Apr 192023
 
 April 19, 2023  Posted by at 8:57 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , ,


Ito Shinsui Snowy night 1923

 

China Offers To Facilitate Israel-Palestinian Peace Talks (AP)
Macron’s Yet-to-be Drafted Peace Plan: Long-term Guarantees To Kiev (TASS)
Russia ‘Winning’ Fight Against Ukraine – Retired US Army Colonel Macgregor (RT)
Lloyd Austin: ‘We Won’t Be In A War With Russia’ (Az.)
Russian Forces Control Almost All Of Bakhmut – DPR Head’s Advisor (TASS)
Kiev ‘Pissed Off’ UN Chief – WaPo (RT)
Leaked Document Reveals the US Spying on the UN Secretary-General (Antiwar)
White House: China Wants To See Dollar Weaken As Reserve Currency (Az.)
BRICS To Pass G7 In Economic Might – Bloomberg (RT)
Can BRICS Weaken the Dominance of the IMF and World Bank? (Baroud)
Russian Envoy Slams Die Welt Over ‘Kill Putin’ Quote (RT)
Russia Officially Rebukes UK Envoy Over Remarks On Journalist’s Verdict (TASS)
EU Funds Enslavement Of African Migrants In Libya – UN (GZ)
Trump Says Disney ‘Destroying’ Florida Governor DeSantis (RT)
Then There Were Nine (Turley)

 

 

 

 

Elon Tucker

https://twitter.com/i/status/1648488786056151041

 

 

 

 

CO2

 

 

Maddow leaks

 

 

 

 

China has solved problems in Yemen and Syria, Iran and Saudi Arabia. And seemingly without major issues. If they succeed in the Israel-Palestine talks, they will be the new world leader.

China Offers To Facilitate Israel-Palestinian Peace Talks (AP)

China’s foreign minister told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts that his country is ready to help facilitate peace talks between the two sides, in its latest effort at mediation in the region. In separate phone calls to the two officials on Monday, Qin Gang expressed China’s concern over intensifying tensions between Israel and Palestinians and its support for a resumption of peace talks, the Foreign Ministry said in statements issued late Monday. Last month, Saudi Arabia and Iran reached a deal in China to restore diplomatic ties that were cut off in 2016. It was a dramatic moment of diplomacy for China that Beijing touted as evidence of its ability to be a diplomatic player in the Middle East. Qin stressed in his talks with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen that Saudi Arabia and Iran have set a good example of overcoming differences through dialogue, a statement about that phone call said.

He told Cohen that Beijing encourages Israel and the Palestinians to show political courage and take steps to resume peace talks. “China is willing to provide convenience for this,” he was quoted as saying. Israel and the Palestinians have not held substantive peace talks on ending the century-long conflict in over a decade. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is committed to expanding settlements in the occupied West Bank — which most of the international community considers illegal and an obstacle to peace — and several of his key allies are staunchly opposed to the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Cohen expressed his country’s commitment to reducing tensions, but said the problem appeared to be difficult to resolve in the short term, the Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Qin and Cohen discussed “the importance of maintaining quiet at the Temple Mount, particularly in the final days of Ramadan,” the Muslim holy month, but made no mention of peace talks with the Palestinians. It said that Cohen conveyed “the threat that we see in Iran’s nuclear program” and called on China to help prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Qin also told Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Riyad al-Maliki that China is willing to play an active role in the resumption of talks, a second statement said. On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin confirmed Qin’s outreach to the two officials. “It is never too late to do the right thing,” he said.

This month, violence in Israel and the West Bank has increased, touched off by an Israeli police raid on Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site, the compound home to the Al-Aqsa mosque. The Israeli military struck sites linked to the Palestinian group Hamas in southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip after militants in the two territories fired rocket salvos at Israel. The mosque sits on a contested hilltop revered as the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest site in Judaism.

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Compared to China’s initiatives, Macron looks defunkt. His “peace plan”: “Future measures will be aimed at upgrading Kiev’s armed forces. NATO members are also working to ensure steady supplies of weapons and military equipment.”

Macron’s Yet-to-be Drafted Peace Plan: Long-term Guarantees To Kiev (TASS)

French President Emmanuel Macron’s yet-to-be drafted peace plan, which he hopes to negotiate with China, would be based on long-term security guarantees for Ukraine, Bloomberg said, citing sources. The agency speculates that the plan would be based on long-term security guarantees to Kiev. However, as the report specifies, Western countries also plan to discuss the details of support for Ukraine at the NATO summit in Lithuania due in July. Future measures will be aimed at upgrading Kiev’s armed forces. NATO members are also working to ensure steady supplies of weapons and military equipment.


Macron has reportedly instructed his adviser Emmanuel Bonn to stay in touch with the head of the office of the Chinese Communist Party’s Foreign Affairs Commission, Wang Yi, in order to formulate a program that might serve as the basis for future negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. During his state visit to China, Macron told Chinese President Xi Jinping that he counted on Beijing’s mediation in settling the Ukrainian conflict. Le Monde has said that Macron’s visit to China has failed to bring about any change to Beijing’s position regarding the Ukrainian conflict and Russia.

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“The Ukrainians themselves know the truth. They’re in a very terrible position right now.”

Russia ‘Winning’ Fight Against Ukraine – Retired US Army Colonel Macgregor (RT)

Russia is defeating Ukraine and the recent leaks of US classified documents will not change the outcome on the battlefield, retired US Army colonel and former Pentagon adviser Douglas Macgregor has said. “I think the Russians are winning anyway, and the Russians know the truth,” Macgregor said in a video uploaded to his YouTube channel on Sunday. “The Ukrainians themselves know the truth. They’re in a very terrible position right now. We’ve been pushing them to launch this massive offensive in the spring,” Macgregor argued. “And, frankly, [Ukrainians] don’t have the forces, they don’t have the resources to make a difference at this point. They really need to fall back and defend against the Russians, who are ultimately going to attack in May and June.”


The documents dumped online sometime this year and recently discovered by news organizations include US intelligence dispatches and documents purported to be the Pentagon’s daily reports on the Ukraine-Russia conflict. According to a file dated February 28, Western countries have been training and equipping nine Ukrainian brigades for a counteroffensive slated for April 30. The same document said that three more brigades were to be formed “internally” in Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have said in the past that offensive operations would depend on the supply of tanks and other heavy weapons from the West. Prime Minister Denis Shmigal confirmed on Monday that the counteroffensive would begin “in the nearest future.” He rejected the idea that Kiev was being pressured from abroad regarding the timetable.

Doctorow

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Denial is useless. Who’re you gonna fool?

Lloyd Austin: ‘We Won’t Be In A War With Russia’ (Az.)

“We are not in a war with Russia, and we won’t be in a war with Russia,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in an interview with The Washington Post. Asked what happens if Ukraine doesn’t succeed in pushing back Russian front lines and reclaiming significant territory, the Pentagon’s top official deflected.

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90%, from 80% a week ago.

Russian Forces Control Almost All Of Bakhmut – DPR Head’s Advisor (TASS)

Russian forces have taken control of almost 90% of the city of Artyomovsk (called Bakhmut in Ukraine), Yan Gagin, an advisor to the Donetsk People’s Republic’s (DPR) leader, told TASS on Tuesday. “The Wagner private military company controls about 90% of Artyomovsk and its advance is inevitable,” he said. Wagner PMC founder Yevgeny Prigozhin said on April 11 that Russian forces controlled more than 80% of Artyomovsk, including all administrative buildings. Gagin specified that Ukrainian troops were booby-trapping and blowing up major infrastructure facilities before leaving the western outskirts of Artyomovsk.


“The Ukrainian armed forces are okay with using scorched earth tactics. This is what they did in Volnovakha and Mariupol, and now, they are blowing up and booby-trapping major infrastructure facilities in Artyomovsk before retreating from the western outskirts of the city. A local community center was one of the buildings that they blew up recently,” Gagin noted. Earlier, he told TASS that Ukraine was redeploying troops to Artyomovsk but the majority of new soldiers were getting killed on their approach to the city. Artyomovsk, located in the Kiev-controlled part of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), is an important transport hub in terms of Ukrainian military supplies. Heavy fighting is raging in the area.

