Health
In Russia, a young employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute developed severe pneumonia and died after several outlets reported that she told clinicians she had broken a tube of live plague material. The death prompted an unusually large response: about 200 contacts were placed under observation, Russia’s chief sanitary official traveled to the region, hospitals restricted visitors, and a large aluminum plant in Shelekhov required masks. Rospotrebnadzor now says expanded testing found no work-related pathogen, an internal review found no laboratory accident, and the illness was pneumonia of unknown etiology. A local warning and plague-related posts were later deleted, the agency disputes the broken-tube account, and primary laboratory results have not been released.
In the US, after Tracy Beth Høeg, a critic of mRNA vaccines, was fired as FDA drug chief on May 15, the agency approved Moderna’s first mRNA flu shot for adults 50 and older, Sanofi’s Tzield for children 8 to 17 with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes, and Replimune’s twice-rejected melanoma drug after a White House meeting. Høeg has said she still does not know who ordered the firing and that the health secretary learned of it later. She told Paul Thacker she is worried about flu-shot safety issues and saw no clear clinical benefit for Tzield in children. HHS sources told Thacker that Medicare director Chris Klomp effectively runs the department.
Relatedly, an analysis of CDC VISION data from the 2022-2023 flu season argues that effectiveness estimates of 30 to 45 percent cannot be trusted, citing rollout during a falling infection wave, exclusion of cases within 14 days of vaccination, and healthy-vaccinee bias. The analysis states that hospitalization effectiveness was lower than outpatient figures, and that among hospitalized patients 65 and older, fatality was 4.0 percent in the vaccinated versus 2.7 percent in the unvaccinated.
Are our choices made freely? Studies suggest obedience and conformity can steer us while leaving an illusion of freedom intact. In Stanley Milgram’s study, about two-thirds of subjects delivered what they believed was a fatal shock when a white-coated Yale authority assumed responsibility and framed the act as serving the greater good. Compliance fell outside that setting, and it nearly collapsed when people were told they had no choice or saw someone else refuse. Solomon Asch found subjects denied their own eyes and matched a wrong majority on 37 percent of trials, but conformity dropped to 5 percent once a single ally broke the group’s unanimity. The pattern continues online: Facebook quietly altered nearly 700,000 feeds and found emotions spread, while search rankings can shift opinions because what appears first is treated as truer.
Energy
European gas rose above €80 per megawatt hour this month, a three-year high, making coal cheaper than gas for the first time in years. An analyst told Reuters coal should remain cheaper through next year and possibly until March 2028, drawing Germany and others back to remaining plants. EU coal’s share of electricity had already fallen from more than a third in 1990 to 9.2 percent by 2025. Kirill Dmitriev said Europe needs Russian energy to survive winter.
In oil markets, Adam Rozencwajg said oil remaining below $100 after more than 200 days of the Iran war reflects lost refining rather than a solved crude shortage. He stated that about 10 million barrels a day of Middle East output left the market while some six million barrels a day of refining demand vanished in the Persian Gulf, China, and Russia. Rozencwajg said diesel already prices as if crude were $200 a barrel and that reopening Hormuz would restore those plants and shift tightness into crude after some two billion barrels of upstream production never appeared.
Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said replenishing global oil inventories could take up to two years even after Hormuz fully reopens. Nearly 3 billion barrels of supply have been lost since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, he said, and about 1 billion have been drawn from stocks, with some 6 billion barrels in storage not practically available. Brent stood at $102.92 as Middle East crude flows were reported higher.
Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelensky told Reuters Ukraine will intensify strikes on Russian oil refineries, citing documents he said outline a Russian plan to hit infrastructure and cities before winter.
Geopolitics
Yemen’s Rashad Al-Alimi ordered all military, security, and civil institutions into an offensive to retake remaining land from Iran-backed Houthis. More than 100,000 pro-government troops were set to mobilize with Saudi air support. The Houthis had advanced on the western coast, tightened their hold on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and announced a blockade of Saudi ships.
European Politics
A French territorial-intelligence commander was kicked unconscious outside a Belfort high school Friday, prompting an attempted-murder inquiry. He had tried to arrest a youth suspected of starting a fire who carried hydrochloric acid. A day earlier, a trainee lieutenant in Paris was chased, thrown down, and kicked as voices yelled to kill her. Thursday saw 1,949 arrests and 305 injured officers, about 400 schools closed Friday, and the education minister said a pupil protest had been taken hostage by ultra-violent groups.
