How an LA robbery took Lego from humble toy to criminal black market item Los Angeles Times
Mysterious monoliths are popping up all over the world. Here’s what we know. Vox
What if I get trapped here? Deserter
Climate and Environment
As heatwave hits much of the world, here are the 14 hottest places on earth, from Tunisia to Kuwait National
Extreme Weather Report, June 22, 2024. pic.twitter.com/Sgkl6hBnV8
— Yellow Dot Studio (@weareyellowdot) June 22, 2024
Downward Mobilization Breakdown: Presentation: “Private investment cannot and should not drive decarbonization. What is clear is that we need governments.”
Miami enters surreal state: Climate change adaptation won’t solve city’s water problems Floodlights
water
Not just a Gulf Coast problem: Mississippi River farm runoff pollutes water upstream Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Pandemic
COVID infection puts pregnancy and newborns at risk. Why aren’t parents being warned? Gauntlet
Concerns expressed over BMJ paper at centre of COVID vaccine deaths debate Medpage Today
Foresight*: Pathogens from permafrost German Institute for International and Security Studies. “Combating the spread of vector-borne diseases with or without Russia.”
India
Africa
Why on earth are major international companies withdrawing from the Nigerian market? An Africanist Perspective
Japan
Marines add new ‘littoral’ combat unit to Okinawa to defend Japan, Philippines Warrior Master
Only 10.4% of people want Kishida to continue in his position: Kyodo poll Kyodo News
Will Tokyo’s public toilets become the new tourist attraction? 13 unique toilets worth visiting Channel News Asia
China?
The Paradox of China’s Fragility: How the World’s Largest Consumer Transformed Global Commodity Markets (Book excerpt) Beijing Studies
South China Sea: Philippine anti-ship missile base targets Scarborough Shoal South China Morning Post
Authorities say he is the town’s largest gun dealer in Southeast Asia. Diplomat
Shiraksta
Israeli assassination attempt kills dozens in northern Gaza Cradle
JENIN: Israeli forces tied a wounded Palestinian man to the bonnet of a vehicle and used him as a human shield during a raid on a city in the occupied West Bank. pic.twitter.com/wht3rBVuhX
— Hamda Salhut (@hamdahsalhut) June 22, 2024
The collapse of Zionism New Left Review
***
The US will give guarantees to Israel this week in the event of an all-out war with Hezbollah CNN
UPDATE: US support with several squadrons of naval attack aircraft from an aircraft carrier stationed offshore is unlikely to significantly change the operational balance in southern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/enIcBy9H91
— Armchair Warlord (@ArmchairW) June 23, 2024
***
Yemeni and Iraqi resistance groups jointly target five ships bound for Israel Al Mayadeen
Houthi claim about attack on US aircraft carrier is false: US official Al Arabiya
European Separation
The dangerous trap of Putin’s puppets Left Bloc. Clare Daly.
EPP ignores Brussels court review of von der Leyen’s European Commission candidacy Eura Active
German automakers pressure EU leaders to lift Chinese EV tariffs Nikkei Asia
Macron’s election call puts Paris’ rise as financial centre at risk Bloomberg
🇫🇷Elections. Bardella: As Prime Minister I will order an audit of the state finances because they are in such dire state that we cannot keep the big promises we made on pensions, VAT etc.
In fact, all the figures are public and released monthly by the Ministry of Finance. RN has once again fallen behind. https://t.co/NkLk6rfU3Y— Giovanni Capoccia @gcapoccia.bsky.social (@gcapoccia1) June 22, 2024
A new cold war
South Korea, Japan, US agree to ‘close’ security cooperation after Putin-Kim summit Anadolu Agency
EU appears to be considering security partnerships with Japan, South Korea Baja
No need to worry? South Korea sounds the alarm Gilbert Doctorow
South Korean Military Power: Lessons Europe Can Learn from Seoul Royal Institute for Defence and Security Studies
***
Ending Ukraine war requires negotiations, but Putin ‘cannot be trusted,’ says Mark Milley Kyiv Independent
Old Brittany
Farage’s children The wrong side of history
Sunak and Starmer slam Farage for claiming the EU and NATO “induced” the invasion of Ukraine POLITICO
South of the Border
Capital Promotion Amazing World. “USMCA, IRA, and Mexico’s Electric Vehicle Boom.”
Spook Country
Trump
Republican move pressures Supreme Court to intervene in Trump case Axios
The Democratic Party is broken
Junior Partner Strategy Left Note
The Democratic National Convention is treating influencers like news outlets this year Gizmodo
2024
Democrats are stepping up efforts to block RFK Jr. from appearing on ballots nationwide CNN
Empire Collapse Watch
Zero Sovereignty System Philip Pilkington, The Post-Liberal Order
Boeing
Boeing issues cast a shadow on 777 freighter modification certification Roadster
Due to technical problems at Boeing, the US has yet to return astronauts to Earth.
(The United States once relied on Russia to transport astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS).)
“What was meant to be a week-long stay in space for astronauts Suni Williams and… https://t.co/KviuLkKcTT pic.twitter.com/JLgreqx1Nd
— ⏳Tauhi🌏☮️ (@amborin) June 22, 2024
health care?
These big health insurers covered fewer people in the commercial market in 2023 than they did in 2013. And yet their profits increased. Here’s why: Healthcare Uncovered
FDA Issues Warning to Another Birth Tissue Company Medpage Today
Antitrust
Inside FICO and the Credit Reporting Cartel “BIG” by Matt Stoller
Police State Surveillance
Company involved in federal death penalty cases announces it will stop manufacturing key drug Intercept
Academy Forest
The crackdown on campus protests has only just begun Modern age
Digital Watches
Publisher lawsuit leads to 500,000 books being removed from Internet Archive Tech Spot
Microsoft admits it doesn’t guarantee sovereignty of UK police data Computer Weekly
Zuckerberg and other meth executives reportedly rejected employee requests for funding youth safety programs Washington Examiner
Guillotine Watch
13 arrested after yacht fireworks spark forest fire on Greek island Parents
Basil
Toddler rescued in Arizona after getting trapped in Tesla with dead battery The Verge
The state wants to nationalize second mortgages. What could go wrong? Mises Institute
Class struggle
Is there a housing shortage, or a lack of affordable housing, in the United States? 48 Hills
Today’s antidote (via):
See yesterday’s link and Antidote du Jour here.