Prigozhin
https://twitter.com/i/status/1648084845682196485

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“Zelensky “sprung the event” on Guterres, the newspaper said. The president’s aides later spun it to imply that the UN chief was “congratulating military personnel on one side of the Russia-Ukraine war.”

Kiev ‘Pissed Off’ UN Chief – WaPo (RT)

President Vladimir Zelensky ambushed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with a surprise ceremony in Kiev during which the Ukrainian leader awarded medals to female soldiers, the Washington Post has reported, citing alleged US eavesdropping on the UN chief. Guterres’ reaction to the incident, which took place during his visit to the Ukrainian capital on March 8, was described in one of the slides purportedly leaked by a US National Guardsman who had access to classified US intelligence. The secretary general apparently discussed his experience privately with his spokesman Stephane Dujarric. Zelensky “sprung the event” on Guterres, the newspaper said. The president’s aides later spun it to imply that the UN chief was “congratulating military personnel on one side of the Russia-Ukraine war.”

Guterres “emphasized that he made a point of not smiling the entire time,” according to the US document purporting to describe the conversation. Footage of the ceremony, which took place on International Women’s Day, indeed shows Guterres maintaining an expressionless face as Zelensky awarded decorations to uniformed female troops. He offered a small nod and a brief smile to the ladies as he shook their hands while standing on the stage alongside the Ukrainian leader. Dujarric confirmed to the Post that his boss was “unpleasantly surprised” by the event, to which he did not consent in advance. Washington’s apparent snooping on the UN leader fits a long record of clandestine activities by the US and other Western powers, the Post noted.

Last week, a BBC report based on another slide from the same trove described the US’ displeasure with efforts undertaken by Guterres to deliver on his promise to Russia to facilitate exports of its food and fertilizers. The pledge was part of the so-called Black Sea Initiative, which allowed Ukrainian grain to be shipped out by sea. The UN chief’s attempts to deliver on the promise were “undermining broader efforts to hold Moscow accountable for its actions in Ukraine,” the slide said. Dujarric commented on the BBC report, stating that Guterres was “not surprised by the fact that people are spying on him and listening in on his private conversations.” “What is surprising is the malfeasance or incompetence that allows for such private conversations to be distorted and become public,” he added.

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“Washington’s apparent snooping on the UN leader fits a long record of clandestine activities by the US and other Western powers, the Post noted.”

Leaked Document Reveals the US Spying on the UN Secretary-General (Antiwar)

Classified documents allegedly leaked by Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira have revealed that the US is closely spying on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and is not happy with his engagement with Moscow. Several documents detail Guterres’ communications, including one that accuses him of “undermining” efforts to take action against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. The document addresses his communications with Moscow regarding the grain deal that unlocked Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. To broker the deal between Moscow and Kyiv, the UN agreed to help facilitate the export of Russian fertilizer and grain, which has been hindered by Western sanctions despite exemptions for agricultural goods.

The document reads: “UN Secretary-General Guterres is taking steps to accommodate Russia in an effort to protect the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI), which he considers a pivotal UN success and key to addressing global food insecurity, and his actions are undermining broader efforts to hold Moscow accountable for its actions in Ukraine.” The document was likely written either in late February or early March before Russia and Ukraine agreed to extend the grain deal on March 18. It says in early February, Guterres “urged Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a letter to renew the BSGI before its term expires on March 18 and Guterres emphasized his efforts to improve Russia’s ability to export, even if that involves sanctioned Russian entities or individuals, according to FISA-derived signal intelligence.”

Signal intelligence refers to information obtained by intercepting communications. In response to the revelation that the US was spying on Guterres, his spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, told Al Jazeera that he is “not surprised by the fact that people are spying on him and listening in on his private conversations.” “What is surprising is the malfeasance or incompetence that allows for such private conversations to be distorted and become public,” Dujarric said. Other documents detailed private communications between Guterres and his deputy.

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Solution: more debt?!

White House: China Wants To See Dollar Weaken As Reserve Currency (Az.)

White House economist Jared Bernstein said there was “some evidence” that China wants to see the dollar weaken as the international reserve currency, and urged Congress to raise the US debt ceiling to protect the value of the dollar, Report informs referring to Reuters. Bernstein, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, told a Senate Banking Committee hearing on his nomination to head the body that US control of the world’s reserve currency offered benefits, including the ability to impose sanctions, as Washington had done on Russia over its war against Ukraine.

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Nominal GDP includes a lot of unproductive work (like people sitting through meetings all day long). Once we ditch that, the situation looks much worse for the G7.

BRICS To Pass G7 In Economic Might – Bloomberg (RT)

The BRICS group – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – is expected to increase their share of the global economy to nearly 35% by 2028, Bloomberg reported on Monday. According to the outlet’s calculations based on the latest IMF data, this year, the BRICS countries will contribute 32.1% of the world’s growth, compared to the G7’s 29.9%. The Group of Seven nations (G7), consisting of the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan, is considered the most advanced economic bloc of countries on the planet. The report indicated that in 2020, the contribution of the BRICS countries and the G7 to global economic growth was equal, and from that moment on, the performance of the Western countries has been declining. By 2028, the G7’s contribution to the world economy is predicted to decrease to 27.8%.

Bloomberg calculations show that China will be the top contributor to global growth over the next five years, with its share set to be double that of the US. China’s share of global GDP expansion is expected to represent 22.6% of total world growth by 2028, the outlet wrote. India is projected to contribute 12.9% of global GDP. “In total, 75% of global growth is expected to be concentrated in 20 countries and over half in the top four: China, India, the US and Indonesia. While Group of Seven countries will comprise a smaller share, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and France are seen among the top 10 contributors,” the outlet wrote. A recent study by a UK-based macroeconomics research firm has also found that the gap between the two groups in terms of global economic weight is expected to continue to grow.

The analysts noted that China and India have been experiencing robust economic growth, and more countries are interested in joining BRICS. Earlier this year, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that “more than a dozen” nations have expressed interest in joining BRICS, including Algeria, Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bangladesh have acquired equity in the New Development Bank, the funding organization of BRICS. Last year, BRICS countries proposed the creation of their own currency in order to move away from the US dollar and the euro in mutual transactions.

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“There may be an obsession in America about Chinese activity on the continent, but there is no such obsession here..”

Can BRICS Weaken the Dominance of the IMF and World Bank? (Baroud)

For decades, the US’s greatest weapon has been its dollar which, with time, ceased being a normal currency per se, to become an actual commodity. Wars have been fought to ensure countries, like Iraq and Libya, remain committed to the dollar. Following the US invasion of Iraq in March 2003, Baghdad returned to selling its oil in US dollars. This struggle over the dominance of the dollar was also painfully felt in Venezuela which has the world’s largest oil reserve, yet was reduced to abject poverty for attempting to challenge the supremacy of Washington its currency. Though it will take time, the process of lessening the reliance on US dollars is now in full swing. On March 30, Brazil and China announced a trade agreement that would allow them to use the two countries’ national currencies, the yuan and the reais, respectively.

This step shall prove consequential, for it will encourage other South American countries to follow suit. But that move was neither the first, nor will it be the last of its kind. One of the main decisions by finance ministers and central bank governors of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) following their March 30-31 meeting in Indonesia is to reduce their reliance on the US dollar. They agree to “reinforce financial resilience … through the use of local currency to support cross-border trade and investment in the ASEAN region.” This too is a game-changer. The BRICS countries, in particular, are leading the charge and are set to serve as the facilitator of rearranging the world’s economic and financial map. While the West is busy trying to keep its own economies afloat, it remains wary of the changes underway in the Global South. Washington and other western capitals are worried. They ought to be.

Following a meeting between US President Joe Biden and 40 African leaders at the White House last December, it was clear that African countries were not interested in taking sides in the ongoing war in Ukraine. Consequently, US Vice President Kamala Harris flew to Africa on March 26 to meet African leaders, with the sole purpose of pushing them away from China and Russia. That effort is likely to fail. A perfect illustration of Africa’s refusal to abandon its neutrality is the press conference between Harris and President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, on March 28. “There may be an obsession in America about Chinese activity on the continent, but there is no such obsession here,” Akufo-Addo told reporters.

