An urgent and important read on the unjust circumstances regarding the dismissal of my dear colleague and friend Sanjay Reddy. I hope our takeaway, in part, is a redoubling of our efforts to protect social inquiry and academic freedom against what's coming. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/05/n...

He Had Tenure. The New School Laid Him Off Anyway. (Gift Article)

The professor, a longtime critic of the university, was among 19 educators who lost their positions as the institution navigated financial woes.

nytimes.com

Watergate was a harmless prank, in terms of the scale of illegality & constitutional violations, compared to this. Again, this is the most basic "do we live under a functioning constitutional order?" type of stuff. The answer, sadly, is no, because this hasn't immediately ended his presidency.

Sahil Kapur@sahilkapur.bsky.social · 2d ago

"The Trump administration admitted that it terminated nearly 300 federal research grants 'solely because' the projects were connected to states that voted against Donald Trump in 2024 and had two Democratic senators in office, according to court filings." www.nbcnews.com/politics/tru...

Chinese viral AI videos are turning foreigners into villains, flooding Chinese social media. They depict foreigners as threats to China’s social, moral, and national order. Strong, confident Chinese people confront, violently beat, and humiliate them in defense of their country. See more below🧵

The effective federal corporate income tax rate: 1950: 50% 1990: 25% 2020: 13% Stop asking "but how we will pay for it?" Restore the corporate tax rate. That is how we will pay for it.

A quantitative picture of the discourse on China in the US over time and across official documents and media, from Mert Geyiktepe and Dani Rodrik www.nber.org/papers/w35539

"In outsourcing control over arrivals to authoritarian regimes on its periphery, the EU and its member states have surrendered the very sovereignty they claim to be defending." Wrote about Ceuta and why the EU's efforts to outsource control over irregular migration are unsustainable. Gift link.

Spain and the EU Reel From the Ceuta Crisis

The repercussions of last week’s massive spike in migrant arrivals continue to be felt within Spain and the European Union, even as its causes remain uncertain.

worldpoliticsreview.com

Some slightly under-the-radar bad news from Ukraine: it's not doing the judicial reforms it promised to get into the EU (and indeed to continue getting EU aid) www.economist.com/europe/2026/...

Ukraine needs the EU to force it to reform

The government is shirking the work required for membership

economist.com

"The sheer scale of the crossings suggests Morocco might have deliberately relaxed border controls. The timing is also suspicious. The crisis came just ten days after Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez visited Algeria— Morocco’s arch-rival—and announced a “new phase” in Spain-Algeria relations."

Alone at the border: Ceuta and Europe’s solidarity failure – European Council on Foreign Relations

By failing to show solidarity with a member state under pressure, the EU is encouraging Morocco and others to keep using migration as a tool of coercion.

ecfr.eu

Social Media Lab@socialmedialab.ca · 5d ago

🤔 49,000, huh? And Morocco didn't notice this caravan of humanity until they reached the walls of Ceuta? As you read more stories about this crisis, keep in mind that migration has long been used as a hybrid warfare tactic to destabilize/bring down states, strain borders, & sow political discord.

Bordeaux, France, has now recorded more days above 40°C in 2026 alone than during the entire 105-year period from 1920 (when observations began) to 2025. This is deeply shocking.

Here they come www.wired.com/story/zoox-b...

For the First Time, Zoox Can Charge People for Rides in Its Steering-Wheel-Free Robotaxis

The temporary exemption from federal safety standards will let Amazon’s Zoox launch a real, paid robotaxi service in Las Vegas.

wired.com

US government map of Africa mislabels every country at global conference reut.rs/4x9eTCW

US government map of Africa mislabels every country at global conference

A U.S. government map of Africa mislabeled every country during a State Department presentation at ‌a global conference taking place in Brazil this week, causing a stir among attendees who took screenshots and posted them online.

reut.rs

🚨NEW from me: leading climate scientist @rahmstorf.bsky.social tells me of his anger after witnessing firsthand the devastating Gironde wildfires - which he ties directly to politicians' inaction on fossil fuels.

Climate Scientist Fleeing Wildfires: ‘We’re In A Race Against Time’

Professor Stefan Rahmstorf escapes out-of-control wildfires in France, and warns fossil fuel inaction is supercharging climate disasters.

forbes.com

Here are some nice mushrooms

From time to time I toy with the idea of organising a conference composed entirely of tea, coffee and lunch breaks.

67.000 Menschen in Frankreich evakuiert. Mehr als 20.000 rund um Madrid. Die können alle nicht arbeiten. In Teilen Frankreichs kann die Feuerwehr nur noch Wohnungen schützen, nicht Firmen in Industriegebieten. Aber #Klimaschutz gefährdet Wirtschaft + Wachstum. www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/fra...

Frankreich bringt 67 000 Menschen in Sicherheit – Feuer außer Kontrolle

Hunderte Einsatzkräfte konnten die verheerenden Feuer an der Atlantikküste und im Süden Frankreichs bislang nicht unter Kontrolle bringen.

sueddeutsche.de

The Austrian Volker Türk will remain High Commissioner for Human Rights for another 4 years. The UNGA voted 144 for, 10 against. Among the no votes and urging members to vote against Türk were Russia, the US and Israel. www.tagesschau.de/ausland/volk...

