Libertarian Angle, 08/20/26
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Libertarian Angle: The Ten Commandments in the Public Schools?” (08/20/26)
NASA calls off mission to save Swift Observatory telescope in space
Source: United Press International
“NASA and Katalyst Space have announced that the mission to boost the altitude of a Swift Observatory space telescope has failed. The announcement came down on Wednesday after an attempt to use the LINK spacecraft ran into altitude control issues, NASA and Katalyst Space said in a press release. The spacecraft was meant to raise NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory to a higher altitude. LINK is still set to attempt rendezvous and proximity operations with the Swift Observatory. … If the mission was successful, LINK would have allowed the Swift Observatory to extend its mission, the press release says. NASA expects Swift to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere this year.” (08/20/26)
From Spectral Evidence to Self-Evident Truths
Source: The UnPopulist
by Andy Craig
“Bathshua Pope, sometimes referred to by her maiden name of Folger, lived with her husband and mother-in-law at a sawmill in Salem. When the mill suffered some kind of mechanical breakdown in 1692, it was attributed to supposed dealings with the devil. Bathshua was among the accusers, ultimately providing ‘evidence’ that helped send at least three people to the hangman’s noose. … Bathshua died in 1726, three years after her restless teenage nephew left Boston to seek work as a typesetter in Philadelphia, betting his future on the burgeoning industry of the printing press. As far as we can tell, he never mentioned his aunt. … The woman who had participated in actions scarcely distinguishable from human sacrifice, and her nephew, the boy whose name would echo through the ages as a harbinger of modernity: Benjamin Franklin.” (08/20/26)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/from-spectral-evidence-to-self-evident
The Case Against Bond Market Panic
Source: Paul Krugman
by Paul Krugman
“Yesterday I wrote about how interest rates are rising around the world. I acknowledged that the higher rates are a real problem, but argued that there is no evidence that the U.S. faces a looming Greek-type debt crisis. Today I’ll talk about why it’s important for the future Democratic administration (assuming that we have free and fair elections in 2028) to keep a sense of perspective and not panic about the size of the federal debt.” (08/20/26)
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-case-against-bond-market-panic
Advisory Opinions, 08/20/26
Source: The Dispatch
“Let’s Pretend We’re Justices | Interview: Chris Scalia.” (08/20/26)
https://thedispatch.com/podcast/advisoryopinions/lets-pretend-were-justices-interview-chris-scalia/
Of course we can make ourselves poorer — but why bother?
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Tim Worstall
“There are things it is possible to do and which are also things we might not want to do – however possible they are …. ‘Food Foundation sounds alarm over supply risks and price shocks as about 40% of Britain’s food is imported’ …. Yes, of course we can grow the food we need in Britain. … Trade means we can have more, different, foods cheaper and also that added bonus of leaving a bit of land for the wildlife. Bonzer, eh? We are richer through trade. At which point we’ve an actual think tank insisting we must make ourselves poorer by giving up those advantages of trade.” (08/20/26)
https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/of-course-we-can-make-ourselves-poorer-but-why-bother
Has Trump Lost His Fear of Markets?
Source: The New Republic
by Timothy Noah
“The madness in the bond market suggests that the death of T(rump) A(lways) C(hickens) O(ut) is nigh.” (08/20/26)
https://newrepublic.com/article/214535/trump-iran-bond-markets-taco
Global wheat buyers brace for supply squeeze amid Black Sea attacks
Source: Reuters
“Global wheat importers are bracing for tighter supplies as attacks on Black Sea grain infrastructure disrupt shipments, heightening food security risks for top buyers such as Egypt and Indonesia, while driving up prices. Benchmark Chicago futures have climbed more than 17% since the start of July, fuelled largely by a shortfall in Black Sea supplies, with physical prices making strong gains in rival exporters Argentina, Australia and the United States. … For now, stronger harvests across parts of the Middle East and North Africa have cushioned the immediate impact, with the Egyptian government procuring record volumes of local wheat and better rains boosting crop prospects in Morocco and Tunisia.” (08/20/26)
The Anarchist Experience, episode 594
Source: The Anarchist Experience
“Rich & Riley talk about what Riley’s been up to while gallivanting, and will Utah run out of water if they put in a new data center.” (08/20/26)
https://theanarchistexperience.wordpress.com/2026/08/20/the-anarchist-experience-594/
The Price of Portland’s Luxury Beliefs
Source: Law & Liberty
by Harrison Kass
“Portland, Oregon exists in a pretzel-like, seemingly unsustainable juxtaposition to itself. Golden hour moments of pastoral perfection, in the shadow of mountains, at the banks of rivers. Afternoons in coffee shops and art museums and concert halls. The best food in the world. Meth psychotics, stalking the pavement, screaming at the sky. Homeless camps that sprawl. Emergency responders too overworked to respond. The city offers both paragon examples of urban living and seeming proof that western civilization has failed—often within mere blocks of one another. While paradoxical, the conditions on the ground aren’t mysterious, or arbitrary, or altogether externally-driven. The conditions are the logical end-result of explicit policy, a reflection of legislative and executive priorities.” (08/20/26)
https://lawliberty.org/the-price-of-portlands-luxury-beliefs/