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Flock. From Mises: The High Cost of the Automated Flock-Camera Surveillance State AND No, Flock Is Not Really a Private Company. The term that best describes the CEO of the "private" company Flock is "parasite" or "plutocrat" or "welfare queen" because his "business model" is simply finding ways to exploit the taxpayers. [Ed: like a wolf with sheep, it is a state venture in private disguise.] From Epoch Times: Dallas Police To Shut Down Hundreds Of Flock Cameras. Dallas police officials said 321 Flock cameras that were supported via grant funding will no longer be eligible. ]Ed: are they afraid some of the 'grant' $ comes from China?]

From Waggington Post: Ice Cube Jackpot!

From the Rattler: Study: Even Well-Intentioned Regulators Do More Harm Than Good. Bureaucrats who intend to do good still restrict competition and suppress liberty.

Trade. From Real Clear Markets: The G-7 Is Down One Rather Obstreperous Member. [Ed: a must read. Insightful.] From the Cato Institute: The Other Liberation Day: The Liberation of the Rest of the World from Trade with the United States. [Ed: can one Presidency destroy the U.S. global economic status? Of course Trump can.]

Trump, Trump, Trump. From the Hill: Trump Suggests Renaming Another Body of Water. He says Hormuz could become 'TRUMP STRAIT' [Ed: Lord have mercy...] From 9to5mac: Another Maps App Falls in Line on Lake Ontario. Apple follows executive order to relabel Lake Ontario in Maps. From CBS News: You Can Now Pay for Your Gas With This (or Save It). US Mint releases $1 coin with president's mug on it to mark nation's 250th anniversary

Iran. From Hot Air: What Is Iran's Boiling Point? We May Be Very Close to Finding Out. From : US Sites Across Mideast Hit by Iran Drones, Missiles. New assault target facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, Iraq, and Bahrain. [Ed: in retaliation, of course. an eye for an eye makes the world bland.]

Upcoming Elections. From Cato Institute: Official: USPS Version of Trump Plan Could Paralyze Mail Balloting. [Ed: a must read. Wow, this election is on the course to disaster.]

From People: Rescue Pup with 'Special Powers' and 'Old Soul' Saves Owner's Life and Wins Award for His Heroics

German Elections. From Politico.EU: How Merkel and Merz lost eastern Germany to the AfD This Sunday, the far right is well placed to take power in a German state for the first time since 1945. [Ed: the left has almost destroyed Germany with green, a migrant flood, and other incredibly unpopular agendas.] AND The far-right leader pushing Germans to forget the Nazi past. Hans-Thomas Tillschneider could soon wield more power than any other far-right figure in Germany’s postwar history to turn his radical ideas into reality.

Fauci and Covid. From the Brownstone Institute: Pfizer and the CIA Privately Cited High Population Immunity in May 2020, Unclassified Document Reveals

Ukraine-Russia. From CNBC: Zelenskyy says airlines should avoid Russian airspace as Ukraine expands drone operations [Ed: yep. He is saying passenger planes from around the world are not safe from Ukraine if in Russian airspace.] From Zero Hedge: Rival Ukrainian Agencies In Lengthy Street Shootout, Officers Wounded. Intel civil war brewing? Rare Ukrainian on Ukrainian firefight in heart of capital. [Ed: I don't know what this means. May be a game-changer. May be be a flunk.]

Big Picture Economics. From the Associated Press: Dutch Central Bank Quietly Shifts Gold Out of US. Bank cites 'increasing geopolitical unrest' [Ed: have other nations 'quietly' done the same?] From the Internatonal Man: Doug Casey on America's Fading Hegemony and the New World Order [Ed: even tho' it will hurt me financially, breaking U.S. hegemony is the right thing. From Scheer Post: The Sovereign Reset: Escaping the Interest Trap with Greenbacks

From Zero Hedge: Brazil's Socialist President Sees Lead Evaporating, New Poll Shows. A Flávio Bolsonaro win in October would not start a right turn in South America. It would effectively close it. "By mid-2026, South America had already flipped. Argentina (Milei), Chile (Kast), Colombia (de la Espriella), Peru (Keiko Fujimori), Ecuador (Noboa), Bolivia (Paz), and Paraguay (Peña) sit on the right." [Ed: Trump is throwing his weight to Bolsonaro, heavily.]

From the Epoch Times: Trump's New Foundry School Aims To Train America's Manufacturing Workers Of The Future. "...a national training program meant to prepare entrepreneurs, engineers, technicians, and industrial leaders for a rebuilding of U.S. manufacturing." [Ed: smart move. Wish it were not a government move.]
From the DoDo: Family Brings Life-Size Cutout Of Their Dog Sofa Shopping To Find The Perfect Fit.

