“Once upon a time, nothing in this world could have convinced me that I would be living through this moment in this America on this planet. As a start, once upon an increasingly distant time, Donald J. Trump as president of the United States would have been inconceivable. Literally beyond conception, even in some wildly dystopian satiric novel about an all-too(un)-American future. I mean, forget anything else, a man who in private life bankrupted six (yes, six!) companies has now been elected president of the United States not just once but twice. You know, the fellow who thinks of those he considers his domestic enemies (and that’s not too strong a word for it), whether Democrats, Republicans, or journalists as nothing short of (and this is the word he uses: ‘evil’).” (07/31/25)
“Polygenic embryo screening is a natural extension of two well-validated technologies: genetic testing of embryos, and polygenic prediction of traits in adults. Genetic testing of embryos has been done for decades, usually to detect chromosomal abnormalities like Down Syndrome or simple single-gene disorders like cystic fibrosis. It’s challenging – you need to take a very small number of cells (often only 5-10) from a tiny proto-placenta that may not have many cells to spare, and extract a readable amount of genetic material from this limited sample – but there are known solutions that mostly work. But most traits are polygenic, requiring information about thousands or tens of thousands of genes to predict. These are too complicated to understand fully at current levels of technology, but some studies have chipped away at the problem and gotten a partial understanding.” (07/31/25)
“‘The Crown says it’s seeking an extraordinary sentence for an unprecedented crime,’ wrote Arthur White-Crummey for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation last week, ‘as court began hearing sentencing submissions Wednesday in the mischief case of Ottawa truck convoy leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber. The ‘Ottawa truck convoy’ is what they are calling the big anti-totalitarian protests made by truckers in Canada during the late pandemic scare. … a specific kind of government does indeed prosecute its opponents in this manner, no matter how peaceful. Tyrannical governments.” (07/31/25)
“His ability to provide valued counsel to Presidents of both major parties originated from a deep love for his country tempered by decades of accumulated political wisdom.” (07/31/25)
“Throughout most of America’s history, Ukraine has been ruled from Moscow. The Ukrainian people have long suffered under that relationship, but Washington never considered going to war on Kiev’s behalf. Ukraine matters far more to Europe than America, and, as Trump has admitted, the current conflict was fueled by Washington’s multiple broken promises not to expand NATO to Russia’s borders. U.S. interests would be best served by cutting off fuel for the conflict, with its dangerous potential of escalating into a nuclear confrontation.” (07/31/25)
“If I became the Boss of Liberalism, the first thing I’d do is tell the people who want a politics centered on demonizing rich people and the people who want a politics centered on demonizing white people that the fight is over, and you both lose. From now on, the enemy is abusive people. (If they need an explanation, Donald Trump is rich, white, and abusive. Which one is the problem with him?) … You’ll hear a lot of accusations made against liberalism. Focusing on abuse can help us answer the accusers.” (07/30/25)
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Katie Ratke & Shloka Mehta
“Nearly 250 years ago, mere steps from the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, a group of men locked in sweltering rooms debated the blueprint for a new nation, conceived in liberty. First among the freedoms they secured was the right to speak one’s mind, free from the chill of government meddling or the heat of mob intimidation. Today, the floor echoes in the National Constitution Center. The walls are lined with powerful quotes. Along the gentle curve of the tall, marble ceilings hang the flags of all 50 states. And normally, these rooms are relatively still. But this July, the Center came alive when over 100 students from 70 universities across the country gathered there, not to write a constitution, but to figure out how to keep its promises alive.” (07/30/25)
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Tyler Tone
“[T]he Paramount settlement provides only a small window into a larger attempt — on the part of the president and his administration — to transform the relationship between the government and America’s media industry, powered by the machinery of the FCC. It’s an extortion regime much bigger than any one-time cash grab, enveloping the media industry in a cloud of weaponized uncertainty created by lawsuits, selective regulatory investigations, and slow-walked merger approvals. The ultimate aim? Getting some of America’s largest media companies to bend the knee and do the administration’s bidding. Call it the extortion-industrial complex, and Paramount has been just one victim of it.” (07/30/25)
“So much for the prophecies of Trumponomics doom: Not only did the US economy grow at a 3% rate in the second quarter, the growth was all in the private sector as the government portion shrank. Meanwhile, ADP reports that private-sector employment rose by 104,000 jobs in July, with annual wages jumping 4.4% — well above the rate of inflation, which also remains markedly lower than the conventional-wisdom crew predicted. That is, growth was half again the consensus forecast for April-June, while July looks like a huge boon for American workers — all as many of President Donald Trump’s policies have only begun to kick in. Trump’s tariffs have neither crashed the economy nor kicked off fresh inflation — though of course those predictions largely came from ‘experts’ who never expected the bane of Bidenflation.” (07/30/25)
