Should US homebuilders emulate Sweden? Construction Physics
Some of your cells are not genetically yours — what can they tell us about life and death? Nature
Did fireworks on champagne bottles trigger deadly blaze in Swiss ski resort bar? Firstpost
Could Next-Generation Medicines Help Cure Opioid Addiction? Scientific American
Please stop mailing butt plugs to Bahrain Boing Boing
You’re Not A Doomer: The Radical Logic Against Positive News Nate Bear
Climate/Environment
Betting on the End of the World: 2026 Edition Watching the World Go Bye
High risk from coincidence of extremes in particulate matter and heat in India IOP Science
Pandemics
This BMJ highlight on movement from “immunity debt” to COVID’s direct role in immune harm is a welcome shift
The evidence on T cell dysregulation driving secondary risks has been mounting and it’s good to see mainstream outlets engaging it seriously
1/ https://t.co/ejM2euv0oT pic.twitter.com/YXcs3ayOZY— AJ Leonardi, MBBS, PhD (@fitterhappierAJ) January 1, 2026
Americans brace to start New Year without healthcare BBC
China?
Taiwan’s President Lai pledges robust defence after China military drills Business Standard
China military drills near Taiwan ‘unnecessarily’ raise tensions: US Channel News Asia
Chinese Cargo Ship Converted To Launch Advanced Combat Drones Emerges The War Zone
China slashes hundreds of tariffs in strategic trade war twist Asia Times
The shocking thing is not the large demand from Chinese tech firms for H200s (pending Beijing’s approval) but that their price is apparently just 15% lower than “grey-market alternatives.”
This implies access to chips was not a huge issue for large firms, assuming China-bound…
— Kyle Chan (@kyleichan) January 1, 2026
Does Manufacturing Matter? ChinaTalk
India
Data centre surge reaches India as American tech giants invest billions Straits Times
Indian Army indigenises 91% of ammunition variants, cuts import dependence The Hindu Businessline
Syraqistan
Israel begins 2026 by killing more Palestinians, banning Gaza aid groups New Arab
Israel seizes planning powers over Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque from Palestinians Middle East Eye
Israel, US advance Rafah ‘Green City’ concentration camp plan
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Israel’s Channel 14 reports that Israel and the US agreed to move forward with the so-called “Green City” project in Rafah, presented by Washington as a solution for Gaza’s population but better described as a…— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) January 1, 2026
Pro-Palestine march draws over half a million people to Istanbul’s Galata Bridge on New Year’s Day Anadolu Agency
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Aden airport closure deepens Saudi-UAE tensions in Yemen Al Mayadeen
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What to Watch in Iran’s Latest Protests Sina Toossi
Is Israel Weaponizing Protests In Iran For Regime Change? The Dissident
Iran in the Crosshairs: Economic Protests and the U.S.–Israeli Strategy of Destabilization
The dominant narrative in Western and Israeli media is now familiar: Iran is on the verge of collapse, its society is turning against the state, and the regime is living on borrowed time.… pic.twitter.com/1InNsB0TbN
— Ibrahim Majed (@ibrahimtmajed) January 1, 2026
The riots in Iran have a different pattern this time
There are organized groups in smaller cities that target the main governmental buildings. Easier targets
Smaller cities with different ethnicities..
Next they will go for the police stations to arm themselves
There are…
— Soureh 🇮🇷🇵🇸 (@Soureh_design2) January 1, 2026
🇮🇷| Riot Saboteurs intended to seize the police station in Azna, Lorestan province in Iran, but they failed.
Around 6 PM today, a group of masked rioters attacked the side closer to the armory of the police station in Azna.
Several police vehicles were set on fire during this… pic.twitter.com/Ksw9Nik6nE
— Arya – آریا (@AryJeay) January 1, 2026
Africa
‘Baseless claims’: Somaliland denies agreeing to absorb displaced Palestinians The Cradle
European Disunion
Ship seized in Finland suspected of cable damage was carrying sanctioned Russian steel Euronews
Bulgaria adopts euro amid political uncertainty and protests TRT World
German exporters face prolonged slump in key U.S., China markets Reuters
Money flow running low, Germany on the hook The Duran
New German military plan views foreign sabotage as preparation for war Politico
Germany moves to produce TAURUS NEO to boost deep-strike Uk Defence Journal
Peter Magyar, a main opposition figure, addressed the nation and left a chilling message on New Year’s Eve, just 100 days before the general election in Hungary 🇭🇺 pic.twitter.com/ytsFeaTCEx
— SzabadonMagyarul 🇬🇧🇭🇺🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@SzabadonMagyar) January 1, 2026
New Not-So-Cold War
Russia’s Defense Ministry says GRU chief Igor Kostyukov has handed a recovered flight controller and decoded navigation data from a downed Ukrainian drone to a US military attaché in Moscow. The files allegedly show the UAV’s programmed route toward Putin’s residence in Novgorod… pic.twitter.com/6hOHIoDawU
— Brian McDonald (@27khv) January 1, 2026
Yes, the CIA is Lying About the Drone Attack on Putin Larry Johnson
The CIA (with Trump’s blessing) has attacked Russian oil facilities and tankers during peace negotiations and during efforts to restore US-Russia bilateral relations. Trump, “the mediator”, has continued the proxy war and dramatically escalatedhttps://t.co/wi0TjER73F pic.twitter.com/lk7pcTayBj
— Glenn Diesen (@Glenn_Diesen) January 1, 2026
Did CIA’s Secret Aiding of Ukraine’s Refinery Strikes Do More Harm to Ukraine Than Russia? Simplicius
Nicolai Petro: Chaos After Ukraine Collapses Glenn Diesen
🇺🇦 A torchlight procession dedicated to Bandera’s birthday is taking place in Lviv.