From Wamiz: Family Brings Life-Size Cutout Of Their Dog Sofa Shopping To Find The Perfect Fit.

From Politico.EU: Nigel Farage’s Reform show gets a reboot.The Reform UK leader will use his conference to strike a ‘very serious tone’ after spending the summer fighting a by-election challenge from Count Binface. [Ed: I wish him luck--or as much luck as I can wish any politician--but calling the bielection may have been a fatal mistake.]

DSA. From Hot Air: WSJ: Do Dems Have a Hasan Piker Problem? One Journo Says ... [Ed: this is more insightful than articles on Hot Air often are.]

From I Heart Dogs: Hero VIP Club Members Helped An Overlooked Rescue Dog Become Someone’s Answered Prayer

From the Post Millennial: Trump admin closes 270 truck driving schools for giving licenses to illegal aliens. "I don't know about you, but with my kids driving around, I don't want a person who can't even read the road signs to have a CDL in the United States of America."

From Bored Panda: A Flight With 5 Rescued Spanish Galgos Inspired This Photographer’s Artistic Sighthound Photo Project

DSA. From PJ Media: HE'S RUNNING: This Obama Advisor Just Denounced the DSA. [Ed: Rahm Emanuel.] From Zero Hedge: 'Daddy's Savings Account': Two More NYC-DSA Leaders Caught Living The Capitalist Dream. Limousine Socialists...

From Thomas Kolbe: Is Germany Preparing To Unveil A Wealth Tax? Germany's government is rolling out a new nationwide wealth survey framed as academic research — but it looks like the first concrete step toward a full wealth register, timed right as Berlin's first-half deficit hits €71.3 billion. [Ed: a wealth registry? What could go wrong?]

Venezuela. From NPR: The U.S. Venezuela Oil Deal Won’t Lower Your Gas Prices. Here’s What You Need to Know . [Ed: appears to be in direct conflict with Venezuela’s 1999 constitution.] From the New Republic: Trump Is a Liar. That’s Bad. But He’s Delusional—and That’s Even Worse. This Venezuela deal is just the latest example: The president has marinated his brain in an insane fantasy that he is an effective leader. It would all be funny if we didn’t have to live through it. [Ed: recommended.]

From X: Poke Bear learning new tricks!

Flock Cameras. From Not the Bee: DeSantis: All Flock cameras on Florida highways will be removed. [Ed: good for him. Many politicians are coming out against them or cutting funding but he's the first I've heard who is removing installed ones.] From USA Today: Flock cameras are un-American. I'm glad folks are fighting back. From liberal cities to red-state teenagers, Americans across the political spectrum are turning against Flock Safety's license plate readers – and some are taking matters into their own hands.

From the New York Post: How McDonald’s Big Mac proves Americans are much richer than most Europeans

SCOTUS & the Ballroom. From the Volokh Conspiracy: Strictly Ballroom: Justice Kavanaugh Defeats Chief Justice Roberts. The Court rejects the D.C. Circuit's erroneous "aesthetic injury" standing precedents and the Chief can only wax about Churchill. AND Making Sense Of The Chief Justice's Tango In The Ballroom Case. It was the Chief, and not KBJ, who was holding up the case. Was he trying to flip ACB's vote?

From South Western Railway: Paws on patrol: GB first as London Waterloo adds dog patrols to security team.

Canada. From the Independent: Trump demands all Canadian companies doing business with the US move to America ‘immediately’. From CNBC: Trump’s rebranding of Lake Ontario was just the beginning of multi-day effort to provoke Canada. Canada's Carney slaps Trump admin for 'doing memes ... throwing shade'. [Ed: hat tip to Brad who comments, I don't think this will get the reaction -- at home or away -- that Carney is hoping for.] From Trending Politics: RNC Revokes Canadian Broadcaster’s Credentials For Upcoming Midterm Convention. [Ed: ostensibly because the CBC refused to call 9/11 a terrorist event.]

From the Guardian: Keir Starmer to stand down as MP to focus on world affairs. [Ed: looks like this may trigger a bielection and the chance for Greens to grab a seat.]

From Son of the New American Revolution: America’s Diesel Paradox: A Shortage It Is Supplying, Not Suffering

Ukraine-Russia. From the 100 Days: A five-part series on all of the excellent reasons to start emergent and serious peace talks to end the war in Ukraine, with an agenda based on Russia’s opening terms. Part I. The humanitarian case demands urgent peace. Part II. The nuclear war danger demands urgent peace. Part III. The mindless growth and aggression of NATO — which provoked this war and threatens to widen it further — needs shut down in the service of urgent peace. Part IV. The malignant partnership between CIA covert ops and Ukrainian Neo Nazis needs shut down to bring peace to Ukraine — and a healthier democracy to the United States. Part V: Nazis Past and Present

From Reuters: Europeans bristle at Russia's return to G20.

