news

Amtrak CEO abruptly resigns from the nation’s passenger railroad

Getting PETTY out there

French scientist denied US entry after phone messages critical of Trump found

Nixon’s vice president asked Saudis for money to fight US ‘Zionists’. Spiro Agnew, in letter to crown prince, said ‘Zionists orchestrated organized attack on me’ as ‘I’d never agree to continuance of unfair and disastrous favoring of Israel’ The late US Vice President Spiro Agnew requested money in 1980 from Saudi Arabia to “continue to fight” against American Zionists.

Agnew, who served for three years under Richard Nixon before resigning in 1973 in a corruption scandal from his time as the governor of Maryland in the 1960s, wrote to Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, then crown prince of Saudi Arabia, saying “I need desperately your financial support,” MSNBC reported Thursday.

“You highness is already familiar with the unrelenting Zionist efforts to destroy me,” Agnew wrote, adding that Elliot Richardson, who was attorney general when Agnew was vice president, “attacked” him because Agnew “could not be trusted to act properly in the Middle East.”

The reason, he also wrote, “was that the Zionists in the United States knew that I would never agree to the continuance of the unfair and disastrous favoring of Israel and they had to get me out of office there so that I would not succeed Nixon.” Since 1974, “The Zionists have orchestrated a well-organized attack on me” through lawsuits, Agnew said, “to bleed me of my resources to continue my effort to inform the American people of their control of the media and other influential sectors of American society.”

Agnew, who died in 1996, resigned amid revelations that he had engaged in corruption while governor and did not contest his conviction. But in his letter to the prince, he said the Zionists “framed” him. He spoke out frequently about what he called the “Zionist influences in the US.”

He stated that he would use the funds to "continue my effort to inform the American people of their (i.e., Zionists') control of the media and other influential sectors of American society." He also congratulated the crown prince on his call for jihad against Israel, whose declaration of Jerusalem as its capital he characterized as "the final provocation". A month later he thanked the crown prince for giving him "the resources to continue the battle against the Zionist community here in the U.S.". Agnew's anti-Zionist views seemed to have developed after leaving office—as vice president, he expressed admiration for Israel and was friendly with his Jewish staff members.

I'm usually yapping about Lebanese government formations and Iraqi shia cults here, but this time I want other nerds to yap here. What's going on in Zambia or Zimbabwe or Mozambique or Angola or Botswana or Malawi or any African nation that isn't under French financial strangulation like the ones in West Africa? How are their economies doing? Native corruption or European shenanigans? Are the Chinese cooking anything there? Are they producing anything interesting? Any cultural output that is interesting? How does an average day look in Maputo or Lusaka or Luanda or anywhere? I only hear about these nations whenever their football team is playing in the AFCON, but I literally haven't read anything interesting about these countries in a long time.

GOLDMAN: “.. we expect hiring in the healthcare, education, and government sectors to slow to about 15k jobs/month in the second half of the year (vs. about 100k jobs/month now). .. We now expect overall payroll growth to slow to 115k jobs/month by the end of the year.” https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/post/3lkqos3pul222?ref_src=embed

That is an apocalyptic slowdown

Is there a term for laws that don't actually get enforced?

Government of Canada finalizes investment to support Canadian-Born AI leader, Cohere

https://www.canada.ca/en/innovation-science-economic-development/news/2025/03/government-of-canada-finalizes-investment-to-support-canadian-born-ai-leader-cohere.html

$240 million dollars lmao

Greenpeace must pay hundreds of millions over Dakota Access Pipeline protests, rules jury

RIP protesting anything. Time for a new form of struggle?

Georgetown scholar detained over American wife’s Palestinian ties, lawyer says

::: spoiler Article ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A Georgetown University researcher who is married to a Palestinian American was detained by immigration agents who told him his visa had been revoked, prompting another high-profile legal fight over deportation proceedings against foreign-born visa holders authorized to live in the U.S.

Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral scholar at Georgetown University and citizen of India, was arrested Monday night outside of his Virginia home by officers who identified themselves as Department of Homeland Security agents, according to a legal filing by Suri’s lawyer.

Hassan Ahmad, Suri’s Virginia-based attorney, wrote in a court filing that Suri was targeted because of his wife’s “identity as a Palestinian and her constitutionally protected speech.”

Suri was later taken to a detention facility in Louisiana, according to a government website. His lawyers are seeking his immediate release and to halt deportation proceedings through their habeas motion filed Tuesday against the Trump administration.

“The Trump Administration has openly expressed its intention to weaponize immigration law to punish noncitizens whose views are deemed critical of U.S. policy as it relates to Israel,” Suri’s attorney wrote.

