We Must Resist The Rise Of A Global Censorship Regime

Authored by Kristen Waggoner via The Epoch Times,

The ordeal of Finnish Parliamentarian Päivi Räsänen, who just stood trial a third time - after being acquitted twice - for a 2019 tweet in which she simply shared a Scripture verse and her faith-based views on marriage and sexuality, is a warning to all who value the right to speak freely across the world.

When governments claim the power to police opinions, even peaceful expressions of faith can be dragged through the courts.

And now this promises to be a much more pervasive reality in Europe as a result of the 2022 Digital Services Act (DSA). Ahead of the European Union’s review of the DSA, 113 international experts committed to free speech wrote to the European Commission highlighting the law’s incompatibility with free expression, citing the possibility of worldwide takedown orders. Räsänen was a signatory to the letter, alongside a former vice president of Yahoo Europe, a former U.S. senator, and politicians, academics, lawyers, and journalists from around the globe.

The DSA gives the E.U. authority to enforce moderation of “illegal content” on platforms and search engines with over 45 million monthly users. It enables bureaucrats to control online speech at scale under the guise of “safety” and “protecting democracy.”

However, E.U. member states may have different definitions of illegal content. Thus, under the law, anything deemed illegal under the speech laws of any one E.U. member state could potentially be removed across all of Europe. That means the harshest censorship laws in Europe could soon govern the entire continent, and possibly the internet worldwide. And if platforms fail to comply, they face billions in fines, thus providing clear incentive to censor and none to promote free speech.

Late last month, the E.U. announced that Meta and TikTok will face fines of up to 6 percent of their global sales for accusations of violating the DSA on matters related to transparency. But the well-founded fear is that this law—which grants sweeping authority to European regulators to control online speech across such platforms—including X, YouTube, and Facebook—will enable the kind of censorship endured by Räsänen on a global scale.

Further, citizens in countries outside of the E.U., like the United States, are at risk of facing new levels of censorship, because the DSA applies to large online digital platforms and search engines accessed within the E.U. but that have a global presence. It explicitly states its extraterritorial applicability as it covers platforms used by people “that have their place of establishment or are located in the Union, irrespective of where the providers of those intermediary services [the platforms] have their place of establishment.”

Platforms are incentivized to adapt their international content moderation policies to E.U. censorship. If those platforms deem something “illegal” under E.U. rules, that content may be banned everywhere, even in countries with strong free speech protections.

U.S. Ambassador to the E.U. Andrew Puzder warned recently that the DSA threatens to censor American speech online. His warning came just after an admission from Google that Europe’s online censorship laws target American companies.

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee issued a report in July explaining that the DSA “may limit or restrict Americans’ constitutionally protected speech in the United States. Companies that censor an insufficient amount of ‘misleading or deceptive’ speech—as defined by EU bureaucrats—face fines ... which would amount to billions of dollars for many American companies. Furthermore, because many social media platforms generally maintain one set of content moderation policies that they apply globally, restrictive censorship laws like the DSA may set de facto global censorship standards.”

Päivi Räsänen of the Christian Democrats campaigns ahead of parliamentary elections in Helsinki, Finland, on April 18, 2015. Lehtikuva/Roni Rekomaa/AFP via Getty Images

French Member of the European Parliament Virginie Joron concurs: “The French digital regulator ARCOM told me they believe the DSA allows them to censor any post anywhere in the world using the DSA. That means even an American citizen posting in Alabama could potentially have their online post taken down, even if the publication would be legal in the U.S.,” she said in a statement.

The DSA creates a censorship industrial complex consisting of an expansive web of outsourced content flaggers, national coordinators, monitoring reporters, and other authorities, with the European Commission at its head. It’s a business model dependent on finding content to censor and inconsistent with the standards of the rule of law. The threat the DSA poses to free speech is real. Resisting it is key to ensuring that its impact is blunted.

Brussels bureaucrats must not be allowed to position themselves as the world’s speech police. For the freedom of all people, we must resist the rise of a global censorship regime so that what happened to Räsänen doesn’t become the new online norm.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times or ZeroHedge.

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 08:30

Tether's 116-Ton Gold Hoard Rivals Reserves Of Korea And Hungary: Jefferies

Authored by Amin Haqshanas via CoinTelegraph.com,

Stablecoin issuer Tether holds 116 tons of physical gold, placing it on par with central banks such as those in South Korea, Hungary and Greece.

Tether is “the largest holder of gold outside central banks,” Jefferies wrote in a recent analysis, per a report by the Financial Times. The investment bank added that Tether’s growing appetite for gold may be playing a larger role in the metal’s recent surge than previously assumed.

According to Jefferies, Tether’s gold purchases last quarter accounted for nearly 2% of total global gold demand and almost 12% of central bank purchases. The company said that Tether’s aggressive accumulation over the past two months “is likely to have tightened supply in the short term and influenced sentiment,” potentially driving speculative inflows into gold markets.

Investors cited by Jefferies said Tether aims to acquire another 100 tons of gold in 2025. With the company reportedly on track for $15 billion in profit this year, the target appears well within reach, according to the report.

Tether doubles down on gold strategy

Tether has also spent more than $300 million this year buying stakes in precious-metal producers. In June, it acquired a 32% stake in Canada’s public gold royalty firm Elemental Altus Royalties.

In September, the FT reported that Tether is exploring investments across the gold supply chain, including mining, refining, trading and royalty companies, as part of a broader push to diversify its reserves.

Tether also issues Tether Gold (XAUt), its gold-backed token launched in 2020 and advertised as being supported by bullion stored in a Swiss vault. Blockchain data shows XAUt issuance has doubled over the past six months, with Tether adding 275,000 ounces (about $1.1 billion) since August.

Tether Gold has a market cap of $2.1 billion. Source: Tether Gold

Jefferies said Tether is betting that tokenized gold will finally find traction. Physical gold is cumbersome for retail investors, futures carry roll costs and gold ETFs charge relatively high fees. Tether argues that tokenization solves these frictions.

Tether increasingly resembles a central bank

As Cointelegraph reported, Tether’s day-to-day operations mirror several core functions traditionally associated with central banks. It mints and redeems USDt directly for verified customers, effectively expanding or contracting supply through its primary market pipeline.

It also manages a large reserve portfolio dominated by short-duration US Treasurys, along with gold and Bitcoin. The company generates central bank–like income by earning interest on those Treasurys while issuing a non-interest-bearing token.

Beyond that, Tether employs policy-style tools, such as freezing addresses at the request of law enforcement and phasing out blockchains to reduce risk.

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 07:20

US Adoptions From Abroad Are Declining

The number of children adopted from abroad is declining in the United States, according to data from the U.S. Department of State.

As Statista's Anna Fleck details below, while more than 12,700 children were adopted internationally in 2009, that figure has dropped to under 1,200 in 2024.

You will find more infographics at Statista

This is due to several reasons.

For example, although the U.S. signed the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption in 1994, it wasn’t until 2008 that it came fully into effect there. Designed to ensure more ethical intercountry adoptions and to prevent the abduction, sale of, or trafficking in children, the Convention requires proof that each given child has been deemed eligible for adoption by the child's country of origin and that due consideration has been given to finding an adoption placement for the child in its country of origin.

Each adoption agency must also be accredited or approved on a Federal level.

According to Adoption.com, while the Hague Convention is beneficial it has also led to increased waiting times and fees, with many poorer countries unable to meet standards.

Looking more closely at country specific examples, Guatemala is frequently held up as an example of what can go wrong when adoptions are commercialized and ethics disregarded, with stories of corruption and of children being kidnapped to then be adopted. These findings led Guatemala to placing a moratorium on new intercountry adoptions in 2008 until a Hague-compliant adoption process could be created and implemented. Until that point, Guatemala had been the only country worldwide to allow fully privatized adoptions, and in 2008 accounted for the second largest group of international adoptees after China.

In the last two and a half decades, more children from China have been coming to the U.S. as adoptees. Between 1999 and 2023, they numbered almost 83,000 compared with 46,000 from Russia, 30,000 from Guatemala, 21,500 adoptees from South Korea, 16,000 from Ethiopia and 12,000 from Ukraine. China stopped international adoptions during the pandemic, resuming the practice again in 2023, when 16 children were adopted in the U.S. This figure is expected to remain low, however, following an announcement from Beijing that the country will no longer be facilitating intercountry adoptions unless to blood relatives. The move takes place in a country experiencing a shrinking and aging population with a falling birth rate. Last fiscal year, a total of 24 children were adopted from China. Meanwhile, 74 children were adopted from Taiwan, which is the fourth highest number in 2024, trailing only after India (202), Colombia (200) and Bulgaria (79).

International politics also play a role in the global flows of adoption. This is the case with Russia, which banned adoptions by U.S. parents in 2012 in retaliation to the U.S.’ Magnitsky Act, which had sanctioned Russian officials and nationals for human rights abuses. As the following chart shows, where 1,588 Russian children were adopted in 2009, this fell to 0 in 2015, with no children having been adopted from the country since.

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 06:45

FBI Seizes $13-Million Mercedes Unicorn From Olympian Snowboarder Turned 'Cocaine Kingpin'

Submitted by The Bureau's Sam Cooper,

In the aftermath of their second Ryan Wedding indictment bombshell, the FBI's Los Angeles field office dropped one of the most surreal photos of the Giant Slalom case this week: a silver, open-top Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR roadster — valued at roughly US$13 million — parked under fluorescent lights in a federal impound warehouse.

Agents say the 2002 Mercedes CLK-GTR was seized from the organization of Ryan James Wedding, the former Canadian Olympic snowboarder now on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list.

Other stunning details in the new indictment — which alleges that a Canadian lawyer advised Wedding to kill a federal witness, whom The Bureau has identified as a convicted fentanyl trafficker from Montreal who ran a cartel network whose "sole purpose" was exporting narcotics including MDMA from Canada to the United States — include claims that Wedding is allegedly protected by a Mexican businessman with ties to senior Mexican government officials.

As one of The Bureau's U.S. sources put it, that allegation suggests the Mexican businessman is viewed as a more important Sinaloa Cartel boss than Wedding himself.

As for the Mercedes, online records show it is one of only six CLK-GTR roadsters ever built worldwide, making it one of the rarest and most valuable cars the U.S. government has ever confiscated.

The car itself is a relic from the wildest corner of 1990s motorsport.

Mercedes and AMG created the CLK-GTR for the FIA GT1 series — essentially a Le Mans race car thinly disguised as a road car.

The road-legal "Straßenversion" models were hand-assembled at AMG's facility in Affalterbach, Germany, in the late 1990s, with a small batch of six roofless roadsters completed from 2002 onward. Under the carbon-fiber skin sits a 6.9-liter V-12 making around 600 horsepower, good for 0–100 km/h in about 3.8 seconds and a top speed of roughly 200 mph.

When new, the CLK-GTR was listed by Guinness World Records as the most expensive production car on sale, at about US$1.5 million; recent auction results put similar roadsters around US$10.2 million, with pre-sale estimates up to US$13 million.

