Trump’s Epic Stupidity Could Kill Millions of People

Worldwide economic disruption could lead to famine and pestilence. We're going to need a bigger ballroom

Dean Baker in Beat the Press   

Trump is both an incredibly ignorant person and incredibly dishonest person. As a result, when he claims ignorance of an obvious fact it is difficult to tell whether he really is as ignorant as he claims or he’s just lying.

Such is the case with Trump’s claim that he didn’t know Iran might attack its neighbors and close the Strait of Hormuz in response to his joint attack with Israel. Trump insisted that none of the experts thought this possible when in effect just about every expert thought it was both possible and likely.

Given Trump’s ignorance and propensity to lie, it is not easy to know whether Trump actually went to war totally unaware of the most likely consequences, or instead went to war anyhow, deciding that he didn’t care about the damage it would cause. Whatever the real story, the consequences are enormous and sure to get worse as the Strait remains closed longer.

The most immediate and obvious consequence is the higher price for oil and natural gas. People in the United States see this at the gas station every time they fill their tank. Paying a dollar or so more for a gallon of gas is an annoyance for everyone. It is very bad news for low- and moderate-income households, especially those who need a car for work.

But this is just the beginning of the story. Diesel prices are up by close to $2.00 a gallon. Diesel fuel prices have risen by far more than regular gas because there is more limited refining capacity. This means when some refiners lose access to their supply of oil, their production cannot be easily replaced. Also, there is less ability for users to cut back their demand.

Honoring Dear Leader

Waiting for your Trump phone?

What to Know Before You Get Balcony Solar

Balcony solar is poised to take the US by storm. 

By Alison F. Takemura / Canary Media

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The DIY systems, which you can hang on a balcony and plug into a normal 120-volt outlet, help lower energy bills and carbon emissions. Already huge in Germany, solar that’s as easy to install as an appliance would be a game changer for the four out of 10 U.S. households that can’t get rooftop systems for financial or logistical reasons.

In 2025, deep-red Utah became the first state to pass a bill making it easier to adopt plug-in solar systems. So far this year, four more states have all advanced similar measures — and nearly two dozen others are weighing bills of their own.

Considering a balcony power plant yourself? Check our tracker to see the status of plug-in solar legislation in your state, and keep reading for some FAQs on the tech.

What is balcony (or plug-in) solar?

Balcony solar systems are modest in size, ranging from just one to a few solar panels. Most states, including California and New York, are considering capping systems at 1,200 watts — a sixth of the average home-solar installation.

The panels connect to an inverter that converts their direct current into alternating current, the kind our homes use. A plug from the inverter fits into a typical 120-volt outlet (15 or 20 amps), pumping the power of the sun directly into a home’s existing wiring.

The systems can cover a small but meaningful fraction of a home’s electricity use: An 800-watt unit can power the equivalent of a fridge or a few small appliances when the sun’s shining.

Judge quashes Trump DOJ attempt to get children's health records from Rhode Island Hospital

Rhode Island judge turns back Trump attack on trans kids

ACLU of Rhode Island

If they really cared about child welfare, the DOJ would
release the Epstein files

Upholding the privacy rights of vulnerable children, U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy quashed the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) subpoena for the sensitive private medical records of young patients who have received medical treatment for gender dysphoria at Rhode Island Hospital. In doing so, the judge also blasted the DOJ as having been “proven unworthy … at every point in this case” of the trust expected of federal prosecutors, saying they “misrepresented and withheld information” from the court.

The decision comes after an emergency motion was filed last week by attorneys for the Lawyers’ Committee for Rhode Island (LCRI) and the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island (ACLU) on behalf of Rhode Island’s Child Advocate. The DOJ’s request to enforce the subpoena for these records was filed and approved, without opportunity for response, by a judge in Texas, not Rhode Island, all in one day at the end of April. [See: Child Advocate seeks to block federal government subpoena for private medical records of minors]

Another accidental truth: Trump admits ‘We’re Like Pirates’

“We took over the cargo. We took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business” 

Jon Queally for Common Dreams

Irony of ironies: Trump and the Iranians agree
Trump is a pirate

Donald Trump on May 1 openly bragged about the US military acting “like pirates” in the world’s oceans as he described recent activities of the US Navy incapacitating vessels at sea and then taking their cargo.

