Author: nick

[ad_1] Photograph Source: Dnjka4444 – CC0 The liberal left again adopted a self‑defeating posture during the recent fuel and cost‑of‑living protests in Ireland. Instead of supporting the protesters or attempting to engage with them, they stood on the sidelines criticising. The republican left broadly supported the movement. But that section of the left whose support base is largely urban middle‑class – the Greens, the Social Democrats and the Labour Party – refused to support this largely spontaneous movement. Why this refusal? For the parties that withheld support, it is clear from their middle‑class base that they do not wish to…

[ad_1] Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair Tuesday 7 April. It was an evening much like any other. At 9pm French TV channels were airing a game show, a repeat of Kitchen Nightmares and, on the Franco-German channel Arte, a documentary soberly titled Europe in Putin’s Grip? (since tracking the Russian threat is its favourite occupation). The day itself, however, had been far from ordinary. A few hours earlier, Donald Trump had posted an exceptionally violent warning on Truth Social: ‘A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again.’ The civilisation he was referring to was that of…

[ad_1] It was great fun while it lasted. It certainly was elegant, exclusive, and attended by men who were gentlemen and women who were ladies. Society beauties like Cee Zee Guest, Babe Paley, Natalie Cushing and their ilk were regulars. It was run by Pat Buckley, William F.’s better half, and she kept the level exclusive and high. It celebrated artistry and beauty, and attendants paid for it with pleasure. I remember introducing the author Walter Isaacson to Cee Zee, and how impressed with her ethereal elegance and looks the writer was; he told me so. And the lady in…

[ad_1] U.S. and Iran Trade Fire, Shaking 4-Week Ceasefire [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] As the U.S. and Iran struggle to find common ground on which to build an agreement during the ceasefire, the Gulf Cooperation Council met in Saudi Arabia last week for the first time since the war began. They focused on Iranian attacks on their member states. They condemned both the attacks and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and called on Iran to rebuild trust. The leaders discussed the need to enhance military coordination but also on the need to coordinate “in pursuit of a diplomatic path forward to preserve the security and stability of the region.” These…

[ad_1] The House Appropriations Committee released its spending bill for Fiscal Year 2027 covering national security, the Department of State, and related programs, which—among other appropriations—approved $3.8 billion for Israel, following the terms of a 10-year U.S.-Israel memorandum of understanding. At the same time, the Israeli government continues to promote and protect violent campaigns of state-backed terror against Palestinians in ways that are so extreme that more and more Western and former Israeli officials are condemning it. The latest official to do so was Tamir Pardo, a former Mossad chief, who criticized his own government in ways that are increasingly…

[ad_1] What the Supreme Court Still Has Left To Decide This Term [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Jerome Powell is finished as Federal Reserve Board chairman, but he has time left in his term, so he is sticking around. He would be only the third chair in history to stay, and he says, “My concern is legal attacks on the Fed, which threaten our ability to conduct monetary policy without considering political factors.” Cry me a river. So-called “Fed independence” has morphed from an arcane academic argument into dinner-table talking points. Apparently, the Fed wants to be left alone to do whatever it wants. Unfortunately, in the past 18 years, Fed policy has had more impact…

[ad_1] In most political disputes, there will usually be an argument that helps the left and an argument that helps the right. A common rhetorical tactic is to insist that one side or other is in fact being neutral, while the other side is being partisan. In the abstract, these arguments should not work because neither side is being neutral. But in various areas of the law, there are liberal institutional asymmetries–legal principles that ensure the liberal position is seen as the neutral baseline. One of the largest asymmetries was (past tense) the Voting Rights Act. I wrote in October:…

[ad_1] Mass deception is a cornerstone of the state’s ability to maintain total control. One of the main methods used by government to convince the population of their legitimacy is the tool of propaganda. This is nothing new, and states throughout the world have engaged in this practice for all of human history. What is new, however, is the mass awakening that is occurring in this moment of imperial decay. I believe this decay is the direct result of an expansionist foreign policy, which is focused on expanding the global empire rather than furthering the values of liberty at home.…