For U.S. authorities, this is evidence. The U.S. Treasury Department, which has now sanctioned Wedding and a string of associates, says he "has laundered his illicit profits through an extensive transatlantic network of businesses and associates, channeling drug proceeds into luxury assets such as cars and motorcycles that are concealed around the world." Treasury identifies two key money men behind that network: Toronto jeweller Rolan Sokolovski and former Italian special forces member Gianluca Tiepolo.

Sokolovski, Treasury says, handled the books for Wedding's organization and washed its funds through his Toronto jewelry company, 2351885 Ontario Inc., which trades as Diamond Tsar, while also moving millions in drug proceeds via cryptocurrency to mask the origin of the money.

Tiepolo allegedly "worked closely with Sokolovski to procure and manage Wedding's physical assets, including high-end vehicles," and held "millions of dollars in Wedding's property under his own name to conceal these assets from authorities."

Tiepolo owns Italian and U.K. firms — Stile Italiano S.R.L. and TMR Ltd. — that trade in luxury motorcycles and cars, and he founded Windrose Tactical, a training outfit that has hosted Wedding's alleged hitmen.

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 06:45

My morning LGA-ORD/turkey day reads:

• This Year’s Thanksgiving Surprise: Half of the Guests Are Stoned: What started as a secret trip to smoke pot before dinner has mushroomed into a full-blown commercial holiday. Behold the ‘cousin walk.’ (Wall Street Journal)

• Crypto Crash Ruins Thanksgiving for Retail Traders Once Again Bitcoin enthusiasts are bracing for some awkward questions this holiday season. (Bloomberg)

• What Is Deinfluencing? Unpacking TikTok’s Unlikeliest Shopping Trend: Over this past year, however, more and more people began to think twice before buying what influencers were selling. Just note the hashtag #Deinfluencing, which now has over a billion views on TikTok. The user-led intervention, which sees an army of self-described deinfluencers discouraging their audiences from buying into overhyped stuff, represents a notable departure from the usual calls to “swipe up” and “buy now.” (Vogue)

• AI Slop Recipes Are Taking Over the Internet — And Thanksgiving Dinner: Food bloggers see traffic dip as home cooks turn to AI, inspired by impossible pictures. (Bloomberg free)

• Grim retail sales data fuels concerns about health of US economy: Consumer confidence drops to second-lowest level since pandemic as inflation lingers. (Financial Times) see also Late Car Payments Are Piling Up at Record Levels as More Drivers Face Delinquency: A record share of subprime borrowers are delinquent on car payments, according to new data from Fitch Ratings in a series that dates back to the ’90s. (Money)

• Streamflation intensifies as Netflix, Disney+, and others continue raising prices; Streaming costs keep climbing as platforms chase profit. The economics of streaming are shifting from expansion to monetization. Nearly every major platform – from Netflix to HBO Max and Apple TV – has raised its prices over the past year, marking one of the sharpest rounds of increases since the subscription model upended cable television. (Techspot)

• Brain has five ‘eras’, scientists say – with adult mode not starting until early 30s” Study suggests human brain development has four pivotal ‘turning points’ at around the ages of nine, 32, 66 and 83. (The Guardian)

• They retired from the government. Now they’re back, protecting forests Trump abandoned. Since the start of the year, the Forest Service has lost nearly 6,000 staffers through firings, resignations and retirements encouraged by the Trump administration, according to internal figures obtained by The Washington Post. By summer, some of the agency’s regions were missing three-quarters of their trail and recreation staff — and some forests and districts had none at all. (Washington Post)

• The COVID political backlash disappeared: Turns out the pandemic didn’t break the Democratic Party. (The Argument)

• Hollywood Is Reeling—and These Movies Have Never Been So Popular: The PG rating has become the king of the box office. The entertainment business now relies on kids dragging their parents to theaters. (Wall Street Journal)

Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Wilhelm Schmid, CEO of famed watchmaker A. Lange & Söhne, the Glashütte, German watchmaker, recorded live at the Audrain Newport Concours d’Elegance.

 

As Holidays Approach, There’s Little Cheer for Consumers

Source: Bloomberg

 

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The post 10 Thanksgiving Day Reads appeared first on The Big Picture.

Where Do You Find The Most AI Leaders In Europe?

Corporate spending on AI is surging. So, our friends at The Big Search asked themselves a practical question: who is actually building and deploying AI inside Europe’s major consumer goods, retail and digital marketplace companies? For this analysis they identified 471 individuals, who have proven themselves as AI trailblazers.

As Statista's Mathias Brandt details below, collectively, these AI leaders represent the new generation of executives: technically skilled, commercially oriented and visibly engaged in the broader ecosystem through teaching, speaking and thought leadership on emerging AI trends like GenAI, LLMOps and ethical AI.

Across Europe, truly T-shaped AI leaders remain rare. Germany, however, has emerged as one of the strongest hubs for such talent as the Statista map shows, followed by Great Britain and the Netherlands.

You will find more infographics at Statista

As Europe’s largest retail market and a top-two e-commerce economy, Germany naturally sustains some of the continent’s most advanced in-house machine learning teams.

Berlin, in particular, concentrates on high-impact players such as Zalando, Delivery Hero, HelloFresh and OTTO Group. They’re all running mature ML platforms focused on personalization, pricing, demand forecasting and monetization.

Read more here...

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 05:35

Revisiting Rush Limbaugh's True Story Of Thanksgiving - Now More Relevant Than Ever

The late radio host Rush Limbaugh used his 2010 Thanksgiving broadcast to remind listeners of the true story of Thanksgiving.

It's a lesson that feels especially relevant today, as the Democratic Party is being swallowed whole by radical left-wingers in the Democratic Socialists of America movement, who seek to undermine the nation from within (in what we've coined "Invisible Insurrection") and push the country into a socialist hellhole and eventually communism.

In less than 36 days, Zohran Mamdani will become the next mayor of New York City, ushering in a radical strain of the Democratic Party that blends Marxism and Islamism - a combination that does not align with Western values.

More broadly, the rudderless Democratic Party has been hijacked by radical DSA, who prioritize Marxist ideology and illegal aliens over capitalism and native-born Americans.

It's a deeply troubling trajectory for the party of unhinged purple-haired liberal-educated people that refuses to learn from history as it aims to push policies that undermine private property, restrict freedoms, and expand state-run economics and central planning - models that have epically failed around the world.

Just look at the catastrophic collapses of Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea, and countless others, and these collapses have led to death and mass starvation. Yet, America's liberal college industrial complex continues to brainwash kids into a flawed way of toxic thinking. 

Back to Limbaugh's 2010 Thanksgiving broadcast. In short, he says the traditional Thanksgiving narrative celebrates cooperation and Native-American generosity. However, the early years of Plymouth Colony underscore how incentives, property rights, and institutional design shaped survival and laid the groundwork for the later celebration in the American founding.

Pilgrims tried socialism when they first landed—no private property, everything held in common. They nearly starved to death. Bradford’s introduction of capitalism and property rights saved the colony.

Ethnic and religious homogeneity didn’t save them. Freedom and ownership did. pic.twitter.com/RvoDwWOjuk

— Joel Berry (@JoelWBerry) August 4, 2025

In other words, the Plymouth Colony tried the communal property system and miserably failed. Once private-property incentives were unlocked, they enabled productivity, self-sufficiency, and flourishing in a free society. 

Perhaps Limbaugh's Plymouth Colony story should serve as yet another reminder to Democrats who refuse to learn from history simply because they've persuaded themselves that this time will be different. 

The Pilgrims tried socialism.

It nearly killed the colony

When Bradford restored private property, abundance returned.

Socialism fails because it denies human nature and God’s design. @RHelfenbein pic.twitter.com/hiFq3KNFYB

— Standing for Freedom Center (@freedomcenterlu) November 25, 2025

It would be a great story to tell the unhinged, triple-vaxxed liberal aunt at Thanksgiving.

Tyler Durden Thu, 11/27/2025 - 04:00

Alzheimer's Disease: The Most Common Neurodegenerative Disease - Here Are The Causes

Authored by Mercura Wang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that gradually destroys memory, thinking skills, and the ability to perform everyday tasks. As the single most common neurodegenerative disease, it affects more than 6 million Americans—most of them age 65 or older. The disease is irreversible and fatal.

It often begins subtly—years before it’s diagnosed—showing up as everyday lapses that are easy to brush off.

Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock What Are the Early Signs and Symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s symptoms develop differently depending on when the disease begins.

There are generally two types: early-onset Alzheimer’s, which develops before age 65, and late-onset Alzheimer’s, which occurs afterward.

Early-onset Alzheimer’s accounts for about 5 percent to 6 percent of cases, often has a stronger genetic link, progresses more quickly, and may start with problems in thinking, language, or vision rather than memory alone, making it harder to diagnose initially.

Late-onset Alzheimer’s, which starts after age 65, typically begins with gradual memory loss and progresses slowly through predictable stages.

The following five stages describe the progression of late-onset Alzheimer’s, the most common form of the disease.

1. Asymptomatic Stage

Biological changes characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease are present long before cognitive or behavioral symptoms appear. This stage may last for years or even up to two decades.

2. Early Stage

Early-stage Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by mild symptoms that may resemble normal aging difficulties. People at this stage are typically aware of their condition and remain largely independent, able to drive, work, and engage in daily activities with minimal assistance.

Common warning signs include:

• Frequently misplacing items and being unable to retrace steps
• Confusion about time, dates, or familiar places
• Difficulty with planning or organizing
• Trouble learning new information or maintaining focus
• New challenges in finding the right words in conversation or writing
• Difficulty interpreting visual information
• Personality or emotional changes

3. Middle/Moderate Stage

This stage is marked by more noticeable symptoms. Memory and cognitive abilities continue to decline, and people often require greater supervision and assistance with everyday activities, although some mental clarity remains. This stage can persist for many years.

Common symptoms include:

• Difficulty performing daily activities, including dressing, driving, reading, or writing
• Trouble remembering recent events or important personal experiences
• Confused speech or incorrect word use
• False beliefs or hallucinations
• Mood changes, including depression, agitation, or aggressive behavior
• Withdrawal from social interactions
• Repetitive or compulsive actions
• Sleep disturbances
• Impaired spatial awareness

4. Severe/Late Stage

This stage is characterized by profound cognitive and physical impairment, requiring constant assistance with daily activities.

Common symptoms include:

• Severe memory loss, including the inability to recognize family members or familiar faces
• Loss of the ability to communicate
• Loss of bladder and bowel control
• Difficulty swallowing
• Progressive weakness and reduced mobility
• Potentially violent behavior
• Unintentional weight loss
• Recurrent infections
• Episodes of delirium

5. End-of-Life Stage

During this stage, the person is in the final months of Alzheimer’s disease and loses all functional independence. Cognitive decline is severe, requiring round-the-clock care, with a focus on palliative support and maintaining comfort and quality of life. Ultimately, the condition can lead to coma and death, often as a result of infections or organ failure.

