- For Sale: The World's First $1+ Billion Dollar House
Exactly two years ago, we reported about what we dubbed at the time was “absolute bubble insanity” – a double skyscraper called the Tour Odeon, located in the French Riviera, which would house a 3,300 square-meter (35,500 square-foot) penthouse with a water slide connecting a dance floor to a circular open-air swimming pool. While the description was nice, it was the bottom line that was mindblowing: that appartment was priced to sell for more than 300 million euros ($400 million at the time) when it went to market the following year. That made it the world’s most expensive penthouse, according to broker Knight Frank LLP.
Below are some images of the nearly half a billion dollar penthouse in question (including the water slide into the pool).
And while we don’t know if and at what price the Odeon’s penthouse ended up selling for, we did predict that it was only a matter of time before this nearly half a billion price tag would be eclipsed by a full, round billion.
Two years later, the forecast has come true: as the Mail reports, the most expensive house in the world has been offered for sale at a price of over €1billion ($1.1 billion), located yet again in the south of France. The address in the billionaire’s playground of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Les Cedres, is owned by Suzanne Marnier-Lapostolle, a member of the Grand Marnier dynasty who is supposedly seeking to “downsize.”
Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat has a population of just over 2000
Cap Ferrat was named in 2012 as the second most expensive place to buy a
home in the world after MonacoWhile the French economy is struggling under the weight of both a collapse in tourism as a result of a recent surge in terrorist attacks, and the destructive influence of a socialist government, Nice Matin on Friday reported that the former home of Belgium King Leopold II can be yours (assuming you are a multi-billionare, of course) for “one billion euros.”
The former home of Belgium King Leopold II, Les Cedres
The monthly gardening bill alone is said to be in the hundreds of thousands.
What does $1.1 billion buy you in Nice these days? The 10-bedroom property, which comes with an Olympic size swimming pool, is located in a coastal enclave close to Nice. Its garden includes 35 acres of manicured lawns, 15,000 plants, and some 20 greenhouses containing rare tropical vegetation. The palatial home features a ballroom and also stables for up to 30 horses.
Close neighbors include British composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and US tech tycoon Paul Allen.
According to the French newspaper, Les Cedres was last owned by Suzanne Marnier-Lapostolle, part of the Grand Marnier liquor dynasty. However after the company was bought by Campari in March, the home was also transferred over by the Italian group.
The swimming pool at Les Cedres pictured in September 1973Campari has decided to sell the home so the heiress is said to be downsizing and looking for a buyer who will care for a house that has been in the family since 1924. Some 15 professional gardeners are currently employed by her full time, and she hopes all will be kept on.
But, as often happens in the rather insane world of multi-billionaires, there are fears that speculators will move in, and build new hugely expensive properties in the gardens.
Until that happens, however, finding a buyer may be tricky now that oligarchs from China, Russia and Saudi Arabia no longer are burning cash around the globe on real estate.
A real estate agent in Moncaco, cited by the Mail, said that “we have not received instructions to sell. These kind of properties tend to be marketed very discreetly.” Still, “despite France’s problems, there should be a buyer around. The billionaire market does not have much to do with countries – there will be international interest.” It just won’t be coming from any Vancouver “flippers” any time soon: that particular housing bubble just burest.
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Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, which currently has a population of just over 2000, has attracted celebrities and royalty from all over the world throughout its history. Regulars have included actors Charlie Chaplin and David Niven, writer William Somerset-Maugham, movie stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and Prince Rainier III of Monaco. The most high profile property transaction in the stretch of Riviera around Nice came in 2008, when Russian oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov offered 320 million to buy Villa Leopolda.
The mansion in Villefranche-sur-Mer, next door to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, was owned by Lily Safra, who had inherited it from her banker husband, Edmond Safra. Prokhorov pulled out of the sale following the 2008 financial crisis, leading to Mrs Safra successfully suing him to keep the deposit of £33million.
A huge fan of the desirable coastal area, King Leopold II once owned the entire west side of the Cap Ferrat. In 1904 he purchased Villa Pollonnais, built in 1830, and its 15 acres of land and after extensive renovation renamed it Le Cedres. The property was principally used as his holiday home. The man who designed the gardens of the Eiffel Tower and Champs Elysees was responsible for the impressive design of Le Cedres’ grounds and pool area.
The man who designed the gardens of the Eiffel Tower and Champs Elysees was
responsible for the design of Le Cedres’ grounds and pool areaCap Ferrat was named in 2012 as the second most expensive place to buy a home in the world after Monaco, with residents enjoying a pleasant climate and a popular yachting scene. That alone may be sufficient to find the world’s biggest fool, if not outright idiot. Sure enough, after Grand Marnier was bought by Italy’s Campari spirits group’s and they took ownership of the historic villa, Campari CEO Bob Kunze-Concewitz told Bloomberg he has already received approaches from Middle Eastern and North American buyers.
And because nothing screams guillotines louder than one billionaire paying another billionaire more than a billion dollars for a seaside villa, we are confident the buyer’s identity will remain a well-guarded secret.
- How Beverly Hills Billionaires Built A Water Empire In California With Taxpayer Money
Beverly Hills Billionaires Stewart and Lynda Resnick control an agricultural empire in the Central Valley of California which Forbes values at $4.2BN. According to an article recently published by Mother Jones, the Beverly Hills based couple bought their first acres of ag land in 1978 as an inflation hedge. Within 20 years the Resnicks had grown to be the largest producer/packager of almonds and pistachios in the world with 130,000 acres of land in the Central Valley and nearly $5BN in annual sales. You’re all probably familiar with some of their brands:
But 130,000 acres of permanent crops requires a lot of water…about 120 billion gallons a year, in fact. At that level of consumption, Mother Jones points out that the Resnicks consume more water than all the homes in Los Angeles combined.
So in a state plagued by constant drought one might ask how the Resnicks built such a “thirsty” empire? Well, at lease according to Mother Jones, they got a lot of help from taxpayers.
The Resnicks received their first taxpayer-funded water windfall in 1995 when they were effectively “gifted” the Kern Water Bank by the State of California (i.e. taxpayers). Ironically, the State had just purchased the Kern Water Bank 7 years prior for $148mm (in current terms) to serve as an emergency water supply for Los Angeles. We guess the threats that had led the State to seek out an emergency supply of water disappeared over the course of those 7 years.
