Law, Power, and Justice

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  • Cuba

    Sunday morning 2 August 2026

    TOPICS:

    · The Democratic Party

    · DSA

    · Cuba

    · Israel

    · Trump: Biggest Scam Artist EVER

    · Trump: Putin’s Puppet

    · Russia

    · Ukraine

    · Podcasts

    · Books

    · Art

    · Life with Nine Cats

    It is smothering hot outside. I just tried to go for a walk. No-go. I can’t believe the cats put up with it. They stayed outside for over an hour.

    A report which appears to be the brainchild of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, presents Cuba, in the throws of a humanitarian crisis caused by U.S. sanctions and fuel blockades, as a major threat.

    The report, published Monday, without an author, says Cuba is the “capital of 21st century communism,” ideologically immovable, and a permanent enemy committed to the destruction not just of the U.S. but also of “Western civilization” through the spread of something called “third Worldism.”

    The report is described as “feverish paranoia” by the publication, the Intercept. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisconsin) went on a fact-finding trip to Cuba recently, and his reaction to the report was: “It may be the stupidest, most fantastical, most biased thing I’ve ever read from a governmental agency.” “…the State Department uses this report to say that this impoverished nation is responsible for everything from Black lives Matter to Antifa the anti-ICE protests and more.”

    Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Illinois) said that the report was aimed at manufacturing consent for an invasion of the island and to crack down on dissent at home. Ramirez told the Intercept: “This report was intentionally designed to instill fear of the Cuban people and to justify a military attack on Cua….while criticizing the regime in Cuba, it instead attacks Americans’ constitutional rights to free speech and free assembly.”

    Cuba, the report says, is “less a nation-state than an all-encompassing intelligence and subversion operation, focused around its existential revolution against the United States.”

    The report lists a slew of left-wing groups and individuals as accomplices of a Cuban intelligence operation. The list includes the DSA, Code Pink, Karen Bass and Hasan Piker.

    The report implied that exchange programs and partnerships with U.S. universities functioned as feeding grounds for Cuban agents looking to recruit spies and fellow travelers.

    Rep. Ramirez said that the reports notion of Cuba as a central node in some threatening conspiracy

    was a “fiction.”

    Ramirez’ voice was on the verge of tears as she described the humanitarian crisis she witnessed in Cuba. Ramirez said: “…what I witnessed was a war on the Cuban people by the United Sates and specifically by Donald Trump and Marco Rubio.

    Article: Horowitz, Noah (7/26/26) “Rubio’s Paranoid Cuba report designed to “justify a military attack on Cuba,” says Democratic rep. The Intercept.

    Additional Articles

    Haltiwanger, John, et. al., (7//2026) “Is Cuba Trump’s next target?” Foreign Policy.

    “House Democrats return from Cuba visit, decry Trump’s sanctions on the communist island.” The Washington Times.

    “Trump administration attacks U.S. left, alleging Cuba ties: key takeaways. Aljazeera.

    “Waltz clashes with Rep. Jackson on Cuba () CBS News.

    “US sends food for Cuban residents while still pressuring island’s government. () Apple News.

    “Why the State Department’s new report on Cuba matters. () Washington Examiner.

    () “Caritas starts distributing US humanitarian aid in 2 towns near Havana.

    Acosta, Deborah () “Cuban-Americans who lost property in 1959 revolution seek compensation.” The Wall Street Journal.

    () “Cuba will not be starved into submission. The Nation.

    () “Marco Rubio’s Cuba fantasies are more dangerous than they seem. The Nation.

    () “Former Cuba police officer alleges retaliation in whistleblower lawsuit.” KOAT7

    () “The U.S.-imposed fuel crisis in Cuba is inhumane and immoral. The mirror

    Gamez Torres, Nora () “U.S. targets Cuba’s medical missions, energy companies and GAESA with new sanctions. The Island Packet.

    Associated Press (7/26/27) “Raul Castro absent as Cuba celebrates important anniversary. Politico.

    Di Martino, Daniel (7/25/26) “Cuba may pay for incubating far-left terror attacks and dissidents across the United States. The New York Post.

    Laffer, Arthur and Stephen Moore (7/27/26) “Trump can finish what 12 presidents failed to do in Cuba. The Washington Times.

    ___ (7/28/26) “We can’t be intimidated: Code Pink slams Rubio-led campaign against Cuba solidarity groups. Democracy Now.

    WLRN News Staff () “Estamos conectados: New film documentary chronicles persecution and triumph of exiled Cuban artist. WLR South Florida.

    Bruneau, Leon and Gerard Martinex ( ) “Secretary of State Rubio’s obsession with Cuba is part of his American dream.” AFP.

    ( ) “Petro urges Trump to hold talks, calls for averting US invasion of Cuba. AFP.

    Diaz, Rigoberto ( ) “Five of Cuba’s 15 provinces without power as grid fails again. AFP.

    Saperstein, Danya (8/2/26) Cuban spy one of U.S.’s biggest intelligence failures, Rubio says, accuses Cuba of funding protesters. The Jerusalem Post.

    Crozier, Hudson (7/31/26) “Elite U.S. schools cozy with Cuban university linked to ‘intelligence network’” The Washington Examiner.

    “The disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961 aimed to force Marxist revolutionaries such as Che Guevara from power in Cuba.” History Extra Magazine.

    Kemp, Danny (7/ /2026) “Rubio got Cuba, but Vance got Iran: Trump auditions his successors.” The New World.

    Lopez, George A. (7/28/26) “US siege on Cuba is making a terrible situation worse.” USA Today.

    Starling, Mike (7/30/26) “Cuba tourism crisis: An industry brought to ‘almost total analysis’” Euronews.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDUCATED CHILDLESS OLD LADY (ACCORDING TO J. F….ING D. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK.

    The magnificent Jake da Mouth
    Jake trying to get early breakfast

  • TRUMP SCAMS, ISRAEL

    Sunday 2 August 2026

    Saturday afternoon, 8/1/26

    TRUMP: SCAMS

    Trump’s fascination with Arctic Icebreakers, which he views as crucial in dominating the Atlantic (or so we are told), led him to make a deal for 11 icebreakers worth almost $7 billion. The contract was to be awarded without competitive bidding (just like the Reflecting Pool and we see how that turned out).

    1) The first four ships are to be built in Finland, which would require waving a law that prohibits the constructure o national security vessels overseas. (Note: It is easy to see why this law exists and it has just cost us an enormous amount of money refitting and refitting again the Quatar Air Force One plane “given” to Trump). There is also a recent $1.3 billion deal to build a migrant detention center.)

    2) This is twice the number of icebreakers the Coast Guard says we need.

    3) There is evidently no plan to pay for the infrastructure required to support the new ships or the crews to sail them.

    4) Much of it is thought to be set to come from “money set aside for border security in the Republicans’’ spending las passed last year, the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which gave the administration wide latitude to pour billions into its priorities with little oversight.” (Note: Quote from article).

    Article: Flavelle, Christopher, et. al., (8/1/26) “Trump’s fixation on Arctic ships led to billions in no-bid contracts.” New York Times.

    LIFE NOTES

    The afternoon gradually darkened and now, the live oaks and the Spanish Moss are dancing in the wind. I think that was the cushion for the upstairs patio sofa that just took off on a jolly ride across the yard. But, the brave little squirrel is still hunkered down just outside the bedroom window, calculating his chances of eating more seeds before he takes off.

    I suppose the boy cats, the mob of six, is still out on the downstairs catio, keeping an eye on the weather to see if they should move in. Jake da Mouth, former cat mob boss and accountant, used to get really spooked when it stormed, especially when there was thunder. He would retreat immediately to the upstairs walk-through closet, one of the only rooms in the house with no windows. But, seven years later, he’s not so worried that he is going to be swept away by the rain or electrocuted by the lightning. He watches, mildly interested and moves into a chair in the library, but he doesn’t get scared. That’s a victory for us.

    There comes the rain, ah, and the thunder. I had better go downstairs and check on them.

    Everybody is alright. The males ganged up on me in the kitchen – five of them, and then Myra came wandering in, so I gave up. It’s a rainy dark Saturday so why not eat supper early and find a place to sleep out the rest of the afternoon. They get treats and kibble at 8 PManyway. They certainly will not starve to death.