Signs of Rapid Decline in Alzheimer’s Disease

Rapidly progressive Alzheimer’s disease is a recognized clinical subtype of Alzheimer’s distinguished by unusually fast cognitive deterioration and a markedly shorter survival. It often advances over months to a few years, with people showing steep declines in global cognition and daily functioning.

What Causes Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s is a complex condition resulting from multiple interacting processes in the brain. Its causes have always been considered a set of hypotheses.

A common hypothesis is that the disease involves abnormal accumulations of two proteins: amyloid and tau. Amyloid forms sticky plaques around brain cells. These plaques keep neurons from communicating, while tau forms tangles inside brain cells, blocking nutrient transport.

These protein abnormalities disrupt cell signaling, are toxic, and eventually lead to neuron death. As neurons die, brain regions shrink, with memory-related areas often affected first.

However, this hypothesis—the most well-known one—has also been implicated in research fraud and study manipulation.

In recent years, scientists have come up with many new theories:

• Neuroinflammation: In Alzheimer’s disease, brain immune cells (microglia) can become overactive, triggering chronic inflammation that damages neurons and promotes the spread of toxic proteins.
• Mitochondrial Dysfunction: Mitochondria fail to produce enough adenosine triphosphate or ATP, the cell’s energy fuel, while releasing harmful molecules that damage neurons.
• Glucose Hypometabolism: The brain becomes resistant to insulin and can’t use glucose properly—sometimes called “Type 3 diabetes“—which disrupts cell signaling and promotes toxic protein buildup.
• Gut-Brain Microbiota Axis: An unhealthy gut microbiome can trigger body-wide inflammation that reaches the brain, damages the protective blood-brain barrier, and contributes to neurodegeneration.
• Metal Imbalances: Abnormal accumulation or deficiency of metals such as copper, iron, or zinc can promote oxidative stress, protein misfolding, and neurotoxicity.
• Excess Glutamate: Overactivation of glutamate receptors (excitotoxicity) can lead to sodium and calcium overload and neuronal death, particularly in memory-related brain regions such as the hippocampus.
• Cholinergic Neuron Damage: Damage to cholinergic neurons, which produce acetylcholine—a neurotransmitter essential for memory and attention–can contribute to early cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease.
• Oxidative Stress: The brain’s high oxygen use and mitochondrial activity increase exposure to reactive oxygen species (ROS). In Alzheimer’s disease, excessive ROS and impaired antioxidant defenses cause lipid, protein, and DNA damage, while amyloid beta both accumulates and further promotes oxidative stress.
• Blood-Brain-Barrier Disruption: Cerebral amyloid angiopathy, a vascular pathology linked to Alzheimer’s disease, involves the deposition of amyloid-beta in the walls of small cerebral blood vessels. This impairs blood flow, disrupts blood-brain barrier integrity, and promotes neuroinflammation.
• Pathological Proteins: Misfolded amyloid-beta and over-phosphorylated tau accumulate to form plaques and tangles that disrupt synaptic function, neuronal transport, and overall brain network stability.
• Brain Structure Changes: Progressive loss of brain tissue—especially in the hippocampus and cortex—reflects widespread neuron death and worsening symptoms.

Risk Factors

Age is the strongest risk factor, with the chance of developing Alzheimer’s roughly doubling every five years after age 65. Age-related brain changes—such as shrinkage, inflammation, blood vessel damage, and impaired cellular energy—can harm neurons and disrupt the function of other brain cells. Women have a slightly higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than men, possibly because women tend to live longer.

The risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease is approximately two times higher for black and Latino populations than for white populations.

Lifestyle and Environmental Factors

Lifestyle habits and environmental exposures play an important role in brain health and may influence the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

• Social Isolation: Social isolation increases the risk of dementia by up to 60 percent.
• Lack of Mental Stimulation: Low cognitive activity can accelerate mental decline, whereas mentally stimulating work is associated with a lower risk of developing dementia later in life.
• Chronic Stress: Chronic stress leads to prolonged elevated cortisol levels. High cortisol can damage the hippocampus, impair neuronal plasticity, promote neuroinflammation, and accelerate amyloid beta and tau pathology.
• Lack of Sleep: Poor or insufficient sleep may contribute to protein buildup. Most people benefit from six to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep each night.
• Unhealthy Diet: Diets high in processed foods, sugar, and unhealthy fats may raise the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by contributing to cardiovascular problems, reduced blood flow to the brain, and neuroinflammation.
• Lack of Exercise: Regular physical activity supports heart health, blood flow, and oxygen delivery to the brain, which helps maintain cognitive function.
• Excess Belly Fat: Excess abdominal fat, particularly visceral fat, promotes chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, vascular dysfunction, hormonal imbalances, and oxidative stress—all of which contribute to brain atrophy and cognitive decline.
• Nutritional Deficiencies: Lack of certain micronutrients—such as manganese, selenium, copper, and zinc, and vitamins A, B, C, D, and E—may increase Alzheimer’s risk. People with Alzheimer’s disease have also been found to have lower brain levels of lutein, zeaxanthin, and lycopene.
• Exposure to Pollutants: Higher exposure to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) is linked to more severe Alzheimer’s-related brain changes and greater dementia severity because these tiny particles can travel into the bloodstream and the brain, where they trigger chronic inflammation and oxidative stress.
• Exposure to Environmental Toxins: A 2020 review found that infections caused by viruses, bacteria, or fungi can trigger inflammation, which may gradually shrink brain tissue and contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.
• Nighttime Light Exposure: Greater exposure to outdoor light at night is linked to a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease, especially in people under 65, because it disturbs the body’s natural circadian rhythm, increases inflammation, and weakens disease resistance.
• Smoking: Smoking damages blood vessels and reduces blood flow to the brain, with studies suggesting a 30 percent to 50 percent increased risk of dementia. Quitting smoking, even later in life, can lower this risk.

Genetics

Both types of Alzheimer’s disease have significant genetic components, although they are driven by different underlying causes, ranging from direct gene mutations to a complex mix of genetic and environmental risk factors.

• PSEN1 or PSEN2 Genes: Early-onset Alzheimer’s can sometimes be inherited, known as familial Alzheimer’s disease, caused by mutations in the APP, PSEN1, or PSEN2 genes. These mutations lead to the overproduction of amyloid beta, which accumulates into amyloid plaques in the brain.
• APOE Gene: The APOE gene is a well-known risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer’s. A 2024 study found that people with two APOE4 genes almost always showed Alzheimer’s-related brain changes by age 55, and most developed abnormal amyloid levels by age 65.

Medical Conditions and Intervention

Certain medical conditions and the ways they are managed can affect cognitive health and may contribute to Alzheimer’s disease risk.

• Certain Conditions: Diabetes, hearing loss, brain injury, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and certain infections may increase Alzheimer’s risk.
• Certain Medications: Examples include zolpidem (for insomnia) and benzodiazepines (for anxiety), as they can impair cognitive function, leading to memory loss, reduced verbal memory, and slowed processing speed.

How Is Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnosed?

There is no single test for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease. Specialists diagnose it with about 95 percent accuracy by ruling out other conditions. Confirmation is only possible after death through autopsy. Comprehensive evaluations—including medical history, neurological exams, and other diagnostic procedures—are essential.

Assessment Methods

Several tools and evaluations help doctors assess memory, thinking, and overall brain function when diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease.

Physical and Neurological Exams

They check overall function, muscle tone, strength, vision, and hearing.

Cognitive Assessments

Brief mental status exams to evaluate memory, thinking, and concentration by using short, structured tasks that measure cognitive skills.

• Mini-Mental State Examination: Uses tasks such as identifying dates, naming objects, following simple commands, and recalling short lists
• Mini-Cog: Uses a three-word recall test and a clock-drawing exercise to assess memory and executive function
• Montreal Cognitive Assessment: Uses tasks that assess attention, memory, language, visuospatial skills, and executive function to provide a more sensitive, broad evaluation

Brain Imaging

Brain imaging tests create detailed pictures of brain structure and activity to identify changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

• CT Scan: Creates cross-sectional images of the brain
• MRI Scan: Generates detailed images to reveal brain shrinkage
• PET Scan: Visualizes brain activity and detects molecular changes, including brain metabolism, protein deposits, inflammation, and chemical activity

Laboratory Tests

Laboratory tests analyze bodily fluids to detect biomarkers and rule out other conditions that can resemble Alzheimer’s disease.

• Lumbar Puncture (Spinal Tap): Collects cerebrospinal fluid to assess protein levels
• Blood Tests: Measure proteins and biomarkers linked to brain changes, including early Alzheimer’s pathology
• Urinalysis: Checks for infections or other abnormalities

What Are the Treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease?

There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, so treatment focuses on slowing its progression, managing symptoms, and adapting the home environment to simplify daily activities.

1. Medicines

Medications for Alzheimer’s disease aim to reduce beta-amyloid protein levels in the brain and help manage behavioral issues, although their overall benefits may be modest, and some drugs remain controversial regarding safety and effectiveness. Doctors typically begin Alzheimer’s treatment with low doses and gradually increase them based on tolerance.

Medications for Mild to Moderate Alzheimer’s Disease

Medicines used in the early stages of Alzheimer’s aim to support memory, thinking, and daily functioning.

• Cholinesterase Inhibitors: These medicines may help manage cognitive and behavioral symptoms by preventing the breakdown of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that supports communication between neurons, although their effectiveness declines as the disease progresses. Examples include galantamine, rivastigmine, benzgalantamine, and donepezil.
• Immunotherapy Drugs: These medicines target beta-amyloid to reduce brain plaques and have been shown in early-stage patients to slow cognitive decline and lower amyloid levels. Examples include lecanemab and donanemab.

Medications for Moderate to Advanced Alzheimer’s Disease

Medicines used in the later stages of Alzheimer’s focus on easing symptoms and supporting quality of life.

• Memantine: This medicine can help reduce symptoms and allow people to maintain certain daily functions, such as using the bathroom independently, for longer. It regulates glutamate, which in excess can damage brain cells, and can be combined with cholinesterase inhibitors for added benefit.
• Brexpiprazole: This atypical antipsychotic is approved to manage agitation associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Medications to Use With Caution

The following medications should be used only after a doctor reviews their risks and side effects, when safer nondrug options have been ineffective, and with careful monitoring by both the person with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers.

• Sleep Aids: These medicines should generally be avoided, as they can increase confusion and the risk of falls.
• Anti-Anxiety Medications: Some medicines, such as benzodiazepines, can cause drowsiness, dizziness, falls, and increased confusion.
• Anticonvulsants: These medicines can cause drowsiness, dizziness, mood changes, and confusion.
• Antipsychotics: These medicines are prescribed to treat hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, agitation, and aggression, but may have serious side effects, including an increased risk of death in some older people with dementia.

2. Cognitive Therapies

Cognitive therapies involve structured activities and strategies designed to stimulate thinking, memory, and problem-solving, while supporting daily functioning and emotional well-being.

