02/19 -- South Korea: Yoon sentenced to life for martial law attempt; Blaming Buildings for Sex Trafficking
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Thomas L. Knapp
Feb 19, 2026, 6:13:31 AM (13 days ago) Feb 19
to Freedom News Daily
Freedom News Daily, 02/19/26
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Today's Freedom News:
1) South Korea: Yoon sentenced to life for martial law attempt
2) Khanna, Massie Move to Force War Powers Vote in House as Senile Reality TV Star Signals Possible Iran Strike
3) Japan: Takaichi Formally Reappointed As PM Following Election Victory
4) NV: Regime sues Kalshi to protect casino-related political donors from competition
5) Philippines: Duterte announces run for president in 2028
6) NYC: Mamdani Stacks Board to Push Through Promised Rent Freeze
7) Power trumps tariffs as another US aluminium smelter shuts
8) TX: Teen falsely accused of race-based bullying wins $3.2 million verdict
9) Moderna says the FDA will consider its new flu shot after resolving a public dispute
10) DC: Beloved millionaire Maine philanthropist shot dead in ritzy suburban assisted-living home
11) Germany: Court tells X to hand over data on Hungarian election
12) Poll: Many Democrats still down on the Democratic Party
13) Tesla stops using “Autopilot” to promote its EVs in California
14) UK: Met making “initial inquiries” into claims about Andrew protection officers
15) Bulgaria: Regime to hold snap elections on April 19
16) Hungary to suspend diesel shipments to Ukraine over interruption to Russian oil supply
17) Wexner to be deposed in congressional probe of Epstein files
18) CA: Zuckerberg arrives to testify in frivolous social media addiction suit
19) Following Trump’s lead, some GOP states seek to limit environmental regulations
20) PA: Homeowner shoots intruder
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) Blaming Buildings for Sex Trafficking
22) We have to trust liberty completely
23) My Plea To Team Gold
24) Senator Tom Cotton’s Ode to US Nuclear Weapons
25) The 2020 “stolen election” obsession: Cynical? Delusional? Reptilian?
26) Pupil power: Why the US South is seeing education gains
27) With Trump hitting new lows, the GOP is experiencing a moral reckoning
28) The AI Future: Between Certain Doom and Endless Prosperity
29) The Ticking Time Bomb Looming Over Gaza
30) The student loan system is working just perfectly
31) Rise in transgender killers proves we have a major mental health crisis unfolding
32) California Forever Stagnating
33) SCOTUS Pro-Trump Immigration Rulings Threaten Decades of Progress
34) When Moderation Becomes Method: Scientism and the Prestige of Experts
35) The Iran Hawks’ Distorted View of Iran
36) Time for a Civil Rights Reset
37) If Dems do him dirty, Stephen A Smith could be the next RFK Jr
38) The Truth About Free Will
39) ICE’s “Warrant” Shortcut Violates the Constitution
40) In Silicon Valley, Hegseth is just one link in the brave new kill chain
41) Do Democrats Have a Plan for the Post-Trump World Order?
42) ICE Expansion and the Architecture of a Security State
43) A Proposal for a New European Order
44) Can Trump’s Plan for Warehouse Immigrant Detention Camps Be Stopped?
45) Remembering Ed Crane
46) Your Bucks Stop with the TSA
47) He refused to censor his syllabus — so Texas Tech cancelled his class
48) Secession often is desirable
49) What We Can Learn From North Carolina’s “Moral Mondays”
50) San Jose Can Protect Immigrants by Ending Flock Surveillance System
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Reason Interview: Fardad Farahzad
52) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 02/18/26
53) Cato Daily Podcast, 02/17/26
54) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 02/18/26: Steve Swedberg
55) Rising, 02/18/26
56) Reasonably Optimistic, 02/18/26
57) The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 02/18/26
58) Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 02/18/26
59) Nonzero, 02/17/26
60) The Kyle Anzalone Show, 02/17/26
61) Zooming In, 02/17/26
62) System Update, 02/17/26
63) Gracearchy with Jim Babka, 02/17/26
64) Free Speech Unmuted, 02/17/26
65) Reason Roundtable, 02/17/26
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_____ Today's Freedom News _____
1) South Korea: Yoon sentenced to life for martial law attempt
Source: CBS News
“Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life in prison for his brief imposition of martial law in a dramatic culmination to the country’s biggest political crisis in decades. Yoon fell from office after an ill-advised attempt to overcome an opposition-controlled legislature by declaring martial law and sending troops to surround the legislature on Dec. 3, 2024. Judge Jee Kui-youn said he found Yoon guilty of rebellion for mobilizing military and police forces in an illegal attempt to seize the liberal-led National Assembly, arrest politicians and establish unchecked power for a ‘considerable’ time. Yoon is likely to appeal the verdict.” (02/19/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/yoon-life-sentence-martial-law-former-south-korea-president/
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2) Khanna, Massie Move to Force War Powers Vote in House as Senile Reality TV Star Signals Possible Iran Strike
Source: Benzinga
“Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) are set to compel a vote on their War Powers Resolution, requiring congressional approval for military action against Iran. This move comes in response to reports of a potential U.S.-Israeli strike on Iran, with a 90% likelihood, according to Trump officials cited by Khanna in his X post. On Wednesday, Khanna and Massie announced their plans to force a vote on the bipartisan resolution, which would necessitate congressional authorization for any U.S. military action against Iran.” (02/19/26)
https://www.benzinga.com/news/politics/26/02/50712115/ro-khanna-thomas-massie-move-to-force-war-powers-vote-as-trump-signals-possible-iran-strike
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3) Japan: Takaichi Formally Reappointed As PM Following Election Victory
Source: Barron’s
“Japan’s Sanae Takaichi was formally reappointed as prime minister on Wednesday, 10 days after her historic landslide election victory. Takaichi, 64, became Japan’s first woman premier in October and won a two-thirds majority for her party in the snap lower house elections on February 8. She has pledged to bolster Japan’s defences to protect its territory and waters, likely further straining relations with Beijing, and to boost the flagging economy. Takaichi suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force. China, which regards the democratic island as part of its territory and has not ruled out force to annex it, was furious. Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that forces in Japan were seeking to ‘revive militarism.'” (02/18/26)
https://archive.is/wkBTe
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4) NV: Regime sues Kalshi to protect casino-related political donors from competition
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Nevada gaming regulators filed a lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to block the prediction market operator Kalshi from offering events contracts that would allow its residents to bet on sports including football and basketball games. The Nevada gaming control board filed the lawsuit as part of an escalating battle over the ability of state gaming regulators nationally to police companies like Kalshi that allow users to place financial bets through their prediction markets. It sued on the same day that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in a brief in related litigation threw its support behind companies like Kalshi by arguing it had exclusive jurisdiction over prediction markets. … a federal appeals court on Tuesday declined to put on hold a judge’s November order dissolving an injunction that had previously prevented Nevada authorities from pursuing an enforcement action.” (02/18/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/18/nevada-kalshi-lawsuit-prediction-market
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5) Philippines: Duterte announces run for president in 2028
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has said she intends to run for president in the upcoming 2028 election, following in the footsteps of her notorious father, ex-President Rodrigo Duterte, who is currently on trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. … Duterte also asked her followers for their ‘forgiveness’ over her previous support for incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos Jr during the last presidential election. … Despite throwing her support behind Marcos’s election bid five years ago, Duterte and the president have since become bitter rivals, particularly following the launch of a corruption inquiry in 2024 into Duterte’s misuse of government funds.” (02/18/26)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/18/philippine-vp-sara-duterte-announces-run-for-president-in-2028
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6) NYC: Mamdani Stacks Board to Push Through Promised Rent Freeze
Source: Bloomberg
“New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced six new appointments to the Rent Guidelines Board, a nine-member panel tasked with governing rent-stabilized units. Mamdani said in a statement Wednesday that the newly composed board will ‘take a clear-eyed look at the complex housing landscape and the realities facing our city’s two million rent-stabilized tenants, and help us move closer to a fairer, more affordable New York.’ The new Mayor is seeking to fulfill one of his signature campaign promises to freeze rents on the city’s 1 million rent-regulated apartments. Landlords and business groups have contended that, despite rising rents on price-stabilized units, rental income isn’t keeping pace with faster inflation and escalating expenses.” (02/18/26)
https://archive.is/xpkre
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7) Power trumps tariffs as another US aluminium smelter shuts
Source: Reuters
“U.S. import tariffs haven’t been enough to stop the United States losing another aluminium smelter, leaving the country with just five primary metal production plants. Century Aluminum suspended production at its Hawesville smelter in 2022 as energy prices spiked in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company expected to resume operations within a year once power prices abated. But they didn’t, and Century has now sold the Kentucky site to digital infrastructure company TeraWulf. U.S. President Donald Trump hiked aluminium import tariffs to 50% last year with the stated goal of halting the decades-long slide in domestic primary metal capacity. The immediate impact has been limited to Century’s restart of 50,000 metric tons of annual capacity at its Mount Holly smelter in South Carolina. Tariffs helped, but an extension, opens new tab of the current power supply deal with local energy provider Santee Cooper was arguably more important.” (02/18/26)
https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/power-trumps-tariffs-another-us-aluminium-smelter-shuts-2026-02-18/
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8) TX: Teen falsely accused of race-based bullying wins $3.2 million verdict
Source: Fox News
“A Texas jury has delivered a decisive verdict in a case that once ignited national outrage and dominated headlines. Five years after a classmate accused Asher Vann of racially motivated bullying at a sleepover, jurors awarded Vann — now a college freshman — $3.2 million in damages, finding that false claims and a viral narrative caused severe emotional distress and invaded his privacy. … The case stemmed from a 2021 incident in which 13-year-old SeMarion Humphrey alleged that Vann and several other boys shot him with a BB gun and forced him to drink urine during a sleepover — accusations that were quickly framed as race-based bullying and drew national media attention, protests and involvement from activists. Vann said the accusations were far from the truth.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/media/teen-falsely-accused-race-based-bullying-wins-3-2m-verdict-from-texas-jury-after-viral-allegations
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9) Moderna says the FDA will consider its new flu shot after resolving a public dispute
Source: San Diego Union-Tribune
“The Food and Drug Administration will consider whether to approve Moderna’s new flu vaccine after all, resolving a dispute that had blocked the company’s application for the first-of-its-kind shot. Moderna announced the change Wednesday, about a week after revealing that the FDA’s vaccine chief was refusing to review the new vaccine, made with Nobel Prize-winning mRNA technology. The dispute centered over a 40,000-person clinical trial that concluded Moderna’s new vaccine was more effective in adults age 50 and older than one of the standard flu shots used today. In the FDA’s rare ‘refusal to file’ letter, vaccine director Dr. Vinay Prasad faulted the trial for not including another brand specifically recommended for people 65 and older.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/02/18/moderna-fda-flu-shot/
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10) DC: Beloved millionaire Maine philanthropist shot dead in ritzy suburban assisted-living home
Source: Fox News
“A millionaire philanthropist from Maine was shot dead in an assisted living facility in a ritzy Washington, D.C. suburb, according to police. The Montgomery County Department of Police in Maryland said it responded to an early-morning Feb. 14 emergency call at the Cogir Potomac Senior Living, where first responders found Robert Fuller Jr., 87, with severe head trauma. ‘After processing the scene, Homicide detectives confirmed that Fuller had been shot,’ the department said in a release. ‘His death is being investigated as a homicide and he was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for autopsy to determine cause and manner of death.’ An arrest has not been made in the case, and police have no suspects. Fuller was a retired Navy reserve officer and high-powered attorney from Augusta, Maine, where he was known to be a major philanthropist, according to reports.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/us/beloved-millionaire-maine-philanthropist-shot-dead-ritzy-dc-suburb-assisted-living-home-no-arrests-made
