US politics

By Eric Ross ( Tomdispatch.com ) – In recent months, nuclear weapons have reemerged in global headlines. Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan approached the brink of a full-scale war, a confrontation that could have become an extinction-level event, with the potential to claim up to two billion lives worldwide. The instability of a global order […]

Climate Crisis

Trump’s Terrorism against the Planet

Tom Engelhardt

( Tomdispatch.com ) – Yes, he’s done quite a job so far and, in a way, it couldn’t be simpler to describe. Somehow he’s managed to take the greatest looming threat to humanity and put it (excuse the all-too-appropriate image) on the back burner. I’m thinking, of course, about climate change. My guess is that […]

Asian-Americans

Zohran Mamdani’s last Name reflects Centuries of intercontinental Trade, Migration and cultural Exchange

The Conversation

By Iqbal Akhtar, Florida International University (The Conversation) – When Zohran Mamdani announced his candidacy for mayor of New York City, political observers noted his progressive platform and legislative record. But understanding the Democratic candidate’s background requires examining the rich cultural tapestry woven into his very surname: Mamdani. He takes the name from his father, […]

Donald Trump

Trump Brings back Torture, Big Time

Rebecca Gordon

( Tomdispatch.com ) – I didn’t want to write this article. In fact, I had something relatively uplifting planned: an Independence Day piece about the rich implications for the present moment to be found in the Declaration of Independence. But other excellent writers beat me to that one. So instead, I reluctantly find myself once […]

Donald Trump

War Criminal Netanyahu nominates Felon Trump for the Nobel Prize

H. Scott Prosterman

Oakland, Ca. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – When I read about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nominating convicted felon Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, my inclination was to write a piece of satire about it. But that would be redundant. Comedian Ronny Chieng mined for the dark humor saying, “Yes, a Peace […]

Artificial Intelligence

Grok’s MechaHitler Antisemitic Rant shows how Generative AI can be Weaponized

The Conversation

By James Foulds, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Phil Feldman, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Shimei Pan, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (The Conversation) – The AI chatbot Grok went on an antisemitic rant on July 8, 2025, posting memes, tropes and conspiracy theories used to denigrate Jewish people on the X platform. It […]

Donald Trump

Did the US and Israeli Attack leave the Islamic Republic of Iran Stronger?

The Conversation

By Bamo Nouri, City St George’s, University of London (The Conversation) – Israel’s attack on Iran last month and the US bombing of the country’s nuclear facilities, the first-ever direct US attacks on Iranian soil, were meant to cripple Tehran’s strategic capabilities and reset the regional balance. The strikes came after 18 months during which […]

China

Trump never saw a Wind Farm in China, but Beijing has half of all Installed Wind Capacity and will Eat America’s Lunch in this Industry

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The dufus-in-chief perorated on Friday once again on wind power, complaining that the components are made in China but that “I have never seen a wind farm in China. Why is that? Somebody check that out.” His just-passed tax bill eliminates federal incentives for the industry, ensuring a vast slow-down […]

Donald Trump

Between Two Enemies: Syria’s Silence in the Israel-Iran Conflicts

Daanish Faruqi

( Aljumhuriya ) – Even as a ceasefire has, for now, calmed tensions between Israel and Iran, Trump’s decision to officially join Israel’s war effort has been illuminating on a multitude of fronts. In particular, it revealed how quickly Iran was able to cultivate global support for its sovereignty and multiple calls for restraint, particularly […]