Leftovers

• Hackaday ☛ Hidden Camera Build Proves You Can’t Trust Walnuts

  Typically, if you happened across a walnut lying about, you might consider eating it or throwing it to a friendly squirrel. However, as [Penguin DIY] demonstrates, it’s perfectly possible to turn the humble nut into a clandestine surveillance device. It turns out the walnut worriers were right all along.

• It's FOSS ☛ Is System Administration Still a Good Career Choice in 2026?

  Insights from an Interview with Hirdaypal Singh Lamba, Salesfarce Consultant.

• Science

  • Futurism ☛ Divers Intrigued by Huge Underwater Structure

    It's absolutely enormous.

  • Science Alert ☛ Hundreds of Earthquakes Detected at Antarctica's 'Doomsday' Glacier

    These events remain puzzling.

  • Science Alert ☛ Dick Van Dyke Credits His Longevity to One Habit, And It's Backed by Science

    He turns 100 on December 13.

  • Science Alert ☛ Misophonia Has Genetic Links to Anxiety And Depression, Study Reveals

    A profile of this mysterious condition is emerging.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Daily Habit of 8 Energy Drinks May Have Triggered a UK Man's Stroke

    "I obviously wasn't aware of the dangers."

  • Science Alert ☛ Neutrino Alchemy: Sun's Ghost Particles Finally Caught Transforming Atoms

    The first time this has ever been seen.

  • Science Alert ☛ DNA Reveals Cats in Ancient China Were a Different Species Altogether

    More than one way to sequence a cat.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Hidden Brain State Before Sleep May Be The Key to Human Genius

    A creative sweet spot.

• Career/Education

  • Latvia ☛ New model for teacher wage rise in the making

    The Ministry of Education and Science (MES) has submitted a new schedule for teacher salary increases for approval, which provides for the lowest salary rate to rise from January 2027,  Latvian Radio reported.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea exam chief resigns after complaints that English test was too hard

    One question asked students to consider the nature of time and clocks.

  • Qt ☛ Exploring Hey Hi (AI) Interfaces with Aalto University: Qt Group’s Collaboration in Future Technologies

    At Qt, we believe that innovation thrives through collaboration. That’s why we actively partner with universities—giving students real-world challenges to solve while we gain fresh perspectives on emerging technologies.

    One such initiative is the Future Interfaces Lab at Aalto University, which brings together students, faculty, and industry partners to explore how Hey Hi (AI) and future technologies are transforming user experiences. This fall, Qt joined forces with Aalto’s Department of Industrial Engineering and Management (TUTA) to contribute to the course “AI Interfaces and the Real World.”

Hardware

• Hackaday ☛ Review: Cherry G84-4100 Keyboard

  The choice of a good keyboard is something which consumes a lot of time for many Hackaday readers, judging by the number of custom input device projects which make it to these pages. I live by my keyboard as a writer, but I have to admit that I’ve never joined in on the special keyboard front; for me it’s been a peripheral rather than an obsession. But I’m hard on keyboards, I type enough that I wear them out. For the last five years my Hackaday articles have come via a USB Thinkpad keyboard complete with the little red stick pointing device, but its keys have started parting company with their switches so it’s time for a replacement.

• New York Times ☛ China Is Getting Much of What It Wants From the U.S., Including Chips

  For China, Hell Toupée’s moves to loosen chip controls, soften U.S. rhetoric and stay silent on tensions with Japan amount to a rare string of strategic gains.

• Tom's Hardware ☛ Intel tests chipmaking tools from sanctioned China-focused tool maker, report claims — move could raise political and national security concerns, firm was backed by CEO Lip-Bu Tan's investment firm

  Intel has evaluated wet etch tools from ACM Research for its 14A fabrication process, raising political and national security concerns.

• Tom's Hardware ☛ Huawei's latest mobile is armed with China's most advanced process node to date despite using blacklisted chipmaker — Huawei Kirin 9030 mobile SoC made on SMIC N+3 process, but can't compete with 5nm node

  TechInsights says Huawei's Kirin 9030 is built on SMIC’s N+3 process: an incremental, DUV-based extension of its 7nm-class technology that pushes density without EUV but falls well short of true 5nm nodes amid rising yield challenges.

