Introduction: This article highlights various noteworthy developments across multiple fields, including science, health, climate, and geopolitics. These updates are significant as they reflect current trends and provide insights into the ever-evolving global landscape.
Cat Returned to Shelter Twice Hugs Her New Humans To Reassure Herself That She’s Found a Loving Home – Laughing Squid
Crime scene university: Neo-feudal power structures in science – Overton, via machine translation (Micael T)
SGLT2 Diabetes Drugs Show Surprising Arthritis Benefit – Naveen Sankar
How America Got Hooked on Ultraprocessed Food – New York Times (resilc)
#COVID-19/Pandemics
Long Covid Is Real — And It’s Changing an Entire Generation – Rolling Stone
Discovery of molecular signature of long-term psychiatric sequelae in COVID-19 through proteome profiling of dried blood spots – Nature, Paul R: “Long Covid biomarker”
Climate/Environment
U.S. Regulators Discard Rules Mandating Banks to Prepare for Climate Change – CNBC (Kevin W)
Australian Tropical Rainforest Trees Become Emissions Source, A World First – The Guardian (Kevin W)
Nevada had the *lowest* increase in electricity prices in the entire nation (falling in real terms!), *despite rising demand* — thanks largely to the massive amount of solar it’s built.
Reversing that course is the dumbest thing we could possibly do. https://t.co/KIxM0rOL0Y pic.twitter.com/qIlh0Ncg36
— Jesse Peltan (@JessePeltan) October 13, 2025
Study Warns of “Ultimate Extinction” as Dolphin Lifespans Decrease – SciTech Daily (Chuck L)
China?
China Sets Record for Canadian Oil Imports, Disregards US Crude – The Cradle (Kevin W)
Oil Tanker Rates Surge Amidst US-China Trade War Intensification – OilPrice
Ambassador Xie Feng: U.S. Actions Represent a Breach of Trust Following Madrid Trade Agreement
Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng criticized the U.S. for not adhering to the agreed understanding at the Madrid trade negotiations. pic.twitter.com/vzCoJMIQG1
— Ignis Rex (@Ignis_Rex) October 16, 2025
India
Yours truly stated that Bessent was making a grave mistake:
Boom! This means that Bessent’s coalition against China is already dead before it even started.
He intended to form it specifically with India, but India’s finance minister announced she wouldn’t attend due to “unresolved trade issues.” https://t.co/YYZOj6LKKc
— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) October 16, 2025
Africa
Madagascar’s Coup Leader Indicates Willingness to Engage with African Union After Suspension – Anadolu Agency
South of the Border
Military Commander Overseeing Heightened Attacks Off Venezuela’s Coast to Step Down – New York Times. Resilc: “Trump seeks a white general for the invasion.”
Trump Confirms Authorization of CIA Operations in Venezuela – NBC (Kevin W)
European Disunion
The most reliant companies in Europe for components from frozen and sanctioned Nexperia include VW, BMW, Stellantis, Bosch, ASML, Siemens, and Airbus. Was Germany not deindustrializing quickly enough for the Trump administration? Finding alternatives will take 12-18 months. https://t.co/Klft0HER1M
— Kathleen Tyson (@Kathleen_Tyson_) October 15, 2025
EU Leaders Aim for the “Most Submissive Award”: Nexperia Edition – Ian Welsh (Micael T)
EU and Spain Reject Trump’s Tariff Threats Over NATO Spending – Al Jazeera
Germany Orders 20 Eurofighters While Struggling to Find Foreign Buyers – Military Watch
Impact of the Car Crisis on Local Communities – Tagesschau, via machine translation (guurst)
EU Nation to Allow 13-Hour Workdays – RT (Kevin W)
Old Blighty
First Container Ship Arrives in UK via Arctic Route, A Faster and Cheaper China-Europe Alternative – YouTube (resilc)
Israel vs. The Resistance
Pro-Hamas Hackers Hijack Airport Loudspeakers Across North America, Causing Delays and Spewing Anti-Trump and Anti-Netanyahu Rhetoric – New York Post. Resilc claims to have an alibi.
With No Viable Governing Alternative, Trump’s Peace Plan May Legitimimize Hamas in Gaza – Haaretz
Trump Vows to “Kill” Hamas Over Crackdown on Israel-Backed Gangs – PressTV. An interesting flip-flop.
Amira Hass: Examining Why the West Bank Did Not Rise Up – OrientXXI (guurst)
Returning to Shujaiya: Palestinians Go Back to Gaza City Despite Proximity of Israeli Forces – Drop Site
Prominent Palestinian Prisoner Marwan Barghouti Reportedly Attacked by Guards, Claims Family – BBC (resilc)
Israel’s Alleged Torture and Sexual Abuse of Greta Thunberg – Caitlin Johnstone (Kevin W)
Old Blighty
Sir Keir Starmer Faces Outrage After Maccabi Tel Aviv Fans Banned from Aston Villa Match – Telegraph (Kevin W). A notable reaction, as the government is contemplating banning ALL Israeli tourists due to their involvement in over half of the violent crimes attributed to tourists, despite their small population.
New Not-So-Cold War
It remains unclear how Putin plans to reach Budapest for a potential summit, considering Hungary is landlocked and surrounding countries might deny airspace to a Russian Government aircraft carrying Putin.