• Cognitive Stimulation Therapy: This therapy involves engaging in activities to improve memory, language, and problem-solving skills, often in a group setting that also encourages social interaction.
• Cognitive Rehabilitation: A specialist and a support person work together to develop strategies for managing daily tasks, aiming to use healthy brain functions to support weaker areas, and to provide a sense of accomplishment.
• Reminiscence and Life Story Work: These therapies focus on long-term memories, skills, and positive experiences to boost mood and well-being. Reminiscence uses prompts such as photos or music to recall the past, while life story work creates a personal record of someone’s life.

3. Neuroprotective Herbs

Certain herbs show potential for supporting brain health and may help reduce processes linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

• Ashwagandha: The extract withaferin A may help reduce the buildup of harmful brain proteins and lower inflammation and oxidative stress. A randomized controlled trial of 40 adults with mild cognitive impairment used 250 milligrams of ashwagandha extract per day for 60 days and reported improvements in memory and attention.
• Turmeric: Turmeric contains curcumin, a natural compound with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that support brain health. Research suggests it may help slow Alzheimer’s progression by reducing brain plaques and preventing the buildup of harmful beta-amyloid proteins.
• Sage: Sage extract may help support mood, cognition, and cholinergic function. One study tested a fixed dose of sage extract (60 drops/day) for four months in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease and found it effective.

4. Acupuncture

Acupuncture may help support brain function in Alzheimer’s disease at both molecular and systemic levels by improving symptoms and the brain’s microenvironment, especially when applied early. Research suggests it works through multiple pathways, including reducing beta-amyloid deposits, improving tau protein changes, and easing neuroinflammation.

A 2019 meta-analysis of 13 studies found that acupuncture can improve memory and cognitive function in Alzheimer’s disease, and in many cases, it has been more effective than conventional Western medicines, with fewer adverse effects. Despite its potential, acupuncture is not yet widely used in clinical Alzheimer’s treatment.

5. Apitherapy

Honey bee products may help support brain health in Alzheimer’s disease.

Royal jelly, a creamy substance produced by worker bees and fed to queen bees, has shown promising neuroprotective and memory-boosting effects in multiple preclinical studies by helping brain cells survive, reducing inflammation and oxidative stress, improving energy regulation, and limiting damage from harmful proteins such as amyloid-beta.

6. Emerging Treatments 

Researchers are exploring new treatments that may slow Alzheimer’s disease by targeting underlying biological changes.

• Lithium Treatment: A study published in August found that lithium levels in the brain’s prefrontal cortex—important for memory and decision-making—dropped by more than half in people with Alzheimer’s disease. A meta-analysis found that lithium treatment may help slow cognitive decline and support thinking and memory in people with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.
• Sodium Benzoate Treatment: This common food preservative has shown potential benefits for Alzheimer’s disease by supporting cognitive function. It appears to enhance brain cell communication by preserving D-serine, a chemical messenger needed for learning and memory, and may also reduce oxidative stress, which contributes to Alzheimer’s progression.

What Are the Natural and Lifestyle Approaches to Alzheimer’s Disease?

Managing Alzheimer’s disease relies on regular social engagement, physical exercise, proper nutrition, consistent health care, and a calm, structured environment.

1. Games

Using play as an intervention strategy for people with dementia provides notable cognitive, emotional, and social benefits. A 2022 study found that caregivers observed improvements in energy levels, mood, communication, and connection through customized play activities.

2. Music

A 2023 systematic review of eight studies found that music therapy improves cognitive function in people with Alzheimer’s disease, with particularly strong effects seen in active music interventions where people participate in music-making. These findings support music therapy as a promising complementary approach. A study published in July also found that exposure to Mozart’s K.448 rhythm improved cognitive function in mice.

3. Dance

A 2019 review of 12 studies found that dancing can improve physical, cognitive function, and psychological well-being in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Most studies showed that dance either enhanced or slowed the decline in quality of life for both patients and caregivers.

4. Brain-Boosting Foods and Diets

Eating brain-supportive foods may help protect memory and overall brain health. Whole grains and legumes provide steady energy for neurons. Fruits such as berries, grapes, watermelon, and avocados supply antioxidants, resveratrol, and lycopene that protect against memory loss. Dark leafy greens and beets support circulation and reduce inflammation, while seafood and shellfish provide omega-3s and vitamin B-12 for cognitive function.

Nuts and olive oil offer healthy fats that support vascular health. Seeds such as pumpkin, sunflower, and sesame are rich in vitamin E and other key nutrients essential for brain health.

Sesame seeds, in particular, contain tyrosine, which boosts dopamine production, as well as zinc, vitamin B6, and magnesium—nutrients that help keep the brain sharp and alert.

The specific diets that people with Alzheimer’s disease may benefit from include:

• Mediterranean Diet: This diet emphasizes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, nuts, olive oil, and frequent fish intake while limiting red meat and processed foods. It may help slow Alzheimer’s progression.
• MIND Diet: This diet combines elements of the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets and emphasizes green leafy vegetables, berries, whole grains, beans, nuts, fish, and olive oil, while limiting red meat, sweets, cheese, butter, and fried foods.

5. Nutritional Supplements

Some vitamins and minerals may help support brain health and address deficiencies linked to cognitive decline.

• Selenium: Research shows that people with Alzheimer’s disease have lower levels of selenium in their blood compared to healthy older people.
• Zinc: Early clinical trials suggest that zinc therapy may help people with Alzheimer’s disease by lowering harmful copper levels and possibly improving cognition.
• B Vitamins: A 2022 meta-analysis of 95 studies found that vitamin B supplementation may help slow the rate of cognitive decline.

6. Aerobic and Resistance Exercises

Regular physical activity—such as walking, gardening, cooking, or playing sports—can help slow cognitive decline and may delay the progression of dementia.

Combining aerobic and strength exercises with everyday activities such as walking, dancing, and gardening supports brain health and general well-being. Try to aim for at least 30 minutes of activity, five days a week, to boost circulation and brain health.

7. Sufficient Sleep

Deep, restorative non-REM slow-wave sleep helps protect the brain against beta-amyloid. Research shows a strong connection between Alzheimer’s progression and the circadian system—the body’s internal clock that controls sleep, wakefulness, and other daily cycles. The circadian system regulates the activity of about half of the 82 genes associated with Alzheimer’s risk.

8. Meditation

Meditation may support brain health and could help prevent or even reverse cognitive decline. Research shows that people who meditate experience less hippocampal atrophy—a reduction in the size of the hippocampus, which controls memory formation, learning, and spatial navigation—and report less isolation and loneliness, which are linked to higher Alzheimer’s risk. Meditation may also improve sleep, lower blood pressure, and reduce cardiovascular disease risk, further supporting overall brain and body health.

9. Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy, which uses plant-based essential oils through inhalation or skin application, may help improve thinking and memory in people with Alzheimer’s disease, as essential oils possess neuroprotective and antiaging properties.

Several recommended essential oils include:

• Lavender: Calms mood and may reduce depression, anger, and irritability
• Lemon Balm: Eases anxiety and insomnia, and may support memory
• Ylang-Ylang: Helps relieve depression and may improve sleep
• Bergamot: Reduces anxiety, agitation, and stress, and may support sleep

10. Other Considerations

Although not treatments, these approaches play a vital role in supporting the well-being of people with Alzheimer’s disease.

• Safety and Supportive Measures: The environment should be bright, cheerful, and secure, with moderate stimulation such as a quiet TV or radio to avoid overwhelming the person. Maintaining structure and routine for daily tasks such as eating, bathing, and sleeping helps with orientation, provides a sense of stability, and can improve sleep. Regularly scheduled activities, both physical and mental, support independence and engagement, and can be simplified into smaller steps as dementia progresses.
• Long-Term Care: Specialized long-term care facilities provide trained staff, structured routines, meaningful activities, and safety features.

The progression of Alzheimer’s disease is unpredictable. On average, patients live about seven years after diagnosis, although the disease course can vary widely, lasting anywhere from one to 25 years. Most people who lose the ability to walk survive no longer than six months, but life expectancy differs from person to person.

Read the rest here...

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 22:15

Domestic Military Manufacturing Is Essential For National Security

Authored by Scott Vadnais via RealClearDefense,

For nearly a century, America’s military strength has come largely through self-reliance. We not only made the ships, airplanes and tanks, our country supplied the parts and materials for these complex systems. But a lot has changed in recent times.

Unfortunately, our military has increasingly relied on sourcing parts globally -- including from possibly unreliable places like China. It’s a disastrous side effect of globalization.

For example, while modern jet engines may typically include between 30,000 and 50,000 parts, ensuring they are “China-free” has proven to be incredibly difficult. We’ve already seen deliveries of F-35s delayed over this issue, revealing that supply chain risk and delays remain in the post-COVID era. For instance, in 2022, a magnet in the turbomachine used in engine start-up was discovered to contain a China-produced alloy of cobalt and samarium – figuratively becoming a “non-starter” for using the jets.

Moreover, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report this past July entitled, “Defense Industrial Base: Actions Needed to Address Risks Posed by Dependence on Foreign Suppliers” which pretty much summed it up.

While America has inadvertently offered an Achilles Heel to potential foes, the Chinese are using the global wealth transfer to invest in its defense manufacturing base. Largely relying on intellectual property theft, also known as stealing, China is focusing on stealth design, advanced jet engines, and artificial intelligence, thereby altering the playing field.

As China has risen, America’s manufacturing sector has steadily declined, losing millions of jobs and share of global output.

China has allocated vast resources towards subsidizing and onshoring manufacturing and development of “indigenous” advanced propulsion systems, and are catching up to our military engines – challenging air superiority.

This is why appropriate investment by Congress in the Next Generation Adaptive Propulsion (NGAP) systems is essential to maintaining America’s technological and military lead.

While the U.S. Air Force has made significant investments in funding for NGAP development, it comes after stagnation in military propulsion.

In President Trump’s FY26 Budget proposal, NGAP was funded at roughly $330 million, representing a 23% decrease in funding from the previous year. Underfunding engine development puts the program at risk of significant schedule delays and cost increases. These facts lay the groundwork for a serious debate in both chambers of Congress as they look to fund our current and future military needs.

While U.S. companies are working on a prototype that will improve performance, increase range, and fuel efficiency of fighter jets, it can only grow at the pace of investment.

NGAP is designed to power the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) platform, America’s first sixth generation fighter, (now designated as the F-47). Its combination of stealth, speed and maneuverability would probably seem like science fiction to military pilots a century ago. NGAD is designed to work with unmanned Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) for air dominance. Unmanned CCA’s, perhaps the world’s most advanced drones, will fly alongside manned NGAD as a so-called “loyal wingman” and can be configured for a wide variety of missions.

While the F-47 is not expected to enter service until the 2030s, unfortunately for America, China has already introduced not one, but two flying sixth generation fighters on the same day last year. Little is known about the capabilities of the two models, but the fact that China has developed and flown two advanced fighter designs before the F-47 even put a rivet to metal should be incredibly concerning for all Americans.

