11/03 -- Ukraine grain export deal back on track as Russia resumes role; Moderation Is Different From Censorship
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Thomas L. Knapp
Nov 3, 2022, 7:27:16 AM11/3/22
to Freedom News Daily
Freedom News Daily, 11/03/22
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Produced by the staff of Rational Review News Digest
https://news.rationalreview.com/
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Today's Freedom News:
0) Year-End Fundraiser Update: Be a Hero, Move Us Off Zero
1) Ukraine grain export deal back on track as Russia resumes role
2) North Korea: Regime launches ICBM that apparently fails
3) Old man yells at Republicans
4) Federal judge issues restraining order against group monitoring Arizona ballot boxes
5) Israel: Netanyahu election win propels far right to power
6) Chinese, Pakistani Regimes Agree to Launch $10 Billion Railroad Project
7) Biden regime to spend $13 billion on last-minute vote-buying with energy subsidies
8) PA: University makes new review of Mastriano's doctoral research
9) CVS, Walgreens agree to $10 billion in bribes to make frivolous opioid litigation go away
10) Emails: Disgraced former president's lawyers saw Thomas as "key" to stealing 2020 election
11) Ecuador: Regime declares state of emergency as five cops killed
12) OR: "People are mad" as Portland votes on government changes
13) Snowden: "Shut Down DHS" After Report Revealed Secretive Effort to Police Online Speech
14) Denmark: Centre-left bloc wins narrow victory in nail-biting vote
15) PA: Court rules to discount some mail-in ballots
16) Idiot bureaucrat: US regime should pretend it can ban TikTok
17) Russia: Putin battling cancer and Parkinsons disease, leaked emails claim
18) MoneyGram Debuts Crypto Purchases on Mobile App
19) Nuestra Familia Gang Leader Sentenced To 25+ Years In Jail Conspiracy Case
20) TX: Border thugs attack migrants with chemical weapons
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) Moderation Is Different From Censorship
22) The Government and Race
23) Vote Selling and Voter Behavior
24) Promises of politicians impossible
25) New research highlights the limits of abortion bans
26) New Iranian Revolution Could Help International Left [sic] Find Its Way
27) Expanding IRS Tyranny to Reduce Inflation
28) State Department Plan to Track Weapons for Ukraine Should Be Starting Point
29) Even Greenpeace finally admits the obvious: Recycling plastic doesn't work
30) Why Do Big Cities Tend to Have Bigger Government?
31) Biden, Our Boneheaded Chip Czar
32) Art as liberation in Iran
33) The Two Wars
34) Capitalism [sic] Has Failed As Badly As Anything Can Fail
35) Misunderstanding Mises, Again
36) Six Wrong Lessons for Taiwan From the War in Ukraine
37) Stupidity or Malice?
38) Four Ways Lula's Victory Will Reshape the US-Led World
39) With Lula, Biden has path to repairing relations with Brazil
40) Lord Shaftesbury Pronounces on Polarization
41) Immigration Justice Ballot Measure Tests Massachusetts Progressivism
42) The Obama Appeal, part 2
43) No Amnesty for Pandemic Tyranny
44) Democrats desperate to censor anyone that disagrees with them
45) These seven midterm ballot questions could change the country
46) The FBI Is Misinformed
47) It's a dog-eat-dog world
48) Democrats Keep Falling for "Superstar Losers"
49) Kentucky Latest to Test Whether Red States Will Keep Voting for Abortion Rights
50) As Student Enrollment Drops, the Number of Teachers Rises
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Questions for Corbett #092
52) Reason Interview: Andrew Doyle
53) The Bryan Hyde Show, 11/02/22
54) The Argument, 11/02/22
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report
56) Nonzero, 11/01/22
57) John Robb on The Scott Horton Show
58) Hubwonk, 11/01/22
59) Agorist Nexus Podcast, episode 124
60) FinTech Beat, 11/01/22
61) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2228
62) Politics! Politics! Politics!, episode 339
63) Meme Wars, episode 2
64) IP ... Frequently, episode 159
65) Conflicts of Interest, episode 344
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_____ Today's Freedom News _____
0) Year-End Fundraiser Update: Be a Hero, Move Us Off Zero
Hey, everyone ...
Yesterday was a "zero-dollar day" in our year-end fundraiser. With a total of $0.00 in contributions, our total remains (as of 6am Eastern this morning) at $1,463.
That leaves us $1,112 short of wrapping up this fundraiser. Our goal is $5,150; support GL has pledged "matching funds" of up to half that, so we need to get to $2,575 from the rest of you who read and value the freedom movement's daily newspaper.
We only run one fundraiser a year. Once we reach our goal, I get to mostly shut up about money until next October. And I really enjoy not talking about money. Help me with that at:
https://news.rationalreview.com/support-rrnd
Have a great day!
Yours in liberty,
Tom Knapp
Publisher
Rational Review News Digest / Freedom News Daily
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1) Ukraine grain export deal back on track as Russia resumes role
Source: Reuters
"Russia said on Wednesday it would resume its participation in a deal freeing up grain exports from war-torn Ukraine, reversing a move that world leaders had said threatened to exacerbate global hunger. Moscow announced the sudden reversal after Turkey and the United Nations helped keep Ukrainian grain flowing for several days without Russian participation in inspections. The Russian defence ministry justified the change by saying it had received guarantees from Kyiv not to use the Black Sea grain corridor for military operations against Russia. Kyiv did not immediately comment on that, but has denied in the past using the agreed shipping corridor as cover for attacks." (11/02/22)
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/grain-ships-sail-ukraine-ports-russian-missiles-knock-out-power-across-country-2022-10-31/
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2) North Korea: Regime launches ICBM that apparently fails
Source: CBS News
"North Korea unsuccessfully fired an intercontinental ballistic missile during a new salvo of launches Thursday, the South Korean military said, with Washington urging all nations to enforce sanctions on Pyongyang. The launches prompted South Korea and the United States to extend their ongoing joint air drills, the largest-ever such exercises, citing North Korea's 'provocations.' People in parts of northern Japan were ordered to seek shelter during the North's latest launches, which also included two short-range missiles and followed a blitz of projectiles fired Wednesday." (11/03/22)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/north-korea-icbm-failure-two-more-missiles-japan-shelter-alerts/
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3) Old man yells at Republicans
Source: The Hill
"President Biden on Wednesday went after former President Trump and other Republicans who continue to tout 2020 election lies, warning democracy is on the ballot just six days before the midterms and following the violent attack on Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) husband. ... The president, speaking at a Democratic National Committee event at Union Station near the Capitol, warned the public that the country faced a crossroads in next week's election that could upend democracy. ... Biden decided to deliver Wednesday's remarks because of the 'alarming number' of Republican officials who have said they won't accept the results of the midterm elections, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier on Wednesday." (11/02/22)
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/3716555-biden-goes-after-trump-lies-in-democracy-speech-after-pelosi-attack/
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4) Federal judge issues restraining order against group monitoring Arizona ballot boxes
Source: NBC News
"A federal judge in Phoenix issued a restraining order Tuesday night against a group that has been photographing and recording voters casting ballots at drop boxes in Arizona. The order, issued by U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi, prohibits Clean Elections USA from 'openly' carrying weapons or 'visibly wear[ing] body armor' within 250 feet of drop boxes. Liburdi's order also bars the group's members from taking photos, recording, following or yelling at voters within 75 feet of drop box locations. Furthermore, he told the group's founder, Melody Jennings, to post a message to her account on Truth Social, former President Donald Trump's social media platform, that reads in part: 'It is not always illegal to deposit multiple ballots in a ballot drop box. It is legal to deposit the ballot of a family member, household member, or person for whom you are the caregiver.'" (11/01/22)
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/federal-judge-issues-restraining-order-group-monitoring-arizona-ballot-rcna55170
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5) Israel: Netanyahu election win propels far right to power
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
"With some young religious voters literally jumping for joy, the stand-out story of Israel's latest election was the big surge in popularity of the far-right. 'Things will be better now. When he's the public security minister, they'll be better still,' Julian, an enthusiastic backer of firebrand politician Itamar Ben-Gvir [said] at his campaign headquarters. 'He wants the best for Israel. He wants the terrorists out,' said Noam from a settlement in the occupied West Bank. 'We don't want the Arabs, they throw rocks at us and take our spots in Israel,' he went on, before being hushed by a party activist. While Mr Ben-Gvir -- previously convicted as a racist in Israel -- is now attempting to rebrand himself as a more conventional politician, he has not changed all his anti-Arab rhetoric." (11/02/22)
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63490806
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6) Chinese, Pakistani Regimes Agree to Launch $10 Billion Railroad Project
Source: Yahoo! News
"Chinese President Xi Jinping and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif agreed in a meeting in Beijing to launch a high-speed rail project that could cost $9.85 billion, a move that comes as the world's No. 2 economy moves to slow some of its lending due to growth concerns. ... That project involves upgrading a 1,163-mile, colonial-era track from Karachi to Peshawar to carry high-speed trains. Earlier this week, Pakistan formally approved the project, which has been in discussion for years, without saying where the funding would come from or providing technical details. Officials in Pakistan have previously said they expected to get loans from China for the upgrade." (11/02/22)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-pakistan-agree-launch-10-102120056.html
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7) Biden regime to spend $13 billion on last-minute vote-buying with energy subsidies
Source: CNBC
"The Biden administration is providing over $13 billion in aid to help low- and moderate-income Americans lower their energy costs, including grants to pay electric bills as well other incentives to make energy-efficient upgrades to their homes. Vice President Kamala Harris plans to announce the new initiative while visiting a sheet metal workers' training facility and union hall in Boston later Wednesday, a senior administration official told reporters in a call Tuesday. The announcement reflects the administration's efforts to lower energy costs amid extreme temperature shifts from climate change." (11/02/22)
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/02/biden-administration-to-provide-over-13-billion-in-aid-to-help-american-families-lower-energy-bills.html
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8) PA: University makes new review of Mastriano's doctoral research
Source: SFGate
"A Canadian university that granted a doctorate in history to Doug Mastriano nearly a decade before he became the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania is investigating a fresh complaint about his work that makes multiple allegations of academic fraud in his recently public dissertation. University of New Brunswick President Paul Mazerolle told The Associated Press in a phone interview Saturday that the school is also bringing in a team of outsiders to review its policies and procedures for graduate study, including issues raised by how Mastriano's research was handled and evaluated. 'Being subject to a complaint, I need to let that process run its course,' Mazerolle said, 'recognizing that there's a time issue, and this is almost 10 years ago this was all propagated. And that's why we need to have this looked at through our complaint processes.'" (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/University-makes-new-review-of-Mastriano-s-17552314.php
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9) CVS, Walgreens agree to $10 billion in bribes to make frivolous opioid litigation go away
Source: CNN
