Jul 222023
 


Andy Warhol Ingrid Bergman 1984

 

Biden Needs China to Bail Out US Economy (Sp.)
Neocons Want War With China (Pepe Escobar)
Putin: There are No Results of Ukrainian Counteroffensive (Sp.)
Putin Warns Of Poland’s Intentions In Ukraine And Belarus (RT)
Storm Clouds Gathering In The Black Sea (Bhadrakumar)
This Is How The New Black Sea Campaign Will Go (Helmer)
95% Of Ukrainian Grain Under Grain Deal Does Not Reach Africa – Italy (RT)
FT: Kremlin Seeks To Cut Ukraine Out Of Global Grain Market (Az.)
West Should Take Measures on Grain Deal – Erdogan (Sp.)
Ukraine Fails To Realize That Israel Is Not The US, EU or UK (Inlakesh)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr: Why Not Stop the a? (NW)
FBI Told Twitter Hunter Biden Laptop Was Real On Day Of Post Scoop (NYP)
Hunter Biden Attorney Requests Ethics Probe Into Marjorie Taylor Greene (Sp.)
Watching the New Barbarians (Pepe Escobar)

 

 

 

 

The light of peace
https://twitter.com/i/status/1682407037227892739

 

 

 

 

RFK BBC

 

 

Trump trial

 

 

Propaganda

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cue Yellen kow-towing.

Biden Needs China to Bail Out US Economy (Sp.)

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s trip [to] Beijing was widely ridiculed in the media. But geopolitical and financial analyst Tom Luongo, publisher of the newsletter ‘Gold, Goats ‘n Guns’, said her real mission was to beg China for economic aid. He told Sputnik’s New Rules podcast that the Biden administration’s financial maneuvers during the debt ceiling stand-off with the Republican-controlled House of Representatives had cleaned out its “checking account”. “There’s a reason why US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen went to China,” he said. “I think Yellen went to Beijing to beg the Chinese to buy US Treasuries.” “The Chinese don’t have an open capital account, meaning they can buy a whole bunch of US treasuries without affecting the yuan onshore,” Luongo continued.

“They were the ones that could actually do this, buy a whole bunch of US treasuries, because Yellen needs to refill the Treasury general account since she drained it in order to blackmail the world into thinking the US was going to default over the debt ceiling crisis.” The pundit explained how the federal government’s new liquidity crisis began. “During the debt ceiling crisis back in May, and as we moved into June, the Treasury’s general account — basically checking account — was being drawn down,” he recalled. “And Yellen was out there every other day screaming, ‘Oh my God, we’re not going to have any money to pay our bills!’ Well, the way the Treasury raises money is by selling Treasuries.”

“The best estimates have been that she would need to raise somewhere between $1 trillion and $1.5 trillion this summer in order to fund the budget deficit of the United States and get the Treasury general account back up to a certain level now, in order for the American government to continue operating in this unbelievably dysfunctional manner,” Luongo said. Recently published data indicates that Yellen had reason to be concerned about China dumping US Treasuries. China sold more than $22 billion of its US Treasury bonds in May, bringing its total holdings to the lowest level since 2010, according to a report by the US Department of Treasury released on Tuesday. Given this context, the US Treasury Secretary likely traveled to Beijing to urge Chinese leaders to reverse course.

But Luongo pointed out the contradiction in Yellen’s plan: “if you’re buying a Treasury bond, you’re selling dollars” — accelerating de-dollarization and undercutting the value of the US fiat currency. “Someone needs to buy treasuries. They could be absorbed by the American domestic markets. But if you do so, you’re taking dollars out of the US domestic markets.”

Read more …

“Hence the turn around by the Biden combo to “freeze” the conflict in the Donbass and change the subject. After all, “if that [China] is the threat, you don’t want Russia to fall apart..”

Neocons Want War With China (Pepe Escobar)

It was a photo op for the ages: a visibly well-disposed President Xi Jinping receiving centenarian “old friend of China” Henry Kissinger in Beijing. Mirroring meticulous Chinese attention to protocol, they met at Villa 5 of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse – exactly where Kissinger first met in person with Zhou Enlai in 1971, preparing Nixon’s 1972 visit to China. The Mr. Kissinger Goes to Beijing saga was an “unofficial”, individual attempt to try to mend increasingly fractious Sino-American relations. He was not representing the current American administration. There’s the rub. Everyone involved in geopolitics is aware of the legendary Kissinger formulation: To be the US’s enemy is dangerous, to be the US’s friend is fatal. History abounds in examples, from Japan and South Korea to Germany, France and Ukraine. As quite a few Chinese scholars privately argued, if reason is to be upheld, and “respecting the wisdom of this 100-years-old diplomat”, Xi and the Politburo should maintain the China-US relation as it is: “icy”.

After all, they reason, being the US’s enemy is dangerous but manageable for a Sovereign Civilizational State like China. So Beijing should keep “the honorable and less perilous status” of being a US enemy. What’s really going on in the back rooms of the current American administration was not reflected by Kissinger’s high-profile peace initiative, but by an extremely combative Edward Luttwak. Luttwak, 80, may not be as visibly influential as Kissinger, but as a behind the scenes strategist he’s been advising the Pentagon across the spectrum for over five decades. His book on Byzantine Empire strategy, for instance, heavily drawing on top Italian and British sources, is a classic. Luttwak, a master of deception, reveals precious nuggets in terms of contextualizing current Washington moves. That starts with his assertion that the US – represented by the Biden combo – is itching to do a deal with Russia.

That explains why CIA head William Burns, actually a capable diplomat, called his counterpart, SVR head Sergey Naryshkin (Russian Foreign Intelligence) to sort of straighten things up “because you have something else to worry about which is more unlimited”. What’s “unlimited”, depicted by Luttwak in a Spenglerian sweep, is Xi Jinping’s drive to “get ready for war”. And if there’s a war, Luttwak claims that “of course” China would lose. That dovetails with the supreme delusion of Straussian neocon psychos across the Beltway. Luttwak seems not to have understood China’s drive for food self-sufficiency: he qualifies it as a threat. Same for Xi using a “very dangerous” concept, the “rejuvenation of the Chinese people”: that’s “Mussolini stuff”, says Luttwak. “There has to be a war to rejuvenate China”.

The “rejuvenation” concept – actually better translated as “revival” – has been resonating in China circles at least since the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911. It was not coined by Xi. Chinese scholars point out that if you see US troops arriving in Taiwan as “advisors”, you would probably make preparations to fight too. But Luttwak is on a mission: “This is not America, Europe, Ukraine, Russia. This is about ‘the sole dictator’. There is no China. There is only Xi Jinping,” he insisted. And Luttwak confirms the EU’s Josep “Garden vs. Jungle” Borrell and European Commission dominatrix Ursula von der Leyen fully support his vision. Luttwak, in just a few words, actually gives away the whole game: “The Russian Federation, as it is, is not strong enough to contain China as much as we would wish”. Hence the turn around by the Biden combo to “freeze” the conflict in the Donbass and change the subject. After all, “if that [China] is the threat, you don’t want Russia to fall apart,” Luttwak reasons. So much for Kissingerian “diplomacy.”

Read more …

“..the Ukrainian cannon fodder is clearly not enough for the West, so they plan to use new consumables – the Poles themselves, Lithuanians, and the list goes on. All those who the West will not feel sorry for..”