    Trump is going to ruin the economy before we get him out of there, if we ever get him out of there.

    Podcast: The Times of Israel Daily Briefing (8/1/26) “Shlomit Ravitsky Tur-Paz: Nothing is black and white in Israel’s religious societies.”

    Different religious and cultural groups in Israel. Two of them are crucial in October’s election.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDUCATED, CHILDLESS OLD CAT LADY (PER J. F…ING D. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUBBASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK

    · National religious or Modern orthodox is a group that comprises about 13,14 percent of Israel. These are people who are religious, but orthodox religious, they are part of Israeli life.

    · They work. They serve in the army, or they do volunteer jobs in the gap between high school and college. Most of this group are right-wing. For a long time they were a swing group, could go with the right or left. But this ended a few years ago and now they are consistently on the right side of the political map.

    · Some of the schools teach boys and girls together and others do not. More and more high schools (not so much elementary) are separating gender. They are not just doing religious study, they are also studying sciences and English and modern topics. Many will go on to be lawyers, doctors.

    · Politically and culturally, they have to make decisions about when they are part of the modern Democratic world and when they are religious Jews, or Orthodox Jews.

    · Take the settler movement. There is the Mitzvah, the commandment to settle the land. About half of the settlers are ultra-Orthodox, most of the others are religious. And there are also secular and traditional groups that are part of the settlements.

    · Some people go to the settlements because it is more convenient, bigger houses, gardens and so on. For others it is an ideological move in order to declare Jews as living and holding parts of Israel. Some of the land was bought, and some of it was taken after the Six-Day War. This is a way of holding the land and making sure it stays Jewish and not Arab.

    · Difficult moral questions arise, for example, when you have an Arab family that has left land they inhabited for generations and now wants it back. The question must be what is moral, not just what is legal. “we see a lot of immoral behavior in these areas. And it’s problematic to democracy, but it’s also problematic to Judaism.” You must be a moral person. It is a conflict with liberal values, “but also with the Jewish values.”

    · For the people who moved for ideological reasons, they believe that it is a commandment to move for ideological reasons and they would give priority to the mitzvot. Have they become a new kind of national theological movement? Can they be still considered as part of the national religious movement?

    · There is a triangle – the land if Israel, the people of Israel and the Israeli and the Jewish Torah. There are people declaring themselves religious but doing things which contradict the Torah.

    · There are three parties which reflect the national religious ethos – Religious Zionist Party led by Bezalel Smotrich; Otzma Yudit led by Itamar Ben Gvir; Noam Party, Avi Maoz (the very homophobic single man leading that party which is irrelevant).

    · These parties are making alliances with ultra-Orthodox parties and letting them go without participating in the military just to stay in power. What kind of morality is that?

    · There are different types of settlements, and the Israeli people see different settlements for what they are. There can be a lot of left-wing voters and central voters in those settlements.\

    · This is an interview with Shlomit Ravitsky Tur-Paz.

    · Haredi (referred to as Hasidic in the U.S.) composes about 12-14% of the Israeli population. Around a third are Sephardic Haredim, another third is Hasidic and another third is Lithuanian.

    · And there is a small Haredi modern faction.

    · These are people committed to living according to the Torah. Most of them are not trying to be part of modern life. They do not see Zionism and the “foundation of the Israeli state as something important…” “It is like being in exile just in the Holy Land in their ways.” This group is becoming larger and larger.

    · There are on average six children per family and the mothers are the providers. They are the ones working and providing for the house. The men are mainly just learning Jewish studies.

    · They learn in private schools funded by the state. They are not studying the state curriculum, however. Only half the men are part of the workforce. They, however, earn very low salaries because they have no skills. And, they learn a very strict gender separation. So when they’re 18, they have had no regular schooling and know nothing about the army.

    · If they go into the army they will be considered as leaving their community. They live in poverty by choice.

    · So, half of this ultra-Orthodox community is under the age of 19 and increasingly exponentially with no skills. So, Israel has a big problem with sustaining this model.

    · The Haredi people are saying we are willing to live in poverty to live our way of life.

    · But it’s the secular and the religious and the traditional Jews that are funding this way of life. Once this was a very small group. It is no longer. Many point out that if the Haredi were willing to go on their own like the Amish, it might be alright. But even Arabs in Israel are paying for their lifestyle.

    · There are three main points 1) the country needs the contribution of all the people, 2) It’s unfair, a matter of equality, and 3) It’s an unfair interpretation of the Torah.

    · The Haredim argue that they are shouldering the burden of security because God will provide for a country where there are people learning the Torah.

    · For many years, the Haredim thought that the secular Jews would become, after coming to Israel, Haredi. The secular Jews thought the Haredim would join the modern life and become secular. They both now realize that this is not going to happen.

  • ISRAEL AND TRUMP SCAMS

    Saturday 1 August 2026

    ISRAEL

    Trump announced an agreement for Hamas to disarm and Israel to pull out of Gaza. Now, there is disagreement on both sides about what was actually agreed to.

    Article: Ayyoub, Abeer (8/1/26) “Latest Gaza Peace plan runs up against reality. Wall Street Journal.

    Hamas is demanding that Israel withdraw from Gaza before it disarms.

    Article: NPR Staff (7/31/36) “Trump announces deal…” NPR.

    TRUMP: SCAMS

    The Justice Department is going to dismiss a criminal case against a former Olympian for deliberately damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting pool. A court filing showed that the damage was the result of a botched installation by the contractor partically in a “rush to complete the project.” (Note: Quote from report).

    Article: Tucker, Eric (7/31/26) Justice Department moves to drop case…” AP News.

    TRUMP: MISMANAGEMENT

    Trump, of course, blamed the hacking of water utilities in Minnesota on Gov. Tim Walz. U.S. and industry officials, however, suspect that Iran is behind an expanding campaign of digital disruption that is spreading to at least seven other states. Walz responded by pointing out that “this is what modern warfare looks like.”

    Note: Successful hacking of essential infrastructure is a nightmare. Instead of spending time trying to figure out who to blame (besides himself) Trump should be trying to protect us from this and future hacks which are guaranteed to occur.

    Article: Sakelladariadis, John (7/31/26) “Trump blames Minnesota…” Politico.

    The breach in Minnesota happened days after U.S. officials publicly warned that Iran-backed hackers were targeting the nation’s critical infrastructure amid the escalating military conflict with Iran.

    Article: Arkin, Daniel, et. al. (7/31/26) “Hackers target…” NBC News.

    TRUMP: MISMANAGEMENT

    ISRAEL

    Use of the Iron Dome air defense system, paid for by the United States, is bound by an agreement with Israel which gives Israel final say over the system’s use. (Note: Netanyahu vetoed its transfer to Ukraine.)

    Rather than seeing this as a mistake, or an unnecessary agreement, Republicans are now looking to expand that relationship to encompass a “range of technological areas, including bioweapons, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and directed energy systems.”

    Sen. Chris Van Hollen pointed out that: “It compromises our sovereignty and hurts our national security by limiting our options.” In an interview, Van Hollen noted: “The missile systems we wanted to transfer to Ukraine were stationed in the southwest U.S and paid for by U.S. taxpayers, but Israel vetoed it.”

    Marco Rubio supports the idea of a closer partnership with Israel.

    (Note: This is part of the defense budget now before Congress. The agreement is an insane blending of the security services of Israel and the United States. It is receiving almost no coverage in the legacy media.)

    Leading proponents of the measure include Republicans Mike Rogers (Alabama), Sen. Ted Budd (North Carolina), and Ronny Jackson (Texas) (Note: The ambien handing-out doctor who used to be Trump’s personal physician).

    The measure is viewed by Republicans as a way of continuing U.S. support of Israel even if Congress chooses to discontinue the $3.8 billion in aid the U.S. sends to Israel every year.

    Earlier in the year, over 100 Democrats voted to end all U.S. aid to Israel.

