Less Indictable Than a Ham Sandwich

Posted on by Lone Candle

“The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution says, with only a handful of exceptions: “No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury.” In practice, though, grand juries rarely fail to indict. The entire process is nonadversarial, meaning prosecutors make their case to jurors without an opposing attorney making any counterarguments, and the burden of proof is much lower than it would be at trial. As the old saw has it, a prosecutor could get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. But failing to get indictments has been a hallmark of the second Trump administration.”

https://reason.com/2025/11/16/less-indictable-than-a-ham-sandwich/

The ‘Emergency’ That Demanded Huge Tariffs on Swiss Imports Is Now Over. So What Was the Emergency?

Posted on by Lone Candle

“There are two possibilities here. You can believe that the vaguely defined economic emergency that required such huge tariffs on Swiss imports is already over, just a few months after those tariffs were imposed and despite the trade deficit seemingly growing rather than shrinking. If so, then you have to accept that Americans peacefully exchanging their money for chocolates, drugs, and watches were somehow undermining America’s economic security for years—but that those exact same transactions are now totally fine, because of the higher tariffs that no longer exist.

The other possibility is that no such emergency ever actually existed, and that the president’s idea of what constitutes an emergency depends largely on who is paying him homage and what gifts they might leave behind. If so, then you’d have to question the entire rationale behind all of Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs, many of which make no more sense than the ones imposed on Swiss goods.”

https://reason.com/2025/11/17/the-emergency-that-demanded-huge-tariffs-on-swiss-imports-is-now-over-so-what-was-the-emergency/

How Eating Wheat vs Rice Shaped The Vast Cultural Differences Between Northern and Southern China

Posted on by Lone Candle

Societies that primarily grow rice rather than wheat tend to be more collectivist due to rice requiring more of a group effort.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THGJxJcM8IE

Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes and the Right’s ‘Groyper’ Problem | The Ezra Klein Show

Posted on by Lone Candle

The online ecosystem of the right includes a heavy dose of straight up anti-semitism. Trump helped break the mold from the beginning of his first political campaign when it comes to rhetoric that used to be unacceptable. Edgy jokes justified by fighting the woke censors pushed the barrier further until today where the far right ecosystem includes actual open Nazis like Nick Fuentes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jyDHToxC-4