US Politics
Leftist protesters have reportedly demonstrated violent rhetoric at conservative events on college campuses over the past week. At the University of Oregon on Wednesday, a large number of Antifa-type protesters held a sign reading “F*** him right in the neck hole” that mocked Charlie Kirk’s assassination, while others were arrested for calling officers fascists. At UTSA, a student recited a poem celebrating Kirk’s assassination and told a conservative he was brave to appear without covering his neck. Hundreds of millions in tax dollars funded the University of Oregon this year.
Meanwhile, Democratic leaders have warned that President Trump and Republicans intend to steal the 2026 elections. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries described the president’s approach as rigging. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer listed election theft and Republican money as the two things that could cost Democrats a Senate majority. Sen. Adam Schiff said Trump intends to repeat his 2020 playbook. These leaders had previously condemned Trump’s 2020 fraud claims, and Democrats have argued against the SAVE Act despite it being supported by a majority of Americans.
Separately, the Democratic Socialists of America announced a nationwide campaign launching October 29 for a total arms embargo on Israel, extending beyond weapons to firms that make and move military equipment. It named United Airlines as an initial target, alleging nearly 3,000 military cargo shipments on civilian flights between June 2025 and March 2026, including cargo linked to Elbit Systems. The group released no supporting documentation. Reports noted the United Airlines shipment claims had not been independently verified, and the airline had not issued a public response.
Economy
Paying off a home ends the mortgage but not the tax bill. ICE data show average tax payments on mortgaged single-family homes rose 31.2% from December 2019 to December 2025, with insurance up 71.8%. Harvard found 20.7 million homeowner households spent more than 30% of income on housing and utilities in 2024, and 16% of owners without a mortgage were burdened. Florida’s Amendment 3 would lift the non-school homestead exemption to $250,000 by 2028. Ohio organizers target November 2027 to abolish real-property taxes that charged $21.41 billion in 2024. State and local property-tax collections totaled about $846 billion over four quarters ending June 2026.
In crypto news, a planned 2026 Bitcoin hard fork will create a separate coin, eCash (ECX), with a proposed one-to-one allocation at a mainnet cutoff near block 973,728 today. Direct eligibility depends on control of Bitcoin keys, and exchange customers depend on each venue’s policy. Japanese exchanges have indicated mixed policies, with GMO Coin planning to credit eligible holders with ECX or a cash equivalent while bitFlyer stated it will not credit or list the token. Due to uncertainty around exchange policy, the eCash developers recommend BTC holders move their funds into self-custody wallets prior to the hard fork.
In other news, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said she will step down on February 7, 2027, months before her October 2027 term ends, giving no reason. Reports had linked an early exit to allowing outgoing French President Emmanuel Macron a role in choosing a successor. The European Council selects the next president, with Klaas Knot and Pablo Hernandez de Cos among the names mentioned.
European Politics
Estimates indicate Muslims in Europe have more than doubled in 25 years, from roughly 15 million around 2000 to about 32.5 million today, excluding Russia and Turkey. Pew put the broader figure, including Russia, at 46 million in 2020. Shares include about 5% in Spain, 8% in Sweden, 7% in Germany, and 3.9 million in England and Wales. France recorded a negative natural balance in 2025 for the first time since World War II. Pew has estimated 75 million by 2050 if high birth rates and immigration continue.
In a Daily Sceptic essay, Milton Madriz Cedeño argues Europe is falling because it confused managing inherited wealth with creating it, as spending, regulation, and moral rhetoric displaced productivity and solvency. He cites debt of 139.9% of GDP in Italy and 119.1% in France, French spending of 57.3% of GDP with a 5.1% deficit, tax wedges of 52.5% in Belgium and 47.2% in France versus a 35.1% OECD average, and industrial electricity more than twice U.S. prices. French President Emmanuel Macron stated that France is not in decline.
Speaking of France, its Senate approved a bill 229 to 105 giving the government greater control over online speech. An administrative authority rather than a judge could order platforms to remove content seen as provoking crimes where a serious public-order disturbance is likely, with six months in prison and a 150,000 euro fine or up to 2% of worldwide turnover for missing a 24-hour deadline. The bill also allows social-media bans for protest-related offenses, lifts drone caps, extends real-time AI analysis of CCTV and drone footage through 2030, and widens a face-covering ban to any public-road protest. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez described the measures as targeting rioters to guarantee protest rights, while left-wing lawmakers and unions denounced the bill as a liberticidal restriction on demonstration.
Geopolitics
With 85% of votes counted, Netanyahu’s bloc stood on 53 seats and former army chief Gadi Eisenkot’s on 48, while Palestinian slates Joint List and Ra’am together had 19, leaving neither side near the 61 seats needed for a majority. Netanyahu remains in office and is expected to try first to form a government, either by drawing defectors from the opposition or by building a unity coalition that would exclude his far-right partners. Eisenkot could pursue a minority government with outside support from the Palestinian parties, though that risks serious political backlash. If no coalition forms in the allotted time, Israel would head to another election that is likely to favor Netanyahu.
