05/04 -- Russia: Drone hits upscale Moscow tower as city readies for Victory Day parade; The Murder of Spirit Airlines
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Thomas L. Knapp
May 4, 2026, 6:16:25 AMMay 4
to Freedom News Daily
Freedom News Daily, 05/04/26
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Today's Freedom News:
1) Russia: Drone hits upscale Moscow tower as city readies for Victory Day parade
2) Japan: Protests in support of pacifist constitution as Takaichi pushes revisions
3) Trump: US Navy will “guide” ships out of Strait of Hormuz from Monday
4) Three cruise ship passengers die in suspected hantavirus outbreak
5) Trump: US will reduce number of troops in Germany “a lot further” than withdrawal of 5,000
6) Pope remembers journalists who lost their lives due to violence and wars
7) TX: Judge temporarily blocks ban on smokeable hemp
8) Australia: Man charged with murder and sexual assault of five-year-old girl
9) Sudan: Drone strike kills five near capital, rights group says
10) CA: Mom faces involuntary manslaughter after son’s e-motorcycle crash kills man
11) Taiwan president visits Eswatini days after blaming China for cancelled trip
12) Iran: Police allegedly murder man after abducting brother for Starlink use
13) Austria: Police arrest suspect in connection to rat poison found in baby food jars
14) Mexico: Governor temporarily steps down after US indictment
15) US Regime Issues Sanctions Warning for Shipping Firms Paying Iran Tolls
16) Spanish regime demands Israeli regime release abducted Gaza flotilla crew member
17) Oil tanker hijacked off coast of Yemen and taken towards Somalia
18) Ukraine: Regime thanks Melania Trump for her help in bringing abducted kids home
19) SCOTUS being asked to restore access to abortion pill by mail
20) OK: Homeowner shoots alleged intruder
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) The Murder of Spirit Airlines
22) Trump’s IRS lawsuit is best shakedown in presidential history
23) Standing Athwart Hegel, Yelling “Stop!”
24) Trump’s Iran blockade snatches defeat from the jaws of victory
25) The Trump Surveillance State
26) Screenagers have something to teach Grandma
27) Michael Jackson: Man or Monster in the Mirror?
28) Trump’s priorities are revenge and posing
29) Protest Laws Should Be Viewed As Efforts To Ban Criticism Of Israel
30) Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!
31) Latin America’s grip on democracy
32) Trump’s Iran War Continues to Violate the Constitution — and Now Also the War Powers Act of 1973
33) No More Kings: Time to End Sovereign Immunity
34) Reclaiming the Calendar
35) I went to Madrid to influence libertarians
36) COVID Conniving Receives First Federal Indictment
37) Humans … Americans … Let Everyone Be Treated Equally
38) Power, Inequality, and Politics
39) The Irrationality of Police-State Libertarian Anarchists
40) America’s Post-Deliberative Wars
41) Turning Civil Rights Inside Out
42) You Found Satoshi? Let’s See the Receipts
43) How Knowing More Can Make Us Worse Off
44) After Nudging: The Rise and Fall of a Behavioral Economics Fad
45) Calling the court illegitimate is the left’s latest assault on the Constitution
46) AI in an Age of Humanity
47) The Self-Driving Car Fight in Congress Isn’t Really About Safety at All
48) Straight Talk on Tariffs
49) May Day Was a Reminder That We Make the World Run
50) One Big Reason Iran Thinks It Has the Advantage
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Unattended Baggage, episode 339
52) Why Wealth Taxes Fail
53) Serious Trouble, 05/01/26
54) The Anarchist Experience, episode 578
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 05/01/26
56) Fountainhead Forum, episode 442
57) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2757
58) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 05/01/26
59) Reasonably Optimistic, 05/01/26
60) The Brian Nichols Show, 05/01/26
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_____ Today's Freedom News _____
1) Russia: Drone hits upscale Moscow tower as city readies for Victory Day parade
Source: South China Morning Post [Hong Kong]
“A drone hit a residential tower in an upscale Moscow district in a rare strike near the city centre ahead of the traditional World War II Victory Day parade. Moscow air defences repelled an attack by two Ukrainian drones, and one hit the building on Mosfilmovskaya Street, according to a post on Monday by Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Emergency services were sent to the scene, and there were no reports of casualties. Mosfilmovskaya is about 6-8km (about 4-5 miles) from the Kremlin, and local media showed damage to the upper floors of a high-end residential building.” (05/04/26)
https://archive.is/hWMU2
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2) Japan: Protests in support of pacifist constitution as Takaichi pushes revisions
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has called for ‘advanced discussions’ on revising the pacifist constitution, as large demonstrations were held nationwide to oppose any changes to the country’s supreme law. … Revisionists have set their sights on article 9 – the co-called ‘pacifist’ clause – which forbids Japan from threatening or using military force to settle international disputes. … On Sunday – constitutional memorial day – an estimated 50,000 people gathered at a park in Tokyo in support of the document, whose wording has remained unchanged since it went into effect on 3 May 1947. … Demonstrations were held in dozens of other towns and cities on Sunday – a public holiday – attended by people old enough to recall how the postwar constitution had brought peace and stability to a country ravaged by conflict.” (05/04/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/04/japan-sees-largest-protest-in-support-of-pacifist-constitution-as-pm-takaichi-pushes-revisions
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3) Trump: US Navy will “guide” ships out of Strait of Hormuz from Monday
Source: Axios
“President Trump said the U.S. Navy will start guiding ships from foreign countries through the Strait of Hormuz from Monday and warned that if Iran tries to disrupt the process, the American military will use force. … It was not immediately clear whether this move was coordinated with Iran in any way. … The U.S. sent on Sunday another amended draft for an agreement to end the war in response to Iranian officials’ latest proposal, sources said.” (05/03/26)
https://archive.is/3knat
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4) Three cruise ship passengers die in suspected hantavirus outbreak
Source: Reuters
“Three people have died and three are ill after a Netherlands-based cruise ship was hit by a suspected outbreak of hantavirus, a rodent-borne virus that can cause fatal respiratory illness, authorities and media reports said on Sunday. Netherlands-based Oceanwide Expeditions said in a news release it was ‘managing a serious medical situation’ on a polar expedition ship, the MV Hondius, which was off Cape Verde, an island nation in the Atlantic west of Africa. The cruise departed from Argentina about three weeks ago with around 150 passengers and stopped in the Antarctic and other locations on its way to Cape Verde, according to media reports. A Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed that two Dutch passengers had died, but gave no further details.” (05/03/26)
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/three-passengers-dead-one-case-hantavirus-confirmed-atlantic-cruise-ship-who-2026-05-03/
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5) Trump: US will reduce number of troops in Germany “a lot further” than withdrawal of 5,000
Source: SFGate
“President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the U.S. will significantly reduce its troop presence in Germany, escalating a dispute with Chancellor Friedrich Merz as he seeks to scale back America’s commitment to European security. The Pentagon on Friday had initially announced it would pull some 5,000 troops out of Germany, but when asked Saturday about the reason for the move, Trump didn’t offer an explanation and said an even bigger reduction was coming. ‘We’re going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,’ Trump told reporters in Florida. Earlier on Saturday, Germany’s defense minister appeared to take in stride the news that 5,000 U.S. troops would be leaving his country.” [editor’s note: Yet another thing we libertarians have been agitating for for decades? Or just another ploy? – SAT] (05/02/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/germany-focuses-on-shared-interests-after-us-22237978.php
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6) Pope remembers journalists who lost their lives due to violence and wars
Source: Vatican News [Vatican state media]
“Following the recitation of Sunday’s Regina Caeli, Pope Leo XIV recalled that today May 3rd marks World Press Freedom Day, the annual day promoted by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The Pope remarked that unfortunately, freedom of the press is often violated, sometimes blatantly and sometimes in subtle ways. He said: ‘Let us remember the many journalists and reporters who have fallen victim to wars and violence.'” (05/03/26)
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2026-05/pope-remembers-journalists-who-lost-lives-due-to-violence-wars.html
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7) TX: Judge temporarily blocks ban on smokeable hemp
Source: United Press International
“A Texas judge on Friday temporarily paused the state’s ban on smokable hemp products, such as flower and joints, after three industry groups and multiple companies based in the state sued over it. The state in March expanded its limit on THC in hemp products from 0.3% levels of Delta-9 THC to cover any form of THC beyond the state’s previous limit of 0.3% total THC in dry weight of the intoxicating group of chemicals. … The groups that [sued] the state contend that the health department overstepped their constitutional authority and that the new rules have done irreparable harm to the Texas hemp industry, CBS Austin reported.” (05/02/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/05/02/texas-hemp-smokable-ban-blocked-by-judge/1781777761522/
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8) Australia: Man charged with murder and sexual assault of five-year-old girl
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Police in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) have charged a man with murder and two counts of sexual assault following the death of a five-year-old girl. The body of the girl, who is identified only as Kumanjayi Little Baby for cultural reasons, was discovered on Thursday following severals days of a major police search. Jefferson Lewis, 47, was charged with her murder on Saturday night and has been scheduled to appear in a Darwin court on Tuesday. Five people have been arrested over violent riots in Alice Springs sparked by the child’s death. Northern Territory Police Commissioner Martin Dole announced the charges against Lewis on Sunday morning.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy92qennznjo
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9) Sudan: Drone strike kills five near capital, rights group says
Source: The New Arab [UK]
“Sudan’s paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) killed at least five people in a drone attack that hit a civilian vehicle on the outskirts of Khartoum, a local Sudanese rights group said. The attack on Saturday morning hit a vehicle that was traveling from the White Nile province to Omdurman, the sister city of the capital, Emergency Lawyers, a rights group tracking violence against civilians, said in a statement.” (05/02/26)
https://www.newarab.com/news/paramilitary-forces-drone-strike-kills-5-near-sudan-capital
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10) CA: Mom faces involuntary manslaughter after son’s e-motorcycle crash kills man
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“A southern California woman is facing an additional charge of involuntary manslaughter after an 81-year-old man died from his injuries after being struck by the woman’s teen son while he was riding an e-motorcycle, prosecutors said on Friday. On 16 April, Tommi Jo Mejer’s 14-year-old son was riding a Surron e-motorcycle and doing wheelies when he hit Ed Ashman, according to prosecutors. … ‘This mother essentially handed her 14-year-old son a deadly weapon, and despite multiple warnings of the dangers, continued to let him illegally ride an e-motorcycle until he finally killed someone,’ the Orange county district attorney, Todd Spitzer, said in a statement.” (05/02/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/02/california-e-motorcycle-crash-involuntary-manslaughter
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11) Taiwan president visits Eswatini days after blaming China for cancelled trip
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has arrived in Eswatini, days after his government said a trip had been cancelled due to China pressuring African countries to stop him flying over their territories. His visit to Eswatini – Taiwan’s only diplomatic ally in Africa — followed ‘days of careful arrangements by the diplomatic and national security teams,’ he said, without giving further details on how he reached the country. China described the visit as a ‘stowaway-style escape farce.’ China [pretends Taiwan is] part of its territory with no right to state-to-state relations. Images showed Lai being welcomed by Eswatini Prime Minister Russell Dlamini as he walked past a guard of honour. Taiwan’s delegation also included Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung and National Security Council Adviser Alex Huang, according to its presidential office.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c809ln029ldo
