World’s Largest Steam Locomotive Weighs 1.2 million pounds. Now, A History Train May Be Coming to Your Town Smithsonian Magazine
Sublime unnatural Mini Philosophy
Astronomers Find Sugar in Interstellar Space for the First Time Sci News. But no spice?
Climate/Environment
Speech slide deck: Have we entered the new normal? Weather Not Covered
How to Handle a Rain Bomb New York City Policy Forum. “In New York City, the four worst weather events have all occurred in the last four years.”
Wildfires destroy Spain, France and Italy, kill three firefighters in France24
An epidemic
Measles cases in the US reached a new Science news for 34 years
Why the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history is a challenge for the AP
Water
‘Five-alarm fire’: Western reservoirs supplying California fall to record lows Los Angeles Times
Japan
JPMorgan, other US banks are set to help finance Japan’s $550 billion investment plan, sources told Reuters.
China?
‘Splitting’: Trump’s Boeing deal sparks turmoil with Beijing Politico
Made “in” China? – Shi Zhan on RMB Appreciation and Building “China’s Reputation” in Offenses Abroad
The Gulf’s China Foreign Affairs Crisis. At least in its problems?
Southeast Asia
When the Indonesian Middle Class Goes to the Streets FULCRUM
India
Student protests against Modi’s operation, spread across India TRT World
India’s fertilizer dependency leaves agriculture vulnerable East Asia Forum
Syracistan
Israel Fired Up Family’s Home Where Children Were Sleeping in Latest Killing Dump
This was almost non-existent, but it should be much more. Israel destroyed medical facilities in Gaza. Patients die every day. It will not allow Gazans to rebuild their hospitals and it will not allow them to discharge patients.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court,…
— Shaiel Ben-Ephraim (@academic_la) July 20, 2026
Almost half of the Israeli government joins the march vowing to occupy Gaza +972 Magazine
I am a student of Genocide. We are entering a Terrible New Era. New York Times
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Without safeguards, Trump approves Saudi nuclear deal to enrich New Arab uranium
Houthis Resume Shipping Attacks, Claim Attack on Two Saudi Tankers gCaptain
Islamabad condemns Houthis’ threats to Riyadh, warns against targeting Pakistan’s maritime interests DAWN
Aurangzeb demands $10bn support from US DAWN
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Iran’s Missiles Alone Will Not End America’s Presence in the Middle East Kautilya the Contemplator
As the war between Iran and the US escalates, the Kurdish invasion ‘plot’ is renewed in Amwaj’s attention
Africa
ECOWAS Supports Morocco-Nigeria Atlantic Gas Pipeline Project L’Intelligencer
The Trump administration is weighing military options in Mali, officials told WaPo
Old Blighty
More thoughts on Andy Burnham as PM Cooper Lee Press
The breakup of Europe
The EU is set to bow to new US tariffs after the current regime expires Euronews
Washington doesn’t want Europe to talk about American tech “kill switch” Reuters
Chartbook 460 Greedflation meets China shock: Can the European auto industry be saved without making the cost of living crisis worse? Adam Tooze
The New Cold War
Iran strikes on CIA facilities raise questions about Russia’s possible role Reuters The results are absorbing.
The US is committed to helping end the war in Ukraine but there is no immediate deal, Rubio said after meeting with Lavrov NBC News Russia
Euronext #wheat for the previous month just hit the highest since June 2024 and the CBOT is about to re-close to $7 a handle.
The market is finally paying attention to the Black Sea / Azov Sea disturbance.
Here’s what we wrote last week: “Until Russia finds an effective way to expel Ukraine… pic.twitter.com/H1v39jysPG
— Andrey Sizov (@sizov_andre) July 22, 2026
A military revolution? Events in Ukraine
Imperial Collapse Watch
US Polar Security Cutter Delayed to 2033 as $6 Billion High Cost, GAO Warns Captain
The impact of private finance on US productivity The Private Equity Stakeholder Project
GM is quietly becoming a Business Insider subscriber
Have nothing, upgrade everything: New Apple deal for Klarna Computer World
iOS 27 code suggests Apple could restrict leased devices after missed payments 9to5 Mac
Epstein’s story
Epstein case: French model scout and hired suspect found dead Le Monde
South of the Border
Why won’t the Pentagon say if it uses AI to blow up boats in the Caribbean? After Action Report
Latin America’s shift to the right is boosting investor confidence, BMI says Intellinews
Greater Democracy
The billionaires behind Ramaswamy’s smear campaign are Oligarch Watch
‘Very Different Level’ of Spending Billions on California Capital & Main
Pentagon proposes new secret powers to seize records not covered by public access laws CBS News
REVIEWING CONSTITUTIONAL OBLIGATION DURING INTERREGNUM LPE WORK
Trump 2.0
House passes reconciliation bill for Pentagon expansion, Hill votes limits. Also House Passes 2027 NDAA With Section To Unite US And Israel Military Antiwar
‘Politically impossible situation’: New poll shows Trump voters growing impatient with Iran war Politico
Little Red Scare 2.0 Unpopular Front
The Trump administration asked how they considered Antifa a Foreign Terrorist Organization – since it’s not clear what “Antifa” is:
“In fact, a foreign terrorist organization, we must have 3 parts: It must be foreign; it must be terrorists; it must be an organization. pic.twitter.com/CsHZCCMU2O— Prem Thakker (@prem_thakker) July 21, 2026
Democracies are simple
This is a dumb trick the Dem Party has used on their supporters for years now.
If something they pretend to oppose “must pass” (like the NDAA), they make sure there are enough Dem votes to pass, even if it’s just one vote.
Then they tell all the other Dems:…
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) July 22, 2026
The GOP Funhouse
The fossil fuel money behind the GOP wildfire blame game is HOT
The AI
What happened recently at TheNumbers.com should concern all of us Stephen Follows
HuggingFace’s confusing OpenAI hack Gary Marcus
Big Brother is Watching You
Herd ‘Targets Out Their Resources’: Emails Reveal Why City Is Putting Bags On Its Cameras 404 Media
Police State Watch
ICE Is Arresting More People Than Ever According to Latest Data Austin Kocher
Academe qualifications
Rural NY School District Will Be One of First to Bring Humanoid Robot to Classroom New York Focus
“FREE”
RFK Jr. says cyclosporiasis outbreak ‘under control’ as Mexico casts doubt on link to Taylor Farms facility NBC News
You Can Blame The Government For Diarrhea Lettuce Bon Appetit
Casino Nation
Kalshi comes in biopharma, with speculative markets for clinical trials and FDA approvals for STAT
America’s Future Nurses Bet on Kalshi to Pay for School Clasp
The Only Thing That Congress Has Blocked Itself, Can We Rule?
Class War
A homeless man has been charged with camping. He is one of the original NPR. Crossing yet another Rubicon when returning to serfdom.
SoCal cities make landlords pay when rent increases drive tenants out. Then came the courts
BREAKING: HUD PLANS TO CONCLUDE FINANCIAL AID FOR HOUSING QUESTIONS BY KEEPING IT OFF Disaster Notes
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s links and the Antidote du Jour here.
