President Donald Trump is defending his interim peace deal with Iran after critics argued the agreement makes too many concessions. The 14-point plan extends the ceasefire, reopens the Strait of Hormuz, commits both sides to 60 more days of talks, removes all types of U.S. sanctions, and includes a $300 billion reconstruction plan for Iran.
A lot of people have criticized the deal as a near-total capitulation, but if you look closely at the text of the document, as I have, you’ll find a clause that I think—no… just kidding. It’s a near-total capitulation.
Still, I think we should hear the president out. In a meandering speech at the G7, Trump said he “got everything” he wanted. Here are some of his rebuttals to critics:
The stock market is up.
Okay, that’s a good start.
The Strait of Hormuz will stay open, thereby not damaging the market.
Maybe a little counterproductive considering that’s what messed with the market in the first place, but let’s see what else…
Iran made a pinky promise to not make nuclear weapons, with Trump saying, “We stopped nuclear holocaust... There’s not going to be any of that.”
Are we really trusting them on that?
But his most compelling argument was his Truth Social Post saying, “These fools, who think I haven’t been tough enough on Iran … are either jealous, bad people, or stupid.
I still think it’s a near-total capitulation, but I’m probably just jealous.
Welcome to the Gist List—a news roundup, things you should know, and my thoughts leading up to today’s podcast episode.
Here’s what’s on my mind:
🦠 Washington, D.C.’s reflecting pool/swamp problem.
🚆 Yet another reason California’s high-speed rail will never get built.
🏔️ Record numbers of old people and tourists are getting lost on hikes in Japan
☢️ Trump’s cabinet’s farts must be toxic.
🐕🦺 These South African sniffing dogs aren’t pulling their weight.
Trump made good on his promise to drain at least a kind of swamp—the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. It just got a $14 million renovation after the president promised to clean up its “filthy” and “disgusting” algae-infested water by resurfacing the basin, stopping persistent leaking, and painting the pool “American flag blue.”
The workers barely had time to pat themselves on the back and pack up before the algae came roaring back. Just days after reopening, the pool had more algae than at any recorded point in June for at least five years. It’s the perfect storm of events. First off, D.C. is dealing with hot, sunny weather, and the new color of the pool is actually heating things up, making it even cozier for the little green invaders.
If the goal is to make the pool match a flag, why not go with the Libyan flag during Qaddafi’s reign:
California’s high-speed rail project has finally found a way to make people nostalgic for the days when it was merely over-budget, behind schedule, and not yet a train: data centers!
Having not quite finished spending billions of dollars on a train, the California High-Speed Rail Authority is now looking for ways to monetize everything around the train. One idea officials are considering is whether land, electricity, and fiber-optic connections along the future rail corridor could be leased or sold to data-center developers.
For years, high-speed rail was sold to the public as environmentally friendly. Now, it seems the jig is up. Planners are all but admitting the area around d the tracks will be degraded and have used that admission to ask, ”Hey, why not build a data center here? It’s kind of a mess anyway.“
I’ve written about this before, but it’s possible that the fears about data center water usage are overblown. They might not take up as much water as opponents would have you believe, but it might be a huge strain on the power grid, so the trains might not be able to run anyway.
The highest number ever recorded of people getting stranded on Japanese mountains was in 2025—up 266 from last year.
People over the age of 60 made up 47.6% of those who got stranded, which, considering that this is a rapidly aging country that uses its prisons as de facto memory care centers, might have more to do with Japan than the treacherousness of the mountains themselves.
Tourists made up a record 246 strandings, more than double the previous year.
A new diet trend is sweeping through Trump’s cabinet, which includes grass-fed meat, fermented foods, and cutting out alcohol and sugar. Meaning, the smell of their farts must be absolutely atomic.
This diet was based on the work of Dr. Sean O’Mara, who recommends sauerkraut, kimchi, old-world cheeses, steak, and full-body MRIs to track visceral fat. And if you look at a photo of the early-60-year-old, you’d think he might be onto something. I mean, look at that pungent sauerkraut thirst trap! He barely even works out!
RFK Jr. was the first convert, claiming to have lost 20 pounds in 30 days, and slowly other cabinet members followed suit. J.D. Vance and Howard Lutnick started the diet—although they don’t seem to be having anywhere near the success that O’Mara is. Sean Duffy, on the other hand, claims his skin is “glowing.”
The South African tax agency has a very niche problem: not enough good bois and girls to sniff out contraband and customs-dodging imports, costing the government millions in foregone revenue.
The Detector Dog Unit has 66 handlers, but nine currently do not have dogs, and the agency says it needs 14 more dogs to meet operational needs. Each dog brings in about 29.7 million rand, or $1.8 million, in revenue per year by detecting goods that would otherwise dodge duties. The total shortfall works out to about 415 million rand annually, or roughly $25 million freedom dollars.
And while all dogs are at least a 10/10 spiritually, the agency says more than 60% of the dogs evaluated don’t meet the behavioral standards required for customs detector-dog training. Maybe lower the standards a bit? It’s ok if each dog only brings in $1.5 million.
This newsletter was put together in collaboration with Kathleen Sykes. All mistakes belong to Mike Pesca.
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