Leftovers

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] Why brutalism architecture still divides opinion

• Mike Brock ☛ What You Should Do

  The revolution isn't coming someday. It's happening right now, in millions of individual decisions to align actions with deepest values. The resistance isn't elsewhere. It's in you, waiting to be lived rather than merely contemplated.

  That's what you should do. But you already knew that, if you’re honest with yourself.

• James G ☛ Grouping link posts in a web reader

  This weekend, I came across a case where an author published a post then another blogger I follow shared that post in their feed. This meant that there were two versions of the same post – with the same titles – in my web reader. Ideally, the web reader would aggregate these two posts but preserve the fact that someone I follow shared the post that was published by an author I follow.

• Science

  • The Register UK ☛ NSF gives laid off probationary staff jobs back after ruling

    That's the same exec order that led to widespread workforce cuts across the federal government, steered by Elon Musk's Trump-blessed DOGE [sic] unit and the OPM, the latter of which is primarily supposed to just set policies and standards rather than hire and fire people directly.

  • Bertrand Meyer ☛ Blog Archive New preprint: Seamless and Traceable Requirements - Bertrand Meyer's technology+ blog

    This article grew out of Maria Naumcheva’s PhD thesis defended on December 18 at the University of Toulouse (I will write separately about the thesis as a whole). It is part of a general effort at systematic requirements engineering, reflected in earlier articles by the some or all of the same group of authors (see my publication list) and in my requirements book. Here is a short version of the abstract for the article: [...]

• Career/Education

  • The Nation ☛ Universities Are Under Attack. Silence Is Not an Option.

    The attacks on biomedical research by the Trump administration over the past month—the funding freezes by executive order and then by subterfuge; the pausing of Federal Register notices so study sections and National Institutes of Health advisory councils cannot meet to consider grants; the massive cuts in indirect research costs—have pushed American public health and medical science to the brink. These attacks are happening at other agencies, including the National Science Foundation, endangering science across the board in the United States. And they are throwing the universities where so much vital research is done into crisis.

    Some may think this will all pass soon, and things will get back to normal. But they’re kidding themselves. This is the new normal—and it’s already causing harm.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Federal News Network ☛ Pandemic era financial losses still haven’t run their course

    The pandemic is long behind the country. And now the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery is about to sunset, but not before a final report.

  • Science Alert ☛ First US Measles Death in 10 Years: Expert Explains How to Protect Yourself

    There's a way to stop the outbreak.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-24 [Older] France: Trial of doctor accused of mass sex abuse underway

  • Has RFK Jr. betrayed the antivax movement?

    I’ve been writing about the antivax activism, conspiracy theories, pseudoscience, and quackery of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for nearly 20 years now, having written so many posts about him that I’ve lost count. Indeed, when Donald Trump, having won the 2024 election, nominated RFK Jr. to be his Secretary of Health and Human Services, I was appalled enough to refer to him as an impending catastrophe for public health and medical research. So it was with some surprise that I awoke yesterday to be made aware of an op-ed published in Fox News by our new HHS Secretary entitled Measles outbreak is call to action for all of us. Even more shocking, the tagline for the article stated MMR vaccine is crucial to avoiding potentially deadly disease. Holy crap! I wondered. Has RFK Jr. gone pro-vaccine? On the surface, it looks that way, but if you dig deeper into the article, you’ll find that the picture is not quite as clear as it’s being portrayed.

  • Wired ☛ Trump’s FDA Cuts Are Putting Drug Development at Risk

    Budget and staffing cuts at the Food and Drug Administration orchestrated by President Donald Trump could prevent new drugs “from being developed, approved, or commercialized in a timely manner, or at all,” according to dozens of annual reports sent by pharmaceutical companies to the Securities and Exchange Commission in late February.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Denmark: Major grocery chain to distinguish European from US goods

• Proprietary

  • The Register UK ☛ Microsoft blames Outlook outage on 'problematic code change'

    The problems for Redmond, and its paying customers, started at around 2100 UTC on Saturday. At least 30,000 Outlook users reported problems via DownDetector alone, and there are still intermittent issues for some users as the new week swung around. Now, according to Microsoft's status page, everything's fine and should be working again.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)

    • Unicorn Media ☛ AI Is Not Unavoidable. Not This AI, That’s for Sure

      Maybe, just maybe, the problem isn't with AI, but with how we're designing it, and perhaps more importantly, how we're using it.

    • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ OpenEvidence v. Pathway: The Legal Battle Over Hey Hi (AI) Reverse Engineering

      Guest Post by Professor Camilla Hrdy (Rutgers Law)

      Can generative Hey Hi (AI) models like Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Chaffbot be “reverse engineered” in order to develop competing models? If so, will this activity be deemed legal reverse engineering or illegal trade secret misappropriation?

    • Axios ☛ What to about Melania Trump-backed deepfakes bill

      The big picture: The bipartisan bill aims to bolster protections against the non-consensual dissemination of sexual images, including those generated through artificial intelligence and targets deepfake and revenge pornography.

    • Futurism ☛ Analysts Warn That If AI Agents Succeed, the "Internet Will Go Dark"

      If that actually happens — a serious "if," but not a completely far-fetched possibility, as early efforts have already started to hit the market — there a major side effect: it'll totally change the ecosystem of information online if it's mainly being consumed by neural nets instead of humans.

      As Business Insider reports, financial analysts are warning that if the use of AI agents becomes widespread, there will be sweeping knock-on effects throughout the economy.

    • 404 Media ☛ Judges Are Fed up With Lawyers Using AI That Hallucinate Court Cases

      But the explanation and Ramirez’s promise to educate himself on the use of AI wasn’t enough, and the judge chided him for not doing his research before filing. “It is abundantly clear that Mr. Ramirez did not make the requisite reasonable inquiry into the law. Had he expended even minimal effort to do so, he would have discovered that the AI-generated cases do not exist. That the AI-generated excerpts appeared valid to Mr. Ramirez does not relieve him of his duty to conduct a reasonable inquiry,” Judge Dinsmore continued, before recommending that Ramirez be sanctioned for $15,000.

    • NBC ☛ DOGE [sic] will use AI to assess the responses of federal workers who were told to justify their jobs via email

      Responses to the Elon Musk-directed email to government employees about what work they had accomplished in the last week are expected to be fed into an artificial intelligence system to determine whether those jobs are necessary, according to three sources with knowledge of the system.

      The information will go into an LLM (Large Language Model), an advanced AI system that looks at huge amounts of text data to understand, generate and process human language, the sources said. The AI system will determine whether someone’s work is mission-critical or not.

  • Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

    • The Record ☛ Palau health ministry on the mend after Qilin ransomware attack

      Palau officials told Recorded Future News that the February 17 ransomware attack launched by hackers connected to a group named Qilin allowed the infiltrators to steal files from IT systems used by the Ministry of Health and Human Services (MHHS).

• Defence/Aggression

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-23 [Older] DR Congo president to hold talks to form unity government

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Sudan: More than 40 killed in military plane crash

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Taiwan dispatches forces as China holds live-fire drills

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-23 [Older] China accuses Australia of 'hyping' live-fire navy drills

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-24 [Older] Has Italy's Albania migrant deal completely failed?

  • VOA News ☛ TikTok’s sponsorship of UK Muslim event sparks criticism

    “I do not believe [Muslim Women’s Network UK] supports violence and genocide, but its cooperation with TikTok sends a deeply troubling message,” Nefise Oguz, an Istanbul University student, told VOA in an email.

  • Vox ☛ Donald Trump’s team takes revenge on career prosecutors

    What’s the big picture? The demotions send a strong signal to prosecutors that there will be consequences for officials who try to hold Trump and his allies accountable to the law. It’s also another blow against the DOJ’s independence, as Trump works to remake law enforcement as a tool he can wield for political ends. And the move weakens the US attorney’s office in Washington, which is tasked with prosecuting abuses of power by some of the country’s most powerful people.

  • C4ISRNET ☛ Hegseth halts US offensive cyberoperations against Russia

    Hegseth’s decision does not affect cyberoperations conducted by other agencies, including the CIA and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. But the Trump administration also has rolled back other efforts at the FBI and other agencies related to countering digital and cyber threats.

  • The Register UK ☛ So … Russia no longer a cyber threat to America?