    Josh Paul, a former State Department official who resigned during the Biden administration in protest over the war in Gaza, noted that this bill would undermine distancing of Israel from the U.S. By promoting defense production in the United States and creating jobs, it makes it harder for Congress to vote against appropriations. In addition, Paul said, “Israel could also retain leverage over the U.S. because Israeli technologies would be integrated into future U.S. weapons systems.”

    Van Hollen said that he worries that Israel could block third party transfers to even more types of U.S. weapons.

    (Note: This provision is part of the National Defense Authorization Act, which is likely to be voted on around the time of the midterms.)

    Article: Hudson, John (7/31/26) “House push to integrate defense industries of Israel, U.S. draws scrutiny.” The Washington Post.

    OTHER ARTICLES

    Gurley, Lauren Kaori (7/31/26) “Airports, nursing homes and schools brace for disruption without Haitian workers.” The Washington Post.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES

  • Ruins by a Forest Pathway Greeting Card by Christina Johns

    Purchase a greeting card featuring the painting “Ruins by a Forest Pathway” by Christina Johns. A serene scene features a rustic gate amidst lush greenery. A curious black cat sits near the gate, adding to the tranquil atmosphere.
    — Read on fineartamerica.com/featured/ruins-by-a-forest-pathway-christina-johns.html

  • THE TRUMP SCAM MACHINE AND ISRAEL

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDUCATED, ELDERLY, RED-HEADED CHILDLESS CAT LADY (PER J. F. F…ING VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE COLD SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK.

    TRUMP: THE MOST CORRUPT ADMINISTRATION EVER

    Article: Roebuck, Jeremy (7/29/260 “Blanche’s attorney general nomination paused as 2 Republicans hold out. Washington Post.

    · The delay in the vote for Blanche’s nomination for Attorney General was announced just hours before it was to take place. Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) insisted that the administration provide in writing guarantees regarding the Trump IRS settlement. The first guarantee involved a $1.8 billion taxpayer pool of money to compensate people who claim to have been victims of political prosecutions. Even though Blanche pledged publicly that the administration would not go ahead with the fund after bipartisan objections, he refused to put this in writing.

    · The second guarantee involved the time period coered by the ‘get out of jail free’ tax coverage. Blanche has continued to maintain that the Justice Department “will honor…” a provision of the bill that “purported to shield Trump, his family, and their business from past tax claims…” but is refusing to stipulate what is covered exactly in the future.

    · NOTE: Both proposals are outrageous and in any other administration would never be considered in any form. To be arguing about the particulars says so much about how far down the political structure has fallen.

    · No doubt, Blanche didn’t sell his soul to become acting Attorney General, but he could remain in this position until the end of Trump’s term.

    ISRAEL: ANTISEMITISM

    Article: Andrews, Frank (7/29/26) “2025 was the deadliest year for antisemitic attacks outside Israel in 3 decades…” CBS News.

    · According to a study from the J7 Communities’ Task Force Against Antisemitism, more than 90% of the Jewish diaspora lives in the countries of Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and U.K. and the U.S.

    · In these seven countries, the J7 group documented over 23,000 antisemitic incidents.

    · A group with purported links to Iran, Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (The Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Righteous) promised to “keep threatening U.S. and Israeli interests…until they had “…avenged every child in Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, and the resistance nations.”

    · The J7 report called the surge in violence in the seven countries “the new normal.”

    Article: Braunstein, Mellissa Langsam (7/16/26) “Fighting the new antisemitism.” National Review.

    · In a recent poll published by the Manhattan Institute, 26% of Republican voters younger than 50 “believe that Jews receive too much favorable treatment.”

    · According to the report of the poll, “…54 percent of Republican men and 39 percent of Republican women under 50 said that “the Holocaust was greatly exaggerated or did not happen as historians describe.”

    · “Among Democrats, 24% of 18–29-year-olds agree that “the Holocaust…was greatly exaggerated or did not happen as historians describe.””

    LIFE NOTES

    It’s cooler than usual this morning which is a blessed relief. I came down at around 3 AM and worked for a few hours with Popsicle Pete flopped down next to me. There is something so comforting about having a cat beside you when you work. While you are paused, thinking, you can run your hand down his so soft orange and white fur while he pats his tail on the daybed.

    BOOKS: POLITICS

    Unger, Craig (2024) “Den of spies: Reagan, Carter, and the secret history of the treason that stole the white house.”

    As Unger notes in the Prologue of his book, “Den of Spies: “I’d been unable to get out of my head about a covert operation in which the Reagan-Bush campaign made a secret deal with Iran that sabotaged the 1980 presidential election.” It was “a hall of mirrors designed to obscure the truth, it was a case study in his to hijack American foreign policy, steal the presidency, and get away with it.”

  • Israel and treason LIFE AND NEWS NOTES. BY CHRISTINA J JOHNS

    Wednesday 28 July 2026

    It is beautiful this morning. The wind is blowing and the Live Oak branches and the Spanish Moss are wafting across the luminous moon.

    Oh Good Grief. Morning Joe is showcasing Joe Machin this morning. Great, after spending almost the entire show yesterday dissing the Democratic Party. Great. Now Joe is arguing that it’s hard to see if the Democrats have what it takes when you see all their advantages and the fact that some polls show them not way out in front of Trump.

    I do not know why I start every morning of the week with this schizophrenic. I told Mike yesterday when he got up and trailed downstairs to join the kitties and I in the library that Joe Scarborough could make me madder than Trump. This is a campaign by the Republicans, the Never-Trumpers and the centrist Democrats to ruin what little momentum there is in the party and this momentum is coming from the left.

    It reminds me so much of Bernie Sanders’ run. They all come together (Joy Reid and most of the MSNBC commentators) doing their darndest to ruin the left, anybody on the left. This new resurgence is driving them crazy. They are driving me crazy and they are going to lose this coming election for us.

    I am not f…ing listening to Joe Machin. Sleazy, mercenary, traitorous Republican.

    Article: Shtrasler, Nehemia (7/17/26) “Israel needs a ballot-box revolution to rid itself of Netanyahu.” Haaretz.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES

    · Sounds familiar?

    · “Despite his obvious responsibility for the October 7th, 2023 debacle. Despite his failure in managing the war and despite the deaths. Of 1080 civilians. And 964 soldiers. Benjamin Netanyahu did the impossible and completed a four year term. Netanyahu did so not because he’s a political magician. But rather because he’s an unscrupulous crook ready to pay any price. He’s even willing to destroy his country and its democracy to remain in power.”

    · As Shtr points out, the judiciary has no police. In fact, Netanyahu recently announced that he will not obey the Israeli High Court of Justice. This week he passed a law “weakening the attorney general’s authority.”

    · This week leading up to a supposed election, he has made another “corrupt alliance” with the ultra-Orthodox giving them everything they wanted: 1) the Basic Law on Torah Study (making them superior to secular Jews, 2) the law halting arrests of draft dodgrs (against which the Hih Court issued a temporary injunction) and 3) the law torpedoing kashrut reform.” He also gave out handouts of several hundred millions of shekels to yeshiva students and Haredi education. He is, Shtrasler writes, “absolutely unfit to be prime minister.”

    · The IDF chief of staff’s warning that the army will collapse from a shortage of soldiers didn’t seem to bother him. His sons have even changed their names to avoid the shame.

    · Israelis consider their position as being a “vassal of the United States.” Israel has lost the support of the Democratic party and even some of the Republican party.

    · There has been an increase in domestic violence. Emigration has increased. The very existence of Israel is threatened if doctors, engineers, mathematicians and high-tech professionals leave.

    · He has turned Israel into a “weak pariah state”

    · (Note: Remember that before October 7, hundreds of thousands of Israelis were in the streets protesting Netanyahu’s attempts to weaken the judicial system.

    Article: Ravid, Barak (7/16/26) “Inside Bibi’s mystery Trump meeting.” Axios.

    · “Our impression was that Bibi was trying to will a meeting into existence.” One official told Axois.

    · The entire series of events where Netanyahu tried and failed to secure a meetingn with Trump demonstrates “Netanyahu’s increasingly precarious standing in Washington.”

    Article: Solomon, Feliz (7/20/26) “The clock is now ticking on Netanyahu…” Wall Street Journal.

    · The vote in Israel is scheduled for late October.