Putin: There are No Results of Ukrainian Counteroffensive (Sp.)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said there are no results of Ukraine’s counteroffensive. Addressing a Russian Security Council meeting on Friday, Putin said that “as a result of suicidal attacks,” the Ukrainian Armed Forces have suffered extensive losses, with “tens of thousands” of soldiers killed. He stressed that despite the “constant raids and total mobilization” across Ukraine, the Kiev regime “is finding it increasingly difficult to drive new reinforcements to the front.” The Russian president stated that neither the supply of weapons nor the presence of foreign mercenaries and advisers helped Kiev. “Neither the colossal resources that were pumped into the Kiev regime, nor the supply of Western weapons, tanks, artillery, armored vehicles and missiles helped. The delivery of thousands of foreign mercenaries and advisers who were most actively used in attempts to break through the front of our army did not help either,” Putin said.

According to him, the West already lacks “Ukrainian cannon fodder,” which is why the Western leaders are considering using Lithuanians and Poles in hostilities. “Hatching their revanchist plans, Polish authorities don’t tell their people the truth. The truth is that the Ukrainian cannon fodder is clearly not enough for the West, so they plan to use new consumables – the Poles themselves, Lithuanians, and the list goes on. All those who the West will not feel sorry for,” Putin noted. He warned that “This is a very dangerous game, and the authors of such plans should think about the consequences.” The Russian president added that “The existing production capacities in the West do not allow it to quickly replenish the consumption of reserves of equipment and ammunition.” According to Putin, the West needs “Additional massive resources and time.”

Putin also praised the command of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine for their professionalism. “Our soldiers and officers, as well as units and formations are doing their duty to the Motherland courageously, steadfastly, and heroically,” the Russian head of state pointed out. [..] “At the same time, the whole world sees the much-hyped ‘invulnerable’ Western military equipment on fire [on the battlefield]. And in terms of its performance characteristics, it often even yields to some pieces of Soviet-made military hardware.” The Russian president also warned of Eastern Europe leaders’ possible involvement in kindling “the fire of the war.” “The fire of war is currently being intensively kindled as they use the ambitions of Eastern European states’ leaders, who have long turned hatred for Russia and Russophobia into their main export product and into an instrument of their domestic policy. And now they want to profiteer from the Ukrainian tragedy,” he underscored.

Read more …

“..the issue of Ukraine’s defeat is only a matter of time,” regardless of the amount of Western military assistance sent to Kiev..”

“.. if the Polish units enter, for example, Lvov or other territories of Ukraine, then they will remain there. And they will remain there forever.”

Putin Warns Of Poland’s Intentions In Ukraine And Belarus (RT)

Polish leaders are planning to form a NATO-backed coalition to intervene in the Ukraine conflict and take over parts of western Ukraine as well as, possibly, Belarus, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed on Friday. Speaking at a meeting with permanent members of Russia’s Security Council, Putin said the government in Kiev is willing to go to any lengths to stay in power, including selling out its own people and handing over Ukrainian territories to “foreign owners.” The first in line, according to the Russian president, are the Poles, who he claimed “probably expect to form some kind of coalition under the ‘NATO umbrella’ and directly intervene in the conflict in Ukraine, in order to then ‘tear off’ a bigger piece for themselves, to regain, as they believe, their historical territories – today’s western Ukraine.”

During Friday’s meeting, the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergei Naryshkin, also alleged that Warsaw if the Polish units enter, for example, Lvov or other territories of Ukraine, then they will remain there. And they will remain there forever.” was considering capturing western territories of Ukraine by deploying its own troops to the region as part of a Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian security initiative. According to Naryshkin, Polish officials are gradually coming to the realization that “the issue of Ukraine’s defeat is only a matter of time,” regardless of the amount of Western military assistance sent to Kiev. Commenting on the SVR report, Putin suggested that the true purpose of such a coalition would only be to occupy Ukrainian territories. “The prospect is obvious – – if the Polish units enter, for example, Lvov or other territories of Ukraine, then they will remain there. And they will remain there forever.”

Putin also noted that it is “well known” that Warsaw “dreams” of also claiming parts of Belarusian territory as well. The Russian leader warned, however, that while Ukraine has the right to sell off as much of its own territory as it wants, when it comes to Belarus, any aggression against a part of the Union State would mean aggression against Russia. “We will respond to this with all the means at our disposal,” Putin stated.

Read more …

NATO in the Black Sea. Not great.

Storm Clouds Gathering In The Black Sea (Bhadrakumar)

[..] in an ominous development, no sooner than Russia let the UN-brokered grain deal expire on July 17, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky disclosed that he had sent official letters to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan suggesting to continue the grain deal without Russia’s participation. On the very next day, Kiev followed up with an official letter to the UN’s International Maritime Organization spelling out a new maritime corridor passing through Romania’s territorial waters and exclusive maritime economic zone in the north-western part of the Black Sea.

Evidently, Kiev acted in concert with Romania (a NATO member country where the 101st Airborne Division of the US army is deployed). Presumably, the US and NATO are in the loop while the UN’s imprimatur is being arranged. It goes without saying that the NATO has been working on a new maritime route in the Black Sea for sometime already. This is a serious development, as it seems a precursor to involving the NATO in some way to challenge Russia’s domain dominance in the Black Sea. Indeed, the NATO’s Vilnius Summit Communiqué (July 11) had forecast that the alliance is gearing up for a vastly enhanced presence in the Black Sea region, which has been historically a Russian preserve, where its has important military bases.

The relevant para in the NATO Communiqué said: “The Black Sea region is of strategic importance for the Alliance. This is further highlighted by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. We underline our continued support to Allied regional efforts aimed at upholding security, safety, stability and freedom of navigation in the Black Sea region including, as appropriate, through the 1936 Montreux Convention. We will further monitor and assess developments in the region and enhance our situational awareness, with a particular focus on the threats to our security and potential opportunities for closer cooperation with our partners in the region, as appropriate.”

Four things need to be noted: one, the Ukraine conflict has been singled out as the context; the focus is on Crimea; two, “freedom of navigation” means an assertive US naval presence; reference to the 1936 Montreux Convention hinted at the role of Turkey, both as a NATO member country and the custodian of the Dardanelles and Bosporus straits; three, the NATO flags its intention to enhance its “situational awareness,” which as a military term involves 4 stages: observation, orientation, decision, and action. Situational awareness has two main elements, namely, one’s own knowledge of the situation and, secondly, one’s knowledge of what others are doing and might do if the situation were to change in certain ways. Simply put, the NATO surveillance of Russian activities in the Black Sea will intensify; and, four, the NATO seeks closer cooperation with “our partners in the region” (read Ukraine).

Most certainly, a new maritime route in northwestern and western regions of the Black Sea along Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey (all of whom are NATO member countries) will cut off the Russian garrison in Transnistria (Moldava) and would boost Kiev’s capability to strike at Crimea. The NATO involvement would complicate any future Russian operations to liberate Odessa as well, which is historically a Russian city. Apart from the huge legacy of culture and history, Odessa is a port head for the industrial products of Russia and Ukraine. The Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline (which the Ukrainian saboteurs blew up recently) is one of the best examples. The 2,471 km pipeline, the longest ammonia pipeline in the world, connected the world’s largest ammonia producer, TogliattiAzot, in Russia’s Samara region with Odessa Port.

