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Albert Pinto @70sbachchan.bsky.social · Aug 2

In the US AI buildout is so gigantic; contrib. more to US growth than consumer spending in 2025!

China's green boom is so gigantic that Clean-energy contributed more than 10% of China's WHOLE ECONOMIC GDP in 2024 for the first time ever
energyandcleanair.org/analysis-cle...
bsky.app/profile/70sb...

Albert Pinto @70sbachchan.bsky.social · Jul 14

Workers tend to herbs grown beneath solar panels in a photovoltaic plantation in Lihua, Lianyungang, Jiangsu.

An aerial view shows residential buildings with roof-mounted photovoltaic-solar panels in Yinchuan,

Great photos of China's record smashing solar boom
www.theatlantic.com/photography/...

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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 15h

i desperately want everyone involved in the destruction of USAID to have to, st the very least, answer to the american people for the suffering and misery they have caused apnews.com/article/myan...

Starving children screaming for food as US aid cuts unleash devastation and death across Myanmar

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said “no one has died" because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program.

apnews.com

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Maia @maiamindel.bsky.social · 1d

British neoliberalism of the 70s and 80s was obsessed with Singapore, a technocratic autocracy of free trade and deregulation. Of course that would evolve to Dubai, an even more autocratic technocracy with even freer trade and no safety net beyond indentured migrant servants for the very rich

BeijingPalmer @beijingpalmer.bsky.social · 1d

it's weird to me how much Gulf states seem to dominate the imagination of the UK right at the moment. I assume it's largely about who's giving them money, but I also think "Dubai expat" is a common social type in their circles.

Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 1d

I was on a panel at Conservative conference today where the UAE model was seriously proposed as a direction to take Britain’s immigration system.

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · 9h

A massive scoop by @occrp.org about personal luxury spending of the Barzani family in the US. Reporting shows them using a combined $28m from Golden Eagle Global and Ster Group, which are connected with senior KDP leaders, to finance lavish purchases.
www.occrp.org/en/investiga...

Mansions, Horses, and Designer Bags: How the Ruling Family of Iraqi Kurdistan Splurged in the U.S.

The five sons of Iraqi Kurdistan’s founding president acquired real estate across the United States and went on luxury shopping sprees. At least some of the money came from major Kurdish conglomerates...

www.occrp.org

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · 14h

That looks great. Thanks!

Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · 17h

Anyone know a good political history book of the PRI in #Mexico?

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Reuters @reuters.com · 1d

Two revolutionary guards killed in attack in western Iran, state media say reut.rs/3KBubxy

Two revolutionary guards killed in attack in western Iran, state media say

Two security personnel from Iran's Revolutionary Guards were killed in what state media said was "an anti-revolutionary attack" in the western district of Sarvabad on Tuesday.

reut.rs

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The New Arab @thenewarab.bsky.social · 1d

Iraq has retrieved over 40,000 stolen artefacts smuggled abroad since 2003, in a major effort to reclaim its looted cultural heritage ⬇️

Iraq recovers over 40,000 stolen artefacts taken since 2003

Iraq has retrieved over 40,000 stolen artefacts smuggled abroad since 2003, in a major effort to reclaim its looted cultural heritage.

www.newarab.com

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The Amargi @theamargi.bsky.social · 4d

Kurdish studies is no longer an academic field in exile.
From Sulaimani to Exeter, a new generation of scholars is bringing it home to Kurdistan itself.
Full story by @wrodgers2.bsky.social in the comment.

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · 14d

Electric cars were a punchline in Iraq's Kurdistan Region a few years ago. Thanks to Chinese companies, that’s not the case anymore with plug-in hybrids leading the way. It's a story of global market dynamics meeting changing local conditions.
foreignpolicy.com/2025/09/23/i...

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Cengiz Yar @cengizyar.com · 15d

"Chinese automakers are likely to supply most of the new EVs. It is a consequence not only of Beijing’s growing soft power in Kurdistan—long a bastion of U.S. influence—but also of China’s ascent as a major automobile manufacturer in developing markets worldwide." @wrodgers2.bsky.social

Iraqi Kurdistan’s EV Revolution

Electric cars were a punchline here just a few years ago. Thanks to Chinese companies, that’s not the case anymore.

foreignpolicy.com

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · 15d

NEW from me for @foreignpolicy.com: Electric cars were a punchline here just a few years ago. Thanks to Chinese companies, that’s not the case anymore with plug-in hybrids leading the way.

A story of global market dynamics meeting changing local conditions.

foreignpolicy.com/2025/09/23/i...

Iraqi Kurdistan’s EV Revolution

Electric cars were a punchline here just a few years ago. Thanks to Chinese companies, that’s not the case anymore.

foreignpolicy.com

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Kerry Dolan @kerrydolan.bsky.social · Sep 5

How to drive away foreign investment in the U.S.:
www.forbes.com/sites/siladi...

