Salvador Dalí Mi esposa desnuda 1945
CNN: The House and Senate map is very favorable for Republicans for the midterms
— Unbreakable Leaks (@unbreakableleak) October 29, 2026
Median Seat Needed To Win Control:
House: 🔴 Trump +5
Senate: 🔴 Trump +13 pic.twitter.com/bM7uItDDUv
Former MI6 chief Alex Younger now admits the West provoked Russia… and lost
— Chay Bowes (@BowesChay) October 30, 2026
By fixating on military confrontation through NATO, the West neglected economic and technological domains. Russia took full advantage and became the leading military technological power. pic.twitter.com/xrItCOdaVk
Some much-needed perspective you’ll never see on any MSM outlet… pic.twitter.com/SxyH2KsI5A
— 🇺🇸🇮🇱✈️Sir Flyzalot✈️🇮🇱🇺🇸 (@SirFlyzalot) October 29, 2026
I'd be overseeing the scrapping of the Basel approach to bank regulation, the re-introduction of national currencies and sensible quantity of credit policies, which includes moving to a fast and low-cost registration system for new banks that lend for business investment. As I'd… https://t.co/HMPpoUXH4I
— Richard Werner (@scientificecon) October 29, 2026
Sounds imposing, but I wonder where his Rubicon is.
• November 3 Could Be the Day America Crosses the Rubicon (Paul Craig Roberts)
Here is how the NY Times Shapes the News in order to Protect Israel and Harm Trump: On October 29, David Halbfinger wrote in the NY Times that President Trump “has made clear he wants Israel to join the United States in another round of war against Iran.” Halbfinger blames the unprovoked aggression against Iran on Trump, with Trump wanting Israel to join America’s aggression. In other words, the war is Trump’s baby.Read more …
But this is how the US Department of State officially explains the war: “As the United States has explained in multiple letters to the U.N. Security Council, including most recently on March 10, the United States is engaged in this conflict at the request of and in the collective self-defense of its Israeli ally.”When a country’s “newspaper of record” is Jewish and it shapes news to protect Israel at the expense of Americans, the picture is of a people being manipulated to serve the interest of a foreign nation. It seems to me that the Democrats tried to get Trump supporters in trouble for less significant manipulations than Halbfinger’s.
If the November 3 vote produces a Democrat Congress, we will witness with the seating of the new Congress the return of lawfare to punish Republicans. The practice will spread, and defeated US presidents will have to flee the country like defeated presidents in South America.
After the midterm elections I plan to assess the outlook for America. I suspect that the Democrats, if they win, will find war against traditional Americans more in line with their agenda than wars with Iran and Russia. Opposition could be weak as Trump’s subservience to Israel rather than to MAGA has demoralized many of those who thought America could be renewed on the basis of its traditional principals.
There are indications that Democrats are transitioning into America’s first ideological party as Democrats become the party of Abdul El-Sayed, Zohran Mamdani, Ilhan Omar, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Ideologues are in it for the cause, not for money, and the cause is transforming or overthrowing existing society and its institutions. Ideology is fiercer than money, and this gives the new Democrats an edge.
The American people have little, if any, sense of this, and are unaware that their votes on November 3 could be equivalent to Caesar’s crossing of the Rubicon.
Where there is no vision the people perish.
I hear and read too much about “lowest numbers” for Trump.
People who don’t like him can’t imagine other people do. The numbers haven’t changed after 10+ years.
• Trump to ‘Electrify’ Voters in Two Rescheduled Rallies (ETM)
President Donald Trump’s canceled rallies to Kansas and Iowa are back on. He will galvanize supporters in both states in back-to-back rallies on Sunday, a source familiar with the matter told the Daily Signal. Trump’s in-person rallies this weekend were canceled and replaced with tele-rallies in order to reach more voters. However, the rallies are now back on the schedule.Read more …
“President Trump loves his supporters, and in addition to nearly 20 tele-rallies, he will hold back-to-back rallies in Kansas and Iowa on Sunday,” the source familiar said. “No one works harder, fights harder, or loves the American people more than President Donald J. Trump. The rallies were rearranged for scheduling purposes to accommodate dozens of additional tele-rallies that were recently added to the president’s schedule.”Republican National Convention Chairman Joe Gruters said a lot of decisions are being made on an ongoing basis about how to “maximize the president’s schedule.” “We need to do everything that we can get him to do within the 15 or 16 hours that he’s willing to be out there working on these things,” he told the Daily Signal. “He’s been an absolute machine. He’s crushing it. So it’s just about maximizing opportunities.”
Trump’s final message to supporters in these rallies will be “that the American people are going to reject extremism, and that’s what the Left is offering,” Gruters said.
“They want common sense, reasonableness, and they want that opportunity to achieve the American dream,” he said. “And these DSA candidates and these leftists who are representing the Democrats in a lot of these races, I think they fundamentally want to change the country, and I think that the path that this president’s put us on, the fact that he’s gone out there and gone to bat for the American worker when almost five decades of elected officials have sold out the American worker in exchange for cheap foreign goods, I think will make the difference.”
Gruters maintained that Republicans will “defy history” on Tuesday and turn out voters. Historically, the party in power loses the midterm elections. “All you got to do is turn on the TV and see what’s happening in Paris,” he said. “We can’t let that happen here in America. That’s why we got to continue to stay the course and focus on turnout to make sure that we get to defy history and give the president the support that he needs to be successful.”
