Aug 28, 2026The conventional wisdom about Silicon Valley is that over recent years, it drifted from liberalism to Donald Trump. Founders got red-pilled, or incurred petty grievances, or simply got too online. But journalist Gil Durán suggests there’s more to it. In his new book The Nerd Reich: Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy, Durán pinpoints an insidious theory inside Silicon Valley: that democracy itself is an obstacle to their own freedom – meaning freedom from us, and from society. In this valuable interview, Durán speaks to Prem Thakker about the quiet theories driving Silicon Valley’s attempted global takeover, and explains why JD Vance is no more than a “puppet” of that movement, and how the media and Democrats failed to take these titans seriously – or are in fact working hand-in-glove with them. Durán lays out the big threats to U.S. democracy, highlighting Crypto as the “scammy digital crime tool” that gave billionaires access to Trump, making him the “crypto bro-in-chief.” This interview was published on Zeteo.com on August 25, 2026. If you want early, exclusive access to this kind of independent, unfiltered journalism — subscribe to our Substack here: https://zeteo.com/subscribe Chapters: 00:37 Intro 01:33 The Radicalization of Silicon Valley 03:32 Peter Thiel Says the Quiet Part Out Loud 06:13 Why Billionaires Embrace Fascism 09:14 The Billionaires’ Victim Mentality 12:18 The Crypto Cartel and Politics 15:50 Billionaire-Funded Private Cities 18:50 Billionaires’ Apocalyptic Prophecies 21:00 Billionaires Are Showing Us Who They Are 23:23 Why Tech Bros Court Both Parties 27:02 Trump Is the ‘Crypto Bro-in-Chief’ 29:05 How to Face the Broligarchy 32:02 JD Vance Is a Radical Extremist 34:41 How Fascist Ideals Were Cloaked in Plain Sight Subscribe to Zeteo to support independent and unfiltered journalism: https://zeteo.com/subscribe
Navigate to: Summary– Facts– Nobel Prize lecture– Prize presentation– Nobel diploma– Interview– Speed read– Photo gallery– Other resources Prize announcement Press release Award ceremony speech Award ceremony video
Nihon Hidankyo Nobel Peace Prize 2024
Founded: 1956, Nagasaki, Japan
Residence at the time of the award: Tokyo, Japan
Prize motivation: “for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again”
Prize share: 1/1
For demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again.
The two American atomic bombs that were dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 killed approximately 120 000 people. A comparable number died later of burn and radiation injuries. It is estimated that 650 000 people survived the attacks. These survivors are known as Hibakusha in Japanese.
The fate of the survivors was long concealed and ignored. In 1956, local Hibakusha associations along with victims of nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific formed The Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organisations, shortened in Japanese to Nihon Hidankyo. This grassroots movement soon became the largest and most widely representative Hibakusha organisation in Japan.
Nihon Hidankyo has two main objectives. The first is to promote the social and economic rights of all Hibakusha, including those living outside Japan. The second is to ensure that no one ever again is subjected to the catastrophe that befell the Hibakusha.
Through personal witness statements, Nihon Hidankyo has carried out extensive educational work on the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of nuclear weapons. Hence the motto “No more Hibakusha”.
Terence Tao has spent decades solving problems most people can’t even state. And he says he’s never had a single eureka moment. In this interview, the legendary mathematician breaks math down into six essential ideas: numbers, algebra, geometry, probability, analysis, and dynamics, and shows how they took us from counting sheep to quantum mechanics, wireless networks, and AI.
About the speakers: Terence Tao is a professor of mathematics at UCLA whose work focuses primarily on harmonic analysis, partial differential equations, combinatorics, and analytic number theory. The recipient of a Fields Medal, a MacArthur Genius Grant, and a Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics, among many other accolades, he is one of the most decorated and prolific mathematicians working today. Tao is the author of several academic books, including Solving Mathematical Problems: A Personal Perspective and Additive Combinatorics, as well as his first popular math book Six Math Essentials, coming out soon.
