News Vérité

Major League Baseball (MLB) just had two days of its annual All-Star festivities a week ago, and now the WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association) is taking a couple of days to do the same. Question: Who other than the players and the media covering them needs this? Answer: I have no idea. The games are usually not at all compelling, and the wraparound events, such as the home-run contest in the MLB and a three-point derby in the WNBA, are as much a product of chance as of talent. The NFL’s Pro Bowl, supposedly an all-star event, is so meaningless that it is routinely opted out of by players. Players chosen to all-star rosters do benefit, as they can argue for more almighty bucks when it comes to contract time. The media can hype the events, plus get all-expenses-paid trips to the host cities to cover the happenings and conduct a zillion interviews. The WNBA regular-season games themselves have become so interesting that it’s a shame to take a break. I didn’t watch one minute of the MLB version, and I won’t be watching a minute of the WNBA charade. Call me an All-Star Scrooge when it comes to these

Oil hit $100 a barrel today, and stock markets tanked. President Trump shouted at aides in a four-letter-word tirade about the situation in Iran. He also levied a new round of unwarranted tariff increases. The president is also brokering a deal with the country where 9/11 was spawned — Saudi Arabia — to give them nuclear power in exchange for their diplomatic recognition of Israel. All in a day’s work for the world’s most powerful person. I wanted to use the word “unhinged” to describe how Trump is going about his business as president, but I thought that might be a slur too far, so I asked AI for a softer version. The result was “untethered.” I’ll go with that. It works fine. I previously wrote about how Trump has become almost drunk with the sense that America is militarily invincible. His overnight — and stunning — success in Venezuela set the stage for Benjamin Netanyahu to convince Trump to carry out an operation in Iran. That operation has, sadly, proven to be mostly unwinnable without a full-scale invasion to depose the IRGC and everyone else in power. We’re left with a Middle East — and a world dependent on

Nicolás Maduro is in court again today for a hearing on drug trafficking charges. No doubt the man and his country made billions in the cocaine trade, but the question remains: Does drug criminalization — and the drug war that goes with it — really work? One country — Portugal — decided 25 years ago to try a different approach to illegal drug use. It took away criminal penalties and erected a strong community support network to help addicts. The results were astounding so long as the government kept the support money faucet open. Budget cuts revealed that perhaps the best answer is a strong support network to help people come clean, along with a police force that refers addicts to the recovery centers to get help. Here’s the story: Portugal: The Myth vs. The Reality Let’s clear something up right away: Portugal did not legalize drugs. This is one of the most persistent misconceptions in drug policy debates. What Portugal actually did in 2001 was far more nuanced—and initially, far more successful—than simple legalization. The country decriminalized personal drug possession, a distinction that matters enormously. Here’s how it works: Under Law 30/2000, which took effect in July 2001, possessing small amounts