breached.” (04/04/26)
Source: The American Prospect
by Matthew Cunningham-Cook & Don Wiener
“After President Trump went all in on crypto when he returned to office, Vivek Ramaswamy, the front-runner in the GOP primary for governor of Ohio, began betting big on Bitcoin through his asset management startup Strive, with limited success. Now, crypto industry players are pouring millions into funding his campaign. Why? If he becomes governor, the billionaire has pledged to expand state investments in a crypto reserve (starting with state revolving funds) that could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in state assets ending up in Bitcoin. The largest donor to Ramaswamy’s gubernatorial super PAC in 2025 was Ross Stevens, who donated $14 million and is actively involved with Bitcoin and crypto. The second-largest donor was Jeff Yass, who donated $10 million to the PAC.” (04/04/26)
“A smoky wildfire in southern California that broke out a day earlier and prompted evacuation orders was mostly under control Saturday afternoon, fire officials said. Encompassing roughly 6.3 square miles (about 16 square kilometers) in Riverside County, about 64 miles (103 kilometers) east of Los Angeles, the Springs Fire was no longer growing and at least 75% percent contained Saturday, said Terra Fernandez, public safety information specialist for the Riverside County Fire Department. It was 25% contained on Friday. Fire officials also lifted evacuation orders for a large swath of neighborhoods Saturday morning. Fernandez said she expected the rest will be lifted by the end of the day. ‘It’s pretty much under control,’ Fernandez said. The fire was fueled by strong Santa Ana winds with gusts predicted to get up to 45 mph (72 kph) on Saturday. But winds had ‘dissipated a bit’ since Friday, helping the efforts of fire crews, Fernandez said.” (04/04/26)
“I think Elon Musk is a good man, not perfect, but then, the guy I look at in the mirror every morning isn’t perfect, either, so I’m not going to knock Elon about that. I don’t know any perfect people. Well, that’s not true. Leftists are perfect, of course. If you don’t think they are perfect, just ask them. There are reasons leftists consider themselves perfect. When you are allowed to set up your own standard of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ (which leftists do), and you judge yourself by your own standard of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, then how can you do anything wrong? If you violate your own standard, you just change the standard and add the ‘wrong’ thing you did to the ‘right’ side of the column. Voila! Perfection! They do it all the time, individually and collectively. But Elon Musk doesn’t do that (I don’t think), and I certainly don’t.” (04/04/26)
“Five Metropolitan Police officers have been removed from front-line duties after a bag containing firearms and a Taser was left on a London street, the force has said. The bag, which was discovered by a member of the public on Tuesday evening, was found outside London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan’s home, The Sun reports. ‘At this stage it is believed the bag was misplaced by on-duty officers a short time before the member of the public located it,’ the police said in a statement. The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards has said it is reviewing the incident. Inside the bag was a sub-machine gun, a pistol, Taser and some ammunition, according to reports. The force said: ‘At around 21:40 BST a member of the public called police after finding a bag containing Met-issued firearms and a Taser on a street in south London.'” (04/04/26)
“Several people were injured when a vehicle struck revelers at a parade celebrating the Lao New Year on Saturday in rural Louisiana, authorities said. The driver was quickly arrested and charged with impaired driving, police said. Video shared on social media showed multiple people on the ground at the annual event in Broussard and New Iberia. The videos showed firefighters tending to one person trapped beneath the car, which wound up in a ditch along the parade route. Around 15 people were hurt, some seriously, according to the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office. ‘Based on the preliminary investigation, this does not appear to be an intentional act,’ said a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, Rebecca Melancon.” (04/04/26)
“The U.S. and Israeli war has, from its very beginning, violated both U.S. domestic and international law. The legal consequences go beyond specific violations. Washington and Tel Aviv’s breaches of the UN Charter and other legal frameworks also undermine the very foundations of the rule of law. Even while international legal institutions too often lack sufficient capacity to enforce their decisions, they still provide a crucial framework for protest, for pressure on individual governments, and for the hope of a future world where the rule of law is paramount. Now, however, that future is in more danger than any other time in recent memory. Right now, Iranian civilians are paying the highest price. But the collapse of the rule of law makes the future more dangerous for everyone else, too.” (04/02/26)
“U.S. President Donald Trump has removed Attorney General Pam Bondi from her post, a White House official said on Thursday, following mounting frustration with her performance, including her handling of investigative files related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump had also reportedly grown frustrated that Bondi was not moving quickly enough to prosecute critics and adversaries who he wanted to face criminal charges. In a social media post, Trump praised Bondi as ‘a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend’ and said she will move to a job in the private sector. Trump said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, his former personal lawyer, will lead the Justice Department in the interim.” (04/02/26)
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“It used to be hard to help westerners see the depravity of the US empire. Now it’s just right in everyone’s face with raw genocide footage and insanely evil warmongering of direct economic consequence. It took a lot of work to help the average westerner understand that NATO aggressions actively provoked the war in Ukraine, or that western interventionism played a major role in the violence and chaos in Syria, or that US economic warfare was largely responsible for the suffering of Cubans and Venezuelans. The murderous savagery of the empire was hidden behind layers of obfuscation, allowing the propagandists to frame the western power structure as a passive witness to the abuses of foreign regimes. Now the propagandists have very little to work with, so those obfuscations can no longer take place.” (04/02/26)