Gruters said the president’s energy at his many midterm rallies has had an “electrifying” effect on the base. “We’ve seen upticks in voting. We’ve seen upticks in enthusiasm and voter intensity, and so we think it’s paying off big time,” he said. “That’s why the last couple of days we’re just trying to maximize everything.”
“Ground-based air defense systems were added in and around West Palm Beach, officials said.” A president’s home. In his own country.
• Surface-to-Air Missile Systems Added to Protect Trump at Mar-a-Lago (ET)
A U.S. Secret Service security tower at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, after Secret Service and local police shot and killed a man armed with a shotgun after he breached a secure perimeter of the resort in Palm Beach, Fla., on Feb. 22, 2026.
The Secret Service ordered short-range surface-to-air missile systems and counter-drone technology to be positioned in and around President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, officials confirmed on Oct. 29. Military and presidential officials declined to provide details about the decision to increase security at the estate, where he is expected to return for the Halloween weekend.Read more …
U.S. Army Humvee-based Avenger Short-Range Air Defense (SHORAD) Systems have been positioned on a floating barge near Trump’s Palm Beach estate and at the Donald J. Trump International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, used by Air Force One, according to local media reports.“At the request of the U.S. Secret Service … NORAD and USNORTHCOM recently deployed ground-based air defense assets and Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System capabilities in and around Mar-a-Lago, Florida,” a military spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email.
“These assets add a complementary layer of technology to enhance protection,” the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern Command Public Affairs spokesperson said. “Due to operational security, we are unable to provide additional details.”
No details were released about when the military equipment arrived in the Palm Beach area, or confirmation of a specific threat. The Avenger Air Defense System is a surface-to-air missile system used by the military as mobile defense protection against cruise missiles, drones, low-flying aircraft, and helicopters, according to the Army.
The Pentagon referred questions about the added security equipment to the White House press office. A White House spokesperson also declined to confirm if the president had received a specific threat. NORAD will enforce protected airspace above West Palm Beach again this weekend. The command issued temporary flight restrictions on Thursday over West Palm Beach, Palm Beach, and the greater area until Nov. 1.
Fighter jets were scrambled on Oct. 24 to intercept a general aviation aircraft over Palm Beach that had entered a no-fly zone. The fighter flew in front of the aircraft to get the pilot’s attention, and the airplane safely left the restricted zone, according to NORAD.
General aviators were advised to check Notices to Airmen before every flight, which is required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA has issued two presidential-level flight restriction windows: from 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 30 to 10:45 a.m. Oct. 31; and 4:15 p.m. on Oct. 31 to 1:30 p.m. Nov. 1. Roads in Palm Beach County will also be temporarily closed this weekend in anticipation of the president’s visit.
“A new RUSI report questions the future of Moscow’s strategic forces. Its conclusions leave crucial parts of the picture out.”
Dmitry Kornev, military expert, founder and author of the MilitaryRussia project
Britain et al provoked Russia into Ukraine. But war with Moscow is useless and/or worse.
Russia became unbeatable with nukes. 100 of them are aimed at London. So try.
• What A British Think Tank Gets Wrong About Russia’s Ultimate Weapons (Kornev)
A few days ago, the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) released a report titled ‘Russia’s Nuclear Deterrent and Its Weapons Procurement’. The report examines the development of Russia’s nuclear triad amid stringent financial constraints and the rising threat of a potential US non-nuclear counterforce strike.Read more …
The author of the report, Sidharth Kaushal, makes conclusions based on the publications of Russian military experts in the journal ‘Voennaya Mysl’ (Military Thought), as well as established Western practices for analyzing Russia’s nuclear capabilities.A British diagnosis of Russia’s nuclear future
Here are the key takeaways from the report:
• Paradigm shift: Russia is being compelled to shift its focus from a posture of “assured retaliation” (increasing the survivability of mobile missile systems and submarine-launched ballistic forces to effectively counter a first strike) to a Launch on Warning (LOW) posture (employing its arsenal early against an enemy attack).
• Vulnerability of mobile forces: Advancements in US space reconnaissance make the concealment of mobile ground-based systems increasingly ineffective.
• Greater reliance on silo-based launchers, which are viewed as more secure bases for strategic missiles. Silo-based systems will comprise a greater proportion of throw weight, particularly since RS-28 Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missiles are silo-launched to ensure instant readiness.
• Economic challenges: According to the report, modern Russia cannot pursue a large-scale quantitative increase in its missile arsenal due to the enormous costs associated with developing and maintaining the conventional armed forces amidst the ongoing military operation in Ukraine.
• Due to cost parity, the domestic production costs of strategic missile systems compete with conventional weaponry – for example, producing one Yars missile is equivalent to the cost of 15 T-72 tanks.
• A labor shortage in the nuclear and missile industries is unavoidable in the current conditions and necessitates a significant increase in wages.
The author also provides interesting assessments of specific weapons systems:
• RS-28 Sarmat: The report projects no quantitative increase in the deployment of these missiles. Emphasis is placed on a short boost phase and a high payload capacity for overcoming missile defense systems.
• The medium-range Oreshnik missile is seen as a priority in the European theater of operations and as a tool for preemptively neutralizing US Dark Eagle systems in Europe. Given manufacturing shortages, it is expected to be deployed primarily in its nuclear variant.
• The long-range KH-BD air-launched cruise missile (with a range up to 6,500 km) is designed to be carried by Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers, in light of the lack of progress on the PAK DA next-generation stealth strategic bomber.
