• George Washington Warned Against A 'Passionate Attachment' To Israel
  George Washington Warned Against A ‘Passionate Attachment’ To Israel

  By Brian McGlinchey at Stark Realities 

  As war rages in Gaza, the intensifying debate over the US-Israel relationship spotlights a political paradox: Those Americans who view George Washington with deepest reverence — that is, would-be “conservatives” — are often the ones who most zealously violate the central tenet of his foreign policy philosophy.

  Specifically, their fierce devotion to the State of Israel defies Washington’s admonition against “passionate attachments” to other countries — attachments that, he said, inevitably lead America “astray from its duty and its interest.”

  That’s not to say that excessive advocacy for Israel is confined to the American right: As demonstrated by President Biden’s backing of Israel’s destruction of Gaza, the championing of policies that serve Israel to America’s detriment also runs rampant among establishment Democrats.

  Regardless of your position on the political spectrum, Washington’s foreign policy advice merits your attention, and the US-Israel relationship serves as a case study that validates his warnings about the many evils that spring from “habitual fondness” for a foreign nation…including one that didn’t exist when his warnings were issued.

  

  After deciding not to pursue a third term as America’s first president, Washington gave the country a parting gift: a farewell address delivered not from a podium, but from the front page of Philadelphia’s Daily American Advertiser.

  Washington’s 7,641-word address reads like an owner’s manual for the young republic. He asked Americans to give “solemn contemplation” and “frequent review” to his guidance, which was “the result of much reflection, and no inconsiderable observation.”

  Let’s review some key excerpts of Washington’s foreign policy guidance, starting with the principle he put above all others:

  “Nothing is more essential than that permanent, inveterate antipathies against particular nations, and passionate attachments for others, should be excluded; and that, in place of them, just and amicable feelings towards all should be cultivated.”

  With this guidance, Washington echoed the wisdom of other American founders. Thomas Jefferson urged “peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.” John Quincy Adams approvingly said, “[America] has abstained from interference in the concerns of others, even when conflict has been for principles to which she clings…She is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all. She is the champion and vindicator only of her own.”

  In addition to “passionate attachments,” Washington denounced habitual hostility toward other countries. As we’ll discuss later, the US government’s passionate attachment to Israel is itself the font of hostilities equally unrooted in American interest.

  “The nation which indulges towards another an habitual hatred or an habitual fondness is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest.”

  While it’s a little less universal these days, “habitual fondness” for Israel remains widespread in American politics, particularly on the right and center-left, and more so among government officials than citizens.

  That habitual fondness is routinely manifested by pronouncements that would make Washington, Jefferson and Madison cringe. Drawing from a common well of fawning rhetoric, politicians frequently refer to a supposedly “unbreakable bond” between America and Israel. Another cliche sees officials stating there must be “no daylight” between the two countries. Endorsing DC’s unconditional backing of Israel, and showing utter disregard for future contingencies, President Obama proclaimed that “our alliance is eternal, it is forever.”

  Many politicians go so far as to say Israel is America’s “greatest ally.” One can only imagine reactions in the UK, Canada, Australia and many other countries that have gone to war alongside the United States on multiple occasions in this century, sacrificing lives and limbs as Israel offers little more than encouragement.

  Taking things to mind-bending extremes, you’ll even encounter declarations that “real Americans stand with Israel” — perversely measuring American patriotism by the extent to which one is devoted to a foreign country.

  

  For many — especially evangelical Christians — habitual fondness for Israel has a religious dynamic. Viewed through religious, rose-colored glasses, the State of Israel is transformed from a modern, man-made political entity — led, like all governments, by manipulative, power-hungry politicians who pursue all manner of ungodly policies — into something sacred that supposedly represents and carries out God’s will.

  Exploiting the religious angle, Israel’s advocates — even a US representative speaking in a recent congressional hearing — claim that America is compelled to serve the State of Israel because the bible says God will bless those who bless the nation of Abraham and curse those who curse it — as if today’s modern political entity and what’s referenced in the bible are one and the same.

  Validating Washington’s warning that habitual fondness for a foreign country makes one an unthinking slave to that affection, these same people ignore the Israeli government’s killing of Christians in Gaza and the mistreatment endured by West Bank Christians — to say nothing of recurring incidents of ultra-orthodox Israeli Jews spitting on followers of Christ.

  

  Especially where government officials are concerned, passionate attachments to Israel can bring enormous financial rewards.

  Case in point: Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, who’s arguably the most extreme advancer of Israeli interests on Capitol Hill. When he ascended to the Senate in 2014, Cotton benefitted from $960,000 in spending on his behalf by the Emergency Committee for Israel, in addition to $250,000 contributed to a Cotton-backing PAC by New York hedge fund billionaire and Israel-backer Paul Singer, and $100,000 from pro-Israel Boston billionaire Seth Klarman.

  Then there’s Donald Trump, who’s not only made pandering to Israel a staple of his speeches, but, as president, took a variety of actions that had long been on the Israeli agenda. His reward: $20 million for his 2020 re-election bid from Las Vegas casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson, in what was reportedly a quid pro quo for moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has personally affirmed the idea that habitual fondness has made America “in some degree a slave” to Israel. In a moment of candid conversation with West Bank settlers, Netanyahu was caught on video as he boasted, “I know what America is. America is a thing you can move very easily.”

  Those who champion Israel’s interest on Capitol Hill do their own bragging. American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobbyist Steven Rosen famously pushed a napkin across a table and said, “You see this napkin? In 24 hours, we could have the signatures of 70 senators on this napkin.”

  Patriotic Americans aren’t the only ones put off by that kind of influence. Marveling at the extraordinary sway his tiny country holds over the world’s foremost power, Israeli journalist and author Gideon Levy wrote:

  “A new chapter is being written in the history of nations. Never before has a small country dictated to a superpower; never before has the chirp of the cricket sounded like a roar; never has the elephant resembled the ant – and vice versa. No Roman province dared tell Julius Caesar what to do, no tribe ever dreamed of forcing Genghis Khan to act in accordance with its own tribal interests.”

  President Clinton used a different kind of colorful language as he confronted the upside-down power dynamic. After being lectured by Netanyahu during his first meeting with the Israeli prime minister, an angry Clinton exploded, asking his aides, “Who the fuck does he think he is? Who’s the fucking superpower here?!”

  …read the rest at Stark Realities

  

  Stark Realities undermines official narratives, demolishes conventional wisdom and exposes fundamental myths across the political spectrum. Read more and subscribe at starkrealities.substack.com  

  * * *

  Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZeroHedge.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 23:20

• Ex-CDC Director Says It's High Time To Admit 'Significant Side Effects' Of COVID-19 Vaccines
  Ex-CDC Director Says It’s High Time To Admit ‘Significant Side Effects’ Of COVID-19 Vaccines

  Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Dr. Robert Redfield, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said Thursday that many officials who tried to warn the public about potential problems with COVID-19 vaccines were pressured into silence and that it’s high time to admit that there were “significant” side effects that made people sick.

  

  Dr. Redfield made the remarks in a May 16 interview with Chris Cuomo on NewsNation, during which he lamented the loss of public confidence in public health agencies because of a lack of transparency around the vaccines, which he said “saved a lot of lives” but also made some people “quite ill.”

  “Those of us that tried to suggest there may be significant side effects from vaccines … we kind of got canceled because no one wanted to talk about the potential that there was a problem from the vaccines, because they were afraid that that would cause people not to want to get vaccinated,” Dr. Redfield said.

  In his role as head of the CDC, Dr. Redfield was part of the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed, a project to surge COVID-19 vaccine development at a time during the pandemic when little was known about the virus and rapid vaccine rollout was widely seen as key to getting the outbreak under control and lockdowns lifted.

  In September 2020, a few months before the first COVID-19 vaccines were given in the United States, Dr. Redfield testified before the Senate that COVID-19 represented the “most significant public health challenge to face our nation in more than a century,” and that the prevailing view among scientists at the time was that the overall case fatality rate of the disease was somewhere between 0.4 and 0.6 percent in the United States.

  “If you were to look right now, individuals under the age of 18, it’s about 0.01 percent, 19 to say 69, it’s more like 0.3 percent. And if you’re over the age of 70, it’s about 5 percent now,” he testified at the time.

  While there’s lingering controversy about the severity of COVID-19, a recent study estimates that the global case fatality rate was 8.5 percent in February 2020 but had plunged to 0.27 percent in August 2022, meaning that the estimated relative risk reduction over that time was a whopping 96.8 percent.

  In his interview on NewsNation, Dr. Redfield said that the vaccines that were developed as part of Operation Warp Speed were “important” and saved “a lot of lives.” However, despite their benefits, the drawbacks of the vaccines must be a matter of open discussion, he said.

  “They’re important for the most vulnerable people, those over 60, 65 years of age. They really aren’t that critical for those that are under 50 or younger. But those vaccines saved a lot of lives, but they also—we have to be honest, some people got significant side effects from the vaccine,” he said.

  “I have a number of people that are quite ill and they never had COVID, but they are ill from the vaccine,” he continued. “And we just have to acknowledge that.”

  Vaccine Controversy

  The severity of COVID-19 remains a matter of debate because it’s unclear whether deaths were overcounted or undercounted due to various factors, such as lack of clarity around the role of underlying medical conditions in fatalities in cases where COVID-19 was listed as the primary cause, or underreporting of asymptomatic infections. Aside from the issue of whether people died “from” COVID-19 or “with” a positive test for SARS-CoV-2, there have also been questions about the role of secondary pneumonia caused by mechanical ventilation.

  Either way, a study from January 2023 indicates that the global case fatality rate from COVID-19 has dropped dramatically over the course of the pandemic. Global case fatalities ranged from 1.7 to 39.0 percent in February to March of 2020, according to the study—but fell to below 0.3 percent in July to August 2022.

  The researchers estimate that the risk of death from COVID-19 has dropped by 96.8 percent over the course of the pandemic.

  Along with a decline in COVID-19 fatalities, there have been growing concerns about vaccine side effects, given that a significant number of vaccinated people have reported various adverse reactions.

  The most common COVID-19 vaccine adverse events are those that affect the body generally, with fever, fatigue, and overall discomfort being the top three, according to the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). But there are others.

  For instance, heart muscle inflammation (myocarditis) and inflammation of the lining outside the heart (pericarditis) have both officially been acknowledged by the CDC as a known side effect of Moderna’s and Pfizer’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

  Nervous system disorders have also been reported, with such disorders being the third most common in the Pfizer trials, coming after general and muscle-related adverse events.

  There have also been papers linking spike-protein-based COVID-19 vaccines to skin problems, a dull ringing in the ears known as tinnitus, visual impairments, blood clotting, and even death. Recent reporting from EpochTV’s “American Thought Leaders“ program indicates that the likelihood of death associated with COVID-19 vaccines (in close proximity to the shot rather than proven as caused by it) was over 100 times greater than for flu vaccines.

  There are also concerns about a post-vaccination jump in excess deaths and disability.

  The CDC still recommends that people of all ages receive a COVID-19 vaccine, saying that the potential side effects do not outweigh the potential harms of getting sick with COVID-19.

  In a notice published in late April, the agency again called for adults aged 65 and older to get the latest version of the vaccines.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 22:45

• House Republicans Express Concern Over Sharp Uptick On Chinese Migrants Illegally Crossing Border
  House Republicans Express Concern Over Sharp Uptick On Chinese Migrants Illegally Crossing Border

  Authored by Darlene McCormick Sanchez via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Republicans on the House Homeland Security subcommittee expressed concern as the surge of illegal Chinese migrants hit an all-time high in April after the Biden administration relaxed vetting rules last year.

  

  House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability Chairman Dan Bishop (R-N.C.) held the hearing on May 16 to address the “unprecedented flow of Chinese nationals” illegally crossing the U.S. southern border, which has topped 27,000 since Oct. 1.

  The latest CBP numbers show that 3,324 Chinese nationals crossed the southwest border in April alone—more than the total crossings for the entire 2022 fiscal year.

  This year’s total tops 27,000 encounters, surpassing the 24,000 illegal southwest border crossings during the entire 2023 fiscal year.

  That’s a massive jump from recent years. In 2022, the number of Chinese migrant encounters was slightly more than  2,000 at the U.S. southern border. In 2021, that number was 450.

  Nationwide encounters of Chinese migrants entering unlawfully are even higher.

  When looking at encounters across the country this fiscal year, CBP data shows more than 48,000 encounters so far with illegal Chinese migrants, which includes migrants coming through ports of entry.

  Mr. Bishop said during the hearing he is concerned that the vetting process, which has been decreased from 40 to five questions for Chinese migrants, does little to protect America’s national security. 

  “As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continues its quest for geopolitical dominance and threatens our sovereignty, we must examine the risks presented by releasing ever-increasing numbers of minimally vetted Chinese nationals into our communities,” Mr. Bishop said in a statement.

  The Democrats’ Homeland Security website dismissed those concerns, characterizing it as “another Republican Border ‘hearing’ with invasion rhetoric and fear-mongering.”

  Mr. Bishop said Chinese migrants crossing illegally into the U.S. could have “nefarious motives,” noting federal indictments in North Carolina last month showed partnerships between Mexican drug cartels and Chinese transnational criminal organizations engaged in money laundering operations throughout the United States. 

  Experts invited to testify indicated that the vetting process was unlikely to find any criminal background information on Chinese nationals who have never been in the United States because China does not readily share that information with American authorities. Border Patrol officers must rely on foreign nationals to answer questions truthfully.

  Simon Hankinson, senior research fellow with the Heritage Foundation’s Border Security and Immigration Center, told the committee that the vetting process was insufficient.

  “At best, this is a mockery of U.S. immigration law and sovereignty, and at worst, it is a huge national security and community safety risk. In addition to many Chinese with connections to the Communist Party, People’s Liberation Army, and other state entities, it is statistically probable that [Department of Homeland Security] DHS is releasing people with criminal records,” he said.

  

  Todd Bensman, a national security fellow with the Center for Immigration Studies, brought along passports and identification cards he found near the border. The stamps inside the passports prove their holders traveled through safe countries that would have granted protection, therefore disqualifying them for U.S. asylum, he said.

  While most Chinese nationals were likely coming to work, Mr. Bensman said there was little doubt that “Beijing spymasters” also noticed a new opportunity at the wide open U.S. southern border.

  However, Meredith Owen, an associate history professor at the University of Maryland, testified that most Chinese are coming to the United States to flee oppression and find jobs.

  She highlighted past actions by the U.S. government targeting Chinese immigrants, which had dire consequences. The Chinese became the first and only nation to be singled out by U.S. immigration law with the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, she said.

  The anti-Chinese movement that drove the creation of the act cited Chinese migration as a unique threat to the United States, she said.

  “These fears led to extreme violence against Chinese immigrants, including mob violence and the burning of Chinatowns,” she said.

  Committee member Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said during the hearing she is concerned about how to fix America’s “broken“ immigration system and implied racism was the reason behind opposition to migration.

  

  “We’re here today because Republicans are demagoguing and exploiting the xenophobic and white supremacist ideologies that are fueling the immigration debate in this nation,“ she said.

  Since President Joe Biden took office, there have been more than 9 million encounters nationwide and some 7.6 million encounters at the southwest border alone.

  House Republicans blame Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorka’s policies under the Biden administration for the border crisis. 

  The House voted Feb. 13 to impeach the secretary for “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law“ and for the “breach of public trust.”

  However, the Democrat-controlled Senate dismissed impeachment charges against him before holding a trial, leaving Mr. Mayorkas in office.

  Democrats have pointed out that America was built on immigrants and benefits from their labor.

  Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said during an immigration subcommittee hearing in January that “many illegal immigrants“ were needed for agriculture production or “our vegetables would rot in the ground.”

  

  Republicans, however, question the surge of Chinese nationals coming across the U.S. southern border.

  In April 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) instructed Border Patrol agents to reduce the number of questions they asked Chinese migrants.

  At the time, agents were facing a record number of illegal crossings from all nationalities.

  The hearing became contentious at times, with committee member Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) saying Mr. Bensman’s organization had been labeled as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. 

  This leftwing group has listed many conservative organizations as “hate” groups, such as parental rights groups headed by moms.

  Ms. Ramirez accused Mr. Bensman of “uplifting the same invasion rhetoric central to the white nationalist and antisemitic Great Replacement conspiracy theory” on social media.

  “There is no hateful antisemitic speech in my Twitter [now called X] feed,“ Mr. Bensman responded. “I am Jewish, and we don’t really get with white nationalists; that’s not our thing, so get your facts straight.”

  Mr. Bensman also suggested she read a book titled, “Making Hate Pay: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center.” 

  In 2023, Republican senators led by Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) wrote to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorka, suggesting some Chinese migrants entering the U.S. illegally may be tied to the CCP.

  “There have been numerous documented instances of Chinese nationals, at the direction of the CCP, engaging in espionage, stealing military and economic secrets,“ according to the letter.

   The letter also noted that China is a significant source of drugs such as fentanyl being trafficked across the U.S. southern border.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 22:10

• Eric Cartman Goes On Ozempic
  Eric Cartman Goes On Ozempic

  South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been master craftsmen at flawlessly capturing and satirizing society’s absurdities since the first episode of the animated comedy series debuted on Comedy Central in August 1997.

  As of May, and 330 episodes later, Parker and Stone are preparing to debut the next exclusive streaming event, “The End of Obesity.” 

  

  “The advent of new weight loss drugs has a huge impact on everyone in South Park. When Cartman is denied access to the life-changing medicine, the kids jump into action,” South Park’s official X account wrote. 

  In the teaser trailer, Eric Cartman visits a doctor about his obesity. The doctor says,  “It’s time for some drastic measures to bring down his weight.” The doctor then asks Cartman, “Have you ever heard of Semaglutides … Ozempic, Mounjaro?” 

  However, Cartman is denied access to Semaglutides and then asks his friends Kyle, Stan, Butters, and Kenny for help. 

  Kyle Broflovski, Cartman’s friend, says these drugs “could be dangerous.” 

  And, of course, Cartman ignores the warnings and says, “Let’s do it!” 

  Leopold “Butters” Stotch, another friend of Cartman’s, says: “We’ve been out navigating the American healthcare system … and I almost died.” 

  The advent of new weight loss drugs has a huge impact on everyone in South Park. When Cartman is denied access to the life-changing medicine, the kids jump into action.

  The new exclusive event SOUTH PARK: THE END OF OBESITY premieres May 24, 2024 on Paramount+! #SouthPark… pic.twitter.com/7A5rQB8q7x

  — South Park (@SouthPark) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  What’s troubling, and likely, Parker and Stone have captured this theme in the upcoming episode, set to debut on May 24, is how America’s healthcare system, a combination of big government and big pharma, is doing very little to promote healthy diets and exercise – which by the way would help solve the obesity crisis – instead have chosen the dangerous pathway of over medicating Americans with even more drugs. 

  • Address Metabolic Crisis At Its Root, Don’t Hook Obese Americans On Gov’t-Funded Ozempic
  • Five Simple Policies To Reset America’s “Rigged” Health System

  South Park has released six other streaming events: “South Park: Post COVID,” “South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID,” “South Park: The Streaming Wars,” “South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2,” “South Park: Joining the Panderverse” and the recently released “South Park (Not Suitable For Children).”

  I’m looking forward to this 😂 https://t.co/LGqGlOTiuU

  — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 18, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

   

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 21:35

• US State Department Issues 'Worldwide Caution' Alert For Americans
  US State Department Issues ‘Worldwide Caution’ Alert For Americans

  Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  The U.S. Department of State on Friday issued a “worldwide caution” alert for U.S. citizens to remain alert for possible terrorist attacks or other violent actions against Americans.

  

  In a “security alert” posted on its website, the agency said the warning was sent because of the “potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations, or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests.” Americans who are overseas, it added, are encouraged to use “increased caution.”

  The Department of State said it is also “aware of the increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence against” LGBT people, echoing a statement issued by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security earlier this week that terrorist groups such as ISIS could target “Pride” month-related events in June.

  “Stay alert in locations frequented by tourists, including Pride celebrations and venues frequented” by those individuals, the bulletin added. It did not provide any specific details about any alleged or reported terrorist plots.

  Late last year, the State Department issued a similar worldwide alert for Americans following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack in Israel that triggered the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

  About a week ago, the agency issued a statement to U.S. citizens in the Middle East, cautioning them to heed a travel advisory for Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank because of active military operations in the area.

  “Terrorist groups, lone-actor terrorists and other violent extremists continue plotting possible attacks in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza,” it said. “Terrorists and violent extremists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets [or] shopping malls, and local government facilities.”

  The Israel-Hamas conflict has led to a “complex situation” that could have implications for U.S. citizens’ safety, the department said, adding that the Israel Defense Forces currently has control over the Gaza side of Rafah Crossing.

  Israel has said that about 100 hostages are still captive in Gaza, along with the bodies of about 30 more. Military officials and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday said that its forces found the bodies of three Israeli hostages killed by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack, including German-Israeli Shani Louk.

  Mr. Netanyahu called the deaths “heartbreaking,” saying in a statement, “We will return all of our hostages, both the living and the dead.”

  Hamas-led terrorists killed about 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and abducted about 250 others in the Oct. 7 attack. About half of those hostages have since been freed, most in swaps for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel during a weeklong cease-fire in November.

  FBI and DHS Warning

  In a separate bulletin, both the FBI and DHS said that groups such as ISIS, or Islamic State, might “seek to exploit increased gatherings associated” with “Pride”-related events. The terrorist threats could come via the mail, in person, or online, the agencies stated without elaborating or providing specific details.

  The bulletin noted that June 12 is the eighth anniversary of the mass shooting at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando in which 49 people died. After the incident, pro-ISIS groups “praised this attack as one of the high-profile attacks in Western countries” and “supporters celebrated it,” according to the FBI and DHS.

  Both agencies also noted that in February 2023, an ISIS-related message board had included “rhetoric and rallied against the growth and promotion” of LGBT groups.

  The two agencies revealed “possible indicators” of what they called “potential threat activity,” which includes “unusual surveillance or interest in buildings, gatherings, or events” as well as “unusual or prolonged testing or probing of security measures at events or venues,” violent threats made online or in person, and photography of security related equipment or personnel.

  In April, the FBI announced that it had arrested an 18-year-old Idaho man for allegedly plotting to carry out a terrorist attack targeting local churches. The man, identified in court documents as Alexander Mercurio, is accused of telling an FBI informant about his alleged plans and that he wanted to carry out an attack on April 7, but he was thwarted by officials.

  Meanwhile, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) earlier this week warned that an ISIS-linked human smuggling network was discovered at the U.S.-Mexico border, adding that the FBI told him about ISIS-linked “individuals who are facilitating the passage of migrants across the U.S.–Mexican border into the United States.”

  Mr. Cornyn, who was speaking at a congressional hearing, added that he believes that it is only a matter of “when” and not “if” a terrorist attack is carried out on U.S. soil.

  Several weeks ago, FBI Director Chris Wray said foreign terrorist groups are again looking to attack the United States in an “increasingly concerning” way, noting that his agency is attempting to prevent an attack on U.S. soil via terrorist groups such as ISIS-K, a regional branch of ISIS mainly in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

  “Foreign terrorists, including ISIS, al-Qaeda, and their adherents, have renewed calls for attacks against Jewish communities here in the United States and across the West in statements and propaganda,” Mr. Wray said in April.

  The Associated Press contributed to this report.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 21:00

• Fierce Fighting Gets Closer To US-Built Gaza Pier Just As Initial Aid Rolls Off
  Fierce Fighting Gets Closer To US-Built Gaza Pier Just As Initial Aid Rolls Off

  While global coverage of the Gaza crisis has focused on the Israeli offensive in the southern city of Raffah of late, fierce battles have erupted in the north of the Strip over the last several days, especially in Jabalia, where the IDF military is in a fierce anti-insurgent style battle set amid narrow alleyways.

  The city which lies 2.5 miles north of Gaza City saw a ‘return’ of Hamas fighters after the IDF months ago conquered it. It has long been deemed among the Strip’s permanent refugee camps. There are reports that Israeli armor has smashed deep into the heart of the camp and city.

  

  Hamas also appears to have stepped-up its attacks on Israeli forces in various locations, and Al Jazeera reports at least 40 Palestinian deaths over the course of the last day.

  “Tanks and planes are wiping out residential districts and markets, shops, restaurants, everything. It is all happening before the one-eyed world,” a resident of Jabalia identified as Ayman Rajab told a regional outlet.

  The same outlet observed that this intensifying fighting is occurring in the same northern region as the US Army-built humanitarian aid pier:

  “People are terrified and they’re trying to get away,” Jens Laerke, UN humanitarian office spokesperson, said in Geneva, adding that most were following orders to move north toward the coast but that there were no safe routes or destinations.

  As the fighting raged, the US military said trucks started moving aid ashore from a temporary pier, the first to reach the besieged enclave by sea in weeks.

  The situation is heating up even as famine is said to be present in this northern area. “To stave off the horrors of famine, we must use the fastest and most obvious route to reach the people of Gaza – and for that, we need access by land now,” deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq announced in a statement, even as initial US aid deliveries via the pier get underway from nearby Cyprus.

  This of course creates the potential that expanded fighting could occur close to the vicinity where American troops are overseeing pier operations just off the coast.

  The Pentagon previously made it clear that if US troops come under fire, they are authorized to defend themselves and fire back. However, the IDF has also said it is providing security on land, and there are at least two Israeli bases established nearby.

  Israel has said of the intense Jabalia fight:

  The Israel Defense Forces said troops killed more than 60 militants in Jabalia in recent days and located a weapons warehouse in a “divisional-level offensive.”

  A divisional operation would typically involve several brigades of thousands of troops each, making it one of the biggest of the war. “The 7th Brigade’s fire control center directed dozens of airstrikes, eliminated terrorists and destroyed terrorist infrastructure,” the IDF said.

  Again, this is all potential recipe for a looming disaster which could suck the Pentagon directly into the chaos of northern Gaza fighting. Some Congressional leaders have recently sought to address this possibility in hearings:

  After the catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden is putting troops in harm’s way with a half baked plan to construct a pier in Gaza.

  Watch me question Biden admin officials, @CENTCOM Commander, and @USAfricaCommand Commander during today’s @HASCRepublicans hearing ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/hS5AW54wXS

  — Rep. Rob Wittman (@RobWittman) March 21, 2024

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  As for Hamas, its armed wing is openly advertising that it is pouring its members into the fight. Via its Telegram channel the group said that its fighters:

  • shot an Israeli soldier with sniper fire east of Jabalia
  • attacked a group of 15 soldiers with anti-personnel devices and then used light weapons and hand grenades while they were inside a house in al-Tanour neighbourhood, east of Rafah
  • targeted a Merkava tank with a Yassin-105 rocket in the same neighbourhood
  • shelled Rafah crossing
  • targeted an “Apache” Israeli military helicopter with an anti-aircraft surface-to-air missile (SAM-7)
  • blew up an Israeli military bulldozer east of Rafah

  There further remains the possibility that Palestinian militants could send drones against the pier, which is something both the Pentagon and IDF appear to have prepared for.

  🛰 Several Coyote Block 2 Anti-UAS/UAV deployed on US-built floating pier( also known as JLOTS costs $326 million)
  Threat Perception/Kamikaze UAV- UAS https://t.co/7EYscUvYtn pic.twitter.com/zxHW94CKO7

  — Hurşit Dingil (@hursitdingil) May 18, 2024

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  How will this all end? Things look to continue to get worse, and there’s still no sign of positive momentum toward a ceasefire on the horizon.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 20:25

• Ex-CIA Ray McGovern: Russia & China – Two Against One
  Ex-CIA Ray McGovern: Russia & China – Two Against One

  Authored by Ray McGovern via Consortium News

  Chinese President Xi Jinping’s extremely warm reception of President Vladimir Putin yesterday in Beijing sealed the increasingly formidable Russia-China strategic relationship. It amounts to a tectonic shift in the world balance of power. 

  The Russia-China entente also sounds the death knell for attempts by U.S. foreign policy neophytes to drive a wedge between the two countries. The triangular relationship has become two-against-one, with serious implications, particularly for the war in Ukraine. If US President Joe Biden’s foreign policy geniuses remain in denial, escalation is almost certain.

  

  In a pre-visit interview with Xinhua, Putin noted the “unprecedented level of strategic partnership between our countries.” He and Xi have met more than 40 times in person or virtually. In June 2018, Xi described Putin as “an old friend of the Chinese people” and, personally, his “best friend.”

  For his part, Putin noted Thursday that he and Xi are “in constant contact to keep personal control over all pressing issues on the Russian-Chinese and international agenda.” Putin brought along Defense Minister Andrey Belousov as well as veterans like Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and key business leaders.

  Joint Statements Matter

  Xi and Putin signed a strong joint statement Thursday, similar to the extraordinary one the two issued on Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. It portrayed their relationship as “superior to political and military alliances of the Cold War era. Friendship between the two States has no limits, there are no ‘forbidden’ areas of cooperation…”

  The full import of that statement did not hit home until Putin launched the Special Military Operation into the Donbass three weeks later. China’s muted reaction shocked most analysts, who had dismissed the possibility that Xi would give “best friend” Putin, in effect, a waiver on China’s bedrock policy of non-interference abroad.

  In the following weeks, official Chinese statements made clear that the principles of Westphalia had taken a back seat to “the need for every country to defend its core interests” and to judge each situation “on its own merits.”

  Nuclear War

  Thursday’s statement expressed concern over “increased strategic risks between nuclear powers” — referring to continued escalation of the war between NATO-supported Ukraine and Russia.

  It condemns “the expansion of military alliances and creation of military bridgeheads close to the borders of other nuclear powers, particularly with the advanced deployment of nuclear weapons and their means of delivery, as well as other items.”

  Putin has undoubtedly briefed Xi on the U.S. missile sites already in Romania and Poland that can launch what Russians call “offensive strike missiles” with flight time to Moscow of less than 10 minutes. Putin surely has told Xi about the inconsistencies in U.S. statements regarding intermediate-range nuclear missiles.

  For example, Xi is aware — just as surely as consumers of Western media are unaware — that during a Dec. 30, 2021, telephone conversation, Biden assured Putin that “Washington had no intention of deploying offensive strike weapons in Ukraine.”

  There was rejoicing in the Kremlin that New Years’ Eve, since Biden’s assurance was the first sign that Washington might acknowledge Russia’s security concerns. Indeed, Biden addressed a key issue in at least five of the eight articles of the Russian draft treaty given to the U.S. on Dec. 17, 2021. Russian rejoicing, however, was short-lived.

  There has remained much speculation over whether the two leaders’ respective translators were actually also carrying the ‘nuclear footballs’ while in Harbin:

  Putin and Xi have been shadowed the entire visit by their respective guys presumably lugging their nuclear footballs. I think this is a new look for Russia and China. The message sent is about as heavy as it gets. https://t.co/adSDnSMoJy

  — Jeff Wells (@JeffWellsRigInt) May 16, 2024

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  Foreign Minister Lavrov revealed last month that when he met Antony Blinken in Geneva in January 2022, the U.S. secretary of state pretended he’d not heard of Biden’s undertaking to Putin on Dec. 30, 2021. Rather, Blinken insisted that U.S. medium-range missiles could be deployed in Ukraine, and only that the U.S. might be willing to limit their number, Lavrov said.

  The Mother of All Miscalculations

  When Biden took office in 2021, his advisers assured him that he could play on Russia’s fear (sic) of China and drive a wedge between them. This became embarrassingly clear when Biden indicated what he had told Putin during their Geneva summit on June 16, 2021.

  That meeting gave Putin confirmation that Biden and his advisers were stuck in a woefully outdated appraisal of Russia-China relations.

  Read the rest at Consortium News

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 19:50

• Bill Maher Scolds Pearl-Clutching Lefties Over Harrison Butker Tradwife Speech
  Bill Maher Scolds Pearl-Clutching Lefties Over Harrison Butker Tradwife Speech

  90s Democrat Bill Maher has come to the defense of Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker over a recent graduation speech in which he said that one of the “most important” jobs a woman can have is being a homemaker.

  

  “How many of you are sitting here now, about to cross this stage, and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career? Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world. But I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world,” Butker told graduates at Benedictine College last weekend.

  The NFL just condemned this speech by Super Bowl champion Harrison Butker.

  They 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 don’t want people to hear it.

  It would be a shame if you make it viral. pic.twitter.com/gKy7wJsqpu

  — End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) May 16, 2024

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  Butker’s speech resulted in a collective gasp from the left, which has spent decades programming young women to believe that becoming a housewife is tantamount to failure, and that real women become titans of industry – delegating the raising of children to others, or hitting peak girlboss and simply not reproducing (and definitely not grappling with deep regret as their eggs expire).

  For example, these assholes:

  

  And so, coming to Butker’s defense is “Real Time” host Bill Maher, who says he doesn’t see “what the big crime is.”

  During a Friday night panel discussion, Maher mocked Butker’s critics for trying to make him out to be “history’s greatest monster.”

  “I can’t express how much this guy is not like me,” said Maher. “He’s religious. He loves marriage. He loves kids… And he’s now history’s greatest monster.”

  “Again, I don’t agree with much with this guy, but I don’t get the thing. He said… ‘Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world.’ Ok, that seems fairly, like, modern. ‘But I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world.’ I don’t see what the big crime is. I really don’t,” Maher continued.

  “And I think this is part of the problem people have with the left is that lots of people in this country are like this. Like he’s saying some of you may go on to lead successful careers, but a lot of you are excited about this other way that people- everybody used to be. And now can’t that be a choice too?“

  “And I feel like they feel very put upon, like there’s only one way to be a good person and that’s to get an advanced degree from one of those a– h–e factories like Harvard,” Maher continued.

  Watch:

  Bill Maher Drops Unexpected Bomb on Left’s Outrage for Harrison Butker’s Speech

  “I don’t see what the big crime is.”

  “I really don’t. And I think this is part of the problem people have with the left is… pic.twitter.com/d43KlyZJZC

  — The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) May 18, 2024

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  Basically…

  Presented without comment. pic.twitter.com/9J8aeArVc2

  — Mollie (@MZHemingway) May 17, 2024

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  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 19:15

• Why Did The US Spend $320 Million On A Rube Goldberg Pier For Gaza?
  Why Did The US Spend $320 Million On A Rube Goldberg Pier For Gaza?

  Authored by Ann Wright via CommonDreams.org,

  Instead of U.S. President Joe Biden marking a red line in the sand demanding that Israel allow aid into Gaza via ground transportation, his inept diplomatic team sent out a plea for help to the U.S. military.

  

  While in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves for 29 years, I thought I had seen some pretty stupid things the military was told by politicians to do. It always begins with politicians deciding the easiest, most sensible solution to a problem would have too much political baggage and cost them votes in the next election. So, they look for a politically expedient solution, one that is invariably very expensive and convoluted.

  Attempting a Military Solution for a Political or Diplomat Problem—AGAIN!!!

  In this vein, all too often, politicians turn to the U.S. military for a solution to a non-military problem. Then some A-type personality in the military presents a hair-brained idea to the politicians, probably never thinking that the idea would be accepted. Then it is accepted to get the politicians out of a jam, and the next thing you know is that the Rube Goldberg, crazy idea is being funded.

  This unbelievable scenario is what has happened with getting humanitarian aid into Gaza for the starving survivors of the Israeli genocide of Gaza. Instead of U.S. President Joe Biden marking a red line in the Israel/Gaza/Egypt sand demanding that Israel allow into Gaza the miles of tractor-trailer loads of food and medicine that have been stalled for months at the Rafah border crossing, Biden’s inept diplomatic team sent out a plea for help to the U.S. military.

  Palestinians in Gaza and citizens around the world will not forget that miles of supplies are just feet away from Gaza at the Rafah crossing and the U.S. will not use its pressure on Israel to open the gates at Rafah.

  And the U.S. military, always looking for validation of its immense “capabilities,” seized the opportunity to use one of its little-known assets—the Army’s Joint Logistics Over the Shore, or JLOTS, system that provides bridging and water access capabilities—to help out the failed U.S. diplomatic efforts to get the U.S.’s “strongest ally in the Middle East” to end the starvation of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza by letting the massive truck convoys filled with food and medicines into Gaza.

  Normally used to move military equipment across rivers where bridges have been blown up—many times by the U.S. military itself—and sometimes to transfer military equipment from a ship onto shore, the U.S. Army’s small navy swung into action and began sailing to the Mediterranean in U.S. Army ships filled with barges that can be locked together to form landing docks and causeways.

  Rube Goldberg Complex of Construction and Transportation Ideas

  In a Rube Goldberg complex of construction and transportation ideas, the U.S. military anchored to the sea floor three miles off the northern coast of Gaza a floating dock system onto which large cargo ships can dock.

  Cargo ships will off-load pallets and possibly container loads of humanitarian assistance—long-life packaged food and medical supplies—on the three-mile off-shore dock. This cargo will have undergone inspection by Israeli authorities in the port of Larnaca, Cyprus, 200 miles from Gaza.

  The inspection process involves Cypriot customs, Israeli teams, the U.S., and the United Nations Office for Project Services. The U.S. Agency for International Development has set up a coordination cell in Cyprus.

  Two-thousand trucks to offload ONE ship driving 1,800 feet on a causeway that will be dangerously affected by tides, winds, and waves is a recipe for disaster.

  From the cargo ships, food and medical supplies will be transferred into the backs of U.S. Army trucks (probably 2.5-ton trucks) that have arrived on the floating pier brought there by two types of smaller Army boats—Logistic Support Vessels, or LSVs, and Landing Craft Utility boats (LCUs). LSVs can hold 15 trucks each and the LCUs about five.

  The loaded 2.5-ton trucks will be driven back onto the LSVs and motored three miles to the second floating pier system constructed by the U.S. military.

  The trucks will then be driven off the LSVs onto the second pier and down a two-lane, 1,800-foot (six U.S. football fields long) causeway anchored onto Gaza land by the Israeli military. The causeway will be anchored onto Gaza shores by the Israeli military because the U.S. military is forbidden to have “boots on the ground” in Gaza.

  The truckloads of food and medical supplies will then be driven somewhere… and supplies distributed by some organization… yet to be determined according to the latest news reports.

  The empty trucks will then be driven back along the two-lane, 1,800-foot causeway to the floating pier where they will be driven into the small LSVs, and the LSVs then sailed back three miles to the larger off-shore pier and the process begun again. The long causeway should be a cause of alarm for drivers, as the winds and waves so dramatically affected the construction of the causeway that most of the causeway was put together in the calm waters of Ashdod, an Israeli harbor, after winds and waves made construction of the causeway in place off Gaza impossible. Parts of the causeway are now being towed 20 miles from Ashdod harbor to northern Gaza to be linked into place.

  While Thousands of Truck Loads of Cargo Wait at the Rafah Border Crossing, It Will Take 2,000 Truck Loads to Empty Each 5,000 Ton Cargo Ship  

  if a large cargo ship has 5,000 tons of food and medical supplies to be off-loaded, and if each truck can hold 2.5 tons of cargo, it will take 2,000 trucks to take the cargo from one ship. If there are 15 trucks on each LSV, then the LSVs will have to make 133 trips to get the trucks to the 1,800 foot causeway.

  If the LCUs that hold only five trucks are mostly used, then it would take 400 trips to get the cargo to shore.

  Two-thousand trucks to offload ONE ship driving 1,800 feet on a causeway that will be dangerously affected by tides, winds, and waves is a recipe for disaster.

  

  A graphic, not to scale, showing how the aid delivery system will work. (Photo: Department of Defense)

  Will Israel Bomb the Docks, Piers, and Causeway? Remember the USS Liberty!

  The possibility of probability is high that Israeli military jets, drones, and artillery may “mistakenly” target the pier complex… or Hamas or other militant groups may decide that the U.S. complicity in the genocide of over 35,000 Palestinians in Gaza outweighs the meager food and medical supplies the U.S. is bringing into Gaza, which presents another aspect of the recipe for disaster for the U.S. Rube Goldberg pier.

  U.S. military personnel should remember the Israeli attack on a U.S. military ship, the USS Liberty. In 1967, the Israeli military bombed and torpedoed a U.S. ship off Gaza, killing 34 and wounding 171, and almost sunk the ship. The U.S. cover-up for its ally Israel’s brutal, lethal attack on a U.S. military ship continues to this day, as does the U.S. complicity in the Israeli genocide of Gaza.

  The World Will Not Forget

  Palestinians in Gaza and citizens around the world will not forget that miles of supplies are just feet away from Gaza at the Rafah crossing and the U.S. will not use its pressure on Israel to open the gates at Rafah, instead offering an expensive, idiotic solution to an easily solvable problem.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 18:40

• Sternlicht's Starwood REIT Running Low On Cash As Redemptions Soar Amid CRE Storm 
  Sternlicht’s Starwood REIT Running Low On Cash As Redemptions Soar Amid CRE Storm 

  Starwood Real Estate Income Trust (SREIT), a $10 billion non-traded REIT ranked second-largest behind Blackstone’s struggling BREIT, faces a severe liquidity crunch as investor redemptions soar amid concerns ‘higher for longer’ interest rates will worsen the commercial real estate storm. 

  The Financial Times reported at the end of last week that SREIT is “running low on liquidity as investors demand their money back” and tapped $1.3 billion of its $1.55 billion credit facility since the start of 2023.

  Redemptions have jumped among concerned investors. In the first quarter, SREIT investors requested $1.3 billion of their cash back. However, the fund only returned $500 million of the requests in the quarter because of a 5% redemption cap. 

  

  Now, Barry Sternlicht’s SREIT is in dire straits. The current pace of redemptions suggests the fund will run out of cash in the second half of the year unless it disposes of properties or expands its credit facility. The filing from last week shows the fund has $225 million left to draw down. 

  The outflows are similar to what happened to Blackstone’s BREIT over the last few years. At least now, BREIT has been able to meet 100% of its redemption requests for the first time since 2022, according to a notice issued by Blackstone to investors on March 1. 

  “Liquidity isn’t something that people think about on the way up, but it can become a concern suddenly,” Phil Bak, chief executive of Armada Investors, which invests in listed REITs. 

  

  Bak said, “When it comes to private REITs, liquidity concerns have been dismissed, and they will become paramount again.”

  FT spoke with an individual close to SREIT who said ‘greater liquidity’ is expected soon after asset sales. They said, “Starwood could sell other assets to raise cash.” 

  The REIT industry has been under severe pressure since Fed chair Powell began raising interest rates in early 2022. Tighter monetary conditions and higher interest rates for the medium term as inflation remains elevated have pressured CRE values of office towers. This has led to a 16% decline in SREIT’s declared net asset value from its peak in September 2022 at nearly $10 billion. 

  For the CRE industry, Goldman’s Lotfi Karoui outlined days ago that the highest share of CRE loans on record will hit maturity walls in the next two years. 

  

  Almost a trillion of CRE mortgages must be paid down, refinanced, or extended by the end of 2024.

  

  The problem is that the Fed’s rate cut cycle has been pushed out to at least the fall. Interest-rate swaps on Friday showed traders pricing about two quarter-point rate cuts by year-end, with about an 80% chance the first one will come in September. 

  

  Between SREIT and BREIT, the smart money has been panic-running for the exit door. Redemption caps have saved these non-traded REITs from totally imploding. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 18:05

• Nickel Prices Log Best Week In Over A Year As Riots In New Caledonia Spark Supply Concerns
  Nickel Prices Log Best Week In Over A Year As Riots In New Caledonia Spark Supply Concerns

  Nickel prices on the London Metal Exchange just had their best week in nearly a year and a half. The surge comes as social unrest rocks New Caledonia. A new report highlighted last week about surging demand for base metals driven by the clean energy push, as well as central bankers hinting at interest rate cuts. This has fueled an upswing in nickel prices and commodity prices. 

  Let’s begin with the unrest and riots that have gripped the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia. Additional French troops, including elite security forces, are en route to help authorities restore order. We outlined the latest on the riots in a note titled “France Blames Deadly New Caledonia Uprising On TikTok” on Friday morning. 

  This note will be commodity-centric and focus mainly on the nickel market. Last year, New Caledonia was the world’s third-biggest producer of the battery metal. The tiny Pacific island accounted for 6% of global output, according to the US Geological Survey.

  So far, French miner Eramet SA’s output in the country has been disrupted, and it is currently operating at minimum capacity. This news helped propel nickel futures trading on the London Metal Exchange to its best trading week since early December 2022, rising a little more than 11%. 

  

  Nickel futures are trading at $20,880 a ton, or about the highest level since September 2023. 

  

  “We have seen these riots . . . If New Caledonia has an ongoing problem, then it is going to make a difference,” Dan Smith, an analyst at Amalgamated Metal Trading, a brokerage, told the Financial Times. He noted that traders had been”downbeat” on the nickel market in terms of being oversupplied and that this sudden price spike had caught traders off guard. 

  However, Smith said the “overwhelming consensus” among traders was that the nickel market was “badly oversupplied,” suggesting that the current rally would not last. “Demand is good for nickel [at the moment] but supply is even stronger,” he added.

  Ending the week was a report by the International Energy Agency that forecasted strong demand for nickel and other base metals critical for the transition to cleaner power grids as the powering up America and Europe theme takes off (read: “the Next AI Trade“). 

  “The world’s appetite for technologies such as solar panels, electric cars and batteries is growing fast . . . but we cannot satisfy it without reliable and expanding supplies of critical minerals,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol.

  Rising nickel prices come as a massive dislocation of physical copper has sparked a squeeze in prices in New York. 

  

  The Bloomberg Industrial Metal Subindex has soared. 

  

  Spot commodity prices tracked by Bloomberg are also surging. 

  

  Jeff Currie might be right about an emerging commodity supercycle. And, of course, high commodity prices are bad news for Fed Powell’s inflation fight. 

  

  All of this chaos is happening as the world splinters into a multi-polar state, an indication commodity prices will remain elevated. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 16:55

• Billionaires Funding Protests Donate Millions To House Dems
  Billionaires Funding Protests Donate Millions To House Dems

  Authored by Susan Crabtree via RealClearPolitics.com,

  For President Biden and congressional Democrats, the fierce party division over the campus protests and the war in Gaza is full of warning signs during the 2024 election year. The unrest is unlikely to stop when universities break for the summer; protesters are pledging to disrupt the August Democratic National Convention planned to be held in Chicago. 

  Most House Democrats have been reticent on the antisemitic protests and encampments roiling college graduations this month, while a handful have vocally defended or even celebrated the student protests as displays of protected free speech. 

  Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, said she was proud of her daughter, a Barnard College student who was suspended for participating in illegal protests and who was among 100 people arrested after demonstrations at Columbia University in April. Throughout the months of campus protests, members of the progressive “squad,” Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Cori Bush of Missouri have applauded “courageous” anti-Israel student protestors while condemning efforts by university administrators and police to dismantle the encampments. 

  A RealClearPolitics analysis of Federal Election Commission data shows one possible reason most Democrats are trying to avoid the campus fray: House Democrats’ reelection campaigns have accepted $6.5 million from three major political families, which have helped bankroll several student groups participating in the protests. The family members cut most of those checks over the last two years, although some of the donations to longstanding House members came over the last decade.

  

  The names are well-known among Democratic funding circles: Soros, Rockefeller, and Pritzker. Yet before the anti-Jewish protests swept college campuses over the last few months, their financial ties to the student groups were not widely known. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a member of the same wealthy Pritzker family, is not among the donors. 

  Several investigative media reports over the last month have uncovered the extensive financial ties between these families and student groups involved in organizing anti-Israel protests and activism across the country predating the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel and in its aftermath and during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. 

  The donors to student groups include George Soros, a billionaire philanthropist and Democratic campaign contributor who helms the Open Society Foundation and his family members; the Pritzkers, the owners of Hyatt Hotels Corporation; and members of the famed Rockefeller family, including relatives of the wealthy American Banker and philanthropist David Rockefeller. The donations have either gone directly to student groups involved in campus demonstrations or to umbrella foundations and organizations, which have, in turn, channeled the funds to the protestors. 

  The House Democratic Congressional Committee and the House Majority PAC, which was founded by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and is directly affiliated with the House Democratic leadership, collected most of those funds, nearly $5.5 million by those two Democratic campaign entities alone, FEC records show. 

  Meanwhile, 30 House Democrats, including Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and other members of the leadership, received a combined total of $856,858 from the Soros, Pritzker, and Rockefeller families, while a dozen Democratic candidates in competitive races received a total of $139,000. RCP did not examine Senate recipients. 

  The House members in competitive races who received funds from at least one of the three families include Reps. Mary Peltola of Alaska, Mike Levin of California, Yadira Caraveo of Colorado, Johana Hayes of Connecticut, Eric Sorensen of Illinois, Frank Mrvan of Indiana, Sharice Davids, Jared Golden, Hillary Scholten, Angie Craig of Minnesota, Don Davis, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, Gabe Vasquez, of New Mexico, Susie Lee of Nevada, Steven Horsford of Nevada, Paty Ryan of New York, Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Andrea Salinas of Oregon, Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, and Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania. 

  Craig’s campaigns have received the most of any other House member from the three families: $96,490 since 2018. Lee’s campaign received the second most: $75,000 since 2017. 

  The Democratic candidates who accepted donations from at least one of the three families include Kirsten Engel in Arizona; Adam Gray, Rudy Salas, George Whitesides, and Will Rollins in California; Lanon Baccam in Iowa; Tony Vargas in Nebraska; Lauren Gillen, Mondaire Jones, and Josh Riley in New York; Ashley Ehasz in Pennsylvania; and Michelle Vallejo in Texas.

  Neither the DCCC nor any of the House members and candidates responded to RealClearPolitics’ questions about whether they had any concerns about the financial ties between the Soros, Pritzker, and Rockefeller families to these student groups. 

  Several organizations have played key roles in pro-Palestinian student activism and protests and have received donations from Soros, Pritzker, and Rockefeller family members. The U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, a pro-Palestinian advocacy group, has received at least $700,000 in Open Society Foundation grants since 2018 and $355,000 from the Rockefeller Brothers since 2019. 