In strategic terms, without control over Odessa, NATO cannot have force projection in the Black Sea region or hope to resurrect Ukraine as an anti-Russia outpost. Nor can NATO advance toward the Transcaucasus and the Caspian (bordering Iran) and Central Asia without dominating the Black Sea region. And for the same reasons, Russia cannot afford to cede the Black Sea region to the NATO, either.

Borrell

Read more …

John Helmer is a bit more optimistic.

This Is How The New Black Sea Campaign Will Go (Helmer)

During the grain deal, the Ukraine was able to export about 33 million tonnes of grain by sea. The withdrawal of such a large volume of grain from the world market, of course, cannot but affect prices. However, it is unlikely there will be such losses. Now the options for sending Ukrainian grain by sea will be limited, but the Ukrainians can continue to send ships through their waters at their own risk. In addition, Ukraine has other ways of sending grain – by rail and by road. This, of course, is unlikely to appeal to Poland and other EU agricultural countries, since Ukrainian grain settling in Europe greatly knocks down prices there and ruins European farmers. However, the EU will have to solve this problem on its own.

Maximov believes that in the medium term, the price of grain will still rise, and this opens up a certain window of opportunity for our exporters to increase export revenue. Finally, the understanding that the grain deal is in the past can help by itself. This awareness will allow Russian companies not to hope for the lifting of restrictions and more actively build workarounds for the trade with the understanding that the sanctions situation will last for a long time. “The termination of the grain deal makes it possible to carry out the necessary restructuring of logistics routes and use the North–South route with maximum load with access to Asian and African markets through Iran. The development of this direction seems to be key for the level of food exports from Russia. This scenario will not only preserve the level of export earnings, but also supply grain, food and fertilizers to the poorest countries of the world.

That is, to realize the same goals that were laid in the foundation of the grain deal, but were shamelessly ignored by our former partners”, says Maximov. As for the export of Russian mineral fertilizers, this has decreased by about 15% due to the general sanctions restrictions. However, in 2023 Russia is gradually restoring fertilizer exports, and this year it may reach supply levels comparable to the record figures of 2021 of almost 38 million tonnes, Andrei Guriev, head of the Russian Association of Fertilizer Producers (RAPU) said in May. And again, it’s not just been the grain deal, but the fact that fertilizer producers needed more effort and time to change buyers from unfriendly to friendly, to agree on payment, logistics and insurance.

Read more …

Putin said 97%.

Zelesky cries for Africa, the sends his grain to the highest bidder.

95% Of Ukrainian Grain Under Grain Deal Does Not Reach Africa – Italy (RT)

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has claimed that only a tiny fraction of Ukraine’s grain exports are going to Africa, contrary to the goals of the Black Sea Initiative, causing prices of staple foods on the continent to soar. Speaking to the newspaper La Stampa news outlet on Friday, Crosetto was asked if the Ukrainian grain deal, which was recently suspended by Russia, could affect stability in North Africa. The minister replied by pointing out that “everything is connected and it is certainly an element of concern.” “95 percent of exported Ukrainian grain does not go to Africa, and when those countries don’t have the supplies they need they look elsewhere, and inevitably the global prices rise, making it even more difficult for African nations to import. It is destabilizing regions that are already in difficulty, and this problem clearly also affects Europe,” Crosetto said.

Grain prices surged earlier this week after Russia announced the “termination” of the Türkiye and UN-brokered Black Sea Initiative. Under the deal, which took effect in July 2022 and had been repeatedly extended since, Russia lifted its blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports to allow the export of Ukrainian grain to world markets. The agreement was also supposed to remove barriers to the export of Russian grain and fertilizer. However, Moscow has insisted that none of the promises made to it under the agreement were kept, with President Vladimir Putin claiming last week that “not a single goal linked to the interests of the Russian Federation was met” and describing the deal as a “one-sided game.”

Russia has also repeatedly criticized the West for failing to use the grain deal for its original purpose – to avert famine in poorer countries. According to Moscow, the vast majority of agricultural goods that should have been delivered to poorer nations under the deal, including those in Africa, have still not reached them and have instead ended up in Europe. Back in March, President Vladimir Putin also announced that if Russia were to suspend the Black Sea deal it would consider a plan to send “the entire volume [of grain] that was sent from Russia to African countries during the previous period” free of charge to countries in need.

Read more …

I thought the sanctions tried to cut out Russia…

FT: Kremlin Seeks To Cut Ukraine Out Of Global Grain Market (Az.)

Russia is pushing a plan to supply grain to Africa and cut Ukraine out of the global market after Moscow’s withdrawal this week from a UN-backed deal. Report informs via the Financial Times that President Vladimir Putin had proposed a replacement initiative whereby Qatar would pay Moscow to ship Russian grain to Türkiye, which would then distribute the crop to “countries in need”. Russia is expected to push its proposal at a summit with African leaders in St Petersburg next week and when Putin visits Türkiye in August.

Read more …

Who has faith in the Sultan anymore?

West Should Take Measures on Grain Deal – Erdogan (Sp.)

Western countries should take measures on the grain deal, as its termination will lead to famine and a migration influx, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday. “The termination of the Black Sea Grain Initiative will entail a range of consequences, including rising global food prices, famine in some regions and new waves of migration. We will not hesitate to take the initiative to prevent this … Western countries should also take action on this issue,” Erdogan told reporters. Erdogan added that he expects to hold talks on the grain deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the near future.


“We maintain relations with Russia … Together with the negotiations, we hope to bring this issue [of the grain deal] to a certain point with Putin in the very near future,” Erdogan stressed. Erdogan added that he had discussed the planned visit of Putin to Turkiye, noting that he expects the grain deal to be resumed after the meeting. “If Putin’s visit scheduled for August takes place, we will discuss these issues in detail. I believe that we will ensure the continuation of the implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative without delaying this process,” Erdogan said. Moscow has certain expectations in connection with the grain deal, Erdogan said, adding that he expects to discuss them with Putin.

Read more …

“..strike the right balance in order to avoid upsetting Washington, as well as not drawing the ire of Moscow..”

Ukraine Fails To Realize That Israel Is Not The US, EU or UK (Inlakesh)

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky stated to the Israeli Knesset in March of last year, that “the threat we face is the same, for us and for you. The destruction of a people and even a name”, attempting to paint both countries as moral actors fighting for freedom. Ukraine accuses Russia of being an illegal occupier, annexing territory and committing daily war crimes, all things that are well documented of Israel, which severely weakens Kiev’s credibility when making its various moral analyses. On one hand, it claims to oppose illegal occupation and annexation, then on the other it compares its struggle to that of one of the most infamous occupiers of foreign territory.

What Ukraine fails to recognise is that despite Israel being very much aligned with the West in many ways, it is not the same as NATO members. Tel Aviv* is, just like Kiev, a strategic asset for Washington, and prior to the war in 2022, it was the top US foreign aid recipient. Israel however relies on the collective West to continue its mutually beneficial mission in the Middle East, but isn’t looking to try and deviate its current course whatsoever. This is something that Netanyahu understands well and hence continues to strike the right balance in order to avoid upsetting Washington, as well as not drawing the ire of Moscow. In fact, when Netanyahu was head of the Israeli opposition last year, he criticized then Israeli PM, Yair Lapid, for his “blabbing” about Russia and accused him of endangering national security.