• Burevestnik and Poseidon programs are considered technically unfeasible by the author of the report; due to the high costs, they are perceived primarily as methods of psychological intimidation
• Space-based warfare: The report highlights the jamming of US missile defense systems as a major priority for Russia. It predicts the launch of nuclear electronic warfare satellites into orbit and the eventual deployment of full-scale space-based nuclear weapons to create massive plasma fields in the ionosphere.
How can we assess this report? Generally, the picture is more complex than described. Like in the Indian parable about the blind men and the elephant, the author of the report sees certain aspects of the ‘elephant’ but fails to see the general picture, which may be quite different. Let’s take a closer look.
The logic behind Russia’s nuclear shield
Regarding the structure of the strategic nuclear forces and the shifting balance between mobile and stationary systems, the distinctive feature of the Soviet, and now Russian, approach lies in balancing mobile and stationary strategic missile systems. Despite advances in satellite reconnaissance, mobile missile systems hold certain advantages: for example, hundreds of them are deployed over vast territories.Moreover, several Peresvet laser weapon systems have already been deployed; these can blind potential adversaries’ optical reconnaissance systems at a critical moment. While reliance on space-based systems is understandable, it’s important to note that these technologies are also vulnerable to various factors, as we have seen recently.
Stationary missile systems come with a significant drawback: it’s relatively easy to spot their location. However, they offer a high level of protection against non-nuclear strikes and maintain relatively high (though not absolute) survivability in the event of a nuclear exchange. Russia’s strategy combines hard-to-detect mobile missile systems with stationary systems that can be employed in response to a nuclear attack.
This combination allows for greater flexibility and multiple operational scenarios. Considering this strategy, it’s likely that a large inventory of Sarmat missiles isn’t necessary – two regiments with 50+ missile silos might suffice. This doesn’t indicate a shift in priorities but rather reaffirms a conservative and justified traditional approach.
We must also note the naval component, which ensures reliable retaliatory capability. Both Russian and Western analysts have grown accustomed to the fact that the Bulava submarine-launched solid-fuel missile has been deployed and will eventually replace other ballistic missiles in the Russian Navy. However, that’s not entirely true. Project 667BDRM DELTA-IV submarines equipped with liquid-fueled R-29RM missiles remain on duty. These missiles are among the most effective strategic systems in terms of their energy-mass efficiency. Judging by statements from 2022, it seems that Russia may very well renew its interest in liquid-fueled sea-based missiles. Maintaining two centers for naval missile production is more expensive than having just one, but if it results in a higher number of warheads with fewer missiles, financial concerns could be overlooked.
Ha Ha Ha!
• Pentagon Tells Baltic States to Tone it Down, Stop Antagonizing Russia (CTH)
What I find very interesting in this Reuters exclusive report are the specific Baltic states mentioned. From the article: “Among the nations that have received messages urging them to keep public statements in check are Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. ”
I would remind readers of the recent 1,000 drones supposedly deployed from Western Ukraine that flew through the airspace of this exact group of nations to attack St Petersburg, Russia. CTH said at the time that given the logistics involved it was far more likely the drones were delivered to, and launched from, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia before crossing into Russian territory.…“if you accept the narrative, the 1,000+ drones took off from western Ukraine, flew north through Poland, crossed Lithuania (a few crashed there) and then Latvia, and finally turned east toward St Petersburg from Estonia at the very end; again, presumably, to avoid Russian air defenses.
This complicated 1,000+ drone operation happened at exactly the same time Zelenskyy was creating a very specific narrative about being allowed to use Starshield for these types of targeting operations.” ~CTH October 20th. Is it just a coincidence that a report surfaces saying the Pentagon has requested these same three specific EU nations to stop their antagonisms as President Trump tries to come to a diplomatic resolution to this conflict?
Oct 30 (Reuters) “Pentagon officials have in recent weeks asked several NATO countries to tone down their rhetoric regarding the threat posed by Russia, arguing that some statements by European leaders and officials have undermined continental security, four people familiar with the matter said.
Among the nations that have received messages urging them to keep public statements in check are Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity. It was not clear if the messages, which were delivered in bilateral meetings, were conveyed to other European governments.
The US requests come as the Trump administration restarts an effort to press for a negotiated end to the full-scale war in Ukraine, now well into its fifth year. The latest push has blended incentives for Russia including sanctions relief with pressure on Ukraine to halt its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.” Asked for comment, a Pentagon official said: Private conversations among allies are just that, so we will not comment on these allegations.
Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, a key figure in an ongoing review of US troop levels in Europe, was one of the US officials delivering the message, the people said. Reuters could not determine what other officials were involved. None of the people, who include three European officials and a US official, suggested the advice was communicated in a confrontational manner. (read more)
Putin and Trump, through Dmitriev and Witkoff, make business deals. No sentiment.
• Trump Considers Lifting Sanctions On Putin’s ‘Slush Fund’ (RFE/RL)
Four days after Russia launched its all-out effort to subjugate Ukraine, the US government and other Western allies fired a broadside of financial sanctions aimed at punishing the Kremlin’s wallet for the assault. The Russian Central Bank was prominent.Read more …
So was a multibillion-dollar sovereign wealth fund that the Kremlin calls the Russian Direct Investment Fund, or RDIF. The U.S. Treasury called it “a slush fund for President Vladimir Putin [that] is emblematic of Russia’s broader kleptocracy.”After months of dormancy, US negotiators have ramped up efforts to find a negotiated settlement to end Russia’s war on Ukraine — as well as normalize frosty relations between Washington and Moscow. The peace proposals vary. Many tilt heavily in Russia favor, something that was echoed in Putin’s remarks to European leaders earlier this week.