  In 2023, the USCPR had three fellows – Nidaa Lafi, Craig Birckhead-Morton, and Malak Afaneh – all of whom have figured prominently in the nationwide protests, the New York Post reported in late April. The group provides up to $7,800 for its community-based fellows and between $2,880 and $3,660 for its campus-based fellows for spending at least eight hours a week organizing campaigns led by Palestinian organizations.

  While all were involved in student protests over the last several months, the University of California at Berkeley’s Afanah, co-president of Law Students for Justice in Palestine, made the most headlines. Afanah commandeered a microphone during a graduation dinner at the law school dean’s home to speak out against Israel’s war in Gaza. She claimed a First Amendment right to disrupt the gathering and then accused the dean’s wife of assaulting her when she forcefully asked her to leave. 

  The Open Society Foundations defended its funding of these groups and their right to “peacefully protest” in an April 26 X.com post. 

  “We have a long history of fighting antisemitism, Islamophobia, and all forms of racism and hate, and have advocated for the rights of Palestinians and Israelis and for peaceful resolution to the conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” the Foundations said. 

  “Our funding is a matter of public record, disclosed on our website, fully compliant with U.S. laws, and is part of our commitment to continuing open debate that is ultimately the only hope for peace in the region,” the organization asserted. 

  Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow are two additional organizations deeply involved in the student protests and backed by the Tides Foundations, which is Soros-funded. Jewish Voice for Peace, which openly describes itself as anti-Zionist, has also received $500,000 in funds from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund over the last five years. David Rockefeller Jr. sits on the Rockefeller Brothers’ board. The group has separately provided grants to both the Tides Foundation and the Tides Center, as Politico reported in early May. 

  The Pritzkers founded the Libra Foundation, which seeds smaller nonprofits, many of which have participated in pro-Palestinian marches, according to the same Politico report. One of them is the Climate Justice Alliance, which has labeled President Biden “Genocide Joe” for his handling of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. 

  Others benefitting from Pritzker largesse include Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity, which has helped promote anti-Israel protests, and the Immigrant Defense Project, which participated in a protest in D.C. earlier this year in which police arrested a number of participants. The Pritzkers also help financially support the Tides Foundation, which funds other small left-wing groups, including Adalah Justice Project, a prominent participant in the Columbia University protests and encampment, which police disbanded in early May. 

  House Republicans have launched multiple investigations into the funding of the campus protests and encampments. Earlier this week, the chairs of two GOP-led House committees, the Education and the Workforce and the House Oversight and Accountability panels, sent Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen a letter requesting all suspicious activity reports, or SARs, connected to 20 organizations that have reportedly led, financed, and participated in the antisemitic protests on college campuses. SARs are documents that financial institutions and other professionals file with the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to flag law enforcement to potential instances of money laundering or terrorist financing. 

  “It’s no coincidence that the day after the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack, antisemitic mobs began springing up on college campuses across the country,” Rep. Virginia Foxx, who chairs the Education and the Workforce Committee, said in a statement.

   “These protests have been coordinated and well-organized, indicating that outside groups or influences may be at play. American education is under attack. It’s critical that Congress investigates how these groups, who are tearing apart our institutions, are being funded before it’s too late.” 

  House Oversight Chairman James Comer pledged that his committee would follow the money trail and stressed that the antisemitism “thriving” on many college campuses “must not go unchecked.” 

  Topping the list that Foxx and Comer sent Yellen is Students for Justice in Palestine, or SJP, which has close ties to several anti-Israel organizations. After the Oct. 7 attacks, Students for Justice in Palestine’s national steering committee distributed a “tool kit” for activists that proclaimed, “glory to our resistance” and included a template for an advertisement showing protesters beneath a Palestinian flag. The image contained a paraglider, an apparent tribute to Hamas’ use of paragliders who slaughtered 360 youthful concert-goers, raped others, and took 44 people hostage during the Oct. 7 attack. That tool kit drew criticism from the Anti-Defamation League, which accused it of “celebrating terrorism.” 

  Students for Palestine has since been banned or suspended by Brandeis, Columbia, and George Washington University, among other colleges and universities. During his presidential campaign, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis banned the group from state campuses, referring to their alleged ties to Hamas.

  “We had a group of Students for Justice in Palestine,” DeSantis said. 

  “They claimed solidarity with Hamas. We deactivated them. We were not going to use tax dollars to fund jihad.”

  A 2016 report from the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at Brandeis stated that having a chapter on campus is “one of the strongest predictors of perceiving a hostile climate toward Israel and Jews.” 

  The Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Jonathan Schanzer, a former Treasury official responsible for designating numerous terrorist financiers, said his organization has been watching the financial network behind Students for Justice in Palestine for several years. The group, he said, has an umbrella organization known as Americans Muslims for Palestine, or AMP, a nonprofit that was previously based in Chicago but more recently moved to Falls Church, Virginia. For the last several years, AMP has been embroiled in litigation, accusing it of being an “alter-ego” or shell organization for the Islamic Association for Palestine, or IAP, a disbanded organization linked to Hamas. 

  In 2023, Schanzer testified before the House Ways and Means Committee that IAP had received numerous checks and deposited them into Hamas’ bank account, information uncovered during the litigation. In some cases, the deposits included the memo line “for Palestinian martyrs only,” Schanzer noted. 

  Hatem Bazian, AMP’s founder, was a frequent speaker at IAP forums, and Osama Abuirshaid, who edited IAP’s newspaper, is now AMP’s executive director, Schanzer said. In addition, Abuirshaid has published articles in English and Arabic praising Hamas, noting in them that he has communicated with Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook. 

  AMP created Students for Justice in Palestine, which started with just a handful of schools and has now expanded to 200 U.S. campuses with chapters. The group is a loosely connected network of autonomous chapters with no named leader. The structure allows it to avoid registering as a nonprofit and filing tax documents. Bazian, who founded the first chapter 30 years ago at the University of California at Berkeley, has described the student organization as “a symbolic franchise without a franchise fee.” 

  Bazian, who is now the chairman of American Muslims for Palestine’s board and a lecturer at Berkeley, has downplayed its ties to the student organization. He says AMP has only provided printed materials and offered grants for students to attend conferences or host speakers but has no supervisory role or control over the Students for Justice in Palestine. 

  Schanzer, however, strongly disagrees. While he stresses that FDD has not produced any evidence of present criminal wrongdoing implicating AMP, he argues that AMP and its organizers deserve intense scrutiny from members of Congress. AMP, he said, has, over the last two decades, provided checks to students at Northwestern, DePaul, and Loyola universities, among others. 

  Last year, Bazian curiously criticized CNN’s Jake Tapper’s “racist” coverage of Rep. Tlaib, arguing in a post from his own X.com account that, “As Jews who believe in human rights and justice, we demand you do better.” Schanzer notes that Bazian is Muslim, not Jewish, and the tweet has led to suspicion that Bazian thought he was logged into Jewish Voice for Peace’s account but mistakenly tweeted from his personal account. 

  Nine Americans and Israeli survivors and victims of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks are suing AMP and Students for Justice in Palestine, alleging that groups collaborated with Hamas to legitimize the Hamas attacks and provide public relations services for the terrorist organization. Meanwhile, the University of Florida chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine sued the state, challenging the Chancellor of the State University System’s order to state universities to deactivate the student group. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 16:20

• Ukraine Launched Its Largest-Ever Drone Attack On Russia While Putin Was In China
  Ukraine Launched Its Largest-Ever Drone Attack On Russia While Putin Was In China

  In what appears an intentionally-timed message, Ukraine’s military launched its largest-ever drone attack on Russian territory while President Putin was visiting China where he held two days of meetings with Xi Jinping.

  “Fifty-one UAVs were destroyed and intercepted over Crimea, 44 over the Krasnodar region, six over the Belgorod region and one over Kursk region,” Russia’s defense ministry announced of the Friday attack.

  This means well over 100 kamikaze drones were sent across several regions, particularly around Belgorod and the Black Sea. Given the Kremlin is claiming its forces intercepted that amount, the total number of UAVs deployed across the border was likely far and above that figure, perhaps even double, as clearly some made it through anti-air defenses.

  

  “Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said a mother and child were killed while traveling in a car, and authorities managed to extinguish the fire at the Tuapse refinery,” as cited in Fox News. “The child was in critical condition. Doctors did everything possible to save him,” Gladkov said.

  Sevastopol was forced to cancel all schools and classes, and to close public buildings, and there was confirmation of damage there.

  Ukraine is apparently seeking to retaliate for Russia’s ongoing major Kharkiv offensive, while Putin has linked the new Russian operation to push deeper into the northeast sector of Ukraine with pro-Kiev forces’ constant cross-border drone attacks and shelling.

  Dozens of Russians have been killed and wounded in Belgorod over the last several months. When asked about the worsening situation, Putin told a press briefing in Harbin, China on Friday that “what is happening on the Kharkiv front is their own fault.”

  Referencing places like Belgorod city, Putin says “Civilians are dying there” – explaining that “It’s obvious… they are shooting directly at the city center, at residential areas. And I said publicly that if this continues, we will be forced to create a security zone, a buffer zone. That is what we are doing.”

  Russian media has reported that the aim is to establish this buffer zone at least 10km within Ukrainian territory, making it more difficult for Ukraine forces to shell Russian villages and cities. According to more of Moscow’s intentions in the region via Russian state media:

  Russia has no intention of capturing the Ukrainian city of Kharkov, which is close to the Russian border, President Vladimir Putin has said. Moscow’s forces have been making notable gains in the area in recent days.

  Speaking to reporters at the Harbin Institute of Technology during his two-day visit to China, Putin commented on Russia’s operations in Kharkov Region, asserting that Moscow is achieving success on the battlefield by acting “strictly according to plan.”

  Also on Friday Ukraine’s President Zelensky warned the public that Russia’s summer assault “could consist of several waves. There was the first wave” in the Kharkiv region, and that the country should brace for more.

  Zelensky is meanwhile still claiming his goal is still the “liberation of Crimea”…

  “Zelensky said that after deoccupation, Crimea will become one of the best places to live in Europe: “It will definitely be – when the power of our resilience, our weapons, our diplomacy and the power of justice for Ukraine will ensure the liberation of Crimea from occupation.… pic.twitter.com/mtWnJLLWGp

  — Ivan Katchanovski (@I_Katchanovski) May 18, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  There has lately been widespread media acknowledgement that Ukrainian lines are being pushed back rapidly, and Ukraine officials including Zelensky have lashed out at Western allies for a significant delay in weapons and ammo.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 15:45

• US Focused On Hunting Down Hamas Chief Yahya Sinwar, In Bid To End War
  US Focused On Hunting Down Hamas Chief Yahya Sinwar, In Bid To End War

  Via Middle East Eye

  The United States is focused on tracking down Hamas’s Gaza chief, Yahya Sinwar, amid a new push by the White House to help Israel declare “total victory” so it can bring an end to the war in Gaza, US officials have told Middle East Eye. Current and former US officials, who spoke with MEE on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the mission, said the US was expanding its search efforts across the region, after believing the 61-year-old was hiding in tunnels deep below Gaza.

  A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media, told MEE that the Biden administration is now exploring possibilities that Sinwar fled to Egypt’s Sinai peninsula, and from there may have even escaped to either Lebanon or Syria. 

  

  The White House referred MEE to comments from US national security advisor Jake Sullivan earlier this week, that he wouldn’t comment on intelligence about Sinwar. The current and former officials did not reference any specific intelligence but said one factor driving the debate was that US intelligence was lagging on Sinwar’s last whereabouts. 

  According to the officials, the Biden administration is roughly one month behind on tracking Sinwar’s last known location, which was within the Gaza Strip. 

  Bruce Riedel, a former CIA official who also advised four US presidents on national security, told MEE that the lack of clarity surrounding Sinwar’s last location was “pretty bad.” When asked about the timeframe, he said: “One month means you aren’t even close to real-time information.”

  Last month, a Hamas official said that Sinwar had visited combat zones above ground and had held deliberations with the group’s leadership abroad. 

  Speaking to the pan-Arab news outlet Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed (or The New Arab), the Hamas official said Sinwar was not always staying in tunnels, as claimed by Israel, but also performing his duties in the field. MEE could not independently verify the reports on his whereabouts. 

  Tracking Sinwar has taken on a new urgency within the US intelligence community because the Biden administration believes it could help pressure Israel to end the war by declaring victory, the officials said.

  US President Joe Biden alluded to that strategy last week when he told CNN: “I said to Bibi (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu), ‘Don’t make the same mistake we made in America. We wanted to get bin Laden. We’ll help you get Sinwar’.”

  The parallel between hunting Sinwar and al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden underlines the extreme difficulty the US and Israel face trying to find Sinwar. The hunt for Bin Laden took ten years, and when he was located, he was in Pakistan, roughly one kilometre away from a military academy of the US’s counterterrorism ally.

  According to the officials, Washington wants to focus Israel’s energy on finding key Hamas leaders such as Sinwar and Mohammad Deif, the head of the al-Qassam Brigades, as a way to avert a wider full-scale assault on Rafah.

  The Biden administration, which continues to provide Israel with military and intelligence support, has said it would withhold offensive arms from Israel if it attacks “population centrers”, referring to Rafah, the southern Gaza border city which currently houses around 1.4 million displaced Palestinians.

  On Sunday, The New York Times reported that US officials believed Sinwar was not in Rafah but likely remains in Khan Younis, a city that Israeli forces laid siege to between December and April. Sinwar himself previously bragged in 2021 that there were 310 miles of tunnels in the Gaza Strip.

  A former US intelligence official familiar with Hamas told MEE that one of Sinwar’s brothers, Mohammad, oversaw tunnel construction between Sinai and Gaza and has deep ties to smuggling networks in Sinai, a factor that could aid Sinwar’s escape. 

  William Usher, a former senior Middle East analyst at the CIA, told MEE, “Right up until 7 October, Hamas had pretty unimpeded access to the tunnel network. They had contingency plans to put key leaders out of harm’s way,” he said. “In the past, Hamas went to Lebanon, Syria and even Iran,” Usher said. “It wouldn’t shock me if Sinwar was hiding there.”

  HAMAS LEADER ISMAIL HANIYEH SAYS
  “WE MUST UNITE AGAINST ISRAEL”

  He emphasized unity in the struggle against their common adversary. pic.twitter.com/PpT6Djda2w

  — Sulaiman Ahmed (@ShaykhSulaiman) May 16, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  US boosts intelligence-sharing with Israel

  On Monday, The Washington Post reported that the US was offering Israel new intelligence to help track Hamas leaders in exchange for Israel not launching the assault on Rafah.

  That report was carried by some Israeli news outlets under the title: US withholding “sensitive intelligence” on Hamas from Israel. However, several current and former US and Arab diplomats, as well as defence and intelligence officials, told MEE it was highly unlikely the US would withhold information on Hamas from Israel.

  In January, The New York Times reported that US national security advisor Jake Sullivan ordered the creation of a new task force to collect information on senior Hamas leaders and the location of hostages in Gaza, and share that intelligence with Israel.

  One of the main challenges for the US is that it paid little attention to Hamas in the lead-up to 7 October, analysts and former US officials said. The Palestinian movement is a designated terrorist organisation by the US, but whilst it was boxed into ruling the impoverished Gaza Strip, it was never considered a major threat to the US.

  The last time the US faced a major security threat in Gaza was in 2003, when a US diplomatic convoy was bombed there, killing three Americans. “The US depends on Israel to a large extent to share intelligence with us on what’s happening in Gaza because it has historically been their priority,” Usher said.

  The US officials said that the Biden administration had accelerated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) coordination with Israel. Meanwhile, a former US official said that Israel would be particularly interested in tapping into the US’s geospatial intelligence capabilities.

  Leverage over talks

  One of the routes the US is exploring to track Sinwar is the ceasefire talks, the sources said. While the face-to-face negotiators on Hamas’s behalf are the political leaders based in Qatar, Sinwar is widely believed to have the final say on any agreement, as the group holds captives in Gaza and exercises control over military units.

  Current and former Arab and US officials told MEE that Sinwar is probably relying on a circuitous network of couriers and potentially messaging apps to communicate with Hamas officials abroad. “If he was using a mobile phone, he’d be dead already,” Riedel told MEE.

  An Arab official familiar with Hamas told MEE that the group has had years of experience learning to cloak its communication during previous wars with Israel. “This is a guy from a different generation who is used to communicating off the grid,” the official said.

  According to US officials, whilst Algeria and Turkey also maintain dialogue with Hamas, Washington is leaning on Egypt to rule out whether Sinwar fled to Sinai. Egypt’s military intelligence talks directly to Hamas’s armed wing, giving them better access to Hamas than any of Washington’s other Arab partners. 

  The current and former US and Arab officials told MEE that if Sinwar fled the Gaza Strip, it could be a blow to Hamas’s morale. Although he has been described as “prepared to die in Gaza”, one US official said that Hamas’s endurance on the battlefield after seven months may be impacting his decision-making.

  “He might want to reconstitute for Hamas 3.0,” the US official said. Despite the US effort, some doubt that killing Sinwar would be enough for the US to press Israel into a ceasefire agreement.

  Jonathan Panikoff, the director of the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council, told MEE, “killing Sinwar might be sufficient for the US to decide its time for Israel to declare victory and move on, but it’s not clear that it would be sufficient for Netanyahu’s political survival”.

  “Ultranationalists like Ben Gvir and Smotrich will likely still demand a military operation in Rafah.” MEE also reached out to Syria’s UN mission in New York, and Lebanon and Egypt’s embassies in Washington DC for comment on Sinwar’s whereabouts, but didn’t receive a reply by the time of publication. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 15:10

• White House Reacts To Ultra-Rare Putin-Xi Hug During Visit Highlighting Closer Military Ties
  White House Reacts To Ultra-Rare Putin-Xi Hug During Visit Highlighting Closer Military Ties

  The Biden administration has reacted to what might be called the hug heard around the world (or ‘felt’ perhaps). During the last day of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit to China where he met with President Xi Jinping, the two shared an ultra-rare embrace in host city for the visit Harbin.

  During the two leaders’ final ‘goodbye’ interaction, it was Xi who appeared to initiate the hug. One regional expert, Arnaud Bertrand, has commented “It is indeed incredibly uncommon to hug in Chinese culture, especially for senior officials, which is why you can see Putin is taken aback at first.”

  Xi Jinping hugged Vladimir Putin. Heads are exploding in America’s Deep State.

  The multipolar world is here.pic.twitter.com/rIKW166OIh

  — Danny Haiphong (@SpiritofHo) May 17, 2024

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  White House national security communications adviser John Kirby weighed in later in the day Friday, saying somewhat sarcastically, “That’s nice for them.” 

  Kirby went on to say that it’s “no surprise” that Putin and Xi “continue to try to develop this burgeoning relationship” but that that it remains officials in both governments “aren’t necessarily all that trustful” of each other, according to the remarks.

  “What they have in common is a desire to challenge the international rules-based order, challenge the network of alliances and partnerships that the United States enjoys,” Kirby followed with. He said the two are trying to “look for ways to bolster each other’s national security interests as well.”

  However, there have been exceptions when it comes to the diplomatic past and Xi has hugged Western leaders at times too…

  Actually, this is very common these days. In 2019, Xi and Macron hug each other in Shanghai.
  In Xi’s latest state visit to France, Macron hug Xi before Xi climbed the steps to his plane. pic.twitter.com/bPHEvZ7fxI

  — Shen Shiwei 沈诗伟 (@shen_shiwei) May 17, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  And an analyst quoted in the NY Times saw it as an expression of “disdain” aimed at Washington. “Xi’s very deliberate embrace of Putin for the cameras wasn’t just to emphasize the closeness of the political relationship between the two countries and their leaders,” said Richard McGregor of the East Asia at the Lowy Institute in Sydney.

  “There was also a touch of disdain directed at Washington, which has been pressuring Beijing to withdraw support from Moscow. That clearly isn’t going to happen in any substantive fashion.”

  The visit culminated in a joint statement pledging deepened cooperation in sectors that include energy, the military, and space.

  🇷🇺🇪🇺🇺🇸 US sanctions European partners, it’s what they do – Putin

  “The Europeans swallow it up, once again confirming that they are vassals of America,” pic.twitter.com/TxjFqc46nY

  — DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) May 17, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  As for questions surrounding reports that Putin is favorable to China’s vision for a roadmap to peace in Ukraine, Putin was quoted as saying in Xinhua, “We have never refused to negotiate. We are seeking a comprehensive, sustainable and just settlement of this conflict through peaceful means,”

  “We are open to a dialogue on Ukraine, but such negotiations must take into account the interests of all countries involved in the conflict, including ours,” he continued. Putin said he informed the Chinese leader in detail about “the situation in Ukraine” and added, “We are grateful for the initiative of our Chinese colleagues and friends to regulate the situation.”

  The city of Harbin was apparently chosen in part as it has Russian cultural roots…

  Putin visits Orthodox Church in Harbin, China pic.twitter.com/NberFgPyG0

  — RT (@RT_com) May 17, 2024

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  Xi had said during the visit, “Both sides agree that a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis is the correct direction.” And further “China’s position on this issue has been consistent and clear, including … the respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries and the legitimate security concerns of all parties.”

  The Pentagon meanwhile took the opportunity to issue a fresh warning to China, with Ely Ratner, assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, he communicated to a Chinese military official “serious concern over the [Peoples Republic of China’s] support for Russia’s defense industrial base that enables Russia’s war in Ukraine.”

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 14:35

• Expect More Inflation No Matter Who Wins The Election
  Expect More Inflation No Matter Who Wins The Election

  Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

  For many reasons, the Fed will struggle to contain inflation. This is part one on the Fed’s struggle. It covers deficit spending and interest on the debt.

  

  Key Points

  • The government is running a cumulative deficit of $1.1 trillion so far in FY2024 ($46 billion more than the same period in the prior fiscal year when adjusted for timing shifts)

  • Revenues were $2.2 trillion through February

  • Outlays were $3.3 trillion through March

  The above is according to the Bipartisan Policy Organization.

  Those numbers do not include a $95 billion aid bill for Ukraine and Israel that recently passed Congress.

  The projections look worse.

  Revenue and Outlays Projections

  

  “As spending continues to outpace revenues, deficits will exceed $1.5 trillion (an average of 5.6% of GDP) in each of the next ten years. In comparison to May 2023’s budget outlook, deficits are projected to be a cumulative $1.4 trillion less over FY2024-2033.”

  This report as well as White House economic projections, and Congressional Budget Office projections are all too optimistic.

  Q: Why?
  A: None of them factor in a recession all the way through 2054.

  The Fed makes the same optimistic assumptions in its projections.

  Fed Summary of Economic Projections March 2024 vs December 2023

  

  Compared to December of 2023 the Fed upped its central tendency of GDP expectations, core inflation, and the expected Fed Funds Rate as noted in my March 20, assessment Fed’s Dot Plot is More Hawkish Towards Cuts in March vs. December

  The key points are the Fed assumes no recessions and the Fed assumes no matter what Congress does that it will hold inflation to two percent over the long term.

  In other words, the Fed assumes that it is in control when history suggests that it isn’t.

  The Fed has never forecast a recession, nor has the Fed spotted one in real time.

  The deficit is now over $34 trillion with debt held by the public at $27 trillion. Interest on the national debt is over $1 trillion.

  Money that would go for investment instead goes to bondholders.

  Neither party will fix deficit spending. Nor will the Fed.

  And it will get worse in the next recession. Unrestrained fiscal stimulus contributed to the mess we are in, and nothing suggests a policy change no matter who wins the election.

  In the past two decades, the Fed did have some favorable global factors that held down inflation. Those factors are gone. I will discuss the differences in my next segment.

  Meanwhile, please consider my question Dear Jerome Powell, Is Everything Under Control?

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 14:00

• Texas Governor Pardons Daniel Perry, Veteran Who Shot Armed BLM Protester
  Texas Governor Pardons Daniel Perry, Veteran Who Shot Armed BLM Protester

  Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has pardoned former U.S. Army Sgt. Daniel Perry, who was convicted of murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison for shooting an armed Black Lives Matter (BLM) protester who wielded an AK-47.

  

  Mr. Abbott issued a proclamation on May 16 indicating that Mr. Perry has been granted a full pardon and restoration of full civil rights of citizenship, while taking aim at Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza for allegedly directing the lead investigator to withhold exculpatory evidence and demonstrating “unethical and biased misuse” of his office in prosecuting Mr. Perry.

  “Texas has one of the strongest ‘Stand Your Ground’ laws of self-defense that cannot be nullified by a jury or a progressive District Attorney,” Mr. Abbott said in a statement announcing the pardon. “I thank the Board for its thorough investigation, and I approve their pardon recommendation.”

  Earlier in the day, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles issued a pardon recommendation to the governor’s office, indicating in a statement that it had “delved into the intricacies” of Mr. Perry’s case, including reviewing police reports, court records, witness statements, and interviews with people linked to the case.

  “The Board voted unanimously to recommend a full pardon and restoration of firearm rights,” the board said in the statement.

  Mr. Garza’s office told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that board’s decision and the governor’s pardon amount to a “mockery of our legal system.”

  “Their actions are contrary to the law and demonstrate that there are two classes of people in this state where some lives matter and some lives do not,” he said.

  More Details

  Mr. Perry was convicted on April 7, 2023, on murder charges for killing Garrett Foster on July 25, 2020, during a BLM protest in Austin, Texas.

  On the night of the shooting, Mr. Perry was working as a ride-share driver and had turned onto a street where Mr. Foster and dozens of other protesters were marching. After Mr. Foster approached Mr. Perry’s car carrying an AK-47 rifle and began to raise the rifle toward Mr. Perry, the former Army sergeant shot Mr. Foster, his attorneys said in his defense.

  Mr. Perry claimed self-defense, but prosecutors claimed he had maliciously driven into a crowd of protesters and that Mr. Foster had the right to approach him and investigate.

  Doug O’Connell, Mr. Perry’s attorney, said in a statement posted on social media that his client is grateful for the pardon and wishes “this tragic event never happened and wishes he never had to defend himself against Mr. Foster’s unlawful actions.”

  “He is thrilled and elated to be free,” Mr. O’Connell wrote, while criticizing the “courtroom travesty” that put him behind bars for what would have been over two decades.

  Mr. Perry served 372 days of his sentence before being freed, Mr. O’Connell said, while blaming Mr. Garza for tampering with witnesses during the case.

  Mr. Garza told The Epoch Times that the pardon sends a message to those Travis County community members who served on the grand jury that their service is meaningless.

  “To the family and friends of Garrett Foster, and to the people of Travis County, we will not stop fighting for justice,” Mr. Garza said.

  Background

  Mr. Perry, who was working as an Uber driver at the time of the shooting, traveled to Austin in July 2020 for work, according to a statement he provided through his attorneys.

  After dropping a client off, Mr. Perry drove his vehicle onto Congress Avenue and encountered the protest, which was blocking the road. His attorney said that Mr. Perry was unaware of the demonstration before encountering the group.

  “When Sgt. Perry turned on the Congress Avenue, several people started beating on his vehicle,” the statement said. “An individual carrying an assault rifle, now known to be Garrett Foster, quickly approached the car and then motioned with the assault rifle for Mr. Perry to lower his window.”

  Mr. Perry complied with the request, initially believing that Mr. Foster was with law enforcement.

  “It has now been confirmed by several witnesses that this individual with the assault rifle then began to raise the assault rifle toward Sgt. Perry,” his lawyer said in the statement. “It was only then that Sgt. Perry, who carried a handgun in his car for his own protection while driving strangers in the ride share program, fired on the person to protect his own life.”

  After Mr. Perry shot Mr. Foster, another person in the crowd began firing on Mr. Perry’s vehicle, prompting him to speed away and, after reaching a safe location, to call the police.

  Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told reporters after the shooting that people on the scene gave conflicting accounts of what happened, though he acknowledged that Mr. Foster may have pointed his gun at Mr. Perry.

  

  Prosecutors alleged that Mr. Perry had provoked the shooting by driving into the crowd of protesters.

  His attorneys argued that prosecutors withheld key evidence from the jury that suggested Mr. Foster was the aggressor. For instance, his attorneys sought to introduce evidence of three incidents that they said showed Mr. Foster had previously tried to intimidate cars on public streets.

  Mr. Perry’s lawyers also repeatedly tried to introduce into evidence a video recording of Mr. Foster, taken by a protester witness on the morning of July 25, 2020. The video showed that when Mr. Foster was asked if he felt like he’d need to use his AK-47, he said: “Na. I think the uh—I mean if I use it against the cops, I’m dead. I think all the people that hate us, and you know, wanna say [expletive] to us are too big of a [expletive] to stop and actually do anything about it.”

  According to Mr. Perry’s attorneys, the evidence showed that Mr. Foster and fellow protesters “routinely harassed vehicles that attempted to interfere with their efforts to ’take the streets.’”

  Texas law indicates that a person is justified in using force against someone when they “reasonably” believe it’s necessary to protect them against another’s use of unlawful force.

  The Board of Pardons and Paroles said in its May 16 statement that, after a “thorough review of the amassed information,” it concluded that Mr. Perry had acted lawfully and recommended he be pardoned.

  Mimi Nguyen-Ly and Zachary Stieber contributed to this report. This article has been updated with comments from Mr. Garza’s office.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 12:50

• Ex-NIH Director Confirms 'No Science' Behind 6-Foot Distancing Rules
  Ex-NIH Director Confirms ‘No Science’ Behind 6-Foot Distancing Rules

  Newly released testimony from former NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins confirms that Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx did not base the pandemic-era six-foot social distancing rule on science, and instead were making things up as they went along.

  

  On Thursday, Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, released a transcript from Collins’ January closed-door interview, in which he’s asked about a range of issues – including the lab-leak theory and the six-foot social distancing rule.

  “We asked Dr. Fauci where the six feet came from and he said it kind of just appeared, is the quote,” the majority counsel on the committee told Dr. Collins, per the transcript. “Do you recall science or evidence that supported the six-feet distance?“

  “I do not,” Collins replied.

  Counsel then asked, “Is that I do not recall or I do not see any evidence supporting six feet?”

  To which Collins replied “I did not see evidence, but I’m not sure I would have been shown evidence at that point.”

  “Since then, it has been an awfully large topic. Have you seen any evidence since then supporting six feet?” Counsel replied.

  “No,” said Collins.

  BREAKING.🚨@COVIDSelect releases testimony of Dr. Francis Collins, former NIH director who ran America’s Covid response.

  Highlights:
  • 6-feet social distancing made up
  • Wuhan lab leak not ‘conspiracy theory’
  • Fauci had agenda to discredit lab leak
  • Fauci lied
  • NIH… pic.twitter.com/ycFSZKrTQr

  — Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) May 16, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  As the Epoch Times notes further, the remarks by Dr. Collins offer further indication that officials issuing guidelines at the height of the pandemic were, at least to some extent, making decisions that were not explicitly supported by scientific data.

  Various officials involved in crafting the U.S. pandemic response, including Dr. Fauci, have said that they were making good-faith decisions based on the available data at the time and that once new information emerged, they adjusted their recommendations accordingly.

  Major factor in the delay of reopening schools due to 6 ft rule

  American Federation of Teachers had it written in the contract

  “Our union had it in their contract. It’s literally why we didn’t reopen the whole year”

  h/t @LeslieBienen

  No one is criticizing Denmark anymore https://t.co/PmiOc9P0J7 pic.twitter.com/CUkYdv7Mf8

  — APBIOonly (@APBIOonly) May 17, 2024

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  Social Distancing In Focus

  As the COVID-19 outbreak spread in 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued guidance describing social distancing to include staying away from congregant settings, avoiding mass gatherings, and maintaining a distance of at least six feet from others when possible.

  The CDC’s latest guidance on respiratory virus infection prevention (updated on April 4, 2024) includes a section on physical distancing. It indicates that putting physical distance between oneself and others can help lower the risk of spreading a respiratory virus.

  “There is no single number that defines a ’safe’ distance, since spread of viruses can depend on many factors,” the guidance states, which comports with studies such as one from 2021 that concluded that the one-size-fits-all six-foot physical distancing rule is invalid.

  However, the CDC’s latest guidance for healthcare settings, updated on March 18, 2024, makes several references to six feet. For instance, it recommends that in dental facilities with open floor plans, one strategy to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is to ensure “at lest 6 feet of space between patient chairs.” It also defines “close contact” between individuals as “being within 6 feet for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period with someone with SARS-CoV-2 infection.”

  New CDC Director Mandy Cohen recalls how she and her colleagues came up with COVID mandates during her time as NC Health Director.

  “She was like, are you gonna let them have professional football? And I was like, no. And she’s like, OK neither are we.”pic.twitter.com/0pZl3dL01D

  — Michael P Senger (@michaelpsenger) June 2, 2023

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  The Epoch Times has reached out to the CDC with a request for comment on Dr. Collins’s remarks and for clarification on what scientific basis the agency incorporated the six-foot figure into its COVID-19 prevention guidance.

  In March, the CDC also updated its guidance for people who test positive for COVID-19, telling them that they no longer need to isolate for five days.

  The updated guidance indicated that the threat from COVID-19 has fallen to become more similar to that of other respiratory viruses, and so rather than providing additional virus-specific guidelines, the CDC was opting for a “unified, practical approach.”

  In justifying its shift to the new guidelines, which basically treat COVID-19 like any other respiratory virus, the CDC said that many people with respiratory virus symptoms often don’t know which pathogen is causing their symptoms, so a unified approach is more practical.

  Numerous doctors had long urged the CDC to drop the five-day isolation recommendation, though as recently as mid-February, the agency continued to hold off on making the change, citing the need for more consultation.

  In the updated guidelines, the CDC gave a nod to the “personal and societal costs of extended isolation,” including limited paid sick time.

  In October 2020, Francis Collins labeled me, Harvard prof. @MartinKulldorff, and Oxford prof. @SunetraGupta “fringe epidemiologists” for opposing lockdowns and school closures. He embraced and recommended “social distancing” on the basis of nothing. https://t.co/FkLHtUOUnU

  — Jay Bhattacharya (@DrJBhattacharya) May 17, 2024

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  A number of experts and studies have warned about the harms of prolonged isolation during the pandemic. For instance, the American Psychological Association said in November 2023 that Americans have suffered “collective trauma” related to the pandemic. The association cited a study suggesting that the heavy-handed response to the COVID-19 outbreak—which, in addition to the social distancing rule, included quarantines, school closures, business shutdowns, and near-universal mandating of masks—had a negative effect on people’s physical and mental health.

  Another study that looked at a wide array of research into lockdowns concluded that such measures can be an effective tool in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic but only if “long-term collateral damage is neglected.”

  The price tag of lockdowns in terms of public health is high: by using the known connection between health and wealth, we estimate that lockdowns may claim 20 times more life years than they save,” the study’s authors wrote.

  The researchers also warned about the widespread censorship of dissenting opinions about the lockdowns, noting that it prevents the scientific community from correcting its mistakes and undermines public trust in science.

  *  *  *

  “SICK LIES”

  New York Post goes after Fauci for his lies about dangerous virus research at the Wuhan institute of Virology.

  It’s only going to get worse for these liars.
  (friend sent me this photo from a NY bodega.) pic.twitter.com/tE9xqB0Ffn

  — Paul D. Thacker (@thackerpd) May 17, 2024

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  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 12:15

• When Ideological Bubbles Trump Economic Thinking
  When Ideological Bubbles Trump Economic Thinking

  Authored by Paul Mueller via The American Institute for Economic Research,

  Sometimes smart people make remarkably naïve or deeply problematic comments because their view of the world has been molded by narrow ideology, reinforced by significant consensus in their social circles.

  

  Recently Esther Duflo, a Nobel prize winning economist, revealed herself to be such a person. In a Financial Times interview with Simon Mundy, she said the West owed a “moral debt” of about $500 billion annually to the global south due to its contribution to climate change and the resulting harm.

  I’ve questioned such a calculation elsewhere. And I am not commenting on her published economic work, some of which is no doubt decent. Instead, I want to highlight how outrageously naïve global elites, in this case within the economics profession, have become. There are three major examples of Progressive groupthink in this relatively short interview.

  Example 1 – People advance the public good by paying taxes

  I think we need to rely on taxation because that is the way in which traditionally we ensure that everyone in the economy, private companies and individuals, contributes to the public good. 

  Setting aside the dubious claim that all or even most government spending advances the “public good,” what a narrow view of the world!

  Does this mean that farmers or doctors or mechanics only contribute to the public good when they pay taxes? The question (should) answer itself! This reasoning suggests that her taxes contribute to the public good, not her research. But perhaps if her work is funded by tax dollars…

  The idea that taxes advance the public good informs her claim that we ought to further tax the ultra-wealthy. The super rich don’t and won’t contribute to the public good because, she thinks, they can basically avoid paying taxes.

  Example 2 – The ultra-rich don’t pay taxes

  In terms of the ultra-rich, I think everyone has recognized [sic] the fundamental unfairness in the fact that the ultra-rich are not being taxed on the income that they are making from their wealth. You are being taxed on the income you’re making by interviewing me; I’m being taxed on the income I’m making as an academic. But if we are sufficiently wealthy to have a lot of money invested in various places, and we keep reinvesting this money, we never have to take it out, and therefore, we are never taxed on it. If [the super-rich] want to consume, in a lot of cases, they will borrow against their wealth. So it’s a loan, not an “income” — so they are not taxed on it. That seems to be fundamentally unfair.

  This view that the ultra-wealthy can avoid paying taxes by simply reinvesting their money indefinitely has become canonical in Progressive elite ideological circles due to the peddling of misleading or even incorrect data on income and wealth inequality by economists like Picketty, Saez, and Zucman. They do not seem to care much about the nuanced disincentives of different kinds of taxation. 

  A capital gains tax, for example, is a third-order tax. Companies already pay corporate income taxes which, all else equal, reduces the price of a stock. And when people buy stock initially, they usually do so with previous income that has also already been taxed. Group think among elites means that many of them have never even questioned the validity of this data or the downsides of taxing “capital” because it is all “based on a lot of empirical work.” 

  As a result, a smart economist like Duflo can say that a 2-percent wealth tax is “not going to be a big burden on the ultra-rich, because 2 percent of their wealth is only 30 percent of their income from their wealth, which is currently untaxed.” As if ultra-wealthy people have a simple mixed stock/bond portfolio that averages a seven or eight percent return annually without any volatility.

  For some reason Duflo seems to think that the ultra-wealthy don’t pay taxes. Leaving aside the fact that they obviously pay significant property and sales taxes, they often fund consumption with loans but that only lets them defer their taxes, not eliminate them. Afterall, they have to repay bank loans periodically and they can only do so by realizing (taxable) income or capital gains.

  And while the effective tax rate the ultra-rich pay may be small in some years, or even though their tax payments may be small relative to their net worth at a given moment, Duflo misses a major difference between stable employment income and how entrepreneurs amass fortunes: equity and risk.

  Take Elon Musk, someone she mentions by name as one of the ultra-wealthy who should pay a global wealth tax. Yes, his net worth is enormous, but so is its volatility. On paper, Musk lost about $165 billion dollars in one year (November 2021 to December 2022). In the past four months he has lost close to $20 billion dollars in the market value of his Tesla shares.

  In what world does a 2-percent tax on someone’s wealth equal “only 30 per cent of their income from their wealth”? Such a comment epitomizes the naivety among many Progressive elites.

  Then Duflo makes a freshman error when talking about whether raising taxes reduces people’s incentives to work hard and innovate. She says that her “comfort with taxation…is based on a lot of empirical work that shows that rich people will not stop working or inventing because taxation is higher.” This comfort, no doubt, comes from an uncritical acceptance of Piketty-Saez-Zucman data and highly problematic narratives. 

  Ever since the marginal revolution in the 1870s, Econ 101 has included the idea of marginal analysis. Economists should not ask questions like: “will people stop work or stop inventing” as if some on-off switch is being thrown. Instead, we ask “how much more” or “how much less” of a certain behavior will occur, and then argue about the significance of that magnitude.

  Example 3 – Politicians can and will easily implement this proposal

  It’s really necessary. And it’s reasonable. It’s not that hard.

  That’s what she thinks of her proposal to raise $500 billion in taxes annually and redistribute it to countries disproportionately harmed by climate change. She thinks a novel tax on wealth can be implemented at a global level with all the revenue going to targeted recipients — it defies belief! Why would power-hungry and spendthrift legislators let go of the new tax revenue? 

  Duflo might suggest that we need a “nonpolitical” global organization to enforce and collect the tax. But that begs a similar question: Why would power-hungry and spendthrift legislators authorize or allow such an agency to have such authority? That a Nobel Prize-winning economist can hold these naïve views and fail to use simple economic reasoning should give us pause about how ideology and echo chambers can dull our reasoning. 

  Industrialization, and the carbon emissions that accompanied it, created more benefit for people in poor and developing countries than all the philanthropy and anti-poverty programs in history combined, many times over.

  That a leading expert in development economics ignores this is nigh unforgivable.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 05/18/2024 – 11:40

Digest powered by RSS Digest

• Sen. Cruz Urges DOJ, FBI To Investigate Whether Foreign Adversaries Are Behind Gaza War Protests In US
  Sen. Cruz Urges DOJ, FBI To Investigate Whether Foreign Adversaries Are Behind Gaza War Protests In US

  Authored by Ryan Morgan via The Epoch Times,

  Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has called for U.S. federal authorities to investigate whether foreign actors are promoting contentions within the United States, including recent protests over the war in Gaza taking place on U.S. college campuses and other venues around the country.

  

  During a Wednesday, May 15 episode of his personal podcast “The Verdict,” Mr. Cruz noted a recent report by the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) alleging connections between the the “Shut It Down for Palestine” (SID4P) movement and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

  The NCRI report specifically alleges that convenor organizations that formed the SID4P protest movement, People’s Forum, the International People’s Assembly, and ANSWER Coalition, “serve as the conduit through which CCP-affiliated entities have effectively co-opted pro-Palestinian activism in the U.S., advancing a broader anti-American, anti-democratic, and anti-capitalist agenda.”

  “If you look at this report from NCRI, it details how China is spending millions upwards of potentially $100 million funding these protests that are occurring on campuses that are shutting down bridges that are shutting down airports,” Mr. Cruz said.

  “And you might think, okay, ‘What does China care about Hamas? What does China care about Israel?’ And the truth of the matter is they don’t, but they care about America, they care about tearing our country apart, they care about chaos and fomenting dissent and dissension that paralyzes our country.”

  During the podcast episode, Mr. Cruz also noted a recent article by the New York Post alleging ties between Manolo De Los Santos, a 35-year-old New York-based activist involved in recent pro-Palestinian activism, and Cuba. Mr. De Los Santos was born in the Dominican Republic and now works with The People’s Forum.

  Report Says Protest Group May Be Tied to Terrorist Group

  The NCRI report also states some Western intelligence assessments indicate Samidoun, an organization that has endorsed SID4P, is connected to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The U.S. government has designated PFLP as a foreign terrorist organization.

  The German government banned Samidoun from operating in the country in October.

  The NCRI report derives its claims that Samidoun may be linked to PFLP from a November article in the German newspaper Deutsche Welle, which itself cites unnamed intelligence sources for the alleged PFLP connection.

  NTD News reached out to Samidoun for comment on these allegations but did not receive a response by press time. The group did, however, publish a statement criticizing the German government’s decision to ban them in October.

  “If the German Chancellor and his government support the genocidal war on Gaza being carried out as we speak, it can be no surprise that they also seek to criminalize the ability of Palestinians and people of conscience to act against that war, to speak out, to organize, and to express support for the Palestinian people’s drive and struggle for freedom, justice and liberation,” Samidoun’s October statement reads.

  Samidoun said in October that it was committed to challenging the German government’s ban.

  Cruz: DOJ and FBI Should Investigate

  Mr. Cruz and 15 other Republican U.S. senators signed a letter last week, calling on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to begin investigating whether various nonprofit organizations involved in organizing protests over the war in Gaza should lose their tax-exempt status on the grounds that their activities may constitute prohibit support for terrorist organizations.

  The Republican Texas senator took his calls for investigation a step further during the Wednesday podcast, urging the U.S. Department of Justice to also begin investigating these activist groups.

  “The Department of Justice should be investigating this. The FBI should be investigating this,” Mr. Cruz said. “We’ve got money coming from communist China, behind these protests, behind these anti-American anti-Israel protests. We’ve got money coming from organizations that have close ties to designated terrorist organizations. And so, whether it is Hamas and Hezbollah pushing this, whether it is affiliated allies of theirs pushing this, whether it is Iran pushing this, or whether it’s Communist China pushing this, the FBI ought to be all over it.”

  NTD News reached out to the SID4P convenor organizations for comment about the NCRI report and Mr. Cruz’s calls for investigation but they did not respond by press time.

  NTD News also reached out for comment from Mr. De Los Santos but did not receive a response.

  In addition to his calls for FBI investigations, Mr. Cruz also advocated for deporting foreign nationals engaged in certain protest activities.

  “As far as I’m concerned, if you have a student on a student visa, who gets out there and is burning an American flag and chanting Death to America, you should deport him that day,” Mr. Cruz said. “We have no obligation to allow people to come on student visas, which is permissive, and it is a choice that is a discretionary choice if they are going to tear down this country.”

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 23:40

• NOTAM Sparks Confusion Over Possible Russian Hypersonic Missile Test Off California Coast
  NOTAM Sparks Confusion Over Possible Russian Hypersonic Missile Test Off California Coast

  There’s been quite a stir on X as some users speculate that a NOTAM, or aviation notice to airmen, suggests a potential Russian Navy hypersonic missile test off the coast of Southern California. However, that’s not the case. According to The War Zone, the NOTAM is actually in anticipation of a Russian space booster splashing down in the Pacific. 

  Let’s begin with the misguided hype on X about the threats of Russian missile testing off the California coast. These posts collectively have generated more than a million views. 

  Russian Navy rocket/gun/missile firing starts this afternoon off the coast of California and Baja until the 26th in International waters. Shouldn’t really affect any flights going to/from Hawaii.

  THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION PLANS TO CONDUCT ROCKET FIRINGS. IMPACT AREA WI THE OAKLAND… pic.twitter.com/xLppIZDSae

  — Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) May 16, 2024

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  🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺Russian Navy will do hypersonic missile test exercise — 40 miles away from California

  Apparently exercise/test will last 10 days will end May 26 , 2024

  this will be new hypersonic —(Zirconium) SCRAMJET ENGINE testing off coast of California.

  Mach : 8 — 12 top speed🇷🇺🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/q2oyR1kKl4

  — Fish 🐟𝐙 (@fisherofsea) May 17, 2024

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  Meanwhile, two US defense officials told TWZ the NOTAM is in place through May 26 because of the re-entry of a “Russian space launch booster.” 

  “It is not for a launch or a military exercise,” the officials said, commenting on the social media hype. 

  

  Concerns about the Russians in the Pacific surfaced earlier this week in a NOTAM posted on May 13 advising pilots to avoid a large block of airspace between May 16 and May 26 “for Russian Federation impact area by at least 50 nautical miles.”

  “This notice is for all aircraft transiting from Hawaii to North America and North America to Hawaii. The following restrictions are due to the Russian Federation rocket firing impact area,” the NOTAM read, which sparked mass confusion. 

  

  US defense officials weren’t entirely sure which Russian rocket booster would splash down in the Pacific. However, Russian media outlet TASS reported earlier today that a Soyuz-2.1b rocket equipped with satellites launched Friday. 

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 23:20

• Drug Overdose Deaths Drop For First Time Since 2018
  Drug Overdose Deaths Drop For First Time Since 2018

  Authored by Amie Dahnke via The Epoch Times,

  The rate of death by overdose declined in 2023, marking the first decrease in five years. Data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics show the decline mainly attributed to a drop in deaths from synthetic opioids, specifically fentanyl.

  

  The number of drug overdoses in 2023 was predicted to be 107,543, down from 111,029 in 2022, indicating a 3 percent drop. Deaths from all types of opioids dropped by 3.7 percent.

  The good news, unfortunately, stops there, as death rates from stimulants like cocaine and methamphetamine rose. Deaths from cocaine overdose were up 5.2 percent, while the death rate for methamphetamine was up nearly 2 percent.

  Some states saw decreases in overdose death rates. Indiana, Kansas, Maine, and Nebraska experienced declines of 15 percent or more. Alaska, Oregon, and Washington, however, experienced significant spikes in overdose deaths, with rates increasing by at least 27 percent.

  However, drug overdose-death trends seem to be leveling off after a drastic spike from 2019 to 2020. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the overdose death rate increased 31 percent that year, marking the biggest spike since 2002. Drug overdoses remain one of the leading causes of injury death in adults, the CDC reports.

  Narcan’s Wider Availability May Be Behind the Dip

  The report gave no definitive reason for the slight decrease in drug overdose deaths. However, naloxone, more commonly known as Narcan, has become more widely available and used. In 2023, Narcan became more available in public places, including schools and federal buildings, as part of the Biden administration’s National Drug Control Strategy.

  “These lifesaving medications should be as readily available as fire extinguishers or defibrillators in all public spaces, from schools, to housing communities, to restaurants, retail, and other businesses,” Human Health Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a press release.

  Additionally, test strips became available for people looking to test their drugs for fentanyl. Community clinics also operate programs to hand out sterile syringes to help reduce transmission of infections such as hepatitis C and HIV among those who inject drugs.

  Despite the dip in death rates, drug overdose deaths remain at an all-time high, as does illicit drug use. Results of the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) showed that 48.7 million Americans 12 or older struggled with drug addiction in the past year, including 29.5 million who were addicted to alcohol, 27.2 million who were addicted to drugs, and 8 million with an addiction to both.