    · Former army chief and political newcomer Gadi Eisenkot is Netanyahu’s biggest challenge. His centrist party, Yashar, is polling roughly equal with Likud.

    (Note: So many times when I’m writing some notes about Netanyahu, I think about a student I had years ago who got an interview for a job at NPR as a newsperson. We were thrilled and I couldn’t wait until she finished up and phoned to tell me when she would start. It was a shocker. She phoned, but she was irate. When I finally got through all the anger, I found out that first of all, she had worn a halter top and low cut pants to the interview. She sent me a photo. But the real kicker was that she didn’t know how to pronounce Netanyahu. They told her that she would be expected to pronounce correctly all the names of important people in the news to have the job. SHE OBJECTED. She told them that Netanuahu was not part of her culture and she should not be expected to know how to pronounce his name or the names of other world leaders if they were not part of “her culture.” Oy vey. I remember sitting at my desk with my head in my hands. Twenty-five years later, Netanyahu is more in the news than ever.)

    · Both are projected to win 20 seats, far short of the 61 needed to form a government. If neither party wins enough votes, Netanyahu will stay leading a caretaker government “keeping him in power even if he doesn’t win.”

    · In order to try to form a coalition, Netanyahu has rushed through a slate of divisive laws designed to cater to the far right and the Ultra Orthodox parties.

    · The new legislation, according to critics (Note: according to critics? It either does or it doesn’t) “The new legislation could curb. The power of the judiciary give the government greater influence over the media. And effectively exempt haredi men from mandatory military service..”

    · Opinions of the Attorney General are currently binding, but a new law set to take effect in January allows the government to disregard some opinions of the AG.

    · Another law enshrines Torah study as a “fundamental value under Israel’s Basic Laws. This bolsters the argument against military conscription of the ultra-Orthodox. A separate order seeks to stop the ability of the government to arrest ultra-Orthodox Haredi “who refuse to complete compulsory military service.”

    · (Note: Joe Scarborough: “The Republicans will do whatever it takes to win. The Democrats will do whatever it takes to lose.”)

    Article: Shipigel, Noa (7/19/26) The four defining failures of Netanyahu’s coalition…” Haaretz.

    · “By the time Netanyahu’s government leaves office, Israel will no longer be the country it was.”

    · This Knesset ended by “…passing a law that undermines the principle of equality and explicitly discriminates between one person’s blood and another’s.”

    · During these final years, “…it steadily Emptied itself. Of power and stature. The opposition was silenced, the coalition became little more than a rubber stamp for the government, and the government pursued its agenda largely unchecked under a prime minister’s standing trial on criminal charges.”

    · Haaretz outlines four defining characteristic of this last term. The Netanyahu government “fundamentally transformed Israel.”

    · The 2023 plan to overhaul Israel’s judiciary included Abolishing the reasonable this standard. Introducing an override clause that would allow a majority of 61 MKS to overturn Supreme Court rulings. Politicizing the Judicial Appointments Committee and implementing other sweeping changes.”

    · Defense Minister Yoav Gallant opposed the changes and was subsequently fired, only to be reinstated after public protests. The public protests grew larger, but the government took no heed.

    · Then, ten months later came the October 7 massacre. “After a brief period of paralysis, during which civil society organizations stepped in to fill functions the state had abandoned, the coalition resumed pursuing the same agenda. Neither the war with Hezbollah nor the war with Iran slowed it down. Judicial overhaul bills returned to the Knesset one after another, all aimed at weakening the judiciary. Professional gatekeepers and the system of checks and balances. Along the way. Came efforts to trample press freedom. Weaken civil society organizations, target government critics, restrict freedom of expression, and strengthen anti-liberal values.”

    · In the final days of the Knesset, they approved legislation allowing gender segregation in graduate-degree programs. Then, they passed a bill allowing greater control over public broadcasting.

    · “Once there is an external enemy, anyone who opposes the government is portrayed as helping that enemy.”

    Article: Hauser, Michael (7/19/26) “Netanyahu threatens to cancel Likud primary amid Iran escalation.” Haaretz.

    · Netanyahu is trying to tighten control over his party’s Knesset slate. He is making efforts to cancel the primary and personally determine the placement of Knesset candidates on the Likud list.

    Article: Lis, Jonathan (7/22/26) “Netanyahu rejects October 7‘treason’ theory, says security failures must be investigated. Haaretz.

    · In a study conducted in late 2025, it was revealed that 56.7 percent of coalition voters believe that “some Israelis knew ahead of time about Hamas’ attack or enabled it.”

    · “Nearly 50 percent of coalition voters believe that former Israeli security officials helped Hamas in order to overthrow Netanuahy, while slightly more than 20 percent reject this theory.

    · “Among opposition voters 23% believe that Israelis enabled the attack. In the public as a whole, the rate of those believing in the treason from within theory nears 50%.”

    qw

  • ISRAEL AND TREASON by dr. Christina johns

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDIUCATED ELDERLY CHILDLESS CAT LADY (AS PER J. D. GOD…. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE VERY COLD SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK.

    Tuesday 28 July 2026

    LIFE NOTES

    I can’t see the marsh yet, just blackness out the library windows. Cool mustard. An enormous orange Kitty is laying like the. Rock of Gibraltar at my left, down by my legs. Coffee, darkness, computers, laptops, iPads, writing pads, notepads, heating pads. All part of the writer’s equipment. Or perhaps the writers comfort foods. This is my favorite part of the day. 4:30 AM in the morning. The cats had been fed. If I come down before 4:00 they will stir but not get up. Too early on the Kitty schedule for breakfast, even for them. But if my sandaled feet start the journey across the catwalk upstairs, I can almost feel their 18 ears perked up. By the time I get to the bottom of the stairs, they have gathered in a greeting party and a mob bribery show of force. Breakfast. After 4:00 AM, if you come down those stairs, you’re going to feed us breakfast no matter what you have in mind. You might think that I’m the alpha, being the one with determination and two opposable forms, but that’s not how it works. Not with cats. If 9 cats are determined to have breakfast or anything else in the world, they get it one way or the other. In terms of breakfast, it seems that a bribery mob does the trick. When you find yourself surrounded at the bottom of the stairs by 9 little beings swirling around, rubbing against each other and you leaning head butting, it’s hard to say no. If this goes on too long and they begin then the pow tire you are at their breakfast.

    It’s a combination of weakness when confronted with a demand, the knowledge that you will never get any work done if you don’t, and sympathy for anybody who wants something to eat. That’s how we ended up with 9 cats not too long ago, 10. Anyway, as our vet said when we swore up and down we were not getting another cat, once a feeder, always a feeder.

    After they eat. They either settled down. Seven out of eight of them. Or they look for trouble. While bidding their time. Until Daybreak. When they can go on their morning walk. Sam. Sam Clemens is the youngest of the crew. He’s the one who is bidding his time most of the time. Especially in the morning. Going outside is his very favorite thing to do. Which is strange. Since he was taken in when he was 5 weeks old. Alone. Hungry. And yelling his head off. In the front yard. In the pouring rain. Just having been jumped on. By an older cat. In a dispute. About dinner. She thought it was hers. Which it was. And he thought it might be his. We felt enormously sorry for him.

    Nobody feels sorry for him now. Is the cock of the walk. What we usually find is that those who have survived outside alone on their own develop an amazing self-confidence, even if it’s not evident when you first take them in. It’s a sort of I ain’t afraid of nothing or nobody sort of attitude.

    NEWS NOTES

    · A judge has ordered immigration officials to release key witnesses in ICE shooting. Associated Press.

    · Two wars converge in the Caspian Sea as Ukraine hits Iranian supply line to Russia. Wall Street Journal.

    · Temporary protected status ends for Haitian and Syrian immigrants. Chicago Sun Times.

    · Trump asks Supreme Court to allow new limits on mail ballots. Washington Post.

    · Deadly US boat strikes…failed to curb cocaine supply. Washinton Post.

    · Pentagon reveals hundreds of new Iran war casualties. Task and Purpose

    · Primary schedule angers some progressives. Axios.

    · Israel needs a ballot-box revolution…” Haaretz

    · Inside Bibi’s mystery Trump meeting. Haaretz

    · The clock is now ticking on Netanyahu… Wall Street Journal.

