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Flock And Other Tech Firms Decline Senate Testimony On Mass Surveillance

Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley and the heads of Axon Enterprise, Motorola Solutions and Verkada all declined invitations to testify before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Wednesday, as senators from both parties pressed on the surveillance networks their cameras feed. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who chairs the Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, called the no-shows "so typical."

A Flock Safety camera in Burbank, Calif., on Aug. 3, 2026. The police department of neighboring Los Angeles recently ended its relationship with Flock Safety over civil liberties concerns. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Democrats weren't any happier. "For the Flock CEOs, obviously they're nervous about being on camera," said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) went further: "Their refusal to come forward and answer questions is a sign that they have something to hide, and they are refusing to be accountable."

Instead, the panel heard from Lindsey Isaacs, a Florida woman who spent 13 days in jail after Flock's system wrongly flagged her car as involved in a fatal crash. She was charged with three counts of vehicular homicide. The charges have since been dropped.

As The Epoch Times notes further, While the license plate-reading cameras developed by Flock have gotten the most airtime in recent weeks - prompting nationwide, viral moments of activist vigilantes destroying or disabling the cameras amid public opposition to the technology - competitors at Axon Enterprise and Motorola offer similar options for police and local governments.

The Los Angeles Police Department is currently planning to roll out a 10-year contract with Axon, a $235 million arrangement that would equip America's second-largest metropolis with more than 1,600 license plate readers.

For municipalities, companies like Flock, Axon, and Motorola offer a potential melding of technology and traditional surveillance tech to reduce crime and make roadways safer. But the cameras they operate have boosted a growing artificial intelligence-powered surveillance network accessible by thousands of U.S. law enforcement agencies, which critics say runs afoul of the Fourth Amendment's protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

Hawley warned during the hearing that, if not addressed, this would have troubling implications for Americans.

"This is still the United States of America, and it shouldn't be that when you walk out your door in the morning, you just have to agree in assent and accept the fact that you're going to be on camera morning, noon, and night," Hawley said.

"You'll be tracked by anybody and everybody in the world. You'll have no privacy whatsoever. You'll be tracked when you take your kids to school and tracked when you go to church and tracked when you go to the grocery store."

Some high-profile abuses of the data collected from these cameras have made headlines.

In one recent case, Indianapolis authorities announced that five police officers had been charged with misusing data from Flock.

"The allegation is that the officers were searching or running the license plate information and tracking individuals through the Flock system. Very often times they had direct relationships with these individuals," Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears explained after these charges were announced.

Meanwhile, lawmakers have demonstrated increased interest in the issue in recent weeks.

"Law-abiding citizens should never be treated as criminals," Hawley wrote in a post on X ahead of the hearing. "Americans do not surrender their privacy rights when they drive to work or drop their kids off at school."

Hawley emphasized during the hearing that, in an earlier letter, Langley had admitted that Flock's database could be used to search for humans in images. Hawley described the admission as "very concerning."

In another segment of the hearing, cybersecurity engineer Benn Jordan testified that, after he learned that Flock didn't require clients to use multi-factor authentication, he investigated.

He found that Flock law enforcement accounts - which have access to the data from the cameras - were being sold online by a dark web vendor.

"I want to use my time here to ask our legislators to take this rare bipartisan agreement to view Flock as a canary in a coal mine and understand that this doesn't go away by removing one company from the equation," said Jordan.

He said that Axon and Motorola have similar aims.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 23:00

Coalition Unveils Plan To Dismantle Australia's Net Zero Goals

Authored by Lucinda Garbutt-Young via The Epoch Times (AAP),

Almost every aspect of Australia's climate and energy policy would be ditched under a Coalition plan leaning heavily on fossil fuels.

Member for Wannon Dan Tehan speaks to the media at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Sept. 9, 2026. Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images

The eight-point plan, released Sept. 23, includes removing four offshore wind zones, repealing the Climate Change Act to scrap net zero targets, and lifting prohibitions on nuclear energy.

An existing carbon emissions policy for vehicles would be canned and developers would be encouraged to invest in all energy types, including coal, gas and nuclear, rather than focusing on renewables.

A renewable energy code of conduct to ensure companies earn social license would also be introduced, but details are yet to be announced.

The sweeping changes would all be made within 30 days of the Coalition being elected to government, Opposition energy spokesperson Dan Tehan said in a statement.

"The last four and a half years, energy policy has been driven by ideology, political targets, and government picking winners rather than the basic realities of keeping the lights on and Australian businesses competitive," he said.

"Australia should have an energy system built around three non-negotiable principles: affordability, reliability and security."

The plan contrasts with Labor's existing push to power just over 80 percent of the national grid with renewables in the next four years.

The closure of several coal power plants will be needed to achieve that.

The Coalition has long argued over energy targets and abandoned its commitment to net zero emissions by 2050 last November after intense internal disagreement.

The net zero fight led to the ousting of former leader Sussan Ley, who was rolled by Angus Taylor in February.

Taylor and his colleague, Nationals Leader Matt Canavan, are against most investment in new renewables, arguing that Australia has ample fossil fuels that should be used to reduce power costs.

Independent MP Monique Ryan slammed the Coalition's plan as "dumb, dangerous and desperate climate denial."

"Australians have embraced clean energy because it works," she said, saying the policy was an attempt to win over One Nation voters.

"We've spent years investing in rooftop solar, electric vehicles, household batteries, and home electrification because these technologies save money and reduce emissions."

Australia will lead negotiations at COP31, the largest annual government climate conference, being held in Turkey later in 2026.

Tehan will address the Australian Energy Nation Forum in Sydney on the afternoon of Sept. 23, during which he is expected to outline more details of the plan.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 22:35

10 Indicted In Philadelphia Cocaine Trafficking Case Tied To Mexican Cartel

Ten members of an alleged drug trafficking organization were indicted, and $17 million of cocaine was seized along with multiple firearms, U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on Wednesday.

Blanche said the drug organization worked with a Mexican drug cartel to move more than 300 kilos of cocaine from Mexico to Philadelphia.

"Literal truckloads of cocaine have been seized as a result of this case and kept from flooding our city," said U.S. Attorney David Metcalf in a statement.

"Know that the investigation is ongoing and there will [be] more arrests to come. We, the FBI, and the Philadelphia Police Department are zeroing in on the drug traffickers and cartels poisoning our neighborhoods and communities."

As Tom Gantert reports for The Epoch Times, the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, identified Gregory Jones of Philadelphia and Edward Basley of Wayne, Pennsylvania, as the leaders of the drug organization.

The indictment alleged that the drug organization was distributing between $5 million and $10 million worth of cocaine a month in the Philadelphia area. Five of the defendants were arrested on Tuesday, and the five other defendants were already in custody.

Jones and Basley were both charged with conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.

Jones had been in prison, but his sentence was commuted by then-President Joe Biden in April 2022. Jones was sentenced to 18 years with a five-year term of supervised release in 2012. Biden commuted the sentence to end in April 2023.

Biden said at the time that his list of people who were pardoned and whose sentences were commuted were in prison for non-violent drug offenses. He said many of the people who had their sentences commuted would have had a lower sentence if they had been charged with the same offense in 2022 due to the First Step Act.

The First Step Act was signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2018.

The investigation involved the FBI and the Philadelphia police department, and the case was part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative.

"This investigation is another example of what is possible when local and federal law enforcement work together with a shared mission," said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel in a press release.

"Drug trafficking organizations operating at this scale fuel violence, destabilize neighborhoods and cause tremendous harm in our communities. I am especially proud of the Philadelphia Police Department members assigned to this task force, whose work alongside our federal partners helped bring this investigation to this point."

* * * Definitely not for cocaine...

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 22:10

Accused ISIS Propagandist Arrested In Australia, Helped Plan Mass-Casualty Attack

Authored by Will Nicholas and Jacob Shteyman via The Epoch Times (AAP),

An accused ISIS member has been arrested by counter-terrorism agents over allegations he instructed people how to plan and conduct mass-casualty attacks from his base in Australia.

A police car in front of Victoria Police headquarters in Melbourne, Australia on Sept. 13, 2026. Courtesy of Tien Nguyen

The Melbourne man, who the Australian Federal Police alleges was a propagandist for the Islamic extremist group, is accused of sending about 10,000 documents, messages, images, videos and audio files relating to executions and torture.

The 65-year-old retiree allegedly pledged allegiance to ISIS.

The man, a Somali-born Australian citizen, is alleged to have acted on the behalf of the terrorist group without traveling to the territory it controlled during conflict in the Middle East.

His role was significant, police said.

