Headlines about the Russian president's looks and 'erratic' behavior are a symptom of terminal Russophrenia.
You can't argue with a man observing the obvious: We are living in unusually perilous times. In the Middle East, for instance, the Israeli-American infernal duo have been on a rampage of war, state terror, all-purpose devastation, and genocide that, as a bonus, has also brought the world economy to the verge of cardiac arrest by clogging one of its vital fossil fuel arteries. Indeed, that particular risk is so obvious that even Germany's less than brilliant Friedrich Merz has long spotted it.

In the Far East, Taiwan is currently ruled by a government so hell-bent on antagonizing their fellow Chinese on the mainland that Taipei's political reflexes seem almost as perverse as those of Berlin. In the West, you have the German elite which can't find enough billions to fork over to Ukraine when Kiev and friends blow up Germany's vital pipelines and lethally cripple its already ailing economy. In the East, there is Taipei, getting really, really angry when the Philippines and Japan start negotiating away Taiwan's maritime Exclusive Economic Zone. Angry, that is, at Beijing.

And in the EU, that "garden" of "values" that really is a swampy jungle of eternal confusion and corruption, the catastrophe that in its foreign policy is now obvious enough for several European bigwigs to gang up on the abysmally, ragingly incompetent Kaja Kallas. Her tenure as de facto EU foreign minister has been so breathtakingly blundering that her employers aren't merely itching to kick her out but thinking about, in essence, abolishing her job.

Being so horrible at something that you won't just get fired yourself but take it down with you - perhaps only the Baltic Girl Boss Wonder could pull that one off. But then, maybe it's really all just another power grab by EU's German queen (of the absolute kind) and US viceroy (of the submissive kind) Ursula von der Leyen. Either way, frightful insanity abides.

We could add more scary and grotesque evidence, but things are clear enough: It's a grim picture all around. So, fair enough if you feel like being a big sad downer and doom monger. Where it gets weird is when you get your scare priorities all upside down.

Trump continues to call the premier a 'wartime prime minister' as Netanyahu faces ongoing internal opposition and a long-delayed corruption trial

A poll published by an Israeli research center on 9 June has revealed that most Israelis do not want Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to run in the upcoming election.

The poll was released by the Viterbi Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at the Israel Democracy Institute, based in occupied Jerusalem.

A U.S. District Court in Boston found Paxton's initial legal action to be retaliatory against ActBlue in support of Paxton's Senate rival.

A federal judge has barred Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from pursuing his state court lawsuit against ActBlue, a major Democratic online fundraising platform.

President Clinton-appointed U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns ruled Thursday that the case represented no more than a retaliation campaign for ActBlue's political activities supporting Paxton's opponent in the 2026 U.S. Senate race.

Stearns issued a preliminary injunction preventing Paxton from pursuing the Texas case. The judge found the lawsuit attempted to undermine protected political speech and therefore violated the First Amendment.

After four years of zero diplomacy, multiple rounds of economic sanctions aimed at crushing the Russian state, and hundreds of billions of euros fueling a futile war in Ukraine against Russia, European capitals are lately abuzz with calls for opening peace negotiations with Moscow.

No doubt part of the shifting policy is due to the economic mess that Europe has created for itself by cutting off energy trade with Russia. Escalating energy costs are destroying European industries and imposing crippling financial hardship on millions of its citizens. Realizing the self-inflicted disaster, European capitals are desperate to appear to be normalizing relations with Russia and resume affordable energy supplies.

France and Italy are advocating the appointment of an envoy to engage with Russia to resolve the conflict and the lifting of anti-Russian sanctions.

Last weekend, the leaders of Britain, France, and Germany - the so-called E3 - stated that they would "help mediate" a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia. The Ukrainian puppet president, Vladimir Zelensky, was feted in Downing Street on June 7 by Britain's Kier Starmer, France's Macron, and Germany's Merz. They proposed taking the lead in negotiations from the United States since President Trump seems more preoccupied with ending the war against Iran.

Various names have been suggested as to who could serve as an interlocutor representing Europe. Angela Merkel, the former German Chancellor, and former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi are two names that have been put forward. Finnish President Alexander Stubb has also been suggested. It's unlikely any of them would be acceptable to Moscow, especially Merkel, mainly due to her past role in covertly undermining the 2015 Minsk Accords, thereby sowing the seeds for war that erupted seven years later.

The telling - almost laughable - thing is the paucity of any European figure with credibility as an envoy.

The EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, has become a laughing stock over her rank incompetence. Her Russophobic ranting has rendered her redundant in conducting foreign policy. So much so that there is a revolt among European diplomats against what they declaim as her "dysfunction".