As you might suspect, California taxpayers have always been a little suspect of the massive wealth transfer inherent in the Kern Water Bank deal. As pointed out by the Los Angeles Times,
the Kern Water Bank transfer has been the subject of decades of litigation with local water agencies and environmental groups that say “the Kern Water Bank transaction was essentially a gift of public property to private interests and therefore violates the state constitution.““By giving this resource away, not only have we lost money on the deal, but we’ve lost a mechanism to use this water for the most beneficial purposes,” Adam Keats of the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, the lead attorney on the lawsuit, told me recently.
The storage facility is the Kern Water Bank, a complex of wells, pumps and pipelines on a 20,000-acre parcel of abandoned farmland southwest of Bakersfield. The water bank was initially part of the $1.75-billion bond-funded State Water Project, which provides water for 25 million Californians and irrigates 750,000 acres.
To be fair, the Resnicks did have to make “concessions” before being gifted the water bank…fortunately for them they gave up a whole lot of nothing. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Resnicks gave up “junior water rights” associated with the State Water Project which the Times pointed out were “from a portion of the State Water Project that will never be built and therefore has no value.” In fact, according to lawsuit documents, the Resnicks likely saved money by forfeiting their State Water Project allocation because it saved them from paying annual dues to the project.
To add insult to injury, Mother Jones points out that the story doesn’t end there. The land that came along with the Kern Water Bank gave the Resnick’s access to water from California’s State and Federal Water Projects which could be purchased at attractive rates. According to an analysis by the Contra Costa Times, between 2000-2007, the Resnicks were able to pocket $30mm by buying State and Federal Water allocations at $28 per acre foot and then selling to the State of California (taxpayers) for as much as $196 per acre foot. So if we understand correctly, the Resnicks were gifted a $150mm project courtesy of taxpayers and then made an incremental $30mm selling the water they were gifted by taxpayers back to those very same taxpayers. Genius.
Lest you thought there was something “fishy” going on, Lynda Resnick confirmed to Mother Jones that they have no political influence on water issues in California, saying:
“We have no influence politically—I swear to you. Nobody has political influence in this. Nor would we use it.“
But as bad as that all sounds, at least from the perspective of California taxpayers, the current Resnick-supported, taxpayer-funded water grab by the Beverly Hills Billionaires puts the Kern Water Bank deal to shame. Of course we’re talking about the “Delta Tunnels” project which is estimated to cost taxpayers up to $65 billion (this is a topic we recently wrote about in a post called “FishLivesMatter: California To Decide If Saving ‘Delta Smelt’ Is Worth $65 Billion Of Taxpayer Money“).
We’ll spare you all the gory details behind the project, but, in summary, when environmentalists effectively shut down water shipments flowing through the California Delta and into State and Federal Water Project canals in the northern part of the state the Resnicks, along with Governor Jerry Brown, floated the idea of building the “Delta Tunnels.” The project contemplates building 30 miles of massive underground pipes to connect existing water canals to the Sacramento river in an effort to bypass the California Delta and all the environmental issues that come along with it. The pipes could carry 67,000 gallons of water per second transporting the water to canals that would then flow to the Resnick’s farms in the southern part of the Central Valley.
But the original launch of the “Delta Tunnels” got push-back as taxpayers saw it as just another taxpayer-funded case of corporate welfare benefiting wealthy Central Valley corporate farming interests, like the Resnicks. So what do you do if you’re a billionaire with limitless influence and taxpayers balk at giving you $65 billion for a pet project? Well you put together coalitions like the “Californians for Water Security” and you poll 100s of “focus groups” to figure which buzz words work best to sway the hearts and minds of taxpayers. Turns out, buzz words like “water security” and “fragile water infrastructure” combined with fear tactics incorporating risks from earthquakes is way more convincing to taxpayers than “massive taxpayer-funded wealth redistribution to Beverly Hills Billionaire farmers“…that just doesn’t have as good a ring to it.
Per Restore the Delta:
Public Records Act documents received from the Santa Clara Valley Water District show how Stewart Resnick’s Paramount Farms led the charge to create Californians for Water Security. They spent piles of money on focus groups with people from urban water districts, led by ratepayer-funded water district officials, to discover public fears and create messaging to sell the tunnels. This week, they are continuing by running from business chamber to business chamber to scare them into supporting the tunnels, falsely making the earthquake threat in the Delta somehow greater than the threat to the water system in Los Angeles. They forget, however, that time and time again in California, the majority of people do not see issues in the same way that dated, out-of-touch business chambers do.
So, with polling data in hand and an arsenal of buzz words from the focus groups, a new ad campaign was launched to convince Californians that they were going to die of thirst after the next earthquake wipes out California’s water infrastructure…that is, unless, the Resnicks get their $65BN.
And wouldn’t you know it, shortly thereafter, Governor Jerry Brown also coincidentally re-branded the project the California Water Fix and the fight goes on.
But we certainly don’t want to imply that the Resnicks have received all of these “perks” for nothing. They have spent handsomely on political contributions over the years with funds flowing to Republicans and Democrats. As Mother Jones points out, the Resnicks have contributed money to every Californian Governor since Pete Wilson (who just happens to have been the Governor during that “questionable” transfer of the Kern Water Bank that we discussed above…but contributions to him were “small” at only ~$240,000 according the Center for Investigative Reporting):
They’ve given six-figure sums to every California governor since Republican Pete Wilson. They donated $734,000 to Gray Davis, including $91,000 to oppose his recall. Then they gave $221,000 to his replacement, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has called them “some of my dearest, dearest friends.” The $150,000 they’ve sprinkled on Jerry Brown since 2010 might not seem like a lot by comparison, but no other individual donor has given more. The Resnicks also have chipped in another $250,000 to support Brown’s pet ballot measure to fund education.
Data from the Center for Investigative Reporting on the Resnick’s political contributions over the years seems to support the Mother Jones data. While California Governors seem to have benefited the most from the Resnick’s generosity, the DNC/RNC, state senators, congressmen and mayors all collected their fair share of the pie.
Meanwhile, contributions have been spread out across the political parties.
While it is unclear whether the Delta Tunnels will ever be built we’re quite certain that the best interests of taxpayers will not get in the way of whatever decision is ultimately made.
- Former Soviet Leader Gorbachev Has A Message The World Needs To Hear
Submitted by Alice Salles via TheAntiMedia.org,
In August of 1991, members of the Soviet Union’s government — who were also hard-line members of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) — attempted to take control of the country. What many call a coup attempt failed in just two days.