Suri’s detention more than 1,000 miles (about 1,600 kilometers) away from his family and attorney is “plainly intended as retaliation and punishment for Mr. Suri’s protected speech,” his attorney added.

The deportation effort comes amid legal fights over cases involving a Columbia University international affairs graduate student and a doctor from Lebanon.

Suri was accused of “spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media” and determined to be deportable by the Secretary of State’s office, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said late Wednesday on X, formerly known as Twitter. Suri’s case was first reported by Politico.

The filing by Suri’s lawyer said that federal authorities have provided no evidence that he’s committed any crimes and that his detention violates his free speech and due process rights. Suri, who has no criminal record, holds a visa authorizing him to be in the U.S. as a visiting scholar, and his wife is a U.S. citizen, according to the motion.

His lawyer didn’t immediately respond to an messages seeking further comment Thursday.

Suri’s lawyers say he’s currently teaching a course at Georgetown and hopes to become a university professor. A Georgetown webpage identifies Suri as a postdoctoral fellow at Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at the university. The university said his areas of interest include religion, violence and peace processes in the Middle East and South Asia. The bio said that he earned a doctorate in India while studying efforts to introduce democracy to Afghanistan and Iraq, and he has traveled extensively in conflict zones in several countries.

The university said in a statement Thursday that Suri is an Indian national who was “duly granted a visa to enter the United States to continue his doctoral research on peacebuilding in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

“We are not aware of him engaging in any illegal activity, and we have not received a reason for his detention,” the school said. “We support our community members’ rights to free and open inquiry, deliberation and debate, even if the underlying ideas may be difficult, controversial or objectionable. We expect the legal system to adjudicate this case fairly.”

The U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement detainee locator website lists Suri as being in the custody of immigration officials at the Alexandria Staging Facility in Louisiana.

Separately, Columbia University student activist Mahmoud Khalil, a legal U.S. resident with no criminal record, was detained earlier this month over his participation in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and is fighting deportation efforts in federal court. And Dr. Rasha Alawieh, a kidney transplant specialist who previously worked and lived in Rhode Island, was deported over the weekend despite having a U.S. visa

: :

The Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum has recognised the State of Palestine and also welcomed the ambassador.

Mexico also continues support South Africa's case in the ICJ against piSSrael even after the elections.

Death to ameriKKKa, Death to isnotreal

I'm quite bothered by burned teslas ngl. This is what crosses threshold for property destruction in america? not making bombs, or selling oxycodone, or closing factories, or shipping bombs for genocide, it's fucking doge closing usaid. I dunno how to interpret it, is it opportunity vs premediation? Batshit civic religion?

It puts me roughly in the same bafflement as gore vidal meeting kissinger and just thinking of quips

This dude who dresses like Sun Yat Sen thinks the strong solidarity for Palestine among Chinese youth will produce meaningful long term changes in government policy back in the direction of Mao-era direct support, rather than post-Deng diplomatic support. I hope he's right! He also wrote a much more in depth piece on the subject.

U.S. Sent Venezuelan Asylum-Seeker To El Salvador Based On Real Madrid Tattoo: Lawyer

also apparently and have issued travel warnings to the US

I've seen libs stop comparing things to Harry Potter and start comparing real things to Warhammer 40k, so, uh... that's where we are now.

Advertising again since it's starting soon (I guess that counts as news, right?): The Progressive International is organizing the people's academy. The first lecture is on the 5th of April. The academy includes bimonthly online lectures and an extensive reading list, and will go on until the end of the year. It looks pretty interesting and it's free. Feel free to register if you want to follow it (if people are curious here are the material for the introductory lecture).

Tesla to recall most Cybertrucks because they’ll fall apart.

Canada claims China executed four of its citizens this year for "drug related offenses".

I am always highly sceptical of 'China bad" news. The identities of the victims have not been made public. Nor the specific charges or details of the alleged crimes.

However on the other hand, China does have the death penalty, and does not fuck around when it comes to drugs.

I haven't had time to look into this closer. Chat, what say you?

https://x.com/leb_now/status/1902453879813325146

Google translated:

A lynx attacks a number of Israeli soldiers on the Egyptian border, wounding them.

And in case you were wondering if Slammer already made a meme for it: here it is

Dunno if this story is true but it's funny and lifted my mood.

The UKKK has issued a travel warning for Amerikkka

Germany, (including "Die Linke" in Bremen and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) voted "yes" to war loans for more arms.

https://xcancel.com/jungewelt/status/1903029173729263732