🚨 What the hell is a gigawatt? – June 24 2025

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 5:00 AM.

Lead: Trump Announces Ceasefire

Photo credit: AI-generated image (ChatGPT/OpenAI) 

President Trump announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire but the terms read like an athletic event. Team A stops first and then Team B stops 12 hours later and then 12 hours after that, the bombs stop completely.

What…? Who…?

I don’t get it.

Both sides blitzed one another with deadly attacks, as the clock ran out but Iranian TV reported that the ceasefire began at 8 a.m. local time after Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi said that they would stop firing after Israel stopped.

Earlier on Monday, Iran retaliated against the U.S. by bombing a U.S. base but President Trump said that it was “weak” and “expected.” His full comment:

“They’ve gotten it all out of their ‘system,’ and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE. I want to thank Iran for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured. Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same.”

He then said that both countries had approached him with requests for a ceasefire and he championed both countries equally and said that they each have an “UNLIMITED” future “filled with great PROMISE.”

It sounds great and maybe it was all strategic but do we trust these parties to lay down weapons?

Is it really “out of their system”? Like a good cry?

Markets Exhale as Iran Avoids Strait Closure

Photo credit: Associated Press

Oil prices fell 7% after Iran fired on a U.S. military base in Qatar.

Why would oil drop after a bombing?

It was a collective exhale.

Prices surged Sunday on fears that Iran might close the Strait of Hormuz — a move that would choke off 20% of global oil supply. But instead of triggering an economic crisis, Iran responded with a limited military strike. No supply shock, no escalation — and everyone survived.

Markets read that as: crisis averted. And oil cooled off.

Is that that?

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Syria’s Christians Are Still Dying

Photo credit: Antiwar.com

The new president of Syria — former ISIS member Ahmed al‑Sharaa — publicly promised to protect Christians and other minorities after taking office in January. That’s not going well.

On Sunday, between 20–25 Christians were killed and dozens more wounded in what’s being called the first major ISIS-style suicide bombing of a church since the fall of the Assad government.

Back in March, after 900 Alawite civilians were massacred in coastal clashes between Assad loyalists and transitional forces, President al‑Sharaa said this:

“We announce the formation of a fact-finding committee regarding the events on the coast and form a higher committee.”

And…? More deaths. More promises. Still “fact-finding.”

This isn’t just about failure — it’s about how fragile transitional governments are when they inherit power vacuums, warlord fiefdoms, and decades of sectarian wounds. Regime change may be complete on paper — but order hasn’t followed.

When will we learn?

News By The Numbers

2.5 gigawatts. That is how much more power the state of New York will need by 2035, according to Governor Hochul. She announced that the state will build a new nuclear power plant to keep up, the first new nuclear plant in the U.S. in 15 years.

45%. That is how many Americans admit to peeing in the shower and experts say that you shouldn’t do that because it risks kidney infections.

1.14 million. That is how many abortions were performed in 2024, according to new data released on Monday by #WeCount, a Society of Family Planning project that has tracked abortion provision since 2022. That’s the highest number on record in recent years.

Mark Rutte’s 5% Fantasy: NATO Tries the Hard Sell

Photo credit: AI-generated image (ChatGPT/OpenAI)

Alliance leaders are leaning hard on the old Cold War script — that Russia is the biggest threat — to convince member states to boost military spending. But let’s be honest: that narrative is wearing thin.

NATO chief Mark Rutte is pushing a new 5% of GDP defense spending target, calling it a “quantum leap” needed to bolster air defenses and buy thousands of tanks and long-range weapons. A NATO summit is happening this week and the goal? Convince member states to rebuild stockpiles and prepare for a more “dangerous world.”

But here’s the thing: most European NATO members currently spend around 2% — and they’ve been perfectly comfortable outsourcing their defense burden to American taxpayers. Why pony up now, when U.S. dollars have done the heavy lifting?

Plus, many of these countries are drowning in debt and already stretched thin at home. Free healthcare and month-long holidays don’t exactly pair well with an expensive military industrial complex.

And in case you were wondering how seriously they’re taking the 5% pledge — Spain has already negotiated an exemption, promising just 2.5%. Great deal for them. Not so great for the Americans underwriting the rest.

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