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 16, 2025
I recently interviewed the former Russian Ambassador to Germany, and it was poignant. Ambassadors always bring a unique charm. But he regretted the lost connections from the 90s when meetings over coffee were routine with counterpart diplomats.
— Johnny Miller (@johnnyjmils) October 16, 2025
Syraqistan
Understanding the Conflict Between Pakistan and the Taliban – Middle East Eye (resilc)
How MI6 Established Syria’s Extremist Police Force – Kit Klarenberg
Big Brother is Watching You Watch
Viral ‘Cheater Buster’ Sites Leverage Facial Recognition to Expose Tinder Profiles – 404 Media
Imperial Collapse Watch
Baker & Taylor Plans Shutdown – Publishers Weekly. Robin K: “This is catastrophic. Although this news surfaced last week, its repercussions are now being felt by libraries and bookstores, which are dwindling in number!”
Jeffrey Sachs & John Mearsheimer: Strategies to Prevent World War III – Glenn Diesen, YouTube
Exorbitant Privilege Gained and Lost: Fiscal Implications – University of Chicago Press (Paul R)
US Depletion of Missiles in Ukraine, Israel, Leads to Urgent Need for More – Responsible Statescraft (Kevin W)
Foreign Ownership in the West… – Andrei Martyanov (Micael T). Yours truly acknowledged a lapse in imagination and cynicism, previously thinking it unthinkable for US firms to invest in China due to expropriation risks. However, the West has since taken a more aggressive approach.
Trump 2.0
Chuck L confirms this was reported by Rep. Anna Luna of Florida:
🚨🇺🇸🇷🇺 BREAKING: Russia Set to Present a “350-Page Document” to the US Revealing the Assassination of JFK.
— Jackson Hinkle 🇺🇸 (@jacksonhinklle) October 14, 2025
FIFA World Cup 2026 Organisers Dismiss Trump’s Threat to Move Venue – Al Jazeera (resilc). It’s unfortunate to see a President resorting to such tactics to exert his influence.
John Bolton Indicted; Former National Security Advisor Becomes Latest Trump Adversary to Face Legal Trouble – CNBC. Li: “Notice transmission.”
Biotech Leaders Warn That Uncertainty at the FDA Threatens Drug Development – STAT
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Seems Uncertain About the Origins of Babies – The Guardian (resilc)
Immigration
Over 170 US Citizens Detained by Immigration Agents Reveal Shocking Stories of Abuse – ProPublica
Roaming Charges: Aspirations to Omnipotence – CounterPunch (resilc)
GOP Clown Car
Mike Johnson Reveals He and His Son Monitor Each Other’s Porn Usage—Yes, It’s Just as Strange as It Sounds – Vanity Fair (resilc)
Mamdani
Mamdani vs. Cuomo: Their Debate Summarized in 3 Minutes. From Zeteo. https://t.co/SyJd2TiF6V pic.twitter.com/2qocXbPzVe
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) October 17, 2025
Mr. Market is Moody
RealTime Bubble Checklist – Barry Ritholtz
Zions Shares Plummet 7% Following $50M Loan Loss as US Regional Banks Confront Credit Strain – Trading View
Economy
75% of Americans Report Soaring Prices, Despite Trump Claiming Inflation is “Over” – The Guardian. Resilc notes: “Prices were $3.99 in April.”
Another New England sighting from resilc:
US Housing Market Entering a “Deflationary Vortex,” Analyst Warns – Newsweek
Boeing
Boeing Is Experiencing Significant Delays in Delivering Aircraft to Airlines, Compounded by the Government Shutdown – Jalopnik (resilc)
AI
MGB Turns to AI to Mitigate Shortage of Primary Care Physicians, Though Some Staff Are Uncertain – Boston Globe. Tom V: “Some?? This signals a complete failure at what is arguably the best medical institution on the planet.”
Ken Griffin States GenAI Fails to Assist Hedge Funds in Generating Alpha – Bloomberg (Micael T). Why is this surprising? Hedge funds have been relying on black box and algorithmic strategies for decades; GenAI primarily handles text, video, and audio, which may not be significantly beneficial. Plus, financial data has been extensively mined, possibly lacking ample training sets.
AI’s Double Bubble Trouble – Financial Times
OpenAI Establishes a Business Plan – Matt Levine, Bloomberg (Micael T)
Skepticism Over AI Job Forecasts: “No One Knows Anything,” Says Wharton Expert – CNBC (resilc)
OpenAI’s New Energy Chief is a Natural Gas Advocate from the Trump Administration – DeSmog Blog
The Bezzle
Windows 11 Is a Lost Cause—An Unfortunate Upgrade from 10 – YouTube (Micael T)
Antidote du jour (retaj):
Bonus Content (Chuck L):
This Deserves an Oscar!
pic.twitter.com/lgotTM0qor— Science Girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) October 14, 2025
Another Bonus:
A Border Collie Teaches a Newly Rescued Kitten to Drink Water from a Dispenser..🐕🐾🐈😍 pic.twitter.com/mrsDhpEnrR
— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) October 16, 2025
And a Third:
The Precision of a Hawk pic.twitter.com/N7DaWv46HU
— Interesting Things (@awkwardgoogle) October 15, 2025
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