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11) Germany: Court tells X to hand over data on Hungarian election
Source: Politico
“A court in Germany on Tuesday ordered Elon Musk’s social media site X to hand over data related to the upcoming election in Hungary to researchers for scrutiny. The court in Berlin ruled in favor of rights group Democracy Reporting International in its bid to access data to research influence campaigns and disinformation in the election. The group took its case to court after X in November refused its data access requests. The European Union’s rules for social media platforms, the Digital Services Act, obliges big online platforms like X to grant external researchers access to data to scrutinize how platforms handle risks, including election interference.” (02/18/26)
https://www.politico.eu/article/berlin-court-tells-x-to-hand-over-data-on-hungarian-election
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12) Poll: Many Democrats still down on the Democratic Party
Source: SFGate
“Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections — but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats have not bounced back since President Donald Trump ’s 2024 victory. Only about 7 in 10 Democrats have a positive view of the Democratic Party, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. While the overwhelming majority of Democrats still feel good about their party, they’re much less positive than they’ve been in the past. The midterm elections are still many months away, and lackluster favorability doesn’t spell electoral doom. Other factors could benefit Democrats this year, including broadly negative views of Trump and other Republicans. But the lack of enthusiasm could be a longer-term problem for the party.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/the-latest-many-democrats-are-still-down-on-the-21360107.php
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13) Tesla stops using “Autopilot” to promote its EVs in California
Source: Engadget
“Tesla has stopped using the term ‘Autopilot’ to sell its cars in California, thereby avoiding a 30-day sales and manufacturing ban in the state. If you’ll recall, a California administrative law judge ruled in December that the automaker misled consumers by using the terms ‘Autopilot’ and ‘Full Self-Driving.’ The judge recommended the suspension, but the California DMV gave Tesla 60 days to remove any untrue and misleading language in its marketing materials. In its announcement, the DMV said Tesla has taken corrective action and has stopped using Autopilot for marketing. Prior to that, the automaker has already clarified that driver supervision is still needed with Full Self-Driving.” (02/18/26)
https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-stops-using-autopilot-to-promote-its-evs-in-california-112533060.html
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14) UK: Met making “initial inquiries” into claims about Andrew protection officers
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“The Metropolitan Police is carrying out ‘initial inquiries’ into allegations relating to close protection officers formerly assigned to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It comes after an unnamed former senior Met protection officer told LBC that members of the Royalty and Specialist Protection (RaSP) may have ‘wilfully turned a blind eye’ during visits to a private island owned by Jeffery Epstein. Multiple survivors have alleged they were trafficked to and abused on the island, known as Little St James, which Epstein purchased in 1998. In a statement, the Met said it had ‘not identified any wrongdoing’ but ‘initial enquiries into these specific allegations have begun so we can establish the facts’. Speaking to LBC on Tuesday, the former Met protection officer claimed Andrew’s protection team travelled with him to the private island on at least two occasions, including travelling on Epstein’s private jet on one of those occasions.” (02/18/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy57ry1vne0o
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15) Bulgaria: Regime to hold snap elections on April 19
Source: US News & World Report
“Bulgaria will hold a snap parliamentary election on April 19, President Iliana Iotova said on Wednesday. Iotova last week picked Andrey Gyurov, deputy governor of the Bulgarian National Bank, to head a caretaker government tasked with preparing the way for another parliamentary election, which will be the eighth in just five years in the EU and NATO member state. The previous government resigned on December 11 following weeks of street protests over its economic policies and perceived failure to tackle corruption.” (02/18/26)
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2026-02-18/bulgaria-will-hold-snap-elections-on-april-19-says-president
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16) Hungary to suspend diesel shipments to Ukraine over interruption to Russian oil supply
Source: SFGate
“Hungary is suspending its shipments of diesel to neighboring Ukraine until interruptions to Russian oil supplies via a pipeline that crosses Ukrainian territory are resolved, Hungary’s foreign minister said Wednesday. Russian oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia have been interrupted since Jan. 27 after what Ukrainian officials say were Russian attacks that damaged the Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian crude into Central Europe. Hungary and Slovakia, which have both received a temporary exemption from a European Union policy prohibiting imports of Russian oil, have accused Ukraine — without providing evidence — of deliberately holding up supplies. In a video posted on social media Wednesday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said the interruption to oil deliveries was ‘a political decision made by the Ukrainian president himself.’ Ukraine has denied such accusations.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/hungary-will-suspend-diesel-shipments-to-ukraine-21360242.php
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17) Wexner to be deposed in congressional probe of Epstein files
Source: Seattle Times
“Les Wexner’s long-time friendship with Jeffrey Epstein will be the subject of a closed-door congressional deposition in Ohio on Wednesday, where the billionaire retail magnate is expected to face questions about new revelations contained in the latest release of Justice Department documents related to the late sexual predator. Wexner, 88, the retired founder of L Brands, has said he plans to cooperate with a subpoena from Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. As one of Epstein’s most prominent former friends, Wexner has already spent years answering for their decades-long association. In court documents, prominent Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre claimed that Wexner was one of the men Epstein trafficked her to.” (02/17/26)
https://archive.is/Rb4HF
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18) CA: Zuckerberg arrives to testify in frivolous social media addiction suit
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook co-founder, arrived at a California court on Wednesday where he is due to testify in a landmark legal case over whether social media is addictive to children. It will mark Zuckerberg’s first appearance before a jury after years of backlash against his company, Meta Platforms, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp. Lawyers for Meta have argued the lead plaintiff in this case, known by her initials K.G.M, was hurt by other things in her life and not by her use of Instagram. The Los Angeles trial, in which Google’s YouTube is also a defendant, is being closely watched for its implications for thousands of similar lawsuits facing social media giants. TikTok and Snapchat, which had also been named in the lawsuit, settled shortly before trial was scheduled to begin. Terms of the settlements were not disclosed.” (02/18/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y42znjnjvo
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19) Following Trump’s lead, some GOP states seek to limit environmental regulations
Source: SFGate
“Some Republican legislators are looking to restrict their states’ ability to set environmental regulations, a move that comes as President Donald Trump’s administration pushes to roll back environmental rules on power plants, water and greenhouse gases. The Alabama Legislature on Tuesday approved legislation backed by business groups that would prevent state agencies from setting restrictions on pollutants and hazardous substances exceeding those set by the federal government. In areas where no federal standard exists, the state could adopt new rules only if there is ‘a direct causal link’ between exposure to harmful emissions and ‘manifest bodily harm’ to humans. Supporters said the Alabama measure would ground standards in ‘sound science’ and prevent regulatory overreach. Environmental groups said it would cripple the state’s ability to respond to environmental or health risks, including a group of chemicals known as PFAS, or forever chemicals, that has contaminated swaths of the South.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/following-trump-s-lead-some-gop-states-seek-to-21360310.php
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20) PA: Homeowner shoots intruder
Source: WFMJ 21 News
“A New Castle resident shot a man who allegedly broke into his home early Monday morning, according to local authorities. New Castle police officers arrived at a home in the 1600 block of South Jefferson Street just after 6 a.m. following reports of a burglary. The person who called 911 told dispatchers that an intruder had entered the house and was shot by the owner. When officers entered the home, they found a male suspect with a gunshot wound to his left leg.” (02/17/26)
https://www.wfmj.com/story/53442227/new-castle-homeowner-shoots-burglary-suspect
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) Blaming Buildings for Sex Trafficking
Source: Reason
by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
“Can a building be a sex trafficker? Some lawyers seem to be hoping so. Apartment buildings, nightclubs, and hotels have been coming under fire for facilitating interactions that some say should have been tip-offs to sex trafficking or sexual violence taking place. Victims in these lawsuits describe some heinous actions by their alleged abusers. I’m not trying to minimize any such harm or suggest actual perpetrators of violence shouldn’t be punished. But in the push to hold more entities legally accountable for alleged sex crimes against women, these suits are setting up a system in which women are increasingly watched and their sex lives increasingly subject to questioning. The end result here isn’t likely to be a world in which women are safer but one in which they’re more surveilled.” (02/18/26)
https://reason.com/2026/02/18/blaming-buildings-for-sex-trafficking/
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22) We have to trust liberty completely
Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal
“As Voltairine de Cleyre wrote in 1908, ‘[T]he sin our fathers sinned was that they did not trust liberty wholly.’ They thought America could have liberty along with a central government — a state. It didn’t work. Now we are stuck with a growing police state, and the tatters of our remaining liberty are being criminalized at an astonishing rate. This won’t end well. Liberty is indivisible — it can’t be broken into pieces and remain liberty. You can’t respect it selectively (for some people, in some areas, some of the time) and call it ‘liberty.’ True liberty requires consistent respect for everyone’s rights, everywhere, all the time.” (02/18/26)
https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2026/02/18/voices/opinion-we-have-to-trust-liberty-completely/232793.html
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25) My Plea To Team Gold
Source: The Findings Substack
by Paul Rosenberg
“I’m a bitcoin advocate, but I also love gold and silver; they’re honest money with no necessity of a counter-party. That is, they’re wonderful for decentralized commerce, which we and the world very much need. My plea to Team Gold is to begin using their wonderful money, rather than leaving it forever on shelves. (Whether their own or in a vault.) By no means am I opposed to keeping gold as an insurance policy; it’s great for that use. But the monetary metals have just enjoyed a great and long overdue run-up, at this point I think we need to take the next logical step: To start using our better money. … we’ll simultaneously build a new infrastructure. And I know this is true because I’ve watched it happen twice in a row over the past twenty-five years: first for e-gold and then for bitcoin.” (02/18/26)
https://thefindings.substack.com/p/my-plea-to-team-gold
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24) Senator Tom Cotton’s Ode to US Nuclear Weapons
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Galen Carpenter
“Hawkish Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) has never been a big fan of arms control agreements. His new op-ed in the Wall Street Journal confirms that his attitude has not softened in the slightest. … His goal is to justify an extensive increase in the U.S. nuclear arsenal under the label of ‘modernization.’ Cotton’s op-ed presents a six-part plan for doing so.” (02/18/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_galen_carpenter/2026/02/17/senator-tom-cottons-ode-to-us-nuclear-weapons/
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25) The 2020 “stolen election” obsession: Cynical? Delusional? Reptilian?