  “The National Survey on Drug Use and Health provides an annual snapshot of behavioral health nationwide,” Mr. Becerra said in an NSDUH press release. “This data informs knowledge, policy and action, and drives our shared commitment across government, healthcare, industry and community to offer resources and services to those in need.”

  Drug Use, Mental Illness Go Hand in Hand

  In 2022, 70.3 million Americans aged 12 and older admitted to using an illicit drug in the past year. The NSDUH also found that nearly one in four adults 18 and older had a mental illness within the past year and that just under 5 million adolescents experienced a major depressive episode.

  Moreover, one in 20 adults had harbored serious thoughts of suicide in the past year, while 3.8 million had made a serious plan; another 1.8 million had attempted to end their lives. Adolescents were not immune to suicidal ideation. Over one in eight adolescents between 12 and 17 years old entertained suicidal thoughts, one in 15 made plans, and one in 25 attempted suicide.

  “To tackle the behavioral health crisis in this nation, we need to fully understand the issues surrounding mental health and substance use, and the impact they have on people and communities,” Human Health Services Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm said in a press release.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 23:00

• Watch: Houthis Shoot Down A 4th US Reaper Drone
  Watch: Houthis Shoot Down A 4th US Reaper Drone

  Yemen’s Iran-linked Houthis have announced that they have shot down yet another $30 million American military drone. 

  Footage is widely circulating of what appears to be the wreckage of an MQ-9 Reaper drone in Yemen, but the Pentagon has not yet confirmed. 

  

  Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree described that the drone was conducing “hostile actions” over Yemen’s Marib province when it was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.

  The Associated Press has commented of footage released by the Houthis:

  The Houthis later released footage they claimed showed the surface-to-air-missile being launched at night, along with night-vision footage of the missile hitting the drone.

  A man, whose voice had been digitally altered to apparently prevent identification, chanted the Houthi slogan: God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”

  Though the US had not confirmed prior shootdowns in every case, this would mark the fourth Reaper downing by the Houthis since Gaza-related hostilities began in the wake of Oct.7.

  Over the last half-decade many more have been lost, in connection with the prior Saudi-US-UAE coalition war against the Yemeni rebels.

  “Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital, Sanaa, in 2014, the U.S. military has previously lost at least five drones to the rebels,” the AP report notes.

  WATCH | Yemeni air defenses shot down a US MQ9 drone in the airspace of Maarib, west of Yemen, with a locally produced surface-to-air missile. pic.twitter.com/kIOWEcO0fI

  — The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) May 17, 2024

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  We described previously that literally hundreds of US and British missile strikes on Yemen have done nothing to deter the Houthis, who insist the campaign will only stop once there’s a ceasefire in Gaza.

  The US backed a brutal Saudi/UAE war against the Houthis from 2015-2022 that involved heavy airstrikes and a blockade, and the Houthis only became more of a capable fighting force during that time.

  New images of the downed drone wreckage from Yemen:

  Yemeni Sources have Posted several Pictures tonight from near the City of Marib, which appear to show that yet another U.S. Air Force MQ-9 “Reaper” Surveillance Drone has been Shot Down by the Houthi Terrorist Group in Western Yemen; with this likely being the 4th MQ-9 to be… pic.twitter.com/rvBTv8IJia

  — OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 16, 2024

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  So ultimately, the Pentagon’s Yemen adventurism over a period of years has cost American taxpayers billions, and yet Congress has never officially authorized combat operations there.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 22:40

• US Power Grid May Become Unreliable This Summer, Watchdog Warns
  US Power Grid May Become Unreliable This Summer, Watchdog Warns

  Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

  Parts of America could face difficulties in meeting electricity demand during the summer season, with renewable energy sources like wind and solar power posing a potential risk to reliable power supply, according to a report by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).

  

  The NERC report classifies several parts of the country as facing an “elevated” risk of summer electricity reliability for the upcoming June-September period.

  Elevated risk means there is “potential for insufficient operating reserves” when the region faces above-normal demand conditions. Such regions include parts of Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Illinois, and Iowa. The determination of elevated risk is based on various factors, including potential low wind or solar energy condions that could lead to a lower electricity supply.

  The North American power bulk power system (BPS) is made up of six regional entities—Midwest Reliability Organization (MRO), Northeast Power Coordinating Council (NPCC), ReliabilityFirst (RF), SERC Reliability Corporation (SERC), Texas Reliability Entity (Texas RE), Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC)—with elevated risk upcoming in certain regions.

  Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which manages the electricity capacity market, operates in 15 U.S. states, including Texas, Illinois, Montana, Arkansas, and Kentucky. MISO is expected to have “sufficient resources” to meet normal summer peak demand, the NERC report said.

  However, if MISO were to face above-normal peak demand conditions at a time when wind and solar output is lower than expected, it could be “challenging” for the transmission organization to meet demand.

  “Wind generator performance during periods of high demand is a key factor in determining whether there is sufficient electricity supply on the system or if external (non-firm) supply assistance is required to maintain reliability.”

  The Texas RE ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) interconnection, which handles approximately 90 percent of Texas’ electrical load, faces potential emergency conditions in summer evening hours “when solar generation begins to ramp down.”

  Under certain grid conditions, power transfers from South Texas to the San Antonio region have to be restricted, which contributes to “elevated risk” of supply. Such grid conditions occur when “demand is high and wind and solar output is low in specific areas, straining the transmission system.”

  In areas serviced by the WECC covering 14 states, including California and New Mexico, challenges to electricity reliability are estimated to be under “above-normal demand and low-resource conditions.” Such a situation happens when there is low solar output or below-normal imports, the report said.

  Commenting on the NERC report, Michelle Bloodworth, the CEO of America’s Power, a partnership of industries involved in producing electricity from coal, said the assessment reveals that the American electricity grid is “increasingly reliant on weather-dependent sources of electricity” like solar and wind power.

  This puts “one-third of the country at elevated risk of blackouts this summer,” she said, adding that such risks are only poised to increase because of regulations imposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

  “Delayed coal plant retirements are playing a key role in supporting grid reliability. However, this is only a temporary band-aid because EPA regulations will cause more coal retirements that cannot be delayed. These regulations, especially the recently announced Carbon Rule, increase the chance of blackouts,” Ms. Bloodworth said.

  “With electricity demand exploding, our country needs a strategy for ensuring a healthy long-term electricity supply that doesn’t depend on the sun and the wind and is not dictated by EPA regulations.”

  The EPA backs renewable energy, noting it “produces no greenhouse gas emissions” like fossil fuels and reduces some types of air pollution. Renewable can also reduce America’s “dependence on imported fuels.”

  Last month, the EPA announced $7 billion in grants under the “Solar for All” scheme to deliver residential solar projects to more than 900,000 homes across the United States. The grants are awarded to 60 selectees.

  “The selectees will advance solar energy initiatives across the country, creating hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs, saving $8 billion in energy costs for families, delivering cleaner air, and combating climate change,” EPA administrator Michael S. Regan said.

  New EPA Rule

  The NERC report comes as the EPA announced a suite of final rules on April 25 aimed at reducing pollution from fossil fuel-fired power plants.

  The new standards require all coal-fired plants that intend to run in the long term as well as all new baseload gas-fired plants to curb 90 percent of their carbon pollution.

  The rules also tighten the coal plant emissions standard for toxic metals by 67 percent and mandate a 70 percent reduction in the emissions standard for mercury from existing lignite-fired sources. Additionally, rules regarding wastewater discharge at coal plants and the management of coal ash are strengthened.

  The EPA claims the new standards deliver on the Biden administration’s commitment to protect the health of all communities. The agency said the rules will deliver “hundreds of billions of dollars in net benefits.”

  “The regulatory impact analysis projects reductions of 1.38 billion metric tons of carbon pollution overall through 2047, which is equivalent to preventing the annual emissions of 328 million gasoline cars, or to nearly an entire year of emissions from the entire U.S. electric power sector. It also projects up to $370 billion in climate and public health net benefits over the next two decades,” the EPA said.

  The agency also estimates that the rules will avoid up to 1,200 premature deaths, 1,900 cases of asthma onset, 360,000 instances of asthma symptoms, and 57,000 lost workdays in 2035 alone.

  “By developing these standards in a clear, transparent, inclusive manner, EPA is cutting pollution while ensuring that power companies can make smart investments and continue to deliver reliable electricity for all Americans,” Mr. Regan said.

  The energy regulations have been criticized by Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, a trade association of electrical cooperatives.

  “The path outlined by the EPA is unlawful, unrealistic, and unachievable,” he said. “It undermines electric reliability and poses grave consequences for an already stressed electric grid. This barrage of new EPA rules ignores our nation’s ongoing electric reliability challenges and is the wrong approach at a critical time for our nation’s energy future.”

  Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) called EPA rules proof that President Biden has “doubled down” on his plans to shut down the “backbone of America’s electric grid.”

  “Electricity demand is set to skyrocket thanks in part to the EPA’s own electric vehicles mandate, and unfortunately, Americans are already paying higher utility bills under President Biden,” she said.

  “Despite all this, the administration has chosen to press ahead with its unrealistic climate agenda that threatens access to affordable, reliable energy for households and employers across the country.”

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 22:20

• First Images Of American Taxpayers' $350 Million Completed Gaza Pier 
  First Images Of American Taxpayers’ $350 Million Completed Gaza Pier 

  The Pentagon is ‘proud’… and so is the Biden administration. But the US taxpayer?…

  “Today we began delivery of aid from the temporary pier on to the beach of Gaza for further distribution to the people by our partners,” US Central Command announced Friday. “This unique logistics capability facilitates the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid enabling a shared service for the international community to use to serve the people of Gaza.” Below are some of the first overhead images since its completion. 

  

  It’s “unique” we’re told… and only costs about $350 million. 

  But critics have pointed out the grim irony and contradictions which abound in that the Biden administration has very publicly criticized the way that Israel’s military is waging war in Gaza (and especially the high civilian death toll) while simultaneously Washington is funding it, ultimately to the tune of billions.

  So the US is funding the weapons used to execute the war and risky projects (it remains high risk in that US personnel could come under attack by Hamas) like of US Army-built pier for the sake of delivering humanitarian aid.

  In short the US taxpayer is on the hook for both the bombs and humanitarian aid, even as all parties have seemed to essentially give up on finding a political solution or reaching a truce deal.

  Reminder to American taxpayers: This floating pier cost you $350 million (and counting), while using existing roads for aid delivery remain the most practical solution. The question is…why? https://t.co/h0eOLL9eTO

  — Daniel McAdams (@DanielLMcAdams) May 17, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  The Ron Paul Institute’s Daniel McAdams has pointed out: “Reminder to American taxpayers: This floating pier cost you $350 million (and counting), while using existing roads for aid delivery remain the most practical solution.”

  “The question is…why?” he wrote.

  The first batch of aid to reach Gaza by sea in weeks has started making its way through a US-built pier anchored off Gaza’s coast, the US Central Command said https://t.co/IgVwgNgw3r pic.twitter.com/FEnXVkYThG

  — Reuters (@Reuters) May 17, 2024

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  As for US Progressives, they’ve decried that the Democratic administration is aiding in active war crimes. Biden is fast losing a key part of his base going into November where he faces Donald Trump. 

  For example The Intercept’s Jeremy Scahill says, “The fact that the US is establishing a pier off the Gaza coast because the genocidal Israeli government, which the US funds, arms, politically bolsters & shields from international & US law, won’t allow aid into Gaza by land is a damning statement about the Biden administration.”

  

  At the same time America’s own bridges, roads, border, energy infrastructure… continue to remain neglected. And again, this while we erect complicated piers and loading zones in foreign hot conflict zones.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 22:00

• Santa Monica Homeless Man Slapped With Felony Charges After Dragging Jogger By Ponytail
  Santa Monica Homeless Man Slapped With Felony Charges After Dragging Jogger By Ponytail

  Authored by Sophie Li via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  A homeless man in Santa Monica was arrested earlier this week after allegedly dragging a female jogger by her ponytail across a beach path in what the victim believes to have been a failed attempt at sexual assault.

  

  Malcolm Jimmy Ward, Jr., 48, is currently being held without bail, the Santa Monica Police Department said in a May 16 statement.

  Officers responded to reports of an assault on the 2000 block of Ocean Front Walk around 7 a.m. May 13. Upon arrival, they found both the victim and suspect near public restrooms, and the suspect was taken into custody without incident, police said. He has been charged with felony counts of kidnapping, assault with intent to commit rape, and violation of parole.

  According to CBS News, the victim, identified as a Venice resident, was jogging at around 7:15 a.m. in the 2000 block of Ocean Front Walk, when the suspect approached her from behind and grabbed her ponytail, causing her to fall to the ground.

  The suspect allegedly dragged her several feet toward the restroom. Several witnesses intervened in the attack and contacted the police, according to authorities. The woman suffered minor injuries.

  “The victim believed that the suspect intended to sexually assault her,” police said.

  According to police, Mr. Ward was on parole for assault with a deadly weapon at the time of the arrest and is homeless.

   

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 21:40

• 25 Year Old BofA Analyst Dies Suddenly Of Cardiac Arrest While Playing Soccer At Industry Event
  25 Year Old BofA Analyst Dies Suddenly Of Cardiac Arrest While Playing Soccer At Industry Event

  A credit trader from Bank of America who was just 25 years old died suddenly on Thursday night while playing soccer at an industry event, a report by Yahoo/Bloomberg on Friday confirmed. 

  The credit portfolio and algorithmic trader, Adnan Deumic, reportedly “collapsed of a suspected cardiac arrest” and did not respond to medical treatment, including CPR, the writeup says. 

  The bank commented: “The death of our teammate is a tragedy, and we are shocked by the sudden loss of a popular, young colleague. We are committed to providing our full support to Adnan’s family, his friends and to our many employees grieving his loss.”

  Working out of Bank of America’s London office, the trader was “active in sports”, the report says, noting that he was a native of Sweden and also played ice hockey. 

  

  The recent death marks the second loss of a young employee in the firm’s Wall Street divisions. Leo Lukenas, an investment banking associate in New York, passed away earlier this month.

  It is unclear if work contributed to Lukenas’ death, and Bank of America is not formally investigating it, Bloomberg reported. The bank stated it is focused on supporting the family and the team, who are devastated.

  As the article notes, this incident has sparked discussions within the industry about the demanding, long hours in investment banking. We’re sure there one other topic that it isn’t sparking discussions about…

  As has been reported, it is still uncertain what contributed to Lukenas’ death, and Bank of America is not formally investigating it.

  The company’s said its focus “doing whatever we can to help and support the family and our team who are devastated,” it commented.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 21:20

• 2 House Panels Clear Contempt Resolutions Against AG Garland
  2 House Panels Clear Contempt Resolutions Against AG Garland

  Authored by Samantha Flom via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  Republicans on two House committees voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress on Thursday night despite President Joe Biden’s intervention to block them from obtaining his recorded interviews with special counsel Robert Hur.

  After a spirited debate, members of the House Judiciary Committee voted 18–15 on May 16 to approve a resolution to hold Mr. Garland in contempt for refusing to provide impeachment investigators with the recordings in defiance of congressional subpoenas.

  The House Oversight Committee followed suit hours later, voting 24-20 to approve their own resolution.

  The measures would need to pass the full House before a referral is made to the Justice Department, but whether House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will bring the resolutions to the floor is unclear.

  The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

  The vote came hours after the president, at Mr. Garland’s request, asserted executive privilege over the recordings, precluding prosecution of the attorney general for his noncompliance.

  The tapes were recorded during Mr. Hur’s investigation of President Biden’s handling of classified documents. Although the special counsel concluded that the president had willfully retained and disclosed classified materials in violation of the law, he ultimately decided not to prosecute, reasoning that a jury would be sympathetic toward an “elderly man with a poor memory.”

  On May 16, Republicans pointed to that decision as a reason for them to hear the recordings for themselves.

  “If our commander-in-chief is so incompetent that he cannot stand trial—if he’s not fit to stand trial—then he’s too incompetent, for God’s sake, to be the leader of the most powerful nation on the face of the earth,” Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.) said.

  “And if President Biden is competent and special counsel Hur’s assessment was incorrect, then President Biden should face a jury for his crimes of mishandling classified materials.”

  ‘What’s the Big Deal?’

  While the Justice Department has provided the Judiciary and Oversight and Accountability committees with transcripts of the solicited recordings, the department has refused to turn over the recordings themselves.

  Democrats on the Judiciary Committee argued that investigators don’t need the recordings as they already have the transcripts of the interviews. But transcripts, Republican members argued, can be altered, and do not convey other information, such as the speaker’s inflections or tone of voice.

  “Transcripts alone are not sufficient evidence of the state of the president’s memory, right? Because the White House has a track record of altering the transcripts,” Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said, citing the White House’s past scrubbing of the president’s gaffes from transcripts of his speeches.

  Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), however, argued that there was “no evidence whatsoever” that the transcripts had been doctored.

  “This transcript was produced by Robert Hur’s office. Robert Hur was appointed by Donald Trump. He is a Republican appointee. The notion that somehow this transcript is fake is a wild, insane conspiracy theory,” he said.

  Mr. Lieu went on to suggest that Republicans only wanted the transcripts so they could “smear” President Biden over his stuttering problem.

  Meanwhile, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) charged that the move to hold Mr. Garland in contempt was a political stunt to benefit former President Donald Trump.

  “This is about doing everything to help Donald Trump, who you see as your client, who a New York criminal trial sees as a defendant, to help him win an election. So, I have no interest in playing this game; the American people have no interest in playing this game,” Mr. Swalwell said.

  But Mr. Van Drew dismissed the mention of President Trump as a distraction.

  “That’s not why we’re here,” he said, holding that President Biden’s fitness for office is a pressing concern that the committee needs to scrutinize.

  “And by the way, if it’s no big deal, as the other side says, because we have the transcripts. Well, we do have the transcript, so why do you care so much about us getting the audio? What’s the big deal?”

  Mr. Johnson seemed to provide his own answer to that question earlier in the day at a news conference.

  “President Biden is apparently afraid for the citizens of this country and everyone to hear those tapes,” he said. “They obviously confirm what the special counsel has found, and would likely cause, I suppose, in his estimation, such alarm of the American people that the president is using all of his power to suppress their release.”

  Moving Forward

  President Biden’s legal counsel, Ed Siskel, advised both committees on the morning of May 16 that executive privilege had been invoked and accused the chairmen of political partisanship.

  “The absence of a legitimate need for the audio recordings lays bare your likely goal—to chop them up, distort them, and use them for partisan political purposes,” he wrote. “Demanding such sensitive and constitutionally-protected law enforcement materials from the Executive Branch because you want to manipulate them for potential political gain is inappropriate.”

  In his letter to President Biden, the attorney general’s cited reason for withholding the recordings was that their release would have “deleterious effects” on the integrity of similar law enforcement investigations down the road.

  Urging the president to assert executive privilege, Mr. Garland added that he did not think that the House committees could overcome such an assertion if the matter wound up in court.

  Typically, with the full House’s approval, a contempt of Congress citation would be sent to the appropriate U.S. attorney to pursue charges. But in this case, the assertion of executive privilege means that Mr. Garland will be shielded from prosecution pending a legal challenge.

  The Oversight and Accountability Committee is slated to hold its own markup of another resolution to hold Mr. Garland in contempt at 8 p.m.

  Jackson Richman contributed to this report.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 21:00

• China Unveils A Housing Market Bailout: Here's What's In It, And Why It Is Still Not Enough
  China Unveils A Housing Market Bailout: Here’s What’s In It, And Why It Is Still Not Enough

  More than four years ago, when China first launched its latest “deleveraging” campaign targeted at bursting the country’s housing bubble in a controlled fashion, which coincidentally was the single largest asset for China’s massive middle class, we – and many others – said that this experiment was doomed and that all China is doing is delaying the inevitable bailout of the property sector with another metric asston of new debt. Well, as the news overnight confirmed, we were right… but not before China saw all of its largest domestic real estate developers collapse, push its housing market into a deflationary tailspin from which the country has not yet recovered, and suffered five years where its economy stagnated and pushed social tension to the edge.

  So what happened?

  On Friday, Chinese policymakers unveiled a fresh batch of easing measures for the housing market, including:

  1. clear top-down guidance for local governments to purchase existing housing inventory for public housing provision,
  2. an RMB300bn relending quota for destocking the housing market,
  3. reductions in downpayment ratios and mortgage rates,
  4. more policy support to secure the delivery of pre-sold homes.

  Needless to say, local government (which is really just an extension of the central government) purchases of existing housing inventory is for lack of a better word, nationalization, and as Goldman writes in its post-mortem (pdf available to pro subs), if implemented at scale, can help stabilize home sales, prices and completions, but the boost to new starts and land purchase would be limited.

  And while lower downpayment ratios and mortgage rates may boost home sales to some degree, the magnitude of downpayment ratio reductions was relatively small this time, and the pace of cuts to effective mortgage rates could be somewhat constrained by bank net interest margins.

  In total, Goldman expects more housing easing efforts down the road — especially on the demand-side — and view funding and implementation as key for the effectiveness of any property market rescue plan. Besides the RMB300bn relending quota, the PBOC’s pledged supplementary lending (PSL), local government special bonds (LGSB), policy bank bonds and commercial bank loans could be potential funding sources for housing destocking. Upcoming policy events will be worth monitoring closely, especially on solutions to address funding and implementation bottlenecks.

  1. What’s new today? Following the April Politburo meeting, Chinese policymakers have significantly stepped up their easing efforts to help stabilize the property sector, on both funding and policy solutions. There were a batch of fresh housing easing measures unveiled today (17 May):

  • At a video conference today on securing home completions, Vice Premier He Lifeng required to clearly understand the people nature (“人民性”) and political nature (“政治性”) of real estate work, and called for more forceful policy measures to secure the delivery of pre-sold homes and digest unsold commodity housing. He specifically mentioned that for cities with high housing inventory, local governments can purchase part of commodity housing to convert into public housing, based on the local situation and at reasonable prices. He required continued policy efforts on the risk disposal of property developer debt, and the “Three Major Projects” for the property sector (i.e., urban village renovation, public housing provision, and emergency public facilities).
  • At the State Council press conference this afternoon, a PBOC spokesman announced an RMB300bn relending program to support local government purchase of existing housing inventory and converting into public housing (“保障性住房再贷款”). The relending interest rate will be set at 1.75%, and the tenor will be 1yr, eligible for rolling over four times if necessary. As banks will receive relending funds amounting to 60% of the principal of their loans to qualified projects, PBOC expects the RMB300bn relending quota to support RMB500bn in bank lending for housing destocking. On the implementation, PBOC highlighted that local governments should appoint local SOEs as agents to purchase housing inventory, but these agents should not engage in local government implicit debt (LGFVs are not qualified). Housing inventory purchase eligible for the relending support should be completed but unsold commodity housing, per the PBOC’s requirement.
  • According to the PBOC’s announcements released today, the nationwide floor for mortgage interest rates will be removed, implying local governments have more discretion to lower their local effective mortgage rates if needed. If there is any major change in the supply-demand dynamics of the property market, PBOC would consider resuming the nationwide floor for mortgage rates. PBOC also lowered the minimum down-payment ratio by 5pp, to 15% for first-time buyers and to 25% for second-home buyers. Housing provident fund loan rates will also be lowered by 25bp, effective 18 May.
  • National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA) pledged to support property projects in the “whitelist” through both new loan issuance and existing loan extensions, with due risk management. Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD) required local governments to push forward the implementation of “whitelist” projects, and commercial banks to increase lending to these projects.

  2. Why now? Despite the previous round of housing easing measures, property headwinds are still strong: new home sales have remained around 30% below year-ago levels in recent months…

  

  …  housing inventory has stayed elevated, secondary home prices declined further in April…

  

  … and some private developers (e.g., Vanke, Agile) continue to face challenging funding conditions. Here, Goldman asserts that “recent developments suggest to us that the prolonged property sector weakness has likely breached policymakers’ pain threshold, pushing them to step up housing easing and to shift the strategic focus towards digesting existing housing inventory.”

  3. What’s the likely impact? Local government purchase of existing housing inventory, if implemented at scale, can help stabilize home sales, prices and housing consumer sentiment, improve property developers funding conditions to some degree, and thus facilitate home completions and property sector rebalancing. However, the boost to new starts and investment will likely be limited, as property developers’ funding conditions will remain tight, given falling new home sales, potential price discounts during local government housing purchases, and the policy priority on ensuring completions (implying less funding for land purchases and new starts). Lower downpayment ratios and mortgage rates may also boost home sales to some degree (a 10pps cut to downpayment ratio raises sales by around 7%), although the magnitude of downpayment ratio reductions was relatively small this time, and the pace of cuts to effective mortgage rates could be somewhat constrained by bank net interest margins (NIM). Furthermore, though it’s crucial to prevent significant risk spillovers from the property sector to the banking sector and the real economy, policymakers appear to have no intention to turn the sector from a growth drag to a driver, given the shift in their policy focus towards high-quality growth. PBOC’s highlight on a potential exit mechanism for the effective mortgage rate cuts underpins this view

  4. Examples from recent local pilot programs. While some cities (e.g., Chongqing, Jinan) have already experimented pilot programs to clear excess housing inventory with the help of state funding, the amount of previous purchase was at a very small scale. Recent pilot programs, including in Lin’an district of Hangzhou city, indicate local governments appear more willing to purchase small and medium-sized housing units with little completion risk at lower-than-average prices, and mostly in large cities (with net population inflows). Specifically, Lin’an district announced that the total floor space to be purchased this round will be capped at 10,000 sqm; housing units eligible for the purchase include completed housing and uncompleted ones able to be delivered in one year, with floor space no higher than 70 sqm per unit; the purchase price will not exceed comparable market rates; it would purchase housing units and car parking spots on an entire building basis.

  5. What to watch next? Expect more housing easing efforts down the road — especially on the demand side — with funding and implementation as key for the effectiveness of the property rescue plan. On the funding, a recent Goldman analysis suggests any game-changing housing easing measures (including those for housing destocking) would require significantly more funding than available thus far, while many inland local governments remain financially stretched after the three years of zero-Covid policy and amid the prolonged property downturn. This will require a larger top-down funding scheme from the central government, beyond the RMB300bn relending quota. Moreover, strengthened fiscal discipline and financial regulation may dampen some officials’ incentives for more concerted and forceful policy efforts. Upcoming policy events — such as the July Politburo meeting, the Third Plenum, and ad hoc meetings/announcements by major authorities (e.g., the State Council, NDRC, MOF, MOHURD, PBOC, SASAC) — will be worth monitoring closely, especially on solutions to address funding and implementation bottlenecks (Exhibit 3).

  

  6. Other potential funding sources. Besides the RMB300bn relending quota, PBOC’s pledged supplementary lending (PSL), local government special bonds (LGSB), policy bank bonds and commercial bank loans could be potential funding sources for housing destocking:

  • PSL is designated to fund property-related stimulus packages, including the large-scale shantytown renovation during 2015-18, and the “Three Major Projects” for the property sector most recently. Goldman assumes PSL net issuance will rise to RMB700bn in 2024 from RMB99bn in 2023, although there are some uncertainties if policymakers prefer to use more relending (funding costs at 1.75% pa) relative to PSL (2.25%) to fund housing destocking.

  

  • LGSB was a funding source for shantytown renovation and land reserves in 2018-19, although there was a temporary ban on LGSB proceeds spending in these areas in late 2019 and early 2020. Local governments have only used ~RMB900bn out of the RMB3.9tn full-year LGSB issuance quota so far this year (as of late May), much slower than previous years. This implies an RMB3tn quota available for the remainder of this year, part of which could be used for supporting the ongoing housing easing package. In early 2024, policymakers allowed LGSB proceeds to be used as equity capital to fund public housing related projects, which suggests a likely larger multiplier effect if implemented well.
  • Policy banks were major players in the 2015-18 PSL-backed shantytown renovation, and in theory they have no explicit constraint for external financing. Hence, more policy bank bond issuance and related lending could be possible.
  • Commercial banks, especially the large ones, may also provide more funding support if needed. Moreover, there is a possibility for the PBOC to increase the relending quota for housing destocking if needed.

  By comparison, the ongoing issuance of ultra-long-term central government special bonds (ULT CGSB; 超长期特别国债), which are designated for funding key projects in strategically important areas (e.g., high-tech manufacturing), may not be a financing tool customized for the property sector. That said, purchasing housing inventory well below market prices and requiring banks to increase lending to projects launched by some troubled POEs could lead to increased burden for banks, which in turn could require the government to enhance support to the banking system.

  In a follow up post this weekend, we will look specifically at what it would take to clear China’s housing inventory, and why the proposed program falls short.

  More in the full Goldman report available to pro subs.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 20:40

• CBO Report Obscures Negative Impact Of 'Bidenomics': House Budget Committee Chairman
  CBO Report Obscures Negative Impact Of ‘Bidenomics’: House Budget Committee Chairman

  Authored by Indrajit Basu via The Epoch Times,

  The chairman of the House Budget Committee has cast doubt on a recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report, which he says glosses over the failures of President Joe Biden’s economic policies.

  

  The White House has said its policies have led to economic growth “from the middle out and bottom up—not the top down.”

  The report, released Wednesday, was entitled An Update About How Inflation Has Affected Households at Different Income Levels Since 2019.”

  Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), House Budget Committee Chairman, said in a May 14 press release that the report covers up the downsides of Bidenomics, while taking a “partisan” turn seemingly aimed at bolstering President Biden just six months before an election.

  The report by the CBO, a federal agency that describes itself as “strictly nonpartisan,” was requested by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). An update to a September 2022 report, it shows the cumulative effects of inflation on households since 2019.

  However, it does not provide a year-by-year breakdown of the five year period. Further, because it includes the period 2019 to January 2021, before President Biden took office, it conflates the favorable effects of the Trump-era Tax Cuts and Jobs Act “with the destructive economic and fiscal policies of the Biden Administration,” said the press release from the House Budget Committee.

  Mr. Arrington said the CBO report “intentionally skewed the results to be more favorable to Biden by including the low inflation, high wage growth, economic benefits of 2019 and the large stimulus of 2020.”

  “This CBO report conflates years of low inflation and rising wages with Bidenflation, which began after the passage of the Democrats’ American Rescue Plan (ARP) in March of 2021,” according to the press release.

  The CBO analysis looked at the 2019 “consumption bundles” of U.S. households—that is, goods and services representing consumption in a typical year before the COVID-19 pandemic.

  It highlighted that in households across all income quintiles, the proportion of income required to cover their 2019 “consumption bundle” decreased on average, because income outpaced prices over the four-year span.

  During this period, households in the highest income quintile experienced the most significant reduction in the share of income required for their consumption bundle, the report noted.

  Nonetheless, “The fiscal reality under Bidenomics is grim,” said Mr. Arrington.

  Pointing to a concerning trend, he pointed out that the cumulative inflation rate is steadily climbing, having increased by 18.9 percent over four years. Inflation once again rose to 3.5 percent in March, its highest level in six months.

  The press release also emphasized the erosion of families’ purchasing power. Families have to spend nearly $17,000 per year “to maintain the same standard of living they could afford before President Biden took office,” it said.

  Rising Energy Costs Behind Inflation Surge

  According to Mr. Arrington, even as the CBO paints a rosy picture, the U.S. economy is bogged down by a surge in general inflation. In an April statement on the rising inflation rate, he attributed the rise primarily to increasing energy expenses, particularly gasoline and electricity.

  There were significant increases in clothing prices and transportation services as well, the House Budget Committee noted.

  For an average family of four, according to the committee’s April statement, this translates to an additional expenditure of $16,726 per year or $1,393 per month to buy the same products and services they bought in January 2021.

  The April report underscored the growing pessimism among Americans regarding future job prospects and income outlook, with 18.2 percent anticipating a decrease in job availability and 13.8 percent foreseeing a decline in their incomes in the short term.

  Wednesday’s press release noted that consumer confidence for April fell for the third consecutive month this year, reaching its lowest level since July 2022.

  “Despite the blatant attempts to pad Biden’s economic numbers, whether it’s at the gas station or the grocery store, the American people know all too well the cost of Bidenomics,” Mr. Arrington said Wednesday.

  Bidenomics Drives Debt, Says Committee Chairman

  Promoting “Bidenomics” has also made the country deeply indebted, says Mr. Arrington.

  According to his committee’s April statement, on assuming office, President Biden inherited a total gross debt of $27.75 trillion, which has since ballooned by $6.86 trillion.

  Experts including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Cato Institute’s Ryan Bourne warn that the U.S. debt position is steadily deteriorating, with the country on the verge of a fiscal disaster unless efforts are taken to lower the federal budget deficit and limit debt growth.

  “If current policies were left on autopilot, U.S. debt-to-GDP would near double over the next 30 years. It’s widely understood that this cannot go on,” Mr. Bourne told The Epoch Times in an email in April.

  In its latest World Economic Outlook on April 16,  the IMF cautioned that while the United States’ economic performance is “impressive,” its long-term fiscal stance is unsustainable.

  Has ‘Bidenomics’ Failed?

  “Bidenomics” is the catchphrase for President Biden’s economic agenda, which includes his administration’s policy efforts, gains, and future intentions in the economic domain.

  The phrase was coined by the media, but not in a complementary context; rather than dismissing it, President Biden has opted to accept and embrace the term.

  Bidenomics has become a cornerstone of President Biden’s narrative about the economy’s strength under his leadership. It is expected to play an important part in his November re-election campaign.

  The White House champions Bidenomics as a vision centered on three core pillars. These encompass making focused public investments to attract more private sector involvement, empowering and educating workers to bolster the middle class, and fostering competition to reduce expenses and support the growth of entrepreneurs and small businesses.

  However, “the majority of Americans have a drastically lower standard of living thanks to Bidenomics,” according to a December LinkedIn post by Armstrong Economics, a global markets and geopolitical strategy think-tank. “Some estimates believe 63% of Americans now live paycheck to paycheck,” the post said.

  According to a February CNN poll, 55 percent of Americans feel Biden’s policies have worsened economic conditions in the United States.

  In a CNN survey conducted last May—as President Biden was stressing the achievements of Bidenomics—two-thirds of Americans expressed disapproval of his handling of the economy, while slightly over three-quarters believed that the economy was in poor condition.

  According to a May Poll by ABC and market research firm Ipsos Group, the economy and inflation remain the most important issues for Americans when determining who they may support for president in November.

  On these matters, more Americans trust former President Donald Trump on most issues than President Biden, and believe they were financially better off under the Trump administration, according to the poll.

  “Enough is enough,” said Mr. Arrington in his April comments. “ We need to step back from the fiscal cliff and restore fiscal sanity in Washington by doing two simple things: cutting spending and growing the economy.”

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 20:20

• Texas Governor Pardons Man Convicted For Shooting Armed BLM Protester
  Texas Governor Pardons Man Convicted For Shooting Armed BLM Protester

  Defend yourself against violent BLM protesters and face an endless salvo of character assassination, not to mention potential prison time.  That was the message being sent by far-left activists and the establishment media from 2020 to 2023, specifically in their efforts to destroy the image of Kyle Rittenhouse and veteran Army Sergeant Daniel Perry. 

  In both cases the men involved were conservative and fired on protesters who were in the process of threatening their lives.  The political left wanted Rittenhouse badly but didn’t get him in court; they needed to make an example and they thought they had the opportunity with Perry.  

  Daniel Perry made the mistake of stumbling into a Black Lives Matter protest In Austin, Texas while driving an Uber on July 25, 2020.  Activists claimed that Perry ran a red light and tried to “ram the crowd.”  This was later proven to be false when footage was released showing Perry simply stuck in the crowd waiting for them to move.  He apparently honked his horn and this is what led to the eventual altercation with Garret Foster, one of the protesters armed with an AK47.  As the crowd angrily surrounded and attacked Perry’s car, shots rang out.

  A mob surrounding and attacking a person’s car is already grounds for self defense.  Perry alleged that Garret Foster approached his vehicle yelling at him to lower his window and then raised the muzzle of his rifle as if getting ready to fire.  Perry, also armed, shot the man believing his life was in danger.  Images show Foster in a mask with his rifle in a tactical “low ready” position standing in the way of Perry’s vehicle, but witnesses (all BLM protesters) claim he did not directly aim the weapon at Perry. 

  

  Perry’s texting history showed discussions with friends indicating that if he was confronted by rioters while working he might have to shoot them.  These texts were presented to the jury as “premeditation.”  Perry, like Rittenhouse, was labeled a “racist” from the start even though he shot another white man (to this day there are still leftists who believe Rittenhouse and Perry shot black protesters).  The veteran was put through the ringer and painted as a monster “looking for a reason” to kill protesters (the same strategy the prosecution used with Rittenhouse).  

  For Rittenhouse the strategy failed, but Perry’s trial was in Austin, a famously progressive enclave in the middle of Texas.  Daniel Perry’s murder conviction despite extenuating circumstances was the left’s answer to the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse.  They cheered his 25 year prison sentence as a political and ideological victory, arguing that this would teach conservatives a lesson.

  Governor Greg Abbott, a former Texas Supreme Court justice, has now addressed the Perry case and decided a pardon is necessary after the Texas Board of Pardons issued a unanimous recommendation.  The full text of the pardon can be read here.  Daniel Perry was released from prison within an hour of the message from Abbott.  The corporate media is outraged, producing a flurry of articles calling the move a “political stunt.”

  But here’s the bottom line:  Perry was working as an Uber driver, meaning he was doing his job at the time which requires him to make rounds throughout the city of Austin.  Protesters deliberately blocked the roads (which is illegal), then surrounded and attacked Perry’s vehicle for doing nothing more than honking his horn at them.  We have seen this same scenario thousands of times across the US from far-left mobs and they seem to believe this behavior is protected by free speech laws; it’s not. 

  During the trial a lot of attention was focused on whether or not Garret Foster raised the muzzle of his rifle enough to present a threat, but Perry was already under threat by an angry crowd blocking the road and thrashing his car.  At the very least, Perry’s sentencing should have taken the frightening nature of the situation into account.  But again, he was being made into an example.  Greg Abbott has been accused of playing politics, but the conviction of Daniel Perry was political from the very beginning.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 20:00

• Hezbollah Launches First-Ever Airstrike On Israeli Territory
  Hezbollah Launches First-Ever Airstrike On Israeli Territory

  Via The Cradle

  Hezbollah launched the first-ever Lebanese airstrike on an Israeli target on Friday, using a never-before-seen drone for the operation. 

  “In support of our steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in support of their brave and honorable resistance, the Islamic Resistance attacked at 1:38 pm on Thursday the Metulla site, its garrison, and its vehicles with an offensive drone armed with two S5 missiles,” Hezbollah said in a statement Thursday afternoon, marking the sixth of 13 operations that day. 

  

  “When it reached its designated point, it fired missiles at one of its vehicles and the elements gathered around it, killing and wounding them. After that, it continued its assault on its designated target and hit it accurately,” the statement added. 

  Hezbollah released footage of its drone strike on Metulla. Two missiles are seen being fired from each side of the drone, which then descends towards its final target and explodes.

  Watch the newly published Hezbollah footage of its first ever “airstrike” operation in action:

  ⚡️⭕️ 🔥 FOOTAGE OF HEZBOLLAH’S FIRST AIRSTRIKE IN HISTORY

  – The military media publishes :

  Video scenes from the operation of the Islamic Resistance targeting the Metulla site of the #Israeli enemy army, with a new attack drone armed with S5 missiles. pic.twitter.com/YXaO5fSDLr

  — Middle East Observer (@ME_Observer_) May 16, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Three Israeli soldiers were reportedly injured – with one seriously wounded – in the drone attack. Coinciding with Israel’s brutal assault on Rafah and its relentless attacks across the Gaza Strip, Hezbollah has stepped up its operations in recent days. 

  While it has increasingly deployed the use of attack drones in its operations over the past several months, this is the first time a drone equipped with missiles has been used to attack targets from above – not only since the start of this war but for the first time in Lebanon’s history. 

  Hebrew news outlet Channel 13 noted this week that Hezbollah’s attacks have become bolder and more sophisticated, and are resulting in more Israeli casualties. 

  In response to Israeli airstrikes on eastern Lebanon the day prior, Hezbollah also announced on Thursday a drone attack on Elbit Systems, the Israel-based international military technology company. 

  The Lebanese Shia paramilitary group backed by Iran has been rolling out increasingly sophisticated weaponry used against northern Israel…

  I’ve been watching and covering this war for the past 7 months, it’s obvious that on the Lebanese front there are certain weapons that are too effective and Israel has no solution for, anti tank guided missiles and drones. A couple of days ago we saw how Hezbollah used the new… https://t.co/mkl9FoQ2qi pic.twitter.com/6m5SpSrHkP

  — Ali Hashem علي هاشم (@alihashem_tv) May 16, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  It also targeted the David Cohen factory in Tel Hai, north of the Kiryat Shmona settlement. One of Hezbollah’s many operations on Wednesday targeted Israel’s Sky Dew aerostat at the Ilania base west of Tiberias. The Israeli army confirmed that a “sensitive” facility was hit. 

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 19:40

• "The Economics Just Don't Work": Demand For Electric Semis Plunges Due To High Costs
  “The Economics Just Don’t Work”: Demand For Electric Semis Plunges Due To High Costs

  For the last year, we’ve been writing extensively about how high costs and low demand have made EVs uneconomical – and, as a result, unpopular to produce – for the auto industry.

  It turns out unionized employees extorting you on labor costs while the government mandates you produce a money-losing product isn’t a combination that leads to prosperity and profit. Go figure. 

  Now, it isn’t just car manufacturers that are balking from the idea of all electric vehicles: the trucking industry, once expected to eventually make the shift to all electric as well, is seeing tepid demand for new rigs, according to a new Wall Street Journal article. 

  “The economics just don’t work for most companies,” Robert Sanchez, the chief executive of Ryder, said earlier this month. 

  Ryder’s experience highlights the difficulties state and federal governments encounter in encouraging truckers to transition from polluting diesel rigs to zero-emissions vehicles, the report says.

  It also indicates that significant improvements in battery weight, range, and charging times are necessary for battery-electric trucks to effectively compete with diesel rigs in the cost-sensitive freight industry.

  Rakesh Aneja, head of eMobility at Daimler Truck North America, told Wall Street Journal: “Quite frankly, demand has not been as strong as what we would like.”

  Aneja said orders for its Freightliner eCascadia battery-electric semi truck are about the same this year as they were in 2023. 

  Battery-electric trucks are about three times more expensive than diesel rigs, the Journal notes. And while federal and state programs help offset purchase costs, significant hurdles remain due to high operating costs and setup challenges.

  

  Truckers find these electric trucks difficult and costly to run, with installation of on-site charging facilities taking years. These trucks travel less than half the distance of diesel rigs per charge and require several hours to recharge.

  Ryder launched a service a year ago to assist companies in setting up and maintaining battery-powered fleets. So far, it has sold only 60 vehicles, mostly light-duty trucks. Three companies use five battery-electric heavy-duty trucks, but only within yards for shuttling trailers.

  Sanchez noted that unlike individual electric car buyers, companies will only switch to battery-electric trucks when they can compete with diesel on operational costs.

  The cost of changing a fleet over is also expensive. Using data from 13,000 vehicles, Ryder analyzed the annual operating expenses of battery-electric commercial trucks and found they are significantly higher than those of diesel rigs. The analysis, assuming existing fast-charging infrastructure, considered costs like vehicle purchase, maintenance, labor, and fuel.

  Ryder found that light-duty battery-electric vans increase annual operating costs by several percentage points, with the gap widening for heavier trucks. Operating battery-electric big rigs costs about twice as much annually as diesel trucks.

  In California, converting a fleet of 25 commercial vehicles, including 10 heavy-duty trucks, from diesel to battery power would raise annual operating costs by 56%, or $3.4 million. In Georgia, the increase would be 67%, or $3.7 million. Ryder stated that these higher costs would add 0.5% to 1% to inflation.

  The American Trucking Associations said of the U.S. EPA’s new rules mandating more BEV semi truck sales by the end of the decade: “Considering that 96% of U.S. trucking companies operate 10 or fewer trucks, these mandates are simply cost-prohibitive for most truckers.” 

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 19:20

• Why The Dollar Will Lose Its Status As Global Reserve Currency
  Why The Dollar Will Lose Its Status As Global Reserve Currency

  Authored by James Hickman via SchiffSovereign.com,

  By the early 400s, the Roman Empire was coming apart at the seams and in desperate need of strong, competent leadership. In theory, Honorius should have been the right man for the job.

  Born into the royal household in Constantinople, Honorius had been groomed to rule, practically since birth, by the finest experts in the realm. So even as a young man, Honorius had already accumulated decades of experience.

  Yet Rome’s foreign adversaries rightfully believed Honorius to be weak, out of touch, divisive, and completely inept.

  He had entered into bonehead peace treaties that strengthened Rome’s enemies. He paid vast sums of money to some of their most powerful rivals and received practically nothing in return. He made virtually no attempt to secure Roman borders, leaving the empire open to be ravaged by barbarians.

  Inflation was high. Taxes were high. Economic production declined. Roman military power declined. And all of Rome’s foreign adversaries were emboldened.

  To a casual observer it would have almost seemed as if Honorius went out of his way to make the Empire weaker.

  One of Rome’s biggest threats came in the year 408, when the barbarian king Alaric invaded Italy; imperial defenses were so non-existent at that point that ancient historians described Alaric’s march towards Rome as unopposed and leisurely, as if they were “at some festival” rather than an invasion.

  Alaric and his army arrived to the city of Rome in the autumn of 408 AD and immediately positioned their forces to cut off any supplies. No food could enter the city, and before long, its residents began to starve.

  Historians have passed down horrific stories of cannibalism– including women eating their own children in order to survive.

  Rather than send troops and fight, however, Honorius agreed to pay a massive ransom to Alaric, including 5,000 pounds of gold, 30,000 pounds of silver, and literally tons of other real assets and commodities.

  (The equivalent in today’s money, adjusted for population, would be billions of dollars… similar to what the US released to Iran in a prisoner swap last year.)

  Naturally Honorius didn’t have such a vast sum in his treasury… so Romans were forced to strip down and melt their shrines and statues in order to pay Alaric’s ransom.

  Ironically, one of the statues they melted was a monument to Virtus, the Roman god of bravery and strength… leading the ancient historian Zosimus to conclude that “all which remained of Roman valor and intrepidity was totally extinguished.”

  Rome had spent two centuries in the early days of the empire– from the rise of Augustus in 27 BC to the death of Marcus Aurelius in 180 AD– as the clear, unrivaled superpower. Almost no one dared mess with Rome, and few who did ever lived to tell the tale.

  Modern scholars typically view the official “fall” of the Western Roman Empire in the year 476. But it’s pretty clear that the collapse of Roman power and prestige took place decades before.

  When Rome was ransomed in 408 (then sacked in 410), it was obvious to everyone at the time that the Emperor no longer had a grip on power.

  And before long, most of the lands in the West that Rome had once dominated– Italy, Spain, France, Britain, North Africa, etc. were under control of various Barbarian tribes and kingdoms.

  The Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, Franks, Angles, Saxons, Burgundians, Berbers, etc. all established independent kingdoms. And for a while, there was no dominant superpower in western Europe. It was a multi-polar world. And the transition was rather abrupt.

  This is what I think is happening now– we’re experiencing a similar transition, and it seems equally abrupt.

  The United States has been the world’s dominant superpower for decades. But like Rome in the later stage of its empire, the US is clearly in decline. This should not be a controversial statement.

  

  Let’s not be dramatic; it’s important to stay focused on facts and reality. The US economy is still vast and potent, and the country is blessed with an abundance of natural resources– incredibly fertile farmland, some of the world’s largest freshwater resources, and incalculable reserves of energy and other key commodities.

  In fact, it’s amazing the people in charge have managed to screw it up so badly. And yet they have.

  The national debt is out of control, rising by trillions of dollars each year. Debt growth, in fact, substantially outpaces US economic growth.

  Social Security is insolvent, and the program’s own trustees (including the US Treasury Secretary) admit that its major trust fund will run out of money in just nine years.

  The people in charge never seem to miss an opportunity to dismantle capitalism (i.e. the economic system that created so much prosperity to begin with) brick by brick.

  Then there are ubiquitous social crises: public prosecutors who refuse to enforce the law; the weaponization of the justice system; the southern border fiasco; declining birth rates; extraordinary social divisions that are most recently evidenced by the anti-Israel protests.

  And most of all the US constantly shows off its incredibly dysfunctional government that can’t manage to agree on anything, from the budget to the debt ceiling. The President has obvious cognitive disabilities and makes the most bizarre decisions to enrich America’s enemies.

  Are these problems fixable? Yes. Will they be fixed? Maybe. But as we used to say in the military, “hope is not a course of action”.

  Plotting this current trajectory to its natural conclusion leads me to believe that the world will enter a new “barbarian kingdom” paradigm in which there is no dominant superpower.

  Certainly, there are a number of rising rivals today. But no one is powerful enough to assume the leading role in the world.

  China has a massive population and a huge economy. But it too has way too many problems… with the obvious challenge that no one trusts the Communist Party. So, most likely China will not be the dominant superpower.

  India’s economy will eventually surpass China’s, and it has an even bigger population. But India isn’t even close to the ballpark of being the world’s superpower.

  Then there’s Europe. Combined, it still has a massive economic and trade union. But it has also been in major decline… with multiple social crises like low birth rates and a migrant invasion.

  Then there are the energy powers like Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia; they are far too small to dominate the world, but they have the power to menace and disrupt it.

  The bottom line is that the US is no longer strong enough to lead the world and keep adversarial nations in check. And it’s clear that other countries are already adapting to this reality.

  Earlier this month, for example, China successfully launched a rocket to the moon as part of a multi-decade mission to establish an International Lunar Research Station.

  By 2045, China hopes to construct a large, city-like base along with several international partners including Russia, Pakistan, Thailand, South Africa, Venezuela, Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Egypt. Turkey and Nicaragua are also interested in joining.