This month marks the 25th anniversary of the failed effort. During a conversation with Interfax, former Soviet Union president Mikhail Gorbachev spoke openly about the situation of the Soviet Union at the time. But he also seized the opportunity to take a stab at what many in America believe to be one of their country’s worst traits: foreign interventionism.
When the collapse of the Soviet Union seemed imminent, Gorbchev told Interfax,
“I told the Americans: you are trying to impose your democracy on the people of different countries, spreading it around like coffee in bags, but we must give the people a chance to make their own choice.”
The “one-legged solutions” imposed by American governments against other nations, Gorbachev added, are inevitable and beyond the president’s power. “Even President Obama,” the former Soviet president said, “democratically elected and enjoying in this regard a significant authority in the country, could not change this course.”
His discontent seems to be rooted in how America reacted to the collapse of the Soviet Union, noting “[t]hey did not want the Soviet Union to become a powerful democratic state.”
According to Gorbachev, reforms and changes were already underway, and decentralization of the Soviet Union was only a matter of time. At the time, U.S. officials feared their country’s “policy of unilateral measures … [or] the policy of US domination in global affairs” would not work, Gorbachev added, prompting U.S. officials to push for a total collapse as opposed to letting the country take its own course.
He continued:
“And then, when they made a bid for Boris Yeltsin, their goal was the same – to prevent the emergence of Russia as a powerful democratic state. Remember, when the [Soviet] Union collapsed, what was the West’s reaction to this tragic event? They said, ‘this is a gift from God.’ And when Russia was on its back, the US president openly applauded the Russian leadership of the time.”
During the interview, RT confirms, Gorbachev admitted that the union’s downfall was not mainly due to foreign intervention. Instead, he declared, “the country’s authorities and he himself were late with reforms which were strongly needed.” Said reforms included the replacement of “the centralized government planning that had been a hallmark of the Soviet system with a greater reliance on market forces.”
But Gorbachev defended his position by saying that, once the country was getting ready “to launch [reforms], reshaping the entire system of managing the [Soviet] Union … our opponents also knew that tomorrow would be too late” — meaning members of the Western world, including the United States. The former Soviet leader claimed they knew “there were contradictions, that the old shape of the Union no longer” met the needs of the country, and that the USSR “had to be reformed, decentralized, but not destroyed.”
He also added that, by then, he thought “only a fool would try to break it all.” But once he allowed confidence to grow into arrogance, Gorbachev told reporters, things got out of his control.
Twenty-five years after the failed coup, Gorbachev appears to admit that domestic intervention is just as bad as foreign intervention, providing those who are listening with a great opportunity to learn from his own mistakes as a statesman.
While the Soviet Union had a long history of perpetrating crimes against humanity that are often hard to compare to any other brutal dictatorship in history due to their devastating outcome, it’s also important to consider that many may have learned from this tragic episode in history. As a result, many now have a better grasp of human nature and voluntary exchange.
Hopefully, his words on the dangers of intervention — domestic or abroad — will resound with the Russian people, and maybe even with Americans.
- America's "Humanitarian War" Against the World
The following text is a point by point thematic summary of Prof. Michel Chossudovsky‘s presentation at the Science for Peace Conference, Academy of Sciences, Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, 15-16 August 2016
Introduction
Historically, science has supported the development of the weapons industry and the war economy. “Science for Peace” indelibly requires reversing the logic whereby commissioned scientific endeavors are directed towards supporting what President Eisenhower called “The Military Industrial Complex”.
What is consequently required is a massive redirection of science and technology towards the pursuit of broad societal objectives. In turn, this requires a major shift in what is euphemistically called “US Foreign Policy”, namely America’s global military agenda.
Military Affairs: The Current Global Context
The world is at a dangerous crossroads. The United States and its allies have launched a military adventure which threatens the future of humanity.
Under a global military agenda, the actions undertaken by the Western military alliance (U.S.-NATO-Israel) in Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Pakistan, Palestine, Ukraine, Syria and Iraq are coordinated at the highest levels of the military hierarchy. We are not dealing with piecemeal military and intelligence operations. Major military and covert intelligence operations are being undertaken simultaneously in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia and the Asia Pacific region.
The current situation is all the more critical inasmuch as a US-NATO war on Russia, China and Iran is part of the US presidential election debate. It is presented as a political and military option to Western public opinion.
The US-NATO military agenda combines both major theater operations as well as covert actions geared towards destabilizing sovereign states. America’s hegemonic project is to destabilize and destroy countries through acts of war, support of terrorist organizations, regime change and economic warfare.
U.S. and NATO forces have been deployed in Eastern Europe including Poland and Ukraine. In turn, military maneuvers are being conducted at Russia’s doorstep which could potentially lead to confrontation with the Russian Federation.
The U.S. and its allies are also threatening China under President Obama’s “Pivot to Asia”.
The U.S. led airstrikes initiated in August 2014 directed against Iraq and Syria under the pretext of going after the Islamic State are part of a scenario of military escalation extending from North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean to Central and South Asia.
* * *
THE HISTORY OF NUCLEAR WAR AND “COLLATERAL DAMAGE”
“We have discovered the most terrible bomb in the history of the world. It may be the fire destruction prophesied in the Euphrates Valley Era, after Noah and his fabulous Ark…. This weapon is to be used against Japan … [We] will use it so that military objectives and soldiers and sailors are the target and not women and children. Even if the Japs are savages, ruthless, merciless and fanatic, we as the leader of the world for the common welfare cannot drop that terrible bomb on the old capital or the new. … The target will be a purely military one… It seems to be the most terrible thing ever discovered, but it can be made the most useful.” (President Harry S. Truman, Diary, July 25, 1945)
“The World will note that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima a military base. That was because we wished in this first attack to avoid, insofar as possible, the killing of civilians..” (President Harry S. Truman in a radio speech to the Nation, August 9, 1945).
[Note: the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945; the Second on Nagasaki, on August 9, on the same day as Truman's radio speech to the Nation]
(Listen to Excerpt of his speech, Hiroshima audio video)
Hiroshima after the bomb
Is Truman’s notion of “collateral damage” in the case of nuclear war still relevant? Publicly available military documents confirm that nuclear war is still on the drawing board of the Pentagon.
Compared to the 1950s, however, today’s nuclear weapons are far more advanced. The delivery system is more precise. In addition to China and Russia, Iran and North Korea are targets for a first strike pre-emptive nuclear attack.
US military documents claim that the new generation of tactical nuclear weapons are harmless to civilians.
Let us be under no illusions, the Pentagon’s plan to blow up the planet using advanced nuclear weapons is still on the books.
