Category: News
Spot The Odd One Out: US Defense Spending By President
Spot The Odd One Out: US Defense Spending By President
Since 1997, U.S. defense spending has moved through multiple cycles, but the long-term trajectory is upward.
This chart, via Visual Capitalist’s Bruno Venditti, tracks National Defense (Function 050) budget authority in constant 2025 dollars and shows how totals changed under each president and party, culminating in a proposed record $1.5 trillion budget for 2027P.
Data is sourced from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Historical Tables, Table 5.1 (National Defense budget authority), supplemented by Reuters reporting for the 2027 proposal. It also leverages analysis from the Council on Foreign Relations.
Steady Growth Through the 2000s and 2010s
In the late 1990s, under President Clinton, U.S. defense spending sat around the mid-$500 billion level in real terms.
Spending rose significantly in the 2000s during the Bush years amid the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, reaching levels above $900 billion before 2010.
Continued high budgets carried throughout the Obama administration, driven by ongoing post-9/11 commitments and modernization efforts.
Fiscal Year
Real Budget (2025$)
President
1997
$542B
Clinton
1998
$535B
Clinton
1999
$564B
Clinton
2000
$569B
Clinton
2001
$609B
Bush
2002
$648B
Bush
2003
$798B
Bush
2004
$837B
Bush
2005
$834B
Bush
2006
$888B
Bush
2007
$971B
Bush
2008
$1.04T
Bush
2009
$1.05T
Obama
2010
$1.06T
Obama
2011
$1.03T
Obama
2012
$955B
Obama
2013
$843B
Obama
2014
$846B
Obama
2015
$813B
Obama
2016
$837B
Obama
2017
$862B
Trump
2018
$931B
Trump
2019
$938B
Trump
2020
$963B
Trump
2021
$902B
Biden
2022
$922B
Biden
2023
$908B
Biden
2024
$905B
Biden
2025
$962B
Trump
2026
$962B
Trump
2027 (proposed)
$1.5T
Trump
Recent Trends and Record Levels
In the early 2020s, spending remained high under Presidents Trump and Biden, with budgets around $900 billion to over $1 trillion in real terms. The 2026 defense budget approved by Congress reached $901 billion, while proposals for 2027 have pushed that figure even higher.
Recently, President Donald Trump announced a proposal for a $1.5 trillion military budget in 2027, representing roughly a 50% increase over current levels, aimed at expanding capabilities and accelerating modernization.
If you enjoyed today’s post, check out America’s $38 Trillion Mountain of Debt on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/20/2026 – 05:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/spot-odd-one-out-us-defense-spending-president
Arabia Saudí podría enriquecer uranio según propuesta de acuerdo con EEUU, advierten los expertos
Por JON GAMBRELL
DUBÁI, Emiratos Árabes Unidos (AP) — Arabia Saudí podría llegar a cabo alguna forma de enriquecimiento de uranio dentro del reino en virtud de una propuesta de acuerdo nuclear con Estados Unidos, según sugieren documentos del Congreso y un grupo de control de armas, lo que plantea preocupaciones sobre la proliferación mientras continúa un pulso atómico entre Teherán y Washington.
Los presidentes de Estados Unidos Donald Trump y Joe Biden intentaron alcanzar un acuerdo nuclear con Riad para compartir la tecnología estadounidense. Expertos en no proliferación advierten que la puesta en marcha de cualquier centrifugadora en el reino podría abrir la puerta a un posible programa de armas, algo que su príncipe heredero ha insinuado que podría perseguir si Irán logra una bomba atómica.
Arabia Saudí y Pakistán, que tiene armas nucleares, firmaron el año pasado un pacto de defensa mutua después de que Israel lanzó un ataque contra Qatar dirigido a responsables del grupo insurgente palestino de Hamás. El ministro paquistaní de Defensa afirmó entonces que el programa nuclear de Islamabad “se pondrá a disposición” de Riad si fuera necesario, una declaración vista como una advertencia a Israel, considerado desde hace tiempo el único país de Oriente Medio con armamento nuclear.
“La cooperación nuclear puede ser un mecanismo positivo para mantener las normas de no proliferación y aumentar la transparencia, pero el problema está en los detalles”, señaló Kelsey Davenport, directora de política de no proliferación de la Arms Control Association, con sede en Washington.
Los documentos suscitan “preocupación por el hecho de que el gobierno de Trump no haya considerado cuidadosamente los riesgos de proliferación que plantea su propuesta de acuerdo de cooperación nuclear con Arabia Saudí ni el precedente que este acuerdo podría sentar”.
