This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 235 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in the financial realm. Please join us and participate via our donation page, which shows how to give via check, credit card, debit card, PayPal. Clover, or Wise. Read about why we’re doing this fundraiser, what we’ve accomplished in the last year,, and our current goal, supporting the commentariat.
Composer Transcribes Duck Sounds Into Sheet Music Laughing Squid
Climate/Environment
Huge El Niño projected to cause 450,000 deaths in next six months The Guardian
The worst El Niño in recorded history is brewing — here’s how governments must prepare Nature
Polo Undergoes Extreme Rapid Intensification Over the Eastern Pacific, Becomes Basin’s Record-Tying 3rd Category 5 Hurricane Eye on the Tropics
Pandemics
Before Wuhan? David Lingenfelter
Water
The Koreas
Texas gas plant selected as first project under Korea’s $200 billion US investment plan Hankyoreh
China?
China shipbuilding orders nearly triple on Iran war windfall Nikkei Asia
China is outfoxing the US in the battle for Mideast influence Responsible Statecraft
***
China’s US ambassador notes four red lines ahead of Xi visit Al Mayadeen
To Go or Not to Go? Behind the Uncertainty of Xi’s CEO Delegation George Chen
LNG sales key part of trade with US China Daily
United Nations General Assembly
A Theater of Madmen and Cowards: UNGA Today Biljana Vankovska
No Nukes? Aurelien
Syraqistan
Israel eyes first use of death penalty law against Palestinian arrested in West Bank New Arab
Iran FM meets with US envoy on UN meeting’s sidelines at American side’s insistence: Report Press TV
Araghchi conveys Iran’s conditions for reopening Hormuz to Witkoff Al Mayadeen
Yemeni dominance over the Red Sea and Trump on the run – with Ehsan Safarnejad Vanessa Beeley
UK to provide Saudi Arabia with military support against Houthis Middle East eye
Saudi Arabia Restarts East-West Oil Pipeline OilPrice
US eyes $10bn fund to rebuild war-battered Gulf infrastructure The Cradle
🇮🇷|Western media omitted what Araghchi said to Kallas.
The West reported only what Kallas “proposed” to Iran. But the truth lies in what Araghchi said to her.
Araghchi told Kallas that the EU is “the greatest enabler of the crimes Israel commits against the oppressed… pic.twitter.com/bqoBZGEGhO
— Aprajita Nafs Nefes 🦋 Ancient Believer (@aprajitanefes) September 23, 2026
Old Blighty
New UK agency to fight ‘information warfare’ from likes of Russia, Burnham tells UN The Guardian
Just listen to red tie!!😡😡
Wants people locked up for not swallowing this bullshit war and wants conscription. pic.twitter.com/PNbM6wJ1sv
— Ben (@ben_toto23) September 21, 2026
English Village That Voted To Leave UK Says It Could Ask To Join US Newsweek
European Disunion
Merz’s woes cast doubt over EU’s €2tn budget deal FT
A colony in the making: the foreign takeover of Hungary Thomas Fazi
Meloni disappointed about deficit, says we’d done 90% of the work Ansa
***
Autistici/Inventati, “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” Hauntologies by Elia Ayoub
Spain keeps Fergie Chambers jailed as US extradition request advances The Canary
***
US gains expanded military access, new defense areas in Greenland with Arctic deal Anadolu Agency
Ok, we now have the actual text of the Greenland deal (https://t.co/HwqZT6CGb2), so we can say how it compares to the existing 1951 arrangement and who, between Trump and Denmark, lied the most in their framing of it.
Long story short – which may surprise some – the Danes lied… https://t.co/DPM2iFkN4v
— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) September 23, 2026
New Not-So-Cold War
Lithuanian parliament backs move to remove ban on weapons of mass destruction Anadolu Agency
Russian journalist Alexander Nosovich says the possible deployment of nuclear weapons in Lithuania could force Moscow to abandon what he describes as its policy of dismissing or ignoring the Baltic states.
