Man v. cobra YouTube (resilc). Impressive.
CDC Buildings Hit by Gunfire MedPage
Americans get more than half their calories from ultra-processed foods, CDC report says Associated Press (Kevin W). I can’t even…
#COVID-19/Pandemics
He died from Long COVID today. His words: “I’ve experienced more discrimination and stigma for being openly disabled by #LongCovid than I ever did for being openly gay” When will the gaslighting stop? How many more need to die? https://t.co/Mf0pNGwEfX pic.twitter.com/Pmlw52DbW4
— Neurologist Mom (@NeurologistMom) August 7, 2025
If you shifted to Novavax (and you avoided exacerbating Long Covid) you made a good move for your health.
The data on this drug are undeniable.
✅Safety profile ✅ Effectiveness✅ Durability https://t.co/Tv2ORoJauv
— Dr. Sean Mullen (@drseanmullen) August 8, 2025
Climate/Environment
Massive out of control forest fire in Çanakkale, Turkey now…pic.twitter.com/VZRNTeyorW
— Volcaholic 🌋 (@volcaholic1) August 8, 2025
Germany Gets No Bids in Zero-Subsidy Offshore Wind Auction Bloomberg
China?
Trump’s Policies Will Make China Great Again CounterPunch (resilc)
US senators sound alarm on DeepSeek’s security risks Asia Times (Kevin W)
Xi holds phone talks with Putin Global Times. I searched on China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs site and found no readout as of early AM US EDT; this seems to be the closest as of now. The Russian readout is thin.
Africa
As the world focuses on Gaza, starvation also looms in Sudan Economist
Ceasefire in doubt as Rwanda-backed rebels kill hundreds in eastern DR Congo UN
Oil exploration in the Congo basin rainforest could be a disaster for nature and the climate Guardian
South of the Border
Gee, another regime change op against Venezuela, just like happened in the first term. So unpredictable, so unexpected https://t.co/SBsXezNmtv
— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) August 8, 2025
Warlord ‘Barbecue’ Threatens Haiti PM Office as Violence Flares Bloomberg (resilc)
European Disunion
Irish exporters ‘told to shut their mouths’ over Trump tariffs Irish Times. PlutoniumKun:
Interesting article here from the Irish Times on the EU-Trump trade deal. I’ve suspected that the EU actually pulled one over on Trump – and the feedback from lots of exporters seems to be confirming exactly that – many think they are actually better off now. When you really dig into the details, the EU came out very well from the deal – they were happy to sacrifice a little dignity to get it. They learned a lot dealing with Boris Johnson.
European earnings lag behind US as trade war throttles market revival Financial Times
Old Blighty
UK hasn’t seen poverty like this for 60 years, says Gordon Brown in call to scrap two-child benefit cap Independent
UK increasingly turning away Ukrainian migrants – BBC RT
Israel v. The Resistance
“We are just as broken as the people we’re trying to care for”.
Majdiya is an UNRWA colleague in #Gaza. Amid hunger, displacement, and relentless bombardment, she continues to serve her community.
Her voice speaks to the lived reality of UNRWA staff on the ground. pic.twitter.com/xK6OjafovW
— UNRWA (@UNRWA) August 6, 2025
I would migrate to another planet and convert to any religion, or spend my entire life in a dungeon, and not be associated with these piles of genetic and moral garbage.
People who still shut up: I am so happy to not be you. Your life is a failure, and you are a failure, and… https://t.co/iumXiHUDcq
— Alon Mizrahi (@alon_mizrahi) August 7, 2025
Smotrich poses next to ‘Death to Arabs’ graffiti in illegal West Bank settlement Middle East Eye (resilc)
Netanyahu, Aiming to Capture Gaza City, Reverts to a Failed Military Strategy New York Times (resilc). Colonel Wilkerson maintains that the IDF is on the verge of collapse and odds favor the US dispatching forces to shore them up.
US drifts further from allies as it shrugs at Israel’s Gaza plan BBC (resilc)
At least six killed, 10 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon Aljazeera
New Not-So-Cold War
Poll: 69% of Ukrainians Want Negotiated End to War as Soon as Possible Antiwar.com (resilc)
Washington and Moscow preparing deal on Russian-occupied territories ahead of Trump-Putin meeting – Bloomberg Urkainska Pravda. The Russian General Staff has said the Ukraine army will collapse in three months. And I can’t see US Ukraine hawks accepting any territorial concessions.