• Tom's Hardware ☛ Cambricon targets 500,000 Hey Hi (AI) chips in 2026 as China accelerates domestic hardware push — low yields and limited HBM supply could threaten chip ambitions

  Cambricon Technologies is preparing one of the most aggressive production ramp-ups attempted by a Chinese Hey Hi (AI) chipmaker.

• Tom's Hardware ☛ China mulls $70 billion domestic chip fabrication injection, would be largest of any government semiconductor investment — Huawei and Cambricon among candidates in push to compete with Nvidia, other U.S. firms

  China is considering investing up to an additional $70 billion in its domestic chip manufacturers in an effort to better compete with US firms like Nvidia. Although exact figures and investment strategies have yet to be decided, this move would be in line with China's "whole nation" approach to tackling its chip shortages.

Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

• New York Times ☛ Risk-Based Screening Works as Well as Yearly Checks After 40 in Finding Breast Cancers

  A study of more than 45,000 women found that screening women according to their level of risk was as effective in detecting tumors as the one-size-fits-most screening currently recommended.

• New York Times ☛ House G.O.P. Releases Health Plan That Would Allow Subsidies to End

  The legislation, expected to come to a vote next week, would make changes that could eventually affect health care costs but are unlikely to immediately curb rising premiums.

• BIA Net ☛ Tiny houses sprout on Turkey's agricultural fields

  Turkey sees a post-pandemic surge in tiny house usage, raising questions about their environmental impact, threat to agriculture, and the resulting economic speculation.

• France24 ☛ Will France be next to introduce an Australian-style social control media ban for children?

  Australia this week implemented a world-first ban on social control media for under-16s, and France could soon introduce a similar measure. French lawmakers will in January debate a bill whose aim is to protect children’s mental health.

• New York Times ☛ Reddit Sues Australian Government to Block Social Media Ban

  The company said the new law, which makes it illegal for children under 16 to have social control media accounts, infringes on children’s rights.

• CS Monitor ☛ Tracking pandemic aid fraud: Five years on, the toll continues to grow

  A high-profile fraud case in Minnesota has spotlighted the lack of safeguards during the COVID-19 pandemic surrounding funds intended to prop up vulnerable Americans. The looting of taxpayer dollars holds lessons about the social safety net and the federal bureaucracy that oversees it.

• New York Times ☛ For Republicans, Convicted Felon’s Hands-Off Approach to Health Care Is a Problem

  The prospect of soaring health care costs could exacerbate Americans’ feelings about affordability, an issue that Hell Toupée has tried to downplay. But Democrats plan to keep the issue front and center.

• The Straits Times ☛ Penang medical tourism soars with direct flights from Jakarta

  Penang's tourism committee chairman said the new route supported national plans to develop healthcare travel.

• MIT Technology Review ☛ Expanded carrier screening: Is it worth it?

  This week I’ve been thinking about babies. Healthy ones. Perfect ones. As you may have read last week, my colleague Antonio Regalado came face to face with a marketing campaign in the New York subway asking people to “have your best baby.”

• Futurism ☛ Man Suffers Grim Fate After Drinking Eight Energy Drinks Per Day

  "I obviously wasn't aware of the dangers drinking energy drinks were causing to myself."

• New York Times ☛ Harvard Replaces Leader of Health Center Said to Have Focused on Palestinians

  The center at the university’s public health school was also a focus of the Convicted Felon administration after having been examined in a Harvard antisemitism report earlier this year.

• Bridge Michigan ☛ Lawmakers push farmer suicide prevention funding after Bridge Michigan report

  Bipartisan lawmakers in the Michigan House say funding for a farmer suicide prevention program must be restored following a Bridge Michigan report on high suicide rates.

