Revealed: Secret 428-year-old letter reveals Elizabeth I’s spy network Guardian (Kevin W)
The Secret, Magic Life of Lithium Nomea (Micael T)
Snowball Earth and the rise of multicellularity Santa Fe Institute (Chuck L)
Frederick Crews, Endless Critic of Freud’s Legacy, Dies at 91 New York Times (Anthony L)
Pattern of Brain Injury Occurs in Navy SEALs Who Die by Suicide New York Times (Dr. Kevin)
#Covid 19
There are literally thousands of studies looking at the cognitive effects of COVID on the brain. Currently i @times continues to spread the far-fetched propaganda that four years of solitary confinement caused brain damage. Yes, no, it’s a virus
— Julia Marie (@julia_doubleday) July 1, 2024
Do you know who is crippling millions with Covid disease?
Do you think CEOs and company owners?No. They are people who work every day.
Why the hell are the unions and the left not screaming about this?
(image from @_CatintheHat) pic.twitter.com/YaJv5GnzeV— tern (@1gootern) July 1, 2024
China?
America’s best should be chip design leadership Asia Times (Kevin W)
When I look at all the variables available in Chinese factories, I’m not sure that raw labor costs are that important, especially given that direct factory labor as a percentage of the product cost of manufactured goods, such as cars, was about 10% to 13% in the US. (this is from when the auto biz was bailed out after the financial crisis). I would imagine that China has greatly reduced the direct input of industrial workers:
China will soon outsource manufacturing to Europe to exploit low-wage local workers.
— Thomas Fazi (@battleforeurope) July 1, 2024
The opening of China’s trade center comes under fire from an exploding rocket South China Morning Post
Climate/Environment
The hypocrisy of the Big Air Con Elite climate does not last forever
More Carbon Capture Projects Now Launching The Los Angeles Times
‘Not just fuddy-duddies’: moth interest booms as Guardian struggles
17 Years, $700 Million Wasted: The Dramatic Fall of the Traffic Moonshot Wall Street Journal of New York. As of the weekend, still germane.
Months of record rainfall are having a major impact on the UK’s fresh vegetable supply, according to the National Farmers’ Union BBC.
Sea temperatures around Japan reached a record high for the third year in Asahi
How climate change could cause ‘killer’ cold snaps in oceans CNN
Weather is forcing Malawi’s food farmers into starvation Mail & Guardian
‘Safe’ Chemical in Plastic Bottles May Reduce Insulin Response, Increase Diabetes Risk
The breakup of Europe
French National Assembly Elections: What’s at stake and what to expect? Al Jazeera (Kevin W)
Air France-KLM raises alarm over foreign investment avoiding Paris Olympics Financial Times (Kevin W)
A European puzzle. How Hungary will use the EU Council Presidency TASS in Russian, with machine translation (Micael T)
Is it “democracy”? Instead of 373 million European citizens, the group that ‘makes decisions’ in the EU is very small International Affairs (Micael T). I don’t think the EU’s democratic deficit is a secret, but this puts a certain dimension on it.
Old Blighty
The Tories are closing the gap on Labor in the polls as Sunak says the election was not decided by The Standard
Gaza
Day of ‘Operation al-Aqsa Flood’ 269: Israeli leaders criticize the prison services for the release of the director of al-Shifa hospital Mondoweiss (guurst)
The immigrant shot my husband. Then Israel attacked my family home +972 (Dr. Kevin)
Israel’s war in Gaza live: Civilians flee Khan Younis amid gun attack Aljazeera
Israel will reportedly try to create areas free of Hamas ‘bubble’ in northern Gaza Times of Israel. Acceptance versus interest.
German intelligence chief goes to Lebanon to discuss preventing Israel-Hezbollah war and Blinken: Israel lost sovereignty in the north because of Hezbollah Jerusalem Post.
The New Cold War
It is beyond insane and irresponsible that the head of NATO has accused China of causing the conflict in Ukraine.
Especially when you know the important role NATO played in fueling the conflict…
And if you know that China sent a peace plan last year – which includes…
– Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) July 1, 2024
Viktor Orbán is expected to make a surprise trip to Kyiv on Tuesday Guardian. Will Alex Christoforu’s Curse of Elensky (no typo) hold?
