
They Speak for the Trees: Meet the ‘Petal Protectors’ Guarding NYC’s Cherry Blossoms
Touching or shaking the fragile flowering cherry trees can harm them. Volunteers on Roosevelt Island make sure that doesn’t happen.
US · 318 articles
MBFC: Left-Center (-3.1); heterodox left economics blog

Touching or shaking the fragile flowering cherry trees can harm them. Volunteers on Roosevelt Island make sure that doesn’t happen.
"Russia is not going to leave the Western Hemisphere, no matter what they say in Washington."
"Most Hungarians came to take Orban for granted and won’t appreciate what they had until it’s gone."
As the US and Israel work to destroy Iranian education centers and cultural heritage sites, US oligarchs want to put a meter on knowledge.
Today's Iran war update: As many anticipated, US-Iran negotiations failed. What comes next?
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Part the First: War Begets War, A Conversation. Daedalus hosted a conversation among Robert Jay Lifton (1926-2025), Neta C. Crawford, and Matthew Evangelista last year. It was preprinted recently in The MIT Press Reader. I immediately noticed the participation of Robert Jay Lifton. Back in my dark ages, when the university had a University Bookstore […]
Today's Iran war news: Both Iran and the US/Israel violate the ceasefire. But that may be fine with the US if the aim was just to buy time.
The Iran War has accelerated the emergence of a new world order, but the world system remains the same. This distinction is crucial.
Today's Iran War news: The ceasefire fell apart, which looks to have been the plan, as in it was merely a ruse from the outset.
Reactions to yesterday's news of a ceasefire in the US-Iran Ramadan War have varied due to cognitive dissonance and conflicting agendas among key players including POTUS Trump, Israel, Iran's Supreme Leader, the IRGC, the UAE, the Saudis, China, and Pakistan.
Today's Iran War news: why the much-ballyhooed Iran ceasefire is much less than it seems to be.
U.S. global air power depends on aerial refueling, but the tanker fleet that sustains it is under growing strain. What appears sufficient on paper becomes fragile in practice, revealing a widening gap between strategic ambition and the physical limits of force projection.
Today's Iran war news: Trump has committed to a deadline and demands, which Iran is rejecting, Iran has vowed to match his threat of apocalyptic damage.
Research suggests that rocket exhaust and debris could be threatening the ozone layer, though uncertainties persist.
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Military-related research at universities helps the imperialist state find ways to more effectively kill people around the world who resist US domination.
From the Pacific Northwest to Antarctica, it’s extraordinary warmth that’s punching through climate norms with the most force.
Online prediction markets evade safeguards against gambling and risk normalizing addictive behaviors.
A comparison on EV charging expenses state by state in the US. Any similar data in other countries based on recent electricity costs?
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How the US is massively hoist on its own petard with its Iran miscalculations
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Union Now event featuring Sanders, NYC Mayor Mamdani, and Association of Flight Attendants-CWA international president Sara Nelson hits right notes, but is thus far light on details.
Häxan is a movie about superstition, paranoia, and the abuse of power.
Iran war: In a telling sign, the start of talks has been pushed back due to disagreements over process.
Trump tries to muscle the Holy See as Catholic voters turn against him and the Iran war.
The threat comes just as Spain appears to be leading a shift in Europe away from Donald Trump's US.
Less is known about psilocybin mushrooms than you might think even as their popularity and potency of products like edibles rises.
A look at the economics of the hot new way to create yet more debt slaves: BNPL, as in buy now pay later loans.
How the US is playing dog-in-the-manger with critical minerals by disregarding WTO rules so as to stymie China.
Why is the United States at war with Iran in 2026? Several excuses have been used by the current administration to justify the spiral of conflict and ratchet of escalation over the past five weeks. These include but are probably not limited to: Iran exports terrorism across the globe. Iran is not a democracy and […]
The struggle over the Fed is a constitutional conflict: in a representative system, the power over money belongs to the legislature
Governments in Mexico have been trying to replace cash with digital payment alternatives for over a decade, and have largely failed. Until now...
Weak links OpenAI, Oracle, and the UAE are strengthening their ties even as the Ramadan War exposes their increasing vulnerabilities.
Today's Iran war news: Trump goes even more crazy as the F-15 rescue looks more like the tip of the iceberg of a big botched mission.
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Today's Iran war news: Trump reiterates his dangerous escalation threat as the real economy Titanic is about to hit the iceberg.
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Today's Iran war update: Trump's blockage of Iran ports looks to be unraveling but Mr. Market will grasp at any happy news straws.
POTUS Trump's ugly and open social media conflict with Pope Leo XIV is a new chapter in the information war that shows some deep sectarian cracks in the American pro-war consensus.
Today's Iran war update: Trump again demonstrates his need to dominate results in self, US and global harm, here with a barmy blockade plan.
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After failed color revolution attempts, Washington tries reset with Georgia as it seeks to control Middle Corridor access to Black Sea.
A key Trump ally engages in economic malpractice to defend Federal government slash and burn spending cuts.
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Is gig work socially beneficial as an alternative to survival via crime?
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The EU’s plans to buy US oil, LNG, and nuclear energy products to lower reliance on Russian gas by 2028 is costly!
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What if anything you can do to prevent recording and AI transcriptions/summaries of doctor visits.
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A propaganda network backed by Russian foreign intelligence and internally known as ‘the Company’ began working to undermine Milei’s government and further divide Argentina’s already polarised society, according to a tranche of Russian-language documents obtained by The Continent, an African news outlet, and shared with a consortium of investigative newsrooms including openDemocracy, Dossier Center, iStories, All […]
On community restaurants that practice and teach food sustainability through optimal cooking to reduce waste and improve health.
With main routes clogged, other trade corridors struggle to launch and suffer setbacks from war as ‘heartland’ integration is delayed.
Midnight on the Galactic Express is a movie about friendship, spiritual development, and this journey called life.
Today's Iran war update: aircraft downed and at least one pilot missing in Iran follows a Saturday Night Massacre-style military purge
Good afternoon. Time for a break. Given the wall-to-wall coverage by Yves and others here, nothing explicit on this Good Friday about the Ramadan War in West Asia. Instead, herewith a few reflections during holy season of the three great Abrahamic traditions. Part the First: Ethical Capitalism? Some argue about whether business can be ethical. […]
Today's Iran war update: The US continues its escalation with a strike on Iran's biggest bridge even as Mr. Market starts a belated protest.