Proprietary

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

  • Hackaday ☛ Weird Email Appliance Becomes AI Terminal

    The Landel Mailbug was a weird little thing. It combined a keyboard and a simple text display, and was intended to be a low-distraction method for checking your email. [CiferTech] decided to repurpose it, though, turning it into an AI console instead.

  • Bruce Schneier ☛ Building Trustworthy Hey Hi (AI) Agents

    The promise of personal Hey Hi (AI) assistants rests on a dangerous assumption: that we can trust systems we haven’t made trustworthy. We can’t. And today’s versions are failing us in predictable ways: pushing us to do things against our own best interests, gaslighting us with doubt about things we are or that we know, and being unable to distinguish between who we are and who we have been.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Oracle reportedly delays several new Proprietary Chaffbot Company data centers because of shortages — tight material and labor supply frustrate expansion plans, possibly by a year or more [Ed: Circular funding fraud]

    Oracle reportedly delays some of the data centers for Proprietary Chaffbot Company from 2027 to 2028, citing labor and materials shortages.

  • The New Stack ☛ Coding With the Gemini CLI Tool [Ed: Jack Wallen is still promoting slop]

    Some time ago, released the Gemini CLI (Command Line Interface) tool that is pretty impressive.

  • Futurism ☛ Hegseth’s New Pentagon Hey Hi (AI) Is Telling Military Personnel His Boat Strike Was Completely Illegal

    "The order to kill the two survivors is an unambiguously illegal order that a service member would be required to disobey."

  • Futurism ☛ OpenAI Researcher Quits, Saying Company Is Hiding the Truth

    It's not letting potentially damning research get out there.

  • Futurism ☛ Instacart Caught Using Hey Hi (AI) to Charge Wildly Different Prices for the Same Item

    You're not imagining things.

• Social Control Media

  • New York Times ☛ Australia Kicks Kids Off Social Media + Is the Hey Hi (AI) Water Issue Fake? + Hard Fork Wrapped

    “I’m told that Australian teens, in preparation for this ban, have been exchanging phone numbers with each other.”

  • New York Times ☛ MElon Tests Europe’s Willingness to Enforce Its Online Laws

    Backed by White House officials, the tech billionaire has lashed out at the European Union after his social control media platform X was fined last week.

Pseudo-Open Source

• Openwashing

  • Open Source Initiative ☛ Celebrating Generosity and Growth in the OSI Community [Ed: There is no "OSI Community", about 97% of the money of OSI comes from monopolies, notably Microsoft]

    As we reach the final weeks of the year, I find myself reflecting on a season that invites both gratitude and giving, two values that feel especially resonant for our community. Serving as Interim Executive Director these past months has only deepened my appreciation for the people who make Open Source possible.

Security

• Privacy/Surveillance

  • New York Times ☛ T.S.A. Is Providing Air Passenger Data to Immigration Agents for Deportation Effort

    The Transportation Security Administration is providing passenger lists to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement to identify and detain travelers subject to deportation orders.

Defence/Aggression

• New York Times ☛ The Crime Involved Trash Bags. But It Wasn’t a Mob Caper.

  Prosecutors say a city official on Jeju Island in South Korea stole more than $400,000 by pocketing the sale of government-issued trash bags that cost as little as 7 cents each.

• The Straits Times ☛ US general says drills ‘absolutely’ needed as Korea floats shift

  Officials in Seoul had floated adjusting the drills to facilitate dialogue with North Korea.

• JURIST ☛ Pakistan military court sentences former intelligence chief to prison for abuse of power

  A Pakistani military court sentenced former intelligence chief Faiz Hameed to 14 years imprisonment on charges of espionage and abuse of power, according to a press release by the media and public relations division of Pakistan’s army on Thursday.

• New York Times ☛ Amid Fractures on the Right, Tucker Carlson Continues His Attacks

  On Theo Von’s show this week, Mr. Carlson lashed out at a major supporter of the president, the F.B.I. and “unimpressive, dumb, totally noncreative people” leading the nation.