Source: Washington Post
by George F Will
“Asked what she thought of an attack on the poet Lord Byron’s morals, a wit replied, ‘It is the first time I ever heard of them.’ You might say the same if asked what you think about proofs that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Donald Trump’s belief in widespread fraud in the casting and counting of 2020 ballots is entailed by his belief that it is theoretically impossible for him to lose at anything. His certitude infects millions of Americans, some of whom think it inconceivable that he could ever be mistaken. Others doubt that anyone could win the presidency while obsessing about a complex conspiracy for which there is no evidence. … It would be reassuring to think that Trump believes nothing he says about 2020: Cynicism in the presidency is less disturbing than delusion. But reassurance is not plausible.” (02/18/26)
https://archive.ph/60gSC
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26) Pupil power: Why the US South is seeing education gains
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“In a well-known folktale, young Goldilocks tests out three bears’ porridge (too hot, too cold, just right), as well as their chairs and beds. The story delights most children of preschool age. But when these children enter school, according to education experts in the United States, a ‘Goldilocks approach’ to developing foundational skills does not serve them well. Teaching and grading that aligns content and standards to a ‘just right’ fit, rather than challenging students to grow, is a disservice, in the view of University of Illinois Chicago literacy professor Timothy Shanahan. ‘This popular approach to teaching has been holding kids back rather than helping them succeed,’ he wrote in The Conversation last fall. ‘Students learn more when taught with more difficult texts.'” (02/17/26)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0217/Pupil-power-Why-the-US-South-is-seeing-education-gains
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27) With Trump hitting new lows, the GOP is experiencing a moral reckoning
Source: The Hill
by Max Burns
“The Lenten season offers us the opportunity to look beyond ourselves and our short-term interests. That call to humility and service feels more needed than ever. If Trump and his weak Republican enablers on Capitol Hill won’t humble themselves to serve the public, voters will be more than willing to do the humbling for them.” (02/18/26)
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/5741875-trump-moral-decline-lent/
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28) The AI Future: Between Certain Doom and Endless Prosperity
Source: Cato Institute
by Kevin T Frazier
“Since early 2023, the AI discourse in the popular press and in legislative chambers has been defined by extremes. Then-Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited AI experts to the Senate and heard extensively about the existential risks posed by AI. He wasn’t the only one to associate AI with the potential end of humanity. Then-FTC Chair Lina Khan shared that she had a p(doom) of around 15 percent — her odds that AI would cause a cataclysmic event. … Today, plenty of folks are convinced of exactly the opposite. Tech luminaries such as Elon Musk envision a bright future in which humanity is surrounded by abundance. Conversations around the end of work, universal basic income, and similar utopian outcomes (to some) pass for normal chatter these days.” (02/18/26)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/ai-future-between-certain-doom-endless-prosperity
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29) The Ticking Time Bomb Looming Over Gaza
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“One under-discussed ticking time bomb is the way Israel keeps saying it’s going to resume incinerating Gaza if Hamas doesn’t disarm while Hamas keeps saying it won’t disarm. Netanyahu’s office is saying that Hamas will soon be given a 60-day deadline to give up its arms, after which the full-scale bombing of the enclave will resume if these demands aren’t met. A lot of people don’t understand that Hamas has never at any point agreed to give up its weapons. To give up its weapons would be to surrender, which is a very different thing from agreeing to a ceasefire. … Israel and its allies have no legitimate basis upon which to demand that Hamas surrender. All they can legitimately do is stop murdering and abusing the Palestinians.” (02/18/26)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/02/18/the-ticking-time-bomb-looming-over-gaza-and-other-notes/
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30) The student loan system is working just perfectly
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Tim Worstall
“As we’ve been known to remark around here prices are information. We may not like the information being transmitted but that’s an incentive to change what is being done rather than to try and hide the price. On this basis the student loan system is working just perfectly …. We are seeing the price of trying to have 50% of the age cohort going to university. It’s a very high price too. One that — clearly — isn’t worth it as the whingeing is showing. But that’s what having that price, clear and obvious, does for us. Tells us that this isn’t working. … The price is too high therefore we need to change what we’re doing.” (02/18/26)
https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-student-loan-system-is-working-just-perfectly
-----
31) Rise in transgender killers proves we have a major mental health crisis unfolding
Source: New York Post
by Karol Markowicz
“In what is becoming a regular occurrence, someone trans-identifying is accused of committing a mass murder, this time during a high school hockey game, in suburban Rhode Island. Robert Dorgan, who preferred to be called Roberta, killed his ex-wife and one of his own children and shot three more people before turning a gun on himself. In 2020, Dorgan had told police that he was being kicked out of his home, by his father-in-law, after Dorgan had undergone ‘gender-reassignment surgery.’ His wife, Rhonda Dorgan, wrote ‘gender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits’ as her grounds for divorce, but those words were crossed out and ‘irreconcilable differences which have caused the immediate breakdown of the marriage’ was written instead.” (02/17/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/02/17/opinion/the-rise-in-transgender-killers-proves-that-we-have-a-major-mental-health-crisis-unfolding/
-----
32) California Forever Stagnating
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Mark Moses
“For over a century, California stood as a frontier of first resort for the ambitious, attracting those eager to escape old-world constraints in exchange for a promise of radical autonomy. This California Dream was not a byproduct of luck; it was forged by a Gold Rush mentality that enshrined risk-taking as a prerequisite for success. This unique acceptance of failure sank roots early in the state’s consciousness, fueling a risk culture that welcomed entrepreneurs from around the globe. Supported by a strategic Pacific Rim location and fertile lands, this environment allowed innovators to transform California into a global powerhouse for agriculture, entertainment, and technology. However, modern political policies have effectively inverted these historical strengths, transforming a once-nimble sanctuary into a restrictive regulatory state.” (02/18/26)
https://fee.org/articles/california-forever-stagnating/
-----
33) SCOTUS Pro-Trump Immigration Rulings Threaten Decades of Progress
Source: Common Dreams
by Rashell Khan
“The justices on the Supreme Court should not favor the president who appointed them because checks and balances demand that they uphold the law without passion or prejudice. The current Supreme Court has increasingly shown a pattern of siding with the Trump administration — a result made predictable by the court’s conservative majority. Immigration cases have, with rare exception, aligned along these partisan lines. On June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court sidestepped the question of birthright citizenship and overruled lower court decisions that sought to protect it. The original plaintiffs filed suit to enjoin the enforcement of the executive order that identifies circumstances in which a person born in the United States is ‘not subject to the jurisdiction thereof,’ thereby restricting the constitutionally guaranteed bestowal of birthright citizenship. The Trump administration petitioned the Supreme Court, which granted review.” (02/18/26)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/trump-supreme-court-immigration
-----
34) When Moderation Becomes Method: Scientism and the Prestige of Experts
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Maros Giansante & Sérgio Alberich
“Contemporary culture grants increasing prestige to the figure of the expert who avoids explicit commitments and presents himself as moderate, technical, and ‘non-ideological.’ This posture is celebrated as a sign of intellectual maturity. In an environment saturated with open conflict, the refusal to choose appears prudent. Moderation becomes a public virtue. The problem arises when moderation ceases to be circumstantial and begins to function as a method.” (02/18/26)
https://mises.org/power-market/when-moderation-becomes-method-scientism-and-prestige-experts
-----
35) The Iran Hawks’ Distorted View of Iran
Source: Eunomia
by Daniel Larison
“Hawks routinely try to paint adversaries as irrational in order to make diplomacy with the other side seem impossible and not worth trying.” (02/18/26)
https://daniellarison.substack.com/p/the-iran-hawks-distorted-view-of
-----
36) Time for a Civil Rights Reset
Source: Law & Liberty
by Thomas F Powers
“The right is giving America a beneficial opportunity to rethink the foundational principles of civil rights law.” (02/18/26)
https://lawliberty.org/forum/time-for-a-civil-rights-reset/
-----
37) If Dems do him dirty, Stephen A Smith could be the next RFK Jr
Source: Fox News
by David Marcus
“As sports media star Stephen A. Smith teased talk of a presidential run in 2028 this weekend, there is one thing that he and those advising him must surely know: The Democratic Party does not nominate outsiders. This is a lesson that Sen. Bernie Sanders [I-VT] learned in both 2016 and 2020 as his populist socialist movement was blocked at every turn by party leaders. To his credit as a politician, Sanders and the socialists, after a decade of work, have now all but taken over the party. The more relevant example to Stephen A’s would-be grab for the golden ring in 2028 is not Sanders, it is Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., whose mistreatment by the DNC led him to endorse President Donald Trump in 2024.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/david-marcus-democrats-do-him-dirty-stephen-a-smith-could-next-rfk-jr
-----
38) The Truth About Free Will
Source: Quillette
by Michael Shermer
“Neuroscience’s challenge to free will misses the point: consciousness and choice emerge from complex systems, not individual neurons.” (02/18/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/02/18/the-truth-about-free-will-determinism/
-----
39) ICE’s “Warrant” Shortcut Violates the Constitution
Source: The Daily Economy
by Tahmineh Dehbozorgi
“ICE claims agents can enter private homes using their own paperwork — without asking a judge first. The Fourth Amendment was written for moments like this.” ()2/18/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/ices-warrant-shortcut-violates-the-constitution/
-----
40) In Silicon Valley, Hegseth is just one link in the brave new kill chain
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Shana Marshall
“Traditionally, weapons expos are about putting producers in contact with buyers, and they feature large scale sites where companies set up booths to showcase hardware capabilities and include simulations and even live-fire demonstrations. In these spec-ops safe-spaces, government procurement officials and top brass could brush elbows with warlords and mercenaries to take turns shouldering JAVELINs and downing batch bourbons. But with the introduction of more Silicon Valley tech firms into the MIC, many industry gatherings feature asset managers and investors from venture capital and private equity firms who care less about the specs than the ROI. Gone are the ‘booth babes’ of yesteryear, replaced by baby-faced billionaires in Patagonia quarter zips. Spurred on by the advent of ZIRP (zero-interest rate policy), allowing investors to borrow money essentially for free, and the decline of consumer-focused tech products, investors have turned their focus to military markets.” (02/18/26)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/defense-tech-silicon-valley/
-----
41) Do Democrats Have a Plan for the Post-Trump World Order?