The scale of extremist material the man was accused of spreading put him among the top propagandists on the encrypted messaging platform he used, AFP acting Assistant Commissioner Paula Hudson said.

"The material allegedly shared by this man glorified acts of extreme violence and promoted a terrorist organization, spreading a hateful ideology that's designed to radicalize others," Hudson said.

The videos, photographs, audio files and documents he allegedly sent contained messages relating to "abhorrent content," including executions, mass murder and torture.

"Terrorist organizations like ISIS rely on online platforms to distribute propaganda and recruit supporters," Hudson said.

"Their content is specifically designed to radicalize individuals, encouraging them to adopt extremist beliefs and commit acts of violence."

The man was arrested at a home in Carlton, in Melbourne's inner north, on Sept. 23.

Counter-terror officers will also allege that the man shared information about avoiding detection from law enforcement, along with instructional guides on planning and conducting mass-casualty attacks.

He is expected to be charged with being a member of a terrorist organization, possessing violent extremist material, and using a carriage service to cause offense.

How the man, a Somali-born Australian citizen, came to be radicalized was expected to emerge in court, Hudson added.

The arrest followed an investigation that began with a referral from the Australian Border Force, which intercepted the man and searched his luggage at Melbourne Airport in November 2020 as he left for Egypt.

A search of his mobile phone allegedly turned up suspicious content.

Agents seized the device but allowed the man to continue on to Egypt, where he stayed for a sixth-month period.

Investigators believe the man had compassionate grounds to leave the country, as was required during COVID-19 travel restrictions in place at the time.

There is no evidence the man traveled to any declared no-go zones at the time.

An additional search warrant was executed in 2024.

Police do not allege the man continued to distribute extremist material after his initial interception in 2020.

Authorities believe that more than 200 Australians have joined ISIS since 2012, some of the more than 50,000 fighters the group was thought to have attracted from overseas.

The man is expected to appear before Melbourne Magistrates Court later on Sept. 23.

Police have not ruled out further arrests but said there was no threat to the community.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 21:45

She Thought Cotton Fields Vanished With Slavery...

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In a now viral video, a woman pulled over, pointed her phone at a cotton field, and spoke as if she had stumbled onto a dark secret.

Overlay text on the clip asks "how do we still have cotton fields?" as the woman states "Okay, I didn't think they did cotton fields anymore. Y'all check this out. Y'all see that? There is literally a cotton field. Do y'all see that? Isn't that crazy?"

Watch:

A woman just filmed a cotton field like she discovered a forbidden relic and asked "how do we still have cotton fields."

Harvesting is done by machines that cost more than most houses. Nobody is out there with a sack.

Are people really this stupid?! pic.twitter.com/LhFv1yx3MD

— Brandon (@LibOrNormal) September 22, 2026

Hard to believe this has to be done but let's examine why cotton still exists.

We still need it to make clothes and... well anything made of fabric.

There is no sack. There is no overseer. There is a crop. The field is doing what cotton fields have done for centuries: grow fiber that becomes clothes, sheets, towels, and the shirt on the person filming.

Harvesting in the United States is done by machines - spindle pickers and strippers that pull lint from open bolls and pack it into modules on the go. John Deere-class pickers cost more than most houses. One operator replaces the gangs of stooped labor that existed before mechanical harvest took over in the mid-20th century.

Cotton did not magically disappear when the 13th Amendment passed. Slavery ended. The plant stayed. The United States still plants on the order of nine million acres.

The stupidity is off the scale. The assumption that a living industry is a moral leftover. If cotton still exists, the thinking goes, the country never left 1859. History collapses into a single image: Black hands, white bolls, forever.

But to this individual, the field is "crazy" because it reminds her of a story she has been indoctrinated to treat as unfinished business.

This is the same reflex that turns a Converse campaign into a lynching.

Pareidolia plus a victim script. Faces in toast. Hoods in fabric. Slavery in a plant. Once you are taught that racism is the hidden operating system of every American scene, you will find it.

It's the same mindset that infests organisations such as the BBC which has stripped comedy sketches from its iPlayer because they "no longer work today."

Several of those sketches were addressing the mindset of racism.

So the rule is complete. A cotton field is now racist because cotton was once picked by slaves. A shoe ad is racist because a shadow can be cropped into a hood. A sketch that ridicules racists is racist because it depicts the thing it is ridiculing. Subject matter is guilt. Intent is irrelevant. Context is a hate crime.

Hell, even jogging is racist.

Ok, add Jogging to the list...??????? pic.twitter.com/c1eNQjI5Kn

— GnosisWolf (@GnosisWolf) September 22, 2026

Anything and everything you can think of is racist and must be perpetually called racist.

The woman in the video is not a historian. She is a product. Decades of media, campus, and corporate training taught a simple algorithm: scan the environment for symbols, assign ancestral pain, film the discovery. Permanent victimhood for some. Permanent virtue signal for others.

That same industry has a diplomatic wing. Earlier this month the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination published "reparatory justice" guidance telling former slaving nations they have a moral and legal "obligation to repair."

Public spaces, the committee said, "should honour the contributions of people of African descent and clearly acknowledge the wrongs of those who supported or benefited from historical atrocities." That can mean artworks, statues, memorials and "dedications."

Britain is the target of choice. The country that banned the trade in 1807, passed the Slavery Abolition Act in 1833, freed more than 800,000 people across the empire, spent the equivalent of 40 percent of annual government outlay to force the measure through, and then sent the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron to seize around 1,600 slaving ships and free some 150,000 Africans is told it has not grovelled enough.

A UN judge has already floated a bill of more than £18 trillion. The committee, guidance largely shaped by American lawyer Gay McDougall and Liberian legal expert Pela Boker-Wilson, treats the Atlantic trade as a live brief for classrooms, speech rules and migration policy. Modern descent-based slavery in the Sahel, and the Arab and East African trades that ran for centuries after Britain quit, barely register.

This movement has become an obsession for many, and does very little aside from revealing just how deeply they despise white people.

'We've all been indoctrinated, Patrick!'

Anti-racism campaigner Imarn Ayton and @PatrickChristys clash over whether Britain should pay Caribbean countries slavery reparations. pic.twitter.com/8cfRY5ONo5

— GB News (@GBNEWS) September 21, 2026

'A cohort of Caribbean activists and leaders are lobbying for the cleansing of the curriculum to make it less "Western"'

'In particular they want the curriculum to reflect the history of slavery so as to foster resentment in a new generation that will continue lobbying Britain... pic.twitter.com/ukt7ukrGk6

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) September 23, 2026

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 20:55

'Covered In Blood': Family Says Canada Euthanized Christian Grandmother Against Her Will

An 83-year-old Christian grandmother in Ontario was euthanized under Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) program this summer, and her family says she never gave her final consent, Fox News reports.

Brigitte Kranendonk gestures with her grandmother Brigitte Stegemann. (Family Handout)

Brigitte Stegemann died by lethal injection on July 10 at The Pearl, a care home in Cannifton, Ontario, after being diagnosed with Stage IV stomach cancer.

Family members claim that Stegemann, a devout Christian, had already turned down MAID because it went against her faith.

"No, I don't want that," Stegemann told relatives, according to the family, who said that her wish was to die naturally.

Stegemann's granddaughter and longtime caregiver, Brigitte Kranendonk, said the process moved forward anyway, and sped up while she was away on vacation.

The family alleges later assessments showed Stegemann couldn't keep basic family details straight, though a doctor still found her eligible.

Two days before the scheduled procedure, Kranendonk said she asked her grandmother point-blank whether she understood she was going to die that Friday.

Stegemann broke down and cried for about 45 minutes, then said she had made a "mistake," according to the family.

Relatives also claimed that at one point she ripped out a medical port while screaming that she didn't want "the death shot."

Brigitte Kranendonk sits with her grandmother Brigitte Stegemann. (Family Handout )

Kranendonk said the morning of July 10 was chaotic. A nurse's first attempt to insert an IV failed, leaving blood on Stegemann, her bedding and the floor.

When the doctor arrived and asked about giving her "medicine," Kranendonk said her grandmother didn't speak, nod or open her eyes, while her hands were folded in prayer.

The doctor went ahead with the euthanization and Stegemann was dead within roughly 10 minutes.

Kranendonk said her grandmother gave "no acknowledgment, no head nod, nothing" that morning, and that a final verbal check for consent was promised before the injection but never happened.

Relatives also alleged paperwork was completed after Stegemann had already died, and that the care home hadn't handed over records that they requested.

On top of a police investigation, the family has filed complaints with Ontario's chief coroner and the provincial patient ombudsman.