They also include lifting sanctions on the RDIF, whose chief executive, Kirill Dmitriev, is the Kremlin’s point person for talks with the Americans.”This conversation is going on,” Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yury Ushakov told Russian reporters. “It’s been going on for some time, though I don’t know what the result will be.”
“Dmitriev is actively reaching out, in particular, and therefore the question has come up and is being discussed,” Ushakov said on October 28, confirming a New York Times report a day earlier. US sanctions experts were wary.
“Since its inception in the early 2010s, RDIF has served as a vehicle for channeling investments into companies and sectors that are strategically important to Putin,” said Peter Harell, who served as a senior director on the White House National Security Council from 2021 to 2022. “We should all be clear-eyed about what unsanctioning RDIF would mean: it would mean prioritizing American investment in Kremlin-aligned projects over supporting Ukraine,” he said.
What Is The RDIF Anyway?
The fund was established in 2011 during the interim period when Putin’s protege, Dmitry Medvedev, served as president, and Putin as prime minister. It came at a time when Russian coffers were brimming with revenues from high global oil prices and fiscal planners were moving to put the country onto a rock-solid financial footing.Back then, Russia had one traditional sovereign wealth fund that was later split into two: the Stabilization Fund and the Reserve Fund. Both more or less helped to keep excess oil revenues from destabilizing the economy, as well as to help fill gaps in the budget; the pension system above all. In short, nothing controversial nor particularly political.
The RDIF, however, was a slightly different beast: aimed at making targeted investments in Russian companies: construction, telecoms, finance, health care, and dairy, among others. It says to date it has made 2.3 trillion rubles ($29 billion) in investments since its inception — with about 80 percent of that amount coming from “partner funds.”
[..]
Who is Kirill Dmitriev?
Born in Kyiv and educated at Stanford then Harvard, Dmitriev, 51, worked briefly on Wall Street, in the investment bank Goldman Sachs, and, also consulting giant McKinsey and Company. RDIF did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment from RFE/RL. His wife, Natalia Popova, is widely known as a close friend of Katerina Tikhonova, who is the younger of Putin’s two daughters. Dmitriev sits on the board of directors for an innovation fund called Innopraktia that is headed by Tikhonova.He was appointed RDIF’s first executive when it was established. In an interview with the business newspaper Vedomosti, published in 2012, he described his philosophy toward investing. “We don’t want to rush. We’re very responsible with our money and take a conservative approach to investment decisions. We don’t want to invest and then see a second wave of the crisis hit and all assets, including ours, plummet in value,” Dmitriev was quoted as saying.
During the run-up to the 2016 US presidential election, which ultimately was won by Donald Trump, Dmitriev was one of several Russian officials who held back-channel meetings with Trump administration confidants. Dmitriev met with Erik Prince, founder of the private military company Blackwater and Trump campaign donor, in the Seychelles just weeks before Trump took office — a meeting that was documented by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated the Trump administration’s ties to Russian officials.
After Trump returned to the White House in 2025, Dmitriev was tapped by Putin to be the Kremlin’s special economic envoy. But he also cultivated a close relationship with the White House’s lead envoy, real estate developer Steve Witkoff. Dmitriev has since taken on the lead role in negotiations to rebuild business relations with US companies — and also end the Ukraine war.
Putin greeting White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner at the Kremlin earlier today. (Kirill Dmitriev also visible greeting Putin.) Witkoff has met Putin at least 6 times prior. The Americans are later scheduled to travel to Kyiv for the first time. pic.twitter.com/utgRpw0Ek5
— Mike Eckel (@Mike_Eckel) September 5, 2026
He’s met repeatedly over the past 16 months with Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in Moscow — including earlier this month amid the release of a retired American schoolteacher, Stephen Hubbard, from a Russian prison. RDIF and Dmitriev, were also instrumental in a deal, recently announced by the Trump administration, to allow Russian diesel fuel to be imported into the United States.That deal has drawn scathing criticism from Democratic lawmakers — and even some Republicans — in Washington, who say it violates the spirit of a recently passed sanctions law, and several have threatened potential criminal liabilities for any American companies that import the Russian diesel.
“I think lifting sanctions without Russia giving anything in return is an example of really confused policy-making,” Korhonen said. Speaking at an energy conference in Moscow on October 16, Dmitriev criticized the US sanctions law as “misguided,” and he touted other business deals he said were in the works between Moscow and Washington.
“Naturally, progress is quite difficult; there is resistance, in fact, widespread resistance, from various quarters. Yet, as the example regarding diesel demonstrates, I believe we will soon be announcing several other significant initiatives,” he said. “The ice has, in fact, begun to break.”
“Ursula goes rogue..”
The EU MUST dump her. But how could that happen? It’s not as if she was elected. No Kings anyone?!
How can this NOT lead to disaster?
She offers Canada associate membership of the EU. But there’s no such thing. She makes it up.
• Von der Leyen’s Canada Power Play: Words Fail The EU Boss (RT)
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is stirring up trouble at home during a controversial trip to Montreal, turning what should have been a straightforward trade mission into a petty argument over Canada’s fictional “membership” in the bloc.Read more …
The EU mandarin traveled to Montreal for the 21st annual EU-Canada summit on Thursday, with her tail between her legs. A month after unilaterally promising Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney “associate member” status of the bloc, she was reportedly forced to scrub all mentions of the term and downgrade her offer to one of an “ever closer association” between the EU and Canada.When the summit closes on Friday, both sides will issue a revised joint statement that reads: “We will create an even closer association between Canada and the EU… and work to define by the 2027 EU-Canada Summit the concept of an ever closer association of Canada to the EU, short of full membership itself,” according to a draft seen by Policito.
