Friday, January 02, 2026
Thursday, January 01, 2026
2026
Being honest, 2025 is not a year I will look back on with much fondness. Wishing everyone a very happy and prosperous new year.
Tuesday, December 30, 2025
Russian Casualties Continue to Rise
Over the past 10 months, Russian losses in the war with Ukraine have been growing faster than any time since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, BBC analysis suggests.
As peace efforts intensified in 2025 under pressure from US President Donald Trump's administration, 40% more obituaries of soldiers were published in Russian sources compared with the previous year.
Overall, the BBC has confirmed the names of almost 160,000 people killed fighting on Russia's side in Ukraine.
BBC News Russian has been counting Russian war losses together with independent outlet Mediazona and a group of volunteers since February 2022. We keep a list of named individuals whose deaths we were able to confirm using official reports, newspapers, social media, and new memorials and graves.
The real death toll is believed to be much higher, and military experts we have consulted believe our analysis of cemeteries, war memorials and obituaries might represent 45-65% of the total.
That would put the number of Russian deaths at between 243,000 and 352,000.
Read the rest here.
Saturday, December 27, 2025
Lessons of the Heritage Foundation's Implosion
Over the last two days, there has been a massive wave of resignations and departures of scholars and staff from the Heritage Foundation, once one of the nation's most respected conservative think tanks. Those leaving include the leadership of Heritage's Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, leading economic policy scholars, my former student and Volokh co-blogger Josh Blackman (editor of the Heritage Guide to the Constitution), and more. This wave of departures follows in the wake of others, such as that of Princeton Princeton professor and prominent conservative political theorist Robert George, who resigned from the Heritage Board last month. Many of the Heritage refugees have moved to Advancing American Freedom (AAF), an organization led by former Vice President Mike Pence.
The immediate cause of the exodus was Heritage President Kevin Roberts' defense of anti-Semitic "influencer" Tucker Carlson and his support of Nick Fuentes, an even more virulent anti-Semite. As it has become clear that Roberts refuses to break his ties with Carlson and unequivocally condemn right-wing anti-Semitism, and that the Heritage board won't remove Roberts, more and more people have left Heritage.
Read the rest here.
Army chief says Switzerland can't defend itself from full-scale attack
ZURICH, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Switzerland cannot defend itself against a full-scale attack and must boost military spending given rising risks from Russia, the head of its armed forces said.
The country is prepared for attacks by "non-state actors" on critical infrastructure and for cyber attacks, but its military still faces major equipment gaps, Thomas Suessli told the NZZ newspaper.
"What we cannot do is defend against threats from a distance or even a full-scale attack on our country," said Suessli, who is stepping down at the end of the year.
"It's burdensome to know that in a real emergency, only a third of all soldiers would be fully equipped," he said in an interview published on Saturday.
Switzerland is increasing defence spending, modernising artillery and ground systems and replacing ageing fighter jets with Lockheed Martin F-35As.
But the plan faces cost overruns, while critics question spending on artillery and munitions amid tight federal finances.
Suessli said attitudes towards the military had not shifted despite the war in Ukraine and Russian efforts to destabilise Europe.
He blamed Switzerland's distance from the conflict, its lack of recent war experience and the false belief that neutrality offered protection.
Read the rest here.
Argentina's Congress approves 2026 budget, first under Milei
BUENOS AIRES, Dec 26 - Argentina's Congress passed the 2026 budget on Friday, the first approved by legislators since President Javier Milei took office in late 2023.
The budget, passed 46 votes to 25 with one abstention, includes spending of $102 billion (148 billion Argentine pesos) and projects South America's second-biggest economy will grow 5% with inflation at 10.1%. The bill projects a primary budget surplus equivalent to 1.2% of the gross domestic product.
The 2023 budget was the last one passed by Congress. During the first two years of his term, Milei's government had extended the budget of the previous year without passing a bill in Congress, resulting in sectors being dramatically hit by inflation, which hit an annual rate of almost 300% in April 2024.
According to a report by the Civil Association for Equality and Justice, a Buenos Aires-based think tank, the new budget reflects a 7% increase in real terms from 2025 but a 24.6% drop in real terms compared to the 2023 Congress-approved budget. However, the think tank noted that some inflation projections are significantly higher than the executive branch's forecast.
Milei has ruled with sweeping austerity measures, which have often generated massive protests, and in 2024 Argentina had its first budget surplus in more than a decade. Congress this year overrode Milei's vetoes of bills boosting funding for public universities, pediatric health care and people with disabilities.
