Category Archives: Banana republic

Lack of Grownups in the Room Exacerbates Bank Freakout

The bank firefighting squad seems to be out on a bender.

California’s Covid Misinformation Law Is Entangled in Lawsuits, Conflicting Rulings

California’s Covid censorship law has not yet been killed by the judiciary, sadly.

Were the Bank Bailouts the Result of Rising Wealth Concentration?

Are many of the explanations of the recent bank tsuris barkign up the wrong tree?

The High and Getting Higher Cost of Renting in the US

Why renting is even more expensive than ever, even pinching the soi-disant middle class.

The Not-So-Winding Road from Iraq to Ukraine

“Fool me once, shame on thee. Fool me twice, shame on me.” The Global Soutn has wised up in the wake of the war in Iraq.

A Feminist Demand on International Women’s Day: Fire Victoria Nuland

If feminists support this Bush-era neocon simply because she is a woman, Victoria Nuland might just burn down the world in a nuclear fire.

Secret Power and the Persecution of Julian Assange

Stefania Maurizi’s “Secret Power: Wikileaks and its Enemies” chronicles Wikileaks’ publications and the dehumanization of Julian Assange.

Salve Lucrum: The Existential Threat of Greed in US Health Care

A big reason US health sucks is that the government refuses to crack down on abuses like price gouging and billing games.

How Private Equity Bribes Public Pension Fund Officials: Subsidized/Fund-Paid Lavish Travel and Entertainment

Yet more private equity corruption! And see how little it costs to buy the assent of public pension fund employees.

Turkish President Erdoğan’s Grip on Power Threatened by Devastating Earthquake

The massive February 6 earthquake weakened Erdogan’s already not-so-hot re-election prospects. What now?

‘Absolute Hypocrisy’: GOP Unveils Bill to Make Trump Tax Cuts Permanent While Howling About Debt

The point of the debt ceiling melodrama is to give fiscal hawks another whack at budget-cutting. Tax increase are therefore off the table.

The Gas Stove Panic

The recent Biden campaign to restrict gas stove in homes is decidely inorganic. What might be behind it?

Is Civilization at Stake in Ukraine?

An effort to deflate the hype over the probable loss of the war by Ukraine does not go far enough.

Seymour Hersh: Navy Divers + Spooks + Norway Took Out Nord Stream 2 on Biden’s Orders, Using Timer

~~Colonel Mustard in the Library with the Candlestick~~ Spooks and divers in the Baltic with the C4.

How the Left Should Exercise Power Once They Have It

Another episode in the long-running soap opera, “Can the Left Be Saved?”