Source: The American Prospect
by Jen Kirby
“The Friday nightcap session at the Munich Security Conference focused on ‘seismic shifts’ in U.S. foreign policy, and it featured a bit of an odd grouping: Matthew Whitaker, the current United States ambassador to NATO; Gretchen Whitmer, the Democratic governor of Michigan; and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Democratic congresswoman from New York. The panelists sat in a circle at the center of the room, surrounded on both sides by the audience, all wearing lanyards around their neck, some sipping wine, and many reaching upward to take photos. The tilt of their iPhones gave away who they were all here to see.” (02/18/26)
https://prospect.org/2026/02/18/democrats-nato-europe-new-world-order-munich-security-conference/
-----
42) ICE Expansion and the Architecture of a Security State
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Matt Wolfson
“The militarization of American cities by ICE is being addressed, or not addressed, around constitutional, moral, and practical questions familiar to Americans from sixty years of debates over ‘law and order.’ Does ICE’s deployment follow the law? What kind of deference is law enforcement due? Is the force deployed by ICE proportional to the threat? And, in general, is it appropriate to oppose the fact that a duly-elected president who was put into office on a promise of deporting illegal immigrants is actually fulfilling that promise? All of these are worthy questions on which reasonable people can disagree. But they are not the most relevant questions, and their relative irrelevance is why they have been embraced so enthusiastically by both political parties and their corporate media outlets.” (02/18/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/ice-expansion-and-the-architecture-of-a-security-state
-----
43) A Proposal for a New European Order
Source: The American Conservative
by Dr. Anton Friesen
“After the end of the war in Ukraine, what would be the nature of a European order that included Russia instead of marginalizing it? What is the future for Europe in an increasingly multipolar world? How should such a European order be institutionalized so that peace, freedom, democracy, and effectiveness are ensured and Europe’s own identity is protected? These are questions that cannot wait to be asked until the guns finally fall silent in Ukraine. In the present context, these questions can only be outlined sketchily in the space of a few pages. Nevertheless, it is worth trying to find an alternative for Europe.” (02/18/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/a-proposal-for-a-new-european-order/
-----
44) Can Trump’s Plan for Warehouse Immigrant Detention Camps Be Stopped?
Source: The Intercept
by Natasha Lennard
“When Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, last week announced that ICE’s ‘surge’ in Minnesota would wind down, it marked a significant victory for the thousands of Minnesotans who have fought back against the federal forces terrorizing their state; resistance forced the Trump regime to change its plans. But nothing is ramping down when it comes to the deportation machine at large. When billions of dollars are spent to turn industrial spaces into detention camps, authoritarian desires meet market logic: The warehouses must be filled. Local communities are nonetheless pushing back, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable federal forces with unlimited funding, abetted by powerful private interests who stand to gain from this carceral build-out.” (02/17/26)
https://theintercept.com/2026/02/17/warehouses-immigration-detention-camp-prisons-immigrants/
-----
45) Remembering Ed Crane
Source: Town Hall
by Star Parker
“Within the last six months, two friends, both pioneers and giants in the world of ideas in Washington, D.C., passed from this world. One, Ed Feulner, was the co-founder of the Heritage Foundation, which became the nation’s defining policy institute for conservative ideas. Now, last week, Ed Crane, the co-founder of the Cato Institute, passed away. Ed Crane built Cato to become the major presence in the nation’s capital for libertarian ideas and policy. My personal involvement with Cato began in 1996 when I was invited to join the national advisory board for Cato’s project to transform Social Security from a government tax and spend program to a program of individually owned personal retirement accounts. When I began working in the business of policy reform, a friend pointed out to me the words of futurist John Naisbitt, who observed, ‘Don’t get so far ahead of the parade that no one knows you’re in it.'” (02/18/26)
https://townhall.com/columnists/starparker/2026/02/18/remembering-ed-crane-n2671468
-----
46) Your Bucks Stop with the TSA
Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
“If you get stopped at an airport security checkpoint with $100 or more in cash, Transportation Security Administration agents can fleece you. TSA has stripped more than 10,000 travelers of their money since 2014, but the supposed ‘criminals’ are almost never charged after their cash is taken. A class-action federal court case could finally end this outrage.” (02/17/26)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2026/02/17/n-y-post-your-bucks-stop-with-the-tsa/
-----
47) He refused to censor his syllabus — so Texas Tech cancelled his class
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Graham Piro
“Texas Tech leaders have somehow convinced themselves that race and gender are not legitimate topics to discuss in a psychology class. That’s absurd on its face: You can’t teach human behavior while treating basic dimensions of human identity as off-limits. Will Crescioni, a lecturer in Texas Tech’s Department of Psychological Sciences, submitted his course materials for his honors-level psychology course the same day the Texas Tech system issued a memo ordering universities to review courses and ensure faculty do not ‘promote or otherwise inculcate’ certain ideas related to race and gender. Just over a month later — and only two days before the semester began — his course was scrapped. His offense? Refusing to alter his course content.” (02/17/26)
https://www.thefire.org/news/he-refused-censor-his-syllabus-so-texas-tech-cancelled-his-class
-----
48) Secession often is desirable
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton
“A New Mexico state representative has again filed a constitutional amendment that would allow three or more contiguous counties in the State to vote to secede if at least 15% of the counties’ electorate sign a petition to put the question on the ballot and then there is a simple majority vote. While no one expects the bill to even get out of committee, it shows that secession from States is still considered a valid and desirable action in many States.” (02/17/26)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/02/17/secession-often-is-desirable/
-----
49) What We Can Learn From North Carolina’s “Moral Mondays”
Source: In These Times
by Matthew Cunningham-Cook
“As Americans struggle with how to effectively confront an autocratic leader and his billionaire backers as they brazenly dismantle democracy and the rule of law, they might well look to a southern state where an unlikely movement managed to defeat the extreme-right agenda of a governor who followed a similar path. History doesn’t always repeat itself, but it often rhymes, as the aphorism goes. Consider this: A newly-elected executive appoints a powerful donor and plutocrat to dismantle government root and branch, mounts broad-based attacks on education, social safety net programs, and collective bargaining, and pushes income tax cuts that benefit corporations and the wealthy. Lawmakers quickly fall in line. The aggressive agenda seems set to succeed with remarkable speed, grinding all opposition into the ground with a sense of inevitability.” (02/17/26)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/what-we-can-learn-from-north-carolinas-moral-mondays
-----
50) San Jose Can Protect Immigrants by Ending Flock Surveillance System
Source: Electronic Frontier Foundation
by Jennifer Pinsof
“As ICE and other federal agencies continue their assault on civil liberties, local leaders are stepping up to protect their communities. This includes pushing back against automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, which are tools of mass surveillance that can be weaponized against immigrants, political dissidents and other targets. In recent weeks, Mountain View, Los Altos Hills, Santa Cruz, East Palo Alto and Santa Clara County have begun reconsidering their ALPR programs. San Jose should join them. This dangerous technology poses an unacceptable risk to the safety of immigrants and other vulnerable populations.” (02/17/26)
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/02/op-ed-san-jose-can-protect-immigrants-ending-flock-surveillance-system
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Reason Interview: Fardad Farahzad
Source: Reason
“Can Iran’s Protest Movement Topple the Regime?” (02/18/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/02/18/can-irans-protest-movement-topple-the-regime/
-----
52) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 02/18/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Trump’s Son Invests In Israeli ‘Low Cost-Per-Kill’ Drone Company.” (02/18/26)
https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1aJbdbbkeRBKX
-----
53) Cato Daily Podcast, 02/17/26
Source: Cato Institute
“Ed Crane and the Ideas that Changed Washington — and the World.” (02/17/26)
https://www.cato.org/multimedia/cato-podcast/ed-crane-ideas-changed-washington-world
-----
54) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 02/18/26: Steve Swedberg
Source: Freedom Works
“Steve Swedberg, Competitive Enterprise Institute ‘January Inflation Numbers.'” (02/18/26)
https://internetradiopros.com/freedomworks/?name=2026-02-19_zfw002162026.mp3
-----
55) Rising, 02/18/26
Source: The Hill
“Robby Soave delivers radar on Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary setting Tezlyn Figaro, a progressive political commentator, straight on matters of criminal justice and American history.” (02/18/26)
https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/5735554-rising-february-18-2026/
-----
56) Reasonably Optimistic, 02/18/26
Source: Washington Post
“Forget the best president. Who was the most underrated?” (02/18/26)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/impromptu/forget-the-best-president-who-was-the-most-underrated/
-----
57) The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 02/18/26
Source: The New Republic
“Minneapolis Mayor’s Emotional Message to Trump: You Failed to Break Us.” (02/18/26)
https://newrepublic.com/article/206690/minneapolis-mayor-emotional-message-trump-failed-break-us
-----
58) Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 02/18/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“Vance: Iran Won’t Acknowledge Trump’s Red Lines, Trump Boasts About Ramped Up Cuba Embargo, and More.” (02/18/26)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2vAnB-QoNY
-----
59) Nonzero, 02/17/26
Source: bloggingheads.tv
“The AI Apocalypse Cometh? | Robert Wright & Paul Bloom.” (02/17/26)
https://bloggingheads.tv/videos/69303
-----
60) The Kyle Anzalone Show, 02/17/26
Source: Libertarian Institute
“Kelley Vlahos : Does Trump’s Iran Policy Serve America or a Foreign Nation?” (02/17/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/the-kyle-anzalone-show-guest-kelley-vlahos-does-trumps-iran-policy-serve-america-or-a-foreign-nation
-----
61) Zooming In, 02/17/26
Source: The UnPopulist
“How the Right and the Left Converged Against Capitalism: A Conversation With John Cassidy.” (02/17/26)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/how-the-right-and-the-left-converged
-----
62) System Update, 02/17/26
Source: Glenn Greenwald
“The New York Times performs loyal stenography — masquerading as journalism — to protect AOC.” (02/17/26)
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-new-york-times-performs-loyal
-----
63) Gracearchy with Jim Babka, 02/17/26
Source: Gracearchy with Jim Babka
“ChiComs Attack Gracearchy.” (02/17/26)
https://rumble.com/v75ufzq-chicoms-attack-gracearchy-instant-grace-with-jim-babka-ig45.html
-----
64) Free Speech Unmuted, 02/17/26
Source: Hoover Institution
“Student Speech, Threats, and the First Amendment | Eugene Volokh and Jane Bambauer.” (02/17/26)
https://free-speech-unmuted.podbean.com/e/student-speech-threats-and-the-first-amendment-eugene-volokh-and-jane-bambauer-hoover-institution/
-----
65) Reason Roundtable, 02/17/26
Source: Reason
“DHS Wants To Unmask Online Critics.” (02/17/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/02/17/dhs-wants-to-unmask-online-critics/
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Today's Freedom News:
1) South Korea: Yoon sentenced to life for martial law attempt
2) Khanna, Massie Move to Force War Powers Vote in House as Senile Reality TV Star Signals Possible Iran Strike
3) Japan: Takaichi Formally Reappointed As PM Following Election Victory
4) NV: Regime sues Kalshi to protect casino-related political donors from competition
5) Philippines: Duterte announces run for president in 2028
6) NYC: Mamdani Stacks Board to Push Through Promised Rent Freeze
7) Power trumps tariffs as another US aluminium smelter shuts
8) TX: Teen falsely accused of race-based bullying wins $3.2 million verdict
9) Moderna says the FDA will consider its new flu shot after resolving a public dispute
10) DC: Beloved millionaire Maine philanthropist shot dead in ritzy suburban assisted-living home
11) Germany: Court tells X to hand over data on Hungarian election
12) Poll: Many Democrats still down on the Democratic Party
13) Tesla stops using “Autopilot” to promote its EVs in California
14) UK: Met making “initial inquiries” into claims about Andrew protection officers
15) Bulgaria: Regime to hold snap elections on April 19
16) Hungary to suspend diesel shipments to Ukraine over interruption to Russian oil supply
17) Wexner to be deposed in congressional probe of Epstein files
18) CA: Zuckerberg arrives to testify in frivolous social media addiction suit
19) Following Trump’s lead, some GOP states seek to limit environmental regulations
20) PA: Homeowner shoots intruder
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) Blaming Buildings for Sex Trafficking
22) We have to trust liberty completely
23) My Plea To Team Gold
24) Senator Tom Cotton’s Ode to US Nuclear Weapons
25) The 2020 “stolen election” obsession: Cynical? Delusional? Reptilian?
