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We just got home from a wonderful trip to Prague, Budapest, and Krakow. All three cities have a rich history of Jewish communities, and one can visit synagogues, musea, and Jewish cemeteries. We visited a number of them, including the very impressive Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest, which was once the largest synagogue in the […]

Today (July 31, 2024), the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the latest – Consumer Price Index, Australia – for the June-quarter 2024. The data showed that the annual inflation rate continues rose by 0.2 points to 3.8 per cent but was steady over the quarter. The major factors driving the inflation at present are…

We are pleased to announce that nominations are now open for the 2024 Australian International Political Economy Network (AIPEN) Richard Higgott Journal Article Prize. We are delighted to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the prize, which is awarded annually for the best article published in the broad field of International Political Economy (IPE) by an Australia-based academic.

The post Call For Nominations For The 2024 Australian International Political Economy Network (AIPEN) Journal Article Prize appeared first on Progress in Political Economy (PPE).

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Both companies posted declines in global sales and profits this week, driven partly by “headwinds in the Middle East.”

The post Boycotts Against Israel Are Hurting Starbucks and McDonald’s Sales Worldwide appeared first on The Intercept.

This is Reform UK. This is Tice. Just an average British person, but he’s a British British Person. Don’t be fooled. Be vigilant. pic.twitter.com/dvA62e2Viz — Christopher Green (@GreeneyOfficial) November 24, 2023 This is old and it shows that there were always people who didn’t buy into the white supremacy and authoritarianism that characterized much of the America Trump and his followers think was so great. Those better people managed to beat them back and they can do it again.

The acknowledgments page from an upcoming book reviewed by The Intercept shows the deep ties between J.D. Vance and Project 2025.

The post Project 2025’s Mastermind Personally Thanked J.D. Vance in His New Book appeared first on The Intercept.

How animals—including us—outsource decision-making to a network.

The post The Wisdom of Fish Schools appeared first on Nautilus.

Is America ready for Pete or is this just a moment in liberal-land? He is a seriously talented politician and I know I’d love to see him out there on the campaign trail with Harris. He’s obviously smart enough to be president. (I mean, look at what the GOP has been putting on offer…) Is it time? Politico reports that he’s on the list: Suddenly, Pete Buttigieg is everywhere. The Transportation secretary is blitzing the airwaves with his Midwest-nice takedowns of Donald Trump and JD Vance. Members of Congress are talking him up. Buttigieg’s digital alumni network is circulating clips of appearances and touting his complementary skills to Kamala Harris. He did a canvassing kickoff for Harris in Traverse City, Michigan, on Saturday morning. And an ally in his home state of Indiana — saying they were acting independently of Buttigieg— has compiled a dossier evaluating Harris’ options and concluding: “Simply put, the vibes are high right now.” The Pete for Veep trial balloon is approaching mid-flight. His allies view it as a clear signal that Buttigieg wants the job.

The Opposition’s shadow minister for home and foreign affairs, Barnaby Joyce, has asked his leader, Peter Dutton, to pick him up a bottle of Tia Maria from customs when he returns from his latest overseas jaunt. ”Pete loves a little... Read More ›

In honor of Intergalactic Friendship Day, check out a video of Alex Kurtzman (Star Trek) and Russell T. Davies' (Doctor Who) SDCC 2024 panel.

The election isn’t going to go smoothly Trump has been telling everyone who will listen that he doesn’t need a get out the vote program because he will personally get his people out. He told the RNC and his campaign that they need to concentrate on stopping the “cheating” (by which he means Democrats voting.) The strategy is to suppress the vote wherever possible and contest the vote no matter how close the election is if he loses. There is no Democratic margin of victory that he will declare legitimate. (After all, even when he won in 2016 he said that he actually won the popular vote which he lost by 2 million votes.) Rolling Stone took a look at how some of the red dominated swing states have set up a system to deny the election results if Trump doesn’t win and it’s sobering: WHEN ELECTION NIGHT comes in November, it will be up to thousands of local election officials to certify election results in their counties.

Journalist Gil Duran has been following this new movement of tech billionaires who are heavily influencing right wing politics in America. They are way more out there than I realized. I just went down the rabbit hole to read these articles and frankly I’m a bit unnerved. You might want to pour yourself a strong drink before you do it: I’ve spent this year writing for the @newrepublic about how a group of Silicon Valley billionaires has gone WEIRD. Now their weirdness is mating up with Trump’s MAGA weirdness in the 2024 election. Here’s a few things to understand about these guys.  #1: They despise democracy. These Trump-loving billionaires believe democracy is bad. They want to create their own corporate dictatorships called Network States. They are actively trying to build these weird little dictator cities all over the world. The People of Solano County Versus the Next Tech-Billionaire Dystopia If these Silicon Valley plutocrats have their way, a swath of Solano County will be transformed into their own nation-state. #2. They want control over existing governments.