War is Good for Business:
Spearheaded by the “defense contractors” (Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, British Aerospace et al), the Obama administration has proposed a one trillion dollar plan over a 30 year period to develop a new generation of nuclear weapons, bombers, submarines, and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) largely directed at Russia and China.
War with Russia: From the Cold War to the New Cold War
Blowing up Russia, targeting Russian cities is still on the Pentagon’s drawing board. In the words of Hillary Clinton, the nuclear option is on the table. Preemptive nuclear war is part of her election campaign.
Source: National Security Archive
According to 1956 Plan, H-Bombs were to be Used Against Priority “Air Power” Targets in the Soviet Union,China, and Eastern Europe.
Major Cities in Soviet Bloc, Including East Berlin, Were High Priorities in “Systematic Destruction” for Atomic Bombings. (William Burr, U.S. Cold War Nuclear Attack Target List of 1200 Soviet Bloc Cities “From East Germany to China”, National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 538, December 2015
Excerpt of list of 1200 cities targeted for nuclear attack in alphabetical order. National Security Archive
GLOBAL WARFARE
The US has formulated a global war scenario, which is defined in military documents.
There are three major regional deployments of US-NATO which threaten Global Security:
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Eastern Europe on Russia’s Western Frontier, with the deployment of US-NATO military hardware on Russia’s doorstep
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“The Pivot to Asia” largely directed against China
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The Middle East and North Africa, extending to Central Asia
In the above regions, the use of nuclear weapons on a preemptive basis is contemplated against both nuclear and non-nuclear states.
In other regions of the World including Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, non-conventional forms of warfare are envisaged including destabilization, ”regime change”, covert support to terrorist organizations, economic warfare.
1. THREATENING RUSSIA ON ITS WESTERN FRONTIER
Russia is threatened on its Western frontier with the US-NATO deployment of the so called missile defense system.
A pro-US regime has been installed in Kiev which integrates two prominent Neo-Nazi Parties.
Neo-Nazis are heavily integrated in Ukraine’s National Guard and military. The US government is channeling financial support, weapons and training to a Neo-Nazi entity –which is part of The Ukraine National Guard– The Azov Battalion (????????? ????) is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the equivalent of America’s Homeland Security.
Kill the Russians: The New Cold War is no longer Cold
A former CIA Official is calling for the “Killing of Russians”. The US media and the the State Department applaud:
CBS News, Charlie Rose
2. “PIVOT TO ASIA”: SOUTH CHINA SEA
China is threatened by the US military in the South China Sea
WAR WITH CHINA IS CURRENTLY ON THE DRAWING BOARD OF THE PENTAGON AS OUTLINED IN A RAND REPORT COMMISSIONED BY THE US ARMY
Washington is actively involved in creating divisions between China and its neighbours.
The objective is to draw South East Asia and the Far East into a protracted military conflict by creating divisions between China and ASEAN countries, most of which are the victims of Western colonialism and military aggression: Extensive crimes against humanity have been committed against Vietnam, Cambodia, Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia. In a bitter irony, these countries are now military allies of the United States.
Bilateral economic relations with China are destabilized. The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a US hegemonic project which seeks to control trade, investment, intellectual property, etc in the Asia Pacific region.
THAAD MISSILE DEPLOYMENT IN SOUTH KOREA DIRECTED AGAINST CHINA
THAAD missiles are deployed in South Korea, against China, Russia and North Korea. Washington states that THAAD is solely intended as a Missile Shield against North Korea.
THAAD System
The Jeju island military base is also directed against China.
Less than 500km from Shanghai
3. US-NATO WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (MENA)
Meanwhile, under the pretext of waging a “war on terrorism”, US-NATO are intervening militarily in the broader Middle East Central Asian region extending from the Mediterranean to Central Asia: Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen, resulting in several million civilian deaths.
THe objective is to destabilize and destroy sovereign countries and to displace secular governments under regime change.
The next stage of the Middle East war is Iran.
The Global War on Terrorism is a Big Lie. Al Qaeda is a Creation of US Intelligence
From the outset of the Soviet-Afghan war in 1979 to the present, various Islamic fundamentalist paramilitary organizations became de facto instruments of US intelligence and more generally of the US-NATO-Israel military alliance.
The US has actively supported Al Qaeda affiliated terrorist organizations since the onslaught of the Soviet Afghan War. Washington has engineered the installation of Islamist regimes in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It has destroyed the fabric of secular societies.
Confirmed by Israeli intelligence media, the Al Qaeda opposition fighters in Syria are recruited by US-NATO and the Turkish high command.
They are the foot-soldiers of the Western military alliance, with special forces in their midst. The Al Qaeda affiliated “moderate” terrorist organizations in Syria are supported by Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
The counter-terrorism agenda is bogus. It’s a criminal undertaking. What is being bombed is the civilian infrastructure of a sovereign country.
The Historical Origins of al Qaeda
In this video-footage President Carter’s National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski (1979) arrives in a helicopter and speaks to a translator in front of a seated crowd of Mujahedeen:
‘We know of their deep belief in god – that they’re confident that their struggle will succeed. – That land over-there is yours – and you’ll go back to it some day, because your fight will prevail, and you’ll have your homes, your mosques, back again, because your cause is right, and god is on your side.’
The video-footage can be found in the documentary series “Cold War” (Episode #24, Soldiers of God, 1975-1988), Turner Original Productions (Time Warner), 1998. Speaker Kenneth Branagh.
Front row, from left: Major Gen. Hamid Gul, director general of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI), Director of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Willian Webster; Deputy Director for Operations Clair George; an ISI colonel; and senior CIA official, Milt Bearden at a Mujahideen training camp in North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan in 1987. (source RAWA)
Referred to as “Freedom Fighters”, president Reagan meets Afghan Al Qaeda Mujahideen leaders at the White House
The Central Intelligence Agency using Pakistan’s ISI as a go-between played a key role in training the Mujahideen. In turn, the CIA-sponsored guerrilla training was integrated with the teachings of Islam. The madrasahs were set up by Wahabi fundamentalists financed out of Saudi Arabia:
“[I]t was the government of the United States who supported Pakistani dictator General Zia-ul Haq in creating thousands of religious schools, from which the germs of the Taliban emerged.”(Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), “RAWA Statement on the Terrorist Attacks in the U.S.”, Centre for Research on Globalisation (CRG), 16 September 2001)
Destroying National Sovereignty and Secular Societies, Installing an Islamic State (Made in America)
What has been the fate of Afghanistan.