  This is pretty remarkable given how many nations are participating, even if just nominally. Yet the US isn’t part of the consortium.

  This would have been unthinkable a few decades ago. But today the rest of the world realizes that they no longer need American funding, leadership, or expertise.

  We can see similar examples everywhere, most notably in Israel and Ukraine. And I believe one of the next shoes to drop will be the US dollar.

  After all, if the rest of the world doesn’t need the US for space exploration, and they can ignore the US when it comes down to World War 3, then why should they need the US dollar anymore?

  The dollar was the clear and obvious choice as the global reserve currency back when America was the undisputed superpower. But today it’s a different world.

  Foreign nations continuing to rely on the dollar ultimately means governments and central banks buying US government bonds. And why should they take such a risk when the national debt is already 120% of GDP?

  In addition, Congress passed a new law a few weeks ago authorizing the Treasury Department to confiscate US dollar assets of any country it deems an “aggressor state.”

  While people might think this is a morally righteous idea, the reality is that it will only turn off foreign investors. Why should China, Saudi Arabia, or anyone else buy US government bonds when they can be confiscated in a heartbeat?

  All of this ultimately leads to a world in which the US dollar is no longer the dominant reserve currency. We’re already starting to see signs of that shift, and it could be in full swing by the end of the decade.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 19:00

• America's Dairy Cow Replacement Inventory Collapses To Two-Decade Low 
  America’s Dairy Cow Replacement Inventory Collapses To Two-Decade Low 

  The nation’s food supply chain remains under stress. We’ve been sounding the alarm on America’s beef cattle supply dwindling to the lowest levels in over half a century.

  Now, Bloomberg reports that dairy farms are pivoting breeding programs toward beef-on-dairy hybrids, capitalizing on the low beef herds amid last year’s crushing milk glut. However, this comes with mounting risks as the nation’s dairy herd begins to crack.

  Hybrid calves are produced by artificially inseminating a dairy cow with semen from a beef bull. This has created a massive upside for struggling dairy farmers battered by volatile milk prices and an unforgiving glut in recent years. Midwest farmers last year were forced to dump tens of thousands of gallons of milk down the drain. 

  

  “Milk prices are up and down and so farmers are always looking for a way to offset costs to be as efficient as possible,” said Amy Penterman, the owner of Dutch Dairy, which breeds approximately 70% of its 900-cow milking herd for beef.

  Penterman explained the new revenue stream is “rewarding because the beef supply has diminished over the last few years. We’re able to add that extra supply into the market to keep the cost down for our consumers.”

  The latest USDA data shows the nation’s beef cattle herd plunged to its lowest level since 1951, primarily due to persistent droughts across the Midwest, surging diesel and feed costs, and high interest rates. Higher costs have forced ranchers to cull an increasing number of beef cows. 

  

  On Wednesday, Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King told the audience at the BMO Global Farm to Market Conference in Toronto that he’s still uncertain when US ranchers will rebuild beef herds meaningfully.

  One major problem with dairy farms pivoting towards beef-on-dairy hybrids to capitalize on soaring beef prices is the collapse of the replacement dairy cow inventory. 

  Data from the USDA already shows that the number of available replacement cows for dairy herds in January 2024 plunged to lows not seen since 2004. 

  

  Rabobank’s Lucas Fuess warned that if milk prices were to jump, low inventories and higher prices for replacement cows could cause farmers to experience severe margin compression. 

  Nate Donnay, the director of dairy market insight at StoneX Financial, said the number of replacement dairy cows is already “down to the minimum level” needed to maintain the dairy herd.

  “Ten years from now, the beef herd’s probably going to get too big again and prices will be terrible and maybe they don’t want these dairy animals anymore,” Donnay said, adding, “But for the next couple of years, that demand for dairy animals into the beef herd is probably going to stay strong.”

  Yet another rolling disaster for the nation’s food supply chain. 

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 18:40

• Full Fifth Circuit Hears Arguments Over the Fate Of Texas' Floating Border Wall
  Full Fifth Circuit Hears Arguments Over the Fate Of Texas’ Floating Border Wall

  Authored by Bill Pan via The Epoch Times,

  The legal saga over the fate of a 1,000-foot floating barrier on the Rio Grande has entered a new phase.

  

  Texas Gov. Greg Abbott last summer ordered the deployment of the string of giant orange buoys in the river near Eagle Pass. As a part of Operation Lone Star, the Republican governor’s signature initiative aimed to curb illegal border crossings from Mexico into his state, the buoys are anchored to the bottom and themselves rotate so that people can’t climb over or swim under them.

  Following the installation of the barrier, the Biden administration sued Texas, demanding that it be taken down. Attorneys for Texas invoked the Constitutional right for each state to defend itself against “invasion”—in Texas’ case, by those illegally crossing the river, but that self-defense argument was rejected by the lower court, as did by a split three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

  Arguing on Wednesday before a full, 17-member Fifth Circuit, attorneys for both Texas and the U.S. Department of Justice largely focused on the question of whether Mr. Abbott’s floating wall violates a Reconstruction-era law regulating the use of waterways.

  The law, dubbed the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899, prohibits the “creation of obstruction … to the navigable capacity of the waters” unless approved by Congress and permitted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—the entity responsible for the maintenance of the country’s waterway system to ensure safe passage of vessels.

  The Rio Grande is not subject to the 125-year-old law, Texas told the court, arguing that the stretch of river is too rocky and shallow to be reasonably called a “navigable waterway.”

  “For most of its length and much of its storied history, the Rio Grande has been little more than a creek with an excellent publicist,” said Lanora Pettit, the principal deputy solicitor general of Texas.

  “If the U.S. is right, then any body of water would be deemed navigable and thereby subject to federal jurisdiction.”

  Ms. Pettit further argued that, for more than a century, the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act had been interpreted as applying only to waterways that, “in their ordinary or natural condition, serves [as] the artery of interstate commerce across which trade or travel can be or is conducted.”

  That interpretation apparently does not fit the Rio Grande, which “has too many rocks and not enough water,” she argued. “The only reason we have water in that stretch [where the buoys were installed] is because of the irrigation, and irrigation infrastructure only puts it about 18 inches deep.”

  Arguing for the Justice Department, attorney Michael Gray urged circuit judges to uphold the district judge’s ruling that the Rio Grande was historically navigable. He pointed to past ferry traffic in the area, as well as the use of patrol boats by border enforcers.

  “The most prominent [evidence] being ferry traffic, which is expressly foreign commerce conducted on the river by floating structures, boats,” Mr. Gray told the court. “That foreign commerce is sufficient to bring the area within Congress’s power … to regulate that commerce.”

  Mr. Gray also claimed that the floating wall, which was expected to deter illegal immigration, interfered with the U.S. Border Patrol officers performing their duties.

  “The Border Patrol is on the river basically every day,” he said, emphasizing that the Border Patrol had conducted 249 rescues on the Rio Grande between 2018 and 2023. “There was evidence here that any obstruction to the river, including this obstruction could impair response times of the Border Patrol as the Border Patrol does rescues on the river.”

  The attorneys also briefly made their case on whether the floating barrier counts as a constitutional means of defending Texas against an invasion.

  “Assuming that the question of invasion is not justiciable, then under what circumstances can the United States thwart that attempt at self defense?” Chief Judge Edith Jones, a Ronald Reagan appointee, asked Mr. Gray.

  “You need some organized hostile force,” the DOJ lawyer replied, arguing that the influx of illegal immigrants is not the same kind of “invasion” the Constitution’s framers had in their minds.

  “[Texas government’s] argument is, once they say invasion, ‘We can do anything we want for as long as we want,’” he said. “We don’t think that’s right.”

  The Fifth Circuit did not indicate when they would rule.

  The Fifth Circuit, headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, is also handling another dispute between Texas and the U.S. government. This separate case centers around Shelby Park, a 47-acre public park in Eagle Pass that the federal government had been using as a staging area to process illegal immigrants.

  In January, Texas National Guard soldiers deployed by Mr. Abbott took control of Shelby Park, and have since used roadblocks and concertina wires to prevent Border Patrol officers from processing migrants in the area.

  “The federal government has broken the compact between the United States and the States,” Mr. Abbott said after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security demanded that he grant Border Patrol agents access to the park. “Instead of prosecuting immigrants for the federal crime of illegal entry, President Biden has sent his lawyers into federal courts to sue Texas for taking action to secure the border.”

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 18:20

• Jeff Currie, The Copper Bull: "Most Compelling Trade I've Seen In My 30-Year Trading Career"
  Jeff Currie, The Copper Bull: “Most Compelling Trade I’ve Seen In My 30-Year Trading Career”

  Jeff Currie, who led commodities research at Goldman Sachs for nearly three decades and now serves as the chief strategy officer of the energy pathways team at Carlyle Group, appeared on Bloomberg’s Odd Lots to discuss why copper is the best trade he has seen in his entire career.

  The drive towards electrification, whether that’s electric vehicles and data centers powering artificial intelligence, as well as reshoring manufacturing trends, the need to expand the nation’s power grid to handle surging load demand is in full swing but comes as new copper mining capacity has dwindled, and a squeeze on the Comex exchange has sent prices to record highs. 

  

  Odd Lots’ Joe Weisenthal began by introducing Currie and referencing his past comments from as early as 2021 about the beginning of a commodity supercycle: 

  We’re going to talk to Jeff Currie. So we’ve had him on the podcast at least a couple of times before, back in 2021. We talked to him and he talked about this idea of like a new commodity supercycle, and of course oil was surging and all these commodities were surging as the global economy was reopening.

  Then we talked to him again in 2022 and he said that copper specifically may end up being one of the, the tightest commodity markets he’s ever seen. So real issues with supply and again, looking pretty good these days.

  So we are back with Jeff Currie, who is now in a new role. So when we talked to him before, he was the head of commodities research at Goldman Sachs, but today he’s the chief strategy officer of Energy Pathways at the Carlyle Group. So Jeff, thank you so much for coming back on Odd Lots. 

  A little more than 11 minutes into the conversation, Odd Lots’ Tracy Alloway asked Currie: 

  Alright, I have a very important question for Jeff, which is, are you wearing a copper bracelet right now?

  The commodities veteran responded:

  You know, it is the most compelling trade I have ever seen in my 30 plus years of doing this. You look at the demand story, it’s got green CapEx, it’s got AI, remember AI can’t happen without the energy demand and the constraint on the electricity grid is going to be copper.

  And then you have the military demand. So unprecedented demand growth against unprecedented weakness in supply growth because we have not been investing, it’s teed you up for what I would argue is the most bullish commodity that I actually, I just quote many of our clients and other market participants say, you know, it’s the highest conviction trade they’ve ever seen.

  Currie’s comments come as a historic Comex copper short squeeze is underway this week. 

  It all started one month ago, when we reported “US, UK Banned Deliveries Of Russian Copper, Nickel And Aluminum To Western Metals Exchanges.” This sparked a massive dislocation for copper prices traded in New York and other commodity exchanges has rocked the global market for the base metal and prompted a frantic dash for supplies to ship to the US.

  

  We have discussed the fundamental case for copper:

  •  “Goldman Says “Copper’s Time Is Now””

  •  “The Copper Supply Shortage Is Here“

  • “Copper “Is Having A Cocoa Moment””

  • Goldbugs Waited Years For A Massive Comex Short Squeeze, And Finally Got It… Just In The Wrong Metal

  And most notably in the “the Next AI Trade“… 

  Back to Currie’s Odd Lots interview. He pointed the acronym “RED” summarizes the three major structural tailwinds driving copper demand forward (summarized by Bloomberg);

  The ‘R’ stands for redistribution policies: As he argues, lower-income groups have been consuming “a greater share of commodities than the higher-income groups. That’s very much alive and kicking. You look at the low unemployment rate, who’s the biggest benefactor of that? It is the lower-income groups, and policies still very much in play all over the world right now reinforcing these lower-income groups in the consumption of commodities.”

  The ‘E’ stands for environment policy, which Currie describes as having been “turbocharged” in recent years.

  “You have the IRA, the REPowerEU, China,” he says. “Now, part of the reason why copper’s rallied recently [is that] China’s growth was over 100% in green CapEx last year, 30% this year. So everywhere you look in the world, we see environmental policy through green CapEx stimulating demand for commodities.”

  And finally, the ‘D’ stands for deglobilization, though it could also stand for defense.

  “Look at the potential military spend in the US — $95 billion on munitions,” he says. “We look at what’s going on in places like Germany, $100 billion dollars of military spend. So you’ve got all three going much stronger than what we would’ve thought two-to-three years ago.”

  As for the beginning of the upswing in the commodity supercycle, well, the  Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index this week reached its highest point in a year. 

  And this is not great news for Fed Chair Powell’s inflation fight. However, for the time being, the OER component of the CPI basket will continue to pressure inflation. 

  

  What’s ominous is the surge in spot commodity prices. 

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 18:00

• NBC Animal Documentary Claims "This Is A Queer Planet"
  NBC Animal Documentary Claims “This Is A Queer Planet”

  Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Modernity.news,

  A documentary set to be broadcast by NBC asserts that we live on a “queer planet,” in which homosexuality is widespread in the animal kingdom and there are more than two genders.

  

  Yes, really.

  The documentary, set to be aired on June 6, features one “expert” stating, “Everything you were taught as a kid is wrong.”

  “Gay penguins, bisexual lions, sex changing clown fish,” the narration, voiced by gay actor Andrew Rannells, claims are all evidence that “this is a queer planet.”

  “Queer Planet” will be released in June.

  The documentary by NBC is focused on “LGBTQI+ tolerance” among the animal kingdom…

  No, this is not satire. pic.twitter.com/sf9ES6bXuG

  — End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) May 16, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  The trailer then shows two women, one with blue hair, asserting that “Queerness has always existed” and that “It’s only in humans that we have such a stigma about it.”

  Apparently, this “stigma” revolves around having it shoved in your face 24/7 on television, TV commercials, within the education system, and publicly shaming or even arresting and prosecuting anyone who doesn’t embrace it.

  “The idea of just having two fixed sexes is clearly out of style,” the narration continues, with another short haired woman with tattoos claiming, “Mother nature is pretty open minded.”

  Nature is apparently “full of queer surprises,” according to the documentary.

  I’m not sure that aspiring to behave like animals is quite the win that LGBT activists think it is.

  Animals practice all kinds of behaviors which if they were mimicked by humans would lead to the collapse of civilization.

  Lions practice infanticide and many other species eat their own offspring, should we start normalizing that too?

  Dolphins torture and murder porpoises for fun, should we do the same?

  Sea otters rape and murder baby seals, should we follow suit?

  Explorer George Murray Levick documented how Adelie penguins gang-rape females and have sex with the ground, other males, and dead females lying frozen. Should we normalize necrophilia?

  Tiger sharks kill their own siblings in the womb, while hyena cubs start fighting and killing each other as soon as they are born, is that to be celebrated?

  Cats and other animals engage in wilfully sadistic behavior for fun, should humans emulate that too?

  The narrative used to be that while homosexuality does occur within the animal kingdom, it is more about base sexual gratification and has little to do with advancing a species.

  In order to abolish the “stigma” surrounding homosexuality in humans (which doesn’t exist since it’s promoted everywhere), that narrative is now apparently changing.

  *  *  *

  Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 17:40

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• US Wars Are Making Türkiye's Relationship With The West Politically Untenable
  US Wars Are Making Türkiye’s Relationship With The West Politically Untenable

  Authored by Conor Gallagher via NakedCapitalism.com,

  Turkish public opinion of the West dropped due to the Iraq War and has not recovered. There have been almost constant issues since, with both sides fanning the flames – the US with its arrogance and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for using the disputes for political gain. Beneath the surface, however, they continue to cooperate on a wide range of issues.

  That might get more difficult. The fact is the US, by supporting Israel’s “plausible” genocide in Gaza, has managed to find an issue that could cause an irreparable break between the West and the vast majority of Turkish citizens, which could make it politically toxic for Erdogan or anyone else to remain partially aligned with the West.

  For months after October 7, Erdogan paid lip service to the Palestinian cause while trade kept flowing between Turkiye and Israel. Voters forced him to take a firmer stand at the polls on March 31 when Erdogan’s Justice and Development (AK) Party lost the popular vote for the first time since 2002 – partially due to the government response to Israel’s war in Gaza (the other big issue was the economy).

  The Islamist far-right New Welfare Party (YRP) left Erdogan’s ruling People’s Alliance and campaigned on ending trade with Israel, and as a result it became the third largest party nationwide with 6.2 percent of the vote and won 60 municipalities.

  A contrite Erdogan said the AKP would begin listening more to voters’ concerns.

  On May 2, the news broke that Türkiye is halting all trade with Israel, which in theory could be a major blow to the latter. Türkiye is the fifth-largest source of Israeli imports, which include high-value products like iron, plastic and steel in addition to basic goods such as food items and textiles. In 2022, iron and steel topped the list of Turkish exports to Israel, and were together worth $1.19 billion.

  

  The US surprisingly bit its tongue over Türkiye’s announcement with State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller saying that “they are both allies of ours, and we would encourage them to work through their differences.” The fact is there isn’t a whole lot the US can do as Washington has already pushed so much on the Ukraine issue, trying to do so on the issue of the slaughter in Gaza, which has inflamed public opinion in Türkiye, would be unwise. Miller’s statement also ignores the fact that “their differences” could be solved by the US forcing Israel to put an end to its “plausible” genocide.

  Israel’s Foreign Minister said on May 9 that Erdogan was retreating on his trade restrictions only for Ankara to deny that’s the case. That makes the statement from Israel sound either imprudent or like more of a threat.

  There are still questions of just how firm Erdogan and the Turks are on the trade suspension.

  On May 5, the Israeli financial daily Globes reported the following:

  Türkiye has not yet halted the loading of oil tankers at Ceyhan port bound for Israel, according to Israeli sources. Azerbaijan is an important supplier of oil to Israel, via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, at the end of which the oil is loaded onto tankers that bring it to Haifa.

  Azerbaijan and Türkiye are strong allies, and Israel enjoys probably its closest ties with a majority Muslim nation with Azerbaijan and is a major supplier of arms to the Caspian country. From 2016 to 2020 Tel Aviv accounted for 69 percent of Azerbaijan’s major arms imports, including loitering munitions (they have been likened to missiles that can hunt for a target while directed from a control station).  The weapons gained notoriety in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War.

  Israel is one of the top customers for Azerbaijani oil, importing $297 million worth in January.

  If Erdogan really wanted to get tough on Israel and lead the Muslim world response as he’s claimed, he could not only stop the transit of Azerbaijani oil, but maybe even try to do something about other suppliers. After Azerbaijan, the second biggest exporter of oil to Israel is Kazakhstan, which sends it through the Chevron-, ExxonMobil-, and Shell-controlled Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) pipeline to the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk.

  

  Article 5 of the 1936 Montreux Convention states that if Türkiye is a belligerent, neutral merchant vessels may transit the straits by day through designated routes, but only if they do not assist the enemy.

  Instead, Israel is beginning to send back its diplomats to Türkiye, half a year after it withdrew them over security concerns, and there are also rumblings about Türkiye rerouting exports through a middleman:

  One proposed solution is to transport the products through European countries, according to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

  Israeli shipping company iShip Forwarding has suggested a workaround to bypass the ban by establishing a new logistical route where Turkish products are first transported to third countries, and from there, to Israel.This solution allows Turkish manufacturers to continue supplying goods to Israel without violating the ban and without their knowledge that the products are reaching Israel. The shipping company has refused to disclose the specific third country through which the shipment passes, but the Israeli newspaper mentioned Bulgaria and Romania among others. This transit would incur additional costs on the shipment but ensures the continuous flow of goods.

  If these reports of Türkiye already softening its trade suspension with Israel are true, more blowback can be expected as Turks are paying close attention to this issue – demonstrated by Erdogan being unable to get away with his usual talk-but-no-action strategy in the recent local elections.

  And the longer Erdogan and the higher ups in Türkiye try to keep a lid on popular backlash against Israel and its partners in the West, the more likely it is that the situation explodes.

  The Bigger Picture – Türkiye and the West

  The number of issues between Ankara and the West over the past few decades are almost too numerous to count. Here’s just a brief list:

  • Sanctions and more sanctions. The US sanctions Turkish individuals and companies for “aiding Russia,” for “aiding Iran,” and the US is already threatening to slap on more sanctions over Turkish firms’ exports to Russia. A quick search on the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control site turns up a whopping 232 sanctioned Turkish individuals or entities.  This is not a great look when Türkiye is going through its worst economic crisis in two decades.

  • Türkiye was snubbed by the EU.

  • Since the 1990s, Ankara asked NATO multiple times to deploy early warning systems and Patriot missiles to Türkiye, but it never came to pass. In 2017 Russia sold Türkiye its S-400 missile defense systems, which are arguably superior to anything the West has. In response the US expelled Türkiye from its F-35 program and sanctioned the country’s defense industry organization and its leaders.

  • Possible US involvement in failed 2016 coup attempt.

  • US proxy forces in Ukraine have reportedly tried to sabotage pipelines between Russia and Türkiye over the past year.

  • Western support of Kurds to the point there exists the possibility of Turkish soldiers coming face to face in the field with American soldiers, who are supporting the YPG in Syria.

  • The US abandoned its largely neutral stance on Türkiye’s relationship with both Greece and Cyprus. Washington is ramping up military aid to Greece, turning a port near the Turkish border into a naval base, and sending weaponry to Cyprus after ending a decades-old ban on arms sales.

  This has all taken place despite Türkiye’s status as the second most important member of NATO just based on its geographic position, which includes controlling access to the Black Sea. These issues highlight a fundamental difference in how the two sides view the alliance: while Türkiye views itself as something more than just a regional power and wants to be treated as such, the US essentially wants Ankara to follow orders.

  For now, the relationship continues largely out of economic necessity. While Turkiye imports cheap and reliable energy from Russia, its factories produce goods for the European market.

  But economic concerns can be overruled by popular opinion, as we have seen by Erdogan being mostly forced by voters to start taking more active measures against Israel despite Türkiye’s economic woes. There are no signs that the trajectory of US-Israel attitudes and actions are going to change, and as a result it’s difficult to see how Turkish public opposition to the US-led West doesn’t continue to stiffen.  Sinem Adar, an associate at the Center for Applied Türkiye Studies at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, writing at War on the Rocks:

  Türkiye’s ruling elites believe that “the West lacks strategic thinking and has increasingly become estranged from the rest of the world in the face of various issues including relations with China, migration and terror, and the shift in economic gravity from the West to the East.”

  For Ankara, the unequivocal and unconditional support that the Biden administration gives Israel confirms this belief. Triggering a convergence between the policies of Türkiye, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and other countries, pro-government journalists expect that the conflict would lead to an increasing isolation of Israel. Regardless of their ideological affiliation, most Turkish political actors tend to see the recent conflict in Gaza as one between the so-called West (led by the United States) and the East. Since the disputed attack at the al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City, there have been calls on the government to ally with countries in the Global South to “stop the U.S.-Israeli alliance.”

  Yet the proposed methods vary. Addressing an emergency session of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation on Oct. 18, Fidan called upon Muslim countries to act with “self-confidence” and “challenge the hegemonic narrative that has been imposed on them,” but without offering a concrete roadmap for how to do that. Devlet Bahçeli, the leader of the AKP’s junior partner, the Nationalist Movement Party, said Türkiye should intervene militarily if there is no ceasefire. Those critical of Ankara’s civilizationist aspirations yet share its aspirations for a foreign policy independent from the West call for booting U.S. military members at Incirlik Air Force Base and the Kürecik Radar Station in Malatya.

  While the main opposition remains committed to the West and even the usually nimble Erdogan has looked a bit slow in keeping up with public opinion on the Palestine issue, others are beginning to fill the gaps, speaking out against the lack of Turkish action on Palestine, as well as increasingly blaming NATO.

  There were protests at the American Incirlik air base in November. Protestors tried to storm the base and fought with police in riot gear who fired tear gas and used water cannons to disperse the crowds. The base in southern Türkiye is reportedly still used by the US to deliver weapons to Israel. There’s also the fact that Incirlik hosts US nuclear weapons, which has become increasingly controversial. Asked about it before the 2020 election, Biden said he is “worried.”

  According to Nordic Monitor, the protests were at least partially organized by the Turkish intelligence agency MIT, which in a bid to give Erdogan more leverage in talks with DC, “engaged a jihadist charity organization to orchestrate a nationwide march.” Let’s hope MIT doesn’t lose control of its assets.

  

  There have also been protests at NATO’s Kürecik Radar Station in southeastern Türkiye, where thousands chanted against Israel and NATO. Although Türkiye agreed to host the radar station under the condition that information gathered there only be shared with NATO member states, it is widely believed Israel also receives the information. Iran criticized Türkiye when the radar was being installed back in 2011, saying it would help to protect Israel from Iranian missile attacks in case of a war.

  Seeing as the US and Israel are joined at the hip, Israel’s actions in Gaza also increase opposition in Türkiye to the US and NATO. And this trend predates Israel’s “plausible” genocide:

  A poll conducted in December 2022 by the Turkish company Gezici found that 72.8% of Turkish citizens polled were in favor of good relations with Russia. By comparison, nearly 90% perceive the United States as a hostile country. It also revealed that 24.2% of citizens believe that Russia is hostile, while 62.6% believe that Russia is a friendly country. Similarly, more than 60% of respondents said that Russia contributes positively to the Turkish economy.

  Those results are astounding. Russia and Türkiye share a long, difficult history, and as recently as 2016, Russia was seen by the public as the biggest threat to Türkiye. Only 16 percent of Turks had a favorable opinion of Russia in 2014. The major reversal is likely the result of a sustained campaign by Russia to improve ties through energy links and the construction of Türkiye’s first nuclear power plant. Further US heavy handedness haven’t helped, and there’s a strong possibility that due to the unpopularity of the US in Türkiye, that when Russia’s ties deteriorate with the West it is held in higher regard in Türkiye.

  While low opinions of the West have persisted since the Iraq War, there are many differences between then and today that make the situation more volatile.

  The US is seen as worsening Türkiye’s economic crisis by applying sanctions over a perceived lack of enthusiasm for the economic war against Russia. (Türkiye has not joined the West’s sanctions against Russia and has profited from acting as a middleman between Russia and other countries.)

  But most of all, it is the fact that the US could put a stop to the daily carnage in Gaza that is widely reported across Türkiye day after day going on seven months now, and it chooses not to.

  These issues helped propel the rightwing New Welfare Party (YRP) to third place in recent elections. YRP demands an end to trade with Israel and the closure of NATO’s Kürecik Radar Station in southeastern Türkiye. The YRP had also previously opposed Sweden’s NATO bid.

  Erdogan is already moving towards the YRP position on trade with Israel – or at least is trying to make it appear as though he is. We’ll have to see if more is coming.

  Erdogan has been playing this card of the big, bad West for years now, but he’s been in power for more than two decades. His problem is that voters believe him; they also see that not much has been done about it. And they’re increasingly starting to demand action – whether it comes through the democratic system or not.

  The fact that Incirlik Air Force Base and the Kürecik Radar Station have become targets of public outrage is not a great sign for the US.

  Leaders of Arab countries are getting increasingly nervous about their restive populations angry about their countries’ lack of action against Israel. US support for Israel has put a big target on US bases throughout the Arab world, and that is also the case in NATO-ally Türkiye where the ties holding Ankara and Washington together at arm’s length are increasingly fraying.

  Tyler Durden
  Fri, 05/17/2024 – 02:00

• Whistling Past The National Train Wreck
  Whistling Past The National Train Wreck

  Authored by Donald Jeffries via I Protest,

  There are only so many ways one can say that America is collapsing. That the Fat Lady is nearing the end of her song. That we’re running on fumes. If Yogi Berra were around, he’d say it’s over. We had a good run, as far as civilizations go. We were the light of the world for a long time. Maybe even Reagan’s shining city upon a hill.

  

  Yesterday, Jason Whitlock reported on one Dexter Taylor, a software engineer who was just convicted and sentenced to ten years for constructing his own guns without a license. Shades of January 6. Taylor is Black, by the way, for those of you to whom that matters. I don’t expect to see former crack dealer turned FBI informant “Reverend” Al Sharpton leading a protest about this particular Black man being a victim of injustice. Our record-setting prisons are overflowing with people like Taylor, of all races. People who most decidedly don’t belong behind bars. Having watched enough of those Investigation Discovery shows, and cops gone wild videos, I often wonder just how many actual criminals are in prison. The system devotes so much effort to framing innocent people, that they may no longer be capable of convicting truly guilty ones.

  I could have titled this Substack Whistling Past the American Graveyard. Maybe I should have. But America 2.0 isn’t literally dead yet. On life support? Yes. With an almost certain terminal prognosis? Yes. I used the train wreck analogy because everywhere we look, things are wrecked. A sad vestige of what they were even a decade ago. It’s fitting that we haven’t addressed our Third World infrastructure for over sixty years. What you see is what you get now. America is in critical condition, and it looks it. You can judge this book by its cover. Give me your obese, your tattooed, your weezing, chronically ill with oxygen tanks and walkers. Wretched refuse indeed. Your endless migrants, who don’t speak English and urinate and defecate in public. What’s not to love?

  A society is reflected in its leaders. And what leaders America 2.0 has! Our political “representatives” are so dedicated to not representing us that every piece of legislation they pass is assumed to be yet another figurative drone strike to the population. I’ve been a political junkie for over fifty years, and I couldn’t tell you when the last law was passed that benefited the People in the slightest way. That’s why libertarianism, and now anarchy, has become popular. The best we can hope for with these beloved statesmen (and stateswomen, and soon to be statetransgenders), is that they do nothing. That we pay them their generous salaries, and give them the lucrative benefits very few of us get, to maybe rape an underage page, or be bribed by a special interest group. Just don’t pass any legislation. Pretty please.

  As I wrote recently in depth about, Americans also have to contend with the occupying force of militarized police officers. They are the standing army Thomas Jefferson warned about. They serve no function other than to annoy, harass, and sometimes kill the befuddled citizens who pay them. They are never there when you need them, and are incapable of solving any real crime. They are good at beating people (as long as you are a vulnerable target who represents no danger to them), planting evidence, and lying on their police reports. But people love them. Jolly coppers on parade, as Randy Newman called them long ago. The best you can hope for is to completely avoid any interaction with them. They are upholding the systemic corruption. Doing the bidding of their masters. Guarding the train wreck.

  Our government agencies are all worthless, providing no real services other than to begrudgingly pay us back the money they stole from us (Social Security, Medicare, and Unemployment Compensation), or provide the benefits they promised (military personnel). But, like savage beasts that are always hungry, they must be fed. Paid better than those who pay them, and with much better benefits. While conservatives bemoan “welfare,” which was altered significantly under Bill Clinton, so that fewer people receive less money, they fail to see the federal government itself for what it is: a gigantic, entitled welfare recipient. Think of Reagan’s mythical Welfare Queen. Living it up with house money. Taxpayer money.

  To paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield, private industry is no winner, either. Much of it would welcome back child labor. They hate the minimum wage. If we raise it, your Big Mac will cost $50 and all that. They’ve been chipping away at the best legislation of the twentieth century, the 1938 act that created the forty hour work week, overtime, sick and vacation pay. They don’t like paying their lowly serfs time and a half. Remember, this law only came about because of the pressure Huey Long put on the Left, to pass a thirty hour work week, with a month’s paid vacation for all workers. The 1938 act was a watered down version of his ideas, a compromise that was still far better than what workers had before that. Which was basically nothing. I think that 1938 act may have been the last good law, passed eighteen years before I was born.

  Corporate America used to represent the epitome of conservatism. Now, they are at least as “Woke” as every government agency is. Say that men can’t have babies at your own risk. Object to some mentally unbalanced co-worker complaining that you don’t respect his/her/its ridiculous new “pronouns,” and be immediately “cancelled.” Without passing “Go” or collecting $200. Say “All Lives Matter.” Wear a MAGA hat. You’ll find that your right to “free expression” is severely restricted. I could never make it in any work environment today. Virtually every word I uttered would be a fireable offense under the “new normal.” And sociable guys like me would be in hot water constantly. Just smiling and saying “hello” to the wrong Karen is no longer permitted. Unless you’re Black. Then be as loud and vulgar as you like. Except saying “9/11 was an inside job,” or talking about the Jews in a loud voice, that is.

  Our dystopian downfall might be a bit more tolerable if it had a nice soundtrack. This one doesn’t, because new music has effectively stopped. I don’t consider rap and the American Idol-inspired wailing to be rock or pop music. It’s like the Titanic going down, and the band decides to be fronted by Snoop Dogg and Cardi B. That’s not quite the same as Nearer my God to Thee. And we can’t even watch any good movies or television shows that critique or satirize the madness. That’s because this train wreck can’t even be mentioned, let alone criticized. So we’re forced to watch old movies and television shows instead. It’s a form of therapy, like digitized valium. That’s how I wind down at night. Get lost in that black and white world, with attractive people, simple values, solid acting, writing, and production values.

  And then there’s the populace. Sure, there are millions of people awake now, to varying degrees. But millions more are sound asleep. If you try to act as their alarm clock, they can quickly become violent. Against all reason, they appear to like the present situation. They seem to feel there is hope for the future. They recoil at our re-pilled and black-pilled proclamations like we were holding them up at intellectual gunpoint. As e.e. cummings once chided his fellow poet Ezra Pound, who was obsessed with Jews, the Federal Reserve, and unnecessary wars, and involuntarily committed to a mental health facility for a decade by the government, “You bastard- you’re trying to get them to think!” Most people desperately don’t want to think. It’s an ignorance is bliss thing, you wouldn’t understand.

  A citizenry basically has two ways to try and reform things. To abolish bad laws and “mandates,” get rid of corrupt leaders, and enact better laws that ensure better leaders. One is by the voting process. As should be obvious by this point, that isn’t an option here. ‘Murricans reelect some 96 percent of the worst people on earth to “represent” them every election. Either this is because they are incurably stupid, or because the votes aren’t honestly counted. Either way, we’re screwed. The other way is by legal redress. Judicial Review, which everyone except Thomas Jefferson, and me, seems to think is the constitutional way to do it. Donald Trump’s and Alex Jones’s show trials alone demonstrate that the legal system is hopelessly compromised, by criminally biased judges, unethical prosecutors, and brainless juries.

  The judge in Dexter Taylor’s trial proclaimed that the Second Amendment didn’t exist in her court. These lordly judges seem to think that the courtroom itself is their property, that it belongs to them. Instead of “get off my lawn,” they yell, “you’re in contempt!” So the Constitution she is supposed to be upholding, which includes the Second Amendment, is irrelevant to her. That statement alone would instantly assure her removal from office in an honest society. This obviously isn’t an honest society. And it follows on the heels of all those Trump and Jones’ judges who have decreed that the First Amendment can’t be cited as a defense in their courtroom. All rise! Here comes ‘da judge, as they used to say when you could lampoon such things.

  Some allegedly famous “social media influencer” named Haley Kalil, who has some ten million followers on social media, recently scoffed at the unwashed masses by quoting Marie Antoinette’s iconic “Let them eat cake.” And to think, I can’t even get 5,000 followers on the platform formerly known as Twitter. Now, it’s highly unlikely that young Haley has even heard of Marie Antoinette. She certainly doesn’t have the mental acuity to realize how that sounds. What she is representing. But some other celebrities, as crazed as they are themselves, became incensed enough at the remark to announce that they were going to subject her to the digitine- the digitalized guillotine. I’m impressed that any young celebrity knows the connection between Marie Antoinette and the guillotine. So I guess that’s a positive development.

  If present-day Americans had anything of the mindset of the eighteenth century French, or the American colonists, then they would have long ago started sharpening some real guillotines. I must stress that I am not supporting guillotining anyone. I oppose capital punishment. Period. Whatever the French monarchy was doing to the masses in the late 1700s certainly cannot compare to the tyranny we see in America today, or really everywhere around the world. Taxes on tea and stamps are laughable compared to the unfair and unjust monolithic establishment present-day Americans must contend with. Someone in an American courtroom faces the same cruel and unusual punishment which is forbidden under the Constitution, every day in this country. And we still have that whole “taxation without representation” thing.

  RFK, Jr.’s recent inexplicable disclosure that he had suffered from a brain worm, which caused him to lose some cognitive function, really hammered home how tragically comic things are. We have Joe Biden, so obviously suffering from dementia that he wouldn’t be trusted by the average nursing home to lead a transgender story time hour, and Donald Trump, who if you accept him at face value (which I don’t), has the emotional maturity of a twelve year old. And now Bobby, Jr. With a worm in his head. Not exactly Jefferson vs. Adams. But many- perhaps millions- still believe the “White Hats” are just around the corner. Despite no evidence of any good people in power anywhere, some still trust that they will save us.

  So all aboard the American train wreck. It’s not going anywhere, but you’ll need to give your ticket to the conductor anyway. You’re forced to watch (and finance) inaction in motion. Just don’t point out it’s not moving. There are a lot of fellow passengers that will want to punch you for that. To them, it’s the best ride they’ve ever been on. Maybe they can keep this facade up a bit longer. Look what they’re doing with the stock market. Even evil magicians can work wonders. This is still the greatest country in the world. Love it or leave it. Pull yourself up by the bootstraps. Those who don’t work don’t eat. Choose your pronouns wisely. And stay on this wreck. We’re number one! And we prosecute dissenters.

  Subscribe to “I Protest” by Donald Jeffries

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 23:30

• Russia Orders UK Defense Attaché Out Of The Country In Tit-For-Tat
  Russia Orders UK Defense Attaché Out Of The Country In Tit-For-Tat

  Russia has hit back at the UK’s latest diplomatic moves against Moscow, on Thursday ordering the expulsion of the British defense attache from the country.

  “The defense attaché at the British Embassy in Moscow, A. T. Coghill, has been declared persona non grata. He must leave the territory of the Russian Federation within a week,” Russia’s foreign ministry said.

  

  It follows the UK first expelling Moscow’s defense attache from British soil earlier this month as he was accused of being “an undeclared military intelligence officer.” Russia blasted it as a lie, and its top diplomat overseeing military affairs was forced to leave.

  The Kremlin is now threatening further diplomatic escalation while complaining about London’s “unfriendly,” “anti-Russian” and politically motivated recent actions.

  The British government has of late quietly launched a pressure campaign on Russian diplomatic facilities and personnel in the UK, with Interior Minister James Cleverly recently briefing parliament that multiple Russian-owned properties will be downgraded from having diplomatic status and protections.

  Cleverly alleged that Russian sites in Sussex as well as in London will see their diplomatic immunity removed. Cleverly told parliament that “we believe have been used for intelligence purposes.”

  As we detailed this week, British intelligence has gone so far as to accuse Putin of plotting ‘physical attacks’ on British soil and NATO sites.

  France has said it’s considering sending ground troops to Ukraine.

  The U.K. greenlit Ukraine’s use of British weapons to strike Russia.

  Is it a mystery why Russia ordered tactical nuclear weapons drills? pic.twitter.com/0eaVZZSZK7

  — System Update (@SystemUpdate_) May 7, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  There have been a spate of new accusations of specific attacks on UK infrastructure being linked to Russia. For example The Telegraph writes that “Last week, a British man was charged with an arson attack in London and accused by prosecutors of working for Wagner Group, the Russian paramilitary organization.”

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 23:00

• Coffee Linked To Reduced Parkinson's Risk
  Coffee Linked To Reduced Parkinson’s Risk

  Authored by George Citroner via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Your morning cup of joe may be doing more than just giving you an energy boost to tackle the day. New evidence suggests that the caffeine in your brew could pack an extra punch by reducing your risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

  

  Findings Suggest Caffeine May Reduce Parkinson’s Risk by 40 Percent

  While previous research highlighted caffeine’s benefits like increased energy and enhanced cognitive performance, a recent study in Neurology adds to the evidence that caffeine may help prevent Parkinson’s disease, a progressive movement disorder.

  The new study examined coffee intake and future Parkinson’s risk in 184,024 participants across six European countries.

  Unlike prior studies, it quantified caffeine biomarkers years before Parkinson’s onset. Researchers identified 351 Parkinson’s cases, matched with controls by age, sex, study center, and fasting status during blood collection.

  Results showed that higher caffeine consumption and the presence of key metabolites like paraxanthine and theophylline were linked to reduced Parkinson’s risk.

  Paraxanthine and theophylline have been shown to have antioxidant effects. Oxidative stress is believed to play a role in the neurodegeneration seen in Parkinson’s, so compounds with antioxidant activity may help protect neurons from damage. Also, Parkinson’s involves the death of dopamine neurons. Some research suggests paraxanthine and theophylline may increase dopamine receptor signaling, which could compensate for neuron loss.

  The neuroprotective effects were exposure-dependent, with the highest consumption group having nearly 40 percent lower Parkinson’s risk compared to non-coffee drinkers.

  The “sweet spot of coffee consumption” is probably two to four cups per day, Dr. Jack Wolfson, a board-certified cardiologist in Scottsdale, Arizona, not associated with the study, told The Epoch Times. Above that amount, “there is probably not much benefit,” he added.

  Link Promising but Not Proven

  The scientific evidence linking coffee consumption to a decreased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease is quite strong, Dr. Hwai Ooi, a neurologist at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, who was not associated with the study, told The Epoch Times. Numerous studies over the past 20 years have demonstrated a “clear association,” she said.

  However, association does not imply causation. The exact mechanism by which caffeine might offer neuroprotection and reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease development remains unknown, Dr. Ooi added.

  Also, clinical trials to date investigating whether caffeine or its metabolites can slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease or help improve its symptoms have not shown such benefits, she noted.

  Though the evidence looks promising, Dr. Ooi said more research is needed to fully understand the relationship between coffee consumption and Parkinson’s disease risk. This includes determining the optimal amount and type of coffee to consume for maximum benefits.

  Don’t Overdo the Coffee: Expert

  Dr. Ooi cautioned against consuming excessive coffee to lower Parkinson’s risk. “As with almost everything we put into our bodies, moderation is key,” she said.

  Excess caffeine intake has been linked to increased anxiety, sleep issues, gastrointestinal problems like heartburn, elevated heart rate and blood pressure (especially problematic for those with heart conditions or hypertension), decreased bone density, and potential medication interactions.

  Regular consumption of large amounts of coffee can lead to dependency and withdrawal symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and irritability when reducing intake.

  Dr. Ooi advised consulting a health care professional for any concerns about caffeine intake.

  Other Ways to Reduce Parkinson’s Risk

  In addition to coffee consumption, experts say there are other lifestyle factors and habits that could play a role in reducing the risk of Parkinson’s disease.

  The most important is aerobic exercise, “which has clearly been shown to be neuroprotective effects in Parkinson’s disease and can slow down progression of the disease,” Dr. Ooi said. Current guidelines recommend a minimum of 2.5 hours of aerobic activity per week for those with Parkinson’s.

  Other factors linked to optimal brain health and lower Parkinson’s risk include maintaining a healthy, balanced diet. Dr. Wolfson recommends a diet rich in wild seafood, noting higher consumption is associated with lower risk.

  Getting adequate sleep, managing stress through practices like mindfulness meditation, and staying socially and mentally active are other modifiable lifestyle changes that may be beneficial, he added.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 22:30

• Netanyahu Could Fire Defense Chief As Public Spat Erupts Over Gaza 'Day After'
  Netanyahu Could Fire Defense Chief As Public Spat Erupts Over Gaza ‘Day After’

  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is at odds with his own defense minister Yoav Gallant after Gallant said in a Wednesday televised address that the Israeli leader must take “tough decisions” on Gaza’s ‘day after’ the war ends. Gallant came out very strongly against any scenario that leaves Israel in charge of overseeing the Gaza Strip. He called for advancing non-Hamas Palestinian governance, which would of course mean the Palestinian Authority (PA, which is made up primarily of Fatah), along with international backing. 

  Times of Israel highlighted that “The public comments, seen as the most direct political challenge to Netanyahu from within his government since the start of the war, sparked an angry backlash among members of the coalition, who urged Netanyahu to fire the defense minister.”

  What made matters worse is that just a few hours prior to Gallant issuing his direct challenge, Netanyahu asserted publicly that any discussions of the “day after” Hamas in Gaza are meaningless until the terror group is defeated.

  In response to Gallant, Netanyahu issued televised remarks wherein he laid out that he’s “not prepared to switch from Hamastan to Fatahstan” – in reference to the PA which currently governs the West Bank, and represents the older era of Palestinian resistance to Israel.

  I am not prepared to replace “Hamastan” with “Fatahstan.” pic.twitter.com/CH3V71bQGd

  — Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) May 16, 2024

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  Gallant’s challenge is also ultra-sensitive due to going tensions between Netanyahu and the Biden White House. Gallant’s plan is widely seen as the one Washington would favor as an outcome. The US has meanwhile condemned any scenario which would see the Israeli government or military permanently administer the Gaza Strip. 

  Some hardliners within the Israeli coalition even want to eventually open up the Strip to direct settlement by Jewish families.

  Below is a more detailed look at Gallant’s ‘day after plan which Netanyahu has rejected, via David Ignatius’ Washington Post column:

  It’s time for Israel to begin building a Palestinian security force in Gaza that can provide stability there after the political power of Hamas is broken, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a blunt briefing this week.

  “The idea is simple,” Gallant told me. “We will not allow Hamas to control Gaza. We don’t want Israel to control it, either. What is the solution? Local Palestinian actors backed by international actors.” Gallant’s frank comments mark a turn in the Israeli government’s debate about governance and security issues in Gaza, known by the shorthand phrase “the day after.” His views are widely shared by the defense and security establishment but opposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition.

  Concerning Washington’s view of this, Ignatius writes further:

  Biden administration officials say Gallant has taken a larger role in U.S.-Israeli dialogue in recent months, as relations have soured between Netanyahu and President Biden. One U.S. official described Gallant as an “indispensable” problem-solver in the increasingly tense debate about how to end the war in Gaza.

  …In January, Gallant released a public plan that stated his central point: “Gaza residents are Palestinian, therefore Palestinian bodies will be in charge, with the condition that there will be no hostile actions or threats against Israel.” He proposed a multinational task force to help stabilize Gaza including U.S., European and Arab partners, with Egypt playing a special role as a “major actor.”

  Netanyahu in his response has tried to frame it as a matter of Gallant making “excuses” for not having eradicated Hamas yet, but without naming him directly.

  

  But central to Gallant’s rationale is that direct Israeli rule over the Strip will perpetuate rebellion among Palestinians, driving them into the arms of Hamas. “As long as Hamas retains control over civilian life in Gaza, it may rebuild and strengthen, thus requiring the IDF to return and fight in areas where it has already operated,” he has said.

  “We must dismantle Hamas’ governing capabilities in Gaza. The key to this goal is military action, and the establishment of a governing alternative in Gaza,” Gallant concluded.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 22:00

• Million Texans Without Power As Storm Topples Transmission Towers 
  Million Texans Without Power As Storm Topples Transmission Towers 

  Powerful storms tore through eastern Texas on Thursday evening, decimating transmission towers and plunging over a million residents into darkness. 

  “Severe thunderstorms moving across the Houston metro area have a history of producing damaging winds! This destructive storm will contain wind gusts to 80 MPH! A tornado is possible!” the National Weather Service of Houston wrote on X.

  ⚠️⚠️Severe thunderstorms moving across the Houston metro area have a history of producing damaging winds! This destructive storm will contain wind gusts to 80 MPH! A tornado is possible!

  TAKE COVER NOW, away from windows. Head to the lowest floor.

  — NWS Houston (@NWSHouston) May 16, 2024

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  X users shared shocking footage of transmission towers that were toppled by the storm. 

  Pics from emergency management in #HarrisCounty show extensive damage to electrical infrastructure. Power out for nearly 1/3 of county and over 750k+ for all of #Texas and growing. #houston @CNN pic.twitter.com/5taRn2441f

  — Derek Van Dam (@VanDamCNN) May 17, 2024

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  🚨#BREAKING: Nearly a Million are without Power as Powerful Storms Move through with 80-117 mph Winds Toppling large transmission power lines and Shattering skyscrapers Windows

  📌#Houston | #Texas

  Currently nearly 935,000 customers in Houston Texas are without power with the… pic.twitter.com/LiSbmRhiib

  — R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) May 17, 2024

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  According to poweroutage.us, more than a million Texans are without power, mainly in the eastern part of the state. 

  

  The Texas power grid can’t catch a break.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 21:39

• Trump Says He Believes A 'Great Silent Majority' Will Vote For Him In November
  Trump Says He Believes A ‘Great Silent Majority’ Will Vote For Him In November

  Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he believes he has a “great silent majority” who will vote for him during the 2024 election.

  

  While speaking to radio host Hugh Hewitt, the former president claimed that he may have the “biggest ever” silent majority, using a term that was popularized by former President Richard Nixon in 1969. He then made reference to the relatively large crowd turnout during last weekend’s rally in Wildwood, New Jersey.

  “I have a great silent majority … the term was very, very powerfully associated with Nixon, and I didn’t want to be copying the term actually, so it’s the great silent majority,” President Trump said, adding that he believes that 107,000 people attended the Wildwood rally. The Epoch Times could not immediately authenticate that figure.

  The former president in 2020 made similar claims about a silent majority turning out in droves for him during that year’s election. But the term was famously used by President Nixon to refer to conservative voters who did not participate in the current political discourse at the time, later resurfacing in the campaigns of former President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s.

  In his interview with Mr. Hewitt, the former president said that he believes inflation may cause some voters to cast ballots in favor of him, coming after the Labor Department released figures Wednesday showing that the consumer price index slightly eased in April.

  “It’s a lot of inflation when added to the inflation that we’ve suffered that’s been so bad,” President Trump said, likely referring to years of rising prices since the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s got to come down much more. That’s a lot of inflation, their number they announced.”

  The former president’s remarks on Wednesday come as a recent poll from Siena College shows that President Joe Biden is trialing the former president in five of six battleground states.