For the U.S. to counter this challenge, a robust, resilient domestic manufacturing base in high-tech industries is essential. This requires not only investing in advanced manufacturing facilities but also revitalizing workforce training programs, increasing R&D funding, and fostering innovation ecosystems in key technological areas.

Though China is among our top trading partners, it’s also paradoxically among our top threats. It strongly supports North Korea, an existential threat to our allies South Korea and Japan. Meanwhile, we generously support Taiwan, which it sees as a renegade province worthy of invasion at any time. Our heavy reliance on China trade, combined with adversarial alliances is not only unwise, but also a recipe for catastrophe. Therefore, we must divorce China from our military manufacturing and supply system entirely. Either that or simply abandon our Pacific allies and do a “180” in foreign policy – a major defeat of American power.

We can and should bring more domestic manufacturing back to the U.S. through smarter policies and programs. We must strengthen investment to ensure potential adversaries do not gain a military and technological edge. Congress and President Trump ought to insist upon it.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 21:35

Taiwan Boosts Defense Budget To $40BN As President Lai Lashes Out At Beijing

Taiwan on Wednesday announced a highly significant increase to a $40 billion defense budget, which it says is necessary in response to growing Chinese military pressure and harassment.

Significantly it comes as nearby US-ally Japan is locked in a diplomatic battle with Beijing over Tokyo's increasingly vocal pro-Taiwan independence stance. China has condemned the growing 'militarism' of Japan regarding Taiwan's status.

Anadolu/Getty Images

The historic increase in the 2026–2033 defense spending plan, projected to cover the next eight years, was framed by President Lai Ching-te said as necessary to defending the island's security as a "non-negotiable".

Lai directly addressed Beijing, emphasizing that the issue is not ideological but rooted in rejecting the characterization of Taiwan as "China’s Taiwan."

Lai further cited Chinese PLA military activities, intensified propaganda operations, and increased espionage and infiltration within and around Taiwan.

The statement reasserted that Beijing’s "one country, two systems" proposal is completely unacceptable to Taiwanese society.

As previously noted, the timing also overlapped with a dispute between China and Japan after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan would likely intervene militarily if China attacked Taiwan.

Beijing responded with economic retaliation and expressed anger after Japan prepared to deploy a missile system on Yonaguni Island, some 70 miles from Taiwan.

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, who visited the island, said the deployment preparations were moving ahead steadily. This was seen as an ultra-provocative move by Chinese officials.

China's foreign ministry has grown more and more vocal regarding Japan's staunch pro-independence stance...

This year marks the 80th anniversary of China’s recovery of Taiwan. Japan must never forget that Taiwan is China’s Taiwan.

Taiwan is none of Japan’s business. If Japan creates trouble on Taiwan, Japan will not get away with it. pic.twitter.com/3YZUeac5wg

— Mao Ning 毛宁 (@SpoxCHN_MaoNing) November 20, 2025

Likely China can't help but think that there is a US or Western hidden hand behind Japan's new boldness, especially given Tokyo has so far not backed down despite threatened measures by its top trading partner China, based on total trade value.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 21:00

"Access To Power" Has Become "Access To Energy"

By Ben Hertz-Shargel of Woods Mackenzie

As industry concerns over an AI bubble mount, the scale of data center ambitions continue to grow. As of mid-October, the US data center pipeline reached 245 GW of planned capacity, driven by a handful of enormous, speculative projects. These projects, and the renewable deals hyperscalers are signing, skew heavily toward Texas. More than a quarter of pipeline capacity targets the state, whose pipeline nearly doubled from 35 GW in Q1 to 67 GW in Q3. 

Data Center Alley gives way to Data Center Prairie  

It is conventional wisdom that for data center developers, ‘access to power’ has become the mantra. That is, the importance of fiber proximity to end customers and other data centers has been superseded by the imperative to secure power from utilities. The giga-scale campuses that have been announced this year, sited in Pennsylvania, Wyoming, and particularly West and North Texas, signal yet another pivot in strategy. Developers have increasingly given up confidence that utilities can meet their power and timeline demand and instead seek to build their own generation based on local natural resources. 

Most frequently this resource is natural gas, with a particular focus on the Permian in Texas. Pacifico Energy’s 5-GW GW Ranch, poolside’s 2-GW Project Horizon, and FO Permian’s 5-GW campus in Midland County are examples. The gas network in the US is at capacity, and building new gas generation far from supply means paying for and - perhaps more importantly for developers - waiting for new pipeline capacity. 

In some cases, it should be noted, campuses are being leveraged for their scale and solar or wind resource, such as Tract’s data center parks in Nevada and Utah, and Quantica’s Big Sky Digital Infrastructure campus in Montana. While more headlines have made about the potential for batteries to make data centers flexible assets, we’ve found that batteries are being planned much more commonly to balance renewables at large campuses and to add needed fast-ramping capacity to onsite gas. 

Distorting the capital landscape 

These mega campuses not only reflect a new siting strategy: they distort the capital landscape. The 2% of projects over US$17 billion represent 42% of overall capital deployment, with the 60% of projects below US$1 billion contributing only 8%. With questions already intensifying regarding froth in project investment and company valuations, these projects promise to drive even more froth. 

The two highest-cost projects, Project Jupiter in New Mexico (US$160 billion) and Project Kestrel in Missouri (US$100 billion), are an order of magnitude more expensive than the campuses being developed by companies like Meta and Microsoft, without appreciable increase in IT infrastructure. They are notably being funded through novel financial engineering: Their developers will be both the payers and payees of industrial revenue bonds (IRBs) issued by the local government, a contrivance that enables tax benefits. 

Betting big on onsite generation 

The new energy-chasing campuses are committing to onsite generation in a way that developers have been hesitant to in the past. Hyperscalers have been very clear that they prefer grid power, which requires less operating risk, shorter contract commitments, and no exposure to scope 1 emissions. Developer commitment to onsite generation reflects a bet either that hyperscalers urgency to deploy will overcome their concerns, or that the developer will be able to sell to a new generation of hyperscalers with greater risk tolerance and less concern for sustainability. 

The net result is that while the number of projects in the pipeline with onsite generation has increased only to 10%, these projects represent a whopping 34% of pipeline capacity.

Unsurprisingly, the vast majority of sites are in Texas, and the technology is gas turbines. 

This trend could have significant implications for both energy affordability and reliability. Whether on- or off-grid, projects with utility-scale gas generation will increase gas burns, competing with LNG exports and raising the long-term price of natural gas. This will drive up both gas and electricity bills across the country. To the extent to which turbine-based projects are off-grid, utilities will have an even harder time obtaining turbines given production limitations. That could pose reliability challenges for on-grid load growth, including electrification. 

Whether or not a bubble bursts, these affordability and reliability challenges are likely to provoke state intervention to protect customers. As that begins happens, all bets are off. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 20:35

Thanksgiving Is Now One Of America's Most Dangerous Holidays, New Analysis Shows

Insuranceopedia reviewed national datasets from the NSC, FEMA, NFPA, NHTSA, and the CDC to analyze accident trends surrounding Thanksgiving. The results show that Thanksgiving surpasses Christmas, Memorial Day, and even the Fourth of July in several key danger categories.

• Thanksgiving is the most dangerous U.S. holiday for fires, with a 388% spike in home fires.

• Thanksgiving week car crashes killed 2,525 people from 2020–2024, more than any other major holiday.

• 40% of all injuries on Thanksgiving Day come from structural fires.

“Most people think of Thanksgiving as a low-risk holiday, but the data paints the opposite picture," Says Max Coupland, CEO of Insuranceopedia.

 "Between rushed travel, long cooking hours, and unfamiliar foods around curious pets, it’s a perfect storm for accidents. Our goal is to help families stay safe and avoid the kinds of claims we see spike every November.”

1. Thanksgiving Driving Is Deadlier Than Any Other Major Holiday

Thanksgiving travel may feel routine, but the numbers tell a different story:

• 2,525 people were killed in car crashes over Thanksgiving week from 2020–2024 — higher than Christmas, Labor Day, July 4th, and Memorial Day. (Source: National Safety Council)

• 36% of all Thanksgiving week traffic fatalities involve a drunk driver. (Source: NHTSA)

• 8% of all annual car accident injuries occur during Thanksgiving week alone. (Source: National Safety Council)

Experts say the deadly combination of alcohol, rushed travel, and congested roads makes Thanksgiving week uniquely hazardous.

Driving Safety Tips For Thanksgiving

• Give yourself extra time so you don’t feel pressured to speed.

• Stay overnight or limit alcohol consumption.

• Avoid distractions and focus fully on the road.

• When possible, avoid peak travel times during the most dangerous days of Thanksgiving week.

2. Thanksgiving Is the No. 1 Day of the Year for House Fires

Thanksgiving isn’t just the biggest cooking day of the year — it’s also the most dangerous.

• Thanksgiving Day sees an average of 1,500 reported fires — 388% higher than the daily average. (Source: NFPA)

• 1,446 home cooking fires were reported on Thanksgiving Day 2023 alone. (Source: NFPA)

• 40% of all Thanksgiving Day injuries come from structural fires. (Source: FEMA USFA)

• Residential fires on Thanksgiving cause five deaths each year on average. (Source: FEMA USFA)

• Most incidents happen between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., during meal prep. (Source: FEMA USFA)

The #1 cause of fires on Thanksgiving? Unattended cooking.

Fire Safety Tips For Thanksgiving

• Stay in the kitchen while cooking, especially when frying or simmering.

• Keep kids and pets away from hot surfaces and kitchen tools.

• Test smoke alarms before starting holiday meal prep.

• Keep floors clear to avoid dangerous slips while handling hot items.

• Ensure cords from appliances aren’t dangling or accessible to children or pets.

3. A Hidden Danger: Food Poisoning from Mishandled Turkey

Foodborne illness spikes every Thanksgiving, and improper turkey preparation is a major culprit.

• 78% of people rinse their raw turkey, spreading bacteria around their sink and countertops. (Source: CDC)

• Even after cleaning, 14% still have lingering contamination in or around the sink. (Source: CDC)

Food Safety Tips For Thanksgiving

• Thaw the turkey far enough in advance and cook thoroughly.

• Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

• Cut large portions into smaller pieces so they cool safely.

• Eat leftovers within 3–4 days, or freeze them.

• Always reheat leftovers to 165°F (74°C).

"Thanksgiving should be a time for connection, not catastrophe." Says Max Coupland.

 "A few simple precautions can prevent the kinds of accidents that turn a celebration into an insurance claim. The goal isn’t to scare people, it’s to help families enjoy the holiday safely and avoid unnecessary risks.”

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 20:10

Did Rubio 'Neo-Con' Trump's Ukraine Peace Plan?

Authored by Daniel McAdams, Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute,

Lie down with dogs, you wake up with fleas; lie down with neocons, you wake up with wars.
–Me

So goes President Trump’s 28 point peace plan to end the Russia/Ukraine war. Revealed at the end of last week, the plan initially received a cautious but cautiously optimistic reception in Moscow.

