Remapping fresh worldviews

Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff

“The term geopolitics, frequently used in discussing global diplomacy and trade relations today, was coined only about 125 years ago. But the concept has been around far, far longer, as evident in the practice of cartography or mapmaking since ancient times. One of the earliest known world maps – created by the Babylonians in 600 B.C.E. – placed Babylonia at the center. Since then, seafaring and colonizing nations in particular have done much the same, centering their locations or adjusting sizes to project global reach and relevance. ‘A map is never neutral’, according to Robert Dussey, foreign minister of the small African nation of Togo. ‘It shapes perceptions, influences how the place of peoples and continents in the world is understood,’ he said at a United Nations briefing last week.” (09/08/26)

https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0908/Remapping-fresh-worldviews

Steve Trinward

Bangladesh in grips of world’s worst measles outbreak, with 1,000 dead in last 6 months

Source: CBC News [Canadian state media]

“Bangladesh, which once came close to eliminating measles, is facing its worst outbreak on record, with around 1,000 suspected and confirmed measles-related deaths reported since March, as hospitals struggle with overcrowding, shortages and a continuing influx of sick children. The South Asian country is currently experiencing the biggest measles outbreak in the world, according to a list on the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, recording more than 57,000 cases between January and June. But the numbers may be far higher than that, according to Bangladesh’s Health Ministry. Since the outbreak emerged in March, Bangladesh has recorded more than 166,000 suspected measles cases, including 19,835 ​laboratory-confirmed infections, according to Health Ministry data.” (09/09/26)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/bangladesh-worst-measles-outbreak-9.7337063

Thomas L. Knapp

The PREP Act: Unchecked Power, Zero Accountability, and a Path Forward

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Robert Malone

‘Beginning in February 2020, the Secretary of Health and Human Services declared that Covid-19 warranted sweeping liability protections, meaning that if someone was injured or died from a Covid-19 vaccine, treatment, or related product, they generally cannot sue for damages in court. The only exception is for ‘willful misconduct’ causing death or serious injury—an extremely high legal standard that is very difficult to prove. Instead of accessing the traditional court system, injured individuals must seek compensation through a government program that has historically been difficult to navigate and provides limited relief.” (09/09/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/the-prep-act-unchecked-power-zero-accountability-and-a-path-forward/

Thomas L. Knapp

Self-Command Is the Price of Freedom

Source: Mindset Shifts
by Barry Brownstein

“Those who split the world into binaries—voluntary exchange on one side, state coercion on the other—miss a lot. They miss the enormous third thing Adam Smith described: the unenforced realm of ‘propriety,’ the decency, manners, and mutual forbearances that no contract specifies and no statute compels. If we want less state, we must have more propriety. A friend of liberty has a larger stake in the moral condition of society than the statist does.” (09/09/26)

https://mindsetshifts.substack.com/p/self-command-is-the-price-of-freedom

Thomas L. Knapp

Anthropic Alignment Lead Warns There’s ‘>10% Chance’ AI Could ‘Kill All Humans’ By Next Decade

Source: Forbes

“A senior researcher who leads Anthropic’s alignment efforts said Tuesday that many in the company believed AI could wipe out humanity and warned that the company is not on track to solve the issue of aligning AI’s goals with humanity’s, despite its efforts, after another researcher quit the company, accusing it of not acting responsibly. Evan Hubinger, the Alignment Science Lead at Anthropic, wrote on X that he and his colleagues do ‘earnestly believe AI could kill all humans,’ and he pegged his own estimate at more than 10% in the next decade. … Hubinger’s post responded to an X thread by another Anthropic researcher, Jacob Coxon, who announced he is resigning from the company over AI safety concerns.” (09/09/26)

https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2026/09/09/anthropic-alignment-lead-warns-ai-could-kill-all-humans-as-researcher-quits/

Thomas L. Knapp

Why CPI Ignores Homes, Stocks, and the Cost of Getting Ahead

Source: The Daily Economy
by Karl-Friedrich Israel

“Capturing only what households consume, inflation stats miss the assets they hope to own. Recent inflation has rewarded existing owners at the expense of aspiring ones.” (09/09/26)

https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/why-cpi-ignores-homes-stocks-and-the-cost-of-getting-ahead/

Thomas L. Knapp