Ukraine’s Operation Spider Web destroyed more than aircraft – it tore apart the old idea that bases far behind the front lines are safe

Ukraine’s Operation Spider Web destroyed more than aircraft – it tore apart the old idea that bases far behind the front lines are safe

A sitting duck? A Russian Tu-160 strategic bomber on the ground on Feb. 22, 2024. Alexander KazakovAFP via Getty Images By Benjamin Jensen, American University School of International Service A series of blasts at airbases deep inside Russia on June 1, 2025, came as a rude awakening to Moscow’s military strategists. The Ukrainian strike at the heart Russia’s strategic bombing capability could also upend the traditional rules of war: It provides smaller military a blueprint for countering a larger nation’s…

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Reducing American antisemitism requires more than condemning opposition to Israel and targeting elite universities

Reducing American antisemitism requires more than condemning opposition to Israel and targeting elite universities

Law enforcement officials dress in protective gear to investigate after an attack on a march in Boulder, Colo., on June 1, 2025, calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza. AP Photo/David Zalubowski By David Mednicoff, UMass Amherst Violent antisemitism in the U.S. isn’t limited to the far right wing of the political spectrum. This was tragically obvious in two recent events – the June 1, 2025, attack using Molotov cocktails to burn participants in a Boulder, Colorado,…

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The Trump regime has shut down more than 100 climate studies

The Trump regime has shut down more than 100 climate studies

MIT Technology Review reports: The Trump administration has terminated National Science Foundation grants for more than 100 research projects related to climate change amid a widening campaign to slash federal funding for scientists and institutions studying the rising risks of a warming world. The move will cut off what’s likely to amount to tens of millions of dollars for studies that were previously approved and, in most cases, already in the works. Affected projects include efforts to develop cleaner fuels,…

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People’s racial and ethnic identities don’t reflect their genetic ancestry

People’s racial and ethnic identities don’t reflect their genetic ancestry

Live Science reports: The racial and ethnic groups people identify with may not accurately represent their genetic backgrounds or ancestries, a new study of people in the United States suggests. This discrepancy between people’s self-reported identities and their genetics is important for scientists to acknowledge as they strive to develop medical treatments tailored to different patients, the researchers behind the study say. “This paper is very important because it clarifies at the highest resolution the relationship between genomic diversity and…

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Michelle Goldberg: I can’t believe anyone thinks Trump actually cares about antisemitism

Michelle Goldberg: I can’t believe anyone thinks Trump actually cares about antisemitism

Michelle Goldberg writes: About a decade ago, conservatives would often denounce Muslim immigration on the grounds that it threatened Western progress on gay rights. This posture, sometimes called homonationalism, got its start in Europe, then made its way into American politics with Donald Trump’s first presidential campaign. In his acceptance speech at the 2016 Republican National Convention, Trump decried the murder of 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., by the Islamist Omar Mateen. “As your president, I…

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Pete Hegseth is targeting a Jewish American hero — who’s next?

Pete Hegseth is targeting a Jewish American hero — who’s next?

Benjamin Ivry writes: On June 3, it was revealed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the Navy to rename a ship that was dedicated in honor of the American Jewish gay rights advocate Harvey Milk. This unusual move was scheduled by the current administration to coincide with Pride Month. A relevant office memo stated that the renaming is in “alignment” with the President, Secretary of Defense, and Secretary of the Navy’s “priorities of reestablishing the warrior culture.” Among reactions…

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Trump losing patience with Musk’s outbursts over tax bill

Trump losing patience with Musk’s outbursts over tax bill

The Wall Street Journal reports: President Trump is losing patience with Elon Musk after the billionaire attacked Republicans’ sprawling tax-and-spending bill. Musk is irked about Trump’s decision to withdraw the nomination of a key ally to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The result is a fraying relationship between two of the world’s most powerful men. A senior White House official said Trump wasn’t happy about Musk’s decision to lambaste his signature legislation, describing the president as confused as…

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The democratic exclusion dilemma

The democratic exclusion dilemma

Andrei Popoviciu writes: From Bucharest’s corporate high-rise districts to its crumbling housing blocks, from sleepy suburbs in the flatlands to misty Transylvanian villages where the sheep outnumber voters, and others holding NATO bases and absorbing European Union funds, I crisscrossed my home country of Romania ahead of its May presidential election to speak to voters about the choices they were about to make. What I found was a country gripped by anxiety, suspicion, fear and a growing sense that democracy…

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‘The intern in charge’: Meet the 22-year-old Trump’s team picked to lead terrorism prevention

‘The intern in charge’: Meet the 22-year-old Trump’s team picked to lead terrorism prevention

By Hannah Allam This story was originally published by ProPublica When Thomas Fugate graduated from college last year with a degree in politics, he celebrated in a social media post about the exciting opportunities that lay beyond campus life in Texas. “Onward and upward!” he wrote, with an emoji of a rocket shooting into space. His career blastoff came quickly. A year after graduation, the 22-year-old with no apparent national security expertise is now a Department of Homeland Security official…

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‘Big Balls,’ Edward Coristine, is officially a full-time government employee

‘Big Balls,’ Edward Coristine, is officially a full-time government employee

Wired reports: Although Elon Musk has said that he is largely exiting his role at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), at least three of his early operatives and key lieutenants throughout his government takeover have recently become full-time government employees. Edward Coristine, Luke Farritor, and Ethan Shaotran’s employment designations at the General Services Administration (GSA) have been officially converted to full-time from the restricted special government employee classification that limited their time in government to a period of…

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Ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects

Ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects

The Guardian reports: Reports of falling insect numbers around the world are not new. International reviews have estimated annual losses globally of between 1% and 2.5% of total biomass every year. Widespread use of pesticides and fertilisers, light and chemical pollution, loss of habitat and the growth of industrial agriculture have all carved into their numbers. Often, these were deaths of proximity: insects are sensitive creatures, and any nearby source of pollution can send their populations crumbling. But what [Daniel]…

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Trump follows Soviet Union and Nazis in an effort to control science

Trump follows Soviet Union and Nazis in an effort to control science

The New York Times reports: Who could argue with setting a “gold standard” for science? Actually, thousands of scientists from around the country. President Trump has ordered what he called a restoration of a “gold standard science” across federal agencies and national laboratories. But the May 23 executive order puts his political appointees in charge of vetting scientific research and gives them the authority to “correct scientific information,” control the way it is communicated to the public and the power…

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Trump employs antisemitism to serve his political interests

Trump employs antisemitism to serve his political interests

Peter Baker writes: In the Oval Office one day last week, President Trump renewed his no-holds-barred attack on the nation’s oldest university. “They’re totally antisemitic at Harvard,” he declared. Just 10 hours later, he posted an image of himself striding down a street with the caption, “He’s on a mission from God and nothing can stop what is coming.” Shown in the shadows, watching with approval, was a cartoon figure commonly seen as an antisemitic symbol. The appearance of the figure, the alt-right mascot…

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U.S. scientists warn that Trump’s cuts will set off a brain drain

U.S. scientists warn that Trump’s cuts will set off a brain drain

The New York Times reports: Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science. He arrived in Los Angeles in 1986 at age 18 after fleeing war-torn Lebanon. He spent a year writing for an Armenian newspaper and delivering Domino’s at night to become eligible for the University of California, where he earned his undergraduate degree and a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroscience. He started a lab at Scripps Research in San Diego with…

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