“We took over the cargo. We took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business,” Trump said with a smile as the friendly crowd at the Forum Club in Palm Beach, Florida, cheered him on.

“We’re sort of like pirates, but we’re not playing games,” Trump added before calling the Iranian “bullies” who had to be confronted.

“The only good thing about Trump—only thing!—is that he sometimes says what we all know to be true,” said journalist Mehdi Hassan, “but don’t expect an American president to say, admit, out loud.”

In a social media post, the Iranian Embassy in New Zealand said: “No need to confess, President, the whole world already knows you. By the way, those who, with performative noise, constantly talk about ‘international law’ and ‘freedom of navigation’… don’t want to condemn piracy now?”

While using the US military to seize the contents of ships may be profitable to somebody, it’s not entirely clear who that might be.

So far, the estimate for what Trump’s war of choice against Iran over the last two months has cost US taxpayers in the immediate term ranges from $25 billion, which is what the Pentagon itself said this week, to upwards of $100 billion. Over the long term, including the increased cost of gas and groceries due to the economic disruption and the care of veterans involved in the war, the costs of the war—which remains historically unpopular among the US public—could exceed $1 trillion.

Energy experts agree: The governor's plan to reduce energy costs is a short-term fix and long-term mistake

McKee, wrong again

Steve Ahlquist

Rhode Island State Senator Samuel Zurier’s Commission to Study the Successful Implementation of the Act on Climate met on Monday and heard from two experts on energy policy who were critical of FY2027 Budget proposals that Governor Daniel McKee claims will save ratepayers money on energy costs. Nick Nybo of Revity Energy, a Rhode Island-based utility-scale solar developer, expressed skepticism about the governor’s projected savings from the proposal, estimating the savings were closer to $70 million over five years, not the claimed $259 million, and that the governor’s plan would make it harder, if not impossible, for the state to reach its 2021 Act on Climate goals.

Samuel Ross, a Director at Dunsky Energy and Climate Advisors, a consulting firm that works across the U.S. and Canada on topics across the clean energy industry, was similarly skeptical, noting that the governor’s proposal to weaken the state’s Renewable Energy Standard threatens compliance with the 2030 goals of the Act on Climate and will likely increase long-term energy costs, even if it manages some near term savings.

Caution

Progressives: thinking about running for office this year?

How to Stay Informed Without Overload

Constant exposure to headlines can take a psychological toll

Gena Wolfrath

Beginning the day with digital news consumption often subjects individuals to a barrage of negative information—including environmental crises, political volatility, and health advisories—before the workday has even begun. For many people, this has become the quiet, unremarkable texture of daily life. 

And for many of those same people, it has become exhausting as well. That exhaustion has a name: news fatigue—the state of emotional and cognitive overwhelm that results from sustained exposure to news, leaving people feeling drained, anxious, or simply numb. It has become more prevalent over the last decade, driven by a structurally limitless media environment. Where previous generations received news in finite, bounded packages—an evening broadcast, or the morning newspaper—today’s always-on information landscape makes it harder than ever to know when enough is enough.

The psychological costs of this shift are real and well-documented. One recent survey performed by the American Psychological Association found that 73 percent of Americans reported being overwhelmed by the number of crises facing the world. Research consistently links heavy news consumption to elevated anxiety, disrupted sleep, and a diminished sense of personal agency. For many, the stress creates a desire to tune out the noise entirely. And yet, as psychologists are quick to point out, disengagement carries its own costs. When news fatigue evolves into news avoidance, people cut themselves off from information essential to their health, community, and political participation.

This is the central tension at the heart of news fatigue: the pull between two legitimate and competing needs—staying informed and staying sane. This article examines what news fatigue is, why the modern media environment makes it so difficult to escape, and what researchers and mental health professionals recommend for those who want to remain engaged with the world without sacrificing their well-being.

