“The law is clear that the First Amendment bars the government from dictating news coverage or punishing outlets for publishing what the president claims is ‘false.’ The American people are entitled to uncensored news about what their government and military are doing. No matter who occupies the White House, war does not justify the government erecting barriers between the people and the press. To the contrary, the life-and-death stakes of war make public scrutiny and accountability more important than ever. … The law is also clear that broadcast licensees which operate under the public interest standard are shielded from [Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan] Carr’s threats.” (03/17/26)
“Two weeks after the start of the war in Iran, the picture is coming into focus. Why would a president who promised countless times not to start new wars, particularly ‘forever wars’ in the Middle East, have leapt into this conflict? As always in the age of Trump, it’s necessary to separate the president’s motives and mindset from the old ways we used to decide questions of war and peace, tariffs, sanctions, immigration, taxes, and other matters. Before venturing into Trump’s mind, let’s consider the shape of the discussion. People who imagine that we are still operating in a normal world are making arguments in favor of military action as if we were engaged in a national debate.” (03/17/26)
“Jeffrey Epstein was not only a rapist and a child predator, but also — wait for it — a White supremacist. While some speculate that the Epstein issue is just a distraction from President Trump’s virulent and endless racism, others feel that the video the president posted at the beginning of Black History Month of Barack and Michelle Obama as apes was meant to divert attention from the growing Epstein fallout. Well, as it turns out, the two crises are not as far apart as you might imagine. Bombshell articles in The Atlantic, Mother Jones, and at MS Now pulled the covers off Jeffrey Epstein’s noxious racism.” [editor’s note: I will leave it to the reader to decipher this mess of lies and context drops – SAT] [additional editor’s note: Probably a good idea, SAT … I suspect they’ll do a better job than your note indicates you did – TLK] (03/17/26)
“Bettors traded more than $529 million in forecasts of when the U.S. would next strike Iran in a market opened last year on Polymarket, the self-described world’s largest prediction market. Bets on Polymarket are made with cryptocurrency, and each trade is countered by another user, so not exactly versus ‘the house.’ By contrast, $133.8 million was bet on last month’s Super Bowl across Nevada’s 186 sportsbooks, representing a 10-year low, according to data from the Nevada Gaming Control Board. … But betting big on war is not exactly a new phenomenon and the outcomes are far from guaranteed, as America’s enemies found out the hard way 250 years ago. Over drinks at Brooke’s in London on Christmas Day, 1776, legend has it British Gen. John Burgoyne bet a colleague 50 guineas he would return by the following Christmas having squashed the American patriots’ rebellion.” (03/17/26)
“The window for Donald Trump to end the Iran war by simply declaring victory and walking away is rapidly closing. Soon he will face a stark choice: He can take greater risks in pursuit of a decisive tactical success, prepare the country for a prolonged conflict that could last for many months, or seek a negotiated settlement that involves a real compromise with Tehran.” (03/17/26)
“This war did not come out of nowhere. To be sure, the United States and Iran have been at odds for decades, and neither Israel nor the lobby is solely responsible for the suspicion with which each country views the other. Nonetheless, lobby groups such as AIPAC, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the Zionist Organization of America, and United Against Nuclear Iran have worked to demonize Iran over the years, prevent U.S. companies from doing business there, and derail prior attempts by former Iranian presidents Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Mohammed Khatami to improve relations. … by making it almost impossible for either Democratic or Republican presidents to put meaningful pressure on Israel, the lobby has enabled Netanyahu to engage in ‘reckless driving’ all over the region, whether in Israel’s sustained efforts to oppress its Palestinian subjects or in its repeated attacks on Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Iran, and even Qatar.” (03/17/26)
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“This is Zionism put into practice. The wars. The massacres. The bombed-out schools and hospitals. The millions of displaced individuals. The invasion of Lebanon. The explosions carpeting Tehran. The hollowed-out moonscape of Gaza. The horrific pogroms in the West Bank. The child amputees. The smell of rotting corpses. The assassinated doctors and journalists. The blackened sky and the poisoned water. The nonstop deluge of brain-melting propaganda. The aggressive promotion of Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism. The erosion of free speech rights throughout the western world. The corrupt warmongering politicians. The legions of online hasbara trolls. The soaring fuel prices. Money which could pay for social services buying bombs for Israel instead. All the death, destruction, instability and suffering that’s being visited upon countless civilians throughout west Asia. This is Zionism.” (03/17/26)
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Cláudia Ascensão Nunes
“At a time when gambling is increasingly treated by governments as a vice to be regulated or restricted, it is worth recalling a curious episode in European economic history: a casino once saved a country. In the 19th century, Monaco went from being a virtually bankrupt state to the playground of millionaires that we know today.” (03/17/26)
“Why democracies must confront Russian hybrid warfare and the return of fascism to Europe.” [editor’s note: Fake “liberals” might want to keep the McCarthyism at least a little hidden until they actually have power – TLK] (03/17/26)
“The Iran war is a regional war in a way that previous reckless U.S. interventions were not, and it is having global effects. The Iran war is already wider and more damaging to international peace and security in its first three weeks than the Iraq war was in its early years. If it is allowed to continue for several more months, the damage to regional security will be severe. The damage to the interests of many of our treaty allies will also be significant, and the entire global economy will suffer. This was an entirely avoidable disaster, and the U.S. and Israel are responsible for causing it.” (03/17/26)