Arabia Saudí no respondió a las preguntas de The Associated Press el viernes.
Reporte del Congreso detalla un posible acuerdo
El documento del Congreso, que también visto por la AP, muestra que la Casa Blanca pretende alcanzar 20 acuerdos comerciales nucleares con países de todo el mundo, incluida Arabia Saudí. El acuerdo con Riad podría estar valorado en miles de millones de dólares, añade.
El documento sostiene que alcanzar un acuerdo con el reino “hará avanzar los intereses de seguridad nacional de Estados Unidos, rompiendo con las políticas fallidas de inacción e indecisión de las que nuestros competidores se han aprovechado para perjudicar a la industria estadounidense y disminuir la posición de Estados Unidos a nivel mundial en este sector crítico”. China, Francia, Rusia y Corea del Sur figuran entre los principales países que venden tecnología para centrales nucleares en el extranjero.
El borrador del acuerdo haría que Estados Unidos y Arabia Saudí suscribieran acuerdos de salvaguardas con el Organismo Internacional de Energía Atómica, la agencia de control nuclear de Naciones Unidas. Esto incluiría la supervisión de “las zonas más sensibles a la proliferación de una posible cooperación nuclear”, añadió. Indicó el enriquecimiento, la fabricación de combustible y el reprocesamiento como áreas potenciales.
El OIEA, con sede en Viena, no respondió a preguntas de la AP. Arabia Saudí forma parte de la agencia, que promueve un uso pacífico de la energía nuclear, pero también realiza inspecciones para garantizar que no haya países con programas clandestinos de armas atómicas.
“Esto sugiere que, una vez que el acuerdo bilateral de salvaguardias esté en vigor, abrirá la puerta a que Arabia Saudí adquiera tecnología o capacidades de enriquecimiento de uranio —posiblemente incluso de Estados Unidos”, escribió Davenport. “Incluso con restricciones y límites, parece probable que Arabia Saudí tenga una vía hacia algún tipo de enriquecimiento de uranio o acceso a conocimientos sobre el enriquecimiento”.
El enriquecimiento no es un camino automático a las armas nucleares: un país debe dominar también otros pasos, incluido, por ejemplo, el uso de explosivos de alta potencia sincronizados. Pero sí abre la puerta a la militarización, lo que ha alimentado las preocupaciones de Occidente sobre el programa iraní.
Emiratos Árabes Unidos, vecino de Arabia Saudí, firmó lo que se conoce como un “acuerdo 123” con Estados Unidos para construir su central nuclear de Barakah con ayuda de Corea del Sur. Pero lo hizo sin buscar el enriquecimiento, algo que los expertos en no proliferación consideran como el modelo a seguir por las naciones que quieren energía atómica.
Propuesta saudí-estadounidense, en plenas tensiones con Irán
El impulso para alcanzar un acuerdo entre Arabia Saudí y Estados Unidos se produce mientras Trump amenaza con acciones militares contra Irán si no se llega a un entendimiento sobre su programa nuclear. La presión militar del líder estadounidense se produce tras protestas en todo Irán, en las que su teocracia lanzó una sangrienta represión contra la disidencia que dejó miles de fallecidos y, según reportes, provocó la detención de decenas de miles más.
En el caso de Irán, sus autoridades insistes desde hace tiempo en que su programa de enriquecimiento nuclear tiene fines pacíficos. Pero Occidente y el OIEA afirman que Teherán tuvo un programa nuclear militar organizado hasta 2003. La República Islámica también había enriquecido uranio hasta una pureza del 60%, que está a un paso técnico corto del 90% necesario para un arma, lo que lo convierte en el único país del mundo alcanzar ese nivel sin contar con un programa armamentístico.
Durante mucho tiempo, diplomáticos iraníes han mencionado las palabras del líder supremo del país, el ayatolá Ali Jamenei, de 86 años, como una fatua, o edicto religioso, vinculante, según la cual no construirán una bomba atómica. Sin embargo, los funcionarios han planteado cada vez más esa amenaza a medida que aumentan las tensiones con Washington.
El príncipe heredero saudí, Mohammed bin Salman, gobernante de facto del reino, indicó que si Teherán obtiene la bomba, “tendremos que conseguir una”.
___
The Associated Press recibe apoyo para la cobertura de seguridad nuclear de la Carnegie Corporation of New York y la Outrider Foundation. La AP es la única responsable de todo el contenido.
