Image is of the Preah Vihear Temple on the Cambodian border. Image sourced from the UNESCO World Heritage website.
Over the last few days, Thailand and Cambodia entered into a heightened stage of conflict due to a long-running border dispute. Like many problems on this planet, Europeans are ultimately to blame - specifically France. Certain sections of the border drawn up by France about a century ago were not fully agreed upon by both sides, with the ownership of some Khmer temples being the most visible points of disagreement.
Despite interventions in favor of Cambodia in the 1960s and later 2010s by the ICJ - one of the mainly mostly useless global institutions that liberals periodically disown - the border conflict has simmered at a generally low level. Of the two countries, Thailand is significantly more militarily and economically powerful.
Last Wednesday, a Thai soldier lost his leg by stepping on a landmine, prompting a rapid escalation between Cambodia and Thailand that has since resulted in dozens of deaths and tens of thousands displaced. Cambodia was willing to come to the negotiating table fairly quickly, but Thailand was more hesitant. International pressure on the two countries by Malaysia, China, and the United States eventually forced Thailand to the table, and they have recently agreed to an immediate ceasefire courtesy of ASEAN.
Notably, Trump refused to hold trade talks with either country until they agreed to peace, which suggests that he really wants a Nobel Peace Prize - which he seems a shoe-in for given that he’s met the two most important requirements that several Nobel Peace Prize recipients have needed to meet in the past, which are: 1) start at least one war, and 2) accelerate the genocide of millions of people as billions more people watch on. His policies vis-a-vis ICE creating a domestic terror regime only further increase his chances of winning the prize.
Last week’s thread is here.
The Imperialism Reading Group is here.
Please check out the RedAtlas!
The bulletins site is here. Currently not used.
The RSS feed is here. Also currently not used.
Israel-Palestine Conflict
Sources on the fighting in Palestine against Israel. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:
UNRWA reports on Israel’s destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.
English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news.
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.
English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Sources:
Defense Politics Asia’s youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don’t want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it’s just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
Simplicius, who publishes on Substack. Like others, his political analysis should be soundly ignored, but his knowledge of weaponry and military strategy is generally quite good.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists’ side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR’s former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR’s forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster’s telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a ‘propaganda tax’, if you don’t believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:
Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.
The recent rants of Dmitry Medvedev, ex President and Prime Minister of Russia, and current deputy head of the security council. Medvedev has been Putin’s right hand man since the 1990s, for over three decades, this is why what he says matters to an extent. Russia uses Medvedev’s social media posts and ramblings to portray more controversial (and sometimes straight up outrageous) opinions, allowing Putin to avoid the flak, and allowing for these posts to be seperate from official government statements. A “good cop bad cop” strategy, if you will. Medvedev’s not just a random shit poster, though you’d be forgiven for thinking that, given just how out there some of his statements are. Up until now, no one has taken what he’s said completely seriously, because of the above. But that’s changed.
Medvedev, July 15th, in response to Trump’s press conference with NATO leader Rutte on Twitter:
Trump issued a theatrical ultimatum to the Kremlin. The world shuddered, expecting the consequences. Belligerent Europe was disappointed. Russia didn’t care.
The usual type of thing you’d expect from him. But Medvedev’s tone changed abruptly two days later, July 17th, in a TASS interview. Turns out Russia did actually care, and Medvedev starts talking about pre-emptive strikes:
“We [Russia] need to act accordingly. To respond in full. And if necessary, launch preemptive strikes [against NATO]. What is happening today is a proxy war, but in essence it is a full-scale war (launches of Western missiles, satellite intelligence, etc.), sanctions packages, loud statements about the militarisation of Europe”.
On July 28th, when Trump announced a 10 day deadline for a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war, Medvedev took to Twitter again:
Trump’s playing the ultimatum game with Russia: 50 days or 10… He should remember 2 things:
- Russia isn’t Israel or even Iran.
- Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country. Don’t go down the Sleepy Joe road!
And in response to Lindsey Graham:
It’s not for you or Trump to dictate when to ‘get at the peace table’. Negotiations will end when all the objectives of our military operation have been achieved. Work on America first, gramps!
Medvedev then took to his personal Telegram to issue a thinly veiled nuclear threat, with regards to a second strike this time:
About Trump’s threats against me on his personal network Truth, which he banned from operating in our country
If some words of the former president of Russia cause such a nervous reaction from the whole so formidable president of the USA, it means that Russia is right in everything and will continue to go its way.
And about India and Russia’s “dead economy” and “entering dangerous territory” - well, let him remember his favourite Walking Dead movies and how dangerous a non-existent "dead hand"😂 can be.
In reference to the Perimeter/Dead Hand nuclear weapons control system in Russia, designed to launch Russia’s ICBMs even if all command centres are taken out, by detecting radiation from a first strike on Russia. It’s speculated to be both operational in a semi automatic mode, where a commander must first activate/switch on the system, and after that it can operate in a fully automatic mode, operating without the need of human intervention to launch ICBMs. Medvedev could be hinting that the system is in high alert mode/operating fully automatically at the moment, or threatening to put it in such a mode.
