My end-of-week morning train WFH reads:

• It Was on Your Table Every Morning Growing Up. It’s Dying Before Our Eyes: Florida’s orange industry — long a breakfast-table staple — is collapsing, and no one in the state wants to face it.  Deep in desiccated Southern groves, the powerhouse of American citrus is suffering a brutal, unrelenting decline. No one wants to face what that means. Who Killed the Florida Orange? (Slate)

• Private Assets May Be Coming to Your 401(k). You Should Know the Risks.: Tara Siegel Bernard on alternative investments — private credit, private equity, crypto — about to start appearing on 401(k) menus, with risks that aren’t fully priced in.  (New York Times) see also U.S. Officials Try to Get a Grip on Risks Bubbling Inside Private Credit: The SEC is sending sweeping information requests to private-credit managers, targeting valuations, loan selection, and other practices. (Wall Street Journal)

• The Billionaire Math Geek Who Turned AI Into a Money-Printing Machine: Alex Gerko’s XTX Markets uses Nvidia chips and deep learning to forecast price moves — and print money at scale. (Wall Street Journal)

• 6 Tax Tips You Should Start Thinking About Now: Simple questions to ask year-round that can help you keep more of what you earn. (Morningstar)

• Warfare in a Box: Executive Outcomes and the making of the modern mercenary: How drone warfare commoditized killing at scale. The moral distance is now shorter and the supply chain is global.  Placing profit over ideology, modern mercenaries are as at home in the boardroom as on the frontline. Their companies are registered in the appropriate tax haven, like the City of London, and operate through shell firms. (The Baffler)

• Where Did the Middle East Go? Satellite Imaging in the Fog of War: Planet Labs’ decision to restrict Middle East satellite imagery is raising questions within a multibillion-dollar industry about commercial independence and global accountability. (Businessweek) see also Putin’s High-Tech Russian Submarines Goad NATO Deep Below the Atlantic: The undersea cable game heats up — and NATO is still catching up to how much of the modern economy literally runs through cables at the bottom of the ocean. NATO is fighting back against Russia’s submarine threat in cat-and-mouse games reminiscent of the Cold War.  (Bloomberg)

• Richard Feynman’s Notes For Self-Education: The great physicist’s approach to learning was as elegant as his physics — curiosity-driven, self-directed, and gloriously undisciplined. A masterclass in how to stay intellectually alive.  (Noted)

• Rocket Science for Monkeys: Early disquisitions on language frequently puzzled over the question of how rational speech could have emerged from the non-speech of animal calls and cries, and Enlightenment treatises on the origins of speech sometimes proposed that iconic words might have been a halfway house.A review of recent work on animal communication and the origins of language. (London Review of Books) 

• MAGA Is Increasingly Convinced the Trump Assassination Attempt Was Staged: Conspiracy theories about the Butler, Pennsylvania, shooting have ramped up in recent weeks as once steadfast Trump supporters turn on the president. As intra-MAGA criticism of Trump grows, the “it was staged” conspiracy is gaining real traction inside the movement. (Wired)

• The Interview Violence Shaped Charlize Theron. It Doesn’t Define Her: Lulu Garcia-Navarro’s long-form interview for The Interview. (New York Times)

Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with David Gardner, cofounder of The Motley Fool in 1993 (with his brother Tom Gardner). Originally launched as a print investment newsletter based on the idea that ordinary investors could beat Wall St., it gained traction when promoted on America Online (AOL) in 1994; it soon became a major presence on AOL and then Fool.com. His latest book is “Rule Breaker Investing: How to Pick the Best Stocks of the Future and Build Lasting Wealth.”

Job Market Gets Tougher for College Grads as Competition and AI Rise

Source: Bloomberg

 

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The post 10 Friday AM Reads appeared first on The Big Picture.

Judge Blocks Trump Admin's Move To Halt Wind, Solar Approvals

Authored by Owen Evans via The Epoch Times,

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to halt federal approvals for wind and solar projects.

Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Casper in Boston issued a preliminary injunction on April 21, sought by a coalition of renewable energy groups.

The injunction blocks five specified agency action measures, including Interior review rules, a wildlife permitting ban, land-use limits, an Army Corps memo, and a legal opinion that had tightened permitting and slowed wind and solar approvals.

The judge said the plaintiffs were “likely to succeed on the merits of their claims” that the Interior Department and other agencies adopted policies that violate the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs how U.S. agencies make and justify policy decisions.

Her ruling applies to members of the plaintiff organizations, which include RENEW Northeast and Alliance for Clean Energy New York.

“This is an undeniable victory for members of our coalition and the broader clean energy industry, as well as American households and businesses,” ​the groups said in a joint statement.

The Interior Department said in a statement that while it does not comment on litigation, “America sets the global standard for energy production.”

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump pledged to maximize U.S. oil and natural gas production and suspended offshore wind leases.

On April 20, Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to issue a series of memorandums focused on strengthening coal supply chains, ​natural gas transmission, and ​liquefied natural gas capacity.

The president also signed memos aimed at boosting domestic petroleum production, enhancing grid infrastructure, and expanding the deployment of “large-scale energy” and related infrastructure.

In a post on X, White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the memos would allow the Energy Department to use funding from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to strengthen the country’s “grid infrastructure and unleash reliable, affordable, secure energy.”

The Defense Production ​Act is ​a ⁠Cold War-era legislation that grants the president authority to expand and expedite the supply of materials from the domestic industrial base for national security purposes.

In April 2025, the Trump administration ordered a halt to the development of Norway-based company Equinor’s Empire Wind project, which the Biden administration approved in 2023. However, the stop-work order was lifted a month later, and construction was allowed to resume.

The Trump administration’s actions are a significant shift from the Biden administration’s effort to expand wind-power leasing, which aimed to build 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2030 and another 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind power by 2035.

According to legal firm Latham & Watkins, Foreign Entity of Concern rules, strengthened by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, aim to block the Chinese regime’s influence in the solar and renewable energy supply chain by denying clean energy tax credits to projects that involve entities linked to the regime.

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told the BBC in September 2025 that the Trump administration had “serious concerns” about Europe’s reliance on Chinese renewable technologies.

“It looks like the Chinese could control what’s going on with your energy system,” he said.

Wright also claimed in a Sept. 2, 2025, post on X, “Even if you wrapped the entire planet in a solar panel, you would only be producing 20 percent of global energy.”

“One of the biggest mistakes politicians can make is equating electricity with energy,” he added.

Trump, a vocal critic of wind energy, particularly in the UK, has described it as “the most expensive energy ever conceived.”

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 20:20

Mercuria, Goldman, JPMorgan See Major Aluminum Market Shock

Analysts at Mercuria, the Geneva-based Swiss commodities trading firm, are sounding the alarm on the global aluminum market after severe disruptions in the Gulf region, adding to a growing list of trading desks and research teams warning of a deepening supply shock.

"The scale of the supply shock we're seeing in the aluminum market is probably the largest single supply shock a base metals market has suffered in the post-2000 era," Mercuria commodities analyst Nick Snowdon told Reuters on the sidelines of the Financial Times Commodities Global Summit in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Snowdon then told Reuters, "We are already in a 'black swan' event. No one could have foreseen something on this scale."

Mercuria is a Swiss commodities trading house based in Geneva. Its traders sell, ship, store, and finance physical commodities across markets such as oil, gas, power, LNG, and metals.

Snowdon's alarm over the global aluminum market is mainly because the Gulf region accounts for 9% of world supply, and with major smelters already declaring force majeure and the Hormuz chokepoint blocked for much of this week, this is shaping up to be one of the most memorable shocks in the metal market in decades.

Aluminum prices have already surged to a four-year high, and Mercuria estimates the market could face at least a 2 million-ton deficit by the end of the year, potentially worse if the US-Iran conflict drags on and alumina flows through Hormuz chokepoint remain heavily constrained.

"That shortfall compares with about 1.5 million tons of visible inventory and just over 3 million tons of total global stock, including non-visible units, leaving the market with limited buffers," Snowdon said, adding that a larger deficit is possible. 

He warned that the most exposed supply chains to the Gulf shock are in the US and Europe. He noted both regions rely heavily on Middle Eastern aluminum imports and already have low stockpiles.

Last week, JPMorgan analysts warned that the aluminum market is descending into a black hole, or a "metaphorical point of no return," where the "global aluminum market will face a serious and prolonged supply outage," even if vessel flows through the Hormuz chokepoint resume in the near term.