    · The four defining failures of Netanyahu’s… Wall Street Journal

    · Netanyahu threatens to cancel Likud primary… Haaretz.

    · Netanyahu rejects October 7‘treason’ theory… Haaretz.

    · Warns top court not to intervene… Haaretz

    · With anti-Arab campaign ad, Netanyahu stoops…Forward.

    · Netanyahu says ICC prosecutor used Israeli PM’s arrest warrant. Washington Examiner.

    · Netanyahu orders new West Bank settler outposts. France 24.

    · Opinion: Can a liberal version of Israel survive? The National.

    · Netanyahu’s Likud falls to lowest position since June 2025… The Jerusalem Post.

    · How Israel kept Biden backing a Gaza war… The Jerusalem Post.

    · Netanyahu’s surprising challenger in Israel. The New Yorker

  • ISRAEL AMD TREASON BY DR CHRISTINA JOHNS.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDIUCATED ELDERLY CHILDLESS CAT LADY (AS PER J. D. GOD…. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE VERY COLD SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK.

    Tuesday 28 July 2026

    LIFE NOTES

    I can’t see the marsh yet, just blackness out the library windows. Cool mustard. An enormous orange Kitty is laying like the. Rock of Gibraltar at my left, down by my legs. Coffee, darkness, computers, laptops, iPads, writing pads, notepads, heating pads. All part of the writer’s equipment. Or perhaps the writers comfort foods. This is my favorite part of the day. 4:30 AM in the morning. The cats had been fed. If I come down before 4:00 they will stir but not get up. Too early on the Kitty schedule for breakfast, even for them. But if my sandaled feet start the journey across the catwalk upstairs, I can almost feel their 18 ears perked up. By the time I get to the bottom of the stairs, they have gathered in a greeting party and a mob bribery show of force. Breakfast. After 4:00 AM, if you come down those stairs, you’re going to feed us breakfast no matter what you have in mind. You might think that I’m the alpha, being the one with determination and two opposable forms, but that’s not how it works. Not with cats. If 9 cats are determined to have breakfast or anything else in the world, they get it one way or the other. In terms of breakfast, it seems that a bribery mob does the trick. When you find yourself surrounded at the bottom of the stairs by 9 little beings swirling around, rubbing against each other and you leaning head butting, it’s hard to say no. If this goes on too long and they begin then the pow tire you are at their breakfast.

    It’s a combination of weakness when confronted with a demand, the knowledge that you will never get any work done if you don’t, and sympathy for anybody who wants something to eat. That’s how we ended up with 9 cats not too long ago, 10. Anyway, as our vet said when we swore up and down we were not getting another cat, once a feeder, always a feeder.

    After they eat. They either settled down. Seven out of eight of them. Or they look for trouble. While bidding their time. Until Daybreak. When they can go on their morning walk. Sam. Sam Clemens is the youngest of the crew. He’s the one who is bidding his time most of the time. Especially in the morning. Going outside is his very favorite thing to do. Which is strange. Since he was taken in when he was 5 weeks old. Alone. Hungry. And yelling his head off. In the front yard. In the pouring rain. Just having been jumped on. By an older cat. In a dispute. About dinner. She thought it was hers. Which it was. And he thought it might be his. We felt enormously sorry for him.

    Nobody feels sorry for him now. Is the cock of the walk. What we usually find is that those who have survived outside alone on their own develop an amazing self-confidence, even if it’s not evident when you first take them in. It’s a sort of I ain’t afraid of nothing or nobody sort of attitude.

    NEWS NOTES

    · A judge has ordered immigration officials to release key witnesses in ICE shooting. Associated Press.

    · Two wars converge in the Caspian Sea as Ukraine hits Iranian supply line to Russia. Wall Street Journal.

    · Temporary protected status ends for Haitian and Syrian immigrants. Chicago Sun Times.

    · Trump asks Supreme Court to allow new limits on mail ballots. Washington Post.

    · Deadly US boat strikes…failed to curb cocaine supply. Washinton Post.

    · Pentagon reveals hundreds of new Iran war casualties. Task and Purpose

    · Primary schedule angers some progressives. Axios.

    · Israel needs a ballot-box revolution…” Haaretz

    · Inside Bibi’s mystery Trump meeting. Haaretz

    · The clock is now ticking on Netanyahu… Wall Street Journal.

    · The four defining failures of Netanyahu’s… Wall Street Journal

    · Netanyahu threatens to cancel Likud primary… Haaretz.

    · Netanyahu rejects October 7‘treason’ theory… Haaretz.

    · Warns top court not to intervene… Haaretz

    · With anti-Arab campaign ad, Netanyahu stoops…Forward.

    · Netanyahu says ICC prosecutor used Israeli PM’s arrest warrant. Washington Examiner.

    · Netanyahu orders new West Bank settler outposts. France 24.

    · Opinion: Can a liberal version of Israel survive? The National.

    · Netanyahu’s Likud falls to lowest position since June 2025… The Jerusalem Post.

    · How Israel kept Biden backing a Gaza war… The Jerusalem Post.

    · Netanyahu’s surprising challenger in Israel. The New Yorker

  • LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDIUCATED ELDERLY CHILDLESS CAT LADY (AS PER J. D. GOD…. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE VERY COLD SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK.

    Tuesday 28 July 2026

    LIFE NOTES

    I can’t see the marsh yet, just blackness out the library windows. Cool mustard. An enormous orange Kitty is laying like the. Rock of Gibraltar at my left, down by my legs. Coffee, darkness, computers, laptops, iPads, writing pads, notepads, heating pads. All part of the writer’s equipment. Or perhaps the writers comfort foods. This is my favorite part of the day. 4:30 AM in the morning. The cats had been fed. If I come down before 4:00 they will stir but not get up. Too early on the Kitty schedule for breakfast, even for them. But if my sandaled feet start the journey across the catwalk upstairs, I can almost feel their 18 ears perked up. By the time I get to the bottom of the stairs, they have gathered in a greeting party and a mob bribery show of force. Breakfast. After 4:00 AM, if you come down those stairs, you’re going to feed us breakfast no matter what you have in mind. You might think that I’m the alpha, being the one with determination and two opposable forms, but that’s not how it works. Not with cats. If 9 cats are determined to have breakfast or anything else in the world, they get it one way or the other. In terms of breakfast, it seems that a bribery mob does the trick. When you find yourself surrounded at the bottom of the stairs by 9 little beings swirling around, rubbing against each other and you leaning head butting, it’s hard to say no. If this goes on too long and they begin then the pow tire you are at their breakfast.

    It’s a combination of weakness when confronted with a demand, the knowledge that you will never get any work done if you don’t, and sympathy for anybody who wants something to eat. That’s how we ended up with 9 cats not too long ago, 10. Anyway, as our vet said when we swore up and down we were not getting another cat, once a feeder, always a feeder.

    After they eat. They either settled down. Seven out of eight of them. Or they look for trouble. While bidding their time. Until Daybreak. When they can go on their morning walk. Sam. Sam Clemens is the youngest of the crew. He’s the one who is bidding his time most of the time. Especially in the morning. Going outside is his very favorite thing to do. Which is strange. Since he was taken in when he was 5 weeks old. Alone. Hungry. And yelling his head off. In the front yard. In the pouring rain. Just having been jumped on. By an older cat. In a dispute. About dinner. She thought it was hers. Which it was. And he thought it might be his. We felt enormously sorry for him.

    Nobody feels sorry for him now. Is the cock of the walk. What we usually find is that those who have survived outside alone on their own develop an amazing self-confidence, even if it’s not evident when you first take them in. It’s a sort of I ain’t afraid of nothing or nobody sort of attitude.

    NEWS NOTES

    · A judge has ordered immigration officials to release key witnesses in ICE shooting. Associated Press.

    · Two wars converge in the Caspian Sea as Ukraine hits Iranian supply line to Russia. Wall Street Journal.

    · Temporary protected status ends for Haitian and Syrian immigrants. Chicago Sun Times.

    · Trump asks Supreme Court to allow new limits on mail ballots. Washington Post.