#OTD 29 August 1991, the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site in Kazakhstan was closed. For over four decades, this site witnessed hundreds of nuclear explosions, leaving lasting scars on the land. Its closure became a symbol of hope and a turning point in global efforts toward a world without nuclear weapons. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3C6brCk
Leaked records show Moscow authorities have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars maintaining and running events at the House of Moscow in Minsk, a hub for pro-Kremlin groups and “Russian world” messaging. Experts warn that institutions like the House of Moscow can serve as tools for the Kremlin to keep Belarus within Russia’s sphere of influence.
A Moscow-funded cultural center in Minsk has operated as an ideological influence hub for the Kremlin, using hundreds of thousands of dollars in Russian state funds to promote the “Russian world” ideology and cement Moscow’s grip over Belarus, according to leaked internal documents.
The cache of more than 270,000 emails from the Moscow House of Compatriots – obtained by Danish public broadcaster DR and analyzed by OCCRP’s Belarusian member center Buro Media – reveals the scale of Russia’s soft-power spending in its neighbor’s capital.
The House of Moscow in Minsk is the Belarusian branch of the Moscow House of Compatriots, a Russian state organization that works with Russian-speaking communities abroad. Although conceived as a business bridge between Moscow and Minsk, it instead hosted events promoting Russian language, joint historical identity, and Kremlin geopolitical priorities.
These efforts mirror Russia’s so-called “humanitarian policy abroad” – a foreign policy doctrine approved by President Vladimir V. Putin that emphasizes defending the ideals of Russkiy Mir, or the “Russian world,” and countering what Moscow labels “Russophobia.”
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the center hosted exhibitions showcasing alleged “crimes of Ukrainian neo-Nazis in Donbas” and held conferences promoting investment in occupied Crimea.
Yan Auseyushkin, a senior analyst at the iSANS international initiative, described the House of Moscow as “an element of the Kremlin’s soft power” and a platform for initiatives, meetings and other activities in Belarus.
“The Kremlin views soft power as one of the tools for transforming Belarus and keeping it within its sphere of influence, and, if necessary, for its outright absorption,” Auseuyushkin said.
The type of events that the Moscow House in Minsk organizes range from publicly celebrating holidays that are vital from Russia’s ideological perspective – like Victory Day and the National Unity Day – to organizing conferences that promote Russian language and culture. In 2023, the institution hosted a series of events promoting tourism and investment possibilities in the annexed Crimea. It also ran an exhibition that showed “the crimes of Ukrainian neo-Nazis in Donbas.”
The leaked records also show the scale of Moscow’s spending. Moscow authorities planned to spend more than 20.8 million rubles, or over $250,000, on maintaining the Minsk center in 2026, with payroll accounting for nearly 39 percent of the total.
Separate budgets for events in Belarus exceeded 32 million rubles in 2021, 41 million rubles in 2022 and a planned 34 million rubles in 2023 — more than $400,000 in each of those years. It remains unclear how much was actually spent. In 2022, the operation in Belarus accounted for about one-fifth of the Moscow House of Compatriots’ entire event budget.
Buro Media also found 13 contracts from 2021 to 2023 under which the Moscow House of Compatriots hired the Minsk-based Center for Modern Social Technologies to organize events such as a festival of Russian films, the celebration of Russia Day or a school for young journalists. One of the speakers at the school was Mikhail Palei, a member of the EU-sanctioned Russia People’s Front – an organization that reportedly owns the pro-war “Z” symbol trademark and raises funds for Russian military forces in Ukraine.
The contracts were worth nearly 19 million rubles, or more than $270,000 at exchange rates on the dates they were signed. The center was founded by Sergei Lushch, leader of Movement Union, which advocates closer ties between Belarus and Russia and has delivered humanitarian aid to Russian troops.
Buro Media previously reported that another Russian state-backed organization, the Foundation for the Support and Protection of the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad, known as Pravfond, allocated more than 20 million rubles between 2021 and 2024 to launch and operate a legal consultation center in Minsk overseen by Lushch.
The center provided legal help for Russian citizens and their organization in Belarus. After Russia began the full-scaled invasion of Ukraine, the center started providing entrepreneurs with guidance on conducting business in occupied Ukrainian territories.