___
Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Today in Chicago History: World War II hero Edward ‘Butch’ O’Hare — the airport’s namesake — downs Japanese bombers
Here’s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Feb. 20, according to the Tribune’s archives.
Is an important event missing from this date? Email us.
Front page flashback: Feb. 21, 1958
After spending a third of a century in prison, Nathan Leopold was released on Feb. 20, 1958, from Stateville Correctional Center near Joliet. Leopold and friend Richard “Dickie” Loeb, the pampered sons of prominent Kenwood families, killed Robert “Bobby” Franks in 1924 after they offered him a ride home from school. (Chicago Tribune)
1958: Nathan Leopold, who was convicted with Richard Loeb of killing Bobby Franks in 1924, was released on parole.
Vintage Chicago Tribune: Leopold and Loeb
Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago)
High temperature: 70 degrees (2017)
Low temperature: Minus 9 degrees (1896)
Precipitation: 2.1 inches (2018)
Snowfall: 2.8 inches (1989)
1852: The first direct train from the East arrived in Chicago to the sound of a firing cannon and the sight of an immense crowd on the Michigan Southern Railroad.
Edward “Butch” O’Hare waves during a parade in his honor in his hometown of St. Louis in 1942. Flanking him are his mother, Selma O’Hare, left, and his wife, Rita O’Hare, right. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)
1942: U.S. Navy pilot Edward “Butch” O’Hare became a World War II hero when he singlehandedly downed a number of Japanese bombers attacking his aircraft carrier. This would make him the first naval aviator recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor. In presenting the award, President Franklin D. Roosevelt referred to O’Hare’s skill as “the most daring single action in aviation history.” After being awarded the Medal of Honor, O’Hare was brought home by the Navy to barnstorm on a Lindbergh-style celebrity tour.
O’Hare International Airport: From farm to global terminal
O’Hare was 29 when he died on Nov. 26, 1943, while leading the Navy’s first nighttime fighter attack launched from an aircraft carrier. His plane and his body were never recovered.
Other than through his father, mob-connected racetracker owner Edward J., O’Hare had only loose ties to Chicago. When his parents were divorced, he stayed in St. Louis with his mother, moving his family to Phoenix during the war. That was no deterrent to Tribune publisher Robert R. McCormick in his campaign to have Chicago’s Orchard Place Airport rechristened to honor Butch O’Hare, and in 1949 Ald. John Hoellen’s proposal passed the City Council, creating O’Hare Field.
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https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/20/february-20-chicago-history/
Today in History: William Wallace Lincoln dies
Today is Friday, Feb. 20, the 51st day of 2026. There are 314 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On Feb. 20, 1862, William Wallace Lincoln, the 11-year-old son of President Abraham Lincoln and first lady Mary Todd Lincoln, died at the White House from what was believed to be typhoid fever.
Also on this date:
In 1792, President George Washington signed an act creating the United States Post Office Department, the predecessor of the U.S. Postal Service.
In 1905, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Jacobson v. Massachusetts, upheld, 7-2, compulsory vaccination laws intended to protect the public’s health.
In 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt signed an immigration act which excluded “idiots, imbeciles, feeble-minded persons, epileptics, insane persons,” among others, from being admitted to the United States.
In 1939, more than 20,000 people attended a rally held by the German American Bund, a pro-Nazi organization, at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
In 1962, astronaut John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, circling the globe three times aboard Project Mercury’s Friendship 7 spacecraft in a flight lasting 4 hours and 55 minutes before splashing down safely in the Atlantic Ocean.
In 1965, America’s Ranger 8 spacecraft crashed into the moon’s surface, as planned, after sending back thousands of pictures of the lunar surface.
In 1998, American Tara Lipinski, age 15, became the youngest-ever Olympic figure skating gold medalist when she won the ladies’ title at the Nagano Olympic Winter Games; American teammate Michelle Kwan took silver.
In 2003, a fire sparked by pyrotechnics broke out during a concert by the rock group Great White at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, killing 100 people and injuring over 200 others.
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In 2016, a Michigan man shot and killed six strangers and wounded two others over several hours in the Kalamazoo area in between picking up passengers for a ride service. (Jason Dalton pleaded guilty in 2019 and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.)