Nosovich writes that Lithuanian politicians see hosting nuclear weapons… https://t.co/qJfXCLuTEZ pic.twitter.com/UQeWxyvRb7
— Brian McDonald (@BrianMcDonaldIE) September 23, 2026
In the Baltics, NATO Forces Are Trying to Learn the New Way of War WSJ
Kaliningrad and the Suwalki Gap: Conflicting Threat Perceptions in the Baltic Sea Region International Crisis Group
Russia May Use Real Estate in Sweden as Bases for Espionage Miltarnyi
Lyman counter-offensive? Events in Ukraine
South of the Border
Trump on Venezuela:
Our actions in Venezuela are proof that the United States will no longer permit threats to America to gain a foothold anywhere in the Western Hemisphere, and if necessary, we will use our unmatched military might to secure the vital national interests of the… pic.twitter.com/U9TyCFw6FO
— Clash Report (@clashreport) September 22, 2026
Not me being paranoid, but why do US military personnel need high-level operational Portuguese lessons for just the next few weeks? https://t.co/s2qnjZxUah
— Andre Pagliarini (@apagliar) September 21, 2026
Lula warns against foreign interference in Brazil election at UN Al Jazeera
Trump 2.0
Trump fully admitting that his administration is executing people because they think due process is a waste of time. https://t.co/xtgI84sL4V
— pokey pup (@Whatapityonyou) September 22, 2026
THE ELECTIONS THE GOP WANTS TO STEAL Seymour Hersh
Trump made over 1,000 July stock trades worth up to $270m, filings reveal The Guardian
The FBI Anti-Corruption Squad Was Circling Susan Collins — Until Trump Got in the Way ProPublica
Democrats Suck
The Accidental Candidate New York Magazine. “Troy Jackson emerged from nowhere to succeed Graham Platner in Maine’s Senate race. Now the Establishment is taking control.” Imagine that.
🇺🇸🇮🇱 Abdul El-Seyed crashes out and starts patronizing a reporter who asked him why he is campaigning with Kamala Harris after publicly supporting the Michigan “Uncommitted” in 2024 pic.twitter.com/4BY1A22GRC
— HOT SPOT (@HotSpotHotSpot) September 22, 2026
Democrat Golden backs GOP’s Lawler in tough New York race The Hill
Bush the Younger
Bush, With Legacy of Torture, Unveils Portrait Book of “Political Prisoners” Truthout
Economy
Europe Paying €200 Million A Day Diesel Premium, Report Shows Clean Technica
Trump administration is examining whether a diesel export ban is feasible, Treasury Secretary says CNBC
Lukashenko says Belarus has no spare potash for Trump’s deal Intellinews
Healthcare?
Even medical professionals are skipping health insurance because of high prices WaPo
AI
Machine god metaphors eat your brain Programmable Mutter
The secret behind Meta’s Muse Gary Marcus
Anthropic is operating a lab that conducts biology experiments TechCrunch
B.C. government suing OpenAI for alleged role in Tumbler Ridge mass shooting CBC
Imperial Collapse Watch
Against Imperialist Multilateralism Un-Diplomatic
Air traffic control equipment struggles parallel growing weather infrastructure concerns Balanced Weather
Jake Paul says civilians should be allowed rocket launchers and drones after Pentagon visit The Mirror US
Big Brother Is Watching You Watch
‘We Hacked the FBI:’ Hackers Say They Have Data on All FBI Employees 404 Media
Immigration
Trump administration to welcome up to 17,500 more White South Africans as refugees CBS News
Abortion
EPA launches drinking water study looking for traces of abortion pills The Hill
Police State Watch
Department Of Justice Hints At New Tool For Prosecuting Protesters Dan Boguslaw
Groves of Academe
Cornell Warns of ‘Jarring’ Skill Gap as Students Fret Over Costs Bloomberg
The Bezzle
Waymo’s latest expansion strategy: teenagers TechCrunch
Casino Nation
Betting Against Ourselves: Gamifying Alienation Dialectics (of Decline)
Class Warfare
‘We Screwed Up’: DoorDash Agrees to Pay $131.5 Million to NYC Delivery Workers The City Reporter
In New York, Access to Lead-Free Drinking Water Doesn’t Come Cheap NY Focus
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