OCCRP and its partners previously investigated Pravfond as part of the Dear Compatriots project. Its main investigation found that the foundation had funded propaganda efforts and the legal defense of alleged spies and criminals.
The Moscow House of Compatriots declined to disclose specific event budgets for Belarus, saying financing followed approved plans and was subject to financial controls and audits. Neither the House of Moscow in Minsk nor Sergei Lushch responded to Buro Media’s requests for comment.
U.S. Navy E/A 18G electronic-warfare aircraft patrol the skies over the Middle East while the U.S. continues to enforce the blockade against Iran. Photo Credit: CENTCOM
6 Months Into The Iran War, These 4 Issues Could Shape What’s Next – Analysis
Six months after U.S.–Israeli strikes, RFE/RL’s sources say Iran’s forces are badly damaged but Hormuz still gives Tehran leverage; Washington is shifting to economic isolation (Bessent’s Aug. 24 “onslaught,” G20 talks).
Experts split the next phase into four tests: how long Iran can take sanctions, whether talks can lock in military gains, who controls Hormuz insurance and shipping, and whether China (most Iranian oil) and Russia help rebuild.
Diplomacy is mixed: some IRGC voices wait for U.S. midterms while others want talks; Bowman says the U.S. will not occupy Iran and may struggle to turn battlefield results into a lasting political settlement.
Six months after US and Israeli air strikes against Iran launched a conflictthat has shaken energy markets and disrupted global shipping, there is still no clear end to the confrontation. While Iran’s military capabilities have suffered major damage, it retains leverage in the Strait of Hormuz.
Experts interviewed by RFE/RL from across Washington’s policy spectrum see the next phase being shaped by four questions: how long Iran can withstand economic pressure, can diplomacy turn military gains into a durable settlement, what happens to Hormuz, and whether Russia and China help Tehran rebuild.
‘Economic Onslaught’
Retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, a former deputy commander of US Central Command, describes the situation as a “steady state.”But he argues that the clock is ticking for Tehran.
“Time is their biggest problem,” Harward told RFE/RL, saying sustained economic pressure could eventually become an internal threat to the Iranian government.
Bread-and-butter issues sparked the mass demonstrations in December-January that were put only down with brutal force involving the killing of thousands of protesters.
This is how Washington is now presenting the conflict, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announcing what he called an “economic onslaught” of measures to further isolate Iran on August 24. Bessent will press G20 finance ministers on this during meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, on August 31-September 1.
Harward said the pressure could become an internal threat if Tehran eventually struggles to pay the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Basij militia, and other state institutions, or if ordinary Iranians face shortages of fuel and other essentials.
Winter conditions, he said, could make the pressure particularly consequential.
Elaine Dezenski, head of the Center on Economic and Financial Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said China’s economic relationship with Iran is significant but not an alliance in the traditional sense.
About 80 percent of Iran’s exported oil goes to China, she said, but Iranian oil accounts for only about 12 to 13 percent of China’s crude imports.
“If China were to cut off its purchases of Iranian oil…that would have a huge effect,” Dezenski said. So far, however, Beijing has pushed back on US pressure over its trading relationship Tehran.
The issue has a longer-term financial dimension. Iranian oil sales in yuan and payment through systems outside the US dollar network can strengthen alternative financial infrastructure.
“The way that Iran is engaging in these transactions and the way that China is supporting those transactions is an attempt to really erode the US dollar’s role in the global energy market,” Dezenski said.
Can Diplomacy Remerge?
While further military action has not been ruled out, officials have suggested it may have reached the limits of its effectiveness — in other words, there’s not much else to target.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in June that Iran’s defense-industrial base had suffered “massive destruction” of 80 to 90 percent attrition. President Donald Trump initially said 90 percent of Iran’s missiles and launchers had been knocked out, later giving an 82 percent estimate. He has repeatedly said the navy is destroyed.
Yet what remains has proven stubbornly able to prevent shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
For Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the central distinction is between military degradation and a lasting political outcome.
