Opinion | She’s a Democratic Bellwether, and She’s Changing Her Position on Israel

"Elite opinion is a lagging indicator." (Good piece, and just as true of opinion writing.) www.nytimes.com/2025/08/08/o...

But they rammed it through anyway. The harm to our health care, research capacity, innovation capacity, and centers of education were not deemed important the first time around.

Obviously there is even less interest in those harms this time.

The earlier rule was vociferously opposed by the American Medical Association, the American Hospital Association, the American Council on Education, the Association of American Universities, the Center for Security and Emerging Technology, and many others

E.g. —>

How do we know they'll ignore public outcry about the damage, and ram it through quickly?

Because in 2020 the same people ignored the fact that *99 percent* of the public comments on the same proposed rule opposed these draconian, harmful restrictions.

www.federalregister.gov/d/2021-13929

Important correction from expert @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social —> the rule will not 'enter force' this week. It will enter force very soon, public comments perfunctorily received, and then quickly enter force despite those comments.

The people controlling the White House are ensuring that it is riskier and riskier to come to the United States to study, to invest the world's talent in America.

The brightest people in the world can, will, and should choose other countries, countries that value them.

These actions, in combination with the wide range of other attacks on international students in the United States, make it clear that the White House considers these brilliant young people categorically harmful.

And will treat them as such.

The rule will mean vast new administrative burdens on requests for new visas.

What happens when the government simply doesn't invest the resources to process these on time?

Students will simply be forced out. In the middle of their degrees.

nfap.com/wp-content/u...

The @aau.edu warned of tremendous harm when the same rule was attempted in 2020.

It will impact more than a third of all international students collectively, and almost all PhD students.

www.aau.edu/sites/defaul...

This Administration tried to push through similar restrictions late in 2020, but the clock ran out.

Universities at that time sounded the alarm, noting that this would push away the best international students, en masse.

www.acenet.edu/Documents/Co...

Is there any evidence whatsoever that it was harming the United States—in the smallest way—for brilliant young people from overseas who are years in to the PhD to be allowed to stay here to complete it? And trust that this country would allow them to?

Of course not. It's made up.

They'll have to apply for a new visa midway through, after all of that work and risky sacrifice.

At which point the US government can just say, "Nope, we're not letting you stay, and we don't have to give you a reason".

Many—rightly risk-averse—will understand they're not wanted, and stay away.

So every foreign student coming to do a PhD at a US university—some of the best and brightest young minds in the world!—will no longer know they have *permission* to even be in the US until they graduate.

This anti-Conservative policy erases the policy of Republican and Democratic Administrations, since 1979, to grant student visas for 'duration of status'—until the students complete their studies.

The White House is taking new steps to undermine every international student at our universities.

It has approved a new rule restricting student visas to 4 years max. That's not long enough for PhD students, or about half of undergrads, to finish their degree.

Likely to enter force within days.

NYT: President’s Criticism of Putin Shows Turn in His Approach on Ukraine Published July 8, 2025

NYT, July 8, 2025: Trump’s Frustration With Putin Preceded Resumption of U.S. Weapons to Ukraine President Trump lashed out at the Russian leader on Tuesday, signaling a change in his posture toward the conflict.

NYT, July 15, 2025: In His Own Words: How Trump Changed His Tone on Putin and the War in Ukraine After years of lavishing praise on the Russian leader, President Trump abruptly changed his posture amid mounting frustration with the lack of progress on a cease-fire.

NYT, July 15, 2025: Republicans in Congress Shift to Backing Ukraine, Matching Trump’s Reversal After years pressing to end U.S. aid to Ukraine, many Republicans have abandoned that position now that President Trump is supporting the country against Russian aggression.

The New York Times and other mainstream US media were quick to buy, praise, and play up Trump’s supposed shift on Ukraine.

A month later, Trump is going to a meeting with Putin, and speaking of territorial concessions, as if parts of Ukraine are Trump’s to trade away.

No real shift or change.

Opinion | Why Putin may call Trump's bluff President Trump wanted to play hero in the Russia-Ukraine war. Vladimir Putin won't allow it.

If more US “weapons shipments and intel sharing with Ukraine, stepped up economic pressure on Russia, and real, sustained solidarity with NATO and democratic Europe, only then will it be true that Trump has changed his Putin-sympathetic position.”