A progressive secular state in the 1970s and early 1980s has become a US failed State integrated by US supported Al Qaeda terrorists. This is the model that US-NATO want to impose on Syria, Iraq, Libya: Destroy national sovereignty and replace it with an Islamic State which conforms to Washington’s demands.
Kabul University in the 1980′s
Unknown to the American public, the US spread the teachings of the Islamic jihad in textbooks “Made in America”, developed at the University of Nebraska:
… the United States spent millions of dollars to supply Afghan schoolchildren with textbooks filled with violent images and militant Islamic teachings, part of covert attempts to spur resistance to the Soviet occupation.
The primers, which were filled with talk of jihad and featured drawings of guns, bullets, soldiers and mines, have served since then as the Afghan school system’s core curriculum. Even the Taliban used the American-produced books,..
The White House defends the religious content, saying that Islamic principles permeate Afghan culture and that the books “are fully in compliance with U.S. law and policy.” Legal experts, however, question whether the books violate a constitutional ban on using tax dollars to promote religion.
… AID officials said in interviews that they left the Islamic materials intact because they feared Afghan educators would reject books lacking a strong dose of Muslim thought. The agency removed its logo and any mention of the U.S. government from the religious texts, AID spokeswoman Kathryn Stratos said.
“It’s not AID’s policy to support religious instruction,” Stratos said. “But we went ahead with this project because the primary purpose . . . is to educate children, which is predominantly a secular activity.”
… Published in the dominant Afghan languages of Dari and Pashtun, the textbooks were developed in the early 1980s under an AID grant to the University of Nebraska -Omaha and its Center for Afghanistan Studies. The agency spent $ 51 million on the university’s education programs in Afghanistan from 1984 to 1994.” (Washington Post, 23 March 2002)
CONCLUDING REMARKS
War is not an inevitable process. War can be prevented through mass action.
War criminals occupy positions of authority. The citizenry is galvanized into supporting the rulers, who are “committed to their safety and well-being”. Through media disinformation, war is given a humanitarian mandate.
The legitimacy of the war must be addressed. Antiwar sentiment alone does not disarm a military agenda.
The corporate backers and sponsors of war and war crimes must also be targeted including the oil companies, the defense contractors, the financial institutions and the corporate media, which has become an integral part of the war propaganda machine.
There is a sense of urgency. Today, the antiwar movement is virtually defunct.
What is the Truth
The real threat to global security emanates from the US-NATO-Israel alliance, yet realities in an inquisitorial environment are turned upside down: the warmongers are committed to peace, the victims of war are presented as the protagonists of war.
The homeland is threatened.
The media, intellectuals and the politicians, in chorus, obfuscate the unspoken truth, namely that the US-NATO led war destroys humanity.
When the lie becomes the truth there is no turning backwards.
When war is upheld as a humanitarian endeavor, Justice and the entire international legal system are turned upside down: pacifism and the antiwar movement are criminalized. Opposing the war becomes a criminal act. Meanwhile, the war criminals in high office have ordered a witch hunt against those who challenge their authority.
The Big Lie must be exposed for what it is and what it does.
It sanctions the indiscriminate killing of men, women and children.
It destroys families and people. It destroys the commitment of people towards their fellow human beings.
It prevents people from expressing their solidarity for those who suffer. It upholds war and the police state as the sole avenue.
It destroys both nationalism and internationalism.
Breaking the lie means breaking a criminal project of global destruction, in which the quest for profit is the overriding force.
ACTIONS
1. The role of media disinformation in sustaining the military agenda is crucial.
We will not succeed in our endeavours unless the propaganda apparatus is weakened and eventually dismantled. It is essential to inform our fellow citizens on the causes and consequences of the US-led war, not to mention the extensive war crimes and atrocities which are routinely obfuscated by the media. This is no easy task. It requires an effective counter-propaganda program which refutes mainstream media assertions.
It is essential that the relevant information and analysis reaches the broader public. The Western media is controlled by a handful of powerful business syndicates. The media conglomerates which control network TV and the printed press must be challenged through cohesive actions which reveal the lies and falsehoods.
2. There is opposition within the political establishment in the US as well as within the ranks of the Armed Forces.
While this opposition does not necessarily question the overall direction of US foreign policy, it is firmly opposed to military adventurism, including the use of nuclear weapons. These voices within the institutions of the State, the Military and the business establishment are important because they can be usefully channeled to discredit and ultimately dismantle the “war on terrorism” consensus. The broadest possible alliance of political and social forces is, therefore, required to prevent a military adventure which in a very real sense threatens the future of humanity.
3. The structure of military alliances must be addressed. A timely shift in military alliances could potentially reverse the course of history.
Whereas France and Germany are broadly supportive of the US led war, there are strong voices in both countries as well as within the European Union, which firmly oppose the US led military agenda, both at the grassroots level as well within the political system itself.
The weakening of the system of alliances which commits Western Europe to supporting the Anglo-American military axis, could indeed contribute to reversing the tide. Washington would hesitate to wage a war on Iran without the support of France and Germany.
4. The holding of large antiwar rallies is important and essential. But in will not in itself reverse the tide of war unless it is accompanied by the development of a cohesive antiwar network.
What is required is a grass roots antiwar network, a mass movement at national and international levels, which challenges the legitimacy of the main military and political actors, as well as their corporate sponsors, and which would ultimately be instrumental in unseating those who rule in our name. The construction of this type of network will take time to develop.
Initially, it should focus on developing an antiwar stance within existing citizens’ organizations (e.g. trade unions, community organizations, professional regroupings, student federations, municipal councils, etc.).
Close down the weapons factories and the military bases.
Bring home the troops.
Members of the armed forces should disobey orders and refuse to participate in a criminal war.
-
- Losing Louisiana: Shocking Images Of Life After A 1000-Year Flood
Floods ravaged the state of Louisiana, leaving at least 11 people dead and 30,000 more forced to flee rising waters after days of catastrophic rainstorms. Bloomberg's Brendan Smialowski captured these images of the aftermath…
A boy rides his bike inside the flood-damaged Life Tabernacle Church…
John Booth (left) sits with Angela Latiolais's (second from left) family while helping them save belongings after flooding…
A dump truck stranded in a flooded construction site…
A boat full of dogs makes its way through a flooded neighborhood…
Volunteers move cages at a temporary animal shelter inside the Lamar Dixon Expo Center near a flood victims' shelter after flooding…
A family of deer makes its way through flood waters…
People carry computer parts from a boat after flooding…
A car partially submerged in flood waters…
The Gold-N-Guns pawn shop seen in flood waters…
Rubble burns after flooding…
Of course, on the bright side, now economists have an excuse for weak Q3 GDP data.