"CVS and Walgreens have tentatively agreed to pay a combined $10 billion to settle lawsuits brought by states and local governments alleging the retailers mishandled prescriptions of opioid painkillers. Walmart has also tentatively agreed to pay $3 billion to settle a similar lawsuits, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. The agreement wouldn't be finalized until enough states, counties and cities agree to the terms, the outlet said. ... US states, cities and counties have filed more than 3,000 lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies, accusing them of downplaying the addiction risk and failing to stop pills from being diverted for illegal use." (11/02/22)
https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/02/us/cvs-walgreens-walmart-opioid-settlement/index.html
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10) Emails: Disgraced former president's lawyers saw Thomas as "key" to stealing 2020 election
Source: Axios
"Emails that emerged Wednesday underscore the extent to which former President Trump's top legal advisers zeroed in on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as 'being key' in their bid to overturn the results of the 2020 election. 'We want to frame things so that Thomas could be the one to issue some sort of stay or other circuit justice opinion saying Georgia is in legitimate doubt,' Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro wrote in an email on Dec. 31, 2020, to John Eastman and other members of Trump's legal team. ... The messages were part of eight emails that Eastman sought to shield from the Jan. 6 select committee, but a judge ordered that the emails be released, Politico reports. Thomas'[s] wife, Ginni Thomas, has also emerged as a central player in the Jan. 6 select committee's investigation, as she was in touch with Trump advisers about schemes to overturn the 2020 election." (11/02/22)
https://www.axios.com/2022/11/02/trump-2020-election-john-eastman-clarence-thomas
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11) Ecuador: Regime declares state of emergency as five cops killed
Source: New York Post
"At least five Ecuadorean police officers were killed on Tuesday in explosive attacks in response to prisoner transfers from overcrowded and violent penitentiaries, prompting President Guillermo Lasso to declare a state of emergency in two provinces. Lasso, a conservative, has repeatedly blamed violence, including inside prisons, on drug gang retaliation for his government's efforts to combat the trade. Ecuador is a transit point for drugs destined for the United States and Europe. The attacks overnight and early on Tuesday morning, including nine explosions in two cities, were an open declaration of war by gangs, Lasso said in a video address." (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/02/ecuador-declares-state-of-emergency-after-five-cops-dead-in-explosive-attacks/
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12) OR: "People are mad" as Portland votes on government changes
Source: SFGate
"Portland's official slogan is 'The City That Works', but after a tumultuous few years, many residents feel the city is anything but that. Homelessness and gun violence are surging and parts of downtown are struggling, unable to recover from the coronavirus pandemic and the racial justice protests that gripped the city in 2020. Now voters are deciding on a ballot measure that would completely overhaul City Hall. The proposal would scrap a century-old commission form of government that Portland is the last major U.S. city to use, and also implement a rare form of ranked choice voting. The campaigns on these questions have been emotional, reflecting different visions of Portland's future: one that maintains the city's reputation as a testing ground for unique ideas and upholds its unofficial slogan, 'Keep Portland Weird', and another that sets unconventional methodology aside in a quest for stability." (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/People-are-mad-Portland-votes-on-17552366.php
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13) Snowden: "Shut Down DHS" After Report Revealed Secretive Effort to Police Online Speech
Source: Common Dreams
"NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security should be shut down after reporting shined light on the agency's sweeping campaign to police what it deems disinformation online, an effort that raised alarm among civil liberties groups. 'It's time to talk about shutting down the Department of Homeland Security,' Snowden, a former NSA contractor who exposed the agency's illegal mass spying program in 2013, wrote on Twitter. DHS, formed in 2002 in the wake of the September 11 attacks, 'was always a mistake, a costly artifact of the hysteric post-9/11 authoritarianism that left us no more safe, but much less free,' Snowden continued. 'Its plan to become the Speech Police is the final straw.'" (11/02/22)
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/11/02/snowden-says-shut-down-dhs-after-report-revealed-secretive-effort-police-online
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14) Denmark: Centre-left bloc wins narrow victory in nail-biting vote
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatar state media]
"Denmark's centre-left bloc led by Mette Frederiksen, the Social Democratic incumbent prime minister, has won a one-seat majority in a nail-biter of a general election. Frederiksen's five-party 'red' coalition looked set to lose its majority as vote counting wore on throughout Tuesday evening, but as the last votes were tallied, it eked out the 87 seats it needed in mainland Denmark. Together with another three seats from the autonomous overseas territories of the Faroe Islands and Greenland, the bloc holds a total of 90 of parliament's 179 seats. Opinion polls had predicted a historically weak election for the Social Democrats, but they instead gained two seats compared with the last election, winning 27.5 percent of votes." (11/02/22)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/11/2/denmark-centre-left-bloc-wins-narrow-victory-in-nail-biting-vote
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15) PA: Court rules to discount some mail-in ballots
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
"Pennsylvania's top court has ruled that mail-in ballots marked with the wrong date will not be counted. In a victory for Republicans ahead of the midterms, the court said such votes would be set aside and preserved. Democrats and Republicans are deeply split on mail-in voting. The issue gained prominence after a surge in the 2020 election caused by the pandemic. Republicans fear postal voting benefits Democrats, even though data suggests both parties are affected equally. About 70% of the 1.4 million requests for mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania this year come from Democrats, compared to 20% from Republicans. After the previous election, then-President Donald Trump condemned mail-in ballots as a 'big scam' and baselessly claimed that millions of ballots were sent from abroad as part of a 'rigged' election." (11/02/22)
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63487609
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16) Idiot bureaucrat: US regime should pretend it can ban TikTok
Source: New York Post
"FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr called Tuesday for the US government to formally ban the popular video sharing app TikTok over national security risks posed by its ties to China. Carr, a frequent TikTok critic and the Federal Communications Commission's senior Republican member, argued any other resolution would not adequately address concerns that Beijing could improperly access the data of millions of US-based TikTok users. ... Carr and lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle have expressed mounting concern that TikTok's parent company, China-based ByteDance, is sharing US user data with Beijing officials. Critics say the Chinese Communist Party could attempt to influence US politics and social discourse through the app. While the FCC does not have regulatory power over TikTok, the Republican commissioner said the Council on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), an interagency committee that reviews foreign investment in the country, should seek to implement a ban." (11/01/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/01/us-government-should-ban-tiktok-fcc-commissioner-brendan-carr-says/
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17) Russia: Putin battling cancer and Parkinsons disease, leaked emails claim
Source: New York Post
"Russian President Vladimir Putin is battling both pancreatic cancer and Parkinson's disease, according to a new report citing leaked Kremlin emails. A Russian intelligence source appeared to confirm in messages viewed by The Sun what has long been rumored about the 70-year-old strongman. 'I can confirm he has been diagnosed with early stage Parkinson's disease, but it's already progressing,' the security services insider reportedly claimed. 'This fact will be denied in every possible way and hidden,' the source said, according to The Sun. 'Putin is regularly stuffed with all kinds of heavy steroids and innovative painkilling injections to stop the spread of pancreatic cancer he was recently diagnosed with,' the person said." [editor's note: Those rumors have been floating around for quite some time; I'm not sure this piece adds any real weight to them – TLK] (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/02/putin-battling-pancreatic-cancer-parkinsons-disease-report/
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18) MoneyGram Debuts Crypto Purchases on Mobile App
Source: CoinDesk
"Payments firm MoneyGram (MGI) has added a service to its mobile app allowing nearly all U.S. customers to buy, sell and hold bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and litecoin (LTC). The company expects to expand those cryptocurrency selections over the coming year, pending global regulation. The new functionality is being enabled by crypto exchange Coinme, in which MoneyGram made a strategic minority investment earlier this year. " (11/01/22)
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/11/01/moneygram-debuts-crypto-purchases-on-mobile-app/
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19) Nuestra Familia Gang Leader Sentenced To 25+ Years In Jail Conspiracy Case
Source: SFGate
"A high-up leader of the prison gang Nuestra Familia was sentenced to over 25 years in federal prison after being convicted of multiple gang violence conspiracies that occurred in the Monterey County Jail, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Tuesday. Vincent Gerald Garcia, 55, of Salinas, is the 14th defendant charged and convicted in the case, which involves racketeering, conspiracy, conspiracy to commit murder in the aid of racketeering and conspiracy to commit assault with a dangerous weapon in the aid of racketeering. Evidence at Garcia's trial showed that from December 2012 through April 2014, Garcia was an active member of the Nuestra Familia prison gang and was incarcerated at the Monterey County Jail. Garcia was 'regiment commander' for the gang in charge of all Monterey County and he controlled the criminal activities of gang members in the jail." (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/bayarea/article/Nuestra-Familia-Gang-Leader-Sentenced-To-25-17552491.php
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20) TX: Border thugs attack migrants with chemical weapons
Source: ABC 7 News
"Border Patrol agents shot pepper balls toward migrants after an agent was assaulted near the U.S.-Mexico border Monday, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). CBP said Venezuelan nationals were protesting along the Rio Grande International Boundary near downtown El Paso when one of them assaulted an agent with a flag pole. A second person threw a rock at an agent causing injury, according to CBP. Agents then responded with crowd control measures which included the use of a pepper ball launching system. The crowd dispersed and returned to Mexico, according to CBP. The situation is still ongoing and further information may be provided as it becomes available, CBP added." (11/01/22)
https://abc7amarillo.com/news/nation-world/migrants-shot-with-pepper-balls-after-agent-assaulted-border-patrol-says-united-states-mexico-venezuela-us-customs-and-border-protection-cbp-el-paso-rio-grande-flag-title-42-immigration-asylum-seekers
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) Moderation Is Different From Censorship
Source: Astral Codex Ten
by Scott Alexander
"Moderation is the normal business activity of ensuring that your customers like using your product. If a customer doesn't want to receive harassing messages, or to be exposed to disinformation, then a business can provide them the service of a harassment-and-disinformation-free platform. Censorship is the abnormal activity ensuring that people in power approve of the information on your platform, regardless of what your customers want. If the sender wants to send a message and the receiver wants to receive it, but some third party bans the exchange of information, that's censorship. The racket works by pretending these are the same imperative." (11/02/22)
https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/moderation-is-different-from-censorship
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22) The Government and Race
Source: Judge Napolitano
by Andrew P Napolitano