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12) Iran: Police allegedly murder man after abducting brother for Starlink use
Source: Euronews [EU]
“An Iranian businessman has died as a result of being beaten while under arrest, human rights group the Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation reported. The report states that Hesam Alaeedin went to the security authorities to follow up on the status of his detained brother. The rights group added that Alaeddin’s brother had been accused of using Starlink equipment to access the internet, and that he too had been subjected to violence by security agents. … Iranian authorities cut off access to the internet 64 days ago, coinciding with the United States and Israeli military attack. … Iranian officials have warned that owners and users of Starlink equipment face legal action.” (05/02/26)
https://www.euronews.com/2026/05/02/businessman-dies-after-alleged-beating-in-custody-over-brothers-starlink-detention
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13) Austria: Police arrest suspect in connection to rat poison found in baby food jars
Source: CBS News
“Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe. HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was ‘greatly relieved’ by the arrest, and would provide a further updates as verified details come in. The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.” (05/03/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hipp-baby-food-rat-poison-suspect-arrested-austria/
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14) Mexico: Governor temporarily steps down after US indictment
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Two members of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s party in the north-western Sinaloa state said they would temporarily step down from their posts after the United States charged them and eight other politicians and security officers with drug trafficking. The bombshell indictment against the 10 has shaken Mexico’s political establishment. In a short video announcement at midnight on Friday, Gov Rubén Rocha Moya, the highest-ranking official named in the indictment, denied accusations that he protected the Sinaloa cartel and helped it smuggle vast quantities of drugs into the US in exchange for political support and millions of dollars in bribes. … Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, the mayor of the Sinaloa state capital of Culiacán named in the indictment, also said he would take leave and denied the charges.” (05/03/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/03/mexican-governor-and-mayor-indicted-by-us-for-drug-trafficking-step-down
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15) US Regime Issues Sanctions Warning for Shipping Firms Paying Iran Tolls
Source: India News Network [India]
“The United States has issued a warning to shipping firms that they risk sanctions if they make payments to Iran for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The alert, released by the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), emphasised that US persons and entities are prohibited from engaging in transactions with Iranian government bodies. It also warned non-US entities that they could face sanctions repercussions if they settle payments to Iran.” (05/03/26)
https://www.indianewsnetwork.com/en/us-sanctions-warning-shipping-firms-paying-iran-tolls-20260503
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16) Spanish regime demands Israeli regime release abducted Gaza flotilla crew member
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Spain has demanded the release of a citizen who was arrested during a raid on a flotilla headed for Gaza and taken to Israel, calling it an abduction. Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told Catalan radio station RAC1 on Saturday that he was concerned about the ‘illegal detention’ of Saif Abukeshek, and called for him to be ‘released immediately.’ … [Israeli pirates] stormed 22 of the flotilla boats attempting to deliver aid to Gaza while they were in international waters, hundreds of miles from the strip. Drones and communications-jamming technology were used. They [abducted] 175 of those on board and took them to Greece, except for Abukeshek and Avila.” (05/02/26)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/2/spain-demands-israel-release-arrested-gaza-flotilla-crew-member
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17) Oil tanker hijacked off coast of Yemen and taken towards Somalia
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Somali pirates have hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen, according to multiple Somali security officials that spoke with the BBC. The Yemeni coastguard earlier said the tanker MT Eureka had been hijacked and was headed towards Somalia. Sources said it was overrun by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, near the port of Qana. The pirates departed a remote coastal area near the seaside town of Qandala, which sits on the Gulf of Aden, according to three separate security officials from the semi-autonomous Puntland region who spoke with the BBC. It marks the second hijacking of an oil tanker in the area in a 10-day period, following the hijacking of Honor 25 by Somali pirates on April 22. Honor 25 was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil bound for Mogadishu.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpwprl0v2npo
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18) Ukraine: Regime thanks Melania Trump for her help in bringing abducted kids home
Source: United Press International
“U.S. First Lady Melania Trump was instrumental in securing the return of at least 26 Ukrainian children abducted by Russia over the past several months, Ukraine’s top human rights official said. Speaking at a Bring Kids Back event in Kyiv on Thursday, Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukraine Parliament’s Human Rights Commissioner, said Trump had become an important ally in negotiating with Moscow to return children to their families from Russia and regions under Russian control. … According to Ukraine Government data, 20,570 children had been deported or forcibly displaced from Ukraine by Russia, as of May 1, of whom only 2,126 have been returned.” (05/01/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2026/05/01/Ukraine-credits-Melania-Trump-with-bringing-children-home/8421777623483/
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19) SCOTUS being asked to restore access to abortion pill by mail
Source: SFGate
“Two makers of the widely used abortion pill mifepristone asked the Supreme Court on Saturday to block an appellate court ruling that cut off mail-order access to the drug just a day earlier, in what was the biggest jolt to abortion policy in the U.S. since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Danco Laboratories asked the high court for an emergency pause on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision, saying the appellate ruling ‘injects immediate confusion and upheaval into highly time-sensitive medical decisions.’ GenBioPro, which makes a generic version of mifepristone, made a similar request.” [editor’s note: While this pill does work a bit further along than Plan B, it is useless if not taken in the early part of first trimester; it is not a late term procedure and should not be anyone’s business – SAT](05/02/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/a-federal-court-blocked-a-widely-used-abortion-22237880.php
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20) OK: Homeowner shoots alleged intruder
Source: KFOR News
“A metro homeowner shot an alleged intruder Friday night and sent the suspect to the hospital, according to police. … Officials said it appeared to be a first-degree burglary, possibly turned self-defense. … The homeowner was not injured in the situation, per police.” (05/02/26)
https://kfor.com/news/metro-homeowner-shoots-alleged-intruder-friday-night/
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) The Murder of Spirit Airlines
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“On May 2, Spirit Airlines ceased operations after it failed to get the US government to bail it out of the latest in a series of untenable situations — at least two of which the US government put it in to begin with. … Maybe Spirit would have failed even absent the massive jet fuel price increases. Perhaps the proposed merger with JetBlue would have dragged that airline down, too, instead of profitably folding Spirit’s assets into a more efficient operating environment. And maybe all of Ted Bundy’s victims were mere moments away from choosing suicide when he strangled them to death instead. We’ll never know, will we? What we do know is that the US government’s murder of Spirit Airlines will almost certainly result in (checks notes) ‘higher fares, fewer seats, and harm [to] millions of consumers.'” (05/02/26)
https://thegarrisoncenter.org/archives/20562
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22) Trump’s IRS lawsuit is best shakedown in presidential history
Source: USA Today
by James Bovard
“President Donald Trump is suing the Internal Revenue Service to force the American people to pay him at least $10 billion in damages because he was embarrassed when his tax returns leaked out in 2020. Trump ordered his appointees at federal agencies to speedily give him the billions to settle his lawsuit. But on April 24, federal Judge Kathleen Williams temporarily stopped the greatest shakedown in presidential history. … Trump’s lawsuit pretends he was an innocent bystander. Who was president at the time of that leak? Trump. Who appointed the chief of the IRS? Trump. And who deserves $10 billion because of alleged federal misconduct under his watch? Trump.” (05/01/26)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2026/05/01/trump-lawsuit-irs-leaked-tax-returns/89838315007/
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23) Standing Athwart Hegel, Yelling “Stop!”
Source: The Dispatch
by Jonah Goldberg
“On Wednesday, The Atlantic’s Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer, two serious journalists formerly with the Washington Post, begin their piece with a question: ‘Had President Trump, we wondered, possibly been reading or at least thumbing through – just maybe — the works of … Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel?’ That’s it. That’s the lede. … Is Trump a world-historical figure in the Hegelian sense? Are you high? Of course not. Parker and Scherer are more interested in whether Trump thinks he’s a world-historical figure in the way that Hegel described. The answer to that is also a resounding no. The dude doesn’t read memos. You think he’s thumbing through Hegel? In fairness to them, the real point of their piece is to illuminate that Trump’s delusions of grandeur are worrisomely out of control. And they succeed.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/mdZxo
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24) Trump’s Iran blockade snatches defeat from the jaws of victory
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Trita Parsi
“[T]he fragile ceasefire disproportionately favored the United States over Iran: Trump secured his central objective — a swift exit from a costly war — while Iran forfeited its primary source of leverage, namely the inflationary pressure of elevated oil prices. Tehran, by contrast, remained unable to achieve its core objective — meaningful sanctions relief — without entering a difficult diplomatic process with Washington. The asymmetry was stark: Trump could afford strategic patience, whereas Iran risked squandering the most consequential gains the conflict could have yielded if negotiations faltered or collapsed. In short, this emerging status quo could have constituted a quiet but decisive victory for Trump. … But then Trump committed a familiar and consequential error.” (05/02/26)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/trump-iran-blockade/
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25) The Trump Surveillance State
Source: Antiwar.com
by Andrew P Napolitano
“The Fourth Amendment protects all persons from warrantless government searches and seizures of their persons, houses, papers and effects. It requires that warrants be supported by probable cause of crime and specifically describe the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. Last week, for the first time in the modern era, the government argued to the Supreme Court of the United States that the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution did not outlaw general warrants.” (05/01/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/andrew-p-napolitano/2026/04/30/the-trump-surveillance-state
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26) Screenagers have something to teach Grandma
Source: New York Post
by Karol Markowicz
“The zombies are everywhere. They’re staring at their phones as they carelessly cross the road. They’re constantly watching videos, sound-on and loudly, on airplanes or in store check-out lines. And they’re not Gen Z screenagers; now, the kids’ aging grandparents are quickly becoming the biggest screen addicts of all. … Last month Wired reported that a med student in India used AI to create a character named Emily Hart (a pretty blonde ‘MAGA influencer’ who claimed to enjoy posing in a stars-and-stripes bikini) and profited handsomely from the deception. In March the equally fake Jessica Foster, billed as a US Army service member, was exposed as a money-spinning AI fiction in a similar scam. Youngsters can spot AI from a mile away; it wasn’t Gen Z sending over cash.” (05/02/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/05/02/opinion/screenagers-have-something-to-teach-grandma/
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27) Michael Jackson: Man or Monster in the Mirror?