When Netanyahu was asked by the New York Times, earlier this year, about his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he characterized it as “still very important.” He made it clear that a mechanism had been set up between Russia and Israel in the context of Israeli offensive operations against Iran in the region, “to prevent this clash, this war, this Russian-Israeli war” that Netanyahu fears could occur if there is no coordination. He has made it very clear that the most important aspect of Russian-Israeli cordiality is the maintenance of the Israeli military’s freedom of action in Syria.

One of the primary foreign policy concerns of Israel, is the expansion of Iranian relations and power inside the Middle East. It is clear that the Israeli PM is also bothered by the tightening of the Tehran-Moscow relationship on a number of levels, which he fears could result in an even more threatening position in the event of any deterioration in ties between Israel and Russia. It is in this spirit that earlier this month the Israeli government advanced relations by settling a land dispute with Moscow in mid June, and in return Russia decided to open a branch of its Tel Aviv* based embassy inside Jerusalem.

Read more …

RFK: @Newsweek writer Paul Bond is the first MSM journalist I’ve spoken to in a decade who asked me for the scientific citations that supported my arguments, read the journal papers, and then wrote an honest and fair article. I commend him. #Kennedy24

Robert F. Kennedy Jr: Why Not Stop the Conspiracy Theories? (NW)

Kennedy is regularly criticized from the left as a DINO, a Democrat in Name Only. As well as his views on COVID, he’s in favor of sealing the southern border; he’s against allowing trans women to compete against female athletes and he’s anti-war—including war in Ukraine. “Some Democrats like him because he is a Kennedy,” notes John Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College. “As more have learned about who he is and what he stands for, his Democratic support has edged downward.” Kennedy responds to criticism of his positions with the argument that he is a proponent of free speech, accusing the Biden administration of orchestrating censorship—again in part over COVID.

Indeed, U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty recently issued a preliminary injunction barring federal agencies and officials from contacting social media firms for the purpose of discouraging speech, and the alleged censorship of Kennedy is mentioned three times in the judge’s written opinion. The Biden administration is appealing the decision and did not respond to a request for comment on Kennedy’s accusations. “I’m the last liberal. A JFK, RFK, FDR liberal. I’m for middle-class labor, the environment, anti-war, anti-corporatist takeover of government agencies, anti-subversion of democracy without redress, and protection of minorities,” Kennedy said.

“Real liberals don’t censor, and he (Biden) has been promoting censorship from the White House. He’s been working with social-media companies to silence his critics, including me,” he said, accusing social-media companies of continuing to censor him. “YouTube took down three videos this week. They took down my pre-announcement speech where I first said I’m thinking of running for president. They take down stuff of mine every day. Some of it is related to the war in Ukraine,” he said. “Some reporters call it a conspiracy theory that the government censored me, or even that I’ve been censored at all.”

[..] Kennedy reels off the list of rights he believes have come under assault, particularly since the government imposed extraordinary measures during COVID. “Freedom of speech; though it’s harder to censor me now that I’m running for president. Freedom of worship; they closed churches for a year. Freedom of assembly; they created social distancing. Private property rights; they closed 3.3 million businesses without due process or just compensation. They also shut down the Seventh Amendment right to jury trials,” he said.

RFK malinformation

Read more …

And then came the 51 former intelligence officials…

FBI Told Twitter Hunter Biden Laptop Was Real On Day Of Post Scoop (NYP)

A senior FBI official told Twitter that Hunter Biden’s laptop was legitimate on the same day The Post published the first article in a bombshell reporting series on documents linking President Biden to his son’s foreign business deals, according to deposition testimony released Thursday by the House Judiciary Committee. That confirmation was not shared with voters ahead of the 2020 election as dozens of former intelligence officials and then-presidential candidate Joe Biden falsely suggested that incriminating documents were Russian disinformation. “Somebody from Twitter essentially asked whether the laptop was real. And one of the FBI folks who was on the call did confirm that, ‘yes, it was,’ before another participant jumped in and said, ‘no further comment,’” Laura Dehmlow, section chief of the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force, recollected in a closed-door deposition Monday, according to a release from the Republican-led committee.

The FBI’s non-public verification of the laptop occurred on Oct. 14, 2020, hours after The Post published a story detailing how an email showed Joe Biden met while vice president with an executive at Ukrainian gas company Burisma Holdings — contradicting his claims that he “never” discussed foreign business dealings with his relatives. Dehmlow’s deposition was released during a hearing on social media censorship featuring journalist Emma-Jo Morris, who authored the initial laptop stories as a deputy politics editor at The Post. Among them was the revelation that Joe Biden — referred to as the “big guy” — was penciled in for a 10% cut of proceeds from son Hunter and brother James Biden’s partnership with Chinese government-linked CEFC China Energy.

Twitter banned distribution of The Post’s initial article for two days for potentially violating its hacked materials policy — despite no evidence the material was hacked and transparency in The Post’s reporting about how the laptop was acquired from a Delaware repairman after it was legally abandoned by Hunter. Although The Post also published an FBI form describing the bureau as taking possession of the laptop in December 2019, there remained broad public uncertainty about the authenticity of the laptop until well after the election, in large part due to warnings of possible disinformation from senior retired intelligence agency officials.

Although The Post also published an FBI form describing the bureau as taking possession of the laptop in December 2019, there remained broad public uncertainty about the authenticity of the laptop until well after the election, in large part due to warnings of possible disinformation from senior retired intelligence agency officials. The Washington Post and New York Times verified the contents of the laptop in March 2022 — more than 17 months after The Post’s initial reports and more than 16 months after Joe Biden narrowly won the 2020 election. Twitter’s ban on sharing links to the initial laptop article remained in effect until around 10 p.m. Oct. 15, 2020, and Twitter continued to bar The Post from accessing its accounts for another two weeks for refusing to delete initial links to the story.

Then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden claimed at the final presidential debate on Oct. 22, 2020 — more than a week after The Post broke the story — that the laptop was a “Russian plant,” citing a letter from 51 former intelligence agency leaders that said the incriminating documents bore “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.” The letter casting doubt on the laptop was signed by five former directors or acting directors of the CIA and many of their high-ranking former subordinates. Recent testimony indicates that Antony Blinken, who was advising Biden’s campaign, inspired former CIA acting director Michael Morell to draft the document. After he won the election, Biden tapped Blinken to be secretary of state.

Read more …

How about an ethics probe into Hunter?

Hunter Biden Attorney Requests Ethics Probe Into Marjorie Taylor Greene (Sp.)

An attorney representing Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, sent a letter to the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) on Friday to request they open a probe into US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) for making allegedly defamatory statements about Biden In April, Biden’s legal team wrote to OCE to request a review and actions against Greene for allegedly making defamatory statements and false accusations about the president’s son. Earlier this week, Greene shared graphic photos during a US House hearing, which purportedly showed Biden making sex tapes with prostitutes paid through his law firm.


“Today we write again because, this week, your colleague has lowered herself, and by extension the entire House of Representatives, to a new level of abhorrent behavior that blatantly violates House Ethics rules and standards of official conduct,” attorney Abbe David Lowell said in the letter. Greene displayed the graphic photos during the hearing in an effort to advance “untethered conspiracy theories,” the letter said. The letter also criticizes Greene for continuing to share the images and allegations via social media. Moreover, Greene may have violated federal law by sending out links to the graphic images in a fundraising email without ensuring the materials were not transferred to minors, the letter said The letter reiterates Biden’s request for OCE to immediately review Greene’s conduct.