The Pearl and Belleville Police did not respond to Fox News' requests for comment. A Belleville Police spokesman confirmed to the Daily Mail that the case is open with the force's Criminal Investigations Division. The care home and the practitioners involved have not commented publicly but reportedly maintain Stegemann legally consented.

Canada legalized assisted suicide in 2016 and expanded eligibility in 2021, dropping the requirement that a patient's natural death be "reasonably foreseeable." Critics have long warned the system puts elderly and vulnerable Canadians at risk.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 20:30

Global Energy Demand Set To Jump 60% By 2060 As Developing Nations Power Up

By Haley Zarmba of OilPrice.com

Emerging economies are going to see an explosion of energy demand over the coming decades. Countries like Brazil, India, Nigeria, and Indonesia are racing to expand their energy production and imports in order to keep up with rapid economic development. While the leaders of these and other emerging economies are making a concerted effort to expand their renewable energy capacity, meeting demand will require an all-of-the-above approach to energy that will extend the life of oil and gas, according to a new report from S&P Global.

According to the study, published last week, emerging economies could increase the world’s total energy demand by more than 60 percent by 2060. “That’s comparable to adding another China to world consumption,” a recent Marketplace report illustrates.

Speaking of China, the global superpower has become, by a gaping margin, the world’s biggest manufacturer of the clean energy infrastructure that is going to power a lot of that growth. Many of the world’s developing countries have seen their solar power installations skyrocket in recent months thanks to a flood of cheap clean energy tech coming out of China, paired with volatility in oil and gas markets driven by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Against this backdrop, emerging economies have emerged as the new face of the renewable revolution. Over the last several years, countries including Brazil, Chile, El Salvador, Morocco, Kenya, and Namibia have overtaken the world’s largest economy in their clean energy transitions. As of the close of 2025, 63 percent of emerging markets in Africa, Asia, and Latin America sourced more of their power generation from solar power than the United States.

But while a renewable revolution is picking up speed in the Global South, S&P says not to expect a clean energy takeover. “This demand growth is going to be met with a multiplicity of different energies,” said Dan Yergin, vice chairman of S&P Global. “Renewables will be an important part of it. You're going to see perhaps more coal now … and oil and gas will continue to be part of the demand picture for longer than many people think.”

While this reality is going to make climate goals incredibly hard to achieve, emerging economies have pushed back against the expectation that they “leapfrog” over fossil fuel development and straight into a 100 percent renewable grid to make up for the greenhouse gas emissions that developed nations had the opportunity to enrich themselves on carte blanche. Rich nations have promised to right this injustice by funding decarbonization in poorer countries, but the history of climate finance is riddled with broken promises.

While Chinese manufacturing has made renewables much cheaper and more attainable, that still requires massive investments on the part of countries that don’t already have a well-established clean energy sector. “Emerging economies can’t wait on renewables getting cheaper to grow their energy systems,” Marketplace writes based on an interview with deputy executive director at the Energy for Growth Hub, Katie Auth said.

Furthermore, despite the growing threat of climate change, energy demand growth is a net positive for developing nations, Auth points out. “It's being driven by economic development, rising incomes, job creation,” she said. “Right now, the average Liberian consumes less electricity in a year than my refrigerator does. So the scale of energy poverty is far worse than I imagine most Americans would ever think about,” Katie Auth, deputy executive director at the Energy for Growth Hub, told Marketplace. This argument is only made more powerful by the recent explosion in energy demand and carbon footprint in the developed world driven by artificial intelligence. 

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 20:05

Carney Says He Studied Prospect Of US Invading Canada Under Trump: "Extreme Tail Risk"

In a wild and unexpected comment, but which illustrates how tense things remain between Canada and the Trump administration on the trade front, the country's Prime Minister Mark Carney bluntly stated in a new interview he had geared up for an "extreme tail risk" of a US invasion.

In a New York Times interview published Wednesday Carney was questioned on his reaction to President Trump's eyeing a takeover of Canada. The US President at one point in the recent past even discussed the possibility of it becoming the "51st" state while looking directly at Carney in the Oval Office.

White House image

Trump spent much of Carney's first year as prime minister calling him "governor" - or at other times issuing provocative remarks like "A lot of people in Canada are liking becoming our beautiful, cherished 51st state. They'll have to pay much lower taxes, they'll have the ultimate security. They don't pay very much for security right now because they rely on us."

After absorbing a lot of insults Carney is perhaps belatedly trying to hit back, or else he's getting more serious with is ribbing and pushback against Washington:

“I think you have a responsibility in these roles to look at extreme tail risk. That’s just risk management. That’s not a base case,” Carney told the Times, adding that “it would be irresponsible not to” be prepared.

But this latter reference to being 'prepared' seems much more than just empty banter or mockery. It could mark the first time in modern history that a sitting Canadian leader is seriously and openly speculating on the question of future US invasion or military attack.

The terse (or mocking?) comments come after earlier this month Carney suggested his country got too comfortable with long depending on "easy" economic links with the United States.

"The past 40 years has been a period of deeper economic integration with the United States. Truth is, it was easy business, but it meant we relied too much on one economic partner. It’s clear that time is over," Carney said at the time.

"This is why our plan, since I came into office, has been development and diversification, not denial, waiting to go back to some good old days, and not continued dependence," he added.

According to more from the NY Times interview with Carney...

The prime minister said that despite the turbulence in the US-Canada relationship he speaks to President Trump "frequently" and has spoken to him "a number of times" since trade talks broke down on Aug. 21.

Already some quick Canadian media backlash in response to the 'extreme tail risk' comment:

If Mark Carney did indeed prepare for the highly unlikely event of the U.S. invading Canada (which is what an 'extreme tail risk' of such an event means) perhaps he could have informed the Canadian people of this through some method other than an interview in the New York Times. https://t.co/Te1CPpVIK4

— Lorrie Goldstein (@sunlorrie) September 24, 2026

As for some other specifics on the implications of broken trade relations which dovetail with military issues, Carney conceded that his government is mulling alternatives to buying American F-35 fighter jets. Plans to obtain a full fleet of the US stealth fighters are still under political review by his government.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 19:40

'Silicon Wadi': UAE Firms Touted To Join Israeli Tech Project In East Jerusalem

Via Middle East Eye

The Israeli-run municipality of Jerusalem has recruited companies from the United Arab Emirates to invest in a modern industrial park, called Silicon Wadi, in the city's occupied east. However Palestinian urban planning experts have told Middle East Eye that the plans and the UAE's involvement has been kept unusually under wraps.

Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Israel's deputy mayor of Jerusalem, told Makor Rishon newspaper that "Jerusalem's branding in the UAE is very strong. They are very excited to see someone from Jerusalem and waiting to visit there." Israel and the United Arab Emirates have been building official ties since August 2020, when they announced a normalization of relations.

via Associated Press

Hassan-Nahoum, who visited the UAE last week, is in charge of the foreign relations and tourism portfolios on behalf of the municipality. My dream is that Jerusalem will become a high-tech center for the entire Middle East,” she said, adding that there an “opportunity” to connect Palestinian high-tech graduates to the UAE.

The project, which was announced in January by the mayor, Moshe Lion, is ambitious. According to Israeli media, it will stretch over 250,000 square meters of real estate for high tech companies and 100,000 square meters split between commerce and hotels. People behind the scheme say it will create 10,000 jobs.

Its estimated cost is 2.1 billion shekels ($600m), and will include 13 pedestrianized thoroughfares, which will replace the industrial area located in Wadi al-Joz, an area of hundreds of workshops, catering units, shops, warehouses and mechanics workshops. 

Wadi al-Joz, meaning the Almond Valley, was once an orchard on the eastern and northern slopes of Jerusalem, within a short walk from the historic walls of the Old City. It is also near the Hebrew University's facilities and dormitories to the north. 

Despite several comments in the Israeli media, Khalil Tafakji, head of the maps department at the Arab Studies Society in Jerusalem, told MEE that “officially” nothing has been launched.

“When you have a building project such as this, you will officially announce it in the newspaper. This did not happen,” Tafakji said, adding that the only information available are the statements to the media.

Tafakji, an expert on Israeli building projects in East Jerusalem, said Wadi al-Joz is currently slated to be the site of a different project, which will also see facilities rented or owned by Palestinians demolished.

“Normally, when the municipality wants to build a project, they should publish and issue a building scheme, and also seize and expropriate the land, and this did not happen so far,” Tafakji said. MEE has asked the municipality for comment, but received no response by the time of publication.

