| Kensington Review |
12 February 2026 |
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Cogito Ergo Non Serviam |
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Latest Commentary: AG Bondi Brings Circus to House Hearings -- Attorney-General Pam Bondi performed her single trick of combative obnoxiousness during her testimony yesterday in front of the House Judiciary Committee. That she is partisan in a role that demands non-partisanship is a problem. That she views any Congressional supervision as an affront to decency is a problem. That she is incompetent is a problem. That she is unwilling and unable to explain her decisions is a problem. Yesterday, though, she took her act to new depths of awfulness. When she is out of office, she loses all protections from legal action. She will prove to be John Mitchell, Richard Nixon's AG, in heels. Mr. Mitchell went to jail though Mr. Nixon did not. [12 February] US Created Only 181,000 Jobs in All of 2025 -- The Bureau of Labor Statistics finally issued the Non-Farm Payroll report this morning, delayed from Friday because of the government shutdown (the official pretext). It showed that, in January 2026, the US created 130,000 jobs, abd the unemployment rate ticked down to 4.3% from 4.4%. That would be anemic in the Obama years, and it is not great now. Yet buried in the report is a figure that should be headline news everywhere. In all of 2025, the US created a total of 181,000 new jobs. This is markedly down from the 584,000 initially reported. On a monthly basis, that means just 15,000 jobs were created each month of last year. [11 February] Scottish Labour Leader Calls for PM to Quit -- The leader of the Labour Party in Scotland, Anas Sarwar, has called for British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to resign. He said at a press conference yesterday, "The distraction needs to end, and the leadership in Downing Street has to change. "He said the PM has made "too many mistakes," and his continued presence at Number 10 will cost the party in th elections coming in May. The catalyst of this was the Epstein Files release and big role Labour grandee Peter Lord Mandelson played in it. That plus the usual difficulty any government has 18 months into a parliament has put Labour at a disadvantage in Scotland. This demand from Mr. Sarwar is all about stopping another SNP government in Edinburgh. [10 February] Japan Gives PM Takaichi Super Majority -- Sanae Takaichi became the first female Japanese Prime Minister last year, after her Liberal Democratic Party suffered numerous scandals. She cited the cost of living and immigration as the two big issues facing Japan. This resonated with voters who liked her assertive yet optimistic tone. Ronald Reagan won his elections with a similar combination. The electorate rewarded her with the largest electoral victory in Japanese politics since the end of the Second World War. Out of 465 seats in the Japanese House of Representattives, the LDP won 316. This is the first super-majority in Japanese politics, and it allows the PM to reform just about everything including the constitution. That, however, is merely means not ends. She now has to find a new path for Japan in Asia and the world. [9 February] Multi-Polar World Does Not Favor US -- The United States built a post-World War II global system for its own benefit. As the only sizaable developed power that did not suffer massive damage to its economy during the war, it was in a position to do so. Rivals were not in a position to argue, as the failure of the Soviet Union ultimately proved. The system rested on the dominance of the dollar, a web of alliances and an economy that dwarfed all others. In a way, it was artificial. Europe and Japan would rise from the ashes because they already knew how to structure a developed economy and society. The world has now reached a point, thanks to natural historical forces and the folly of Trumpism, where the American dominance is almost all gone. [6 February] © Copyright 2026 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.
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