Separately, Goldman commodity specialist James McGeoch recently warned clients, "Hard to think of a bigger metal supply shock: High degree of expectation this was where it was heading, but the initial reaction was to fade the uncertainty yesterday. That should be replaced by fresh length if history is a guide."

From Mercuria to JPM to Goldman, traders and analysts at these mega institutions are all warning of a metal supply shock, with major risks that could curtail the production of anything from planes to tanks to cars and even power infrastructure. 

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 19:55

CIA-Backed AQ-Linked Syrian Leader Watching Dance Performance To Missy Elliott Song Goes Viral

Via Middle East Eye

A video of interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa (previously, Abu Mohammad al-Julani) watching a dance performance to Missy Elliott's Work It has gone viral, sparking a mix of amusement and confusion on social media.

The performance took place on Monday at the recently reopened al-Feyhaa Sports Hall in Damascus, which Sharaa had inaugurated earlier that day before a Syria-Lebanon basketball match later that evening.

The game marks the first time Syria and Lebanon have played against each other since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. 

Ahead of the game, a group of dancers took to the stage, performing a dance routine to Work It, a song containing sexually explicit lyrics, by US rapper Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. Other performances reportedly included Rihanna's Rudeboy and Gwen Stefani's Hollaback Girl. 

The Syrian leader is seen sitting in the audience with a deadpan expression on his face. 

In light of Sharaa's background as a former militant and member of al-Qaeda, his attendance at a performance of a western song, featuring sexually explicit lyrics, stunned many social media users. 

"The ISIS president of Syria Al-Sharaa vibing to @MissyElliott is not something I was ready to see this year", one person commented on X.

After Sharaa’s Islamist group, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, seized Damascus on December 8, 2024, ousting longtime ruler Assad, Sharaa became Syria's interim president and rapidly transformed from a militant into a statesman.

The concept of a former terrorist Leader publicly jamming to "Work It" by Missy Elliott pic.twitter.com/i7Y7nXvVl3

— Moh (@Daimohnds) April 21, 2026

"Never thought I'd mention al-Sharaa and Missy Elliot in the same sentence, but then here we are. Not touching the lyrics (I doubt Sharaa knows what Missy E is singing about)... but damn, what a “flip it and reverse it” moment!", another person posted on X, in response to the video.

Shortly after celebrating his victory in December 2024, Sharaa warmly began embracing world leaders he once eschewed and appeared in western media outlets, where he spoke of Syria's "diversity as a strength" and of "unifying the country".

He also promised to pursue former government personnel and loyalists implicated in war crimes, trimmed his beard and lost his turban and thobe for a suit and tie. 

The ISIS president of Syria Al-Sharaa vibing to @MissyElliott is not something I was ready to see this year. https://t.co/y19UVH3Bup

— Joel Jenkins (@boganintel) April 22, 2026

His attendance at the performance was seen by many online as a further sign of his departure from his past, albeit with raised eyebrows, given the swiftness of his transformation.

"Al Qaeda is dead and Missy Elliott is alive!" one user posted on X.

While Syria's transitional administration has initiated economic reforms, including public-sector employee reductions, tax system reforms, and the reopening of border crossings, several people have questioned the sustainability of Sharaa's transformation and pointed out that the Syrian leader has, to date, not publicly apologized for past actions. 

His transition from head chopper to Missy Elliott fan has to be one of the most remarkable transformation stories ever. Yet we have heard virtually zero explanation as to his change, nor any apologies for his past actions

— Sheriff Detmer (@SheriffDetmer) April 21, 2026

"His transition from head chopper to Missy Elliott fan has to be one of the most remarkable transformation stories ever. Yet we have heard virtually zero explanation as to his change, nor any apologies for his past actions," a social media user commented on X. 

* * *

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 18:40

PIMCO Privately Lends Over $10 Billion To Dollar-Strapped Gulf States

Just days after the UAE hinted at a growing dollar shortage in the Gulf nation by requesting swap lines with the Fed, Bloomberg reports that as Iran's struggling neighbors scramble to build cash buffers to deal with any potential economic fallout from the Iran war, one large buyer has stepped in: the world's largest bond manager, Pacific Investment Management Co.

Since the start of the Iran war, Pimco has lent more than $10 billion to state-backed and government borrowers in the Gulf via so-called private placements. The $2.27 trillion asset manager has been a significant buyer of privately placed bonds issued by the governments of Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Kuwait, as well as by Qatar National Bank. Pimco also participated alongside other investors in several placements that boosted the size of existing Abu Dhabi bonds by a combined $2.5 billion. 

In total, regional borrowers raised $13.8 billion from Feb. 28 to April 23, in privately placed bonds denominated in hard currency, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, with Pimco accounting for a majority of that lending.

Private placements offer trade-offs for issuers rushing to get to market: they can be more expensive than public debt (and thus soffer higher returns for buyers such as Pimco). In return, sellers are able to borrow faster, with more privacy and greater flexibility on deal terms.

The coupon on Qatar’s privately placed bond was 4.8%. That was about 0.3% higher than implied by the yield curve for the country’s public traded bonds, according to Bloomberg calculations. The actual yield for bondholders depends on the price at which they bought it from the issuer, which wasn’t disclosed.

“Not all countries have the option of borrowing at reasonable interest rates at a time of geopolitical uncertainty. It’s notable that the three Gulf nations with the strongest balance sheets are the ones tapping the market,” said Ziad Daoud, chief emerging markets economist at Bloomberg Economics. “And they’re resorting to private borrowing instead of public issuance. The latter probably requires more disclosure and higher transparency.”

To Pimco, which has been invested heavily in emerging market bonds, the Gulf scramble to find buyers for its bonds has been a boon. The Newport Beach-based fund opened an office in Dubai last year, joining a rush of investment companies seeking to deepen their presence in a region flush with sovereign wealth. Pimco said this move built on over 20 years of managing assets for investors in the Middle East.

Pimco intends to hold the bonds over the long term, a Bloomberg source said. Earlier this month, Pimco - which is rapidly emerging as a lender of last resort - bought all of a $400 million bond issued by a Blue Owl Capital, in an important vote of confidence for the private credit specialist.

Gulf bond markets have been among the busiest globally in recent years, with regional borrowers selling about $50 billion of public debt in the first two months of this year. But those markets have effectively shut since the conflict began.

Before a ceasefire between the US and Iran was agreed in early April, Gulf Arab states contended with thousands of missiles and drones over several weeks, intercepting the vast majority. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted energy exports — a key source of government revenue — prompting the International Monetary Fund to cut growth forecasts across the region.

Over the weekend, the WSJ reported that the UAE informally inquired about a currency swap, if the economic and financial impact of the war worsens. The Emirati ambassador to Washington signaled the country had no need for external financing, and Bloomberg Economics’ Daoud described the inquiry as “a call for confidence, not a call for help.”

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that many Persian Gulf allies had requested foreign exchange swap lines with the US, a day after President Donald Trump said an arrangement with the UAE is under consideration.

 

 

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 18:15

Air Force Extends Use Of Iran Attack Plane A-10 'Warthog' To 2030

Authored by Victoria Friedman via The Epoch Times,

The U.S. Air Force said on April 20 that it would extend the life of the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft—commonly referred to as the “Warthog”—for another four years beyond its previously stated retirement deadline of 2026.

Air Force Secretary Troy ​Meink wrote on X that following consultation with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, the Air Force “will EXTEND the A-10 ‘Warthog’ platform to 2030,” adding that this decision “preserves combat power as the Defense Industrial Base works to increase combat aircraft production.”

The A-10 is being deployed in operations in Iran, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which said in a March 25 post on X that it had been used to strike Iranian naval vessels during Operation Epic Fury.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine previously revealed at a March 19 Pentagon news conference that the craft was “now in the fight across the southern flank and is hunting and killing fast-attack watercraft in the Strait of Hormuz.”

According to an Air Force fact sheet, the Warthog was the first Air Force aircraft designed specifically to provide air support for ground forces. It can fly near combat areas for extended periods of time, and be used as an attack aircraft against ground targets, “including tanks and other armored vehicles.”