While the new budget boosts funding for social services -including health, social security and education - the bump does not compensate for sharp falls over the last several years, the ACIJ report said.
After a strong showing in midterm legislative elections in October, Milei's La Libertad Avanza party gained considerable power in the newly elected Congress, becoming the largest minority in the lower house and increasing its bloc in the Senate. The government hopes that will help it push forward a series of overhauls, including overhauls to the labor and tax systems, in the coming months.
Wealth Tax Floated in California Has Billionaires Thinking of Leaving
Billionaires including Peter Thiel, the tech venture capitalist, and Larry Page, a co-founder of Google, are considering cutting or reducing their ties to California by the end of the year because of a proposed ballot measure that could tax the state’s wealthiest residents, according to five people familiar with their thinking.
Mr. Thiel, 58, who owns a home in the Hollywood Hills and operates a personal investment firm from Los Angeles, has explored opening an office for that firm, Thiel Capital, in another state and spending more time outside California, three of the people said.
Other billionaires who appear to be making moves to decrease their presence in California include Mr. Page, 52, a longtime resident of Palo Alto. He has discussed leaving the state by the end of the year, according to two people briefed on the talks. In mid-December, three limited liability companies associated with Mr. Page filed documents to incorporate in Florida, according to state records.
The moves are being driven by a potential California ballot measure from the health care union, Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, the people said. The proposal calls for California residents worth more than $1 billion to be taxed the equivalent of 5 percent of their assets.
If the measure gains enough signatures to reach the state ballot in November and wins approval, it will retroactively apply to anyone who lived in California as of Jan. 1, 2026. Those with $20 billion in assets who resided in the state on that date would face a one-time tax of $1 billion and have five years to pay it, according to the terms of the measure.
Whether the proposal will reach California’s ballot is far from certain, but some billionaires may be unwilling to take the risk. For Mr. Page, whose net worth is estimated at $258 billion, the measure could result in a one-time tax of more than $12 billion. The tax bill for Mr. Thiel, whose net worth is around $27.5 billion, could be more than $1.2 billion.
Read the rest here.
Thursday, December 25, 2025
Monday, December 22, 2025
Anglican priests are fleeing to Catholicism
Father Matthew Topham, priest-in-charge of St Mary’s, East Hendred in Oxfordshire, is acutely conscious of the weight of Reformation history that comes with his role.
When Henry VIII broke with Rome, East Hendred was one of only a handful of places around the country where Recusant Catholics remained stubbornly loyal to the Pope, risking death by attending Mass in a secret chapel in the local big house. That chapel remains part of Fr Topham’s parish, somewhere he says Mass each week. Yet the 36-year-old Cambridge graduate is no die-hard cradle Catholic but rather a former Anglican curate who converted in 2023 and was then ordained. He is one of 491 Anglican vicars who, over the past 30 years, according to a new report, have “headed to Rome”.
Many of them are now fearful that, as it approaches its 500th anniversary, the Church of England’s days may be numbered given it is riven by division amid the appointment of Dame Sarah Mullaly as its first-ever female Archbishop of Canterbury and a row over same-sex blessings that has set conservatives and liberals at loggerheads.
Authored by Prof Stephen Bullivant of St Mary’s University in Twickenham, the report details how former Anglican clergy have accounted for more than a third of all Catholic ordinations in England and Wales since 1992, when the General Synod (the legislative assembly of the CoE) voted to ordain women.
That decision prompted an exodus of clerics who could not accept female priests. When the Vatican held out its hand to them and offered a special opt-out from its compulsory celibacy rule (if they were already married), the path was open to enable them to continue in ministry as Catholic priests...
Read the rest here.
Gold and Silver Rise Sharply
Gold and silver prices soared to new highs on Monday.
Gold was last seen at a record $4,445.8 per ounce while spot gold was last trading at $4,414.99. Prices are up nearly 70% since the start of the year.
The metal has soared this year, smashing consecutive price records as risk assets lost ground. Gold is typically viewed as a safe haven asset in times of economic or geopolitical turbulence...
Read the rest here.
Reps. Khanna and Massie considering inherent contempt against Bondi
Reps. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said Sunday they are committed to holding Justice Department officials accountable for their failure to release all eligible Jeffrey Epstein files by Friday’s deadline, saying they're speaking with members of Congress about holding Attorney General Pam Bondi in contempt.