It was hardly a dramatic tilt toward the Russian position. Many of the plan’s points ranged from the implausible to the bizarre. For example the idea that President Trump would be crowned some sort of “peace czar” overseeing the deal, and that Russia would agree to use its seized assets to rebuild Ukraine. Then there is the one that Russia should accept a demilitarized “buffer” zone taking up a good chunk of Donetsk (which itself would be “de facto” part of Russia but not de jure – and thereby subject to the vicissitudes of Western electoral politics). And of course there was the part where the US would share the “profits” from Russia’s paid reconstruction of Ukraine.

Very Trumpian, very weird.

Nevertheless the flawed plan (in terms of Russian acceptance) dropped like an atom bomb on the US neocons and their European counterparts. Trump’s peace plan was “entirely dictated by Putin,” the UK Independent breathlessly tells us. Yes, that is how propagandistic the western mainstream media really is. And suddenly we are back to Russiagate and accusations the Trump is acting as Putin’s puppet – or at least stenographer.

At the political level, EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas pretty well summed up the level of delusion among the European elite: “We have not heard of any concessions from Russia. If Russia really wanted peace, it could have agreed to an unconditional ceasefire a long time ago.’”

Yes, Kaja “Sun Tzu” Kallas. Military history teaches us that every army making rapid gains on the battlefield periodically pauses to make concessions to the losing side. Otherwise it wouldn’t be fair and not everyone would get a trophy.

President Trump’s demand that Ukraine’s acting president, Zelensky, accept the terms by Thanksgiving or face a cut-off in US military and intelligence assistance put the Europeans and US hawks in panic mode. It appeared Trump was finally tired of playing Hamlet after the framework he presented in Alaska in August was agreed upon by Russia and then abandoned by Trump himself after receiving an earful from said Europeans and US neocons.

This time, by golly, Trump was finally going to step up and end a conflict nearly a year after he promised to end it 24 hours.

And then Rubio walked in.

The one lesson Trump 2.0 did not learn from Trump 1.0 is that the personnel is the policy, particularly with a president who appears uninterested in details and disengaged from complex processes. Trump 1.0 was dragged down by neocon albatrosses John Bolton and Mike Pompeo, among others.

Even a Col. Douglas Macgregor brought in in the 4th quarter at the two minute warning to throw a “Hail Mary” pass to get us out of Afghanistan was tackled behind the line of scrimmage by Robert O’Brien, Trump’s final National Security Advisor and neocon dead-ender.

Neocons are wreckers. That’s the one thing they are good at.

The inclusion of new blood in the person of Vice President Vance ally, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll – who supplanted terminally clueless Trump envoy Keith Kellogg – offered the promise that finally the realist faction in the shadows of the Trump Administration would have their shot.

Then the rug was pulled. Again.

Rubio jetted off to Geneva to help lick the wounds of the European “leaders” who are dedicated to fighting the Russians down to the last Ukrainian.

Politico lets us in on what happened next, in a piece titled, “Rubio changes the tack of Trump’s Ukraine negotiations after week of chaos.”

Before Rubio showed up in Switzerland, it largely felt like Vice President JD Vance, via his close friend Driscoll, was leading the process. By the end of the weekend, Rubio had taken the reins because the conversations became more flexible, the official said.

“Flexibility” means that we are back to square one, with a reversion to the Kellogg/Euro view that the side winning a war should unilaterally freeze military operations in favor of the losing side.

Politico continued:

Rubio’s participation in the talks produced much more American flexibility, the four people familiar with the discussions said. Rubio told reporters on Sunday night that the aim is simply to finalize discussions ‘as soon as possible,’ rather than by Thanksgiving.

That loss of momentum and destruction of the sense of urgency means we have returned to the endless bickering of the eternally deluded voices who even in the face of rapid recent Russian advances believe that Ukraine is winning – or could win with a few hundred billion more dollars – the war against Russia.

Never mind the golden toilets. Suddenly that’s out of the news.

At the end of the day, all the drama changes little. As President Putin himself said while meeting with his own national security council (h/t MoA):

Either Kiev’s leadership lacks objective reporting about the developments on the front, or, even if they receive such information, they are unable to assess it objectively. If Kiev refuses to discuss President Trump’s proposals and declines to engage in dialogue, then both they and their European instigators must understand that what happened in Kupyansk will inevitably occur in other key areas of the front. Perhaps not as quickly as we would prefer, but inevitably.

And overall, this development suits us, as it leads to achieving the goals of the special military operation by force, through armed confrontation.

In other words, Russia is happy to achieve its objectives through negotiation, which would save lives and infrastructure especially in Ukraine. But it is also willing to continue its accelerating push to achieve those objectives militarily. And no fever dreams of war with Russia from the likes of former NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen is going to change that.

Marco Rubio is a pretty bad Kissinger, and Kissinger was bad enough. At some point – and that point may have now passed – the Russians are going to rightly conclude that they have no negotiating partner in a US still dominated by people like the former Senator from Florida whose first love is regime change in Venezuela and Cuba.

Whatever the case, Trump should be pretty miffed that Marco threw a spanner in what would have been a world record, unprecedented, universally-praised, like-nothing-the-world-has-ever-seen, solving of NINE wars in just his first year in office!

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 19:45

Public Schools Are Failing And Parents Are Bailing

Authored by Larry Sand via American Greatness,

Students attending American public schools are struggling. Test scores from the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), released this year, indicate that 33% of 8th graders—a greater percentage than ever before—are reading at the “below basic” level.

Additionally, only 22% of high school seniors are proficient or above in math, down from 24% in 2019, and only 35% are proficient in reading—the lowest score since NAEP began in 1969—down from 37% in 2019. Also, a record-high percentage scored at “below basic” levels in both math and reading compared to all previous assessments.

Parents across the country, especially in big cities, have become aware of the problem and are removing their children.

In Chicago, public school enrollment has decreased significantly over the past 15 years, from nearly 403,000 students in 2010-11 to just over 316,000 in 2025-26, according to the Illinois Policy Institute. Most recently, the district reported a decline of 9,081 students between 2024-25 and 2025-26. IPI states that more than one in three desks in the district are empty.

For the 2025–26 school year, the New York City Department of Education discloses that 793,300 students are enrolled in K-12 grades. That’s a 2.3% decrease from the previous year and a nearly 10% drop since 2020. The data also show that 112 of the city’s public schools have fewer than 150 students, up from 80 schools just two years ago.

Twenty years ago, the Los Angeles Unified School District had 737,000 students, but that number has now fallen to approximately 408,000, reflecting a decline of over 40%.

Among students who haven’t withdrawn, many are chronically absent. Using data from 44 states and Washington, DC, Nat Malkus, the director of education policy at the American Enterprise Institute, writes that the alarming rate of chronic absenteeism—students missing more than 10% of school days annually—was 23.5% in 2024.

This problem, too, is especially serious in our large urban areas. In Los Angeles, over 32% of students were chronically absent in the 2023-2024 school year, 34 elementary schools have fewer than 200 students, and 29 use less than half of the building. Even worse, Chicago’s chronic absentee rate is 41%.

As government-run schools are shrinking, private schools are expanding substantially.

Participation in private school choice—when students use public funds for private school tuition—has risen 25%, from just over one million students in 2024 to 1.3 million this year, according to a new analysis by EdChoice, a school choice advocacy group.

This has been the largest year-to-year increase since EdChoice started tracking the data in 2000, said Robert Enlow, president and CEO of EdChoice. He noted that it took about 24 years for private school choice participation to reach one million students, and this year it hit 1.3 million.

Florida educates over 500,000 students through its universal voucher and scholarship programs. Utah’s Fits All Scholarship launched in 2024 with about 10,000 seats and was immediately oversubscribed. Iowa’s Students First Educational Savings Account program enrolled nearly 28,000 students in its second year, surpassing projections.

Additionally, many parents have chosen to homeschool. In fact, homeschooling has reached an all-time high.

Angela Watson of the Johns Hopkins University School of Education’s Homeschool Hub wrote earlier this month, “In the 2024-2025 school year, homeschooling continued to grow across the United States, increasing at an average rate of 5.4%. This is nearly three times the pre-pandemic homeschooling growth rate of around 2%. Notably, 36% of reporting states recorded their highest homeschool enrollment numbers ever—exceeding even the peaks reached during the pandemic.”

It’s not just parents who are dissatisfied with public schools; only 26% of teachers believe K-12 education is heading in the right direction nationwide, a 5-point drop from the spring, when 31% felt optimistic.

Of course, the public school monopolists, especially the teachers’ unions, are upset about the advancement of school choice, but their reasons are baseless. One argument they use is that choice increases segregation. American Federation of Teachers’ president Randi Weingarten nonsensically claims school choice was designed to keep schools segregated.

Wrong.

Researcher Greg Forster states that ten empirical studies have examined private school choice programs and their effect on segregation. Nine of these studies found that the programs reduced segregation, while one found no noticeable impact. None of the studies indicated that choice encourages racial discrimination.

No matter. The teachers’ unions, realizing they are losing in the court of public opinion, have resorted to litigation in various state courts. Wyoming, Missouri, Utah, South Carolina, and Montana have faced legal action from the unions, which are desperately afraid that parental choice will severely impact their bottom line.

So far, the unions’ efforts have been successful in two states.

In Wyoming, lawmakers launched the state’s first K-12 education savings account (ESA) program last year, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year. The $7,000 accounts can be used for private school tuition, tutors, homeschooling, or other education-related expenses. Nearly 4,000 students applied for them this fall.

However, the Wyoming Education Association, representing about 6,000 public school teachers, opposes using taxpayer dollars for a private option. In a lawsuit filed in June, the union and nine parents sued the state, arguing that the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act is unconstitutional because it violates a state regulation requiring a “complete and uniform system of public instruction.” The union was successful when a District Court judge issued a preliminary injunction against the voucher program in July.

In Utah, the state affiliate of the National Education Association successfully sued the state last year, arguing that the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program violates the state constitution by diverting tax revenue to private schools that aren’t free, accessible to all students, and supervised by the state board of education. The Utah Supreme Court is scheduled to review an appeal later this year.

In summary, we are engaged in a turf war. Parents, whose primary concern is their children’s education, are battling the establishment, particularly the teachers’ unions, whose aim is to protect their profits and maintain their toxic influence over K-12 education.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 18:55

Public Schools Are Failing And Parents Are Bailing

Authored by Larry Sand via American Greatness,

Students attending American public schools are struggling. Test scores from the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), released this year, indicate that 33% of 8th graders—a greater percentage than ever before—are reading at the “below basic” level.

Additionally, only 22% of high school seniors are proficient or above in math, down from 24% in 2019, and only 35% are proficient in reading—the lowest score since NAEP began in 1969—down from 37% in 2019. Also, a record-high percentage scored at “below basic” levels in both math and reading compared to all previous assessments.