Hatem Abdel-Kader, a former minister for Jerusalem affairs in the Palestinian Authority, told MEE that the Silicon Wadi project is under study and research. 

"It did not start the official approval procedures yet, but what is certain that the Wadi al-Joz area, in the near future, will not be the same," Abdel-Kader said. "I do not have information about UAE investment in the project, but if it is true, it is certainly dangerous, because this is a settlement project that harms the Arab identity of Jerusalem, despite Israelis claiming it will benefit Palestinians."

Abdel-Kader added that Israel's plan is to connect East and West Jerusalem together with the Silicon Wadi project, and "any Arab involvement in it means helping the Judaization of Jerusalem, and helping in making it the unified capital of Israel".

Last week, Israel and the United Arab Emirates set an agenda to discuss bringing thousands of visitors from the Gulf to the occupied Old City of East Jerusalem, including the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

"Jerusalem will host between 100,000 and 250,000 Muslim tourists a year; they dream of visiting Al-Aqsa," Hassan-Nahoum told newspaper Israel Hayom. Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates signed a US-sponsored normalization deal with Israel on September 15, 2020 in Washington.

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ON US.$10 off one order of $30 or more. New or returning, one per person. YOUR EMAILGET MY $10 →Signs you up for ZeroHedge Store emails. $30 minimum, once per person, can't be combined. Every order helps support ZeroHedge. Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 19:15

Dem Senator Wants To Regulate The Internet To Prevent Another Trump From Happening

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) called for government regulation of the internet as part of a broader effort to reduce loneliness and powerlessness among Americans, two conditions he argues push voters toward leaders like President Donald Trump. Murphy made the remarks on September 21 during an appearance on the I've Had It podcast, where he discussed his book, Crisis of the Common Good.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

Murphy told the podcast hosts that isolation and helplessness define the country right now. "Those are the two things I think Americans are going through right now... They don't feel powerful at all, and they feel lonely," he said.

His remedy for loneliness coincidentally becomes an excuse to grow the government even further.

"And so, government should build a set of rules in which people feel more powerful - that's why the minimum wage is so important - and people feel so more connected," Murphy said.

He added, "That's why, you know, rebuilding healthy institutions in your town should be a project that government is involved in."

Then he got to the internet and revealed his true objective. "Regulating the internet so that you're spending less time alone on Instagram should be an important government project," Murphy said. And if Americans feel more powerful and less alone, Murphy argued, "they are going to be less likely to fall for a bullshit demagogue like Donald Trump."

Senator Chris Murphy to Jennifer Welch: Government needs to regulate social media so people are less likely to support a candidate like President Trump.

The left will censor your speech as soon as they have the power to do so. They're not hiding the ball here.

They did it…

— Andrew Kolvet (@AndrewKolvet) September 21, 2026

Murphy's framework leaves little room for the more than 77 million Americans who voted for Trump in 2024 over high inflation, the border crisis, or high crime. In his telling, they were lonely, they spent too much time alone on Instagram, and they "fell for" something.

The platform he picked out makes an odd target. A 2024 Pew Research Center survey of U.S. Instagram users found that 23% described the political content they see there as mostly liberal, and only 7% called it mostly conservative. Another 26% said they don't see political content on Instagram at all. By its users' own account, whatever politics the app serves up leans left. Though it's far more likely he has other platforms in mind when he talks about regulating the internet if he thinks social media is causing people to vote for Trump.

Murphy gave no details on what his regulation would look like, whether time limits, design mandates, or rules on content. He was specific about its purpose. He wants fewer voters who "fall for" Trump, and a goal defined by one politician's support points toward regulating what people see, which is where the censorship concerns begin. Murphy insists none of this is partisan. He claims the things that make people "more connected" and "more powerful" cut across political lines. His own summary of his idea runs counter to that. "Unless you fix what's broken with the culture, you're going to be stuck with people like Trump for a long time," Murphy said.

Murphy's comments come as lawmakers in both parties push to rein in social media companies to protect younger users, and some have floated rolling back Section 230's liability shield. Protecting children is a legitimate cause. Any tool Congress builds for it, however, will belong to whoever holds power next.

Journalist Lara Logan couldn't help but acknowledge the hypocrisy of Murphy's proposal to regulate the internet.

"Are these the same people screaming foul about certain media organizations being kicked out of the White House?" she asked on X.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 18:50

The ABA Shouldn't Get To Grade Its Own Homework

Authored by Bryan Cutsinger via RealClearEducation,

The organization tasked with accrediting the nation's law schools will appear before a federal advisory panel later this month to defend its government-recognized status as an accreditor. This status gives the Council of the American Bar Association Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar the power to determine which schools have access to federal student aid and, in most states, whether graduates may sit for the bar. In short, federal recognition gives the council extraordinary power over entry into the legal profession.

Last month, the Department of Education identified numerous compliance failures by the council and recommended ending that recognition. Among the Department's findings was that the council is not sufficiently "separate and independent" from the ABA - a charge that is far from surprising.

The council is not separately incorporated from the ABA. Nor do the two organizations possess a distinct employer identification number, or file separate tax returns. Moreover, the ABA has the authority to amend the council's bylaws, giving the profession's principle membership organization authority over the accreditor's governing framework. The council does have procedures in place to insulate individual accreditation decisions from ABA politics. But these internal checks are unlikely to be effective if the two entities are one in the same.

The problem extends far beyond the legal profession. In a forthcoming study in the European Economic Review, I examined whether there was similarly structural entanglement between all 25 federally recognized professional accreditors and their corresponding professional or membership associations. I found that 22 share an employer identification number, consolidated tax filing, or single legal identity.

My findings don't prove that every accreditation decision is improper. They do, however, identify a potential conflict of interest that can lead to worse outcomes for students and consumers alike. Incumbent professionals benefit when entry into their profession is limited - fewer lawyers means higher salaries. Students and consumers, by contrast, benefit from affordable, innovative routes into a profession.

To be sure, accreditation standards can play an important role in protecting quality. But they can also suppress competition by excluding new schools or less costly methods of training. An independent accreditor is necessary because the same rule can serve either purpose.

Consider distance education in law. Until 2018, the ABA limited how many hours a law student could earn online to 15 of the 83 necessary to earn a law degree. The council then increased that limit to one-third and, after the pandemic demonstrated the viability of remote learning, increased that limit to half. Those earlier restrictions may have been justified on the grounds that they promote higher quality education, but law students deserved to have that decision made by an institution structurally independent of the profession benefiting from the entry limits those restrictions created.

Federal regulations already require accreditors to be separate and independent from affiliated trade or membership organizations. However, a grandfather provision exempts accreditors continuously recognized since Oct. 1, 1991, while another provision permits shared personnel, facilities and equipment. As it happens, most established professional accreditors predate the cutoff. For them, formal independence has largely been optional.

The Department of Education has proposed eliminating both exceptions. The proposed changes would also bar association staff from serving on accreditor decision-making bodies, require independently determined budgets, and mandate disclosure of organizational affiliations.

Those are important reforms, but they do not go far enough. Every accreditor should be required to separately incorporate and file its own tax return. At least 60 percent of an accreditor governing board should be independent of the affiliated association, so that one vacancy or recusal cannot transfer control. And no professional association should provide more than 15 percent of an accreditor's revenue - a benchmark adapted from international auditor-independence rules.

Critics will argue that accreditation requires professional expertise. I agree. Experts can play an important advisory role without creating a conflict of interest. The separately incorporated nursing, public-health and naturopathic-medicine accreditors in our study show that independence and expertise can coexist.

The central question the members of the panel must ask themselves later this month is simple: "Can an accreditor be meaningfully independent when it has no legal existence apart from the professional association it regulates?" The answer is obvious: No.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 18:25

Mamdani Campaign Alum Living In China Talks US Revolution: "Very Surprised If There's No Violence Going Forward"

Explicit calls to overthrow capitalism only suggest revolutionary goals within the reformist socialist movement. There have been reports that some of these reformist socialists have coordinated with foreign subversion networks in Cuba and China or used NGOs to conduct hybrid information warfare.

President Trump has clearly been briefed. 

.@POTUS: The Cuban regime has also spent decades coordinating with left-wing radicals and Communist networks here in the United States. As our State Department has detailed, they have cultivated ties to subversive and radical groups such as the Communist Party USA, Antifa, and… pic.twitter.com/Bopz3W6sXz

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 22, 2026

The latest comments about revolution and the hope for violence in America come from far-left influencer Hasan Piker's China-based producer, Eric Hovagim, who also worked on socialist Zohran Mamdani's campaign and said on a recent podcast that he would be "very surprised if there is no violence going forward in the United States." 