Why was the text changed?
Von der Leyen reportedly gave neither the EU’s vast bureaucracy, nor its members’ wary leaders, any warning before she told Carney in front of the European Parliament that she “would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to being the first associate member of the European Union.”Unilateral decisions and boundary-overstepping are von der Leyen’s calling cards, as her fellow Eurocrats have repeatedly complained to the press. “Nobody was consulted about associate membership apart from [von der Leyen’s] closest staff, it would seem,” an unnamed diplomat told The Guardian on Wednesday. The widespread anonymous briefing to various mainstream European media made it clear that France, Germany, Greece and Italy had forced von der Leyen to adopt the new, watered-down terminology.
In her first speech in Montreal on Thursday, von der Leyen refused to adopt the new, sanitized wording. After noting that “Canada cannot become a full-fledged member of the EU because of geography,” she insisted that “we are discussing the idea of Canada becoming the first associate member of the European Union. Our idea is simple: it is an ‘association without accession’.”
Whatever form Friday’s communique will take, von der Leyen has evidently chosen to disregard the concerns of the EU’s largest member states for the sake of her own personal project. However, the difference between both statements is purely rhetorical.
What does ‘associate member’ mean anyway?
Neither “Associate member” nor “ever closer association” are defined anywhere in EU law.German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attempted to define “associate membership” in May when he suggested that it be granted to Ukraine. Under his proposal, Ukraine would participate in European Council meetings without voting rights, send representatives to the European Parliament, receive more EU funding, and become party to the EU’s mutual defense clause.
The proposal was rejected by Kiev, with Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky arguing that this kind of ‘membership-lite’ would leave his country “present in the European Union, but voiceless.”
“Ever closer association” is an even more meaningless term, lifted straight from ‘Ever Closer Union’, a hagiography on EU integration by the bloc’s court historian, Desmond Dinan. Writing in 1994, Dinan argued that “European integration is a good thing,” and the phrases he used – “ever closer union” and “pooling sovereignty,” for example – have since become staples of EU speeches and press releases.
US President Donald Trump ridiculed von der Leyen’s word games last month, calling the concept of associate membership laughable, and threatening to put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe on many things if the EU-Canada proto-alliance ever harmed US interests.
Carney who plainly insisted last month that Canada is “not looking to become a member of the European Union”, responded diplomatically to the intra-EU squabbling. “:The good news is it doesn’t matter about specific names or nomenclature”, he said ahead of the summit. What matters is the difference it will make to the lives of Canadians.
However, Von der Leyen’s membership promise and the subsequent retraction has undermined Carney in front of his opponents. In a social media post on Thursday, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre described the concept of associate membership as theater, and dismissed the summit as yet another grand theatrical meeting to sign a bunch of meaningless declarations filled with big words (catalyze, anyone?) and promises to meet again to talk more.”
“How long will this theatre go on? While Canadians can’t afford food and homes, Mr. Carney has distracted for months with big talk about “Associate Membership” with Europe. Now, Europe has rejected it. For the next two days, we will be distracted again from the cost-of-living crisis with wall-to-wall media coverage on yet another grand theatrical meeting to sign a bunch of meaningless declarations filled with big words (catalyze, anyone?) and promises to meet again to talk more.No one’s mortgage or grocery bill will come down. We already have a free trade deal with Europe, Mr. Carney. Get the 9 countries who have not ratified it to do so. And get EU countries to let our beef into the continent and cancel their planned carbon tariff on Canada. Otherwise stop wasting your time and our money. Both are running out.
— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) October 29, 2026
[..] The argument over the statement’s wording has overshadowed the summit, but the geopolitical reality remains unchanged: the EU needs Canada’s energy supplies to keep its economy afloat, Canada’s money to prop up its Ukraine project, and Canada’s geography to legitimize its Arctic expansion. For these, it doesn’t matter how the deal is dressed up.
“Canada cannot have a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU that contains structural regulations on the flow of goods that substantively restricts Canadian products from entering the USA.
• Canada GDP Slips as PM Carney Continues Chasing EU Membership (CTH)
Canada is in a really weird place and I’ve all but given up trying to understand it. At a certain point you just have to accept that Prime Minister Mark Carney is operating on an agenda for that country that is disconnected from all traditional perspectives around national best interest.
For example, the Canadian trade relationship with the single state of Texas, USA, is larger than the total Canadian trade relationship with the European Union, yet Carney is spending an inordinate amount of time chasing a trade deal with the EU that is never going to amount to anything. Seriously, it’s a literal dead-end.First, there’s not a scintilla of alignment between the USMCA (Canada says CUSMA) and the European Union. There’s two entirely different sets of economic baselines, standards, rules and regulations between trading with the United States and trading with the EU. If Canada wants a trade relationship with the USA, they have to give up trying to structure their economy to align with the EU; both systems are entirely different.
Canada cannot have a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU that contains structural regulations on the flow of goods that substantively restricts Canadian products from entering the USA. The same issue exists with China.