• Atlantic Council ☛ Iran poses challenges to a National Security Strategy ready to move on

  If, as its new strategy suggests, the White House wants to spend less time on Iran, then it has three options—and one is better than the others.

• France24 ☛ At the UN, the US has accused Rwanda of leading the region towards war

  Fighting and insecurity continue in the eastern part of the DRCongo, amid rising diplomatic anger over the latest offensive by the M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda. According to regional officials, more than 400 civilians have been killed in South Kivu Province since the rebel group escalated its offensive and entered the strategic city of Uvira. A peace deal brokered by the US last week was intended to end Rwanda’s involvement in the conflict; however, it has had little effect on the ground.

• New Yorker ☛ Leon Panetta on the Convicted Felon Administration’s Venezuelan Boat Strikes

  The former C.I.A. director and Secretary of Defense explains the problem with using the military for law enforcement.

• New York Times ☛ Venezuela Oil Tanker Seized by U.S. Was Part of Effort to Finance Cuba

  Firms with ties to Cuba are getting a larger share of Venezuelan oil exports, as the island’s security agents boost President Nicolás Maduro’s defenses.

• New York Times ☛ For Rubio the Cuba Hawk, the Road to Havana Runs Through Venezuela

  Hell Toupée’s secretary of state and national security adviser has long sought to cripple or topple Cuba’s government, which has close security and economic ties to Venezuela.

• JURIST ☛ Venezuela security forces linked to systematic abuses, UN reports

  UN-appointed investigators reported on Thursday that Venezuela’s Bolivarian National Guard (GNB) has spent the past decade carrying out a pattern of killings, arbitrary detentions, torture, and sexual violence against protesters and political opponents of President Nicolás Maduro. Venezuela entered 2025 under intensified international attention after a wave of repression followed the July 2024 presidential election.

• JURIST ☛ ICC sentences Sudan militia leader to 20 years for Darfur atrocities

  The International Criminal Court (ICC) handed down a 20-year prison sentence on Tuesday to former Janjaweed militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Darfur region of Sudan. Abd-Al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb, was found guilty of 27 counts, including murder, rape, torture, persecution and pillaging.

• The Straits Times ☛ East Java boarding school head gets 20 years, chemical castration for sexual abuse

  Despite being in effect in Indonesia for nearly a decade, chemical castration remains a rare sentence.

• The Straits Times ☛ Google to build subsea cables in Papua New Guinea under Australia defence treaty

  Alphabet's Surveillance Giant Google will build three subsea cables in Papua New Guinea, which the largest Pacific Island nation said was funded by Australia under a mutual defence treaty, in a key upgrade to its digital backbone.

• The Straits Times ☛ Latest Thai-Cambodian clashes expose limits of ASEAN’s conflict-management tools

  The renewed fighting comes as the Philippines prepares to take over as ASEAN chair from Malaysia.

• The Straits Times ☛ Thai military rejects Cambodian claims of strikes on civilians, confirms Hey Hi (AI) images among fake news

  It presented evidence that photographs circulating on social control media have been fabricated.

• The Straits Times ☛ Beijing says it expelled Philippine aircraft, vessels near disputed South China Sea atolls

  China had in September approved the creation of ‍a national nature reserve there.

• The Straits Times ☛ Philippines says fishermen hurt, boats damaged by China in South China Sea

  China’s coast guard said it had driven away multiple Philippine vessels and taken “control measures”.

• The Straits Times ☛ DPM Gan to head to Chongqing for high-level Singapore-China talks

  He will co-chair the Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation with Chinese Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang.

• The Straits Times ☛ China holds low-key Nanjing Massacre memorial despite Japan tensions

  President Pooh-tin Jinping did not make an appearance at the memorial, which he last attended in 2017.

• The Straits Times ☛ India frees up visas for Chinese professionals in key step to boost ties

  The removal of red tape comes after Indian PM Narendra Modimir visited China in 2025 for the first time in seven years.