  President Trump, notably, is ahead by 6 percentage points in Arizona, 11 points in Georgia, and 13 points in Nevada, the survey revealed. He’s ahead about 3 points in Pennsylvania and 1 point in Wisconsin, while is down by 1 point to President Biden in Michigan. In the 2020 election, races were called for President Biden in all of those states mentioned in the Siena College survey.

  In a Wall Street Journal poll conducted in April, President Trump garnered a lead of between 2 and 8 percentage points among voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and North Carolina on a ballot that included third-party and independent candidates. The results were similar in a one-on-one matchup with President Biden, it said.

  The former president also was viewed as having better physical and mental fitness for the job by 48 percent of respondents, compared to 28 percent for President Biden, the poll showed.

  Meanwhile, a recent Reuters-Ipsos poll showed that more Americans believe President Trump would handle the economy better than President Biden. Some 41 percent of respondents in the three-day poll said the former president has the better approach, compared to 34 percent for the current president.

  Debate Announcement

  On Wednesday, President Biden said in an announcement that he would agree to two debates with President Trump ahead of the 2024 election, holding one in June and another in September.

  “I’ve also received and accepted an invitation to a debate hosted by ABC on Tuesday, September 10th,“ the president said on X. ”Trump says he’ll arrange his own transportation. I’ll bring my plane, too. I plan on keeping it for another four years.”

  The former president wrote that he accepted his invitation.

  “It is my great honor to accept the CNN Debate against Crooked Joe Biden,” President Trump said on Truth Social. “Likewise, I accept the ABC News Debate against Crooked Joe on September 10th,” he added.

  In a separate post, he also pushed for a debate to be held on Fox News, which he said could take place on Oct. 2, or about a month from the election.

  Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a third-party candidate, suggested on social media after the announcement that he might be excluded from the debate “because they are afraid I would win.”

  President Trump, who did not debate his rivals during the Republican nominating race before they all dropped out, has in recent weeks been challenging President Biden to a one-on-one matchup with him, arguing that debates should be held before early voting begins in some states. He also told Mr. Hewitt the debate should be two hours long and that both men should be required to stand.

  Wednesdays are a day off for President Trump during his ongoing New York trial, where he is accused of falsifying business records to cover up payments to a woman to keep silent about an alleged affair. He has denied her claims and pleaded not guilty, saying it’s an attempt to harm his 2024 presidential campaign.

  The trial is expected to last about two more weeks.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 21:30

• These Are The 10 Countries Most In Debt To The IMF
  These Are The 10 Countries Most In Debt To The IMF

  Established in 1944, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) supports countries’ economic growth by providing financial aid and guidance on policies to enhance stability, productivity, and job opportunities.

  Countries seek loans from the IMF to address economic crises, stabilize their currencies, implement structural reforms, and alleviate balance of payments difficulties.

  In this graphic, Visual Capitalist’s Bruno Venditti visualizes the 10 countries most indebted to the fund.

  

  Methodology

  We compiled this ranking using the International Monetary Fund’s data on Total IMF Credit Outstanding. We selected the latest debt data for each country, accurate as of April 29, 2024.

  Argentina Tops the Rank

  Argentina’s debt to the IMF is equivalent to 5.3% of the country’s GDP. In total, the country owns more than $32 billion.

  

  A G20 member and major grain exporter, the country’s history of debt trouble dates back to the late 1890s when it defaulted after contracting debts to modernize the capital, Buenos Aires. It has already been bailed out over 20 times in the last six decades by the IMF.

  Five of the 10 most indebted countries are in Africa, while three are in South America.

  The only European country on our list, Ukraine has relied on international support amidst the conflict with Russia. It is estimated that Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country caused the loss of a third of the country’s economy. The country owes $9 billion to the IMF.

  In total, almost 100 countries owe money to the IMF, and the grand total of all of these debts is $111 billion. The above countries (top 10) account for about 69% of these debts.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 21:00

• Container Ship Lacked Backup System To Avoid Baltimore Bridge Strike
  Container Ship Lacked Backup System To Avoid Baltimore Bridge Strike

  By John Gallagher of FreightWaves

  Cargo vessels are not equipped with backup power sufficient to avoid situations such as the one in March when the container ship Dali struck and collapsed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, the country’s top transportation safety investigator told lawmakers.

  

  Testifying before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Wednesday, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennfier Homendy said the backup generator that kicked in after the Dali lost power roughly half a mile from the bridge restored emergency lighting, navigation functions, radio equipment, alarms and a steering pump that allowed for low-speed, limited rudder movements.

  That wasn’t enough.

  “It does not power propulsion, and without the propeller turning, the rudder was less effective — they were essentially drifting,” she told the committee.

  “If you wanted to regain propulsion through any sort of emergency generator, it would literally take a six-storey generator on a vessel to do that. There is that redundancy in, say, cruise ships, but the Dali is not unlike other [cargo] vessels.”

  Homendy’s testimony came a day after NTSB released a preliminary report on the March 26 accident that killed six bridge construction workers.

  The report shows that the Dali experienced four total power outages — including two that occurred the day before the accident during routine maintenance being performed by the vessel’s crew while the ship was docked at the Port of Baltimore.

  While recovering from the second power outage, the crews switched to a different transformer and set of circuit breakers from those that had been in use for several months. “Switching breakers is not unusual but may have affected operations the very next day on the accident voyage,” Homendy said at the hearing.

  “We will continue evaluating the design and operation of the Dali’s power distribution system, including its breakers. Examination of damage to the vessel will continue when the ship is cleared of debris and moved to a shoreside facility.”

  Timelines and costs

  The U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been able to reopen much of the channel since the accident, officials from those agencies testified at the hearing, adding that they expect the vessel to be refloated and removed from the channel as early as next week.

  Shailen Bhatt, administrator of the Federal Highway Administration, confirmed to lawmakers a preliminary estimate to replace the bridge at $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion. It will take four years to construct, with completion estimated to come sometime in 2028, he said.

  Bhatt was questioned by several lawmakers on the administration’s request to have 100% of the bridge’s replacement cost paid upfront through federal funds, which will require legislation approved by Congress.

  He pointed out that getting the money approved upfront by Congress “removes an element of uncertainty” to insure against construction delays. In addition, a significant amount of that funding will be paid back to the government eventually through insurance payment recovery and money received through litigation proceedings from responsible parties, he said.

  “But we don’t want to wait for all the litigation and NTSB investigations and insurance issues” to be resolved, he said.

  Rerouting delays increase

  During the hearing, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Washington’s nonvoting delegate in the House, sought comment from Bhatt on federal data showing that traffic crashes rose 29% on alternative routes in the weeks following the Key Bridge collapse.

  “The same data show that it now takes between two and four times longer for drivers to travel those alternative routes,” she said. “That traffic means trucks are delayed in reaching their destinations, commuters are late getting to their jobs or home to their families, and there is more air pollution and wasted fuel.”

  Bhatt noted that when significant highway capacity is lost, traffic adjusts and levels out. However, “that’s not happening in Baltimore to the same extent, and I think it’s because of just the criticality of this artery,” he said.

  “It’s important for Maryland and Baltimore, but it’s also important for the Northeast Corridor. So yes there are trucks and vehicles moving through neighborhoods that normally they would not, and that’s why it’s important that we move with as much speed as possible” to rebuild the bridge.

  Bhatt told lawmakers he would look into potential long-term relief, including hours-of-service waivers, for truck drivers affected by the delays.

  Bridge assessments recommended

  As part of its investigation, NTSB is looking at other areas in the U.S. where bridges have been improved following vessel strikes. Depending on the information collected, the agency could issue an urgent safety recommendation even before a final report is issued in the Dali accident, which could take up to 18 months.

  “The key is, you have here a bridge that was opened in 1977. It’s not the bridge that’s getting larger, it’s not the waterway that’s getting larger, it’s the vessels that are getting larger — both width and height. So it’s important that states and other bridge owners look at, from a risk assessment standpoint, what type of vessel traffic is going through, and how is the bridge protected.”

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 20:35

• Boeing 747 Engine Erupts In Fireball During Takeoff 
  Boeing 747 Engine Erupts In Fireball During Takeoff 

  Another week, another mid-air mishap for a Boeing plane. This time, a 747-400 carrying 468 passengers from Indonesia to Saudi Arabia had to make an emergency landing immediately after takeoff when one of the plane’s four engines erupted in a fireball.

  “The decision was made by the pilot in command immediately after takeoff, considering engine problems that required further examination after sparks of fire were observed in one of the engines,” Garuda Indonesia president director Irfan Setiaputra wrote in a statement obtained by the local media outlet The Jakarta Post. 

  Garuda-1105 flight to Madinah, a city in western Saudi Arabia, was departing from the Indonesian city of Makassar on Wednesday when, as soon as the plane achieved rotation speed and lifted off the runway, a giant fireball erupted from one of the plane’s engines. 

  Garuda Indonesia 747-412 returns safely to Makassar Airport in Indonesia after an engine failure during takeoff. pic.twitter.com/VibKqCQosc

  — Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) May 15, 2024

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  Here’s what happened last week with Boeing mishaps:

  May 8:

  • Boeing 767 Cargo Plane Crash-Landed In Turkey

  May 9:

  • Boeing 737 Crashes After Failed Takeoff At African Airport

  May 10: 

  • United Airlines Boeing 737 Makes Emergency Return To Japanese Airport After Wing Flap “Irregularity”

  If you want to avoid flying in Boeing’s “death traps,” use this plane ticket booking search feature for Airbus “only” before your next trip.   

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 20:10

• Electric Vehicle Subsidies As Complex And Costly As Ever
  Electric Vehicle Subsidies As Complex And Costly As Ever

  Authored by David Williams via RealClearEnergy,

  Electric vehicles (EVs) may be the most subsidized product in America. Federal taxpayers shell out $7,500 every time a new eligible electric vehicle is purchased (usually by wealthy buyers). State and local taxpayers chip in an additional $1,500 for each EV purchase. Then, there’s the tens of billions of dollars “invested” by policymakers into building EV plants. Even these bank-breaking concessions aren’t enough to please the Biden administration. Recently finalized EV tax credit rules expand eligibility for the subsidy while maintaining bizarre trade sourcing rules likely to lead to further tariffs from China. It’s time for President Biden and lawmakers to ditch protectionism and finally end EV subsidies. 

  

  From the start, President Biden’s fumbling approach to EV subsidies has harmed the economy without bolstering ecology. In 2022, the chief executive declared, “[t]hanks to American ingenuity, American engineers, American autoworkers… if you want an electric vehicle with a long range, you can buy one made in America.” Prices were already through the roof, with taxpayers being asked to shoulder these pricy purchases. Kelley Blue Book estimates that the average price of a new EV is more than $65,000, compared to $48,000 for gas-powered cars. Biden imposed requirements that EVs must undergo “final assembly in North America,” contributing to even higher prices for taxpayers and consumers. 

  Biden’s rules make production cost-prohibitive by restricting the foreign mineral inputs (e.g., graphite) that could go into tax credit-eligible EVs. The administration has since reversed course and allowed for a grace period for graphite sourcing. However, the new rules, “introduce a stricter test for measuring whether 50% of the vehicle’s critical minerals come from the United States or a free trade agreement partner…[requiring] automakers to more precisely account for the value added at each step of the supply chain.” The net effect of all these confusing new rules is to expand the number of vehicles eligible for EV tax credits, while increasing compliance costs. And, of course, this cost will be passed onto taxpayers and consumers. 

  Instead of tethering absurd rules to a complex and costly program, the Biden administration should start from scratch and axe the tax credit. EV subsidies are showered onto the wealthiest Americans at the expense of their poorer neighbors. According to a 2023 analysis of California EV purchase patterns by the news outlet CalMatters, “Most of the median household incomes in the top 10 [zip codes with the highest share of EVs] exceed $200,000, much higher than the statewide $84,097. Typical home values in those communities exceed $3 million, according to Zillow estimates.” In comparison, “electric cars are nearly non-existent in California’s lowest income communities: only 1.4% of cars in Stockton’s 95202, where the median household income is $16,976, and 0.5% in Fresno’s 93701, where the median is $25,905. Most are plug-in hybrids, which are less expensive.” This study’s findings are consistent with earlier, multi-state surveys. A 2018 study by Dr. Wayne Winegarden of the Pacific Research Institute found, “79% of electric vehicle plug-in tax credits were claimed by households with adjusted gross incomes of greater than $100,000 per year. Households with incomes greater than $50,000 per year claimed 99% of the credits.” 

  This stunning regressivity ensures that subsidies are a net-negative for ecology. Wealthy Americans primarily purchaseEVs as secondary cars, keeping them in the garage for occasional outings. EV owners are largely still using conventional cars, and there’s less-than-hoped-for substitution between gasoline and electricity. As a result, extra pollution is generated via increased EV production without corresponding decreases in driving emissions. One 2022 Harvard study suggests, “foregoing gasoline in favor of volts may actually increase, not lower, overall emissions in some cases.” This is far from the outcome envisioned by “green” activists and policymakers. 

  The Biden administration and lawmakers ought to seriously rethink adding more fuel to the dumpster fire of EV subsidies. Struggling Americans shouldn’t be forced to foot the bill for these over-hyped toys for tycoons.

  David Williams is the president of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance. 

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 19:45

• Cocoa Bull Pierre Andurand Warns Of 'Price Explosion' If Stock-To-Grinding Ratio Collapses
  Cocoa Bull Pierre Andurand Warns Of ‘Price Explosion’ If Stock-To-Grinding Ratio Collapses

  Commodity trader Pierre Andurand appeared on Bloomberg’s Odd Lots to discuss his bullish bet on cocoa markets and the future direction of physical markets amid severe droughts plaguing vast farmlands in West Africa. He’s still bullish on cocoa prices, with an upside price target of $20,000 a ton later this year or next because continued droughts will spark a “massive supply shortage this year.” 

  Andurand’s discussion with Tracy Alloway and Joe Weisenthal comes after cocoa prices had two of the largest single daily declines ever in recent weeks as liquidity evaporated from the market. 

  • Cocoa Crash Unfolds As “Liquidity Evaporates”
  • Cocoa Market Hit With Second Crash In Weeks As Liquidity Evaporates

  And Rabobank analyst Paul Joules told clients the bull rally has likely peaked. 

  • After Cocoa Crash, Rabobank Says Bull Rally Likely Peaked

  However, Andurand, founder of Andurand Capital Management LLP, known for his oil and energy trades, told the Odd Lots hosts that his bullish cocoa bets from March paid off when prices skyrocketed north of $12,000. He believes there is potential for further upside as extreme global deficits of the bean loom. 

  

  “Basically, we have a massive supply shortage this year. I mean, we see production down 17% relative to last year. Most analysts out there have it down 11%, but that’s because they tend to be very conservative. You know, they have lots of clients and they don’t want to to worry the world, so they come with relatively conservative estimates,” he explained, adding, “We’re in a situation where we might actually run out of inventories completely.”

  Andurand continued, “This year we think we will end up with a with an inventory-to-grinding ratio — so inventory at the end of the season — of 21%.” 

  “For the last 10 years, we’ve been between 35% and 40%. Roughly at the previous peak in 1977, we were at 19%,” he said.

  The International Cocoa Organization tracks inventories of unprocessed cocoa, which can serve as a cushion when there’s a shortfall in supply. However, the lower the inventory-to-grinding ratio drops, the less of a buffer there is. When the stock-to-grinding ratio crashed in 1977, cocoa prices soared to $5,500, or on an inflation-adjusted basis today, $28,000. 

  Andurand warned the ratio could collapse to as low as 13%, adding, “That’s when you really have a real shortage of cocoa beans. You can’t get it. And that’s when the price can really explode.”

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 19:20

• America's Nuclear Zeitenwende
  America’s Nuclear Zeitenwende

  Authored by Charles Bell via RealClear Wire,

  Overshadowed by Hamas’s attack on Israel, the release of the congressionally mandated Strategic Posture Commission (SPC) report heralded the arrival of an American nuclear Zeitenwende – a sea change setting us on a new course. By issuing consensus recommendations for significant changes to the size and composition of the deployed nuclear forces of the United States, the bi-partisan members of the SPC signaled that we have crossed the Rubicon from the post-Cold war nuclear order to the terra incognita of two peer nuclear adversaries’ intent on brandishing their growing nuclear weapons capabilities to overthrow the rules-based international order.  The SPC commissioners warn that this “new global environment is fundamentally different than anything experienced in the past,” constituting “an existential challenge for which the United States is ill prepared, unless its leaders make decisions now to adjust the U.S. strategic posture.”

  

  It would be difficult to exaggerate the extent to which the SPC’s consensus conclusions have reoriented the nuclear debate, shifting the focus away from how to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. strategy and towards a focus on how to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in the strategies of our adversaries (by building a nuclear posture that will credibly deter them). In doing so on a bi-partisan basis and by articulating comprehensive recommendations to address “this unprecedented two peer threat,” the SPC commissioners can legitimately lay claim to having produced the most important national security document of the post-Cold war era.

  Nevertheless, the SPC’s recommendations have not received the widespread, public attention that they urgently require. This inattention needs to be quickly remedied, lest we fail to garner the essential public support necessary to ensure the United States creates a strategic posture capable of preventing great power military conflict.

  One of the many strengths of the SPC report is to remind us of a salient reality that we too often lost sight of during the long period of great power geopolitical quiescence following the end of the Cold war: the rules-based internal order is, at its core, predicated on the strength of the U.S. strategic posture – and especially the credibility of the U.S. extended nuclear deterrent. Thus, a failure to ensure that the U.S. nuclear deterrent remains credible is likely to cause the unraveling of our alliances, a nuclear “proliferation cascade,” and the demise of the international order that has kept the peace for over three quarters of a century.

  The SPC emphatically states that allowing this to happen “is not an option.” Instead, the commissioners argue that “[m]odifications to both strategic nuclear forces and theater nuclear forces are urgently necessary,” particularly considering the “increased role of nuclear weapons in the strategies and tactics of our adversaries.”

  Accordingly, the SPC recommends increasing the numbers of deployed strategic nuclear weapons in the land, air, and sea legs of the U.S. strategic triad by the placing more nuclear warheads on ICBMs and SLBMs and producing more nuclear-armed, air-launched cruise missiles.  Also recommended is rendering U.S. strategic forces more survivable by deploying mobile ICBMs, placing a portion of the bomber fleet on alert, and increasing the number of ballistic missile submarines.

  The SPC commissioners place particular emphasis on the need to enhance U.S. theater nuclear capabilities, an imperative rendered even more urgent because “China is adopting an expanded theater nuclear war-fighting role” and in light of “Russia’s increasing reliance on nuclear weapons…” In response, the SPC recommends that “U.S. theater nuclear forces should be urgently modified in order to: Provide the President a range of military effective nuclear response options to deter or counter Chinese of Russian limited use in theater.” These changes in the U.S. theater nuclear posture are deemed essential if the U.S. is to maintain the flexible response options required to credibly extend nuclear deterrence to our allies.

  Given the significance that the SPC attaches to maintaining the credibility of the U.S. extended nuclear deterrent, it is important to emphasize the degree to which the problem of ensuring the credibility of the U.S. extended nuclear deterrent was a vexing conundrum for U.S. strategists throughout the Cold War, particularly as the Soviet Union became a true peer nuclear power with an assured second-strike capability that negated U.S. nuclear superiority.

  In the very near future, the U.S. will confront the even more difficult problem of having to extend nuclear deterrence to our allies in the face of not one, but two, peer nuclear powers. In this future, enhanced theater nuclear forces, along with more robust strategic nuclear forces, will be critical to the U.S.’s ability to deter opportunistic – or planned simultaneous – aggression in two theaters and “to compensate for any conventional shortfall in U.S. and allied non-nuclear capabilities.”  Enhanced U.S. nuclear capabilities are critical to reassuring our allies, who “perceive that the risk of Russian and Chinese aggression and potential nuclear employment has increased; and thus, U.S. nuclear and conventional capabilities are increasingly important for credible extended deterrence.”

  The SPC’s emphasis on the importance of both nuclear and conventional forces points to yet another strength of the SPC, which is to embed the imperative of strengthening the U.S. nuclear posture within the broader imperative of strengthening all aspects of the U.S. strategic posture from cyber to space to missile defense – and integrating these elements of deterrence into a whole of government approach.  At the same time, the SPC emphasizes that the “U.S. nuclear posture composes the foundation of U.S. military strength, and therefore the foundation of the U.S. strategic posture.”  No matter how capable U.S. conventional forces may be, if the U.S. does not deploy nuclear forces capable of credibly deterring adversary use of nuclear weapons, we run the risk of adversaries believing that they can gain advantage by using nuclear weapons in a conventional conflict that they are losing.

  The overriding challenge before the United States is how to implement the SPC’s recommendations. This will require bringing to the attention of the broader body politic that, in the words of the SPC, the “new global environment is fundamentally different than anything experienced in the past, even in the darkest days of the Cold War.” It is an environment in which 35 years of U.S. nuclear restraint has gone unreciprocated; in which “China is pursuing a nuclear force build-up on a scale and pace unseen since the U.S.-Soviet nuclear arms race” (but this time without the U.S. racing); in which Russia continues to build on its advantage in theater nuclear forces while issuing explicit nuclear threats; and in which our allies fear that U.S. extended nuclear guarantees to their security are eroding. 

  Given this “dramatic change in the overall strategic setting,” we must recall that deterrence does not supply its own efficacy; it must be tailored “to decisively influence the unique decision calculus of each nuclear-armed adversary.”  Building a strategic posture capable of deterring war will not be cheap; but it would be “far more expensive to fight such a war.”  Or as former Secretary of Defense Mattis pithily remarked: “America can afford survival.”

  If there is a dominant theme that pervades the SPC, it is a palpable sense of alarm: “The challenges are unmistakable; the problems are urgent; the steps are needed now.” We ignore the SPC’s cri de coeur at our peril.

  Charles Ball served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Threat Reduction and Arms Control from 2018-2021 and is a retired Reserve Naval Intelligence Officer. The views expressed are solely his own.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 18:55

• IDF Tanks Open Fire On Own Gaza HQ, Killing 5 Troops In Disastrous Friendly Fire Incident
  IDF Tanks Open Fire On Own Gaza HQ, Killing 5 Troops In Disastrous Friendly Fire Incident

  The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have just suffered their biggest ‘friendly fire’ disaster to date during military operations in northern Gaza. In a Wednesday incident, a pair of Israeli tanks targeted a building which was serving as a forward operating HQ for their own troops.

  Five Israeli soldiers were confirmed killed in the incident which happened in Jabalia. An additional seven troops were wounded, with three listed in serious condition. 

  

  Soon after it happened social media images from Israel showed that there was a significant medical evacuation underway, with military helicopters seen transporting wounded to hospitals inside Israel. 

  The tanks had reportedly been taking heavy fire just before the friendly fire incident, with the Jerusalem Post providing the following details:

  Tank Unit 82’s soldiers said that they saw a potential threat, the barrel of a weapon, emerge from the three floor battalion headquarters, which was only 10-20 meters away from them. The soldiers hit by the tank were from Unit 202 is a Haredi-integrated unit. 

  It was unclear why they did not recognize the battalion headquarters. However, the IDF said that the tanks had taken over the junction in Jabalya around 9:00 am and that the Battalion headquarters deputy commander had only arrived many hours later.

  On Thursday the IDF listed the young troop deaths – which included an officer with the rest being among enlisted ranks – as follows: Capt. Roy Beit Ya’akov, 22, from Eli; Staff Sgt. Gilad Arye Boim, 22, from Karnei Shomron in Samaria; Sgt. Daniel Chemu, 20, from Tiberias; Sgt. Ilan Cohen, 20, from Carmiel; and Staff Sgt. Betzalel David Shashuah, 21, from Tel Aviv.

  While it’s still under investigation, another local media outlet reported the following:

  The tank forces had arrived at the area in the morning, and several hours later, the paratroopers reached the area and established a post in the building. Later in the evening, another group of paratroopers reached the area and notified two of the tanks there that they were entering the building.

  Likely this will further energize angry anti-Netanyahu protesters who say he has not done enough to actually get the Israeli hostages back, but instead has prioritized the brutal fight to eliminate Hamas.

  Earlier in the Gaza operation, the IDF admitted that many of its troops were being killed by friendly fire in the tight urban setting. It was a shocking admission at the time:

  Of the 105 Israeli soldiers killed to date in the Gaza Strip during Israel’s ground offensive against Hamas, which began in late October, 20 were killed by so-called friendly fire and other accidents, according to new data released by the IDF on Tuesday.

  Thirteen of the soldiers were killed by friendly fire due to mistaken identification in airstrikes, tank shelling, and gunfire.

  One soldier was killed by gunfire that was unintended to hit them, and another two were killed by accidental misfires.

  Two soldiers were killed in incidents involving armored vehicles running over troops. And two soldiers were killed by shrapnel, including from explosives set off by Israeli forces.

  In another somewhat recent tragic incident three hostages were able to get free from their Hamas captors in Gaza and emerged from a building waiving white flags, but they were shot by Israeli troops who reportedly mistook them for enemy militants.

  In a tragic friendly fire incident on Wednesday, two IDF tanks mistakenly fired on a forward battalion headquarters in Jabalya, northern Gaza, killing five soldiers and injuring seven. Learn more: https://t.co/BLbYkrbY5o pic.twitter.com/mswtXkwbek

  — The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) May 16, 2024

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  The latest IDF data indicates: “Of the 278 Israeli soldiers killed in the Gaza Strip during Israel’s ground offensive against Hamas, which began in late October, at least 49 were killed by friendly fire and in other accidents.”

  Some regional observers believe that casualties among the IDF are much higher than being reported. As for Israel, it says it has killed over 14,000 Hamas militants since Oct.7.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 18:30

• Discharged US Marine Threatened To Target White People In Mass Shooting, Feds Say
  Discharged US Marine Threatened To Target White People In Mass Shooting, Feds Say

  Authored by Ryan Morgan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Federal prosecutors have charged a recently discharged U.S. Marine with making threats to attack white people in a mass shooting.

  

  On Monday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey announced the arrest of Joshua Cobb, 23, on a single-count indictment of transmitting an interstate threat over the internet. According to a complaint filed in the case, Mr. Cobb authored a social media post on Dec. 17, 2022, indicating his interest in inflicting mayhem “on the white community.”

  The author of the Dec. 17, 2022, social media post states, “I want to cause mayhem on the white community. The reason i specifically want to target white people is because as a black male, they will NEVER understand my struggles.”

  The post’s author goes on to state he has already begun planning the attack, which he intended to carry out somewhere in New Jersey at some point in 2023, though he had not chosen an exact time.

  “I have not chosen a exact date but I am going to be sure it is close to an important holiday to their race. I have a location in mind already which I have frequented for the past year and I am certain nobody there is armed to be able to stop me from spraying them to the ground,” the suspect’s social media post continues. “I have already acquired 2 of the 4 firearms I plan to use for my attack, and I also know my entry and exit points already after the mayhem.”

  The social media post was published under the handle “NearbyUserl0l.” Investigators determined that social media activity was associated with an internet protocol (IP) address matching the Trenton, New Jersey residence in which Mr. Cobb resided at the time.

  Suspect Planned to ‘Continue Training’ For Attack

  Federal prosecutors allege Mr. Cobb made subsequent posts on a second social media platform in the Spring of 2023, expressing homicidal ideations. A May 2023 social media post states, “Imagine the rush you’d feel while shooting some [expletive] up. Probably could get literally high off the adrenaline alone. I’d probably OD on my own adrenaline after the 10th body goes down.” Another May 2023 post states, “I hope I do progress into a serial killer because I [expletive] hate life man… But one day everyone will suffer. I promise I will make everyone feel my [expletive] pain. My deep, sincere, raw, & sharp pain.” Prosecutors say Mr. Cobb’s posts also indicated a plan to “continue training and buying more ammunition” until the day he could carry out his attack.

  Mr. Cobb joined the U.S. Marine Corps and entered basic training in June 2023. The Marine trainee completed his basic training in September and was given a period of post-basic leave. He arrived at another duty station, the Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms (Twentynine Palms), in California in February of this year.

  Investigators eventually caught up with Mr. Cobb last month while he was still stationed at Twentynine Palms. They seized and searched his phone, finding additional notes he allegedly made in May 2023 expressing further homicidal ideations.

  Suspect Discussed Attack Ideas in FBI Interview

  The federal complaint indicates that FBI agents interviewed Mr. Cobb at the Marine Corps in April after they had seized his phone. The complaint states that during his interview, Mr. Cobb described to FBI agents his ideas for carrying out mass shootings, including one idea he had to shoot up a gym called New Jersey Strong, believing he could carry out the attack at the gym’s peak hours and then easily escape. Mr. Cobb described a second idea of attacking a grocery store because those are “almost always crowded.”

  Mr. Cobb allegedly told FBI agents he specifically thought of targeting an Aldi’s grocery store in Robbinsville, New Jersey, “cause it was like one of them grocery stores like where you just see all these [expletive] rich-[expletive] white people.”

  Mr. Cobb allegedly told FBI agents a third idea he had was to simply “go into like a rich white area and just like start shooting.”

  During the April interview, Mr. Cobb allegedly suggested an affinity for the suspects in the 2018 Parkland High School shooting in Florida and the 2022 shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York. In the latter of those two shootings, federal prosecutors have alleged the shooter posted a manifesto expressing a desire to specifically target a black community. Despite their differing racial motives, Mr. Cobb said he “liked the element of surprise and style” of the 2022 Buffalo supermarket attack.

  Mr. Cobb was discharged from the Marine Corps sometime after his April interview with the FBI.

  NTD News reached out to a pair of public defenders assigned to Mr. Cobb’s case for comment, but they did not respond by press time.

  Mr. Cobb faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.

  From NTD News

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 18:05

• Goldman Finds 'Big City Flight' Intact Boosting Housing Prices In Suburbia  
  Goldman Finds ‘Big City Flight’ Intact Boosting Housing Prices In Suburbia  

  A team of Goldman analysts led by Jan Hatzius found that domestic migration trends from big cities continued through mid-2023. This trend, initially sparked by virus fears and remote working, was further fueled by rising violent crime in urban areas. People sought peace and quiet, moving to suburbia and rural areas for more land and larger homes.    

  “The recent surge in immigration into the US is now well known. But newly released county-level population estimates from the Census reveal another major migration trend: domestic emigration from large cities,” Hatzius told clients on Wednesday.

  Goldamn’s chief economist said – that most cities – with populations over a million – “experienced population growth nearly 1% below the pre-pandemic trend over 2019-2023 cumulatively, while all but the most rural counties experienced above-trend population growth.” 

  Here’s more color on the findings: 

  First, the most urban Tier 1 counties, which include cities such as Kansas City, New Orleans, and Cleveland, experienced population growth nearly 1pp below the pre-pandemic trend over 2019-2023 cumulatively, while counties in Tiers 2-7, which include cities such as Ann Arbor in Tier 2, Santa Fe in Tier 3, and Juneau in Tier 5, experienced population growth 0.4pp above the pre-pandemic trends on average over that period (Exhibit 1).

  The rise of remote and hybrid work arrangements made it easier for workers to relocate away from offices that might have tied them to city centers prior to the pandemic. We noted previously that the share of US workers working from home at least part of the week peaked at 47% at the height of the pandemic and has now stabilized at around 20-25%, well above the pre-pandemic average of 2-3%.

  

  Hatzius’ team also revealed that government county-level population data showed domestic migrants were leaving big cities in droves (about 750k in 2021, 650k in 2022, and 550k in 2023). More than half of them moved to areas between 250k to 1 million. This outflow comes as the Biden administration facilitated the greatest illegal alien invasion this nation has ever seen, piling migrants into crime-ridden progressive cities.

  

  Given the strong positive population trends outside large cities, Hatzius’ team determined housing markets were hotter in suburbia: 

  “Stronger population growth outside the Tier 1 counties has meant somewhat faster house price appreciation relative to pre-pandemic trends compared to the Tier 1 counties.”

  

  The bad news is that housing prices in suburbia are unlikely to return to pre-Covid levels. 

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 17:40

• Judge Rejects Democrat Lawsuit Challenging Wisconsin Absentee Voting Requirements
  Judge Rejects Democrat Lawsuit Challenging Wisconsin Absentee Voting Requirements

  Authored by Zachary Steiber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit claiming that Wisconsin’s requirement for witnesses to sign for absentee voters clashes with federal law.

  The claims by plaintiffs, four voters represented by Democrat firm Elias Law Group, are based on faulty interpretations of the law, according to U.S. District Judge James Peterson.

  The challengers said the Voting Rights Act unilaterally bars requiring absentee voters to prove their qualifications, making the Wisconsin requirement illegal. The act states in part that “no citizen shall be denied, because of his failure to comply with any test or device, the right to vote in any federal, state, or local election conducted in any state or political subdivision of a state.” It defines “test or device,” in part, as any requirement that makes a person “prove his qualifications by the voucher of registered voters or members of any other class.”

  However, that interpretation of the federal law is not correct, Judge Peterson said in his May 9 ruling.

  “Plaintiffs say that Wisconsin law requires the witness to do more than ensure that the voter followed the proper procedure in preparing the ballot; rather, the witness must also certify that the voter is eligible to vote,” he said. “But that interpretation is inconsistent with the text and purpose of the statute, and it is inconsistent with how the law has been interpreted since it was enacted. Even the plaintiffs themselves do not say in their declarations that they believe they need to find a witness who can certify their qualifications to vote.”

  In Wisconsin, any qualified voter who is “unable or unwilling” to vote in person is eligible for an absentee ballot. The law states that among requirements to vote by mail, another adult must observe the voter filling out the ballot and signing a statement that reads, in part, that “the above statements are true and the voting procedure was executed as there stated.”

  As the “above statements” include the attestation from the voter that he or she is a resident of Wisconsin and entitled to vote in the state, plaintiffs said the requirement is illegal under federal law.

  However, government officials argued that the witnesses only confirm the second part of the statements, which states that the voter certifies that he or she showed the enclosed ballot to the witness and that he or she marked the ballot and placed it in the envelope without assistance.

  “If defendants are correct, there would be no violation of the Voting Rights Act. As other courts have held, a witness does not vouch for a voter’s qualifications by simply confirming with a signature what he or she observed,” said Judge Peterson, an appointee of former President Barack Obama.

  He said that the phrase “the above statements” is ambiguous but that the plaintiffs’ interpretation “simply does not make any sense.”

  If they were correct, “every witness would have to determine the voter’s age, residence, citizenship, criminal history, whether the voter is unable or unwilling to vote in person, whether the voter has voted at another location or is planning to do so, whether the voter is capable of understanding the objective of the voting process, whether the voter is under a guardianship, and, if so, whether a court has determined that the voter is competent,” according to Judge Peterson.

  “If plaintiffs’ interpretation were correct, it would mean that countless absentee ballots over decades were invalid because the witness certified that the voter was qualified to vote and met the other requirements in the first voter certification, even though the witness had no basis for such a certification,” he said.

  The challengers never provided evidence of any witnesses being penalized for not confirming a voter’s qualifications, and the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s guidance does not mention witnesses taking any steps to confirm voters are eligible to vote, the ruling noted.

  The lawsuit also stated that the witness requirement violates the Civil Rights Act, which bars people from “[denying] the right of any individual to vote in any election because of an error or omission on any record or paper relating to any application, registration, or other act requisite to voting, if such error or omission is not material in determining whether such individual is qualified under state law to vote in such election.”

  The Wisconsin Elections Commission, the defendant, declined to comment.

  The law group did not return an inquiry.

  The organization Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections, which lodged an amicus brief in support of the government in the case, welcomed the ruling.

  “It’s essential that people voting by mail follow the law in doing so, and Wisconsin has implemented a witness signature requirement that helps ensure they do just that,” Derek Lyons, president of the group, said in a statement. “This case marks another example of liberal activists’ transparent and shameful efforts to co-opt important civil rights legislation for their partisan agendas.”

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 17:15

• Cohen Destroyed: Trump Lawyer "Dog Walks" Star Witness Through Lie After Lie, CNN Pundits Aghast
  Cohen Destroyed: Trump Lawyer “Dog Walks” Star Witness Through Lie After Lie, CNN Pundits Aghast

  President Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen had his “knees chopped out” by Donald Trump’s defense attorneys in cross-examination during Trump’s ‘hush money’ trial.

  

  Cohen was grilled by Trump attorney Todd Blanche about a pivotal phone call that connected Trump to allegations that he approved reimbursements to pay porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election. In one exchange, Blanche accused Cohen of lying about speaking with Trump on the phone in October 2016 to reassure his boss that he was handling the payment to Daniels.

  Blanche then confronted Cohen with text messages that contradicted the lie – revealing that Cohen in fact spoke with Trump’s bodyguard, Keith Schiller.

  Trump attorney Todd Blanche grilled him about a pivotal phone call that had connected President Trump to the allegations at the center of the case. He accused Mr. Cohen of calling the former president’s bodyguard, Keith Schiller, to complain about harassing phone calls—not to disclose an update on a plan to purchase the silence of Ms. Clifford.

  Mr. Cohen said that the prank calls were a part of the conversation with Mr. Schiller.

  “Now your memory is that you were testifying truthfully on Tuesday, and you had enough time to update Mr. Schiller about all the problems you were having with these harassing calls?” Mr. Blanche asked him.

  “I always run everything by the boss immediately,” Mr. Cohen said. “It could’ve just been me saying, ‘everything’s been taken care of, it’s been resolved.’”

  “That was a lie. You did not talk to President Trump that night,” Mr. Blanche said. “You can admit it.” “No sir, I can’t,” Mr. Cohen said. “Because I’m not sure that’s accurate.”

  “This jury doesn’t want to hear what you think happened,” Mr. Blanche said. –Epoch Times

  Cohen appeared blindsided by the line of questioning, and wavered in his recollection of the phone call before blurting out “I believe I was telling the truth!”

  Blanche then slapped Cohen around for telling Congress that he didn’t want to work in the Trump administration – only to be confronted with conversations in 2016 in which he expressed disappointment that he was overlooked for the role of Trump’s chief of staff.

  Cohen also lied about seeking a pardon from Trump, for which his attorneys later had to issue a statement to correct the record.

  After Cohen had his ass handed to him, CNN pundits were beside themselves.

  “It was incredible…lawyers want to build a box around the witness & slam it shut–that’s what Todd Blanche did to Cohen…it was an extraordinary cross…Cohen was cornered in…a lie,” said host Anderson Cooper.

  Anderson Cooper was left stunned by Trump’s attorney’s cross examination of Michael Cohen

  “It was incredible…lawyers want to build a box around the witness & slam it shut–that’s what Todd Blanche did to Cohen…it was an extraordinary cross…Cohen was cornered in…a lie” pic.twitter.com/WKnKCs8TkU

  — johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) May 16, 2024

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  The network’s top legal analyst said “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a star witness get his knees chopped out quite as clearly and dramatically as what just happened with Michael Cohen.”

  CNN legal analyst: “I don’t think I’ve never seen a star cooperating witness get his knees chopped out quite as clearly and dramatically as what just happened with Michael Cohen.” pic.twitter.com/NcghETrUIJ

  — MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) May 16, 2024

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  Rep. Matt Gaetz says Cohen was “dog walked through the series of lies he has told.”

  The alleged “crime” by President Trump is made up!

  No other American in the country would be charged with this type of crime.

  I watched Michael Cohen get dog walked through the series of lies he has told. There is literally no branch of government that he has not lied to. pic.twitter.com/Fi1GpbCF13

  — Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) May 16, 2024

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  Fin…

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 16:50

• Goldbugs Waited Years For A Massive Comex Short Squeeze, And Finally Got It… Just In The Wrong Metal
  Goldbugs Waited Years For A Massive Comex Short Squeeze, And Finally Got It… Just In The Wrong Metal

  For much of the past decade, gold bugs religiously tracked the physical gold inventory located in the various gold vaults that make up the Comex system, eagerly awaiting the day when there would be more deliverables (via paper shorting of gold) than physical in storage, sparking a historic, Volkswagen-like short squeeze. Well, the day of a historic Comex short squeeze finally arrived… only it wasn’t in gold but in the far less precious metal that is copper.

  It all started one month ago, when we reported that in an attempt to enforce sanctions against Russia that actually worked (as opposed to the joke that is the western “oil embargo” now openly breached by absolutely everyone), the “US, UK Banned Deliveries Of Russian Copper, Nickel And Aluminum To Western Metals Exchanges.” There, in our conclusion, we wrote that “history has taught us that the market will price in some “full-sanction” risk premium which when combined with the current macro bid (reflation narrative, electrification, “copper is the first AI commodity” etc.) means we expect a complex wide rally.” Little did we know how truly historic said rally would be just one month later.

  As anyone who has been following the recent moves in the price of copper – which is hitting daily record highs – knows by now, a massive dislocation between the prices for copper traded in New York and other commodity exchanges has rocked the global market for the metal and prompted a frantic dash for supplies to ship to the US.

  

  The source of the disruption, as Bloomberg reports, is a record short squeeze that has driven up copper prices on the Comex exchange to the point  where the premium for New York copper futures above the London Metal Exchange price has rocketed to an unprecedented level of over $1,200 per ton, compared with a typical differential of just a few dollars.

  

  The blowout in that price spread has wrong-footed major players from Chinese traders to quant hedge funds, all of whom are now scrambling for metal that they can deliver against expiring futures contracts!

  Adding fuel to the fire, the surge in the price is not just driven by technicals but also reflects the surge of interest from speculators after forecasts that long-term copper mine production will struggle to keep pace with demand. We have discussed the fundamental case for copper in “The Copper Supply Shortage Is Here“, and most notably in “the Next AI Trade” where we said that copper is starting to show signs of what Goldman has called “AI exposure” considering it is an essential material to produce power, and added that Goldman recently has gone full-bore pushing for copper (see the following note from Goldman S&T “Turning Copper into Gold” available to professional subs).

  While less important than the LME, Comex, which is part of the CME Group, is a key playground for investors, some of whom have used the exchange to build up large bullish bets on copper in recent months

  “The broader story is that there are new investment funds that are boosting their exposure to copper for a multitude of reasons, and while that’s a global trend, a huge amount of that investment has been heading to Comex,” said Matthew Heap, a portfolio manager at Orion Resource Partners, the largest metals-focused fund manager.

  As shown in the charts above, while copper prices had been rising for months, this week’s spike was specific to the Comex and the most-active futures contract for July delivery. By Wednesday, the July price had soared as much as 10%, touching a record high for that contract, even as the global benchmark contract on the LME traded broadly flat. The move, Bloomberg reports citing numerous traders and brokers, was a classic short squeeze as market participants who had placed bets on the Comex contract moving back into line with prices on the LME and in Shanghai, the other global copper benchmark, were forced to buy those positions back as prices rose, creating a vicious cycle and sending the price to a record.

  Indeed, as Colin Hamilton, managing director for commodities research at BMO Capital Markets, said the spread of more than $1,000 a ton between Comex and London was “something never seen previously,” adding that “there has been a squeeze on short positions into contract expiry, exacerbating the move.”

  In yet another example of hedge funds and other traders being too smart for their own good (i.e. a replay of the original GameStop short squeeze), they had taken the other side of the bullish trades on Comex, betting on narrowing differentials between the contracts in New York, London and Shanghai, or between New York contracts for different delivery dates, often with massive leverage. With prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange relatively depressed, some Chinese physical market participants had also sold on the LME and Comex, with plans to export.

  Putting this all together, and on Wednesday morning, the July Comex copper contract soared to a record $5.128 a pound ($11,305 a ton), also trading at a record premium above the September Comex contract — a monster backwardation that is hallmark of a short squeeze.

  

  While the spike was driven by short covering rather than any overall physical shortage, traders and brokers say, but it has shined a light on relatively tight supplies in the US copper market, just as we warned a month ago in “The Copper Supply Shortage Is Here. Case in point, inventories tracked by the Comex currently total 21,066 short tons, while LME inventories in the US are just 9,250 tons. For comparison, annual US copper demand is almost 2 million tons. Traders say solid demand, and shipping issues at the Panama and Suez canals, have left the market tight. Indeed, US copper imports year-to-date are down 15%, according to consultancy CRU Group.

  “We continuously monitor our markets, which are operating as designed as market participants manage copper risk and uncertainty,” the CME said in a statement.

  Of course, as our readers know too well, short squeezes are nothing new in commodity markets, and they often prompt a mad scramble to find supplies of raw materials that underpin paper contracts. The most recent and vivid example is the Nickel short squeeze of March 2022, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to a huge shortage in the market, and a staggering surge in the price which nearly bankrupted one of China’s biggest commodity traders and the LME itself.

  

  A similar squeeze took place in 2020, when Covid locked down much of the world, and gold traders raced to ship metal to address a similar dislocation between New York and London bullion prices. And in 1988, a short squeeze in aluminum led some traders to load the metal into jumbo jets — a highly unusual and costly mode of transport for industrial raw materials — in order to get it on to the LME as soon as possible.

  The current Comex copper squeeze has triggered a similar dash to send copper to the US: Chinese traders have spent the past 24 hours calling around shipping companies to try to secure transit to the US, according to people familiar with the matter.

  Traders and miners in South America have also raced to boost their US shipments. According to Bloomberg, Chilean copper-mining giant Codelco is directing all of its available volumes to the market and also negotiating with customers to postpone some sales so that it can maximize deliveries.

  That said, there are tentative signs that the squeeze is easing: the July copper contract edged lower on Thursday morning after coming off its highs from Wednesday, while the premium over cash copper on the LME narrowed to $573 a ton — although still a historically elevated level.

  There may be further relief ahead, as investors with bullish positions via commodity indexes are set to start rolling their   copper positions in early June, providing an opportunity for traders with short positions to defer delivery, potentially easing the backwardation. Still, it remains unclear if that will be enough to resolve the squeeze ahead of the expiry of the July contract, which goes into delivery at the start of that month. And any attempts to provide further metal to the US to ease the squeeze may face challenges: Chinese traders seeking to transport metal to the US have found that shipping schedules are fully booked, with the earliest available shipping slots from Shanghai to New Orleans at the beginning of July, said Gong Ming, analyst with Jinrui Futures Co.

  Adding to the plight of those caught out by the squeeze is the fact that much of the copper inventories outside the US is from brands that aren’t deliverable against Comex futures. For example, more than 80% of the 94,700 tons of copper on the LME at the end of April was produced in Russia, China, Bulgaria or India — countries whose copper isn’t deliverable on Comex as we reported a month ago, in a development that has eventually cascaded into today’s historic squeeze.

  

  And while substantial inventories have built up in China in recent months, traders estimate that only about 15,000 to 20,000 tons of that could be delivered against Comex futures.

  “We do not think the physical arbitrage activity will be sufficient by the July expiry to close the arb on the near month. There is not enough material and not enough time,” said Anant Jatia, chief investment officer at Greenland Investment Management, a hedge fund specializing in commodity arbitrage trading.

  “However, physical traders are currently heavily incentivized to move copper into the US and over time the arb market will stabilize.”

  As for gold bugs, watching with sheer shock – and outright jealousy – the epic squeeze roiling the less precious metal, all they can hope for is that one day the massive paper shorts on the comex will lead to a similar meltup in gold. All that may be needed is a pair of enterprising Hunt Brothers for the new millennium to pull it off.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 16:45

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• Get Woke, Go Broke: New "Queer" 'Doctor Who' Suffers Worst Ratings In Series History
  Get Woke, Go Broke: New “Queer” ‘Doctor Who’ Suffers Worst Ratings In Series History

  Woke activists today often like to hearken back to nostalgic media from the 1960s; what they consider the golden era or genesis moment of far-left movements in British and US history.  These were the days when being a progressive was considered “counter-culture” and cool, with every major rock star and celebrity tapping into youth angst and hippie philosophy.  The progressive shift led to considerable social instability in the 1970s.

  It is common these days to hear leftists in popular media argue that TV shows like Star Trek or Doctor Who were “always woke” and that they are simply carrying on the tradition.  This is simply not true.  While many productions in the US and in Europe displayed liberal sensibilities, woke activists are not liberal and do not hold liberal values.  They are, rather, a hybrid ideology combining elements of Marxism/communism/fascism, collectivism, moral relativism and narcissism.

  One could argue that the woke cult is the natural end state, the unavoidable final evolution of liberal thinking.  That may be true, but that’s a debate for another day.  The point is, the woke activism of today has very little in common with the political movements of the 1960s.  In fact, if you were to go back in time only 15 years ago and tried to explain to a typical Democrat in the US or Labour member in the UK what leftists are trying to get away with in 2024, they would laugh in your face and call you crazy.

  In our decade nearly every major television and film franchise of the past has received the woke treatment; what leftists call “updating for modern audiences.”  As a consequence, nearly every franchise has suffered an extreme collapse in audience number, ad revenues and box office receipts.  Why?  Because woke ideology is a fringe movement making up a tiny percentage of the population.  Almost no one likes it, hence the reason why “Get Woke, Go Broke” has become a rule rather than a theory.

  Doctor Who has not been able to escape this rule despite being considered an open sci-fi world where almost anything goes.  The problem is, it doesn’t matter what the canon technically allows or what the writers want – In the end the fans always dictate what succeeds and what fails.  When a show starts preaching at people about respecting gender pronouns, they aren’t going to stick around to see what happens next.

  The BBC show (working hand-in-hand with Disney) has been on an unstoppable decline for the past few years as it becomes increasingly woke.  The real collapse started with the introduction of a female and decidedly feminist Doctor (played by Jodie Whitaker) for three seasons.  The series ratings fell exponentially and Whitaker became one of the most hated iterations of the main character in the history of the show.    

  You would think the BBC would have learned not to be confrontational with the fans, but as we all know leftists never admit failure, they only double down.  The newest version of the character is being applauded as the first “black queer” Doctor Who, played by Rwandan-Scottish actor Ncuti Gatwa.  The show also features a villain played by Drag Queen and trans activist Jinkx Monsoon.