Hovagim said, "I mean, it is simply the situation that they have put the working masses in. And I mean, we're seeing what's happening in the Global South, where you have October 7th happening. You know, this is something that happens when you put people in a pressure cooker, a concentration camp, when you do not allow them the basic human rights that we love to champion in the West."

"The workers of the United States are in the exact same predicament as the workers of the Global South. And it is frankly in their long-term interest to partner with them, to ensure that they can see eye to eye, to build an internationalist movement that goes beyond the four walls of the capitalist states of the United States of America. Because frankly, otherwise they are doomed," he continued.

He noted, "There is no militant group that has had any success whatsoever, maybe since the Black Panthers. But again, we saw what happened when the Black Panthers did have any success. So I don't know what's going to happen." 

🚨 Hasan’s China Guy Says He’d Be “Very Surprised” If Violence Doesn’t Hit America

A viral clip of Hasan Piker calling for “Chinese-style communism” and “Cultural Revolution shit” is making the rounds. People should also know about Eric Hovagim, who works with Hasan and… pic.twitter.com/ywf01jc9D8

— Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) September 23, 2026

In a separate podcast, Hovagim discussed his close friendship with China-based Marxist billionaire Roy Singham, whose network of revolutionary NGOs has been accused of promoting pro-Beijing and communist propaganda through what some describe as a possible foreign subversion network.

Via Free Press:

Taken together, these comments from Hovagim point to the broader far-left agenda, suggesting that the Democratic Socialists of America are not truly focused on affordability, Palestine, climate change, opposition to data centers, or whatever the hottest issue of the day may be.

Instead, they appear more focused on dismantling the foundations of America's capitalist system.

In fact, DSA leaders state their intentions very bluntly:

On another stream earlier this year, Hovagim told his followers: "I'm friends with Roy Singham. He's dope."

Roy Singham and a network of far-left NGOs are under intense scrutiny by the federal government ...

Interesting https://t.co/HHh8RcM3gI

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 29, 2026

According to investigative reports (e.g., New York Times, 2023), Singham has worked closely with pro-CCP propaganda networks targeting the US.

Where self-described socialist reformers advocate dismantling capitalism and existing US institutions, their stated objectives point toward a violent revolution.

Any shift toward socialist unrest would raise a separate national security concern: who stands to benefit from social unrest?

Well, it's a shared interest of foreign adversaries as two wars rage in Eurasia, resource nationalism explodes, and the world is on a dangerous path. The good news is that Scott Bessent's NGO team may have disrupted any mobilization of riots this summer, since there were none. But that only suggests more chaos is just around the corner as these revolutionaries regroup. 

* * *

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 18:00

Coast Guard Intercepts Alleged Smuggling Vessel With 13 Chinese Nationals

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,

Federal officials on Monday said the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) intercepted an alleged smuggling vessel with nearly two-dozen people on board, including 13 Chinese nationals, near Florida's coast.

Last week, the Coast Guard and CBP detected "a surface target of interest" near Angelfish Creek, Florida, according to a Border Patrol news release. When they intercepted the vessel, they discovered it was a 27-foot-long cabin vessel before it was interdicted.

They found that one suspected human smuggler, a Cuban national, and 22 illegal immigrants of various nationalities were on board. That included 13 Chinese nationals, eight Ecuadorian nationals, and one from the Dominican Republican, officials said.

The people who were apprehended were transferred to Coast Guard cutter ship Pablo Valent for more processing, while the 27-foot long vessel was seized by federal authorities, the release said.

Lt. Corryn Ulrich, commanding officer of the Pablo Valent, said that the apprehensions show that the Coast Guard is "ready to save lives and enforce federal law at sea."

"Attempting to enter the United States illegally by sea is extremely dangerous and will not go undetected," a CBP regional director, Andres Blanco, said in a statement. "This interdiction demonstrates the strength of our maritime partnerships and our commitment to stopping human smuggling organizations before they can put more lives at risk. Those who attempt these dangerous voyages face arrest, prosecution, removal, and the very real possibility of losing their lives at sea."

The interdiction was carried out under the Coast Guard's Operation Vigilant Sentry, which is designed to stop illegal immigration into the United States from sea.

Photos of the arrest were published by an official Coast Guard X account earlier this week, showing a Coast Guard ship approaching the alleged smuggling vessel as well as the individuals who were on board.

Coast Guard officials this week said they discovered and interdicted a 30-foot-long vessel around a mile east of Ocean Reef, Florida, on Sept. 15.

On the vessel, Coast Guard boat crew members found 23 people before they transferred 20 of them to the Bahamas for processing. The other three were taken into Homeland Security Investigations custody, the Coast Guard said.

The Trump administration has made border security alongside mass deportations of illegal immigrants a priority. Since January 2025, President Donald Trump has issued a number of executive orders to stop border crossings.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees both the Coast Guard and CBP, reported 16 straight months of releasing no illegal immigrants into the United States at the U.S. - Mexico border, according to a statement published last week.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 17:40

Appeals Court Upholds Hawaii's Rules For Gun Buyers

Authored by Michael Clements via The Epoch Times,

Hawaii's rules for gun buyers were upheld by a federal appeals court Tuesday in a ruling that reversed a lower court's injunction.

Palm trees frame the Hawaii State Capitol in Honolulu on April 23, 2025. Mengshin LinAP Photo

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii by a vote of 6 to 5.

In Todd Yukutake and David Kikukawa v. Anne Lopez and the City and County of Honolulu, the court found that the law imposing a list of rules on gun buyers is constitutional under the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen.

Writing for the majority of the Ninth Circuit's en banc panel, Judge John B. Owens stated that a footnote in the Bruen decision holds that objective, "shall-issue" licensing standards comply with the Second Amendment.

A "shall-issue" standard means the state must grant a permit to a qualified applicant.

The dissenting judges say this is a misapplication of the Bruen standard.

The law in question requires a state-issued license to purchase a handgun. The licensing process requires applicants to submit fingerprints, a mental health check and their Social Security number. It also sets a 30-day limit for purchasing the gun once the license is issued. If the licensee fails to meet that deadline, the process must be restarted.

Once the firearm purchase is complete, the new gun owner is required to provide information about the gun to the police department. Under some circumstances the gun must be inspected by the police.

Under Bruen, a gun law is constitutional if it fits the plain text of the Second Amendment and has a historical analogue from the time of the Second Amendment's ratification.

The majority wrote that footnote nine of the Bruen decision allows requiring a license to carry a handgun in public for protection as long as the licensing requirements are based on objective standards.

Owens wrote that the plaintiffs failed to show that the law effectively denied them their Second Amendment rights or impeded their ability to acquire firearms. He stated that, according to footnote nine, "non-abusive, shall-issue laws comport with the Second Amendment."

Joining Owens in reversing the injunction were Chief Judge Mary H. Murguia and judges Kim McLane Wardlaw, Jacqueline H. Nguyen, Gabriel P. Sanchez, and Holly A. Thomas.

Judge Ryan Nelson joined Judges Daniel Bress, Lawrence VanDyke, Bridget Bade, and Danielle J. Forrest in dissenting in part.

The dissenters wrote that footnote nine does not apply since it covers the carrying of a firearm and not the acquisition of one. They also noted that the state did not identify a historical analog for the licensing requirement.

The lawsuit was filed on Oct. 21, 2021, by the Honolulu County residents. The pair said the licensing process was an unconstitutional infringement on their Second Amendment rights. In August 2021 the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii found in their favor.

Gun rights activists say this is not the end of the case. Brandon Combs, president of the Firearms Policy Council, called the decision a "roadmap for abusing gun owners."

Alan Gottlieb, executive vice president of the Second Amendment Foundation, vowed to continue the legal fight.

"This case will be headed to the Supreme Court and I believe that the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will be overturned," Gottlieb stated in an email to The Epoch Times.

* * *

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 17:00

Regulators Find Their Situational Awareness: Fed, BoE Probe Bank Exposure To Jane Street After AI Fund Meltdown

Better late than never...

Nearly two months after Leopold Aschenbrenner's Situational Awareness went from a $45 billion AI juggernaut to a Citadel block trade after it dumped its entire public book on Ken Griffen's doorstep at a 10% discount and six weeks after we learned that Jane Street lost $15 billion in July, its first down month in a decade, central bankers on both sides of the Atlantic have noticed that something may have happened.

According to the FT, the Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority and the Federal Reserve have "stepped up scrutiny" of banks' exposure to large trading firms and market makers. They are asking global lenders how much they have lent to Jane Street and Ken Griffin's Citadel Securities, and presumably also to such HFT money makers as Susquehanna and Hudson River Trading.