Now, if Canada wants to separate from the North American trade agreement, then by all means – go for the deal with the EU and/or China. However, as long as Canada wants to retain their USA dependencies and benefits, there’s no mechanism that permits an FTA of substance with Europe or China. Mark Carney cannot have it both ways.Secondly, do you remember when CTH noted the second quarter GDP for Canada appeared to be entirely manipulated by the movement of Dutch Central Bank gold from Ottawa to London. People laughed at me for noticing the timing and the mysterious (completely unexplained) gain in economic output in the second quarter. Q4 2025 was flat, Q1 2026 was negative, then mysteriously Q2 had a bounce – and, well, now Q3 is showing a return to flatline or negative.
OTTAWA—Canada’s economy cooled in the latest quarter after activity unexpectedly stalled two months running and early data points to a slight contraction in September. Gross domestic product was essentially unchanged in August from the month before at 2.372 trillion Canadian dollars, the equivalent of US$1.695 trillion, Statistics Canada said on Friday. That was softer than the 0.2% expansion expected by economists following a similarly flat result in July. The national data agency’s advance data indicates output edged down 0.1% in September.
Based on the estimate, Canada’s economy expanded at an annualized pace of 1.3% in the third quarter after surging back to life the period before. August’s activity reflected a modest 0.1% expansion in activity by goods-producing industries, balancing a 0.1% dip by services producers.
The advance information for September points to decline in manufacturing and mining and oil and gas extraction, partially offset by increases in utilities and recovery in wholesale trade for the month. (read more)
Let me put this as plainly as I can. Carney is a former banker. Banks know how to manipulate economic outputs because banks can create the appearance of ‘sales’ within an economy. Mark Carney was getting blasted for having a recession economy (two quarters of contraction Q4 ’25 and Q1 ’26) in early spring ’26 at the exact moment he was delivering his now famous Davos speech presenting himself as the leader of the “middle powers strategy.”
Enter the Dutch Central Bank transferred $86 billion in gold out of Ottawa and New York but didn’t actually take custody of it. Instead, the Dutch financially transferred the Canadian gold to the City of London. The Dutch Bank and Bank of England can, I say did, record that 3-way transfer as a physical sale of a Canadian holding (asset). That created the Q2 Canadian anomaly.
So, in reality pull that Q2 result out of the equation and the Canadian economy has been flat or declining for almost a full year now with a negative -0.1% result in September. This makes the conversation about Canada’s desire to become more economically dependent on the European Union look even sillier.
The USA economy already at $32.5 trillion is growing substantially at a 3.4% rate; that’s more than a thousand billions’ in economic growth. The EU economy is barely bumping along at 1.3% growth and Canada is completely flat.
For the past two days, Prime Minister Mark Carney and EU Commission President Ursula Fond of Lyin’ have been conducting an oratory lovefest expressing a desire for Canada and the EU to embrace each other with passionate synergy. However, back in Europe the rest of the knuckleheads -led by Germany- have dispatched any notion of letting Canada be an “Associate Member” 3,000 miles away. {GO DEEP}Into this hot mess of diplomatic duplicity intended to dupe the culturally clueless Snow Mexicans and First Nation sensibility enablers, comes a bucket of ice water to the face in the form of a report showing the EU would apply a carbon border adjustment tax to Canadian industrial products because Canada just isn’t progressive enough with their climate preservation regulations {SEE HERE} and the evidence is HERE.
Remember what I said about the North American USMCA being entirely incompatible with the EU regulations on trade? Well, the European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is one brutally obvious example therein. Canada already having created a carbon trading exchange system may be willing to align and regulate themselves even more with that nonsense, but the USA and Mexico are never going to participate in such self-defeating foolishness.
I know there are a substantial number of really solid, conservative and intellectually honest Canadians. They are in my prayers daily, because the scale of bizarro world frustration they live with is astonishing. God Bless the pragmatic conservative Canadians. Now, knowing how valuable time is, I would not recommend a video unless it was well documented, short on banter and hard on facts. This video is well worth your time.
“Can’t we just be Mexico or Paraguay and have peace and quiet while things mostly go to hell?” — Matt Taibbi
• A Fine, Deliberately Engineered Mess (James Howard Kunstler)
The garish stunt pulled by the Democratic Party in Alaska’s US Senate race has been known for months — a florid, festering carbuncle on the election’s face — and The New York Times finally reported it this week, mainly to get ahead of an accelerating DOJ probe, spin the story, and soften its sharp edges for public consumption. And a day later, the newspaper is now straining to say that it’s just normal politics.Read more …
Here’s what happened: Rep. Mary Peltola is running against sitting US Senator Dan Sullivan (Dan S.). Somehow, a second Dan Sullivan (Dan J.), a retired nobody in a remote fishing village, was induced to jump on the ranked-choice ballot. (The ranked-choice method is another layer of trickery.) So, there are two Dan Sullivans on the ballot. Do you suppose this might confuse voters and siphon off votes from the real Sullivan to push a Peltola victory?Peltola fired her campaign manager, Elisa Rios, in August, for reasons not yet disclosed. Rios then filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Peltola and sometime along in there Rios went to The Times with the story of how two Dan Sullivans ended up on the Alaska ballot. Turns out that the campaign ran a “ballot composition project.” Also involved were the national Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) and the Marc Elias law firm, which represents both the DSCC and Rep. Peltola’s campaign.
Marc Elias was previously the Perkins Coie lawyer who represented the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign and helped arrange the Steele Dossier facet of the RussiaGate prank. Elias has since then been working tirelessly to engineer election procedures that favor Democrats, enable voting by non-citizens, block election reform, and file lawsuits to prevent states from turning over voter rolls to the DOJ, as they have demanded.
