A new pest threatens Italy’s risotto dish: the flamingo The Independent
Eight healthy babies born after IVF using DNA from three people The Guardian
To Raise Children, We Must First Raise Parents Sapiens
Climate/Environment
The summer of flash flooding continues Balanced Weather
There have been varying meteorological forces behind recent extreme rainfall events, but they are all connected by very unusual amounts of moisture pulsing above the United States.
Precipitable water, a measure of the total amount of water in the atmosphere, has been above the… pic.twitter.com/ezPGILjEhG
— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) July 16, 2025
Monday night’s one hour rainfall in NYC ranked 2nd…Only behind Ida. That this happened without a tropical system is significant and shows our new reality. The top 3 wettest one hour rainfalls for NYC in the past 156 years have all happened in the past four years. pic.twitter.com/6MKxJaNHeX
— John Davitt (@johndavittontv) July 15, 2025
Floods and cause-specific mortality in the United States applying a triply robust approach Nature
Water
What water can teach us about resistance and survival The Breach
China?
Trump Softens Tone on China to Secure Xi Summit and a Trade Deal Bloomberg
US approved Nvidia H20 sales to China because Huawei already makes equivalent chips: US treasury secretary Global Times
US set to ban Chinese technology in submarine cables FT
U.S. to Construct Philippine Fast Boat Base Near South China Sea Flashpoints US Naval Institute News
Syraqistan
U.S. calls on Israel to investigate killing of Palestinian-American young man by Israeli settlers Mondoweiss
Debt ridden Eilat Port to close Sunday Globes
Twelve nations commit to ‘unprecedented measures’ holding Israel accountable for genocide The Cradle
***
France, UK and Germany would restore UN sanctions on Iran next month without progress on a deal AP
U.S./Iran talks on ice Diplomatic, by Laura Rozen
Why the U.S. Only Wants Hezbollah’s Precision Weapons, Not Its Full Disarmament Elijah J. Magnier
Clashes in Iraqi Kurdistan show power of tribes acting outside state control Amwaj
Concern grows in Iran as Azerbaijan hosts Syria’s new leaders Amwaj
***
Israeli army prepares ‘prolonged operation’ in Syria following massive attack on Damascus The Cradle
Syria says pulling troops from Druze heartland after US request Channel News Asia
Here we go. Syrian regime jihadists attacked a Shia town in Homs and indiscriminately shot at civilians. At least 3 killed so far. Either Joulani lost control over these savages or he’s deliberately working on destabilizing Syria. They can’t fight Israel so they kill minorities
— Hadi (@HadiNasrallah) July 17, 2025
It’s not like the analysts have not predicted that Syria’s governance will be fragmented and it will be a failed state based on US strategy in the region
Here’s an Iranian analyst a while back: pic.twitter.com/57BwU5Whob
— Soureh 🇮🇷🇵🇸 (@Soureh_design2) July 16, 2025
Israel’s Bombing Of Damascus Is Aimed At Turkey Moon of Alabama
Jailed İstanbul mayor convicted over remarks criticizing controversial prosecutor Turkish Minute
Old Blighty
UK GOVERNMENT SECRETLY PAID FOREIGN YOUTUBE STARS FOR ‘PROPAGANDA’ Declassified UK
Britain’s secretive fund for spies comes out of the shadows Politico
There’s lots of numbers that detail the shocking state of the UK but this one – that in England in 2011 seventeen (17) people waited over 12 hours in A&E before being admitted and now it’s >140,000 people every 3 months – really is astounding and shameful pic.twitter.com/4qXSwqtTkd
— Nate Bear (@NateB_Panic) July 16, 2025
European Disunion
Cohesion crunch: Europe’s regions brace for loss of catch-up funds Euractiv
Commission’s budget proposal delivers blow to climate and nature EU Business
Hungarian farmers dump manure at EU headquarters in protest at planned cuts in CAP funds Intellinews
EU eyes defense spending boost in trillion-dollar budget UPI
New Not-So-Cold War
Ukraine war briefing: Weapons will be Europe’s support to Ukraine – not Trump’s, Kallas suggests The Guardian
France, Italy reportedly opt out of US-NATO arms deal for Ukraine Kyiv Independent
Can the U.S. Arm Itself and Ukraine? Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Neocon outfit says “absolutely!”