   

  Long considered a family show, parents are turning away from Doctor Who because they don’t want their children constantly exposed to gender propaganda.  Not surprisingly, the show’s audience numbers have imploded by roughly 50% compared to the previous two seasons.  The mainstream entertainment media blamed “warm weather” in the UK for the ratings disaster, but numerous representatives from the production openly attacked fans for their opposition to its woke direction and told them not to watch. 

  As Ncuti Gatwa told Variety when discussing fan criticism:

  “Don’t watch. Turn off the TV. Go and touch grass, please, for God’s sake…As the world darkens – and I do think the world is darkening around queer rights – there is a joy and a celebration, and there’s a community…”

  It would seem the audience took Gatwa’s advice to heart.  They aren’t watching and his show is now facing an embarrassing collapse into obscurity.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 02:45

• Israel Will 'Set Sights' On Turkey If Hamas Defeated, Erdogan Claims
  Israel Will ‘Set Sights’ On Turkey If Hamas Defeated, Erdogan Claims

  Via The Cradle

  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on 15 May that Israel would “target” Turkey if victorious against the Hamas and other Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.

  “Israel will not stop in Gaza, and if not stopped, this rogue state will eventually target Anatolia with its delusions of a promised land,” Erdogan said during a parliamentary group meeting in Ankara. “We will continue to stand by Hamas, which fights for the independence of its own land and which defends Anatolia,” the Turkish president stressed.

  

  “On Nakba, the Day of Catastrophe, we once again declare with all our being and resources that we stand by Palestine and the Palestinian cause … We will also ensure that the perpetrators of genocide face justice,” Erdogan added.

  For the past several months, the Turkish president has harshly criticized Israeli authorities, accusing them of overseeing ongoing genocide in Gaza. However, his actions trailed far behind his words, as it took over six months for Ankara to end its highly lucrative trade ties with Israel.

  Days after announcing a trade freeze, the Turkish government partially walked back its decision by issuing temporary approval for the supply of construction materials to Israel. Ankara has also refrained from obstructing the flow of oil from neighboring Azerbaijan to Israel.

  For its part, Tel Aviv has been quietly returning diplomats to Turkey in recent weeks after withdrawing them months ago over “security concerns.”

  Nevertheless, Turkish officials continue to send mixed signals, as earlier this week, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said his country decided to submit its declaration of official intervention in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

  “Israel systematically killing thousands of innocent Palestinians and rendering a whole residential area uninhabitable is a crime against humanity, attempted genocide, and the manifestation of genocide,” Fidan told reporters.

  Tyler Durden
  Thu, 05/16/2024 – 02:00

• Escobar: De-Dollarization Bombshell – The Coming Of BRICS+ Decentralized Monetary Ecosystem
  Escobar: De-Dollarization Bombshell – The Coming Of BRICS+ Decentralized Monetary Ecosystem

  Authored by Pepe Escobar,

  Get ready for what may well be the geoeconomic bombshell of 2024: the coming of a decentralized monetary ecosystem.

  

  Welcome to The Unit  – a concept that has already been discussed by the financial services and investments working group set up by the BRICS+ Business Council and has a serious shot at becoming official BRICS+ policy as early as in 2025.

  According to Alexey Subbotin, founder of Arkhangelsk Capital Management and one of the Unit’s conceptualizers, this is a new problem-solving system that addresses the key geoeconomic issue of these troubled times: a global crisis of trust.

  He knows all about it first-hand: a seasoned financial professional with experience in investment banking, asset management and corporate matters, Subbotin leads the Unit project under the auspices of IRIAS, an international intergovernmental organization set up in 1976 in accordance with the UN statute.

  The Global Majority has had enough of the centrally controlled monetary framework put in place 80 years ago in Bretton Woods and its endemic flaws: chronic deficits fueling irresponsible military spending; speculative bubbles; politically motivated sanctions and secondary sanctions; abuse of settlement and payment infrastructure; protectionism; and the lack of fair arbitration.

  In contrast, the Unit proposes a reliable, quick and economically efficient solution for cross-border payments. The – transactional – Unit is a game-changer as a new form of international currency that can be issued in a de-centralized way, and then recognized and regulated at national level.

  The Unit offers a unique solution for bottlenecks in global financial infrastructure: it is eligible for traditional banking operations as well as for the newest forms of digital banking.

  The Unit can also help to upend unfair pricing in commodity trading, by means of setting up a new – fair and efficient – Eurasian Mercantile Exchange where trading and settlement can be done in a new currency bridging trade flows and capital, thus paving the way to the development of new financial products for foreign direct investment (FDI).

  The strength of the Unit, conceptually, is to remove direct dependency on the currency of other nations, and to offer especially to the Global Majority a new form of apolitical money – with huge potential for anchoring fair trade and investments.

  It is indeed a new concept in terms of an international currency – anchored in gold (40%) and BRICS+ currencies (60%). It is neither crypto nor stablecoin – as it’s shown here.

  The Beauty of Going Fractal

  The Global Majority will instantly grasp the primary purpose of the Unit: to harmonize trade and financial flows by keeping them outside of political pressure or “rules” that can be twisted at will. The inevitable consequence translates as financial sovereignty. What matters in the whole process are independent monetary policies focused on economic growth.

  That’s the key appeal for the Global Majority: a full ecosystem offering independent, complementary monetary infrastructure. And that surely can be extended to willing Unit partners in the collective West.

  Now to the practical level: as Subbotin explains, the Unit ecosystem may be easily scalable because it comes from a fractal architecture supported by simple rules. New Unit nodes can be set up by either sovereign or private agents, following a detailed rule-book in custody of the UN-chartered IRIAS.

  The Unit organizers employ a distributed ledger: a technology that ensures transparency, precluding capital controls or any exchange rate manipulation.

  This means that connection is available to all open DEX and digital platforms operated by both commercial and Central Banks around the world.

  The endgame is that everyone, essentially, may use the Unit for accounting, bookkeeping, pricing, settling, paying, saving and investing.

  No wonder the institutional possibilities are quite enticing – as the Unit can be used for accounting and settlement for BRICS+; payment and pricing for the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU); or as a reserve currency for Sub-Saharan Africa.

  And now comes the clincher: the Unit has already received backing by the BRICS Business Council and is on the agenda at the crucial ministerial meeting in Russia next month, which will work out the road map for the summit next October in Kazan.

  That means the Unit has all it takes to be on the table as a serious subject discussed by BRICS+ and eventually be adopted as early as in 2025.

  Will Musk and the NDB Be on Board?

  As it stands, the priority for the Unit conceptualizers – whom I followed for over a year during several, detailed meetings in Moscow – is to inform the general public about the new system.

  The Unit team is not interested at all in getting straight into political hot waters or to be cornered by ideologically-laden arguments. Direct references to inspiring but sometimes controversial concepts or authors like Zoltan Pozsar may bury the Unit concept into pigeon holes, thus limiting its potential impact.

  What may lie ahead could be extraordinarily exciting, as the Unit appeal could extend all the way from Elon Musk to the BRICS’s New Development Bank (NDB), hopefully engaging an array of crucial actors. After a positive evaluation by Finance Minister Anton Siluanov – who remains on the post in the new Russian government – it’s not far-fetched to imagine Putin and Xi discussing it face to face this week in Beijing.

  As it stands, the major takeaway is that the Unit should be seen as a feasible, technical solution for the theoretically Unsolvable: a globally-recognized payment/trade system, immune to political pressure. It’s the only game in town – there are no others.

  Meanwhile, the Unit conceptualizers are open for constructive criticism and all manners of collaboration. Yet sooner or later the battle ranks will be lined up – and then it will be a matter of seriously upping the game.

  “Academically Sound, Technologically Innovative”

  Vasily Zhabykin, co-author of the Unit white paper and founder of CFA.Center, Unit’s technological partner at Skolkovo Innovation Hub in Moscow, crucially stresses: the Unit “represents apolitical money and can be the connector between the Global South and the West.”

  He’s keen to point out that “the Unit can keep all the wheels turning unlike most of the other concepts that feature ‘dollar killers’, etc. We do not want to harm anybody. Our goal is to improve efficiency of currently broken capital and money flows. The Unit is rather the ‘cure for centralized cancer’’’.

  Subbotin and the Unit team “are keen to meet new partners who share our approach and are ready to bring additional value to our project.” If that’s the case, they should “send us 3 bullet points on how can they help and improve the Unit.”

  A bold follow-up step should be, for instance, a virtual conference on the Unit, featuring leading Russian economist Sergey Glazyev, Yannis Varoufakis, Jeffrey Sachs and Michael Hudson, among others.

  By email, Glazyev, a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Minister of Integration and Macroeconomics of the Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU) , summed up the Unit’s potential:

  “I have been following the development of Unit for more than a year and can confirm that Unit offers a very timely, feasible solution. It is academically sound, technologically innovative and at the same time complementary to the existing banking infrastructure.

  Launching it under the auspices of an UN institution gives Unit legitimacy, which the current Bretton Woods framework is clearly lacking. Recent actions by the US administration and loud silence from IMF clearly indicate the need for change.

  A decentralized approach to emission of potential global trade currency, whose intrinsic value is anchored in physical gold and BRICS+ currencies, makes Unit the most promising of several approaches being considered. It balances political priorities of all participants, while helping each sovereign economy develop along its optimal path.

  The New Development Bank (NDB) and BRICS+ shall embrace the concept of Unit and help it to become the pinnacle of the new emerging global financial infrastructure, free from malign political interferences while focused instead on fair trade and sustainable economic growth.”

  A clear, practical example of possible Unit problem-solving concerns Russia-Iran trade relations. These are two top BRICS members. Russian trade with Iran is unprofitable due to sanctions – and both cannot make payments in US dollars or euros.

  Russian companies suffer significant losses after switching to payments in national currencies. With each transfer, Russian businesses on average lose as much as 25% due to the discrepancy between the market rate in Iran and the state rate.

  And here’s the key takeaway: BRICS+ as well as the Global Majority can only be strengthened by developing closer geoeconomics ties. The removal of Western speculative capital shall free up local commodity trading, and enable the pooling of investable capital for sustainable development. To unlock such a vast potential, the Unit may well be the key.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 23:40

• Environmental Protection Not A Major Issue For Majority
  Environmental Protection Not A Major Issue For Majority

  In a survey of 38 countries carried out by Statista Consumer Insights, only between 21 and 44 percent of respondents said that they considered environmental protection a major issue for their country.

  As Statista’s Katharina Buchholz reports, respondents in Brazil were the most concerned about the environment, with those in Mexico and Colombia also rating environmental protection as more important than most countries in the survey.

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  The picture was more mixed in Asia, with Indonesians seeing the issue as highly important, while respondents in Indian and China hit around the survey average and Pakistan ranked lower in the international comparison. However, the countries rating the environment as a major issue typically also rated many other issues as highly problematic. Despite fewer people seeing the problem in China and India, environmental protection was still rated as the second and fourth most important issue, respectively, by respondents in these countries behind the likes of health/social security or unemployment, education and poverty.

  In developed countries, climate change was typically rated more important than environmental protection, while it was the other way round in developing countries. European ratings ranked from 40 percent in Italy deeming environmental protection a major issue to just 19 percent saying the same in Ireland. Among U.S. respondents, 27 percent thought the issue was major – rank 13 among 20 issues.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 23:20

• A Nanny State Idiocracy: A Tale Of Too Many Laws And Too Little Freedom
  A Nanny State Idiocracy: A Tale Of Too Many Laws And Too Little Freedom

  Authored by John & Nisha Whitehead via The Rutherford Institute,

  “Whether the mask is labeled fascism, democracy, or dictatorship of the proletariat, our great adversary remains the apparatus—the bureaucracy, the police, the military.”

  – Simone Weil, French philosopher

  We are caught in a vicious cycle of too many laws, too many cops, and too little freedom.

  It’s hard to say whether we’re dealing with a kleptocracy (a government ruled by thieves), a kakistocracy (a government run by unprincipled career politicians, corporations and thieves that panders to the worst vices in our nature and has little regard for the rights of American citizens), or a Nanny State Idiocracy. 

  Whatever the label, this overbearing despotism is what happens when government representatives (those elected and appointed to work for us) adopt the authoritarian notion that the government knows best and therefore must control, regulate and dictate almost everything about the citizenry’s public, private and professional lives.

  The government’s bureaucratic attempts at muscle-flexing by way of overregulation and overcriminalization have reached such outrageous limits that federal and state governments now require on penalty of a fine that individuals apply for permission before they can grow exotic orchids, host elaborate dinner parties, gather friends in one’s home for Bible studies, give coffee to the homeless, let their kids manage a lemonade stand, keep chickens as pets, or braid someone’s hair, as ludicrous as that may seem.

  As the Regulatory Transparency Project explains, “There are over 70 federal regulatory agencies, employing hundreds of thousands of people to write and implement regulations. Every year, they issue about 3,500 new rules, and the regulatory code now is over 168,000 pages long.”

  

  In his CrimeADay Twitter feed, Mike Chase highlights some of the more arcane and inane laws that render us all guilty of violating some law or other.

  As Chase notes, it’s against the law to try to make an unreasonable noise while a horse is passing by in a national park; to leave Michigan with a turkey that was hunted with a drone; to refill a liquor bottle with different liquor than it had in it when it was originally filled; to offer to buy swan feathers so you can make a woman’s hat with them; to enter a design in the Federal Duck Stamp contest if waterfowl are not the dominant feature of the design; to transport a cougar without a cougar license; to sell spray deodorant without telling people to avoid spraying it in their eyes; and to transport “meat loaf” unless it’s in loaf form.

  In such a society, we are all petty criminals.

  In fact, Boston lawyer Harvey Silvergate estimates that the average American now unknowingly commits three felonies a day, thanks to an overabundance of vague laws that render otherwise innocent activity illegal and an inclination on the part of prosecutors to reject the idea that there can’t be a crime without criminal intent. 

  The bigger the government grows, the worse the red tape becomes.

  Almost every aspect of American life today, including the job sector, is now subject to this kind of heightened scrutiny and ham-fisted control.

  Whereas 70 years ago, one out of every 20 U.S. jobs required a state license, today, almost 1 in 4 American occupations requires a license.

  According to business analyst Kaylyn McKenna, more than 41 states require that makeup artists be licensed. Twenty-eight states require a license before you can work as a residential painter. Funeral attendants, whose duties include placing caskets in visitation rooms, arranging flowers and directing mourners, have to be licensed to do so in Kansas, Maine and Massachusetts.

  The problem of overregulation has become so bad that, as one analyst notes, “getting a license to style hair in Washington takes more instructional time than becoming an emergency medical technician or a firefighter.”

  This is what happens when bureaucrats run the show, and the rule of law becomes little more than a cattle prod for forcing the citizenry to march in lockstep with the government.

  Overregulation is just the other side of the coin to overcriminalization, that phenomenon in which everything is rendered illegal, and everyone becomes a lawbreaker.

  As policy analyst Michael Van Beek warns, the problem with overcriminalization is that there are so many laws at the federal, state and local levels—that we can’t possibly know them all.

  “It’s also impossible to enforce all these laws. Instead, law enforcement officials must choose which ones are important and which are not. The result is that they pick the laws Americans really must follow, because they’re the ones deciding which laws really matter,” concludes Van Beek. “Federal, state and local regulations — rules created by unelected government bureaucrats — carry the same force of law and can turn you into a criminal if you violate any one of them… if we violate these rules, we could be prosecuted as criminals. No matter how antiquated or ridiculous, they still carry the full force of the law. By letting so many of these sit around, just waiting to be used against us, we increase the power of law enforcement, which has lots of options to charge people with legal and regulatory violations.”

  Case in point: in New Jersey, in what journalist Billy Binion describes as “yet another example of the effects of overcriminalization, which increases interactions between civilians and police with little benefit to actual public safety,” police went so far as to arrest a teenager and seize other teen’s bicycles for so-called traffic violations and a failure to register their bikes with the state.

  This is the police state’s superpower: it has been vested with the authority to make our lives a bureaucratic hell.

  That explains how a fisherman can be saddled with 20 years’ jail time for throwing fish that were too small back into the water. Or why police arrested a 90-year-old man for violating an ordinance that prohibits feeding the homeless in public unless portable toilets are also made available. Or how states across the country, in a misguided attempt to disperse homeless populations, have criminalized sitting, sleeping, or resting in public spaces; sharing food with people; and camping in public.

  The laws can get downright silly.

  For instance, in Florida, it’s against the law to eat a frog that was used in a frog-jumping contest. You could also find yourself passing time in a Florida slammer for such inane activities as singing in a public place while wearing a swimsuit, breaking more than three dishes per day, farting in a public place after 6 pm on a Thursday, and skateboarding without a license.

  “Such laws,” notes journalist George Will, “which enable government zealots to accuse almost anyone of committing three felonies in a day, do not just enable government misconduct, they incite prosecutors to intimidate decent people who never had culpable intentions. And to inflict punishments without crimes.”

  Unfortunately, the consequences are all too serious for those whose lives become grist for the police state’s mill.

  In this way, America has gone from being a beacon of freedom to a locked down nation.

  We labor today under the weight of countless tyrannies, large and small, carried out in the so-called name of the national good by an elite class of governmental and corporate officials who are largely insulated from the ill effects of their actions.

  We increasingly find ourselves badgered, bullied and browbeaten into bearing the brunt of their arrogance, paying the price for their greed, suffering the backlash for their militarism, agonizing as a result of their inaction, feigning ignorance about their backroom dealings, overlooking their incompetence, turning a blind eye to their misdeeds, cowering from their heavy-handed tactics, and blindly hoping for change that never comes. 

  The overt signs of the despotism exercised by the increasingly authoritarian regime that passes itself off as the United States government (and its corporate partners in crime) are all around us: censorship, criminalizing, shadow banning and de-platforming of individuals who express ideas that are politically incorrect or unpopular; warrantless surveillance of Americans’ movements and communications; SWAT team raids of Americans’ homes; shootings of unarmed citizens by police; harsh punishments meted out to schoolchildren in the name of zero tolerance; community-wide lockdowns and health mandates that strip Americans of their freedom of movement and bodily integrity; armed drones taking to the skies domestically; endless wars; out-of-control spending; militarized police; roadside strip searches; privatized prisons with a profit incentive for jailing Americans; fusion centers that spy on, collect and disseminate data on Americans’ private transactions; and militarized agencies with stockpiles of ammunition, to name some of the most appalling.

  Yet as egregious as these incursions on our rights may be, it’s the endless, petty tyrannies—the heavy-handed, punitive-laden dictates inflicted by a self-righteous, Big-Brother-Knows-Best bureaucracy on an overtaxed, overregulated, and underrepresented populace—that illustrate so clearly the degree to which “we the people” are viewed as incapable of common sense, moral judgment, fairness, and intelligence, not to mention lacking a basic understanding of how to stay alive, raise a family, or be part of a functioning community.

  In exchange for the promise of an end to global pandemics, lower taxes, lower crime rates, safe streets, safe schools, blight-free neighborhoods, and readily accessible technology, health care, water, food and power, we’ve opened the door to lockdowns, militarized police, government surveillance, asset forfeiture, school zero tolerance policies, license plate readers, red light cameras, SWAT team raids, health care mandates, overcriminalization, overregulation and government corruption.

  We relied on the government to help us safely navigate national emergencies (terrorism, natural disasters, global pandemics, etc.) only to find ourselves forced to relinquish our freedoms on the altar of national security, yet we’re no safer (or healthier) than before.

  We asked our lawmakers to be tough on crime, and we’ve been saddled with an abundance of laws that criminalize almost every aspect of our lives.

  We wanted criminals taken off the streets, and we didn’t want to have to pay for their incarceration. What we’ve gotten is a nation that boasts the highest incarceration rate in the world, with many doing time for relatively minor, nonviolent crimes, and a private prison industry fueling the drive for more inmates.

  We wanted law enforcement agencies to have the necessary resources to fight the nation’s wars on terror, crime and drugs. What we got instead were militarized police decked out with M-16 rifles, grenade launchers, silencers, battle tanks and hollow point bullets—gear designed for the battlefield, more than 80,000 SWAT team raids carried out every year (many for routine police tasks, resulting in losses of life and property), and profit-driven schemes that add to the government’s largesse such as asset forfeiture, where police seize property from “suspected criminals.”

  We fell for the government’s promise of safer roads, only to find ourselves caught in a tangle of profit-driven red light cameras, which ticket unsuspecting drivers in the so-called name of road safety while ostensibly fattening the coffers of local and state governments.

  This is what happens when the American people get duped, deceived, double-crossed, cheated, lied to, swindled and conned into believing that the government and its army of bureaucrats—the people we appointed to safeguard our freedoms—actually have our best interests at heart.

  As I make clear in my book Battlefield America: The War on the American People and in its fictional counterpart The Erik Blair Diaries, the problem with these devil’s bargains is that there is always a catch, always a price to pay for whatever it is we valued so highly as to barter away our most precious possessions.

  In the end, such bargains always turn sour.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 23:00

• Convicted Non-Violent Felons Can Own Guns, Ninth Circuit Rules
  Convicted Non-Violent Felons Can Own Guns, Ninth Circuit Rules

  In what must be the first time California’s 9th circuit has ruled in favor of the 2nd Amendment, non-violent convicted felons can now own guns.

  The decision stems from a 2020 case, in which California resident Steven Duarte was arrested after tossing a handgun out of a moving car during a traffic stop. He was indicted by a federal grand jury for possessing said firearm while being previously convicted of “a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year” in violation of the federal “felon-in-possession” law.

  

  Duarte had five prior non-violent criminal convictions in California; vandalism, felon in possession of a firearm, drug possession, and two convictions for fleeing a police officer – each of which is punishable by one year or more in prison. After pleading not guilty, Duarte’s case proceeded to trial, where he was found guilty and sentenced to 51 months in prison.

  Not so fast!

  As the Epoch Times notes further, in a 2-1 decision handed down on May 9, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Mr. Duarte’s conviction violated the Second Amendment as applied to him.

  Specifically, the court’s majority found that the federal government failed to prove that its felon-in-possession law supports disarming convicted felons for life under a two-step framework established by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 2022 “New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen” case.

  The two-step process, put forth by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, first requires the court to determine whether the Second Amendment’s “plain text” covers an individual’s conduct. If so, then that conduct is presumptively protected, and the government must prove that its law is “consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.”

  “Because Duarte is an American citizen, he is part of the people whom the Second Amendment protects,” Senior Circuit Judge Carlos Bea wrote for the majority.

  “The Government argues only that ’the people‘ in the Second Amendment excludes felons like Duarte because they are not members of the ’virtuous’ citizenry,” he wrote. “We do not share that view.”

  The burden then fell back to the federal government to show that its gun possession policy aligns with the “historical tradition” of the United States.

  However, during the Early Republic era, Mr. Duarte’s past convictions either would have been considered misdemeanors, didn’t exist as a crime, or may have had predecessors for which the government failed to provide evidence of their existence, Judge Bea noted.

  ‘Historically Understood Meaning’

  “Based on this record, we cannot say that Duarte’s predicate offenses were, by Founding-era standards, of a nature serious enough to justify permanently depriving him of his fundamental Second Amendment rights,” the majority opinion read.

  “The Second Amendment’s plain text and historically understood meaning therefore presumptively graduate his individual right to possess a firearm for self-defense.”

  Judge Bea, a George W. Bush appointee, was joined by Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke, a Donald Trump appointee. The majority opinion overturned a 2010 Ninth Circuit precedent, “U.S. v. Vongxay”, which upheld the federal prohibition on possession of firearms by felons.

  Circuit Judge Milan Smith, a George W. Bush appointee who penned the Vongxay opinion, dissented and urged the appeals court to order a new hearing of Mr. Duarte’s case before a full, 11-judge panel.

  He argued that Buren does not override Vongxay, at least not before the U.S. Supreme Court further clarifies the constitutionality of the federal felon-in-possession law.

  “One day—likely sooner, rather than later—the Supreme Court will address the constitutionality of [the federal felon firearm ban] or otherwise provide clearer guidance on whether felons are protected by the Second Amendment,” Judge Smith wrote in his dissenting opinion.

  “But it is not our role as circuit judges to anticipate how the Supreme Court will decide future cases.”

  The Ninth Circuit’s vacation of Mr. Duarte’s conviction added to the post-Bruen “Circuit Split” over the scope of the Second Amendment.

  The Ninth Circuit joins, at least for now, the Third Circuit to rule in favor of Americans permanently stripped of Second Amendment rights because of past non-violent offenses, while the Tenth Circuit has reaffirmed its precedent upholding the restriction on those individuals.

  In a 2-1 ruling last October, the Tenth Circuit observed that the Bruen Court “didn’t appear to question the constitutionality of longstanding prohibitions on possession of firearms by convicted felons.”

  Instead, it argued, “Bruen apparently approved the constitutionality of regulations requiring criminal background checks … to ensure that the applicant is a ‘law-abiding, responsible citizen.’”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 22:40

• Toxic Atmosphere At FDIC Spurs Calls For Chair's Resignation
  Toxic Atmosphere At FDIC Spurs Calls For Chair’s Resignation

  Authored by Philip Wegmann via RealClearPolitics,

  The White House did not offer their full faith and credit to the FDIC chairman when asked by RealClearPolitics about a bombshell 234-page investigation that detailed a toxic environment within the agency.

  

  Other than noting that Martin Gruenberg, the official in question, had already “apologized and spoke[n] to” allegations that he presided over a culture of bullying, harassment, and mismanagement, Karine Jean-Pierre, the president’s spokeswoman, mostly demurred.

  Gruenberg will not skate by so easily when he testifies before Congress this week. Republicans in both the House and Senate are hell-bent for leather. And his scalp.

  The report was published by law firm Cleary Gottlieb last week and followed a Wall Street Journal investigation last November that documented a federal agency akin to “a good ol’ boys club” where female employees were subjected to stalking, unwelcome illicit messages, and sexual harassment.

  The episode is an embarrassment to President Biden, who promised on the first day of his administration to fire “on the spot” anyone who engaged in such behavior.

  It is also a political liability. If Gruenberg, a Biden nominee who served in both the Obama and Trump administrations and the Senate confirmed by voice vote, exits under pressure, it would leave the FDIC board deadlocked during an election year. “A 2-2 vote would stall and probably doom politically sensitive banking policy,” observed Renaissance Macro Research. The regulatory policy of the administration would then hang in limbo.

  These realities are not lost on many in the FDIC workforce who want reform. In a statement obtained by RCP, current employees expressed their concern that “the egregious issues documented in the Cleary report by over 500 employees have become partisan.”

  Working at an agency now under scrutiny for a history of reprisals against whistleblowers, the statement was left unsigned, though the drafters noted that they “have a wide range of political views, ranging from far left to far right.”

  “The FDIC employees behind this statement do not have confidence that the chairman and executive management have the willingness to truly make the cultural and structural changes necessary to fully address the [matters] identified in the report,” they write.

  For his part, Gruenberg has already offered an apology.

  “I want to also thank everyone who shared their experiences throughout this process. I know that doing so was difficult. To anyone who experienced sexual harassment or other misconduct at the FDIC, I again want to express how very sorry I am. I also want to apologize for any shortcomings on my part,” he said in a statement when the Cleary Gottlieb report was published.

  “As chairman, I am ultimately responsible for everything that happens at our agency, including our workplace culture,” Gruenberg added.

  The chairman, whom the report found has a history of anger and belittling staff, plans to announce a new, independent office devoted to professional conduct at the agency, according to prepared testimony before the House Financial Services Committee Wednesday. But the head of that committee, Republican Chairman Patrick McHenry, has already called for his resignation. And some FDIC employees are already registering their dissatisfaction.

  “The Chairman has communicated the action plan that he oversaw the creation of as proof of his commitment to improving conditions at the FDIC. We, however, do not have confidence that this action plan is meaningful,” they wrote.

  More than a dozen Republicans now oppose Gruenberg. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, the ranking member on the Senate Banking Committee, has called for his resignation. Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst has called on the Department of Justice to open an investigation. Only one Democrat, however, Illinois Rep. Bill Foster, has followed suit, calling for the FDIC chairman to step down.

  Rep. Maxine Waters, the top Democrat on Financial Services, blasted the report, not the FDIC chairman, for focusing too much on current leadership. Democrats are expected to circle the wagons to protect Gruenberg during his testimony – an irony given the propensity of Democrats, not Republicans, to rail against toxic workplace environments.

  Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen signaled her displeasure, telling reporters Tuesday that “the kind of abuses that were documented in the report are a totally unacceptable way to treat employees at the FDIC and not in line with the core values of the Biden administration.” She stopped short, however, of joining Republican calls for his resignation.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 22:20

• "Make Innocence Great Again": Mothers Gear Up To Decide The 2024 Elections
  “Make Innocence Great Again”: Mothers Gear Up To Decide The 2024 Elections

  Authored by Russ Jones via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  “Make innocence great again.”

  It’s a mantra that Juliana Ormond feels strongly about. The suburban mom of three children seeks to call attention to the importance of preserving the purity and innocence of childhood. She said she desires a return to a time when she contends innocence was valued and protected, which conflicts with the complexities and challenges of the current culture.

  “The only way to bring back innocence is to keep our children away from those who want to make everything about sexual identity,” Ms. Ormond said. “I look for political candidates who support policies that align with the Bible.”

  She said she has watched the culture become more progressive since she was young. From her home in suburban Orlando, Ms. Ormond told The Epoch Times that two of her children are 10 years apart. Her younger daughter had a radically different school experience from her older sister.

  “One day, my younger daughter brought a girlfriend home after school,” she said. “The friend proudly proclaimed that she was nonbinary. I was shocked. That ideology wasn’t pushed when my older daughter went to school.”

  Mothers such as Ms. Ormond represent a significant demographic segment of the population and make up a sizable portion of the electorate. Candidates recognize the importance of appealing to this demographic group to secure their votes. Their motivations are deeply personal, rooted in parenthood’s daily struggles and triumphs. From grassroots activism to high-profile political campaigns, mothers harness their perspectives and experiences to advocate for change on issues ranging from abortion, health care, and education to the environment and social justice.

  “I believe both the Democrat and Republican parties have left the people,” Ms. Ormond said. “I am dissatisfied with our government and think they are all in cahoots with one another.”

  Moms of various social and political stripes are welcomed in the corridors of strategic planning, and mothers are stepping out and striding onto the political stage with vigor and determination, reshaping the political landscape. These women assert their influence in the public arena, driven by a deep-seated desire to create a better world for their children.

  Mama Bears Bite Back

  With almost 89 million women eligible to vote, they represent the largest and possibly most persuasive voting bloc in the United States. Among this constituency are those who identify as “mama bears.”

  The Mama Bear movement is growing and altering the nation’s political climate. These mothers represent a diverse group of everyday women who are driven to shield their children from the agendas of special interest groups who think they know what’s best for kids.

  Moms for Liberty co-founder Tina Descovich talked with The Epoch Times about parents’ growing concern about public education and parental rights. In 2021, three mothers from Florida founded Moms for Liberty to combat COVID-19 restrictions.

  “Moms are troubled about the country’s future and education crisis in America,” she said. “Schools have been infiltrated with woke ideologies, so moms are looking closely at private schools or homeschooling their children.”

  Ms. Descovich, a former Brevard School Board member in Florida, said Moms for Liberty focuses on the 2024 state school board elections nationwide, where progressive agendas thrive.

  In April, the Biden administration reversed changes made under President Donald Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that updated Title IX regulations governing schools’ responses to sexual misconduct. The revised rules, which go into effect in August, reinterpret what constitutes harassment and sex discrimination to prohibit actions driven by sexual orientation, gender identity, sex stereotypes, and pregnancy.

  To date, 15 states have sued the administration over the new policy. Moms for Liberty has elevated its effort to inform moms about the changes.

  “Many moms are deeply troubled with the rewriting of Title IX,” Ms. Descovich said. “We must stand up for the parental right to raise our children and support them as they navigate significant life lessons.”

  For these reasons, she said, many parents seek alternative education options such as homeschooling or private schools.

  Moms for Liberty is represented in 48 states, with 300 chapters and 330,000 members. Ms. Descovich said the organization recently discovered that more than half of its members have not voted more than once in the past eight years in a primary.

  “Most moms are not historically politically active,” she said. “We’re working on getting them registered to vote on our issues.”

  Progressive Moms Embrace Social Diversity

  Alexandria White founded Student Affairs Moms, the largest online community for mothers in the student affairs profession. She is the mother of one daughter and a seasoned diversity, leadership, and inclusive communities trainer. The resident of Oxford, Mississippi, said she understands the desire to maintain innocence with children but also said that complex social issues must be addressed.

  “I believe in preparing my children for complex topics,” Ms. White said.

  Such topics include, for instance, a classmate who has two moms.

  “This kind of preparation reduces bullying,” she said. “Our children are more likely to be more empathetic.”

  Ms. White told The Epoch Times that moms seek candidates who identify with their family needs and align with their community and family values.

  “There is no perfect candidate,” she said. “We must, however, have passion in our hearts and reason in our minds. What can a particular candidate do that connects with my heart but also reasoned with my mind regarding policies?”

  Ms. White consults clients who work hard to meet the financial needs of their families and women who seek “work-life harmony.” She engages moms, who evaluate these issues and demands as they vote.

  “The pulse is on what candidate can make the average person’s dollar go the farthest,” Ms. White said. “Most moms are worried about their children’s overall mental, spiritual, or physical health.”

  According to a survey conducted by The Current Project, nearly 70 percent of black single mothers with school-age children think the nation is headed in the wrong direction. About 90 percent of respondents said they believe that the current public school system does not adequately serve students’ needs, and 56 percent have considered transferring their children to different schools in the past year. The Current Project, a New York City-based advocacy group, surveyed 504 middle-to-low-income black mothers who are single.

  Six out of 10 respondents strongly agreed they would be more inclined to support a candidate who advocated granting parents greater flexibility in selecting the school for their children. The respondents emphasized after-school child care, gifted and talented programs, respect for their child’s gender identity, and class sizes.

  “I’m concerned that some of the social wedge issues are being used to defund public education,” Merisa Bowers, a mom of a 7-year-old son and City Council president of Gahanna, Ohio, told The Epoch Times. “We need vital public education systems for workforce development and a system that creates an educated population.”

  She acknowledged that following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, Ohio voters last year overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment that guarantees access to abortion and reproductive health care.

  “All politics is local,” Ms. Bowers said. “While presidential cycles are important and do a lot of good, most politics at the state and local level affect individuals and families. It’s important that moms evaluate what’s happening politically in their local communities.”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 22:00

• Boeing Could Face Criminal Prosecution Over 737 MAX Crashes: Justice Department
  Boeing Could Face Criminal Prosecution Over 737 MAX Crashes: Justice Department

  Authored by Jacob Burg via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  The U.S. Department of Justice determined on May 14 that Boeing violated a deferred prosecution agreement that allowed the aerospace company to evade criminal charges after two crashes of its 737 MAX jet that killed everyone on board.

  

  Justice Department prosecutors delivered the news to a federal judge on May 14 after hosting a closed-door meeting with the families of the victims of the 2018 and 2019 crashes on April 24. The agency now has until July 7 to decide whether it will file criminal charges against Boeing, during which time it will tell the court how it plans to proceed, the Justice Department said.

  Glenn Leon, the head of the Justice Department’s fraud section, said in a letter that the aerospace company failed to implement measures to prevent it from running afoul of federal anti-fraud laws, which is a violation of its 2021 deferred prosecution agreement.

  The Justice Department said it could prosecute the company “for any federal criminal violation of which the United States has knowledge,” including a fraud charge that Boeing hoped to sidestep with its $2.5 billion settlement with the U.S. government.

  The government did not say whether it would move forward with prosecuting Boeing, one of its biggest aerospace contractors.

  “The Government is determining how it will proceed in this matter,” the Justice Department said in a court document.

  The 2018 and 2019 737 MAX crashes involved a new flight-control system that Boeing added to the jet without notifying airlines or their pilots, according to investigations. The aerospace company then discounted the system’s importance and failed to overhaul its application until after the second crash caused further casualties.

  The Justice Department then investigated Boeing before settling the case with a deferred prosecution agreement on Jan. 7, 2021. The department agreed not to prosecute for the charge of defrauding the government in misleading the regulators who approved the 737 MAX after closed-door negotiations with Boeing.

  Instead, Boeing paid a total of $2.5 billion in settlement fees. That included nearly $1.8 billion to airlines whose 737 MAX jets were grounded, a $500 million fund for compensating victims, and a $243.6 million fine to the U.S. Government.

  “The tragic crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 exposed fraudulent and deceptive conduct by employees of one of the world’s leading commercial airplane manufacturers,” Acting Assistant Attorney General David P. Burns of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said in 2021.

  “Boeing’s employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception.”

  U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox, for the Northern District of Texas, was also featured in the Justice Department’s 2021 statement on the Boeing agreement.

  “The misleading statements, half-truths, and omissions communicated by Boeing employees to the FAA impeded the government’s ability to ensure the safety of the flying public,” she said.

  The agreement between Boeing and the U.S. Government was set to expire on Jan. 7, two days after a mid-air blowout of a door panel on an Alaskan Airlines flight, also featuring a 737 MAX. That incident triggered the Justice Department’s 2024 investigation into whether Boeing violated the 2021 settlement.

  As a result of the various crashes and incidents, Boeing has faced multiple civil lawsuits, Senate and House investigations, and increased public scrutiny of its business practices.

  Paul Cassell, the attorney representing the 737 MAX crash victims’ families, said in late April that he was worried the Justice Department was giving Boeing “preferential treatment” after the April 24 closed-door meeting with the agency yielded no decisive updates on its investigation.

  “We don’t understand how it could possibly be in the public interest to dismiss the charges and avoid a trial that could shed light on so many of the safety issues that continue to surface regarding the 737 Max that’s made by Boeing,” he told The Epoch Times.

  The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 21:40

• Glenn Greenwald Makes An Important Prediction On Ukraine
  Glenn Greenwald Makes An Important Prediction On Ukraine

  It was Tuesday night that Secretary of State Antony Blinken was leading a bizarre rock anthem as the guitar and vocals front man at a Kiev bar, singing Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” — and the internet collectively cringed. But only the next morning, on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared he was canceling all upcoming foreign trips at a moment his forces are getting hammered in the Kharkiv region.

  “Volodymyr Zelenskyy has instructed that all international events scheduled for the coming days be postponed and new dates coordinated. We are grateful to partners for their understanding,” said Zelensky’s press secretary Sergii Nykyforov.

  Just a quick reminder that you and your family can’t afford rent, gas, and groceries because inflation is out of control and your tax dollars are being spent on things like Secretary of State Tony Blinken playing guitar at a bar in Ukraine.

  Please be more pissed off. pic.twitter.com/bbyXMuiG0p

  — NotKennyRogers (@NotKennyRogers) May 14, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Ukraine’s military leaders are “making all decisions based on comprehensive information. Additional forces are being deployed, reserves are available,” Nykyforov stated.

  Among the foreign trips which have been postponed were expected visits of Zelensky to Spain and Portugal. Spain has just recently given up at least one of its Patriot missile batteries for Ukraine after considerable pressure from EU and NATO leaders.

  Commenting on these developments, journalist Glenn Greenwald has made an important prediction and point…

  By this time next year, there will be about 15 people still admitting they supported this bloodshed and debacle of the US blocking diplomatic solutions and instead fueling this futile war in Ukraine.

  Everyone else will pretend they opposed it. US war propaganda is always false. https://t.co/VOycKd5QLH

  — Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) May 15, 2024

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  He wrote Wednesday, “By this time next year, there will be about 15 people still admitting they supported this bloodshed and debacle of the US blocking diplomatic solutions and instead fueling this futile war in Ukraine.”

  “Everyone else will pretend they opposed it. US war propaganda is always false,” Greenwald concluded.

  Indeed this is very similar with how the Iraq war turned out: “everyone” was on board, until they weren’t.  

  And those who had it horribly wrong all along suddenly fell silent and ‘forgot’ their past gatekeeping and rabid denunciations of the minority ‘other side’ whose ‘unpopular’ predictions proved accurate.

  Never forget pic.twitter.com/9PdsEwNwLy

  — Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  …Behold the predictable pattern of US Empire in a long, slow decline.

  * * * 

  A golden oldie…

  This had to be one of the greatest Freudian slips in modern history pic.twitter.com/QslbvNMvG8

  — An0maly (@LegendaryEnergy) May 15, 2024

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  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 21:20

• FBI And DHS Issue Warning On Foreign Terrorist Groups For June "Pride Month'
  FBI And DHS Issue Warning On Foreign Terrorist Groups For June “Pride Month’

  Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,

  The FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a public service announcement saying that foreign terrorist organizations like ISIS and related terrorist organizations could target certain events across the United States during “Pride Month”-related events in June.

  “Organizations like ISIS may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month,” the announcement said. The two agencies said the terror threat is “compounded” by the “current heightened threat environment” in the United States.

  

  The terrorist threats could come via the mail, in person, or online, the agencies said, without elaborating or providing specific details.

  The bulletin noted that June 12, 2024, is the eighth anniversary of the mass shooting at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando in which 49 people died. After the incident, pro-ISIS groups “praised this attack as one of the high-profile attacks in Western countries” and “supporters celebrated it,” the FBI and DHS said.

  There was no evidence that the ISIS terrorist group was directly involved in plotting that shooting, the shooter, Omar Mateen, called 911 after the incident started and pledged allegiance to the group.

  The agencies cited that in February 2023, an ISIS-related message board had included “rhetoric and rallied against the growth and promotion” of LGBT groups, the FBI said. “Messages also called for ISIS followers to conduct attacks on soft targets, though they weren’t specific” to those venues, it added.

  Last June, three ISIS sympathizers tried to attack a parade in Austria, using vehicles and knives, according to the FBI and DHS.

  The two agencies revealed “possible indicators” of what they called “potential threat activity,” which includes “unusual surveillance or interest in buildings, gatherings, or events” as well as “unusual or prolonged testing or probing of security measures at events or venues,” violent threats made online or in person, or photography of security related equipment or personnel.

  Other FBI Warnings

  In April, the FBI announced that it had arrested an 18-year-old Idaho man for allegedly plotting to carry out a terrorist attack targeting local churches. The man, identified in court documents as Alexander Mercurio, is accused of telling an FBI informant about his alleged plans and that he wanted to launch an attack last Sunday, April 7, but was thwarted by officials.

  “The defendant allegedly pledged loyalty to ISIS and sought to attack people attending churches in Idaho, a truly horrific plan which was detected and thwarted by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force,” the FBI said in a statement issued at the time

  It comes as FBI Director Chris Wray last month that foreign terrorist groups are again looking to attack the United States in an “increasingly concerning” way, adding that his agency is attempting to prevent an attack on U.S. soil via terrorist groups such as ISIS-K, a regional branch of ISIS mainly in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

  “Foreign terrorists, including ISIS, al-Qaeda, and their adherents, have renewed calls for attacks against Jewish communities here in the United States and across the West in statements and propaganda,” Mr. Wray said at the event. He then made reference to a terrorist attack claimed by ISIS in Moscow, Russia, that left more than 140 people dead.

  “The foreign terrorist threat and the potential for a coordinated attack here in the homeland, like the ISIS-K attack we saw at the Russia Concert Hall a couple weeks ago, is now increasingly concerning. Oct. 7 and the conflict that’s followed will feed a pipeline of radicalization and mobilization for years to come,” he added.

  In the meantime, Mr. Wray has been issuing warnings about the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), often warning this year that the regime is actively targeting U.S. systems. The CCP’s hacking programs are much larger than the U.S.’s cybersecurity structure.

  “To put it simply, [the Chinese Communist Party] is throwing its whole government at undermining the security and economy of the rule-of-law world,” the FBI director said earlier this year.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 21:00

• France Declares State Of Emergency, Sends Troops, To Quell Deadly Riots In Pacific Territory
  France Declares State Of Emergency, Sends Troops, To Quell Deadly Riots In Pacific Territory

  French President Emmanuel Macron has declared a 12-day state of emergency starting Wednesday as a result of deadly riots which have gripped France’s Indo-Pacific territory of New Caledonia.

  Four people died and many others were wounded in clashes with police Tuesday night, with reports of looting and buildings burned to the ground. The mayhem was sparked by a vote in France’s parliament, the National Assembly, which authorizes residents who’ve resided in New Caledonia for 10 years to cast ballots in provincial elections.

  

  But the archipelago’s indigenous Kanak people have for decades chafed over what they see as a power grab favoring the descendants of colonizers who want to remain part of France. These ethnic tensions have simmered for many years, and have boiled over this week.

  The French territory lies east of Australia and is ten time zones ahead of Paris, and it has about 270,000 people. The new state of emergency aims “to restore order in the shortest time possible” – according to a parliament statement.

  There are widespread reports that French military troops have been deployed to put down the pro-independence riots, and a ban on TikTok has also reportedly been issued, but Paris officials have sought to downplay these draconian measures.

  According to the Associated Press, “Asked if France could deploy the French military to the island, Thevenot said it’s not the army’s job to maintain order but that it is helping with the transport of police reinforcements.”

  A montage view of the destruction and fires raging:

  New Caledonia hit by deadly unrest as France approves local voting system change

  Follow us on Rumble: https://t.co/Nuc9nUzlmx pic.twitter.com/3SwO7U95LK

  — RT (@RT_com) May 15, 2024

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  However, later the AFP news agency wrote that France has deployed army personnel at New Caledonia ports as well as the main airport.

  New Caledonia’s president Louis Mapou has said that the deaths from the last 24 hours of unrest included three young indigenous Kanak people and a French gendarmerie police officer who had previously sustained wounds. Hundreds of protesters and police have been injured.

  “The moblie gendarme seriously wounded by a bullet in New Caledonia has just died,” Darmanin announced. “Our thoughts are with his family, those close to him and his friends. Nothing, absolutely nothing, justifies violence. Order will be restored.”

  Paris has confirmed an extra 500 French police officers have been sent to the territory to help restore order.

  The French Empire has deployed its military to put down insurgents in the Pacific island of New Caledonia, which is near Australia!

  And France has also banned TikTok in that island to hide human rights violations.

  Freedom, democracy and Western values on display: pic.twitter.com/0PViDdpt74

  — S.L. Kanthan (@Kanthan2030) May 15, 2024

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  All schools and public buildings in the capital of Noumea have remained shut. Hundreds of buildings have been damaged or have been set on fire.

  Fresh reporting in The New York Times demonstrates how seriously France is taking it, with President Macron having canceled an overseas trip:

  The French authorities have undertaken what they called a “massive” mobilization of security forces since violent protests broke out in New Caledonia this week over a proposed amendment to the French Constitution that would change local voting rules in the territory. A vote in France’s Parliament approving the amendment on Tuesday ignited riots overnight that left four people dead, including a law enforcement officer.

  #UPDATE ⚡️🇫🇷 —Events are growing in New Caledonia.

  At least 4 people were killed in the riot in New Caledonia. – LS pic.twitter.com/yEsNWZ2ONH

  — UK R REPORT (@UKR_Report) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  According to more:

  The French government said that more than 1,800 security officers were already in the territory and that 500 reinforcements would arrive in the next 24 hours.

  At a crisis meeting, Mr. Attal said that the army was being deployed to secure ports and the airport.

  Following a crisis security meeting chaired by Macron on Wednesday, the French president’s office issued a statement expressing “strong emotion” of the deaths as a result of the riots.

  

  The statement further said that “All violence is intolerable and will be subject to a relentless response” to ensure that order and peace are restored.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 20:40

• Al Gore Said The Ice-Caps Would Be Gone By 2014… Yes 2014!
  Al Gore Said The Ice-Caps Would Be Gone By 2014… Yes 2014!

  Authored by Martin Armstrong via ArmstrongEconomics.com,

  The Press refuses to hold all of these failed Climate Change forecasts to task…

  

  All they do is keep moving the date for our doom, all due to CO2.

  In fact, the real crisis is the continued weakening of the magnetic field, which leads to pole shifts about every 43000 years – yes, that conforms to the ECM frequency.

  The major shifts we discovered from the data scientists provided us came out to be 720,000 years.

  Either way, they both seem to be lining up in our lifetime.

  We are headed more into a pole shift than a climate change thanks to CO2.

  The fact that they are targeting farmers when we should be stockpiling food now is either the most idiotic human decision in history or intentional with hopes of reducing the population.

  

  If I keep forecasting every year that the stock market would crash by 90%, I think they would call me a nut-job and laugh after ten years of perpetual failed forecasts.

  But with the climate, they just love to keep the fraud going.

  After June 6th, they are whispering about restricting travel to reduce CO2 this summer.

  They want to deprive you of your vacation this year as well.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 20:20

• Mississippi Passes Law Banning Trans-Friendly Bathroom Policies In Public Schools
  Mississippi Passes Law Banning Trans-Friendly Bathroom Policies In Public Schools

  A lot of Americans are asking how we so quickly got to a point where a man could simply declare he is the opposite sex, throw on a wig and a leotard, and then walk into a women’s restroom while being protected by government officials? 

  In some Democrat controlled states if you try to stop these people from doing this you could even be arrested or sued.  Even worse, the gender ideology has now infiltrated public schools where young and vulnerable children are subject to trans exceptionalism.  

  How did this happen?

  Through a combination of political support, NGO influence, ESG money, corporate promotion, media propaganda and astroturf activism the trans movement gained momentum too swiftly to be countered in a practical way.  The gears of local and state government turn slowly and convincing public officials that the gender ideology problem was a reality took time.  That is how a movement representing only 1% of the population was suddenly in a position to dictate the speech and behavior of the other 99% – They had the backing of every major institutional power structure.

  With Big Tech companies censoring or banning almost anyone questioning the gender cult and government officials vying to pass laws making criticism of trans people a hate crime, the effort was almost victorious.  A lot of people were afraid to speak up for fear of being “cancelled.”  Then public schools, teacher’s unions and other organizations started pushing gender theory onto kids and this is when things changed.  Mess with people’s children and now you have a war on your hands.