To argue that BRICS is a purely economic group is to ignore a large part of the story. The timing of BRICS’ expansion, the stern political discourse of its members, potential members and allies, the repeated visits by top Russian and Chinese diplomats to Africa and other regions in the Global South, etc., indicate that BRICS has become the South’s new platform for geopolitics, economy and diplomacy.

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It’s become normal.

Russian Envoy Slams Die Welt Over ‘Kill Putin’ Quote (RT)

Germany’s Die Welt daily “hit rock bottom” in its anti-Russian zeal last week, the Russian ambassador to Berlin, Sergey Nechaev, said on Monday, in response to an interview with American columnist Fred Kaplan in which he said the “easiest way” to end the Ukraine conflict is for someone to “kill Putin.” Die Welt has left “this de facto call for murder” unredacted and uncommented on and even used it as a headline, Nechaev wrote in a damning post published on the embassy’s Telegram account. The envoy was apparently referring to Die Welt’s Twitter account, which used the “killing” quote to draw attention to the interview with Kaplan on its social media. “It is unfortunate that some German media keep crossing all the lines and hitting rock bottom,” the ambassador said, adding that “although this is outrageous, it is no longer surprising.”

Kaplan made the statement in response to Die Welt’s question about the “most plausible scenarios” of ending the military conflict between Moscow and Kiev, which has now been ongoing for now than a year. “The easiest way for this to end is for someone to kill Putin,” Kaplan stated, adding that a “new leader” could them come to power, who would declare Russia’s military operation in Ukraine “a folly” and gain the support of the Russian elites to end the conflict. The American journalist and political scientist said he does not believe that Moscow will prevail, adding that otherwise the conflict could last “for years” and potentially end with an agreement that would involve the US and China as “guarantors.”

The US columnist also admitted that Kiev is fully dependent on US aid and that a halt to this assistance might force the Ukrainian government to “strike a deal” with Moscow. “Without the US assistance, it [Ukraine] would not last long,” he said. Die Welt’s choice of a quote has also been met with criticism on social media. One person accused the outlet of being “no longer above … an incitement to murder.” “Is it a call for murder?” another person asked, warning that killing the Russian president could also bring “hardliners” to power in Russia, potentially putting the world on the brink of a nuclear war. The German media outlet has not commented on the criticism so far. Neither the text of the interview nor the Twitter post has been altered in any way as of the time of this writing.

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“..indicates London’s clear violation of the fundamental principles of the 1962 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and runs counter to the status of the British diplomatic mission in Moscow..”

Russia Officially Rebukes UK Envoy Over Remarks On Journalist’s Verdict (TASS)

Russia has issued a stern rebuke to British Ambassador to Moscow Deborah Bronnert over her remarks as well as statements by senior British Foreign Office officials regarding the court verdict handed down in the case against journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza (designated as a foreign agent in Russia), the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. “On April 18, the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned British Ambassador to Moscow Deborah Bronnert to issue a protest to her against her unacceptable remarks as well as the provocative statements made by the highest officials of the British Foreign Office following the Moscow City Court’s verdict handed down in the case of Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian national convicted of high treason and making false reports about the Russian Army,” the statement reads.

The ministry added that London’s reference to the fact that Kara-Murza holds British citizenship was “legally null and void” under Russian jurisprudence. The Russian Foreign Ministry also pointed out that Moscow viewed foreign diplomats’ calls for revoking the verdict as blatant interference in Russia’s domestic affairs. “Such disrespectful behavior indicates London’s clear violation of the fundamental principles of the 1962 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and runs counter to the status of the British diplomatic mission in Moscow,” the statement added.

According to the ministry, Bronnert was informed that British officials’ attempts “to lecture Russia on respect for human rights” were unacceptable as the international community was well aware of London’s disregard for human rights issues. Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrey Kelin said earlier that the Russian Foreign Ministry had strongly protested to Bronnert, pointing out that “the activity staged by the British, the Americans and the Canadians yesterday morning is regarded as blatant interference” in Russia’s internal affairs.

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Legacy of the west. Of course they will turn to China.

EU Funds Enslavement Of African Migrants In Libya – UN (GZ)

An investigation by the United Nations has concluded that money provided by the European Union to state entities in Libya has facilitated crimes against humanity ranging from forced labor and sexual slavery to torture. Through its financial support of the Libyan Coast Guard and the Libyan Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM), the European Union has aided and abetted crimes against humanity, according to a recent UN report. On March 27, 2023, the United Nations released the findings of a three-year investigation, confirming that “arbitrary detention, murder, rape, enslavement, sexual slavery, extrajudicial killing and enforced disappearance” has become a “widespread practice” in the once-prosperous nation of Libya, which was plunged into civil war by NATO’s regime change war over a decade ago.

While crimes against humanity were found to be widespread throughout the country, the report homed in on the plight of migrants and blamed the European Union for enabling the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity to enact abuses against Africans seeking asylum in Europe. The report stated in its introductory section: “The Mission found that crimes against humanity were committed against migrants in places of detention under the actual or nominal control of Libya’s Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration, the Libyan Coast Guard and the Stability Support Apparatus. These entities received technical, logistical and monetary support from the European Union and its member States for, inter alia, the interception and return of migrants.”

In other words, rather than directly intercepting migrants traveling by boat to Europe, the European Union has outsourced the dirty work to the Libyan Coast Guard. Once the coast guard detains the migrants, they are sent back to Libya and transferred to both official and “secret prisons” where they are often exploited for financial gain through forced labor, ransom, or sexual slavery.

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Woke.

Trump Says Disney ‘Destroying’ Florida Governor DeSantis (RT)

Former President Donald Trump says Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is “being absolutely destroyed” in his months-long battle with Disney, after the governor unveiled a new bill that would give state officials more authority over the company’s massive Disney World amusement park. Trump took aim at DeSantis in a social media post on Tuesday, calling his feud with Disney unnecessary, while condemning the governor’s new legislative effort as a political stunt. “DeSanctus is being absolutely destroyed by Disney. His original PR plan fizzled, so now he’s going back with a new one in order to save face,” he said, using a disparaging nickname for the governor.

The former leader went on to predict that Disney – one of the state’s largest employers – would cut off investments in Florida “because of the governor,” suggesting the company “could even announce a slow withdrawal or sale of certain properties, or the whole thing. Watch!” While DeSantis has not announced a 2024 presidential campaign, he is expected to run for the White House and is widely considered Trump’s main Republican rival. On Monday, DeSantis announced a bill that would rescind an agreement Disney struck with state officials earlier this year, which granted Disney free rein to develop the district that hosts its Walt Disney World theme park and its related resorts. While DeSantis previously appointed officials to head up a new state board to oversee the district, the deal with Disney was completed before they began their roles, effectively circumventing the board in giving the company full developmental powers.

“They negotiated with themselves, to give themselves the ability to maintain their self-governing status. Now that’s in direct defiance of the will of the people of Florida,” the governor told reporters on Monday. “They thought that they could create some type of development agreements that would essentially render everything that we did null and void and put them in control in perpetuity for this. Well, that’s not going to work.” DeSantis’ row with Disney kicked off last year after the company publicly opposed his ‘Parental Rights in Education’ bill, which barred certain public school teachers from classroom discussion or instruction related to sexual orientation or gender identity. Dubbing the act the ‘Don’t Say Gay bill’, Disney said it “should never have been signed into law” and vowed to fight for its repeal.

The governor argued that Disney’s statement “crossed the line” and slammed the company for working to “repeal substantive protections for parents.” Since then, DeSantis has sought to strip Disney of its broad authority over the district housing its theme park, and more recently, requested an inspector general probe into Disney’s development agreement with the state for potential criminal or civil violations.

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“It is illegal to give a member of Congress or a president even $100 to gain influence. However, you can literally give millions to their spouses or children..”

