Lambert and I, and many readers, agree that Ukraine has prompted the worst informational environment ever. We hope readers will collaborate in mitigating the fog of war — both real fog and stage fog — in comments. None of us need more cheerleading and link-free repetition of memes; there are platforms for that. Low-value, link-free pom pom-wavers will be summarily whacked.
And for those who are new here, this is not a mere polite request. We have written site Policies and those who comment have accepted those terms. To prevent having to resort to the nuclear option of shutting comments down entirely until more sanity prevails, as we did during the 2015 Greek bailout negotiations and shortly after the 2020 election, we are going to be ruthless about moderating and blacklisting offenders.
–Yves
P.S. Also, before further stressing our already stressed moderators, read our site policies:
Please do not write us to ask why a comment has not appeared. We do not have the bandwidth to investigate and reply. Using the comments section to complain about moderation decisions/tripwires earns that commenter troll points. Please don’t do it. Those comments will also be removed if we encounter them.
Professional Bears Certify Equipment As Bearproof Cracked
You weren’t supposed to see that The Reformed Broker
Whistleblowers accuse EY of whitewashing suspicious trades at longstanding client FT
Opec oil production cuts bad for global economy, says Janet Yellen FT. Yves: “Oh, the US is fine with killing demand when the Fed and ECB do it, but not OPEC.”
Why Governments Go Off the Rails Foreign Policy. Case studies.
Climate
The Edge of Ice and Sea Orion
Lung Cancer in Nonsmokers? Study Identifies Air Pollution as a Trigger Inside Climate News
The ‘hurricane tax’: How Ian is pushing Florida’s home insurance market toward collapse Grist
#COVID19
As Omicron mutates wildly the virus shows first signs of convergent evolution New Atlas
Vaccines alone cannot slow the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 (preprint) medRxiv. From the Abstract: “As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage worldwide, it is generally hypothesized that the next phase of the crisis will involve a widely-circulating disease with limited virulence. This belief, often articulated as “learning to live with COVID”, assumes that vaccines can be used to keep the fatality rate of COVID-19 infections in check even in the face of high levels of viral transmission. Over the past year, however, the rapid emergence of immuneevading viral variants of SARS-CoV-2 has cast a pall over this vision of the future.”
Few Americans get new covid booster shot ahead of projected winter surge WaPo
China?
The World According to Xi Jinping Foreign Affairs
A new model for Chinese growth FT. Commentary:
3/9
Specifically, it requires that China shift from a growth model in which households are structurally locked into transfers that subsidize government and businesses to one in which government and businesses are structurally locked into transfers that subsidize households.— Michael Pettis (@michaelxpettis) October 9, 2022
Global Impact: 20th party congress preparations enter final leg South China Morning Post
Tesla hits China sales record as Beijing praises Musk’s Taiwan proposal FT
Myanmar
Litmus test Asian Affairs
Syraqistan
Neom: Saudi Arabia sentences tribesmen to death for resisting displacement Middle East Eye
Dear Old Blighty
Brits are turning back to using cash due to cost of living crisis as Post Office reports record handling of £3.45bn in notes and coins in August Daily Mail. Thin on detail, however.
On John Lennon’s Birthday, a Few Words About War Matt Taibbi, TK News
New Not-So-Cold War
Ukraine military claims it shot down 41 of 75 missiles fired by Russia and Multiple explosions hit central Kyiv and other cities in wave of Russian attacks Guardian. As of this writing, from the Guardian live blog.
Donald Trump, antiwar spokesperson:
Trump on Ukraine: “We must demand the immediate negotiation of a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine or we will end up in World War Three. And there will be nothing left of our planet — all because stupid people didn’t have a clue… They don’t understand the power of nuclear.” pic.twitter.com/sCAqUVhQQl
— Phil Stewart (@phildstewart) October 9, 2022
Where’s the lie? Trump says the unsayable once again (unlike the Squad, Sanders, et al.).
* * * Investigative Committee: The terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge was staged by the Ukrainian special services (translation) Aftershock News (original). Yandex will do what Google will not….
Attacks Expose Vulnerability of European Infrastructure Der Spiegel. Finding the real killer….
Patrick Lawrence: Sins of Silence ScheerPost
* * * Zelensky: Russian officials starting to ‘prepare their society’ for use of nuclear weapons The Hill. From Mr. Pre-emptive Strike himself.
A Good And Righteous Proxy War Wouldn’t Need Such Cartoonish PR Caitlin’s Newsletter
The Origins of the Ukraine War Policy Tensor
Lula Vote Was Hit By Unexpected Abstentions. Are Bannon Tactics In Play? BrasilWire
Biden Administration
A New National Security Strategery is Coming! The Liberal Patriot
Trump’s shadiness doesn’t mean it was OK to give Hunter Biden a pass NBC
Activists Acquitted In Trial For Taking Piglets From Smithfield Foods The Intercept (Furzy Mouse). It seems Trumka was right about jury trials, though Smithfield will certainly appeal.
Democrats en Déshabillé
Why Nancy Pelosi Sabotaged Wildly Popular Bipartisan Legislation Slate
Healthcare
Study suggests how measles depletes body’s immune memory Harvard Gazette
Everything but #MedicareForAll:
Medical students at the University of Minnesota must now take an oath to “honor all Indigenous ways of healing that have been historically marginalized by Western medicine” and fight “white supremacy, colonialism, [and] the gender binary.” pic.twitter.com/DSiQz9BUx8
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) October 9, 2022
Tech
Why The Internet Needs the Interplanetary File System IEEE Spectrum
The GIF Is on Its Deathbed The Atlantic
Police State Watch
665 FBI employees left agency after misconduct investigations: whistleblower disclosure The HIll
Inmate in Georgia’s maximum security prison accused of impersonating billionaires to steal millions Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Class Warfare
The broken US economy breeds inequality and insecurity. Here’s how to fix it James K. Galbraith, Guardian
Our very own New Zealand:
Data confirm what many Montanans have already noticed. Lots more “rich” people live in Montana. Between 2019-2021, the number of MT HHs earning over $200K increased by nearly 12,000, a 63% increase. In percentage terms, massively more than any other state. pic.twitter.com/XqmdmQxAmb
— Bryce Ward (@bryceaward) October 8, 2022
(HH = Head of Household.) Yes, bunker contractors.
Neuroscientists Unravel the Mystery of Why You Can’t Tickle Yourself Wired
William Shatner: My Trip to Space Filled Me With ‘Overwhelming Sadness’ (EXCLUSIVE) Variety
The Right to Leave Harpers
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