"This week, the Supreme Court of the United States is confronting yet again an issue that has bedeviled it for the past 30 years: the use of racial quotas by government-owned universities and private universities that accept government funding. The last time the court looked at this issue, it punted. As is always the case when the court punts, the issue returned. This time around, the issue comes in an environment hot with racial anxiety and lack of constitutional fidelity. Here is the backstory." (11/03/22)
https://www.judgenap.com/the-government-and-race/
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23) Vote Selling and Voter Behavior
Source: Independent Institute
by Randall G Holcombe
"One of the characteristics of a secret ballot is that others can't tell how you voted. This might protect voters from harassment or intimidation, but it also prevents voters from providing assurance to others about how they voted. A voter might have claimed to have voted a certain way, but the secret ballot means that others can never be sure. The secret ballot is a barrier to voters selling their votes because the purchaser cannot be certain that the seller voted as promised. Mail-in voting reduces this impediment to selling one's vote. The purchaser can watch the voter complete the ballot, or even complete the ballot for the seller. Buying votes becomes easier with mail-in ballots." (11/02/22)
https://blog.independent.org/2022/11/02/sell-vote/
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24) Promises of politicians impossible
Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal
"Politicians are always promising to do things politicians can't do. Either they believe they are magic, or they want you to believe they are. Sometimes they promise things they can't legally do -- things that violate the Constitution -- and other times they promise to do things that aren't possible within the laws of physics in our universe. Do they believe you are gullible enough to fall for it? Probably. Often they promise to violate economic reality, which is nearly as immutable as the laws of physics." (11/02/22)
https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2022/11/02/voices/opinion-promises-of-politicians-impossible/173309.html
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25) New research highlights the limits of abortion bans
Source: Orange County Register
by Jacob Sullum
"Since the Supreme Court repudiated a constitutional right to abortion in June, 22 states have enacted or begun to enforce new limits on the procedure, including 13 strict bans. New research suggests that the consequences so far have been less dramatic than abortion-rights activists may have feared and anti-abortion activists may have hoped, demonstrating the obstacles facing legislators who are taking advantage of the authority that the Court restored." (11/02/22)
https://www.ocregister.com/2022/11/02/new-research-highlights-the-limits-of-abortion-bans/
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26) New Iranian Revolution Could Help International Left [sic] Find Its Way
Source: Common Dreams
by Yanis Varoufakis
"An Athenian taxi driver, a Nazi sympathizer, told me recently, 'I am a Golden Dawn voter, but I think the world of you.' I would rather that he had punched me in the stomach. I had the same sinking feeling the other day when I read far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's proposals for achieving peace in Ukraine -- proposals not too dissimilar to what I have been suggesting since Putin's repulsive invasion began. While Orban, unlike the Golden Dawn voter, did not praise me personally, the revulsion was the same. For years, I despaired that nothing can save the international left from the blind spots which cause progressives to lose our way time and again. Over the years, I have suffered immense discomfort when people whose analyses at least partly resonated with my own suddenly revealed themselves as fascist anti-Semites, unreconstructed Stalinists, loony libertarians, or, more recently, Trumpists." (11/02/22)
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2022/11/02/new-iranian-revolution-could-help-international-left-find-its-way
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27) Expanding IRS Tyranny to Reduce Inflation
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
"One of the interesting aspects of President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act was the allocation of $80 billion in increased funding for the Internal Revenue Service, one of the most powerful and tyrannical agencies in U.S. history. The money is intended to be used for enhanced tax enforcement, especially through the potential hiring of 87,000 new IRS agents who, to borrow a phrase from the Declaration of Independence, will be further eating out the substance of the American people. Using soaring prices of gasoline, food, cars, and most everything else as a way to seize more money from the American people should not surprise anyone." (11/02/22)
https://www.fff.org/2022/11/02/expanding-irs-tyranny-to-reduce-inflation/
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28) State Department Plan to Track Weapons for Ukraine Should Be Starting Point
Source: Cato Institute
by Jordan Cohen
"Late last month, the State Department issued a proactive policy to track weapons being sent to Ukraine that are highly portable, highly lethal, and contain advanced technology. In essence, this means that they are tracking man‐portable air defense systems and anti‐tank guided missiles. These weapon systems are still effective against things like Iranian drones, so ensuring that Ukraine can use them safely is in Washington's interests. But while this proactive approach is a good start to monitoring, the already‐existing loose weapons in Ukraine mean that the new policy is nothing but a small start to solving a larger issue." (11/02/22)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/state-dept-plan-track-weapons-ukraine-should-be-starting-point
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29) Even Greenpeace finally admits the obvious: Recycling plastic doesn't work
Source: New York Post
by John Tierney
"Even Greenpeace has finally acknowledged the truth: Recycling plastic makes no sense. This has been obvious for decades to anyone who crunched the numbers, but the fantasy of recycling plastic proved irresistible to generations of environmentalists and politicians. They preached it to children, mandated it for adults and bludgeoned municipalities and virtue-signaling corporations into wasting vast sums -- probably hundreds of billions of dollars worldwide -- on an enterprise that has been harmful to the environment as well as to humanity. Now Greenpeace has seen the light or at least a glimmer of rationality. The group has issued a report accompanied by a press release headlined 'Plastic Recycling Is A Dead-End Street -- Year After Year, Plastic Recycling Declines Even as Plastic Waste Increases'" (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/01/recycling-plastic-doesnt-work/
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30) Why Do Big Cities Tend to Have Bigger Government?
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Peter Jacobsen
"It's no secret that cities tend to have a lot of wealth concentrated in a small area. This isn't to say everyone in the city is rich, but all the production and exchange in cities make them hubs of wealth. And, like any place that generates significant wealth, cities also generate significant incentives to capture the wealth. Consider, for instance, that a group of taxi cab drivers is seeking to keep its would-be competitors out of the market. In order to do this, the company might lobby for regulations (like a limited number of permits) that would restrict competition. What sorts of cities would be the best places to create this kind of monopoly? Big cities with a lot of customers would seem like a good target." (11/02/22)
https://fee.org/articles/why-do-big-cities-tend-to-have-bigger-government/
-----
31) Biden, Our Boneheaded Chip Czar
Source: JimBovard.com
by Jim Bovard
"The Chip Act made Biden the nation's Semiconductor Czar, and he promised that he would 'personally have to sign off on the biggest grants' to companies. What could possibly go wrong?" (11/02/22)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2022/11/02/biden-our-boneheaded-chip-czar/
-----
32) Art as liberation in Iran
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
"Odd as it may seem, Iran is experiencing an art boom during weeks of mass protests against a hijab-enforcing regime. Recording artists who support the street struggle are enjoying high popularity, mainly for lyrics that inspire hope and unity. Just as strange is this: The most popular song, 'For' (in Persian, 'Baraye'), mainly recites the most common phrases used by the protesters in media posts, such as 'For dancing in the streets, for kissing loved ones' and 'For women, life, freedom'. The song's writer and singer, Shervin Hajipour, was briefly arrested last month. He is a well-known musician. The song has also been widely nominated for a Grammy in the category of best song for social change. Coldplay is playing 'Baraye' during its current world tour." (11/02/22)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/the-monitors-view/2022/1101/Art-as-liberation-in-Iran
-----
33) The Two Wars
Source: The Nation
by Stephanie McCurry
"A number of years ago, in his book Yankee Leviathan, the political scientist Richard Franklin Bensel insisted that the relationship between the federal government and finance capital that was forged during the Civil War 'mortgaged a radical Reconstruction' before the conflict had even ended. It is an arresting argument, and a relevant one. The idea that wars make states -- because governments have to create the capacity to wage and pay for them -- certainly holds true for the Civil War. The claim that the conflict saw the birth of the modern American state is also now widely accepted. But what kind of state, and what kind of economy, did the war produce? Did it create a state dedicated to emancipation, or to big business? Roger Lowenstein's new book, Ways and Means, provides one answer." (11/02/22)
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/roger-lowenstein-ways-and-means/
-----
34) Capitalism [sic] Has Failed As Badly As Anything Can Fail
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
"'No no you don't understand, this US war is completely different from all the other US wars. See, the US is intervening in Ukraine for humanitarian reasons. We're fighting a bad guy who is an evil dictator that loves war crimes and genocide. Not like all those other interventions.' ... Western punditry is rife with op-eds arguing that the US needs to vastly increase military spending because a world war is about to erupt, and they always frame it as though this would be something that happens to the US, like its own actions would have nothing to do with it. If World War 3 does indeed occur, it will be because the drivers of the US-centralized empire continued accelerating towards that horrific event while refusing every possible diplomatic off-ramp due to their inability to relinquish their goal of unipolar planetary domination." (11/02/22)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com/2022/11/02/capitalism-has-failed-as-badly-as-anything-can-fail-notes-from-the-edge-of-the-narrative-matrix/
-----
35) Misunderstanding Mises, Again
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Per Bylund
"In a recent blog post on the Marginal Revolution blog, Ludwig von Mises is categorized as an underrated thinker. That's undoubtedly true, especially when considering his many groundbreaking contributions to economics. ... Mises is frighteningly often dismissed as a 'crank' or 'ideologue' by present-day know-it-alls who are clearly ignorant of recent history of economic thought. The blog post at 'MR,' which comments very briefly on Mises's main works, is therefore an important reminder of Mises's strong legacy. But it is also interesting because it provides insight into how a non-Austrian who is (or at least should be) well aware of Austrian economic theory sees Mises's work." (11/02/22)
https://mises.org/wire/misunderstanding-mises-again
-----
36) Six Wrong Lessons for Taiwan From the War in Ukraine
Source: Foreign Policy
by Franz-Stefan Gady
"Since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, there has been plenty of analysis of the conflict's possible lessons for future wars, including implications for a potential military confrontation between the United States and China over Taiwan. Military history, however, is filled with examples of armies drawing the wrong lessons from previous wars and applying them to disastrous effect in new ones. Because warfare is highly contingent and the character of the next war is inherently difficult to predict, any lessons distilled from the current conflict for the next one have a very high chance of being wrong. Instead, military planners and decision-makers are better served by focusing on the supposed lessons from Russia's war that they should best avoid. Here are six wrong lessons for Taiwan from the war in Ukraine." (11/02/22)
https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/11/02/lessons-ukraine-russia-war-taiwan-china-military-weapons-strategy-tactics/
-----
37) Stupidity or Malice?