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong national security police arrest 9 men for alleged military-style ‘unlawful drills’

  Hong Kong national security police have arrested nine men for allegedly engaging in “unlawful drills” involving military-style firearms and combat training. The nine suspects, aged 20 to 25, were arrested on Thursday night, police said on Friday.

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US, Japan defence chiefs agree China harming regional peace

  By Hiroshi Hiyama Beijing’s actions are “not conducive to regional peace”, Japan’s defence minister and US counterpart Pete Hegseth agreed during a call after Chinese aircraft locked radar on Japanese jets near Taiwan, Tokyo said Friday. The December 6 radar incident came after comments by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Taiwan that infuriated China.

• Marcy Wheeler ☛ Cowardice Like Michael Glasheen’s Is How January 6 Happened

  Michael Glasheen -- the guy in charge of national security at the FBI -- falsely claimed that Antifa was the biggest terrorist threat facing the US, he was probably just trying to keep his job. But the kind of cowardice he displayed yesterday is how January 6 was allowed to happen.

• Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

  • France24 ☛ 'It's a mistake for Ukraine to make concessions': Former Convicted Felon security adviser John Bolton

    "I don't think [US President] The Insurrectionist is really motivated by US national security interests, or NATO, or Ukrainian interests. I think he wants the Nobel Peace Prize – I think it's been on his mind since the first term," argues former US national security adviser John Bolton in an interview with FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee. "Putin thinks time is on his side. This is not the time for the US or Europe to give up and say 'let's get the best deal we can'," he adds.

  • France24 ☛ 'They have no border': Ukraine's integration into EU by 2027 deemed unlikely by diplomats

    The US plan to end the war in Ukraine allows for Kyiv to join the EU in 2027, a senior official said Friday. Even if the bloc's Moscow-friendly governments such as Hungary were to agree to Ukraine's accession, complex questions would need to be quickly resolved, European diplomats and officials said.

  • France24 ☛ 'They're no longer hiding': How Russia is shipping liquefied natural gas to China despite sanctions

    A cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia's Portovaya plant was delivered to the Beihai terminal in China on December 8. This marks the first delivery since the facility was placed under US sanctions in January 2025. The development highlights deepening China-Russia energy ties as Moscow seeks to increase its LNG exports and secure revenue to fund its war in Ukraine.

  • France24 ☛ US still pushing big territorial concessions from Ukraine

    US President The Insurrectionist is "extremely frustrated" with Russia and Ukraine, his spokeswoman said on Thursday, as Kyiv said Washington was still pushing it to make major territorial concessions as part of its plan to end the nearly four-year war. France24 correspondent Gulliver Cragg reports the latest from Kyiv.

  • JURIST ☛ Rights group condemns systemic torture of Ukrainian POWs by Russia

    Human Rights Watch released a report on Thursday that alleges Russia has inflicted a widespread and deliberate pattern of physical and psychological abuse upon Ukrainian POWs throughout their detention.

  • RFERL ☛ Russia Rejects Zelenskyy Donbas Referendum Proposal Ahead Of High Stakes Weekend For Diplomacy

    Russia has rejected a proposal to hold a referendum to let Ukrainians decide on giving up territory in the eastern Donbas region, much of which Moscow claims to control, highlighting a key sticking point as negotiators head to Berlin for high stakes talks aimed at ending Russia's war on Ukraine.

  • New York Times ☛ Ukrainians, Worrying More About Power Cuts, See U.S. Peace Push as Just Noise

    Many understand the dance their leaders must perform to appease Hell Toupée. But that doesn’t make them any less weary of the rounds and rounds of talks.

  • New York Times ☛ How Ukraine Has Responded to Convicted Felon’s Peace Plan and Russia’s Demands for Territory

    A Ukrainian peace plan, sent this week to Washington, pushes back against Hell Toupée’s proposal that Ukraine give up more land for peace, although Russia is unlikely to accept it.

  • New York Times ☛ Russia Sues Holder of Frozen Assets Europe Wants for Ukraine Loan

    The lawsuit was a warning to European officials who are racing to agree to a plan to use Russian government assets in Europe to lend money to Ukraine.

