“One of the important conclusions to draw from the Iran War is how much importance Tehran attaches to Hezbollah, its long-time Lebanese Shiite ally. This is not to be dismissed as business as usual, but rather reflects a major shift whereby supporting Hezbollah has become even more necessary for Iran’s national security.” (04/27/26)
“Something very strange is shifting in the darker corners of the internet. Something serpentine slick and black as ink. While Donald Trump moves farther and farther to the right and much of his cultish base mindlessly follows him into the abyss, the farthest of the far-right appear to be turning against Orange-Man-Fash with a vengeance. The brazenly Zionist massacre in Iran was certainly the last straw, but this subterranean sea change was a longtime coming.” (04/26/26)
“It is difficult to determine whether the bizarro worldview of the current Democrat-media nexus can simply be attributed to its generic Trump Derangement Syndrome — but the crazy world of the left [sic] increasingly bears scant resemblance to reality. In this alternate universe, Eric Swalwell was a liberal [sic] icon and invaluable asset for years, though admittedly a bit randy and occasionally a serial sexual predator. Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner was, at last, the left’s [sic] ‘real thing’, the white working-class liberal stiff who could win back the hoi polloi — although he can’t get his story straight on whether his Nazi tattoo was an accident or proof that he was brainwashed by the toxic US military.”[editor’s note: I admit I can’t contest Hanson’s credentials when it comes to expertise in inhabiting strange alternate realities – TLK] (04/27/26)
“In an earlier age, gatekeepers existed to stop morons with puerile or reprehensible views from being heard. I’m not the first (or even the hundredth) person to note that all the gatekeepers are gone and we now live in a permissionless, anything-goes media environment. The death of gatekeepers is why you’re reading this blog on Substack, it’s why I can make my living from writing here and podcasting over at the New Liberal Podcast. There are real benefits to allowing anyone to create and distribute their work without having to break through a stultifying, bureaucratic system. But the death of gatekeepers also has downsides. Today, even the New York Times seems to be chasing clicks any way they can. Invite the hot doofus on your show to say blowing up stuff is cool and shoplifting is good but plastic cups are a moral travesty. Why not? That’ll go viral.” (04/26/26)
“At the beginning of 2022, the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in many European countries started to decrease dramatically. A rapid and unexpected decline in TFR has occurred in all the Baltic states, across Northern Europe, Central Europe, and in all major countries of Western Europe. Only Greece, Spain, Italy, Croatia, and Romania did not exhibit such dramatic declines, while Portugal and Bulgaria even experienced TFR growth …. This dramatic and unexpected change in TFR dynamics that occurred synchronously across most of Europe begs for an explanation. Several mechanisms have been proposed in the mainstream media.” (04/26/26)
“The gunshots at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner had barely stopped echoing through the DC hotel before the internet had solved the case several times over. The leading theories: it was all staged, or all the Left’s fault. It’s another reminder that we’re in the era of the post-event event: something happens, and then the event is subsumed by its own interpretation.” (04/26/26)
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Kerry McDonald
“On the day the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a global pandemic, I wrote in this space about ‘the world’s homeschooling moment,’ projecting a spike in the number of families who would choose homeschooling and other alternative education options in the wake of school closures. I predicted that while most children would return to their conventional classrooms post-pandemic, some families ‘may start to wonder if homeschooling or other schooling alternatives could be a longer-term option.’ Six years later, it’s clear that many families wondered this. … Hybrid homeschooling programs, along with other creative schooling options, are expanding across the US. These models often provide more curriculum freedom, scheduling flexibility and individualization than traditional schools — public and private.” (04/26/26)
“The executive order President Trump signed in February protecting and encouraging the production of glyphosate, the primary ingredient in Roundup, is a major victory for Bayer AG, the German biotech giant that produces the notorious herbicide. The company has been aggressively implementing its five-point plan to thwart the ability of cancer patients to sue over claims that it failed to warn them about the link between Roundup and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. But Bayer is not resting on its laurels, and is pushing for a more permanent win in the Supreme Court this spring — and eventually in Congress. By the time Bayer introduced its plan to stem a flood of Roundup-related lawsuits in 2021, the company already owed billions in verdicts and settlements.” (04/27/26)