Today’s birthdays: Racing Hall of Famer Roger Penske is 89. Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Esposito is 84. Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is 84. Film director Mike Leigh is 83. Actor Brenda Blethyn is 80. Actor Sandy Duncan is 80. Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley is 63. Model Cindy Crawford is 60. Actor Andrew Shue is 59. Actor Lili Taylor is 59. Singer Brian Littrell (Backstreet Boys) is 51. Actor Lauren Ambrose is 48. Actor Jay Hernandez is 48. MLB pitcher Justin Verlander is 43. Comedian-TV host Trevor Noah is 42. Actor Miles Teller is 39. Singer Rihanna is 38. Singer-actor Olivia Rodrigo is 23.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/20/today-in-history-william-wallace-lincoln-dies/
Guyana Fast-Tracks Gas Expansion As Oil Cash Piles Up
Guyana Fast-Tracks Gas Expansion As Oil Cash Piles Up
Authored by Julianne Geiger via OilPrice.com,
Guyana’s sights are set much higher than just being the new oil darling of the Western hemisphere. It wants to be the gas darling too.
That’s the frame coming out of Georgetown as Guyana lines up a second gas pipeline project, even before the first one is fully online.
President Irfaan Ali said a new gas development at Berbice will be finalized very soon, aimed at bringing more associated gas from ExxonMobil’s offshore fields to shore. The first gas-to-shore pipeline is expected to start up later this year, supplying roughly 300 megawatts to a new power plant near the capital.
For a country long plagued by high power costs and periodic blackouts, this goes well beyond being a side project.
Guyana’s oil boom has been nothing short of staggering.
Since Exxon’s 2015 discovery, output has surged and the country has become one of the fastest-growing producers in the world. But crude exports don’t automatically create factories, processing plants or tech hubs.
They create revenue. What you do with it is another matter.
Ali’s argument is that gas is the bridge.
Instead of exporting everything offshore, Guyana wants to use its associated gas to anchor manufacturing, agri-processing and potentially petrochemicals. He’s also floated partnering with neighboring Suriname on the second project to scale it beyond a purely domestic build.
Exxon says it is committed to moving quickly on gas development, but it has also been blunt that gas is more complicated than oil. Upstream chief Dan Ammann said the offshore pipeline infrastructure is ready, but onshore power plants, permitting and market frameworks need to advance in parallel. In short, the company will invest as the regulatory and commercial pieces fall into place.
This is where ambition meets execution. Guyana is trying to convert an oil windfall into a broader industrial base while capital and political momentum are still strong. That window does not stay open forever.
The molecules are there. The revenue is there. The question now is whether the build-out on land can keep pace with what’s already happening offshore.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/20/2026 – 05:00
https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/guyana-fast-tracks-gas-expansion-oil-cash-piles
Expresidente surcoreano se mantiene desafiante tras condena a cadena perpetua por rebelión
Por KIM TONG-HYUNG
SEÚL, Corea del Sur (AP) — El destituido expresidente surcoreano Yoon Suk Yeol mantuvo su actitud desafiante el viernes en su primera reacción a su condena de cadena perpetua por rebelión dictada por un tribunal de Seúl en la víspera.
En un comunicado difundido por sus abogados, Yoon sostuvo que su abrupta y efímera declaración de ley marcial en diciembre de 2024 se hizo “únicamente por el bien de la nación y de nuestro pueblo”, y desestimó al Tribunal del Distrito Central de Seúl por considerarlo parcial en su contra.
Yoon, quien fue apartado del cargo en medio de la crisis política desatada por su fallido intento de aferrarse al poder, lleva tiempo rechazando los ocho procesos penales en su contra por lo que los fiscales describieron como un intento de golpe de Estado y otras acusaciones.
Se atrincheró durante semanas en la residencia presidencial, obstaculizó la labor de los investigadores tras su detención y no acudió a vistas judiciales, además de enfrentarse con testigos cuando sí compareció.
Al dictar su veredicto por los cargos de rebelión el jueves, el juez del tribunal de Seúl Jee Kui-youn, afirmó que el exmandatario no mostró “ninguna señal de disculpa por los abrumadores costos sociales ocasionados por la ley marcial de emergencia” y que “se negó a comparecer ante el tribunal sin ninguna razón justificable” en varias ocasiones.
Los simpatizantes conservadores de Yoon, que se concentraron durante horas cerca del tribunal antes del veredicto, expresaron su decepción y malestar tras el anuncio, mientras sus opositores celebraban en las calles cercanas. Ambos grupos estuvieron separados por cientos de agentes de policía y no se registraron enfrentamientos relevantes.
El comunicado de Yoon rechazó el veredicto por considerarlo ilegítimo.