Mandat von UN-Menschenrechtskommissar Türk um vier Jahre verlängert

UN-Menschenrechtskommissar Volker Türk bleibt weitere vier Jahre im Amt. Gegen den Widerstand Russlands, Israels und der USA hat die UN-Generalversammlung mehrheitlich für eine Mandatsverlängerung ges...

tagesschau.de

As I wrote at the time, USAID was the first federal agency killed by conspiracy theory. Joe Rogan floated these theories, Musk believed them, and the Trump administration let the richest man in the world condemn the most vulnerable to death. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-death-...

The Death of USAID

The most consequential legacy of DOGE will be human misery on a massive scale

donmoynihan.substack.com

He goes on to say zero people have died because of DOGE, and his *proof* for that claim is that the amount of money cut could easily be replaced by Gates or McKenzie Scott. Illogical and demonstrably untrue. USAID spent about 50-40 billion per year, more than Scott's net worth.

Musk still relying on conspiracy theories and lies when it comes to USAID. "USAID was the biggest funder of regime change. Also, its funding was not stopped it was moved to the State Department." "There were claims [that programs were shut down]. These claims were false, nonsense."

Jonathan Harris@jonathan-a-thon.bsky.social · 2w ago

He's quite possibly one of the worst people to have ever lived.

Republicans used to talk all the time about the importance of predictable economic policy, anywho it's 4PM, the tariffs Trump imposed after the Supreme Court decision expire in 8 hours, and they haven't announced their replacements No telling what tariffs will be on goods that arrive TOMORROW

"There is no salvation in becoming adapted to a world which is crazy." Henry Miller

Ökonomin Kemfert zu Klimaschutz: "Kosten für Nichthandeln sind enorm" Bis 2050 könnten bis zu 900 Milliarden Euro Folgekosten entstehen. "Wir müssen endlich über den Nutzen sprechen", sagt Claudia Kemfert. www.ndr.de/nachrichten/...

Ökonomin Kemfert zu Klimaschutz: "Kosten für Nichthandeln sind enorm"

Bis 2050 könnten bis zu 900 Milliarden Euro Folgekosten entstehen. "Wir müssen endlich über den Nutzen sprechen", sagt Claudia Kemfert.

ndr.de

France plans to ditch all fossil fuels by 2050. “France announced a ‘first of its kind’ plan to phase out coal by 2030, oil by 2045 & gas by 2050…The roadmap was published as dozens of nations gather for the first-ever international talks on how to transition away from planet-heating fossil fuels.”

France unveils plan to ditch all fossil fuels by 2050

France on Tuesday announced a “first of its kind” plan to phase out coal by 2030, oil by 2045 and gas by 2050 during a global conference aimed at breaking reliance on fossil fuels.

ctvnews.ca

Something I talked about repeatedly in 2024: 20 million people, to say nothing of 30, would be the largest forced population transfer in human history, larger any of the three post-WW2 transfers (partition of India, expulsion of Germans, partition of Palestine) or the post-WW1 Balkan cases.

🗽LOLGOP🗽@thefarce.org · 2w ago

Have to get serious because this is the thought that has consumed and motivated me for the past 2 and a half years. When Trump/Miller talk about 20/30 million immigrants to deport, and that number reaches 100 million for the real freaks like Bovino, verily I say to you: THIS IS MEIN KAMPF SHIT

Ara Güler, Nightfall, Istanbul, 1960.

Trump already tried to do a coup. We should prepare for the worst. I've heard that Democratic officials are already gaming this out, but if they aren't, they should be getting regular presentations from veterans of Color Revolutions and other mass pro-democracy protests.

Elizabeth N. Saunders@profsaunders.bsky.social · 3w ago

I’m not a doomer, but we have seen Trump inflict suffering on millions in Iran and consolidate its hardline regime because he was hyped up after the “easy” Venezuela operation. He’s suggested regime change in Cuba. Who knows what he might try in our elections with all the power at his disposal?

The State Department has just put out a tender, offering funding of up to $3 million to European organizations who want to fight against "Supra-national institutions" - presumably the EU - and governments who seek to regulate the internet and end Western Civilization. www.state.gov/drl-nofo-dev...

DRL NOFO Developing Civilizational Bonds, Democratic Resilience, and Rule of Law in Europe - United States Department of State

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)Developing Civilizational Bonds, Democratic Resilience, and Rule of Law in EuropeBureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor, Department of StateOpportunity number: ...

state.gov

Letzte Woche trafen sich internationale Expert*innen zum 2-tägigen Workshop des Vienna Global Forum, der die Debatten rund um die Neue Weltwirtschaftsordnung (NIEO) kritisch beleuchtete. Wir bedanken uns bei allen Teilnehmer*innen für die spannende Diskussion! 🙏 ℹ️ viennaglobalforum.org

Die gute Nachricht: Die massiven Kürzungen bei Österreichs Entwicklungszusammenarbeit sind vorerst gestoppt. Die schlechte Nachricht: Österreich bleibt immer weiter hinter seinen internationalen Zusagen zurück- so @schl.bsky.social zum Budget der österr. Bundesregierung www.oefse.at/publikatione...

A Norway fan has gone viral for not taking part in their Row celebration after matches and won't do it if they win the World Cup "It’s factually wrong; they didn’t row, they sailed over the Atlantic”