Older Americans quit mass weight loss drugs KFF Health News
After decades of searching, scientists have cracked the code for multiple sclerosis.
They used identical twins and mice to prove that two specific gut bacteria cause the disease.
This changes everything we know about MS. pic.twitter.com/1YOHkSekqv
— Craig Brockie (@CraigBrockie) January 6, 2026
south of the border
Even Venezuelan opposition supporters are demanding Maduro’s release Council Estate Media
Former Army Ranger Explains President Trump’s Venezuela Disaster Katie Halper, YouTube. I’ve seen Greg Stoker before and I really like him. It’s interesting how he projects intelligence and doubt.
Seven US soldiers injured in raid to capture Maduro in Venezuela, Pentagon announces on CNBC
President Trump’s drug addiction Julian MacFarlane
* * *
BREAKING NEWS: President Trump admits he kidnapped President Maduro and attacked Venezuela because he wanted personal control of Venezuela’s oil.
This is completely pathetic in every sense of the word. How can anyone who loves freedom support this? pic.twitter.com/xc8JEXWWMj
—Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) January 7, 2026
President Trump said the United States and Venezuela have reached an agreement to export up to $2 billion worth of Venezuelan crude oil to U.S. ports, potentially redirecting oil shipments bound for China and easing pressure on Venezuela’s oil industry, which is subject to sanctions. https://t.co/SiHz3RlJQl pic.twitter.com/jZR7CdmxMl
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 7, 2026
Big oil doesn’t share President Trump’s dream of making Venezuelan oil great again CNN
* * *
The US plans to seize a Venezuela-linked oil tanker over which Russia claims jurisdiction, sources report CNN (resilc)
Oil fleet leaves port despite US naval blockade as Navy busy figuring out how to capture runaway tanker Reuters
And is Bloomberg working for Team Trump? Chevron deploys 11 oil ships as Venezuela’s dark fleet disappears
AI-powered image of Maduro capture receives millions of views on social media Guardian
Russia, US sends submarine to escort tanker tried to seize Venezuela Wall Street Journal Suddenly pictured as a rusting, empty tanker.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum addressed President Trump:
“So you voted to build a wall…
Yes, Americans, even if you don’t understand geography well, America is your country, not a continent, so before you lay the first brick, it’s important to know that there is… pic.twitter.com/jdvUrtLcsC
—Global Insight Journal (@GlobalIJournal) January 6, 2026
Climate/Environment
Hot weather thickens blood in wild mammals: Tracking this in African striped rats PhysOrg
New high-resolution global warming stripe chart with @pot GISS temperature data.
The average value for years 2 and 3 is now +1.5°C, but the annual value for 2025 has only decreased slightly due to the effects of La Niña.
Join us for a climate chat later today. Let’s look back at 2026 and talk about the future https://t.co/Bnn5wMHPcs pic.twitter.com/b4aa2I9BZn
— Leon Simmons 🌍 (@LeonSimons8) January 4, 2026
La Niña gas still remains in the tank.
The 30-day relative Niño 3.4 index fell to -0.86°C, the lowest of the event so far.
La Niña has weakened the subtropical jet stream, limiting the chance of snowstorms along the East Coast and will likely continue. pic.twitter.com/m9LzdIb3Ga
— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) January 4, 2026
‼ ️Hundreds of minimum records were broken in Greece, Turkey, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania and North Africa, with maximum temperatures up to 19°C!
You might see a tropical night in Greece the next day
It is one of the most extreme events in European history
0 cold records in Central Europe https://t.co/ySip3NuSy9
— Abnormal temperatures around the world (@extremetemps) January 5, 2026
Northern Greenland’s ice dome has melted before, but could do so again, new scientists say.
Farmers face catastrophic water outages as Colorado River disappears Agriculture progress
China?
China bans export of dual-purpose goods to Japan amid tensions over Taiwan Al Jazeera (Michael T.)