Poland’s Tusk says Russia-Ukraine war could be frozen ‘sooner rather than later’ Kyiv Independent
Trump-Putin Meeting ‘POLITICAL THEATER,’ Not an End to the War Mark Sleboda
While Trump Talks Peace, is the US Setting the Stage for More War? Larry Johnson. On latest Seymour Hersh article. Note that Hersh’s record on Russia-Ukraine is poor. Notice also:
Armenia reportedly plans to withdraw from CSTO by early 2026. (The CSTO is the Russian founded military alliance in Eurasia consisting of six post-Soviet states: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.) Moreover, the US also reportedly secretly promised NATO membership to Armenia and Azerbaijan for signing on to this deal, which would give NATO access to the Caspian Sea by virtue of the Zangezur corridor.
And here is the kicker (if true): Some telegram channels claim that US troops are set to be deployed in Armenia within the next 48 hours.
Kremlin confirms that Putin-Trump summit to take place in Alaska on August 15 TASS
Ukraine and the Chronicle of an Announced War Nachdenkseiten via machine translation (Micael T)
Caucasus
Central Asia as a Vulnerable Node in Greater Eurasia Valdai Club (Micael T)
How ‘Trump Bridge’ May Soon Reshape Warzone Bordering Russia, Iran, Turkey Newsweek (Kevin W)
Imperial Collapse Watch
Adam Tooze · Is this the end of the American century? America Pivots London Review of Books (resilc)
Listen to Lavrov: Here’s why Russia won’t take crap from the EU anymore RT (Micael T). Important.
Another Illegal Trump War Is Coming Daniel Larison. Seeking an opponent he can look like he is actually beating.
Trump 2.0
Trump energizes conservative Christians with new religious policies Associated Press (Robin K)
Veterans’ Care at Risk Under Trump as Hundreds of Doctors and Nurses Reject Working at VA Hospitals ProPublica (Robin K)
New executive order puts all grants under political control ars technica (Paul R)
Trump announces federal law enforcement will patrol DC Politico (Kevin W)
Tariffs
Auto Industry Takes $12 Billion Hit From Trade War Wall Street Journal
Trump’s planned 100% computer chip tariff sparks confusion among businesses and trading partners Associated Press (Kevin W)
US to initially impose ‘small tariff’ on pharma imports, Trump says Reuters
Swiss Businesses Fear Trump’s 39% Tariff Will Create ‘Worst-Case Scenario’ New York Times (resilc)
Immigration
Child mental health crisis tied to immigration enforcement UC Riverside
GOP Clown Car
GOP’s FBI talk on Texas sparks firestorm with Democrats The Hill
Texas AG says he’s filed suit to remove 13 absent state Democrats from office in redistricting fight ABC (Kevin W)
Economy
Shades Of 2007 Seeking Alpha (resilc). Lots of supporting detail.
AI
Data-mining the Global South into submission RT (Micael T). Look at the tender pleading that all this exploitation by AI is beneficial: When AI Doesn’t Understand You: A New Form of Global Inequality Undark
ChatGPT as a Narcissus Mirror Neofeudal Review (Micael T). Important. Also helps explain its popularity.
Mindless Machines, Mindless Myths Los Angeles Review of Books
James Cameron warns of ‘Terminator-style apocalypse’ if AI weaponised Guardian (resilc)
The Bezzle
Why struggling companies are loading up on bitcoin Financial Times
Ex-SEC staff warns of another Lehman Brothers collapse The Street. Due to lack of limits on rehypothecation for crypto.
It’s official:
The top 10% largest US stocks now reflect a record 76% of the US equity market.
This has officially surpassed the previous record set before the Great Depression in the 1930s.
By comparison, at the 2000 Dot-Com Bubble peak, the top 10%’s share was at ~73%.
In… pic.twitter.com/zkH069Vzr9
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) August 7, 2025
Tesla used car prices keep plumetting, dips below average used car Electrek. Paul R: “Leopards ate Elon’s face.”
The Big Ten and private equity: Why college sports’ richest conference is doing its homework New York Times (resilc). Not news to regulars. CalPERS’ suddenly departed Chief Investment Officer Nichole Musicco was keen to get into sports deals.
Class Warfare
Holy shit! David beat Goliath?
The people of Tucson banded together and killed an Amazon data center project poised to guzzle millions of gallons of water a day. https://t.co/zfQElkMUmj
— Chai Dingari (@chaidingari) August 6, 2025
Insurance Companies’ Medicare Pullback Is Here Wall Street Journal (resilc)
Gambling with the Proletariat’s Future: How Capital Turns Pensions into a Predators’ Casino William Murphy
Antidote du jour (via):
And a bonus (guurst):
Ужасное нападение pic.twitter.com/mONB2gvSWG
— Etna (@Etnaetoya) August 7, 2025
A second bonus:
Dogs remember your smell forever 🐶🥹❤️ pic.twitter.com/U53ahMHMvS
— Nina Deer (@longdepzai_n) August 6, 2025
And a third:
Cat WWE💥🤣🤣🤣🤔 pic.twitter.com/s3ALcWulOf
— Stu thats all you get🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@Boldyboy1975) August 7, 2025
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