-> These tough guys walk around with torches and attack grandmas speaking Russian … but there’s no way they would join the war that is literately against them.
Russia wants to denazify you …… pic.twitter.com/4Nzt5hYVy0
— Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) January 1, 2026
The Great Game
Rising Border Insecurity Puts Chinese Interests at Risk in Tajikistan The Times of Central Asia
South of the Border
Venezuela Deploys Combat Tested Iranian Long Range Strike Drones to Respond to U.S. Military Buildup Military Watch
Maduro says Venezuela open to talks with US, remains mum on dock attack Al Jazeera
“To the People of the United States, I Say That Here in Venezuela, You Have a Friendly People” Telesur
Congress Is Asking Who We’re Killing at Sea. This San Diego Lawyer Has an Answer — and No One Has Called After-Action Report
Trump 2.0
As Signs of Aging Emerge, Trump Responds With Defiance WSJ
TACO strikes again: Italian pasta becomes the latest product to have tariffs slashed by Trump The Independent
White House ‘looking at’ denaturalising Somali Americans for alleged fraud Telesur
Minnesota Fraud Distraction & Trump Tariffs Exposed: How Nationalist Capitalism Hurts Workers Egberto Off The Record
Federal Judges Blow the Whistle on DOJ Deception: 35+ Cases of Lies and “Sham” Evidence Allen Analysis
U.S. Treasury Lifts Sanctions on Executives Previously Linked to the Intellexa Company and Predator Spyware TechNadu
Below is a non-exhaustive list of individuals who defrauded the American public, U.S. financial institutions, and taxpayer-funded systems out of billions of dollars through bank fraud, securities fraud, Medicare fraud, insurance fraud, and foreign-influence schemes.
They… pic.twitter.com/kEz6IFHZ9x
— DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) January 1, 2026
Wars Come Home
⚡️🇺🇸🇮🇱JUST IN:
Netanyahu gave a speech to a Chabad synagogue in Miami Florida on New Year’s Eve about “fighting anti-Semitism.”
“You should fight back…You should attack your attackers!”
How is it allowed to incite violence in a synagogue in the U.S?pic.twitter.com/WIfHyRLjok
— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws1) January 1, 2026
Immigration
They stole the art as well. pic.twitter.com/lS2bXkCBXo
— Tracey Schulz (@TraceySchulz) January 1, 2026
Imperial Collapse Watch
The Bad Dream of Modernity Warwick Powell
THE END OF A GLOBALISATION THAT NEVER BEGAN Comidad
US seeks unpaid local interns at Greenland consulate as annexation threats loom Euractiv
The Accelerating Nature Of Financialization Collapse Ian Welsh
The Post-American Internet Cory Doctorow
Mamdani
New Mayor Mamdani’s affordability push in NYC faces economic headwinds in ’26 Gothamist
Tax the Rich, Say Mamdani, Sanders, and NYC Inauguration Crowd Common Dreams
AI
AI Labor Is Boring. AI Lust Is Big Business Wired
Accelerationists
It’s all right here 15 years ago… how the PayPal Mafia planned to “escape” from politics—by creating an “alternate virtual reality.”
They did it. That’s why we’re talking about “Somali fraud” instead of the Epstein files.
“But the basic idea was that we could never win an… pic.twitter.com/xnR33HV3YY
— Jim Stewartson, Decelerationist 🇨🇦🇺🇦🇺🇸 (@jimstewartson) December 31, 2025
Economy
Consumer spending powers the US economy. A K-shaped economy will further test this dynamic in 2026. Yahoo! Finance
Casino Nation
Bally’s casino jackpot winner says he hasn’t been paid a dime because of his immigration status CBS News
To Save Las Vegas, Pedestrianize the Strip Arbitrary Lines
Class Warfare
A Socialist Organizer’s Guide to 2026 Left Notes
Things are falling apart: where to look for leadership? Ann Pettifor
Time for one more thing. Working Class Storytelling
Antidote du jour (via):
Bonus:
You are looking at a creature that watched the continents drift apart. 🌍
The Feather Star (Crinoid) has been here for 400+ million years.pic.twitter.com/y239RtKFNR
— Curiosity (@MAstronomers) December 31, 2025
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