“En una situación en la que no puede garantizarse la independencia del poder judicial y es difícil esperar un veredicto basado en la ley y la conciencia, siento un profundo escepticismo sobre si tendría sentido continuar una batalla legal mediante una apelación”, declaró Yoon, de 65 años, que está encarcelado desde julio del año pasado.
Yoo Jeong-hwa, una de sus abogadas, señaló que Yoon “solo estaba expresando su estado de ánimo actual” y no indicó su intención de renunciar a su derecho a presentar recurso. Yoon tiene siete días para apelar la sentencia del jueves.
En su comunicado, el expresidente expresó su solidaridad con las familias de los soldados, agentes de policía y funcionarios públicos que enfrentan investigaciones o acusaciones formales en relación con su decreto de ley marcial, y afirmó que se siente responsable de su sufrimiento. Pero también dijo a sus seguidores que “nuestra lucha no ha terminado”.
El tribunal declaró a Yoon culpable de orquestar una rebelión al movilizar fuerzas militares y policiales en un intento ilegal de hacerse con el control de la legislatura —de mayoría progresista—, detener a adversarios políticos y establecer un gobierno sin controles por un período indefinido. Yoon ha descrito su impulso autoritario como necesario para contrarrestar a la cámara controlada por la oposición, de la que dijo que estaba integrada por fuerzas “antiestatales”.
Yoon también podría enfrentar el recurso de un fiscal especial independiente, que pidió la pena capital al tribunal y tiene derecho a solicitar que a un tribunal superior modifique la condena. Jang Woo-sung, miembro del equipo de investigación, dijo a reporteros tras el fallo que el equipo tiene “reservas” sobre las conclusiones fácticas del tribunal y la severidad de la condena.
El tribunal de Seúl también declaró culpables y condenó a cinco exoficiales militares y policiales implicados en la aplicación del decreto de ley marcial de Yoon. Entre ellos estaba el exministro de Defensa Kim Yong Hyun, quien fue sentenciado a 30 años de prisión por su papel clave en la planificación de la medida, la movilización del ejército y la instrucción a funcionarios de la contrainteligencia militar para detener a políticos clave, entre ellos el actual presidente, el progresista Lee Jae Myung. Kim presentó una apelación.
Jang Dong-hyuk, líder del conservador Partido del Poder del Pueblo, afirmó en una conferencia de prensa el viernes que el tribunal no presentó argumentos convincentes para demostrar que la ley marcial de Yoon equivaliera a rebelión y, al referirse a un posible recurso, subrayó que “el derecho a la presunción de inocencia se aplica a todos sin excepción”.
El decreto de ley marcial de Yoon, anunciado a última hora de la noche del 3 de diciembre de 2024, estuvo en vigor unas seis horas, hasta que un quórum de legisladores superó el bloqueo militar y votó por unanimidad revocar la medida, lo que obligó al gobierno a retirarla.
Yoon fue suspendido del cargo el 14 de diciembre de 2024 tras un juicio político, y fue destituido formalmente por el Tribunal Constitucional en abril de 2025. Enfrentado múltiples juicios penales bajo arresto, siendo el cargo de rebelión el que acarrea la pena más severa.
Aunque fue breve, el decreto de ley marcial de Yoon desencadenó la crisis política más grave del país en décadas, paralizando la política y la diplomacia de alto nivel y sacudiendo los mercados financieros. El vacío de poder se resolvió cuando Lee ganó las elecciones anticipadas en junio del año pasado.
___
Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
US Plans Sprawling Base For 5,000 International Troops In Southern Gaza
US Plans Sprawling Base For 5,000 International Troops In Southern Gaza
“The Board of Peace is going to almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs properly,” Trump claimed in Thursday remarks during the inaugural meeting of the panel in Washington.
He said this in response to some allies – which are not participating – recently complaining that post-Gaza war reconstruction should be directly under UN auspices, and not a US-overseen board based on paying membership (the one billion dollar buy-in fee).
Apart from that controversy, the biggest Board of Peace development is being reported in The Guardian, which says Trump is advancing plans for a major US military installation inside the Gaza Strip, envisioned as the “military operating base” for future international forces.
While unconfirmed, the report outlines “the phased construction of a military outpost that will eventually have a footprint of 1,400 meters by 1,100 meters, ringed by 26 trailer-mounted armored watch towers, a small arms range, bunkers, and a warehouse for military equipment for operations” – with the entire compound enclosed by barbed wire. It would reportedly house 5,000 personnel.
The proposed site is to be located in southern Gaza, according to more: “A small group of bidders – international construction companies with experience in war zones – have already been shown the area in a site visit.”