Source: Chris’s Substack
by Chris Matthew Sciabarra
“The Jackson family is split down the middle on sanctioning the new film and critics have been similarly split, many voicing concern that its ‘sanitized’ version of MJ’s life sidesteps controversial charges of child molestation, which first surfaced in August 1993 and led Jackson to resolve a civil lawsuit in 1994 with the family of Jordan Chandler. A second series of molestation charges led to a 2005 criminal trial, in which Jackson was acquitted. Arguably, his reputation didn’t begin to recover until after his untimely death at the age of 50 in 2009. Conveniently, both the Broadway musical and the 2026 film end their time frame before any of this ugliness came to light.” (05/02/26)
https://chrismatthewsciabarra.substack.com/p/michael-jackson-man-or-monster-in
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28) Trump’s priorities are revenge and posing
Source: Los Angeles Times
by Matt K Lewis
“A wise man — possibly Winston Churchill — once said, ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste.’ And if he’d lived long enough to see President Trump in office, he might have added, ‘Especially if you can turn it into a real estate project.’ In the aftermath of the chaos at the White House Correspondents’ dinner, Trump was presented with yet another opportunity to refocus his presidency on issues important to the American people. Instead, he chose to exploit the opportunity for his personal priorities. The real crisis, in his telling, was less about guns or mental health and more about America’s strategic shortage of sufficiently opulent indoor gathering spaces.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/qEwN2
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29) Protest Laws Should Be Viewed As Efforts To Ban Criticism Of Israel
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“Laws aimed at pro-Palestine protests should always be looked at as efforts to ban criticism of Israel. That’s what we’re seeing in the UK as the prime minister encourages the prosecution of anyone who says ‘globalise the intifada.’ ‘If you stand alongside people who say globalise the intifada, you are calling for terrorism against Jews and people who use that phrase should be prosecuted,’ said Keir Starmer during a Thursday press conference. ‘It is racism, extremely racism and it has left a minority community in this country scared, intimidated, wondering if they belong. So, I say again this government will do everything in our power to stamp this hatred out.'” (05/02/26)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/05/02/protest-laws-should-be-viewed-as-efforts-to-ban-criticism-of-israel/
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30) Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
“Long time ago, May Day was about celebrating Spring — for which rejoicing is appropriate. Over the last century, it has become International Workers’ Day. ‘In 1889, an international federation of socialist groups and trade unions designated May 1 as pro-workers day,’ informs the Wikidates.org website, ‘on the anniversary of the Haymarket Riots in Chicago (1886).’ Five years later, clearly opposed to cavorting with socialists, the U.S. established Labor Day on September 1, an alternative date to honor workers. Today, political rallies and protests are expected in major cities across the country.” (05/01/26)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/05/01/mayday-mayday-mayday/
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31) Latin America’s grip on democracy
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“In its daily use of social media (three hours, 32 minutes on average), Latin America leads the world. Over the past quarter century, it has nearly tripled the number of people attending university and cut poverty by about half. This list of notable trends could go on, regardless of concerns about crime, corruption, and caudillo-style rulers. Together, however, they might help explain this latest news: Last year, the region saw the greatest improvement in key indicators of democracy, such as political participation and civil liberties, compared with Asia, Africa, and elsewhere. In fact, it was the only region to improve. And Latin America did so after seeing nine years of decline on the index of democracy compiled annually by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).” (05/01/26)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0501/Latin-America-s-grip-on-democracy
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32) Trump’s Iran War Continues to Violate the Constitution — and Now Also the War Powers Act of 1973
Source: The Volokh Conspiracy
by Ilya Somin
“In my March 5 Dispatch article on the Iran War and the Constitution, I explained why Donald Trump’s initiation of the war without congressional authorization is unconstitutional. As of today, it is also in violation of the War Powers Act of 1973. Enacted in the wake of the Vietnam War, the WPA requires the president to secure congressional approval within 60 days of entering U.S. troops into ‘hostilities’ or situations ‘where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances.’ The president can seek a 30 day extension without additional congressional authorization, but Trump has not done so in this case. The sixty day deadline expires today. Therefore, Trump is now in violation of the WPA, as well as the Constitution.” 905/01/26)
https://reason.com/volokh/2026/05/01/trumps-iran-war-continues-to-violate-the-constitution-and-now-also-the-war-powers-act-of-1973/
-----
33) No More Kings: Time to End Sovereign Immunity
Source: Common Dreams
by Eirik Cheverud
“On three major occasions in President Trump’s second term, his opponents, including many elected officials, have taken to the streets under the banner of ‘No Kings.’ And yet just this week, King Charles III spoke before our joint houses of Congress, where his comments about governmental checks and balances drew a standing ovation from everyone there. A contradiction lies here, between our history and our perception of it. The truth is, the law that made kings untouchable (that ‘the king can do no wrong) has never gone away in the United States. Instead, it multiplied. Today we call it ‘sovereign immunity.'” [editor’s note: Fascinating how this “progressive” pundit babbles about “sovereign immunity” when the “qualified” version for police is the real problem – SAT] [editor’s note: Fascinating how SAT doesn’t understand that the “qualified” version is a just a subset of the “sovereign” version and that both are irredeemably evil – TLK] (05/02/26)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/donald-trump-divine-right-of-kings
-----
34) Reclaiming the Calendar
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Denise Lever
“For our family, learning didn’t follow the traditional school calendar, and the results look nothing like traditional school outcomes. Years ago, when I started homeschooling our three kids, I made the rookie mistake of trying to replicate the traditional school system. Up early, hours of instruction, correcting pages of work, and the outcome was inevitable. I soon discovered that not only was this time consuming and exhausting; it was also unnecessary. I was fortunate to have a veteran homeschooler guiding me when we started. She gently nudged me to consider what a more bespoke education could look like. We intentionally chose a family-centric calendar over an institutional one, and before long, we were schooling a couple of hours a day while holding space for interests, hobbies, and relationships.” (05/01/26)
https://fee.org/articles/reclaiming-the-calendar/
-----
35) I went to Madrid to influence libertarians
Source: Sex and the State
by Cathy Reisenwitz
“I was kind of disappointed to see that more hadn’t changed in the past 12 years in libertarian-land. On the one hand, there was open acknowledgement that the far-right was a salient problem. On the other hand, that problem was blamed on Russian interference, antifa, and the far left rather than low social mobility, status loss, or inequality. On the one hand, they’ll talk about how it takes five years to open a standard-issue coffee shop in Madrid. On the other hand, they won’t mention the lobbyists the transnational coffee and retail corporations hire to write these rules. For some reason. At the same time, I was super impressed with what Students For Liberty has been able to accomplish in terms of their chapters.” (05/01/26)
https://cathyreisenwitz.substack.com/p/i-went-to-madrid-to-influence-libertarians
-----
36) COVID Conniving Receives First Federal Indictment
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Jim Bovard
“David Morens, a former top advisor to COVID Czar Tony Fauci was indicted this week and ‘charged with conspiracy against the United States; destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations; concealment, removal, or mutilation of records; and aiding and abetting,’ according to the Justice Department press release. Morens allegedly helped top federal health officials cover up the potential role of federal grants in spurring the COVID pandemic. … Fauci doesn’t need to worry about getting indicted since President Joe Biden, on his last morning in office, pardoned any crimes that Fauci might have committed in the previous decade.” (05/01/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/covid-conniving-receives-first-federal-indictment
-----
37) Humans … Americans … Let Everyone Be Treated Equally
Source: Town Hall
by Mark Lewis
“‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’ — Declaration of Independence … No, our Founders were not totally consistent with the above principle, and frankly, America never has been. But to understand their failings in the matter, we must comprehend the age in which they lived, the ‘zeitgeist’ they grew up in. Very, very few Americans today understand it, and the hypocritical Left condemns our Founders for it. This column aims to show the current utter hypocrisy of today’s Democratic Party, and please be patient, reader, we will arrive there by and by.” (05/02/26)
https://townhall.com/columnists/marklewis/2026/05/02/humans-americans-let-everyone-be-treated-equally-n2675345
-----
38) Power, Inequality, and Politics
Source: The Bleeding Heart Libertarian
by Matt Zwolinski
“Over at Liberalism.org I’ve been working on a series of essays making the case that classical liberals and modern liberals have more in common than either camp tends to admit, and ought to be working together rather than past each other. The first piece draws on the great Chicago School theorist Henry Simons to argue that for liberalism the great enemy is concentrated power, whether public or private. The second extends this line of thought by making the case that classical liberals should care about wealth inequality. Not for the usual reasons modern liberals care about it, but because of its easy conversion to political power. Once private wealth becomes large enough to capture the institutions that are supposed to constrain it, the classical liberal commitment to limited government has nothing left to push against.” (05/01/26)
https://bleedingheartlibertarian.substack.com/p/power-inequality-and-politics
-----
39) The Irrationality of Police-State Libertarian Anarchists
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“Anarchists — genuine anarchists — favor the abolition of all government. Yet, when it comes to immigration, we have ‘anarchists’ favoring a massive socialist program, one that is enforced by a massive immigration police state. At the risk of belaboring the obvious, a massive socialist program and a massive immigration police state are the opposite of anarchy, which, again, means no government at all.” (05/01/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/05/01/the-irrationality-of-police-state-libertarian-anarchists/
-----
40) America’s Post-Deliberative Wars
Source: Cato Institute
by Brandan P Buck
“Over the last eight weeks of war with Iran, America’s two deliberative institutions, Congress and the media, have largely abandoned their duty to sustain public debate on the most important question a republic can face — the choice between war and peace. Neither institution performed perfectly during the Global War on Terror. Yet on Capitol Hill there was debate before the initiation of hostilities, and the media made considerable efforts to manufacture consent. By today’s standard, these activities seem almost admirable. The Iran War may be the first genuinely ‘post-deliberative’ war in American history.” (05/01/26)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/americas-post-deliberative-wars
-----
41) Turning Civil Rights Inside Out
Source: The American Prospect
by Robert Kuttner