Education
UC Berkeley mathematician Richard Borcherds, a 1998 Fields Medal winner, has stopped grading homework for correctness after concluding student AI use is widespread. He said grading for correctness adds a huge incentive to use AI and penalizes honesty. He now gives credit for completion regardless of whether answers are right, although he admits he knows of no better approach. Other Berkeley faculty have said high homework grades are masking weak foundational skills on proctored tests.
In other college news, the University of Connecticut’s College of Engineering recruited LGBTQ+ scientists and engineers to volunteer at its Queer Science conference for high school students in STEM. Eighteen high schoolers took part on October 17. A university article said the gathering aims to counter the stereotypical image of a scientist as a straight, white, cisgender man. A volunteer form said organizers wanted all scientists and engineers helping that day to identify as queer or LGBTQ+.
Energy
European natural gas prices crossed 100 euros per megawatt-hour for the first time since December 2022 after TTF futures jumped as much as 4.1%. EU storage is about 75% full against a 10-year average near 90%, and inventories fell for the first time this year. A cold blast is expected in parts of continental Europe early next month, and supplies through the Strait of Hormuz remain disrupted. Current TTF levels remain well below the peaks above 300 euros per megawatt-hour recorded in 2022, although winter has not yet begun.
Artificial Intelligence
A California lawsuit filed October 27 by the parents of Bowen Wan seeks a court order forcing ChatGPT to refuse any questions about medication and divert users to a licensed provider. Wan, a 31-year-old Amazon engineer with epilepsy, died around February 12, 2026, of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy. The complaint alleges the chatbot coached her to taper lamotrigine from 400 milligrams a day to zero over about 25 days. Toxicology showed 0.64 micrograms per milliliter against a therapeutic range of 3 to 14. Plaintiffs also want an unbreakable medical-advice rule like copyright refusals. OpenAI called the case incredibly heartbreaking, noted it involved a now-retired model, and stated that ChatGPT is not a substitute for medical care.
Sources
Paid Off, Still Taxed: Inside America’s Property-Tax Revolt
Paying off a home ends the mortgage. It does not fix the cost of keeping the house.
Source | Submitted by Redneck Engineer
Europe’s Muslim Population Doubles in 25 Years as Native Birthrates Collapse
Muslims in Europe have more than doubled in the last 25 years, and forecasts see more growth to come
The Fall of Europe: Rhetoric Cannot Pay the Bill for Decline
Europe is falling because it has confused the management of inherited wealth with the ability to create new wealth.
Israel’s Record Turnout Yields Hung Knesset, No Path to Majority
More Israelis voted in Tuesday’s election than in any poll since 2001, yet neither Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nor his challengers have a straightforward path to power.
DSA Pushes Total Israel Arms Embargo, Targeting Airlines and Defense Firms
The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has announced a nationwide campaign calling for a broad arms embargo on Israel.
UConn Recruits LGBTQ+ Scientists for High School ‘Queer Science’ Event to Counter ‘Straight White Cis Man’ Stereotype
What exactly is ‘queer science’? Well, it can be any science conducted by a queer researcher,
If They Lose, It Was Stolen: Democrats Echo 2020 Rhetoric Ahead of Midterms
Democrats Planning Their Own ‘Stop The Steal’ If They Don’t Win The Midterms
Europe’s NatGas Hits €100 as Low Stockpiles Meet Hormuz Risks and a Coming Cold Snap
European natural gas prices hit triple-digit territory for the first time since December 2022.
Berkeley Fields Medalist Stops Grading Homework: AI Makes Honesty a Liability
Student use of AI for homework is now widespread. Grading for correctness just adds a huge incentive for them to use AI for homework instead of doing it themselves, and penalizes students for honesty.
Leftist Bloodlust Erupts on College Campuses Ahead of Election
Mostly peaceful leftists are ramping up their bloodlust on college campuses ahead of the election
French Senate Packs ‘Rioters Pay’ Bill With Online Censorship and Unlimited Police Drones
A bill about broken windows now reaches into feeds, cameras, and the machinery of dissent and criticism.
California Suit Seeks Total ChatGPT Ban on Medical Advice After Death
The order wouldn’t stop bad medical advice. It would stop medical advice, and call that safety.
Lagarde to Exit ECB Early in Feb. 2027, Months Before Term Ends
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said this morning that she will step down on Feb. 7, 2027, months ahead of the October 2027 end of her term.
ECX Bitcoin Fork 2026: 1:1 for Holders Who Control Their Keys
ECX is the planned cryptocurrency for a 2026 Bitcoin hard fork, and Bitcoin holders could receive it at a proposed 1:1 ratio.
In addition to sources submitted by community members, the following were also used in the creation of this report: Florida Politics, St. Pete Polls, Pew Research Center, Clash Report, The Jerusalem Post, The Times of Israel, The New York Times, Hindustan Times, The College Fix, Daily Emerald, University of Connecticut, TechCrunch, GMO Coin, and bitFlyer.
by westcoastjan 