The report indicates the contracting document was issued by the Trump-led board, but hasn’t been made public:
“The Contractor shall conduct a geophysical survey of the site to identify any subterranean voids, tunnels, or large cavities per phase,” the ‘Board of Peace’ document states. “If suspected human remains or cultural artifacts are discovered, all work in the immediate area must cease immediately, the area must be secured, and the Contracting Officer must be notified immediately for direction.”
Likely, thousands of bodies are still buried underneath the rubble, given also the Israeli officials recently admitted at least 70,000 Palestinians were killed in the two year long war – though Israel maintains that some one-third of these deaths were armed Hamas militants.
The question of a US-backed military base in the Gaza Strip is sure to unleash immense controversy among Palestinians and Arab leaders more broadly.
Some interesting scenes on Thursday…
🇺🇸 Trump’s “Board of Peace” meets in DC, with Trump telling people to smile as Guns N’ Roses plays in the background. It’s bizarre. pic.twitter.com/dqq6vQbmLa
— DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) February 19, 2026
The White House has frequently vowed there would be no US boots on the ground in Gaza, but such a military base would certainly open that up as a likely possibility.
While Washington has long argued that the Board of Peace will ensure other countries are (and not the US) shouldering the burden of Gaza’s future, there would be a very high chance of at least American military advisers being present at such a future ‘international base’.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/20/2026 – 04:15
This popcorn tastes sweet and salty
A few years ago, I tried a Japanese-inspired version of classic Chex Mix that used furikake, that delicious seasoning of sesame seeds, spices, seaweed, and dried fish. The crunchy cereal coated with furikake blew my mind, so why couldn’t the same idea be applied to popcorn? Thus the idea for furikake popcorn was born. I wanted to turn kettle corn on its head and given it a fun Japanese twist.
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I thought I wanted to start by making homemade kettle corn, but after many failed attempts with burned sugar and popcorn kernels, I realized that a much easier way to go was to take already-popped corn and coat it with a light stovetop caramel instead. This caramel also helped the furikake to adhere to the popcorn, and just a short time in the oven got everything get nice and crunchy.
The result is fabulous — not too sweet or savory, but just a great balance of both. It’s been a delicious addition to the movie night snacking rotation, especially since furikake popcorn also stays crunchy for a few days if stored in an airtight container. I know that from firsthand experience, because I seemed to reach in for a handful every time I walk past the kitchen snack drawer.
Why you’ll love it
It’s so easy. The sugar coating base is made by boiling butter and sugar together, but you don’t need to worry about using a candy thermometer here, just set a timer and boil it for 3 minutes.
The sweet-savory combo is perfect. This popcorn is sweet, savory, nutty, and salty all at the same time.
Key Ingredients in furikake popcorn
Furikake: Furikake is a savory Japanese condiment made of dried seaweed, spices, toasted sesame seeds, and usually bonito flakes (although it often contains additional ingredients). It’s delicious sprinkled on rice, fish, eggs, and noodle dishes. Make your own furikake (we also have a vegetarian version) if you feel like going the extra mile.
Popcorn: Buying already-popped popcorn is the easiest route to go for this recipe, but you can also make popcorn in the microwave instead.
Butter: Adds a savory background note to the syrup.
Sugar: Granulated sugar adds sweetness while letting the other flavors shine through.
Baking soda: Lightens the texture of the syrup so it coats the popcorn evenly.
Furikake Popcorn
Serves 6 to 8
12 cups plain popped popcorn
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons furikake
1. Heat the oven to 250 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. Place 12 cups plain popcorn in a large stockpot, roasting pan, or bowl — something large enough where you can stir it easily without popcorn falling out.
3. Melt 6 tablespoons unsalted butter in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan (at least 1 1/2 quarts) over medium heat. Stir in 1/2 cup granulated sugar until moistened. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for 3 minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom and sides of the saucepan as needed with a rubber spatula (the mixture and any foam on top should darken to the color of light maple syrup).
4. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Carefully whisk in 1/4 teaspoon fine salt and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda (it will bubble up violently!). Continue whisking until you have a thick, glossy sauce. Immediately drizzle the mixture over the popcorn while continually stirring with the rubber spatula. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons furikake over the popcorn and stir to coat the popcorn.
5. Transfer the popcorn to the baking sheet and spread into an even layer. Bake, stirring halfway through, until a cooled piece of popcorn is very crunchy, about 30 minutes total. (To test for doneness, take a few pieces of popcorn out of the oven and let cool for 30 seconds. If they’re crunchy, then the popcorn is done.) Let the furikake popcorn cool for at least 5 minutes before serving — it will crisp as it cools.
