The Genie in the Bottle: Vaccine Rites

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Daniel Polikoff

“The more forceful, invasive, violent, and dangerous the deed performed upon the body, the more powerful the assault upon the sovereignty of the individual person. Corporal punishment of any kind violates the inherent dignity of human beings. Torture aims to break the human spirit by abusing the human body, crippling its form and impairing its function so it no longer so readily stands, upright, as vessel of immortal spirit. By contrast, forced injection entails — no blows landed upon the surface of the body — but penetration of the physical interior of the person. Coerced vaccination forces entry into the figurative as well as literal bloodstream of the unwilling subject.” (02/09/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/the-genie-in-the-bottle-vaccine-rites/

Thomas L. Knapp

US Treasuries Decline on News Chinese Banks Asked to Limit US Bonds

Source: Bloomberg

“Treasuries extended losses after Chinese regulators reportedly asked the nation’s financial institutions to rein in their holdings of US bonds. Yields on 10-year Treasuries rose as much as four basis points on the day to 4.25% after trading around 4.22% earlier. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dropped 0.1%. Chinese officials had urged banks to limit purchases of US government bonds, and instructed those with high exposure to pare their positions, according to people familiar with the matter. The move was framed around diversifying risk rather than anything to do with geopolitical maneuvering or a fundamental loss of confidence in US creditworthiness. The directive doesn’t apply to China’s state holdings of US Treasuries.” (02/09/26)

https://archive.is/Lb821

Thomas L. Knapp

Alienated by Trump, Europeans Finally Take Responsibility for Defense

Source: Reason
by JD Tuccille

“There are downsides to insulting and threatening friends and acting like a Mafia don slapping around his goons. You risk turning them against you, for one thing. But if those friends have been freeloading off you for years, well, there are some upsides, too. We’re seeing that as President Donald Trump’s rough treatment of our European allies has driven them to huffily make steps to actually defend themselves rather than continue to rely on the American defense umbrella.” (02/09/26)

https://reason.com/2026/02/09/alienated-by-trump-europeans-finally-take-responsibility-for-defense/s

Thomas L. Knapp

War crimes prosecutors seek 45 years’ prison for Kosovo ex-president

Source: Reuters

“International war crimes prosecutors said on Monday Kosovo’s former president Hashim Thaci controlled ethnic Albanian guerrillas and should be convicted of war crimes and sentenced to 45 years in prison. Thaci and three other ex-Kosovo Liberation Army commanders are charged with persecution, murder, torture and forced disappearances of people during and shortly after the 1998-99 uprising that eventually brought independence for the Albanian majority region from Serbia. … Thaci, 57, who served as prime minister, foreign minister and president of independent Kosovo between 2008 and 2020, and his co-accused deny all the charges.” (02/09/26)

https://www.reuters.com/world/war-crimes-prosecutors-seek-45-years-prison-for-kosovo-ex-president-2026-02-09/

Thomas L. Knapp

Spain: Sánchez’s Socialists suffer heavy loss in regional election

Source: Politico

“The Socialist Party of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez endured a major defeat on Sunday in an election in the Spanish region of Aragón, while the far right made substantial gains. The conservative People’s Party (PP), which governs the north-eastern region, came first with 34.3 percent support, but its 26 seats represented a loss of two and left it well short of a majority in the 67-seat chamber. With 99 percent of votes counted the Socialists secured 24.3 percent, good for 18 seats but representing a loss of five, equaling their worst-ever result in the region.” (02/09/26)

https://www.politico.eu/article/pedro-sanchez-socialists-suffer-defeat-aragon-regional-election/

Thomas L. Knapp