Source: The Tom Woods Show
“Trump Warming to Zelensky? The State of Russia and Ukraine
Read the original article at TomWoods.com. https://tomwoods.com/ep-2778-trump-warming-to-zelensky-the-state-of-russia-and-ukraine/.” (07/15/26)
https://tomwoods.com/ep-2778-trump-warming-to-zelensky-the-state-of-russia-and-ukraine/
Source: Semafor
by David Weigel
“Last month, after Abdul El-Sayed and I wrapped up our interview in the Detroit suburbs, I mentioned the ongoing effort by centrist Democrats to link him to Graham Platner. The candidate laughed. El-Sayed rose on his strength during short TV hits, where he would talk about his issues — ‘Medicare for All,’ no more wars — and the interviewer would ask about newsy topics like Platner, who used some of the same consultants as him. El-Sayed liked to joke that he was already running for Senate as a Muslim with the middle name Muhammad, ‘and now I have to carry that guy?’ If centrists have their way: Yes, he does.” (07/15/26)
https://www.semafor.com/article/07/15/2026/how-obama-fits-into-democratic-centrists-comeback-plot
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
“Casinos compete with online prediction markets. One way to compete is just to compete. If some of your casino customers are drifting to online betting, find ways to make the in-person experience more appealing. Improve advertising. Jigger the odds ever-so-slightly more in favor of players. Increase the dollar value of wins. Etc. We might call this the economic means of competition. The other way to compete? Deploy the political means: cajole government to bludgeon competitors. Thus the American Gaming Association, which represents casinos, would like the federal government to do something to impede online prediction markets — the trading of contracts about what’s going to happen in sports and otherwise on platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket.” (07/15/26)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/07/15/bet-on-rigging-the-games/
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“My novel Salamander is a fantasy in which some mages are truthtellers. I did not put as much thought as I should have into the question of how a society would be different if it was possible to tell when someone was (subjectively) lying, a question relevant to fictional worlds but also to possible futures. A better understanding of how the mind works might produce a real lie detector, one that reliably reported whether a speaker believed that what he said was true. What effects would it have on our society, assuming the lie detector was inexpensive and available to almost everyone?” (07/15/26)
https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/if-lie-detectors-worked
Source: Liberal Currents
by Chuck Babbage
“At the end of May, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) put forward a proposal for rules governing federal financial assistance, which includes almost all grant making in the United States including scientific research. OMB, which is run by the conservative machinator Russell Vought, has been a nexus of major Trump demolition jobs, including the immediate impoundment of scientific grants when Trump retook office in 2025. So scientific research in the United States was already on the run before this latest proposal. The Trump administration hates America’s research institutions.” (07/15/26)
Source: US News & World Report
“Protesters gathered in downtown Kyiv on Thursday after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy moved to dismiss his defense minister as parliament convened to appoint a new prime minister as part of a major government reshuffle. The shake-up could become a test of Zelenskyy’s political authority as Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion approaches 4½ years. Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, whose technological expertise is credited in part with a significant improvement in Ukraine’s military performance in recent months against Russia’s bigger army, was expected to leave the government after just six months in the post. Before he became defense minister last January, 35-year-old Fedorov was the head of Ukraine’s digital transformation policies and seen as a modernizer. He won public popularity by spearheading Ukraine’s speedy development and deployment of drone technology and introducing several successful e-government platforms.” (07/16/26)
Source: Brennan Center
“Trump Ramps Up Election Meddling (with Larry Norden and Wendy Weiser).” (07/15/26)
Source: Free the People
“This UFC Champion Is Fighting for Freedom | Guest: Renato Moicano | Ep 395.” (07/15/26)
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Blaise Malley
“Congress returned to Washington DC this week after its July 4 recess. With President Donald Trump having recently declared the memorandum of understanding with Iran ‘over’ and with the two countries exchanging attacks, the war has predictably taken center stage. Congressional Democrats have been mostly unified against the war, but this week has presented opportunities for members to use new vehicles to express their opposition via the power of the purse. On Tuesday, every present Democratic Senator voted to block debate over the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes the appropriation of Pentagon funds. The bill, which needed 60 votes to advance, failed by a 50-46 tally.” (07/15/26)
Source: Freedom and Flourishing
by Winton Bates
“In his book, The Enlightenment: The Pursuit of Happiness 1680-1790, Ritchie Robertson uses the term ‘Enlighteners’ to describe the proponents of the Enlightenment. I will briefly describe Robertson’s book before explaining how my reading of it has caused me to consider the question posed above.” (07/15/26)
https://www.freedomandflourishing.com/2026/07/did-enlighteners-reject-aristotle.html