Source: The Pamphleteer
by Davis Hunt
"This morning, we're giving a short and simple math lesson. If that intimidates you, bear with me for a second. It's not that scary. Justin Kanew, leader of the miserable Tennessee Holler, mockingly posted this yesterday: 'My kids just trick-or-treated for 2 hours and got zero fentanyl what are we doing wrong? @MarshaBlackburn' Though the answer to Justin's question is simple (he lives in a million-dollar house in a gated community), it doesn't mean there's no lesson to be gleaned from his deliberate ignorance. There's a concept called 'fat tail risk,' which came to my attention many years ago through the mathematician and writer Nassim Taleb. Taleb, who is famous for his books Antifragility, The Black Swan, and Skin in the Game among others, introduces the concept in Antifragility." (11/02/22)
https://pamphleteer.co/newsletter/no-369-stupidity-or-malice/
-----
38) Four Ways Lula's Victory Will Reshape the US-Led World
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Snider
"On October 30, former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva once again became president of Brazil. In the first round of the election, Lula DA Silva won 48% of the vote versus 43% for the incumbent Jair Bolsonaro. Falling short of the 50% required to win in the first round, the election headed to a runoff vote between the two candidates. Lula won the runoff, defeating Bolsonaro 50.9% to 49.1%. Lula's victory could impact the world far beyond Brazil. It could send shockwaves that will be felt by the US led world order in a number of ways." (11/02/22)
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2022/11/01/four-ways-lulas-victory-will-reshape-the-us-led-world/
-----
39) With Lula, Biden has path to repairing relations with Brazil
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Andre Pagliarini
"Lula's unlikely ascent to another term in office in Latin America's largest nation represents renewed opportunities. Indeed, given the host of issues Brazil faces -- including reigning in deforestation, navigating the decline of U.S. hegemony in the hemisphere, and reversing an alarming slide into deindustrialization -- it is hard to imagine someone better equipped than Lula to turn the page from the far-right Jair Bolsonaro, who has governed the country since 2019. For the Biden administration, Lula's return to power is also fortuitous as it offers a chance to reset relations." (11/02/22)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2022/11/02/how-biden-can-repair-relations-with-brazil-after-lulas-win/
-----
40) Lord Shaftesbury Pronounces on Polarization
Source: Law & Liberty
by EJ Hutchinson
"These days, one cannot escape an encounter with the punditocracy without hearing the word 'polarization': the political phenomenon in which the extremes (seem to) crowd out the middle while growing farther and farther apart from each other and becoming ever more rhetorically and practically shrill. There is a paradox here: 'extremes' and 'middle' are correlative terms whose meaning depends on the latter being much bigger than the former. This truism is often ignored or elided by journalists who think extremism is unidirectional -- they gesture vaguely with their right hands -- and want those, and only those, who disagree with them to be labeled 'extremists,' as well as, in an ideal world, investigated by the FBI and Department of Justice." (11/02/22)
https://lawliberty.org/lord-shaftesbury-pronounces-on-polarization/
-----
41) Immigration Justice Ballot Measure Tests Massachusetts Progressivism
Source: The American Prospect
by Tisya Mavuram
"This November, Massachusetts voters will decide whether to keep or repeal the Work and Family Mobility Act, a law passed earlier this year allowing state residents who meet all competency qualifications to apply for a standard Massachusetts driver's license, regardless of immigration status. A 'yes' vote on Question 4 would keep the current law, while a 'no' vote would repeal it. Republican Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed the bill; the Massachusetts legislature overrode the veto in June. Instead of leaning into an immigrant justice message, the 'Yes on 4' campaign is choosing to highlight the question as one of road safety. 'One of the things that we're trying to point out is that this is not about immigration. It's about safety, and safety is a state issue. Immigration is a federal one,' said Franklin Soults, a senior communications strategist with SEIU 32BJ." (11/02/22)
https://prospect.org/justice/immigration-justice-ballot-measure-tests-massachusetts-progressivism/
-----
42) The Obama Appeal, part 2
Source: Hawaii Reporter
by Manfred Henningsen
"Obama's Hawaii was a legend for him that did not represent America's historical and political reality. Yet it socialized him in an un-American way, turned him into an "alien" yet extremely appealing "stranger" for a large section of the US population. The African dimension of his person that connected him with his absent father made it impossible for him to accept Hawaii as his political lifeworld." (11/02/22)
https://www.hawaiireporter.com/the-obama-appeal-part-2/
-----
43) No Amnesty for Pandemic Tyranny
Source: The American Conservative
by Micah Meadowcroft
"The headline reads, 'Let's Declare a Pandemic Amnesty.' It would be risible if it were not so galling. We are to give a pardon to the officials who, over and over, proved themselves blustering little tyrants, and worse, incompetent? Absolutely not. We are to erase the record of those responsible for leaving sick children to waste away in hospitals all alone, for separating husband from wife, for stopping families from holding the hands of the dying or gathering for their funerals? No, no, and again, no. ... experts and public authorities are people who make assessments, predictions, and decisions on behalf of ordinary people, and they are supposed to be judged by the accuracy and utility of those assessments, predictions, and decisions. It matters, a lot, if they get things wrong, and it matters, a lot, that they got things wrong." (11/02/22)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/no-amnesty-for-pandemic-tyranny/
-----
44) Democrats desperate to censor anyone that disagrees with them
Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
"As the covert war against 'misinformation' expands, the list of federally prohibited online thoughts is snowballing. DHS is targeting 'inaccurate information on 'the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, racial justice, U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the nature of U.S. support to Ukraine,'' The Intercept reported. Are federal censors still seeking to enforce President Biden's delusion that COVID vaccines prevent transmission? Are they continuing to suppress any information about COVID originating in a Wuhan lab? Is any criticism of Biden's botched Afghan withdrawal considered heresy? In many cases, DHS notified Facebook and Twitter to suppress parody accounts -- perhaps because nothing is more subversive than laughing at politicians. How many votes were swayed by federal censorship in 2020, and how many will be swayed in next week's midterm election?" (11/01/22)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2022/11/01/new-york-post-democrats-desperate-to-censor-anyone-that-disagrees-with-them/
-----
45) These seven midterm ballot questions could change the country
Source: Fox News
by Stephen Moore
"Investors are following with an eagle eye next week's tight midterm elections for United States Senate and a dozen or so close gubernatorial races. Overlooked have been a slew of state ballot initiatives that could have a major influence on these states' economic direction -- and the national economy as well. Overall there are dozens of direct democracy referendum and initiative measures that will be voted on. Below I highlight the ones that taxpayers and investors should be following most closely with some fearless forecasts of how they are likely to turn out." (11/02/22)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/these-seven-midterm-ballot-questions-could-change-country
-----
46) The FBI Is Misinformed
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
"The FBI is misinformed if it thinks that prosecuting persons who misinform solely for misinforming is consistent with freedom of speech. The utterance of false statements, whether unknowingly or willfully, is nothing new in human history. And such utterances are impossible to avoid in any kind of discourse -- for example, political debates -- in which people disagree with each other about facts as well as values. Indeed, one often hears both true things and false things. We must evaluate claims as best we can, using observation, logic, common sense and so forth. But, somehow, the FBI has decided that 'misinformation' and 'disinformation,' chronic in campaign ads, political pronouncements, and domestic quarrels, are a crime when communicated in the context of an election." (11/01/22)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2022/11/01/the-fbi-is-misinformed/
-----
47) It's a dog-eat-dog world
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton
"Those who worship the state -- that is, government -- often tell lovers of liberty that without mandatory human government, life would be miserable and short and brutish. 'Just like primitive cavemen!" They tell us that "Taxes are what we pay for civilized society, including the chance to insure.' (quoting SCOTUS Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes). Balderdash! ... If the government's role is to protect people from evil-doers, the governments are obviously failing." (11/01/22)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2022/11/01/its-a-dog-eat-dog-world/
-----
48) Democrats Keep Falling for "Superstar Losers"
Source: The Atlantic
by Jacob Stern
"In the early 2000s, the Japanese racehorse Haru Urara became something of an international celebrity. This was not because of her prowess on the track. Just the opposite: Haru Urara had never won a race. She was famous not for winning but for losing. And the longer her losing streak stretched, the more famous she grew. She finished her career with a perversely pristine record: zero wins, 113 losses. American politics doesn't have anyone quite like Haru Urara. But it does have Beto O'Rourke and Stacey Abrams. The two Democrats are among the country's best known political figures, better known than almost any sitting governor or U.S. senator. And they have become so well known not by winning big elections but by losing them." (11/01/22)
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/11/beto-orourke-stacey-abrams-superstar-loser/671959/
-----
49) Kentucky Latest to Test Whether Red States Will Keep Voting for Abortion Rights
Source: In These Times
by Shefali Luthra
"When Kansas voted roughly 60% to 40% against a proposal that would have said there was no right to an abortion in the state, the resounding victory suggested that abortion bans are a losing issue. But it wasn't clear whether that argument could apply to red states beyond Kansas. Now comes the next test: Kentucky, which is already enforcing a near-total ban on the procedure. Voters this month will weigh in on a measure nearly identical to what Kansans rejected. A yes vote would specify that the state's constitution does not protect the right to an abortion. A no vote would leave the constitution as it is, allowing for the possibility that the state's Supreme Court could strike down Kentucky's abortion ban." (11/02/22)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/kentucky-anti-abortion-amendment-november-ballot
-----
50) As Student Enrollment Drops, the Number of Teachers Rises
Source: Show-Me Institute
by James V Shuls
"From 2011 to 2021, enrollment in Missouri public schools dropped by nearly 30,000 students. The largest drop was post-COVID, with the state losing over 20,000 students in that year alone. Nevertheless, the trend is clearly downward. It would make sense, given that total enrollment in the state has been decreasing, to see a similar decline in the number of teachers. Fewer students, fewer teachers needed. But instead, we see the opposite happening. As enrollment drops, the state continues to add to the number of teachers. ... From 2011 to 2021 -- the same period that the state lost 30,000 students -- the state added 2,475 FTE teachers. As the state dropped 20,000 students from the rolls, it only lost 10 FTE teachers. This brings the ratio down from 13.2 students per FTE teacher in 2011 to 12.3 in 2021." (11/01/22)
https://showmeinstitute.org/blog/education/as-student-enrollment-drops-the-number-of-teachers-rises/
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Questions for Corbett #092
Source: The Corbett Report
"What is Technocracy?" (11/02/22)
https://www.corbettreport.com/qfc-technocracy/
-----
52) Reason Interview: Andrew Doyle
Source: Reason
"How the 'New Puritans' Created a 'Frenzy of Conformity.'" (11/02/22)
https://reason.com/podcast/2022/11/02/andrew-doyle-how-the-new-puritans-created-a-frenzy-of-conformity/
-----
53) The Bryan Hyde Show, 11/02/22
Source: The Bryan Hyde Show
"Many of us are feeling indignation at the suggestion of amnesty for the architects of the lockdowns. Brian Almon has a thoughtful take on where and when we should consider forgiveness for their actions." (11/02/22)
https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-hvy4z-1302907
-----
54) The Argument, 11/02/22
Source: New York Times
"The Price of $5 Donations: Is Small-Dollar Fund-Raising Doing More Harm Than Good?" (11/02/22)
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/02/opinion/is-small-dollar-fund-raising-doing-more-harm-than-good.html
-----
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
"Rumble Says 'Non!' To French Government Censors, Pulls Out Of Country." (11/02/22)
https://rumble.com/v1r3xp0-rumble-says-non-to-french-government-censors-pulls-out-of-country.html
-----
56) Nonzero, 11/01/22
Source: Bloggingheads.tv
"Russia, Ukraine, and US Diplomacy | Robert Wright & Samuel Charap." (11/01/22)
https://bloggingheads.tv/videos/65133
-----
57) John Robb on The Scott Horton Show
Source: The Scott Horton Show
"Scott talks with John Robb about the major consequences of Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter." (11/01/22)
https://scotthorton.org/interviews/10-28-22-john-robb-on-the-geopolitical-ramifications-of-elon-musks-twitter-takeover/
-----
58) Hubwonk, 11/01/22
Source: Pioneer Institute
"Grading State Governors: Do Higher Taxes Equate To Higher Value?" (11/01/22)
https://pioneerinstitute.org/podcast-hubwonk/grading-state-governors-do-higher-taxes-equate-to-higher-value/
-----
59) Agorist Nexus Podcast, episode 124
Source: Agorist Nexus
"Biden and Desantis -- like peas and carrots." (11/01/22)
https://www.agoristnexus.com/biden-and-desantis-like-peas-and-carrots-episode-124/
-----
60) FinTech Beat, 11/01/22
Source: Roll Call
"Karen Webster, CEO of Pyments.com, joins the Beat." (11/01/22)
https://traffic.megaphone.fm/FISCAL9333918312.mp3
-----
61) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2228
Source: The Tom Woods Show
"A Twisted History of the United States." (11/01/22)
https://tomwoods.com/ep-2228-a-twisted-history-of-the-united-states/
-----
62) Politics! Politics! Politics!, episode 339
Source: Politics! Politics! Politics!
