Mastodawn

https://theconversation.com/donald-trumps-new-15-point-plan-is-the-biggest-sign-yet-that-washington-fears-it-is-losing-this-war-279001; https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/17/joe-kent-resigns-director-national-counterterrorism-center. "The most immediate problem is lack of #legitimacy. This #war has authorisation from neither the #UnitedNations or, in the case of #America, the #USCongress. Further, #US #intelligence #assessments indicate #Iran was not rebuilding its #nuclear programme following earlier strikes - contradicting one of Washington’s justifications for war."

Donald Trump’s ‘new’ 15-point plan is the biggest sign yet that Washington fears it is losing this war

Donald Trump’s revival of a ‘roadmap’ to peace dismissed by Iran in 2025 suggests he is looking for a way out of an increasingly unwinnable war.

The Conversation

BellingenNSW Mar 16

Lords a-leaving: Britain is ejecting hereditary nobles from Parliament after 700 years
"Centuries of British political tradition will end within weeks after Parliament voted to remove hereditary aristocrats from the unelected House of Lords."

"On Tuesday night members of the upper chamber dropped objections to legislation passed by the House of Commons ousting dozens of dukes, earls and viscounts who inherited seats in Parliament along with their aristocratic titles."
https://apnews.com/article/uk-house-of-lords-hereditary-peers-expelled-535df8781dd01e8970acda1dca99d3d4
#aristocracy #nobility #privilege #democracy #legitimacy #parliament #British #monarchy

The UK is ejecting hereditary nobles from Parliament after 700 years

Britain is ending the centuries-old tradition of hereditary aristocrats sitting in Parliament’s House of Lords. Late Tuesday the Lords dropped objections to a bill passed by the House of Commons that removes dozens of dukes, earls, and others who inherited seats in the unelected upper chamber. The chamber currently has more than 800 members. The vast majority are now “life peers” appointed by the government, but roughly 1 in 10 members are currently hereditary peers. A previous Labour government removed most hereditary peers in 1999 but left 92 in place. The rest will leave at the end of the current session of Parliament in the spring.

AP News

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Ton Lansink Mar 15

9/11
#8 Legitimacy deficit. Occupying powers lose when they offer no acceptable political alternative to the regime they fight. Betts (1995), Nagl (2002). Most underrated factor in the literature on Iraq and Afghanistan.
#Legitimacy #StateBuilding #Iraq #Afghanistan #Occupation

BellingenNSW Mar 11

A ‘just’ war?
‘We’re the good guys’: why moral storytelling doesn’t make the war on Iran necessary or legal

"The Iran war reveals a dangerous shift in the way states justify their actions: a growing preference for moral storytelling over legal reasoning."

"Once the narrative of a “just war” replaces the rule of law, there is little left to restrain the powerful states from dominating the weaker ones."

"The purpose of international law is not to determine who is morally good; it is to maintain order in a world where every state believes it is waging the “good” fight." >>
https://theconversation.com/were-the-good-guys-why-moral-storytelling-doesnt-make-the-war-on-iran-necessary-or-legal-277952
#war #legitimacy #narratives #RuleOfLaw #Australia #law

‘We’re the good guys’: why moral storytelling doesn’t make the war on Iran necessary or legal

Once the narrative of a “just war” replaces the rule of law, there is little left to restrain powerful states from dominating weaker ones.

The Conversation

Hacker News Mar 9

Is legal the same as legitimate: AI reimplementation and the erosion of copyleft

https://writings.hongminhee.org/2026/03/legal-vs-legitimate/

#HackerNews #legal #legitimacy #AI #copyleft #open-source #technology

Is legal the same as legitimate: AI reimplementation and the erosion of copyleft

Last week, Dan Blanchard, the maintainer of chardet—a Python library for detecting text encodings used by roughly 130 million projects a month— released a new…

Hong Minhee on Things

WIST Quotations Feb 24

A quotation from Ambrose Bierce

AUTHENTIC, adj. Indubitably true — in someone’s opinion.

Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Authentic,” “Devil’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco Wasp (1881-04-09)

More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/82290…

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #abrosebierce #devilsdictionary #authenticity #belief #bonafides #genuineness #judgment #legitimacy #opinion #perspective #trustworthiness #truth #verity

Bierce, Ambrose - "Authentic," "Devil's Dictionary" column, San Francisco Wasp (1881-04-09) | WIST Quotations

AUTHENTIC, adj. Indubitably true -- in someone's opinion. Not collected in later books.

WIST Quotations

John

Feb 28

#Albanese: “A #regime that relies on the #repression & #murder of its own people to retain power is without #legitimacy.”

Nah. He wasn’t talking about the #TrumpRegime but #Iran #auspol #ICE

Trending Stocks 📈Feb 22

Ray Dalio warns of civil war - Tucker Carlson and Ray Dalio

#legitimacy #trust #partisan

Original timestamp: 00:08:15

Gerd_Brodowski Feb 19

#usa #israel #palestine : #war / #gaza / #uspeaceplan / #board / #comment

„A vague mandate and pay-to-play model suggest it'll become a bloated boondoggle in search of an expanded mission lacking full international #legitimacy.“

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/board-of-peace-gaza/

How Trump's Board of Peace is set up for a multibillion dollar fail

A vague mandate and pay-to-play model suggest it'll become a bloated boondoggle in search of an expanded mission lacking full international legitimacy

Responsible Statecraft

what's trending Feb 13

Tucker dives into Epstein files - Tucker Carlson and Ian Carroll

#legitimacy #trust #corruption

Original timestamp: 00:56:54