Trump and the United States have, for the first time, chosen to take Medvedev seriously and at his word, and have publicly announced that two Ohio Class Ballistic Missile Submarines are currently patrolling with Russia in mind , via Trump on Truth Social.
Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances. Thank you for your attention to this matter!
Each Ohio Class SSBN can carry 24 Trident II SLBMs each, with either 8 high yield nuclear warheads (475kt W88) per Trident II, or 12 lower yield warheads (5-100kt W76, depending on variant) per Trident II. Under the NEW START treaty, the SSBNs were limited to 20 Trident IIs each, and averaged around 4 warheads per Trident II. But Russia withdrew NEW START in 2023, neither Russia or the United States are obligated to follow it as of now, and it’s set to expire in February 2026. The submarines were likely already there beforehand, the US has 4 SSBNs on patrol at any time. Trump’s statement just serves as a very public reminder. Russia is not the only country that can play this game in the media with thinly veiled nuclear threats, and mentioning pre-emptive and second strike capabilitiy, is what Trump is trying to say.
Treating Gaza’s Collective Trauma
I have no words. If there is one thing that I firmly believe it’s that the people who supported this and who let this happen should never ever ever be able to live it down. In fact I don’t think they should ever be able to live at all.
Palestinian resistance forces released more recent combat footage from Gaza:
The title is a bit of a mouthful but the relatively short substack post (from the many I follow) serves as a useful tool in linking classic modern Marxist concepts and literature with current news pages in the context of Malaysia
Neoliberalism-as-Neo-Imperialism: Post-13MP Constraints, Economic Dependency, and the Entrenchment of Oligarchy in Malaysia
2nd August 2025
Introduction: Neoliberalism Reloaded in the 13th Malaysia Plan
Malaysia’s 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) was heralded as a forward-looking framework to guide the country through economic recovery and structural reform. However, its implementation remains deeply constrained by a global order where neoliberalism, under the guise of liberalised trade and tech optimism, acts as a contemporary form of neo-imperialism. This essay draws from Samir Amin’s theory of unequal exchange, dependency theory, and Gramscian analyses of hegemony to frame Malaysia’s structural vulnerabilities—perpetuated by ethnocapital alliances, comprador capital, and collusion with Global North monopoly-finance capital.
remainder
- Unequal Exchange and the Myth of Reciprocal Trade Gains
“Trade is not development, especially if it transfers value upwards.” — Samir Amin
Malaysia’s trade diplomacy was recently celebrated with the United States reducing its reciprocal tariff rate from 25% to 19%—a move framed as a diplomatic win. However, as clarified in the MITI statement, critical export sectors such as semiconductors and pharmaceuticals are already exempt from new tariffs. Hence, there is no new material gain in terms of value-add or market expansion.
Key Argument: This scenario exemplifies unequal exchange, where the Global South (Malaysia) continues to export labor-intensive intermediate goods at low prices while importing high-value technology at inflated costs—creating a structural transfer of surplus to the Global North.
Reference: Samir Amin, Imperialism and Unequal Development, Monthly Review Press, 1977.
Further Source: MITI Trade Statement (July 2025)
- Comprador Capital and State-Enabled Tech Colonialism
Malaysia’s digital economy push, while ostensibly progressive, is underwritten by state-backed incentives to Big Tech platforms like Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, Meta, and Amazon AWS. These corporations receive tax holidays, land grants (particularly in Johor and Cyberjaya), and preferential tariffs for electricity and water—subsidised by public spending.
Key Argument: Comprador technocrats within Malaysia’s GLC ecosystem facilitate this “digital rent extraction” in return for elite brokerage. The rakyat, meanwhile, face increasing cost of living, inflation, and underinvestment in public digital infrastructure.
Reference: Fadiah Nadwa Fikri, “Eliminate the Culture of Worshipping Wealth,” NUS Southeast Asian Centre, 2023.
Data Point: Electricity subsidy expenditure, MOF 2024 report.
Relevant Concept: Sweezy & Baran’s Monopoly Capital, Monthly Review, 1966.
- Ethnocapital Clientship and the Preservation of Oligarchy
Economic policy implementation under the 13MP remains tightly bound to ethnocapital alliances, where state contracts, subsidies, and ownership stakes favour politically connected Bumiputera elites. This arrangement both maintains political loyalty and diverts resources away from meritocratic redistribution or innovative sectoral development.
Key Argument: The post-NEP ethnocracy continues to thrive under neoliberalism, which ironically delegitimises state redistribution while reinforcing state-backed rentier structures—creating a dual crisis of legitimacy and inequality.
Reference: Gomez, E.T. et al. (2022). Malaysia’s Political Economy: Ownership and Control of Corporate Capital. ISEAS.
Supporting Concept: Gramsci’s theory of passive revolution and hegemony through clientelism.
