Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Peter S. Goodman @petersgoodman.bsky.social · Jan 27

Before Trump turned his focus there, Colombia was quietly emerging as a destination for companies shifting factory production out of China. My story from Colombia www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/b...

Trump’s Colombia Tariff Threat Startled Companies Trying to Rely Less on China

By declaring he’d put tariffs on goods from the South American country, the president imperiled a growing influx of foreign investment there.

www.nytimes.com

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ScienceGuide @scienceguide.bsky.social · Jan 31

De minister heeft geen extra geld voor het screenen van masterstudenten en onderzoekers die werken met gevoelige technologie. Wel biedt de Wet Internationalisering in Balans enige verlichting, doordat er minder internationale studenten naar Nederland komen, aldus de minister in debat met de Kamer.

Geen extra geld, wel meer administratieve last rondom kennisveiligheid - ScienceGuide

De minister van OCW heeft geen extra geld voor het screenen van maximaal 10.000 masterstudenten en onderzoekers die in aanraking komen met sensitieve technologie.

www.scienceguide.nl

1 1 1

Sander Tordoir @sandertordoir.bsky.social · Jan 31

Hope that Mexico and Canada call the bluff.

US tariffs (on what US legal basis?) on its closest trading partners, whose economies are deeply interwoven with American supply chains, will hurt US firms and consumers badly.

It does not seem like a credible threat.

@johnspringford.bsky.social ?

8 4 45

Sander Tordoir @sandertordoir.bsky.social · Feb 19

New paper with CER's brilliant climate/energy expert. @elisabettaco.bsky.social

The EU will now negotiate its clean industrial deal. We sketch out how promising EU clean tech is and how to do industrial policy well to make the most of it.

Vital now the US is ceding the space to China.

Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · Feb 19

The EU should revamp its industrial policy for clean technologies not to cede its advantages in clean tech manufacturing to China as Trump's America backtracks from decarbonisation goals.

New CER policy brief by @sandertordoir.bsky.social & @elisabettaco.bsky.social

Read here: buff.ly/3QoalFM

1 10 31

Prof. Deepak Malhotra @deepakmalhotra.bsky.social · Feb 27

My latest post: “Trump is Weaker Than You Think—Unless He Convinces You Otherwise.” The article puts recent events into perspective, evaluates how serious a threat we're actually facing, and explains what we need to do about it. Read/share if inclined.

www.linkedin.com/pulse/donald...

Donald Trump is Weaker Than You Think—Unless He Convinces You Otherwise

Politics is fundamentally about power—but power itself is often more about perception than reality. Not since the Wizard of Oz has someone leveraged this simple truth more effectively than Donald Trum...

www.linkedin.com

1 6

ScienceGuide @scienceguide.bsky.social · Mar 31

"De afspraken in het bestuursakkoord zijn in beginsel bindend voor alle partijen, maar dat betekent niet dat er sprake is geweest van een intentie om juridisch afdwingbare afspraken te maken." Zo luidt de verdedigingslinie van de minister, in aanloop naar de derde termijn in de Eerste Kamer.

Bruins blijft erbij: de bezuinigingen zijn rechtmatig - ScienceGuide

In zijn antwoorden licht de minister de juridische onderbouwing, de gemaakte keuzes en de gevolgen van de bezuiniging toe. Tijdens de behandeling van de onderwijsbegroting vorige week ontstond in de E...

www.scienceguide.nl

3

Peterson Institute for International Economics @piie.com · Apr 8

The Trump admin is under pressure to constrict or eliminate the largest pipeline for lawful immigration for high-skilled, university-educated workers, Optional Practical Training (OPT). It would cause permanent losses to US innovation, productivity, growth, & job opportunities for native workers.

Skilled immigration on the chopping block? Effects of eliminating "Optional Practical Training" in the US

The White House has taken numerous steps to sharply reduce the number of immigrant workers, with or without legal status, in the US economy. These policies, so far, typically target immigrants with le...

www.piie.com

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EU Institute for Security Studies @euiss.bsky.social · Apr 14

Trump’s #tariffs are just the latest blow. Europe’s industrial base is under siege from Moscow, Beijing & now Washington. To defend itself, the EU must reindustrialise. Economic & national security are at stake, warns @joristeer.bsky.social.

➡️ Read: iss.europa.eu/publications...

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Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Jun 4

Iemand die weet waarom het in Nederland vijf maanden moet duren om verkiezingen te organiseren als de Fransen het binnen een maand kunnen en de Engelsen ook binnen een week of zes?