* * *
And finally – after all that devastation- there is this… The Aqua Dam…
The Aqua Dam sounds truly nuts. A giant inner-tube around your house to protect you from floods? And it costs more than $8,000? That's some serious prepper stuff, and surely crazy. Well, this one worked magnificently during the Louisiana and Texas floods. Private enterprise comes through again!
This is exactly the kind of thing that can only emerge in a free society where people can experiment and try out all kinds of different ways of solving problems. It's something that clearly a lot of people would think is ridiculous or too expensive, not practical, etc., yet it's the very thing that saved Randy Wagner's house.
If we were all forced to leave it up to a one-size-fits-all state enforced solution to flooding, you know what would have happened: Wagner would have been forcibly evacuated from his home and would have had to watch as it got destroyed.
But in a world where entrepreneurs can offer a variety of different products, and where buyers are free to take a chance on things they may not know for sure are going to work out, a family home survived a flood.
- The 10 Worst Places In America To Start A Business
Anywhere you start a business, it's going to be a gamble.
More new businesses fail than succeed, according to the Kauffman Foundation. And, as CNBC notes, U.S. Small Business Administration data shows that it's only a matter of time before at least half of all businesses go under: Nearly two-thirds of businesses with employees survive at least two years, but only about 50 percent survive at least five years.
So it's important to set up in an area where the odds are in your favor. Some cities are more hospitable to business formation than others. Regulatory hurdles, tax rates, ease and cost of hiring, and cost of real estate are just some of the factors. Cities across the country are also dealing with demographic challenges, including population growth, an aging workforce and economic stagnation.
The new CNBC Metro 20: America's Best Places to Start a Business ranking identified metro areas where the likelihood of business success is highest. For that ranking, CNBC reviewed data on the 107 largest metro areas in the United States.
Here's a look at the bottom 10 – the metro areas where social, economic and government hurdles to success could plague business owners.
10. Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, the capital of the Magnolia State, is weighed by an array of issues that work together to keep entrepreneurs at bay.
With a population of nearly 171,000, Jackson battles higher-than-average unemployment and a poverty rate of nearly 30 percent, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data.
The city's chief issues include dilapidated properties and potholes, thanks to frequent flooding and decades of poor infrastructure management.
Jackson is trying to fix the issue. In 2014 the city approved a 1 percent sales-tax increase to fund infrastructure repairs. The measure is a crucial part of Jackson's mission to transform itself into a destination city that is "safe and conducive to entrepreneurial endeavors," according to the city's official website.
- Jackson population growth rate: 2.06 percent
- Jackson average hourly wages: $21.37
- Jackson unemployment rate: 5.4 percent
- Jackson cost of living: Low
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
9. Albuquerque, New Mexico
One of New Mexico's eight state-designated arts and cultural districts, Albuquerque is known for its historic buildings, old churches and wealth of handcrafts shops, making it a go-to destination for cultural tourists. But heavily reliant on volatile oil and gas revenues, New Mexico's economy struggled to recover from the Great Recession, and the labor force has stagnated.
In June, Albuquerque's unemployment rate rose to 6.4 percent, the highest level since August 2015, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (average annual unemployment was used for the Metro 20 ranking). In addition, annual income growth per capita rose a dismal 0.3 percent in 2013, the most recent data available, trailing the national average of 1.1 percent, according to Albuquerque's most recent progress report.
The city said it plans to make small business a big part of its economy resurgence. It now offers entrepreneurial support resources, including Innovate ABQ, a hub for researchers, investors and entrepreneurs.
- Albuquerque population growth rate: 2.28 percent
- Albuquerque average hourly wages: $20.97
- Albuquerque unemployment rate: 6.2 percent
- Albuquerque cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
8. Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville may be home to big market-cap companies, like YUM! Brands, Papa John's and Lexmark, but more than 18 percent of the city's estimated 615,370 residents live in poverty. Meanwhile, the median household income is just $44,806, well below the U.S. average of $53,482, according to government data.
Still, the city claims that small business accounts for about two-thirds of jobs.
A plan called Louisville Forward aims to accelerate the economy through start-up resources, including five business accelerators, five co-working hubs and more than 20 networking partners. The city is also promoting a "buy local" initiative.
- Louisville population growth rate: 3.46 percent
- Louisville average hourly wages: $23.24
- Louisville unemployment rate: 4.7 percent
- Louisville cost of living: Low
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
7. Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is an epicenter of academia, with eight college and university campuses anchored in the city, including the prestigious Brown University, Johnson & Wales University and Providence College. However, many students flee after graduation, resulting in a severe case of brain drain.
As a result, the city's workforce has been hit hard. Providence's population grew just 1.1 percent between 2010 and 2015, dragging behind the country's growth of 4.1 percent over the same period, according to U.S. Census data.
Rhode Island as a whole has business-friendliness issues. It was recently named America's Bottom State for Business in CNBC's 10th annual state-level ranking, and it's not the first time the state has been at the bottom of the list.
- Providence population growth rate: 0.76 percent
- Providence average hourly wages: $24.78
- Providence unemployment rate: 6 percent
- Providence cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
6. Fresno, California
With a poverty rate that is nearly double the national average and a median household income of just $41,455, Fresno is one of California's poorest communities. But the city has tax incentives in place that are designed to boost income growth and business.
As a part of the state's Economic Development Initiative program, businesses in Fresno receive a tax credit when they hire qualified employees for wages paid between 150 percent and 350 percent of the minimum wage.
Because Fresno was designated as one of three pilot program areas in the state, the qualifying wage threshold in Fresno is lower than the program standard of $15, at $10/hour for pilot cities, resulting in a larger tax credit for firms in the area.
- Fresno population growth rate: 4.77 percent
- Fresno average hourly wages: $20.13
- Fresno unemployment rate: 10.2 percent
- Fresno cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
5. Santa Rosa, California
Located about 55 miles north of San Francisco, Santa Rosa should get some of the benefits of the tech boom, but it is weighed down in the ranking by expensive costs of living and above-average hourly wages.
Indeed, the city touts itself as the North Bay's premier location for technology and entrepreneurial businesses, and it is trying to live up to the title. Santa Rosa has placed a renewed focus on entrepreneurship, and it now hosts a portal for local business owners on its official municipal website.