Then There Were Nine (Turley)

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has revealed that there are not three but nine members of the Biden family that may have benefitted from suspected influence peddling efforts. For those of us who have long criticized the corrupt practices of the Biden family, the identity of these other family members is intriguing after the Committee secured new bank and financial records. Democratic members again insisted that there is no need to investigate such influence peddling. The new information on the Biden family is due largely to the takeover of the House by the GOP. Previously, Democrats blocked efforts to investigate influence peddling by the Biden family for years. After assuming control of the Committee. Comer sought suspicious activity reports sent by banks to the Treasury Department alerting of potential criminal activity in transactions involving President Biden’s family.

He stated on Monday that “We’ve identified six additional members of Joe Biden’s family who may have benefited from the Biden family’s businesses that we are investigating, bringing the total number of those involved or benefiting to nine.” Those are six names are in addition to three Biden family members and two associates previously linked to payment from China in 2017. Three million was wired Biden family associate Rob Walker in March 2017, who then allegedly divided and distributed the funds later. There remains an “Unknown Biden” who received four payments in 2017 totaling $70,000. The investigation into the Bidens has made many in the Beltway uncomfortable. Influence peddling has long been the favored form of corruption in this city, but few families seem to have cashed into the extent of the Bidens.

I frankly do not understand the willingness of so many Democrats to cover for the Bidens. Democratic members have gone all in with censorship, but this is an effort to scuttle investigations into corruption that may have resulted in millions of dollars going to Biden family members. The Biden family has long been associated with influence peddling to the degree that they could add an access key to their family crest. Influence peddling has long been a cottage industry in Washington. For decades, I have written about this loophole in bribery laws. It is illegal to give a member of Congress or a president even $100 to gain influence. However, you can literally give millions to their spouses or children in the forms of windfall contracts or cozy jobs. James Biden has been remarkably (even refreshingly) open about marketing his access to his brother.

Former Americore executive Tom Pritchard and others allege that Biden openly referenced his access to his brother and his family name in his pitch for clients. James has faced a wide array of litigation over allegedly fraudulent activities as well as a personal loan acquired through Americore before it went into bankruptcy. Hunter worked with his uncle but also branched off on his own in the family business. While his father recently emphasized that his son was a hopeless addict, that defense stands in glaring contradiction to the fact that he maintained a multimillion-dollar influence-peddling scheme. The question is why foreign figures (including some associated with foreign intelligence) rushed to him international money transfers and complex deals worth millions from Moscow to Kyiv to Beijing.

[..] Many Democrats and legal experts have objected that influence peddling is not a crime. However, it is corrupt and squarely within the oversight authority of Congress. Indeed, if it is not a matter for criminal charges, such congressional action may be the only way to force accountability for corrupt efforts to sell influence and access.

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Happy dog day
https://twitter.com/i/status/1648374882726559746

 

 

Walter

 

 


While it may look at first glance like a composite image, this mind-bending picture by Kenichi Ohno and titled “Gap”, is a real single-exposure photo and not the result of Photoshop manipulation

 

 

Armadillo
https://twitter.com/i/status/1648377460201865244

 

 

Nemrut

 

 


Given its transparent body, the glass octopus, Vitreledonella richardi, remains one of the most elusive creatures of the deep sea. Rare photos such as this reveal an array of opaque organs and a glimpse of its unusually shaped eyes

 

 

Draco

 

 

 

 

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Home Forums Debt Rattle April 19 2023

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  • #133740

    Ito Shinsui Snowy night 1923   • China Offers To Facilitate Israel-Palestinian Peace Talks (AP) • Macron’s Yet-to-be Drafted Peace Plan: Long-ter
    [See the full post at: Debt Rattle April 19 2023]

    #133741
    V. Arnold
    Participant

    Ito Shinsui Snowy night 1923

    Sublime…

    #133742
    Dr. D
    Participant

    Germany Closes Its Last Nuclear Power Plants – Electricity Bills To Spike Up To 45%”

    After 110 years, the Anglos finally complete the Morgenthau Plan. Germany is helpless and no longer an industrial rival.

    …Joke’s on UK though: neither are they. We should round up a boy scout troop and take them over. Still most Germans will die like Morgenthau wanted, so that’s a win. You can always tell history’s good guys when they want to murder for few hundred thousand men like Henry or Churchill (in India).

    But the Yanks did kill, what? +500,000 in the German camps? so he got a lot of what he wanted. AND we installed all the previous Nazis back to their positions, because, you know, Blood Brothers: One Vision for life.

    “Saudi Foreign Minister Lands In Syria, Meets Assad, In 1st Since War’s Start In 2011”

    At the same time, the U.S. illegally bombs there – a nighttime raid on “ISIS”, whoever they are. So let’s see: you’ve run the desert there with satellites for +10 years, and ISIS is still running around, a threat. But only in the zone where you are. You’re Fired.

    “Fox News And Dominion Settle Defamation Case For $787.5 Million, Averting Trial Over 2020 Election Claims”

    Fox, a Murdoch company, moves money between mafia arms to re-fund the battered Dominion Vote-rigging operation. Anyone surprised? Anyone? Anyone? No? Yeah we all know Fox news is a plant. And they HAVE to settle: if it goes to court they’ll have to look at “evidence” for the first time since 2020. Fox can’t have that, nor their owners, that would be helping the Right, or rather, the #Truth.

    Musk “Or increase the output of goods and services”. Yes, in theory. And “Theory is a great place to live because everything works there.” You can’t increase the output not just because you can’t, it lags, but because you would output ALL THE WRONG THINGS. Capitalism is very sensitive. It’s the buying that INFORMS you want people want. What YOU want. Then — I – make if for you. Because YOU want it. Why does Amazon exist and pack everything 11 times to send a coaster in a refrigerator box? Because YOU want it. So why does Amazon, Norfolk Southern, BP pollute? Not for giggles: it’s because YOU want it. “Companies” don’t pollute. YOU do. You ask them to do this for them and refuse to buy from the ones who are responsible. (Plus refuse to enforce the law). That’s YOUR morality. Now companies have their morality too, but they always say “Companies” do this, “Capital” does this….”Capital” only exists to make things for YOU, the individual. Because YOU, the individual, want these goods. If you don’t want it, they won’t make it. If “companies” didn’t exist, we’d still make the goods. Same thing with prices. They say “We’ll raise prices/taxes/costs on the “Company”. No. You won’t. The “Company” doesn’t have any money; they have FLOW. They will and must raise PRICES on YOU, the customer. Thanks, Government, I really needed a $5,000 increase in prices over the year, not like I was feeding my kids or anything.

    Anyway, so if you drop $6 Trillion into the economy as we did, WHAT goods should you create to “balance” the inflation? You don’t know and I don’t either. Businesses themselves don’t know. It’s well proven GOVERNMENT doesn’t the h—l know. It would take TIME, feeling out what was the direction, making the machines, shipping the goods, getting feedback. That would take years. Capitalism is a homeostasis, self-organizing, steady-state system organism. Made up of US. Humans, using human work, creativity, and expression. As their avowed goal is its destruction, they blast it out of the water and try to capsize it’s steady state with heavy waters – all fabricated from nothing – and EXACTLY AS LENIN SAID. “The surest way destroy the capitalist system [is] to debauch the currency.”

    But I’m sure that’s all just another 100-year coincidence.

    No, you can’t “create the goods” to match printed money. Like Soviet Russia you would end up with 100,000 too many tractors, no gasoline for them, and everyone would die. As they did.

    Next “This is a dire situation”.

    Yet nothing happens. “We can lower the rate”. No, we can’t. That’s like just keeping the whiskey in the punchbowl so the party doesn’t end. The problem IS the whiskey. The “Dire Situation” is just you-all finally REALIZING how INCREDIBLY STUPID and reckless, wasteful, dissipative, you’ve been, and how POOR YOU ACTUALLY ARE now that you’ve eaten all the food, drank $100,000 worth of Champers, and burned the Chippendale Armoire in the bonfire. The hangover is the REALITY. The Drunk is the fantasy. So we can’t “lower the rate” to what? Extend the fantasy? And that’s healthy? What would your Doctor say?

