Insolvent Mullahs

 

Friends, on this week's Newsmakers show, Brian and I reflect on the increasingly desperate economic predicament of the Islamic Republic of Iran...or more accurately of its miserable inhabitants, since the leadership seems to be somewhat oblivious to the suffering of ordinary people.  But for how long?  Iran can only sink so far before even the mullahs have to reacquire some sort of grip on reality.  In addition, Brian and I talk over class changes in the last several generations in the U.K. and the U.S., the expansion of SpaceX infrastructure in the context of the recent softening of the Trump-Musk relationship, the precipitious rise in our national debt, the feasibility of third party candidates for high office, and more!!!

 

https://wysl.podbean.com/e/newsmakers-8-29-26/ 

 

In other news, DJT has announced a big new deal to expand Venezulean oil production, and to channel a lot of the profits into American hands.  Sounds nice!  Can the government there be trusted, and will private enterprise play ball, as it undoubtedly would need to in order to make production rise?  We shall see.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2zlwe7qj1o 

Good Bye, Dolly!

 

Friends, I won't pretend that I'm a country music fan or that I knew diddly squat about Dolly Parton, but I saw 9 to 5 and quite enjoyed it, so allow me to join the chorus of voices wishing ole Dolly Godspeed!

 

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201204-how-dolly-parton-became-the-worlds-best-loved-celebrity 

 

In other news, everyone's favorite trillionaire, Elon Musk, is about to build another sprawling "Starbase" -- this time in the great state of Louisiana.  The sky is the limit when it comes to Musk and SpaceX, if you ask me.  I would buy stock in SpaceX before I would buy it in Tesla, that's for sure.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq5xel4v642o 

 

Finally, you may have heard that we've unleashed economic armageddon on the Iranians.  Well, why not?  This does rather beg the question of why we didn't put maximum pressure on Iran at the beginning of the conflict, but hey -- better late than never.  Iran really does seem to be struggling economically.  Why the leadership there thinks all this is a good idea is beyond me...  I know we're the "Great Satan" and all, but why poke Satan in the eye?  Seems to me the mullahs have bitten off more than they can chew.  They might end up defrocked, or even decapitated!

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/08/25/scott-bessent-is-right-about-iran-attack-economy/ 

The King's Speech

 

Friends, there was a time when, if you didn't speak "the Queen's English", i.e. English with an upper-class British accent, you wouldn't get anywhere near a BBC microphone or a television camera.  And I say: right you were, snobs!  Mere peasants have no right to assail us with their dreary diction.  Of course, a lot has changed in Britain's class system since the end of WWII.  Nowadays, a compromise, middle class accent, denuded of regionalisms, is arguably taking over.  That's "democracy" at work, I suppose.  In the U.S., it has long been the case that one's accent does not necessarily indicate one's social status.  This is why I favor the reinstitution of sumptuary laws.  Look 'em up, peons!

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c05q318501yo 

 

In other news, the WaPo is absolutely right to celebrate the recent decline in food insecurity, and to tie this trend to the waxing prosperity of the "developing world", but it is somewhat missing the forest for the trees, since the real news -- in a world-historical sense -- is that, in this day and age, virtually no one is starving.  That may not seem very surprising to those of us who live in the USA and have supermarket-sized expectations for caloric intake, but for most of human history it has been shockingly common for large numbers of people to starve.  Not so long ago it was pretty common in "Afro-Asia" too.  No more!  Modern agricultural methods have banished famine almost altogether, and guess what?  That's kinda good!!!  We don't stop to reflect on it very often, but we should.  Chances are, you'll never be desperately hungry, and therefore just plain desperate.  You can thank the Brits and their pioneering work in the Agricultural Revolution for that.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/08/22/world-hunger-decline-is-powerful-story-economic-freedom/ 

The Elephant in the Room

 

Friends, while lefties obsess over made-up scandals like President Trump's entirely fictional romantic relationship with his long-time secretary, the country faces real problems, like our ballooning debt, and the rising burden of making interest payments on that debt.  Meanwhile, we continue to spend far beyond our means, and neither Democrats nor Republicans show any genuine inclination towards fiscal responsibility.  How long can the spending spree continue?  Probably pretty long, as this is a very rich country, and it takes time for insolvency to become apparent.  We have to admit, though, that President Trump has not been, in any meaningful sense, part of the solution.  Instead, he's part of the problem, spending-wise, although there's plenty of blame to go around!  Much of it (most of it?) rests with the voters themselves, who always want something for nothing.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70gp8252ejo 

 

https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2026/08/20/rosie-odonnell-joins-crude-natalie-harp-mania-in-latest-trump-obsessed-kimmel-live-monologue/ 

The Stars Align

 

Friends, a lot may be going wrong for Trump and Republicans these days, but one thing is going decidedly right: the rapprochement between Trump and Elon Musk, the world's richest man.  Sniping between the two of them is totally counterproductive, needless to say, but Musk can also offer vital support to GOP candidates in the midterms.  Every little bit helps, and Musk is in a position to do more than a little...