Read more …

“Sultan is broke. Turkiye is broke. Foreign exchange reserves are going down the Bosphorus drain. So what’s Sultan to do? Miserably default? Sell what’s left of the palace gold? Or bend over backwards to the IMF?”

Watching the New Barbarians (Pepe Escobar)

Now let’s get to the main plot in the clown show. NATO explicitly formulated it “does not want” a war with Russia. Translation: they are absolutely terrified. More scared than if Zeus in the flesh was threatening them with a million thunderbolts (or their post-modern epigone: Mr. Khinzal). What NATO – via the real masters, the Americans, or their piece of Norwegian wood posing as the man in charge – could not possibly admit in public is that they have less than zero resources for a real war. Russia, on the other hand, has them – in droves. NATO, already miserably humiliated in Afghanistan, is now being ruthlessly, methodically demilitarized, a process running in parallel to the increasingly abysmal state of the economy prevailing amongst all NATOstan members. War? Against a nuclear, hypersonic superpower? Give us a – Thucydides – break.

Then there’s the story of a major character that ended up making a big splash: the Sultan. He may be a Neo-Ottoman potentate or just a plain streetwise grifter, but in the end he got what he needed: the moolah in the coolah. Well, not yet in the coolah: considering this is an IMF racket, the moolah will come with a zillion conditions attached. It goes like this. Sultan is broke. Turkiye is broke. Foreign exchange reserves are going down the Bosphorus drain. So what’s Sultan to do? Miserably default? Sell what’s left of the palace gold? Or bend over backwards to the IMF? There’s no smokin’ gun on who called who first to set up the deal. Ankara may have been promised a lifeline of up to $13 billion – in fact pocket money. The Sultan could have gotten a much better deal with the “win-win” Chinese – complete with serial BRI investment projects.

And yet he decided to play his cards with NATO, not Eurasia. Reality won’t take much time to dictate its terms. Turkiye will never be admitted into the – floundering – EU. The Americans may force Brussels to do it – remember those “rules” – but up to a point. Selling tons of extra Bayraktar drones to Kiev – yes, it’s a Sultan family racket – won’t alter anything on the battlefield. Yet simultaneously antagonizing the Russia-China strategic partnership and their push for Eurasia integration – via SCO, BRICS, EAEU – does alter the chessboard. The Sultan may be condemning Turkiye to the role of extra minor sidekick – with nearly zero screen time – in the plot line that really matters: the Eurasian Century. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow, reflecting on the Vilnius clown show, remarked that the world will not be turned into a “NATO globe”. Of course not: what’s ahead has been defined by Old Man Luka, the Oracle of Minsk, as the “Global Globe”.

Read more …

 

 

 

 


1934 job application in Hollywood. He had a successful career as a scriptwriter.

 

 

Kathmandu

 

 

Alsomitra

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

 

 

 

 

 

Feb 102022
 


Giuseppe Arcimboldo Four elements – Water 1566

 

VAERS Data Supports DoD Whistleblowers (UncoverDC)
The Rise of Omicron is the Fall of Vaccines (TSN)
COVID “Conspiracy Theories” Become “Fact-Checked” Mainstream Narrative (QTR)
Fauci Says ‘Full-Blown’ Covid-19 Pandemic Is Almost Over In US (Fox)
Mayor Reveals Plan To Deal With Truckers Blocking US-Canada Bridge (RT)
Dozens Arrested As New Zealand Police & Anti-mandate Protesters Clash (RT)
Texas Probes GoFundMe Shutdown Of Freedom Convoy Fundraiser (RT)
What Will Gov. Abbott Do With Vax Mandate In The Texas National Guard? (Blaze)
CVS Forecasts 80% Drop In Covid Vaccine Sales For 2022 (R.)
Germany Electricity Prices Soar To World Record Highs (NTZ)
Joe Rogan Mocks His Controversy In Surprise Stand-up Appearance (RT)
Britain’s Second Elizabethan Age Has Been 70 Years Of Dismal Decline (Nuttall)
Glyphosate’s Dirty Secrets — Are We About to Learn More? (CHD)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blue America

 

 

“..corrupt bureaucrats in Washington have knowingly poisoned our troops and deceived the American people about the safety and efficacy of the COVID injections.”

VAERS Data Supports DoD Whistleblowers (UncoverDC)

Renz explained to Sen. Johnson that he received significant and damaging data from the DoD whistleblowers under the penalty of perjury. For example, DMED data shows miscarriages increased by nearly 300% over the five-year average. Likewise, data shows an almost 300% increase in cancer over the same five years. Making a point to thank Dr. Ryan Cole for his focused attention to cancer related to COVID jabs and Dr. Pierre Kory for his “stance on the [current] corruption,” Renz continued, presenting the disturbing data to Sen. Johnson, adding:

“We saw—and this one’s amazing—neurological issues, which would affect our [military] pilots, [we saw] over a thousand percent increase—82,000 per year to 863,000 in one year. Our soldiers are being experimented on, injured, and sometimes possibly killed. They know this. And Senator, when these doctors are attacked, they call me. I’m the one dealing with the medical boards. I’m the one watching the witch hunts. I’m the one fighting them off, and I’m going to keep doing that. And let me give you one last thing, Senator—the Sept. 28, 2021, Project Salus weekly report.

Project Salus is a defense department initiative where they take all this data—that [they now say] doesn’t exist, supposedly—and they give it to the CDC. They’re watching these vaccines. On and around that date, I have numerous instances where Fauci and the entire crew were saying, “it’s a crisis of the unvaccinated. It’s 99% unvaxxed in the hospital.” In the project Salus weekly report, the DOD document says specifically 71% of new cases are in the fully vaccinated and 60% of hospitalizations are in the fully vaxxed. This is corruption at the highest level. We need investigations. The secretary of defense needs to be investigated. The CDC needs to be investigated. Thank you so much, Senator, for having the courage to stand up against these special interests.”

[..] UncoverDC spoke with attorney Renz last Friday. Renz shared that he and others believe DMED data is currently “being manipulated to cover up the fact that corrupt bureaucrats in Washington have knowingly poisoned our troops and deceived the American people about the safety and efficacy of the COVID injections.” Furthermore, Renz called claims that the DMED data from 2016-2020 was incorrect “absurd.” He added that we spend millions per year on DMED and the individuals monitoring it. Renz shared that he and his team believe DMED data is currently “being manipulated to cover up the fact that corrupt bureaucrats in Washington have knowingly poisoned our troops and deceived the American people about the safety and efficacy of the COVID injections.”

Read more …

“Omicron may be the death knell of the pandemic…”

The Rise of Omicron is the Fall of Vaccines (TSN)

Unless one sells vaccines for a living, the overall numbers for the covid-19 variant Omicron will seem wildly encouraging. Take a California study of 53,000 Omicron and 17,000 Delta cases from November 30, 2021, to January 1, 2022. In every way, Omicron patients did far better—a quarter the hospitalizations of Delta, miniscule admissions to ICU, no ventilation whatever, and a death rate of less than one-tenth of one percent. The study, by researchers at UC-Berkeley and Kaiser Permanente, suggests, as do others, that Omicron may be the death knell of the pandemic. But, buried deep within its piles of data, it also calls into question the utility of the vaccines themselves.