A pro-Peltola political action committee (49th State PAC) paid $87,000 to an Ohio consulting company run by one Jerid Kurtz (operating under the name “Zane”) to compile a list of all the Dan Sullivans in Alaska and recruit one to run for Dan S. Sullivan’s Senate seat. They succeeded, finding Dan J., age 69, a retired US Forest Service employee and schoolteacher, in Petersburg, AK, who had never run for anything before. In late May 2026, he filed as a Senate candidate without a party label, then received about 2.5% in the top-four primary, and advanced to the general election ballot.
The Alt Dan Sullivan was assisted with all the filing paperwork by one Amber Lee, an Anchorage-based political consultant. A super PAC, Right for Alaska (meaning good for, not right wing, and based in Hudson, Wisconsin, by the way), has spent $1.15 million on Alt Dan, with $990,000 of that funneled in from the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a Washington DC-based Lefty-left pass-through operation — a 501(c)(4), not required to disclose its dark money donors — that has handled hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years. The org is associated with Arabella Advisors, which is funded by George Soros’s Open Society grants.
Former campaign manager Rios had told The Times that, “Ms. Peltola was not directly involved in the Two Dan Sullivans project, but she was ‘definitely aware.’” Two days ago, just before publication of The Times report, Rios attempted to retract her story, declaring to the newspaper, “As discussed on our call earlier today, I am confirming that I have retracted all statements made regarding the 2026 Alaska Senate Race in connection with any article you may or may not be writing. I am not willing to be a source for any story in any capacity.” Nice try. Explain that to a grand jury.
The DOJ opened criminal and civil investigations in the Two Dan Sullivans matter last summer but bumped up its activities with the publication of The Times report. A grand jury was convened in August. On the criminal side, prosecutors have now issued thirty to forty grand jury subpoenas targeting Democratic officials, the Peltola campaign, and others linked to the Alt Dan recruitment effort. No one has been charged yet. At issue is whether this was a conspiracy to mislead voters or interfere with a fair election. Potential charges could include 18 U.S.C. §§ 241 and 242, conspiracy against rights / deprivation of rights under color of law and wire fraud.
On the civil side, a DOJ lawsuit filed October 23, seeks to block certification of the vote if Senator Dan S. Sullivan happens to lose the election in a way that could be attributed to voter confusion.
Yesterday, Governor Mike Dunleavy directed the Alaska Bureau of Investigation to determine whether the prank violated Alaska law and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted. The governor said the state’s actions were based on “Alaskans’ right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support” and described deliberately confusing voters as “striking at election integrity.” The Alaska Supreme Court previously ruled that Daniel J. Sullivan (Alt Dan) met the constitutional requirements to appear on the ballot and that officials could not exclude him based on alleged motives. How that happened remains a mystery.
From a public sentiment point of view, the Two Dan Sullivans case underscores how desperately filthy Democratic Party tactics are in the service of preserving their longstanding racketeering operations. As a practical matter, the outcome could affect which of the two parties gets control of the US Senate. A vote for Democratic Party candidates is a vote to wreck our country. Think hard on that when you go to the polls.
“For consumers, heating and electricity costs have spiked as a consequence of the US-Israeli war on Iran..”
• European Energy Giants Declare Record Profits (RT)
As European households struggled to pay their energy bills, the continent’s oil companies more than doubled their profits over the last quarter, reaping the benefits of the US-Israeli war on Iran.Read more …
Eight months to the day since American and Israeli forces began bombarding Iran, Brent crude prices sat at $115 on Thursday, up from $72 pre-war. Dated Brent, the actual on-the-spot price that purchasers are paying for Brent cargoes in the North Sea, was even higher, at $120.This price spike has driven the cost of petrol, diesel, and heating oil to record highs across Europe. However, it’s been a windfall for Europe’s largest oil companies, according to quarterly profit statements compiled by Germany’s Der Spiegel on Thursday.
British oil and gas giant Shell recorded a profit of $12.1 billion between July and September, a more than twofold increase on the previous quarter, and on the same quarter last year. Between July and September 2025, Shell made $5.43 billion in profit.
France’s TotalEnergies increased profits by 127% to $9.1 billion in the same period, while Spain’s Repsol recorded an almost fivefold increase, from $640.7 million to $3.1 billion. Austria’s OMV, meanwhile, increased profits by 68% to $2.36 billion.
German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil and his counterparts in Austria, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, have called for an EU-wide windfall tax on the oil giants, similar to the “solidarity levy” imposed by Brussels after the escalation of the Russia/Ukraine conflict in 2022.
The Commission has been very reserved on this issue, although several member states have been calling for models to be presented for a long time, Klingbeil said after a meeting of EU finance ministers in Ireland last month. This must happen by the next [finance ministers] meeting in October at the latest, he added.
The European Commission shot down Klingbeils proposal, and October passed with no action from Brussels. It is in the hands of member states, EU Economic Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis told reporters. Member states can go ahead and take those decisions on the taxing of windfall profits.
Despite Gulf exports reportedly recovering to 80% of pre-war levels, Houthi attacks on Saudi energy facilities and shipping, the threat of naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, and warnings of an “intense” new US military campaign against Iran have all played a role in keeping oil prices nearly twice as high as they were at the beginning of February.
Bukele in Haiti.