- Malaysia as a Semi-Peripheral Cog in the Global $114 Trillion Economy
The IMF (August 2025) reports increasing geopolitical tensions, tariff risks, and stagnating multilateral trust in the global economy. Malaysia, with a GDP size constituting less than 0.3% of global output, finds itself trapped in the semi-periphery—dependent on FDI, vulnerable to external shocks, and constrained by domestic debt burdens and productivity stagnation.
Key Argument: Despite its ambitions for high-income status, Malaysia is structurally subordinated to global capital flows and FDI conditions. Its policy room is narrowed not only by fiscal limitations but also by ideological surrender to neoliberal integration.
Reference: IMF Blog, “New Standards for Economic Data,” July 2025. (https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2025/07/31/new-standards-for-economic-data-aim-to-sharpen-view-of-global-economy)
Theoretical Base: Immanuel Wallerstein, World-Systems Theory
Conclusion: Towards a Post-Dependency National Strategy
The 13MP will not succeed unless Malaysia dismantles its dependency logic—whether on U.S.-China supply chains, Big Tech’s infrastructural colonisation, or the institutional entrenchment of ethnocapital and comprador elites. Only through a radical re-imagining of national development priorities, with a return to social wage policies, public digital infrastructure, and class-based redistribution, can Malaysia reclaim agency from neoliberal-imperialist constraints.
Linkages of Neoliberal Dependency in Malaysia: Capital Entrenchment & Global Tech Hegemony
Exclusive: Indian state refiners pause Russian oil purchases, sources say - Reuters, 31 July 2025
Indian state refiners have stopped buying Russian oil in the past week as discounts narrowed this month and U.S. President Donald Trump warned against purchasing oil from Moscow, industry sources said. India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, is the biggest buyer of seaborne Russian crude.
The country’s state refiners - Indian Oil Corp (IOC.NS), Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL.NS), Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL.NS), and Mangalore Refinery Petrochemical Ltd (MRPL.NS) - have not sought Russian crude in the past week or so, four sources familiar with the refiners’ purchase plans told Reuters.
IOC, BPCL, HPCL, MRPL and the federal oil ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
The four refiners regularly buy Russian oil on a delivered basis and have turned to spot markets for replacement supply - mostly Middle Eastern grades such as Abu Dhabi’s Murban crude and West African oil, sources said.
Private refiners Reliance Industries (RELI.NS) and Nayara Energy are the biggest Russian oil buyers in India, but state refiners control over 60% of India’s overall 5.2 million barrels per day refining capacity.
On July 14, Trump threatened 100% tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil unless Moscow reaches a major peace deal with Ukraine.
This isn’t a suprise, as the Indian state owned refiners (Indian Oil Corp in particular) already said that they would no longer be purchasing Russian oil over a week ago.
What’s the deal with chapo.chat?
Zohran Mamdani claims he has “grown” from previous “defund the police” tweets while speaking to reporters at a cop funeral
reminder that the coward zionist Bernie Sanders has used the word “genocide” both for Russia’s attempts to stop Ukraine’s ethnic cleansing of the Donbas and proxy war of NATO encroachemnt, and about China’s supposed treatment of the Uyghurs, but still has not done so for the disgusting livestreamed genocide happening in Occupied Palestine. I expect that when he finally stops defending zionism will be when he dies and then I will spit on his grave. also I want my donations back you scumbag
EDIT: uhh source https://xcancel.com/zei_squirrel/status/1951047259996504123
red
President Trump fires Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner over jobs numbers
Simón Bolivar Journalism Prize presented to Sahar Emami by Nicolas Maduro (not sure why VTV is still on instagram)
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DM0AH_ys4-s/
Palestinian resistance continues to fight the Nazi occupiers
https://tankie.tube/w/cSwiydWryj1jRcCrkJcjnL
Things are great for the US economy at the moment:
“May’s estimated 144,000 net gain [in jobs] was revised down by 125,000 to 19,000; and June’s preliminary tally of 147,000 was slashed by 133,000 to 14,000, according to data released Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics … the meager job gains in June were the weakest since December 2020, the last time the labor market had monthly job losses. The pace of job creation seen so far this year is the weakest in decades, outside of recessions … Health care and social assistance, which added 73,300 jobs, accounted for the entirety of [July]’s gains.”
I’m sure the big beautiful bill’s cuts to health care and social services will make things even better
@SeventyTwoTrillion@hexbear.net requesting that “Israel-Palestine Conflict” please be changed to another header along the lines of “Israel’s genocide of Palestine” or “The Palestinian Genocide”. Especially when there is “Russia-Ukraine Conflict” written immediately after, its just not comparable. *I know you don’t have any bad intentions, this will just send a very firm message about where this website stands (against genocide).
This is a company that officially has $37 billion cash on hand.
Tesla (TSLA) is not paying its bills, and this has led to at least two small American businesses going bankrupt. The automaker had over $110 million in liens with contractors over the last 5 years.
In two cases, contractors, most often small American businesses, had to file for bankruptcy due to the unpaid bills.
https://electrek.co/2025/08/01/tesla-tsla-is-not-paying-bills-destroying-small-american-businesses/
