Fans Say Costco’s New Sparkling Protein Drink Is “Revolutionary” Delish
And just like that, the CEO of Genius Gourmet, the maker of the “revolutionary” sparkling protein water just deleted his LinkedIn. 👀🫠 https://t.co/1q6jRLxz3l pic.twitter.com/uEIcEytZEl
— James Li (@5149jamesli) August 17, 2025
Astronomers discover an ‘interstellar tunnel’ that connects our solar system to other stars Earth.com
Drifting Off into ‘Space 1.8’ Another Thought
Climate/Environment
Wildfire Fighters, Unmasked in Toxic Smoke, Are Getting Sick and Dying New York Times
if the USSR did this, it would be proof that communism is a monster that hates human life. pic.twitter.com/pHhuJIBwEm
— Yasha Levine (@yashalevine) August 17, 2025
Wildfires continue at over 51 locations across Spain Anadolu Agency
Extreme heatwaves expose vulnerabilities in Europe’s power grid amid rising air con demand Euronews
Erin vaults from tropical storm to Category 5 hurricane in just 25 hours Yale Climate Connections. Has since weakened, but…
Hurricane Erin to grow, will next threaten US coasts with dangerous conditions Accuweather
Pandemics
The Silent Front: Unraveling the Neurological Consequences of COVID-19 in Infants and Children David Lingenfelter
MRSA was once a hospital acquired infection and related to antibiotic resistance from poly-antibiotic use.
Now….. Not 😔
👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 https://t.co/2Ma5eSOKz2
— David Joffe MB BS (Hons), PhD, FRACP 🇦🇺 (@DavidJoffe64) August 16, 2025
The more I dig, the more problems I see on the CDC COVlD wastewater surveillance dashboard.
They have re-binned values such that higher levels of transmission are now categorized as “low” or “very low.” pic.twitter.com/qGIrsYf7DU
— Mike Hoerger, PhD MSCR MBA (@michael_hoerger) August 16, 2025
India
US-India trade talks scheduled for August called off Business Times
China?
Trump gave China the AI chips it wanted. Beijing isn’t saying thank you CNN
China Is Enjoying Trump 2.0 Foreign Affairs
New Chinese drones scramble naval power in Pacific, and maybe everywhere else Kevin Walmsley
Why Lockheed Martin’s Philippine R&D hub will be on China’s radar South China Morning Post
Syraqistan
US state department stops issuing visas for Gaza’s children to get medical care after far-right campaign The Guardian
These are the kids that we bring for medical care they cannot get back in Gaza. Four year-old Adam lost his leg and parents in a bombing, and two year-old Seedra came for orthopedic surgery and will be fitted with artificial legs. She was born with a birth defect and has to have… pic.twitter.com/ueSPOeYUmY
— Steve Sosebee (@Stevesosebee) August 17, 2025
Newly obtained video shows Israeli missile hitting Palestinian girl in Gaza Al Jazeera. Carrying water.
Israel managed to exterminate most of Gaza’s journalists. Today, it is carrying out an obliteration campaign against #Gaza’s largest neighbourhood, Zaitoun, under almost no media coverage
In just 6 days, it has used all kinds of weaponry against the neighbourhood, bombing at…
— Maha Hussaini (@MahaGaza) August 17, 2025
Israel is literally shooting pregnant Palestinian women in the uterus.
“An exploded fetus with a bullet through its neck — that’s not something a human should ever have to see.”
—American doctor, Aziz Rahman, upon returning from a medical mission in Gaza pic.twitter.com/sHwgCRcJA3
— sarah (@sahouraxo) August 16, 2025
Former IDF General Calls Palestinian Death Toll in Gaza ‘Necessary’ in Recording Haaretz
3/By halting aid completely in March–April and then resuming only at a trickle, Israel directly created the conditions for famine.
Expert Alex de Waal:
“There is no case since World War II of starvation that has been so minutely designed and controlled. This is preventable…
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) August 17, 2025
Life expectancy over time in Gaza, along with four other countries that experienced wars in recent decades. pic.twitter.com/SBW9FErHuU
— Noah Carl (@NoahCarl90) August 14, 2025
Greater Israel, Weaker Army: Netanyahu’s Myth Meets Reality. Elijah J. Magnier
Israel on Hold: General Strike, Civil Disobedience Explained Palestine Chronicle
***
Israeli government official arrested in Nevada in internet crimes against children sting The Guardian
US helped Netanyahu’s cyber chief evade child sex crime charges: Report Press TV
Israel’s man inside the CIA betrayed the US, new files show The Grayzone
***
Israeli military bombs power plant near Yemeni capital Sanaa Al Jazeera
Israel’s covert war in Balochistan binds Iran and Pakistan in rare alliance The Cradle
Syria’s HTS Government Preps 50,000 Troops for a Large Anti-Kurd Offensive in Northeast Antiwar
Old Blighty
‘My daughter Zoe is not a terrorist. Why has she spent a year in prison?’ The Observer
The Alternative New Left Review
O Canada
Air Canada flight attendants continue strike despite order to return, airline delays restart CTV
European Disunion
Japan, Germany pledge to boost security cooperation at 1st strategic dialogue Anadolu Agency
Germany wants to be Europe’s military power. China could get in the way. Politico
Poland’s New President Is Picking Fights With His Prime Minister, The EU, & Russia Andrew Korybko
New Not-So-Cold War
White House envoy claims Russia agreed to ‘Article 5-like’ security guarantees for Ukraine NBC News
BREAM: What does a security guarantee mean in practicality?
