PragerU Wants to Capitalize on PBS Defunding

Source: The American Prospect
by Naomi Bethune

“On July 24th, President Trump signed the Rescissions Act of 2025 into law, which clawed back $1.1 billion in previously appropriated federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for the next two fiscal years. Passage of the law left PBS and NPR, the two main beneficiaries, at an unprecedented loss …. Without public media support, America’s most in-need educators may be forced to turn to other providers of educational materials to be implemented into lesson plans. Some states have offered a controversial alternative: the Prager University Foundation, or PragerU. The ideologically conservative network could become the de facto beneficiary of PBS defunding.” [editor’s note: And this would be disastrous exactly how? – SAT] (08/15/25)

https://prospect.org/education/2025-08-15-prageru-wants-to-capitalize-on-pbs-defunding/

Steve Trinward

Ethics complaints accuse US House speaker of using campaign funds to pay Issa rent

Source: San Diego Union-Tribune

“The leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, the person who is second in the presidential line of succession, has been accused of illegally paying rent to East County Rep. Darrell Issa from campaign cash, two complaints filed with federal regulators show. Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana and his campaign ‘appear to have used campaign funds to rent Johnson a personal residence, a clear-cut violation of federal campaign finance laws that prohibit using campaign funds to pay for personal expenses,’ the Federal Elections Commission complaint alleges. The complaint was filed earlier this month by the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan government-watchdog nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. … Federal law prohibits legislators from using campaign funds for personal expenses. Johnson’s campaign said the payments are strictly for office space, but the complaint says lawmakers are not permitted to live in office space.” (08/16/25)

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/08/16/ethics-complaints-accuse-house-speaker-of-using-campaign-funds-to-pay-issa-rent/

Thomas L. Knapp

Pushing for Immoderate Moderatism

Source: ProSocial Libertarians
by Andrew Jason Cohen

“The power of the presidency has increased all of my lifetime — one reason it’s always hard for me to determine which president in my lifetime I like the best (they were all bad). Undoing that would take a lot. Whoever becomes president next will face huge temptation to make use of the increased powers of the presidency (legal or not). If JD Vance is the next president, it’s hard to imagine he wouldn’t use those powers to further advance the agenda of his National Conservatism, pushing us toward an authoritarian theocracy. If Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the next president, it’s hard to imagine she wouldn’t seek to replace Trump appointees with leftists and use her power to advance that agenda. … what we need is an immoderate moderate.” (08/15/25)

https://prosociallibertarians.substack.com/p/pushing-for-immoderate-moderatism

Thomas L. Knapp

UK: Cooper defends regime’s latest justification for taking political prisoners as 60 more face charges

Source: BBC News [UK]

“The home secretary has again defended the proscription of Palestine Action as a terrorist group, saying it is more than ‘a regular protest group known for occasional stunts.’ Writing in the Observer, Yvette Cooper said the group had claimed responsibility for incidents that saw those allegedly involved subsequently charged with a range of crimes, including violent disorder and aggravated burglary. … More than 700 people have been arrested since the group was banned by the government on 5 July – including more than 500 at a demonstration in central London last week. On Saturday, Norfolk Police arrested 13 people accused of supporting the group, after a protest in Norwich city centre. … Palestine Action has engaged in activities that have predominantly targeted arms companies since the start of the current war in Gaza.” (08/17/25)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gj93j2r2go

Thomas L. Knapp

The Meaning of the ​​Semiquincentennial

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Jeffrey A Tucker

“The word semiquincentennial is not likely to catch on – it’s too hard to say – but it means the 250th anniversary. For the USA, that happens July 4, 2026, because we count our birthday from one of the most remarkable documents issued in the history of man: the Declaration of Independence. That alone is notable. We don’t date our birth from the Articles of Confederation, the ratification of the US Constitution, or back much earlier to the landing on Plymouth Rock. No, we date it from the time when some men representing everyone said that we are now independent from the British Empire. We can and will govern ourselves. The nation’s birthday is not the government’s birthday. It marks instead a revolution against government.” (08/15/25)

https://brownstone.org/articles/the-meaning-of-the-semiquincentennial/

Thomas L. Knapp

Erin becomes a Category 3 hurricane in the Caribbean and is expected to strengthen further

Source: ABC News

“Erin became a Category 3 hurricane in the Caribbean early Saturday and is expected to strengthen further during the day, the National Hurricane Center reported. The storm is currently 170 miles (275 kilometers) northeast of Anguilla with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (195 kph). It is moving west-northwest at 20 mph (31 kph). It is currently not forecast to hit land, but strong winds are affecting nearby islands, prompting forecasters to warn of possible flooding and landslides. The NHC said it currently expected Erin to become a Category 4 storm later Saturday but to eventually swerve away from the continental United States.” (08/16/25)

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/erin-category-3-hurricane-caribbean-expected-strengthen-124705017

Thomas L. Knapp

Trump and the Necessity of Democratic Struggle

Source: Quillette
by Matt Johnson

“Liberal pluralism remains the best way to secure as much freedom as possible for a nation with 340 million diverse inhabitants, and this point should become clearer as clashing illiberal forces compete to impose their own versions of law and morality on everyone else.” (08/16/25)

https://quillette.com/2025/08/16/trump-and-the-necessity-of-democratic-struggle/

Thomas L. Knapp