Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a mutual defense agreement that includes defense industry collaboration, technology transfer, military co-production, capacity-building, and training. The timing of the pact, following an Israeli attack on Qatar and amid regional tensions, suggests Saudi Arabia is seeking to bolster its defenses beyond its traditional reliance on American protection. Importantly, Pakistan is a nuclear power and this serves as a signal that if Western powers are unable to quickly rein in Israeli aggression, state actors in the Middle East are possibly preparing to act collectively.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including teachers, train drivers, pharmacists, and hospital staff, participated in strikes and protests across France. The protests were largely an effort to tell President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu that their planned budget cuts are unpopular and that French citizens would prefer to see an increase in taxes on the wealthy. The protests, which also saw teenagers blocking high schools and disruptions to regional trains, were a response to the government's fiscal plans and calls for more spending on public services, with union leaders emphasizing the need for a socially fair budget amidst a deeply divided parliament. It may not be clear to many yet, but France is truly on the brink of serious disorder and chaos. Fiscal instability is truly nothing to play with.

The Taliban, led by supreme leader Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada, has ordered internet shutdowns in several Afghan provinces, including Kandahar and Balkh, to curb the "misuse of the internet" and prevent the diffusion of "immoral acts," as stated by provincial officials. Wi-Fi services have been suspended in these areas, with fiber internet also shut down in Kandahar, though the national government did not respond to requests for comment. It appears the Taliban have learned nothing from the situation in Nepal and to be frank, I hope that efforts at this type of repression are met with equal and opposite force. There is nothing more important, especially in the coming era, than ensuring there is a free flow of information. All blanket censorship efforts must be fervently resisted.

President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he is designating "antifa," a decentralized, leftist ideology adhered to by various individuals and groups, as a terrorist organization. However, experts note that the U.S. has no legal mechanism to designate domestic terrorist groups, and there are concerns that this could lead to political repression given "antifa" is an ideology rather than a specific group. 'Antifa' functionally works in the country with a cell infrastructure so perhaps this will facilitate mass investigations of this cell network throughout the country. The problem is not so much that 'Antifa' is being designated a terrorist organization, as they often engage in terrorist activities; the problem is that the government can't be trusted to carry out these investigations and prosecutions in good faith.

The U.S. Department of Education has announced it will allocate $137 million in discretionary grants to K-12 schools adopting a new “patriotic education” curriculum developed by the 250 Civics Education Coalition, comprising over 40 groups including the America First Policy Institute and Hillsdale College. This initiative, led by Education Secretary Linda McMahon, aims to emphasize a “unifying and uplifting portrayal of the nation’s founding ideals” ahead of the 250th anniversary in 2026, despite legal prohibitions since 1970 against federal influence over school curricula. It is an interesting position curricula puts us in as there is a tension between what some people understand to be honesty and others find to be an active undermining of any semblance of national pride. What it seems would be best is to give American children an optimistic curricula which is frank about the past, but clear that they live in a nation that is constantly overcoming and worth having reverence for.

A federal judge, Timothy Kelly, blocked the Trump administration from deporting hundreds of Guatemalan minors to their home country, following a lawsuit and reports indicating the children feared violence or neglect and had no parental requests for their return. The judge's order, which extends an emergency restraining order, came after the administration attempted to deport 70 minors aged 10 to 17 in the middle of the night, despite some having pending asylum cases. This has been one of the most confusing issues in the world as it is totally unclear to us what is happening. It appears that the Guatemalan government wants the children to return, so perhaps that is the simplest path forward.

Ohio Republicans, led by state Rep. Jack Daniels and state Rep. Josh Williams, have introduced a bill that would allow prosecutors to seek the death penalty for politically motivated homicides, with convictions resulting in mandatory life without parole. The legislation aims to protect political speech and deter political violence, though progressive activist Rachel Coyle has expressed concerns about potential unequal application and the unpopularity of the death penalty, while Gov. Mike DeWine, a critic of capital punishment, has not allowed any executions during his tenure. There is nothing more important than the protection of political speech as fundamentally that is the ability to question the arrangement of power in society. However, we here at Mituye remain staunchly against the death penalty given the possibility of error on the part of the state.

Illinois state Republicans, including Reps. Patrick Windhorst, David Friess, Dennis Tipsword, and Tom Weber, are advocating for reforms to the Pretrial Fairness Act, which eliminated cash bail two years ago, citing issues like financial strain on county clerks, increased crimes by defendants on pretrial release, and judges' inability to detain dangerous offenders, such as cases involving multiple child pornography and sex abuse charges. They have proposed legislation like House Bill 1482 to expand detainable offenses and are responding to President Donald Trump's executive order that threatens to withhold federal funds from states that eliminated cash bail, highlighting concerns over public safety and the need for additional state funding. Fundamentally and somewhat unfortunately, it may be time to just admit that the cashless bail experiment has been a failure.

The Chicago City Council’s License Committee voted 8-6 to support an ordinance proposed by Alderman Anthony Beale that would legalize video gambling at about 3,500 establishments such as restaurants, hotels, theaters, and bowling alleys, where liquor can be sold but is not the primary revenue source. Mayor Brandon Johnson opposes the measure, citing a potential revenue of only 10millionannuallyatbestandconcernsaboutitsimpactonthetaxrevenuefromslotmachinesatBally′snewcasino,despitethecityfacinga1.15 billion shortfall. Stories like these make us deeply concerned that we live in a fallen empire that is soon to succumb to the worst kinds of corruption and moral decay.

St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer will sign an executive order requiring all future data centers to hold public hearings and obtain a conditional use permit, or prove they won't threaten public welfare and safety, while also developing a framework to include data centers in the city's zoning and water codes within five months. This decision follows the rejection of a proposed year-long ban on data centers, influenced by community concerns about environmental impact, utility costs, and water usage, and comes after St. Charles enacted a similar ban due to issues with a large data center project. We will continue to cover how various localities deal with the issue of data centers as it may overtake homeless shelters as the most troubling NIMBY problem of our time.