    On Friday, reports emerged that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered US Cyber Command – the part of the military that among other things launches cyber-attacks against adversaries – to pause offensive operations against Russia.

    This comes just weeks after security analysts sounded the alarm on Sandworm stealing credentials and data from American organizations. Sandworm is the operations wing of Russia's Military Intelligence Unit 74455, part of the GRU, that has been blamed for waging cyberwarfare against America's critical infrastructure.

  • Security Week ☛ CISA: No Change on Defending Against Russian Cyber Threats

    The US government’s cybersecurity agency CISA says there is no change to its stance detecting and disrupting Russian APTs , even as a recent directive from the Trump administration pauses offensive cyber operations against Russia amid high-stakes negotiations.

  • Mike Brock ☛ How to Stop a Coup

    This isn’t an analysis of democratic decline. It’s a plan for how to stop it.

    The thing about Trump, Vance and Musk is, they have no intention of playing fair. This isn't a casual observation—it's the essential insight required to understand our current moment.

  • Manton Reece ☛ Something is wrong with Trump

    We can all see it. It is beyond political parties. Beyond ideology. Beyond whether he is corrupt or competent.

  • The Telegraph UK ☛ TikTok to be investigated over use of children's data

    TikTok is to be investigated by the data watchdog over its use of children’s data and whether its algorithms are serving up inappropriate or harmful content.

    The Chinese-owned platform is among three social media sites to be investigated by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The other two are the forum site Reddit and the image-sharing platform Imgur.

  • Defence Web ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Oversight visit exposes severe resource shortages at Cape Town Public Order Policing unit

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] Eastern and Southern African Blocs Weigh Deployment to Eastern Congo

  • Atlantic Council ☛ Mercenaries in DRC: “Do not come for adventure here”

    After 300 Romanian mercenaries were cornered by M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo in January, Ben reflects on the reasons behind the rebels’ advance, as well as the perennial need for DRC’s government to look to external security providers for help with managing threats.

  • New York Times ☛ Social Security and Sex Robots: MElon Veers Off Script With Joe Rogan

    MElon’s three-hour interview with “The Joe Rogan Experience” offered a window into his worldview that was by turns crude and contradictory.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ Civilians under siege As Russian forces advance on Ukraine’s Pokrovsk, a mayor’s appeal to Zelensky draws a rebuke from the local military administration — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Dozens of Ukrainian soldiers killed, nearly 100 wounded in Russian training ground strike

    • Meduza ☛ ‘My father died. I have to be thankful?’ Ukraine supporters across Europe and the U.S. take to the streets to protest Trump’s treatment of Zelensky — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘The president of Ukraine will not be chosen in Lindsey Graham’s house’: Zelensky responds to U.S. senator’s call for him to resign after Trump meeting — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ U.K. and France propose Ukraine peace plan including one-month partial ceasefire and eventual peacekeeping forces — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Can Europe go it alone? Future of NATO in doubt as Convicted Felon turns on Ukraine

      The image of King Charles welcoming Volodymyr Zelensky to Sandringham evokes memories of his grandfather, George VI, standing firm as Britain held the line before the United States entered the war. Since then, Europe has relied on Washington’s security umbrella.

    • New York Times ☛ Zelensky Turns to Diplomacy in Russia-Ukraine War After Clash With Convicted Felon

      After a startling clash with Hell Toupée, who has echoed the Kremlin view of the war, Ukraine’s leader is trying to shore up European support and smooth over relations with Washington.

    • Meduza ☛ Preparations for a Putin-Trump meeting may be expedited — CNN — Meduza

    • European Commission ☛ EU advancing on 2030 zero-pollution targets but stronger action is needed

      Today, the Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA) published the second Zero Pollution Monitoring and Outlook report, which provides an overview [...]

    • Latvia ☛ Baltic fuel station chain makes sizeable donations to Ukraine

      Fuel retail chain Circle K  and its customers have raised 120,000 euros for several Baltic organizations and associations that provide various types of support to Ukraine and its people, the company said March 3.

    • Latvia ☛ Illegal migrant transportation was active over weekend in Latvia

      Over the weekend, border guards in cooperation with State Police officers detained three Ukrainian citizens for transporting persons who had illegally crossed the state border and stopped 13 persons from illegally crossing the state border, the State Border Guard Service said March 3.

