The last hours of 2024. It's a cliché, but the year has flown by again. Like the previous year, 2024 was characterised by turmoil and bloodshed in Central Europe and the Middle East. All eyes were on U.S. President Donald Trump, who returned after four years of the Joe Biden debacle. It was also the year that The Liberum boarded many new contributors in its second year of publication. Here are some of our highlights in case you accidentally missed them.
By Arthur Blok
Looking back on 2024, it becomes evident that international institutions are further declining. The inadequacy of institutes like the undemocratic Security Council of the United Nations became undeniable. Lefties around the globe and climate psychopaths were not amused when The Liberum demonstrated to the reader that the Climate Emergency is nothing more than a hoax.
It's a lucrative one, but still.
Frontrunner in the fight against this orchestrated climate hypocrisy, Dr Guus Berkhout was not even granted the courtesy of a meeting by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This subsidised institute categorically ignores crucial peer-reviewed literature and cherry-picks evidence to promote doom scenarios on climate change.
The Liberum will keep on supporting Dr Berkhout’s battle in 2025.
There is hope for a return to normal after Trump won the 2024 United States presidential election, sending Kamala Harris back to the rock from under where she crawled out. He stated that stopping the climate madness is at the top of his agenda. Trump became the first U.S. president elected to a non-consecutive second term in 132 years (after Grover Cleveland in 1892).
Trump also exposed the agenda of the global left mainstream media, which did everything in its power to downplay his changes. With his victory, Trump drastically changed the future of the American empire and stopped the roll-out of a perverted global woke agenda that climaxed at the #Metoo-Lympics, co-written with Dutch opinion leader Mienke de Wilde.
For a year, all eyes were on Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu and his obsession with winning the war in Gaza and defeating Hezbollah in Lebanon. After a year of destruction and bloodshed, Bibi still did not succeed in defeating Hamas and bringing the Israeli hostages home. The Liberum’s in-house columnist, Hiba Kilany, powerfully expressed the pain and frustration that this struggle entails. On various occasions,
Bibi more successfully whipped the Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah from the map, killing their leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and most of their senior command and infrastructure. Soon after a ceasefire was reached, it was Syria’s turn.
A new round of violence erupted in Syria after Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham launched a military operation. In a little over a week, Syrian President Bashar al-Asad fled the country, ending almost 52 years of brutal Baath’ rule.
The Liberum’s new analyst, Ahmad Ghosn, was on top of this. Making Turkey the biggest beneficiary of the war. After Israel, of course, who saw an opportunity to grab more land.
At the same time, our new senior Asia analyst and entrepreneur, Vietnam-based Wouter van der Wiel, surprised us with spot-on reports on the developments in his region and the consequences for the world. All his stories of 2024 can be found here.
It was also the year that several prominent scholars joined the Liberum. Canadian Dr Robert M. Cutler published various stories about Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Eurasia, while Dutch scholar Dr Aart G. Broek elaborated on taboos like slavery repartition, Saint Nikolas’ Black Pete, and the influence of radical Islam.
Dr Ken van Ierlant enlightened our readers with his views about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the war of lies inherent to this conflict, and, of course, "To be, or not to be, from the river to the sea…". His contributions caused quite a stir online, to say the least.
As if this was not enough, Dutch philosopher emeritus professor and former Senator Dr Paul Cliteur rejoiced us with his arrival. Cliteur elaborated on Jew-hatred in the West, convicted Pakistani Jihadis, Salman Rushdie, and the commemoration of the assassinated Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, to name a few.
We are looking forward to his contributions in the new year.
There was more. A few weeks ago, The Liberum launched a new category, Unbelievable, where alternative views like Ancient Aliens, Astronauts, and other mysteries are discussed. It was, of course, our legendary in-house (Arab) science Emad Aysha who kicked this segment off. Visiting Emad’s SF is also a must for science fiction enthusiasts.
Last but certainly not least, a big thank you to our usual suspect, Nikola Mikovic, our central European expert and analyst. His contribution makes the most complicated geopolitical matters understandable for many. In the second half of 2024, Roula Kmeid contributed her first column. Since that moment, she has kept surprising us with nicer stories, a trend that will hopefully continue in the new year.
Where would we be without Adriana Lebbos, who always knows how to put her finger on the sore spot?
The Liberum would not be the same without Joon W's cartoons. On behalf of the whole editorial team, I wish all our readers a healthy and happy 2025.
