*Tolerance in the North & War in the South

“Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them.” – Karl Popper

“No rational argument will have a rational effect on a man who does not want to adopt a rational attitude.” – Ibid.

“It is complete nihilism to propose laying down arms in a world where atom bombs are around. It is very simple: there is no way of achieving peace other than with weapons.” – Ibid.

Recession on the Horizon?: The yield curve, which shows the difference between interest rates on short-term US bonds and long-term government bonds, is showing signs of a possible recession. Wall Street’s attention has been on troubling indicators such as the “flattening curve” – a graphic representation of a shrinking gap between short-term and long-term interest rates. The last time such a shrinkage occurred was 2007, which lead into the 2008 recession – the worst America had seen in 80 years.

Though it is (of course) not certain that a recession is on its way, the flattening curve will soon invert if trends continue, and long-term interest rates will fall below short-term interest rates. As officially recorded, every recession in the past six decades was preceded by an inverted yield curve, which is worrisome for economists. Many onlookers argue that with the lowest unemployment rates in decades and an almost five percent growth closing the second quarter should be indicators enough that there will be no recession, but this may be a short-term economic stimulus leading into a slowdown or possible crash.

– Shops shut down and people took to the streets in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, which saw Iranian demonstrators marching toward parliament. The largest protest in over half a decade, this protest was against rising prices and the plummeting value of Iran’s currency due to “fears about the impact of the US sanctions that will be reinstated in August.”(BBC)

– Pay-what-you-can is the slogan at this Toronto market, which seeks to fight against landfills and hunger. Provisions for the produce and premade meals are provided by partners across the region who look to aid those struggling to find ends meet while raising awareness for the depletion of nature caused by landfills. (Guardian)

– Thirty-four people were found dead after a chemical bomb was dropped in Syria on April 7th. Syrian officials continue to deny that they orchestrated the bombing, or that it even took place. An investigation by the New York Times has unveiled many details to the situation, however, including that the attack was indeed a chemical one, how the bomb was dropped, and what chemicals it had encased. (NYT)

– Straight out of a James Bond movie, China is using robotic surveillance birds to spy on its residents. Quiet and highly convincing, birds even fly next to them, unaware that they are only helping in masking the presence of an all-seeing eye. (Newsweek)

– China has pushed the blame for the opioid crisis in the United States back to the United States. In November, Trump had targeted China, stating that their opioid production was fueling the worldwide epidemic, to which China retorted that it was American demand driving and worsening the opioid crisis. This argument mirrors one that policymakers in the United States face: do you seek to address the demand (the addicted users) or the supply (sellers). Ultimately the best policy is to address both sides of the market. (Reuters)

Tolerance Level – Canada’s Claim to Fame: A recent survey has ranked the United States a close second to Canada in tolerance and inclusiveness of seeing people as their own population. This suggests that most Americans are not in line with the current administration’s nativist stance. An inclusiveness index was created using the data from the survey, which measured people’s interpretations of what it meant to be a “true” member of the nation. Religion, immigration status, sexuality, and criminal background were all categories in which people were asked to judge and assess.

Canadians seemed to have the broadest acceptance, and while the US came in at a very close second, it was a very legalistic point of view. Americans believed that regardless of anything else, legal status made you a “real American,” which is more aligned with the current state of affairs with immigration policies. Other notable countries are China, Serbia, and Turkey, where surveyed people did not consider themselves “real nationals” if their parents were immigrants. Out of the twenty-seven surveyed countries, the United Kingdom had the least amount of people believing they were “real Britons.”

Mexico’s Domestic Warfield: The terrain of the Mexican political wargrounds is drastically different from decades ago. Once a peaceful, flourishing land full of democratic promise, the barren battlefield left behind is ravaged by bloodshed and an intensifying drug war. As the election draws near, Mexicans are looking for a leader who will stop the mass murders and deaths which have plagued the country for over a decade. The country has seen over two hundred thousand murders since 2007, and last year was the deadliest year in its modern history with a count of almost thirty thousand. Reporters and citizens have taken to the streets with complaints that the twelve-year war on drugs has had no effect, and that the bloodshed needs to come to an end. Yet, politicians seem afraid of the power held by organized crime.

Mexican voters not only are thinking about how to abate the raging violence caused by organized crime, they are also being influenced by political parties who hope to sway the outcome of the election. According to independent election observers and former party officials, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) has been using government institutions to destroy opposing campaigns and bolster their own candidate’s chances. Crime accusations and mistrials are not uncommon tactics, but the PRI’s abuse of state powers is unprecedented. Government resources have been misused by the party in power since early 2017, but as the election draws closer, there has been a significant increase in public displays of power by the PRI.

– The District of Columbia has attained first place once more… and this time, it’s not a drought-ending Stanley Cup. The capital of the United States ranks highest in predominance of psychopaths.

– The Pentagon has announced plans to erect tent camps at two US military bases to house people who are caught illegally crossing the border. The two military bases have not been revealed to the public yet, but they will have to house up to twenty-thousand unaccompanied minors. This announcement comes one week after Trump’s statement in which he said that the “US would not be a migrant camp, nor would it be a refugee holding facility.

– “What might we achieve if only we were willing to play the truly long game?” (Tim Harford blog)

– “The first time you heard of a burner phone—a cheap prepaid mobile intended for temporary use—was probably while watching a crime drama. But an extra cell phone comes in handy even when you operate on the right side of the law.” (Popular Science)

– This New York Times writer might be reading Daily Pnut given we recently quoted Hannah Arendt, “Arendt was one of the first major political thinkers to warn that the ever-increasing numbers of stateless persons and refugees would continue to be an intractable problem.” And “She warned against being seduced by nihilism, cynicism or indifference. She was bold in her description of the lying, deception, self-deception, image-making and the attempt of those in power to destroy the very distinction between truth and falsehood.” (NYT)

– “Big Tech Isn’t the Problem with Homelessness. It’s All of Us: Amid all the digital wealth, the big cities of the West are racked with the destitute. We know how to solve this problem, so what’s stopping us?” (Wired)

– America’s Millennials Are Waking Up to a Grim Financial Future: Job prospects, savings, safety nets, life expectancy—the data show just how bad a mess they face. And it’s unanimous as here’s another piece on the same subject that further emphasizes Millennials are screwed: “Why millennials are facing the scariest financial future of any generation since the Great Depression.” (Bloomberg and Huff Post)

LAST MORSELS

“All life is problem solving” – Karl R. Popper

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