Lily me this
The United States and Israel continue their attack on Iran (and Lebanon), planning for at least a month of war. / Al Jazeera, CBS News
In retaliation, Iran strikes hotels, malls, and airports in America’s regional allies. And Riyadh becomes an exit hub for the worried rich. / CNN, Semafor
US naval forces retreat from a base in Bahrain after an Iranian counterattack. / Defense One
See also: Video of an F-15 jet fighter being mistakenly shot down in Kuwait. / The Aviationist
Our president says don’t worry, we have plenty of bullets: “You know, we have ammunition stored all over the world in different countries.” / The New York Times [$]
“Who doubts that America is strong? But that’s not all America has to be.” Recalling Susan Sontag during times of war. / Interruptrr
Related: What we know on day three of the attacks on Iran. And thus far: the war in pictures. Meanwhile, Trump proposes a “friendly takeover” of Cuba. / Al Jazeera, the Guardian, Reuters
If you enjoy these headlines, please join us as a Sustaining Member to support what we do and unlock access to paywalled links.
Despite its feud with Anthropic, the government reportedly used its AI bot Claude “for intelligence assessments, target identification, and simulating battle scenarios.” / Gizmodo
An anonymous source says OpenAI’s deal with the Pentagon “is much softer” than the one Anthropic was pushing for. / The Verge [$]
Why are passenger trains in the US so slow? Because the freight rail network is so productive. / American Affairs
How do you get people excited about public transit? Sell merch that can be interpreted inappropriately. / Torched
If you didn’t know: How to shop eBay like a pro. / what’s mine is yours
Is the worst pun of all time a French phrase about lilies? / Futility Closet
“That night I was vntroubled by such euents as I had vndergone the night before.” A blogger time-travels through the English language. / Dead Language Society
In the members area, unlocked links from the New York Times and the Verge ↓