"Midterm Madness! Dems Stem GOP Momentum?" (11/01/22)
https://politicspoliticspolitics.fireside.fm/339
-----
63) Meme Wars, episode 2
Source: Lions of Liberty
"Dahmer Glasses and Twitter Musk." (11/01/22)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/gomuj0z7vq519kqm5jfsfhlzmd5frj
-----
64) IP ... Frequently, episode 159
Source: IP ... Frequently
"President Biden says the economy is booming, and who are we to cast doubt on that claim? After all, we live in a free country where anyone can make up whatever they want and then claim it to be true. Also in this episode, the top signs you might be in a toxic friendship, and a new theory on why JFK was killed." (11/01/22)
https://anchor.fm/ip-frequently/episodes/Ep–159--The-Booming-Economy-e1q1i1v
-----
65) Conflicts of Interest, episode 344
Source: Libertarian Institute
"Russia Cancels Grain Export Deal After Attack on Black Sea Fleet." (11/01/22)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/kyle/coi-344-russia-cancels-grain-export-deal-after-attack-on-black-sea-fleet
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Today's Freedom News:
0) Year-End Fundraiser Update: Be a Hero, Move Us Off Zero
1) Ukraine grain export deal back on track as Russia resumes role
2) North Korea: Regime launches ICBM that apparently fails
3) Old man yells at Republicans
4) Federal judge issues restraining order against group monitoring Arizona ballot boxes
5) Israel: Netanyahu election win propels far right to power
6) Chinese, Pakistani Regimes Agree to Launch $10 Billion Railroad Project
7) Biden regime to spend $13 billion on last-minute vote-buying with energy subsidies
8) PA: University makes new review of Mastriano's doctoral research
9) CVS, Walgreens agree to $10 billion in bribes to make frivolous opioid litigation go away
10) Emails: Disgraced former president's lawyers saw Thomas as "key" to stealing 2020 election
11) Ecuador: Regime declares state of emergency as five cops killed
12) OR: "People are mad" as Portland votes on government changes
13) Snowden: "Shut Down DHS" After Report Revealed Secretive Effort to Police Online Speech
14) Denmark: Centre-left bloc wins narrow victory in nail-biting vote
15) PA: Court rules to discount some mail-in ballots
16) Idiot bureaucrat: US regime should pretend it can ban TikTok
17) Russia: Putin battling cancer and Parkinsons disease, leaked emails claim
18) MoneyGram Debuts Crypto Purchases on Mobile App
19) Nuestra Familia Gang Leader Sentenced To 25+ Years In Jail Conspiracy Case
20) TX: Border thugs attack migrants with chemical weapons
Today's Freedom Commentary:
21) Moderation Is Different From Censorship
22) The Government and Race
23) Vote Selling and Voter Behavior
24) Promises of politicians impossible
25) New research highlights the limits of abortion bans
26) New Iranian Revolution Could Help International Left [sic] Find Its Way
27) Expanding IRS Tyranny to Reduce Inflation
28) State Department Plan to Track Weapons for Ukraine Should Be Starting Point
29) Even Greenpeace finally admits the obvious: Recycling plastic doesn't work
30) Why Do Big Cities Tend to Have Bigger Government?
31) Biden, Our Boneheaded Chip Czar
32) Art as liberation in Iran
33) The Two Wars
34) Capitalism [sic] Has Failed As Badly As Anything Can Fail
35) Misunderstanding Mises, Again
36) Six Wrong Lessons for Taiwan From the War in Ukraine
37) Stupidity or Malice?
38) Four Ways Lula's Victory Will Reshape the US-Led World
39) With Lula, Biden has path to repairing relations with Brazil
40) Lord Shaftesbury Pronounces on Polarization
41) Immigration Justice Ballot Measure Tests Massachusetts Progressivism
42) The Obama Appeal, part 2
43) No Amnesty for Pandemic Tyranny
44) Democrats desperate to censor anyone that disagrees with them
45) These seven midterm ballot questions could change the country
46) The FBI Is Misinformed
47) It's a dog-eat-dog world
48) Democrats Keep Falling for "Superstar Losers"
49) Kentucky Latest to Test Whether Red States Will Keep Voting for Abortion Rights
50) As Student Enrollment Drops, the Number of Teachers Rises
Today's Freedom Podcast and Video:
51) Questions for Corbett #092
52) Reason Interview: Andrew Doyle
53) The Bryan Hyde Show, 11/02/22
54) The Argument, 11/02/22
55) Ron Paul Liberty Report
56) Nonzero, 11/01/22
57) John Robb on The Scott Horton Show
58) Hubwonk, 11/01/22
59) Agorist Nexus Podcast, episode 124
60) FinTech Beat, 11/01/22
61) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2228
62) Politics! Politics! Politics!, episode 339
63) Meme Wars, episode 2
64) IP ... Frequently, episode 159
65) Conflicts of Interest, episode 344
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0) Year-End Fundraiser Update: Be a Hero, Move Us Off Zero
Hey, everyone ...
Yesterday was a "zero-dollar day" in our year-end fundraiser. With a total of $0.00 in contributions, our total remains (as of 6am Eastern this morning) at $1,463.
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Publisher
Rational Review News Digest / Freedom News Daily
-----
1) Ukraine grain export deal back on track as Russia resumes role
Source: Reuters
"Russia said on Wednesday it would resume its participation in a deal freeing up grain exports from war-torn Ukraine, reversing a move that world leaders had said threatened to exacerbate global hunger. Moscow announced the sudden reversal after Turkey and the United Nations helped keep Ukrainian grain flowing for several days without Russian participation in inspections. The Russian defence ministry justified the change by saying it had received guarantees from Kyiv not to use the Black Sea grain corridor for military operations against Russia. Kyiv did not immediately comment on that, but has denied in the past using the agreed shipping corridor as cover for attacks." (11/02/22)
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/grain-ships-sail-ukraine-ports-russian-missiles-knock-out-power-across-country-2022-10-31/
-----
2) North Korea: Regime launches ICBM that apparently fails
Source: CBS News
"North Korea unsuccessfully fired an intercontinental ballistic missile during a new salvo of launches Thursday, the South Korean military said, with Washington urging all nations to enforce sanctions on Pyongyang. The launches prompted South Korea and the United States to extend their ongoing joint air drills, the largest-ever such exercises, citing North Korea's 'provocations.' People in parts of northern Japan were ordered to seek shelter during the North's latest launches, which also included two short-range missiles and followed a blitz of projectiles fired Wednesday." (11/03/22)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/north-korea-icbm-failure-two-more-missiles-japan-shelter-alerts/
-----
3) Old man yells at Republicans
Source: The Hill
"President Biden on Wednesday went after former President Trump and other Republicans who continue to tout 2020 election lies, warning democracy is on the ballot just six days before the midterms and following the violent attack on Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) husband. ... The president, speaking at a Democratic National Committee event at Union Station near the Capitol, warned the public that the country faced a crossroads in next week's election that could upend democracy. ... Biden decided to deliver Wednesday's remarks because of the 'alarming number' of Republican officials who have said they won't accept the results of the midterm elections, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier on Wednesday." (11/02/22)
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/3716555-biden-goes-after-trump-lies-in-democracy-speech-after-pelosi-attack/
-----
4) Federal judge issues restraining order against group monitoring Arizona ballot boxes
Source: NBC News
"A federal judge in Phoenix issued a restraining order Tuesday night against a group that has been photographing and recording voters casting ballots at drop boxes in Arizona. The order, issued by U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi, prohibits Clean Elections USA from 'openly' carrying weapons or 'visibly wear[ing] body armor' within 250 feet of drop boxes. Liburdi's order also bars the group's members from taking photos, recording, following or yelling at voters within 75 feet of drop box locations. Furthermore, he told the group's founder, Melody Jennings, to post a message to her account on Truth Social, former President Donald Trump's social media platform, that reads in part: 'It is not always illegal to deposit multiple ballots in a ballot drop box. It is legal to deposit the ballot of a family member, household member, or person for whom you are the caregiver.'" (11/01/22)
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/federal-judge-issues-restraining-order-group-monitoring-arizona-ballot-rcna55170
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5) Israel: Netanyahu election win propels far right to power
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
"With some young religious voters literally jumping for joy, the stand-out story of Israel's latest election was the big surge in popularity of the far-right. 'Things will be better now. When he's the public security minister, they'll be better still,' Julian, an enthusiastic backer of firebrand politician Itamar Ben-Gvir [said] at his campaign headquarters. 'He wants the best for Israel. He wants the terrorists out,' said Noam from a settlement in the occupied West Bank. 'We don't want the Arabs, they throw rocks at us and take our spots in Israel,' he went on, before being hushed by a party activist. While Mr Ben-Gvir -- previously convicted as a racist in Israel -- is now attempting to rebrand himself as a more conventional politician, he has not changed all his anti-Arab rhetoric." (11/02/22)
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63490806
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6) Chinese, Pakistani Regimes Agree to Launch $10 Billion Railroad Project
Source: Yahoo! News
"Chinese President Xi Jinping and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif agreed in a meeting in Beijing to launch a high-speed rail project that could cost $9.85 billion, a move that comes as the world's No. 2 economy moves to slow some of its lending due to growth concerns. ... That project involves upgrading a 1,163-mile, colonial-era track from Karachi to Peshawar to carry high-speed trains. Earlier this week, Pakistan formally approved the project, which has been in discussion for years, without saying where the funding would come from or providing technical details. Officials in Pakistan have previously said they expected to get loans from China for the upgrade." (11/02/22)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-pakistan-agree-launch-10-102120056.html
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7) Biden regime to spend $13 billion on last-minute vote-buying with energy subsidies
Source: CNBC
"The Biden administration is providing over $13 billion in aid to help low- and moderate-income Americans lower their energy costs, including grants to pay electric bills as well other incentives to make energy-efficient upgrades to their homes. Vice President Kamala Harris plans to announce the new initiative while visiting a sheet metal workers' training facility and union hall in Boston later Wednesday, a senior administration official told reporters in a call Tuesday. The announcement reflects the administration's efforts to lower energy costs amid extreme temperature shifts from climate change." (11/02/22)
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/02/biden-administration-to-provide-over-13-billion-in-aid-to-help-american-families-lower-energy-bills.html
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8) PA: University makes new review of Mastriano's doctoral research
Source: SFGate
"A Canadian university that granted a doctorate in history to Doug Mastriano nearly a decade before he became the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania is investigating a fresh complaint about his work that makes multiple allegations of academic fraud in his recently public dissertation. University of New Brunswick President Paul Mazerolle told The Associated Press in a phone interview Saturday that the school is also bringing in a team of outsiders to review its policies and procedures for graduate study, including issues raised by how Mastriano's research was handled and evaluated. 'Being subject to a complaint, I need to let that process run its course,' Mazerolle said, 'recognizing that there's a time issue, and this is almost 10 years ago this was all propagated. And that's why we need to have this looked at through our complaint processes.'" (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/University-makes-new-review-of-Mastriano-s-17552314.php
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9) CVS, Walgreens agree to $10 billion in bribes to make frivolous opioid litigation go away
Source: CNN
"CVS and Walgreens have tentatively agreed to pay a combined $10 billion to settle lawsuits brought by states and local governments alleging the retailers mishandled prescriptions of opioid painkillers. Walmart has also tentatively agreed to pay $3 billion to settle a similar lawsuits, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. The agreement wouldn't be finalized until enough states, counties and cities agree to the terms, the outlet said. ... US states, cities and counties have filed more than 3,000 lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies, accusing them of downplaying the addiction risk and failing to stop pills from being diverted for illegal use." (11/02/22)
