“This ain’t gonna work’: How Russia pulled the plug on Assad

Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Connor Echols

“In early November of last year, the Assad regime had a lot to look forward to. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had just joined fellow Middle Eastern leaders at a pan-Islamic summit in Saudi Arabia, marking a major step in his return to the international fold. … Less than a month later, Assad fled the country in a Russian plane as Turkish-backed opposition forces began their final approach to Damascus. Most observers were taken aback by this development. But long-time Middle East analyst Neil Partrick was less surprised. As Partrick details in his new book, ‘State Failure in the Middle East,’ the seemingly resurgent Assad regime had by that point been reduced to a hollowed-out state apparatus, propped up by foreign backers. When those backers pulled out, Assad was left with little choice but to flee.” (12/08/25)

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/assad-regime-collapse/

Romania: Bucharest voters elect centrist mayor

Source: Politico

“Center-right politician Ciprian Ciucu will be Bucharest’s new mayor after defeating a far-right candidate in Sunday elections. Ciucu, the candidate of the center-right National Liberal Party and a close ally of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, won roughly 36 percent of the vote. Ciucu defeated Anca Alexandrescu, a TV presenter backed by Romania’s largest far-right party (AUR), who finished second with about 22 percent. The Social Democratic Party’s candidate Daniel Băluță came third, despite being projected to win in many opinion polls.” (12/08/25)

https://www.politico.eu/article/bucharest-election-mayor-centril-ciprian-ciucu-reject-far-right

It’s Time to Make America Truly Tribal Again

Source: exile in happy valley
by Nicky Reid

“Way back in the 1700s there was this fucked up little place called Florida, or at least that’s what the Spaniards called it. The original natives of the region had multiple different names for this untamable swampland but most of them were wiped out by slaughter and disease from the Conquistadors who declared the wild mess, Florida. They didn’t last long though. In fact, those butchers only managed to build and populate a few colonialist missions before their glorious Catholic empire collapsed in the tall grass surrounding them and, in spite of such efforts, most of Florida remained a verdant wilderness teeming with all kinds of shit that freaked white people the fuck out- snakes, alligators, mosquitos, humidity … But there was one tribe of Indians just wild enough to call this no-man’s-land home.” (12/07/25)

https://exileinhappyvalley.blogspot.com/2025/12/its-time-to-make-america-truly-tribal.html

Minnesota’s $70 million fraud exposes how Dems built system designed to be robbed

Source: Fox News
by Jason Rantz

“For years, Democrats assured us that expanding government programs was an act of moral heroism — that the only thing standing between America and utopia was more taxpayer money flowing through more ‘community-based’ nonprofits embracing ‘equity-centered’ missions. Then Minnesota happened, exposing a truth the radical left will never admit: The system isn’t broken. This is exactly how it’s designed to work. Over 70 people connected to the Minnesota nonprofit Feeding Our Future face federal charges in the country’s largest COVID pandemic fraud scandal. It was primarily Somali American defendants who allegedly stole funds meant for low-income children by submitting falsified invoices, fake meal counts and fabricated rosters. The organizations billed the government for tens of millions of unserved meals, using the stolen money for luxury cars, beachfront property and homes. It’s jaw-dropping — but it’s not surprising. And it happened because Democrats built a system practically engineered for abuse by the nonprofit industrial complex.” (12/08/25)

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/minnesotas-70-million-fraud-exposes-democrats-built-system-designed-robbed

Environmental Groups Call On Congress to Impose Moratorium on New AI Data Centers

Source: Common Dreams

“Environmental and economic justice advocates alike have been sounding the alarm for months regarding the Trump administration’s push to built massive data centers to support artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency in communities across the United States (regardless of local opposition) and on Monday Congress heard from a coalition of more than 200 groups demanding action to stop what they called ‘one of the biggest environmental and social threats of our generation’. Led by Food and Water Watch (FWW), which originally demanded a moratorium on new AI data centers in October, more than 230 organizations have signed a letter warning that thus far, Congress has failed to take action to stop the rapid expansion despite the fact that ‘the harms of data center growth are increasingly well-established, and they are massive.'” (12/08/25)

https://www.commondreams.org/news/ai-data-centers-energy-news

Cult(ure) of Abuse

Source: The Reframe
by AR Moxon

“Man, I don’t know. Lately it’s hard to know where even to start or where to begin. Do I have to list all the news stories? Either you’re aware or you aren’t. Many aren’t. I don’t know what to do with that fact, but it seems like a choice, though an understandable one. Awareness carries a high cost these days. It’s exhausting. It’s meant to be exhausting, I think. This is how supremacy works. The costs of reparation are very high, and the cost of awareness comes first of all.” (12/07/25)

https://www.the-reframe.com/cult-ure-of-abuse/?ref=the-reframe-newsletter

Trump: Nice merger deal ya got there … be a shame if anything happened to it

Source: NBC News

“President Donald Trump said Sunday that the proposed $72 billion merger between Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery ‘could be a problem’ because of the amount of market share the resulting company would have. … Trump said he would consult ‘some economists’ before the deal get his stamp of approval. ‘I’ll be involved in that decision, too,’ he said. Historically, presidents have not often gotten involved in antitrust approvals when companies seek to merge. Neither Netflix nor Warner Bros. own any broadcast stations, so the deal would not require approval by Federal Communications Commission. However, it may still require approval by the Justice Department’s antitrust division.” (12/07/25)

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-says-netflix-warner-bros-deal-problem-will-involved-approval-rcna247923