#verkiezingen #TweedeKamer
#Kiesraad
#improvisatievermogen

www.kiesraad.nl/actueel/nieu...

Advies Kiesraad: woensdag 29 oktober eerste reële optie voor Tweede Kamerverkiezing

Minister-president Schoof heeft op 3 juni het ontslag van het kabinet aangeboden aan Zijne Majesteit de Koning. Er volgt een vervroegde Tweede Kamerverkiezing. De Kiesraad adviseert het kabinet over e...

www.kiesraad.nl

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Apr 14

Interesting analysis by @joristeer.bsky.social . Some of the examples can rely on strengthening and expanding the current industrial base. However, in many industries, it is an issue of redeveloping the ability to produce at mass scale, against affordable cost, and error-free. Tough process.

EU Institute for Security Studies @euiss.bsky.social · Apr 14

Trump’s #tariffs are just the latest blow. Europe’s industrial base is under siege from Moscow, Beijing & now Washington. To defend itself, the EU must reindustrialise. Economic & national security are at stake, warns @joristeer.bsky.social.

➡️ Read: iss.europa.eu/publications...

2

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Apr 8

Eliminating or restricting OPT would not only be a massive blow to the ability of the US to continue attracting the world's top STEM talent, but also wipe out many graduate programs at universities that already have come under enormous financial pressure.

Peterson Institute for International Economics @piie.com · Apr 8

The Trump admin is under pressure to constrict or eliminate the largest pipeline for lawful immigration for high-skilled, university-educated workers, Optional Practical Training (OPT). It would cause permanent losses to US innovation, productivity, growth, & job opportunities for native workers.

Skilled immigration on the chopping block? Effects of eliminating "Optional Practical Training" in the US

The White House has taken numerous steps to sharply reduce the number of immigrant workers, with or without legal status, in the US economy. These policies, so far, typically target immigrants with le...

www.piie.com

1

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Apr 8

Is Michel Barnier niet weer beschikbaar? @rikrutten.bsky.social

www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Apr 1

"Bindend voor alle partijen maar niet juridisch afdwingbaar". De goed-bestuur en betrouwbare-overheid club van @omtzigt.bsky.social laat zich opnieuw van zijn beste kant zien.

ScienceGuide @scienceguide.bsky.social · Mar 31

"De afspraken in het bestuursakkoord zijn in beginsel bindend voor alle partijen, maar dat betekent niet dat er sprake is geweest van een intentie om juridisch afdwingbare afspraken te maken." Zo luidt de verdedigingslinie van de minister, in aanloop naar de derde termijn in de Eerste Kamer.

Bruins blijft erbij: de bezuinigingen zijn rechtmatig - ScienceGuide

In zijn antwoorden licht de minister de juridische onderbouwing, de gemaakte keuzes en de gevolgen van de bezuiniging toe. Tijdens de behandeling van de onderwijsbegroting vorige week ontstond in de E...

www.scienceguide.nl

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Mar 28

Seems the US Government is now also getting into auto companies' pricing decisions. Waiting for the first executive order on pricing (or was there already one on eggs?)

www.wsj.com/business/aut...

2

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Mar 24

Blijkbaar hebben ze meer vertrouwen in de Zweedse wetgeving en bedrijfsvoering

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Mar 15

Op zich wel handig dat ie de lijn stopzet nu er ook enorme tarieven op datzelfde staal worden gezet 🤷

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Mar 2

Welcome! I did the same move a few weeks ago after a similar hibernation period

1

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Mar 2

The Boston ducklings are still in wide support of #Ukraine this morning

1

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 27

Interesting analysis of Trump's character and concrete advice on how to deal with this.

Prof. Deepak Malhotra @deepakmalhotra.bsky.social · Feb 27

My latest post: “Trump is Weaker Than You Think—Unless He Convinces You Otherwise.” The article puts recent events into perspective, evaluates how serious a threat we're actually facing, and explains what we need to do about it. Read/share if inclined.

www.linkedin.com/pulse/donald...

Donald Trump is Weaker Than You Think—Unless He Convinces You Otherwise

Politics is fundamentally about power—but power itself is often more about perception than reality. Not since the Wizard of Oz has someone leveraged this simple truth more effectively than Donald Trum...

www.linkedin.com

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 26

Amid the massive unrest at the global stage, my morning view from the office still remains spectacular. #TilburgUniversity #TiSEM @tilburg-university.bsky.social

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 19

Here we go.