Former F-16 Thunderbird fighter pilot Ryan Bodenheimer, who runs the YouTube channel “Max Afterburner,” described A-10 in a March 15 video as “America’s flying tank.” He said it could be used to take down Shahed drones, as well as some of the fast-attack boats Iran still had in service at the time.

The Warthog is resilient, able to survive hits from armor-piercing and high-explosive projectiles up to 23mm, according to the Air Force.

However, they’re not invulnerable. On April 3, a pilot ejected from an A-10 after it was hit, with Iranian forces taking credit. The pilot parachuted to safety in Kuwait before the Warthog crashed.

Attempts to Retire the A-10

Some in the Air Force said that the A-10, which first flew in 1976, is too old, too slow, and too expensive to maintain, ​prompting calls for its retirement to free up funds to develop modern defense solutions such as hypersonic weapons. But those opposed to the retirement say that cutting the fleet before there is a suitable replacement could leave ground troops without adequate air support.

In 2021, then-President Joe Biden wanted to retire dozens of the aircraft to free up resources for modernization, but  Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.)—in whose state many of the craft are based—pushed back and secured language in defense legislation that blocked retirements.

Kelly argued that the aircraft should not be taken out of commission until a replacement is available.

That same year, Air Force Lt. Gen. David Nahom told a House of Representatives hearing that if the number of A-10s is not reduced, the Air Force will face a shortage of mechanics for newer planes.

An A-10 Thunderbolt II undergoes pre-flight inspections at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona on March 23, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jesse Shipps

The Warthog has some enthusiastic defenders outside the Pentagon.

Defense analyst Mike Fredenburg wrote in a March 24 opinion piece in The Epoch Times: “Despite Air Force claims that the A-10 has no place on the modern battlefield, a claim it has been making for decades, the A-10 is once again using its unmatched versatility and loitering capability to destroy fast-attack watercraft, drones, and enemy positions.

“And for the role it is performing in Operation Epic Fury, the Warthog is vastly superior to any F-35, F-15, F-16, or B-2, or even the most advanced drone in the U.S. arsenal.”

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 17:50

Texas Instruments Jumps Most Since Dot-Com On Upgraded Outlook; Goldman Sees Analog Recovery

Shares of Texas Instruments jumped the most since the Dot-Com bubble era after the chipmaker issued a stronger-than-expected second-quarter forecast, signaling that demand is rebounding across industrial markets and data centers. Goldman analysts told clients the guidance suggests the "analog recovery is continuing." 

Revenue guidance of $5 billion to $5.4 billion and profit guidance of $1.77 to $2.05 a share both came in well above the Bloomberg Consensus estimate of estimate $4.85 billion, while first-quarter results also beat expectations.

Here's a snapshot of first-quarter results (courtesy of Bloomberg):

EPS $1.68 vs. $1.28 y/y, estimate $1.38

Revenue $4.83 billion, +19% y/y, estimate $4.53 billion

• Analog revenue $3.92 billion, +22% y/y, estimate $3.68 billion
• Embedded processing revenue $723 million, +12% y/y, estimate $683 million
• Other revenue $178 million, -16% y/y, estimate $168.7 million

Operating profit $1.81 billion, +37% y/y, estimate $1.54 billion

Capital expenditure $676.0 million, -40% y/y, estimate $689.9 millio

Free cash flow $1.40 billion, estimate $1.2 billion

R&D expenses $510 million, -1.4% y/y, estimate $530.7 million

Cash and cash equivalents $3.55 billion, +28% y/y, estimate $3.25 billion

CEO Haviv Ilan told analysts on an earlier call that the resurgence in demand for industrial components was broad-based across all geographies and segments. He added that while the company's revenue remains below its previous peak, that's only spurring optimism that upside momentum will continue.

"There is a lot of room to grow," Ilan said. "I saw it across all sectors in industrial."

Institutional commentary from Goldman analyst James Schneider had some very positive takeaways from earnings:

Key stock takeaways: We expect the stock to trade higher following a quarter and guidance that came in well above the Street. We believe expectations were somewhat elevated given management's constructive commentary at recent conferences, and based on our conversations we believe most investors were positioned more constructively ahead of the quarter.

We see the strong recovery in the industrial end market as a particularly encouraging read-across for the sector. Although we continue to see a recovery across the analog sector (including for TI), we believe peers have managed their inventory levels far more proactively — and hence we believe gross margins are likely to recover much faster for peers (along with significant upward earnings revisions) than for TI.

We continue to have a preference for peers (including Microchip, NXP, and Analog Devices) who are likely to see greater upward earnings revisions in the near term, and we retain our relative Sell rating on TXN given the ongoing gross margin headwinds we expect in the coming quarters.

Schneider continued: 

Read-through to our coverage: We expect a positive initial reaction for the analog group, with the most direct read-across for MCHP (Buy) and ADI (Buy) given their relatively high industrial exposures.

He raised Goldman's 12-month price target to $200 from the previous $175 and maintained a "sell" rating: 

Here's what other institutional desks are saying:

Barclays (raised to equal-weight from underweight, PT to $250 from $175)

• Upgrade reflects multiple quarters of growth in the company's Industrial business

• While a lot seems baked into the stock, "Industrial exposure is the place to be in Analog today"

BofA Global Research (raised to buy from neutral, PT to $320 from $235)

• Upgrades rating after solid 1Q earnings on "industrial strength, data center power content, and US-based manufacturing"

• "Pricing has not been a factor, but could offer incremental good news in 2H which we conservatively model below seasonal trends"

Truist Securities (hold, PT $225)

• The results show broad-based upside, including "strong cash flow performance" 

• "Capital allocation was constructive for equity"

• The outlook is better than expected

Bloomberg Intelligence

• "Texas Instruments' 1Q results and 2Q outlook significantly beat consensus, solidifying a robust and broad recovery across its industrial markets, likely aided by new data-center sales"

Evercore ISI (outperform, PT to $316 from $270)

• The results were better than expected, while the outlook is "above seasonal"

Citi (buy, PT to $280 from $235)

• The results are strong, while the outlook is "well above seasonal"

Bloomberg Consensus Breakdown:

Traders rewarded Texas Instruments for its upgraded earnings outlook with buying panic mania on Thursday.

Shares in late-afternoon trading were up nearly 20%, the largest intraday move since the 24% gain on October 19, 2000. 

Shares are in bluesky breakout territory:

Professional subscribers can read Goldman's TI takeaway here at our new Marketdesk.ai portal

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 17:25

12 AGs Petition Court To Defend Trump's Executive Order On Citizenship Verification In Elections

Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times,

Attorneys general from a dozen states on April 20 asked to intervene in two lawsuits that oppose President Donald Trump’s executive order on citizenship verification and other election integrity efforts.

The coalition of attorneys general filed motions in Massachusetts and the District of Columbia, expressing support for the president’s March 31 executive order, titled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections.”

After Trump issued the order, “left-leaning activists and progressive states” immediately challenged it, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway’s office said in a news release, “claiming it represents a federal intrusion on state authority over elections.”

She characterized Trump’s actions as “common-sense election integrity measures” in a statement and resolved to “defend every lawful step that promotes accurate [voter] rolls, secure absentee processes, and transparent administration.”

The president also issued a broader order in March 2025, titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.”

Both election-related orders have spawned numerous courtroom battles.

On April 17, a federal judge in Rhode Island became at least the fifth to rule against the Trump’ administration’s voter-roll-collection attempts. Some states agreed to turn over the requested data, but the Trump administration sued 30 states and the District of Columbia for refusing to do so.

Trump’s 2026 order requires federal agencies to compile a state citizenship list to assist state election officials in confirming which people are U.S. citizens, over 18, and residents of the state—all mandatory to be eligible to vote.

The order also instructs the U.S. Postal Service to improve security of mail-in ballots, using means such as barcodes that allow tracking of official election mail.

“Missouri and the other states are fighting for access to these resources and to work alongside the federal government in guarding the integrity of American elections,” Hanaway wrote.

Attorneys general who joined Hanaway’s coalition hail from Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick (L) and President Donald Trump before signing an executive order on election integrity in the Oval Office on March 31, 2026. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

The Washington lawsuit against Trump, filed on April 1 by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and other Democrats, frames Trump’s order as another attempt to “rewrite election rules for his own perceived partisan advantage.”

The lawsuit also calls provisions of Trump’s order “convoluted and confusing,” adding, “What is clear is that it dramatically restricts the ability of Americans to vote by mail, impinging on traditional state authority.”