URI Farmland to Be Transformed Into Hybrid of Forest and Pasture

The word for today is "Silvopasture"

By Rob Smith / ecoRI News staff

Driving past Peckham Farm on Route 148, you’ll see a 20-acre parcel that looks like any other agricultural parcel.

The farm, just outside the University of Rhode Island’s main campus, is owned and operated by the university for research, teaching, and extension programs. It is actively farmed. Eighteen acres of the property are used for pasturing cattle, sheep, and other animals.

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But if a new project planned for 54 acres that were recently made available to farm goes well, Peckham Farm may look more like a forest than it does bare fields in the next decade.

In recent years, URI natural resources professor Laura Meyerson and Peckham Farm manager Coleman Replogle have been teaming up to bring a new kind of pasture to the farm, one that combines forestland with pasture into a hybrid called silvopasture.

“It’s a bit like the savanna,” explained Meyerson to ecoRI News on a recent Zoom call. “You are integrating trees into a grazing pasture, but also creating a forested edge, just this continuum of forest.”

Silvopasture is an agroforestry practice that integrates trees, forage, and other vegetation with livestock into a single farming and habitat system. Traditional pasture, such as the 18 acres already extant on Peckham Farm, usually just consists of grasses and other herbage for farm animals like cattle to feed on.

The practice is rooted in traditional ecological knowledge from the Indigenous tribes of the Americas, according to Myerson. It’s still used in the southeastern United States and South America. 

Farms such as Wild Harmony Farm in Exeter practice silvopasturing, but Meyerson said the Peckham Farm project is the first to study the practice as a method of ecological restoration.

Under silvopasture, grassland is peppered with trees and other foliage to provide ecological benefits and new, traditional habitats for species such as birds and bats, while still providing a nutritious, varied grazing diet for cattle.

Who do you think would win in a physical fight between you and Donald Trump?

A pollster asked Americans that question after Trump asked an 8-year-old if he could take him in a fight.

Terri Rupar, Editorial Director

This story was originally reported by Terri Rupar of The 19th. Meet Terri and read more of their reporting on gender, politics and policy.

Who do you think would win in a physical fight between you and Donald Trump?

The question, asked by YouGov, was sparked by a Tuesday event in the Oval Office, when the president revived the Presidential Physical Fitness Award. “Are you a strong person?” Trump, 79, asked a child in attendance. “You think you could take me in a fight?”

Overall, 55 percent of Americans said they could take Trump in a fight; 19 percent said Trump would win. 

Medical experts declare Trump is too unstable to remain in office

Can't be trusted with unchecked authority to launch nuclear weapons

Bandy X. Lee

The following press release has just been issued:

Washington, DC—On April 30, 2026, a group of 36 leading physicians and other doctors with expertise in mental health issued a statement calling for President Donald J. Trump’s immediate, lawful removal from office for medical reasons. His mental instability, coupled with his sole, unchecked authority to launch nuclear weapons, makes him a clear and present danger to the safety of all Americans, they declared. 

The U.S. Senate offices of Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Jack Reed (D-RI) entered their statement into the Congressional Record, Vol. 172, No. 76.

While they did not offer diagnoses, the experts were informed by voluminous evidence from the historical record of the president’s bizarre and impulsive behavior, rambling digressions, factual confusions, unexplained sudden changes of course in strategic matters, both national and international, and his deeply impaired judgment. 

Since we circulated our concerns among medical colleagues, Mr. Trump has exhibited more signs of grandiosity, e.g., posting images of himself on social media shaking hands with God, acting like Jesus, and dressing as a Pope. And he has continued nocturnal bingeing on social media posts that are filled with accusations of multiple conspiracies against him, as often as 150 times a night. 

Most worrisome are his outbursts of extreme, seemingly uncontrollable rage, such as his threat to destroy Iran, saying, “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”

Current nuclear policy permits a president, and the president alone, to choose the time and target of a nuclear launch, without his orders being subject to review. The U.S. has a policy that permits a first use of nuclear weapons. These policies, combined with an emotionally unstable leader is a formula for unspeakable tragedy waiting to happen. For this reason above all others, the group of medical experts urged that lawful steps be taken to remove the president from office.

Donald versus Leo, point and counter-point

Definitely. Arrest Bezos