Regulators want to know three things: the firms' risk appetite, how banks' exposure to them "evolved during the day," and how risk controls held up. That's a polite way of asking whether anyone at the prime brokers was actually watching intraday margin as the AI trade fell apart in July.

While the PRA, the Fed and Jane Street all declined to comment, Jane's silence is the least surprising. Its last public word on the subject came from partner Turner Batty, who told investors, in the understatement of the year, that "July was a bad month."

A brief history of a very bad month

For anyone who missed it (i.e., all the regulators), here's the recap.

Situational Awareness is the fund Aschenbrenner, a former OpenAI researcher, launched in 2024 under the name of his viral essay. It had eight employees and ran long AI infrastructure / short software, with about 4x leverage through Goldman total return swaps. We described that leverage as "batshit insane", but it was also extremely profitable, if only to Goldman. In a separate piece, the FT today reported that Goldman earned more than $200 million in fees this year from lending to Situational Awareness, the most of any client in its prime brokerage business financing hedge funds. 

As long as the market was going, up it was a party: the extremely levered momentum-chasing fund was was up 439% net through June, reached $45 billion in AUM, and counted Jane Street among its investors.

Then July happened. AI stocks rolled over, software rallied, and both legs of the pair trade lost money at once. Nebius, Sandisk and SharonAI each fell roughly half, and SK Hynix dropped nearly 50%. As the margin calls came in, the fund went looking for fresh capital. It failed to find willing "widows and orphans" and so within days it had exited all of its public equity trades. Citadel bought the whole book in under 24 hours at about a 10% discount, beating Millennium and, fittingly, Jane Street. The fund ended the month down about 78%, with roughly $10 billion of private holdings left, including a large stake in Anthropic.

Griffin did well out of it. Citadel's Wellington fund rose 5.94% in July, its best month since 2022, and about half of its year-to-date gains came from the Situational Awareness trade. Over the next three weeks, Citadel flipped more than 80% of Leopold's portfolio to dumb money through roughly 100 block trades worth more than $4 billion. When Griffin later described the unwind, he thanked "the trading and prime brokerage teams at the banks serving both firms" for their "extraordinary cooperation."

Regulators are now asking those same prime brokerage teams some questions of their own.

Jane Street was the collateral damage: on top of its direct stake in Situational Awareness, its own book, which tends to, cough, be just ahead of whale and retail orders, leaned into the same momentum names: Sandisk, Micron, CoreWeave, Broadcom, SMCI, Dell and Bloom Energy, all the names that defined the momentum trade trough July. And when the AI trade reversed, it lost $15 billion in a month. Most firms wouldn't survive a hit like that. At Jane Street it barely dented the year: by early August the firm had generated $40 billion in net trading revenue, already more than its record $39.6 billion for all of 2025.

That is also what worries regulators. As the FT puts it, the size of the loss "indicated that Jane Street... appeared to take far more risk than a typical market maker."

The "market maker" that isn't one

This is the real story, and it has been building for 15 years. After 2008, Dodd-Frank and Volcker pushed banks out of proprietary trading. The risk didn't disappear. It moved across the street to a new class of firms that started out collecting pennies as market makers and grew into some of the largest directional risk-takers in the world. Many readers will recall our early days which were defined as a crusade against HFT shops such as Jane Street, Citadel, Jump trading and others, whose business practices were best described as frontrunning providing liquidity. Of course, they had money and we didn't, so that particular crusade ended up going nowhere.

Jane Street now holds equity stakes in companies, including Anthropic, and invests in hedge funds like Situational Awareness. Because these firms trade only their founders' and employees' money, they have no outside LPs to answer to. They can "take risks without answering to external investors," which works fine until the leverage comes from banks that do answer to regulators.

So the banks that were told to stop running prop books now finance the firms that do. As a result, prime brokerage has become one of Wall Street's biggest profit engines: banks finance equity trades, lend against bonds, and execute and clear derivatives for these clients. If a client defaults, the bank takes the loss... within limits of course - if the loss is too big, taxpayers end up eating it.

Put another way, the Volcker Rule didn't take risk out of the system. It moved the risk one step further from its supervisors, and the banks collect a financing fee on it.

What regulators can actually do

If supervisors decide banks are too exposed to certain firms, their main tool is to make them hold more high-quality liquid assets against those exposures. That would cost the banks real money, which makes it about the only thing prime brokerage desks would take seriously.

To be fair, the PRA wasn't entirely asleep. In its April business plan, three months before the blowup, it warned that while many firms had improved end-of-day monitoring, "rising intraday exposures - particularly for firms providing market access, clearing, and financing to electronic market-makers - continues to pose potential risks."

It was the right warning, but it came roughly $50 billion in losses early and a few months short of any action.

The BoE is also looking at the rapid growth of London prime brokers financing Asian equities this year, after AI names like SK Hynix went vertical. That raises the obvious question: if one eight-person fund with 4x leverage could produce a $35 billion drawdown and a $15 billion hit at the world's most profitable trading firm, how many other levered AI books are sitting on prime brokerage balance sheets, a question we have been asking repeatedly in recent months.

Situational Awareness #1

Next? https://t.co/wU7ogIUysJ

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) July 30, 2026

We know of at least one. While the Fed and BoE send out questionnaires, Situational Awareness is already putting on the same trades that blew it up the first time: AMD, Intel, SK Hynix and Sandisk. It dropped the Goldman total return swaps and now gets its leverage from out-of-the-money flex options through Clear Street. Nomura flagged a "mystery buyer" that spent $315 million in premium, equal to $1.1 billion of delta, on concentrated tech calls. Aschenbrenner told investors the fund had taken "the steps that were necessary to fight another day." Evidently that day came quickly.

The bottom line

Nobody expects Jane Street to go under. A firm that makes $40 billion in seven months can absorb a bad July, and it just sold $14.6 billion in bonds to PIMCO, Capital Group and Fidelity. The problem isn't Jane Street specifically. It's that the firms running the most concentrated, levered bets on the market's most crowded theme are now systemically important and lightly supervised, and they are financed by the banks regulators are supposed to protect.

Archegos was supposed to teach this lesson in 2021. Five years later, with AI in place of ViacomCBS, regulators are learning it again.

For more background, see our earlier pieces: "A Lack Of Situational Awareness", "Situational Unawareness" and "Little To No Situational Awareness… With ZERO Risk Management".

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 16:40

Tech Giant Feared Its AI Tools Started A Commercial 'Doom Loop,' New Documents Reveal

Authored by Stacy Robinson via The Epoch Times,

AI executives allegedly knew their products could unlawfully harm businesses, flood the market with inferior work, and damage human society's creative capacity as a whole, according to communications newly revealed in a lawsuit.

Those internal documents were cited in a lawsuit brought by The New York Times, Mother Jones, and other news outlets alleging OpenAI and Microsoft's AI tools stole their work, and are harming their bottom lines.

"Millions of people around the world will soon consider large models 'hoovering up' all their work to be an astonishing theft of unprecedented proportions," one Microsoft document said, according to a legal filing first reported by Mother Jones on Sept. 22.

The 'Doom Loop'

One Microsoft document also allegedly indicated that the company was aware that the AI model outputs would result in fewer clicks on websites - including its own. Fewer clicks means less money, which disincentivizes creativity and leads to less, and maybe lower-quality, work.

"Our AI content strategy has started a 'doom loop' that will hurt the performance of our models and the entire web at the same time," the document said.

In evaluating the suits, courts will look at how the new material produced by AI models affects the source material's moneymaking capabilities.

According to the filing, Nick Turley, OpenAI's head of ChatGPT, wrote that the company's AI products pose an "existential threat" to publishers, "are largely substitutive, period" and "will get more and more substitutive as they get better."

Those statements kill the AI companies' "fair use" claim, attorneys for the news publishers wrote in their filing.

"The AI-generated outputs provide substitutive answers that reduce the need for users to visit Plaintiffs' websites and flood the market with low-quality material that undermines the business model of news publishers," the complaint reads.

One employee told OpenAI cofounder Greg Brockman that he'd developed "a hack" to get around The New York Times' paywall, allowing ChatGPT to scrape up more stories.

"Ah, nice," Brockman allegedly responded.

After the companies filed suit, the lawsuit says, OpenAI also developed a filter to stop ChatGPT from outputting from sources involved in the litigation.