https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/02/us/cvs-walgreens-walmart-opioid-settlement/index.html
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10) Emails: Disgraced former president's lawyers saw Thomas as "key" to stealing 2020 election
Source: Axios
"Emails that emerged Wednesday underscore the extent to which former President Trump's top legal advisers zeroed in on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as 'being key' in their bid to overturn the results of the 2020 election. 'We want to frame things so that Thomas could be the one to issue some sort of stay or other circuit justice opinion saying Georgia is in legitimate doubt,' Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro wrote in an email on Dec. 31, 2020, to John Eastman and other members of Trump's legal team. ... The messages were part of eight emails that Eastman sought to shield from the Jan. 6 select committee, but a judge ordered that the emails be released, Politico reports. Thomas'[s] wife, Ginni Thomas, has also emerged as a central player in the Jan. 6 select committee's investigation, as she was in touch with Trump advisers about schemes to overturn the 2020 election." (11/02/22)
https://www.axios.com/2022/11/02/trump-2020-election-john-eastman-clarence-thomas
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11) Ecuador: Regime declares state of emergency as five cops killed
Source: New York Post
"At least five Ecuadorean police officers were killed on Tuesday in explosive attacks in response to prisoner transfers from overcrowded and violent penitentiaries, prompting President Guillermo Lasso to declare a state of emergency in two provinces. Lasso, a conservative, has repeatedly blamed violence, including inside prisons, on drug gang retaliation for his government's efforts to combat the trade. Ecuador is a transit point for drugs destined for the United States and Europe. The attacks overnight and early on Tuesday morning, including nine explosions in two cities, were an open declaration of war by gangs, Lasso said in a video address." (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/02/ecuador-declares-state-of-emergency-after-five-cops-dead-in-explosive-attacks/
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12) OR: "People are mad" as Portland votes on government changes
Source: SFGate
"Portland's official slogan is 'The City That Works', but after a tumultuous few years, many residents feel the city is anything but that. Homelessness and gun violence are surging and parts of downtown are struggling, unable to recover from the coronavirus pandemic and the racial justice protests that gripped the city in 2020. Now voters are deciding on a ballot measure that would completely overhaul City Hall. The proposal would scrap a century-old commission form of government that Portland is the last major U.S. city to use, and also implement a rare form of ranked choice voting. The campaigns on these questions have been emotional, reflecting different visions of Portland's future: one that maintains the city's reputation as a testing ground for unique ideas and upholds its unofficial slogan, 'Keep Portland Weird', and another that sets unconventional methodology aside in a quest for stability." (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/People-are-mad-Portland-votes-on-17552366.php
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13) Snowden: "Shut Down DHS" After Report Revealed Secretive Effort to Police Online Speech
Source: Common Dreams
"NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security should be shut down after reporting shined light on the agency's sweeping campaign to police what it deems disinformation online, an effort that raised alarm among civil liberties groups. 'It's time to talk about shutting down the Department of Homeland Security,' Snowden, a former NSA contractor who exposed the agency's illegal mass spying program in 2013, wrote on Twitter. DHS, formed in 2002 in the wake of the September 11 attacks, 'was always a mistake, a costly artifact of the hysteric post-9/11 authoritarianism that left us no more safe, but much less free,' Snowden continued. 'Its plan to become the Speech Police is the final straw.'" (11/02/22)
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/11/02/snowden-says-shut-down-dhs-after-report-revealed-secretive-effort-police-online
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14) Denmark: Centre-left bloc wins narrow victory in nail-biting vote
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatar state media]
"Denmark's centre-left bloc led by Mette Frederiksen, the Social Democratic incumbent prime minister, has won a one-seat majority in a nail-biter of a general election. Frederiksen's five-party 'red' coalition looked set to lose its majority as vote counting wore on throughout Tuesday evening, but as the last votes were tallied, it eked out the 87 seats it needed in mainland Denmark. Together with another three seats from the autonomous overseas territories of the Faroe Islands and Greenland, the bloc holds a total of 90 of parliament's 179 seats. Opinion polls had predicted a historically weak election for the Social Democrats, but they instead gained two seats compared with the last election, winning 27.5 percent of votes." (11/02/22)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/11/2/denmark-centre-left-bloc-wins-narrow-victory-in-nail-biting-vote
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15) PA: Court rules to discount some mail-in ballots
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
"Pennsylvania's top court has ruled that mail-in ballots marked with the wrong date will not be counted. In a victory for Republicans ahead of the midterms, the court said such votes would be set aside and preserved. Democrats and Republicans are deeply split on mail-in voting. The issue gained prominence after a surge in the 2020 election caused by the pandemic. Republicans fear postal voting benefits Democrats, even though data suggests both parties are affected equally. About 70% of the 1.4 million requests for mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania this year come from Democrats, compared to 20% from Republicans. After the previous election, then-President Donald Trump condemned mail-in ballots as a 'big scam' and baselessly claimed that millions of ballots were sent from abroad as part of a 'rigged' election." (11/02/22)
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63487609
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16) Idiot bureaucrat: US regime should pretend it can ban TikTok
Source: New York Post
"FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr called Tuesday for the US government to formally ban the popular video sharing app TikTok over national security risks posed by its ties to China. Carr, a frequent TikTok critic and the Federal Communications Commission's senior Republican member, argued any other resolution would not adequately address concerns that Beijing could improperly access the data of millions of US-based TikTok users. ... Carr and lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle have expressed mounting concern that TikTok's parent company, China-based ByteDance, is sharing US user data with Beijing officials. Critics say the Chinese Communist Party could attempt to influence US politics and social discourse through the app. While the FCC does not have regulatory power over TikTok, the Republican commissioner said the Council on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), an interagency committee that reviews foreign investment in the country, should seek to implement a ban." (11/01/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/01/us-government-should-ban-tiktok-fcc-commissioner-brendan-carr-says/
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17) Russia: Putin battling cancer and Parkinsons disease, leaked emails claim
Source: New York Post
"Russian President Vladimir Putin is battling both pancreatic cancer and Parkinson's disease, according to a new report citing leaked Kremlin emails. A Russian intelligence source appeared to confirm in messages viewed by The Sun what has long been rumored about the 70-year-old strongman. 'I can confirm he has been diagnosed with early stage Parkinson's disease, but it's already progressing,' the security services insider reportedly claimed. 'This fact will be denied in every possible way and hidden,' the source said, according to The Sun. 'Putin is regularly stuffed with all kinds of heavy steroids and innovative painkilling injections to stop the spread of pancreatic cancer he was recently diagnosed with,' the person said." [editor's note: Those rumors have been floating around for quite some time; I'm not sure this piece adds any real weight to them – TLK] (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/02/putin-battling-pancreatic-cancer-parkinsons-disease-report/
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18) MoneyGram Debuts Crypto Purchases on Mobile App
Source: CoinDesk
"Payments firm MoneyGram (MGI) has added a service to its mobile app allowing nearly all U.S. customers to buy, sell and hold bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and litecoin (LTC). The company expects to expand those cryptocurrency selections over the coming year, pending global regulation. The new functionality is being enabled by crypto exchange Coinme, in which MoneyGram made a strategic minority investment earlier this year. " (11/01/22)
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/11/01/moneygram-debuts-crypto-purchases-on-mobile-app/
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19) Nuestra Familia Gang Leader Sentenced To 25+ Years In Jail Conspiracy Case
Source: SFGate
"A high-up leader of the prison gang Nuestra Familia was sentenced to over 25 years in federal prison after being convicted of multiple gang violence conspiracies that occurred in the Monterey County Jail, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Tuesday. Vincent Gerald Garcia, 55, of Salinas, is the 14th defendant charged and convicted in the case, which involves racketeering, conspiracy, conspiracy to commit murder in the aid of racketeering and conspiracy to commit assault with a dangerous weapon in the aid of racketeering. Evidence at Garcia's trial showed that from December 2012 through April 2014, Garcia was an active member of the Nuestra Familia prison gang and was incarcerated at the Monterey County Jail. Garcia was 'regiment commander' for the gang in charge of all Monterey County and he controlled the criminal activities of gang members in the jail." (11/02/22)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/bayarea/article/Nuestra-Familia-Gang-Leader-Sentenced-To-25-17552491.php
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20) TX: Border thugs attack migrants with chemical weapons
Source: ABC 7 News
"Border Patrol agents shot pepper balls toward migrants after an agent was assaulted near the U.S.-Mexico border Monday, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). CBP said Venezuelan nationals were protesting along the Rio Grande International Boundary near downtown El Paso when one of them assaulted an agent with a flag pole. A second person threw a rock at an agent causing injury, according to CBP. Agents then responded with crowd control measures which included the use of a pepper ball launching system. The crowd dispersed and returned to Mexico, according to CBP. The situation is still ongoing and further information may be provided as it becomes available, CBP added." (11/01/22)
https://abc7amarillo.com/news/nation-world/migrants-shot-with-pepper-balls-after-agent-assaulted-border-patrol-says-united-states-mexico-venezuela-us-customs-and-border-protection-cbp-el-paso-rio-grande-flag-title-42-immigration-asylum-seekers
_____ Today's Freedom Commentary _____
21) Moderation Is Different From Censorship
Source: Astral Codex Ten
by Scott Alexander
"Moderation is the normal business activity of ensuring that your customers like using your product. If a customer doesn't want to receive harassing messages, or to be exposed to disinformation, then a business can provide them the service of a harassment-and-disinformation-free platform. Censorship is the abnormal activity ensuring that people in power approve of the information on your platform, regardless of what your customers want. If the sender wants to send a message and the receiver wants to receive it, but some third party bans the exchange of information, that's censorship. The racket works by pretending these are the same imperative." (11/02/22)
https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/moderation-is-different-from-censorship
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22) The Government and Race
Source: Judge Napolitano
by Andrew P Napolitano
"This week, the Supreme Court of the United States is confronting yet again an issue that has bedeviled it for the past 30 years: the use of racial quotas by government-owned universities and private universities that accept government funding. The last time the court looked at this issue, it punted. As is always the case when the court punts, the issue returned. This time around, the issue comes in an environment hot with racial anxiety and lack of constitutional fidelity. Here is the backstory." (11/03/22)
