“A summit on Thursday between President Donald Trump and the leaders of five Central Asian nations (aimed at striking deals on critical metals for high-tech industries) could mark a significant advance for the world over the course of a few months. The meeting at the White House reflects a possible return to a global order in which countries exchange economic opportunities out of a self-desire to help others thrive rather than inflicting a zero-sum approach to international trade. In early 2025, such exercises in enlightened self-interest were losing ground. Mr. Trump imposed massive tariffs on most nations, most notably China. In return, China restricted exports of critical elements – known as rare earths – of which it controls 90% of world production. The two largest economies were reverting to a type of mercantilism from centuries past, trying to weaponize their monopoly-like controls over particular markets or resources..” (11/06/25)
“‘AND SO IT BEGINS! …’ Donald Trump’s dramatic, four-word salvo on Truth Social just before midnight Tuesday means he knows the honeymoon is over. After thumping wins by radical Democrats — a tautology now, of course — the battle lines are clear. The president knows he has just one year until the midterms to fireproof his agenda and safeguard future elections against Democratic fraud. That’s why he wants to end the filibuster. The 60-vote Senate threshold is strangling Republican priorities and is allowing Democrats to shut down the government for the fifth week while blaming Trump. Yet too many Senate Republicans don’t know what time it is. They are clinging to outdated niceties that Democrats are itching to blow up as soon as they get their hands back on the reins — which will be soon if the GOP old guard doesn’t wake up.” (11/05/25)
“When Preston Byrne received a demand from Ofcom for £20,000 last month, he printed it off, put it through the shredder and turned it into bedding for his pet hamster. The lawyer, who is representing US messageboard 4chan in its legal wrangling with Ofcom, even publicly poked fun at Britain’s communications quango, telling it that his hamster – Mr Whiskers – said the letter ‘smelled of failure.’ It’s a sign of just how confident the American attorney is in his assertion that Britain’s Online Safety Act has no legal force outside the UK, despite Ofcom’s claims to the contrary.” (11/05/25)
“American patriots began their rebellion against the British Crown in part because Parliament, in faraway London, forced them to pay taxes on imported goods without their consent. Their slogan, ‘no taxation without representation,’ evolved into a foundational principle of the United States. … You wouldn’t think we’d be relitigating this on the eve of the nation’s 250th birthday. But we are, because President Trump has asserted the power to levy tariffs without any debate or vote in Congress. Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a lawsuit brought by small businesses and states who are affected by the tariffs and want to stop them. It’s a big deal for the economy. But it’s also a historic test of the judiciary’s willingness to act as an independent check on the executive.” (11/06/25)
“Some scholars have come up with the idea that it is not really a ‘civil war’ until there are at least a thousand dead in the fighting. While we disagree with that entire chain of logic, we note that such a milestone has long been passed when it comes to government agencies killing people over political matters, certainly in only a decade or so.” (11/05/25)
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Graham Piro
“At a moment of political turmoil in American history, rife with violence, mass protest, and division, one university chose neutrality. In 1967, when the president of the University of Chicago convened a faculty committee to deliberate on how the university should approach social and political issues, American higher education faced a pivotal moment. The Berkeley Free Speech Movement had changed the face of campus activism just three years prior. American society was rocked by protests against the Vietnam War and racial segregation. That the committee emerged from deliberations with the Kalven Report, which recommended that colleges and universities stay neutral on major social and political issues, was a testament to the committee’s understanding of the purpose of the university to advance knowledge and truth-seeking.” (11/05/25)
Source: The Peaceful Revolutionist
by David S D’Amato
“I suggested last time that what we need to do going forward is redirect politics, making it an exercise in interrogating and exposing the factual story of the system. This is a positive politics that has no use for the prevailing politics of impotent identity on both apparent teams. If you know my positive politics of ‘consistent Manchesterism,’ then you know that what I’m not doing here is criticizing liberalism on substantive grounds. As we’ve discussed, almost all ordinary people, irrespective of their professed political opinions, already practice some broadly liberal and pluralistic politics in their day-to-day lives, in that they are more than willing to treat others with basic decency and respect, on account of the fact that they’re dealing with another human being.” (11/05/25)
“President Donald Trump’s gerrymandering war has never looked riskier for his party. Prodded by Trump, Republicans earlier this year launched an audacious plan to entrench their congressional majority by redrawing House-district maps to squeeze out Democrats — anywhere and everywhere they could. The gambit was an exercise in political power and, coming outside of the traditional decennial redistricting process, without precedent in modern history. Yet if Democrats feared not long ago that they would be locked out of a House majority, their decisive victories across the country last night have made them, arguably, the favorites heading into next year’s midterm elections.” (11/05/25)
“If you’re a Democrat who woke up this morning with a strange and unfamiliar sensation you couldn’t name, let me help you out: It’s called optimism. After running the table in Tuesday’s off-year elections, there’s a sense that the party has at last found new voices and a message — affordability — that resonates with voters. It really hasn’t — not even close. And that’s exactly why Republicans should be scared out of their minds right about now.” (11/05/25)