It's also involved in a joint venture with the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce and the North Bay Angels, a seed capital firm. The partnership, called the North Bay Growth & Innovation Forum, aids local start-ups by creating a larger pool of available angel and private-equity financing.
- Santa Rosa population growth rate: 3.78 percent
- Santa Rosa average hourly wages: $27.15
- Santa Rosa unemployment rate: 4.5 percent
- Santa Rosa cost of living: Very high
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
4. Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown, Pennsylvania's third-largest city, started down a financial spiral a few decades ago (remember the Billy Joel tune?) when nearby big employers folded or fled and its retail sector collapsed. Now Allentown officials say it is undergoing a renaissance and the city wants to make entrepreneurs vital to the plan's success.
The city partners with two business incubators — Bridgeworks Enterprise Center and Velocity — both located in the Lehigh Valley area of Allentown. The former focuses predominantly on manufacturing and manufacturing-related technology start-ups, while the latter provides affordable office space, advisory services and networking sessions to founders who are dedicated to urban renewal.
- Allentown population growth rate: 1.36 percent
- Allentown average hourly wages: $23.24
- Allentown unemployment rate: 5.2 percent
- Allentown cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
3. San Bernardino, California
With nearly 34 percent of the population living below the poverty line, San Bernardino is the most impoverished city in California.
The city declared bankruptcy in 2012, with a $46 million budget deficit, forcing it to make serious cuts in services.
Unlike some of the other American towns in this bottom 10 that are making efforts to boost business, San Bernardino is now considering legislation that could make the business climate even worse. An amendment proposed in June would eliminate development funding for the city's small business assistance program, saving the city $150,000 for the current fiscal year. The amendment would also reduce funding for the Center for Employment Opportunities by 60 percent.
But the city also states that it plans to offer an aggressive business incubator program to support entrepreneurial development.
- San Bernardino population growth rate: 6.26 percent
- San Bernardino average hourly wages: $21.48
- San Bernardino unemployment rate: 6.6 percent
- San Bernardino cost of living: High
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
2. Modesto, California
Yep, yet another city from the Golden State relegated to this bottom 10 (the fourth thus far if you're keeping count). California may have the world's start-up mecca in Silicon Valley, but it isn't the best climate for business owners, in general. The state usually does poorly in CNBC's Top States for Business ranking due to lofty costs of living, high tax rates and high hourly wages. It came in No. 32 in the 2016 Top States ranking.
Modesto has a population of about 211,270, with nearly 21 percent of residents living below the poverty line, compared to the statewide poverty rate of 16 percent, according to U.S. Census data. The college graduation rate is much lower that the state average, too — more than 80 percent of residents lack college degrees.
Companies may struggle to find qualified job applicants, but the city is working to mend the education gap by connecting businesses and education leaders and encouraging social service. Earlier this month, the Modesto Chamber of Commerce held its sixth annual State of Business & Education gathering to show businesses ways to improve the local workforce.
- Modesto population growth rate: 4.65 percent
- Modesto average hourly wages: $22.92
- Modesto unemployment rate: 9.5 percent
- Modesto cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
1. Stockton, California
The seventh-poorest city in California, Stockton has the dubious distinction of the worst city in which to start a business. Median household income of $45,347 is about $16,000 less than the statewide average. The city's college graduation rate is also much lower than the state and national averages, according to federal data.
The city is aware of its challenges.
In its most recent planning report, the city said it wanted to become more business friendly and make it easier for developers to acquire licenses and fulfill permit requirements. Business issues, such as cost of permits and fees, have become a major talking point in this year's mayoral election. Stockton's often complicated and expensive permitting and licensing process is a top concern for local business owners and developers.
- Stockton population growth rate: 5.95 percent
- Stockton average hourly wages: $21.42
- Stockton unemployment rate: 8.9 percent
- Stockton cost of living: Average
- Median population growth rate, all metro areas: 4.77 percent
- Median average hourly wages, all metro areas: $23.77
- Median unemployment rate, all metro areas: 5.1 percent
* * *
So 50% of America's worst 10 cities for starting a business are in California… which should not be a surprise since we noted with three simple charts why businesses are fleeing California.
- "There's Going To Be A Massive Run On Firearms" If A Hillary Win Is Imminent
Submitted via Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com
Survival Expert James Rawles Warns: “There’s Going To Be A Massive Run On Firearms… Bigger Than Anything We’ve Ever Seen Before” If Hillary Win Is Imminent
James Wesley Rawles is a former intelligence officer of the United States Army, prolific author and one of the top survival experts in the world. In his best-selling book series Patriots he paints a terrifying picture of a post-collapse America where food is scarce, currency is worthless, law and order have broken down, and survival is a daily struggle. It’s a fictional tale, of course, but one that is grounded in real-world possibilities.
In his latest interview with SGT Report, the SurvivalBlog.com founder breaks down the probability of such a scenario and explains that should it come to pass, where hyperinflation destroys our currency or a world war ravages America, the most important thing to have in your possession will be essential tangible assets.
Further, Rawles notes that as we get closer to the possibility of a Hillary Clinton Presidency, we may soon see panic buying of firearms, ammunition and gun-related accessories.
Venezuela is a microcosm of a centrally planned government and currency run amok… and we need to learn from their example.
If you notice the things that people are clamoring for are tangibles… they’re looking for food and they’re looking for currencies that are inflation proof and that usually means precious metals.
So if we’re going to learn anything from Venezuela it’s tangibles, tangibles, tangibles.
…Wake up… watch what’s happening in Venezuela… you need to get your beans, bullets and band aids squared away… Those tangible items are going to be what pulls your family through the hard times ahead. And regardless of what happens to currencies, if you have a honest one year supply of food, preferably two years, and a good core position in physical precious metals that you hold at home… hidden… not in a bank because banks are vulnerable to banking holidays where they would limit or eliminate access to your safe deposit box…
If you have those tangibles… food, silver and my other favorite is common caliber ammunition… that’s the other thing you should really stock up on heavily.
I have a feeling that as we get closer to the election and if it looks like the poll numbers are leaning to Hillary winning there’s going to be a massive run on firearms… bigger than anything we’ve ever seen before… and along with that people are going to be rushing to buy any ammunition they can, reloading components and full capacity magazines.
If you want to survive a collapse scenario this is a must-listen interview:
- A Silver Lining For Ryan Lochte?
