Weekend News Review:
Zak Mir takes a look at some of the more eye catching headlines of the moment.
The Telegraph: Elon Musk approached Donald Trump with the idea of slowing down Starlink in Ukraine, The Telegraph can reveal. The billionaire tech entrepreneur approached the US president with the proposal to introduce speed limits on the system, which hampered Ukraine’s drone defences, according to four sources familiar with the discussions. One of the sources said Mr Trump “agreed” with Mr Musk’s suggestion, paving the way for the Pentagon to execute the slowdown on Starshield, the military-grade version of the satellite communications system.
Comment: All of this has a rather sour mix of Back To The Future II, and a James Bond villain rolled into one. We have Elon Musk starring as Ernst Stavro Blofeld, and his Starshield, which has a distinct Moonraker vibe to it. And of course, Donald Trump in the President Biff Tannen role.
The Telegraph: Andy Burnham’s government has been accused of waging a £500m “class war” on councils. Conservatives and Liberal Democrats say ministers are deliberately cutting funding from affluent rural councils to bankroll urban Labour Party strongholds. An analysis by The Telegraph shows that Tory and Lib Dem-dominated councils in England will receive a £487m cut in government-controlled grants and funding during this parliament. Labour councils, by contrast, will enjoy a £1.6bn funding increase.
Comment: Fresh from the VAT hike on public school fees, we have a more targeted and efficient execution of the gerrymandering of the vote and political bias / engineering. Aside from blatantly offering money for people to vote Labour – the current benefits system, taking money away from people who will not be voting Labour is also a winning strategy – if you are the present government.
The Guardian: Donald Trump has put on hold a sweeping new sanctions package targeting the Russian economy, telling Congress the pause on the legislation passed by both chambers was in the national interest. In an executive order on Friday, the US president said he was waiving many sanctions, restrictions and duties on Russia, in a move that comes as he has been publicly criticising Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, including suggesting that Ukraine needs a new leader. The move was greeted by Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who wrote on social media: “The Trump administration’s suspension of the Graham Act is an important and truly historic moment.”
Comment: Anyone who might have been concerned that President Trump is a Russian agent would now be in celebration mode after the recent newsflow on the matter. Perhaps the worst aspect here is that President Zelensky has to rely on UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham as his main ally, not knowing that the main interest UK PM’s since Boris Johnson have backed Ukraine is as a political prop to make them look strong, as much as with regard to the war being initiated by Russia.
Sky News: Katie Zacharia: Trump's press secretary responds after leaving job a week into appointment. A whirlwind of headlines over her credentials and an unconvincing first press conference have forced Ms Zacharia out the door. After the US president admitted "maybe it's not for her", she said: "It was an honor to work for him."
Comment: It was perhaps a tad harsh to be forced out, or simply run out of town, after just one appearance. But then again the press secretary role of instant world fame and not considerable pressure, is not going to be for everyone. One wonders if whoever did the vetting on Ms Zacharia has also had to walk the plank?
BBC: More than 100 people have been arrested across France, with tens of thousands expected at protests against rising fuel prices and the cost of living. The French interior ministry condemns what it calls "targeted acts of violence" and accuses some protesters of attempts at looting and attacks on police. Today's demonstrations come after three weeks of student protests across the country, with calls for students to be joined by workers' unions and key figures from the so-called "yellow vest" movement.
Comment: One imagines that a significant proportion of the protesters are more of the yellow gilet type than vest, and of course, Greta Thunberg has already turned up. One also wonders whether the 2026 protests are to be regarded as revolutionary as those in Paris in 1968, where the dangerous revolutionaries all joined the bourgeoisie, sooner rather than later. And of course, there are those who are simply thieves and looters, exploiting the chaos.
The Standard: Gangs steal £1m of luxury watches in London’s West End every month, police reveal. Victims are being punched, kicked and threatened with knives as organised gangs target wealthy diners and visitors.
Comment: The atmosphere in central London in terms of personal safety, whether perceived or otherwise is not exactly up to the kind of level that would be good for any of the more vulnerable members of society, or of course, those who like to whether five or six figure time pieces. Indeed, one gets the feeling that shoes will be the next on the list, after phones and watches. But of course, if the city were a safe place what would be the need to pay the £500 plus a year to City Hall. Indeed, why there is no Mayoral candidate mentioning this horrific waste of money remains understandable, but disappointing.