Iran. From Zero Hedge: Iran Begins Retaliation Amid Trump's 'Large & Powerful Strikes' - Explosions Heard In Jordan. From 19FortyFive: The Next Iran Crisis: Starvation. Speaking in Baghdad on August 20, Iran's parliament speaker warned that military power counts for nothing if the people are hungry. Four days later... "Famine may not be imminent in Iran, and it may be wholly avoidable; the danger is that it may be intentional, not by the United States but by the Iranian leadership itself." From Issues & Insights: What Will TDS Sufferers Do If The U.S. Wins The Iran War?

From the Hill: Judge sends Charlie Kirk murder case to trial with defendant facing potential death penalty [Ed: next question...will there be cameras in the court?]

From the Dogington Post: Chinese Zoo Admits Its Pandas Are Just Painted Dogs

Ukraine. From FOX News: Billions in US aid to Ukraine under microscope as corruption rocks Zelenskyy's inner circle. [Ed: Zelensky and Ukraine elite are about as corrupt as it is possible to get.] From Moon of Alabama: Budanov – Ukraine Is Losing 30,000 Soldiers Per Month.

From People: News Anchor Breaks Down in Tears Over Prize-Winning Dog in Hilarious On-Air Moment

Iran. From Politicom: US Launches Surprise Attack on Iran – Senior IRGC Official DROPS DEAD on Live TV at Regime’s Nightly Rally! (VIDEO). From Zero Hedge: Trump Vows US Will Respond To Iranian Attacks After Ballistic Missile Strikes On Jordan. Trump teasing potential assault on Kharg Island... From Naked Capitalism: Iran War: Iran Retaliates Disproportionately to US Attack on Larak Island as WaPo Detailed Pentagon Leak Shows Navy Incapacity, Top Level Opposition. From Moon of Alabama: War On Iran: – IRGC Defeats U.S. Strait Clearing Scheme

Regarding U.S. Voter Fraud...From the Epoch Times: Feds Arrest Foreign National In California On Voter Fraud Charges. The Honduran national is a lawful permanent resident who attended an anti-immigration enforcement protest earlier this year. [Ed: this fellow seems to be a poster person for illegal immigrants who vote in elections.] From Zero Hedge: 24 States To Sue US Postal Service Over Mail-In Ballot Restrictions. The USPS wants tracking and verification on ballots to prevent fraud. Not surprisingly, Democrat controlled states say no... [Ed: a must read. I'm among those who believe the 'hockey stick' votes at the 11th hour mean the '20 election was probably stolen.]

From Breitbart: U.N. Demands Immediate Slavery Reparations for ‘People of African Descent’. [Ed: the UN is becoming more and more irrelevant.]

Cost of Living. From Axios: America's next grocery shock is brewing. [Ed: it will be a steep hike.] From Yahoo! Finance: ‘More than I expected to pay’: Rents are rising at the fastest rate in over a year.

From Reason: Anthropic Win Reaffirms Private Sector's Right To Put Conditions on Government Dealings. Trump administration officials didn’t try to hide that they were punishing the company for its views. [Ed: by J.D. Tucille.]

From the Miami Herald: Police dog jumps in baptismal pool while hunting accused church burglar, Florida cops say

From the Epoch Times: Trump Says NBC's Kristen Welker Will Be Reported To FCC Over Endorsement Comments. "How can anyone be allowed to say this, working for freely given Public Airwaves?" [Ed: the FCC is looking more and more like a private enforcement arm of Trump.]

Weaponizing Courts. From Jonathan Turley: Clyburn Calls for Packing the Court with “Baker’s Dozen” to Flip Cases AND The Long Shadow of Judge Indira Talwani. "Talwani is one of a number of jurists who have been habitual blockers of executive reforms and policies." [Ed: she is a key judge re: USPS's proposed role in mail-in ballots.] From City Journal: Mamdani’s Abolitionist Bench. The mayor’s new judicial panel reveals the radical direction in which New York’s criminal and family courts may be headed. [Ed: legislating through the court system.]

Immigration. From the Economic Times: After 35-year pause, US may restart neighbourhood investigations for citizenship applicants.