    · Deadly US boat strikes…failed to curb cocaine supply. Washinton Post.

    · Pentagon reveals hundreds of new Iran war casualties. Task and Purpose

    · Primary schedule angers some progressives. Axios.

    · Israel needs a ballot-box revolution…” Haaretz

    · Inside Bibi’s mystery Trump meeting. Haaretz

    · The clock is now ticking on Netanyahu… Wall Street Journal.

    · The four defining failures of Netanyahu’s… Wall Street Journal

    · Netanyahu threatens to cancel Likud primary… Haaretz.

    · Netanyahu rejects October 7‘treason’ theory… Haaretz.

    · Warns top court not to intervene… Haaretz

    · With anti-Arab campaign ad, Netanyahu stoops…Forward.

    · Netanyahu says ICC prosecutor used Israeli PM’s arrest warrant. Washington Examiner.

    · Netanyahu orders new West Bank settler outposts. France 24.

    · Opinion: Can a liberal version of Israel survive? The National.

    · Netanyahu’s Likud falls to lowest position since June 2025… The Jerusalem Post.

    · How Israel kept Biden backing a Gaza war… The Jerusalem Post.

    · Netanyahu’s surprising challenger in Israel. The New Yorker

    Sam Clemens
    Cool Mustard and Popsicle Pete
    pete on morning waalk

  • SUNDAY CUBA SHORT ARTICLE SUMMARIES

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM AN OVER-EDUCATED CHILDLESS OLD LADY (PER J. D. VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK

    Well, we’re still trying to get Sam Clemens, our youngest, back inside and it’s almost 12 noon. We had to bribe Pete three times with plates of fresh tuna to get him to come inside and stay. He’s got the trick. “If I come inside, they’ll bribe me with tuna. So, if I come inside, have tuna, sneak back outside, get tuna, sneak back outside, get more tuna. That’s three orders of tuna every morning.

    They train us up nicely and quickly.

    I trained Sam to pat the trash can in the bedroom to ask for treats. He now pats every trashcan in the house, no matter what it looks like, what size it is. You gotta be smart to do that. Really smart.

    CUBA: Part 2: STATE DEPARTMENT REPORT

    The State Department recently issued a report on Cuba intended to legitimize the invasion of Cuba.

    Aljazeera outlines five takeaways from the State Department Report:

    1) Front Groups and Fellow Travelers.

    The wins of AOC, Omar, Mandami, Platner (and others) have sent a chill down the spines of the Republicans, (or Republicans that actually have spines).

    The DSA has helped several progressive politicians into Congress. (Note: Aljazeera article names more names.)

    The Trump administration is trying desperately to connect the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), the most prominent group on the list, with what they refer to as “communists.”

    While not accusing the DSA of being a Cuban asset, the report makes the case that the interests of the DSA and the Cubans are mirrors of each other (Harb)

    Harb, defines the DSA as “an activist organization whose stated mission is to support workers gaining power through democratic means (Harb, 7/21/26).”

    The State Department report, of course, overestimates the power of the DSA within the Democratic Party. Report quote: “The DSA has built a national infrastructure dedicated to moving extreme-left politics from the margins into the mainstream – and with it, a deep and abiding devotion to the Cuban regime (Harb, 7/21/26).

    Media Benjamin, cofounder of one of the groups mentioned, Code Pink, has called the report and the approach of trying to label activists as communists as a “flashback” to the 1950s (Harb, 7/21/26). “We are in an era of McCarthyism, where they’re not only labelling groups like us communists and trying to position us as enemies of the state, but also combining that with the efforts to crack down on protests,” Benjamin told Al Jazeera (Harb, 7/21/26).

    CUBA: PART 3 GEORGE FLOYD

    Article: Smith, Benedict (7/20/26) “Cuba fueled George Floyd riots, claims Trump administration.” The Telegraph.

    • A report by the US State Department (www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/Cuba-Report.pdf) claims that Cuba provided “gleeful support” for the protests in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd.

    • “And while using the demonstrations to smear the US as a systemically racist country, it claims Cuba brutally cracked down on protests against its own regime.”

    • The report also accuses Cuba of seeking to groom Left-wing students from elite universities as spies and of coordinating with radical groups “to move against the government in the event of a military invasion.” (Note: Quote from article not report).

    • The government in Cuba issued daily commentary about the Floyd case “portraying the United States as a systemically racist country morally unfit to criticize Cuba’s human rights record,” the report says. (Note: Pete Hegseth, head of the Department of Defense just removed paintings of black servicemen, demoted and pushed out females and blacks from the military.)

    • The report also notes that the then president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, denounced the “practically uncontrolled expressions of hatred, racism, police brutality,” in a September 2020 speech at the UN. (Note: Please just refer to the past year and the number of Hispanics killed by ICE, and placed in detention centers.) (Note: Quote from report).

    CUBA: PART 3, BOOK “The Gargantua Reports from Cuba

    Book: Tennant, J. S. “The Gargantua reports from Cuba.” Review Christiansen, Rupert (7/15/26) “A bewitching history of Cuba (and why Fidel Castro deserves more credit.).

    CUBA: PART 5: RESULT OF US AGGRESSION

    Article: Leake, Natasha (7/6/26) “Cuba suffers total blackout as energy grid crumbles.” The Telegraph.

    • Cuba was struggling before Trump imposed an oil blockade in January. This has depleted the supply of fuel for Cuba’s power plants.

    • This week’s collapse marks the eighth time Cuba’s 9.6 million people have been left without power since late 2024.

    • In Havana the cuts have lasted as much as 24 hours at a time and in rural areas as much as 70 hours.

    • The UN has warned of an emergency as drinking water, food and medicine are in short supply.

    • Raul Giuillermo Rodriqguez Castro, the grandson of Raul Castro has said that he is willing to negotiate with the US in an interview published in USA today.

    • In May, the US announced murder charges against Castro.

    CUBA: PART 6: HEGSETH WARNING TO CUBA

    Article: Cleave, Iona (6/10/26) “Hegseth issues warning to Cuba during Guantanamo visit.” The Telegraph.

    CUBA; PART 7 CUBA’S AMBASSADOR TO UK WARNS US

    Article: Shanagher, Lilly (6/7/26) “Cuba warns Trump: We’ll fight to the bitter end.” The Telegraph.

    • Cuba’s ambassador to the UK has stated that the Cuban people will fight to the death against any US military invasion. This statement comes in response to repeated US threats to Cuba.

    • Trump has “hinted” according to the Telegraph that Raul Castro could be seized just as Maduro was.

    • “Although the US has captured or killed the leaders of Iran and Venezuela this year, little has changed in both of those countries. This has LED experts to question the wisdom of decapitating another government.”

    • Cuba’s president, Miguel Diez-Canel, has warned of a “bloodbath” should the US launch strikes.

    • “Cuba has enacted a 1980s Castro era doctrine called War of All the People, in which the entire population is trained to fight against an invader in a prolonged resistance campaign that would combine guerrilla warfare with conventional defense.”

    • Axios is reporting that the Cuban government could collapse as early as this summer.”

    • “The intention is to keep pushing sanctions to try to strangle Havana in a slow constriction, as administration officials said, likening it to accelerationism, the philosophy of using capitalism to hasten societal change.”

    • Rubio (Note: Who has spent his entire life wanting to destroy the Cuban government) has called Cuba a “national security threat.”

    • Castro was indicted for the shooting down of two US planes in 1996 that left four people dead. Castro was defense minister at the time and is blamed by the US. The planes were operated by Brothers to the Rescue an American activist group opposed to the Castro government.

    • Cuba warned the US multiple times that they would act before they shot the planes down. The planes violated their country’s airspace constantly and the Cuban government accused them of “illegal and provocative activities.”

    • The ambassador called the indictment an echo of the indictment of Maduro, a “desperate attempt” to justify military aggression that had no “legal basis.”

    • Washington is demanding that Americans whose property was seized after he revolution be compensated. (Note: I think Cuba has already done some of this and offered to do more. This is just another excuse.)

    • Ambassador: “War, military aggression, threat, oil siege, strengthening the blockade and indicating leaders of the Cuban Revolution is not the way.”