“In Louisiana v. Callais, the Roberts Court has continued its war on civil rights [sic] in the name of civil rights. The cynicism of the 6-3 majority decision in Callais is staggering. According to the majority decision by Justice Samuel Alito, the long-standing interpretation of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, requiring minorities to have opportunities to have representation in rough proportion to their population, has been overtaken by events. What has changed? Nothing, except Alito’s ability to cobble together a majority based on his disingenuous [sic] claim that this ruling is merely an ‘update.’ As recently as the Court’s 2023 ruling in Allen v. Milligan, Justices John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh voted to uphold a lower-court order requiring an additional majority-minority district in Alabama.” [editor’s note: Fascinating how the Dramacrat narrative has so entirely overwhelmed “progressive” pundit thought on this issue – SAT] (05/01/26)
https://prospect.org/2026/05/01/turning-civil-rights-inside-out-supreme-court-voting-rights/
-----
42) You Found Satoshi? Let’s See the Receipts
Source: Wired
by Steven Levy
“Here’s a reality check: Since the only way to verify Satoshi’s identity is to get the unique cryptographic key linked to the 1.1 million bitcoins in their wallet, the best anyone can do is create a compelling circumstantial case. To really close the book, your evidence must be so powerful that it would convince even those who have gone before you and squandered months of their lives in the quest. … Projects to unmask Satoshi have a kabuki-style familiarity. They’re crypto-journalistic versions of Clue, the Agatha Christie-esque board game where players identify a murderer from a fixed set of suspects.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/mYbN7
-----
43) How Knowing More Can Make Us Worse Off
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“Some people are born with bad hearts, some good. As long as nobody knows which is which it is possible to insure against the risk of having a bad heart. What happens if a genetic test is invented that distinguishes people who are likely to have a heart attack from people who are not?” (05/01/26)
https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/how-knowing-more-can-make-us-worse
-----
44) After Nudging: The Rise and Fall of a Behavioral Economics Fad
Source: The Daily Economy
by Richard Morrison
“The zeal of the convert can be a terrifying force to behold. An acolyte convinced of their own prior heresy will often be a more thorough inquisitor than the native-born believer. This dynamic may help explain why It’s on You by Nick Chater and George Loewenstein is so shrill and devoid of self-awareness. Having been leading researchers in behavioral psychology and economics who sought to manipulate individuals into ostensibly healthier and smarter choices — the world of ‘nudge’ theory — they are doing a righteous penance by exposing the flaws of their former discipline.” (05/01/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/after-nudging-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-behavioral-economics-fad/
-----
45) Calling the court illegitimate is the left’s latest assault on the Constitution
Source: Fox News
by Jonathan Turley
“The Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais took 36 pages to explain why Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is about combating intentional racial discrimination, not allowing racial gerrymandering. However, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrapped it up in one word: ‘illegitimate.’ Jeffries was not speaking of the case, but of the court. The man who would become the next speaker of the House if Democrats retake power in November has joined other radicals in denying the legitimacy of the nation’s highest court. Just for the record, the Supreme Court did not strike down Section 2, but it said neither the law nor the Constitution allows legislators to manipulate district lines to guarantee that candidates of a particular race will be elected.” (05/01/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jonathan-turley-calling-court-illegitimate-lefts-latest-assault-constitution
-----
46) AI in an Age of Humanity
Source: Law & Liberty
by Spencer A Klavan
“The media theorist Marshall McLuhan became famous in certain circles for insisting that the real importance of a new tool can be found in ‘the medium — that is, all the side-effects, all the unintended patterns and changes.’ He was anticipated in this by Plato, who had Socrates hint in a story that ‘the person who produces an instrument of technology is not the same as the person who can judge whether it helps or harms those who use it.’ If that’s true, then we would expect to find the architects of AI struggling to predict and control the ends it will be made to serve.” (05/01/26)
https://lawliberty.org/forum/ai-in-an-age-of-humanity/
-----
47) The Self-Driving Car Fight in Congress Isn’t Really About Safety at All
Source: Reason
by Andrew Miller
“To put American traffic deaths in perspective, consider the Miami Marlins. Since 2012, the baseball team has played its home games at the stadium now called LoanDepot Park. The field’s official capacity is 36,742, roughly the number of Americans who die in traffic crashes every year. America loses a baseball stadium’s worth of lives to vehicular accidents every 12 months. For the first time, there’s a way to prevent many, and perhaps most, of those deaths: self-driving cars. But self-driving cars are controversial. Some worry about safety. Others worry about jobs.” (05/01/26)
https://reason.com/2026/05/01/the-self-driving-car-fight-in-congress-isnt-really-about-safety-at-all/
-----
48) Straight Talk on Tariffs
Source: Free Association
by Sheldon Richman
“Trump wants us to think that tariffs — his favorite word — are paid by exporters; you know, those crafty foreign manufacturers who’ve been exploiting us American naifs from time immemorial. Stop the presses! He’s wrong. To state what should have been known, U.S. tariffs are taxes that American importers of foreign-made goods pay to customs officials at ports of entry. While under unusual market conditions, an American importer might persuade an exporter to lower his price to offset the tariff, this did not happen with most of Trump’s tariffs.” (5/01/26)
https://sheldonrichman.substack.com/p/tgif-straight-talk-on-tariffs
-----
49) May Day Was a Reminder That We Make the World Run
Source: In These Times
by Hamilton Nolan
“May Day is for the workers. In some beautiful future, every worker will get May Day off. One day. But not yet. For now, it can also serve as a day when you remember the workers who are still working, and think about how you could make their lives better. On my way from Brooklyn to the May Day rally in Washington Square Park yesterday, I saw all the people working who make New York City work. The Mexican construction crew sitting in a line against a concrete wall on my block, covered in dust, taking a break from building the building across the street. The woman selling them lunches out of a big plastic cooler. The woman pulling hot metal trays out of the steam table at the restaurant on the corner.” (05/02/26)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/may-day-workers-labor-movement-new-york-city
-----
50) One Big Reason Iran Thinks It Has the Advantage
Source: The American Conservative
by Ted Snider
“As Iranians marked the failure of the U.S. military to defeat their country and indeed celebrated a perceived victory, Iran’s parliamentary speaker and head of the negotiating team, Mohammad Ghalibaf, insisted that ‘we are not stronger than the United States in military power.’ Ghalibaf suggested Iran shouldn’t expect to ‘destroy’ the enemy, but instead should translate its battlefield gains into diplomatic leverage. U.S. officials have shown less humility. … Though Iran has been hammered, Ghalibaf may be right to think the Islamic Republic has won diplomatic leverage — and the proud people of Iran whom he chided may be closer to the truth than the boastful Americans. The most obvious source of newfound diplomatic leverage for Iran is its effective control of the Strait of Hormuz, but battlefield outcomes have also made Tehran think it has the advantage in negotiations.” (0501/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/one-big-reason-iran-thinks-it-has-the-advantage/
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Unattended Baggage, episode 339
Source: Unattended Baggage
“Alex wants his underwear back.” (05/01/26)
https://unattendedbaggage.substack.com/p/episode-339-alex-wants-his-underwear
-----
52) Why Wealth Taxes Fail
Source: Reason
“California progressives are pushing for a tax on billionaires; so are senators like Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I–Vt.). But as Andrew Heaton explains, such programs don’t work. Just ask France.” (05/01/26)
https://reason.com/video/2026/05/01/why-wealth-taxes-fail/
-----
53) Serious Trouble, 05/01/26
Source: Serious Trouble
“I’m Still Mad He Put Martha Stewart In Prison.” (05/01/26)
https://www.serioustrouble.show/p/im-still-mad-he-put-martha-stewart
-----
54) The Anarchist Experience, episode 578
Source: The Anarchist Experience
“Rich and Riley discuss the Assassination attempt on Trump, and the pros and cons of deflationary currency with the troll.” (05/01/26)
https://theanarchistexperience.wordpress.com/2026/05/01/the-anarchist-experience-578/
-----
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 05/01/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“The Costs of Trump’s War: How Long Until They’re Unbearable?” (05/01/26)
https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1vJpPrQmzdoJE
-----
56) Fountainhead Forum, episode 442
Source: Fountainhead Forum
‘Andrew Bernstein on free will vs. determinism.” (05/01/26)
https://rumble.com/v798hr2-ff-442-andrew-bernstein-on-free-will-vs.-determinism.html
-----
57) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2757
Source: The Tom Woods Show
“Will the Billionaires Unseat Massie? Cliff Maloney’s Strategies for Election Victories.” (05/01/26)
https://tomwoods.com/ep-2757-will-the-billionaires-unseat-massie-cliff-maloneys-strategies-for-election-victories/
-----
58) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 05/01/26
Source: Freedom Works
“Kelley Vlahos, Quincy Institute ‘Trump’s Iran War.’” (05/01/26)
https://internetradiopros.com/freedomworks/?name=2026-05-02_zfw05012026.mp3
-----
59) Reasonably Optimistic, 05/01/26
Source: Washington Post
“Longing for ‘simpler times’? Consider this first.” (05/01/26)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/impromptu/longing-for-simpler-times-consider-this-first
-----
60) The Brian Nichols Show, 05/01/26
Source: Lions of Liberty
“Energy Insider REVEALS What’s Killing Your Electric Bill (…and it’s NOT AI).” (05/01/26)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/energy-insider-reveals-whats-killing-your-electric-bill-and-its-not-ai
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Today's Freedom News:
1) Russia: Drone hits upscale Moscow tower as city readies for Victory Day parade
2) Japan: Protests in support of pacifist constitution as Takaichi pushes revisions
3) Trump: US Navy will “guide” ships out of Strait of Hormuz from Monday
4) Three cruise ship passengers die in suspected hantavirus outbreak
5) Trump: US will reduce number of troops in Germany “a lot further” than withdrawal of 5,000
6) Pope remembers journalists who lost their lives due to violence and wars
7) TX: Judge temporarily blocks ban on smokeable hemp
8) Australia: Man charged with murder and sexual assault of five-year-old girl
9) Sudan: Drone strike kills five near capital, rights group says
10) CA: Mom faces involuntary manslaughter after son’s e-motorcycle crash kills man
11) Taiwan president visits Eswatini days after blaming China for cancelled trip
12) Iran: Police allegedly murder man after abducting brother for Starlink use
13) Austria: Police arrest suspect in connection to rat poison found in baby food jars
14) Mexico: Governor temporarily steps down after US indictment
15) US Regime Issues Sanctions Warning for Shipping Firms Paying Iran Tolls
16) Spanish regime demands Israeli regime release abducted Gaza flotilla crew member
17) Oil tanker hijacked off coast of Yemen and taken towards Somalia
18) Ukraine: Regime thanks Melania Trump for her help in bringing abducted kids home
19) SCOTUS being asked to restore access to abortion pill by mail
20) OK: Homeowner shoots alleged intruder
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) The Murder of Spirit Airlines
22) Trump’s IRS lawsuit is best shakedown in presidential history
23) Standing Athwart Hegel, Yelling “Stop!”