China’s 50% domestically produced chip tools drive stock price rise, but face limits Asia Times (Kevin W)
China deploys Type 052C air defense destroyer for operations near Japan: How capable is it? military watch
Africa
Türkiye’s intelligence chief declares Africa a strategic priority Middle East Eye (resilc)
The climate crisis, aid cuts and deepening poverty are combining to create Madagascar’s crisis.
discord in europe
Rubio tells lawmakers Trump aims to buy Greenland, downplays military action Wall Street Journal Lead Story.
US says military use is an “option” for acquiring Greenland’s Financial Times
The White House BBC reported that the US is discussing options for acquiring Greenland, including military use. President Trump warned that he meant it. But until we see the movement of troops, this is still noise. Will President Trump make threats?
EU Commissioner Kubilius: US military operation in Greenland will be the end of NATO TASS communications (machine translation) (Michael T.)
In the midst of the Greenland crisis: Ulf Kristersson prepares to face Donald Trump Arbett with machine translation (Mikael T.)
Europe whistles past Venezuela cemetery: Responsible State Strategy
Europe’s failure to condemn Trump’s illegal invasion of Venezuela is not just wrong – it’s stupid The Guardian (resilc)
The housing crisis: From market failure to state failure Hintergrund (machine translation) (Micael T)
Finnish preschools lead fight against Russia Associated Press (Michael T.)
old blighty
Watch out for bombs on morning walks, residents warn Telegraph
UK North Sea oil prices plunge into survival mode as investment dries up
Britain’s secret role in the destruction of Yugoslavia Kit Clarenberg
israel vs resistance
‘Lawless land’: Israeli settlers force Bedouin out of West Bank communities New Arab
Israel issue prompts construction of more than 3,400 settler housing units in occupied East Jerusalem Anadolu Agency
Israel has announced a new system to digitally track Palestinians 24/7 without testing. The announcement read as follows:
“Following the direction of the political hierarchy and through the work of the Joint Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, the Shin Bet, the Israeli Police, the Ministry of Justice, and the General Counsel…
— Shayel Ben Ephraim (@academic_la) January 5, 2026
A new war that’s not so cold war
Ukraine’s allies sign declaration on troop deployment after ceasefire France24 (resilc)
View from Moscow: Europe and Russia have reached a clear stage, but the international situation is bleak (Michael T.)
Time to read about the Charge of the Light Brigade:
🚨🇭🇺Breaking News: Hungary reveals that Ursula’s European Union will go to war.
“In Brussels they decided to go to war. They decided in favor of it.”pic.twitter.com/E4kaBudMrj
— Based in Hungary🇭🇺 (@HungaryBased) January 6, 2026
Why sanctions against Russia helped start and prolong the war in Ukraine Ian Proud
Did Russia just send a message to Donald Trump? Who accused Maduro? Larry Johnson
Rise of Nazis within Russia’s liberal opposition; Events in Ukraine
Washington pledges $2.7 billion to break Russian control over nuclear fuel oil prices (resilc)
big brother is watching over you
The nation’s strictest privacy law takes effect ars technology. This is a rare bit of good news!
Here is the agreement to give ICE Medicaid patient data 404 media
imperial collapse watch
Politics of Destruction Aurelian
From Gaza to Venezuela, the US uncovers the true identity of serial villain Jonathan Cook (Randy K.)
Why “Might Be Right” is Dangerous for All of Us Moon in Alabama (Kevin W.). Related Jack Bo video can be found here. Amazing singing Floyd considering what he was given.
Ukraine Allies Rally and Hope / Lt. Col. Daniel Davis YouTube. Daniel Davis is very brave. He explicitly compared Trump to Hitler. Please watch from 29:00.
Why will the international system enter an irreversible post-Western phase in 2026 and why? New Eastern Outlook (Michael T)
Empire’s Body Count: America’s Hidden Genocide Since 1967 William Murphy
US arms stocks boom, CEOs gloat after Maduro overturns Responsible Nation Strategy (resilc)
Who owns the world’s oil and who can actually produce it Visual Capitalist (resilc). Note that Venezuela’s proven reserves are significantly overestimated.
