UNFTR Weekly Roundup

This week in our Members Only Newsletter you missed:

Max Notes on how ridiculous it is that the Democrats aren’t blowing the Republicans out of the water in every way imaginable.
The Tuesday Top Five news articles everyone should be reading.
An original essay from News Beat’s Rashed Mian on the politics of climate change.
And “Not for Nothing” on Ana Kasparian’s right turn, late inning heroics by the Mets and RFK Jr. sexting scandal.

So I guess the question is…what are you waiting for? Sign up today to become a member and level up to unlock a slew of additional perks!

Max Notes

The skies above went from purple to green, offering a visual feast for millions across the globe. Beneath the illuminated night sky many sat in wonder. Others sat in filth and squalor. Homes ruined by nature’s latest wrath. Entire towns and cities wiped out by human hands. The Northern Lights juxtaposed with the force and brutality of Hurricane Milton, disappearing rivers, bombed out cities and widespread famine in forgotten areas.

I don’t know if it’s an occupational hazard or election nerves, but this seems to be how my mind works now. I’m still capable of taking in natural wonders and the beauty that surrounds us but it never seems to last very long. My mind always finds a way to tug me back to reality. There’s work to be done. Always has been, always will be.

Other things I’m obsessing over…

Mehdi and BJG brawling makes me deeply sad.
The Game. So underrated. Early Fincher.
Lindor. #MVP. You know I had to.

-Max

Chart of the Week

I find oil one of the most fascinating topics. The bets we make on it (or against it). How it continues to drive the global economy and increase standards of living while simultaneously and slowly killing us and its host planet. Anyhoo. Being “bearish” on oil means you think it’s going down, which is great for consumers and bad for investors. Being “bullish” obviously means the opposite. What’s so interesting about this moment is that oil predictions are typically a solid indicator of economic activity, or projected economic activity. Expensive oil means lots of demand and (typically) a cheap dollar. Cheap oil means things are probably pretty bad out there because demand is low. In this case, investors are reading the tea leaves and predicting a slowdown in the economy but wars (over oil) and climate disasters (because of oil) are sustaining prices.

Money managers flee brent bearish bets. Brent short-only positions see biggest cut since December 2016.

Sources: Yahoo Finance via Bloomberg

“Overall, speculators increased their bullish Brent and WTI oil bets by 117,227 combined net-long positions to 263,135, weekly ICE and CFTC futures and options data on four contracts showed. That’s the most bullish in 10 weeks.”

Headlines

Hard to Flee Under Lock and Key

Our friends at News Beat have done an amazing job over the years addressing issues related to incarceration. So I’ve been attuned to these kinds of stories. What’s that they say about the value of a society? Something, something…the least among us? Yeah. This article seems about right.

From the article:

“Incarcerated people are often neglected when it comes to ensuring their safety during natural disasters, but they’re frequently exploited for labor in the aftermath of those same situations. In Louisiana, incarcerated people performed clean-up and recovery efforts after Hurricane Francine in September and, in California, they’ve been key to fighting wildfires for years. While some of these tasks offer an alternative path to rehabilitation or allow inmates to refine new skills, none come with the same labor protections around safety or wages that other workers generally receive.”

Mother Jones: These Floridians Couldn’t Flee Hurricane Milton. They’re Incarcerated.

A Storm to Look Forward To

Our daughter is in school north of us and texted us pictures of the Northern Lights in the sky. Then I read that they were visible in so many parts of the world. For a moment I felt like Fievel and was thinking about people all over the world staring up in wonder at the natural gifts we’re afforded sometimes. And it made me smile.

From the article:

“These lights started with giant explosions on the surface of the sun, known as coronal mass ejections, which send streams of energetic particles into space. When these particles cross Earth’s orbit, they create a disturbance in our planet’s magnetic field, known as a geomagnetic storm.”

New York Times: Northern Lights Animate Night Skies Around the Globe

Uncertainty on Tribal Lands

Native people in the United States have been living somewhere between purgatory and hell since being conquered centuries ago by European settlers. The relationship between the United States and the hundreds of sovereign native states has never been good but the Biden years have bordered on tolerable; especially when contrasted with the Trump years.

From the article:

“Trump hasn’t talked a lot about what specifically he’d do regarding tribes in his next presidency. A spokesperson for his campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment. The 16-page summary of the Republican platform on Trump’s campaign website doesn’t include the words ‘tribe,’ ‘Native,’ or ‘Indigenous.’ But it does lay out unambiguously how Trump stands on energy projects.”

ICT News: What a second Trump presidency could mean for Indigenous peoples

This Week on the Pod

Unf*cking Flashback

The American Propaganda Machine.

While Max puts the finishing touches on the forthcoming Worker Cooperative episode, we’re replaying an oldie but a goodie called The American Propaganda Machine. We chose this as a complement to our recent discussions surrounding news literacy. We think it holds up pretty well, actually.

Here’s a snippet from the pod:

Max: “Even casual observers of politics and policy will likely recognize the big names in the game. Brookings, The Cato Institute, Human Rights Watch, Council on Foreign Relations. It’s estimated that there are more than five thousand active think tanks in the world and, as usual, the United States dominates the arena with more than one third of them. Of the 1,800 or so registered think tanks in the U.S., more than half of them sprung up over the past quarter century.”

Read The Essay

Access Episode Resources

Resources

Pod Love

“Featuring Jake Werner on how the US and China entered into a New Cold War and why the whole world urgently needs an alternative international order that fosters great power cooperation.”

The Dig Podcast: Ending the New Cold War

Book Love

Curious as to why RFK Jr. can’t keep his d**k in his pants? Mystery solved. Kennedy comes from a long line of philandering miscreants who at least held offices he can and will only ever dream of. Even if you think you know how disgusting the men of this family are, you’ll be surprised.

“The renowned biographer and New York Times bestselling author of The Kennedy Women returns with this first volume in a multigenerational history that will forever change the way America views its most famous family...”

The Kennedy Men: 1901-1963 by Laurence Leamer

Bonus Book Love from Manny Faces

“Embark on a captivating journey with Love & Whiskey. New York Times bestselling author Fawn Weaver unveils the hidden narrative behind one of America's most iconic whiskey brands. This book is a vibrant exploration set in the present day, delving into the life and legacy of Nearest Green, the African American distilling genius who played a pivotal role in the creation of the whiskey that bears Jack Daniel's name.”

Love & Whiskey: The Remarkable True Story of Jack Daniel, His Master Distiller Nearest Green, and the Improbable Rise of Uncle Nearest by Fawn Weaver

**Unf*cker Comment of the Week**

From @Thetrueaqeedahofthesalaf on YouTube: “This man needs to be protected.”

Not gonna lie, shed a tear on this one. - Max

Progressive Corner

Progressive Spotlight: Ben Burgis.

Explore the impact of Ben Burgis, a prominent leftist media figure, known for his rigorous approach to philosophy and political discourse, and host of Give Them An Argument.

Progressive Organization of the Week: Rural Urban Bridge Initiative.

“The Rural Urban Bridge Initiative invites liberals and progressives to think differently, talk differently and act differently in order to understand the causes of the rural-urban divide and then do something to repair it. We develop political, economic and communications strategies that build bridges and serve the common interests of working and middle class Americans.”

This one is a referral from Unf*cker Glenn S. who wrote: “I thought it might fit into some discussion of ‘How do we speak outside our regular circles and actually help people in their lives.’”

Check Out the New UNFTR Directory of Progressive Resources for More