Parents across the country, especially in big cities, have become aware of the problem and are removing their children.

In Chicago, public school enrollment has decreased significantly over the past 15 years, from nearly 403,000 students in 2010-11 to just over 316,000 in 2025-26, according to the Illinois Policy Institute. Most recently, the district reported a decline of 9,081 students between 2024-25 and 2025-26. IPI states that more than one in three desks in the district are empty.

For the 2025–26 school year, the New York City Department of Education discloses that 793,300 students are enrolled in K-12 grades. That’s a 2.3% decrease from the previous year and a nearly 10% drop since 2020. The data also show that 112 of the city’s public schools have fewer than 150 students, up from 80 schools just two years ago.

Twenty years ago, the Los Angeles Unified School District had 737,000 students, but that number has now fallen to approximately 408,000, reflecting a decline of over 40%.

Among students who haven’t withdrawn, many are chronically absent. Using data from 44 states and Washington, DC, Nat Malkus, the director of education policy at the American Enterprise Institute, writes that the alarming rate of chronic absenteeism—students missing more than 10% of school days annually—was 23.5% in 2024.

This problem, too, is especially serious in our large urban areas. In Los Angeles, over 32% of students were chronically absent in the 2023-2024 school year, 34 elementary schools have fewer than 200 students, and 29 use less than half of the building. Even worse, Chicago’s chronic absentee rate is 41%.

As government-run schools are shrinking, private schools are expanding substantially.

Participation in private school choice—when students use public funds for private school tuition—has risen 25%, from just over one million students in 2024 to 1.3 million this year, according to a new analysis by EdChoice, a school choice advocacy group.

This has been the largest year-to-year increase since EdChoice started tracking the data in 2000, said Robert Enlow, president and CEO of EdChoice. He noted that it took about 24 years for private school choice participation to reach one million students, and this year it hit 1.3 million.

Florida educates over 500,000 students through its universal voucher and scholarship programs. Utah’s Fits All Scholarship launched in 2024 with about 10,000 seats and was immediately oversubscribed. Iowa’s Students First Educational Savings Account program enrolled nearly 28,000 students in its second year, surpassing projections.

Additionally, many parents have chosen to homeschool. In fact, homeschooling has reached an all-time high.

Angela Watson of the Johns Hopkins University School of Education’s Homeschool Hub wrote earlier this month, “In the 2024-2025 school year, homeschooling continued to grow across the United States, increasing at an average rate of 5.4%. This is nearly three times the pre-pandemic homeschooling growth rate of around 2%. Notably, 36% of reporting states recorded their highest homeschool enrollment numbers ever—exceeding even the peaks reached during the pandemic.”

It’s not just parents who are dissatisfied with public schools; only 26% of teachers believe K-12 education is heading in the right direction nationwide, a 5-point drop from the spring, when 31% felt optimistic.

Of course, the public school monopolists, especially the teachers’ unions, are upset about the advancement of school choice, but their reasons are baseless. One argument they use is that choice increases segregation. American Federation of Teachers’ president Randi Weingarten nonsensically claims school choice was designed to keep schools segregated.

Wrong.

Researcher Greg Forster states that ten empirical studies have examined private school choice programs and their effect on segregation. Nine of these studies found that the programs reduced segregation, while one found no noticeable impact. None of the studies indicated that choice encourages racial discrimination.

No matter. The teachers’ unions, realizing they are losing in the court of public opinion, have resorted to litigation in various state courts. Wyoming, Missouri, Utah, South Carolina, and Montana have faced legal action from the unions, which are desperately afraid that parental choice will severely impact their bottom line.

So far, the unions’ efforts have been successful in two states.

In Wyoming, lawmakers launched the state’s first K-12 education savings account (ESA) program last year, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year. The $7,000 accounts can be used for private school tuition, tutors, homeschooling, or other education-related expenses. Nearly 4,000 students applied for them this fall.

However, the Wyoming Education Association, representing about 6,000 public school teachers, opposes using taxpayer dollars for a private option. In a lawsuit filed in June, the union and nine parents sued the state, arguing that the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act is unconstitutional because it violates a state regulation requiring a “complete and uniform system of public instruction.” The union was successful when a District Court judge issued a preliminary injunction against the voucher program in July.

In Utah, the state affiliate of the National Education Association successfully sued the state last year, arguing that the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program violates the state constitution by diverting tax revenue to private schools that aren’t free, accessible to all students, and supervised by the state board of education. The Utah Supreme Court is scheduled to review an appeal later this year.

In summary, we are engaged in a turf war. Parents, whose primary concern is their children’s education, are battling the establishment, particularly the teachers’ unions, whose aim is to protect their profits and maintain their toxic influence over K-12 education.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 18:55

Trump-MbS Meeting Was Strained Behind Closed Doors: 'Disappointment & Irritation'

Axios reported some new details this week related to the recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.

There were more tensions in the private dialogue between the two leaders than previously known, and some significant disagreements centered on policy toward Israel.

While the two leaders exchanged compliments in front of the cameras, aspects of the private discussion were strained, Axios noted. Officials described Trump as being frustrated by the resistance he encountered from the crown prince on joining the Abraham Accords.

Bin Salman presented his stance that a firm commitment toward a two-state solution involving the Palestinians must be made for Saudi Arabia to join the accords.

Behind closed doors the crown prince reportedly pushed back when Trump pressed him to formally join the Abraham Accords which establishes normalization with Israel.

via Al Jazeera

MbS reportedly argued that he has to represent his people at a moment Saudi public sentiment has turned sharply against Israel in the aftermath the Gaza war.

But Trump had "pressed hard" on the issue in the November 18 meeting, Axios underscored. One unnamed admin official explained in the meeting's aftermath, "The best way to say it is disappointment and irritation. The president really wants them to join the Abraham Accord. He tried very hard to talk him. It was an honest discussion. But MBS is a strong man. He stood his ground."

The Saudis are insisting that Israel must agree to "an irreversible, credible and time-bound path" for a Palestinian state, but the Netanyahu government has firmly rejected this possibility, especially in the wake of the Oct.7, 2023 terror attack.

Another US official said, "MBS never said no to normalization. The door is open for doing it later. But the two-state solution is an issue."

In relation to the Hamas Oct.7 attack, there's long been speculation that the terror raids on southern Israel were launched precisely because the militant group was worried that as more and more regional countries join the Abraham Accords, the question of Palestinian statehood would be permanently abandoned.

According to this theory, the brazen and history-altering attack was meant once again to sow deep division among the 'Arab world' and Israel. To some degree, this may have succeeded as a broader geopolitical goal, given the Abraham Accords have indeed been stalled. But it also backfired, given Iran and Hezbollah are more weakened than ever, and the Syrian government was overthrown a year ago. These were all key, well-armed and historic resisters of Israeli expansion and Zionist hegemony. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 18:30

Why No COVID Commission In The US?

Authored by Jeffrey Tucker via The Epoch Times,

They were the hardest years of our lives, marked by the dissolution of rights, liberties, and hope. Sadness swept the land, as forced physical isolation and shattered civic life mutated toward mandates to wear masks and eventually to accept a new injection product.

The liturgy of life fundamentally disrupted, we lost track of the passage of time and saw our social and community networks decimated. Government spending and money printing exploded as never before. For many the whole period feels like a blur, one that resulted in a dramatic devaluation in the value of income and savings.

I speak of course of the COVID years, 2020–2023. Agencies at all levels cancelled religious holidays, closed small businesses and schools, imposed limits on house parties, and overturned traditional election protocols. It went on for three years. It was in the name of health but health collapsed during this period. It all feels like madness in retrospect.

People these days barely want to speak about the subject, because it is still somewhat divisive but mainly because it is deeply painful. It was this way following the Great War, a trauma on a similar scale. Most people just wanted it to go away, and to put it all in the rearview mirror.

That said, when people do open up about what happened, they share shocking stories of personal tragedy and loss. Only this past week, a man told me about his dream business he had started 10 years ago and then built into a growing wholesale machine with 200-plus employees and bright prospects ahead. With the lockdowns, all orders for his project stopped. The company collapsed in two weeks. All employees lost their jobs and he and his wife lost their dreams. They divorced soon after.

Today his idea and a version of his project is in most major stories, as manufactured by huge corporate enterprises. He changed professions and is still digging out from a financial hole.

It’s just one story but something replicated in some form millions of times over. Kids who experienced this will never forget it, and parents have few choices but to describe the whole thing as a time when adults lost their minds.

Remember that all of this happened not just in the United States but in 194 countries around the world. The policies were strikingly similar everywhere. It was a time in which human interaction was described as disease spreading and therefore to be avoided in the interest of “slowing the spread.”

Only a few nations resisted: Sweden, Tanzania, Nicaragua, and Belarus. Sweden in particular experienced far better outcomes even from the targeted pathogen, the best in Europe. The population in general avoided trauma.

After all this time, one might suppose that the world would be awash in apologies along with pledges never to do anything like this again. One possible path to making this happen might be a COVID Commission. The United States has never formed one. Early on, there was talk about such a thing but it never came to fruition. Even now, there are no plans for such a thing.

This is for a reason. An honest report, one informed and written by independent researchers, would implicate both political parties, most universities, many government agencies, the Big Tech and pharmaceutical sectors, churches and schools that went along, in addition to a massive swath of incumbent elites in foundations.

Sadly, that is just not going to happen. I wish it were otherwise. Any official commission report written as a coverup would be dead on arrival. Not even the establishment is that dumb.

I would like to live in a society in which mistakes are admitted, brutality is repudiated, institutions adapt in light of failure, and leadership is mature enough to seek forgiveness for wrongdoing. We hope for a narrative of history that is self-correcting in real time: error followed by pledges to improve and sin by repentance and propitiation.

Sadly none of that is to be.

Somehow it came to be that the United Kingdom did put together an official commission.

It has spent upwards of 500 million pounds and taken years in testimony. The second part of the report just appeared. It features a helpful summary of its conclusions for those who do not want to slog through the entire thing. It is one that could have been predicted from the start. It comes down to four words:

“Too little, too late.”

Translation: The commission has decided that the UK waited too long to issue stay-at-home orders and shut businesses, churches, and schools. If it had acted in February rather than March 2020 and with greater ferocity, they have declared, somehow the outcomes would have been better. In short, there is no regret at all except for one point: it should have been more and sooner.

They know this because computer models tell them so.

Sure, the report admits, there were all sorts of mistakes in coordination, communication, and costing. This is bureaucratic speak for: we need more money next time. The report takes no issue with the disease modeling that gave rise to the lockdowns in the first place. The ineffective shot is not addressed in this particular report but we can anticipate what later reports will say: its only failure traces to slow uptake and vaccine resistance.

The huge lesson: “Governments must act swiftly and decisively to stand any chance of stopping the spread of a virus.”

In other words, they are going to do it again, more quickly and harder.

There is a feature of this report that simply breaks my heart. This is because I seriously doubt that anyone really believes in the truth of it. The claim is utterly unsustainable in light of any and all evidence. The Swedish experience is not discussed in any depth. It cannot because the Swedish experience disproves everything in this report.