https://www.judgenap.com/the-government-and-race/
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23) Vote Selling and Voter Behavior
Source: Independent Institute
by Randall G Holcombe
"One of the characteristics of a secret ballot is that others can't tell how you voted. This might protect voters from harassment or intimidation, but it also prevents voters from providing assurance to others about how they voted. A voter might have claimed to have voted a certain way, but the secret ballot means that others can never be sure. The secret ballot is a barrier to voters selling their votes because the purchaser cannot be certain that the seller voted as promised. Mail-in voting reduces this impediment to selling one's vote. The purchaser can watch the voter complete the ballot, or even complete the ballot for the seller. Buying votes becomes easier with mail-in ballots." (11/02/22)
https://blog.independent.org/2022/11/02/sell-vote/
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24) Promises of politicians impossible
Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal
"Politicians are always promising to do things politicians can't do. Either they believe they are magic, or they want you to believe they are. Sometimes they promise things they can't legally do -- things that violate the Constitution -- and other times they promise to do things that aren't possible within the laws of physics in our universe. Do they believe you are gullible enough to fall for it? Probably. Often they promise to violate economic reality, which is nearly as immutable as the laws of physics." (11/02/22)
https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2022/11/02/voices/opinion-promises-of-politicians-impossible/173309.html
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25) New research highlights the limits of abortion bans
Source: Orange County Register
by Jacob Sullum
"Since the Supreme Court repudiated a constitutional right to abortion in June, 22 states have enacted or begun to enforce new limits on the procedure, including 13 strict bans. New research suggests that the consequences so far have been less dramatic than abortion-rights activists may have feared and anti-abortion activists may have hoped, demonstrating the obstacles facing legislators who are taking advantage of the authority that the Court restored." (11/02/22)
https://www.ocregister.com/2022/11/02/new-research-highlights-the-limits-of-abortion-bans/
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26) New Iranian Revolution Could Help International Left [sic] Find Its Way
Source: Common Dreams
by Yanis Varoufakis
"An Athenian taxi driver, a Nazi sympathizer, told me recently, 'I am a Golden Dawn voter, but I think the world of you.' I would rather that he had punched me in the stomach. I had the same sinking feeling the other day when I read far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's proposals for achieving peace in Ukraine -- proposals not too dissimilar to what I have been suggesting since Putin's repulsive invasion began. While Orban, unlike the Golden Dawn voter, did not praise me personally, the revulsion was the same. For years, I despaired that nothing can save the international left from the blind spots which cause progressives to lose our way time and again. Over the years, I have suffered immense discomfort when people whose analyses at least partly resonated with my own suddenly revealed themselves as fascist anti-Semites, unreconstructed Stalinists, loony libertarians, or, more recently, Trumpists." (11/02/22)
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2022/11/02/new-iranian-revolution-could-help-international-left-find-its-way
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27) Expanding IRS Tyranny to Reduce Inflation
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger
"One of the interesting aspects of President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act was the allocation of $80 billion in increased funding for the Internal Revenue Service, one of the most powerful and tyrannical agencies in U.S. history. The money is intended to be used for enhanced tax enforcement, especially through the potential hiring of 87,000 new IRS agents who, to borrow a phrase from the Declaration of Independence, will be further eating out the substance of the American people. Using soaring prices of gasoline, food, cars, and most everything else as a way to seize more money from the American people should not surprise anyone." (11/02/22)
https://www.fff.org/2022/11/02/expanding-irs-tyranny-to-reduce-inflation/
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28) State Department Plan to Track Weapons for Ukraine Should Be Starting Point
Source: Cato Institute
by Jordan Cohen
"Late last month, the State Department issued a proactive policy to track weapons being sent to Ukraine that are highly portable, highly lethal, and contain advanced technology. In essence, this means that they are tracking man‐portable air defense systems and anti‐tank guided missiles. These weapon systems are still effective against things like Iranian drones, so ensuring that Ukraine can use them safely is in Washington's interests. But while this proactive approach is a good start to monitoring, the already‐existing loose weapons in Ukraine mean that the new policy is nothing but a small start to solving a larger issue." (11/02/22)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/state-dept-plan-track-weapons-ukraine-should-be-starting-point
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29) Even Greenpeace finally admits the obvious: Recycling plastic doesn't work
Source: New York Post
by John Tierney
"Even Greenpeace has finally acknowledged the truth: Recycling plastic makes no sense. This has been obvious for decades to anyone who crunched the numbers, but the fantasy of recycling plastic proved irresistible to generations of environmentalists and politicians. They preached it to children, mandated it for adults and bludgeoned municipalities and virtue-signaling corporations into wasting vast sums -- probably hundreds of billions of dollars worldwide -- on an enterprise that has been harmful to the environment as well as to humanity. Now Greenpeace has seen the light or at least a glimmer of rationality. The group has issued a report accompanied by a press release headlined 'Plastic Recycling Is A Dead-End Street -- Year After Year, Plastic Recycling Declines Even as Plastic Waste Increases'" (11/02/22)
https://nypost.com/2022/11/01/recycling-plastic-doesnt-work/
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30) Why Do Big Cities Tend to Have Bigger Government?
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Peter Jacobsen
"It's no secret that cities tend to have a lot of wealth concentrated in a small area. This isn't to say everyone in the city is rich, but all the production and exchange in cities make them hubs of wealth. And, like any place that generates significant wealth, cities also generate significant incentives to capture the wealth. Consider, for instance, that a group of taxi cab drivers is seeking to keep its would-be competitors out of the market. In order to do this, the company might lobby for regulations (like a limited number of permits) that would restrict competition. What sorts of cities would be the best places to create this kind of monopoly? Big cities with a lot of customers would seem like a good target." (11/02/22)
https://fee.org/articles/why-do-big-cities-tend-to-have-bigger-government/
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31) Biden, Our Boneheaded Chip Czar
Source: JimBovard.com
by Jim Bovard
"The Chip Act made Biden the nation's Semiconductor Czar, and he promised that he would 'personally have to sign off on the biggest grants' to companies. What could possibly go wrong?" (11/02/22)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2022/11/02/biden-our-boneheaded-chip-czar/
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32) Art as liberation in Iran
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
"Odd as it may seem, Iran is experiencing an art boom during weeks of mass protests against a hijab-enforcing regime. Recording artists who support the street struggle are enjoying high popularity, mainly for lyrics that inspire hope and unity. Just as strange is this: The most popular song, 'For' (in Persian, 'Baraye'), mainly recites the most common phrases used by the protesters in media posts, such as 'For dancing in the streets, for kissing loved ones' and 'For women, life, freedom'. The song's writer and singer, Shervin Hajipour, was briefly arrested last month. He is a well-known musician. The song has also been widely nominated for a Grammy in the category of best song for social change. Coldplay is playing 'Baraye' during its current world tour." (11/02/22)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/the-monitors-view/2022/1101/Art-as-liberation-in-Iran
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33) The Two Wars
Source: The Nation
by Stephanie McCurry
"A number of years ago, in his book Yankee Leviathan, the political scientist Richard Franklin Bensel insisted that the relationship between the federal government and finance capital that was forged during the Civil War 'mortgaged a radical Reconstruction' before the conflict had even ended. It is an arresting argument, and a relevant one. The idea that wars make states -- because governments have to create the capacity to wage and pay for them -- certainly holds true for the Civil War. The claim that the conflict saw the birth of the modern American state is also now widely accepted. But what kind of state, and what kind of economy, did the war produce? Did it create a state dedicated to emancipation, or to big business? Roger Lowenstein's new book, Ways and Means, provides one answer." (11/02/22)
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/roger-lowenstein-ways-and-means/
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34) Capitalism [sic] Has Failed As Badly As Anything Can Fail
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
"'No no you don't understand, this US war is completely different from all the other US wars. See, the US is intervening in Ukraine for humanitarian reasons. We're fighting a bad guy who is an evil dictator that loves war crimes and genocide. Not like all those other interventions.' ... Western punditry is rife with op-eds arguing that the US needs to vastly increase military spending because a world war is about to erupt, and they always frame it as though this would be something that happens to the US, like its own actions would have nothing to do with it. If World War 3 does indeed occur, it will be because the drivers of the US-centralized empire continued accelerating towards that horrific event while refusing every possible diplomatic off-ramp due to their inability to relinquish their goal of unipolar planetary domination." (11/02/22)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com/2022/11/02/capitalism-has-failed-as-badly-as-anything-can-fail-notes-from-the-edge-of-the-narrative-matrix/
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35) Misunderstanding Mises, Again
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Per Bylund
"In a recent blog post on the Marginal Revolution blog, Ludwig von Mises is categorized as an underrated thinker. That's undoubtedly true, especially when considering his many groundbreaking contributions to economics. ... Mises is frighteningly often dismissed as a 'crank' or 'ideologue' by present-day know-it-alls who are clearly ignorant of recent history of economic thought. The blog post at 'MR,' which comments very briefly on Mises's main works, is therefore an important reminder of Mises's strong legacy. But it is also interesting because it provides insight into how a non-Austrian who is (or at least should be) well aware of Austrian economic theory sees Mises's work." (11/02/22)
https://mises.org/wire/misunderstanding-mises-again
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36) Six Wrong Lessons for Taiwan From the War in Ukraine
Source: Foreign Policy
by Franz-Stefan Gady
"Since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, there has been plenty of analysis of the conflict's possible lessons for future wars, including implications for a potential military confrontation between the United States and China over Taiwan. Military history, however, is filled with examples of armies drawing the wrong lessons from previous wars and applying them to disastrous effect in new ones. Because warfare is highly contingent and the character of the next war is inherently difficult to predict, any lessons distilled from the current conflict for the next one have a very high chance of being wrong. Instead, military planners and decision-makers are better served by focusing on the supposed lessons from Russia's war that they should best avoid. Here are six wrong lessons for Taiwan from the war in Ukraine." (11/02/22)
https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/11/02/lessons-ukraine-russia-war-taiwan-china-military-weapons-strategy-tactics/
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37) Stupidity or Malice?