26) Pupil power: Why the US South is seeing education gains
27) With Trump hitting new lows, the GOP is experiencing a moral reckoning
28) The AI Future: Between Certain Doom and Endless Prosperity
29) The Ticking Time Bomb Looming Over Gaza
30) The student loan system is working just perfectly
31) Rise in transgender killers proves we have a major mental health crisis unfolding
32) California Forever Stagnating
33) SCOTUS Pro-Trump Immigration Rulings Threaten Decades of Progress
34) When Moderation Becomes Method: Scientism and the Prestige of Experts
35) The Iran Hawks’ Distorted View of Iran
36) Time for a Civil Rights Reset
37) If Dems do him dirty, Stephen A Smith could be the next RFK Jr
38) The Truth About Free Will
39) ICE’s “Warrant” Shortcut Violates the Constitution
40) In Silicon Valley, Hegseth is just one link in the brave new kill chain
41) Do Democrats Have a Plan for the Post-Trump World Order?
42) ICE Expansion and the Architecture of a Security State
43) A Proposal for a New European Order
44) Can Trump’s Plan for Warehouse Immigrant Detention Camps Be Stopped?
45) Remembering Ed Crane
46) Your Bucks Stop with the TSA
47) He refused to censor his syllabus — so Texas Tech cancelled his class
48) Secession often is desirable
49) What We Can Learn From North Carolina’s “Moral Mondays”
50) San Jose Can Protect Immigrants by Ending Flock Surveillance System
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Reason Interview: Fardad Farahzad
52) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 02/18/26
53) Cato Daily Podcast, 02/17/26
54) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 02/18/26: Steve Swedberg
55) Rising, 02/18/26
56) Reasonably Optimistic, 02/18/26
57) The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 02/18/26
58) Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 02/18/26
59) Nonzero, 02/17/26
60) The Kyle Anzalone Show, 02/17/26
61) Zooming In, 02/17/26
62) System Update, 02/17/26
63) Gracearchy with Jim Babka, 02/17/26
64) Free Speech Unmuted, 02/17/26
65) Reason Roundtable, 02/17/26
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_____ Today's Freedom News _____
1) South Korea: Yoon sentenced to life for martial law attempt
Source: CBS News
“Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life in prison for his brief imposition of martial law in a dramatic culmination to the country’s biggest political crisis in decades. Yoon fell from office after an ill-advised attempt to overcome an opposition-controlled legislature by declaring martial law and sending troops to surround the legislature on Dec. 3, 2024. Judge Jee Kui-youn said he found Yoon guilty of rebellion for mobilizing military and police forces in an illegal attempt to seize the liberal-led National Assembly, arrest politicians and establish unchecked power for a ‘considerable’ time. Yoon is likely to appeal the verdict.” (02/19/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/yoon-life-sentence-martial-law-former-south-korea-president/
-----
2) Khanna, Massie Move to Force War Powers Vote in House as Senile Reality TV Star Signals Possible Iran Strike
Source: Benzinga
“Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) are set to compel a vote on their War Powers Resolution, requiring congressional approval for military action against Iran. This move comes in response to reports of a potential U.S.-Israeli strike on Iran, with a 90% likelihood, according to Trump officials cited by Khanna in his X post. On Wednesday, Khanna and Massie announced their plans to force a vote on the bipartisan resolution, which would necessitate congressional authorization for any U.S. military action against Iran.” (02/19/26)
https://www.benzinga.com/news/politics/26/02/50712115/ro-khanna-thomas-massie-move-to-force-war-powers-vote-as-trump-signals-possible-iran-strike
-----
3) Japan: Takaichi Formally Reappointed As PM Following Election Victory
Source: Barron’s
“Japan’s Sanae Takaichi was formally reappointed as prime minister on Wednesday, 10 days after her historic landslide election victory. Takaichi, 64, became Japan’s first woman premier in October and won a two-thirds majority for her party in the snap lower house elections on February 8. She has pledged to bolster Japan’s defences to protect its territory and waters, likely further straining relations with Beijing, and to boost the flagging economy. Takaichi suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force. China, which regards the democratic island as part of its territory and has not ruled out force to annex it, was furious. Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that forces in Japan were seeking to ‘revive militarism.'” (02/18/26)
https://archive.is/wkBTe
-----
4) NV: Regime sues Kalshi to protect casino-related political donors from competition
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Nevada gaming regulators filed a lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to block the prediction market operator Kalshi from offering events contracts that would allow its residents to bet on sports including football and basketball games. The Nevada gaming control board filed the lawsuit as part of an escalating battle over the ability of state gaming regulators nationally to police companies like Kalshi that allow users to place financial bets through their prediction markets. It sued on the same day that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in a brief in related litigation threw its support behind companies like Kalshi by arguing it had exclusive jurisdiction over prediction markets. … a federal appeals court on Tuesday declined to put on hold a judge’s November order dissolving an injunction that had previously prevented Nevada authorities from pursuing an enforcement action.” (02/18/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/18/nevada-kalshi-lawsuit-prediction-market
-----
5) Philippines: Duterte announces run for president in 2028
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has said she intends to run for president in the upcoming 2028 election, following in the footsteps of her notorious father, ex-President Rodrigo Duterte, who is currently on trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. … Duterte also asked her followers for their ‘forgiveness’ over her previous support for incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos Jr during the last presidential election. … Despite throwing her support behind Marcos’s election bid five years ago, Duterte and the president have since become bitter rivals, particularly following the launch of a corruption inquiry in 2024 into Duterte’s misuse of government funds.” (02/18/26)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/18/philippine-vp-sara-duterte-announces-run-for-president-in-2028
-----
6) NYC: Mamdani Stacks Board to Push Through Promised Rent Freeze
Source: Bloomberg
“New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced six new appointments to the Rent Guidelines Board, a nine-member panel tasked with governing rent-stabilized units. Mamdani said in a statement Wednesday that the newly composed board will ‘take a clear-eyed look at the complex housing landscape and the realities facing our city’s two million rent-stabilized tenants, and help us move closer to a fairer, more affordable New York.’ The new Mayor is seeking to fulfill one of his signature campaign promises to freeze rents on the city’s 1 million rent-regulated apartments. Landlords and business groups have contended that, despite rising rents on price-stabilized units, rental income isn’t keeping pace with faster inflation and escalating expenses.” (02/18/26)
https://archive.is/xpkre
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7) Power trumps tariffs as another US aluminium smelter shuts
Source: Reuters
“U.S. import tariffs haven’t been enough to stop the United States losing another aluminium smelter, leaving the country with just five primary metal production plants. Century Aluminum suspended production at its Hawesville smelter in 2022 as energy prices spiked in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company expected to resume operations within a year once power prices abated. But they didn’t, and Century has now sold the Kentucky site to digital infrastructure company TeraWulf. U.S. President Donald Trump hiked aluminium import tariffs to 50% last year with the stated goal of halting the decades-long slide in domestic primary metal capacity. The immediate impact has been limited to Century’s restart of 50,000 metric tons of annual capacity at its Mount Holly smelter in South Carolina. Tariffs helped, but an extension, opens new tab of the current power supply deal with local energy provider Santee Cooper was arguably more important.” (02/18/26)
https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/power-trumps-tariffs-another-us-aluminium-smelter-shuts-2026-02-18/
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8) TX: Teen falsely accused of race-based bullying wins $3.2 million verdict
Source: Fox News
“A Texas jury has delivered a decisive verdict in a case that once ignited national outrage and dominated headlines. Five years after a classmate accused Asher Vann of racially motivated bullying at a sleepover, jurors awarded Vann — now a college freshman — $3.2 million in damages, finding that false claims and a viral narrative caused severe emotional distress and invaded his privacy. … The case stemmed from a 2021 incident in which 13-year-old SeMarion Humphrey alleged that Vann and several other boys shot him with a BB gun and forced him to drink urine during a sleepover — accusations that were quickly framed as race-based bullying and drew national media attention, protests and involvement from activists. Vann said the accusations were far from the truth.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/media/teen-falsely-accused-race-based-bullying-wins-3-2m-verdict-from-texas-jury-after-viral-allegations
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9) Moderna says the FDA will consider its new flu shot after resolving a public dispute
Source: San Diego Union-Tribune
“The Food and Drug Administration will consider whether to approve Moderna’s new flu vaccine after all, resolving a dispute that had blocked the company’s application for the first-of-its-kind shot. Moderna announced the change Wednesday, about a week after revealing that the FDA’s vaccine chief was refusing to review the new vaccine, made with Nobel Prize-winning mRNA technology. The dispute centered over a 40,000-person clinical trial that concluded Moderna’s new vaccine was more effective in adults age 50 and older than one of the standard flu shots used today. In the FDA’s rare ‘refusal to file’ letter, vaccine director Dr. Vinay Prasad faulted the trial for not including another brand specifically recommended for people 65 and older.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/02/18/moderna-fda-flu-shot/
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10) DC: Beloved millionaire Maine philanthropist shot dead in ritzy suburban assisted-living home
Source: Fox News
“A millionaire philanthropist from Maine was shot dead in an assisted living facility in a ritzy Washington, D.C. suburb, according to police. The Montgomery County Department of Police in Maryland said it responded to an early-morning Feb. 14 emergency call at the Cogir Potomac Senior Living, where first responders found Robert Fuller Jr., 87, with severe head trauma. ‘After processing the scene, Homicide detectives confirmed that Fuller had been shot,’ the department said in a release. ‘His death is being investigated as a homicide and he was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for autopsy to determine cause and manner of death.’ An arrest has not been made in the case, and police have no suspects. Fuller was a retired Navy reserve officer and high-powered attorney from Augusta, Maine, where he was known to be a major philanthropist, according to reports.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/us/beloved-millionaire-maine-philanthropist-shot-dead-ritzy-dc-suburb-assisted-living-home-no-arrests-made
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11) Germany: Court tells X to hand over data on Hungarian election
Source: Politico
“A court in Germany on Tuesday ordered Elon Musk’s social media site X to hand over data related to the upcoming election in Hungary to researchers for scrutiny. The court in Berlin ruled in favor of rights group Democracy Reporting International in its bid to access data to research influence campaigns and disinformation in the election. The group took its case to court after X in November refused its data access requests. The European Union’s rules for social media platforms, the Digital Services Act, obliges big online platforms like X to grant external researchers access to data to scrutinize how platforms handle risks, including election interference.” (02/18/26)