"OpenAI did not suppress the output of content from any entity that had not sued it," the lawsuit alleges. The filter was created "not to prevent OpenAI's models from infringing copyrights, but to stop Plaintiffs from gathering evidence of OpenAI's copying for use in litigation."

An executive at Microsoft, the lawsuit claims, worried that might be an "accidental cover up" that would result in "people who have a right over the content having less visibility into what was used for training."

Lawsuit

The publisher's cases have been consolidated into one federal multidistrict litigation in the Southern District of New York. The newspapers have filed for summary judgment, asking the sitting judge to decide the case without a trial.

This lawsuit is one of many that have cropped up in recent years, as AI companies have sought to train their models by feeding them existing texts and images from copyrighted sources.

In these lawsuits, the AI firms have defended themselves by citing the Fair Use doctrine under Section 107 of the federal Copyright Act.

That portion of the law gives an exception when copyrighted material is used under certain circumstances, such as teaching or criticism. Courts have ruled that it applies when the copyrighted material is used in a "transformative" way, and the end product is vastly different than the original.

The AI firms have argued that the model has simply substituted its own product for the source material on which it was based.

In July, a federal judge approved a historic $1.5 billion settlement between Anthropic and a group of plaintiff authors who alleged the company used pirated copies of their work - illegally downloaded from the internet - to train its model, Claude.

In the Anthropic case, the judge said using the books to train AI models was fair use; the violation was in using the pirated copies.

The AI companies' statements come amid an ever-increasing scrutiny of machine learning, and its possible impacts on humanity.

After a group of more than 700 OpenAI agents went rogue and hacked startup AI company Hugging Face, industry leaders publicly called for a pause in the development of new machine learning technology.

AI leaders have since called for a slowdown in AI development, citing the technology's potential to harm humanity. The calls have been met with skepticism from Trump administration officials, who argue the United States needs to lead the AI race with China to ensure national security.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 16:20

Woman Faces Federal Charges After Threatening To Kill Austin Metcalf's Father

The Karmelo Anthony story never seems to end, and perhaps that's a testament to the era we live in.  It seems as though every prominent trial with any media attention is automatically politicized - From the Lindsay Clancy circus to the Luigi Mangionne case to Anthony stabbing Austin Metcalf, the political left has been particularly invasive.  Not only do they consistently take the side of the murderers, but they continue in their efforts to blame and terrorize the victims.

Such is the ongoing reality of the Metcalf family, who are now faced with an array of threats from online lunatics and race militants looking for "payback" after the conviction of their hero, Karmelo Anthony.  

A Missouri woman is currently facing federal charges for threatening to kill Austin Metcalf's father (Jeff Metcalf) and "put him in a body bag" because of Anthony's prison sentence.  Court documents show Sharifa Nicole Henderson, who is also known as Riffa Henderson, was arrested on September 11 and indicted on three federal counts over messages she allegedly sent "on or about June 9" - which was the day Anthony was convicted and sentenced to 35 years behind bars. 

  

In one message she allegedly wrote:

"Don't worry. I'll kill you next...I will hunt you forever until I kill you ... I will be there. You will always have to look over your fucking shoulder."

In another post, she reportedly threatened to "demolish" the Metcalf family.  U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs said investigators traced the messages through phone and social media records.

"The stability of our society rests in part on the proper functioning of our system," Combs said. "If you threaten to kill or harm jurors, judges, prosecutors or victims, we will treat those threats seriously."

Henderson could get a maximum of 5 years in prison for each charge if convicted.  But why does the political left engage in trial tampering and intimidation?  Because the leftist philosophy relies on an inversion of the moral order and power is their only value. 

In the case of Karmelo Anthony, the murderer is a young black man and the victim is a young white man, therefore Anthony must be protected as a symbol of the tearing down (the murder) of the western moral order.  If Austin Metcalf had been black, leftists and black activists never would have cared.  They would have ignored the case entirely. 

Anthony was convicted in June after his representatives attempted to try the case in the court of public opinion.  Numerous false claims were made in order to paint Austin Metcalf as the aggressor (very similar to activist efforts to make Lindsay Clancy into a victim and paint her husband as the "real killer"). 

The bottom line?  Anthony was a psychopath looking for trouble.  He had a history of violent and bizarre behavior and text messages from before the event show that he fantasized about murder.  He walked into the team tent of Austin Metcalf armed with a knife like a coward and hoping someone would ask him to leave.

* * *

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 15:45

DOJ Alleges UC Medical School Discriminates In Race-Based Admissions

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

A Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into the University of California-San Francisco's (UCSF's) medical school has determined that the institution discriminates on a racial basis during its admission process.

Signage on the exterior of a building at the UCSF Mission Bay campus in San Francisco on Feb. 10, 2025. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The investigation looked at whether admission policies of the UCSF School of Medicine complied with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and the university was deemed to have "illegally discriminated on the basis of race in its medical school admissions processes for the incoming classes of 2023, 2024, and 2025 and in its operation of diversity pipeline programs," the DOJ said in a Sept. 22 letter sent to the university chancellor.

"UCSF Med openly admits that its goal is to increase enrollment from specific racial groups it designates as underrepresented minorities in medicine (URM), which excludes all white students and most Asian students," the DOJ said.

Title VI prohibits programs and activities receiving federal funding assistance from discriminating on the basis of race, color, or national origin. The investigation specifically looked at whether UCSF Med complied with Title VI as interpreted by the Supreme Court's decision in the Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. Harvard case. In the SFFA case, the Supreme Court struck down the use of racially discriminatory admissions policies at U.S. colleges in June 2023, thereby ending so-called affirmative action in higher education institutions.

The letter cited a student-selection admissions policy of the UCSF Med to ensure that the student population "reflect the population of California." According to the DOJ, this was despite the Supreme Court's ruling in the SFFA case that "outright racial balancing" was "patently unconstitutional."

Meanwhile, the university said that it would engage with the DOJ and looked forward to resolving the matter.

"UC San Francisco disagrees with the Department of Justice's finding regarding the School of Medicine's admissions process," the university said.

Every application to medical school is evaluated "through a rigorous, individualized review process that prioritizes academic excellence," according to the university.

Favoring Certain Applicants

According to the DOJ, the UCSF Med's Admissions Committee invites Hispanic and black applicants for interviews at "far higher rates" than Asian and white applicants, despite the black and Hispanic individuals having lower mean MCAT scores and undergraduate GPAs.

Post interviews, the committee decides on which applicants to admit. Between 2023 and 2025, these decisions "heavily favored" Hispanic and black individuals over their white and Asian counterparts, according to the letter.

During this period, the school accepted 1.5 to 1.7 percent of white applicants and 1.98 to 2.55 percent of Asian applicants, which are lower rates than the 4.83 to 6.69 percent for Hispanic applicants and 6.96 to 11.43 percent for black applicants, the DOJ said.

UCSF Med also featured diversity programs that involved scholarships, stipends, assistance with college admissions, and research opportunities, which preferred certain student populations, the DOJ said in the letter.

One such program, the university's Programs in Medical Education (PRIME) initiative, seeks to increase medical student enrollment. In a February 2025 report on the PRIME program, the university said that "increasing the racial and ethnic diversity" of the health workforce was one of the ways to improve health outcomes and attain "health equity."

In a Sept. 22 statement, the DOJ said that UCSF Med was 12.6 times more likely to admit black students and 4.6 times more likely to admit Hispanic students, even when their socioeconomic traits, MCAT scores, and GPAs were the same as white students.

"Unfortunately, at UCSF Medical School, MCAT scores and undergrad GPAs have taken a backseat to race," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said in the statement.

"Aspiring doctors should be admitted based on their qualifications. The Supreme Court has spoken clearly - federally funded medical schools may not admit students based on misguided and illegal notions of diversity."

The Epoch Times reached out to UCSF for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 15:25

Iran Willing To Strike Deal With US Before Midterm Elections: Pezeshkian Summary

• US-Iran talks uncertain: as Iran has stuck by its conditions while engaging Kushner-Witkoff in NY at UN.

• Iran threatens escalation beyond Persian Gulf: Tehran warned the conflict could spread to the Indian Ocean if attacked again.

• Yemen front intensifies: Saudi Arabia said it intercepted six Houthi ballistic missiles.

• Oil markets react: Renewed tensions pushed Brent crude to $106/barrel, undermining hopes for a quick deal.