Source: The Pamphleteer
by Davis Hunt
"This morning, we're giving a short and simple math lesson. If that intimidates you, bear with me for a second. It's not that scary. Justin Kanew, leader of the miserable Tennessee Holler, mockingly posted this yesterday: 'My kids just trick-or-treated for 2 hours and got zero fentanyl what are we doing wrong? @MarshaBlackburn' Though the answer to Justin's question is simple (he lives in a million-dollar house in a gated community), it doesn't mean there's no lesson to be gleaned from his deliberate ignorance. There's a concept called 'fat tail risk,' which came to my attention many years ago through the mathematician and writer Nassim Taleb. Taleb, who is famous for his books Antifragility, The Black Swan, and Skin in the Game among others, introduces the concept in Antifragility." (11/02/22)
https://pamphleteer.co/newsletter/no-369-stupidity-or-malice/
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38) Four Ways Lula's Victory Will Reshape the US-Led World
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Snider
"On October 30, former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva once again became president of Brazil. In the first round of the election, Lula DA Silva won 48% of the vote versus 43% for the incumbent Jair Bolsonaro. Falling short of the 50% required to win in the first round, the election headed to a runoff vote between the two candidates. Lula won the runoff, defeating Bolsonaro 50.9% to 49.1%. Lula's victory could impact the world far beyond Brazil. It could send shockwaves that will be felt by the US led world order in a number of ways." (11/02/22)
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2022/11/01/four-ways-lulas-victory-will-reshape-the-us-led-world/
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39) With Lula, Biden has path to repairing relations with Brazil
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Andre Pagliarini
"Lula's unlikely ascent to another term in office in Latin America's largest nation represents renewed opportunities. Indeed, given the host of issues Brazil faces -- including reigning in deforestation, navigating the decline of U.S. hegemony in the hemisphere, and reversing an alarming slide into deindustrialization -- it is hard to imagine someone better equipped than Lula to turn the page from the far-right Jair Bolsonaro, who has governed the country since 2019. For the Biden administration, Lula's return to power is also fortuitous as it offers a chance to reset relations." (11/02/22)
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2022/11/02/how-biden-can-repair-relations-with-brazil-after-lulas-win/
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40) Lord Shaftesbury Pronounces on Polarization
Source: Law & Liberty
by EJ Hutchinson
"These days, one cannot escape an encounter with the punditocracy without hearing the word 'polarization': the political phenomenon in which the extremes (seem to) crowd out the middle while growing farther and farther apart from each other and becoming ever more rhetorically and practically shrill. There is a paradox here: 'extremes' and 'middle' are correlative terms whose meaning depends on the latter being much bigger than the former. This truism is often ignored or elided by journalists who think extremism is unidirectional -- they gesture vaguely with their right hands -- and want those, and only those, who disagree with them to be labeled 'extremists,' as well as, in an ideal world, investigated by the FBI and Department of Justice." (11/02/22)
https://lawliberty.org/lord-shaftesbury-pronounces-on-polarization/
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41) Immigration Justice Ballot Measure Tests Massachusetts Progressivism
Source: The American Prospect
by Tisya Mavuram
"This November, Massachusetts voters will decide whether to keep or repeal the Work and Family Mobility Act, a law passed earlier this year allowing state residents who meet all competency qualifications to apply for a standard Massachusetts driver's license, regardless of immigration status. A 'yes' vote on Question 4 would keep the current law, while a 'no' vote would repeal it. Republican Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed the bill; the Massachusetts legislature overrode the veto in June. Instead of leaning into an immigrant justice message, the 'Yes on 4' campaign is choosing to highlight the question as one of road safety. 'One of the things that we're trying to point out is that this is not about immigration. It's about safety, and safety is a state issue. Immigration is a federal one,' said Franklin Soults, a senior communications strategist with SEIU 32BJ." (11/02/22)
https://prospect.org/justice/immigration-justice-ballot-measure-tests-massachusetts-progressivism/
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42) The Obama Appeal, part 2
Source: Hawaii Reporter
by Manfred Henningsen
"Obama's Hawaii was a legend for him that did not represent America's historical and political reality. Yet it socialized him in an un-American way, turned him into an "alien" yet extremely appealing "stranger" for a large section of the US population. The African dimension of his person that connected him with his absent father made it impossible for him to accept Hawaii as his political lifeworld." (11/02/22)
https://www.hawaiireporter.com/the-obama-appeal-part-2/
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43) No Amnesty for Pandemic Tyranny
Source: The American Conservative
by Micah Meadowcroft
"The headline reads, 'Let's Declare a Pandemic Amnesty.' It would be risible if it were not so galling. We are to give a pardon to the officials who, over and over, proved themselves blustering little tyrants, and worse, incompetent? Absolutely not. We are to erase the record of those responsible for leaving sick children to waste away in hospitals all alone, for separating husband from wife, for stopping families from holding the hands of the dying or gathering for their funerals? No, no, and again, no. ... experts and public authorities are people who make assessments, predictions, and decisions on behalf of ordinary people, and they are supposed to be judged by the accuracy and utility of those assessments, predictions, and decisions. It matters, a lot, if they get things wrong, and it matters, a lot, that they got things wrong." (11/02/22)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/no-amnesty-for-pandemic-tyranny/
-----
44) Democrats desperate to censor anyone that disagrees with them
Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
"As the covert war against 'misinformation' expands, the list of federally prohibited online thoughts is snowballing. DHS is targeting 'inaccurate information on 'the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, racial justice, U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the nature of U.S. support to Ukraine,'' The Intercept reported. Are federal censors still seeking to enforce President Biden's delusion that COVID vaccines prevent transmission? Are they continuing to suppress any information about COVID originating in a Wuhan lab? Is any criticism of Biden's botched Afghan withdrawal considered heresy? In many cases, DHS notified Facebook and Twitter to suppress parody accounts -- perhaps because nothing is more subversive than laughing at politicians. How many votes were swayed by federal censorship in 2020, and how many will be swayed in next week's midterm election?" (11/01/22)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2022/11/01/new-york-post-democrats-desperate-to-censor-anyone-that-disagrees-with-them/
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45) These seven midterm ballot questions could change the country
Source: Fox News
by Stephen Moore
"Investors are following with an eagle eye next week's tight midterm elections for United States Senate and a dozen or so close gubernatorial races. Overlooked have been a slew of state ballot initiatives that could have a major influence on these states' economic direction -- and the national economy as well. Overall there are dozens of direct democracy referendum and initiative measures that will be voted on. Below I highlight the ones that taxpayers and investors should be following most closely with some fearless forecasts of how they are likely to turn out." (11/02/22)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/these-seven-midterm-ballot-questions-could-change-country
-----
46) The FBI Is Misinformed
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob
"The FBI is misinformed if it thinks that prosecuting persons who misinform solely for misinforming is consistent with freedom of speech. The utterance of false statements, whether unknowingly or willfully, is nothing new in human history. And such utterances are impossible to avoid in any kind of discourse -- for example, political debates -- in which people disagree with each other about facts as well as values. Indeed, one often hears both true things and false things. We must evaluate claims as best we can, using observation, logic, common sense and so forth. But, somehow, the FBI has decided that 'misinformation' and 'disinformation,' chronic in campaign ads, political pronouncements, and domestic quarrels, are a crime when communicated in the context of an election." (11/01/22)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2022/11/01/the-fbi-is-misinformed/
-----
47) It's a dog-eat-dog world
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton
"Those who worship the state -- that is, government -- often tell lovers of liberty that without mandatory human government, life would be miserable and short and brutish. 'Just like primitive cavemen!" They tell us that "Taxes are what we pay for civilized society, including the chance to insure.' (quoting SCOTUS Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes). Balderdash! ... If the government's role is to protect people from evil-doers, the governments are obviously failing." (11/01/22)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2022/11/01/its-a-dog-eat-dog-world/
-----
48) Democrats Keep Falling for "Superstar Losers"
Source: The Atlantic
by Jacob Stern
"In the early 2000s, the Japanese racehorse Haru Urara became something of an international celebrity. This was not because of her prowess on the track. Just the opposite: Haru Urara had never won a race. She was famous not for winning but for losing. And the longer her losing streak stretched, the more famous she grew. She finished her career with a perversely pristine record: zero wins, 113 losses. American politics doesn't have anyone quite like Haru Urara. But it does have Beto O'Rourke and Stacey Abrams. The two Democrats are among the country's best known political figures, better known than almost any sitting governor or U.S. senator. And they have become so well known not by winning big elections but by losing them." (11/01/22)
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/11/beto-orourke-stacey-abrams-superstar-loser/671959/
-----
49) Kentucky Latest to Test Whether Red States Will Keep Voting for Abortion Rights
Source: In These Times
by Shefali Luthra
"When Kansas voted roughly 60% to 40% against a proposal that would have said there was no right to an abortion in the state, the resounding victory suggested that abortion bans are a losing issue. But it wasn't clear whether that argument could apply to red states beyond Kansas. Now comes the next test: Kentucky, which is already enforcing a near-total ban on the procedure. Voters this month will weigh in on a measure nearly identical to what Kansans rejected. A yes vote would specify that the state's constitution does not protect the right to an abortion. A no vote would leave the constitution as it is, allowing for the possibility that the state's Supreme Court could strike down Kentucky's abortion ban." (11/02/22)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/kentucky-anti-abortion-amendment-november-ballot
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50) As Student Enrollment Drops, the Number of Teachers Rises
Source: Show-Me Institute
by James V Shuls
"From 2011 to 2021, enrollment in Missouri public schools dropped by nearly 30,000 students. The largest drop was post-COVID, with the state losing over 20,000 students in that year alone. Nevertheless, the trend is clearly downward. It would make sense, given that total enrollment in the state has been decreasing, to see a similar decline in the number of teachers. Fewer students, fewer teachers needed. But instead, we see the opposite happening. As enrollment drops, the state continues to add to the number of teachers. ... From 2011 to 2021 -- the same period that the state lost 30,000 students -- the state added 2,475 FTE teachers. As the state dropped 20,000 students from the rolls, it only lost 10 FTE teachers. This brings the ratio down from 13.2 students per FTE teacher in 2011 to 12.3 in 2021." (11/01/22)
https://showmeinstitute.org/blog/education/as-student-enrollment-drops-the-number-of-teachers-rises/
_____ Today's Freedom Podcast and Video _____
51) Questions for Corbett #092
Source: The Corbett Report
"What is Technocracy?" (11/02/22)
https://www.corbettreport.com/qfc-technocracy/
-----
52) Reason Interview: Andrew Doyle
Source: Reason
"How the 'New Puritans' Created a 'Frenzy of Conformity.'" (11/02/22)
https://reason.com/podcast/2022/11/02/andrew-doyle-how-the-new-puritans-created-a-frenzy-of-conformity/
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53) The Bryan Hyde Show, 11/02/22
Source: The Bryan Hyde Show
"Many of us are feeling indignation at the suggestion of amnesty for the architects of the lockdowns. Brian Almon has a thoughtful take on where and when we should consider forgiveness for their actions." (11/02/22)
https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-hvy4z-1302907
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54) The Argument, 11/02/22
Source: New York Times
"The Price of $5 Donations: Is Small-Dollar Fund-Raising Doing More Harm Than Good?" (11/02/22)
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/02/opinion/is-small-dollar-fund-raising-doing-more-harm-than-good.html
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55) Ron Paul Liberty Report
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
"Rumble Says 'Non!' To French Government Censors, Pulls Out Of Country." (11/02/22)
https://rumble.com/v1r3xp0-rumble-says-non-to-french-government-censors-pulls-out-of-country.html
-----
56) Nonzero, 11/01/22
Source: Bloggingheads.tv
"Russia, Ukraine, and US Diplomacy | Robert Wright & Samuel Charap." (11/01/22)
https://bloggingheads.tv/videos/65133
-----
57) John Robb on The Scott Horton Show
Source: The Scott Horton Show
"Scott talks with John Robb about the major consequences of Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter." (11/01/22)
https://scotthorton.org/interviews/10-28-22-john-robb-on-the-geopolitical-ramifications-of-elon-musks-twitter-takeover/
-----
58) Hubwonk, 11/01/22
Source: Pioneer Institute
"Grading State Governors: Do Higher Taxes Equate To Higher Value?" (11/01/22)
https://pioneerinstitute.org/podcast-hubwonk/grading-state-governors-do-higher-taxes-equate-to-higher-value/
-----
59) Agorist Nexus Podcast, episode 124
Source: Agorist Nexus
"Biden and Desantis -- like peas and carrots." (11/01/22)
https://www.agoristnexus.com/biden-and-desantis-like-peas-and-carrots-episode-124/
-----
60) FinTech Beat, 11/01/22
Source: Roll Call
"Karen Webster, CEO of Pyments.com, joins the Beat." (11/01/22)
https://traffic.megaphone.fm/FISCAL9333918312.mp3
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61) The Tom Woods Show, episode 2228
Source: The Tom Woods Show
"A Twisted History of the United States." (11/01/22)
https://tomwoods.com/ep-2228-a-twisted-history-of-the-united-states/
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62) Politics! Politics! Politics!, episode 339
Source: Politics! Politics! Politics!
"Midterm Madness! Dems Stem GOP Momentum?" (11/01/22)
https://politicspoliticspolitics.fireside.fm/339
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63) Meme Wars, episode 2
Source: Lions of Liberty
"Dahmer Glasses and Twitter Musk." (11/01/22)
https://www.lionsofliberty.com/episodes/gomuj0z7vq519kqm5jfsfhlzmd5frj
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64) IP ... Frequently, episode 159
Source: IP ... Frequently
"President Biden says the economy is booming, and who are we to cast doubt on that claim? After all, we live in a free country where anyone can make up whatever they want and then claim it to be true. Also in this episode, the top signs you might be in a toxic friendship, and a new theory on why JFK was killed." (11/01/22)
https://anchor.fm/ip-frequently/episodes/Ep–159--The-Booming-Economy-e1q1i1v
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65) Conflicts of Interest, episode 344
Source: Libertarian Institute
"Russia Cancels Grain Export Deal After Attack on Black Sea Fleet." (11/01/22)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/kyle/coi-344-russia-cancels-grain-export-deal-after-attack-on-black-sea-fleet
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