From Western Journal: Breaking: SCOTUS Gives Trump's Ballroom Construction the Green Light

Israel-Palestine. From Jonathan Cook: The British state has lost the argument, even as it rigs the trials of genocide opponents. The UK isn’t a dispassionate arbiter of justice in prosecuting anti-genocide activists. It has been aggressively colluding in Israeli crimes. That huge conflict of interest is the elephant in the room. [Ed: a must read.] From Al Jazeera: Why has Greece signed a $3.5bn missile deal with Israel? Analysts say Greece is concerned about threats posed by the US-Israel war on Iran and Turkiye’s growing capabilities.

From the Cato Blog: Freeing Workers to Work: The Case for Removing Occupational Licensing Barriers

Russia. From Andrew Korybko: Who’d Expect To Gain More From A Serious Escalation: NATO Or Russia? [Ed: NATO wants to be attacked in order to be relevant and poerful again.] From France24: NATO’s Arctic activity poses ‘direct threat’ to Russia, Lavrov warns

From Gulf Coast News: What a 'Gouda' boy! Officers use cheese to save dog trapped in Florida drain

From Al Jazeera: Trump says US will refill its petroleum reserves using Venezuelan oil. President Donald Trump says in a post that the 'topping out' process will begin shortly. [Ed: read the next article to understand why this will not happen as Trump says.]From Discovery Alert: Why Venezuelan Crude Cannot Fill the SPR’s 424-Million-Barrel Gap. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve level has fallen to just 289.7 million barrels, a four-decade low at 40.6% of its 714-million-barrel capacity, and Venezuela's production arithmetic, crude chemistry, and diluent constraints make Trump's 'very shortly' replenishment announcement operationally impossible to deliver on any near-term timeline. [Ed: Brad, up your alley...and that of all tekkies.]

From International Man: The One Reason to Own Silver Now: Explosive Upside in a Monetary Crisis

From Prepp Group: Lessons Buried in the Rubble: What Argentina’s 2001 Collapse Actually Teaches Us [Ed: recommended. Comparison to what is happening in N. America. 1 of several articles I've read in the last few days that says the banks may lock down bank accounts.]

From Syracuse.com: Canada trade war a fig leaf for Trump’s absurd trade policy .(Editorial Board Opinion) [Ed: this fig leaf will make life difficult in Canada for a while.]

From Modern Dog Magazine: An Unlikely Superhero. Cole, a deaf rescue pitbull inspires acts of kindness.

From Zero Hedge: 50 Survival Lessons From The Great Depression: The Horrifying Things Americans Did When Money, Jobs, & Hope Disappeared. [Ed: this is a real glimpse into those long past days.]

From the DoDo: He Was Left Paralyzed In A Ditch. Then He Made A Recovery No One Expected. "I assumed he would never walk again."

H-1B. From the Indian Express: Trump’s H-1B fee plan: Why $103,265 and who will pay? Trump wants employers to pay $103,265 for new H-1B petitions. Here's why he is targeting the programme, who will pay, and what it could mean for Indian professionals. [Ed: not surprising. This is getting a great deal of play in Indian press.] From the Hindustan Times: H-1B dependent spouses can’t get jobs in US? Big blow for immigrants as DHS mulls work permit rollback. The DHS plans to potentially eliminate employment authorization for certain H-4 visa holders. From Gulf News: US plan to scrap H-1B grace period clears key review. Thousands of foreign workers could lose crucial time to find new jobs after layoffs.

From the Daily Economy: Put Money on It? The Social Value of Prediction Markets.

From Jonathan Turley: Pack or Sack: Penn Professor Demands Litmus Test for Politicians to Commit to Packing the Supreme Court. [Ed: this is Michael Mann of Steyn lawsuit on climate change fame.] AND The Counter-Constitutional Movement: “Institutionalist” Becomes the New “Oligarch” Label for the Far Left.

Venezuela. From Mish Talk: What’s in Trump’s Allegedly Greatest Oil Deal in History, with Venezuela? [Ed: a must read.] AND Trump Claims He Will Fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserves with Venezuelan Oil. From Son of the New American Revolution: Feedstock Is Not Fuel: Why Venezuelan Crude Cannot Fix the Diesel and Jet Shortage. From Politico: How Trump took control of Venezuela’s democratic transition. The U.S. has sidelined opposition leader María Corina Machado and bet on a “serious” but little-known regime critic as it tries to restore democracy in Venezuela.

From TV Over Mind: “Blaze Is A Pure Black Labrador Retriever, But He’s A Little Different From The Others”

From the Times-Union: NY prosecutor claims Letitia James' office directed him to target Trump. ...Says He Was Ordered to “Find Crimes” Committed by Trump Despite Zero Evidence. "The email sent early Friday by Assistant Attorney General Daniel Wiesenfeld, who officials said has worked for the attorney general’s office for about two years, was quickly deleted from the office’s servers and vanished from the inboxes of more than 2,000 employees."