Recipe notes
Popcorn: You can either pop your own corn for this recipe, or for more convenient options, buy plain or just salted (no butter flavoring) microwave popcorn or already-popped popcorn.
Gluten-free: While many brands of furikake are gluten free, not all may be. Make sure the furikake is gluten-free if you want gluten-free furikake popcorn.
Storage: The cooled furikake popcorn can be stored an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days.
(Christine Gallary is a senior recipe editor for TheKitchn.com, a nationally known blog for people who love food and home cooking. Submit any comments or questions to editorial@thekitchn.com.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/20/sweet-and-salty-popcorn/
NASA realiza segunda prueba de carga de cohete que decidirá cuándo despega su misión lunar
Por MARCIA DUNN
CABO CAÑAVERAL, Florida, EE.UU. (AP) — La NASA volvió a intentar cargar combustible en su gigantesco cohete lunar el jueves, después de que unas fugas interrumpieron el ensayo general inicial y retrasaran el primer viaje lunar de sus astronautas en más de medio siglo.
Por segunda vez este mes, los equipos de lanzamiento bombearon más de 2,6 millones de litros (700.000 galones) de combustible ultrafrío al cohete, ubicado en su plataforma de lanzamiento. Realizaron la cuenta regresiva hasta la marca de los 30 segundos, tal como estaba previsto, y luego retrocedieron los relojes para repetir los últimos 10 minutos.
La NASA completó la prueba a última hora de la noche y apuntó que la pérdida de hidrógeno fue mínima, muy por debajo de los límites de seguridad.
Fue la parte más crítica y difícil de los dos días de ensayos previos al lanzamiento. Los ingenieros estaban analizando los datos, y el resultado determinará si es posible lanzar la misión lunar Artemis II, con cuatro astronautas, en marzo.
En un indicio esperanzador, la tripulación, formada por astronautas de Estados Unidos y Canadá, se preparó para iniciar el viernes un periodo de cuarentena de dos semanas, con el fin de proporcionar lo que la NASA califica como flexibilidad dentro de la ventana de lanzamiento de marzo. Tres de los astronautas se unieron al equipo de lanzamiento el jueves para supervisar el progreso.
Durante la prueba de hace dos semanas, se registró una fuga de cantidades peligrosas de hidrógeno líquido ultrafrío por las conexiones entre la plataforma y el cohete Space Launch System, 98 metros (de 322 pies). Los ingenieros reemplazaron un par de juntas y un filtro obstruido con la esperanza de superar la segunda prueba en el Centro Espacial Kennedy. La NASA indicó que los resultados del jueves dieron a los ingenieros confianza en las nuevas soldaduras.
Lo más pronto que los astronautas podrían despegar es el 6 de marzo. Se convertirán en los primeros en volar a la Luna —en un viaje de ida y vuelta de 10 días, sin escalas— desde el Apolo 17 en 1972. No entrarán en órbita ni alunizarán.
La NASA lleva lidiando con las fugas de combustible de hidrógeno desde la era de los transbordadores espaciales, que proporcionaron muchos de los motores del SLS. El primer vuelo de prueba no tripulado de Artemis estuvo parado durante meses por fugas de hidrógeno antes de despegar finalmente en noviembre de 2022.
El hecho de que pasen años entre los vuelos agrava el problema, indicó el nuevo administrador de la NASA, Jared Isaacman, un empresario tecnológico que financió sus propios viajes a la órbita a través de SpaceX.
Apenas dos meses después de asumir el cargo, Isaacman ya promete rediseñar las conexiones de combustible entre el cohete y la plataforma antes del próximo lanzamiento de Artemis III. Aún a varios años de distancia, esa misión intentará alunizar con dos astronautas cerca del polo sur de la Luna.
___
El Departamento de Salud y Ciencia de The Associated Press recibe apoyo del Departamento de Educación Científica del Instituto Médico Howard Hughes y de la Fundación Robert Wood Johnson. AP es la única responsable de todo el contenido.
Just When You Thought The BBC Couldn’t Get Any More Repugnant…
Just When You Thought The BBC Couldn’t Get Any More Repugnant…
Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,
The BBC is under fire for a headline that branded 23-year-old conservative student Quentin Deranque as a “far-right student” after he was fatally beaten by a mob of far-left militants in Lyon, France. Critics are calling it blatant bias, turning the victim into the villain while downplaying the attackers’ extremism.
