The horses and mules that moved mountains and hearts Sequencer
Robot Dexterity Still Seems Hard Construction Physics
From Investment to Savings: When Finance Feeds on Itself American Affairs Journal
WEBB TELESCOPE REVEALS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A PLANET SPIRALS INTO ITS STAR Sky and Telescope
Climate/Environment
Abundance for Whom? Breakthrough Journal
People on the streets. Or in trailers. Or tents. It all points to a post-Helene housing crisis in Western NC. Carolina Public Press
The Great Insect Apocalypse: Why Are Bugs Vanishing? SciTech Daily
Plastics that melt in the ocean offer new hope for cleaner seas ZME Science
Water
What We Can Learn from Water, a Great Force of Life The Tyee
India-Pakistan
Why Putting Indus Waters Treaty ‘in Abeyance’ Has Been Counterproductive For India The Wire
Pahalgam: Why Would Pakistan Risk an Attack Now? The Diplomat
Modi in Netanyahu’s shoes. Military action risks spotlighting Kashmir dispute internationally The Print
#IndianNavy Ships undertook successful multiple anti-ship firings to revalidate and demonstrate readiness of platforms, systems and crew for long range precision offensive strike.#IndianNavy stands #CombatReady #Credible and #FutureReady in safeguarding the nation’s maritime… pic.twitter.com/NWwSITBzKK
— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) April 27, 2025
The Koreas
Scoop: Trump admin game-planning for potential North Korea talks Axios
S. Korean soldier accidentally fires machine gun at inter-Korean border Yonhap
U.S. Surging Fighter Presence in Korea By 78 Percent: Large F-16 Force Basing Just 80km From North Korea Military Watch
Jet by jet, US losing Pacific air superiority over China Asia Times
China?
China’s Huawei develops new AI chip, seeking to match Nvidia: WSJ Business Times
China and Philippines display competing flags on disputed South China Sea sandbank The Guardian
Old Blighty
The surprising reason why the UK has power surges because of TV programs ZME Science
“Little Churchill” and British Interests Pluralia
O Canada
Chartbook 378: The anxiety of influence: economic geography, Canada and the USA. Adam Tooze, Chartbook
Canada’s Premiers Cut Health Care then Ran a Nationwide Campaign to Blame the Feds Instead. The Scam Worked. Dougald Lamont’s Substack
Even if Pierre Poilievre loses the election, he will have jolted Canada rightward The Breach
Vancouver man charged with 8 counts of murder in Lapu-Lapu Day festival tragedy CBC
Syraqistan
Israel just bombed a residential neighborhood in Beirut, violated Security Council resolution SCR 1701, the ceasefire agreement, and international law with absolutely no consequences.
This is another war crime and the International Criminal Court remains silent. pic.twitter.com/gPlssIB6zE
— Mohamad Safa (@mhdksafa) April 27, 2025
IOF faces manpower shortages, extended military service amid Gaza war Al Mayadeen
‘Jews will kill Jews’: Israel’s top politicos warn of impending civil war The Cradle
Israel’s International Blackmail Campaign (w/ Norman Finkelstein) The Chris Hedges Report (Video)
Selling Muslim marriage app Salams to the Zionist pornography complex Al Mayadeen
***
At least 68 killed in US strikes on African migrant shelter in northern Yemen, Houthis say Anadolu Agency
Saudi Arabia, Qatar to settle Syria’s outstanding debt to World Bank Al Jazeera
Iran’s exiled ‘crown prince’ calls for mass labor strikes to topple regime Politico
Unprecedented rise in global military expenditure as European and Middle East spending surges Stockholm International Peace Institute
European Disunion
Tanks rolling into Brussels’ downtown park on a sunny Sunday, right by the European Commission. What’s this military exhibition really about? Are we prepping for war or just showing off? Who’s the enemy—Russia, China, or some vague “threat”? pic.twitter.com/cwya2JD7M6
— Eldar Mamedov (@EldarMamedov4) April 27, 2025
Profit margins for Weapon and Ammunition at Rheinmetall went up from 23% to 28.5% from 2023 to 2024. Of every Euro in public money spent on weapons from Rheinmetall, the company makes 28.5% return on sales, quite spectacular even compared to other Rheinmetall business. pic.twitter.com/SvKmjNcB30
— Isabella M Weber (@IsabellaMWeber) April 28, 2025
France: Labour market slows, worsening expected in 2025-2026 Agenzia Nova
Why a Ukraine peacekeeping force could become a trap for Europe European Council on Foreign Relations
New Not-So-Cold War
Transcript: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” April 27, 2025 CBS News
Sergei Lavrov Conducts Master Class in Diplomacy With CBS Larry Johnson
🇷🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦 Russia is ready to sign a peace agreement on Ukraine, but some specific points still need to be finalized — says Lavrov.
▪️ Russia wants guarantees that a ceasefire will not be used again to strengthen the Ukrainian Armed Forces and that arms supplies must stop.
▪️… pic.twitter.com/wuO1NCV7wk
— Zlatti71 (@Zlatti_71) April 27, 2025
Trump says he wants a Russia-Ukraine deal in ‘2 weeks or less’ ABC News
Russian satellite linked to nuclear weapon program appears out of control, U.S. analysts say Reuters
N. Korea confirms troop deployment to Russia Yonhap
The Great Game
Embracing “Greater Central Asia” has become a strategic imperative for US Bne Intellinews
Chokepoints
Parties involved in CK Hutchison’s port transaction must not circumvent review process: China’s State Administration for Market Regulation Global Times
“Liberation Day”
Demand slump fuelled by Trump tariffs hits US ports and air freight FT
There will be blood The Next Recession
Retail wipeout: Trump tariffs stoke fears of shortages and price hikes Axios
Shein Raises Prices by Up to 377% in Response to Tariffs PYMNTS
***
This ‘resumption of shipments’ notice is something Washington should reflect on carefully: Global Times editorial Global Times
US treasury secretary says ‘there is a path’ with China over tariff negotiations The Guardian
US-China trade war: Escalate to de-escalate to escalate? Responsible Statecraft
LNG companies say they cannot comply with Trump rules on Chinese ships FT
Trump 2.0
Trump Jr Sails To Eastern Europe to Woo American Deals over Chinese Influence Visegrad Insight
DOGE
New Details Emerge on Trump Officials’ Sprint to Gut Consumer Bureau Staff New York Times
Immigration
How Volunteer Patrols Are Working to Protect San Diego Immigrant Communities From ICE Bolts
AI
MyPillow CEO Torched for Hilariously Bad AI-Generated Legal Filing The New Republic
Boeing
China is killing Boeing, Part I Bill Totten’s Weblog (Lambert)
Boeing wants to remarket China’s airplanes. It’s costly and time consuming. Leeham News and Analysis (Lambert)
Antitrust
Monopoly Round-Up: Google Generated $468 Billion Delaying Its Antitrust Trial BIG by Matt Stoller
Groves of Academe
What Harvard Didn’t Say Liberties
Are universities too dependent on federal support? Can We Still Govern?
Imperial Collapse Watch
Too Hot to Work Nefarious Russians. Well worth a read.
Does the West really need to be great again? Middle East Eye
Class Warfare
A homebuilding giant is lobbying for the power to collect endless profits from homeowners Seeking Rents
The enshittification of tech jobs Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic
ALL TOGETHER NOW Lux
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