WITKOFF: It means the US is potentially prepared to be able to give Article 5 security guarantees, but not from NATO
BREAM: Does it mean boots on the ground?
WITKOFF: I think part of the discussion we’re gonna have… pic.twitter.com/NmjGrw6zgW
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 17, 2025
Putting Words Into Mouths–Western Spin Karl Sanchez
Putin’s Positive Readout Following the Alaska Summit, While Western Propaganda Pushes the Meme that Russia Faces Economic Turmoil at Home Larry Johnson
The Delicate Exit William Schryver
Zelensky says giving up land for peace could be ‘impossible’ as Trump rages at ‘fake news’ over his showdown with Putin – as Europe’s leaders head to the White House Daily Mail
Zelensky Drags Traveling Circus to Town for One Last Encore Simplicius
Sub-imperial powers escorting their Ukrainian satrap to visit the Emperor in the Metropolehttps://t.co/me9r9bvd70
— Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) August 17, 2025
⚡️Trump refused a joint meeting with European leaders and will meet Zelensky alone — Bild
Only later may accompanying EU politicians join them. The program includes a working dinner and a lengthy discussion in an expanded format.
— Zlatti71 (@Zlatti_71) August 17, 2025
Statement of the Co-chairs of the Coalition of the Willing: 17 August 2025. Macron and Starmer say they’re ready “to deploy a reassurance force once hostilities have ceased, and to help secure Ukraine’s skies and seas and regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces.”
⚡️🇺🇦Ukranian soldiers are burying their comrades right on the frontline. A Ru fpv drone crew on a routine scouting mission spotted a group of AFUs near a trench went in for the strike and aborted at the last minute when they saw the sign which asked the FPV to not strike them, as… pic.twitter.com/kWXenTAD08
— SIMPLICIUS Ѱ (@simpatico771) August 17, 2025
‘Baton Dropped’ – Trump Admin ‘Abruptly Halted’ Russia Sanctions, Weakened Ukraine’s Position, Senate Report Reveals Kyiv Post
Declassified: CIA’s Covert Ukraine Invasion Plan Kit Klarenberg
The Caucasus
Moscow, Tehran push to complete Rasht–Astara railway The Cradle. Missing link in one route of the International North-South Corridor.
South of the Border
Trump’s Venezuela Drug War Gambit and the Militarization Playbook at Home Venezuelanalysis
Bolivia is holding illegitimate presidential elections today without the candidacy of the most popular political force in the country, Evo Morales.
The right-wing succeeded in its campaign to get Evo excluded from the ballot, now U.S. allies lead the first round polls. pic.twitter.com/9XNQN3GkBj
— Camila (@camilapress) August 17, 2025
Spook Country
Jim Sanborn has a secret FT
Trump 2.0
Rupture or Continuity? Arthur Goldhammer, The Sense of an Ending
The Uniparty
Pence: ‘I fully support’ Trump’s deployment of National Guard to DC The Hill
DNC Leadership Pressured Gen Z Member to Kill Resolution on Banning Arms to Israel The Intercept
⭕️Hillary Clinton praises Donald Trump’s foreign policy
She argues that while she disagreed with Trump during his first term, she is impressed this time around, when it comes to his approach to NATO. pic.twitter.com/mMtGgyXEHG
— MintPress News (@MintPressNews) August 17, 2025
Antitrust
Monopoly Round-Up: Will Trump Deal Away a Google Break-Up? BIG by Matt Stoller
Big Brother is Watching You Watch
Let’s Turn the Tide on Surveillance – starting with radio biometrics Jem Bendell
AI
What bubble? pic.twitter.com/m25EOBIAFq
— Laurel (@BalanceCrafting) August 17, 2025
Police State Watch
Masked Border Protection Agents Open Fire on Family’s Truck After Smashing Its Windows Common Dreams
An L.A. high school senior was walking his dog. Then immigration agents grabbed him Los Angeles Times
SFPD to replace pistols said to fire without the trigger being pulled SF Standard
Eugenics
The Next Parenting Trend Starts Before Conception New York Times
counting down until these guys launch a plan to cover all upfront costs of embryo selection, in exchange for the ability to garnish future wages of children born from this
embryo securitizations on the way https://t.co/PA84cdV7cG
— alexandra scaggs (@alexandrascaggs) August 17, 2025
Healthcare?
Update: Humana allegedly delegated insurance coverage decisions to its AI tool, nH Predict, which patients say “spits out generic recommendations … and fails to adjust for a patient’s individual circumstances.”
Patients say Humana’s coverage denials are overturned on review… https://t.co/VjrvZpJanO pic.twitter.com/M9hFj4TPi0
— Rob Freund (@RobertFreundLaw) August 17, 2025
Imperial Collapse Watch
Junk Empire Triple Canopy
Our Famously Free Press
Family killed after Gaza airstrike despite Israel’s precautions to not harm civilians https://t.co/jA6nSs5RjS
— The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) August 16, 2025
Screening Room
Why Did Hollywood Stop Making Comedies? A Statistical Analysis Stat Significant
Class Warfare
Mucking through local democracy Working Class Storytelling
Genus Irritabile Vatum: Why You Should Write Cathartic Poetry Meon Journal
Travis Chi Wing Lau and the radical act of remaining tender Matter
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