In a separate action filed in the District of Columbia court on April 21, a grassroots organization, Common Cause, is asking a judge to stop what it calls “an illegal and unprecedented quest to stockpile millions of Americans’ confidential voter data.”

Common Cause requested the court to “hold unlawful, stay, vacate, and set aside” the national Voter Registration Nationalization Policy and to prohibit the Justice Department from “unlawful disclosure and use” of voter data.

The Massachusetts lawsuit, filed April 2, alleges that Trump’s order “violates the constitutional separation of powers because the president doesn’t have authority to set election rules. Only the states and Congress may do so,” a news release from the Brennan Center for Justice says.

The Brennan Center’s attorneys worked with lawyers from other groups to file the federal complaint on behalf of the lead plaintiff, the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, and additional organizations.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 17:00

Intel Shares Soar On Strong AI-Fueled Outlook, Surpassing August 2000 Peak

Chipmaker Intel, which less than a year ago was trading like a distressed company, and required a capital infusion from the US government, and earlier today hit a 90x forward PE...

... soared after hours after giving a strong sales forecast for the current period, signaling that the recently struggling chipmaker is finally beginning to benefit from the giant build-out of artificial intelligence infrastructure. But before we get there, here is a quick look at what the company reported for the first quarter: 

• Adjusted EPS 29c vs. 13c y/y, beating estimate 1.0c
   
• Revenue $13.58 billion, +7.2% y/y, beating estimates of $12.36 billion
  • Intel Products revenue $12.78 billion, +8.7% y/y, beating estimate $11.53 billion
  • Client Computing revenue $7.73 billion, +1.3% y/y, beating estimate $7.1 billion
  • Datacenter & AI revenue $5.05 billion, +22% y/y, beating estimate $4.41 billion
  • Intel Foundry revenue $5.42 billion, +16% y/y, beating estimate $4.81 billion
  • All Other revenue $628 million, -33% y/y, beating estimate $605.3 million
  • Intersegment eliminations revenue -$5.25 billion, -12% y/y
     
• R&D expenses $3.38 billion, -7.3% y/y, beating estimate $3.18 billion
• Adjusted gross margin 41% vs. 39.2% y/y, beating estimates of 34.5%
• Adjusted operating income $1.67 billion vs. $690 million y/y, beating estimate $386.2 million
• Adjusted operating margin 12.3% vs. 5.4% y/y, beating estimate 3.08%

The Intel Foundry Services division - the company’s factory unit - generated revenue of $5.4 billion, up 16%. That unit currently relies almost exclusively on Intel product divisions for orders, though it is seeking outside customers. Its PC chip division had revenue of $7.7 billion, and the data center unit posted sales of $5.1 billion. All of those totals topped Wall Street estimates.  Gross margin was 41% on an adjusted basis. When Intel was at the height of its powers, it regularly reported margins north of 60%. It predicted a margin of 39% in the current period.

Commenting on the results, CFO David Zinsner said that “we remain focused on maximizing our factory network to improve available supply and meet our customers’ needs throughout the year.“

CEO Lip-Bu Tan chimed in: “The next wave of AI will bring intelligence closer to the end user, moving from foundational models to inference to agentic. This shift is significantly increasing the need for Intel’s CPUs and wafer and advanced packaging offerings." 

While Q1 results were solid, especially at the data center level, it was the Q2 forecast that caught the market's attention: 

• Revenue will be $13.8 billion to $14.8 billion in the quarter ending in June, beating estimates of $13 billion.
• Adjusted EPS will be about 20 cents a share, also beating estimates of 9 cents.
• Margin is projected to rise to 39.0%, 

The upbeat outlook suggests that CEO Lip-Bu Tan is making progress on a challenging comeback plan. After lining up major investments in Intel last year which helped to strengthen the company’s balance sheet - Thursday’s results suggest he’s now delivering on a promise to improve its operations. 

The earnings report shows that the need for data center chips to power the massive AI expansion is lifting demand for Intel’s flagship Xeon server processors. That type of generalist semiconductor is a renewed focus for companies trying to turn their AI software into services that bring in revenue.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Tan said Intel delivered a “solid result” that was ahead of its projections. He expects the strong demand for processors used in AI systems to expand and said the company is “laser-focused” on increasing output from Intel’s factories, which still can’t produce enough to fill all its orders. 

“There is huge demand,” Tan said. “We are working very hard with our team to make sure we deliver, that we meet that demand but we are still short because the demand keeps increasing from the customers.

And, as Bloomberg notes, for now Intel has also been able to navigate another challenge the PC industry is facing: memory-chip shortages.

To be sure, the company has a long way to go to restore its former chip-industry glory. Its annual revenue of $53 billion last year was roughly $25 billion shy of the company’s peak revenue, achieved in 2021, when the stock was far lower. Wall Street projects 3% growth in 2026.

Red-hot demand for server products has lured memory suppliers into concentrating on the high-speed processors for those machines. That’s cut into production of standard products used in phones and personal computers, meaning fewer of those mass-market devices are being built and the prices are going up.

In addition to making progress on production, Tan has restored Intel’s balance sheet via outside investments - to the point where the company bought back part of a factory in Ireland that it had been forced to sell to raise cash. That purchase was seen as a sign of future confidence by investors. Adding to the optimism, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday that he will use Intel technology as part of his effort to build an in-house chip manufacturing plant. Tan declined to provide further details on the relationship.

Finally, Intel said it would spend more than originally budgeted on capex, according to CFO Dave Zinsner. The company has plenty of factory space and will add more machines to fill it out, he said. Capital expenditures will now be about flat from where they were last year. Intel had earlier said it planned to reduce its outlay. 

In response to the strong earnings and guidance, Intel shares rose 14% in extended trading. The stock had gained 81% this year before the results were released, closing at $66.78. This has now pushed the company's fwd PE well above 100x.

With the 14% surge after hours, Intel stock has finally surpassed its dot com bubble high of $74.88 hit in August of 2000.

As Shay Boloor writes, "all it took was a CPU shortage, AI agents, SpaceX + TSLA terafabs and a bit of help from the U.S. government + NVDA." 

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 16:46

Israel Waiting For US Greenlight To Renew Iran War: New 'Targets Marked', Says Katz

It should come as no surprise that the Netanyahu government is not happy with this current lull in the Iran war, as Trump's initially declared 3-5 day ceasefire extension has become more of an indefinite truce, with the Hormuz Strait blockade still on.

Israel is now preparing for the possibility of a return to fighting, the country's media is on Thursday reporting. Israel's leadership has consistently stated that it wants to see regime change or else total government and societal collapse, saying that only then would Iran never more be a 'threat to Israel.

Fresh remarks by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz have made clear that "Israel is prepared to renew the war against Iran. The IDF is prepared for both defense and offense, and the targets are marked."

But tellingly, he admitted a big obstacle stands in the way before the go ahead for a renewed bombing campaign can be given.

"We are waiting for the green light from the U.S., first and foremost, to complete the elimination of the Khamenei dynasty and to return Iran to the dark and stone ages by destroying Iran's major energy and power facilities," Katz said.

"This time, our strikes will be different and more deadly, and will deliver further devastating blows to the most painful places, which will shake and collapse the regime's foundations," he added.

Currently, the only place where Israeli forces are still actively engaged in combat related to the Iran conflict is in Lebanon. Technically a 10-day ceasefire, which is hanging by a thread, is still on. 

But there has been ongoing fighting and shelling targeting Hezbollah in the south, and the last days have seen it grow more intense, per local reports.

Meanwhile Prime Minister Netanyahu is expected to chair security consultations on Thursday evening, against backdrop of growing difficulties in the US-Iran talks, which appear to have been effectively frozen for the time being.

Israel says it is "prepared for any scenario" and is without doubt intensifying its intelligence-gathering and military preparedness, which includes the urgent restocking of its dwindled interceptor and missile arsenal.

Israel Defense Minister Katz:

Israel is prepared to renew the war against Iran. Waiting on a U.S. green light. pic.twitter.com/MTGFSAe5wh

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) April 23, 2026

Al Arabiya, citing Israel Channel 13 is reporting that there's general anticipation in Israel that the war could resume "by the end of the week."

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 16:40

Euthanasia Is Now 6% Of All Deaths In The Netherlands

Via Remix News,

Euthanasia is now responsible for 6 percent of all deaths in the Netherlands, and this figure is increasing every year.

