Endnotes are never acceptable, and this is one of my most strongly-held writing beliefs.

the president of the united states wants to use the american military to kill american citizens on american soil. that's the whole story!

This is helpful, but if anything I’d say the map is too favorable in terms of Burkinabè and maybe Malian areas of control.

28.09 #Niger JNIM has issued a statement claiming to have taken control of a Security Forces position at Assamaka, close to the Algerian border. In October of 2024 a large JNIM force attacked 03 Security Forces positions west of Assamaka.

This is so disruptive, so expensive, and so stupid. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Zizek bait right here.

Oh yeah, Trump is absolutely all over those files.

This has always been true, but Thiessen truly is one of the dumbest and most dishonest people in commentary, and it’s shocking that he’s been paid so well for so long to give these opinions.

If there was any doubt about the fascist intentions of the current government, the masks have dropped fully since Kirk’s killing.

Since before Trump took office the first time, Adam has been one of the sharpest observers and analysts of the right today. This piece is a great example of that.

We're witnessing the most aggressive, fanatical crackdown on free speech in my lifetime. The speed and breadth of government censorship and private sector and nonprofit capitulation has been astonishing. As has the lack of urgency/silence from people who've long claimed to care about this stuff.

And the supposed “free speech warriors” will be silent, or applaud these and other removals.

This is…an actually insane take. It makes no sense. In what respect was Kirk growing or making any attempt to bridge disagreements?

Always remember that the military seized prower in the Sahel with the promise that they would fix the security situation

Ezra Klein has always been terrible and overrated, but this is shockingly bad.

Kamala Harris said they’d do this and the press called her a liar and a fabulist.

Also wasn’t this a year after a Trump purportedly banned Epstein from Mar-a-Lago?

Under this Supreme Court, Joe Biden couldn't forgive student debt because that would be a presidential overreach, but Trump can demand that anyone who looks like they may be an immigrant show their papers.

There was an attack in Kassela recently, but it's a sign of where things are now that JNIM can set up checkpoints for several hours near there (around 50 km from Bamako) without the FAMa confronting them: www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/2...

I would really love to know where Trump got this specific idea from.

Something about this feels chilling in a way that cuts through the other fascism of the administration: x.com/statedept/st...

In the articles about the renamed “Department of War” (which still by law needs congressional approval) it would be helpful if journalists pointed out how many tens of millions of dollars (if not more) the rebrand will cost.

One of the great indictments of our current mode of capitalism is that people like Lutnick were so wealthy and successful for so long.

We are governed by the absolute dumbest people in existence.

Wait they’re not swearing him in??

So…did Trump speak at 2?

Not to be conspiratorial or anything, but it’s a little weird that there’s a lot of speculation looming about Trump’s health, and the entire White House is basically silent about it, yes?

So like…is it happening?

This is horrendous. The lethality of the migration route Nouakchott-Canary Islands or Nouadhibou-Canary Islands is way worse than in the Mediterranean Sea (1 person out of 4 dies en route, according to estimates of humanitarian orgs)

Working on a piece now on JNIM and the “Syria model” and it’s a good reminder about the importance of longue durée governance structures and how people in different contexts contest the “modern” state, including in jihadi communities.

They won’t, but it would be unbelievably funny if France PNG’d Charles Kushner.

All this shows is that Stephen Miller is a fascist liar who hates the city he’s lived in for so long.

Also given how TikTok steals data, this is a pretty significant security threat, no?

Reuters' claim is based on a fake communiqué

Based on Ted Cruz's tweets (no, I'm not QT'ing that) he's calling to recognize Somaliland as a way of standing up to China, which is a hilarious little bit of marketing/lobbying.

This, in a way, echoes the older "we're turning students into customers" leitmotif which I hardly ever experienced even though I was working at universities charging obscene tuition fees. The overwhelming majority of kids in higher ed institutions want to learn stuff

This is bizarre, but also can we note that Melania’s signature is exactly the same style as Trump’s?

Mali's government has finally commented on the arrests of senior officers, claiming to have disrupted an attempted coup involving a former French Air Force officer, and also confirming the arrests of Nema Sagara and Abbas Dembélé, among others: fr.apanews.net/news/mali-te...

This is a good breakdown of what's known about the current purge happening in Mali: www.jeuneafrique.com/1713987/poli... That said, I think there's a general tendency over the past few months to overstate some aspects of the Goita-Camara rivalry. And lots of projections w/o evidence.

Trump's talk about DC being "dirty and disgusting" in today's press conference reminds me how often Trump seems to hate the country he governs (rules?)

This is insane. And as dictatorial a power grab as we’ve ever seen in US history. Most of all, though, it’s also just unneeded. Crime is at a generational low in DC.

Potentially huge news developing with the rumors circulating that Morocco has succeeded in negotiating a release of Niger's former president Mohamed Bazoum under conditions, including his political exile in Morocco. To be followed as more information comes in...

Reports circulating of a large number of officers arrested in Mali. Too soon to know more, but a potentially major disruption is underway.

JNIM doesn't just expand geographically as Jules' map spectacularly shows but they also use a a diverse repertoire of violence for specific purposes. A recent example - which they announced - includes systematic attacks against strategic industrial facilities in Mali (sugar sector in particular)

Genuinely hilarious not to subpoena Donald Trump, who was close friends with Epstein for at least 15 years!

had Biden randomly wandered on the White House roof shouting at reporters about nuclear weapons, Jake Tapper would drop everything to pitch a new series of books and Hannity would anchor ongoing special coverage until 2029 but when Trump does it it's just Trump being Trump!

Interesting to see how the Malian press has gotten the message it's (sort of, tentatively) ok to talk about the Russian presence now: www.maliweb.net/insecurite/n...

Unfortunately given the tendency toward targeting economic production, one could expect the Lithium mine at Bougouni to eventually come under attack: www.maliweb.net/economie/min...

"Data complied and published by Israel’s own government makes clear that it has been starving Gaza" | The mathematics of starvation: how Israel caused a famine in Gaza

This is the stuff that gets to me. Even if Dems win big in 2026 and 2028, it will take decades to undo the damage.