The Islands Where Animals Always Come First Wall Street Journal (resilc). No archived version yet
Your Cat Is Being Nice? Think Again. New York Times (resilc)
Medicine is Moving From Calendars to Clocks Eric Topol (Robin K)
Ebola
The U.S. Embassy in DR Congo just issued a perplexing statement that could significantly impact the ongoing Ebola outbreak there.
It strongly advises Americans against traveling to DR Congo “for any reason.” This warning is bolded and underscored for emphasis.
This announcement comes after… pic.twitter.com/wytjEM1gI2
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) July 12, 2026
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">BREAKING: Staff at the Congo Ebola centre are on strike as the virus continues to spread.</p> <p>Read more: <a href="https://t.co/Bl9iVTj5Ut" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://t.co/Bl9iVTj5Ut</a> <a href="https://t.co/LZ27GDeptP" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">pic.twitter.com/LZ27GDeptP</a></p> <p>— Al Jazeera Breaking News (@AJENews) <a href="https://x.com/AJENews/status/2076721860327162216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">July 13, 2026</a></p> </blockquote>
COVID-19/Pandemics
Covid rates are sharply rising in Boston, approaching the levels seen last year. This rapid increase follows a period of nearly zero cases before the Fourth of July. pic.twitter.com/90EyL0h5ut
— Data Report (@CovidDataReport) July 13, 2026
<p><a href="https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/andhra-pradesh-on-high-alert-after-2-covid-19-deaths-8-active-cases-11760367" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Andhra Pradesh On Alert After 2 COVID-19 Deaths, 8 Active Cases</a> NDTV</p>
Climate/Environment
French rivers dry up amid prolonged heatwaves France24
River Pollution May Be Causing Fish to Mate with the Wrong Species ZMEScience
Microplastics Discovered in Deep-Sea Creatures at Depths Exceeding 2,000 Meters Chosun
El Niño is Here and Already Disrupting Fisheries in the Pacific Grist
Atlantic Ocean Current Slowdown Could Intensify Storms Globally Earth
America May Need to Sacrifice Lake Powell to Save the Colorado River, Experts Warn Times of India
China?
China’s Oil Imports May Soon Recover as Stockpiling Resumes Financial Post
Chinese Property Developers Face New Liquidity Crisis Nikkei
Sang Baichuan Discusses the Decline in Foreign Investment in China Pekinology
How Companies Secure Their Supply Chains by Sourcing Directly from China Kevin Walmsley
China’s Aerospace Vision Diverges from Elon Musk’s SpaceX South China Morning Post
China’s Ethnic Unity Law Expands Legal Authority to Taiwan and its Diaspora Asia Times (Kevin W)
China Reacts as 14 Nations, Including Japan, Reject Beijing’s Claims in the South China Sea Times of India
Southeast Asia
Tragic Fire at Bangkok Bar Leaves at Least 28 Dead and 25 Critically Injured BBC. A horrific video is available showing people fleeing the bar amidst raging flames.
Africa
Nigerian Army Claims to Have Killed 300 Bandits in Zamfara State Guardian
Around 30 Malian Soldiers Killed During Anefis Retaking, According to Army Chief Aljazeera
South Africa Reports More Than 53,000 Foreigners Deported in Migration Campaign BBC
South of the Border
Cuba Faces Islandwide Blackout for the Second Time This Week France24
Cuba Offers Trump a Luxury Island in Desperate Attempt to Avert Invasion The Mirror
Trinidad and Tobago Forms Agreements with US Companies for Caribbean Data Centers Yahoo
European Disunion
Germany’s Ruhr Valley on the Verge of Financial Collapse DW
Germany Records Highest Death Toll from Recent European Heatwave Le MondeOngoing Heatwave and Prolonged Drought Threaten Rice Farming in Italy Bastille Post
Old Blighty
Bank of England Faces Internal Divisions Over Strategic Changes Financial Times
Extreme Heat May Have Claimed Over 2,700 Lives in England and Wales, Study Reveals Anadolu Agency
Israel vs. The Resistance
ARMED ISRAELI SETTLERS DETAIN RO KHANNA. HE CALLS FOR DEMOLITION OF THEIR ILLEGAL OUTPOSTS Intercept (Robin K)
Israeli Defense Minister States Southern Lebanon “Will Become Gaza” AzerNews (resilc)
Death Toll from Israeli Strikes on Lebanon Climbs to 4,322 Middle East Eye
War on Iran: Escalation—Saudi Arabia Blocks Oil; Alleged Recruitment of Ahmadinejad Moon of Alabama. Was Israel trying to rehabilitate Ahmadinejad? It spread a mistranslation of his conditional remark, “It would be better if Israel had never existed,” as “Israel needs to be wiped from the map.”
Iraqi Armed Factions Demand Assurances Before Surrendering Weapons New Arab
* * * Selling One’s Soul and Saving It Dublin Review of Books (Anthony L)
Syraqistan
No Choice But War if India Withholds Water from Pakistan, PPP Rallies Declare Dawn
A Look Behind Pakistan’s Mass Deportation of Afghans Aljazeera
Kashmiri Diaspora Asks for Global Action Over PoK Humanitarian Crisis in Washington D.C. FirstPost
New Not-So-Cold War
Kiev Today Sonar 21 (Kevin W). A Must Read.
