How I Discovered the Joy of Reading — John Paul Brammer
Aliens May Be Out There, But Here Are 3 Reasons They Aren’t Visiting Us — StudyFinds
Earth’s Vast Underground Fungus Network Is So Immense, It Could Extend to Other Star Systems — Futurism
Climate and Environment
The El Niño phenomenon is in full swing, with sea temperatures in the central equatorial Pacific hitting record highs for five consecutive days. A significant westerly wind burst is contributing to further warming. pic.twitter.com/vv1mldruAd
— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) June 14, 2026
A Major El Niño Event Is Anticipated for 2026: Insights and Global Impacts — Daniel Swain, Inigo Insights
Declining Phytoplankton Signals Trouble for North Atlantic Food Chains — Oceanographic
Unprecedented heat has struck Galicia, with A Coruña Airport recording a maximum temperature of 37.7°C, matching its all-time record. https://t.co/QXSYbxOvKr
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 14, 2026
Rethinking Forest Restoration Beyond Just Planting Trees — Mongabay
Ebola Outbreaks
Ebola Cases Surge Rapidly in the DR Congo — Anadolu Agency
Pandemics
Ebola, Hantavirus, Diphtheria: The Role of Distrust in Health Care in Fueling Global Outbreaks — The Conversation
New Study Investigates Potential Cross-Species Spread of Chronic Wasting Disease — Morning Ag Clips
Water Issues
Glen Canyon Dam Faces Deadpool Situation — High Country News
China Updates
Shanghai: A Lifeline to Wall Street? How China Aided Elon Musk Despite Being Excluded from SpaceX IPO — George Chen
China May Have Fewer People Living in Poverty Compared to the US — Global Currents
India Developments
India Indicates a Strategic Rethink Regarding West Asia — Indian Punchline
A Empirical Examination of Indo-Russian Energy Trade — Asia Cable
Middle East and Relations
Iran’s Deputy FM Announces MoU with the US Set to Be Signed in Geneva on Friday — Press TV
Israel’s Attempts to Undermine the Islamabad Accord Have Failed… For Now — Larry Johnson
US Military Begins Constructing Large Base Near Gaza to Monitor Trump’s Colonization Initiatives — The Cradle
Incorrect. Israel seeks US military bases everywhere EXCEPT in Israel. The US, having depleted its regional basing capabilities due to its Iran conflict, wants to re-establish bases in Israel. Tel Aviv will produce excuses to obstruct this. https://t.co/K5ppCdBdsq
— Sharmine Narwani (@snarwani) June 14, 2026
***
Israel Expands Military Control in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria by 1,000 Square Kilometers — Al Jazeera
A Silent Plea: “It matters to me”, an Emotion that Will Triumph Over the Destruction of Our Future — Patrizia Pisino (Translation via GeoPolitiQ)
United Kingdom News
UK Conducts First Direct Interdiction Operation Against Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker — gCaptain
NHS Patients Cannot Opt-Out of Palantir’s Data Platform, However, Their Hospital Can — The Register
European Union Developments
Ukraine and Moldova Initiate First Phase of EU Membership Talks — The Guardian
Albania’s Citizen Revolt Calls for Government Resignation — Tirana Times
A devastated elderly man from Albania claims Jared Kushner has taken everything he built over his lifetime, including his home and land, denying him a future for his children. He returned one day to find his property sealed behind barbed wire. pic.twitter.com/4uyhAbNzd7
— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) June 14, 2026
Global Tensions
Politics: Reality or a Simulation? — Events in Ukraine
The Origin of Ukraine’s Naval Drone Program: Development and Key Organizations Behind It — Black Mountain Analysis
How Russia Is Responding to the New Ukrainian ‘Drone Threat’ to the Crimean Corridor — Simplicius
The Future of Warfare Arrives Sooner Than Expected — Karl Sanchez
Tulsi Gabbard’s Disclosure on US-Funded Ukrainian Biolabs is Crucial to National Discourse — Andrew Korybko
Onward to War — Kathleen McCroskey
Watch on Imperial Collapse
De-Blob-ification: A Comprehensive Guide — Un-Diplomatic
Debunking the Myth of the ‘Belly of the Beast’ — Anti-Empire Project
Hidden Messages in New Military Recruitment Ads — Ken Klippenstein
US Business Group Warns Critical Minerals from China Are ‘Almost Impossible’ to Source — Reuters
If only everything were fine:
Hegseth: The US produces the best munitions anywhere.