Iran. From Iran International: US forces strike two IRGC launchers on Iran’s Larak Island. [Ed: first U.S. bombing of Iran in over 5 weeks.] From DW: Iran war: US military strikes Iran's Larak Island. The attack targeting Iranian rocket launchers in the Strait of Hormuz was the first in over a month. Iran's Revolutionary Guards have vowed retaliation. DW has the latest. [Ed: Larak Island is strategically located to dominate the Strait.]

From the Spectator: The West Is a Superior Civilization (And I Don’t Care If That Offends You). The civilization that gave the world constitutional liberty, modern science, and human dignity deserves defense, not embarrassment. [Ed: a must read.]

From Just the News: Christian leaders urge Trump to create legal pathway for Jewish Canadians facing antisemitism. The National Association of Christian Lawmakers and its partners asked the administration to direct the State Department and Department of Homeland Security to develop “lawful, secure, and appropriately expedited pathways” for eligible Jewish Canadian nationals and their immediate family members. [Ed: I don't think the situation is worse here than in the States, but Trump is likely to 'honor' this requst in order to make Canada look bad.]

Ukraine-Russia. From Zero Hedge: Russia Hits Kiev Ammo Dump Next To Homes; Ukraine Admits 90% Of Retail Food Logistics Wrecked. Both sides have been systematically striking each other's logistics and dual-use commercial infrastructure...[Ed: Russia is trying to bring this war to a swift end.] From Simplicius: Ukraine Buckling: New Russian Strike Strategy Savages Kiev Round-the-Clock as True Motives of CIA Moscow Visit Revealed. What follows is a special premium report on the current situation surrounding major escalations playing out in Ukraine. [Ed: important.] From the Daily Star: Putin to unleash 300,000-troop 'hammer blow' as desperate Vlad goes all-out. Desperate Putin is reportedly plotting a terrifying all-out gamble to crush Ukraine, lining up a 300,000-troop “hammer blow” towards Kyiv while ramping up Nato sabotage

From Politico.EU: Icelanders say no to restarting talks to join the EU. While the ‘yes’ vote was popular in the capital, the ‘no’ from more rural areas tipped the balance. [Ed: undoubtedly, Trump will take this as encouragement.]

DSA. From Hot Air: Hasan Piker to Dems: Don't Quit Me. From Newsweek: Pentagon Employee Launches ‘DSA Explorer’ Site to Track Left-Wing Groups. ...describes itself as an interactive map showing organizations and individuals connected to the DSA and what it calls a wider "anti-imperialist solidarity network." From New York Post: NYC socialist leaders caught living large, quietly collecting millions from real estate flips.

From Dog Beast: Brooklyn Cop Rescues Young Pit Bull Left To Die Alone In City Park. Twice.

Jackson Hole. From Deseret News: Key takeaways from Fed Chair Warsh’s closely watched speech in Wyoming. The keynote address at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium marked Warsh’s first speech since taking over as Fed chairman in May. From the Signal: 4 takeaways from Fed chair’s 1st Jackson Hole speech. From Investopedia: Warsh Talked Tough on Inflation at Jackson Hole, and Markets Believe Him. [Ed: given that he denounced former fed chairs who broadcast upcoming changes, I didn't expect him to be specific or very informative.]

From Epoch Times Bright: Couple Lives 43 Years Off-Grid, Generating Their Own Energy, Food, and Retirement Fund. At times, the couple went six months without seeing another human—and they not only survived but thrived in some of the remote places.

Flock. From the Hill: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Cuts Off State Funding for Controversial Flock Surveillance Cameras. [Ed: 1000s already purchased, however.] From the Libertarian Institute: You Should Feel Good About the Flock Cameras Debate. "The American people do not trust the people in charge enough to be reassured by promises ..." From Reason: A Tale of Two Tech Revolts. What the simultaneous revolts against Flock and data centers can tell us about the power and risks of populism. {Ed: the risk is government in any form, not populism.]

From the Daily Beast: Google Maps Renamed Lake Ontario to 'Lake America' - But Only for U.S. Users

From Just the News: Trump breaks Big Four meat processor grip, restores ranchers’ freedom to process. After discontent from the cattle industry and many Republican allies, the latest move to help both ranchers and consumers is a shock to the entrenched ag system.

From Reshare Worthy: Priest’s Rescue Dog Joins In Prayer and Touches Hearts Around The Globe