Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan
“Maximally civilized societies don’t just scrupulously respect members’ rights to life and property; they afford exactly the same rights to all intelligent beings. Maximally barbaric societies, in contrast, see nothing wrong with murdering and robbing outsiders, even if they treat their own members well.” (09/30/25)
Hey, everyone …
As I periodically remind y’all, the freedom movement’s daily newspaper is a reader-supported publication.
I try to go easy on that for nine months out of the year, but every October 1, we run a “year-end fundraiser.”
And … it’s October 1. So off we go:
Last year, our goal was $5,351. This year it’s $5,501. More than last year because, you know, inflation. $5,501 because I like prime numbers.
The good news: As has been the case for several years now, a generous reader is offering “matching funds” for half of that goal … meaning that all of our several thousand OTHER daily readers on the web, via email, and on social media, only need to come up with $2,750.50.
And once we’ve hit our goal, you will hear not a single word from me about money for the rest of the year, and only the occasional “we’re reader-supported” mention for another nine months after that.
So: The quicker the better, and the beatings will continue until morale improves! That URL again:
PLEASE: DO NOT MAIL CHECKS WITHOUT EMAILING ME ([email protected]) FIRST!
Why? Well, they need to be made out to a particular person (we’re not incorporated, we’re not a non-profit, etc.) in order to be cashed. And, I will hopefully be moving during the fundraiser; my address will change when I do move.
I’m sure I’ll be making the case for helping us out many times between now and hitting our goal, so I’ll keep it to one sentence this time:
We’ve been doing this since the mid-1990s, and we’ve never charged a mandatory fee, but we gotta eat.
Have a great day, and support the freedom movement’s daily newspaper!
Yours in liberty,
Tom Knapp
Publisher
Rational Review News Digest / Freedom News Daily
Source: Newsweek
“A senior Hamas official said Wednesday the group is ‘likely’ to reject U.S. President Donald Trump’s newly announced 20-point peace proposal for Gaza, a plan that Washington and Jerusalem maintain could end the fighting and secure the release of the remaining [48 Israeli hostages held by Hamas and some, but not all, Palestinian hostages held by Israel]. The official, speaking to the BBC, argued the framework ‘serves Israel’s interests’ while ‘ignoring those of the Palestinian people,’ and added that Hamas will neither disarm nor accept the deployment of an international stabilization force — both central requirements of Trump’s initiative.” (10/01/25)
https://www.newsweek.com/hamas-deals-blow-to-trump-peace-plan-for-gaza-report-10809035
Source: Law & Liberty
by Sarah Burns
“One of the most valuable elements of the creation of the Constitution was the deliberation that took place in the Philadelphia Convention. The very act of discussing important matters of state over the course of time allows for compromise and clarity (and likely a good deal of frustration). The act of deliberation is an important safeguard in democracy. It is even more important in deciding about war and peace. I think most founders thought there should be some discussion about when to initiate hostilities, with a land invasion as an exception. Beyond that, I still think the founders and many who followed thought that it was important, arguably necessary for a president to ask for congressional permission, wait for their deliberation, and accept the result. … Presidents today have too many tools at their fingertips. They barely even ask forgiveness, let alone permission. Worse still, Congress doesn’t force presidents to do so.” (09/30/25)
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Singing the Shutdown Blues.” (09/30/25)
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“The US government shut down [sic] on Wednesday, after congressional Democrats refused to support a Republican plan to extend funding for federal departments unless they won a series of concessions centered on healthcare. The GOP, which controls the Senate and the House of Representatives, repudiated their demands, setting off a legislative scramble that lasted into the hours before funding lapsed at midnight, when the Senate failed to advance both parties’ bills to keep funding going.” (10/01/25)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/oct/01/us-government-shuts-down
Source: Notablog
by Chris Matthew Sciabarra
“For more than two decades, I was associated with The Journal of Ayn Rand Studies (JARS). That journal’s debut issue was published in September 1999. … Not too long after the debut of that first issue, Bill [Bradford] received a threatening letter addressed to The Journal of Ayn Rand Studies Foundation, dated September 30, 1999 — twenty-six years ago today. It was from the New York offices of a prestigious law firm specializing in intellectual property rights. The lawyer wrote on behalf of their clients: Leonard Peikoff as the sole heir and executor of Rand’s estate, and the Ayn Rand Institute. We were informed that the Estate owned a valid federal trademark for the name ‘AYN RAND,’ which had been registered on February 10, 1998 (Registration No. 2,135,457).” (09/30/25)
Source: CoinDesk
“Bitcoin has broken through the $116,000 mark, climbing 2% in the past 24 hours and briefly reaching as high as $116,600. The rally is unfolding against a backdrop of a U.S. government shutdown and record-setting strength in gold, which is trading near $3,900. Ether is following suit, jumping nearly 4% in the same 24-hour period to trade at $4,287.” (10/01/25)
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“‘Military leaders have raised serious concerns about the Trump administration’s forthcoming defense strategy,’ the Washington Post reports. ‘The critiques from multiple top officers … come as [US defense secretary Pete] Hegseth reorders U.S. military priorities — centering the Pentagon on perceived threats to the homeland, narrowing U.S. competition with China, and downplaying America’s role in Europe and Africa.’ … we should welcome even the slightest reorientation of US military policy toward ‘national defense’ rather than foreign meddling.” (09/30/25)
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“A Ukrainian diver suspected of being involved in causing undersea explosions that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany in 2022 has been detained in Poland. The diver, identified as Volodymyr Z under Germany’s privacy laws, was detained on Tuesday near the Polish capital, Warsaw, local radio station RMF FM and his lawyer said. The lawyer, Tymoteusz Paprocki, said he would challenge his client’s transfer to Germany, where investigators had launched a case into the attack, which was described by both Moscow and the West as an act of sabotage.” (09/30/25)