https://www.politico.eu/article/berlin-court-tells-x-to-hand-over-data-on-hungarian-election
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12) Poll: Many Democrats still down on the Democratic Party
Source: SFGate
“Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections — but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats have not bounced back since President Donald Trump ’s 2024 victory. Only about 7 in 10 Democrats have a positive view of the Democratic Party, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. While the overwhelming majority of Democrats still feel good about their party, they’re much less positive than they’ve been in the past. The midterm elections are still many months away, and lackluster favorability doesn’t spell electoral doom. Other factors could benefit Democrats this year, including broadly negative views of Trump and other Republicans. But the lack of enthusiasm could be a longer-term problem for the party.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/the-latest-many-democrats-are-still-down-on-the-21360107.php
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13) Tesla stops using “Autopilot” to promote its EVs in California
Source: Engadget
“Tesla has stopped using the term ‘Autopilot’ to sell its cars in California, thereby avoiding a 30-day sales and manufacturing ban in the state. If you’ll recall, a California administrative law judge ruled in December that the automaker misled consumers by using the terms ‘Autopilot’ and ‘Full Self-Driving.’ The judge recommended the suspension, but the California DMV gave Tesla 60 days to remove any untrue and misleading language in its marketing materials. In its announcement, the DMV said Tesla has taken corrective action and has stopped using Autopilot for marketing. Prior to that, the automaker has already clarified that driver supervision is still needed with Full Self-Driving.” (02/18/26)
https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-stops-using-autopilot-to-promote-its-evs-in-california-112533060.html
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14) UK: Met making “initial inquiries” into claims about Andrew protection officers
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“The Metropolitan Police is carrying out ‘initial inquiries’ into allegations relating to close protection officers formerly assigned to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It comes after an unnamed former senior Met protection officer told LBC that members of the Royalty and Specialist Protection (RaSP) may have ‘wilfully turned a blind eye’ during visits to a private island owned by Jeffery Epstein. Multiple survivors have alleged they were trafficked to and abused on the island, known as Little St James, which Epstein purchased in 1998. In a statement, the Met said it had ‘not identified any wrongdoing’ but ‘initial enquiries into these specific allegations have begun so we can establish the facts’. Speaking to LBC on Tuesday, the former Met protection officer claimed Andrew’s protection team travelled with him to the private island on at least two occasions, including travelling on Epstein’s private jet on one of those occasions.” (02/18/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy57ry1vne0o
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15) Bulgaria: Regime to hold snap elections on April 19
Source: US News & World Report
“Bulgaria will hold a snap parliamentary election on April 19, President Iliana Iotova said on Wednesday. Iotova last week picked Andrey Gyurov, deputy governor of the Bulgarian National Bank, to head a caretaker government tasked with preparing the way for another parliamentary election, which will be the eighth in just five years in the EU and NATO member state. The previous government resigned on December 11 following weeks of street protests over its economic policies and perceived failure to tackle corruption.” (02/18/26)
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2026-02-18/bulgaria-will-hold-snap-elections-on-april-19-says-president
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16) Hungary to suspend diesel shipments to Ukraine over interruption to Russian oil supply
Source: SFGate
“Hungary is suspending its shipments of diesel to neighboring Ukraine until interruptions to Russian oil supplies via a pipeline that crosses Ukrainian territory are resolved, Hungary’s foreign minister said Wednesday. Russian oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia have been interrupted since Jan. 27 after what Ukrainian officials say were Russian attacks that damaged the Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian crude into Central Europe. Hungary and Slovakia, which have both received a temporary exemption from a European Union policy prohibiting imports of Russian oil, have accused Ukraine — without providing evidence — of deliberately holding up supplies. In a video posted on social media Wednesday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said the interruption to oil deliveries was ‘a political decision made by the Ukrainian president himself.’ Ukraine has denied such accusations.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/hungary-will-suspend-diesel-shipments-to-ukraine-21360242.php
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17) Wexner to be deposed in congressional probe of Epstein files
Source: Seattle Times
“Les Wexner’s long-time friendship with Jeffrey Epstein will be the subject of a closed-door congressional deposition in Ohio on Wednesday, where the billionaire retail magnate is expected to face questions about new revelations contained in the latest release of Justice Department documents related to the late sexual predator. Wexner, 88, the retired founder of L Brands, has said he plans to cooperate with a subpoena from Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. As one of Epstein’s most prominent former friends, Wexner has already spent years answering for their decades-long association. In court documents, prominent Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre claimed that Wexner was one of the men Epstein trafficked her to.” (02/17/26)
https://archive.is/Rb4HF
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18) CA: Zuckerberg arrives to testify in frivolous social media addiction suit
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook co-founder, arrived at a California court on Wednesday where he is due to testify in a landmark legal case over whether social media is addictive to children. It will mark Zuckerberg’s first appearance before a jury after years of backlash against his company, Meta Platforms, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp. Lawyers for Meta have argued the lead plaintiff in this case, known by her initials K.G.M, was hurt by other things in her life and not by her use of Instagram. The Los Angeles trial, in which Google’s YouTube is also a defendant, is being closely watched for its implications for thousands of similar lawsuits facing social media giants. TikTok and Snapchat, which had also been named in the lawsuit, settled shortly before trial was scheduled to begin. Terms of the settlements were not disclosed.” (02/18/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y42znjnjvo
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19) Following Trump’s lead, some GOP states seek to limit environmental regulations
Source: SFGate
“Some Republican legislators are looking to restrict their states’ ability to set environmental regulations, a move that comes as President Donald Trump’s administration pushes to roll back environmental rules on power plants, water and greenhouse gases. The Alabama Legislature on Tuesday approved legislation backed by business groups that would prevent state agencies from setting restrictions on pollutants and hazardous substances exceeding those set by the federal government. In areas where no federal standard exists, the state could adopt new rules only if there is ‘a direct causal link’ between exposure to harmful emissions and ‘manifest bodily harm’ to humans. Supporters said the Alabama measure would ground standards in ‘sound science’ and prevent regulatory overreach. Environmental groups said it would cripple the state’s ability to respond to environmental or health risks, including a group of chemicals known as PFAS, or forever chemicals, that has contaminated swaths of the South.” (02/18/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/following-trump-s-lead-some-gop-states-seek-to-21360310.php
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20) PA: Homeowner shoots intruder
Source: WFMJ 21 News
“A New Castle resident shot a man who allegedly broke into his home early Monday morning, according to local authorities. New Castle police officers arrived at a home in the 1600 block of South Jefferson Street just after 6 a.m. following reports of a burglary. The person who called 911 told dispatchers that an intruder had entered the house and was shot by the owner. When officers entered the home, they found a male suspect with a gunshot wound to his left leg.” (02/17/26)
https://www.wfmj.com/story/53442227/new-castle-homeowner-shoots-burglary-suspect
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) Blaming Buildings for Sex Trafficking
Source: Reason
by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
“Can a building be a sex trafficker? Some lawyers seem to be hoping so. Apartment buildings, nightclubs, and hotels have been coming under fire for facilitating interactions that some say should have been tip-offs to sex trafficking or sexual violence taking place. Victims in these lawsuits describe some heinous actions by their alleged abusers. I’m not trying to minimize any such harm or suggest actual perpetrators of violence shouldn’t be punished. But in the push to hold more entities legally accountable for alleged sex crimes against women, these suits are setting up a system in which women are increasingly watched and their sex lives increasingly subject to questioning. The end result here isn’t likely to be a world in which women are safer but one in which they’re more surveilled.” (02/18/26)
https://reason.com/2026/02/18/blaming-buildings-for-sex-trafficking/
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22) We have to trust liberty completely
Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal
“As Voltairine de Cleyre wrote in 1908, ‘[T]he sin our fathers sinned was that they did not trust liberty wholly.’ They thought America could have liberty along with a central government — a state. It didn’t work. Now we are stuck with a growing police state, and the tatters of our remaining liberty are being criminalized at an astonishing rate. This won’t end well. Liberty is indivisible — it can’t be broken into pieces and remain liberty. You can’t respect it selectively (for some people, in some areas, some of the time) and call it ‘liberty.’ True liberty requires consistent respect for everyone’s rights, everywhere, all the time.” (02/18/26)
https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2026/02/18/voices/opinion-we-have-to-trust-liberty-completely/232793.html
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25) My Plea To Team Gold
Source: The Findings Substack
by Paul Rosenberg
“I’m a bitcoin advocate, but I also love gold and silver; they’re honest money with no necessity of a counter-party. That is, they’re wonderful for decentralized commerce, which we and the world very much need. My plea to Team Gold is to begin using their wonderful money, rather than leaving it forever on shelves. (Whether their own or in a vault.) By no means am I opposed to keeping gold as an insurance policy; it’s great for that use. But the monetary metals have just enjoyed a great and long overdue run-up, at this point I think we need to take the next logical step: To start using our better money. … we’ll simultaneously build a new infrastructure. And I know this is true because I’ve watched it happen twice in a row over the past twenty-five years: first for e-gold and then for bitcoin.” (02/18/26)
https://thefindings.substack.com/p/my-plea-to-team-gold
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24) Senator Tom Cotton’s Ode to US Nuclear Weapons
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Galen Carpenter
“Hawkish Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) has never been a big fan of arms control agreements. His new op-ed in the Wall Street Journal confirms that his attitude has not softened in the slightest. … His goal is to justify an extensive increase in the U.S. nuclear arsenal under the label of ‘modernization.’ Cotton’s op-ed presents a six-part plan for doing so.” (02/18/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_galen_carpenter/2026/02/17/senator-tom-cottons-ode-to-us-nuclear-weapons/
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25) The 2020 “stolen election” obsession: Cynical? Delusional? Reptilian?
