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Western analysts spent years warning that western actions would provoke a war in Ukraine, westerners spent four years being propagandised into hating Russia, then Russia invades and now western imperialists say the war is advancing US interests. But remember: it was an “unprovoked invasion”. The official narrative is that western aggressions played no role in Continue reading »

I like to eat, but still think it's weird we have to do it so often.

Jennifer Frey and Christopher Frey, both currently associate professors of philosophy at the University of South Carolina, will be moving to the University of Tulsa. Jennifer Frey is known for her work in moral philosophy, particularly moral psychology and virtue. In addition to her academic work, she also has written for various popular media and is the creator and host of the philosophy, theology, and literature podcast, Sacred and Profane Love. At the University of Tulsa, she will be the inaugural dean of the university’s new Honors College, which will have a general education curriculum that is focused on philosophical texts and questions. Regarding the Honors College, she says: By studying classical texts of the liberal arts tradition within a community of learners who seek truth as a common end, TU Honors College students will confront the most profound and enduring questions of human existence, as explored by some of the most influential thinkers in our inherited intellectual tradition.

There are a few take-aways from this topic on how to respond....

Bond Economics
Yield Curve Control Sustainability
Brian Romanchuk

This country is currently in the midst of the biggest wave of strikes since the 1980s, with a resurgent labour movement leading the struggle against a system that demands working-class people get pushed ever deeper into poverty. But now, with new laws announced by Rishi Sunak set to be introduced to Parliament in the coming […]

Richard Spence -- The Dissenter -- January 5, 2023 Ministers and security officials in Australia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom have coordinated with the United States to develop new espionage laws.

This will be especially welcome to Ruby Freeman and Shay Moss who Trump has inexplicably decided to target again just this week in his usual grotesque fashion. This is from Tuesday: Around midnight last night, for reasons that aren’t yet clear, Donald Trump used his social media platform to launch a new offensive against an old perceived foe. It started with this unfortunate missive: Soon after, the former president published another item, accusing Freeman of election crimes, followed by a third missive, in which the Republican asked, “What will the Great State of Georgia do with the Ruby Freeman MESS?” Trump concluded that he’s battling “the evils and treachery of the Radical Left monsters who want to see America die.” Both items referred to “suitcases” filled with ballots that Trump believes Freeman opened, all as part of the crime that was committed only in his imagination. In case anyone needs a refresher, it wasn’t long after the 2020 elections when the nightmare began for a clerical worker in a county election office in Georgia and her mother.

 The Fed and "inflation."

The Lens

Thin response but at least something of an antidote to the venom that is spewing.

The Globe and Mail
Was our experiment with modern monetary theory a colossal failure? Not so fast
David Parkinson

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Later, Batman disappears shortly after Bruce Wayne is discovered to have been running a cryptocurrency ponzi scheme.

Today's News:

I can't find it now but there was a piece a few years back about how all the Rock Gods from the 60s/70s are going to die fairly soon.  The ones who are still alive, anyway.   Maybe there's too much emphasis placed on that cultural moment, though I still hear that stuff in the hipster coffee shop.  Getting older provides a lot of perspective (too much fucking perspective) on ageing, and it's "funny" realizing these guys were barely older than my parents('38, '39), and not even boomers in some cases.  The other funny thing is realizing how young many were when they became big.

Fed officials pledge higher for longer, but

Never did If it was not clear before, it is clear now. The Republican Party, fueled since the Newt Gingrich revolution by the insecurities and grievances of white, Christian males in a changing world is reduced at long last to its essence (New York Times): After two days of chaos and confusion on the House floor, Republicans have made it abundantly clear who is leading their party: absolutely no one. From the halls of Congress to the Ohio Statehouse to the back-room dealings of the Republican National Committee, the party is confronting an identity crisis unseen in decades. With no unified legislative agenda, clear leadership or shared vision for the country, Republicans find themselves mired in intraparty warfare, defined by a fringe element that seems more eager to tear down the House than to rebuild the foundation of a political party that has faced disappointment in the past three national elections. Revanchism is all that’s left. There is no positive GOP agenda. No vision of a better tomorrow. No city on a hill. Just power for power’s sake, power enough to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women.

I suppose one has to be way too into the twittersphere to explain/understand this, but Elon Musk's reply guy bullying him is hilarious.

In this Sanctions Watch, covering December 2022: Seized Afghan assets languish in US-backed trust fund while Afghans prepare for a grueling winter; US lawmakers meet with the president of Cuba and denounce the US embargo; UN experts denounce environmental degradation and loss of life as a result of sanctions against Iran; US, Japan, South Korea […]

The post CEPR Sanctions Watch, January 2022 appeared first on Center for Economic and Policy Research.

Law professor Mary Wood breaks describes how the public trust can protect rights to clean air, water, and land.

They are going to put CO2 monitors in all classrooms, with a limit of 800ppm.

An American woman visiting Australia for the first time has vented her frustrations over the difference between shopping trolleys here and in the US. (Thanks to Ralph)

Anticipating Winter Waterfowl Webinar with Dave Barry (Thanks to pharmaross)

Montreal's Poutine Week Festival Is Coming Back This Winter & It Can Get Pretty Wild (Thanks to The Perts)

Hong Kong to lift year-long ban on hamster imports (Thanks to Steve Bradford)

The Stone Watch is not a smartwatch, it’s just designed to look like one. Created by Japanese capsule toy maker Tama-Kyu, the low-tech accessory doesn’t even tell time, let alone feature advanced tech like heart rate measurement, or smartphone connectivity....