China and Russia have no intention of ‘testing’ the US, says Hegseth after show of force in Venezuela South China Morning Post (Garst). First arrogance, then nemesis.
Trump 2.0
President Trump warns Republicans that he will be impeached if he doesn’t win in midterm elections ABC (Kevin W)
Grassley and Durbin exclude protests from Venezuela press conference, justifying ‘law enforcement’ The Hill
supremes
How Bribery Became Legal – U.S. Code 666 and the Roberts Court Christopher Armitage (Chris N). important.
economy
Please tell us more:
Switzerland will vote on the ‘cash is free’ initiative on March 8th. This ensures the sustainable existence of cash and protects the Swiss Franc from being substituted without a vote of the people or the cantons. 🎙️Release press conference held this morning. https://t.co/zpuTMkGQRB
—Solari Report |Katherine Austin Fitts (@solari_the) January 6, 2026
THE HARD BIFURCATION: The Convergence of Financial Liquidity and Physical Insolvency https://t.co/MBgGrZMpap The world economy is experiencing a structural collapse that converts financial receivables into physical output… U.S. Magnesium Bankruptcy in September 2025…
— Dr. Steve Keen (@ProfSteveKeen) January 6, 2026
The Ugly Graph of US Auto Sales in 2025: Stellantis and Nissan are having a catastrophic affair. GM, Ford, and Honda’s sales are up, but well below their peaks. Toyota and Hyundai-Kia set records Wolf Richter We’ve written from time to time about how difficult the auto industry is.
Electric car discounts are unsustainable, industry group BBC says (Kevin W)
VW’s New Year’s resolution is to bring back physical button cars and drivers
Mr. Market is dizzy.
Financial conditions continue to ease as investors get excited about the possibility of fiscal and monetary stimulus this year. Junk bond yields have fallen to their lowest levels since 2022, even as bankruptcies begin to rise. pic.twitter.com/X5IVUMkZzw
— Lisa Abramowicz (@lisaabramowicz1) January 7, 2026
A.I.
There’s something unhealthy about App Doctor Afton Bladet with machine translation (Micael T)
Regarding the importance of GP, I strongly disagree about GP and IM Doc. This further streamlines the shortage of primary care physicians and the resulting tax exemption of medical care.
Remember when I said that most general practitioners would be replaced by AI? Because to begin with, they are nothing more than vending machines pushing medicine for Big Pharma. So here we go: “News Release: State of Utah and Doctonic Announce Groundbreaking Partnership on AI Prescription Drugs…”
— HealthRanger (@HealthRanger) January 7, 2026
Aphoristic intelligence beats artificial intelligence Atlantic
Mother of one of Elon Musk’s children says his AI bot won’t stop creating sexual images of her NBC (Kevin W)
basil
Here’s everything Elon Musk promised in 2025 and failed to deliver on Mashable (resilc)
“Kia Motors and Hyundai are the same” Toyota Tech obtains work order. Next, check motor 1(resilc) in step 5.
class war
To convey. Financiers claim superiority over their home countries: Pensions are not a ‘plaything’ to promote domestic investment, governments warn Financial Times
Rhode Island considers taxing the wealthy to counter Trump policies Bloomberg
Antidote (via):
And bonus:
Rare thermal imaging footage shows a couple of coyotes in Central Park engaged in courtship play (affectionate stomping, nipping, and chasing) in a fenced-in area at night. 🐺❤️🐺 pic.twitter.com/N9K5ADe09a
— Manhattan Bird Alert (@BirdCentralPark) January 7, 2026
Second bonus:
when an animal gives very clear instructions
— Science Girl (@sciencegirl) January 7, 2026
Click here for yesterday’s link and Antidote du Jour.
