Undisguised racism: Trump’s cabinet is almost all white, and he keeps firing Black officials

Undisguised racism: Trump’s cabinet is almost all white, and he keeps firing Black officials

The Guardian reports: A day after Donald Trump announced that he was firing Lisa Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the board of governors of the Federal Reserve, the White House proudly released a photo. It showed Trump, his cabinet and other officials giving a thumbs-up. Of the 24 people in the Oval Office, only one was Black. For those who have studied the US president’s long and troubling history of racism, the two events were more than…

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Israel’s only language is force

Israel’s only language is force

Abed Abou Shhadeh writes: Historian Yuval Noah Harari has described this moment as a spiritual turning point for Jews – perhaps the most significant since the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. Jews, he argued, have survived catastrophe after catastrophe, but never faced a spiritual threat of this magnitude. Israel’s current path, Harari warned, risks dismantling 2,000 years of Jewish thought and culture. In his view, Israel could end up ethnically cleansing Palestinians, dismantling democratic structures, and replacing…

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Life on Earth probably needed supplies from space

Life on Earth probably needed supplies from space

University of Bern: Earth is so far the only known planet on which life exists—with liquid water and a stable atmosphere. However, the conditions were not conducive to life when it formed. The gas-dust cloud from which all the planets in the solar system formed was rich in volatile elements essential for life, such as hydrogen, carbon and sulfur. However, in the inner solar system—the part closest to the sun, where the four rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars…

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Most Trump tariffs are not legal, appeals court rules

Most Trump tariffs are not legal, appeals court rules

Reuters reports: A divided U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday that most of Donald Trump’s tariffs are illegal, undercutting the Republican president’s use of the levies as a key international economic policy tool. The court allowed the tariffs to remain in place through October 14 to give the Trump administration a chance to file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court. Trump has made tariffs a pillar of U.S. foreign policy in his second term, using them to exert political…

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White House plans to unilaterally cancel $4.9B in foreign aid in end-run around Congress’ funding power

White House plans to unilaterally cancel $4.9B in foreign aid in end-run around Congress’ funding power

The New York Times reports: The White House has informed Congress it intends to cancel $4.9 billion that lawmakers approved for foreign aid programs, invoking a little-known and legally untested power to slash spending without their approval. The 15-page notification, sent to Congress on Thursday night and reviewed by The New York Times, is the administration’s first attempt to push through what is known as a “pocket rescission.” It is an effort to unilaterally claw back money that has already…

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Trump’s pick to head CDC is a Peter Thiel acolyte

Trump’s pick to head CDC is a Peter Thiel acolyte

The New Republic reports: Donald Trump has tapped Deputy Health Secretary Jim O’Neill, a market fundamentalist Silicon Valley investor and long-time associate of billionaire Peter Thiel, as acting director of the Centers for Disease Control. Taking the place of Susan Monarez, whose firing has raised alarm over the dangerous incompetence of the health department under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., O’Neill will bring to the role no medical or scientific background. But he does have a history of feverish advocacy…

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Israel’s onslaught on Gaza City forces thousands to flee with nowhere to go

Israel’s onslaught on Gaza City forces thousands to flee with nowhere to go

Abdel Qader Sabbah reports: Israeli tanks backed by warplanes and quadcopters are pushing deeper into Gaza City, destroying entire neighborhoods and leaving people with nowhere to go. The escalating assault comes amid a widening famine, with Palestinians starving to death every day. Airstrikes continue to pound civilians in central and southern Gaza. It has been one of the deadliest periods for journalists since Israel’s assault began, with at least 11 journalists killed in two bombardments just two weeks apart. Palestinians…

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Israel’s killing of journalists follows a pattern of silencing Palestinian media that stretches back to 1967

Israel’s killing of journalists follows a pattern of silencing Palestinian media that stretches back to 1967

A funeral ceremony takes place in the courtyard of Nasser Hospital in Gaza following the deaths of five journalists on Aug. 25, 2025. Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images By Maha Nassar, University of Arizona Five journalists were among the 22 people killed on Aug. 25, 2025, in Israeli strikes on the Nasser Hospital in the Gaza Strip. Following global condemnation, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying Israel “values the work of journalists.” But…

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Collapse of critical Atlantic current is more likely than previously thought, study finds

Collapse of critical Atlantic current is more likely than previously thought, study finds

The Guardian reports: The collapse of a critical Atlantic current can no longer be considered a low-likelihood event, a study has concluded, making deep cuts to fossil fuel emissions even more urgent to avoid the catastrophic impact. The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (Amoc) is a major part of the global climate system. It brings sun-warmed tropical water to Europe and the Arctic, where it cools and sinks to form a deep return current. The Amoc was already known to be…

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Mapping France’s ‘Great Fear of 1789’ shows how misinformation spreads like a virus

Mapping France’s ‘Great Fear of 1789’ shows how misinformation spreads like a virus

Phys.org reports: Since the rise of the internet and social media, society has become well-acquainted with the idea of “virality” as the rapid spread of ideas and information (or misinformation). The relatively recent COVID-19 pandemic also reminded modern society of how rapidly viruses spread and how they impact society. As it turns out, the idea of information spreading like a virus is not just an apt metaphor—information virality can also be scientifically modeled in the same way as an actual…

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Resignation letters from CDC leaders as hundreds of Americans are still dying from Covid

Resignation letters from CDC leaders as hundreds of Americans are still dying from Covid

In late January, 2021, almost 24,000 Americans died from Covid in a single week. Less than five years later, the pandemic somehow appears to be part of the distant past. Over the last 28 days, 22 people have been killed in mass shootings across America. During the same period, there have been 672 deaths from Covid — almost three quarters of the number of Covid deaths recorded globally. For the 2024–2025 season, the CDC reported that less than 25% of…

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America is no longer a functioning democracy

America is no longer a functioning democracy

Don Moynihan writes: There is so much happening that occasionally pausing to take stock is necessary. So where are we? In deep trouble. America may not be fully authoritarian, but by no means can we consider it to be a functioning democracy. There will be no announcement, no headline saying “America Not A Democracy.” But if you are willing to look clear-eyed at the cumulative evidence, the inescapable conclusion is that our deeply held beliefs about American democracy no longer…

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Why bargaining with authoritarians fails

Why bargaining with authoritarians fails

Daniel Ziblatt writes: On March 23, 1933, inside a dimly lit chamber filled with the stale scent of cigar smoke, Ludwig Kaas tried to convince himself he was making the right decision. A Catholic priest and the leader of Germany’s establishment Center Party, he stood at a crossroads. For several years, his party had sought to block Adolf Hitler’s rise. But in 1932, Hitler’s National Socialists (Nazis) became the largest force in parliament, and in January 1933, Hitler became chancellor….

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AI companies stand to profit from denying care to patients on Medicare

AI companies stand to profit from denying care to patients on Medicare

The New York Times reports: Like millions of older adults, Frances L. Ayres faced a choice when picking health insurance: Pay more for traditional Medicare, or opt for a plan offered by a private insurer and risk drawn-out fights over coverage. Private insurers often require a cumbersome review process that frequently results in the denial or delay of essential treatments that are readily covered by traditional Medicare. This practice, known as prior authorization, has drawn public scrutiny, which intensified after…

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