“On March 20, 200[3], President George W. Bush began the bombing campaign in Iraq, justifying the attack with manipulated and bogus intelligence. Twenty-three years later, history is repeating itself. The clear judgment of the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) is that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon, and its leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has not authorized a nuclear weapons program. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, the nation’s top intelligence official, said so publicly …. Now, to justify the bombing of several sites in Iran, top members of the Trump administration claim Iran is actively pursuing a nuclear weapon.” (06/23/25)
Source: SFGate
by Bassem Mrout & Stephanie Liechtenstein
“With the United States joining Israel in its attacks on Iran’s nuclear program, here is what we know about the radiation threat, and other health risks. Iran enriches uranium at two key sites, Natanz and Fordo. President Donald Trump said U.S. forces struck both sites, along with a third site, Isfahan, early Sunday, and Iran confirmed the strikes. The U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said in a statement after the strikes that it ‘can confirm that no increase in off-site radiation levels has been reported as of this time.’ … The Islamic Republic’s leaders say their nuclear program is for the peaceful purpose of harnessing atomic energy. But highly enriched uranium — which is radioactive — is used in the manufacture of atomic weapons, and Israel is determined to prevent Iran from having them.” (06/23/25)
“The demographic studies and actuarial charts were correct, and the explosion is nigh. The question is what to do about it, and, more perplexing, who will do it. There’s nothing complicated about the options. One is to raise more revenue, either by hiking the 7.65 percent payroll tax … or by increasing the amount of income subject to the tax. The first of these options is regressive, striking hardest at those who earn the least. The second would add to the burden of high-salary workers who already shoulder the biggest tax load …. Another choice is to further raise the age of eligibility for benefits …. A third solution is to increase the number of workers paying into the system. But this cuts against the current political mood, because the quickest and surest way of growing the workforce is through easy immigration.” (06/23/25)
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“Journalist Ken Klippenstein has drawn attention to an overlooked remark made by State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce last month saying that the United States is ‘the greatest country on earth, next to Israel.’ ‘The pride of being able to be here and do work that facilitates making things better for people and in the greatest country on Earth, next to Israel,’ Bruce told Jewish News Syndicate. ‘It’s an honor to be able to make a difference and to be able to speak in this regard with an administration that I love so much and that I feel genuinely represented by.’ It’s like this administration is doing everything it can to vindicate those who accuse it of being Israel First instead of America First.” (06/23/25)
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“President Trump says it was necessary for him to order U.S. pilots to bomb Iran to prevent that nation’s government from building a nuclear bomb. Wait a minute. Something is coming to me. Just give me a moment. It’s coming into my mind. Oh, yes, I remember: ‘WMDs! WMDs, Jacob! We have to invade Iran, I mean Iraq, because Saddam Hussein is coming to get us with his WMDs! We have to invade now! Tomorrow will be too late. WMDs! WMDs!’ That was 2003, just before the U.S. government invaded Iraq, a country that had never attacked the United States or even threatened to do so. That was another war of aggression, one that violated the principles set forth at Nuremberg and that also violated the U.S. Constitution’s declaration-of-war requirement, thereby making the war illegal under our form of government.” (06/23/25)
“Media personality and former Trump campaign operative Steve Cortes has released a video exposing the flaws of using wind turbines as an energy source, which he calls the ‘wind scam’. Filmed in New Mexico, which generates 38% of its electricity from wind, he revealed how wind turbines still need petroleum to function, and they’re bad for the environment, especially animals. Studies estimate 140,000 to 679,000 birds die annually in the U.S. due to them. ‘They are one gigantic, expensive scam,’ Cortes said. ‘There’s nothing clean about this,’ they stated, as they cause pollution. He showed a clip from the show Landman that went viral, featuring actor Billy Bob Thornton going off on a rant about wind turbines. Oil companies own them, Thornton said. He said they need a lot of oil for lubrication and winterizing. Additionally, ‘In its 20-year lifespan, it won’t offset the carbon footprint of making it.'” (06/23/25)
“President Trump is engaged in a whole-of-government assault on American society. So we need a whole-of-society response. The 5 million Americans who took to the streets on June 14 mark an excellent start. And the demonstrations must continue, but they are not enough. The ultimate weapon against tyranny in a democracy is the popular vote, but the next opportunity to use it is nearly 500 days away, when voters will elect 468 senators and House members. Our highest priority should be to elect people with the integrity and backbone to remove Trump, repair the damage he is doing, and restore checks and balances. Otherwise, Trump will remain president another 1,300 days. And we have seen the damage he has already done in just 150.” (06/23/25)
“This week, all eyes will be on the fascinating race for mayor of New York City. One reason it’s so interesting is because New York plays such an outsized role in American life. It’s the home of some of America’s defining cultural symbols: the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the World Trade Center, Times Square, Broadway, and Harlem’s Apollo Theater. It’s also the country’s most populous and demographically complex city …. beset by many of the challenges confronting America, writ large: crime, housing, drugs, immigration, racial and ethnic tensions, problems with policing, gentrification, the high cost of living, and political polarization. And yet, New York remains a magnet, drawing hundreds of thousands of new immigrants from all over the world and young people from across the U.S. to settle there, attracted by its allure and its promise of opportunity.” (06/23/25)
“Anyone who wants to understand international trade should care about Luxembourg. When you analyze the effect of international trade on a large economy, it’s easy to get distracted by purely domestic factors. Even if Trump’s tariffs all go through, the U.S. will retain most of its great economic strengths, like the tech sector, a long history of entrepreneurship, relatively low labor regulation, and legal fracking. As a result of this continued vitality, American protectionists will avoid crushing ridicule when they loudly claim that their tariffs ‘worked.’ When you analyze the effect of international trade on a country like Luxembourg, in contrast, domestic factors will not distract you. Nothing in Luxembourg matters nearly as much as the fact that Luxembourg without trade is nothing.” (06/23/25)