24) Trump’s Iran blockade snatches defeat from the jaws of victory
25) The Trump Surveillance State
26) Screenagers have something to teach Grandma
27) Michael Jackson: Man or Monster in the Mirror?
28) Trump’s priorities are revenge and posing
29) Protest Laws Should Be Viewed As Efforts To Ban Criticism Of Israel
30) Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!
31) Latin America’s grip on democracy
32) Trump’s Iran War Continues to Violate the Constitution — and Now Also the War Powers Act of 1973
33) No More Kings: Time to End Sovereign Immunity
34) Reclaiming the Calendar
35) I went to Madrid to influence libertarians
36) COVID Conniving Receives First Federal Indictment
37) Humans … Americans … Let Everyone Be Treated Equally
38) Power, Inequality, and Politics
39) The Irrationality of Police-State Libertarian Anarchists
40) America’s Post-Deliberative Wars
41) Turning Civil Rights Inside Out
42) You Found Satoshi? Let’s See the Receipts
43) How Knowing More Can Make Us Worse Off
44) After Nudging: The Rise and Fall of a Behavioral Economics Fad
45) Calling the court illegitimate is the left’s latest assault on the Constitution
46) AI in an Age of Humanity
47) The Self-Driving Car Fight in Congress Isn’t Really About Safety at All
48) Straight Talk on Tariffs
49) May Day Was a Reminder That We Make the World Run
50) One Big Reason Iran Thinks It Has the Advantage
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Unattended Baggage, episode 339
52) Why Wealth Taxes Fail
53) Serious Trouble, 05/01/26
54) The Anarchist Experience, episode 578
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 05/01/26
56) Fountainhead Forum, episode 442
57) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2757
58) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 05/01/26
59) Reasonably Optimistic, 05/01/26
60) The Brian Nichols Show, 05/01/26
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_____ Today's Freedom News _____
1) Russia: Drone hits upscale Moscow tower as city readies for Victory Day parade
Source: South China Morning Post [Hong Kong]
“A drone hit a residential tower in an upscale Moscow district in a rare strike near the city centre ahead of the traditional World War II Victory Day parade. Moscow air defences repelled an attack by two Ukrainian drones, and one hit the building on Mosfilmovskaya Street, according to a post on Monday by Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Emergency services were sent to the scene, and there were no reports of casualties. Mosfilmovskaya is about 6-8km (about 4-5 miles) from the Kremlin, and local media showed damage to the upper floors of a high-end residential building.” (05/04/26)
https://archive.is/hWMU2
-----
2) Japan: Protests in support of pacifist constitution as Takaichi pushes revisions
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has called for ‘advanced discussions’ on revising the pacifist constitution, as large demonstrations were held nationwide to oppose any changes to the country’s supreme law. … Revisionists have set their sights on article 9 – the co-called ‘pacifist’ clause – which forbids Japan from threatening or using military force to settle international disputes. … On Sunday – constitutional memorial day – an estimated 50,000 people gathered at a park in Tokyo in support of the document, whose wording has remained unchanged since it went into effect on 3 May 1947. … Demonstrations were held in dozens of other towns and cities on Sunday – a public holiday – attended by people old enough to recall how the postwar constitution had brought peace and stability to a country ravaged by conflict.” (05/04/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/04/japan-sees-largest-protest-in-support-of-pacifist-constitution-as-pm-takaichi-pushes-revisions
-----
3) Trump: US Navy will “guide” ships out of Strait of Hormuz from Monday
Source: Axios
“President Trump said the U.S. Navy will start guiding ships from foreign countries through the Strait of Hormuz from Monday and warned that if Iran tries to disrupt the process, the American military will use force. … It was not immediately clear whether this move was coordinated with Iran in any way. … The U.S. sent on Sunday another amended draft for an agreement to end the war in response to Iranian officials’ latest proposal, sources said.” (05/03/26)
https://archive.is/3knat
-----
4) Three cruise ship passengers die in suspected hantavirus outbreak
Source: Reuters
“Three people have died and three are ill after a Netherlands-based cruise ship was hit by a suspected outbreak of hantavirus, a rodent-borne virus that can cause fatal respiratory illness, authorities and media reports said on Sunday. Netherlands-based Oceanwide Expeditions said in a news release it was ‘managing a serious medical situation’ on a polar expedition ship, the MV Hondius, which was off Cape Verde, an island nation in the Atlantic west of Africa. The cruise departed from Argentina about three weeks ago with around 150 passengers and stopped in the Antarctic and other locations on its way to Cape Verde, according to media reports. A Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed that two Dutch passengers had died, but gave no further details.” (05/03/26)
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/three-passengers-dead-one-case-hantavirus-confirmed-atlantic-cruise-ship-who-2026-05-03/
-----
5) Trump: US will reduce number of troops in Germany “a lot further” than withdrawal of 5,000
Source: SFGate
“President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the U.S. will significantly reduce its troop presence in Germany, escalating a dispute with Chancellor Friedrich Merz as he seeks to scale back America’s commitment to European security. The Pentagon on Friday had initially announced it would pull some 5,000 troops out of Germany, but when asked Saturday about the reason for the move, Trump didn’t offer an explanation and said an even bigger reduction was coming. ‘We’re going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,’ Trump told reporters in Florida. Earlier on Saturday, Germany’s defense minister appeared to take in stride the news that 5,000 U.S. troops would be leaving his country.” [editor’s note: Yet another thing we libertarians have been agitating for for decades? Or just another ploy? – SAT] (05/02/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/germany-focuses-on-shared-interests-after-us-22237978.php
-----
6) Pope remembers journalists who lost their lives due to violence and wars
Source: Vatican News [Vatican state media]
“Following the recitation of Sunday’s Regina Caeli, Pope Leo XIV recalled that today May 3rd marks World Press Freedom Day, the annual day promoted by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The Pope remarked that unfortunately, freedom of the press is often violated, sometimes blatantly and sometimes in subtle ways. He said: ‘Let us remember the many journalists and reporters who have fallen victim to wars and violence.'” (05/03/26)
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2026-05/pope-remembers-journalists-who-lost-lives-due-to-violence-wars.html
-----
7) TX: Judge temporarily blocks ban on smokeable hemp
Source: United Press International
“A Texas judge on Friday temporarily paused the state’s ban on smokable hemp products, such as flower and joints, after three industry groups and multiple companies based in the state sued over it. The state in March expanded its limit on THC in hemp products from 0.3% levels of Delta-9 THC to cover any form of THC beyond the state’s previous limit of 0.3% total THC in dry weight of the intoxicating group of chemicals. … The groups that [sued] the state contend that the health department overstepped their constitutional authority and that the new rules have done irreparable harm to the Texas hemp industry, CBS Austin reported.” (05/02/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/05/02/texas-hemp-smokable-ban-blocked-by-judge/1781777761522/
-----
8) Australia: Man charged with murder and sexual assault of five-year-old girl
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Police in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) have charged a man with murder and two counts of sexual assault following the death of a five-year-old girl. The body of the girl, who is identified only as Kumanjayi Little Baby for cultural reasons, was discovered on Thursday following severals days of a major police search. Jefferson Lewis, 47, was charged with her murder on Saturday night and has been scheduled to appear in a Darwin court on Tuesday. Five people have been arrested over violent riots in Alice Springs sparked by the child’s death. Northern Territory Police Commissioner Martin Dole announced the charges against Lewis on Sunday morning.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy92qennznjo
-----
9) Sudan: Drone strike kills five near capital, rights group says
Source: The New Arab [UK]
“Sudan’s paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) killed at least five people in a drone attack that hit a civilian vehicle on the outskirts of Khartoum, a local Sudanese rights group said. The attack on Saturday morning hit a vehicle that was traveling from the White Nile province to Omdurman, the sister city of the capital, Emergency Lawyers, a rights group tracking violence against civilians, said in a statement.” (05/02/26)
https://www.newarab.com/news/paramilitary-forces-drone-strike-kills-5-near-sudan-capital
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10) CA: Mom faces involuntary manslaughter after son’s e-motorcycle crash kills man
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“A southern California woman is facing an additional charge of involuntary manslaughter after an 81-year-old man died from his injuries after being struck by the woman’s teen son while he was riding an e-motorcycle, prosecutors said on Friday. On 16 April, Tommi Jo Mejer’s 14-year-old son was riding a Surron e-motorcycle and doing wheelies when he hit Ed Ashman, according to prosecutors. … ‘This mother essentially handed her 14-year-old son a deadly weapon, and despite multiple warnings of the dangers, continued to let him illegally ride an e-motorcycle until he finally killed someone,’ the Orange county district attorney, Todd Spitzer, said in a statement.” (05/02/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/02/california-e-motorcycle-crash-involuntary-manslaughter
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11) Taiwan president visits Eswatini days after blaming China for cancelled trip
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has arrived in Eswatini, days after his government said a trip had been cancelled due to China pressuring African countries to stop him flying over their territories. His visit to Eswatini – Taiwan’s only diplomatic ally in Africa — followed ‘days of careful arrangements by the diplomatic and national security teams,’ he said, without giving further details on how he reached the country. China described the visit as a ‘stowaway-style escape farce.’ China [pretends Taiwan is] part of its territory with no right to state-to-state relations. Images showed Lai being welcomed by Eswatini Prime Minister Russell Dlamini as he walked past a guard of honour. Taiwan’s delegation also included Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung and National Security Council Adviser Alex Huang, according to its presidential office.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c809ln029ldo
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12) Iran: Police allegedly murder man after abducting brother for Starlink use
Source: Euronews [EU]
“An Iranian businessman has died as a result of being beaten while under arrest, human rights group the Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation reported. The report states that Hesam Alaeedin went to the security authorities to follow up on the status of his detained brother. The rights group added that Alaeddin’s brother had been accused of using Starlink equipment to access the internet, and that he too had been subjected to violence by security agents. … Iranian authorities cut off access to the internet 64 days ago, coinciding with the United States and Israeli military attack. … Iranian officials have warned that owners and users of Starlink equipment face legal action.” (05/02/26)
https://www.euronews.com/2026/05/02/businessman-dies-after-alleged-beating-in-custody-over-brothers-starlink-detention
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13) Austria: Police arrest suspect in connection to rat poison found in baby food jars
Source: CBS News
“Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe. HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was ‘greatly relieved’ by the arrest, and would provide a further updates as verified details come in. The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.” (05/03/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hipp-baby-food-rat-poison-suspect-arrested-austria/
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14) Mexico: Governor temporarily steps down after US indictment
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Two members of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s party in the north-western Sinaloa state said they would temporarily step down from their posts after the United States charged them and eight other politicians and security officers with drug trafficking. The bombshell indictment against the 10 has shaken Mexico’s political establishment. In a short video announcement at midnight on Friday, Gov Rubén Rocha Moya, the highest-ranking official named in the indictment, denied accusations that he protected the Sinaloa cartel and helped it smuggle vast quantities of drugs into the US in exchange for political support and millions of dollars in bribes. … Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, the mayor of the Sinaloa state capital of Culiacán named in the indictment, also said he would take leave and denied the charges.” (05/03/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/03/mexican-governor-and-mayor-indicted-by-us-for-drug-trafficking-step-down
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15) US Regime Issues Sanctions Warning for Shipping Firms Paying Iran Tolls
Source: India News Network [India]
“The United States has issued a warning to shipping firms that they risk sanctions if they make payments to Iran for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The alert, released by the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), emphasised that US persons and entities are prohibited from engaging in transactions with Iranian government bodies. It also warned non-US entities that they could face sanctions repercussions if they settle payments to Iran.” (05/03/26)
https://www.indianewsnetwork.com/en/us-sanctions-warning-shipping-firms-paying-iran-tolls-20260503
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16) Spanish regime demands Israeli regime release abducted Gaza flotilla crew member
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Spain has demanded the release of a citizen who was arrested during a raid on a flotilla headed for Gaza and taken to Israel, calling it an abduction. Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told Catalan radio station RAC1 on Saturday that he was concerned about the ‘illegal detention’ of Saif Abukeshek, and called for him to be ‘released immediately.’ … [Israeli pirates] stormed 22 of the flotilla boats attempting to deliver aid to Gaza while they were in international waters, hundreds of miles from the strip. Drones and communications-jamming technology were used. They [abducted] 175 of those on board and took them to Greece, except for Abukeshek and Avila.” (05/02/26)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/2/spain-demands-israel-release-arrested-gaza-flotilla-crew-member
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17) Oil tanker hijacked off coast of Yemen and taken towards Somalia
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Somali pirates have hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen, according to multiple Somali security officials that spoke with the BBC. The Yemeni coastguard earlier said the tanker MT Eureka had been hijacked and was headed towards Somalia. Sources said it was overrun by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, near the port of Qana. The pirates departed a remote coastal area near the seaside town of Qandala, which sits on the Gulf of Aden, according to three separate security officials from the semi-autonomous Puntland region who spoke with the BBC. It marks the second hijacking of an oil tanker in the area in a 10-day period, following the hijacking of Honor 25 by Somali pirates on April 22. Honor 25 was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil bound for Mogadishu.” (05/02/26)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpwprl0v2npo
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18) Ukraine: Regime thanks Melania Trump for her help in bringing abducted kids home
Source: United Press International
“U.S. First Lady Melania Trump was instrumental in securing the return of at least 26 Ukrainian children abducted by Russia over the past several months, Ukraine’s top human rights official said. Speaking at a Bring Kids Back event in Kyiv on Thursday, Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukraine Parliament’s Human Rights Commissioner, said Trump had become an important ally in negotiating with Moscow to return children to their families from Russia and regions under Russian control. … According to Ukraine Government data, 20,570 children had been deported or forcibly displaced from Ukraine by Russia, as of May 1, of whom only 2,126 have been returned.” (05/01/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2026/05/01/Ukraine-credits-Melania-Trump-with-bringing-children-home/8421777623483/
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19) SCOTUS being asked to restore access to abortion pill by mail
Source: SFGate
“Two makers of the widely used abortion pill mifepristone asked the Supreme Court on Saturday to block an appellate court ruling that cut off mail-order access to the drug just a day earlier, in what was the biggest jolt to abortion policy in the U.S. since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Danco Laboratories asked the high court for an emergency pause on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision, saying the appellate ruling ‘injects immediate confusion and upheaval into highly time-sensitive medical decisions.’ GenBioPro, which makes a generic version of mifepristone, made a similar request.” [editor’s note: While this pill does work a bit further along than Plan B, it is useless if not taken in the early part of first trimester; it is not a late term procedure and should not be anyone’s business – SAT](05/02/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/a-federal-court-blocked-a-widely-used-abortion-22237880.php
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20) OK: Homeowner shoots alleged intruder
Source: KFOR News
“A metro homeowner shot an alleged intruder Friday night and sent the suspect to the hospital, according to police. … Officials said it appeared to be a first-degree burglary, possibly turned self-defense. … The homeowner was not injured in the situation, per police.” (05/02/26)
https://kfor.com/news/metro-homeowner-shoots-alleged-intruder-friday-night/
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) The Murder of Spirit Airlines
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“On May 2, Spirit Airlines ceased operations after it failed to get the US government to bail it out of the latest in a series of untenable situations — at least two of which the US government put it in to begin with. … Maybe Spirit would have failed even absent the massive jet fuel price increases. Perhaps the proposed merger with JetBlue would have dragged that airline down, too, instead of profitably folding Spirit’s assets into a more efficient operating environment. And maybe all of Ted Bundy’s victims were mere moments away from choosing suicide when he strangled them to death instead. We’ll never know, will we? What we do know is that the US government’s murder of Spirit Airlines will almost certainly result in (checks notes) ‘higher fares, fewer seats, and harm [to] millions of consumers.'” (05/02/26)
https://thegarrisoncenter.org/archives/20562
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22) Trump’s IRS lawsuit is best shakedown in presidential history
Source: USA Today
by James Bovard
“President Donald Trump is suing the Internal Revenue Service to force the American people to pay him at least $10 billion in damages because he was embarrassed when his tax returns leaked out in 2020. Trump ordered his appointees at federal agencies to speedily give him the billions to settle his lawsuit. But on April 24, federal Judge Kathleen Williams temporarily stopped the greatest shakedown in presidential history. … Trump’s lawsuit pretends he was an innocent bystander. Who was president at the time of that leak? Trump. Who appointed the chief of the IRS? Trump. And who deserves $10 billion because of alleged federal misconduct under his watch? Trump.” (05/01/26)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2026/05/01/trump-lawsuit-irs-leaked-tax-returns/89838315007/
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23) Standing Athwart Hegel, Yelling “Stop!”
Source: The Dispatch
by Jonah Goldberg
“On Wednesday, The Atlantic’s Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer, two serious journalists formerly with the Washington Post, begin their piece with a question: ‘Had President Trump, we wondered, possibly been reading or at least thumbing through – just maybe — the works of … Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel?’ That’s it. That’s the lede. … Is Trump a world-historical figure in the Hegelian sense? Are you high? Of course not. Parker and Scherer are more interested in whether Trump thinks he’s a world-historical figure in the way that Hegel described. The answer to that is also a resounding no. The dude doesn’t read memos. You think he’s thumbing through Hegel? In fairness to them, the real point of their piece is to illuminate that Trump’s delusions of grandeur are worrisomely out of control. And they succeed.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/mdZxo
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24) Trump’s Iran blockade snatches defeat from the jaws of victory
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Trita Parsi
“[T]he fragile ceasefire disproportionately favored the United States over Iran: Trump secured his central objective — a swift exit from a costly war — while Iran forfeited its primary source of leverage, namely the inflationary pressure of elevated oil prices. Tehran, by contrast, remained unable to achieve its core objective — meaningful sanctions relief — without entering a difficult diplomatic process with Washington. The asymmetry was stark: Trump could afford strategic patience, whereas Iran risked squandering the most consequential gains the conflict could have yielded if negotiations faltered or collapsed. In short, this emerging status quo could have constituted a quiet but decisive victory for Trump. … But then Trump committed a familiar and consequential error.” (05/02/26)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/trump-iran-blockade/
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25) The Trump Surveillance State
Source: Antiwar.com
by Andrew P Napolitano
“The Fourth Amendment protects all persons from warrantless government searches and seizures of their persons, houses, papers and effects. It requires that warrants be supported by probable cause of crime and specifically describe the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. Last week, for the first time in the modern era, the government argued to the Supreme Court of the United States that the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution did not outlaw general warrants.” (05/01/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/andrew-p-napolitano/2026/04/30/the-trump-surveillance-state
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26) Screenagers have something to teach Grandma
Source: New York Post
by Karol Markowicz
“The zombies are everywhere. They’re staring at their phones as they carelessly cross the road. They’re constantly watching videos, sound-on and loudly, on airplanes or in store check-out lines. And they’re not Gen Z screenagers; now, the kids’ aging grandparents are quickly becoming the biggest screen addicts of all. … Last month Wired reported that a med student in India used AI to create a character named Emily Hart (a pretty blonde ‘MAGA influencer’ who claimed to enjoy posing in a stars-and-stripes bikini) and profited handsomely from the deception. In March the equally fake Jessica Foster, billed as a US Army service member, was exposed as a money-spinning AI fiction in a similar scam. Youngsters can spot AI from a mile away; it wasn’t Gen Z sending over cash.” (05/02/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/05/02/opinion/screenagers-have-something-to-teach-grandma/
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27) Michael Jackson: Man or Monster in the Mirror?