This week, Europe sent three ambassadors to Moscow to renew some form of dialogue. Russia's deputy foreign minister, Mikhail Galuzin, met with representatives from Britain, France, and Germany. The Russian foreign ministry said it was open to hearing what Europe had to say.

However, Galuzin reportedly gave the visitors short shrift, reminding them that Europe cannot pose as mediators when it is a participant in the war against Russia.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Friday announced that she is declassifying evidence of US-funded biolabs and gain-of-function research around the world as one of her final acts before stepping down as DNI.

"After months of searching through intelligence community holdings and files, today I'm releasing longstanding US government funding of more than 120 bio labs in over 30 countries," including Ukraine, she said in a video statement.

She said the labs in Ukraine "likely housed dangerous pathogens," and the US Intelligence Community previously warned that they were at risk of compromise due to the ongoing war.

"Until now, evidence regarding the full existence and funding of these laboratories had been knowingly withheld from you, the American people," Gabbard said. "Many of these US government-funded bio labs are currently or have previously engaged in research using hazardous and highly contagious pathogens, and in some cases included dangerous gain-of-function research with very little visibility or oversight."

Recent tensions between Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu have fueled speculation about a growing divide in U.S.-Israel relations. However, a closer examination suggests that these disagreements are shaped more by domestic political calculations, electoral considerations, and regional dynamics than by any fundamental strategic rupture.

"You are crazy. What the hell are you doing?" This is what Trump told Netanyahu, according to the report, after learning of Israeli military actions in Lebanon. Is this the end of the US-Israel partnership? Well, it's too early to say this. Since the inception of the Trump 2.0 administration, disagreements between the US and Israel have erupted recurringly over Gaza, Iran, or Lebanon. On one occasion, US Vice President JD Vance once commented on Israel's plan to occupy the West Bank as, "What a stupid idea this is!"

The actual question is: whether these disagreements are a genuine rupture of relations or just political theater. President Trump has always been blunt to gain media attention and to maintain his political base.

Remember one thing: any kind of tactical divergences should not be confused with decades-long strategic cooperation between the two counterparts.

The US president has previously threatened to hit the country "very hard" and to seize Kharg ⁠island.

US President Donald Trump has cancelled planned strikes on Iran, saying talks with the Islamic Republic are moving forward with the country's top leadership. The announcement came just hours after he again threatened to hit Iran "very hard."

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have surged in recent days despite a nominal ceasefire agreed in April. The US launched strikes on Iran on Wednesday after a US AH‑64 Apache helicopter was lost near the Strait of Hormuz - an incident Washington blamed on Tehran. Iran denied responsibility and responded with a missile barrage targeting American bases in the region.

In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said the "scheduled strikes and bombings" had been canceled because of negotiations "brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved." He said "discussions and final points" had been agreed by all sides involved, including the US, Israel, Saudi Arabia and several other regional states.
The US‑led naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz "will remain in full force," Trump added.

A measure in a must-pass bill would dramatically increase Israeli access to American secrets.

Buried deep inside a 192-page intelligence authorization bill is Section 622, titled "United States-Israel Intelligence Sharing Enhancement." It would require the president, acting through the director of national intelligence and as necessary the secretary of defense, to "expand and enhance intelligence sharing with the Government of Israel" on a list of subjects that encompasses almost every topic of intelligence interest in the Middle East.

The bill, put forward by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, would prohibit any suspension, reduction, or limitation of such sharing "except on the basis of a specific and identifiable national security concern determined by the President." Any such exception would require a report to Congress within fifteen days detailing not only the reason for the change but also the categories of information involved. The same report would require an assessment of the anticipated impact on regional security and various other matters.

The US Dept of Justice is intensifying scrutiny of some of the country's largest financial institutions over allegations that customers were denied banking services, or "debanked" for political or ideological reasons, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The US Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, led by Jeanine Pirro, has reportedly issued subpoenas to several major banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo. Investigators are seeking information on account closures, customer offboarding decisions, and internal records explaining why certain individuals or businesses were denied access to banking services.

ActBlue CEO Regina Wallace-Jones invoked the Fifth Amendment on Wednesday before the House Administration Committee, surrounding reports that she may have misled Congress about how the platform vets foreign donations.

Wallace-Jones had originally agreed to testify voluntarily before Congress concerning ActBlue's vetting process for foreign contributions to domestic candidates. But her attorneys requested a congressional subpoena on Monday, ahead of her June 10 testimony, according to committee lawmakers.

The House asked Wallace-Jones to testify after a recent New York Times report included memos from Covington & Burling, a law firm that worked for ActBlue, warning that she may have misled Congress about the process for screening overseas donations.