Beyond showing that the vaccines faltered as Omicron overtook Delta in December, the study lays bare what until now was a heretical assertion. The share of unvaccinated people hospitalized for Omicron infection was a mere 24 percent—43 of 182 hospitalized patients—compared to 69 percent for Delta. Put the other way around, the vaccinated have morphed into about three-quarters of hospital admissions for the now-dominant Omicron. These figures belie the rock-solid mainstream narrative that hospitals are filled with the unvaccinated. Clearly, the “pandemic of the unvaccinated”—always open to question—is no more.

“This is a huge change,” said Juan Chamie, a covid data expert who verified my conclusion from the data. “It is clearly contradicting the ‘99-percent unvaccinated in hospital’ narrative.” Dr. Mobeen Syed, a YouTube medical educator who favors vaccination of high-risk groups, agreed. The public health message on the hospitalized unvaccinated, he said, was “not up-to-date and transparent enough,” relying on data early in the pandemic when fewer were vaccinated and the variant was different. “They want to scare,” he told me. “They should have the courage to look at the data and say, ‘Hey guys, the risk (with Omicron) is reducing. Become happy, become more comfortable.’”

Read more …

“..only now that millions of vaccines have been distributed and the public’s trust in the President and in his Covid response is at all time lows – she has completely and totally changed her tune.”

COVID “Conspiracy Theories” Become “Fact-Checked” Mainstream Narrative (QTR)

I started out 2022 by predicting that capitalism and common sense would catalyze a massive pivot in how the mainstream media reports on Covid. I believed that the media would eventually start the process of pivoting from hysteria and that politicians, understanding full well that they can’t get re-elected during mid-terms this year on a platform of locking people in their homes, would follow. All I can say one month into the year is holy shit, does it look like I was right. So far in 2022, innumerable U.S. states, in addition to countries like Sweden, Norway and Denmark, are lifting Covid restrictions. Connecticut and Delaware are planning on lifting school mask mandates by the end of March. Oregon officials have also announced that general mask mandates would be lifted March 31. Even New Jersey and California announced they would ease mandates in coming weeks.

And the media narrative has very quickly changed, too. Dr Leana Wen, columnist with The Washington Post and CNN medical analyst who has, in the past, gushed non-stop about following the government’s Covid guidance, has now completely changed her playbook for her appearances on CNN. On Monday of this week, she told CNN: “There was, and is, a time and place for pandemic restrictions. But when they were put in, it was always with the understanding that they would be removed as soon as we can. And, in this case, circumstances have changed. Case counts are declining. Also, the science has changed. The responsibility should shift from a government mandate imposed from the state or the local district of the school … it should shift to an individual responsibility by the family, who can still decide that their child can wear a mask if needed.”

[..] In fact, where the fuck was this woman 6 months ago? On New Years, she was urging people to mask up while heading outdoors to watch the ball drop: “Make sure that you’re vaccinated and boosted. Make sure that you’re wearing a mask even though it’s outdoors. There are lots of people packed around you, wearing a three-ply surgical mask.” In Spring of last year, she was expressing “fears” about the U.S. not being able to reach herd immunity. In Summer of last year, she was spreading the narrative that “we can’t trust the unvaccinated”. Heading into the Fall, she was writing op-eds called “Why Covid-19 Vaccines Should Be Required For All Americans”. And now – and only now that millions of vaccines have been distributed and the public’s trust in the President and in his Covid response is at all time lows – she has completely and totally changed her tune.

Read more …

“..you might need a booster only every four or five years.”

Fauci Says ‘Full-Blown’ Covid-19 Pandemic Is Almost Over In US (Fox)

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical adviser for President Biden, said in an interview published Tuesday that the U.S. is almost past the “full-blown” pandemic phase of the coronavirus and said he hopes that all virus-related restrictions could wind down in a few months. Fauci discussed his idea of the virus’s trajectory with the Financial Times. He told the paper that the government response to the disease will eventually be handled on a local level and not federal. He did not mention a specific month or season but told the paper that these restrictions — including mask mandates — could end “soon.” The number of people in the hospital with COVID-19 across the U.S. has tumbled more than 28% over the past three weeks to about 105,000 on average, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


Dr. Chris Beyrer, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told the Associated Press, “What we want to see is that the omicron surge continues to decrease, that we don’t see another variant of concern emerge, that we start to come out of the other side of this.” Fauci told the paper that there is no way to eradicate the virus, but it is his hope that “we are looking at a time when we have enough people vaccinated and enough people with protection from previous infection that the Covid restrictions will soon be a thing of the past.” He also said it may not been needed for all Americans to get boosted in the future. “It will depend on who you are,” he said. “But if you are a normal, healthy 30-year-old person with no underlying conditions, you might need a booster only every four or five years.”

Read more …

Well, actually, there is no plan, at least in the article. But he does sound scared.

“You have a number of people who are … part of the protest group who have openly stated … they feel such a passion for this particular cause that they are willing to die for it..”

Mayor Reveals Plan To Deal With Truckers Blocking US-Canada Bridge (RT)

Trying to forcibly remove truckers blockading the busiest US-Canadian border crossing at the Ambassador Bridge could lead to violence and even death, the mayor of Windsor, Ontario cautioned on Wednesday, while his police chief called for a diplomatic approach. “You have a number of people who are … part of the protest group who have openly stated … they feel such a passion for this particular cause that they are willing to die for it,” Mayor Drew Dilkens told reporters on Wednesday. “If you have people who hold that sentiment, the situation can escalate and get very dangerous for police and those members of the public in very short order. It’s fair to say we don’t want to see anyone get hurt.” Dilkens added that he’s been getting calls from Windsor residents and businesses demanding the forcible removal of the truckers, but said “such action may inflame the situation and cause more folks to come and join the protest.”

The Ambassador Bridge runs between Windsor and Detroit, Michigan. It has been closed to commercial traffic since Monday, when several dozen truckers set up a blockade on the Canadian side, in solidarity with the Freedom Convoy in Ottawa. Another group of truckers and farmers has been blockading a border crossing in the western province of Alberta for over a week as well. Detroit-Windsor bridge traffic accounts for about $355 million worth of goods traded between the US and Canada, more than a quarter of all commerce between the two countries. The Canadian authorities have tried to route trucks to the Blue Water Bridge in nearby Sarnia. On Wednesday, truckers and farmers parked their vehicles near that bridge as well, causing a 4.5-hour delay to enter the US, the Canada Border Services Agency said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has refused to meet with the protesters in Ottawa, calling them a “fringe minority with unacceptable views,” and accusing them of violence, racism, bigotry, and even Nazi sympathies. Other Canadian officials have denounced the trucker protests as an “insurrection” and a “threat to our democracy.” Trudeau’s public safety minister, Marco Mendicino, called the bridge protests illegal, telling the truckers, “you are hurting Canadians and you are not above the law.” “This is an illegal economic blockade against the people of Ontario and against all Canadians,” Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said, adding that they are putting supply chains of food and manufacturer parts at risk.

Tyranny at its finest

Read more …

Ardern and Trudeau. What a couple.

Dozens Arrested As New Zealand Police & Anti-mandate Protesters Clash (RT)

New Zealand police cracked down on protesters outside Parliament in Wellington on Thursday, arresting more than 50 people after forcibly dispersing the demonstration against Covid-19 restrictions. Shortly before the scuffles erupted, police threatened the crowd of around 150 protesters with arrest if they refused to leave the area voluntarily. Those who ignored the order were subsequently detained by law enforcement. Protesters could be seen chanting “this is not democracy” and “shame on you” as police officers moved in to clear the grounds. Footage showed police officers tearing down tents that had been erected by protesters and scuffling with the protesters unwilling to scatter on their own.