    • Latvia ☛ Public media charity campaign for Ukraine raises over €450,000

      The support campaign "In thoughts and deeds together with Ukraine" by the Latvian Public Service Media (LSM) in cooperation with the charity organization "Ziedot.lv" has come to an end, and 464 237 euros have been donated since the campaign started on February 6 until its end on March 2.

    • NYPost ☛ Inside one Ukrainian family’s daring escape from Russian occupation after 2.5 years in captivity

      Ukrainian mom Yulia Khrapatova lived in fear for months that her quiet patriotism would be found out by Russian occupiers — and her kids ripped from her for the crime of speaking their native language.

    • NYPost ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man pauses all US military aid to Ukraine after heated Oval Office meeting with Zelensky

      The official noted that the temporary pause is a direct response to Zelensky's conduct over the last week.

    • The Strategist ☛ To avoid a Ukraine-style quid pro quo, Australia needs to work with the US on critical minerals

      With The Insurrectionist back in the White House, Washington is operating under a hard-nosed, transactional framework in which immediate returns rather than shared values measure alliances.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Ukrainians unite behind Zelenskyy after disastrous Oval Office meeting

      Ukrainians have rallied behind President Zelenskyy after his White House visit escalated into a very public spat with US President The Insurrectionist and Vice President JD Vance, writes Peter Dickinson.

    • France24 ☛ US pauses military aid to Ukraine, says White House official

      President The Insurrectionist suspended military aid to Ukraine on Monday, according to a US official. The move sharply escalates pressure on Kyiv to agree to peace negotiations with Russia and comes just days after a stunning public clash at the White House between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Convicted Felon.

    • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man confirms 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico will kick in on Tuesday

      US President The Insurrectionist said that 25% duties on goods from Mexico and Canada will start on Tuesday, with "no room left" for a further delay.  His announcement sent Wall Street stocks tumbling, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunging as puch as 800 points. European defence stocks surged earlier on Monday as leaders pledged to boost military spending in the face of uncertainty over the US's commitment to support Ukraine.

    • France24 ☛ Starmer unveils four-point plan to strengthen support for Ukraine

      UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced a four-point plan to work with Ukraine to end the war and defend the country from Russia. It comes after a summit in London of mainly European leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. FRANCE 24's Selina Sykes reports.

    • France24 ☛ 'We should have woken up earlier': Europe races to rearm as old alliances falter

      European countries are ramping up defence spending, spurred by the war in Ukraine and uncertainty over continued US backing. After a decisive weekend meeting in London, several nations committed to significant increases in their military budgets.

    • France24 ☛ ‘Closer than ever’: The mother-daughter duos fighting for Ukraine

      Since 2014, the number of women serving in the Ukrainian army has risen by 75 percent. Among these new recruits are mothers and daughters, sometimes serving in the same brigades. Natalia, 53, serves in the 100th brigade alongside her daughter Veronika and, although she worries about her safety, she says its better to have her daughter close by.

    • France24 ☛ 'Staged political lynching' of Zelensky: US doesn't recognise there's an aggressor, there's a victim

      A deal to end the war between Ukraine and Russia “is still very, very far away,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, adding that he expects to keep receiving American support despite his recent fraught relations with US President The Insurrectionist. Nevertheless, Zelenskyy remains publicly upbeat despite recent diplomatic upheaval between the US and Western allies. For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24's Delano D'Souza welcomes Marc Pierini, Senior Fellow at Carnegie Europe and former EU ambassador to Syria and Turkey.

    • JURIST ☛ US foreign aid freeze impedes UN operation to protect Ukraine women and girls

      The United Nations reported on Monday that approximately 640,000 women and girls in Ukraine will face disruptions to essential services following the United States’ decision to cease nearly all financial contributions to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian PM: Cool heads needed to resolve US-Ukraine crisis

      Cool heads, not loud statements, are needed to resolve the crisis in bilateral relations between the United States and Ukraine, Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas says.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian FM says not inviting Baltic leaders to London summit was ‘mistake’

      The United Kingdom’s decision not to invite the Baltic leaders to Sunday’s meeting in London on Ukraine was a mistake, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said on Monday.