  

  The idea of biological males being allowed to enter girls bathrooms in a school setting was perhaps the straw that broke the camel’s back.  This was a situation in which parent tax dollars were going towards the indoctrination of their own kids and putting those kids at risk from mentally unstable people.  This is why homeschooling in the US in 2023 remained 45% higher than it was in 2019, even after covid mandates had been lifted.  Public school enrollment has been falling nationwide. Americans don’t want their kids exposed to activist controlled environments. 

  Multiple red states are finally taking action to rectify the situation, much to the outrage of progressives.  In particular, Utah and Mississippi have recently passed laws requiring trans people to use the bathroom that corresponds to their biological sex in public education centers (including in dorms and locker rooms).  Mississippi State Governor Tate Reeves notes:

  “It’s mind blowing that this is what Joe Biden’s America has come to…Having to pass common sense policies that protect women’s spaces was unimaginable just a few years ago. But here we are… we have to pass a law to protect women in bathrooms, sororities, locker rooms, dressing rooms, shower rooms, and more.”

  Rob Hill, the Mississippi state director for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group, called the new law an attempt to “strip basic rights from LGBTQ+ people in our state”:

  “This bill does nothing but attempt to push us further apart at the expense of LGBTQ+ people, who deserve the freedom to be and to use bathrooms and locker rooms without the prying eyes of politicians peering over the stall…Shame on the governor and the MAGA agenda of hate.”

  But it’s the prying eyes of mentally deranged weirdos that these laws are specifically designed to address.  Why are leftists so insistent on trans-friendly bathroom laws?  It’s not about bathroom convenience.  They know that it is a way to get their foot in the door in terms of special legal protections and government affirmation for the trans ideology.  In other words, if the government recognizes your delusion your delusion becomes real.  Trans friendly bathrooms in public schools are also a short skip away from trans privileged speech laws like those seen in Europe and Canada.

  The political left relies on the conservative and moderate sense of compromise to gain advantage.  Give them and inch and they will always take a mile, until one day your kids wake up in a world where being “trans” is the only way to get the government to take your concerns seriously. 

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 20:00

• Thousands Of Children Prescribed Ivermectin Or Hydroxychloroquine For COVID: Study
  Thousands Of Children Prescribed Ivermectin Or Hydroxychloroquine For COVID: Study

  Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,

  Doctors prescribed ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine more than 4,400 times to children with COVID-19 during periods of time when the drugs were not recommended against the illness by authorities, according to a new study.

  

  Doctors issued 813 prescriptions of hydroxychloroquine to minors with COVID-19 after the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society on Sept. 12, 2020, advised against using hydroxychloroquine outside of a clinical trial, researchers found. The recommendation came after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revoked emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19.

  Another 3,602 prescriptions of ivermectin for children with COVID-19 were issued after Feb. 5, 2021, when the Infectious Diseases Society of America released guidelines advising not to use ivermectin outside of a trial. The FDA later in 2021 urged people not to take ivermectin against COVID-19, although it has since been forced to rescind those warnings.

  Dr. Julianne Burns, a clinical assistant professor of pediatric infectious diseases at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, and other researchers examined records from Komodo Healthcare Map, a health care claims database that Komodo Health says covers 330 million patients. They looked for children who had acute COVID-19 from March 7, 2020, to Dec. 31, 2022.

  After excluding some children, including those who did not have continuous insurance coverage for at least one year prior to diagnosis, the researchers found approximately 4,480 prescriptions of “nonrecommended medications.”

  All but a few dozen of the prescriptions were for ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine.

  Both drugs are approved by the FDA, but not against COVID-19. Some agencies, groups, and doctors say the drugs should not be used against the illness, pointing in part to clinical trials that have found little or no evidence that they’re effective. Other organizations and doctors, though, say the drugs work against COVID-19, citing their own experience and other trials that found the drugs were beneficial. Off-label prescriptions are common in the United States.

  Dr. Burns and the other researchers who conducted the new study, which was published by the American Academy of Pediatrics’ journal, said their findings showed “children were prescribed ineffective and potentially harmful medications for acute COVID-19 despite national clinical guidelines.”

  The only data on effectiveness or lack thereof they cited was the FDA’s authorization revocation for hydroxychloroquine and the guidance from the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society and Infectious Diseases Society of America. As for their safety description, they pointed to a federal advisory that found a 24-fold increase in ivermectin prescriptions and a five-fold increase during the same time of ivermectin-related calls to poison control centers.

  Dr. Robert Apter, who was not involved in the study, highlighted how the study referred to potential issues but cited no evidence of actual issues from usage of the drugs against COVID-19.

  “The fact that there was a report of increased calls to poison control centers about ivermectin doesn’t mean a thing. When something gets in the news and people are curious about it, they may call the poison control center,” Dr. Apter told The Epoch Times.

  He said that the drugs “have a long history of safe use in children.”

  Dr. Apter has prescribed treatments for thousands of COVID-19 patients and was one of the doctors who sued the FDA over its anti-ivermectin statements. He said he’s prescribed ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine for several teenagers who became so sick that their families became concerned. Those children improved quickly and there were no side effects, according to the doctor.

  Dr. Burns did not respond to a request for comment.

  The researchers said limitations to their study stemmed from their reliance on health care records, which can’t account for COVID-19 infections that were not reported to a health care provider and might contain mislabeled codes. Funding came from the Stanford Maternal and Child Health Research Institute. No conflicts of interest were listed.

  A previous study, examining claims data from Dec. 1, 2020, through March 31, 2021, identified 128 prescriptions of ivermectin for children for non-parasitic infections, with researchers assuming the prescriptions were for COVID-19. That paper drew from IQVIA’s health claims database. The researchers also examined data from patients with Medicare Advantage insurance and found some ivermectin prescriptions, though none for children.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 19:40

• These Are The Most Polluted Cities In The US
  These Are The Most Polluted Cities In The US

  According to the World Health Organization, air pollution is responsible for 7 million deaths annually, and could cost the global economy between $18–25 trillion by 2060 in annual welfare costs, or roughly 4–6% of world GDP.

  And with predictions that 7 in 10 people will make their homes in urban centers by mid-century, cities are fast becoming one of the frontlines in the global effort to clear the air.

  In this visualization, Visual Capitalist’s Chris Dickert uses 2024 data from the State of the Air report from the American Lung Association to show the most polluted cities in the United States.

  

  What is Air Pollution?

  Air pollution is a complex mixture of gases, particles, and liquid droplets and can have a variety of sources, including wildfires and cookstoves in rural areas, and road dust and diesel exhaust in cities. 

  There are a few kinds of air pollution that are especially bad for human health, including ozone and carbon monoxide, but here we’re concerned with fine particulate matter that is smaller than 2.5 microns, or PM2.5 for short. 

  The reason for the focus is because at that small size, particulate matter can penetrate the bloodstream and cause all manner of havoc, including cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, and chronic pulmonary disease. 

  The American Lung Association has set an annual average guideline of 9 µg/m³ for PM2.5, however, the World Health Organization has set a much more stringent limit of 5 µg/m³.

  The 21 Worst Polluted Cities in the U.S.

  Here are the top 21 most polluted cities in the U.S., according to their annual average PM2.5 concentrations:

  Rank	City, State	Annual average concentration, 2020-2022 (µg/m3)
  1	Bakersfield, CA	18.8
  2	Visalia, CA	18.4
  3	Fresno, CA	17.5
  4	Eugene, OR	14.7
  5	Bay Area, CA	14.3
  6	Los Angeles, CA	14.0
  7	Sacramento, CA	13.8
  8	Medford, OR	13.5
  9	Pheonix, AZ	12.4
  10	Fairbanks, AK	12.2
  11	Indianapolis, IN	11.9
  12	Yakima, WA	11.8
  13	Detroit, MI	11.7
  T14	Chico, CA	11.6
  T14	Spokane, WA	11.6
  15	Houston, TX	11.4
  16	El Centro, CA	11.1
  17	Reno, NV	11.0
  18	Pittsburgh, PA	10.9
  T19	Kansas City, KS	10.8
  T19	Las Vegas, NV	10.8

  Note: The American Lung Association uses Core Based Statistical Areas in its city and county rankings, which have been shortened here to the area’s principal city, or metro area in the case of the Bay Area, CA.

  Six of the top seven cities are in California, and four in the state’s Central Valley, a 450-mile flat valley that runs parallel to the Pacific coast, and bordered by the Coast and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges. As a result, when pollution from the big population centers on the coast is carried inland by the wind—cities #5 and #6 on the list—it tends to get trapped in the valley. 

  Bakersfield (#1), Visalia (#2), and Fresno (#3) are located at the drier and hotter southern end of the valley, which is worse for air quality. The top three local sources of PM2.5 emissions in 2023 were farms (20%), forest management / agricultural waste burning (20%), and road dust (14%). 

  Benefit to Economy

  While the health impacts are generally well understood, less well known are the economic impacts.

  Low air quality negatively affects worker productivity, increases absenteeism, and adds both direct and indirect health care costs. But the flip side of that equation is that improving air quality has measurable impacts to the wider economy. The EPA published a study that calculated the economic benefits of each metric ton of particulate matter that didn’t end up in the atmosphere, broken down by sector.

  Sector	Benefits per metric ton
  Residential Woodstoves	$429,220
  Refineries	$333,938
  Industrial Boilers	$174,229
  Oil and Natural Gas Transmission	$125,227
  Electricity Generating Units	$124,319
  Oil and Natural Gas	$88,838

  At the same time, the EPA recently updated a cost-benefit analysis of the Clean Air Act, the main piece of federal legislation governing air quality, and found that between 1990 and 2020 it cost the economy roughly $65 billion, but also provided $2 trillion in benefits. 

  Benefit to Business

  But that’s at the macroeconomic level, so what about for individual businesses?

  For one, employees like to breathe clean air and will choose to work somewhere else, given a choice. A 2022 Deloitte case study revealed that nearly 70% of highly-skilled workers said air quality was a significant factor in choosing which city to live and work in.

  At the same time, air quality can impact employer-sponsored health care premiums, by reducing the overall health of the risk pool. And since insurance premiums averaged $7,590 per year in 2022 for a single employee, and rose to $21,931 for a family, that can add up fast. 

  Consumers are also putting their purchase decisions through a green lens, while ESG, triple-bottom-line, and impact investing are putting the environment front and center for many investors.

  And if the carrot isn’t enough for some businesses, there is the stick. The EPA recently gave vehicle engine manufacturer Cummins nearly two billion reasons to help improve air quality, in a settlement the agency is calling “the largest civil penalty in the history of the Clean Air Act and the second largest environmental penalty ever.”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 19:20

• US Suspends EcoHealth Funding Over Wuhan Lab Compliance
  US Suspends EcoHealth Funding Over Wuhan Lab Compliance

  Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  U.S. officials have cut off funding to a nonprofit that funneled government money to a laboratory in China located in the same city where the first COVID-19 cases appeared.

  

  EcoHealth Alliance (EHA), the nonprofit, “did not adequately monitor” compliance from the Wuhan lab with the terms and conditions of a grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), Henrietta Brisbon, a deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the NIH’s parent agency, said in a May 15 letter to EcoHealth President Peter Daszak. Officials also found that the subaward to Wuhan lacked requirements that would make the grant in compliance with federal law and regulations.

  “Given the issues regarding the management of EHA’s grant awards and subawards, I have determined that the immediate suspension of EHA is necessary to protect the public interest,” Ms. Brisbon added later.

  EcoHealth, which is based in the United States, passed more than $1 million to the Wuhan lab, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, over the years to study bat coronaviruses.

  In 2019, the experiments yielded a more virulent version of a bat virus in mice, according to an annual report for 2019 that was not conveyed to the U.S. government by EcoHealth until 2021.

  U.S. officials then asked for laboratory notebooks and other files regarding the testing. EcoHealth officials said they did not have the files, but had forwarded the request to the Wuhan lab. Wuhan officials never provided the files, according to U.S. and EcoHealth officials.

  EcoHealth facilitated gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China without proper oversight, willingly violated multiple requirements of its multimillion-dollar National Institutes of Health grant, and apparently made false statements to the NIH,” Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) said in a statement. “These actions are wholly abhorrent, indefensible, and must be addressed with swift action. EcoHealth’s immediate funding suspension and future debarment is not only a victory for the U.S. taxpayer, but also for American national security and the safety of citizens worldwide.”

  EcoHealth & Dr. Daszak facilitated gain-of-function research in China without proper oversight & willingly violated multiple requirements of @NIH grants.

  They should never again receive a single penny from the U.S. taxpayer.

  Read Chairman @RepBradWenstrup‘s full statement👇 pic.twitter.com/Jw9VQVVBIf

  — Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic (@COVIDSelect) May 15, 2024

  Dr. Wenstrup, chairman of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, released a report on May 1 recommending federal prosecutors investigate Mr. Daszak over violations of the grant terms.

  Dr. Wenstrup, for instance, noted that EcoHealth blamed the delay in providing the annual report on being “locked out” of the NIH’s system, but that a forensic audit by the government uncovered no evidence supporting that claim.

  Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the subcommittee, said in a statement that he welcomed the suspension of funding to EcoHealth.

  “Every recipient of federal taxpayer funding has an obligation to meet the utmost standards of transparency and accountability to the American public,” he said. “EcoHealth Alliance’s failure to do so is a departure from the longstanding legacy of good faith partnerships between NIH and federal grantees to advance science and the public interest, which remains essential for the continued work of preventing and preparing for future threats to our nation’s public health.”

  Mr. Daszak, who holds a doctorate in parasitic infectious diseases, told the subcommmittee in a recent hearing that “in all of our federally funded projects, we have maintained an open, transparent communication with agency staff” and “rapidly provided information critical to public health and agriculture.”

  EcoHealth currently has three grants being funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, including a grant to experiment on bats with antibodies against the Nipah virus could be re-infected in lab experiments.

  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is suspending all funding to EcoHealth and proposing the nonprofit be debarred, or unable to receive funding for a period of time that could last years or even decades.

  “The length of debarment, if ultimately imposed, will be based on the seriousness of the cause for debarment,” Ms. Brisbon said.

  EcoHealth has 30 days to contest the findings from the HHS.

  “EcoHealth Alliance is disappointed by HHS’ decision today and we will be contesting the proposed debarment,” a spokesperson for the organization told The Epoch Times in an email. “We disagree strongly with the decision and will present evidence to refute each of these allegations and to show that NIH’s continued support of EcoHealth Alliance is in the public interest.”

  The HHS inspector general said previously that both NIH and EcoHealth officials failed to properly monitor experiments done under the grant.

  The NIH, for example, did not make sure the annual report was submitted in a timely manner, the watchdog said.

  EcoHealth, the watchdog added, should have submitted the report by the end of September 2019 but did not do so until August 2021.

  The HHS previously debarred the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) from receiving U.S. taxpayer funds over its failure to provide the requested materials.

  The debarment, announced in September 2023, is for 10 years.

  “The NIH determined that WIV may have conducted an experiment yielding a level of viral activity which was greater than permitted under the terms of the grant,” Ms. Brisbon said in a letter to the lab’s director at the time.

  The lab’s refusal to hand over notebooks and other materials means the determination is undisputed, she said. “As such,” she wrote, “there is risk that WIV not only previously violated, but is currently violating, and will continue to violate, protocols of the NIH on biosafety.”

  Correct. But further accountability is needed. Both for EcoHealth and for EcoHealth’s enablers.

  — Richard H. Ebright (@R_H_Ebright) May 15, 2024

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 19:00

• Tyson Foods CEO Unsure When Nation's Collapsing Beef Herd Will Reverse
  Tyson Foods CEO Unsure When Nation’s Collapsing Beef Herd Will Reverse

  Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King spoke at the BMO Global Farm to Market Conference in Toronto on Wednesday, expressing much uncertainty about when US ranchers will rebuild tight cattle herds meaningfully. 

  Reuters was the first to report King’s comments at BMO’s farm conference. He stated ranchers had been pressured in recent years to offload cattle due to high grain costs and drought, which, in return, sent the nation’s beef cattle herd plunging to the lowest in more than half a century. 

  King provided some encouraging news, citing slightly lower grain costs and improved grazing conditions in the Midwest as factors in increasing the US herd. However, he noted that a high-interest rate environment is a significant headwind. 

  All in all, King’s comments did not provide confidence that the nation’s beef cattle herd would reverse from seven-decade lows as ranches continue offloading cows to slaughterhouses. The latest figures from the US Department of Agriculture show that the nation’s cattle herd is 87.2 million head (as of Jan. 1), the lowest level since 1951. Data from USDA in the chart below only goes back to 1974. 

  

  Shrinking herds means fewer cows, as the latest slaughter price per 100 pounds is around $186, the highest ever and in breakout territory. 

  

  We have explained that ranches have been culling more cows for several years because of droughts, surging feed costs, and high interest rates. 

  • Dwindling US Cattle Herd Implies Supermarket Beef Prices May Rise Even More
  • Hamburger Prices Might Continue To Rise As US Cattle Herd Shrinks
  • US Cattle Prices Hit Nine-Year High As National Herd Drops To Half-Century Low
  • US Beef Prices Hit Record High As Nation’s Cattle Herd Expected To Shrink Through 2025

  This perfect storm has sent beef prices at the supermarket to record highs. 

  

  Lane Broadbent, president of KIS Futures Inc. in Oklahoma City, told Bloomberg earlier this year that herds aren’t expected to rebound before at least 2026. 

  We suspect retail prices will go higher until demand destruction is achieved. Seasonally, outdoor cookouts ignite an upswing in beef demand in the coming weeks. 

  Can the Fed just print more beef? Oh wait, no, but you know who can: Bill Gates.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 18:40

• Slovak PM Robert Fico Expected To Survive; UK Media Appears To Justify Assassination Attempt
  Slovak PM Robert Fico Expected To Survive; UK Media Appears To Justify Assassination Attempt

  Update(1840ET): Prime Minister Fico is said to be improving, following reports that he was in surgery due to several gunshot wounds from the Wednesday assassination attempt. Deputy Prime Minister Tomas Taraba has told the BBC he “is not in a life-threatening situation at this moment.” 

  “Fortunately, as far as I know, the operation went well – and I guess in the end he will survive,” the statement indicated.

  Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak has told reporters in a briefing that “there is no doubt” that the attack was a politically motivated assassination attempt. “The inability to accept the will of some part of the public, which some group does not like, is the result that they have worked towards today,” he said in reference to Fico’s political opponents. A video is widely circulated of the detained suspect’s interrogation wherein the man, identified as Juraj Cintula, confesses to saying he “disagreed” with his government’s policies. 

  Western media coverage of the attempted killing has been interesting to say the least. Fico was alongside Viktor Orban a dissenter when it comes to the NATO line on Ukraine.

  Journalist Glenn Greenwald has commented, for example, “Listen to this Sky News report on the shooting of Robert Fico. Not only do they come close to justifying it because he opposes aid to Ukraine, but they also casually imply that he’s being paid by the Kremlin. This casual accusation is so prevalent in the West, and toxic.” The Sky segment in question which calls Fico “very pro-Russian” and that it’s “not surprising” that the attack took place is below:

  Unsurprisingly, Sky News has literally justified the assassination attempt on Slovakian PM Robert Fico. Despicable ghouls.

  Reposting it, because the previous one has “mysteriously disappeared”. pic.twitter.com/JXPGJzgnTF

  — Olga Bazova (@OlgaBazova) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Update(1220ET): The identity of the shooter has been revealed in national media, and video of the actual moment the shots range out and PM Fico went down has emerged on some social media platforms.

  Several local media reports, citing visuals and witnesses at the scene, report that the man who shot the Slovak PM is a writer and activist named Juraj Cintula.

  While a clear motive has yet to be established, Cintula is said to be part of the pro-West and socially liberal “Progressive Slovakia” party.

  New: moment that Slovakia was shot pic.twitter.com/KRF6h18BQ8

  — Amichai Stein (@AmichaiStein1) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Statements have poured in from Western leaders: “Shocked and appalled by the shooting of Prime Minister Robert Fico. I wish him strength for a speedy recovery. My thoughts are with Robert Fico, his loved ones, and the people of Slovakia,” NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said on X.

  Photographs have emerged of the shooter being taken into custody. He also appears to be wounded or have suffered injury after being swiftly taken down by security…

  The Shooter who attempted to Assassinate the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico earlier today has been Identified by Slovakian Media as a 71-Year-Old Poet and Member of the Pro-Western Progressive Party, Juraj Cintula from the Town of Levice. Cintula had previously been… pic.twitter.com/KebqzkD5NM

  — OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  And from Hungary’s Orban:

  Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Wednesday expressed “deep shock” over the “heinous attack against my friend” Slovakia’s premier Robert Fico, who was reportedly shot and hospitalised after a cabinet meeting.

  “I was deeply shocked by the heinous attack against my friend, Prime Minister Robert Fico. We pray for his health and quick recovery! God bless him and his country!,” the nationalist fellow EU leader wrote on X.

  

  Meanwhile, Russian media and others have pointed out that Fico’s most controversial stance concerned Ukraine and NATO funding. Sputnik has the below partial list of recent controversies centering on the Slovak PM:

  • Fico earned NATO’s ire after vowing to block the delivery of weapons to Ukraine during his latest run for office. Fico has also expressed dissatisfaction with Bratislava’s defense pact with Washington, promising to review it.
  • Fico has expressed fervent opposition to Ukraine’s membership in NATO, and said he believes Russia began its military operation as a result of neo-Nazis running rampant in Ukraine.
  • Fico has warned that Western military assistance to Ukraine will only prolong the crisis and increase the number of victims, and has accused foreign forces of meddling in the conflict, which “could have been extinguished at the very beginning.”
  • Fico believes anti-Russian sanctions have “negatively affected” the lives of ordinary Slovaks.
  • Fico has been bashed by European legacy media as a left-wing populist analogue of Hungarian right-wing populist Viktor Orban, with outlets pulling out all the stops to accuse him of “democratic backsliding” and “flouting European norms,” including over his push to reform the criminal code.
  • The Slovak PM has also made enemies with powerful European political and business interests, promising to launch an independent inquiry into the EU’s authoritarian pandemic-era policies.

  * * *

  Slovakia’s populist prime minister Robert Fico has been shot, according to breaking news reports, after which he was rushed to the hospital and appears to be alive according to early reports. But some reports have listed his condition as “very serious” and that he had to be airlifted.

  According to emerging details in The Associated Press, Fico “was injured in a shooting and taken to hospital. The incident took place in the town of Handlova, some 150 kilometers northeast of the capital, according to the news television station TA3.”

  

  Local authorities say that a suspect is in custody. The shooting happened in front of the House of Culture where a government meeting was taking place.

  One eyewitness “saw the prime minister being lifted from the ground by security guards and loaded into a car and driven away.”

  Several people were greeting Fico and the moment the shots rang out, after which the prime minister fell to the ground. The would-be assassin was then taken by police. No details have been released as to the extent of his injuries.

  Unconfirmed video of the immediate aftermath:

  🇸🇰 Details on the assassination attempt on Slovakian PM Robert Fico:

  The shooter was hiding in the crowd that had gathered at the building where the Prime Minister was speaking. He fired from within the crowd, presumably 3-4 times.

  He then tried to escape but was apprehended by… pic.twitter.com/jS3waHm9q0

  — DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  He has been outspoken against deepening Western involvement in the Ukraine war, for which he’s made many enemies and critics among Western allies, and of course within Ukraine itself.

  For example, here’s how CNN last October described his ascendancy to prime minister and leader of the small NATO member state… “A party headed by a pro-Kremlin figure came out top after securing more votes than expected in an election in Slovakia, official results show, in what could pose a challenge to NATO and EU unity on Ukraine.”

  However, at this early point a motive is unknown.

  

  A national outlet in Slovakia has reported the following unconfirmed details of his condition (machine translation):

  According to the available information, which immediately began to spread, Prime Minister Robert Fico was hit by 2-3 wounds, allegedly in the limb, chest and abdomen. It is said that up to 4-5 shots should have been fired. According to information from the PLUS 7 DAYS weekly , someone from the crowd called out “Robo, come here” and the shooting started.

  “It’s a gunshot wound to the abdomen and arm. He’s currently out of danger. They’re going to operate on him,” our well-informed source told us at 3:30 p.m.

  Some conflicting reports say he may have been shot in the head.

  

  Meanwhile, there is growing speculation that this could be connected to Fico’s contrarian stance on Ukraine against the hawks in NATO, where he has only one other prominent ally…

  Double your security, Mr. Prime Minister. They’re out for blood. https://t.co/nf26dtqoaq

  — Daniel McAdams (@DanielLMcAdams) May 15, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  developing…

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 05/15/2024 – 18:40

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• Mass Starvation: Here's Why Most Of America Is Completely Unprepared
  Mass Starvation: Here’s Why Most Of America Is Completely Unprepared

  Authored by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.us,

  The concept of mass starvation has not been in the forefront of American society for a very long time. Even during the Great Depression the US was majority agrarian and most people knew how to live off the land. In fact, the US has never suffered a true national famine. There have been smaller regional instances of famine (such as during the Dust Bowl in the 1930s), but nothing coming remotely close to the kinds of famines we have seen in Asia, the Eastern Bloc, Africa or the Middle East in the past 100 years.

  

  Even Western Europeans dealt with major famines during the World Wars (like the Dutch Famine) and that experience has left an imprint on their collective consciousness. Most Americans, on the other hand, don’t get it. Because we have lived in relative security and economic affluence for so long the idea of ever having to go without food seems “laughable” to many people. When the notion of economic collapse is brought up they jeer and call it “conspiracy theory.”

  Compared to the Great Depression, the US population today is completely removed from agriculture and has no idea what living off the land means. These are not things that can be learned in a few months from books and YouTube videos; they require years of experience to master.

  I will say that things have changed dramatically in the past two decades I have been writing for the liberty media. When I started back in 2006 the preparedness movement was incredibly small and often people were afraid to broach such topics in public forums.

  In the past several years preparedness culture has EXPLODED in popularity. Millions of Americans are now dedicated survival experts with extensive preps and firearms training. Prepping and shooting is no longer the realm of tinfoil hat “crazies”, now it’s considered cool.

  The credit crash of 2008-2009 certainly helped wake people up to the reality of economic instability in the US. Then the covid pandemic, the lockdowns and the attempts at medical tyranny really shocked Americans out of their stupor. Everything we “conspiracy theorists” have been warning about was suddenly confirmed in the span of a couple of years. Every time globalists and governments create a crisis they only inspire more preppers.

  The greater problem in terms of famine is not that individual Americans are not aware of the threat; many of them are. The problem is that our infrastructure and logistical systems are designed to fail and there’s not much the average citizen can do about it.

  The just-in-time freight system is perhaps one of the worst ever devised in terms of community redundancy. Any disruption no matter how minor could cut off supplies to a town or city for days or weeks. Then there’s the interdependency that comes with food being produced outside most states. If your state does not have a solid agricultural base then it will be reliant on outside food sources during a crisis. What guarantees are there that your region will be able to secure food from elsewhere?

  Furthermore, most of the populace, even those that are preparing, have never experienced large scale starvation events before. It’s difficult to adapt mentally to a threat that one has never seen.

  I suggest people who want to know what starvation feels like practice it from time to time. Try fasting for 24 hours, then try fasting for 48 hours. See how many days you can go without eating (just be sure to drink plenty of water). My maximum was seven days (after months of practice), and what I found was that after day three the hunger pangs actually stop altogether. You don’t go crazy, you don’t get violent; at most you might get tired, but you will also be surprised at how heightened your thinking becomes and how much energy you still have.

  The human body can survive for three weeks or more without a single bite of food. My suspicion is that initial panic over potential hunger is the thing that causes the most violence during famines. People encounter starvation and lose their minds within the first three days. First-stage stomach pains and fogginess causes them to react without thinking and this leads to the widespread riots and other crisis events we are used to seeing in history during food shortages.

  Fasting is a way to educate yourself on what it means to starve; it’s not as bad as it seems as long as you have some fat stores in your body. When you hit the point of muscle loss and organ deprivation, that’s when things change and the possibility of death arises. Having some familiarity with the feeling of true hunger will help you to avoid panic should the real thing ever occur in the future.

  The greater problem is not what you can endure, though. Watching people you care about starve is much more difficult. This is not something you can practice for and it could be a far more powerful motivator when it comes to looting and crime during a crash.

  The goal of course is to avoid famine altogether. Food storage is the foundation of any survival plan. Anyone who claims that jumping right into agriculture and hunting and wild edibles is the solution has never actually had to survive off the land in their lives. The reality is, finding enough food and growing enough food to live on is difficult for most people even in normal times.

  During collapse, crops are often difficult to plant safely. They can be stolen or destroyed easily and require large communities of people to maintain and protect. Even smaller gardens can draw attention from undesirables and are hard to hide.

  Hunting might be useful initially if you live in a rural area, but you won’t be the only person with the same idea and animals will move out of a region quickly if they are being hunted on a daily basis. You’ll have to go further and further out to find them and that’s risky during a crisis.

  Wild edibles are nice in spring and summer when they are plentiful, but then again, if you’re hiking around expending more calories that you can get from these plants then the entire exercise is pointless. I tend to find that wild edibles proponents are the most delusional when it comes to the logistics of survival. Survivalists who think they’re going to run to the woods and live off of the random plants they find will probably die.

  Growing food, hunting food and foraging food are all supplemental measures, especially in the first years of any crisis event. Without a primary emergency supply most people will not make it. Food storage has been a mainstay of civilization for thousands of years for a reason – It works. When larger secure communities are established then agriculture can return and self sustaining production makes food storage less important. Until then, what you have in your basement or your garage is the only thing that’s going to keep you alive.

  Unfortunately, there are some people out there who think they don’t need to store supplies because they plan to take from other people. Firstly, anyone who makes this their Plan A is probably a psychopath and I have zero empathy for them. Secondly, such people won’t stay alive very long. With every violent encounter the risk of injury or death increases; looters and raiders will be whittled down rather quickly as they get picked off by people defending their resources.

  It’s not like the movies, folks; marauders will disappear swiftly during a crash. After the first year I would be surprised if any of these individuals or groups still exist.

  In the meantime, the initial stages of collapse are going to be a shock for many Americans. It could be a grid down event, an economic collapse, a supply chain collapse, etc., but the panic associated with hunger will be ever present. People who understand the nature of famine can avoid panic and organize for safety. They will survive and thrive. People who don’t understand famine will freak out in the first week without food and make detrimental mistakes.

  Mental preparedness is just as important as physical preparedness. Keep that in mind as we move forward into uncertain times.

  *  *  *

  One survival food company, Prepper All-Naturals, has proactively dropped prices to allow Americans to stock up ahead of projected hikes in beef prices. Their 25-year shelf life steaks currently come at a 25% discount with promo code “invest25”.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 23:40

• Samsung Tops Apple In Q1 Global Smartphone Shipments
  Samsung Tops Apple In Q1 Global Smartphone Shipments

  While not quite a duopoly, Apple and Samsung have long been known to produce the most popular smartphones from a global perspective. Over the past years, however, Chinese tech companies have started catching up and, at times, even overtaking Apple’s iPhone product lines.

  In the following chart, based on data from the IDC Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker,  Statista’s Florian Zandt shows that between January and March 2024, roughly one out of five of the 289 million smartphones shipped were Samsung devices, while Apple commanded a market share of 17.3 percent. Xiaomi, however, wasn’t far behind with a 14.1 percent share in the market translating to around 41 million smartphones shipped in the first quarter of the year.

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  Rounding out the four smartphone vendors with the highest amount of devices shipped is Transsion, which produced every tenth smartphone sold in the first three months of 2024. Although the Chinese company entered IDC’s top 5 for the first time in the second quarter of 2023, it’s been around since 2006. Its devices have become increasingly popular in emerging markets like the African continent.

  Looking at smartphone vendor market share over time, Apple and Samsung have been on top for most of the first quarters since 2014. The notable exception is Huawei, which rose to prominence in the latter half of the 2010s and even managed to overtake Samsung for the best-selling smartphone brand worldwide in the second quarter of 2020 after already coming within 3.3 percentage points in the three months prior.

  Huawei’s rise was abruptly halted by the end of 2020, reportedly due to the increasing pressure of U.S. sanctions on the company. Its shoes were quickly filled by its Chinese competitors Xiaomi and Oppo, which had combined market shares ranging from 22 to 25 percent in the first quarters of 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 23:20

• Over $13 Million Paid Out In Vaccine Injury Claims In Australia
  Over $13 Million Paid Out In Vaccine Injury Claims In Australia

  Authored by Monica O’Shea via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  The Australian government has paid out $20.5 million (US$13.2 million) in COVID-19 vaccine injury claims to people who experienced harm from the jab.

  

  Services Australia data provided to The Epoch Times reveals 6.82 percent of claims have been compensated so far, that is 286 out of 4,191.

  “As at 31 March 2024, the COVID-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme has received 4,191 claims and paid 286 claims to the value of around $20.5 million,” a spokesperson said.

  “Services Australia expects to receive new claims until the COVID-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme’s end date of 30 September 2024.”

  The updated figures up to the end of March, follow a submission to the government’s COVID-19 Inquiry, revealing it had paid $16.9 million worth of claims up to the end of November 2023.

  The federal government is due to deliver a budget for 2024/2025 covering all government agencies in the evening on May 14.

  How Does the Vaccine Claims Scheme Work?

  Australia’s COVID-19 vaccine claims scheme allows individuals to claim losses above $1,000 in relation to “moderate to severe adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccines.”

  It covers vaccines approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) including the AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax jabs.

  Services Australia administers the scheme on behalf of the Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC). In April, the Department updated the policy to include more claimable conditions, based on advice from the TGA.

  In order to make a compensation claim, individuals must meet the definition of harm, be admitted to hospital as an inpatient, or have a waiver if seen in outpatient care.

  Further, those who suffered harm need to have experienced losses or expenses of more than $1,000 due to the vaccine.

  The conditions included range from anaphylactic reaction to erythema multiforme (major), myocarditis, pericarditis and thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome.

  Also included, are shoulder injuries from the vaccine, or other moderate to significant physical injuries that caused permanent impairment or need an extended period of medical treatment.

  “In both cases, the injuries must have been sustained during the physical act of being given the vaccine. You must also have been admitted to hospital as an in-patient,” Services Australia explains.

  “Presenting to an emergency department is not recognised as being admitted to hospital.”

  Lockdown Lead to Surge in Demand for Government Services

  Services Australia revealed it had processed 1.3 million JobSeeker claims in 55 days in 2020, an amount that equates to the claim volume normally processed within two and a half years.

  “At the peak, more than 53,000 claims were completed in a single day. Within the same 55 day period, the Agency also received and monitored approximately 3.7 million phone calls, 1.9 million service centre walk-ins, and 250,000 social media interactions,” the department said (pdf).

  During Victoria’s lockdown in 2021, demand for COVID-related claims also surged.

  “In less than 4 months, between 1 July and 26 October 2021, Services Australia processed over 5.1 million COVID-related claims alone—more than the full-year total of 3.5 million claims across all social security and welfare payments in the year prior to COVID (2018-19).”

  Not Enough Focus on Mental Health, Psychologists

  Meanwhile, the Australian Association of Psychologists Incorporated (AAPi) has raised concerns that there was not enough focus on mental health support during the pandemic.

  “Particularly during times of crisis, such as snap lockdowns, crisis support lines should have been prominently displayed along with the urging of people to reach out for support and the continuation of psychological treatment,” they said.

  The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) also raised concerns that alcohol companies and retailers taking advantage of the situation.

  “Alcohol companies invested significantly in digital marketing and in expanding their capacity to deliver alcohol, outpacing privacy and marketing regulation,” FARE said.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 23:00

• Elections And Devaluations
  Elections And Devaluations

  Authored by Yves Smith via NakedCapitalism.com,

  Yves here. It’s revealing that Serious Economist Jeffrey Frankel limits himself to third-world examples in his case studies below on post-election devaluations.

  Perhaps it would be unseemly to look at, say, the US, UK, Japan, South Korea, or even Australia (admittedly the latter and Canada have their currency values substantially affected by commodity prices). Of course, Frankel might contend that any politically-related currency action in an advanced economy would not amount to a depreciation-level decline. After all, they have independent central banks.

  As many, including your humble blogger, have noted, the US is running a very hot fiscal policy along side tight monetary policy. Hence America has persisted in having solid to very strong groaf figures, leading the Fed to persist in tight monetary policy. All of that has led the dollar to trade at very lofty levels.

  One has to think the dollar will start to reverse near the election, say in October. But inflation has been very sticky, and it’s interest rates that are buoying the greenback, so it might stay comparatively strong even past the election. In addition, the US has, at least since the Clinton Administration, has had an explicit strong dollar policy. Weak currencies and financial centers do not co-exist happily. The Fed has historically not cared a whit about what moves in interest rates have done in terms of in and out flows to emerging economies, who are routinely whipsawed by hot money moves. One wonders if we will eventually see the Fed become more attentive to the value of the dollar.

  Any readers who are currency-knowledgeable are encouraged to opine on which countries might look more attractive as King Dollar retreats from its current high.

  

  By Jeffrey Frankel, Economist and Professor, Harvard Kennedy School. Originally published at VoxEU

  An unprecedented number of voters will go to the polls globally in 2024. It has long been noted that incumbents tend to engage in expansive fiscal (and where possible monetary) policy in the run up to elections in order to buoy the economy and therefore their electoral prospects. This column extends this concept to look at exchange rates and finds that currencies frequently depreciate following an election as the incumbent’s efforts to overvalue the currency in the run up to the election are unwound and the new government comes to terms with depleted reserves and current account woes.

  Lots of countries are voting, with 2024 an unprecedented year in terms of the number of people who will go to the polls.  Recent elections in a number of emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) have demonstrated anew the proposition that major currency devaluations are more likely to come immediately after an election, rather than before one. Indeed, Nigeria, Turkey, Argentina, Egypt, and Indonesia are five countries that have experienced post-election devaluations within the last year.

  The Election–Devaluation Cycle

  Economists will recall a 50-year-old paper by Nobel Prize winning professor Bill Nordhaus as essentially initiating research on the political business cycle (PBC).  The PBC refers to governments’ general inclination towards fiscal and monetary expansion in the year leading up to an election, in hopes of the incumbent president, or at least the incumbent party, being re-elected.  The idea is that growth in output and employment will accelerate before the election, boosting the government’s popularity, whereas the major costs in terms of debt troubles and inflation will come after the election.

  But the seminal 1975 paper by Nordhaus also included the prediction of a foreign exchange cycle particularly relevant for EMDEs.  That is the proposition that countries generally seek to prop up the value of their currencies before an election, spending down their foreign exchange reserves, if necessary, only to undergo a devaluation after the election.

  Nordhaus wrote: “It is predicted that the concern with loss of reserves and balance of payments deficits will be greater in the beginning of electoral regimes, and less toward the end.…The basic difficulty in making intertemporal choices in democratic systems is that the implicit weighting function on consumption has positive weight during the electoral period and zero (or small) weights in the future.”

  The devaluation may be undertaken deliberately by an incoming government, choosing to get the unpleasant step – with its unpopular exacerbation of inflation – out of the way while it can still blame it on its predecessors.  Or the devaluation may take the form of an overwhelming balance-of-payments crisis soon after the election.  Either way, a government has an incentive to hoard international reserves during the early part of its term in office, and to spend them more freely to defend the currency toward the end of its term.

  A political leader is almost twice as likely to lose office in the six months following a major devaluation as otherwise, especially among presidential democracies (Frankel 2005).  Why are devaluations so unpopular that governments fear to undertake them before elections?  In the traditional textbook model, a devaluation stimulates the economy by improving the trade balance.  But devaluations are always inflationary in countries which import at least a portion of the basket of goods consumed.  Furthermore, devaluations in EMDEs often are contractionary for economic activity, particularly via the adverse balance sheet effects on those domestic borrowers who had incurred debts denominated in dollars.

  The theory of the political devaluation cycle was developed in a series of papers by Ernesto Stein and co-authors.  One might think that voters would wise up to these cycles and vote against a leader who sneakily postponed a needed exchange rate adjustment.  But given a lack of information about the true nature of the politicians, voters may in fact be acting rationally.  Figure 1, from Stein and Streb (2005) shows that devaluations are far more common in the immediate aftermath of changes in government. (The sample covers 118 episodes of changes, excluding coups, among 26 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean between 1960 and 1994.)

  Figure 1 Average devaluation pattern before and after elections

  

  Source: Stein and Streb (2004).

  Some Devaluations Over the Past Year

  Many EMDEs have been under balance-of-payments pressure during the last two years.  One factor is that the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates sharply in 2022-23 and is now leaving them higher for longer than markets had been expecting.  Consequently, international investors find US treasury bills more attractive than EMDE loans and securities.

  A good example of the political devaluation cycle is Nigeria.  Africa’s most populous country held a contentious presidential election on 25 February 2023.  The incumbent, who was term-limited, had long used foreign exchange intervention, capital controls, and multiple exchange rates to avoid devaluing the currency, the naira. The new Nigerian president, Bola Tinabu, was inaugurated on 29 May 2023. Two weeks later, on 14 June, the government devalued the naira by 49% (from 465 naira/$, to 760 naira/$, computed logarithmically). It soon turned out that this was not enough to restore equilibrium in the balance of payments.  At the end of January 2024, the government abandoned its effort to prop up the official value of the naira, devaluing another 45% (from 900 naira/$ to 1,418 naira/$, logarithmically).

  A second example is Turkey’s election in May 2023. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had long pursued economic growth by obliging the central bank to keep interest rates low – a populist monetary policy that was widely ridiculed because of the president’s insistence that it would reduce soaring inflation – while simultaneously intervening to support the value of the lira.  The government guaranteed Turkish bank deposits against depreciation, an expensive and unsustainable way to prolong the currency overvaluation.  After the elections, the lira was immediately devalued, as the theory predicts.  The currency continued to depreciate during the remainder of the year.

  Next, on 19 November 2023, Argentina elected a surprise candidate as president, Javier Milei.  Often described as a far-right libertarian, he comes from none of the established political parties. He campaigned on a platform of diminishing sharply the role of the government in the economy and abolishing the ability of the central bank to print money.  Milei was sworn in on December 10. Two days later, on 12 December he cut the official value of the peso by more than half (a 78% devaluation, computed logarithmically, from 367 pesos/$ to 800 pesos/$).  At the same time, he took a chain saw to government spending such as energy subsidies rapidly achieved a budget surplus, and initiated sweeping reforms.  Argentine inflation remains very high, but the central bank stopped losing foreign exchange reserves after the devaluation, again as predicted by the theory.

  A fourth example is Egypt, where President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi just started a third term, on 2 April 2024. The economy has been in crisis for some time. Nevertheless, the government had ensured its overwhelming re-election on 10-12 December 2023 by postponing unpleasant economic measures, not to mention by preventing serious opponents from running.  The widely expected devaluation of the Egyptian pound, came on 6 March 2024 depreciating 45% (from 31 egyptian pounds/$ to 49 pounds/$, logarithmically).  It was part of an enhanced-access IMF programme, which also included the usual unpopular monetary and fiscal discipline.

  Finally, in Indonesia the widely liked but term-limited President Jokowi is soon to be succeeded by the Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, who is less widely liked but was backed by the incumbent in the 14 February election. The rupiah has been depreciating ever since the 20 March announcement of the outcome of the contentious presidential vote.  It fell almost to an all-time record low against the dollar on 16 April.

  What next?

  Of course, the association between elections and the exchange rate is not inevitable.  India is undergoing elections now and Mexico will in June.  But neither seems especially in need of major currency adjustment.

  Venezuela is scheduled to hold a presidential election in July.  As with some other countries, the election is expected to be a sham because no major opposition candidates are allowed to run. The economy is in a shambles due to long-time mismanagement featuring hyperinflation in the recent past and a chronically overvalued bolivar.  But the same government that essentially outlaws political opposition also essentially outlaws buying foreign exchange.  So, equilibrium may not be restored to the foreign exchange market for some time.

  To stave off devaluation, these countries do more than just spend their foreign exchange reserves.  They often use capital controls or multiple exchange rates, as opposed to allowing free financial markets.  That doesn’t invalidate the phenomenon of post-election devaluations; it just works to insulate the governments a bit longer from the need to adjust to the reality of macroeconomic fundamentals.  Unfortunately, many of these countries also fail to allow free and fair elections, which works to also insulate the government from the need to respond to the voters’ verdict.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 22:40

• "The Russians Just Walked In": Ukraine Border Defense Funds Diverted To Fake Companies In Massive "Betrayal"
  “The Russians Just Walked In”: Ukraine Border Defense Funds Diverted To Fake Companies In Massive “Betrayal”

  Authored by Thomas Stevenson via Human Events (emphasis ours),

  Head of the Mezha Anti-Corruption Center, Martyna Bohuslavets, has written a report in Pravda asking “Where are the fortifications?” She reports that millions of dollars that were intended for the construction of fortifications in Ukraine were instead “transferred to Kharkiv OVA to front companies of avatars.”

  

  Bohuslavets said the Ukrainian Kharkiv Regional Military Administration (Kharkiv OVA) paid out funds to fictitious companies during the construction and fortification of the Kharkiv region. The report comes as Russian forces have broken into the northern region of Ukraine and the US continues funding the war.

  According to Ukranian Pravda reports, the Russian military has begun to advance in the northern region of Ukraine where funding that was set for fortification was transferred to fake companies. The offensive from the Russian military launched on Monday with attacks on towns and villages, the Kyiv Post reports. A total of 7 billion hryvnias was spent there by Ukraine, according to the report.  

  This comes as the BBC reports that a regional Ukrainian commander in Kharkiv has said that the first line of defense was missing in a massive “betrayal” in the northern region of the country.  Denys Yaroslavskyi, a commander in the region in charge of the Ukrainian Special Reconnaissance Unit, told the outlet, “There was no first line of defence. We saw it. The Russians just walked in. They just walked in, without any mined fields.” 

  He told the BBC that government officials claimed to have built up the mines as the first line of defense at a huge cost. He told reporters, “Either it was an act of negligence, or corruption. It wasn’t a failure. It was a betrayal.” He then added, “When we were fighting back for this territory in 2022, we lost thousands of people. We risked our lives.” 

  “And now because someone didn’t build fortifications, we’re losing people again,” he stated.  

  In March, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported on the lack of oversight on the funds going to Ukraine during the war. GAO found in its report from March that the Defense Department is lacking in its ability to provide oversight on the resources being sent to Ukraine in the war.  

  The GAO reported, “DOD does not have quality data to track delivery of defense articles to Ukraine. DOD guidance on PDA does not clearly define at what point in the delivery process defense articles should be recorded as delivered or provide clear instructions for how DOD service branches are to confirm delivery.” 

  It added that full documentation of the funding being sent to the military effort has been lacking.  

  Ukraine has entered the “where is the money, Lebowski” phase https://t.co/llv6KOmUGb

  — zerohedge (@zerohedge) May 14, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 22:20

• FDA Preparing For Possible Bird Flu Spread Among Humans: Commissioner
  FDA Preparing For Possible Bird Flu Spread Among Humans: Commissioner

  Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,

  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is preparing for a scenario in which the highly pathogenic avian influenza starts spreading among humans, the agency’s commissioner said on May 8.

  “This virus, like all viruses, is mutating. We need to continue to prepare for the possibility that it might jump to humans,” Dr. Robert Califf, the commissioner, told senators during a hearing in Washington.

  The influenza, also known as the bird flu or H5N1, has recently started spreading among cattle and other species. One person in Texas has had a confirmed case this year.

  

  Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf in Washington in a file image. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

  So far, genetic sequencing and other data indicate that influenza poses little risk to people, and there are no signs that the flu is transmitting from person-to-person, according to U.S. officials. But they are working on getting treatments, tests, and vaccines ready in case that changes.

  “We’ve been busy getting prepared for if the virus does mutate in a way that jumps into humans on a larger level,” Dr. Califf told the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee.

  The patient in Texas primarily experienced one symptom: inflamed eyes. Neither the patient nor many of the cows that have been infected have suffered respiratory symptoms. H5N1 commonly infects the respiratory tracts of birds.

  “The real worry is that it will jump to the human lungs, where, when that has happened in other parts of the world for brief outbreaks, the mortality rates have been 25 percent,” Dr. Califf said. The worry is based in part on how viruses typically mutate, such as in the case of COVID-19.

  From 2003 to April 1, 2024, 889 cases of H5N1 have been confirmed across the globe, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Of the patients, 52 percent have died.

  WHO chief scientist Jeremy Farrar said recently that H5N1 has developed into a “global zoonotic animal pandemic” and that scientists are concerned that the virus could evolve to spread among humans.

  Tedros Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the organization, said Wednesday that “the virus does not show signs of having adapted to spread among humans, but more surveillance is needed.”

  Many experts consulted by the U.S. government are concerned about the jump of the influenza to cattle and other species and how cattle intermingle with pigs, chickens, and humans on farms, according to Dr. Califf. A May 3 study from U.S. and Danish researchers said testing of tissues from cattle indicated the animals could serve as a “mixing vessel” for avian influenza because receptors from chickens, ducks, and humans were expressed in the cows.

  While the risk is still low, “if we institute the countermeasures now and reduce the spread of the virus now, then we’re much less likely to see a mutation that jumps to humans for which we’re ill-prepared,” Dr. Califf added.

  Current U.S. rules mandate testing of some cattle before being moved to another state. The guidance includes advising workers on farms to wear protective equipment when dealing with animals that may be or are sick with the bird flu.

  The FDA is focusing in part on ensuring the country’s milk supply is safe to drink. The agency and its partners have tested samples of milk from grocery stores. Although some samples tested positive, no live virus has been detected, meaning the milk supply is safe, according to the agency.

