The Radical — Thursday, 21 May 2026

A gritty wide-angle shot of a dusty lithium mine in Jujuy, Argentina, with heavy excavators under a harsh midday sun, high contrast black-and-white, 4K HDR documentary photography, dramatic shadows.

Articles #

A close-up of a weathered Argentine miner's hands holding white lithium carbonate powder, harsh fluorescent lighting, high contrast documentary style, 4K HDR.

Milei Hands Over Argentine Mines To Chinese Power #

Javier Milei stood in the arid province of Jujuy this week to clear the way for a $1.24 billion expansion of a lithium mine half-owned by China’s Ganfeng Lithium Group. The self-proclaimed libertarian firebrand, who recently accepted a $20 billion lifeline from the Trump administration, is now handing three decades of legal stability to a joint venture involving the state-owned JEMSE and Lithium Argentina AG. This move allows the Chinese firm to bypass the very ideological barriers Milei once shouted…

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Meat Giants Lock Out Workers As Prices Hit Records #

Dean Modecker stood outside the beef processing plant in Fort Morgan, Colorado, as Cargill stopped paying 1,700 employees on Wednesday. The lockout follows a month of suspended slaughtering, leaving the workers of Teamsters Local 455 in a desperate standoff against a corporate titan that offered a mere 70-cent raise in…

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A sea of 47,000 strikers in blue union vests outside a massive brutalist glass factory, low angle shot, overcast natural light, 4K HDR documentary photography.

Samsung Tech Workers Launch Massive Strike For Bonuses #

47,000 members of the Samsung Electronics labor union gathered in a mass rally outside the Pyeongtaek foundry this week, holding signs that read "Change it to be transparent!" The workers are threatening an 18-day strike to begin on May 21, demanding the removal of a cap on performance bonuses and…

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Putin Meets Xi To Solidify The New Global Order #

Sergey Lavrov arrived in New Delhi this week for a two-day BRICS meeting, shaking hands with Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar as the bloc struggles to maintain a united front…

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Google Encloses Your Reality With New Smart Glasses #

Andrew Lanxon stood before a panel of tech editors at Google I/O 2026 to unveil the latest expansion of Gemini Intelligence and the upcoming Android XR glasses. The presentation focused…

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In Brief #

New York Bills Targeting Surveillance Pricing Advance

The New York state Senate has advanced a package of bills to ban electronic shelf labels and prevent online retailers from basing prices on a user's geolocation. The United Food and Commercial Workers union stated that passing this act means New York will be the first to stop 'surveillance pricing' that discriminates against poor shoppers.

Paul Schrader Ghosted By His AI Girlfriend

Legendary screenwriter Paul Schrader reported that an online AI girlfriend he 'procured' to understand male/female interactions has ghosted him after he asked too many questions. Schrader, who predicts fully AI-generated movies by 2027, noted the interaction resembled a bizarre sequel to his own dark cinematic themes.

Texas AI Platform Tracks Every State Foreclosure

A new AI-driven system called Texas NTS has launched in Lubbock, claiming to track every foreclosure filing across all 254 Texas counties with 99.2% accuracy. The platform automates the extraction of Trustee's Sale notices, turning state-level administrative failures and private debt crises into a real-time data stream for subscribers.

New Zealand Scraps Research Schemes For Transition Fund

The New Zealand government has unveiled a new NZ$85 million Transition Research Fund for 2027, replacing the legacy Marsden and Endeavour schemes. Scientists have warned that the new system is flawed and prioritizes 'meaningful benefits' over basic scientific inquiry, signaling a shift toward state-directed industrial research.