//--> //--> US announces end of Iranian blockade by October 15, 2026?
Yes 23% · No 80%
View full market & trade on Polymarket

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Tehran Willing to Strike Deal Before Midterm Elections

President Trump has on multiple occasions indicated his belief that Iran will hold off making a deal to end the war until after the US midterm elections in November. In somewhat surprising statements which contradict this, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has just told American media that Tehran is willing to strike an agreement before the midterms. Per the Thursday afternoon NBC report:

“We don’t want it to get to the midterm elections,” Pezeshkian said Thursday in a brief meeting with NBC News and other news organizations on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

“We wish Americans to return to the MOU before the midterms,” Pezeshkian added, referring to a memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran that laid out plans for a temporary ceasefire. The agreement, signed in June, eventually collapsed.

Is this one big effort to troll Trump? Via Newsquawk:

Refutation of Reuters claim; There is no negotiation, Defapress_ir reports, citing earlier comments from Mohammad Ghaderi.

Meanwhile, even if an Iran deal is stuck soon - and this is a big if at this point, there remains the Yemen conflict: Yemen’s Houthis say they attacked Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu; attacked what they called a “sensitive target” in Saudi capital Riyadh, it's being reported.

More from Thursday media interviews with the Iranian president:

• Iran's president says the deal Trump signed in June is still on the table and Tehran wants it. "We did reach an agreement with Trump. That agreement was signed, and based on that, we are willing and still wish to move forward, and the framework was agreed upon. We had not closed the Strait of Hormuz. It was open. Without any legal justification or framework, they attacked us."
• Iranian President Pezeshkian says Iran is ready for an agreement with the US and makes demands only within the framework of international law and could give up highly enriched uranium if it reaches an agreement with the US, according to TASS

Denial of Deal Optimism Headlines

Iranian journalist and analyst Mohammad Ghaderi, who often accurately presents Tehran's point of view or reaction to fast-paced events, has slammed the earlier Reuters report as 'false'.

That prior report said that the "US and Iran reportedly discuss phased deal to reopen Hormuz and end US blockade, according to Reuters citing sources." But the reaction from Tehran is below:

The Reuters report is false and its goal is to control the price of oil. no negotiations are underway. #Iran's position remains unchanged: the U.S. must fulfill the stipulated conditions in a single step so that the Strait of #Hormuz can be opened under Iranian control. Period.

— Mohammad Ghaderi | محمد قادری (@ghaderi62) September 24, 2026

Additionally this is via Israel's i24: "A senior Israeli official says "The chance of an agreement between the US and Iran is 'small' - but not impossible'."

Reuters Headline Signals [Dubious] Return to 'Deal in Motion'

Crude tumbles on a new Reuters report signaling a return to [dubious?] 'deal in motion' headlines: US and Iran reportedly discuss phased deal to reopen Hormuz and end US blockade, according to Reuters citing sources

This seems just a reiteration of Iranian demands, but crude still reacted (per Rtrs):

• A senior Iranian official said the most plausible way to end the impasse would be a phased arrangement, with Iran allowing navigation through Hormuz in return for the US lifting its economic blockade and Tehran potentially gaining access to frozen assets.
• Neither side wants to surrender leverage driving diplomacy
• Iran signals flexibility on fees, not on Strait of Hormuz
• Gulf states reject Iranian control of the strait

 

Iran Threatens to Spread War to Indian Ocean

It was just this month which saw the Iran conflict spill over into a renewed fight between the Saudi coalition and Yemen's Houthi rebels. Now Iran is threatening to expand the fight further, even into the Indian Ocean.

Yahya Rahim Safavi, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, warned Thursday of another significant expanse of the war if the Islamic Republic suffers attack again.

"Since the conflict has spread from the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz to the Red Sea, it is possible that, in response to more war, the front will expand even further, reaching the Indian Ocean and perhaps beyond," said Safavi in a video published by Iran's Fars news agency.

NASA/CFR: Aerial imagery of Diego Garcia, the Chagos Islands’ largest landmass, and home to the U.S.-UK military base.

This marks the first time that an adviser to Iran's supreme leader explicitly mentioned hitting targets in the Indian Ocean as a heightened military threat.

The strategic British military base at Diego Garcia, which is also heavily used by the United States, lies deep in the Indian Ocean - some 2400 miles away.

The Iranians are believed to have actually fired ICBMs on the base at the height of Trump's Operation Epic Fury.

Diego Garcia was first targeted on March 21st, with The Wall Street Journal at the time reporting that one missile had a mid-flight malfunction, while the other was engaged by an SM-3 interceptor missile fired from a US Navy vessel, though it's unclear whether this latter projectile ever hit its target.

Brent surged to around $106 after a military adviser to Iran’s supreme leader said Tehran may expand the war to the Indian Ocean if the US or Israel attacks again, further undercutting hopes of a deal. —Bloomberg

Iranian negotiators are vowing they will not back off Tehran's firm conditions for ending the war, after this week sitting down with the US team in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Saudi Arabia Says Intercepted 6 Houthi Missiles

Meanwhile another attack on the Saudi kingdom by the Houthis:

Saudi led coalition in Yemen says it intercepted six ballistic missiles launched by Iran-backed Houthis

"They broke the agreement and committed another vicious act. We have therefore toughened our conditions," spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Brig. Gen. Hossein Mohbi told AFP in an interview this week. He also said that if the US doesn't change its trajectory, it "will only make things difficult for themselves".

"We are not their playthings, and they cannot unilaterally violate an agreement they signed whenever they please," he emphasized.

Bloomberg just dropped the most disturbing investigation I have read this year, and every AI builder should read it and take it seriously.

On February 28, two Tomahawk missiles hit an elementary school in Minab, a small town in southern Iran. 156 people died. At least 123 were… pic.twitter.com/RqT1lwzsLP

— Ihtesham Ali (@ihteshamali) September 23, 2026

"We believe we have won this war, and we are currently consolidating that victory into a total deterrent force," he added.

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Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 15:20

Wall Street's Nuclear Bull Case Requires Reactors To Actually Get Built

Wall Street is largely on board with the nuclear bull case. But investor patience is thinning with an industry that is enjoying both political support and demand from deep-pocketed customers, yet still struggles to this day to get any projects actually started.

We noted a similar sentiment with Barclay’s nuclear outlook, as investors increasingly want evidence of real delivery.

New research from Jefferies and Bank of America echo similar verbiage (Professional subscribers can read the full notes here at our marketdesk.ai portal).

Jefferies' Laurence Alexander projects global nuclear capacity reaching 1,903 GW by 2100, (almost 5x from 2025 baseline). Their forecast also has solar capacity expanding roughly 22x, geothermal 18x, and wind 12x.

Jefferies frames the rising electricity consumption as leaving room for generation expansion growth across all four low-carbon sources, instead of one just taking over.

Most of the concerns come down to project financing. Massive upfront costs and years without revenue make nuclear particularly sensitive to financing costs. Government support is a way of bridging the gap, but standardized construction and repeat orders will be what really drives down execution risk. 

BofA's conference recap highlights China's approach to repeatable fleet deployment, contrasted against Western developers' reluctance to break ground.

Representatives from nuclear companies in China stated their solution to rapid nuclear deployment was standardization, specialization, and centralization. Emphasizing that this must be done across all key areas, including engineering, construction, and talent, the less-than-democratic nation proves why China's success isn't exactly repeatable in the US.

At the recent World Nuclear Association Symposium, the fuel market found itself at the center of attention as one of the notable constraints of the ongoing nuclear renaissance.

Enrichment was the hot topic of the fuel chain. European enrichment giant Urenco noted their order book had grown from just under €9 billion in 2021 to over €21 billion recently.

We've commented repeatedly on not only the lack of enrichment capacity within the US, but the specific lack of unobligated enrichment capacity. Significant investment is still required across the nuclear value chain, but finding a way to create a fuel supply for America's national defense needs (unobligated) is even further behind.

BofA took notes on Amazon discussing contributing capital and expertise to X-energy, Equinix supporting developers, and Exxon exploring nuclear industrial heat. Grid connections, completed designs and allocating construction risk remain obstacles, while new reactors' timelines extend beyond the immediate data-center boom.

Jefferies favors Cameco, Kazatomprom, NexGen and Denison, while BofA prefers Constellation, Cameco, Oklo and Standard Nuclear.

Needham's Sean Milligan initiated NANO Nuclear with a Buy rating and $33 price target. He highlighted its $8.5 million acquisition of Ultra-Safe Nuclear Corp’s development work behind the 15 MW KRONOS design. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign project is in formal NRC construction permit review, with key milestones targeted for 2027.

Milligan argues that 9.9% initial enrichment could ease fuel sourcing compared with designs requiring approximately 19.75%, while $580 million of liquidity supports the licensing runway.

Tyler Durden Thu, 09/24/2026 - 15:10