Source: Chris’s Substack
by Chris Matthew Sciabarra
“The Jackson family is split down the middle on sanctioning the new film and critics have been similarly split, many voicing concern that its ‘sanitized’ version of MJ’s life sidesteps controversial charges of child molestation, which first surfaced in August 1993 and led Jackson to resolve a civil lawsuit in 1994 with the family of Jordan Chandler. A second series of molestation charges led to a 2005 criminal trial, in which Jackson was acquitted. Arguably, his reputation didn’t begin to recover until after his untimely death at the age of 50 in 2009. Conveniently, both the Broadway musical and the 2026 film end their time frame before any of this ugliness came to light.” (05/02/26)
https://chrismatthewsciabarra.substack.com/p/michael-jackson-man-or-monster-in
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28) Trump’s priorities are revenge and posing
Source: Los Angeles Times
by Matt K Lewis
“A wise man — possibly Winston Churchill — once said, ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste.’ And if he’d lived long enough to see President Trump in office, he might have added, ‘Especially if you can turn it into a real estate project.’ In the aftermath of the chaos at the White House Correspondents’ dinner, Trump was presented with yet another opportunity to refocus his presidency on issues important to the American people. Instead, he chose to exploit the opportunity for his personal priorities. The real crisis, in his telling, was less about guns or mental health and more about America’s strategic shortage of sufficiently opulent indoor gathering spaces.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/qEwN2
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29) Protest Laws Should Be Viewed As Efforts To Ban Criticism Of Israel
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“Laws aimed at pro-Palestine protests should always be looked at as efforts to ban criticism of Israel. That’s what we’re seeing in the UK as the prime minister encourages the prosecution of anyone who says ‘globalise the intifada.’ ‘If you stand alongside people who say globalise the intifada, you are calling for terrorism against Jews and people who use that phrase should be prosecuted,’ said Keir Starmer during a Thursday press conference. ‘It is racism, extremely racism and it has left a minority community in this country scared, intimidated, wondering if they belong. So, I say again this government will do everything in our power to stamp this hatred out.'” (05/02/26)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/05/02/protest-laws-should-be-viewed-as-efforts-to-ban-criticism-of-israel/
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30) Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
“Long time ago, May Day was about celebrating Spring — for which rejoicing is appropriate. Over the last century, it has become International Workers’ Day. ‘In 1889, an international federation of socialist groups and trade unions designated May 1 as pro-workers day,’ informs the Wikidates.org website, ‘on the anniversary of the Haymarket Riots in Chicago (1886).’ Five years later, clearly opposed to cavorting with socialists, the U.S. established Labor Day on September 1, an alternative date to honor workers. Today, political rallies and protests are expected in major cities across the country.” (05/01/26)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/05/01/mayday-mayday-mayday/
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31) Latin America’s grip on democracy
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“In its daily use of social media (three hours, 32 minutes on average), Latin America leads the world. Over the past quarter century, it has nearly tripled the number of people attending university and cut poverty by about half. This list of notable trends could go on, regardless of concerns about crime, corruption, and caudillo-style rulers. Together, however, they might help explain this latest news: Last year, the region saw the greatest improvement in key indicators of democracy, such as political participation and civil liberties, compared with Asia, Africa, and elsewhere. In fact, it was the only region to improve. And Latin America did so after seeing nine years of decline on the index of democracy compiled annually by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).” (05/01/26)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0501/Latin-America-s-grip-on-democracy
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32) Trump’s Iran War Continues to Violate the Constitution — and Now Also the War Powers Act of 1973
Source: The Volokh Conspiracy
by Ilya Somin
“In my March 5 Dispatch article on the Iran War and the Constitution, I explained why Donald Trump’s initiation of the war without congressional authorization is unconstitutional. As of today, it is also in violation of the War Powers Act of 1973. Enacted in the wake of the Vietnam War, the WPA requires the president to secure congressional approval within 60 days of entering U.S. troops into ‘hostilities’ or situations ‘where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances.’ The president can seek a 30 day extension without additional congressional authorization, but Trump has not done so in this case. The sixty day deadline expires today. Therefore, Trump is now in violation of the WPA, as well as the Constitution.” 905/01/26)
https://reason.com/volokh/2026/05/01/trumps-iran-war-continues-to-violate-the-constitution-and-now-also-the-war-powers-act-of-1973/
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33) No More Kings: Time to End Sovereign Immunity
Source: Common Dreams
by Eirik Cheverud
“On three major occasions in President Trump’s second term, his opponents, including many elected officials, have taken to the streets under the banner of ‘No Kings.’ And yet just this week, King Charles III spoke before our joint houses of Congress, where his comments about governmental checks and balances drew a standing ovation from everyone there. A contradiction lies here, between our history and our perception of it. The truth is, the law that made kings untouchable (that ‘the king can do no wrong) has never gone away in the United States. Instead, it multiplied. Today we call it ‘sovereign immunity.'” [editor’s note: Fascinating how this “progressive” pundit babbles about “sovereign immunity” when the “qualified” version for police is the real problem – SAT] [editor’s note: Fascinating how SAT doesn’t understand that the “qualified” version is a just a subset of the “sovereign” version and that both are irredeemably evil – TLK] (05/02/26)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/donald-trump-divine-right-of-kings
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34) Reclaiming the Calendar
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Denise Lever
“For our family, learning didn’t follow the traditional school calendar, and the results look nothing like traditional school outcomes. Years ago, when I started homeschooling our three kids, I made the rookie mistake of trying to replicate the traditional school system. Up early, hours of instruction, correcting pages of work, and the outcome was inevitable. I soon discovered that not only was this time consuming and exhausting; it was also unnecessary. I was fortunate to have a veteran homeschooler guiding me when we started. She gently nudged me to consider what a more bespoke education could look like. We intentionally chose a family-centric calendar over an institutional one, and before long, we were schooling a couple of hours a day while holding space for interests, hobbies, and relationships.” (05/01/26)
https://fee.org/articles/reclaiming-the-calendar/
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35) I went to Madrid to influence libertarians
Source: Sex and the State
by Cathy Reisenwitz
“I was kind of disappointed to see that more hadn’t changed in the past 12 years in libertarian-land. On the one hand, there was open acknowledgement that the far-right was a salient problem. On the other hand, that problem was blamed on Russian interference, antifa, and the far left rather than low social mobility, status loss, or inequality. On the one hand, they’ll talk about how it takes five years to open a standard-issue coffee shop in Madrid. On the other hand, they won’t mention the lobbyists the transnational coffee and retail corporations hire to write these rules. For some reason. At the same time, I was super impressed with what Students For Liberty has been able to accomplish in terms of their chapters.” (05/01/26)
https://cathyreisenwitz.substack.com/p/i-went-to-madrid-to-influence-libertarians
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36) COVID Conniving Receives First Federal Indictment
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Jim Bovard
“David Morens, a former top advisor to COVID Czar Tony Fauci was indicted this week and ‘charged with conspiracy against the United States; destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations; concealment, removal, or mutilation of records; and aiding and abetting,’ according to the Justice Department press release. Morens allegedly helped top federal health officials cover up the potential role of federal grants in spurring the COVID pandemic. … Fauci doesn’t need to worry about getting indicted since President Joe Biden, on his last morning in office, pardoned any crimes that Fauci might have committed in the previous decade.” (05/01/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/covid-conniving-receives-first-federal-indictment
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37) Humans … Americans … Let Everyone Be Treated Equally
Source: Town Hall
by Mark Lewis
“‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’ — Declaration of Independence … No, our Founders were not totally consistent with the above principle, and frankly, America never has been. But to understand their failings in the matter, we must comprehend the age in which they lived, the ‘zeitgeist’ they grew up in. Very, very few Americans today understand it, and the hypocritical Left condemns our Founders for it. This column aims to show the current utter hypocrisy of today’s Democratic Party, and please be patient, reader, we will arrive there by and by.” (05/02/26)
https://townhall.com/columnists/marklewis/2026/05/02/humans-americans-let-everyone-be-treated-equally-n2675345
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38) Power, Inequality, and Politics
Source: The Bleeding Heart Libertarian
by Matt Zwolinski
“Over at Liberalism.org I’ve been working on a series of essays making the case that classical liberals and modern liberals have more in common than either camp tends to admit, and ought to be working together rather than past each other. The first piece draws on the great Chicago School theorist Henry Simons to argue that for liberalism the great enemy is concentrated power, whether public or private. The second extends this line of thought by making the case that classical liberals should care about wealth inequality. Not for the usual reasons modern liberals care about it, but because of its easy conversion to political power. Once private wealth becomes large enough to capture the institutions that are supposed to constrain it, the classical liberal commitment to limited government has nothing left to push against.” (05/01/26)
https://bleedingheartlibertarian.substack.com/p/power-inequality-and-politics
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39) The Irrationality of Police-State Libertarian Anarchists
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
“Anarchists — genuine anarchists — favor the abolition of all government. Yet, when it comes to immigration, we have ‘anarchists’ favoring a massive socialist program, one that is enforced by a massive immigration police state. At the risk of belaboring the obvious, a massive socialist program and a massive immigration police state are the opposite of anarchy, which, again, means no government at all.” (05/01/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/05/01/the-irrationality-of-police-state-libertarian-anarchists/
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40) America’s Post-Deliberative Wars
Source: Cato Institute
by Brandan P Buck