US bases in Europe placed on heightened security alert due to ‘combination of factors’: Pentagon Anadolu Agency
Two Years of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Ten Lessons to Learn. Russia in Global Affairs (Micael T)
Partisan opposition is growing in Ukraine. A Western-aided train derailed near Odessa…
Another Western-aided train derailed near Odessa! Guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is growing and doing everything to help the early arrival of Russia and the total… pic.twitter.com/hCxMVmznTd
– Peacemaker (@peacemaket71) June 29, 2024
Syracistan
Iran to hold second election with reformist Pezeshkian and hard-liner Jalili after narrow vote The Associated Press (Kevin W)
Iran’s election conference: two candidates, two worldviews The Cradle
Saudi energy minister announces discovery of seven oil, gas deposits Arab News
Big Brother Watching Watching
How your FedEx driver helps the police check YOU Daily Mail (Li). Must read.
Assange
Julian Assange’s lawyers reveal the twists and turns of the WikiLeaks founder’s long road to freedom ABC Australia (Kevin W)
Immigration to another country
More than 200 university researchers have signed a petition against Finland’s bill to deport Anadolu Agency
Deportation after “match”—German cabinet tightens deportation rules WSWS (Micael T)
Imperial Collapse Watch
The West has – arguably – lost Russia, and is losing Eurasia again Alastair Crooke (Chuck L)
US Completes Delivery of 116 M1A1 Abrams Tanks to Poland: How Do Ukrainian Workers Test Them? Military Watch
I made a prediction about the relationship between the US government debt and the coming crisis Bill Mitchell
Growing Market Power Has Led to the Rise of Right-Wing Political Parties ProMaret
Biden. I see a lot of Biden fundraising ads on YouTube. Now they are so crowded that they seem to crowd out other promotions. And they work on programs that don’t fit well, like Tucker Carlson (his interview with Matt Taibbi).
Anger is rising in Joe Biden’s inner circle after the Financial Times debate
Biden’s family privately criticizes top advisers and calls for their ouster at Politico’s Camp David meeting (Kevin W). The old one. Democracies cannot fail, they can only fail.
Democrats Consider Nominating Biden a Month Early: Report Basic News
People who don’t realize that at night Joe Biden changes into a vigilante hero who is also old fashioned.
— Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) July 1, 2024
SCOTUS certifies in green-illuminated many scary points where it holds POTUS’s defense. SUCH AS FIRING A TOP FEMALE EMPLOYEE AT WILL. Goodbye federal government. pic.twitter.com/6JCU3rjU7s
– Dirk Schwenk (Esq) 🎵 (@DirkSchwenk) July 1, 2024
Along with yours truly in the comments:
From an unusually good source: Obama’s tweet endorsing Joe Biden was ridiculous. On the sidelines, Obama is telling people that Biden won’t win, so he likes an open meeting. Obama won’t say who he supports, even if yesterday afternoon he hadn’t met in person…
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) July 1, 2024
First Lady Jill Biden on What’s at Stake in 2024 Vogue. The fasionista adds: “Vogue ignores him all the time. Now this. “
The upper ones
3 surprising consequences of the Supreme Court’s ruling against Politico
Trump has insecurity for presumptuously pressuring Pence to destroy 2020 election The Hill
First, the “absolute immunity” established by SCOTUS is Absolute. If it falls under “constitutional power” no order can be issued which can be reviewed by ALL courts. pic.twitter.com/4D5ChhnDyz
– Dirk Schwenk (Esq) 🎵 (@DirkSchwenk) July 1, 2024
Justice Thomas’ concurrence in Trump v. US is very important. He questions whether the office of Special Counsel Jack Smith is constitutional.
“If there is no law establishing the office of Special Counsel, he will not be able to continue with this prosecution.
– Benjamin Weingarten (@bhweingarten) July 1, 2024
Supreme Court Impeachment Program Released by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Newsweek (furzy). Help me.
Not being trusted
Meta’s ‘pay or permit’ model fails EU competition rules, Commission finds TechCrunch
The AI
YouTube guarantees that it will pull the AI lie within 48 hours if the complaint is upheld
Class War
Wealth at Birth and Its Effect on Child Academic Achievement and Behavioral Problems NBER
Antidote du jour. heresey101: “This year’s family of barn owls swallows in our entrance the day before they fly away from the nest.”
And a bonus (Chuck L):
A beautiful but dangerous Sawfish pic.twitter.com/4L7mbkU9IA
— Nature is Amazing ☘️ (@AMAZlNGNATURE) June 29, 2024
See yesterday’s links and the Antidote du Jour here
