The Great American Bubble Machine | The great, indispensable Matt Taibbi on the US economy:

The first thing you need to know about Goldman Sachs is that it's everywhere. The world's most powerful investment bank is a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money. In fact, the history of the recent financial crisis, which doubles as a history of the rapid decline and fall of the suddenly swindled-dry American empire, reads like a Who's Who of Goldman Sachs graduates.

AFP: Morocco dismantles militant group: security official | Spanish-Moroccans jihadists arrested, possibly in touch with AQIM.
Death penalty debate rages as hundreds await gallows - The National Newspaper |

CAIRO // June has been dubbed “the month of executions” and 2009 “the year of mass executions” by Egyptian newspapers and analysts amid debate about abolishing capital punishment. More than 200 death sentences have been handed down since the beginning of the year, including 68 in June alone, according to official sources at the justice ministry. There are usually about 80 people executed each year.

Tomgram: Dilip Hiro, The Weeks of Living Dangerously | The Smirking Chimp | Very interesting look at student demographics in Iran, and what some of the key issues of the elections were for young people.
Informed Comment: Moaddel Guest Op-Ed: Iran’s Crisis and the U.S. Option: Support Mousavi now or fight Ahmadinejad tomorrow | It arlams me to see Juan Cole hosting an op-ed such as this one, basically calling for a US-Iran war...

Note: Going back to the daily link dump, unless you prefer the individual posts. Most people I asked seem to prefer this method...

Tamim death sentences upheld - The National Newspaper | On HTM, case will now go to appeal, perhaps ultimately to Cassation Court.

Moving Out of Kuwait’s Political Impasse - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace | Nathan Brown on Kuwait's divisions between the ruling family and parliament.

Al-Ahram Weekly | Focus | Loyalty to racism | Azmi Bishara on Israel's demand that it be recognized as a Jewish state. He makes several really good points.

Obama to Send U.S. Ambassador to Syria After Four-Year Gap - washingtonpost.com | Move had been planned, but coming in the middle of Iran's crisis it signals an ambition to split the Syrian-Iranian alliance.

Calif. professor's Gaza e-mail cleared by panel - Yahoo! News | Bloody thought police.

Almasry Alyoum | Why Has the Regime Gotten Rid of Hisham Talaat Mustafa?
Editor Magdy Gallad thinks the HTM verdict was a message to big business, like Mubarak's recent speech urging them not to flaunt their wealth.