“Over the last eight weeks of war with Iran, America’s two deliberative institutions, Congress and the media, have largely abandoned their duty to sustain public debate on the most important question a republic can face — the choice between war and peace. Neither institution performed perfectly during the Global War on Terror. Yet on Capitol Hill there was debate before the initiation of hostilities, and the media made considerable efforts to manufacture consent. By today’s standard, these activities seem almost admirable. The Iran War may be the first genuinely ‘post-deliberative’ war in American history.” (05/01/26)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/americas-post-deliberative-wars
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41) Turning Civil Rights Inside Out
Source: The American Prospect
by Robert Kuttner
“In Louisiana v. Callais, the Roberts Court has continued its war on civil rights [sic] in the name of civil rights. The cynicism of the 6-3 majority decision in Callais is staggering. According to the majority decision by Justice Samuel Alito, the long-standing interpretation of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, requiring minorities to have opportunities to have representation in rough proportion to their population, has been overtaken by events. What has changed? Nothing, except Alito’s ability to cobble together a majority based on his disingenuous [sic] claim that this ruling is merely an ‘update.’ As recently as the Court’s 2023 ruling in Allen v. Milligan, Justices John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh voted to uphold a lower-court order requiring an additional majority-minority district in Alabama.” [editor’s note: Fascinating how the Dramacrat narrative has so entirely overwhelmed “progressive” pundit thought on this issue – SAT] (05/01/26)
https://prospect.org/2026/05/01/turning-civil-rights-inside-out-supreme-court-voting-rights/
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42) You Found Satoshi? Let’s See the Receipts
Source: Wired
by Steven Levy
“Here’s a reality check: Since the only way to verify Satoshi’s identity is to get the unique cryptographic key linked to the 1.1 million bitcoins in their wallet, the best anyone can do is create a compelling circumstantial case. To really close the book, your evidence must be so powerful that it would convince even those who have gone before you and squandered months of their lives in the quest. … Projects to unmask Satoshi have a kabuki-style familiarity. They’re crypto-journalistic versions of Clue, the Agatha Christie-esque board game where players identify a murderer from a fixed set of suspects.” (05/01/26)
https://archive.is/mYbN7
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43) How Knowing More Can Make Us Worse Off
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“Some people are born with bad hearts, some good. As long as nobody knows which is which it is possible to insure against the risk of having a bad heart. What happens if a genetic test is invented that distinguishes people who are likely to have a heart attack from people who are not?” (05/01/26)
https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/how-knowing-more-can-make-us-worse
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44) After Nudging: The Rise and Fall of a Behavioral Economics Fad
Source: The Daily Economy
by Richard Morrison
“The zeal of the convert can be a terrifying force to behold. An acolyte convinced of their own prior heresy will often be a more thorough inquisitor than the native-born believer. This dynamic may help explain why It’s on You by Nick Chater and George Loewenstein is so shrill and devoid of self-awareness. Having been leading researchers in behavioral psychology and economics who sought to manipulate individuals into ostensibly healthier and smarter choices — the world of ‘nudge’ theory — they are doing a righteous penance by exposing the flaws of their former discipline.” (05/01/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/after-nudging-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-behavioral-economics-fad/
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45) Calling the court illegitimate is the left’s latest assault on the Constitution
Source: Fox News
by Jonathan Turley
“The Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais took 36 pages to explain why Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is about combating intentional racial discrimination, not allowing racial gerrymandering. However, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrapped it up in one word: ‘illegitimate.’ Jeffries was not speaking of the case, but of the court. The man who would become the next speaker of the House if Democrats retake power in November has joined other radicals in denying the legitimacy of the nation’s highest court. Just for the record, the Supreme Court did not strike down Section 2, but it said neither the law nor the Constitution allows legislators to manipulate district lines to guarantee that candidates of a particular race will be elected.” (05/01/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jonathan-turley-calling-court-illegitimate-lefts-latest-assault-constitution
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46) AI in an Age of Humanity
Source: Law & Liberty
by Spencer A Klavan
“The media theorist Marshall McLuhan became famous in certain circles for insisting that the real importance of a new tool can be found in ‘the medium — that is, all the side-effects, all the unintended patterns and changes.’ He was anticipated in this by Plato, who had Socrates hint in a story that ‘the person who produces an instrument of technology is not the same as the person who can judge whether it helps or harms those who use it.’ If that’s true, then we would expect to find the architects of AI struggling to predict and control the ends it will be made to serve.” (05/01/26)
https://lawliberty.org/forum/ai-in-an-age-of-humanity/
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47) The Self-Driving Car Fight in Congress Isn’t Really About Safety at All
Source: Reason
by Andrew Miller
“To put American traffic deaths in perspective, consider the Miami Marlins. Since 2012, the baseball team has played its home games at the stadium now called LoanDepot Park. The field’s official capacity is 36,742, roughly the number of Americans who die in traffic crashes every year. America loses a baseball stadium’s worth of lives to vehicular accidents every 12 months. For the first time, there’s a way to prevent many, and perhaps most, of those deaths: self-driving cars. But self-driving cars are controversial. Some worry about safety. Others worry about jobs.” (05/01/26)
https://reason.com/2026/05/01/the-self-driving-car-fight-in-congress-isnt-really-about-safety-at-all/
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48) Straight Talk on Tariffs
Source: Free Association
by Sheldon Richman
“Trump wants us to think that tariffs — his favorite word — are paid by exporters; you know, those crafty foreign manufacturers who’ve been exploiting us American naifs from time immemorial. Stop the presses! He’s wrong. To state what should have been known, U.S. tariffs are taxes that American importers of foreign-made goods pay to customs officials at ports of entry. While under unusual market conditions, an American importer might persuade an exporter to lower his price to offset the tariff, this did not happen with most of Trump’s tariffs.” (5/01/26)
https://sheldonrichman.substack.com/p/tgif-straight-talk-on-tariffs
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49) May Day Was a Reminder That We Make the World Run
Source: In These Times
by Hamilton Nolan
“May Day is for the workers. In some beautiful future, every worker will get May Day off. One day. But not yet. For now, it can also serve as a day when you remember the workers who are still working, and think about how you could make their lives better. On my way from Brooklyn to the May Day rally in Washington Square Park yesterday, I saw all the people working who make New York City work. The Mexican construction crew sitting in a line against a concrete wall on my block, covered in dust, taking a break from building the building across the street. The woman selling them lunches out of a big plastic cooler. The woman pulling hot metal trays out of the steam table at the restaurant on the corner.” (05/02/26)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/may-day-workers-labor-movement-new-york-city
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50) One Big Reason Iran Thinks It Has the Advantage
Source: The American Conservative
by Ted Snider
“As Iranians marked the failure of the U.S. military to defeat their country and indeed celebrated a perceived victory, Iran’s parliamentary speaker and head of the negotiating team, Mohammad Ghalibaf, insisted that ‘we are not stronger than the United States in military power.’ Ghalibaf suggested Iran shouldn’t expect to ‘destroy’ the enemy, but instead should translate its battlefield gains into diplomatic leverage. U.S. officials have shown less humility. … Though Iran has been hammered, Ghalibaf may be right to think the Islamic Republic has won diplomatic leverage — and the proud people of Iran whom he chided may be closer to the truth than the boastful Americans. The most obvious source of newfound diplomatic leverage for Iran is its effective control of the Strait of Hormuz, but battlefield outcomes have also made Tehran think it has the advantage in negotiations.” (0501/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/one-big-reason-iran-thinks-it-has-the-advantage/
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Unattended Baggage, episode 339
Source: Unattended Baggage
“Alex wants his underwear back.” (05/01/26)
https://unattendedbaggage.substack.com/p/episode-339-alex-wants-his-underwear
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52) Why Wealth Taxes Fail
Source: Reason
“California progressives are pushing for a tax on billionaires; so are senators like Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I–Vt.). But as Andrew Heaton explains, such programs don’t work. Just ask France.” (05/01/26)
https://reason.com/video/2026/05/01/why-wealth-taxes-fail/
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53) Serious Trouble, 05/01/26
Source: Serious Trouble
“I’m Still Mad He Put Martha Stewart In Prison.” (05/01/26)
https://www.serioustrouble.show/p/im-still-mad-he-put-martha-stewart
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54) The Anarchist Experience, episode 578
Source: The Anarchist Experience
“Rich and Riley discuss the Assassination attempt on Trump, and the pros and cons of deflationary currency with the troll.” (05/01/26)
https://theanarchistexperience.wordpress.com/2026/05/01/the-anarchist-experience-578/
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55) Ron Paul Liberty Report, 05/01/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“The Costs of Trump’s War: How Long Until They’re Unbearable?” (05/01/26)
https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1vJpPrQmzdoJE
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56) Fountainhead Forum, episode 442
Source: Fountainhead Forum
‘Andrew Bernstein on free will vs. determinism.” (05/01/26)
https://rumble.com/v798hr2-ff-442-andrew-bernstein-on-free-will-vs.-determinism.html
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57) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2757
Source: The Tom Woods Show
“Will the Billionaires Unseat Massie? Cliff Maloney’s Strategies for Election Victories.” (05/01/26)
https://tomwoods.com/ep-2757-will-the-billionaires-unseat-massie-cliff-maloneys-strategies-for-election-victories/
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58) Freedom Works with Paul Molloy, 05/01/26
Source: Freedom Works
“Kelley Vlahos, Quincy Institute ‘Trump’s Iran War.’” (05/01/26)
https://internetradiopros.com/freedomworks/?name=2026-05-02_zfw05012026.mp3
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59) Reasonably Optimistic, 05/01/26
Source: Washington Post
“Longing for ‘simpler times’? Consider this first.” (05/01/26)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/impromptu/longing-for-simpler-times-consider-this-first
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60) The Brian Nichols Show, 05/01/26
Source: Lions of Liberty
“Energy Insider REVEALS What’s Killing Your Electric Bill (…and it’s NOT AI).” (05/01/26)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/energy-insider-reveals-whats-killing-your-electric-bill-and-its-not-ai
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