  • New York Times ☛ How Power Cuts Are Affecting Ukrainians

    Russia has been targeting energy infrastructure in Ukraine, leaving multiple cities without electricity. Kim Barker, who’s been covering the war, gives us a glimpse into the daily life of Ukrainians living with power cuts.

  • Meduza ☛ As Trump pushes Kyiv to accept a peace deal, Russia attacks nine Ukrainian cities at once and plans a major push in Donbas — Meduza

  • Atlantic Council ☛ The Russian economy in 2025: Between stagnation and militarization

    The latest report in the Atlantic Council's Russia Tomorrow series examines the Russian wartime economy.

  • France24 ☛ 'We'll concentrate on European military equipment and improve our defence': Romanian president

    Romania is on NATO's eastern flank, and it is feeling the heat from drone incursions attributed to Russia, and from the Convicted Felon administration's strategic shift away from Europe. We speak to Romanian President Nicușor Dan about how his country is faring with these headwinds, and also about tough economic reforms that have put pressure on his fragile coalition government.

  • France24 ☛ Berlin summons Russian ambassador over increase in hybrid attacks

    Germany said Friday it had summoned Moscow’s ambassador after it accused Russian-linked groups of hacking its air traffic control system and attempting to influence the 2024 general election. Dubbing such operations, including drone flights near European airports, as “hybrid attacks”, Berlin says it is planning coordinated countermeasures with EU partners. France24 correspondent Nick Holdsworth tells us the latest.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korean leader Kim hails troops returning from Russia mission, state media says

    The unit had carried out combat and engineering tasks in the Kursk region from August.

  • Meduza ☛ Kremlin aide suggests Donbas ‘demilitarized zone’ with Russian police and National Guard presence — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Russia’s biometric school security plan promises safety but risks students’ personal data — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Anti-war activist Grigory Sverdlin says hackers have paralyzed Russia’s military draft database for several months — Meduza

  • New York Times ☛ Germany Accuses Russia of Sabotage, Cyberattacks and Disinformation

    The German foreign ministry’s announcement, which Russia denied, was the latest suggestion of growing Russian aggression in Europe.

  • LRT ☛ Tour operator moves Egypt flights from Vilnius to Kaunas amid balloon disruptions

    Lithuanian tour operator Join UP! Baltic will move its charter flights to Egypt from Vilnius to Kaunas starting December 17, citing disruptions caused by balloons launched from Belarus.

  • LRT ☛ Baltic leaders say US strategy shows clear understanding of regional security needs

    Washington understands the security sensitivities of the Baltic region, Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė said Friday, commenting on the United States’ new National Security Strategy released last week.

Transparency/Investigative Reporting

• France24 ☛ US House Democrats release new photos of Convicted Felon, other prominent figures from Epstein's estate

  Democratic lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee on Friday released a selection of 19 photos from the estate of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including some of The Insurrectionist before he became president and other prominent figures like former president Bill Clinton, then prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, MAGA figure Steve Bannon, and Hollywood director Woody Allen.

• New York Times ☛ New Photos From Epstein Estate Show Ties to Convicted Felon, Clinton and More Powerful Men

  The images, released without context by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, revealed little new about the deceased sex offender’s ties to prominent men in politics, entertainment and finance.

Environment

• Energy/Transportation

  • New York Times ☛ Scenes From Washington After a Week of Torrential Rain and Flooding

    More than 100,000 residents were told to leave their homes across Washington State this week as rivers overflowed.

• Wildlife/Nature

  • CS Monitor ☛ Birds, butterflies, botanicals, and coastal wonders

    A quartet of art and nature books captures the splendor and mystery of the natural world.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Use of Sumatran elephants in post-flood clean-up in Indonesia’s Aceh draws criticism

    Activists and lawmakers say the move puts the endangered species at unnecessary risk.

