Source: The Volokh Conspiracy
by Mark Movesesian

“One of the most difficult areas in church–state law involves the conflict between freedom of speech and freedom of religion. In the United States, at least at the level of basic principle, that conflict has been largely resolved for decades. Ever since Cantwell v. Connecticut, we have accepted that people don’t have a right to be free from criticism — or even offense — directed at their religious beliefs. Speakers may criticize religion, ridicule religious doctrines, and even confront believers directly, so long as they respect ordinary time, place, and manner restrictions and do not incite imminent violence. In other words, in American constitutional law, freedom of speech generally trumps claims that religious sensibilities have been wounded. The First Amendment does not contain a right not to be insulted. The situation in Europe is more complicated.” (01/20/26)

https://reason.com/volokh/2026/01/20/free-speech-religious-offense-and-a-transatlantic-divide/

Source: Common Dreams
by Norman Solomon

“The past year has completely discredited any claim that choosing between the Democratic and Republican parties would be merely a matter of ‘pick your poison’ with the same end result. In countless terrible ways, the last 12 months have shown that Donald Trump’s party is bent on methodically inflicting vast cruelty and injustice while aiming to crush what’s left of democracy and the rule of law. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party’s leadership persists with the kind of elitist political approach that helped Trump win in 2024. Hidebound and unimaginative, Senate leader Chuck Schumer and House leader Hakeem Jeffries have been incapable of inspiring the people whose high-turnout votes will be essential to ending Republican control of Congress and the White House.” (01/20/25)

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/corporate-democrats-trump

Source: Law & Liberty
by Corbin K Barthold

“The United States and China are the world’s two great powers. The US boasts the largest economy, the global reserve currency, the leading AI firms, and a military with unmatched worldwide reach. China has the globe’s second-largest economy (far ahead of third-place Germany); commanding positions in key fields such as drones, batteries, and rare earths; an increasingly formidable navy; and, by virtue of its export dominance, substantial leverage over global trade. Cold War II is taking shape. Or is it? Dig deeper, and both nations start to look like surprisingly fragile societies drifting slowly but steadily toward disaster.” (01/20/26)

https://lawliberty.org/chinas-debt-problem-and-our-own/

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Joel Salatin

“Food, which generally originates with a farmer, gardener, or orchardist, is fast losing its hands-on persona and increasingly gaining a mechanical, chemical platform. Over the last decade, the United States has lost about 28,000 farms annually. While some of the loss is due to urbanization, most of the land remains farmland, either managed by other farmers or simply abandoned. While there are 1.3 million farmers over age 65, only 300,000 are 35 or younger. In 2022, the average American farmer was 58—years older than the average age in other vibrant economic sectors. The American business landscape is largely anti-people. The current rush to artificial intelligence reflects how eagerly most businesses seek to eliminate people. The farming sector illustrates this trend better than most.” (01/20/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/were-losing-the-human-touch-in-food/