Source: Electronic Frontier Foundation
by Sarah Hamid
“When people remember the 2011 uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), they picture crowded squares, raised phones, and the feeling that the internet had finally shifted the balance of power toward ordinary people. But the past decade and a half is also a story about how governments, companies, and platforms turned those same tools into the backbone of a powerful state surveillance apparatus. For activists, journalists, and everyday users, that means now living with a constant threat: the phone in your pocket, the platforms you organize on, and the systems you rely on for safety and connection can be weaponized at the flip of a switch.” (04/08/26)
Source: The American Conservative
by Liam Childers
“We’ve heard it all before. Pro-war MAGA commentators insist that every move President Donald Trump makes is a strategic masterstroke. The war with Iran is no exception. What appears to be a Middle Eastern quagmire in the making is not a blunder at all. Instead, this war is ‘really’ about China. Another oil shock is nothing to worry about. It is ‘really’ leverage against America’s ‘main rival.’ Another open-ended entanglement is not overextension. It is ‘really’ the opening act of a coherent Indo-Pacific strategy that the ‘America Lasters’ are too daft to understand. This is the 4D chess defense of the Iran war. It is also nonsense, cooked up by propagandists and consumed by those eager to believe Trump hasn’t betrayed his base.” (04/08/26)
“Yesterday began with Donald Trump issuing genocidal threats against Iran on social media and ended (just ten hours later) with the announcement of a 14-day ceasefire, on Iran’s terms. Even by the volatile standards of Trump’s presidency, the whiplash is extraordinary. What, then, have the two sides actually agreed to, and what might it mean? In a subsequent post, Trump asserted that Iran had agreed to keep the Strait of Hormuz open during the two-week pause in hostilities. Negotiations, he added, will proceed over that period on the basis of Iran’s 10-point plan, which he described as a ‘workable’ foundation for talks. … The United States has not, of course, signed on to all ten points. But the mere fact that Iran’s framework will anchor the negotiations amounts to a significant diplomatic victory for Tehran.” (04/08/26)
“Trump’s failed use of force has blunted the credibility of American military threats, introducing an entirely new dynamic into the diplomatic track.” (04/08/26)
“At some point—and I can’t quite say when—it has become harder, at least from this side of the Atlantic, to separate our image of Donald Trump from the United States itself. The two have begun to blur in ways that feel new, and, frankly, unsettling. Until recently, I tried to be careful about this. I love my American friends. And it’s worth saying very plainly that millions of Americans continue to oppose these policies, often loudly and at great personal cost. Any criticism here is directed at decisions made in power, not at the people who live with their consequences. … However, as the consequences of Trump’s leadership continue to play out—not only in the Middle East but across much of Europe—that distinction has come under real strain.” (04/08/26)
“The Building Chips in America Act (2024) offers a glimpse of a possible modus operandi for a liberal abundance coalition. By exempting semiconductor fabs funded under the CHIPS and Science Act (2022) from some NEPA reviews, Congress cleared a major obstacle that had threatened to derail a factory investment boom. Industrial policy — planning as accelerator — overrode stultifying environmental protectionism — planning as brake. The modest precedent might become a template for using industrial policy as a crowbar for deregulation.” (04/08/26)
“Most of Tehran’s demands to end the war are maximalist, as are Washington’s right now. One of Iran’s demands may be achievable if structured correctly: the right to operate the Strait of Hormuz as a tolled waterway, in formal partnership with Oman. This is not a fantasy. Iran’s parliament is already debating legislation to collect transit fees from ships passing through the world’s single-most important maritime chokepoint. Since mid-March, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has turned the strait into a de facto toll booth, collecting fees in exchange for safe passage. … it’s difficult to imagine any situation short of the Islamic Republic’s collapse whereby Tehran doesn’t retain some form of control of the Strait as an insurance policy against persistent U.S. and Israeli attacks in the future.” (04/07/26)
“The United States must be growing and prosperous at home and strong and secure in the face of the many security threats facing us abroad. The former can only be achieved with free markets and limited government domestically and the latter through a robust defense [sic] budget. On both fronts, Democrats would take the country in the exact opposite direction needed. Voters seem to understand this. RealClearPolitics reports Democratic Party favorability at -20.0 unfavorable and Republicans at -15.4 unfavorable. Nevertheless, in polling on the overall congressional election for 2026, RealClearPolitics shows Democrats up +6.0. Two things may explain this disconnect: One, although voters show generically more favorability to Republicans, Republicans are still underwater in overall favorability. Second, when voters are overall not happy with how things are going, they vote against the party in power.” (04/08/26)
“The U.S.-Israel joint attack on Iran exemplifies the foreign policy theory guiding the Trump administration: other countries aren’t real, and they can’t hurt you. The United States, the thinking goes, has the most expensive armed forces in the world — more expensive than the next nine countries combined. Who could stand against American might? Sure, those armed forces failed in Afghanistan and Iraq, but that was because of, well, politics. … Ultimately, of all the posturing and Trump doctrines, I think it is FAFO that will stand the test of time.” (04/07/26)