• Trump Tells Bukele “Do What You Have to Do” to Deal with Haitian Gangs (CTH)
The nation of El Salvador has been part of a UN-established initiative called the Gang Suppression Force, or GSF, operating in Haiti’s capital city of Port-au-Prince. Four of El Salvador’s soldiers, aviation technicians, were ambushed and captured by Haitian gangs. El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has been positioning military assets to deliver retribution.
According to Axios, as Bukele pumps military assets into the collapsed nation he called President Trump who told him, “do what you need to do” to deal with the situation and return stability. Having dealt with this situation in his home country, President Bukele knows exactly how to deal with gangs who take control of government.AXIOS – El Salvador’s strongman president, Nayib Bukele, is sending thousands of troops to Haiti to boost the island’s push to wipe out its gang problem — and find four of his military personnel who were captured in a recent ambush. Bukele called President Trump on Tuesday to make sure he had no problem with this major military escalation, to which Haiti’s government has agreed. “Do what you have to do,” Trump told him, according to sources briefed on the call.
Why it matters: If it works, Bukele’s troop surge could stabilize Haiti, a country 700 miles from Florida that has been devastated by deadly gang violence and has lacked a president since the last one, Jovenel Moise, was assassinated five years ago. President Bukele delivered the following statement via the X platform:
Pèp ayisyen,
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) October 29, 2026
Nou prèske fin deplwaye sòlda nou yo ak ekipman nou yo sou tè Ayiti. Sa a se pa yon operasyon kont pèp ayisyen an, ni yon envazyon peyi Ayiti. Nou pa yon gwo pisans. Nou pa gen okenn enterè ni pou nou vin domine pèp ayisyen an, ni pou nou mete men sou richès Ayiti.… pic.twitter.com/AZ1XvdeJje
“Haitian people,We have nearly finished deploying our soldiers and equipment on Haitian soil. This is not an operation against the Haitian people, nor an invasion of the country of Haiti. We are not a great power. We have no interest in coming to dominate the Haitian people, nor in laying hands on Haiti’s wealth.
We are a modest country that is developing. The only thing we want is for our four aviation technicians to return home. And we’re giving the gangs a lesson—these gangs that make the Haitian people suffer, that kill people the population loves, that prevent them from living a normal, free life, without fear.
It’s almost just us footing the bill for this operation. Even though we receive a bit of logistical help from a few other countries, it’s with our own modest funds that we’re covering 90% of the expenses.
It costs us dearly, but we’ve learned from our own suffering: justice and peace have no price. We went through the same suffering that Haiti is going through today. We lived through a nightmare that was even more horrific than what the Haitian people are enduring right now. We know what that means: living in fear, not trusting politicians, not believing anyone who promises to help you. Because no one came to help us, and those who did come didn’t have good intentions in their hearts.
But we managed to escape it. After 200 years of suffering, finally we’re living in peace, and today we are the safest country on the continent.
We didn’t come to Haiti to make money, because no one is paying us to do it. We came to Haiti to fight against the wicked.
But here’s what I’m asking of you: trust us, pray to the one true God, and ask Him to heal Haiti.
“If at that time my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, where I am, I will forgive their sin, and I will heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14
Help us help Haiti.
And when our mission is finished, we’ll return home. Perhaps the next generation of Haitians will remember us as friends who came to help one day.” {source}
Tesla is celebrating Halloween this year by having a Cybercab autonomously drive around Austin with skeletons inside haha 🎃 pic.twitter.com/NPhAhEkQoB
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) October 31, 2026
🚨 TESLA BEGINS OPTIMUS PRODUCTION IN FREMONT
— As Found (@AsFoundX) October 29, 2026
Tesla has started early production of Optimus humanoid robots on its high-volume line at Fremont.
• First production-quality units now coming off the line
• Line designed for up to 1 million robots per year
• Target of 20,000… pic.twitter.com/voVlP7liH2
https://twitter.com/AsFoundX/status/2115815669581455750?s=20Neuralink’s first product is called Telepathy.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 30, 2026
It enables high-speed communication with computers or humans simply by thinking. Output bandwidth will vastly exceed the fastest human speech or typing in a few years. Read that sentence again. https://t.co/cv1KCA076q
Our second product is called Blindsight and it will, as the name suggests, enable even those who are completely blind or have never seen to see.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 30, 2026
It is ready from an engineering standpoint. Just waiting on regulatory approval. https://t.co/2hPuw6QsnN
Elon Musk just shared a MASSIVE update on Neuralink's Blindsight
— X Freeze (@XFreeze) October 30, 2026
“Our second product is called Blindsight and it will, as the name suggests, enable even those who are completely blind or have never seen to see
It is ready from an engineering standpoint. Just waiting on…
Starship 42 is getting ready to make HISTORY. SpaceX wants to catch BOTH stages of the rocket!
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 30, 2026
Ship 42 has completed its six-engine static fire and a separate Raptor test simulating its return from orbit.
The goal for Flight 15? Catch both the Super Heavy booster AND Starship's… https://t.co/cxB56iapDW pic.twitter.com/qafVumTIOP
GOVERNMENT’S WAR ON THE UNIVERSAL ANTIDOTE: Dr. Pierre Kory Exposes Why Chlorine Dioxide — The Cure for Viruses, Cancer & Deadly Pathogens — Is STILL SMEARED in America
— Valerie Anne Smith (@ValerieAnne1970) October 29, 2026
They know it empties hospitals and heals millions… yet the U.S. government is waging all-out war to keep it… pic.twitter.com/6njycXq1CP
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