    • LRT ☛ Europe getting into ‘driver’s seat’ following London summit – Lithuanian FM

      Europe is “getting ready to put itself in the driver’s seat” by taking responsibility for peace in Ukraine, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys says.

    • RFERL ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Pauses Military Aid To Ukraine After Heated Clash With Zelenskyy -- Reports

      U.S. President The Insurrectionist has paused all military aid to Ukraine following his clash with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office last week, according to media reports on March 3.

    • RFERL ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Again Blasts Zelenskyy As Europe Seeks 'Massive Surge In Defense'

      Leaders across Europe are moving to take control of peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia and ensure security across the continent after a flurry of diplomatic maneuvers last week appeared to collapse with the rupture of relations between The Insurrectionist and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

    • CS Monitor ☛ Ukrainians flock to Zelenskyy’s banner, but hope for solution with US

      Ukrainians were shocked to see Volodymyr Zelenskyy lock horns with a seemingly Russia-aligned The Insurrectionist. They are now seeking a new way forward.

    • CS Monitor ☛ How will Europe defend itself? 3 ways Convicted Felon is forcing the continent to adapt.

      After President The Insurrectionist’s public rebuke of Ukraine’s president, European leaders are attempting to step up their defense of Kyiv and adjust to shifting security norms.

    • New York Times ☛ Europe Faces a Huge Bill to Defend Ukraine. Investors Are Thrilled.

      Europeans would need to ramp up military spending quickly, a notion that has set off a market rally, led by defense stocks.

    • New York Times ☛ In Speech to Congress, Convicted Felon Is Expected to Boast About DOGE Cuts and Ukraine

      Tuesday night’s address will be a remarkable return to a chamber that Hell Toupée last addressed five years ago, before voters ousted him from office.

    • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Said Tariffs Are Coming

      Also, Cuomo entered the New York mayoral race as a front-runner. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

    • New York Times ☛ European Leaders Look for Allies to Secure Ukraine-Russia Peace Deal

      European leaders met in London to form a plan to help end the war in Ukraine. But even potential peacekeepers face political and economic hurdles.

    • Meduza ☛ Trump says Ukraine minerals deal not dead, but Zelensky ‘should be more appreciative’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Trump administration pauses all military aid to Ukraine, media reports — Meduza

    • Latvia ☛ LTV: Latvian entrepreneur reportedly linked to Russian fertilizer business

      Latvian citizen and businesswoman Jelena Bonča-Brujeviča indirectly owns several subsidiaries in Russia related to the fertilizer business, Latvian Television's investigative show De Facto reported on March 2.

    • Scoop News Group ☛ DHS says CISA won’t stop looking at Russian cyber threats

      The statement is a rebuttal to stories suggesting otherwise.

    • France24 ☛ Moscow is jubilating, former NATO diplomat says, as US considers Russians as equal partners

      The Kremlin said in remarks aired Sunday that the United States's dramatic shift in foreign policy largely aligns with its own vision. FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee speaks to Joachim Bitterlich former NATO diplomat and advisor to the former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. He says that Russians are jubilating as for the first time in decades the US considers them as equal partners.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian president warns against ‘provoking Russia’ over Kaliningrad gas transit

      Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda suggests Vilnius should extend the gas transit contract for Russia’s Kaliningrad region, saying there is no need to create a crisis over it.

    • Meduza ☛ White House orders plan for possible sanctions relief for Russia — Reuters — Meduza

• Transparency/Investigative Reporting

  • RTL ☛ Looming tariffs: Fact-check: Trump's claims about Canada

    AFP fact-checked some of the president's claims about Canada, which include misrepresentations about bilateral economic relations and the situation at the border.

• Environment

  • EcoWatch ☛ Plants Are Losing Their Ability to Absorb Carbon Dioxide as Emissions Rise

    At first, the added carbon led to warmer temperatures, vegetation growth and a longer growing season. Once a tipping point was reached, however, the combination of heat stress, wildfires, drought, flooding, storms and the spread of new diseases and pests led to a reduction in the amount of carbon plants can soak up.