This isn’t just sloppy journalism—it’s narrative warfare, shielding violent leftists and ignoring the real threat of Antifa-style thugs running rampant in Europe.
Authorities charged nine far-left militants with the fatal beating during a protest. The suspects are linked to the militant group La Jeune Garde (Young Guard), including a parliamentary assistant from the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party.
The attack stemmed from Deranque providing security for the anti-mass migration feminist group Collectif Némésis, who were protesting a conference featuring MEP Rima Hassan. Tensions escalated when far-left groups confronted the demonstrators, leading to chaotic clashes.
Videos shared online captured the violence, including attempts to seize banners and at least one woman being knocked to the ground. Deranque was isolated, viciously set upon by masked attackers, and left for dead after repeated blows to the head.
According to Collectif Némésis leader Alice Cordier, “A member of our security…was lynched by the Jeune Garde Antifa.” The group added, “His attackers were masked, armed with reinforced gloves and tear gas, leaving little doubt about the premeditated nature of their attack.”
Deranque, a pious Catholic mathematics student, suffered severe brain injuries consistent with a cerebral hemorrhage. He was rushed to Édouard-Herriot Hospital but was later declared brain-dead.
The BBC’s disgusting headline, “Nine arrested in France over death of far-right student,” ignited backlash from conservatives. It framed Deranque as “far-right” and didn’t even mention that he was brutally murdered, just that he died, nor that the mob that set upon him and ended his life were far left militants.
His death came about because he was brutally MURDERED by FAR-LEFT thugs. Perhaps that should also be mentioned @BBCWorld? https://t.co/DWq2dfffj6
— m o d e r n i t y (@ModernityNews) February 18, 2026
The article is as bad as the headline pic.twitter.com/avovwMPEnu
— blank (@MarconiBalls) February 17, 2026
FAR LEFT murder a young man!
Fixed it for you.
Defund the BBC!
— Tommy Robinson ?? (@TRobinsonNewEra) February 17, 2026
The far left kill a student and you still
1.Refuse to call them what they are, and
2.Take one last swipe at their dead victim.
This isn’t reporting. It’s narrative management.
Defund the BBC.
— Avi Yemini (@OzraeliAvi) February 17, 2026
In ten words @BBCNews manages five examples of disinformation.
Let me give it a go:
Nine far-left thugs beat student to death for protecting women.
— Josh Howie (@joshxhowie) February 18, 2026
???After a mob of Antifa thugs beat 23-year-old Quentin Deranque to death in Lyon, there have been marches and memorials for the young man, who was a nationalist, Catholic, and mathematics student.
French politician Eric Zemmour says murder is not just an isolated incident, but… pic.twitter.com/XFI9Tf11FJ
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) February 16, 2026
In Paris, far-left activists tore down posters tributing Deranque, while President Emmanuel Macron condemned the killing but urged calm.
Anthropologist Florence Bergaud-Blackler warned, “The circumstances of Quentin’s death as he came to protect the women of Collectif Némésis are a foreshadowing of the civil war that is looming. The petty servile foot soldiers of anti-fascism are the cannon fodder of Islamism which seeks to overthrow our liberal and egalitarian social order and lock women away. Young Quentin is a hero.”
The media’s spin, like the BBC’s “Student death puts French far-left under pressure,” minimizes the murder as “just a death,” ignoring the blatant political lynching.
The British state funded broadcaster is already under intense scrutiny owing to President Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit concerning deceptive editing of his January 6, 2021, speech. The suit accuses the BBC of splicing footage to falsely imply Trump incited violence at the Capitol, omitting his calls for peaceful protest.
District Judge Roy Altman rejected the BBC’s bid to delay discovery, paving the way for a two-week trial in Miami. Trump’s team blasts the edit as “false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory,” while a BBC spokesman said, “As we have made clear previously, we will be defending this case. We are not going to make further comment on ongoing legal proceedings.”
This follows internal turmoil at the BBC, with top executives resigning amid the fallout, and an FCC probe into potential “news distortion.” Leaked memos condemned the edit as “completely misleading.”
As Europe grapples with unchecked far-left extremism, shielded by biased media and complicit politicians, incidents like this expose the real dangers to freedom and safety.
Quentin Deranque stood for protecting women against threats—his sacrifice demands accountability, not smears. Meanwhile, the BBC’s globalist propaganda faces its own reckoning in court.
Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.
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Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/20/2026 – 03:30
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/just-when-you-thought-bbc-couldnt-get-any-more-repugnant