“America has struggled consistently in the Middle East to convert battlefield success into sustainable and positive political outcomes,” Bowman told RFE/RL. “We often win on the battlefield and lose at the negotiating table.”
He said a sustainable political transformation in Iran would require decisive action by Iranians themselves. Washington, he added, does not have the political will to send “thousands and thousands” of troops into Iran and sustain the casualties such an operation would entail.
Bowman also said the war has also demonstrated the scale of US weapons expenditure and raised questionsabout the quantities of offensive and defensive munitions available for other potential theaters.
Some elements, including the IGRC, seem in no hurry to push ahead with talks ahead of November’s midterm elections in the United States. Other key members of the clerical authorities have spoken repeatedly recently of the economic pain and of the importance of reviving diplomacy.
Hormuz: Iran’s Key Leverage
For Gawdat Bahgat, a professor of national-security affairs at the National Defense University’s Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, the most important development of the past six months may be the emergence of the Strait of Hormuz as Iran’s principal remaining bargaining instrument.
“Even if a temporary agreement is signed, it will be temporary, but in the future they will keep threatening to close the strait,” he said.
The waterway traditionally carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil, liquid natural gas, and other vital commodities. This has also translated into economic pressure on the United States, as global markets push up gasoline prices.
The strait is only about 39 kilometers wide at its narrowest point. Iran and Oman both claim the maximum 22.2 kilometers allowed under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as territorial waters, meaning there are no international waters in the area.
UNCLOS is supposed to guarantee the right of transit passage for commercial vessels and prohibits their blockade. Tehran, however, never ratified UNCLOS and says it is not bound by the treaty. The United States has also not ratified it.
Bahgat says the Gulf states may eventually press for an arrangement that restores stability even if it formalizes some Iranian role in the strait. Their priority, he said, is returning to economic stability.
The more difficult question is whether Washington can accept some form of Iranian control or economic benefit from the waterway.
Bowman argues that the critical issue is whether commercial ship captains and insurers regard the route as safe.
Iran therefore does not necessarily need to close Hormuz completely. Intermittent missile or drone attacks can raise insurance costs and deter shipping, while attacks on infrastructure in Gulf states can create additional pressure on countries that cooperate with Washington.
“That actually turns our Arab partners into vehicles of leverage that Iran is exerting on Washington,” Bowman said.
Iran’s Helping Hand From Russia, China
Another major question is whether Iran’s external partners can help it rebuild.
Bowman cited Chinese shipments of chemical precursors and Russian targeting information and drone support as evidence of growing assistance. He said Moscow is considering whether to deliver Su-35 fighters to Iran, while Beijing could move from supplying dual-use materials toward finished weapons and munitions.
The future of that support, he said, will depend heavily on how Beijing and Moscow assess the likely US response.
“The No. 1 thing China fears is secondary sanctions from the United States,” Bowman said. Bessent’s announcement hinted at these, but they also carry the risk of Chinese retaliation and it’s not clear how far Washington is prepared to ratchet up pressure of this kind.
Iran’s military recovery cannot be separated from the broader network supporting it, he said.
A study led by Bowman documented 616 incidents of security cooperation among China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea between January 2019 and December 2025, covering areas including arms development and transfers, military exercises, intelligence sharing, and military diplomacy.
Alex Raufoglu is RFE/RL’s senior correspondent in Washington, D.C.
About RFE RL
RFE/RL journalists report the news in 21 countries where a free press is banned by the government or not fully established.
For the past 10 years, the German armed forces — the Bundeswehr — have been represented at Gamescom, Cologne’s video game trade fair. They’ve been criticized for trying to draw more young people into military careers.
The Bundeswehr will once again be represented at the Gamescom video game trade fair in Cologne in 2026Image: Kristina Reymann-Schneider/DW
Gamescom, which runs from August 26-30 in Cologne, is promoted as the world’s largest video game trade show.
Last year, two-thirds of its non-industry visitors were male, with over 40% of them between the ages of 16 and 25. Those are precisely the young people the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces, is trying to reach as it urgently seeks to expand its ranks.