    The Crash” is when the market RETURNS TO TRUTH. Fair value. We seem to have had the longest keg party in the history of earth – since 1990 or 1980 – but leave it to the Americans. No success like excess.

    Maddow, the shrill voice of hatred and contempt. Contempt for all, because she – and THEY, the PMC laptop-class – are Better Than You. So shut up you stupid children and Do What You’re Told. Mommy says. Hey, what mental illness does this represent?

    China has solved problems in Yemen and Syria, Iran and Saudi Arabia. And seemingly without major issues.”

    And notice they DON’T say, “We’re strongly in the running here, we, the U.S. JUST signed major, historic peace agreements in these places too.” WHY don’t we crow that we had as much or better agreements than China? Because then we’d have to admit REALITY. That is, that Trump existed and he did some good things sometimes.

    NOPE. Nope nope nope. The Audacity of Nope. 1,000 times nope. No, nay, never. Never-ever. Nope. The U.S. must be seen and reported as a generational failure and collapse just a year after signing similar historic agreements rather than that. Every American must die so my ego remains intact.

    Anyway, fabulous since the shock of losing Ukraine, NATO, and all of Europe so badly will be that much sharper for them. Never stop, Rachael.

    “French President Emmanuel Macron’s yet-to-be drafted peace plan,”

    SMH. Um, why would you bother? Neither France nor Germany is a nation who can be proven to uphold any peace plan. Anytime. Of any sort. With any body. Ever. Save your breath, you’d just break it. Immediately and without comment or shame.

    “We are not in a war with Russia”

    That’s odd. That’s not what your boss says. He says I have to bankrupt myself on gas prices to support the war.

    A local community center was one of the buildings that they blew up recently,”

    That’s because they don’t see it as “Ukraine.” By their actions. They see all Donbas as “Russia”, populated with “Russian scum and vermin”. Why WOULDN’T you blow up “Russia’s” things? They only reason they don’t is that they can’t get to Moscow.

    “Ukrainian leader awarded medals to female soldiers,”

    Rainbow medals. Well they’re winning the rainbow war, online. The happy thing about this is while women are getting medals, another 300,000 men – that is, adult human males – were exterminated. I see no downside. Wherever men are killed it’s the le plus maximum good. And boy are they killed everywhere like the Terminex Man.

    “urged Congress to raise the US debt ceiling to protect the value of the dollar”

    More printing = HIGHER dollar. Gotcha. Now I’m not an economist but…that’s probably why I can see that’s the world’s stupidest plan and position. Go for it! The faster the better.

    “compared to the G7’s 29.9%”

    Yes, but 1/3 of U.S. and UK GDP is bond-kiting and FIRE. Some other % is welfare remittance. I don’t know the others, but that says 15% of real GDP and falling. We’re talking about a nation that can’t make bullets here. CROMWELL could make bullets and bombs. Not us? Too advanced for us? Out of our reach? Should I round up some Ox-carts and Wagons and help you?

    “There may be an obsession in America about Chinese activity on the continent,”

    Huh? No. Americans don’t think about other nations at all. Ever. Nor should we. The infinitesimal PMC Crazies-Class who do don’t Obsess about China because they have all 20 fingers and toes in the fire and every one of them is getting burned off. China is NOT an additional priority of any sort to them, it’s a “Yet another chess piece” to them.

    Hear the word “Obsess” and the sentence and article is false. Just like “Gamechanger.” “Panic” “It’s over.” “Bombshell” “Walls are closing in.” Do we have to finish out our lifetimes where every one has always been false, and when Father O’Reilly is giving us our last rites, FINALLY accept this never happens?

    “has facilitated crimes against humanity ranging from forced labor and sexual slavery to torture.”

    And that’s just in Democratic cities! You should see what it’s like in Africa!

    “I frankly do not understand the willingness of so many Democrats to cover for the Bidens.”

    You are kidding right? Pretty sure you’re not under a rock since the 1990s.

    Got to go. Busing having another day where nothing matters and nothing happens.

    #133743
    Germ
    Participant

    Moron Alert

    US FDA authorizes second Omicron-updated COVID booster for older adults

    ” …over 50 years old …”

    https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/fda-withdraws-authorization-older-covid-vaccines-by-moderna-pfizer-2023-04-18/

    TVASF(especially the ‘older’)

    #133744
    Oroboros
    Participant

    By the way, I remember Harrison Schmitt as an Astronaut first, and Senator second and a geologist three.

    Just saying

    #133745
    Oroboros
    Participant

    Hitllary accuses Rethuglicans of a War on Disney

    This picture needs a caption

    .

    #133746
    Oroboros
    Participant

    .

    #133747
    Oroboros
    Participant

    “Nominal GDP includes a lot of unproductive work (like people sitting through meetings all day long). Once we ditch that, the situation looks much worse for the G7…”

    In the Empire of Lies,Lies,Lies,

    GDP is the Biggest Lie

    The amount of ” unproductive work” in the Collective West is probably the major of the ‘economy’ in most ‘service oriented’ countries

    Take ‘education’ in the Empire of Lies

    Productive?

    OMG no.

    A substitue ‘teacher’ takes away a student’s phone for some infraction

    Here, have some Gross Domestic Product

    #133748
    Maxwell Quest
    Participant

    Who Wants a Booster?

    #133749
    John Day
    Participant

    It’s a rumor and I have no link, but the rumor is that Christine LaGarde got pranked by “V. Zelensky” on the phone and said that the CBDC would come out 10/23/23 as a “solution”. i’d be happy if anybody had seen a link they could share about this.

    Here is a story from Michael Every:
    https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/it-wasnt-mistake-or-slip-lagarde-hints-raising-central-bank-inflation-target

    “Lagarde added later in the day that once the 2% CPI target has been met, “discussions” can be had on changing it(!); central bank digital currency may be needed to deliver hypothecated fiscal spending and trade invoicing; in “systemic competition”, the bloc that does state capitalism/mercantilism best will fare better; and central banks’ role is at the heart of it.”

    #133750
    John Day
    Participant

    Dr.D wrote: ”

    Capitalism

    is a homeostasis, self-organizing, steady-state system organism. Made up of US. Humans, using human work, creativity, and expression.”

    But I think he meant ”

    Political economy

    ” is a homeostasis, self-organizing, steady-state system organism. Made up of US. Humans, using human work, creativity, and expression.

    (hmm, that came out with a funny look)

    #133751
    John Day
    Participant
    #133752

    “What is surprising is the malfeasance or incompetence that allows for such private conversations to be distorted and become public,”
    We talked about this a while ago on this site. They say they spy on everybody and want us all to know it, so when they lie about what was said, they will have “credibility”.

    That interview and tapes I posted last night: “Americans are too trusting.”
    “Somebody get a teacher!!”

    #133753
    Mister Roboto
    Participant

    #133754
    zerosum
    Participant

    Each of us can see some of the complexity. Non of us can see all of the complex action/reaction.
    I am satisfied to let the millions of units of life within my shell do their thing with the minimum of interference.
    The battle with Omicron/the vaccine has left me weakened and vunerable.
    I do not control the resources of Elon Musk or of China.
    ———–
    Secret – The smell of death is everywhere.
    Since 2014, the Ukrainians build up what they believed to be an impenetrable fortress. Now, they are okay with using scorched earth tactics to prevent Russia from seizing it.
    —————-

    #133755
    Michael Reid
    Participant

    Dancing on the Brink

    Dancing on the Brink

    #133756
    Figmund Sreud
    Participant

    Sound advise for current times from my very dear cyber-bud:

    F.S.

    #133757
    phoenixvoice
    Participant

    Dr d
    . Capitalism is very sensitive. It’s the buying that INFORMS you want people want. What YOU want. Then — I – make if for you

    Not quite.

    That describes an idealized, fictional version of Capitalism that doesn’t exist in the here-and-now. The really existing system, the one we actually live in, is very different.