    “The rate of natural sequestration of CO2 from the atmosphere by the terrestrial biosphere peaked in 2008. Atmospheric concentrations will rise more rapidly than previously, in proportion to annual CO2 emissions, as natural sequestration is now declining by 0.25% per year,” the authors of the study wrote. “This effect will accelerate climate change and emphasises the close connection between the climate and nature emergencies. Effort is urgently required to rebuild global biodiversity and to recover its ecosystem services, including natural sequestration.”

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] Germany: Strike at Munich airport set to cancel most flights

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-24 [Older] Germany: Strikes paralyze Düsseldorf and Cologne airports

    • Tech Central (South Africa) ☛ How to put load shedding behind us - forever

      Eskom also has an endemic issue with non-payers, further putting a strain on Eskom’s finances. As of August 2024, Emfuleni municipality owes Eskom approximately R8-billion. Many municipalities are heavily indebted to Eskom and refuse to pay what they owe. Countless households use electricity without paying.

      All these non-payers contribute to putting strain on the grid, while not contributing a cent to keeping Eskom running.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • The Revelator ☛ Meet the Passionate Advocates Trying to Save Western Monarch Butterflies

• Finance

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-24 [Older] German firms demand stability and swift action on growth

  • Defence Web ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] State Security Agency implements early retirement plan amidst structural reforms

  • TruthOut ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Report: Acting Leader of Social Security Administration Moves to Demolish It

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • RTL ☛ 'Cutting edge' manufacturing: TSMC announces $100 bn investment in new US chip plants

    Taiwanese chip-making giant TSMC will invest at least $100 billion in the United States to build "cutting edge" manufacturing facilities, President Donald Trump said Monday, announcing the latest blockbuster financial pledge by a private company since his return to office.

  • The Register UK ☛ TSMC announced $100 US fab expansion as semi tariffs loom

    TSMC boss CC Wei said the billions of dollars will go toward three new fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a “major R&D team center.” The factory giant claimed this is “the largest single foreign direct investment in US history.”

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • International Business Times ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Did DOGE Really Catch Louisiana Man Who Used 34 Names, Social Security Numbers To Get$1.1M Every Year?

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Social Security Zombies: Another Big Lie for the MAGA Collection

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Most social media medical advice is misinformation

    • Mike Brock ☛ The Manifesto of the Cognitive Revolution

      That quick decision to speak or stay silent when you hear a lie. The instant calculation of whether to stand with someone being mistreated or look away to avoid complications. The split-second choice between comfortable complicity and uncomfortable truth. These aren't dramatic crossroads with flashing signs—they're the quiet, constant texture of a life lived.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Myanmar: Why is junta shutting down [I]nternet?

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini's move to pick reporters raises press freedom concerns

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Freedom declined globally, but bright spots in Asia — report

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • Papers Please ☛ Treasury Department says it won’t enforce ID requirement for corporate principals

    The US Department of the Treasury has announced that it plans not to enforce the provisions of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) that were to go into effect next month requiring owners and principals of all corporations to file copies of government-issued ID credentials, including photos, with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

    The Treasury Department also says it plans to propose revisions to the CTA regulations that would limit the ID-filing requirement to principals of “foreign reporting companies”, a term that doesn’t appear in the statute and isn’t defined in the announcement.

    We don’t want the government to try to enforce the CTA reporting requirement. But if the law isn’t going to be enforced, it should be repealed, not left on the books as a Sword of Damocles available to prosecutors to threaten or persecute disfavored businesspeople. And the proposed regulations, redefining which entities must file CTA reports, would appear to be contrary to the explicit language of the CTA statute as to who must file.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Michael Geist ☛ The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 227: Tara Henley on How to Save the CBC

    Debates over the role and future of the CBC are seemingly about as old as the CBC itself. Those debates have become increasingly fractious in recent years as some see the public broadcaster as essential to Canadian culture and to address concerns about misinformation, while other insist it is hopelessly biased, outdated, and a threat to marketplace competition. Tara Henley is a Canadian writer, journalist and podcaster who spent years at the CBC.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-24 [Older] Google, Meta Face Penalties for Anti-Competitive Behaviour Towards South African News Media

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Industry Groups Urge Quick Adoption of EU Cybersecurity Label That Favours Big Tech