South Korea Raises Concern After U.S. Immigration Raid At Hyundai EV Battery Plant In Georgia

U.S. immigration authorities detained around 450 people from a Hyundai EV battery plant in Georgia, including more than 300 South Korean nationals.

www.forbes.com

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Aug 26

When voters in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region cast their ballots last October, a major question was how quickly the lawmakers they elected would form a government. More than ten months later, the prospect of a new KRG cabinet seems as remote as ever.

Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Aug 26

Since the 2018 regional elections, the Kurdistan Region has had more days where the legislative & executive branches either did not function or operated in a caretaker capacity—more than 1,300—than in ordinary government—1,215.

NEW from me in @thenewarab.bsky.social: www.newarab.com/analysis/why...

Why forming a government in Iraqi Kurdistan is so difficult

Ten months after the elections, the prospect of a new government in Iraqi Kurdistan seems as remote as ever, pointing to a deeper institutional malaise

www.newarab.com

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Aug 18

NEW from me in @thenewarab.bsky.social: “Business is booming for solar” in the sunny climate of Iraq's Kurdistan Region. Residents & businesses are looking for reliable power supply & lower bills. Upfront costs are lower these days with affordable systems from China.
www.newarab.com/features/sol...

Solar power rising and energy shift in Kurdistan

As summer heat intensifies in the KRI, many businesses and households are investing in solar power to reduce reliance on costly and polluting diesel generators

www.newarab.com

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Inkstick Media @inkstickmedia.com · Aug 5

The United States once supported groups clearing the life-threatening mines dotting Iraq. The Trump administration has changed that.

By: @wrodgers2.bsky.social

US Aid Cuts Put the Future of Iraq's Demining Efforts at Risk

The United States once supported groups clearing the life-threatening mines dotting Iraq. The Trump administration has changed all that.

inkstickmedia.com

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Aug 5

NEW from me for @inkstickmedia.com: 60% of funding for clearing landmines and leftover IEDs in Iraq came from the US, but this was eliminated by the Trump administration's foreign aid cuts. Now deminers are out of work and their communities still at risk.
inkstickmedia.com/us-aid-cuts-...

US Aid Cuts Put the Future of Iraq's Demining Efforts at Risk

The United States once supported groups clearing the life-threatening mines dotting Iraq. The Trump administration has changed all that.

inkstickmedia.com

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NPR @npr.org · Jul 6

NPR's Gaza producer faced Israeli military fire, private U.S. contractors pointing laser beams at his forehead and masked thieves as he tried to get food from a U.S.-supported group.

By Anas Baba

Knives, bullets and thieves: the quest for food in Gaza

NPR's Gaza producer faced Israeli military fire, private U.S. contractors pointing laser beams at his forehead and masked thieves as he tried to get food from a U.S.-supported group.

n.pr

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jul 3

In Iraq, Mosul’s Women Find Freedom in Female-Only Transport
www.themiddleeastuncovered.com/p/in-iraq-mo...

In Iraq, Mosul’s Women Find Freedom in Female-Only Transport

After the end of ISIS rule, a groundbreaking taxi service is giving Mosul’s women new freedom on the road and beyond.

www.themiddleeastuncovered.com

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Local Observer🇮🇶🇵🇸🍉 @observer46664.bsky.social · Jun 26

The Iraqi government still hasn't sent the 2025 federal budget schedules to parliament for approval. It's almost July.
This year is a parliamentary elections year in Iraq, so anything goes really.

Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jun 26

Members of the Kurdish diaspora held a protest in Glasgow and other cities in the UK today in solidarity with the public servants who tried to hold a demonstration today in Sulaimani.

Salaries are not just an economic issue but “a matter of respect and dignity,” one speaker said.

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jun 26

It was organized by Dakok, a civil society group founded in 2022.

Some other signs read:

“No Salaries, No Pensions
The Iraqi government and the KRG are failing us.”

“A nation without teachers is a nation without a future”

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jun 26

Members of the Kurdish diaspora held a protest in Glasgow and other cities in the UK today in solidarity with the public servants who tried to hold a demonstration today in Sulaimani.

Salaries are not just an economic issue but “a matter of respect and dignity,” one speaker said.

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jun 26

NEW from me for @thenewarab.bsky.social: Tensions between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government are soaring over oil, gas, and the budget, providing ample campaign fodder for upcoming elections.

www.newarab.com/analysis/ira...

As Iraq enters election season, Baghdad-Erbil tensions soar

Tensions between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government are soaring over oil, gas, and the budget, providing ample campaign fodder for upcoming elections

www.newarab.com

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Winthrop Rodgers @wrodgers2.bsky.social · Jun 24

Yeah, thumbs up.