"The quickest way, and I think most expeditious way, to get justice for these victims is to bring inherent contempt against Pam Bondi," Massie said Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation" when he was asked how Congress can force the Justice Department to release the rest of the files it has related to Epstein...
Read the rest here.
Trump Appoints Special Envoy to Greenland, Further Angering Denmark
U.S. President Donald Trump appointed Louisiana’s governor as Washington’s special envoy to Greenland, reigniting a fight over the fate of the Arctic island.
Trump, who has long expressed his desire to make self-ruling Danish territory Greenland a part of the U.S., said on his social media platform Truth Social late Sunday that he had appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry “as the United States Special Envoy to Greenland.”
“Jeff understands how essential Greenland is to our National Security, and will strongly advance our Country’s Interests for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Allies, and indeed, the World,” Trump wrote.
Landry, a Republican who has been in office since early 2024, called the “volunteer position” an “honor” in a post on social media and said he would work to “make Greenland a part of the U.S.”
“This in no way affects my position as Governor of Louisiana!” he added.
Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen posted a statement about the appointment on social media, saying “it may seem like a lot” but urging calm and reiterating Greenland’s right to self-determination.
“We will shape our own future,” he added. “Greenland is ours, and our borders will be respected.”
Copenhagen, which retains some authority on matters of foreign policy and security for Greenland, reacted with fury to Trump’s announcement. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told local media he was “deeply outraged” and would summon U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Ken Howery.
Read the rest here.
Sunday, December 21, 2025
Democrats are united in bashing GOP on Obamacare. Medicare for All could reopen a rift.
Progressives are pushing Medicare for All in some of the Democratic Party’s most competitive Senate primaries next year, threatening the unity the party has found on attacking Republicans over expiring Obamacare subsidies.
In Maine, Graham Platner said he’s making Medicare for All a “core part” of his platform in his race against Gov. Janet Mills, the establishment pick who’s called for a universal health care program. In Illinois, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and Rep. Robin Kelly are both championing the concept — and calling out rival Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi for not fully embracing it.
In Minnesota, Medicare for All has emerged as a key distinction between progressive Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and moderate Rep. Angie Craig, who supports adding a public option to the Affordable Care Act rather than Medicare for All. Flanagan said she “absolutely” expects the policy to define the primary because “it doesn’t matter if I’m in the urban core, the suburbs or greater Minnesota — when I say I’m a supporter of Medicare for All, the room erupts.”
And it’s become a flashpoint in Michigan, where physician Abdul El-Sayed, who wrote a book called Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide, is using his signature issue to draw a contrast with Rep. Haley Stevens and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who favor other approaches.
Medicare for All — government-funded health coverage for every American — is “where we need to point to,” El-Sayed said in an interview. “And I think you can galvanize a winning coalition around this issue.”
But some more moderate Democrats worry that progressives’ renewed push for Medicare for All would undermine the party’s recent united front in fighting for an extension of the Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year, leading to a significant spike in insurance costs for millions of Americans. Their effort initially failed in the Senate, but with the help of four vulnerable Republicans who crossed party lines this week, Democrats have now secured a House vote on an extension in January.
“We have a singular message, which is: ‘Don’t let these tax credits go.’ We have Republicans on the ropes,” said a national Democratic strategist who works on Senate races and was granted anonymity to speak candidly. “I don’t think introducing ‘we need MFA’ is the right strategy right now. I think it would be unhelpful.”
Read the rest here.
France Prepares for Russia as US Withdraws
Paris has long worried the United States was an unreliable partner. Donald Trump is proving them right...
...Trump continues to antagonize the United States’ traditional European allies, deriding them as he did in an interview with POLITICO earlier this month as “weak” and a “decaying group of nations.” And for its part, France wants to prove him wrong.
Like many other European nations, France sees Russia has a growing threat to the continent. So it is preparing to defend itself against what the country’s chief of defense staff, Gen. Fabien Mandon, called a “violent test” from Russia in the next three to four years that it would need to counter without much, if any, help from Washington. To do that, France is boosting military spending, increasing weapons production and doubling the reserve forces.
Read the rest here.
UK: Pubs go to war with the Labour Party
abour MPs heading back to their constituencies this weekend will do so with a sense of relief that another turbulent term in British politics is over. But those hoping to pitch up at their local pub for a restorative pint with colleagues and constituents may find festive cheer is in short supply. In fact, some may not be allowed through the door.
For the past few weeks, pubs across the country have been putting up signs declaring “No Labour MPs” in protest at changes to business rates announced by the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, in her latest budget.