“Police continue to appeal to protestors to leave Parliament Grounds peacefully, as the area is closed to the public,” New Zealand Police said in a statement on Thursday. “We continue to acknowledge people’s rights to protest, however those who behave unlawfully will face arrest,” the statement continued. By 11:30am, New Zealand Police claimed to have arrested more than 50 protesters on charges such as trespassing and obstruction for remaining on Parliament grounds after they decreed the area closed to the public. “Wellingtonians have the right to conduct their lives and go about their business without the interference of ongoing unlawful activity,” the police declared, warning that “additional resources” would be “deployed from around the country” to crack down on protests if they continued.

Read more …

“I will not stand by and allow these big tech firms to perniciously cancel or stifle speech they disagree with.”

Texas Probes GoFundMe Shutdown Of Freedom Convoy Fundraiser (RT)

The Texas state government has opened an investigation into crowdfunding platform GoFundMe after the site shut down a campaign on behalf of Canadian truckers in the Freedom Convoy, a large anti-vaccination mandate protest staged primarily in Ottawa. The state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton, announced the move on Wednesday, saying he would act to “protect Texas consumers” and “get to the bottom of this deceitful action” following the platform’s decision to cancel the Freedom Convoy fund drive. “GoFundMe’s response to an anti-mandate, pro-liberty movement should ring alarm bells to anyone using the donation platform and, more broadly, any American wanting to protect their constitutional rights,” he said, arguing that Texans deserve to “know where their hard-earned money is going, rather than allowing GoFundMe to divert money to another cause” without their consent.

The site halted donations after “multiple discussions with local law enforcement” and “reports of violence and other unlawful activity” at the trucker-led protest against Covid-19 vaccine mandates. Demonstrators have camped out in the Canadian capital, Ottawa, for over a week – what GoFundMe has described as an “occupation.” By the time the campaign shut down, it had raised more than $8 million. While the platform initially said it would issue refunds to donors only if they explicitly requested it – noting that it would otherwise send the money to charities approved by itself and the Freedom Convoy organizers – it has since reversed course. Earlier this week, GoFundMe issued an update, stating that, “due to donor feedback,” refunds would instead be processed automatically.

Two other states have also vowed to launch similar probes. Missouri AG Eric Schmitt told Fox News on Wednesday that his office would investigate “GoFundMe’s actions to silence the Freedom Convoy,” adding, “I will not stand by and allow these big tech firms to perniciously cancel or stifle speech they disagree with.” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis previously said that his state would look into the canceled fund drive, accusing GoFundMe of “deceptive practices.”

Read more …

“..they must let some of the pressure out of the balloon and ease some of the restrictions affecting the average family.”

What Will Gov. Abbott Do With Vax Mandate In The Texas National Guard? (Blaze)

These were supposed to be part-time citizen soldiers, but so many of them have served multiple tours of duty in the Middle East. More recently, nearly all of them are at the Texas-Mexico border attempting to do the job the federal government won’t do. Now that same federal government is threatening to terminate thousands of Texas guardsmen if they fail to get a shot that quite literally is outdated, and numerous data points and testimony from military doctors raise concerns about adverse reactions. Will Texas Gov. Greg Abbott stand up for his Guard? What about other GOP governors? The Biden administration officials know that with mounting opposition to COVID mandates, they must let some of the pressure out of the balloon and ease some of the restrictions affecting the average family.


But they also understand that the military is a minority of the minority and that they can get away with illogical and illegal mandates on it for far longer. At present, it appears that no number of facts on the ground will change the minds in the Pentagon in terminating their July 1 deadline on all Army soldiers, including state guardsmen, to receive the experimental shots. While the damage has already been done in most circles of the active-duty military, there are thousands of Texas guardsmen who have not gotten the shots and are now starring down the barrel of losing their careers and all retirement benefits. Here are the most recent vaccination numbers released by the Texas Military Department obtained by the Blaze:

As you can see, just 47% of the Texas Army National Guard are fully vaccinated, and 45% — accounting for 8,750 troops – have not begun the shots. At the border, 48% of the soldiers, nearly 3,000 of them, are unvaccinated, according to my source. And from speaking to two sources on the ground in the Texas Guard, it appears that most of them will refuse to get the shots. Will Gregg Abbott allow them to be terminated? Will Republicans in the U.S. Senate vote for the upcoming budget bill that continues to fund the DOD mandate?


The obvious question everyone should be asking is why are the GOP governors not uniting at a meeting and declaring the DOD mandate null and void? Remember, while governors have no control over the active-duty military, they do control the chain of command for disciplinary actions in their respective guards, absent a “Title 10” order from the president. At a minimum, each governor should direct the adjunct general of the Guard to announce that the state plans to fight the mandates and will dismiss any officer who encourages, much less coerces, soldiers to get the shots. That is fully within the legal authority of a governor.

Read more …

“CVS is not counting on booster shots boosting its business.”

CVS Forecasts 80% Drop In Covid Vaccine Sales For 2022 (R.)

CVS on Wednesday said it expected a 70% to 80% drop in the number of COVID-19 vaccines its drugstores will administer this year and said 2022 profit would be driven by its health insurance and pharmacy benefit management businesses. Shares of the company fell more than 4% in early trading after the company left its 2022 earnings forecast unchanged despite beating profit expectations in the fourth quarter. CVS made the comments during a conference call to discuss fourth-quarter results, which exceeded Wall Street estimates for profit and sales. The company, which operates one of the largest US drugstore chains, manages pharmacy benefits for employers and health plans and owns the Aetna health insurer, also forecast a 40% to 50% fall in COVID-19 testing at its stores.


It said it expects “modest full-year volume growth” in over-the-counter test kits. CVS said it administered COVID-19 vaccine booster doses during the fourth quarter that it had previously expected to provide in 2022, helping drive a near 13% increase in sales at its retail stores. That was also a factor in not raising the 2022 forecast, it said. While some countries such as Israel have begun giving out fourth vaccine doses, CVS is not counting on booster shots boosting its business.

Read more …

Three times higher than international average

Germany Electricity Prices Soar To World Record Highs (NTZ)

Germany’s power supply, once mostly made up of a mixture of coal and nuclear power, used to be among the most stable and affordable in the world. Power outages were rare and grid interventions were infrequent. But then in the 1990s environmental activists and politicians got involved, believing they could manage and design a grid and power supply that would be technically and environmentally superior than what the leading power generation and electrical engineers and experts themselves had in place. Sun and wind were the way to go, the environmentalist Greens and SPD socialist’s declared. After all, the wind and sun don’t send electric bills and are “free for the taking”. This they somehow managed to convince the public. And so the greening of the grid began.

In 2000, the coalition government of the Socialist’s and Greens, led by Chancellor Gerhard Schroder, introduced the EEG renewable green energies feed-in act. What followed was a green energies construction frenzy with hundreds of megawatts of volatile wind and solar capacity being added to the grid every year while nuclear power was shut down. Today now comes the EED’s price shock. Wind and solar are not free after all. In fact they are outrageously expensive, and they are even more volatiles in terms of supply than the country’s Corona policies! Today German weekly news magazine FOCUS here reports how Germany’s electricity prices have now reached “record” levels: “Germany is the world champion in electricity prices – no country pays more for electricity.