According to a report by the regional euthanasia review committee (RTE), cited by the news portal Hirado, 10,341 people died by euthanasia in 2025, and while three-quarters of the applicants were over 70 years old, one case involved someone between the age of 12 and 18.

The number of those choosing to die by euthanasia due to mental illnesses decreased by almost a fifth (174 cases), but more than 85 percent suffered from physical diseases such as cancer, nervous system disorders, and lung or cardiovascular diseases.

There were 499 cases of euthanasia performed on patients with dementia, and the RTE investigated 11 cases where the patient was no longer competent. In addition, 475 cases involved the co-existence of multiple age-related illnesses, and 278 cases involved “other reasons.”

Pro-life advocates have argued that these “other reasons” often include selfish human interests, such as family members pressuring or emotionally manipulating an older relative to go through with euthanasia in order to obtain inheritance faster. In these cases, euthanasia is often carried out even when, according to supporters, it could not be justified.

Another seven cases involved doctors who did not fully comply with the required standards of care, and these are under investigation.

Just recently in Spain, a 25-year-old woman, Noelia Castillo Ramos, ended her life, despite her parents waging a two-year legal battle, fighting until the last minute for their daughter’s life. Although a ruling by the Constitutional Court in Madrid states that euthanasia cannot be used in cases where the source of suffering is mental illness, since “the state has the duty to protect these individuals from the risk of suicide,” Castillo Ramos was nevertheless was allowed to go through with euthanasia.

According to the Christian Lawyers organization, which represented the woman’s parents at various levels during the legal battle, “this case highlights the failure of the euthanasia law, since it facilitates suicide without the individual having received prior mental health treatment,” meaning that they would have had a chance to recover and live a full and happy life.

Spain’s Catholic bishops warned that “euthanasia and assisted suicide are not medical acts, but deliberate interruptions of the bond of care, and represent a social defeat when presented as a response to human suffering.”

In Castillo’s specific case, they added, “we are not dealing with a fatal illness, but with deep wounds that cry out for attention, treatment and hope.” Their call was also significant because it could help prevent further cases that lead to the taking of innocent lives.

The Spanish bishops also reminded society that “the dignity of the human person does not depend on their state of health, their subjective perception of life or their degree of autonomy,” but rather “is an intrinsic value that must be recognized, protected and helped in all circumstances.” For this reason, the response to human suffering “can never be to cause death, but rather to offer closeness, accompaniment, appropriate care and comprehensive support.”

“When life hurts, the answer is not to shorten the path, but to walk it together. Only in this way can we build a truly just society, where no one feels alone or excluded,” they concluded.

A group of Dutch experts in the field of child psychiatry recently called attention to the need to be particularly careful when it comes to cases of young people under the age of 25 requesting euthanasia due to psychological suffering. Their research suggests that the decision-making abilities of members of this age group can be influenced by brain development and a number of external influences.

According to the professors cited, the condition of those under the age of 25 is less likely to be considered permanent than that of those older than them. In addition, they are more exposed to social pressure and online influences, which can cause significant damage and lead them to make a compulsive and short-sighted decision.

Read more here...

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 16:20

"Gone In 60 Seconds": Feds Uncover DC-Area International Car Theft Ring

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times,

Federal authorities in the Washington area have uncovered an alleged international vehicle theft ring involving six people suspected of stealing cars and shipping them to Africa, where they are sold for top dollar.

Six people were charged on April 22 in connection with their roles in the alleged scheme.

A 15-count federal indictment was unsealed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, charging the defendants with conspiracy to steal at least 20 vehicles in the Washington metropolitan area and Pennsylvania.

The cars are transported over state lines and sold to buyers in the United States and the African nation of Ghana, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington.

The indictment follows a year-long investigation into an alleged auto-theft ring in the District of Columbia area that involved vehicles stolen using electronic devices that allowed thieves to reprogram cars to accept blank key fobs, prosecutors said.

“They don’t need keys, and they don’t need hot wiring—no smashed windows, no drama—just a sleek electronic device called an ‘Autel’ and under a minute the car’s brain is rewritten,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said during a press conference on April 22.

“The car is gone in 60 seconds.”

An Autel device can be used to erase a vehicle’s records and reprogram its keys. Law enforcement is continuing to investigate the case, Pirro said.

The auto theft ring could involve more than 100 vehicles in the District of Columbia and more than 30 vehicles in Prince George’s County, Maryland.

Police officers working on the case executed a search warrant on April 21 at an automobile storage facility in Decatur, Georgia, locating several of the missing vehicles, prosecutors said.

The suspects are Jacob Hernandez, 29, of Los Angeles; Dustin Wetzel, 23, of Woodbridge, Virginia; James Young, 23, of Hyattsville, Maryland; Khobe David, 24, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland; and Chance Clark, 25, of Waldorf, Maryland.

Another defendant remains at large and is considered a fugitive. Prosecutors did not release the name of that defendant, whose indictment remained sealed.

According to the indictment, the stolen vehicles—mostly newer Honda Civics and CRVs, and Acura TLXs and RDXs—were first taken to be “cooled off” in storage locations in southeast Washington. Theeves allegedly disguised the cars by swapping license plates and obscuring the vehicle identification numbers (VINs), according to prosecutors.

Before shipping the stolen cars, the conspirators allegedly disabled the GPS and Bluetooth systems to deter detection.

A car transporter in Maryland was loaded with several of the recovered vehicles from an alleged international auto-theft ring that federal authorities say was connected to six people in the Washington metropolitan area. U.S. DOJ

“This isn’t joyriding,” Pirro said. “These are high-end vehicles loaded on transport carriers headed to ports in Savannah [Georgia] and Baltimore, Maryland.”

The stolen cars were then loaded onto shipping containers labeled as furniture to avoid more scrutiny and sent to Africa, where they were able to get “top dollar,” Pirro said.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 15:20

Beyond Cookies - How To Stop The Invisible Browser Fingerprint That Tracks You Everywhere

For years, the privacy advice was simple: clear your cookies, use incognito mode, or click "Reject All" on those annoying consent banners. That advice is now outdated.

A groundbreaking study published last year has delivered the first peer-reviewed proof that the $600 billion online advertising industry has moved on from cookies. The new tracking method is called browser fingerprinting, and it works even if you never log in, never accept cookies, and have legally opted out under privacy laws.

Researchers from Texas A&M University and Johns Hopkins University built a tool named FPTrace to measure exactly how this works in the wild. They simulated real user sessions, systematically altered browser fingerprints, and watched what happened to the ads being served and the bids advertisers placed in real time. The results were clear: when the fingerprint changed, the price advertisers were willing to pay to target that "user" changed with it. Tracking signals dropped. The system was actively using the fingerprint to follow people across sessions and sites.

And crucially, this happened even in tests where cookies were fully deleted and users were in "opt-out" mode under GDPR and CCPA rules. The law’s exit door for cookies does not cover fingerprinting.

How Browser Fingerprinting Works (No Permission Required)

Every time your browser loads a page, it leaks dozens of tiny, seemingly harmless signals:

• Screen resolution and color depth
• Installed fonts
• GPU model and graphics capabilities
• Audio processing signatures
• Browser version, plugins, and language settings
• Time zone
• Canvas rendering differences (how it draws hidden shapes)
• Whether you run an ad blocker
• Even battery level in some cases

Alone, each detail is common. Combined, they create a unique "fingerprint" that can identify your device with startling precision. No cookies. No login. No pop-up asking for consent. Just loading the page is enough.

Studies have long shown how pervasive this is. Princeton’s Web Transparency Project and related research have repeatedly found fingerprinting scripts running on a significant share of popular websites.

Princeton researchers tested the top 10,000 websites.

Fingerprinting scripts on 88% of them.

The EFF tested browsers directly.
83% had a fingerprint unique enough to track with no cookies at all.

You do not have to visit a shady site.
You just have to open a browser.

— AI Highlight (@AIHighlight) April 21, 2026

The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s long-running Cover Your Tracks test (formerly Panopticlick) has demonstrated that a large majority of browsers produce fingerprints unique enough to track users without any cookies at all—historically around 83% or higher in large samples.