- The Definitive Answer To Whether The Oil Market Has Rebalanced
By EconMatters
Introduction:There has been much debate in this oil industry regarding this subject with a lot of poor analysis, no analysis at all, opinions, raw speculation, pure conjecture and every investment bank in the world talking their book on this subject. So we thought we would settle this question once and for all so that everybody is on the same page. We analyzed the Oil Market to determine this question definitively by checking the actual data. The only valid way of determining this matter in a rational and constructive manner.Exhibit #1: U.S. Ending Stocks Excluding SPR of Crude Oil:2016 5/6 539,984 (Million Barrels of Oil) 8/12 521,093 (Million Barrels of Oil)We drew down 18.9 Million of Oil Stocks during summer driving season in 2016.2015 5/8 484,839 (Million Barrels of Oil) 8/14 456,213 (Million Barrels of Oil)We drew down 28.6 Million of Oil Stocks during summer driving season in 2015.Conclusion:We drew down more oil in 2015 versus 2016 for the same strong season of the market, and we are sitting with an extra 65 Million more barrels of oil in storage year over year with less of a drawdown this year during the Summer Driving Season. Therefore: Oil Market Not Rebalanced.
Exhibit #2: U.S. Stocks of Total Gasoline:2016 5/6 240,564 (Million Barrels of Gasoline) 8/12 232,659 (Million Barrels of Gasoline)We drew down 7.9 Million of Gasoline Stocks during summer driving season in 2016.2015 5/8 226,710 (Million Barrels of Gasoline) 8/14 212,774 (Million Barrels of Gasoline)We drew down 13.9 Million of Gasoline Stocks during summer driving season in 2015.Conclusion:We drew down more gasoline in 2015 versus 2016 for the same strong season of the market, and we are sitting with an extra 20 Million more barrels of gasoline in storage year over year with less of a drawdown this year during the Summer Driving Season. Therefore: Gasoline Market Not Rebalanced.
Exhibit #3: U.S. Stocks of Distillate Fuel Oil:2016 5/6 155,332 (Million Barrels of Distillate Oil) 8/12 153,135 (Million Barrels of Distillate Oil)We drew down 2.2 Million of Distillate Stocks during summer driving season in 2016.2015 5/8 128,270 (Million Barrels of Distillate Oil) 8/14 148,400 (Million Barrels of Distillate Oil)We built 20.1 Million of Distillate Stocks during summer driving season in 2015.Conclusion:We built more Distillate Stocks in 2015 versus 2016. However, we are sitting with 5 Million more barrels of Distillates year over year. Furthermore, we were coming from such lower levels of Distillates last year there was more room to fill up storage facilities, and like Cushing this year once Oil Capacity reaches limits the Oil gets moved to the Gulf Coast. Well similarly for Distillates once inventories reach this level of overall capacity, refiners no longer want to produce extra supplies, so they have found other alternative products to process excess oil into product for available storage capacity. Therefore: Distillate Market Not Rebalanced.
Exhibit #4: U.S. Stocks of Propane and Propylene:2016 5/5 73,176 (Million Barrels of Propane) 8/12 93,744 (Million Barrels of Propane)We built 20.6 Million of Propane Stocks for this time period in 2016.2015 5/8 68,459 (Million Barrels of Propane) 8/14 93,866 (Million Barrels of Propane)We built 25.4 Million of Propane Stocks for this time period in 2015.Conclusion:We built more Propane Stocks in 2015 versus 2016. However, we basically have the same levels of overall stocks (Which are at Record Historical Levels) as this time last year. The big takeaway is that over the last two years a lot of oil has been processed into this category for the sole purpose of doing something with the existing oil glut. Therefore: The Propane and Propylene Market Not Rebalanced.
Exhibit #5: U.S. Stocks of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products:2016 5/6 1,369,395 (Million Barrels of Product) 8/12 1,393,563 (Million Barrels of Product)We built 24.1 Million Barrels of Oil and Petroleum Products during summer driving season in 2016.2015 5/8 1,244,572 (Million Barrels of Product) 8/14 1,280,261 (Million Barrels of Product)We built 35.7 Million Barrels of Oil and Petroleum Products during summer driving season in 2015.Conclusion:We built 11.5 Million more Total Crude Oil & Petro Stocks in 2015 versus 2016. However, we still added another 24 Million to total overall stocks this year during the Summer Drawing and Driving Season. Moreover, we are sitting at 1,393,563 versus 1,280,261 for last year, for the highest ever Recorded Reading of this Metric by a large margin. Therefore: Oil & Petroleum Products Market Not Rebalanced.
Exhibit #6: U.S. Stocks of Other Oils:2016 5/6 252,979 (Million Barrels of Oil) 8/12 291,808 (Million Barrels of Oil)We built 38.8 Million Barrels of Other Oil Stocks during summer driving season in 2016.2015 5/8 239,763 (Million Barrels of Oil) 8/14 268,971 (Million Barrels of Oil)We built 29.2 Million Barrels of Other Oil Stocks during summer driving season in 2015.Conclusion:We built more Other Oils in 2016 versus 2015, but both years saw substantial builds, and my guess is that with Distillates Inventories at Record Levels, refiners needed to find other available storage capacity to move excess oil into refined product and chose this category “Other Oils”. We built 22.8 Million Barrels to this Other Category year over year, and is just another sign the oil market is in fact getting worse during the strongest demand part of the season. Therefore: Other Oils Market Not Rebalanced.
Conclusion:The oil market is not rebalancing as some have suggested, in fact it appears to be still oversupplied by a large measure when taking into account the year over year additions to Total Stocks and comparing them to last year`s additions. Plus when you add in the effects of floating storage, the additions to alternative products for refined product there seems a desperate effort by the oil industry to move the commodity around from Cushing to the Gulf Coast, Gasoline Refining to Other Product Refining Categories to find any available storage capacity.
The Oil Market again moved up above $50 a barrel on the forward curve allowing more hedging for Oil Producers, and the reason the oil market hasn`t rebalanced is not enough producers went out of business. In fact the oil market is in such a state of denial that even if Saudi Arabia and OPEC agreed to a Production Freeze, or a Production Cut this would just allow more U.S. Production to come online in the form of the Completed Wells Category. There is still way too much Oil Supply, and the Oil Market is massively oversupplied, and actually getting worse as opposed to rebalancing. Just for context, the high end of the Five Year Average Total Oil Stocks used to top out at 250 Million Barrels of Oil each year, we are now more than double that level at 521,093 Million Barrels of Oil in storage.© EconMatters All Rights Reserved | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Email Digest | Kindle
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