 

https://www.wsj.com/politics/trump-elon-musk-relationship-d4b57ce6?st=2j4snk 

Number Two

 

Friends, the conflict with Iran is creating some intriguing disruptions and relignments in international trade and travel.  For one thing, an airport in South Korea (???) is now the world's busiest, and, unsurprisingly, Dubai's airport is rather quiet.  The world's second busiest airport is Heathrow, which I know well from my visits to the U.K., and because my beloved aunt lives in its flightpath.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr49p1279n0o 

 

In other news, the GOP isn't raising the white flag for the midterms, even though the political environment seems highly adverse this year.  A lot can change between now and November, of course, and the Dems are shooting themselves in the foot (feet?) in multiple marquee matchups.  Don't despair!

 

https://www.axios.com/2026/08/13/house-republican-american-action-network-midterm-ad-campaign 

Los Americanos

 

Friends, the peoples of the Americas are a little closer to comity tonight, as the great nation of Colombia has rejected Marxism and now has as its president a bonafide conservative.  Bravo!!!  Long may he reign.

 

https://www.breitbart.com/latin-america/2026/08/07/conservative-abelardo-de-la-espriella-inaugurated-president-colombia/ 

 

In other news, President Trump's White House ballroom project has been put on hold by the D.C. Court of Appeals.  Shockingly, the judges who ruled against him were appointed by...Democrats???  Who saw that coming?  Let's hope SCOTUS makes this right.

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/appeals-court-says-trump-needs-151920281.html 

 

Lastly, you won't want to miss my appearance on this week's Newsmakers show, because, well, I'm basically the star!!!  I like to think you'll learn a thing or two: about Britain's new party system, about Trumponomics, and more!

 

https://wysl.podbean.com/e/newsmakers-8-8-26/ 

El Cid He Ain't

 

Friends, today socialists and Republicans are in perfect agreement!  They're united in celebrating Abdul El-Sayed's win in the primary to determine the Democratic nominee for Michigan's open Senate seat.  Socialists love him because, well, socialism, but Republicans are excited because he's a hardcore leftist and may well go down in flames, making it darn near impossible for Democrats to take control of the Senate in January.  Let's hope so!!!

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/abdul-el-sayed-wins-michigans-democratic-senate-primary-notching-midwe-rcna589750 

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp309ng0xq1o 

Godspeed, Lindsey!

 

Friends, the media always had nothing but contempt for poor Lindsey Graham, and death didn't ameliorate their disdain in the least, as you can see from the cartoon above.  To the Left, Graham was a warmonger and a toady, and his close alliance with Trump sealed the deal, as far as they were concerned, on his odiousness.  Well, on this week's Newsmakers show, Brian and I take a more magnanimous tack.  Graham was a patriot, and he befriended DJT not because he was intrinsically inclined to support his brash populism (we all know he wasn't), but because he felt it was in the best interests of these United States, and that's a pretty good reason, when you get right down to it.  Also on this week's show, Brian and I discuss the migrant invasion of Spain's outpost of Ceuta, the developing civil war within the Democratic Party, the fiasco of Dr. Fauci's appearance before the Senate, and more!

 

https://wysl.podbean.com/e/newsmakers-8-1-26/ 

 

In other news, it's possible that the gloves may come off in our conflict with Iran, i.e. Israel will rejoin the assault, and new energy infrastructure targets will be hit, in a bid to increase the pressure on the mullahs.  I say: blast 'em with both barrels!!

 

 https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-israel-iran-war-energy-related-targets-trump/

The New Normal

 

Friends, mighty warrior DJT continues to direct airtrikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran, but to what purpose?  The promised aerial armaggedon never quite arrives, so the Iranians keep absorbing their losses and lobbing yet more missiles and drones at a wide variety of targets, precious few of which they hit.  How long can this charade go on?  Pretty long, would be my guess.  No doubt some of Iran's elite want to capitulate, given the fact that their economy is circling the drain, but as long as a few diehards in the regime want to keep the conflict going, it won't be easy to stop.  Oh well.  For Americans, the only real downside is $4 a gallon gas, and that's not exactly the end of the world...

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c74gwdzywmeo 

 

In other news, there's a big ole primary fight happening in Michigan, where the DSA candidate is facing off against a moderate Democrat to become the party's Senate nominee.  It'll be fascinating to see who prevails.  Would El-Sayed be the weaker candidate?  That's what many Republicans assume...

 

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/07/29/establishment-democrats-make-last-stand-socialist-takeover-michigan/ 

 

Lastly, our old pal Tony Fauci appeared before a Senate committee yesterday...and refused to answer questions, asserting his Fifth Amendment rights.  Does that hold water, given the fact that he enjoys a presidential pardon protecting him from prosecution?  His lawyers would argue that he's still vulnerable to perjury charges, since that would be a crime committed after Sleepy Joe's pardons.  Probably he can't be forced to testify.  That's my assumption.  Oh well.  What are the chances that we'd get straight answers anyway?

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/07/29/anthony-fauci-contempt-charge-legal-questions/91099754007/