According to new data from the German Association of Energy and Water Industries, German households paid an average of 36.19 cents for a kilowatt hour in January 2022.” That’s over 40 US cents per kilowatt-hour! “Never before have German consumers had to pay so much,” writes FOCUS. “Germans have to pay almost three times as much for electricity from the outlet compared to the international average. This is mainly due to unusually high taxes and eco-taxes in this country.” What’s worse, the country now teeters on power grid collapse, meaning blackouts are a real threat. Moreover, high-tech computer-controlled production machines and plants rely on a steady supply frequency to operate. As grid frequency becomes increasingly unstable due to the volatile wind and solar power input, the equipment risks costly unplanned production shutdowns.

Read more …

“kind of weird, people will get really mad if you use that word and tweet about it on a phone that’s made by slaves.”

Joe Rogan Mocks His Controversy In Surprise Stand-up Appearance (RT)

Headlining a small comedy show in Austin, Texas, Joe Rogan took to the stage to speak about the recent controversy surrounding him and his podcast on Spotify, and comment on the recently circulated video compilation of him using the n-word on his show. “I used to say it if [I was talking about] a Richard Pryor bit or something, I would say it in context,” Rogan said. “Somebody made a compilation of every time I said that word over 14 years and they put it on YouTube, and it turned out that was racist as f**k. Even to me! I’m me and I’m watching it saying, ‘Stop saying it!’ I put my cursor over the video and I’m like, ‘Four more minutes?!’” Rogan added that he hadn’t used the word in years, before saying he found it “kind of weird, people will get really mad if you use that word and tweet about it on a phone that’s made by slaves.”

The number one podcast host then addressed the other major controversy surrounding his show – the alleged Covid and vaccine misinformation. “I talk shit for a living — that’s why this is so baffling to me,” he said. “If you’re taking vaccine advice from me, is that really my fault? What dumb shit were you about to do when my stupid idea sounded better? ‘You know that dude who made people eat animal dicks on TV? How does he feel about medicine?’ If you want my advice, don’t take my advice.” After the show, Rogan held a brief Q&A with the audience, where one fan asked if he would accept the recent $100-million offer to move his show onto Rumble, but the host said he’ll stay where he is for now: “No, Spotify has hung in with me, inexplicably, let’s see what happens.”

In a recent episode with comic Akaash Singh, Rogan has decried the controversy surrounding him as “a political hit job” saying that the video of him saying the n-word had always been out there and was being used now for political reasons. “They’re taking all this stuff I’ve ever said that’s wrong and smushing it all together. It’s good because it makes me address some stuff that I really wish wasn’t out there.” Rogan also responded to criticism leveled against him by former US president Donald Trump and Florida governor Ron DeSantis, who said Rogan shouldn’t have apologized to the mob. “You should apologize if you regret something,” said Rogan, adding that “I do think you have to be careful not to apologize for nonsense.”

Read more …

“Great Britain has lost an empire but not yet found a role.”

Britain’s Second Elizabethan Age Has Been 70 Years Of Dismal Decline (Nuttall)

There’s no doubt that Queen Elizabeth II is a wonderful monarch, perhaps one of the greatest Britain has ever seen. To put her long reign in perspective, she ascended to the throne only seven years after the end of the Second World War, and Winston Churchill was her first prime minister. Her commitment to duty and to her people are beyond reproach, and, as a result, her jubilee will be met with a swathe of celebratory television documentaries and news articles. But let’s not fool ourselves. Although she has been a magnificent monarch, her time on the throne has been one of steep British decline, and a far cry from the glorious first Elizabethan age in the 16th century.

This reign of Elizabeth I, from 1558 to 1603, is regarded as a ‘golden age’ for Britain, one of economic prosperity, technological advancement, and global exploration. She inherited an unstable kingdom, one divided by religion, increasing poverty, and beset with powerful foreign enemies. Under the guidance of its shrewd ‘Virgin Queen’, however, England emerged as a world power able to tackle its outward and internal foes. Her achievements included the restoration of England to Protestantism, the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Royal Navy’s defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, which laid the foundations for Britain to go on to ‘rule the waves’. Indeed, when it comes to the navy, it could be argued that the second Elizabethan period represents the undoing of the first.

When her namesake became Queen in February 1952, Britain was one of the most powerful nations on the planet; alongside the United States and the Soviet Union, it was considered one of the ‘Big Three’. Britain’s strength was augmented later that same year, when it became a nuclear power. At the time, Britain was spending 11.2 percent of GDP on its armed forces, yet this figure today has shrunk to a mere 2.3 percent. In 1952, Britain had a standing army of 871,000. This now stands at 82,000 and is due to be reduced to 72,500 by 2025. This is not really an army, but a corps. It is the same with the Royal Navy. In the 1950s, Britain had a navy worthy of policing the oceans. There were 280 active ships in 1950 and 12 aircraft carriers.

By 2020, however, the Royal Navy only had seventy active vessels, with only two aircraft carriers. Indeed, if coastal patrol vessels are excluded, the number of ships in the Royal Navy has declined by around 74 percent since the Falklands War of 1982. By any measure, this can only be construed as military decline. I am not making an argument in favour of colonialism, but the fact that Britain was prepared to abandon – or “scuttle” as Churchill put it – her empire in such a hurry only serves to highlight the country’s rapidly diminishing status. Indeed, as Dean Acheson, the former US secretary of state, said in 1962, “Great Britain has lost an empire but not yet found a role.”

Read more …

“Bayer AG purchased Monsanto and dumped the company name back in 2018. As if … that would be helpful. ”

Glyphosate’s Dirty Secrets — Are We About to Learn More? (CHD)

Truth will out. Eventually, given enough time, the good, the bad and the ugly will be revealed. Such is the case with Monsanto‘s dubious herbicide glyphosate. The long-winding story on how Monsanto and its governmental enablers at the Environmental Protection Agency first registered the weedkiller Roundup under at best dubious circumstances is sickening. In March 2015 U.S District Judge for the Northern District of California allowed public release of internal Monsanto documents showing how Monsanto influenced EPA to reclassify glyphosate from a Class C carcinogen to a Class E category which paved the way for glyphosate Roundup production. It was nothing short of a cover-up that put greed ahead of public safety.

And now ironically we learn the cover-up may have included Monsanto’s own investors. Bayer AG purchased Monsanto and dumped the company name back in 2018. As if … that would be helpful. Bayer has lost a string of jury trials where glyphosate was believed to be responsible for cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Now Bayer investors are saying the German agri-giant played fast and loose with the facts, misleading them on 1) the safety of glyphosate and Roundup; 2) Bayer’s efforts at due diligence; and 3) the legal risks in the acquisition of Monsanto. Their lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California makes for some interesting reading:

“Defendants specifically downplayed the liability risks related to Monsanto’s Roundup product, emphasizing that Bayer conducted a ‘thorough analysis’ during the due diligence process and ‘undertook appropriate due diligence of litigation and regulatory issues throughout the process’ which led Bayer to finalize the Acquisition. “These and similar statements made by Defendants during the Class Period were false and misleading. In truth, Defendants knew or recklessly disregarded that the Acquisition would not result in the benefits for Bayer that Defendants had represented, due to Monsanto’s significant exposure to liability risk related to Roundup.”

Read more …

 

 

 

 

 

Nate Hagens Energy Blind | Part 01 of 05 | The Great Simplification

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arnold

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in virustime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.