“As U.S. and Iranian negotiators prepare for more talks in Geneva, the White House is reportedly considering an initial, targeted military strike — with the possibility of broader action if Tehran refuses to accept demands for ‘zero enrichment’ of nuclear material. In his State of the Union address Tuesday, President Trump argued that last year’s U.S. strikes had ‘obliterated’ Iran’s program even as his administration continues negotiations now, without a clear objective. The strategic logic appears straightforward: strike first, demonstrate resolve, increase pressure and force Iran back to the table on American terms. Before momentum carries the country further down that path, the nation is owed clear answers. Decisions of this kind should not rest solely on tactical calculation; they require clarity about legal authority, strategic reality and risk.” (02/26/26)
“While the Pentagon has contracts with all the leading AI labs, Anthropic until this month was the only one contracted for AI use in classified settings: Claude was, for instance, reportedly involved in the operation to capture Nicolas Maduro. But Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has grown unhappy with two elements of the DoD’s contract with Anthropic. One, Anthropic won’t let its AI be used to conduct mass surveillance of Americans. Two, it won’t let the DoD use it to operate autonomous weapons systems that can identify, track, and kill targets without direct human involvement. To the Defense Department, the idea that a contractor would be able to tie the military’s hands like this is outlandish …. Hegseth could simply drop Anthropic’s contract over this …. But he doesn’t really want to …. So instead, Hegseth has issued Anthropic an ultimatum: Change your policy, or we’re going to start getting nasty.” (02/26/26)
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Marie McMullan
“When student journalism came under fire last year, those sparks caught the public’s attention. With the ousting of The Indiana Daily Student’s advisor and temporary ban on its print issues, the University of Alabama’s decision to close two student-run magazines, and sadly more, 2025 was a busy year for student press censors. But not all efforts to suppress student journalists are as eye-catching. To help understand how censorship can sneak into newsrooms, here are six signs to look out for …” (02/26/26)
“There are people who are peddling the lie that sexual abuse – Jeffrey Epstein, Howard Rubin, Harvey Weinstein – is about sexual liberalism run amok. … it is not. It’s about POWER. Successful abusers know who to abuse. They know when to abuse. They find vulnerable people and make sure they’re not able to leave before they start abusing them. Howard Rubin didn’t rape [h]is assistant Jennifer Powers. He didn’t rape his kids’ dance instructor or his wife or daughter. He had Jennifer find women in desperate financial need and offered them $2,000 for a night and $5,000 for a great night (according to Rubin). She told them it would involve ‘light fetish work.’ They’d establish a safe word. Then, when they were alone in a room Rubin would tie them up, gag them, and rape and torture them (allegedly?!).” (02/26/26)
“Americans are rightfully concerned about affordability. From healthcare and housing to groceries and utility bills, Americans have been finding these everyday necessities difficult to afford for far too many years. In response, President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are pursuing multiple policies meant to lower costs for the American people. While the President and our former Republican congressional colleagues usually have good economic and regulatory instincts, there are some policies worth reconsidering, as they could exacerbate the affordability crisis. For example, as Congress assesses the proposed 10% price cap on credit, Republicans should follow their instincts by recognizing price controls like this have a long history of producing harmful unintended consequences for working families and small businesses. When governments mandate an artificially low price for a product or service in a competitive market, the result is always the same: reduced supply.” (02/26/26)
“Hating the rich has been a popular pastime since democracy was invented. The ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes even played on this fact in his comedy Ecclesiazusae, written four centuries before Christ, in which the idealistic Praxagora proposes building a utopian community in which ‘there will no longer be either rich or poor,’ but ‘all property [will] be in common.’ When a friend asks her ‘But who will till the soil?’ Praxagora unselfconsciously replies: ‘The slaves.’ The rhetoric hasn’t improved much since.” (02/26/26)
“‘We did not protect President Trump.’ That is what Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on January 30, after what he described as the final release of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. It turns out that was not true. According to a new report by NPR, the DOJ is withholding ‘more than 50 pages of FBI interviews, as well as notes from conversations with a woman who accused Trump of sexual abuse decades ago when she was a minor.’ The New York Times also reported Wednesday that the DOJ withheld summaries of three FBI interviews with the woman about her interactions with Trump. They released a fourth FBI interview, where the woman made allegations about Epstein.” (02/26/26)
“Millions are failing college math. Advocates say the problem isn’t students, but decades-old curricula requiring Cold War-era algebra skills.” (02/26/26)