#tariffs #prices #inflation

wccftech.com/acer-becomes...

Acer Becomes The First Manufacturer To Announce 10% Price Increase On Consumer Products Amid Trump Tariffs; ASUS, HP & Dell To Likely Follow

Acer has become one of the first hardware manufacturers to show the influence of Trump tariffs on consumer product pricing.

wccftech.com

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 19

The key skill that Europe lost over the past two decades is to industrialize the manufacturing of new technologies. Northvolt is a sad example.

"EU programs are geared towards the early stages of tech development – not to deployment. There is a dearth of support for the manufacturing stage."

Sander Tordoir @sandertordoir.bsky.social · Feb 19

New paper with CER's brilliant climate/energy expert. @elisabettaco.bsky.social

The EU will now negotiate its clean industrial deal. We sketch out how promising EU clean tech is and how to do industrial policy well to make the most of it.

Vital now the US is ceding the space to China.

Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · Feb 19

The EU should revamp its industrial policy for clean technologies not to cede its advantages in clean tech manufacturing to China as Trump's America backtracks from decarbonisation goals.

New CER policy brief by @sandertordoir.bsky.social & @elisabettaco.bsky.social

Read here: buff.ly/3QoalFM

2 7

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 12

Trump's deportations of immigrants working on dairy farms become a significant contribution to fighting climate change #emissions #secondordereffect #unintendedconsequences

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 11

Curious how many Google lawyers have been spending time on this piece of text

#GulfofMexico #GulfofAmerica

blog.google/products/map...

Gulf of America name change in the U.S. — what you’ll see in Maps

In the U.S., the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has officially updated “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America.” As we announced two weeks ago and consistent wi…

blog.google

Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · Feb 9

any economists here that can help me understand why the world's richest man might want to kill the consumer financial protection bureau

75 260 1.7K

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Feb 7

Studenteninstroom daalt en hogescholen verlagen kwaliteitseisen.

"Hogescholen versoepelen bindend studieadvies: 'Minder streng bij valse start' "- nos.nl/l/2554880

Hogescholen versoepelen bindend studieadvies: 'Minder streng bij valse start'

Veel hogescholen vinden dat een "valse start" van eerstejaars studenten niet keihard moet worden afgestraft.

nos.nl

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Jan 31

Witnessing these and other insane tariff threats, indeed calling the bluff would be the best strategy for every single country faced by US tariff threats.

Sander Tordoir @sandertordoir.bsky.social · Jan 31

Hope that Mexico and Canada call the bluff.

US tariffs (on what US legal basis?) on its closest trading partners, whose economies are deeply interwoven with American supply chains, will hurt US firms and consumers badly.

It does not seem like a credible threat.

@johnspringford.bsky.social ?

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Jan 31

Het is wel handig dat die wet echt een duizend-dingen-doekje is. Ik vermoed dat hij ook zal helpen om de files te verminderen en de stikstofuitstoot omlaag te brengen.

#WIB #Internationalisering @universiteitennl.bsky.social @tilburg-university.bsky.social @minocw.bsky.social

ScienceGuide @scienceguide.bsky.social · Jan 31

De minister heeft geen extra geld voor het screenen van masterstudenten en onderzoekers die werken met gevoelige technologie. Wel biedt de Wet Internationalisering in Balans enige verlichting, doordat er minder internationale studenten naar Nederland komen, aldus de minister in debat met de Kamer.

Geen extra geld, wel meer administratieve last rondom kennisveiligheid - ScienceGuide

De minister van OCW heeft geen extra geld voor het screenen van maximaal 10.000 masterstudenten en onderzoekers die in aanraking komen met sensitieve technologie.

www.scienceguide.nl

Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Jan 29

It is truly remarkable that a company that has violated the copyright of millions of authors to train its models claiming now accuses a new competitor of stealing its IP.

"#OpenAI says it has evidence China’s #DeepSeek used its model to train competitor" - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT

OpenAI says it has evidence China’s DeepSeek used its model to train competitor

White House AI tsar David Sacks raises possibility of alleged intellectual property theft

giftarticle.ft.com

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Jan Fransoo @proflog.bsky.social · Jan 29

Now that Trump starts using short-term #tariff threats demanding investments that may take 10+ years to render any returns, it is better for the rest of the world to simply sit back, relax and wait for this storm to settle by not responding at all to any such threats. #supplychains