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The Prophet of Trump's Second Term In 2000, columnist Patrick J. Buchanan defeated Donald Trump for the Reform Party nomination. But it was the property developer and television star who, more than a decade later, brought Buchanan's populist views on trade, immigration, and nonintervention into the White House. "The ideas made it, but I didn't," Buchanan told journalist Tim Alberta in 2017. Such are the wages of political prophecy. Click on the image If Buchanan prefigured President Trump's first-term nationalism, another thinker anticipated Trump's second-term war against the administrative state and sweeping revision of American foreign policy: international relations professor Angelo Codevilla. Codevilla died in 2021, but his ideas endure. His core insight, developed in a 2010 essay and in subsequent books and publications, was that a progressive ruling class based on a sense of social superiority had captured government and academia and large parts of the business sector and waged war against ordinary Americans to maintain and expand its power. The result, Codevilla said, was an increasingly oppressive centralized bureaucracy immune to supervision, and an American empire that failed to keep Americans safe. Today's political vocabulary - "ruling class," "administrative state," "Deep State," "cold civil war," "uniparty" - comes from Codevilla's pen. One sees Codevilla's influence everywhere, from Trump's reversal of DEI and affirmative action to DOGE's unspooling of USAID to reductions in the federal workforce to the foreign-policy pivot toward our own hemisphere. Friends and participants in his seminars, such as Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought, State Department director of policy planning Michael Anton, and State Department counselor Michael Needham, serve in the administration. They are busy enacting his critique of America, with unpredictable consequences. Maintaining The Free Press is Expensive!

ARMS Charity Concert - Royal Albert Hall ARMS Concert The idea for hosting the concert was envisaged by Ronnie Lane, ex-bassist for The Small Faces and The Faces, himself a casualty of multiple sclerosis. The concert was billed as The Ronnie Lane Appeal for ARMS and featured a star-studded line-up of British musicians, including Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Steve Winwood, John Paul Jones, Andy Fairweather-Low, Bill Wyman, Kenney Jones and Charlie Watts. The concert was particularly notable in the fact that it was the first occasion on which Clapton, Beck and Page, each a former lead guitarist for The Yardbirds, had performed together on stage. The set list for the ARMS Charity Concert Video was as follows: Eric Clapton Everybody Oughta Make A Change Rita Mae "Lay Down Sally" "Ramblin' On My Mind"/"Have You Ever Loved a Woman" "Cocaine" Steve Winwood with Eric Clapton "Man Smart Woman Smarter" "Roadrunner" "Take Me To The River" "Slowdown Sundown" "Gimme Some Lovin'" Intermission Jeff Beck Star Cycle The Pump "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat"/"Led Boots" "Hi Ho Silver Lining" Jimmy Page Prelude City Sirens (with Steve Winwood) Who's To Blame (with Steve Winwood) "Stairway to Heaven" (Instrumental) All "Tulsa Time" "Layla" "Goodnight Irene" (with Ronnie Lane) The complete show lasted just under three hours and included Wonderful Tonight, Hound Dog, Best That I Can, Wee Wee Baby and Bombers Moon. Clapton, Beck and Page each performed sets, with Andy Fairweather-Low and Steve Winwood also performing songs. Clapton, with Fairweather-Low, Bill Wyman, Chris Stainton, percussionist Ray Cooper, Kenney Jones, James Hooker, Steve Winwood and Fernando Saunders performed a selection of blues and rock numbers. Jeff Beck's set consisted largely of instrumental rock jazz-fusion numbers, though he did (to both the surprise of his fellow musicians, the audience, and indeed, himself!) perform his 1960s hit "Hi Ho Silver Lining". Jimmy Page's set was made up, first, of three numbers taken from the Death Wish II music he had put together for director Michael Winner earlier that year. The set ended with an instrumental version of "Stairway to Heaven", which evoked a great cheer from the audience. Prince Charles and Lady Diana were in attendance seated in the Royal box in the upper level. After Page's set, the entire cast of musicians gathered on stage to perform "Tulsa Time", a blues rock/country number from Clapton's album Backless, and then "Layla". In each number, Clapton, Beck and Page each shared lead guitar duties, and, notably in "Layla", each performed a different, and unique guitar solo. At the concert's end, Ronnie Lane appeared on stage. Expressing thanks not only to the audience, saying that what had been achieved was 'terrific', he also thanked 'all the boys on the stage too', and then led the musicians in a rendition of "Goodnight Irene".