The campaign means, for many Labour MPs, there is one less place to escape the bruising reality of their party’s unpopularity. Backbenchers now say they frequently encounter hostility in public spaces after a difficult first 18 months in which the party’s ratings have plummeted from about 34% to 18%.
“It can be hard being the MP of the area you have always lived in,” said one. “The local pub is where we used to go with the kids and just be a normal family. But the last few times we’ve just ended up being shouted at by other customers. Now I’m not even sure we’ll be able to get in.”
That sense of dismay is palpable in a recent video posted by Tom Hayes, the Labour MP for Bournemouth East, about being banned from one of his local pubs, the Larderhouse.
“It’s the Christmas season, it’s meant to be the joyful season,” he said. “But the Larderhouse and other businesses with a No Labour MPs sticker in the window, they are undermining the inclusive culture that business owners locally have helped to nourish.”
He went on to add: “We have to get politics off the high street full stop, but especially at Christmas.”
Read the rest here.
Thursday, December 18, 2025
Economists are skeptical of new inflation numbers
Thursday saw the release of a much lighter-than-expected consumer price report for November, breaking from the recent trend of sticky inflation.
Stocks jumped. Yields fell. Odds of a Federal Reserve rate increased.
And many economists scratched their heads.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the consumer price index had an annual inflation rate of 2.7% last month, while core CPI — a measure that excludes volatile food and energy prices — was even lower at 2.6%. Both were below what economists had been estimating, as those polled by Dow Jones called for an annual headline rate of 3.1% and a rate on core CPI of 3%.
The November data release Thursday was delayed by 8 days because of the U.S. government shutdown, but more importantly, the October data was canceled, leaving it to the BLS to make certain methodological assumptions about the prior month’s inflation levels.
Those assumptions in the methodology were not clear to economists and were not fully explained in the release.
“The downside surprise reflects weakness in both goods and services, but may be partly due to methodological issues. The BLS might have carried forward prices in some categories, effectively assuming 0% inflation,” Michael Gapen, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley, said in a note, deeming the November reading as “noisy” in a way that’s “difficult to draw strong conclusions.”
“If these technical factors are the main source of weakness, we could see reacceleration in December,” Gapen added.
Read the rest here.
Not saying that they are cooking the numbers. But this report has raised a lot of eyebrows. And it's worth remembering that Trump fired the last head of BLS after an unfavorable jobs report.
Kennedy Center to be renamed in honor of Donald Trump
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s handpicked board voted Thursday to rename Washington’s leading performing arts center as the Trump-Kennedy Center, the White House said.
Read the rest here.
No; this is not satire.
Canada Offers Assisted Suicide to Patient they Would Not Treat
Canada’s healthcare system used to be a source of pride for my country. It was regarded as one of the world’s best examples of a publicly-funded insurance system, free at the point of use, ranking highly for accessibility, care, compassion and the treatment of major and minor illnesses.
No longer. In 2024, the influential Commonwealth Fund survey placed Canada in seventh place out of ten developed countries, with a particularly poor score for access to care. In January, the Canada-based CD Howe Institute gave the country’s healthcare system an even gloomier diagnosis: it was placed ninth out of 10 countries, with all provinces and territories falling below the international average for overall healthcare performance.
Now the world has begun to notice. Story after story has emerged of patients failing to receive the treatment they require. But none is quite so chilling as that of Jolene Van Alstine.
Van Alstine, who lives in Regina, Saskatchewan, was diagnosed with a rare form of parathyroid disease eight years ago. She has dealt with many health-related problems, including abdominal pain and extreme bone pain and fractures. “It has been horrific,” she told reporters on Nov 25. “Every day I get up and I’m sick to my stomach and I throw up and I throw up. And then it takes me hours to cool off. I overheat. We have to turn the temperature down to 14 degrees when I get up in the morning.”
Her condition is treatable – said to involve complex surgery to remove her remaining parathyroid gland. But no doctors in Saskatchewan are able to perform it. Her case could have been moved on to a surgeon in a different Canadian province, but she needed to get a referral from an endocrinologist – and none of them are reportedly taking new patients.
This is where the story takes a truly sinister turn. Van Alistine sought approval for MAID, or medical assistance in dying. Worse, she was actually approved for medically-assisted suicide. Her husband, Miles Sundeen, told Global News that “she doesn’t want to die. She’s expressed that”, but he understands her position “after watching her suffer for this length of time”.
Read the rest here.
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