Matthew Fraser

Trump Wants to Overhaul Drug Sales. A Company Tied to His Son Stands to Benefit. The family members of President Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are poised to benefit from efforts to remake the pharmaceutical industry.

Donald Trump Jr created an exclusive club called "Executive Branch" where he conducts his business deals. He joined the board of an online pharma retailer, BlinkRx, that stands to benefit from Donald Trump's shakeup of the pharma industry. Egregious conflicts of interest here.

Secret tunnel let Roman emperors dodge the Colosseum’s angry mob For the first time visitors can walk the passage thought to have allowed emperors to visit gladiators in their gym before sealing their fate — and sneaking out unseen

Fascinating. The secret tunnel that let Roman emperors dodge the Colosseum’s angry mob.
www.thetimes.com/article/e5f0...

Donald Trump Says Bad Bunny Performing at the Super Bowl Is ‘Absolutely Ridiculous’ Even Though ‘I’ve Never Heard of Him. I Don’t Know Who He Is’ Donald Trump says it's absolutely ridiculous that Bad Bunny is performing at the Super Bowl in 2026.

Trump is incensed that Bad Bunny is performing at the Super Bowl, but says: "I've never heard of him. I don’t know who he is."

Can Canada Survive Donald Trump? Under assault from an increasingly aggressive and authoritarian United States, the country’s future looks less secure than at any time in postwar history.

Gift Link// Whether the US's ongoing act of political suicide evolves as a murder-suicide is of more than passing interest to the US’s northern domestic partner. Canada is extremely -- uniquely -- vulnerable. I spoke to executives, defense analysts, others. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...

Trump hasn’t moved on from wanting Greenland forever, Danish PM warns Denmark and Greenland cannot afford to “breathe a sigh of relief,” Mette Frederiksen says.

Trump hasn’t moved on from wanting Greenland forever, Danish PM warns

Denmark and Greenland cannot afford to “breathe a sigh of relief,” Mette Frederiksen says.

www.politico.eu/article/dani...

Evening walk with Hector and Djery on the Champ de Mars.

‘Obedient, yielding and happy to follow’: the troubling rise of AI girlfriends AI dating sites claim they remove potential for exploitation, but critics say they are reinforcing harmful stereotypes

The troubling rise of AI girlfriends.

Books on BookTok: how crying on camera affects book recommendations This week, BookTok creators reflected on the popularity of videos where creators film themselves crying while reading or finishing a book.

Who needs books reviews when crying on camera sells books. #BookTok #booksthatmademecry

L.A.’s Entertainment Economy Is Looking Like a Disaster Movie Work is evaporating, businesses are closing, longtime residents are leaving, and Los Angeles’s creative middle class is hanging on by a thread.

The decline and fall of Hollywood.

Dordogne : un colis piégé visant une célébrité explose dans la camionnette du facteur, deux autres retrouvés Trois colis piégés de faible puissance, adressés à un député, une journaliste et une humoriste, ont été découverts en Dordogne. L’un d’eux a explosé sans faire de blessé dans le véhicule d’un postier.

In the Dordogne, three explosive packages were sent in the post targeting an MP, a journalist, and a comedian. One of them exploded in a postman’s vehicle with no injuries. www.lefigaro.fr/faits-divers...

Why the French do higher education better | Luke Markham | The Critic Magazine Preserved on the campus of University College London (UCL) are the remains of philosopher Jeremy Bentham. Regrettably, his classical liberal view of education has not also benefitted from conservation...

Interesting French-UK university comparison from a British student studying classics at the Sorbonne.

Why Trump’s speech to US military top brass was such a disaster | Sidney Blumenthal The president of the United States seemingly does not understand what the military is for

Why Trump’s speech to US military top brass was such a disaster. He seemingly does not understand what the military is for.

He’s now putting quotes (“Trump”) on his own name. Is he distancing himself from his own existence?

Trump’s Purge of Terrorism Prosecutors The politicization of the Justice Department is making Americans less safe.

Trump's Justice Department is firing the people who prosecute terrorists, Jake Tapper argues. The president's politically motivated personnel decisions make "the United States and the world less safe":

Pop star turned Islamist militant Fadel Shaker surrenders to Lebanese military after 12 years on the run Shaker, wanted over his connection to deadly shootout between militants and army, had been hiding out in Palestinian refugee camp

In Lebanon, a "pop star turned Islamist militant" arrested after twelve years on the run and a 22-year prison sentence in absentia.

Way past its prime: how did Amazon get so rubbish? Sick of scrolling through junk results, AI-generated ads and links to lookalike products? The author and activist behind the term ‘enshittification’ explains what’s gone wrong with the internet – and ...

The three stages of "enshittification": 1) Platforms are good to their users. 2) They abuse their users to make things better for their business customers. 3) They abuse those customers to claw back all the value for themselves – and become a giant pile of shit.

The Pill That Women Are Taking for Everything From Speeches to First Dates Influencers have described propranolol as a magic pill that eases nervous jitters in all kinds of settings. Prescriptions are on the rise, especially for young women.

The pill that women are taking for everything from speeches to first dates. Influencers have described propranolol as a magic pill that eases nervous jitters in all kinds of settings. Prescriptions are on the rise, especially for young women.

Rainy evening in Paris, arriving for dinner with an old friend at my favourite Italian restaurant.

Dame Sarah Mullally has been named the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the first woman to hold the Church of England’s most senior clerical position. on.ft.com/3Kywkdg

Shein : un aréopage d’anciens politiques au service du géant de l’ultra fast-fashion En France, l’ancien ministre de l’intérieur Christophe Castaner et l’avocate et ancienne secrétaire d’Etat Nicole Guedj font partie des personnalités recrutées pour faire le lobbying du mastodonte chi...

SHEIN recruited a former Macron minister as lobbyist in France. www.lemonde.fr/economie/art...

‘A paroxysm of disposability’: France’s distaste for Shein’s ultra-fast fashion A petition to ban the brand has passed 270,000 names but French shoppers have not been immune to its inexorable rise

Shein plans to open shops in Galeries Lafayette department stores in five cities and also in the BHV store in the capital.

ENQUETE. Fraude aux "CumCum" : 13 banques en redressement pour avoir soustrait des milliards d'euros au fisc Le Crédit Agricole a reconnu devant la justice avoir participé à la fraude aux "CumCum" qui consiste à éviter la taxe sur les dividendes. Mais d'autres établissements sont mis en cause. Selon la Cellu...

Another reminder that big banks are legalised forms of organised crime. In France, banks are committing massive fraud by helping foreign investors (for a commission, of course) avoid tax on dividends.

What Ever Happened to Getting to First Base? Gen Z has abandoned the old dating script. In its place are more possibilities than young people sometimes know what to do with.

Gen Z's new approach to relationships allows “them to forge paths shaped by their specific desires and inclinations, rather than external expectations.” But without a script, Zoomers can struggle to know where to begin, Molly Langmuir writes:

NYU law school cancels speech about cancel culture at elite law schools | The College Fix Legal scholar Ilya Shapiro will not be allowed to give his speech about cancel culture and wokeness at elite law schools after New York University’s law school refused to facilitate a room and…

NYU Law School cancelled a speech about... cancel culture.

Why I have had it with entitled dog owners | Arwa Mahdawi You know the types – they let their hound jump all over you and don’t clear up after them. Bring on their poo-nishment, writes Arwa Mahdawi

In Paris, it’s the dog owners who don’t keep their pets on leads (invariably the same ones who don’t pick up after them). www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...