Source: CounterPunch
by Robert Harris
“The partisan charade boils down to a question of appearances. For Democrats, Trump is not guilty of war crimes so much as bad manners, crassly admitting that he is after the oil. Better to put lipstick on the pig and claim the empire is ‘promoting democracy.’ All the whining is about Congress being left out of the action.” (01/15/26)
Source: Common Dreams
by Rainer Ebert
“Just a week after Donald Trump first took office as president, he signed Executive Order 13769—his first travel ban. It halted refugee admissions and suspended entry into the US for citizens of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. All of these countries have a Muslim majority. Because of that, and also because Trump had previously said that he intends to ban Muslims from the US, critics referred to the order as a ‘Muslim ban’. The backlash was immediate and broad, coming from Republicans and Democrats alike, as well as US diplomats, business leaders, universities, faith groups, and international organizations such as the United Nations and Amnesty International. Protests erupted in airports and cities across the US. A friend and I (both of us immigrants to the US ourselves) spontaneously drove to the international airport in Houston to express our outrage, along with hundreds of other protesters. I remember I felt hopeful.” (01/15/25)
Source: Stabroek News [Guyana]
“Haitian security forces yesterday bombed three houses belonging to top gang leader Jimmy ‘Barbecue’ Cherizier, local outlet Gazette Haiti reported on Wednesday, after unverified footage showed a large explosion in the capital Port-au-Prince. The footage shared earlier online showed a large explosion destroying at least one building and affecting nearby houses, with a large smoke cloud released into the air. It was not immediately clear if anyone was killed, injured or arrested in the operation.” (01/15/26)
Source: The New Republic
“Mike Johnson Goes Off Rails in Vile Gaslighting Display on Trump, ICE.” (01/15/26)
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Madsen Pirie
“Exposure of BBC left-wing bias has made recent headlines, especially since Panorama spliced the speeches of President trump to fit their own agenda at the expense of the truth. But this is not new. Over 50 years ago, the presenter of their ‘World at One’ was William Hardcastle, a man they said ‘left his hatred of the Tory Party at the door of Broadcasting House.’ Of course, he did no such thing. The selection of stories and the slant put upon them was just as biased then as it is now. … There was one big difference between then and now. Fifty-odd years ago, all people could do was to fume and rage and throw books at the TV because there was no right of reply. Now they can answer back.” (01/15/26)
Source: Independent Institute
by John C Goodman & Pete Sessions
“Congress is deeply divided over what to do about the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance exchanges. Democrats are understandably concerned about potential premium increases, especially for older workers. Republicans want to empower people and give them more choices. We think the goals of both parties can be met if Congress takes a bolder approach to reform. Before you can fix a problem, however, you must acknowledge a problem exists.” (01/15/26)
Source: Quillette
by Renie Anjeh
“The UK’s Labour government is in a parlous state. Following a collapse in popularity that was unprecedented in both speed and extent, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s days in office seem to be numbered. For this to befall a government after less than sixteen months in power is astounding. The Labour Party will be faced with a debate about its future within the next year. Strategy, policies, and ideas will — or should — dominate the upcoming debate.” (01/15/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/01/15/the-alliance-keir-starmer-needs-labour-lib-dems/
Source: SFGate
“A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days. District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure. Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. Spokesperson David Schoetz said they welcome the court’s decision and will continue to work in collaboration with authorities. It’s the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.” (01/15/25)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/judge-hands-offshore-wind-industry-another-21296978.php
Source: Seattle Times
“Wikipedia unveiled new business deals with a slew of artificial intelligence companies on Thursday as it marked its 25th anniversary. The online crowdsourced encyclopedia revealed that it has signed licensing deals with AI companies including Amazon, Meta Platforms, Perplexity, Microsoft and France’s Mistral AI. Wikipedia is one of the last bastions of the early internet, but that original vision of a free online space has been clouded by the dominance of Big Tech platforms and the rise of generative AI chatbots trained on content scraped from the web.” (01/16/25)
Source: Freedom’s Phoenix
“Etienne de la Boetie2 (the author of ‘Government’ — The Biggest Scam in History … Exposed!) comes on the show to give his perspective on world news, economic and market conditions, the state of liberty, technocracy, etc.” (01/15/26)