Source: Washington Post
by George F Will
“Asked what she thought of an attack on the poet Lord Byron’s morals, a wit replied, ‘It is the first time I ever heard of them.’ You might say the same if asked what you think about proofs that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Donald Trump’s belief in widespread fraud in the casting and counting of 2020 ballots is entailed by his belief that it is theoretically impossible for him to lose at anything. His certitude infects millions of Americans, some of whom think it inconceivable that he could ever be mistaken. Others doubt that anyone could win the presidency while obsessing about a complex conspiracy for which there is no evidence. … It would be reassuring to think that Trump believes nothing he says about 2020: Cynicism in the presidency is less disturbing than delusion. But reassurance is not plausible.” (02/18/26)
https://archive.ph/60gSC
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26) Pupil power: Why the US South is seeing education gains
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“In a well-known folktale, young Goldilocks tests out three bears’ porridge (too hot, too cold, just right), as well as their chairs and beds. The story delights most children of preschool age. But when these children enter school, according to education experts in the United States, a ‘Goldilocks approach’ to developing foundational skills does not serve them well. Teaching and grading that aligns content and standards to a ‘just right’ fit, rather than challenging students to grow, is a disservice, in the view of University of Illinois Chicago literacy professor Timothy Shanahan. ‘This popular approach to teaching has been holding kids back rather than helping them succeed,’ he wrote in The Conversation last fall. ‘Students learn more when taught with more difficult texts.'” (02/17/26)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0217/Pupil-power-Why-the-US-South-is-seeing-education-gains
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27) With Trump hitting new lows, the GOP is experiencing a moral reckoning
Source: The Hill
by Max Burns
“The Lenten season offers us the opportunity to look beyond ourselves and our short-term interests. That call to humility and service feels more needed than ever. If Trump and his weak Republican enablers on Capitol Hill won’t humble themselves to serve the public, voters will be more than willing to do the humbling for them.” (02/18/26)
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/5741875-trump-moral-decline-lent/
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28) The AI Future: Between Certain Doom and Endless Prosperity
Source: Cato Institute
by Kevin T Frazier
“Since early 2023, the AI discourse in the popular press and in legislative chambers has been defined by extremes. Then-Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited AI experts to the Senate and heard extensively about the existential risks posed by AI. He wasn’t the only one to associate AI with the potential end of humanity. Then-FTC Chair Lina Khan shared that she had a p(doom) of around 15 percent — her odds that AI would cause a cataclysmic event. … Today, plenty of folks are convinced of exactly the opposite. Tech luminaries such as Elon Musk envision a bright future in which humanity is surrounded by abundance. Conversations around the end of work, universal basic income, and similar utopian outcomes (to some) pass for normal chatter these days.” (02/18/26)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/ai-future-between-certain-doom-endless-prosperity
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29) The Ticking Time Bomb Looming Over Gaza
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“One under-discussed ticking time bomb is the way Israel keeps saying it’s going to resume incinerating Gaza if Hamas doesn’t disarm while Hamas keeps saying it won’t disarm. Netanyahu’s office is saying that Hamas will soon be given a 60-day deadline to give up its arms, after which the full-scale bombing of the enclave will resume if these demands aren’t met. A lot of people don’t understand that Hamas has never at any point agreed to give up its weapons. To give up its weapons would be to surrender, which is a very different thing from agreeing to a ceasefire. … Israel and its allies have no legitimate basis upon which to demand that Hamas surrender. All they can legitimately do is stop murdering and abusing the Palestinians.” (02/18/26)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/02/18/the-ticking-time-bomb-looming-over-gaza-and-other-notes/
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30) The student loan system is working just perfectly
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Tim Worstall
“As we’ve been known to remark around here prices are information. We may not like the information being transmitted but that’s an incentive to change what is being done rather than to try and hide the price. On this basis the student loan system is working just perfectly …. We are seeing the price of trying to have 50% of the age cohort going to university. It’s a very high price too. One that — clearly — isn’t worth it as the whingeing is showing. But that’s what having that price, clear and obvious, does for us. Tells us that this isn’t working. … The price is too high therefore we need to change what we’re doing.” (02/18/26)
https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-student-loan-system-is-working-just-perfectly
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31) Rise in transgender killers proves we have a major mental health crisis unfolding
Source: New York Post
by Karol Markowicz
“In what is becoming a regular occurrence, someone trans-identifying is accused of committing a mass murder, this time during a high school hockey game, in suburban Rhode Island. Robert Dorgan, who preferred to be called Roberta, killed his ex-wife and one of his own children and shot three more people before turning a gun on himself. In 2020, Dorgan had told police that he was being kicked out of his home, by his father-in-law, after Dorgan had undergone ‘gender-reassignment surgery.’ His wife, Rhonda Dorgan, wrote ‘gender reassignment surgery, narcissistic + personality disorder traits’ as her grounds for divorce, but those words were crossed out and ‘irreconcilable differences which have caused the immediate breakdown of the marriage’ was written instead.” (02/17/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/02/17/opinion/the-rise-in-transgender-killers-proves-that-we-have-a-major-mental-health-crisis-unfolding/
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32) California Forever Stagnating
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Mark Moses
“For over a century, California stood as a frontier of first resort for the ambitious, attracting those eager to escape old-world constraints in exchange for a promise of radical autonomy. This California Dream was not a byproduct of luck; it was forged by a Gold Rush mentality that enshrined risk-taking as a prerequisite for success. This unique acceptance of failure sank roots early in the state’s consciousness, fueling a risk culture that welcomed entrepreneurs from around the globe. Supported by a strategic Pacific Rim location and fertile lands, this environment allowed innovators to transform California into a global powerhouse for agriculture, entertainment, and technology. However, modern political policies have effectively inverted these historical strengths, transforming a once-nimble sanctuary into a restrictive regulatory state.” (02/18/26)
https://fee.org/articles/california-forever-stagnating/
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33) SCOTUS Pro-Trump Immigration Rulings Threaten Decades of Progress
Source: Common Dreams
by Rashell Khan
“The justices on the Supreme Court should not favor the president who appointed them because checks and balances demand that they uphold the law without passion or prejudice. The current Supreme Court has increasingly shown a pattern of siding with the Trump administration — a result made predictable by the court’s conservative majority. Immigration cases have, with rare exception, aligned along these partisan lines. On June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court sidestepped the question of birthright citizenship and overruled lower court decisions that sought to protect it. The original plaintiffs filed suit to enjoin the enforcement of the executive order that identifies circumstances in which a person born in the United States is ‘not subject to the jurisdiction thereof,’ thereby restricting the constitutionally guaranteed bestowal of birthright citizenship. The Trump administration petitioned the Supreme Court, which granted review.” (02/18/26)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/trump-supreme-court-immigration
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34) When Moderation Becomes Method: Scientism and the Prestige of Experts
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Maros Giansante & Sérgio Alberich
“Contemporary culture grants increasing prestige to the figure of the expert who avoids explicit commitments and presents himself as moderate, technical, and ‘non-ideological.’ This posture is celebrated as a sign of intellectual maturity. In an environment saturated with open conflict, the refusal to choose appears prudent. Moderation becomes a public virtue. The problem arises when moderation ceases to be circumstantial and begins to function as a method.” (02/18/26)
https://mises.org/power-market/when-moderation-becomes-method-scientism-and-prestige-experts
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35) The Iran Hawks’ Distorted View of Iran
Source: Eunomia
by Daniel Larison
“Hawks routinely try to paint adversaries as irrational in order to make diplomacy with the other side seem impossible and not worth trying.” (02/18/26)
https://daniellarison.substack.com/p/the-iran-hawks-distorted-view-of
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36) Time for a Civil Rights Reset
Source: Law & Liberty
by Thomas F Powers
“The right is giving America a beneficial opportunity to rethink the foundational principles of civil rights law.” (02/18/26)
https://lawliberty.org/forum/time-for-a-civil-rights-reset/
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37) If Dems do him dirty, Stephen A Smith could be the next RFK Jr
Source: Fox News
by David Marcus
“As sports media star Stephen A. Smith teased talk of a presidential run in 2028 this weekend, there is one thing that he and those advising him must surely know: The Democratic Party does not nominate outsiders. This is a lesson that Sen. Bernie Sanders [I-VT] learned in both 2016 and 2020 as his populist socialist movement was blocked at every turn by party leaders. To his credit as a politician, Sanders and the socialists, after a decade of work, have now all but taken over the party. The more relevant example to Stephen A’s would-be grab for the golden ring in 2028 is not Sanders, it is Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., whose mistreatment by the DNC led him to endorse President Donald Trump in 2024.” (02/18/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/david-marcus-democrats-do-him-dirty-stephen-a-smith-could-next-rfk-jr
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38) The Truth About Free Will
Source: Quillette
by Michael Shermer
“Neuroscience’s challenge to free will misses the point: consciousness and choice emerge from complex systems, not individual neurons.” (02/18/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/02/18/the-truth-about-free-will-determinism/
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39) ICE’s “Warrant” Shortcut Violates the Constitution
Source: The Daily Economy
by Tahmineh Dehbozorgi
“ICE claims agents can enter private homes using their own paperwork — without asking a judge first. The Fourth Amendment was written for moments like this.” ()2/18/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/ices-warrant-shortcut-violates-the-constitution/
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40) In Silicon Valley, Hegseth is just one link in the brave new kill chain
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Shana Marshall
“Traditionally, weapons expos are about putting producers in contact with buyers, and they feature large scale sites where companies set up booths to showcase hardware capabilities and include simulations and even live-fire demonstrations. In these spec-ops safe-spaces, government procurement officials and top brass could brush elbows with warlords and mercenaries to take turns shouldering JAVELINs and downing batch bourbons. But with the introduction of more Silicon Valley tech firms into the MIC, many industry gatherings feature asset managers and investors from venture capital and private equity firms who care less about the specs than the ROI. Gone are the ‘booth babes’ of yesteryear, replaced by baby-faced billionaires in Patagonia quarter zips. Spurred on by the advent of ZIRP (zero-interest rate policy), allowing investors to borrow money essentially for free, and the decline of consumer-focused tech products, investors have turned their focus to military markets.” (02/18/26)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/defense-tech-silicon-valley/
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41) Do Democrats Have a Plan for the Post-Trump World Order?