-Me last month. Panned out. Not the hardest call.

Chicken drumsticks that looks like a very tired E.T.

E.T. really needs to phone home now!

Investigation | Holding the line: Auditing the EU’s ban of Russian state media 3 years on

By @isdglobal.org www.isdglobal.org/digital_disp...

I mean the NAACP does and will represent them if the civil rights of a member of Blacks for Trump are violated. Therefore the ADL should represent anti-Zionist Jews if their civil rights are violated. Problem is, the ADL agrees with the violation of the civil rights of anti-Zionist Jews.

”’Debattstilen från Mellanöstern fyller nu svenska gator och torg och alla stora onlineforum’, skriver Busch.” (Hämtat från omni) Alla vet att debatten är affektivt polariserad, i Sverige liknar den nog mest USA. Men detta är en (inte särskilt diskret) hundvissling. Inte en utsaga om verkligheten.

One of the few Israelis with a direct line to Gazans urges public to confront horrors ***

Please read the interview that Nir Hasson did with Assaf David in Haaretz. It's really important www.haaretz.com/israel-news/...

Trump was elected as part of a backlash to high grocery prices. Here's why raising those grocery prices with tariffs is a political masterstroke.

by Marc Thiessen

Home Insurance Should Be for Safety, Not Profits The home insurance system is fatally flawed. As climate disasters intensify, it's becoming dangerously clear this system cannot protect us. We need a new model entirely — one focused on safeguarding p...

Alarming indeed, but important to remember that for an insurance exec, "uninsurable" means that insurance companies can't make enough profit from it. There are other ways to think about insurance (and risk reduction!) besides that based on profit motive. jacobin.com/2024/11/home...

Why insurers worry the world could soon become uninsurable Günther Thallinger, a board member at Allianz, one of the world's biggest insurers, says the climate crisis could make adaptation economically unviable.

Well this is alarming.

Kan man vara expert på arabiska grupperingar om man inte kan arabiska?

Frågar åt en bekant.

Svara gärna med exempel på experter på svenska grupperingar som inte kan svenska eller ens det latinska alfabetet.

Facebookinlägg: Here are the rules: You may not post long comments about Israel and Palestine unless you can answer the following series of questions without cheating: 1. Define Zionism ("Jewish nationalism" is not and acceptable answer. Please be more thorough) 2. Who is Lord Balfour? Who are Sykes and Picot? 3. What are UN resolutions 242 and 338? 4. Explain the laws of citizenship in Israel for European Jews, Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews, Palestinians with Israeli citizenship and Gaza and the West Bank. Please also discuss Jerusalem and license plates in detail. 5. Why did Oslo fail? 6. Who are Edward Said ("your dad" not an acceptable answer) Ghassan Kanafani, Naji Al Ali, Rashid Khalidi, lan Pappe avi Schlaim, Gideon Levy, Amira Hass Name 4 more people who know more than any of you for extra credit 7. What are Judea and Samaria and who refers to them as such and why? 8. What is the Nakba and where does the term come from (please cite work and author) I'm sure 1'll come up with more Feel free to add on But also note if you can't answer at least 6 of these you are uneducated on the topic and should simply be calling for a ceasefire out of love for humanity.

Hur många av dessa punkter löser Magnus Ranstorp och Peter Wennblad?

Ranstorp

1) Israel förvägrar internationell media från att komma in i Gaza. 2) De enda rapporterna som kommer ut från Gaza kommer från lokalbefolkningen. 3) Israels försvarare anser att vi inte bör lita på rapporterna från Gaza, eftersom de kommer från lokalbefolkningen.

Ranatorp raljerar om att de flesta fotografer i gaza nu är palestinier och därför inte går att lita på

Samma idioter som var emot journalistuppropet för att journalister skulle släppas in i gaza misstänkliggör nu foton ifrån gaza eftersom "de flesta fotografer är palestinier". Fyfan vad världen ska minnas dessa sadistiska jävla as

-Vilken minut som helst nu! Vi har två minister som borde avgå. Jag tror att minst en av de ska avgå idag, käraste syster!
-Jag satsade pappas arv på betting. Hoppas på Busch.

Gustave Léonard de Jonghe, Awaiting the ministeravgång, ca. 1829 - 1893.