Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
-
How the US is emerging from its drugs death epidemic
Tim Mansel Kayla says she became “instantly addicted” to fentanyl as a teenager Kayla first tried fentanyl as a troubled 18-year-old, growing up in the US state of North Carolina. “I felt like literally amazing. The voices in my head just completely went silent. I got instantly addicted,” she remembers. The little blue pills Kayla…
-
Why India’s Diwali gold rush is different this year
Anahita SachdevDelhi and Nikhil InamdarMumbai Getty Images More Indians are choosing buying gold for investment purposes this festive season Ahead of the Hindu festival of Diwali, the jewellery market in Indian capital Delhi’s vibrant Lajpat Nagar neighbourhood is teeming with crowds. Shops have stayed open even on holidays, and at dusk, dozens of cars line…
-
The anti-migrant movement blocking foreigners from healthcare
BBC Operation Dudula has transformed from an anti-migrant pressure group into a political party A community clinic just north of Johannesburg has become the frontline of a battle in South Africa over whether foreigners can access public health facilities. What started as a small local action in one area in 2022 has spread, with activists…
-
Trump commutes George Santos sentence, ordering his prison release
US President Donald Trump has commuted the prison sentence of George Santos, a former Republican Congressman who is serving seven years for fraud and identify theft, and ordered his immediate release. In a post on social media, Trump said Santos “has been horribly mistreated”, adding: “Therefore, I just signed a Commutation, releasing George Santos from…
-
Red Cross retrieves body of dead hostage in Gaza, Israel says
Israel’s military says a coffin of a deceased hostage has been transferred to the Red Cross in the southern Gaza Strip and is now “on the way to IDF [Israel Defence Forces] troops” in the territory. Posting on X, the IDF urged the public to “act with sensitivity and wait for the official identification, which…
-
Polish judge refuses to extradite Nord Stream blasts suspect over ‘just act’
Sarah RainsfordSouthern and Eastern Europe correspondent in Warsaw Omar Marques/Getty Images Volodymyr Zhuravlyov was released after the judge delivered his verdict A Polish judge has refused to extradite a Ukrainian citizen – suspected by Germany of sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September 2022 – arguing that if Ukraine was responsible for the attack,…
-
Putin-Trump call a curveball for Zelensky ahead of White House meeting
News of the phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, in which they agreed to meet in person to discuss the war in Ukraine, will have come as an unwelcome surprise to Kyiv. The country is being hit hard. The last 24 hours alone have seen Russia launch…
-
Death penalty sought for Bangladesh’s fugitive ex-leader
Prosecutors in Bangladesh have demanded that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina be put to death over a deadly crackdown on student-led protests last year that ousted her from power. Hasina, who has fled to India, is on trial for crimes against humanity. According to a leaked audio clip, she ordered security forces to “use lethal…
-
Can Putin’s Flying Kremlin travel to through EU airspace to Budapest?
Paul KirbyEurope digital editor GAVRIIL GRIGOROV/POOL/AFP Putin flew to Alaska in his specially modified Il-96 plane in August The summit has not been set in stone, but if Russia’s Vladimir Putin does go to Budapest to meet US President Trump in the next two weeks, he would need to clear a few hurdles first. When…
-
How would US Tomahawk missiles change the Ukraine-Russia war?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Washington as the US considers whether to arm Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles capable of striking deep into Russia. But how do these weapons differ from the missiles currently being supplied to Ukraine and what impact might they have on the war going forward? The BBC’s Defence Correspondent Jonathan Beale…
Got any book recommendations?