Why This Matters Now

Cookies are dying. Google has been phasing out third-party cookies in Chrome, and Apple has aggressively blocked them in Safari for years. Advertisers needed a replacement that users cannot easily clear, block, or reset. Browser fingerprinting is that replacement: it is invisible, persistent, and rebuilds itself if your setup changes slightly.

The result? Targeted ads that follow you across devices and sessions, even when you think you’ve gone "private." And because it operates below the surface of most privacy laws, the protections many people rely on simply don’t apply.

What Actually Works to Protect Yourself

Most people get privacy wrong by making their setup more unique (rare browsers + 30 extensions = the most identifiable fingerprint on the internet). True anonymity comes from uniformity, not obscurity.

Here are the proven defenses, ranked by effectiveness:

1. Choose the right browser (the single biggest decision)

• Tor Browser – The gold standard. It forces every user to share the exact same fingerprint. Anonymity through uniformity.
• Brave – Excellent middle ground for everyday use. It randomizes canvas, WebGL, audio, and other fingerprintable surfaces every session.
• Firefox (with strict settings) – Strong out of the box and highly customizable. Avoid Chrome for privacy-sensitive activity; it offers no native fingerprint resistance.

2. Add the right extensions (Firefox or Brave only)

• uBlock Origin – Blocks fingerprinting scripts before they can run. (Note: Chrome’s Manifest V3 severely limited the full version; Firefox is required for maximum protection.)
• CanvasBlocker – Randomizes your canvas output whenever a site tries to read it.

3. Flip one powerful Firefox setting Type about:config in the address bar → search for privacy.resistFingerprinting → set it to true. This standardizes canvas, timezone, fonts, and other outputs so you blend in with everyone else. Takes 30 seconds and makes a measurable difference.

Bottom line: Clearing cookies no longer protects you. The advertising industry has quietly built a more resilient tracking system that operates in the shadows of your browser. 

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 15:00

39 Going On 40 (Trillion)

Authored by Robert Aro via The Mises Institute,

A little over two weeks ago, on April 7th, the U.S. national debt crossed $39 trillion. Since then, another $150 billion has already been added to the ledger. While major news outlets missed the milestone, every trillion is worthy of mention.

House Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) put the figure in perspective:

America is now $39,000,000,000,000 in debt—yes, $39 trillion. It took roughly 200 years to accumulate the first $1 trillion. Now we add that in a matter of months… Compounding the problem, we now spend more than $1 trillion a year just on interest to service our debt—more than the entire defense budget.

Almost three years ago, I wrote about the U.S. debt crossing the $32 trillion and $33 trillion marks. If there’s one economic projection to stand by, it’s this: within the next several months, the $40 trillion debt level will be breached.

Looking back at the last 200 years, or even the last three, it becomes clear that debt growth is not linear; the curve is moving up exponentially.

While the future is always uncertain, the trajectory is unmistakable.

One reason stands above the rest: the interest on the debt itself.

For context, net interest outlays were equivalent to 22.1% of total revenues through Q1 of FY 2026. Even if the national debt were frozen at $39 trillion today, the interest payments alone would be staggering. With the 10-year Treasury yield hovering between 4% and 4.5% at the time of writing, and annual interest surpassing $1 trillion, solvency should be a real concern.

Naturally, one might argue that with a Federal Reserve, solvency is not a concern. However, that’s the crux of the matter. America technically won’t become insolvent thanks to the Fed’s ability to create money (literally) out of thin air, and so, the final outcome is certain. Expanding debt and the accompanying expansion of the money supply are features of the system. History shows that monetary inflation, currency debasement, and the eventual crack-up boom are the recurring final outcomes.

Couple the interest problem with global conflict and the endless crisis response cycle of political outlays, and it’s fair to say that Congress has as much appetite for cutting spending as they do for ending the Federal Reserve

39 going on $40 trillion is an achievement only in the sense that many once thought we’d never see numbers this large. Over forty years ago, during the Reagan administration, the debt tripled from $1 trillion to $3 trillion, and life went on. Applying that same logic today and accounting for exponential growth, we are talking about $40 trillion becoming $120 trillion in our lifetime.

The idea of $50 trillion, $60 trillion, or even $80 trillion seems absurd, but history gives us no reason to assume a ceiling exists.

I still wouldn’t bet against America; the U.S. dollar persists largely because liberty and freedom still mean something in the USA, and the greenback remains the cleanest shirt in the dirty pile. But that doesn’t change the fact that life could be better for almost everyone. That is everyone except those who continue to steer society down a path Austrians have warned about for generations.

The debt clock keeps ticking. The numbers keep rising. And while life will go on, we must ask: what kind of life will it be? And for whom?

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 14:40

MSFT Plans First Voluntary Buyout In 51-Year History; Gates Foundation To Slash 20% Of Staff Summary: 

• First CNBC reports MSFT's first-ever Voluntary Buyout in 51-Year Company History,

• Then a report by BBG on Meta planning 10% Workforce Cut, All Within Hours

• To note: Reuters First reported Meta's 10% cut late last week (report)  

Meta Layoffs 

First, Microsoft unveiled a voluntary buyout program, a move that could incentivize thousands of employees to leave.

Now, Meta Platforms has reportedly followed with plans to cut 10% of its workforce. Taken together, today's back-to-back announcements suggest that as Big Tech continues to spend aggressively on AI infrastructure and data center buildouts, management teams are trimming excess fat to reallocate capital toward the AI race.

Bloomberg reports that Meta plans to reduce its workforce by 10%, or roughly 8,000 employees, and leave 6,000 open roles unfilled. The layoffs are expected to occur on May 20.

Meta had nearly 79,000 employees at the end of last year, according to Bloomberg data.

The outlet cited an internal memo written by Janelle Gale, chief people officer, in which she said, "We're doing this as part of our continued effort to run the company more efficiently and to allow us to offset other investments we're making."

Meta shares are flat on the year but in-line in seasonal trends. 

"I know this is unwelcome news, and confirming it puts everyone in an uneasy state, but we feel this is the best path forward, given the circumstances," Gale wrote.

Reuters first reported last week that Meta planned to cut 10% of its workforce (read here). 

MSFT Plans First Voluntary Buyout In 51-Year History; Gates Foundation To Slash 20% Of Staff

Until early April, Microsoft shares were on track for their worst start to a year in Bloomberg data going back to 1997.

Then, in late March, The Information reported that the tech giant had imposed a hiring freeze across parts of its cloud and sales divisions.

Now, in yet another sign of belt-tightening, Microsoft is preparing its first voluntary employee buyout program in the company's 51-year history.

CNBC cites a new internal memo detailing a one-time retirement program for senior director-level employees and below whose combined years of employment and age total 70 or more.

While CNBC notes that voluntary buyouts are expected to involve a "small percentage of its workforce," a separate Bloomberg report states that the new voluntary retirement program could affect about 7% of its U.S. workforce.

Microsoft's latest annual report says it had about 126,000 employees in the U.S. The voluntary retirement program could allow the tech giant to cut upward of 9,000 employees. It reported 228,000 employees worldwide in 2025.

The adjustments to its workforce come as the hyperscaler is spending massive amounts of capital on data centers during the AI boom and heavy data-center spending cycle.

At the same time, Microsoft is changing how it rewards employees by separating stock awards from cash bonuses, giving managers more flexibility to reward top performers. It is also simplifying manager review choices, reducing compensation options from nine to five.

"Our hope is that this program gives those eligible the choice to take that next step on their own terms, with generous company support," Amy Coleman, Microsoft's executive vice president and chief people officer, wrote in a memo.

Separately but still related, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that the Gates Foundation is slashing up to 500 jobs, or about 20% of its staff, as the left-wing NGO has come under fire for funding questionable protests and for Gates' ties to Epstein.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 14:20

Yet Another Dead NASA Scientist: Nuclear Propulsion Expert Was Found Charred Inside Crashed Tesla

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

The case of yet another top NASA nuclear engineer turning up dead in a fiery crash has hit the headlines, adding to the dark and mysterious pattern of experts tied to advanced propulsion and space secrets apparently being targeted.

Joshua LeBlanc, 29, a team lead on NASA’s most cutting-edge nuclear thermal propulsion projects, was found charred beyond recognition inside his burned Tesla after vanishing from his Huntsville, Alabama home. His family immediately feared abduction. He left his phone and wallet behind—an act they called completely uncharacteristic.

