Source: The UnPopulist
by Andy Craig
“An outlandish scenario to refuse to seat newly elected blue state representatives just became more plausible.” (05/11/26)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/the-vra-ruling-might-have-handed
Source: Axios
“Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary is stepping down after a turbulent 13-month term marked by organizational upheaval, controversies over drug approvals and tensions with the White House. Kyle Diamantas, the agency’s deputy commissioner for food, will serve as acting commissioner, according to sources familiar. … Makary, a Johns Hopkins physician and researcher, faced a series of controversies over abortion pills, flavored vapes, vaccines and rare disease drugs as the agency he oversaw underwent substantial turnover. He faced internal criticism for not accommodating some of President Trump’s priorities, along with complaints from health care investors about unpredictable regulatory decisions that rejected some promising drugs.” (05/11/26)
https://www.axios.com/2026/05/12/makary-out-fda-chief-turmoil
Source: Property and Environment Research
by Dylan Soares
“Restoring flows to California’s rivers is a worthy goal. But in a water-scarce state, lasting conservation requires incentive-driven, voluntary efforts, not litigation that upends centuries of water law. It involves careful balancing among fish, wetlands, farms, cities, and using tools that bring people together to solve hard water conflicts. That principle is at the center of PERC’s amicus brief in Bring Back the Kern v. City of Bakersfield, now before the California Supreme Court.” (05/11/26)
https://www.perc.org/2026/05/11/restoring-rivers-requires-cooperation-not-litigation-shortcuts/
Source: United Press International
“Eileen Wang, the mayor of Arcadia, Calif., has agreed to plead guilty to a charge of acting as an illegal agent for China, federal prosecutors announced Monday, the same day she resigned from office. The 58-year-old is expected to formally plead guilty in the coming weeks to the charge of acting in the United States as an illegal agent, which is punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment. The Justice Department said in a release that Wang admits in her plea agreement to working with Yaoning ‘Mike’ Sun, 65, to operate U.S. News Center, which purported to be a news source for the Chinese-American community, but was used to spread pro-People’s Republic of China content.” (05/11/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/05/11/Arcadia-mayor-charged/3651778548120/
Source: Lions of Liberty
“Talking Money and Baseball with my Daughter.” (05/11/26)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/ff-talking-money-and-baseball-with-my-daughter
Source: Aaron Ross Powell’s Blog
by Aaron Ross Powell
“To harm someone is to inflict suffering on them and to do so out of greed, hatred, or delusion — the three roots Pali Buddhism calls unwholesome. The suffering itself and the mental state and motivations of the person causing it go together in the analysis. The upshot is that, even toward enemies, it’s wrong and, well, harmful to cause harm. What we actually want is for our enemies to be less harmful, which means released from the unwholesome states that drive their harm-doing in the first place, and so less likely to inflict suffering on others, including on us.” (05/11/26)
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton
“There are many things which are part of ‘The Price of Liberty’ that lovers of liberty must pay. It is not just our ‘lives, fortunes, and sacred honor’ that are sacrificed for freedom. One of those offerings on the altar of liberty is giving up cherished beliefs and ‘facts’ that were taught us by our parents and grandparents, or even by others whom we love and respect, or schools from kindergarten to graduate school.” (05/11/26)
Source: SFGate
“The leader of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group called on the government Tuesday to withdraw from direct talks with Israel, calling them a concession and urging ‘indirect negotiation.’ Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold two days of talks in Washington starting Thursday in an attempt to end the latest fighting that broke out two months ago, following the Iran war, and discuss the future of relations between the two sides that have been at war since Israel was created in 1948. Naim Kassem said in a letter directed to the group’s officials that direct negotiations benefit Israel and that they are ‘concessions by Lebanese authorities.’ He said Lebanon’s government should instead resort to indirect negotiations with Israel, as in previous years, such as when a ceasefire was reached in November 2024.” (05/12/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/hezbollah-leader-urges-lebanon-to-quit-direct-22254773.php
Source: Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael
“The Yellow Vests and the Battle For Democracy w/ Ida Susser.” (05/11/26)
Source: Glenn Greenwald
by Glenn Greenwald
“Ridglan Farms was forced to release thousands of beagles from hideous experiments because activists formed a trans-ideological coalition. AOC-style liberals would never dirty themselves in that way.” (05/11/26)
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-self-indulgent-dead-end-politics