Brennan: Yet we face a crisis with those stockpiles right now.
Hegseth: That narrative is just a manufactured story the media is trying to spread.
Brennan: You stated under oath that it would take years to rebuild…
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 14, 2026
Epstein Scandal Updates
Model Scout Discusses Trusting Epstein While Sending Young Women to Him — CNN
Kathy Ruemmler’s Historical Narrative Rewrite — The Epstein Files by Julie K. Brown
Latino Affairs
The Threat of US Intervention Looms Over Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia — El País
Trump’s Influence
The UFC Freedom 250 opening ceremony at the White House was quintessentially American, featuring President Trump with Dana White and a flyover by the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds during Zac Brown Band’s rendition of the National Anthem. 🇺🇸
(📽️: UFC on Paramount+ YouTube) pic.twitter.com/s6cypoQoXD
— Julia 🇺🇸 (@Jules31415) June 15, 2026
Examining Trumpian State Capitalism — Phenomenal World
Significant Drop in Global HIV Prevention Following Trump Aid Cuts, According to UN — Washington Post
Sources Indicate Trump Aides Fear Situation Room Tapes for ‘Regime Change’ Have Been Obtained — Axios
Political Landscape
Democrats Pledge ‘Day One’ Epstein Hearings If They Regain House Majority — NOTUS
Obama’s Legacy
A Preview of the New Obama Museum Ahead of Its Juneteenth Grand Opening — AP
Is the Obama Center a Monument to a More Effective Kind of Evil? — Black Agenda Report
Sports Highlights
Sporting Events and Steroids — Savage Minds. It pains me to admit, but I missed last month’s ‘Enhanced Games’ in Las Vegas.
Academia
Stanford Students Stage Protests Against Google CEO’s Speech Over the Company’s Contract with Israel — HuffPost
Financial Markets
Markets React Positively to US-Iran Agreement, Though Some Investors Remain Cautious — CNBC
Wall Street Gains Access to New Catastrophe Models Aimed at Predicting Warfare — Bloomberg
Economic Insights
A Bright Spot: Average New Car Prices Drop to Just Below $50,000 in May — Jalopnik
Social Commentary
Elon Musk’s Actions Undermining USAID Result in Food Aid Reductions for Millions Facing Starvation — Common Dreams
A Wish for the Demise of Trillionaires in Their Bunkers — The Sentinel-Intelligence
🇨🇭 This isn’t merely fans celebrating a sports victory; it’s a protest against the G7 in Geneva, Switzerland. Activists are igniting fires and clashing with police protesting against inequality, wars, climate failures, and Trump.
This is escalating…
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 15, 2026
The Bezzle
As AI Firms Rush to Go Public, Who Else Is Also Riding Along? — TechCrunch
Crypto Platforms Promised Access to SpaceX IPO; Tokenized Stocks Failed to Materialize — Gizmodo
Bitcoin’s Price Drop Revives Debate on Its Ownership Value, Is It Just ‘Crypto Being Crypto’? — CNBC
Artificial Intelligence Developments
Amazon CEO’s Discussions with US Officials Prompted Crackdown on Anthropic Models — WSJ
Steps Washington Must Consider — Gary Marcus
Transitioning from Manhattan Projects to Genesis Initiatives — Communications of the ACM. “The US Department of Energy is Advocating for a Unified National AI Scientific Platform.”
Monopoly Round-Up: The Pope and a Silicon Valley Trillionaire’s Dispute Over God — Matt Stoller
AI Is Boosting Office Efficiency, But also Taking Away Time in the Form of ‘Botsitting’ — Los Angeles Times
Class Issues
The Contrary of Oppression Isn’t Freedom, but Time — Kaimataara
Today’s Antidote (via):
For yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour, click here.
