'Beyond this damage lies something more insidious'

'Javier Milei has been a disaster for Argentina'

Juan Grabois at Newsweek

Argentinian President Javier Milei "boasts of an economic miracle: a record fiscal surplus, a stronger currency, and surging market optimism," says Juan Grabois. But "behind these numbers lies a brutal truth." Milei is "tearing apart Argentina's social fabric and democratic institutions, leaving millions in deepening poverty and despair." The "government's much-celebrated fiscal achievements are funded by gutting institutions meant to sustain human life." Argentina is "not yet lost. But its democracy is in grave danger."

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'Should we worry about American women having fewer kids?'

The Chicago Tribune editorial board

Americans are "having fewer children, and the birth rate has dropped to historic lows," says the Chicago Tribune editorial board. Declining "fertility rates certainly have broader implications for the U.S." But "one of the biggest — and most misunderstood — factors in this debate is that it's become prohibitively expensive to start a family." As "policymakers try to gin up another baby boom, they should ask themselves: Are the conditions right for women to want to have more kids?"

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'Trump's hypothetical Alcatraz plan is scary. This very real criminal justice move is scarier.'

Chesa Boudin and Kenneth E. Hartman at the San Francisco Chronicle

As "absurd as his Alcatraz idea sounds, no Trump proclamation is too outlandish to ignore," say Chesa Boudin and Kenneth E. Hartman. But "those concerned with Trump's plans" should "devote their most robust scrutiny to a different criminal justice effort." The DOJ "quietly terminated all funds for an effort to stop prison rape by defunding the national Prison Rape Elimination Act Resource Center." For "men and women, the reported numbers represent only a fraction of the actual sexual violence."

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'A massive shared military deal may be Europe's future'

Elisabeth Braw at Foreign Policy

Sweden, Norway and Lithuania will "team up to buy hundreds of soon-to-be-manufactured CV90 combat vehicles," says Elisabeth Braw. These "kinds of deals are very difficult to execute," but these nations "may be about to set a new standard." Governments "faced with the immediate threat of Russia no longer have the luxury of insisting on a transport plane, helicopter, or infantry fighting vehicle that is perfectly suited to their preferences." Countries "also need maximum bang for their defense buck."

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