Trump’s ultimatum isn’t an ultimatum – and Moscow knows it RT
Ukraine wing of US-founded terrorist group says it was involved in killing of intelligence officer in Kyiv The Guardian
Moldova: pro-EU government turns increasingly authoritarian Gert-Ewen Ungar
L’affaire Epstein
Trump calls Epstein controversy a “Hoax” and “bulls***,” denouncing “weaklings” in GOP CBS News
Unlike Jeffrey Epstein, Donald Trump Commits Political Suicide Larry Johnson
Maurene Comey, daughter of ex-FBI Director James, fired from top US Attorney’s Office job after working Diddy, Epstein cases New York Post
Trump 2.0
Trump says he’s ‘highly unlikely’ to fire Fed’s Powell after floating that idea in private AP
Well would you look at that.
2 *perfectly* timed trades shorting the Dollar and then longing the Dollar *right before* Trump leaked that he was firing Powell, and then TACO’d 30 minutes later.
10:54 AM (first red circle), heavy shorting pressure on the USD/EUR begins out of… pic.twitter.com/KVls3lHUpm
— Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) July 16, 2025
Trump Expands Lavish Tax Dodge for Silicon Valley VCs and Private Equity Lee Fang
MAHA
NIH official fired amid probe of contract used to potentially hire spouse, officials say WaPo
2028
Scoop: RFK Jr.’s PAC stirs, fueling speculation on a 2028 campaign Axios
Democrats en déshabillé
Turning Trump-hate into gold Unherd
Antitrust
Union Pacific has hired bankers for a possible railroad bid Semafor
AI
We’re Starting to Sound Like ChatGPT — And We Don’t Even Realize It ZME Science
How the brain turns our intended words into the sounds of speech EurekAlert!
Police State Watch
ICE LAWYERS ARE HIDING THEIR NAMES IN IMMIGRATION COURT The Intercept
US deports immigrants to African country of Eswatini amid rights concerns Al Jazeera
Trump Admin’s Focus on Child Labor After California Raids Is a Bait and Switch Truthout
Trump’s Concentration Camps Are Not New to the U.S. Black Agenda Report
Two Days Talking to People Looking for Jobs at ICE n+1. The money quote: “What he was really interested in, he said, was parlaying his wages as a deportation officer into buying Airbnbs.”
When Do You Need to Quit Your Job? Hamilton Nolan
Imperial Collapse Watch
Hegseth’s New Dress Code of Honor Ken Klippenstein
The State Department Between Rubio’s Cuts and Structural Limitations Sawahil
Trump’s Shipbuilding Push Falters as NSC Maritime Office Gutted Reuters
The enshittification of American hegemony Programmable Mutter
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Lavrov’s Tianjin Post-SCO Council of Foreign Ministers Presser Karl Sanchez. “On the SCO’s terrorism and international crime fighting aspect, I await a statement aimed at the West’s direct and deep involvement —IMO, it’s imperative that CIA, MI6, and other “agencies” be publicly called out for the crimes they commit and foment.”
Iran Proposes Formation of Shanghai Regional Security Assembly Tasnim
Pashinyan shared details on why Armenia decided to join SCO News.am
Gunz
‘Amazon of guns’ backed by Donald Trump Jr sinks on stock market debut FT
Our Famously Free Press
Burying Genocide – The BBC, Gaza And The Role Of The UK Media Lens
Supply Chain
Lightning declines over shipping lanes following regulation of fuel sulfur emissions Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Screening Room
Why Modern Movies Have Become Awash in Increasingly Desaturated Colors Laughing Squid
The Bezzle
Is your future pension safe? System Change
Class Warfare
Hard Truths About the US Labor Movement: An Interview with Chris Townsend MR Online
United Farm Workers Not Backing Wildcat Strikes – SEIU Calls August 12th Strike – LA Bus Drivers Won’t Cooperate With ICE Payday Report
Higher Ground Working Class Storytelling
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