    • Cuba once had a “world-leading” medical system. Now, because of US actions, infant mortality rates have soared, life expectancy has decreased, and the US has blocked vital medicines through secondary sanctions. (Note: Is this the country you want to live in?)

    • There has been an outbreak of disease, hunger and poverty because of lack of rubbish collection and closure of companies.

    • Ambassador: “You may consider that the social and political systems in Cuba are not the right ones, but there is no single reason for the US to impose such inhumane and cruel collective punishment against a population.”

    CUBA: PART 8: ARTICLES AND BOOKS

    Article: DePetris, Daniel (5/21/26) “Could Trmp be about to attack Cuba?” The Telegraph

    Article: Nicoll, Ruaridh (7/21/26) “US claims of Cuba’s unique threat jar with reality of hunger and blackouts.” Guardian.

    Article: 2026 United States fuel blockade on Cuba. Wikipedia.

    Skove, Sam (7/20/26) “State Department frames Cuba as major threat via Left-Wing groups. Foreign Policy. ****

    Podcast: “Cuba edges towards radical reform. The Economist.

    Podcast: “America’s plans for Cuba. The Economist.

    Article: (5/27/26) “Attacking Cuba would be a huge mistake.” The Economist.

    Article: “Donald Trump is pushing towards the end-game in Cuba. The Economist.

    Gutenplan, D. D. and Katrina Vanden Heuvel. (11/13-20 of 2023 issue) “Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel sits down with the Nation.

    Puig, Mar (7/23/26) “US. Monitorw Catholic Church distribution of aid in Cuba. The Nation.

    Corthell, Michael (2/26/2025) “Accelerationism’s: Propelling society through capitalism’s extremes.” Essay X2.

    Sam clemens

  • THE NEW RED SCARE

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM A CHILDLESS CAT LADY WORKING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK:

    “And Cuba must be free of Spain and of the United States.” Jose Marti

    As part of the ideological work necessary to legitimize the invasion of Cuba, Trump is busy adding fuel to the fire. He has stated flatly that he can “take” Cuba. “I can do anything I want with it.” (Schmidt and Faiola, 3/16/26).

    While at the moment the Trump administration’s focus is on trying to get out of Iran with no good options that anybody can see, the administration is still trying to set the ground work for taking Cuba when it is feasible.

    This new expanded imperial version of the United States has already set up what is essentially a Viceroyship in Venezuela. As the New York Times (Pager and Kurmanaev, 7/13/26)[1]reports, The Secretar of State, Marco Rubio already essentially controls “Venezuela’s finances, the distribution of its natural resources and its government.”

    Aides say that earlier this year, Trump joked about sending Rubio to Venezuela permanently. But he doesn’t have to. “He already runs Venezuela from Washington” according to reports from the New York Times and other media sources. With threats to take over Cuba, the United States essentially will have installed a Viceroy to Venezuela and Cuba.

    “The United States has sent 900 military personnel to Venezuela, committed nearly $400 million in aid and delivered crates of cash to the Venezuelan government (Pager and Kurmanaev, 7/13/26).”

    “The U.S. Treasury receives the revenue from most of Venezuela’s exports, then disburses it to Venezuela through the country’s banking system, a relationship,” described by the New York Times as “akin to parents handing out allowances to children (Pager and Kurmanaev, 7/13/26).”

    Critics, of course, can easily see the potential for “siphoning Venezuela’s resources” off to private interests and also the reality of propping up an authoritarian government by leaving much of Maduro’s “henchmen largely in place.” This is after Rubio has spent his career presenting himself as an advocate of democracy in Latin America (Pager and Kurmanaev, 7/13/26). What a colossal hypocrite.

    In addition to using the threat of Communism to ideologically justify invading Cuba, the Republican party has decided to double purpose the new “red scare” by accusing the Democratic Party of being not only full of communists, but linked ideologically, politically, and even militarily (through spies and operatives) to Cuba. There seems to be no accusation too outrageous.

    In July of 2026, the State Department issued a report tying left-wing advocacy groups in the US to Cuba “often relying on circumstantial and ideological links, rather than direct connections ().” Cuba is portrayed as an ideological threat to the U.S. ”frequently using language and concepts harkening back to the Cold War.” The report argues that Cuba is trying to subvert the US from within (Harb, 7/21/26).

    In the report it is claimed that Cuba was built around a near-singular obsession with the “liberation” of the Global South from its Western colonial oppressors…(Harb, 7/21/26).

    “In the minds of the Cubans, there was only one path to this goal: the destruction of the Yankee imperialist regime” (Harb, 7/21/26).”

    Left-wing activists in the United States are rejecting the accusations that they are linked to Cuba and pointing out that the administration seeks to increase pressure on Havana “while intensifying the crackdown on dissent inside the US (Harb, 7/21/26).” (Note: The quote is from article). The accusations are also intended to sway voters in the upcoming mid-term elections, about which the Republicans are desperate.

    [1] Pager, Tyler and Anatoly Kurmanaev (7/13/26) “How Marco Rubio is running Venezuela from afar.” The New York Times.

  • cuba. Stste department

    apple.news/AtlC5SuNsQDC6yvsuB_uexQ

    “A 100-page report released on Monday by the U.S. State Department argues that Cuba has sought to bring down the United States through decades of subversive operations, many of them tied to U.S. domestic left-wing causes.

    The report frames Cuba as more dangerous than U.S. officials have typically done in the past. According to the report, Cuban “agents and operatives” operate within “hundreds” of organizations and “collectively represent one of the single largest, most sophisticated and dangerous vectors for hostile foreign influence in modern American history.””

    Excerpt From

    “State Department Frames Cuba as Major Threat via Left-Wing Groups”

    Sam Skove

    Foreign Policy

    https://apple.news/AtlC5SuNsQDC6yvsuB_uexQ

    This material may be protected by copyright.

  • LIFE AND NEWS NOTES. CUBA

    22 July 2026: CUBA

    As part of the ideological work necessary to legitimize invading Cuba, Trump adds fuel to the fire.

    Article: Smith, Benedict (7/20/26) “Cuba fueled George Floyd riots, claims Trump administration.” The Telegraph.

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM A CHILDLESS CAT LADY WORKING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK

    · A report by the US State Department (www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/Cuba-Report.pdf) claims that Cuba provided “gleeful support” for the protests in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd.

    · “And while using the demonstrations to smear the US as a systemically racist country, it claims Cuba brutally cracked down on protests against its own regime.”

    · The report also accuses Cuba of seeking to groom Left-wing students from elite universities as spies and of coordinating with radical groups “to move against the government in the event of a military invasion.” (Note: Quote from article not report).

    · The government in Cuba issued daily commentary about the Floyd case “portraying the United States as a systemically racist country morally unfit to criticize Cuba’s human rights record,” the report says. (Note: Pete Hegseth, head of the Department of Defense just removed paintings of black servicemen, demoted and pushed out females and blacks from the military.)

    · The report also notes that the then president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, denounced the “practically uncontrolled expressions of hatred, racism, police brutality,” in a September 2020 speech at the UN. (Note: Please just refer to the past year and the number of Hispanics killed by ICE, and placed in detention centers.) (Note: Quote from report).

    Book: Tennant, J. S. “The Gargantua reports from Cuba.” Review Christiansen, Rupert (7/15/26) “A bewitching history of Cuba (and why Fidel Castro deserves more credit.).

    Article: Leake, Natasha (7/6/26) “Cuba suffers total blackout as energy grid crumbles.” The Telegraph.

    · Cuba was struggling before Trump imposed an oil blockade in January. This has depleted the supply of fuel for Cuba’s power plants.

    · This week’s collapse marks the eighth time Cuba’s 9.6 million people have been left without power since late 2024.

    · In Havana the cuts have lasted as much as 24 hours at a time and in rural areas as much as 70 hours.

    · The UN has warned of an emergency as drinking water, food and medicine are in short supply.

    · Raul Giuillermo Rodriqguez Castro, the grandson of Raul Castro has said that he is willing to negotiate with the US in an interview published in USA today.

    · In May, the US announced murder charges against Castro.

    Article: Cleave, Iona (6/10/26) “Hegseth issues warning to Cuba during Guantanamo visit.” The Telegraph.