The independent: A Reform councillor who was filmed by an undercover journalist calling Asian homeowners “parasites” has resigned over his “completely unacceptable” remarks. Alan Feeney, who held posts on Solihull Council and Birmingham City Council, was one of several Reform members featured in an ITV investigation, and was also recorded saying no more than 1 per cent of the UK population should be non-white. In a post on Facebook, he announced he had stepped down from his post, saying: “My remarks were wrong, offensive and completely unacceptable. They do not reflect the standards that the public rightly expects from an elected representative, and I take full responsibility for what I said.
Comment: This Reform “story” may be a bogus one on at least two counts. The first is the perception that one of the backbones of the party and its membership is a somewhat xenophobic streak. The second is that given the apparent wholehearted apology, the matter has perhaps been settled as best it could. One presumes that the ITV investigation was looking to unearth precisely such views from Reform party members. After all, the General Election is not too far away now…
ITV.com: A man killed by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park may have had his medical records breached by NHS staff. William Chapman, 24, died after entering the tiger enclosure at the park in Doncaster on Sunday. An inquest on Thursday heard that Mr Chapman had a history of mental illness and a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He had also suffered previous bouts of psychosis. Yorkshire Ambulance Service Trust said it believes two members of its staff accessed or attempted to access medical information "without a legitimate reason to do so" after the incident. It said it takes the "confidentiality and security of patient information extremely seriously" and reiterated that it has "robust systems in place to protect information." It continued "The trust has commenced an investigation to establish the full circumstances surrounding these potential breaches and the actions of these individuals." The incident has been reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
Comment: The tiger mauling story seems to have gained a rather greater profile in the social media age that one might have imagined. Not only because of the perhaps rather unhelpful medical conclusion that the victim died of “multiple injuries”, but also President Trump’s AI video showing him successfully wrestling with a large, stripey feline. On the matter of the victim’s medical records, there may be some merit in them remaining confidential to protect his family. However, this does seem to overlap with the law that you cannot libel the dead. Not that one necessarily believes that the law is correct in many matters.
This Is Money: Britain should cut the ballooning benefits bill rather than hit banks with higher taxes, according to the International Monetary Fund. John Healey is facing a mounting backlash over plans to clobber lenders in the Budget while at the same time hailing them as ‘the jewel in the crown of the British economy’. The Chancellor looks set to hike the surcharge banks pay on top of standard corporation tax from 3 per cent to as high as 8 per cent in the Budget this month – raising as much as £2billion.
Comment: Even though it could be the case that before too long this country may need to have an IMF bailout such as we had in 1976, it still grates getting unsolicited advance from a shadowy, non-elected international organisations. But of course, we have always had problems with such institutions, be they the UN, WHO, FIFA, or of course, the EU.
Yahoo! Finance: Anthropic's latest revenue figures were like chum in the water for the AI doomers. Critics pointed to the revenue figure to argue the AI boom is ending. Anthropic is getting ready to go public in what's expected to be a historic IPO. Nearly $17 billion in quarterly revenue is good, right? Not if you're the most hotly anticipated IPO candidate in recent market history, apparently. Market researcher publication Geiger Capital shared a graphic of Anthopic's revenue run-rate on X, stating, "Not good enough. It's over." Other prominent AI skeptics shared similar views. Gary Marcus, an AI researcher and author who has been an outspoken critic of the market's frenzy for AI, recalled a previous Anthropic revenue forecast, implying that it seems absurd now.
Comment: Whatever happens with the Anthropic IPO, it is almost certainly going to be the case that siren voices will be saying that it has not been good enough in terms of revenue, share price performance of market cap.. After all, if you are a commentator in the field like Gary Marcus (who?), then being anything less than “outspoken” is unlikely to get you future clickbait inspired views. In fact, those with less controversial perspectives will know that it is only pulled IPOs that are really an indication of the market falling off a cliff. WeWork was perhaps the most famous of recent times. But of course, there are famous examples of pulled IPOs that eventually became winners: Facebook. You pay you money and take your choice. Heck, even SpaceX has got over the line…