Germany’s military aims to have 260,000 active-duty soldiers by 2035. The German government has supplied hundreds of billions of euros to modernize the country’s armed forces. Defense has become a priority for Germany in the face of the current global security situation.
Career advice in camouflage
The Bundeswehr set up shop at Gamescom for the first time in 2016. It’s been back every year since.
A brand-new, olive-green Caracal off-road vehicle is one of the main attractions. Alongside it are laptops belonging to the Bundeswehr’s Center for Cyber Operations — tasked with cyber defense, among other responsibilities.
Under a watchful eye, visitors can try their hand at hacking.
The Caracal off-road vehicle is a popular photo opportunity at the Bundeswehr boothImage: Kristina Reymann-Schneider/DW
At another station, visitors can put on VR headsets to get a glimpse into the working life of a soldier aboard a naval vessel. Pilots, aircraft mechanics and air traffic controllers present their professions in a 3D experience. Elsewhere, several fit mountain infantry soldiers stand beside a pull-up bar, where visitors are invited to test their strength.
New this year is a career lounge where interested visitors can have what the Bundeswehr is calling “career counseling sessions.” The atmosphere is positive, with soldiers promoting their jobs without being pushy, taking time to answer questions from visitors — who have primarily come to Gamescom to have fun, meet friends and play the latest games.
Do gamers make good soldiers?
A representative study by Germany’s Bitkom digital association found that one in five people found it likely that video and computer games teach skills that could be useful in wartime — training reaction speed and problem-solving, for instance. However, being a good gamer doesn’t necessarily make for a good soldier.
Lieutenant General Robert Sieger, president of the Federal Office for Bundeswehr Personnel ManagementImage: Kristina Reymann-Schneider/DW
“We need people who are comfortable with technology,” Lt. Gen. Robert Sieger, president of the Federal Office for Bundeswehr Personnel Management, told DW. “What we don’t want are people who think we’re playing an ego shooter or some kind of shooting game. That doesn’t do justice to the seriousness of the situation at all. War isn’t a game. As a soldier and a general, it is important to me that people understand the seriousness of what we do.”
For Sieger, educating people about the Bundeswehr and the range of careers it offers is a central reason for having a booth at Gamescom. “We’re an integral part of our country’s safety net. We have to simply be here and show what it means to stand up for the freedom of our country, be that as a soldier or a civilian.”
The Bundeswehr is represented alongside many other employers in the gaming trade show’s Job Area, including Germany’s federal police, retailer Edeka and software company DATEV.
‘Level Up for Your Career’: Peace activists criticize the Bundeswehr’s use of gaming jargonImage: Kristina Reymann-Schneider/DW
Peace campaigner Marius Pletsch says the Bundeswehr uses inappropriate slogans, designed to appeal specifically to gamers, and distorts the image of military service.
“We think it’s wrong to lure young people to the booth by appealing to their sense of adventure. We don’t think the Bundeswehr should be represented at a trade show that is primarily about video games and leisure to boost its personnel numbers,” he told DW.
For two days, the peace organization will have a booth outside the trade show exhibition halls, providing information about conscientious objection to military service.
Bundeswehr: Not just any job
“Being a soldier isn’t a normal job,” the peace initiative said in a statement.
Lt. Gen. Sieger uses similar terms, but puts it somewhat differently: “Being a soldier isn’t a job like any other. We put our lives on the line for the security of our people.”
He reaches a different conclusion than the peace advocates, though. “It would be downright negligent for an organization responsible for our country’s security not to be an inherent part of society,” Sieger said. “As an inherent part of society and a modern employer, of course we have our rightful spot here in the Job Area, just as we have over recent years.”
What do young Gamescom visitors make of the Bundeswehr’s presence?
“Morally questionable, but a good employer,” said Dennis, a 22-year-old computer science student, although he said the Bundeswehr wasn’t for him. Dominik, 26, said he was pleased that the German military was represented at Gamescom. “You can actually have a pretty good conversation with them. They’re all very nice,” he said. He said he may even consider working for the Bundeswehr’s cyber defense division.