    Article: Shanagher, Lilly (6/7/26) “Cuba warns Trump: We’ll fight to the bitter end.” The Telegraph.

    · Cuba’s ambassador to the UK has stated that the Cuban people will fight to the death against any US military invasion. This statement comes in response to repeated US threats to Cuba.

    · Trump has “hinted” according to the Telegraph that Raul Castro could be seized just as Maduro was.

    · “Although the US has captured or killed the leaders of Iran and Venezuela this year, little has changed in both of those countries. This has LED experts to question the wisdom of decapitating another government.”

    · Cuba’s president, Miguel Diez-Canel, has warned of a “bloodbath” should the US launch strikes.

    · “Cuba has enacted a 1980s Castro era doctrine called War of All the People, in which the entire population is trained to fight against an invader in a prolonged resistance campaign that would combine guerrilla warfare with conventional defense.”

    · Axios is reporting that the Cuban government could collapse as early as this summer.”

    · “The intention is to keep pushing sanctions to try to strangle Havana in a slow constriction, as administration officials said, likening it to accelerationism, the philosophy of using capitalism to hasten societal change.”

    · Rubio (Note: Who has spent his entire life wanting to destroy the Cuban government) has called Cuba a “national security threat.”

    · Castro was indicted for the shooting down of two US planes in 1996 that left four people dead. Castro was defense minister at the time and is blamed by the US. The planes were operated by Brothers to the Rescue an American activist group opposed to the Castro government.

    · Cuba warned the US multiple times that they would act before they shot the planes down. The planes violated their country’s airspace constantly and the Cuban government accused them of “illegal and provocative activities.”

    · The ambassador called the indictment an echo of the indictment of Maduro, a “desperate attempt” to justify military aggression that had no “legal basis.”

    · Washington is demanding that Americans whose property was seized after he revolution be compensated. (Note: I think Cuba has already done some of this and offered to do more. This is just another excuse.)

    · Ambassador: “War, military aggression, threat, oil siege, strengthening the blockade and indicating leaders of the Cuban Revolution is not the way.”

    · Cuba once had a “world-leading” medical system. Now, because of US actions, infant mortality rates have soared, life expectancy has decreased, and the US has blocked vital medicines through secondary sanctions. (Note: Is this the country you want to live in?)

    · There has been an outbreak of disease, hunger and poverty because of lack of rubbish collection and closure of companies.

    · Ambassador: “You may consider that the social and political systems in Cuba are not the right ones, but there is no single reason for the US to impose such inhumane and cruel collective punishment against a population.”

    Article: DePetris, Daniel (5/21/26) “Could Trmp be about to attack Cuba?” The Telegraph

    Article: Nicoll, Ruaridh (7/21/26) “US claims of Cuba’s unique threat jar with reality of hunger and blackouts.” Guardian.

    Article: 2026 United States fuel blockade on Cuba. Wikipedia.

    Skove, Sam (7/20/26) “State Department frames Cuba as major threat via Left-Wing groups. Foreign Policy. ****

    Podcast: “Cuba edges towards radical reform. The Economist.

    Podcast: “America’s plans for Cuba. The Economist.

    Article: (5/27/26) “Attacking Cuba would be a huge mistake.” The Economist.

    Article: “Donald Trump is pushing towards the end-game in Cuba. The Economist.

  • ISRAEL And THE AUTHORITARIAN MOVEMENT

    LIFE AND NEWS NOTES FROM A CHILDLESS CAT LADY (ACCORDING TO VANCE) BEAVERING AWAY IN ONE OF THE SUB-BASEMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF SNARK

    NEWS NOTES

    We have two fascinating elections coming up – the American mid-terms and the Israeli elections. It is extremely interesting and disturbing to read about the Israeli elections since there are so many similarities in what Netanyahu is doing and what Trump is doing to ensure a victory for themselves.

    Quote of the Day:

    “Israelis who care about democracy and civil liberties must be vigilant. Leaders around the world who are aligned with Netanyahu’s authoritarian politics have tried to subvert the democratic process in order to avoid defeat at the ballot box. Netanyahu (note: and Trump) wouldn’t hesitate to do the same if given the opportunity.” Noa Sattath, Haaretz (7/20/26).

    Noa Sattath of Haarets reminds us that we should watch the actions of the Shin Bet and their leader closely in the run up to this election.

    She reminds us of a “flurry of anti-democratic laws passed by the outgoing Knesset.” Most of these laws, she writes “will likely be thrown out by the Israeli Supreme Court. Those that survive judicial review could easily be overturned by the next Israeli government, assuming it is led by someone other than Netanyahu.” Assuming it is someone other than Netanyahu.

    The Shit Bet must be watched. Netanyahu appointed David Zini to serve his personal interests, not the interests of the courts, which Zini has called “monstrous,” and human rights, which Zini has called “nonsense.”

    For example, the Knesset passed an “openly racist death penalty law,” which applies to Palestinian terrorists but not Jewish ones. The right has tried for years to pass such a law, but failed because of the opposition from the Shin Bet whose leaders always argued that the law would make martyrs out of Palestinians and only encourage terrorism.

    But when Netanyahu appointed former IDF general David Zini, the position of the Shin Bet about this death penalty law changed completely to supporting it.

    Another concern is that in the upcoming elections, Zini will support efforts to disqualify some of the political parties representing Israel’s Arab minority from participating in the election. He could do that by presenting secret evidence.

    Noa Sattath is the executive director of the Association for Civil Rights Israel, Israel’s largest and oldest civil and human rights NGO.

    _________________________________________________

    David Zini, Netanyahu’s head of Shin Bet, is right-wing and ultra-Orthodox.

    “Too Dangerous: The Religious Far Right”

    Article: Uri Misgav (7/9/26) Opinion: “Too Dangerous: The Religious far right infiltrates Israel’s Internal Security Agency. Haaretz.

    Reporter, Uri Misgav, describes a “disturbing speech” by David Zini, head of the Shin Bet. He writes that the speech is equivalent to “coming out of the closet.” Zini had no reason to hide his far-right religious beliefs. He was speaking to a friendly audience, the equivalent of a right-wing think tank.

    The statements he made reveal an “organized worldview: that of the nationalist ultra-Orthodox, or haradlim.

    The hardalim believe that the state is an instrument, the “donkey carrying the messiah.” There is no sanctity in the state. One should use it in the most “profitable way on the road to redemption.” In addition, “the liberal-democratic world is an abomination…Goyuim, Arabs, secular people, leftists, jurists and gay people are inferior races. Women are good for the kitchen, the bedroom and childbirth. “

    Zini evidently considered his son a special class of person. He suspended investigations of, and the fight against, Jewish terrorism.” “One of Zini’s sons was part of the …hilltop youth and a target of Sin Bet investigations.”

    __________________________________________________

    Article: Limone, Noa (7/13/26) “How Netanyahu’s Court pundit is sabotaging Israeli journalism.” Haaretz.

    In addition to right-wing religious views, special classes of people, and anti-democratic laws, the Netanyahu government is making moves to silence the press. (The Trump administration just issued subpoenas to New York Times journalists and also is investigating the people they associate with).

    Netanyahu associate and Channel 14 commentator, Jacob Bardugo, has repeatedly called for an investigation into how Channel 12 learned of Israeli’s planned Iran strike – putting journalist’ ability to protect their sources at risk.

    Bardugo maintains he is not a “journalist” but a “media personality.” (Note: I think some Fox News commentators have made the same argument in the past). And he is evidently “part of the government’s campaign against journalists.”

    Bergman stated on a TV interview that ever since Zini was appointed to the Shin Bet, they had been collecting information about journalists who don’t identify with the government’s positions and is using technological tools to identify people with whom they are in contact.

    The authoritarian movement is stretching around the world, and we must stop it before it’s too late.

    Do something. Do anything. Protest. Write. Phone your Congressperson. Read.

  • CHICAGO PROSECUTORS OFFICE

    www.nytimes.com/2026/07/19/us/immigration-chicago-prosecutors.html

    Prosecutors have fled the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago, angry about the cases they’ve been told to bring against protesters and immigrants.