Law & Politicking Worldwide

Critics on the left and right make a living on selling “American Decline.” It is designed to scare you. They want you to click. America is not without faults, but it is not in decline.  This episode dives into the data that proves it, and also explains why it's important to rebut this fear-mongering. 

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Beware of the Bitcoin Whale.  There are 86 wallets that make up approximately 14% of existing bitcoins, with a market value of approximately $130 billion (as of this episode's airing).  Host Sebastian Stone explains why this number is misleading, however.  It does not account for inactive accounts or lost coins, which make up a surprising (and growing) percentage of the bitcoin market.

Accordingly, Bitcoin Whales have significant market share and power over bitcoin and how it is traded. With little to no oversight in any jurisdiction, they could exercise this power in potentially nefarious ways. The risk that Bitcoin Whales decide to dump their coins may be remote, but it exists. There is nothing currently stopping these dominant market participants from unduly influencing bitcoin markets.

This episode explores these inherent risks, including the elaborate pump-and-dump schemes that Bitcoin Whales could try to execute.  It also dives into the deterrents currently in place and how regulators and prosecutors around the world might think about addressing the risks. Until they do, it's buyer beware. 

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COVID-19 anti-vaxxers and skeptics alike have their (not so good) reasons for opposing or questioning vaccines. The speed at which certain vaccines were developed though should definitely not be one of them. In Walter Isaacson’s recent book, The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race, he details in part how research on vaccines used to fight COVID-19 were years in the making. The book, which had been recommended on this reading list, also covers a number of other fascinating topics, including designer babies and of course, the story of the gene editing star herself, Jennifer Doudna. What I appreciated most though was Isaacson’s telling of how we were prepared to fast-track a COVID-19 vaccine because of significant research that had recently been done on the molecular superstar, RNA.

This podcast episode details why humanity was well-prepared to develop the two main RNA vaccines (Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech) that have protected so many of us against COVID-19. Host Sebastian Stone gives scientific context and background into RNA, and the research that scientists like Jennifer Doudna published in the decade prior to the pandemic. He also discusses the implications for the future of biotechnology and what it means for humanity at large, including why any advances require a thoughtful framework. Otherwise, gene editing technology could lead to uncontrolled and negative outcomes, such as increased inequality and modern day Frankensteins.  

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As China’s economic troubles mount, it will be incentivized to engage in more geopolitical aggression, with Taiwan at greater risk than ever. This episode analyzes China's recently economic woes, particularly in its real estate sector with firms like Evergrande risking default. It then focuses on how China might exert its power and influence in other ways to compensate for economic issues.

China makes no secrets about its desires to "reunify" Taiwan. It has had Taiwan in its crosshairs for some time. With its economic troubles mounting, Taiwan is at more risk than ever.

This episode examines the complex history between these two countries, the foreign policy purgatory Taiwan finds itself in, and why it's at greater risk today than ever before.

Be sure to subscribe to the weekly newsletter that recently featured this topic on China. You can also find similar content that speaks truth to power and celebrates culture at polispandit.com and on host Sebastian Stone's Medium page.  If you are not a current Medium subscriber, you can sign up here.  

The U.S. embargo against Cuba is not the problem or cause of recent protests. Cubans want freedom. The latest rounds of protests are not solely about recent food shortages, inadequate medical supplies, or the country’s pandemic mismanagement. The protests are deep-rooted, following decades of many Cubans living on a few dollars per month with food quotas, barren grocery stores, and rolling blackouts. That is in addition to the communist government’s many documented human rights abuses and infringements on civil liberties. When young Cubans recently organized online, internet service went dark for hours.

In this episode, Sebastian Stone not only describes the current state of the protests, but also puts them into historical context. With a brief history of Cuba and the Castro-led revolution, listeners have context for the current issues plaguing Cubans. Unfortunately, history repeats itself. 

After assessing this history and the evolution of American foreign policy toward Cuba, Stone argues that the Cuban communist regime must first end its autocracy before the U.S. lifts its embargo. Otherwise the U.S. has little leverage to address human rights abuses. The Cuban people depend on the embargo for their future freedom and prosperity.

For more, check out Stone's article, An Embargo for Cuban Freedom.  For more about Sebastian Stone, head over to his portfolio site.   

Please leave comments and let us know your thoughts.  

What really happened on July 7th when President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated in his home? How was it that a group of twenty plus foreign mercenaries (mostly Colombian) were able to breach the presidential compound virtually unscathed, despite multiple security checkpoints and a team of bodyguards? 

In this episode, host Sebastian Stone attempts to cut through the spin, putting the latest crisis in Haiti in historical context, including who might have had the motive to assassinate the sitting President.  While there are still more questions than answers, Stone breaks down President Moïse's many enemies, and how they came to be. 

This gruesome assassination in Haiti has left a country under siege.  It has also created difficult political dilemmas and questions for the international community.  Should Haiti be left to handle this matter domestically?  What happens if it spirals into a refugee crisis and the situation grows more unstable? 

Stone attempts to answer these tough questions and more, using history and the current political climate as a guide.  He also analyzes the current competing claims for political power in the vacuum left by the assassinated President.  It is an action-packed episode you won't want to miss.  

For the related article, please see Assassination In Haiti. 

Below are links to certain videos referenced in the episode:

- Assassins claim to be agents from the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

- Jimmy Cherizier (aka "Barbecue") warns that he is launching a revolution against Haiti's business and political elites a few days prior to the assassination of President Moïse