The 2024 EU Parliamentary Elections

https://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-braces-for-far-right-wave-as-eu-election-looms/

It's too difficult to tell if there will be a Right-wing wave in the June 2024 EU Parliamentary Elections. For years the Right has been predicted to win in France and yet always seems to fail in the second round. In other words, when it comes down to it, people are willing to vote strategically rather than stick to one party come what may. It's a definite difference when compared to the US winner-take-all system - one that makes a two-party duopoly all but inevitable.

Fico and the Slovak Media Controversy

https://www.politico.eu/article/slovak-robert-fico-government-shuns-independent-press-wants-turn-public-broadcaster-into-state-run-tv/

*This article was written on 13 May, two days before the assassination attempt which is briefly addressed at the conclusion of this piece.

Brussels has another dissident nation on its hands. On the one hand Slovakia is part of the Visegrad Four (V4), a bloc which has long resisted the EU bureaucracy. But this bloc has been fragmented if not shattered by the war in Ukraine. Poland and the Czech Republic are 'all in' with the EU and NATO, while Hungary and now Slovakia dissent. As such the foreign policy of the bloc is at odds with itself.

Costa Rica, Semi-conductor Devices, and the American Empire

https://english.elpais.com/international/2024-04-22/from-san-jose-to-silicon-valley-costa-rica-is-emerging-as-a-hotbed-for-us-chips.html

The microchip industry has become strategic for the United States, meaning it is guaranteed federal subsidies and is becoming integrated with the security state. New facilities are being developed in Arizona, Texas, Idaho, Ohio, and New York but the industry is always going to be looking for cheaper options. A decade ago that was in China and other Asian locales. The US might be comfortable with South Korea, Japan, or even the Philippines but after the supply chain snags associated with Covid, the US is looking for something closer, a location that wouldn't be affected by such shipping scenarios. As such, Costa Rica has suddenly become an attractive option.

Congress and Big Tech: Hypocrisy and Blindness all on Sides

https://breakpoint.org/big-tech-families-and-the-role-of-government/

As we've come to expect, Stonestreet is less than helpful in addressing the salient issues. This time it's about families, technology, and the state. It continues to astonish me that parents have so little oversight or influence over their children that they are unable to curtail the problems associated with Smartphones and social media.

The Persecution-Industrial Complex Panders to the Right

I must say, this sort of thing just makes me sick. I will explain why. This email appeared in my inbox last fall.

Why do we Pray for Kings and All in Authority?

https://mitchchase.substack.com/p/to-lead-quiet-and-peaceful-lives

It was refreshing to find this author focusing on the Neronic context of Paul's letter to Timothy. It's a critical point and one the seriously undercuts many of the common assumptions that reign in the Evangelical and Dominionist sphere.