Editorial: Growing Fear: The World Prepares for a Possible War The alarm is sounding loud and clear, echoing through the nations: the world finds itself at a perilous crossroads, where fear and uncertainty have become constant companions. Headlines, once focused on progress and development, now display somber warnings about global tensions, imminent conflicts, and the increasing possibility of a war of catastrophic proportions. This atmosphere of apprehension, which permeates every corner of the planet, demands careful analysis and a responsible response from all of us. Fear, an intrinsic feeling to human experience, assumes a central role in this somber scenario. It is not a baseless fear, but rather an understandable reaction to the escalation of geopolitical tensions, demonstrations of military might, and the bellicose rhetoric emanating from some world leaders. Ordinary citizens, in their homes, at their jobs, and in their communities, feel the weight of uncertainty and the fear of the unknown, while the international community seems hesitant and incapable of finding lasting solutions to the problems that afflict us. The conflict in Ukraine, with its brutality and devastating consequences, serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of peace and the persistence of violence as a means of resolving conflicts. The Russian invasion, without a doubt, not only violated international law and the sovereignty of a country, but also destabilized the global order and reignited the specter of a large-scale war. The suffering of the Ukrainian people, the irreparable human losses, and the scars left by this tragedy demand deep reflection and a renewed commitment to the pursuit of peace. Economic sanctions, inflammatory speeches, and the incessant flow of weapons into the region create a whirlwind of uncertainties that spread far beyond the borders of Ukraine, affecting the economy and stability of several countries. This crisis becomes proof of the interconnectedness of the world, where the actions of one country reverberate globally, affecting everything from the wallet of the common citizen to the geopolitical stability of major powers. The impacts of this war are multiple, complex, and far-reaching, requiring careful analysis and a firm commitment to the search for a peaceful and lasting solution. The conflict in Ukraine, far from being an isolated case, serves as a dark mirror to other latent conflicts around the world. Tensions in East Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and other regions of the globe reveal that instability, distrust, and polarization have become a global reality. The risk that these conflicts will intensify or that new wars may arise is a constant threat, hanging over humanity and reminding us of the importance of a joint effort to preserve peace. In East Asia, China’s growing influence and geopolitical ambitions create an atmosphere of tension and uncertainty. The issue of Taiwan, with its historical complexity and strategic significance, has become a point of friction between major powers. Demonstrations of military might, joint exercises, and bellicose rhetoric from both sides increase the sense of instability and raise the risk of military conflict. Dialogue and diplomacy seem increasingly difficult to maintain amid this growing escalation of tensions. The Middle East, with its religious, ethnic, and political complexities, remains a powder keg waiting for a spark. Sectarian conflicts, disputes over natural resources, the influence of foreign powers, and transnational terrorism combine to create a volatile and unpredictable scenario. Attempts to achieve a lasting peace in the region have been constantly frustrated by the lack of dialogue and the persistence of conflicting interests. The international community needs to become more actively and constructively involved in finding peaceful and sustainable solutions to these conflicts. The increase in military spending, driven by fear of conflict and the arms race, reflects a worrying prioritization of force over diplomacy.

Hell: The mockery of death.. The terrifying moments in Assad's prisons - Syria In a profound tragic blend between narrating the personal experiences of prisoners who suffered the horrors of death and the horror of facing it moment by moment, and a diligent visual evocation of the finest documentary details of the tragedy of pain, torture and the violation of human dignity, this documentary, produced by Orient TV and researched and prepared by (Sasha Al-Alou) and directed by (Abdo Madkhana), presents one of the most accurate documentary experiences to approach the image of hell that the Assad regime wanted to evoke and embody in its prisons over decades, in order to subjugate the Syrian people and destroy human dignity.