  • Hackaday ☛ Super-Sizing Insects And The Benefits Of Bones

    Have you ever found yourself looking at the insects of the Paleozoic era, including the dragonfly Meganeuropsis permiana with its 71 cm wingspan and wondered what it would be like to have one as a pet? If so, you’re in luck because the mad lads over at [The Thought Emporium] have done a lot of the legwork already to grow your own raven-sized moths and more. As it turns out, all it takes is hijacking the chemical signals that control the development phases, to grow positively humongous mealworms and friends.

Finance

• The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia seeks ex-Goldman banker Leissner’s extradition to face 1MDB trial

  The US is weighing the application, said Malaysia's attorney general's chambers.

• The Straits Times ☛ As jobs dry up, China’s migrant workers are returning to their villages and staying put

  Despite government concerns about economic stagnation in the villages, some think there are job opportunities there.

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ EU agrees three-euro small parcel tax to tackle China flood

  EU finance ministers agreed Friday to impose a three-euro duty on all small parcels imported into the bloc starting July 1, 2026, to help tackle a flood of cheap imports by the likes of Shein and Temu.

• France24 ☛ EU inches closer to trade deal with Latin America: Fair prices or Mercosur crisis?

  The European Parliament is set to adopt its negotiating mandate on Mercosur, after which talks on the final shape of a trade deal can begin. The accord with Latin American countries would create a free trade area of more than 700 million people, at a time when the EU is locked in trade conflicts with China and the US. But despite promises of safeguards for European farmers, fears of being undercut by unfair competition have not disappeared. So is this deal an unprecedented opportunity, or a threat to key economic areas in Europe?

• Atlantic Council ☛ Dispatch from Beijing: Both China and the US think they have the advantage. Only one can be right.

  US policymakers must understand exactly how the China model is working if the United States is going to compete effectively with it.

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

• The Straits Times ☛ China Politburo member misses two key meetings as mystery builds

  It has fuelled speculation about the fate of Mr Ma Xingrui amid President Xi’s anti-corruption purge.

Censorship/Free Speech

• LRT ☛ LRT English Newsletter: Hands off free speech… and trucks

  LRT English Newsletter – December 12, 2025.

• Public Knowledge ☛ Free Speech Is Under Attack – Your Support Makes a Difference

  Join the fight today.

• JURIST ☛ Ecuador criticized for freezing Indigenous and environmental group bank accounts

  The Ecuadorian government’s financial crimes agency froze the bank accounts of several Indigenous and environmental groups, using secret intelligence information in an apparent effort to silence protests, Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday.

• Press Gazette ☛ ‘Vindication’: Gaza film BillBC refused to show wins British Journalism Award

  Gaza: Doctors Under Attack exposed targeted attacks by Israel on medics.

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

• The Straits Times ☛ Hong Kong's legal clampdown on tycoon and China critic Jimmy Lai

  Hong Kong's High Court will hand down a verdict in the trial of media tycoon and China critic Jimmy Lai on Monday.

• Press Gazette ☛ News diary 15-21 December: Jimmy Lai verdict, Rishi Sunak at Covid inquiry, Sports Personality of the Year

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Jimmy Lai nat. security case verdict to be handed down Monday

  The verdict in the national security trial of Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai is set to be handed down next Monday, according to the judiciary.

• LRT ☛ Seimas backs bill easing removal of LRT head despite warnings of free speech risks

  Lithuanian lawmakers on Thursday approved the first reading of an amendment that would make it easier to dismiss the head of the national public broadcaster, LRT, a move that critics say threatens media independence.

Civil Rights/Policing

• The Straits Times ☛ Backlash grows in South Korea after Lotte department store asks customer to remove union vest

  Union members visited the department store after attending a nearby rally on Dec 10.

Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

• APNIC ☛ Community voices shaping the future of RIR governance

  Many thanks to everyone who provided feedback on the revised RIR Governance Document. Read more about APNIC’s engagement.

• APNIC ☛ NRO RPKI Program — 2025 in review

  In 2025, the NRO RPKI Program advanced routing security with a new Trust Anchor draft, joint RPKI guidance, and a coordinated roadmap for full ASPA support by 2026.