Tesla Sentry Mode data later showed the vehicle sat motionless at Huntsville International Airport for four hours the morning of July 22, 2025. The car was discovered that afternoon after colliding with a guardrail, slamming into trees, and erupting in flames. Authorities confirmed his identity days later through forensic examination.

A NASA nuclear scientist was found deceased in his Tesla after colliding with a guardrail, leaving his body so burned that he was completely unrecognizable, according to a new report from Fox News.

29-year-old Joshua LeBlanc, who worked on nuclear propulsion projects, died in a… https://t.co/C793en0aeU pic.twitter.com/8YIhgG7fE3

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 22, 2026

LeBlanc had worked at NASA for over five years, first as team lead for the Space Nuclear Propulsion (SNP) Instrumentation and Control Maturation project, then leading NASA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operation (DRACO)—a nuclear thermal propulsion engine designed to slash travel times to Mars and beyond.

His family told local outlets the trip west was never part of his plans for the day, and he had been in regular contact right up until he vanished. “They feared he had been abducted,” reports confirmed.

NASA nuclear engineer found dead in burned Tesla after vanishing from his Alabama home last year https://t.co/gmqYCtfcvS pic.twitter.com/cQxPNevggj

— New York Post (@nypost) April 23, 2026

This case fits squarely into the disturbing wave of deaths and disappearances among scientists working on nuclear, propulsion, and space technologies—now totaling at least thirteen cases since 2022. LeBlanc’s death comes as President Trump has repeatedly signaled his intent to rip open the government’s UFO files.

The Huntsville airport connection is particularly intriguing. LeBlanc’s Tesla lingered there for hours before the fatal crash—just miles from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, a hub for exactly the kind of classified nuclear propulsion work he led.

As we highlighted yesterday, NASA payload specialist James “Tony” Moffatt and his entire family, also from Huntsville, Alabama, were killed last week in a plane crash.

This mirrors patterns highlighted in our earlier reporting on the scientist death mystery now explicitly linked to NASA.

The FBI has now confirmed it is spearheading a probe with the Departments of Energy and Defense into potential connections among the missing and deceased scientists. Trump himself addressed the issue last week: “I hope it’s random, but we’re going to know in the next week and a half. I just left a meeting on that subject.”

Independent researcher Jesse Michaels has laid out the broader pattern in stark terms just days before LeBlanc’s case resurfaced publicly. In his April 21 episode, Michaels documented how scientists at the frontier of fusion, exotic propulsion, advanced metallurgy, and space surveillance are being silenced.

He highlighted the February 2026 disappearance of retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Neil McCasland—former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson AFB, the alleged repository of Roswell materials—who vanished from his Albuquerque home eight days after Trump ordered the Pentagon to begin releasing UFO files. McCasland left his phone, glasses, and smartwatch behind. Despite massive searches, no trace.

Michaels connected this to the June 2025 disappearance of NASA material scientist Monica Reza, co-inventor of a breakthrough nickel-based superalloy for next-gen rocket engines developed under the very lab McCasland once oversaw. She vanished mid-hike, 30 feet behind her group.

He also detailed the December 2025 assassination of MIT fusion physicist Nuno Loureiro—shot in his own doorway—and the February 2026 murder of Caltech astronomer Carl Grillmair, who was working on the powerful Vera Rubin Observatory capable of spotting anomalous objects in Earth orbit.

Clearly these aren’t random tragedies. The expertise clusters around technologies that could upend energy cartels and expose long-hidden propulsion breakthroughs—exactly the kind of work LeBlanc was advancing at NASA.

The pattern is no longer deniable. While authorities insist there is “no evidence” of coordination, the sheer concentration of losses in these hyper-specific fields—nuclear propulsion, plasma physics, advanced materials—defies coincidence. Tesla’s own data in LeBlanc’s case raises further questions about remote access possibilities in modern vehicles, a capability long acknowledged in intelligence circles.

President Trump’s America First push for transparency on UAPs and government records is clearly rattling cages. These experts held the keys to technologies that could secure American dominance in space and energy independence. Their sudden, suspicious exits just as disclosure momentum builds scream for full, public investigation—not another quiet federal handwave.

Many believe that Trump’s commitment to releasing the files is the only path forward to protect innovation, expose the gatekeepers, and reclaim technological sovereignty for a free republic. Anything less leaves the best minds in America vulnerable to the very forces working against national strength.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 14:00

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei Surrounded By 24/7 Medical Team In Hideout As Generals Run Iran: NYT

The NY Times in a new deep dive of what governing structures now look like inside Iran says what's already long been obvious to many in the wake of longtime Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's death: "When Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ruled Iran as the supreme leader, he exerted absolute power over all decisions about war, peace and negotiations with the United States. His son and successor does not play the same role."

The publication says it was able to interview at least half-a-dozen Iranian insiders, including IRGC officials, and individuals who know the younger Khamenei "well". The NY Times describes of Mojtaba Khamenei: "His father, wife and son were all killed. Access to him is extremely difficult and limited now. He is surrounded mostly by a team of doctors and medical staff who are treating the injuries he sustained in the airstrikes."

ISNA/AFP/Getty Images

Apparently even top 'trusted' generals and IRGC commanders do visit him for fear of being surveilled and tracked to his location by Israel and the United States.

Per the sources cited in the Times, "Though Mr. Khamenei was gravely wounded, he is mentally sharp and engaged, according to four senior Iranian officials familiar with his health."

And more: "One leg was operated on three times, and he is awaiting a prosthetic. He had surgery on one hand and is slowly regaining function. His face and lips have been burned severely, making it difficult for him to speak, the officials said, adding that, eventually, he will need plastic surgery."

All of this provides an explanation as to why he has never been seen or heard from in public since Trump's Operation Epic Fury began on February 28. He has not so much as been photographed, and when state media has issued a few prior statements, it does so via text or what appears to be AI-configured audio over state media airwaves.

This fact has unleashed an avalanche of speculation as to his fate over the course of the war, and who is "really in charge". And yet it's also well-known that Iran is able to function militarily based on autonomy and dispersion of command among units, with the IRGC given more independence to act.

The White House has alleged there are essentially two factions vying for power and direction over the war - the civilian leadership and the IRGC command sides. 

"Mojtaba is not yet in full command or control," Sanam Vakil, the director of the Middle East and North Africa for Chatham House, claimed in the NYT report. But as expected the situation is nuanced: "There is, perhaps, deference to him," he continued. "He signs off or he is part of the decision-making structure in a formal way. But he is presented with fait accompli presentations right now."

As we and other have pointed out, in public at least the de facto day-to-day leader of the country remains speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. He has taken point as lead negotiator with the United States in Pakistan, and has been the public face of updating his country and the world on both the status of the war and the now stalled negotiations.

One other interesting detail in the Times report is seen in the following:

Messages to him are handwritten, sealed in envelopes and relayed via a human chain from one trusted courier to the next, who travel on highways and back roads, in cars and on motorcycles until they reach his hide-out. His guidance on issues snakes back the same way.

Some pundits have correctly pointed out that skepticism is warranted, also given the NYT's often deeply inaccurate reporting on Bush's Iraq war invasion, and other Mideast conflict zones including Syria:

With all due respect, remain skeptical about the credibility of the The New York Times report.

- If leaks of this magnitude were truly that easy, it would have been just as easy for Mossad to obtain precise information on Mojtaba Khamenei’s whereabouts, with obvious… https://t.co/g36ONAQUpd

— Babak Vahdad (@BabakVahdad) April 23, 2026

The NY Times alleged findings has it to the conclusion that even big decisions are currently under control of the generals and IRGC apparatus: "The combination of concern for his safety, his injuries and the sheer challenge of reaching him has resulted in Mr. Khamenei's delegating decision making to the generals, at least for now," the report concludes.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 13:40

Republicans Open New Front In Growing Battle Against "Climate Lawfare"

Republicans in Congress are taking action to shield U.S. energy producers from “Climate lawfare,” the relentless barrage of frivolous lawsuits orchestrated by radical environmental activists.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced S.4340, a bill that would bar frivolous lawsuits from green activist groups seeking damages, injunctions, or other relief for harms allegedly caused by the end use of energy products. Senators Ted Budd (R- NC), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Mike Lee (R-UT) are cosponsoring the legislation. The House companion bill, H.R. 8330, was introduced yesterday by Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY). The bill would also void any energy penalty law and preempts any states’ attempts to regulate interstate and global emissions.

