Source: Common Dreams
by Julia Norman
“The Trump administration’s latest threat to impose secondary tariffs on any nation selling oil to Cuba represents a dramatic and catastrophic tightening of the six-decade-long, deliberate chokehold the United States has maintained on Cuba’s access to essential resources. This act of collective punishment against the Cuban people, for alleged crimes the US government has scarcely attempted to substantiate, will be felt across every aspect of daily life. According to Trump’s January 29 executive order, this latest escalation in economic warfare is framed as a response to the ‘unusual and extraordinary threat’ the Cuban government allegedly poses to US national security.” (02/02/25)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/us-sanctions-cuba
Source: San Diego Union Tribune
“Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of wintry weather Monday, a forecast sure to disappoint many after what’s already been a long, cold season across large parts of the United States. His annual prediction and announcement that he had seen his shadow was translated by his handlers in the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club at Gobbler’s Knob in western Pennsylvania. The news was greeted with a mix of cheers and boos from the tens of thousands who braved temperatures in the single-digits Fahrenheit to await the annual prognostication.” (02/02/26)
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/02/02/phil-groundhog-predicts-more-winter/
Source: The Dispatch
“Learning to Govern Ourselves | Interview: Ben and Jenna Storey.” (02/02/26)
https://thedispatch.com/podcast/remnant/learning-to-govern-ourselves-interview-ben-and-jenna-storey/
Source: Antiwar.com
“Khamenei Warns US Attack Will Bring ‘Regional War,’ US Bombed Somalia 25 Times in January, and More.” (02/02/26)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-5CCkXMSJ8
Source: Quillette
by Stephan Jensen
“Trump’s threat to annex Greenland has revealed the shakiness of America’s commitment to NATO. Europe urgently needs to create its own alternative.” (02/02/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/02/02/europe-needs-a-new-alliance-nato-greenland-eu-trump-defence/
Source: Bitcoin.com
by Jamie Redman
“President Donald Trump has nominated former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to lead the U.S. central bank, instantly reviving an old debate with real market consequences: Is Warsh a hard-money hawk, a quiet dove, or something closer to a modern-day Paul Volcker? The answer matters, because investors are already trading the nomination as if Volcker himself just walked back into the Federal Reserve building.” (02/02/26)
https://news.bitcoin.com/is-kevin-warsh-a-hawk-a-dove-or-the-next-volcker-markets-are-about-to-find-out/
Source: The Daily Economy
by Emile Phaneuf III & Rahim Taghizadegan
“Governments claim monopoly, but we can choose between them. Flag theory explains how mobility, diversification, and ‘exit’ create a real marketplace for governance.” (02/02/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/jurisdiction-shopping-the-forgotten-logic-behind-flag-theory/
Source: SFGate
“France has adopted its delayed 2026 budget Monday, clearing the way for higher military spending promised by President Emmanuel Macron to confront threats linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine and Mideast conflicts. The adoption of the budget marks the final step of a monthslong, chaotic process that exposed deep divisions in the fractured Parliament, which proved unable to reach a compromise. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu ultimately opted to use his special constitutional power to pass the bill without a vote, surviving two no-confidence votes on Monday evening. Macron has vowed to increase defense spending to counter what he describes as a widening range of threats, from Russia and nuclear proliferation to terrorism and cyberattacks. France in December passed an emergency law to avoid a U.S.-style government shutdown, but only the full 2026 budget provides the military with the needed funding to build up forces.” (02/02/25)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/france-s-budget-set-to-clear-the-way-for-macron-s-21328588.php
Source: US News & World Report
“Greece’s prime minister proposed on Monday reviewing ministers’ legal immunity and guaranteed ‘jobs for life’ for state-sector workers in a bid to restore voters’ trust after a graft scandal and to build support ahead of a 2027 national election. Kyriakos Mitsotakis'[s] centre-right government remains ahead in opinion polls but it has been shaken by a corruption scandal in which some farmers, aided by state employees, faked land ownership to get subsidies. The affair was revealed by EU prosecutors in 2025 and parliament is looking into the case.” (02/02/26)
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2026-02-02/greek-pm-targets-ministers-immunity-jobs-for-life-to-restore-voters-trust
Source: Quillette
“Tasmania looks like wilderness from afar. Up close, it is lush, intimate, and unexpectedly generous — a place that feels familiar, yet entirely its own.” (02/02/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/02/02/the-gentle-wildness-of-tasmania/
