Odds and Ends — 18 August 2026
Published on HivePostify by @preparedwombat · Tue Aug 18 2026
Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, AI, and Debt:
South Korea moves to block Polymarket over gambling concerns
Bitpanda Hit With Europe's First Published MiCA Penalty in Austria
Coronavirus and Public Health:
Measles Cases Are Reaching Record Highs in America >The U.S. recently reached a grim milestone: As of July 23, more measles cases have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention than in any year since 1991. It took less than seven months to blow past the three-decade high recorded last year. >This potentially deadly disease is easily prevented. Shots are widely available and, in many cases, free. Still, since the beginning of last year, more than 4,850 people here have been infected, and three have died. Among them were two unvaccinated girls in West Texas whose deaths made national headlines. > The U.S. recently reached a grim milestone: As of July 23, more measles cases have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention than in any year since 1991. It took less than seven months to blow past the three-decade high recorded last year,” ProPublica reports. >This potentially deadly disease is easily prevented. Shots are widely available and, in many cases, free. Still, since the beginning of last year, more than 4,850 people here have been infected, and three have died. Among them were two unvaccinated girls in West Texas whose deaths made national headlines.
Iran:
https://x.com/RonFilipkowski/status/2089490729634566313 https://x.com/NickAnderson/status/2089452304454005177
Trump posts map labeling Strait of Hormuz 'new’ US territory
https://x.com/EuanMacDonald/status/2089433220882292934
https://x.com/SethAbramson/status/2089418172520702257
https://x.com/RonFilipkowski/status/2089683037982278111
Politics:
https://x.com/BillKristol/status/2089320776302236021
https://x.com/RadioFreeTom/status/2089177739219619896 https://x.com/covie93/status/2089345674110173245 https://x.com/Strandjunker/status/2089356233618694155
https://x.com/atrupar/status/2089419411543482762
https://x.com/kyledcheney/status/2089345085481627733
———— Natalie Harp ————
https://x.com/mpfreeman1950/status/2089381946459656667 https://x.com/TBlountNews/status/2089482143948767586 https://x.com/ChugALugg/status/2089523123888484578
https://x.com/katierogers/status/2089462291985023257
https://x.com/CameronCorduroy/status/2089491239376740457
https://x.com/TimInHonolulu/status/2089476048497016931
https://x.com/RonFilipkowski/status/2089495008218866004
https://x.com/RonFilipkowski/status/2089510477608984689
———— Stark. Raving. Mad. ————
———— None Dare Call It Treason ————
https://x.com/ruthbenghiat/status/2089487934021906806
———— The Panopticon ————
https://x.com/mpfreeman1950/status/2089415575596343620
———— Autocracy R Us ————
https://x.com/LarrySabato/status/2089474699549942044
https://x.com/SundaeDivine/status/2089075238923292702
———— Putin&Krasnov vs. Ukraine ————
https://x.com/BohuslavskaKate/status/2089106153988899118
https://x.com/rshereme/status/2089120519861784673
Russia Jails Politician for Criticizing War in Ukraine >A Russian court sentenced an opposition politician to 11 years and one month in a penal colony for speaking against President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, the latest anti-war figure to be jailed in a broader crackdown on dissent. >Lev Shlosberg, a deputy chairman of the liberal Yabloko party, received the sentence on Monday after being convicted under Russia’s laws against disseminating false information and discrediting the military.
Trump Has Opened the Door for Putin to Move On NATO >…Donald Trump is providing Russian President Vladimir Putin a window of opportunity to break apart NATO, analysts fear, even as the Kremlin searches for an elusive path to victory in its grinding war of attrition against Ukraine. >American actions are accumulating into an existential crisis for the alliance. Trump and members of his administration continue to openly signal their contempt for allies and unwillingness to defend Europe, as the U.S. becomes bogged down in a costly war against Iran with no apparent exit. Putin may be emboldened by the increasingly strained relationship between NATO and its most important member nation. >Intelligence reports from multiple countries have long warned that Russia may be ready to widen the Ukraine war into a direct test of NATO’s resolve.
———— Oman ————
https://x.com/acnewsitics/status/2089467750213427422 https://x.com/RadioFreeTom/status/2089454819132026966 https://x.com/SethAbramson/status/2089524540082659689
———— Hegseth on the Rocks ————
https://x.com/BohuslavskaKate/status/2089117470992851291
———— Mors Imperii ————
https://x.com/RepJackKimble/status/2089005034109296947
https://x.com/facetedcarapace/status/2089324767631294487
Badge thanks to @arcange
new US territory map source
opposing the ballroom source
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Tags: #oddsandends#covidandpublichealth#iran#politics#autocracy