RELEASE: Sens. Cruz, Cotton, Budd, Lee Introduce Bill to Combat Climate Lawfare and Defend American Energy https://t.co/XN4KgDIhE4 pic.twitter.com/Q3jWNb7J7m

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) April 20, 2026

“Radical environmental groups have waged a coordinated campaign to weaponize our judicial system against American energy producers, including many in Texas,” Cruz said in a statement. “They’re using meritless lawsuits to bankrupt our energy industry, kill good paying jobs, and drive up the cost of electricity and gasoline for hardworking families. I am proud to lead this bill to stop that abuse to protect American jobs, lower energy costs, and defend American energy dominance.”

“Energy security is national security, and we will not self-sabotage our critical industries with a cascade of costly lawsuits and extreme penalties that jeopardize American drilling. America’s energy producers should be protected from the dangerous legal precedent that would be set by the retroactive punishment of lawful activity,” Hageman said.

The bill has already won applause by energy groups aligned with President Donald Trump’s pro-growth agenda.

“Green left activists have always gone to extraordinary lengths to impose their anti-energy agenda on Americans. Filing sweeping lawsuits against oil and gas companies in an attempt to force policy outcomes they have failed to achieve in the legislative and administrative arenas is some of their most egregious work yet,” American Energy Alliance president Tom Pyle said. "This kind of politically motivated litigation threatens not only energy stability, security, and affordability but also the integrity of our legal system.”

The legislation arrives as California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont have taken landmark legal action aimed at holding fossil fuel companies accountable for misrepresenting to the public about their products’ role in climate change.

On Friday, the Supreme Court delivered a unanimous procedural victory for sanity, ruling that certain environmental damage lawsuits, including one against Chevron for alleged destruction of coastal wetlands in Louisiana, can be removed from hostile state courts to more neutral federal forums.

“Chevron’s case fits comfortably within the ordinary meaning of a suit ‘relating to’ the performance of federal duties,” said Justice Clarence Thomas. “Chevron has plausibly alleged a close relationship between its challenged conduct and the performance of its federal duties —not a tenuous, remote, or peripheral one.”

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 13:00

RFK Jr. Tells Senate Glyphosate Causes Cancer

Authored by Troy Myers via The Epoch Times,

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told senators on April 21 that glyphosate, a key ingredient in herbicides like Roundup, causes cancer and that human consumption of the chemical should be minimized.

His comments came amid growing political and legal controversy over the chemical, which is widely used in agriculture. During a Senate Budget Committee hearing, Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) asked Kennedy whether the chemical caused cancer.

Without hesitation, Kennedy replied, “Yes.” Schatz also asked if the chemical was safe for human use.

“I mean, safe, or does it kill weeds? It kills weeds,” Kennedy said. “I would say it’s important to minimize consumption of glyphosate as much as possible.”

Schatz told Kennedy he was being “uncharacteristically diplomatic about glyphosate,” which Kennedy, a standard-bearer for the Make America Healthy Again movement, denied.

Kennedy helped secure a $289 million award from Monsanto in 2018 while representing a client who alleged Roundup caused him to develop non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Now, Kennedy is the leading health official for an administration that is defending Monsanto in a Supreme Court case set for oral argument just days after the health secretary’s testimony.

That case, known as Monsanto v. Durnell, similarly involves a man alleging that Monsanto’s Roundup caused him to develop non-Hodgkins lymphoma. The Justice Department didn’t argue as much on glyphosate’s alleged health hazards as it did that the lower-court verdict against Monsanto was legally flawed.

President Donald Trump addressed the issue in February, signing an executive order that said glyphosate-based herbicides were critical to the nation’s economy and national security.

“Any major restrictions in access to glyphosate-based herbicides would result in economic losses for growers and make it untenable for them to meet growing food and feed demands,” his order reads.

“Ensuring an adequate supply of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides is thus crucial to the national security and defense, including food-supply security, which is essential to protecting the health and safety of Americans.”

Schatz told Kennedy he had many friends in Hawaii who supported the health secretary, but they were shocked when Kennedy put out a February statement in support of Trump’s executive order on glyphosate, which would also give immunity to manufacturers if Congress were to pass it into law.

“Pesticides and herbicides are toxic by design,” Kennedy wrote in a post on X. “Unfortunately, our agricultural system depends heavily on these chemicals.”

The executive order, and Kennedy’s reaction, led to pushback among Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, supporters, who denounced Trump’s characterization of glyphosate as critical to national security.

“I was very clear with the president about my own displeasure with the executive order,” Kennedy told Schatz. “The president felt it was necessary for national security reasons.”

The health secretary said the idea for the executive order came from the Pentagon, and the administration regards the issue as one that Trump inherited—not created.

The overwhelming majority of American agriculture relies on glyphosate-based herbicides, and “100 percent of that is coming from China,” Kennedy said.

“You have an adversary that could literally shut down the American food supply overnight,” he testified. “[Trump’s] executive order does not increase the use of glyphosate. All it says is, as long as we’re dependent on it, we’re going to make it here.”

In Kennedy’s X post, he stated that cross-agency steps are being taken to shift away from harmful agricultural practices. The health secretary reaffirmed this goal to lawmakers at the April 21 hearing.

Monsanto has denied Roundup causes cancer and has argued no cancer warning is necessary because the Environmental Protection Agency has historically considered Roundup and glyphosate safe to use.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 12:40

Twitter Users Statistics – Key Data for 2026 Twitter Marketing

 

 

For the past 30 years, I have been sharing my ideas on investing, markets, the economy, policy, and related topics. Online, in public, no hold barred; writing for a broad audience invites comments, criticism, and general interaction.

So it was no surprise that when Twitter came along, I jumped in (Thanks, Howard!). It was an amazing technology that gave you access to awesome people you otherwise would not have met; it enabled cool interactions with readers. It became a community of like-minded individuals across a variety of topics. For me, this included everything from markets and investing, economic analysis, and behavioral finance to cosmology and collectible cars. Before Chart Kid Matt, many of the most-liked charts seen on The Big Picture were originally found on Twitter.

I hadn’t noticed the slow bleed on the site until I was hacked in July 2023. Someone took control of the account until Bloomberg helped me get it back 3 months later. The site had changed so radically that I didn’t recognize it.1 My partner Josh, always ahead of the curve, saw the writing on the wall and tapped out in 2020.

Trying to scale and monetize the site only led to a change for the worse; new ownership accelerated the collapse. Today, there is very little engagement, too many bots, and endless trolls;2  constant fake versions of myself and impersonations3 of my colleagues have revealed how little the site cares about the security and safety of its users.4  What could have been a global town square morphed into something far more insidious. 5

And so it is with a heavy heart that I belatedly say farewell to X.

I’ll still allow the blog to auto-post; I’ll lurk on my favorite lists, and occasionally retweet others. But that’s it. You can find me here and on LinkedIn.

 

 

 

 

 

__________

1. Recently, a number of my favorite follows have headed for the exits. (FEE was just the latest).

2. Social media fraud channels contributed to 56% of all crypto scam cases in 2025, led by Telegram, X, and Instagram; AI-generated deepfake scams rose roughly 700%; fake endorsements impersonating Musk accounted for 32% of social media scam attempts. CoinLaw Silent Push documented a May 2025 campaign exploiting an X display-URL spoofing loophole to promote a fake “Apple iToken” with an ad that appeared to originate from CNN.com Silent Push — the kind of infrastructure-level exploit that suggests the ad-review layer isn’t catching obvious impersonation. For the financial-commentary side of the platform, the most visible pattern is the stock-pick scam chain: a low-follower bot posts a reply with replies disabled, tags a “financial expert” account using a stock photo and a generic handle ending in a number, and that account pushes penny-stock picks Medium — you’ve almost certainly seen these under your own posts. (via Claude)

3. New ownership made everything worse: Paid verification inverted the old signal: a blue check now correlates positively, not negatively, with scam risk, and the algorithmic boost for paying accounts means scam replies surface above legitimate ones. (via Claude)

4. AI has lowered the cost of producing convincing content and increased variability across a botnet, making pattern-based takedowns harder, while “reply-and-block” tactics let bots register engagement and then suppress the original poster’s ranking. (via Claude)

5. It’ll be interesting to see the Harvard Business School case study of how to light $38 billion on fire.

 

 

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