“It was, by any measure, a lot of red ink. When Volkswagen announced its third-quarter profits at the end of October, the German auto giant said it anticipated heavy losses for this year. The reason? It is taking a 5 billion-euro hit from tariffs imposed in the American market. Likewise, the German sportswear manufacturer Adidas warned of a 120 million-euro hit to its earnings, in part because the levies its sneakers now face in the United States, while Toyota warned of a $9 billion hit from tariffs. For anyone following the corporate earnings season over the last month, a clear theme has emerged from the giants of European and Asian industry: President Trump’s tariff regime is starting to significantly reduce their profits. But hold on. Weren’t we told that tariffs would simply be passed straight on to American consumers in the form of higher prices? That they were a tax on ordinary working people?” [editor’s: Yes, that’s what we were told — and we were told correctly – TLK] (11/24/25)
Source: Washington Post
by Sean Rad & Zach Schapira
“X’s recent bold decision, led by Head of Product Nikita Bier, to add country labels to accounts reflects an important shift: a recognition that geographic transparency is crucial context to help users understand whether a post is a firsthand account or distant commentary, whether it reflects genuine local sentiment or coordinated foreign messaging. After all, posts from the ‘Ivanka Trump News’ account with 1 million followers feel very different once you learn the account is posting from Nigeria. Lifting the veil on these accounts is a promising start. But the platforms have a long road ahead to construct true digital borders. Here are some ideas for platforms to consider if they want to join this effort.” (11/25/25)
“The 20th century encompassed the era of social democracy followed by an attempt to resurrect the left through the Third Way after that era’s ignominious end. In the 21st century, the left embarked on a new project they hoped would remedy 20th century weaknesses and inaugurate a new era of political and governance success. We are now a quarter of the way through the 21st century, which has witnessed both a genuine ‘crisis of capitalism’ (the Great Recession of 2007-09) and the systemic breakdown of the COVID era (2020-22). Enough time has gone by to render a judgement: despite ample opportunity to advance their cause, the left’s 21st century project has failed and failed badly.” (11/24/25)
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Ari Cohn
“The debate over algorithmic content recommendation has been going on for years. Lower courts have almost universally held that Section 230 immunizes social media platforms from lawsuits claiming that algorithmic recommendation of harmful content contributed to terrorist attacks, mass shootings, and racist attacks. When faced with the question in 2023, the Supreme Court declined to rule on the scope of Section 230 — opting instead to hold the claims of algorithmic aiding and abetting at issue would not survive either way. But there’s an important question that usually gets lost in the heated debate over Section 230: Would such lawsuits be viable even if they could be brought?” (11/24/25)
Source: The Peaceful Revolutionist
by David S D’Amato
“I’m reading through a book by the American philosopher Idris Robinson, The Revolt Eclipses Whatever the World Has to Offer, and it has been helpful to my thinking about where we go from here. The dichotomy of constituent vs. destituent power also helps to explain my broader criticism of the professional-managerial class and its politics, so I thought it might be good to share a few words. Nothing defines the professional-managerial class quite like their tendency to give maximum credence to anything uttered by the ultra-elite who actually rule our country. There is a tendency in the PMC to attribute epistemic and moral authority to this ultra-elite.” (11/24/25)
“The Heritage Foundation, which has stood for decades as the intellectual crown jewel of the conservative movement, has been convulsed in an ugly public spat over the organization’s approach to anti-Semitism. Employees and visiting scholars are resigning from and revolting against the think tank over its defense of the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s interview with Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist and anti-Semite who has gained prominence in MAGA circles. The conflict has exposed the degree to which previously forbidden bigotries have penetrated the heart of the Trump-era Republican Party. It has also revealed a somewhat different, yet related pathology: the brain death of the conservative movement.” (11/24/25)
Source: The American Prospect
by David Dayen & Ryan Cooper
“One way of looking at Donald Trump’s plan for the Affordable Care Act, which has leaked out and was expected to be announced this week, is that it’s a surrender. (The fact that ‘strong congressional backlash’ has delayed the announcement fits this analysis.) While stopping short of making Democratic enhanced subsidies for millions of insurance exchange customers permanent, it does extend them for two years, similar to a bipartisan outline introduced last week. And while there are changes to the subsidies, some are relatively more benign than expected. One of the main goals of the enhanced subsidies, established in 2021, was to universalize affordable insurance and avoid the ‘cliff’ effect of cutting off aid at a particular income level. The Trump proposal restores that cliff but sets it much higher. Prior to 2021, the cliff was set at 400 percent of the federal poverty level. The Trump plan raises that to 700 percent.” (11/24/25)
“An extensive network of automatic license plate readers is being used to develop predictive intelligence to stop vehicles, violating Americans’ rights.” (11/24/25)
“[I]nflation is the most effective instrument in making the rich richer, and the poor poorer. But what would happen in an alternative scenario where the money supply doesn’t increase much over a long period of time? As it happens, we have a historical case of this happening in nineteenth century America.” (11/24/25)
Source: Cato Institute
by Colin Grabow & Clark Packard
“This is not a dividend at all. It’s a deficit-financed giveaway, arriving at a moment when the federal government is already projected to run a $1.8 trillion deficit. Worse still, the money is already spoken for. Congress counted tariff revenue as an offset when passing the president’s One Big Beautiful Bill tax reform package earlier this year. Revenue cannot fund both tax cuts and rebate checks. The administration is trying to spend the same dollar twice. But suppose, for the sake of argument, the money actually existed and the deficit didn’t matter. The proposal would still be misguided. For one thing, it’s economically pointless. Tariffs are taxes paid by Americans, not foreigners, and the government’s plan amounts to collecting that money in Washington, skimming off administrative costs, and then mailing a smaller amount back to the public.” (11/24/25)