I’ve been writing about this topic for five going on six years. My first piece was from January 2020, and it warned that if governments try to take on the microbial kingdom it will lose and utterly discredit themselves. I said this before we even knew of the thousand-fold differential in medically significant impact between the young and elderly and infirm. Even if the virus had been more serious, the result would have been the same.

Another reason that this report is demoralizing: tens and hundreds of thousands of actual experts the world over have debunked the pandemic response in countless numbers of papers, articles, and books. Have these protests made no difference at all? Are officials at all levels going to pretend forever as if these do not exist?

I don’t know the answer but this much I know: We cannot look to official statements of these sorts to codify truth. Instead, we can only count on them to be self-serving, a means of protecting the reputations and jobs of the very people who made such dreadful errors.

Just as no one should look to government to stop a fast-spreading and fast-mutating respiratory virus, we should not be looking to government commissions to admit error and pledge to do better next time. Just as the pandemic response discredited so many institutions, kicking off a new age of widespread distrust of everything and everyone, so too will more such reports entrench our culture of incredulity.

Given these conditions, the United States is better off with no commission at all. That said, it would be good for at least one legislative body to speak clearly and plainly about all that went wrong. My choice would be the U.S. Senate.

Maybe there is some chance of that with enough push from the grassroots. So long as there are no admissions of wrongdoing, there will be no healing from the anger and distrust that characterizes our times. This problem is not going away. As time has rolled on, the reality of what happened is ever more present in our lives.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 18:05

From Intercontinental Exchange: ICE First Look at Mortgage Performance: Increased Refinance Activity Drives Mortgage Prepayments to 3.5-Year High

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) ... oday released the October 2025 ICE First Look at mortgage delinquency, foreclosure and prepayment trends.

“Softening mortgage rates expanded the pool of refinance candidates in October, pushing prepayments to their highest level in three and a half years,” said Andy Walden, Head of Mortgage and Housing Market Research at ICE. “This trend was largely driven by people who purchased homes at elevated rates in recent years seizing the opportunity to lower their monthly payments.”

“Overall mortgage health remains solid, with continued improvement in delinquency rates across all stages,” continued Walden. “While foreclosure activity has ticked up, levels remain historically low. This uptick is driven by a rise in FHA foreclosures along with the resumption in VA foreclosures following last year's moratorium."

Key takeaways from this month’s findings include:

• Delinquencies improved: The national delinquency rate fell by 7 basis points (bps) in October to 3.34%. This is down 11 bps from the same time last year and 53 bps below the October 2019 pre-pandemic benchmark.

• Broad strength in delinquency rates: Performance improved across the board, with both early-stage (30-day) and late-stage (90+ day) delinquencies declining during the month.

• Prepayments reached a multi-year high: The single month mortality (SMM) rate, which tracks prepayments, rose by 27 bps in October to 1.01%. This marks the highest level in 3.5 years and an increase of 16 bps from last year when interest rates were at similar levels.

• Foreclosure activity trending upward: Although October foreclosure starts slowed by 9.8% from the prior month, the overall trend continues to rise. Foreclosure inventory is up by 37,000 (+19%) year over year, and foreclosure sales have increased by 1,900 (+32%) from last year's levels.

• Government loans driving foreclosure growth: While foreclosure activity remains muted by historical standards, the number of loans in active foreclosure hit its highest level since early 2023, driven by a notable rise in FHA foreclosures (+50% YoY) along with a resumption of VA activity following last year's moratorium.
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

Here is a table from ICE.

Is A Trump UFO Bombshell Incoming?

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Documentary filmmaker Dan Farah has boldly predicted that President Trump could be the first world leader to spill the beans on UFOs, dropping a “major announcement” about non-human tech and extraterrestrial intel—sparking feverish speculation: Is this engineered hype to divert from global flashpoints, or a seismic shift toward transparency? 

Farah made the claim on Joe Rogan’s podcast while promoting a new documentary titled The Age of Disclosure. As Farah teases amnesty for black-budget insiders, is Trump poised to unmask aliens, or is this another misdirect?

Farah asserted: “I wouldn’t be surprised if it happens soon after the film comes out — the sitting president has to step to the microphone and say: humanity is not alone in the universe. We have recovered technology of non-human origin. So have other nations. There is a high-stakes, secret cold war race to reverse engineer this technology. We need to win this race.” 

UFO expert Dan Farah just told Joe Rogan he believes a sitting president will finally come clean about the UAP phenomenon…and he thinks that president will be Donald Trump.

Then he dropped a bombshell about what Trump has already tasked Tulsi Gabbard with investigating.… pic.twitter.com/TsMb2WRm2q

— Overton (@overton_news) November 21, 2025

Rogan quipped, “I think Trump might be the only guy that’s willing to do something that crazy.” 

Farah replied: “I know he is aware of what people in his administration say in the film… And I know that they are discussing internally how they’re going to react to the film publicly.”

The filmmaker also claimed that Trump was contemplating basic disclosure during his first tenure as President and has now tasked United States Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard with getting to the bottom of what is gong on with the UFO/UAP phenomenon.

Throughout the podcast he detailed how insiders have revealed to him that there have been multiple UFO contact events with the U.S. military, including multiple face to face encounters with non-human entities.

Dan Farah tells Joe Rogan there have been multiple UFO contact events with our military and even describes the types of beings involved. ? pic.twitter.com/weBCa1fbIz

— Astral? (@The_Astral_) November 21, 2025

The Age of Disclosure director/producer Dan Farah tells Joe Rogan the U.S. conducted nuclear weapon tests with the specific intent to recover crashed UFOs.

Farah: “One of the realizations early on was that atomic weapon testing has a ripple effect that can down these things. So… pic.twitter.com/6TVlvi9tGo

— UAP James (@UAPJames) November 21, 2025

Full interview here:

Farah’s call for “amnesty” for UFO cover-up insiders mirrors Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s previous on-camera plea: “I’m not trying to punish anyone. I need to know what they learned, because taxpayers paid for this and it’s in our interest to know what’s going on.” 

But is this real reckoning or red herring? Intelligence Whistleblower Edward Snowden’s warned in 2023 that such flaps are “engineered” to bury scandals like Nord Stream.

“I wish it were aliens,” but it’s bait to “wipe the infinitely more awkward Seymour Hersh story from the headlines,” he noted at the time.

Farah also claimed that according to insiders, over a trillion dollars has been poured into “reverse-engineering” recovered craft.

Ex-intel officer Luis Elizondo’s 2024 drone-UFO intercept revelations—“true UAP events followed by a Department of Defense response”—have hinted at a hidden arms race.

In 2023 the NSC claimed that UAPs are having a “real impact” on pilots—claiming “there’s something our pilots are seeing.”

White House National Security Council Coordinator, Admiral John Kirby was asked about Senator Schumer’s UAP legislation. ?

-White House takes it seriously

“Some of these phenomena we know have already had an impact on our training ranges.” pic.twitter.com/CNeJ8Efj6z

— UAP News (@HighPeaks77) July 17, 2023

Under Trump, could this be significant truth-telling, unearthing black-budget secrets? Or, as Snowden posited, another “distraction” from wars or woes? 

Farah’s hope—Trump as the “only guy” wild enough—clashes with skeptics seeing psyop. 

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 15:45

'Seditious Six' Democrats Freak Out Over FBI Investigation

Democrats are losing it after the Trump administration opened an investigation into six Democratic lawmakers following the posting of a Nov. 18 social-media video in which they advised U.S. service members that they are obligated to follow lawful, not illegal, orders under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

The video - featuring lawmakers with national security backgrounds - reflected a familiar line of Democratic criticism of President Donald Trump during his term: questioning the president’s adherence to constitutional constraints and norms of military authority.

We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.

The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.

Don’t give up the ship. pic.twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r

— Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) November 18, 2025

On Monday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he may take disciplinary action against Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), who participated in the video and served as a U.S. Navy captain and astronaut before entering public office. Hegseth directed Navy Secretary John Phelan to review Kelly’s remarks and provide guidance by Dec. 10.

The video made by the “Seditious Six” was despicable, reckless, and false. Encouraging our warriors to ignore the orders of their Commanders undermines every aspect of “good order and discipline.” Their foolish screed sows doubt and confusion — which only puts our warriors in danger.

Five of the six individuals in that video do not fall under @DeptofWar jurisdiction (one is CIA and four are former military but not “retired”, so they are no longer subject to UCMJ). However, Mark Kelly (retired Navy Commander) is still subject to UCMJ—and he knows that. -Pete Hegseth

The following day, all six lawmakers said the FBI had asked to interview them. In addition to Kelly, the Democrats are: Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, a former Army officer; Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, a former Air Force captain; Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, a former Navy lieutenant who served in Iraq; Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, a Navy reserve veteran; and Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who previously worked at the CIA. Slotkin said the outreach came from the FBI’s counterterrorism division, Punchbowl News reports.

“No amount of intimidation or harassment will ever stop us from doing our jobs and honoring our Constitution,” the four House members said in a joint statement. The FBI declined to comment on the agency’s inquiry.

While Kelly remains subject to court-martial as a retired naval officer, pursuing charges against a sitting senator for public remarks would have little historical precedent. The matter could ultimately require judicial interpretation.

The case raises constitutional questions, particularly under Article I, which affords lawmakers certain protections for statements made in the course of legislative - or in some interpretations, public - duties. Legal scholars note that this dynamic may force the courts to balance military conduct statutes with congressional speech protections.

GOP Reaction and Divisions

With Congress out of session for Thanksgiving, Republican lawmakers have been slow to offer comment, though two GOP senators voiced immediate concern about the inquiry.

Sen. John Curtis (R-UT) said he respects Kelly personally, while Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said that “to accuse him and other lawmakers of treason and sedition for rightfully pointing out that servicemembers can refuse illegal orders is reckless and flat-out wrong.”

On Truth Social, Mr. Trump reacted sharply to the video, accusing the Democratic lawmakers of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” He also amplified a user repost calling for their hanging.

The controversy emerges at a time when both Hegseth and FBI Director Kash Patel face heightened internal scrutiny. Hegseth’s authority has been unusually overshadowed by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a Yale Law acquaintance of Vice President JD Vance. Driscoll has been tasked with exploring diplomatic channels in Ukraine amid ongoing hostilities with Russia.

Patel, meanwhile, has drawn criticism for deploying local FBI tactical resources for personal security purposes involving his girlfriend. MSNOW reported that Patel’s tenure atop the FBI “may be numbered,” however the Trump administration pushed back, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posting on X: "This story is completely made up. In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel."

Trump later said that Patel is "doing a great job." 

Politically, Hegseth’s posture may inadvertently bolster Kelly, who is considered by some Democrats as a potential 2028 presidential contender. But the public exposure has carried risk for the Democrats involved: several have reported an escalation in threats. Slotkin now receives security protection from Capitol Police.

Tyler Durden Wed, 11/26/2025 - 15:25