    A lot of capital (money/resources) invested into psychological studies to understand human behavior, especially the behavior of consumers. Advertising is especially crafted to exploit the innate psychological weaknesses of humans. We know this. We all like to believe that we are immune — let’s not fool ourselves — we are not.

    As if my purchasing were not limited by my location, nor by my funds — of course it is.
    As if I had any appreciable influence on which retailers occupy which commercial spaces around me, after I purchased this home nearly 20 years ago. (“I could move.” Right. My credit score has been trashed because I had to defend myself in a spurious family court case. My income is low…primarily because I have prioritized parenting over money-making and my co-parent is perfidious and lied his way into avoiding his material responsibilities. If I left the area I would be abandoning my children. “I could move”…not.)

    Most of what I purchase is FOOD. Half of my non-food purchases are from thrift stores or other 2nd hand means. And I supposedly have appreciable influence over corporations? The money I spend on food was provided to my by the federal government!

    Corporations decide what to produce after a period of R&D … and then a marketing department creates a strategy for selling the product, endeavoring to foment desire for the product in the public.. (Yeah, sure, occasionally the marketers get confused by Woke ideology and ignore their actual consumers and the strategy backfires — like the recent Mulvaney/Bud Light fiasco — but most likely the Bud drinkers are going to switch to the next cheapest, mass-produced option. With wallets stretched, most can’t migrate to local, craft beers. And human psychology suggests that they won’t stop drinking beer altogether.). The iPhone phenomenon of the past 15 years is a great example of this. And most of the people I interact with — be they young, old, or middle-aged — have no idea that THEY are the product — that their precious smartphone is gathering data about them constantly and sending that data who-knows-where — to the phone OS developer, to the app developer, to the intelligence community, to the Chinese government, et al. The people don’t even know what they are really buying. Caveat emptor — it’s all a huge deception.

    Consumers have been deceived. The idea that they are in the driver’s seat in the really existing system is a massive lie that gets used to “blame the victim” so that the victim will feel bad about him-/herself and accept the status quo.

    I am not suggesting that we pity the consumer-victim. I am not suggesting that anyone come and rescue the consumer-victim. There is no “actual violence” here — only “structural violence.” The means of change is that victim-consumers must realize that they have been deceived and change their behavior as a result. (Which means that I agree with Dr D in the solution.). As individuals come to this realization and then meet in community with others who have reached similar conclusions, their individual actions can synergistically work towards real change. We could argue endlessly over how this should work, based on our own experiences and philosophical outlooks. (I disagree with Dr D on the source of the problem and who is at fault, who acted “wrongly,” who it is that acted with “evil intent.” I no longer adhere to any codified religion, but I see the aptness of evil called “the father of lies.” Intentional deception for the purpose of personal gain lies at the root of the problem.)

    #133758
    Afewknowthetruth
    Participant

    RIM

    Why keep linking the lies of a professional liar on TEA?

    Everyone with a brain knows the overheating we are witnessing has nothing to do with changes in solar activity but has everything to do with the massive surge (+50%) in the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere!

    All that repeated linking of professional lairs lying does is to discredit TAE and drive people away.

    #133759
    WES
    Participant

    Ukraine:

    This time of the year is when Ukrainian farmers start planting their crops. In 2021 120 million tons was harvested. In 2022 that fell by half to only 60 million tons. In 2023 the outlook is for only 40 million tons.

    Many farmers, their tractor drivers, and mechanics, have been drafted whole-sale into the army by the Nazis. Remaining farmers are old and can’t find any qualified people to hire except old pensioners.

    For many farmers, their nput costs, especially fertilizers and fuel, exceeds the price they can get for their crops, so they can’t afford to plant any crops at all.

    If you get badly injured in the Ukrainian war, you are classified as “decommissioned illiquid assets” and thus not worth the money to be treated properly. If you lose a leg they will give you a wooden leg and then send you back to the front. Most of the wounded (60%) are sent back to the front.

    The Ukrainian government doesn’t bother to spend money on medical care because it is far cheaper to just round up fresh bodies off the streets to send to the front. Buying an exemption from military service has sky rocketed from $3k -$7k up to $32k USD, so the Nazis have never had it so good, as now.

    #133760
    WES
    Participant

    I read somewhere that the earth’s sun is still “slowly” burning hotter añd hotter and will continue to burn even hotter as time goes on.

    #133761
    Oroboros
    Participant

    The floor of the “Obergruppenführersaal” of the Wevelsburg of the Nazis

    The Black Sun of the Nazis

    Hollyweird cuck Mark Hamill praising Ukronazis drone operators as ‘brave” with the Nazi Black Sun Flag in the upper right.

    Guess antisemitism is AOK if you were in Star Wars sport!

    Great ‘optics’ Mark, may “The Farce Be With You”

    .

    #133762
    Oroboros
    Participant

    .

    Just an artistic variation of the swastika

    #133763
    John Day
    Participant

    At least Trump is making a bit nicer with “DeSanctimonious”, standing up to Disney for him.

    #133765
    John Day
    Participant

    Banker’s War https://drjohnsblog.substack.com/p/bankers-war

    Christine LaGarde speaks in English to “Volodymyr Zelensky” (phone prankster) in this video from March 17, 2023, explaining that the decision to release the digital Euro will be made this “October 23”, which appears to mean October 2023.
    She says that there will be “controls” on transactions, though they might be waived under 300-400 euros. It is easy enough to watch the short video. One presumes she saw “Volodymyr” on her screen as she spoke.
    LaGarde claims that Germans and Dutch are fine with digital currency, sidestepping the question about “people not wanting to be controlled”.
    (I am chagrined to have not heard of this sooner. It was on social media, but I’m not…)
    https://cointelegraph.com/news/cbdc-will-be-used-for-control-ecb-president-admits-in-vid-chat-with-fake-zelensky

    ECB President LaGarde’s official statement from Monday is reviewed again in this light. It was unusually frank.
    ​ ​The tectonic plates of geopolitics are shifting faster. We are witnessing a fragmentation… into competing blocs, with each bloc trying to pull as much of the rest of the world closer to its respective strategic interests and shared values…
    ​..​Under the hegemonic leadership of the US, rules-based international institutions flourished, and global trade expanded. This led to a deepening of global value chains and, as China joined the world economy, a massive increase in the global labour supply. As a result, global supply became more elastic to changes in domestic demand, leading to a long period of relatively low and stable inflation. That in turn underpinned a policy framework in which independent central banks could focus on stabilising inflation by steering demand without having to pay too much attention to supply-side disruptions.​ ​​ [That means they just suppressed wages to control inflation.]​ …
    ​..​But that period of relative stability may now be giving way to one of lasting instability resulting in lower growth, higher costs and more uncertain trade partnerships. Instead of more elastic global supply, we could face the risk of repeated supply shocks.​..​
    ​..​Insofar as geopolitics leads to a fragmentation of the global economy into competing blocs, this calls for greater policy cohesion…behind a strategic goal…
    ​ ​Achieving the right policy framework will not only determine how our economies fare at home, but also how they are viewed globally in a context of greater “system competition.”
    …For Europe, long-delayed projects such as deepening and integrating our capital markets can no longer be viewed solely through the lens of domestic financial policy. To put it bluntly, we need to complete the European capital markets union. This will be pivotal in determining whether the euro remains among the leading global currencies or others take its place.
    ​ ​Central banks also have an important role to play here – even as protagonists. For example, the manner in which swap lines are used could influence the dynamics of major international currencies…. We have already seen the PBOC set up over 30 bilateral swap lines with other central banks to compensate for the lack of liquid financial markets in renminbi. How central banks navigate the digital era –such as innovating their payment systems and issuing digital currencies– will also be critical for which currencies ultimately rise and fall.
    ​ ​So, we need to be ready for the new reality that may well lie ahead. The time to think about how to respond to changing geopolitics is not when fragmentation is upon us, but before. Because, if I may paraphrase Ernest Hemingway, fragmentation can happen in two ways: gradually, and then suddenly. Central banks must provide for stability in an age that is anything but stable. And I have no doubt that central banks will measure up to the challenge.”
    https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/en-lagarde-ecb-president-reveals-what-happens-next