Source: The American Prospect
by Jen Kirby
“The Friday nightcap session at the Munich Security Conference focused on ‘seismic shifts’ in U.S. foreign policy, and it featured a bit of an odd grouping: Matthew Whitaker, the current United States ambassador to NATO; Gretchen Whitmer, the Democratic governor of Michigan; and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Democratic congresswoman from New York. The panelists sat in a circle at the center of the room, surrounded on both sides by the audience, all wearing lanyards around their neck, some sipping wine, and many reaching upward to take photos. The tilt of their iPhones gave away who they were all here to see.” (02/18/26)
https://prospect.org/2026/02/18/democrats-nato-europe-new-world-order-munich-security-conference/
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42) ICE Expansion and the Architecture of a Security State
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Matt Wolfson
“The militarization of American cities by ICE is being addressed, or not addressed, around constitutional, moral, and practical questions familiar to Americans from sixty years of debates over ‘law and order.’ Does ICE’s deployment follow the law? What kind of deference is law enforcement due? Is the force deployed by ICE proportional to the threat? And, in general, is it appropriate to oppose the fact that a duly-elected president who was put into office on a promise of deporting illegal immigrants is actually fulfilling that promise? All of these are worthy questions on which reasonable people can disagree. But they are not the most relevant questions, and their relative irrelevance is why they have been embraced so enthusiastically by both political parties and their corporate media outlets.” (02/18/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/ice-expansion-and-the-architecture-of-a-security-state
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43) A Proposal for a New European Order
Source: The American Conservative
by Dr. Anton Friesen
“After the end of the war in Ukraine, what would be the nature of a European order that included Russia instead of marginalizing it? What is the future for Europe in an increasingly multipolar world? How should such a European order be institutionalized so that peace, freedom, democracy, and effectiveness are ensured and Europe’s own identity is protected? These are questions that cannot wait to be asked until the guns finally fall silent in Ukraine. In the present context, these questions can only be outlined sketchily in the space of a few pages. Nevertheless, it is worth trying to find an alternative for Europe.” (02/18/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/a-proposal-for-a-new-european-order/
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44) Can Trump’s Plan for Warehouse Immigrant Detention Camps Be Stopped?
Source: The Intercept
by Natasha Lennard
“When Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, last week announced that ICE’s ‘surge’ in Minnesota would wind down, it marked a significant victory for the thousands of Minnesotans who have fought back against the federal forces terrorizing their state; resistance forced the Trump regime to change its plans. But nothing is ramping down when it comes to the deportation machine at large. When billions of dollars are spent to turn industrial spaces into detention camps, authoritarian desires meet market logic: The warehouses must be filled. Local communities are nonetheless pushing back, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable federal forces with unlimited funding, abetted by powerful private interests who stand to gain from this carceral build-out.” (02/17/26)
https://theintercept.com/2026/02/17/warehouses-immigration-detention-camp-prisons-immigrants/
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45) Remembering Ed Crane
Source: Town Hall
by Star Parker
“Within the last six months, two friends, both pioneers and giants in the world of ideas in Washington, D.C., passed from this world. One, Ed Feulner, was the co-founder of the Heritage Foundation, which became the nation’s defining policy institute for conservative ideas. Now, last week, Ed Crane, the co-founder of the Cato Institute, passed away. Ed Crane built Cato to become the major presence in the nation’s capital for libertarian ideas and policy. My personal involvement with Cato began in 1996 when I was invited to join the national advisory board for Cato’s project to transform Social Security from a government tax and spend program to a program of individually owned personal retirement accounts. When I began working in the business of policy reform, a friend pointed out to me the words of futurist John Naisbitt, who observed, ‘Don’t get so far ahead of the parade that no one knows you’re in it.'” (02/18/26)
https://townhall.com/columnists/starparker/2026/02/18/remembering-ed-crane-n2671468
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46) Your Bucks Stop with the TSA
Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
“If you get stopped at an airport security checkpoint with $100 or more in cash, Transportation Security Administration agents can fleece you. TSA has stripped more than 10,000 travelers of their money since 2014, but the supposed ‘criminals’ are almost never charged after their cash is taken. A class-action federal court case could finally end this outrage.” (02/17/26)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2026/02/17/n-y-post-your-bucks-stop-with-the-tsa/
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47) He refused to censor his syllabus — so Texas Tech cancelled his class
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Graham Piro
“Texas Tech leaders have somehow convinced themselves that race and gender are not legitimate topics to discuss in a psychology class. That’s absurd on its face: You can’t teach human behavior while treating basic dimensions of human identity as off-limits. Will Crescioni, a lecturer in Texas Tech’s Department of Psychological Sciences, submitted his course materials for his honors-level psychology course the same day the Texas Tech system issued a memo ordering universities to review courses and ensure faculty do not ‘promote or otherwise inculcate’ certain ideas related to race and gender. Just over a month later — and only two days before the semester began — his course was scrapped. His offense? Refusing to alter his course content.” (02/17/26)
https://www.thefire.org/news/he-refused-censor-his-syllabus-so-texas-tech-cancelled-his-class
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48) Secession often is desirable
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton
“A New Mexico state representative has again filed a constitutional amendment that would allow three or more contiguous counties in the State to vote to secede if at least 15% of the counties’ electorate sign a petition to put the question on the ballot and then there is a simple majority vote. While no one expects the bill to even get out of committee, it shows that secession from States is still considered a valid and desirable action in many States.” (02/17/26)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/02/17/secession-often-is-desirable/
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49) What We Can Learn From North Carolina’s “Moral Mondays”
Source: In These Times
by Matthew Cunningham-Cook
“As Americans struggle with how to effectively confront an autocratic leader and his billionaire backers as they brazenly dismantle democracy and the rule of law, they might well look to a southern state where an unlikely movement managed to defeat the extreme-right agenda of a governor who followed a similar path. History doesn’t always repeat itself, but it often rhymes, as the aphorism goes. Consider this: A newly-elected executive appoints a powerful donor and plutocrat to dismantle government root and branch, mounts broad-based attacks on education, social safety net programs, and collective bargaining, and pushes income tax cuts that benefit corporations and the wealthy. Lawmakers quickly fall in line. The aggressive agenda seems set to succeed with remarkable speed, grinding all opposition into the ground with a sense of inevitability.” (02/17/26)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/what-we-can-learn-from-north-carolinas-moral-mondays
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50) San Jose Can Protect Immigrants by Ending Flock Surveillance System
Source: Electronic Frontier Foundation
by Jennifer Pinsof
“As ICE and other federal agencies continue their assault on civil liberties, local leaders are stepping up to protect their communities. This includes pushing back against automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, which are tools of mass surveillance that can be weaponized against immigrants, political dissidents and other targets. In recent weeks, Mountain View, Los Altos Hills, Santa Cruz, East Palo Alto and Santa Clara County have begun reconsidering their ALPR programs. San Jose should join them. This dangerous technology poses an unacceptable risk to the safety of immigrants and other vulnerable populations.” (02/17/26)
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/02/op-ed-san-jose-can-protect-immigrants-ending-flock-surveillance-system
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Reason Interview: Fardad Farahzad
Source: Reason
“Can Iran’s Protest Movement Topple the Regime?” (02/18/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/02/18/can-irans-protest-movement-topple-the-regime/
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52) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 02/18/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Trump’s Son Invests In Israeli ‘Low Cost-Per-Kill’ Drone Company.” (02/18/26)
https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1aJbdbbkeRBKX
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53) Cato Daily Podcast, 02/17/26
Source: Cato Institute
“Ed Crane and the Ideas that Changed Washington — and the World.” (02/17/26)
https://www.cato.org/multimedia/cato-podcast/ed-crane-ideas-changed-washington-world
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54) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 02/18/26: Steve Swedberg
Source: Freedom Works
“Steve Swedberg, Competitive Enterprise Institute ‘January Inflation Numbers.'” (02/18/26)
https://internetradiopros.com/freedomworks/?name=2026-02-19_zfw002162026.mp3
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55) Rising, 02/18/26
Source: The Hill
“Robby Soave delivers radar on Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary setting Tezlyn Figaro, a progressive political commentator, straight on matters of criminal justice and American history.” (02/18/26)
https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/5735554-rising-february-18-2026/
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56) Reasonably Optimistic, 02/18/26
Source: Washington Post
“Forget the best president. Who was the most underrated?” (02/18/26)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/impromptu/forget-the-best-president-who-was-the-most-underrated/
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57) The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 02/18/26
Source: The New Republic
“Minneapolis Mayor’s Emotional Message to Trump: You Failed to Break Us.” (02/18/26)
https://newrepublic.com/article/206690/minneapolis-mayor-emotional-message-trump-failed-break-us
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58) Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 02/18/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“Vance: Iran Won’t Acknowledge Trump’s Red Lines, Trump Boasts About Ramped Up Cuba Embargo, and More.” (02/18/26)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2vAnB-QoNY
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59) Nonzero, 02/17/26
Source: bloggingheads.tv
“The AI Apocalypse Cometh? | Robert Wright & Paul Bloom.” (02/17/26)
https://bloggingheads.tv/videos/69303
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60) The Kyle Anzalone Show, 02/17/26
Source: Libertarian Institute
“Kelley Vlahos : Does Trump’s Iran Policy Serve America or a Foreign Nation?” (02/17/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/the-kyle-anzalone-show-guest-kelley-vlahos-does-trumps-iran-policy-serve-america-or-a-foreign-nation
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61) Zooming In, 02/17/26
Source: The UnPopulist
“How the Right and the Left Converged Against Capitalism: A Conversation With John Cassidy.” (02/17/26)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/how-the-right-and-the-left-converged
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62) System Update, 02/17/26
Source: Glenn Greenwald
“The New York Times performs loyal stenography — masquerading as journalism — to protect AOC.” (02/17/26)
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-new-york-times-performs-loyal
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63) Gracearchy with Jim Babka, 02/17/26
Source: Gracearchy with Jim Babka
“ChiComs Attack Gracearchy.” (02/17/26)
https://rumble.com/v75ufzq-chicoms-attack-gracearchy-instant-grace-with-jim-babka-ig45.html
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64) Free Speech Unmuted, 02/17/26
Source: Hoover Institution
“Student Speech, Threats, and the First Amendment | Eugene Volokh and Jane Bambauer.” (02/17/26)
https://free-speech-unmuted.podbean.com/e/student-speech-threats-and-the-first-amendment-eugene-volokh-and-jane-bambauer-hoover-institution/
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65) Reason Roundtable, 02/17/26
Source: Reason
“DHS Wants To Unmask Online Critics.” (02/17/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/02/17/dhs-wants-to-unmask-online-critics/
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