Economy
Peter Tchir of Academy Securities said Treasuries, European sovereigns, and credit did not look right after the 10-year yield rose from 5.15 percent Friday morning to 5.27 percent. He pointed to a glut of sovereign and long corporate supply and little evidence of large short positioning. French and Italian yields moved against German bunds as France’s deficit heads toward 5 percent. Two of the largest high-yield deals on record slipped as much as 3.5 points as bond volatility stayed elevated while equity volatility stayed low. That said, CNBC reported that surging Treasury yields do not yet signal a U.S. fiscal apocalypse, with some analysts pointing to a resilient economy.
US Politics
The Treasury and IRS proposed rules for the first nationwide school-choice tax credit, allowing up to $1,700 for individuals and $3,400 for joint filers who donate to scholarship organizations covering private tuition, tutoring, books, and special-needs services. Thirty states have opted in for a January 1, 2027 launch. Officials estimate up to 2.2 million scholarships a year and eligibility for about 96 percent of children in participating states. Critics such as Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers said public funds should go to public schools and objected to the nationwide expansion of private school choice.
Artificial Intelligence
President Trump named DNI Jay Clayton as White House AI czar, keeping both jobs. A Super Intelligence Force has 120 days to report on risks and opportunities and is charged with preventing overregulation and regulatory capture. Trump rejected an AI pause, writing that the only guardrails needed are a strong president, and told the UN he rejects any globalist scheme to control the technology. Clayton called superintelligence a national security issue and questioned what a pause would mean while other countries keep building. The Next Web reported that the Super Intelligence Force has no statutory authority, no budget, and no place in government.
Sources
When Peace Hits Hormuz, Oil Could Hit $200
I think that oil prices could go to $200 a barrel.
Russia Denies Irkutsk Lab Accident as Precautions and Gaps Persist
Right now we have a serious unexplained death, contradictory reporting, extraordinary precautions, and an official denial that has not been independently auditable.
Source | Submitted by randy45
Europe Sleepwalks Into Another Energy Crisis, Turns Back to Coal
Europe awakened to realize that it had sleepwalked into yet another energy crisis – its third in just four years.
French Police Commander Beaten Unconscious by ‘Wild Horde’ as School Riots Escalate
A French police commander in his sixties was chased, knocked down and kicked in the head until he blacked out outside a Belfort high school on Friday morning.
Treasury Unveils Rules for First Nationwide School Choice Tax Credit Program
“Thirty states have already opted in, and we encourage all 50 states to participate so every American student and family can benefit,” Bessent said.
Trump Taps DNI Clayton as Super Intelligence Czar, Rejecting Pause and Overregulation
The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a strong and smart (high IQ!) president, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!
Mysterious FDA Firing of mRNA Skeptic Clears Path for Flu Shot and Pharma Wins
One has to wonder, is it approved based on the data or do they just know the right people?
Why CDC Flu Vaccine Effectiveness Estimates Can’t Be Trusted
We Cannot Trust the CDC Estimates of Flu Vaccine Effectiveness
Something Rotten in the State of Yields
Something seemed rotten this week, with Thursday’s price action in all 3 of those markets triggering the need to focus on this more.
Yemen Leader Orders All-Out Offensive on Iran-Backed Houthis to Reclaim the Coast and Strait
All state military, security and civil institutions as of this moment are mobilized and on high alert until the mission is completed and victory is achieved
Zelensky Vows More Russian Refinery Strikes as G7 Dumps Emergency Fuel Stocks
With their attacks on our energy, we have to respond on their energy. First of all, oil refiners, etc.: what gives money to them for this war.
The Illusion of Freedom: Experiments That Reveal How We’re Influenced Without Consent
So if you think you’re free, you’re not necessarily free.
Aramco CEO: Two Years to Rebuild Oil Stocks as War Squeeze Lingers
Even then, replenishing inventories while meeting demand could take up to two years
In addition to sources submitted by community members, the following were also used in the creation of this report: Reuters, CNBC, The Moscow Times, CNEWS, Wisconsin Examiner, The Next Web, Al Mayadeen, and RT.
by rodster 