    ​ The head of the ECB announces a divergence in global finance, implies that there will be competing currency-coalitions, preferentially trading internally, which will lead to supply-chain disruptions and uncertainty. This will cause price-inflation through restriction of supply. She advises against paying labor more, which will be inflationary. She advises getting cheap fuel and resources for the economy. (Well, that’s bad for CO2, we hear.) The upshot is that she thinks central banks will manage this, but must be careful not to let workers get better wages in the process.
    She does say that ​”issuing digital currencies” may be part of a solution, but how? Nobody wants to say that restrictions on spending and elimination of account-assets are how that will “help”.
    She says that we should act before there is a problem, which means that the problem already exists.
    Since the central-bank solution is always to impoverish workers and retirees, we should resist it if we are in those demographics.
    Withdraw cash. Spend cash. Write checks. Avoid online transactions and use of credit cards when feasible. Get/stay out of debt, and assure food, water, fuel and shelter security as much as possible. Can you grow vegetables? It may take a couple of years to work it out.
    https://live.childrenshealthdefense.org/chd-tv/events/the-attack-on-food-symposium/attack-on-food-john/
    Investigate the stability of your community under stress. Do you have a way to do that? Does it have a history? Has it grown suddenly? Does it have strife between factions in the community? Does it have a lot of debt and high taxes?

    ​ ​Massive Strike Hits Canada As Inflation Discontent Spreads Around The World
    https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/massive-strike-canada-inflation-discontent-spreads-around-world

    #133766
    John Day
    Participant

    The title is inflammatory, but in a time of supply chain stress, external dependencies should be reduced or eliminated. Also, the lifetime environmental impact of cars is pretty well reflected in their lifetime price, including purchase price and fuel/electricity cor=st for 200,000 miles. Electrics and hybrids are more wasteful than fossil fuel economy vehicles.​
    Since “the purpose of legislation is what it does” the purpose of this legislation is to reduce personal ownership and use of vehicles in the US. There is not the grid capacity or wealth to transfer to electric vehicles at par, so there will be a vast reduction in car/truck ownership and use, especially among poorer and middle class people.
    That covertly concurs with the espoused goal of CO2 emission-reduction.
    In my view, the real problem is that net-oil production is already in terminal decline, and they can’t admit the truth. “When it is important you have to lie.”
    ​ ​”This Is Industrial Suicide”: Biden’s EV Plan Could Be Key To China’s Global Economic Dominance
    The agency anticipates that with the new standards, two-thirds of new light-body vehicles will be electric by the model year 2032, up from less than six percent today…
    ​..​“This is industrial suicide,” said James Kennedy, a U.S. mine owner and rare earths expert, in an April 17 interview with The Epoch Times.
    ​ ​“By design, their goal is to wipe out, to destroy, to effectively terminate the massive economic investment that the auto companies have made in the internal combustion engine,” he said.
    ​ ​He outlined China’s long-range, strategic plan to dominate the mining and refining of rare earths, as well as the production of downstream technologies.
    ​ ​“No one in the West will accept the reality that China has total domain control at every level,” he added.
    ​ ​The rare earth metals terbium, holmium, and dysprosium are one key choke point for Chinese control over EV production.
    ​ ​Kennedy explained that the elements enable neodymium magnets to function at the high temperatures found in the motors of electric cars.
    “China is the only country in the world, period, exclamation point, that can separate those materials,” he said
    https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/industrial-suicide-bidens-ev-plan-could-be-key-chinas-global-economic-dominance

    #133767
    John Day
    Participant

    ​ ​Doubled Pregnancy Loss Rate, Raised Foetal Abnormality Rate and Concentration of Lipid Nanoparticles in Ovaries – How Could They Call This Vaccine ‘Safe’?

    Doubled Pregnancy Loss Rate, Raised Foetal Abnormality Rate and Concentration of Lipid Nanoparticles in Ovaries – How Could They Call This Vaccine ‘Safe’?

    ​ Fewer shots to avoid, same principle…
    ​The FDA has declared that only bivalent shots are authorized for use in US – April 18, 2023
    https://jessicar.substack.com/p/psa-the-fda-has-declared-that-only

    ​ ​The Canadian Freedom Convoy and the Fate of Our Universities​ , Professor Anthony Hall​
    ​ ​The Truckers Freedom Convoy that converged on Ottawa and other sites along the Canada-US border in February of 2022 continues to be a flash point of strident disagreement in Canada. Even as the the Truckers’ parking protest in Ottawa was unfolding, there seemed to be a clear split developing. Working class people both formed and massively supported the process of applying significant democratic pressure to bring about a needed reality check in our nation’s complacent capital…
    ​..​It didn’t seem to dawn on the urban professionals of Ottawa how onerous and disgraceful the federal handling of the manufactured COVID crisis had become. The epic scale of the federal ineptitude that was literally killing and injuring large numbers of people in our national version of a ghastly worldwide phenomenon that is still unfolding and is still being obsessively covered up…
    ​..​The well-publicized campaign to defame, smear and bury the Truckers movement is becoming increasingly rabid as we build towards a show trial that will take place in Southern Alberta this summer or fall. Four Truckers face Kafkaesque charges that they conspired to kill RCMP officers. These four individuals have been held in jail now for more than a year without having been convicted of anything.
    https://anthonyjhall.substack.com/p/the-canadian-freedom-convoy-and-the

    ​ You can’t say anything Russians like or it’s a crime. You are free to say things Russia would not like. We will judge that fairly.
    ​ Biden DOJ Indicts Four Americans For “Weaponized” Free Speech
    ​ ​Omali Yeshitela, the founder and chairman of the African People’s Socialist Party and one of the four Americans named in the indictment, has adamantly denied ever having worked for Russia. Earlier this month before charges were brought against him, the Tampa Bay Times quoted him as saying, “I ain’t ever worked for a Russian. Never ever ever ever. They know I have never worked for Russia. Their problem is, I’ve never worked for them.”​ …
    ​..T​he US government is constantly engaging in foreign influence operations with outfits like the National Endowment for Democracy, which was set up to help foment coups and color revolutions and advance US information interests overtly in ways the CIA used to do covertly.
    ​ ​As commentator Brian Berletic noted on Twitter, “The US through the National Endowment for Democracy has created armies of organizations carrying out malign influence operations around the world including here in Thailand. When the Thai government attempts to stop this activity, the US embassy shouts ‘free speech.’
    https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/biden-doj-indicts-four-americans

    ​ I’d like a double global warming methane-burger with oil-fries, please. Uh, can I pay cash?
    ​ New York City to Track Personal Food Choices Using Credit Card Data
    This is needed to fight climate change, NYC mayor says
    https://igorchudov.substack.com/p/new-york-city-to-track-personal-food

    #133768
    Figmund Sreud
    Participant

    Re Dancing on the Brink
    __________________

    Germane , two-part capitalist’s lengthy and aggressive harangue, … but summary first:

    Summary
    The pundits will be right someday. The dollar’s death as the reserve currency will come, and some other nation’s currency, cryptocurrency, gold, shells, or something else will take its place. However, that day is not coming anytime soon. The four reasons we describe in the article leave the world with no alternative.

    While China is rapidly growing its economy and global trade footprint, it lacks the rule of law and liquid capital markets to sustain a global currency. It’s difficult to see how a communist country can overcome those challenges.

    The Euro is the most viable competitor. They have the rule of law, but their capital markets are not nearly liquid enough to facilitate global trade. They also lack the military might to force the usage of the Euro. Let us also remember its finances are in equally bad or even worse shape than the U.S. There is no reason to suspect the euro could overtake the dollar.

    Bitcoin? Forget about it! The government will never relinquish its control over the currency because, with that, they lose control of the nation.

    Gold-backed dollars were a mainstay until 1971. However, as we have learned for the last fifty years, gold restricts the ability of the central bank to run monetary policy as they see fit. A rules-based system, like gold-backed dollars, might benefit the economy. However, regardless of your thoughts, the Fed and government are not ones to give up power.

