Ukraine's NATO Path and the Bush-Putin Disclosed Transcript of April 6, 2008

US silence and failure to explain why they insisted on NATO membership for Ukraine is very revealing.

The recently FoIA released Bush-Putin verbatim transcripts provide interesting insights into US-Russia relations during the presidency of George W. Bush. Considering the on-going tragedy in Ukraine, the details of the meeting between Bush and Putin in Sochi, Russia on April 6, 2008 is of particular historical interest.

US and EU: A Falling Out Among Thieves?

Many pundits are talking about a split between the United States and Europe, a sort of falling out among thieves, as it were. It may look that way superficially, but is it so? Of course, geography and History will never align the two in terms of strategy and outlook, so the commonality of views are always to some extent imposed and superficial. Nevertheless, the combination of the Five Eyes Anglo-Saxon countries with continental Europe is referred to as the “Collective West” for a reason. In particular in Europe, the US has been involved as peace-maker and political stabilizer since 1945, though sometimes by subterfuge and far from peaceful means.

The Nuanced Natural Rights of the Non-Principled Libertarian

A strong argument against modern ethics of natural rights is the skepticism these often elicit, even among libertarians. If one of these doctrines actually were unassailable, then it presumably would receive overwhelming support in the libertarian community, if not more widely.

A critical review of the normative arguments and the empirical evidence for natural rights seems relevant, therefore, and could lead to a more nuanced and less principled approach. The common modern definition of “natural rights” is used in this context, namely the universal right to self-ownership, homesteading, and private property.

Looking Back on 2025, Buckle Up for 2026!

As a year of tragic events and fraught international relations comes to a close, it’s time to look back on 2025 and prepare for 2026. Our world is in the midst of radical upheaval, the significance of which we generally can only fully grasp in retrospect. Antonio Gramsci’s often quoted sentence seems more apt than ever: “The old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born: now is the time of monsters.”

Indeed, let us expose again these monsters, one by one. First, it must be admitted that these monstrous entities are mostly Western, with an enormous propensity for lying.