No Functional Way to End the War in Ukraine Ian Proud. Proud is typically understated.
Ukraine Struck Russian Territory Up to 850 Times Daily Last Week, Says Envoy TASS
The EU Purchased Record Amounts of Gas from Russia’s Flagship Plant Financial Times (resilc)
Polish PM Pledges Memorial for Victims of WWII “Genocide by Ukrainian Nationalists” BBC
Nine Dead as Russia and Ukraine Exchange Drone and Missile Fire Aljazeera
Big Brother is Watching You Watch
Severe Backlash Against “Pervert Glasses” Is Causing Users to Fear Public Use Yahoo (Kevin W). Hooray!
Chinese Voice Actor Pressured to Prove He’s Human Sixth Tone (Paul R)
Imperial Collapse Watch
The World is Running Out of Time to Escape the “Might Makes Right” Mentality The Insider
Rubio Claims the US Will Dismantle the ICC “Brick by Brick” Middle East Eye (resilc)
China’s Strategy for Ending Global Hegemony, Part Two Karl Sanchez
250 Years of the United States: Has America Strayed from Its Path, or Was This Its Fate All Along? Marat Khairullin
Trump 2.0
Judge Halts Trump’s Settlement with the IRS The Hill
Boosie Badazz Sues After Paying $600K for Trump Pardon That Was Never Granted TMZ (resilc). Talleyrand was known for shocking bribe amounts when he served under Napoleon, but he always returned the funds if he could not fulfill the promise.
Trump Ridiculed with 10-Foot-Tall Iran War ‘Participation Trophy’ on the National Mall Mediate
Lindsey Graham
Mostly Peaceful Warmonger NO1 (Micael T)
Lindsey Graham’s Sister Appointed to Complete His Senate Term New York Times (Kevin W)
Our No Longer Free Press
Under Israeli Pressure, US Seizes Max Blumenthal’s Devices Following His Return from Tehran Reporting Trip Greyzone (france888)
Economy
Storm Clouds Gather Over America’s Economic Dominance Economist. An Important Read.
European Jet Fuel Stocks are Dangerously Low as Tensions with Iran Escalate Reuters. The shortages are appearing later than anticipated, partly due to US increases in jet fuel production, but they are finally materializing.
Oil and Treasury Yields Indicate Growing Geopolitical Risks for Global Markets Yahoo
‘Super’ El Niño Could Trigger Global Food Price Shock Lasting Until 2028, Analysts Warn Guardian
Fuel Refining Margins Hit Record Highs as Markets Tighten OilPrice
Mr. Market Needs a Therapist
Are We on the Brink of Another Financial Crisis? BBN Times
Awaiting the Crash? New Left Review (Anthony L)
Only 8% of Investors Think AI Stocks Aren’t in a Bubble, AAII Survey Reveals Seeking Alpha
Profits, Payouts, and Equity Prices JW Mason
AI
The Bear Case for AI: Ed Zitron Investor’s Business Daily, YouTube
Music Community Launches System for Tagging AI-Generated Songs Blabbermouth (Micael T)
Alan Turing’s Key Assumption about AI May Have Been Incorrect Science Daily (Anthony L)
The Bezzle
Gates Heir’s Shopping App Claimed Sales It Didn’t Achieve Bloomberg (Micael T)
Wall Street is Promoting SpaceX—So Why Is It Declining? YouTube (resilc). Important. See starting at 24:00. Notably, the regulations imposed under the global research settlement were revoked just seven months ago.
Class Warfare
Same Capacity, Reduced Throughput Laxmena. Paul R: “Abundance critique. I can’t determine if this is interesting. It lacks depth. It attempts to address a point that the Abundance book overlooked.”
Changes to Food Assistance Programs Will Cost States Billions, Raising Concerns about the Future of SNAP Kansas Reflector (Robin K)
Sub-$500 New Car Payments Are Becoming Increasingly Rare Jalopnik (resilc)
A Marketing Opportunity for the Bail Bonds Industry The Smoking Gun (resilc)
Grand Jury Impaneled to Investigate UAW Mike Elk
The New Ellis Island New York Review of Books
Antidote du jour (via):
And a bonus:
A man in Moscow has devised a unique way to walk his pet by riding a monowheel while remotely controlling a tiny car with the animal sitting inside. pic.twitter.com/EYvvCkMMwQ
— Brian McDonald (@BrianMcDonaldIE) July 12, 2026
A second bonus:
A hummingbird finds relief from the heat in a heatwave pic.twitter.com/7yEcuLHxqR
— Science girl (@sciencegirl) July 14, 2026
And a third:
Tigers enjoy a frozen milk brick on a hot day pic.twitter.com/zhujg6D8fv
— Science girl (@sciencegirl) July 14, 2026
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