    The Dollars Death, Not So Fast- Part 1
    https://realinvestmentadvice.com/the-dollars-death-not-so-fast

    Four Reasons The Dollar Is Here to Stay- Part 2
    https://realinvestmentadvice.com/four-reasons-the-dollar-is-here-to-stay-part-2

    F.S.

    #133769
    Michael Reid
    Participant

    The way I see it family will be very important for survival.

    #133770
    Veracious Poet
    Participant

    Once a week, or so, I drop by to peruse the daily rants, screeds and whinging on TAE, a formerly wonderful news blog/forum that had only recently served such an invaluable service 2-3 years ago when the plan~demic was cast upon humanity-at-large…

    Well, in truth, I haven’t even dropped by in over two weeks 😐

    As Western “civilization” implodes, and the social media commentariat shakes the latest news bites like a rabid canine with a rat in it’s mouth, I have become acutely aware of the Mass Formation Psychosis (EG0ic Collective Madness) “democratic” CULTure(s) that have wrought death, destruction & cataclysm upon mankind, now circling the drain like so many Imperial mobs throughout millennia…

    Rather than practice even a modicum of humility & respect for The Loving, Healing, Creative Power of the Infinite ( · Love Without End. Amen · ), the toxic child EG0 dominant across former territories of “The Free” has become the domain of lies, hate, rape, pillage, plunder & murderous insanity 😐

    Even those that rail against the advent of utterly corrupt, dishonest & evil “leadership” fail to abandon the hubris which blinds them to the truth, that they too are part and parcel of cancerous malignancy when they reject spiritual practice, allowing their EG0ic thoughts/feelings (finite consciousness) to supersede/overwhelm their true self (infinite consciousness/being)…

    The lesson is lost on the majority of gen pop, especially within the U$ Empire, why “democratic” choices for “Leader Of The Free World” have been degraded to the choice of a narcissistic buffoon vs. a senile liar, cheat & turncoat with dementia 😐

    About 28 years ago I realized this dilemma while actively involved with the “patriot” movement, after becoming part of a men’s prayer group that spoke publicly in churches, community centers & radio (like the prophets of old), hoping against hope that We were wrong, that Sanity would return…

    The attack, murder & destruction of women, children & the elderly is a *final* sign that a culture has become irredeemably malignant, nearing the end.

    Dollar Finished – America in Danger – Charles Nenner:

    Physically, the Americans are in danger, and they don’t seem to understand that. . .

    On the war cycle, Nenner has been forecasting a huge loss of life coming. Nenner is predicting “30% of the people on Earth will die in the next war cycle. . .

    We are like at the end of civilization of the United States. It’s not that we are all going to drop dead, but it’s the end of civilization. The same issues that finished other countries like bad education, too many outstanding loans and people will become too lazy to really do hard work. That usually means the end of an empire.

    Nenner is looking at war in Taiwan, South Korea, and the Middle East with Iran. Nenner says, “I think you could have all these wars at the same time. . .

    It’s endless possibilities. . . . I think they will all act at the same time. Wouldn’t you? You are waiting for the right moment, and if the United states get weaker and busy. . . . That’s the time to do whatever you want.

    Warren Buffett sold most of his Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing shares last week…

    \https://usawatchdog.com/dollar-finished-america-in-danger-charles-nenner/

    #133771
    Oroboros
    Participant

    .

    .

    #133772
    Oroboros
    Participant

    Russia and allies are testing all kinds of new stuff

    Belarus Tests Scary Robotic Complex Called ‘Berserk’

    A robot/drone with dual Gatling guns

    These guns fire approx 1,000 to 6,000 rounds per minute

    Great for probing enemy defenses

    They will see how they perform in actual combat situations.

    #133773
    WES
    Participant

    V.P.

    Good to know you are still around!

    #133774
    aspnaz
    Participant

    US warns Russia not to touch American nuclear technology at Ukrainian nuclear plant.

    Wow, what a demonstration of the super-arrogance of the USA, proclaiming their rights to their export controlled technology as if they were god. Oh well, I am sure the letter is only for public consumption.

    #133775
    aspnaz
    Participant

    Dr D said

    WHAT goods should you create to “balance” the inflation?

    Your value added imports.

    #133776
    aspnaz
    Participant

    Afewknowthetruth said

    RIM

    Why keep linking the lies of a professional liar on TEA?

    Everyone with a brain knows the overheating we are witnessing has nothing to do with changes in solar activity but has everything to do with the massive surge (+50%) in the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere!

    All that repeated linking of professional lairs lying does is to discredit TAE and drive people away.

    Go on then, piss off. Ooops, I mistook you for someone with a brain.

    #133777
    Veracious Poet
    Participant

    I guess that last bit was a bit rambling, hopefully someone understands and/or has awareness of what I’m trying to convey…

    If you obsess on the problem (stare into the abyss), eventually you become part of the problem (become the abyss).

    Rather, become one with The Solution, inspire others to do the same, use your thoughts & actions to build a community of God’s kids that are awake & committed to The Solution

    EOT

    #133778
    citizenx
    Participant

    April 19 1775

    Whittemore (78 yo) was in his fields when he spotted an approaching British relief brigade under Earl Percy, sent to assist the retreat. Whittemore loaded his musket and ambushed the British grenadiers of the 47th Regiment on Foot from behind a nearby stone wall, killing one soldier. He then drew his dueling pistols, killed a second grenadier and mortally wounded a third. By the time Whittemore had fired his third shot, a British detachment had reached his position; Whittemore drew his sword and attacked. He was subsequently shot in the face, bayoneted numerous times, and left for dead in a pool of blood. He was found by colonial forces, trying to load his musket to resume the fight. He was taken to Dr. Cotton Tufts of Medford, who perceived no hope for his survival. However, Whittemore recovered and lived another 18 years (98yo)

    Hell Yeah ! That’s the f’n Spirit…

    I look to the Right at the Neo Con Republicans and think, fuck those War Criminal Scumbags. I look to the Left at the Neo Liberal Democrat Hypocrite War Criminal Scum… fuck them too.

    The Spirit of ’76 is a sentiment explored by Thomas Jefferson. According to the text published at Monticello, “The principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence promised to lead America—and other nations on the globe—into a new era of freedom. The revolution begun by Americans on July 4, 1776, would never end. It would inspire all peoples living under the burden of oppression and ignorance to open their eyes to the rights of mankind, to overturn the power of tyrants, and to declare the triumph of equality over inequality.”

    I look at my fellow Americans in bewildered disgrace- selfish, arrogant, ignorant, hypocrites, obese, primitives, addicts etc… USA a failed Rogue Nation in disgrace. I ask, may I have the Grace to live fully, think freely, live with dignity, treat myself and others with respect, do no harm…

    Then I draw inspiration from stories of a real man, a real human- to stand up to Tyranny, against Rulers, to knowingly choose Courage and charge forward against abuse and evil- to fight for truth even if it may mean your last breath will be taken any moment, your last day alive on Earth…

    We are all on the brink of being turned into slaves by scum. Covid 19 taught me that loud and fucking clear. They are still pushing and will never be stopped unless, and until, Real Humans decide to have real Courage and fight back. The RF has certainly had enough… to them my respect as to Whittemore.

    It does no matter what age you are or where you reside. What does matter is your Spirit to fight, for truth, for dignity, for Love and Honor.

    The fight is coming, the War has begun… they started this shit. When your time comes, choose well.

    Before the Bayonetting: The Untold Story of Capt. Samuel Whittemore

    https://allthingsliberty.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/WhittemoreMonument-1024×576.jpg

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Whittemore

    #133779
    ezlxa1949
    Participant

    All empires reach a use-by date and come to an end.

    Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Greek, Toltec, Portuguese, Spanish, French, British, American. And so on and on.

    What’s next? The BRICS+ empire? Will it be any better than any of the preceding failures?

    #133780
    citizenx
    Participant

    Correction- memorial has his ages wrong, I corrected his battle age but missed his last day age-
    no/ not*

    Train your Spirit… take care of your body, your mind, your thoughts and emotions, when the time comes fight with ferocity, bravery and courage. Look around you- it’s coming whether you want it or not.

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