  Test results from beef have also found beef is safe, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

  The agency has confirmed H5N1 infections in 36 herds across nine states, including Colorado, Kansas, and Michigan. Data from affected cows indicate H5N1 began circulating in cattle in late 2023, according to a preprint paper from the department.

  About 70 farm workers are being monitored in Colorado, officials said in a briefing this week, but none have displayed symptoms as of yet.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 22:00

• Why 1960 Alternate Electors Succeeded Where 2020 Ones Failed
  Why 1960 Alternate Electors Succeeded Where 2020 Ones Failed

  Authored by Lawrence Wilson via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  A November election decades ago produced a clear winner in a hotly contested presidential race. Yet the popular vote immediately came under scrutiny in several states. In one, auditors discovered clear errors in tabulating vote totals. In others, credible evidence of election fraud was uncovered.

  

  With a court challenge underway, electors from both parties met at a state capitol and conducted the electoral vote. Two certifications were forwarded to Washington, one declaring the Democratic candidate to be the victor, the other naming the Republican.

  The Republican vice president—also a candidate in the race—convened a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6. Without fanfare, he moved to accept the Democratic slate of electors and set the Republican electors aside.

  So ended the presidential election of 1960.

  The state in question was Hawaii. The vice president was Richard Nixon, who ran against Democrat John F. Kennedy, and would have won if as few as 11,000 votes spread over five battleground states had gone the other way.

  Sixty years later, history nearly repeated itself as Republican electors from seven states sent alternative electoral certifications to Washington amid allegations of election fraud.

  This time the alternate slates were rejected. On Jan. 6, 2021, in a joint session presided over by Republican Vice President Mike Pence, also a candidate in the race, Congress certified Democratic candidate Joe Biden the winner over President Donald Trump.

  Many Americans have no memory of the 1960 election, and few are likely aware of the striking similarities between it and the 2020 election. The Hawaii election provided the rationale for the alternate elector plan promoted by some associates of President Trump following the 2020 election.

  Since last year, criminal prosecutions have been levied against Republicans who took part in the plan in Michigan, Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, and Arizona. President Trump is facing related charges in a Washington federal court.

  The two elections have much in common, yet the cases exhibit key differences that spelled success for the alternate electors in 1960 and defeat in 2020.

  Recount in Progress

  The first tally of votes in Hawaii during the 1960 election showed Kennedy had won by 92 votes. After a second tabulation of the totals—not a recount of the ballots themselves—Nixon led by 141 votes.

  Democrats petitioned a state circuit court for a recount. But Republican Lt. Gov. James Kealoha, who was acting governor at the time, had no legal authority to reopen the ballots or invalidate the results. So he certified Nixon as the winner.

  

  After an initial audit, a judge ordered a full recount of the state’s ballots on Dec. 13, 1960, just six days before the electoral vote.

  That court order was crucial to the success of Hawaii’s dual elector plan because it placed the outcome of the popular vote in legal limbo. While a winner had been certified, a state court had taken action that might lead to a different result.

  Lawsuits were also filed to challenge aspects of the 2020 election. One was pending in Georgia, and one remained under appeal in Michigan, though the Michigan Supreme Court refused to halt certification of the popular vote on Dec. 9, 2020.

  However, there was no court order in any state and no action by a state legislature to mandate a recount or to delay the certification of the election.

  State-Certified Electors

  In 1960 the ongoing recount created a dilemma for Hawaii’s acting governor. If only the Republican electors voted, Nixon would carry Hawaii even if Kennedy was later found to have won the most votes.

  Yet federal law establishes the date for the electoral vote as “the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December” following the election. If there were no vote on Dec. 19, 1960, the brand-new state of Hawaii would miss out on its first presidential election.

  So with the recount in progress, both sets of Hawaii electors met at Iolani Palace, the seat of the Hawaiian government. They voted for their respective candidates one minute apart. Kealoha signed two certificates of ascertainment and sent them to Washington.

  A certificate of ascertainment states the elector candidates pledged to a presidential candidate and the total number of votes received. The electors for the candidate who received the most votes are “elected” as presidential electors from their state.

  A separate document, the electoral ballot, states the outcome of the electoral vote for that state.

  The certificate of ascertainment is a second important difference between the 1960 and 2020 cases.

  To be sure, some of the 2020 electors knew about the Hawaii case and used it as a rationale for their efforts. The Pennsylvania Republican Party issued a press release stating as much.

  “Today’s move by the Republican Party electors is fashioned after the 1960 Presidential election, in which President Nixon was declared the winner in Hawaii,” the Dec. 14, 2020, release stated.

  

  “While Democrat legal challenges were pending, Democratic presidential electors met to cast a conditional vote for John F. Kennedy to preserve their intent in the event of future favorable legal outcomes.”

  In 2020, Republican electors in Pennsylvania and New Mexico added conditional language to their vote certifications, saying they were filed “on the understanding that it might later be determined that we are the duly elected and qualified Electors for President and Vice President of the United States of America” from their respective states.

  Read the rest here…

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 21:40

• Target To Limit LGBT Pride Products To Online And 'Select Stores' After Last Summer's Controversy
  Target To Limit LGBT Pride Products To Online And ‘Select Stores’ After Last Summer’s Controversy

  Authored by Bill Pan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Target has announced that its LGBT-themed merchandise will only be sold online and at select stores this June, a decision made after last year’s Pride Month marketing campaign divided customers and dragged down sales.

  

  In a statement on its website, Target said that instead of prominently displaying its Pride Month collection in all its stores, it will be “offering a collection of products including adult apparel, home, food, and beverage items, curated based on consumer feedback.”

  “The collection will be available on Target.com and in select stores, based on historical sales performance,” the company added, noting that it will also join Pride Month events in “our hometown of Minneapolis and around the country” over the summer.

  A spokesperson for the retailer didn’t specify the number of brick-and-mortar stores where Pride Month merchandise will be sold, although a report by Bloomberg indicated that about half would do so.

  “Target is committed to supporting the LGBTQIA+ community during Pride Month and year-round,” Target told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement. “Most importantly, we want to create a welcoming and supportive environment for our LGBTQIA+ team members, which reflects our culture of care for the over 400,000 people who work at Target.”

  Last summer, Target came under heavy criticism on social media following the release of its LGBT-themed collection, which featured a range of clothing, including what was dubbed a “tuck-friendly” female-style swimsuit designed to help men who identify as transgender conceal their genitalia. Some products were also labeled as being able to “thoughtfully fit on multiple body types and gender expressions.”

  Shoppers who disagreed with Target’s promotion of what they saw as “woke” transgender ideology posted videos and images on social media showing rainbow-colored onesies for infants as well as swimsuits that offer “extra crotch coverage” that many viewers mistakenly believed were aimed at children. The swimwear in question was available in adult sizes extra-small through extra-large and were not in the kid’s section.

  Other products that received backlash from conservative shoppers included apparel and accessory items for adults with pro-LGBT messages, such as “We Belong Everywhere,” “Too Queer for Here,” and “Cure Transphobia” from British designer Erik Carnell, who identifies as a gay transgender man. The designer’s brand Abprallen also includes clothing sporting Satanist imagery, although the designs in question weren’t available for sale in Target.

  Since the controversy and ensuing backlash, the retailer announced it would remove some of the Pride merchandise from its shelves. Some rural Target stores in more socially conservative Southern states were also forced to move the items away from front-of-store displays due to customer backlash.

  “Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior,” the company said at the time, alleging violent threats that were “impacting our team members’ sense of safety and well-being” on the job.

  But the backlash didn’t stop there. Target’s reaction to conservative outrage by scaling back its LGBT merchandise and displays then prompted complaints from progressive advocacy groups, who questioned the company’s stated support of their cause.

  “The LGBTQ+ community has celebrated Pride with Target for the past decade. Target needs to stand with us and double-down on their commitment to us,” Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, wrote on X.

  The backlash coming from customers on both sides appears to have taken a toll on the brand. In August 2023, Target’s own earnings report unveiled its first quarterly sales decline in six years, with net sales down 4.9 percent from the same quarter the previous year.

  In a full-year earnings report released this March, Target reported a total 2023 revenue fall of 1.6 percent to $107.4 billion, down from $109.1 billion a year earlier. Comparable sales for the 2023 fiscal year also declined nearly 4 percent, although operating income rose 48 percent to $5.7 billion.

  While the company partly blamed the dip in sales on the post-COVID shift in consumer trends, it also said it would be reevaluating how it celebrates Pride Month in the future.

  “As we navigate an ever-changing operating and social environment, we’re committed to staying close to our guests and their expectations,” Target chief executive Brian Cornell said in last August’s corporate earning call, defending the decision to adjust the chain’s Pride Month assortment in the face of negative customer reaction.

  “Specific to Pride and Heritage months, we’re focused on building assortments that are celebratory and joyous with wide-ranging relevance, being mindful of timing, placement and presentation,” he told investors.

  “Our goal is to ensure we continue to celebrate moments that are special to our guests while acknowledging that, every day, for millions of people, they want Target to serve as a refuge in their daily lives.”

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 21:00

• "We Need To Deal With The Debt" – Goldman CEO Warns Interest Costs On America's Ballooning Borrowings Means "Issues Down The Road"
  “We Need To Deal With The Debt” – Goldman CEO Warns Interest Costs On America’s Ballooning Borrowings Means “Issues Down The Road”

  Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Goldman Sachs CEO David M. Solomon is the latest business leader to sound the alarm on the Biden administration’s deficit spending, which comes as the cost of making interest payments on America’s ballooning government debt has exceeded spending in both the critical sectors of defense and Medicare.

  “I think the level of debt in the United States [and] the level of spending is something that we need a sharper focus on and more dialogue around than what we’ve seen,” the investment banking chief told Bloomberg Television on Monday, adding that if something isn’t done to rein it the spending, it could create problems.

  

  His remarks come as the cost of servicing America’s ballooning government debt reached $514 billion for the first seven months of the current fiscal year, becoming the second largest line item in the budget, and surpassing both the bills for national defense and Medicare spending.

  The latest monthly statement from the U.S. Treasury—released on May 8—shows that the $514 billion spent on net interest so far this fiscal year has surpassed spending on both national defense ($498 billion) and Medicare ($465 billion).

  Interest spending—now the fastest growing part of the budget—is currently greater than all the money spent on education ($128 billion), transportation ($70 billion), and veterans ($183 billion) combined.

  The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) predicts that, by 2051, spending on interest will be the largest line item in the budget. Currently, only Social Security spending ($837 billion) is greater than what’s being forked over to service the nation’s growing debt.

  “Rising debt will continue to put upward pressure on interest rates. Without reforms to reduce the debt and interest, interest costs will keep rising, crowd out spending on other priorities, and burden future generations,” CRFB said in a statement.

  It comes as a number of economists, business leaders, and lawmakers have issued warnings about out-of-control deficit spending that adds to the debt load.

  House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in October—the first month of the 2024 fiscal year—that it was already well past time to establish a bipartisan commission to tackle the federal government’s $34.6 trillion debt.

  “The consequences if we don’t act now are unbearable,” he said at the time. Despite his calls for such a commission, the project remains stuck in limbo.

  Many Democrats and left-leaning groups oppose the commission because they fear it would recommend cuts to Social Security, while some Republicans have expressed reluctance out of concern it would be a backdoor way to raise taxes.

  No Longer a Pandemic

  In his remarks to Bloomberg Television on Monday, Mr. Solomon said that some of the U.S. government’s massive debt-fueled spending in recent years may have been justified to prevent the economy from crashing during the COVID-19 lockdowns. However, he decried the fact that even though the pandemic is no longer a factor, the spending spree continues.

  “The spending levels … are continuing at a pace that I think is raising our debt level and creating issues for us down the road,” he warned.

  President Joe Biden in March unveiled a sweeping $7.3 trillion budget blueprint, which includes raising the corporate income tax rate to 28 percent from 21 percent, and forcing those with wealth of $100 million to pay at least 25 percent of their income in taxes.

  The blueprint was panned by Mr. Johnson, who said it reflected an “insatiable appetite for reckless spending.”

  Deficit spending in the United States hit $1.7 trillion in 2023, or 6.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), according to a recent report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The agency estimated that deficit spending would grow to 8.5 percent of GDP by 2054.

  At the same time, CBO projected that America’s debt-to-GDP ratio, which in the 1980s was around 35 percent of GDP, will grow to 166 percent by 2054, while warning that this would pose “significant risks” to America’s fiscal and economic outlook.

  Mr. Solomon said that America’s deficit spending is an issue that “deserves a lot of attention.”

  “Hopefully, there will be a lot more discussion as we move through the election and into the next administration,” he said, adding that, “we need to deal with the debt and the deficits.”

  ‘Dollar Will Be Worth Nothing’

  Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently sounded the alarm on massive government spending, warning that unless steps are taken to slow down the growth of the U.S. national debt, the dollar will become worthless.

  “We need to do something about our national debt or the dollar will be worth nothing,” Mr. Musk said in a post on X.

  The billionaire tech mogul was reacting to a post about Gen. H.R. McMaster’s warning that the world is on the cusp of World War III while calling for a doubling in defense spending to prepare for potential threats.

  Mr. Musk has repeatedly advocated for a negotiated end to the conflict in Ukraine to put a halt to the loss of life.

  Like Mr. Musk, billionaire investor Warren Buffett has also warned about the “important” consequences of deficit spending. However, the Berkshire Hathaway founder predicted that, when push comes to shove, the government would opt to raise taxes rather than reduce spending.

  “I think higher taxes are likely,” Mr. Buffett said on May 4 at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholder meeting in Omaha.

  “They may decide that some day, they don’t want the fiscal deficit to be this large because that has some important consequences. So they may not want to decrease spending and they may decide they’ll take a larger percentage of what we own, and we’ll pay it,” he said.

  

  Analysts at the University of Pennsylvania estimate that when the debt-to-GDP ratio hits around 200 percent, it will hit the point of no return—when no amount of future tax increases or spending cuts could prevent the government from defaulting on its debt.

  JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has predicted that America’s debt-to-GDP ratio would “hockey stick” upward at some point, meaning rise sharply and become unsustainable after a period of relatively gradual increase.

  “It is a cliff. We see the cliff. It’s about 10 years out. We’re going 60 miles an hour,” Mr. Dimon said, speaking on a panel at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington at the end of January 2024.

  The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also sounded the alarm on the Biden administration’s fiscal stance, warning that its massive deficit spending and ballooning public debt threaten to stoke inflation and—potentially—even spark financial chaos.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 20:20

• OpenAI 'Exploring' How To Responsibly Generate AI Porn
  OpenAI ‘Exploring’ How To Responsibly Generate AI Porn

  OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT, has recently disclosed plans that could revolutionize its technology’s applications, signaling a potential shift in its traditionally stringent content policies. According to draft documentation released last week, the company is exploring how to ‘responsibly’ introduce not-safe-for-work (NSFW) content through its platforms. The new policy is highlighted in a commentary note within the extensive Model Spec document, sparking a complex discussion about the future of AI in generating sensitive content, Wired reports.

  

  “We’re exploring whether we can responsibly provide the ability to generate NSFW content in age-appropriate contexts through the API and ChatGPT,” the note reads. “We look forward to better understanding user and societal expectations of model behavior in this area.”

  Current usage policies prohibit the generation of sexually explicit or even suggestive materials. However, the document suggests a nuanced consideration: the possibility of allowing NSFW content in age-appropriate contexts. This potential pivot is not about promoting explicit content indiscriminately but rather understanding societal and user expectations to guide model behavior responsibly.

  OpenAI is considering how its technology could responsibly generate a range of different content that might be considered NSFW, including slurs and erotica. But the company is particular about how sexually explicit material is described.

  In a statement to WIRED, company spokesperson Niko Felix said “we do not have any intention for our models to generate AI porn.” However, NPR reported that OpenAI’s Joanne Jang, who helped write the Model Spec, conceded that users would ultimately make up their own minds if its technology produced adult content, saying “Depends on your definition of porn.” -Wired

  The concern extends beyond the direct implications of NSFW content. Danielle Keats Citron, a law professor at the University of Virginia, has emphasized the broader societal repercussions, noting that intimate privacy violations can severely impact targeted individuals’ lives, restricting their opportunities and personal safety.

  Of course, there are already a lot of NSFW AI content generators using things like Stable Diffusion, many of which border on (or worse) virtual child exploitation that we’re sure this guy would defend.

  “Intimate privacy violations, including deepfake sex videos and other nonconsensual synthesized intimate images, are rampant and deeply damaging,” she said. “We now have clear empirical support showing that such abuse costs targeted individuals crucial opportunities, including to work, speak, and be physically safe.” According to Citron, OpenAI’s potential embrace of NSFW content is “alarming.”

  

  OpenAI’s announcement addresses an ongoing debate about the balance between technological innovation and ethical responsibility – particularly when it comes to setting precedents for how AI technologies might handle sensitive content in the future. The engagement with various stakeholders, as OpenAI spokesperson Grace McGuire told the outlet, noting that the Model Spec was an attempt to “bring more transparency about the development process and get a cross section of perspectives and feedback from the public, policymakers, and other stakeholders.”

  Earlier this year, OpenAI’s chief technology officer, Mira Murati, told The Wall Street Journal that she was “not sure” if the company would in future allow depictions of nudity to be made with the company’s video generation tool Sora.

  AI-generated pornography has quickly become one of the biggest and most troubling applications of the type of generative AI technology OpenAI has pioneered. So-called deepfake porn—explicit images or videos made with AI tools that depict real people without their consent—has become a common tool of harassment against women and girls. In March, WIRED reported on what appear to be the first US minors arrested for distributing AI-generated nudes without consent, after Florida police charged two teenage boys for making images depicting fellow middle school students. -Wired

  While OpenAI’s usage policies prohibit impersonation without permission, the decisions made by OpenAI could have far-reaching effects. Of course, they also realize that if they don’t compete in this space, someone else’s AI will simply dominate, leaving OpenAI as the gimp.

  

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 20:00

• Citadel's Ken Griffin Tells Qatar Audience: American Campus Chaos Is "Anarchy"
  Citadel’s Ken Griffin Tells Qatar Audience: American Campus Chaos Is “Anarchy”

  On day one of the 2024 Qatar Economic Forum in Doha, Citadel’s Ken Griffin covered a wide range of hot-button issues. He criticized the Biden administration’s latest wave of Chinese tariffs, the ongoing campus crisis terrorizing American colleges and universities, global geopolitical tensions, and former President Trump’s potential comeback. 

  Griffin started the conversation by discussing soaring geopolitical risks from Eastern Europe to the Middle East to China. He warned, “We are living in a different world than what we fantasized just a few years ago.”

  “There are more tail risks that are harder to manage. That goes with this rise in geopolitical complexity,” Griffin said. As we must note, the surge in conflicts is a direct symptom of a world fracturing into a multi-polar state. 

  Bloomberg provided a live blog of the event via the ‘Top Live Blogs’ function on the Terminal. BBG journos noted that Griffin criticized the Biden administration for new tariffs, announced Tuesday, but well telegraphed for the last several days, on Chinese electric vehicles, advanced batteries, solar cells, steel, aluminum and medical equipment. He called the move a continuation of ‘incoherent economic policy,’ adding a Trump administration would restore America’s image abroad. 

  On the subject of the continued education crisis at American universities and colleges, of shady non-governmental organizations facilitating pro-Palestinian protests, he said:

  “What’s happening on campuses is not free speech, it’s anarchy.”

  He added:

  “Universities should be trying to encourage a constructive debate between students of different backgrounds.”

  Separately, in a Financial Times interview on Saturday, Griffin, who is one of Harvard’s most prominent donors, said the Ivy League school needs to embrace “Western values” and pointed out the chaos is a byproduct of a “cultural revolution.”

  Back in Doha, Griffin also commented on the geopolitical shitstorm in Eastern Europe between Russia and Ukraine, the Middle East between Israel and Hamas, and worsening Sino-US relations. 

  “There are just larger tails that didn’t exist seven or eight or 10 years ago,” he said, adding that the only way to mitigate risk is to construct portfolios with protection, capitalizing off tail risk events. 

  The billionaire, who founded the $63 billion hedge fund Citadel, then commented on Trump’s potential return to the White House, calling him a person who can’t be pushed. 

  “He will exude a level of strength that will help stabilize the world in these trying times,” the billionaire said. Bloomberg pointed out that he had yet to donate to the presidential campaign. 

  *   *   * 

  Watch here for the whole discussion: 

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 19:40

• House Oversight Cmte Probing Biden Voter Mobilization Order
  House Oversight Cmte Probing Biden Voter Mobilization Order

  Authored by Ben Weingarten via RealClearPolitics,

  The House Oversight Committee is probing a controversial Biden administration executive order tasking the federal government with mobilizing voting groups it says are underrepresented.

  

  In a letter obtained by RealClearPolitics, Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) has requested that Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young produce a slew of documents and information concerning the development and implementation of Biden’s sweeping “Executive Order on Promoting Accessing to Voting” no later than May 28, and a staff-level briefing by May 20.

  The demand by the chairman of the House Oversight Committee signals an escalation in Republican lawmakers’ efforts to combat an effort they say may be unlawful, if not unconstitutional.

  The administration characterizes its efforts as a remedy to “discriminatory policies and other obstacles … disproportionally affect[ing]” black, non-English-speaking, handicapped, and other minority voters. EO 14019 calls on all federal agencies to develop and execute corrective plans to “promote voter registration and voter participation.”

  It instructs officials government-wide to consider “soliciting and facilitating approved, nonpartisan third-party organizations … to provide voter registration services on agency premises.”

  Seeing the order as potentially enabling “the executive branch to circumvent the legislative process,” Comer is asking Young to clarify the “constitutional or statutory authority the President relied on,” as well as all “White House and OMB documents and communications” pertaining to the drafting of it.

  In past oversight letters, including ones delivered in June 2022 by then-ranking Republicans on various committees, including Comer, members have also raised concerns that officials could violate the Hatch Act prohibiting their engagement in political activities in carrying out the order.

  Senate Republicans have also questioned whether the act violates the Antideficiency Act, which precludes federal agencies from using funds “for a purpose that Congress did not explicitly authorize” – namely “voter mobilization.”

  “Overreach by the federal government often leads to confusion and inconsistencies,” Comer also stated. He cites a recent letter from Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson to Attorney General Merrick Garland to illustrate this issue.

  The order mandates that relevant agencies seek to ensure “access to voter registration for eligible individuals in federal custody.”

  To satisfy that charge, the Magnolia State official notes that the U.S. Marshals Service is modifying contracts and/or intergovernmental agreements with jails “to provide voter registration materials and facilitate voting by mail,” and likewise that the Justice Department is working to “facilitate voter registration and mail voting for individuals in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons.”

  He says these efforts create “numerous opportunities for ineligible prisoners to be registered to vote in Mississippi.” Illegal aliens, Secretary Watson warns, may be among those receiving information on how to register to vote.

  The Biden administration issued EO 14019 in March 2021. Despite a raft of oversight requests from House Republicans of agencies within their respective committee jurisdictions, those agencies have largely withheld the strategic plans they were tasked with crafting and implementing, and information regarding the putatively non-partisan groups with which they have coordinated.

  The White House has rebuffed RealClearInvestigations in its efforts to solicit details about an order that Republicans characterize as little more than a taxpayer-funded Democrat get-out-the-vote effort.

  As RCI has previously reported, the Biden administration has sought to drive voter registration through agencies as diverse as the Departments of Labor, Housing and Urban Development via job training centers, public housing authorities, and child nutrition programs. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued guidance calling for the agency to register voters at naturalization ceremonies.

  The Department of Education has blessed the use of “federal work-study funds to pay students for “supporting broad-based get-out-the-vote activities, voter registration,” and other activities.

  In January, over two dozen Pennsylvania legislators filed a federal lawsuit challenging the executive order. The Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) – which has litigated with the Biden administration to pry loose documents concerning the order – submitted an amicus brief supportive of the suit, asserting that the agencies’ efforts have one thing in common: “They provide government welfare benefits and other services to groups of voters the vast majority of which have historically voted Democrat.”

  Republicans’ concerns over the order extend to the involvement of the third-party groups with which agencies were to consider coordinating. The order itself was built on a blueprint from progressive think-tank Democrats. In a since-deleted but still archived analysis, the outfit estimates that if fully implemented, the order could generate 3.5 million new or updated voter registrations annually – a significant figure given that recent presidential elections have been determined by thousands of votes across a few states.

  Dems as well as the American Civil Liberties Union have reportedly worked to implement the directive. Documents obtained by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project and released earlier this month show that at a July 2021 listening session convened by the Biden administration, left-leaning activist groups encouraged some of the practices federal agencies would ultimately implement to carry out the directive, for example in targeting prospective voters in prisons and at naturalization ceremonies.

  “Every participant whose party affiliation or political donation history could be identified by the Oversight Project was identified as a Democrat except for one Green Party member,” the report noted.

  While the participants suggested efforts to target constituencies including criminals, immigrants, low-income families including those in public housing, and Native Americans, the Oversight Project observed that “There is no corresponding evidence of efforts [to] increase voter access and education in likely Republican constituencies.”

  As RCI has also recently reported, Democrats have made purportedly non-partisan voter registration targeting groups that vote disproportionately Democrat a linchpin of their plans to prevail in recent election cycles.

  “If the Biden Administration wants to use taxpayer-funded buildings to allow ‘nonpartisan third-party organizations’ to engage in voter registration,” Comer writes, “then the American people deserve to know who these organizations are.”

  The Oversight Committee’s pursuit of information regarding the order comes in the wake of the House Small Business Committee’s recent escalation of its own probe of the order.

  It recently subpoenaed two members of the Small Business Administration who refused to sit for transcribed interviews regarding an unprecedented partnership the agency inked with the Michigan Department of State. Under the relevant memorandum of understanding, among other things, state officials may conduct in-person voter registration at administration small business outreach events.

  Fox News reported that the Small Business Committee found that nearly all – “22 out of 25 such outreach events have taken place in counties with the highest population of Democratic National Committee target demographics.”

  In March, a federal judge dismissed the Pennsylvania legislators’ case challenging the executive order on grounds of standing.

  In late April, the legislators took their case to the Supreme Court, filing a petition for writ of certiorari and motioning for expedited consideration of their request in hopes the nation’s highest court will rule favorably on the matter of standing prior to the 2024 election.

  Ben Weingarten is a fellow of the Claremont Institute, senior contributor at The Federalist, and 2019 recipient of The Fund for American Studies’ Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship, under which he is currently working on a book on U.S.-China policy.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 19:20

• RFK Jr. And AV24 Super PAC Sue Meta, Alleging Election Interference
  RFK Jr. And AV24 Super PAC Sue Meta, Alleging Election Interference

  Authored by Matt McGregor via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and the super PAC backing him have filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, Inc., for election interference after it allegedly shadow banned the documentary “Who is Bobby Kennedy?” on Facebook and Instagram.

  

  American Values 2024 (AV24) announced in a May 13 press release that they have filed the lawsuit in a California district court for violating the First Amendment and “the American people’s fundamental right to a presidential election decided by voters, not by trillion-dollar corporations.”

  The complaint alleges that Meta “brazenly” censored speech supportive of Mr. Kennedy, then lied about its actions.

  According to the complaint, Meta “sent users messages threatening to suspend their accounts or otherwise punish them if they sought to watch, share or even post a link to the film. And they made good on these threats, disabling and suspending users who did so.”

  In addition, the complaint says that Meta stated that the film contained improper sexual or violent content.

  When users attempted to comment, those comments were removed, the complaint alleges.

  “Under the Support and Advocacy Clause of the Civil Rights Act of 1871, private companies and their officers and employees cannot in concert seek to prevent by force, threat or intimidation any citizen from engaging lawful speech supporting or advocating the election of a presidential candidate,” the complaint says.

  After AV24 released the documentary, it began trending on X. However, Facebook and Instagram—both Meta-owned—allegedly suppressed “the organic reach of content they don’t want to spread,” the PAC said in a May 6 press release.

  The film was also labeled with a COVID-19 vaccine disclaimer that referred users to other sources such as the Center for Disease Control’s website, the complaint said.

  In response to The Epoch Times’ request for comment on the allegation last week, a spokesperson for Meta stated, “The link was mistakenly blocked and was quickly restored once the issue was discovered.”

  In response to a request for an updated comment on the allegation of election interference in the lawsuit, a Meta spokesperson repeated the above statement.

  ‘Implausible’

  AV24 said in its lawsuit that Meta’s claim of accidental censorship is “implausible on its face” and contradicts “the numerous messages users received from Meta offering other, equally implausible explanations.”

  The documentary film, released May 3, is narrated by actor Woody Harrelson. The film is a biography of Mr. Kennedy aimed at providing a look into who he is as opposed to how mainstream media portray him.

  It begins with Mr. Kennedy quoting from various media reports that paint him as a “mentally disturbed” conspiracy theorist instead of an environmental attorney who took on corporate malfeasance.

  It discusses how he went after the pharmaceutical industry after meeting with mothers who believed vaccines injured their children.

  “Right now big oil funds the Republicans, Big Tech funds the Democrats, Big Pharma and the military contractors make sure to donate to both,” Mr. Kennedy said.

  “Who is liberal now and who is conservative? Who’s left and who’s right? These labels make less and less sense. I’ve been fighting corporate corruption for 40 years. I know how they work. I know how to clean them up. And that’s why I’m running for president.”

  The lawsuit referenced what it calls Meta’s “different agenda, tilting the playing field in favor of, at the behest of, and in collusion with the current Administration.” The alleged collusion between Meta and the Biden administration is documented in the Murthy v. Missouri case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. 

  The legal complaint also referenced a recent Congressional report entitled “The Censorship-Industrial Complex: How top Biden White House officials coerced Big Tech to censor Americans, true information, and critics of the Biden Administration.”

  “With extensive quotation from internal Facebook emails and other documents, the report describes in detail ‘collusion’ between Facebook and the White House eventually resulting in an agreement by Facebook pursuant to which the platform would and did implement censorship policies suppressing critics of the Administration, particularly critics of its COVID policies, specifically including Mr. Kennedy,” the complaint says.

  AV24’s co-founder Tony Lyons said that polls show 20 percent of Americans aren’t aware that Mr. Kennedy is running for president, while another 30 percent have been fed misinformation about him and his policies.

  “Reaching those voters could change the outcome of the 2024 election,” Mr. Lyons said. “How are people supposed to find out that they have a viable alternative candidate—that they don’t have to vote for the lesser of two evils—when Meta is colluding with the Biden administration to block key channels for communicating with the American public?”

  ‘It Works’

  Jay Carson, former advisor to President Bill Clinton and now to Mr. Kennedy, produced the film.

  He stated in the documentary that during campaigns, big corporations hire writers in media like him to attack those who challenge their power.

  “Here is the way the playbook works: First they attack you broadly and they question your facts,” he said.

  “They say you’re lying and it’s ferocious. But if you keep on moving after that, they move on to character assassination. They take on who you are as a person. They dig up everything bad in your past and leak it to the press.”

  If this doesn’t work, Mr. Carson said, “they say you’re a liar.”

  If liar doesn’t work, they call their target an anti-semite and a racist.

  “No two slurs in America are worse than those,” Mr. Carson said. “No slur, except crazy. Crazy, or kook, or crank, or nutjob are their mainstays. That’s their nuclear option.

  “If they can get everyone to dismiss you as a wacko nutjob, everything you say is suspect and then they can get back to selling whatever thing it is you said might not be safe. And here’s the thing: It works.”

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 19:00

• Goldman Finds Commercial Power Demand In Virginia Explodes Higher As 'Next AI Trade' Soars
  Goldman Finds Commercial Power Demand In Virginia Explodes Higher As ‘Next AI Trade’ Soars

  All eyes are on the powering-up America theme as the surge in artificial intelligence sparks a nationwide boom in data center building. The urgent need to overhaul the nation’s power grid to meet the skyrocketing demand for electricity is now front and center. We pointed out earlier this month that data centers hiding in ‘spy country’ Northern Virginia will need a ‘reactor’s worth of power.’ 

  Continuing the focus on Virginia, a team of Goldman analysts led by Hongcen Wei revealed that commercial power demand across the state has exponentially surged, unlike anywhere else in the country. 

  

  Wei explained to clients, citing data from GS’ equity analysts, that “US power consumption growth will accelerate sharply to an annual average 2.4% pace in 2022-2030, boosted by data centers, AI, and EVs.” 

  As we noted in “The Next AI Trade,” “Everyone Is Piling Into The Next AI Trade,” and “The Next AI Trade Just Hit An All-Time High,” power demand across the US is set to rise dramatically through 2030 because of the proliferation of data centers, electrification trends, and reshoring efforts. 

  The analyst pointed out that an acceleration in power demand growth is set to eclipse GDP through the second half of the decade—this hasn’t happened in three decades.

  

  Wei’s analysis then focuses on commercial power consumption in Virginia, which has skyrocketed in the last several years as new data centers are hooked up to the local grid. Meanwhile, commercial power demand in ex-Virginia (or the rest of the US) remains laggard but is expected to rise in the coming years. 

  

  He noted, “The impact of data center developments is more difficult to observe directly within larger states, where more factors simultaneously impact power demand.” 

  In relation to all other forms of power demand in the state, commercial outstrips residential and industrial. 

  

  Using the statistical “doppelganger” method, Wei’s team found that data centers boosted Virginia’s power consumption by 2.2 gigawatts in 2023. This number will only increase, resulting in the need for increased nuclear power in the state or the adoption of small reactors near data centers. 

  

  The analyst concludes:

  “First, AI and data centers are boosting US power demand as market participants expect, especially in regions like Virginia. But the overall magnitude of the boost remains modest, compared to both the current level of US total power demand and the expected level of data center power demand in later years of the decade.” 

  In a separate note, Goldman’s Julia Masch shows the GS US Power Up America index (GSENEPOW) and GS Electrifcaion index (GSXEACDC) are powering higher but points out the GS Power Up Europe index (GSPIPOWR) has lagged behind. 

  

  Why is so much power needed? Well…

  

  For more clarity on where power demand surges are expected, Visual Capitalist’s Julie Peasley uses data from Cushman & Wakefield to visualize the top data center markets worldwide. 

  

  The ‘Powering Up America’ theme is red hot. 

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 18:40

• 1 In 8 US Adults Have Tried GLP-1 Obesity Medications, Poll Finds
  1 In 8 US Adults Have Tried GLP-1 Obesity Medications, Poll Finds

  Authored by Amie Dahnke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)

  One in eight American adults have used popular weight loss and diabetes drugs known as GLP-1 agonists, according to the latest KFF Health Tracking Poll.

  

  The survey, which involved nearly 1,500 adult participants and was carried out in late April, found that two-thirds of those currently using the drugs are doing so to manage diabetes or heart disease, while roughly four out of 10 are taking the medication primarily for weight loss.

  Approximately 6 percent of U.S. adults, equating to over 15 million people, are currently taking a prescribed medication from the GLP-1 agonist class of drugs, according to the poll.

  Other Key Findings

  Other key findings reveal that, among those who have ever taken GLP-1 agonists, 43 percent were diagnosed with diabetes by a doctor, 25 percent were diagnosed with heart disease, and 22 percent were told by a doctor within the last five years that they were overweight or obese.

  The reasons for using these drugs are nearly evenly split: 39 percent of Americans turn to GLP-1 agonists to treat a chronic condition, while 38 percent use them for weight loss. The remaining 23 percent rely on the drugs to address both chronic conditions and weight management.

  The poll also confirms media reports that the popularity of these drugs has surged over the past couple of years. According to the survey, 32 percent of adults now say they have heard “a lot” about GLP-1 agonists, an increase of 19 percent from July 2023.

  Despite their growing popularity, the poll noted that 54 percent of all adults who have taken GLP-1 drugs find it difficult to afford the cost. One in five adults who took the drugs said it was “very difficult” to afford them. While insurance sometimes covers part of the cost, even insured adults found the expenses challenging, with 53 percent reporting difficulties in bearing the costs.

  Ozempic, produced by Novo Nordisk, is listed at $935.77 for a monthly injection, while Wegovy is priced at $1,349.02 for a 28-day supply—both without health insurance.

  One in five adults aged 50-64 report having taken GLP-1 drugs at some point, a higher proportion compared to other age groups. Among this 50-64 age bracket, 15 percent indicate using these medications to treat chronic conditions, while 5 percent took them solely for weight loss purposes. Relatively few adults under 50 have taken GLP-1 drugs for managing chronic illnesses, but similar shares of 18-29 year olds (7 percent) and 30-49 year olds (6 percent) reveal using them for weight loss goals.

  Most Americans Want Medicare Coverage

  While some insurance providers offer coverage for GLP-1 agonist drugs, Medicare does not cover these medications if they are prescribed for weight loss purposes. The poll reveals that only 8 percent of adults aged 65 and older took a GLP-1 drug for a chronic condition, and 1 percent used it solely for weight loss. This is despite 37 percent of poll respondents aged 65 and above reporting that a doctor had informed them they were overweight or obese.

  Most poll respondents believe that Medicare should begin covering prescription drugs for weight loss (though the program is currently prohibited by law from doing so). In fact, 60 percent of adults who responded to the poll support Medicare providing coverage for such prescription medications.

  Several GLP-1 agonists are available on the U.S. market for people  with diabetes or who are obese, including Ozempic, Trulicity, Byetta, Victoza, Rybelsus, Adlyxin, and Bydureon. A similar class of medication called a GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist, such as Mounjaro, is also prescribed. Wegovy is a relatively newer GLP-1 agonist marketed specifically for those seeking to manage their weight.

  GLP-1 agonists work by mimicking the GLP-1 hormone naturally produced by the body. This hormone is secreted from the small intestine and is responsible for triggering insulin release, blocking glucagon secretion, and slowing stomach emptying. It also helps create a feeling of fullness after eating by affecting areas of the brain that process hunger and satiety signals.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 18:20

• Record Household Debt, Jump In Delinquencies Signal "Worsening Financial Distress", Fed Warns
  Record Household Debt, Jump In Delinquencies Signal “Worsening Financial Distress”, Fed Warns

  While the market remains focused on tomorrow’s CPI print, and to a lesser extent the April retail sales reports, which will both be released at 8:30am on May 15. we should flag another important report that doesn’t typically get a lot of attention: the New York Fed’s Household Debt and Credit Report for 1Q 2024 which was just published, and where the latest data on credit card debt and delinquencies has recently been the most important part of the report.

  While we already know that in the latest monthly consumer credit report published by the Fed last week and covering the month of March, total consumer debt hit a record high (despite a sharp slowdown in credit card growth) even as the personal savings rate plunged to an all-time low, hardly a ringing endorsement for the strength of the US consumer…

  

  … today’s report provided more granular details which however did not change the conclusion: the US consumer is getting weaker, and while not in a crisis just yet, will get there soon enough.

  As the chart from the NY Fed shows, at the end of the first quarter, US household debt reached a record and more borrowers are struggling to keep up: overall US household debt rose to $17.69 trillion, the NYFed’s Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit revealed (link here). That’s an increase of $184 billion, or 1.1%, from the fourth quarter.  

  

  Consumers have added $3.4 trillion in debt since the pandemic, and that increased debt bears much higher interest rates.

  And with both credit card rates and total credit at all time highs, the data corroborate the mounting financial pressures on American families in an age of elevated inflation. The persistent rise in the prices of essentials such as food and rent have strained household budgets, pushing people to borrow against their credit cards to pay for necessities.

  Total credit card debt stood at $1.12 trillion in the first quarter of 2024, according to the report (the number diverges from the monthly print reported last week by the NY Fed and which was much higher), but an increasing number of borrowers are behind on credit card payments. While down slightly sequentially according to this data set (if not the NY Fed’s other data set), the number in line with seasonal patterns of consumers paying debt incurred over the holidays. But as Bloomberg notes, credit card balances are up almost 25% from the first quarter of 2020.

  “Credit card balances usually rise in the second and third quarters and then they really tend to spike around the holidays in Q4,” Ted Rossman, a senior analyst at Bankrate, wrote in a note to clients. “With inflation and interest rates likely to remain elevated, there’s a very good chance credit card balances will surge to new highs later in 2024.”

  Meanwhile, in a blog post by NY Fed economists, they cautioned that “consumers facing a financial squeeze may be maxing out their credit cards and falling behind on payments” and added that “one observable factor that is strongly correlated with future delinquencies is a high credit card utilization rate.”

  

  “In the first quarter of 2024, credit card and auto loan transition rates into serious delinquency continued to rise across all age groups,” said Joelle Scally, Regional Economic Principal within the Household and Public Policy Research Division at the New York Fed. “An increasing number of borrowers missed credit card payments, revealing worsening financial distress among some households.”

  As of March, 3.2% of outstanding debt was in some stage of delinquency. That remains still 1.5% points lower than the fourth quarter of 2019, but delinquency transition rates increased for all product types, according to the Fed. And also interest rates before covid were about 5% lower.

  

  In a separate post, economists at the St. Louis Fed pointed out that credit card delinquency rates are returning to historically more normal levels after pandemic-related government assistance programs pushed them to unusually low numbers. They added, however, that “present levels of credit card delinquency are greater than pre-pandemic levels, suggesting that a trend which began prior to the pandemic has accelerated.”

  About 121,000 consumers had a bankruptcy notation added to their credit reports last quarter, and approximately 4.8% of consumers held some debt in third-party collections. What is remarkable is that those consumers currently in collection have the highest number on record in collection amounts. Which means that once the delinquency train finally leaves the station, and creditors start collecting in earnings, the amount of debt in 3rd party collections will be literally off the chart!

  

  And the clearest hint that we are getting there, is that borrowers using more than 60% of their credit are falling into delinquency at a faster pace than before the pandemic, making up most of the increase in credit card delinquency rates. About a third of balances associated with borrowers using more than 90% of their credit became delinquent in the past year, compared to about 25% before the pandemic.

  

  What is most remarkable here is that despite a so-called end to the student loan repayment moratorium, it appears that not only is nobody repaying their student loans, but that debt issuers aren’t even bothering to make the delinquent debt as such (then again, it is difficult to determine how much of that debt is delinquent as missed federal student loan payments will not be reported to credit bureaus until the fourth quarter).

  

  The data also show a wide range in credit card utilization rates. About one in six credit card users are using at least 90% of their available credit. And an additional 11% are using between 60% and 90% of their available credit.

  The Fed researchers found younger borrowers and those with lower incomes are more apt to be financially stressed than older borrowers and those with higher incomes, who may have more credit available. “Millennials were the only group whose delinquencies exceeded their pre-pandemic rate,” New York Fed researchers wrote in a blog post.  

  

  The Fed’s report showed 6.9% of credit card debt transitioned to serious delinquency last quarter, up from 4.6% a year ago. And for credit card holders aged 18–29, 9.9% of balances were in serious delinquency.  

  

  Auto loan delinquencies are also higher as the average monthly car payment jumped to $738 in 2023. Close to 2.8% of auto loans are now 90 or more days delinquent — that equates to more than 3 million cars. Auto loans are the second-largest debt category following mortgage debt, with $1.62 trillion outstanding.

  The biggest household debt holding is for housing. It accounts for more that 70% of the total. That debt is performing well, but homeowners are increasingly tapping their accumulated home equity in the form of a home equity loans, meanwhile new mortgage originations have tumbled near record low levels as a result of the soaring rates…

  

  … which also means that foreclosures are starting to tick up.

  

  Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, some $16 billion in additional home equity loans was originated — the biggest increase since 2008 — and $37 billion was added over the past year. Homeowners have about $580 billion in outstanding home equity credit available, the most in about 15 years.

  So what to make of this information, especially when even the Fed is warning that the US consumer is in increasingly weak shape.

  Well, credit card debt has increased sharply in recent quarters. When it surpassed $1.0tn for the first time in history in 2Q 2023, alarm bells went off in some circles, although according to Bank of America’s (especially sanguine) economists, the surge in credit card debt is partly just a normalization, after consumers used their fiscal stimulus windfalls to pay down their balances in 2020-21. Moreover, they note that even setting aside the structural drift away from cash, credit card debt should scale up with the nominal economy. As a share of disposable income, total credit card debt in 4Q 2023 was still below its pre-pandemic level.

  

  Instead of the total credit number, BofA urges clients to pay more attention to credit card delinquencies: the total amount of delinquent credit card debt stood at $110bn as of 4Q 2023, up 42%; that number grew even higher in Q1 2024.

  To put these numbers in context, BofA offers two approaches: first, why you shouldn’t worry too much

  • How much will surging delinquencies weigh on consumer spending? The good news is that credit cards make up only 6.5% of total consumer debt. Despite the recent increase, delinquent credit card debt accounts for only 0.5% of total disposable income.
  • Meanwhile, mortgages make up 70% of consumer debt and are by far the biggest swing factor for total delinquencies. A large share of households is locked into low fixed-rate 30-year mortgages. This has kept mortgage delinquencies, and total delinquent debt, very low by historical standards, and made consumer spending more resilient to Fed hikes than in the past. Even when student loan delinquencies finally do normalize, that would not move the needle a great deal assuming mortgage debt remains stable.

  And then, here is why you should worry:

  • So far so good, but the picture gets a little more concerning at the lower end of the income distribution. Lower-income households are less likely to be homeowners, so they are benefiting less from low fixed mortgage rates. Meanwhile, they are more likely to also be delinquent on their credit cards. From this fact, one can conclude that credit card delinquencies appear to be higher among younger consumers (who would, on average, have lower income.

  

  • Further, delinquencies might understate the issues consumers are facing due to credit card debt. There is likely a large group of consumers who are paying their minimum balances, and so are not delinquent, but are unable to pay the full balance, and so are paying high APRs (annual percentage rates) on the overdue amounts. APRs have risen significantly due to Fed hikes, increasing the strain on such consumers.

  More in the full BofA note available to pro subscribers.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 18:00

• Snyder: "Demographic Winter Is Coming" As Fertility Rates Plummet All Over The Globe
  Snyder: “Demographic Winter Is Coming” As Fertility Rates Plummet All Over The Globe

  Authored by Michael Snyder via The End of The American Dream blog,

  Fertility rates have fallen way below replacement level throughout the entire industrialized world, and this is starting to cause major problems all over the globe.  Aging populations are counting on younger generations to take care of them as they get older, but younger generations are not nearly large enough to accomplish that task.  Meanwhile, there aren’t enough qualified young workers in many fields to replace the expertise of older workers that are now retiring.  Sadly, this is just the beginning.  As I discuss in my new book entitled “Chaos”, if fertility rates continue to drop we could potentially be facing an unprecedented global population collapse in the decades ahead. 

  

  This has become so evident that even the mainstream media is starting to do stories about this.  In fact, an economist that was just interviewed by the Wall Street Journal is warning that “demographic winter is coming”…

  Fertility is falling almost everywhere, for women across all levels of income, education and labor-force participation. The falling birthrates come with huge implications for the way people live, how economies grow and the standings of the world’s superpowers.

  In high-income nations, fertility fell below replacement in the 1970s, and took a leg down during the pandemic. It’s dropping in developing countries, too. India surpassed China as the most populous country last year, yet its fertility is now below replacement.

  “The demographic winter is coming,” said Jesús Fernández-Villaverde, an economist specializing in demographics at the University of Pennsylvania.

  Here in the United States, if we want to maintain a stable population we need the fertility rate to be at 2.1 or above.

  Unfortunately, our fertility rate dropped to just 1.62 last year, which was an all-time record low…

  In the U.S., a short-lived pandemic baby boomlet has reversed. The total fertility rate fell to 1.62 last year, according to provisional government figures, the lowest on record.

  Had fertility stayed near 2.1, where it stood in 2007, the U.S. would have welcomed an estimated 10.6 million more babies since, according to Kenneth Johnson, senior demographer at the University of New Hampshire.

  Our native-born population has been in decline for quite some time.

  The only reason why the U.S. population as a whole has not been shrinking is because of the tremendous amount of immigration that has been happening.

  But even though it is not shrinking, the U.S. population has been rapidly getting older, and it is being projected that just six years from now seniors will actually outnumber children for the first time in our entire history…

  Seniors are set to outnumber children for the first time in American history within six years, as experts warn that the country is about to struggle with a dramatically aging population.

  The ‘silver tsunami’ has already seen the burden on working age people double since 1960 when there were six workers for every over-65.

  Needless to say, seniors are counting on all the rest of us to fund Social Security and Medicare.

  But there are way too few of us, and so a day of reckoning for those programs is quickly approaching…

  Actuaries warned last year that Social Security’s trust fund is expected to be depleted by 2034, with spending on welfare and Medicare predicted to rise from 9.1 percent of US GDP to 11.5 in just 12 years.

  And America’s changing age profile means there will be just 2.75 working-age people for every dependent-age person by 2030 when children are included.

  Of course it isn’t just the U.S. that is dealing with such issues.

  In Japan, South Korea and China, fertility rates are even lower than they are in the United States…

  The problem is not confined to the US with most developed nations experiencing an aging population including Japan whose population is expected to shrink 30 percent by 2070 when four-in-ten will be over 65.

  The situation is so stark in South Korea that Oxford University professor David Coleman predicted the entire country would be extinct at current rates by 2750.

  And even China, which recently lost its status as the world’s most populous nation to India, is now shrinking at a rate of nearly a million people a year.

  And fertility rates are also way below replacement level all over Europe…

  The projected fertility rates in Central, Eastern, and Western European countries are all below the global average estimated for 2050 and 2100, and are already lower than what is needed to sustain population growth.

  The total fertility rate in Western Europe is projected to fall from 1.53 in 2021 to 1.44 in 2050 and 1.37 in 2100.

  Italy, Spain, and Andorra were projected to have the lowest fertility rates by then.

  So what is causing this?

  As I have warned my readers for many years, sperm counts have dropped to catastrophically low levels all over the planet.

  If sperm counts continue to decline at the rate they have been, eventually most males will be infertile.

  Infertility is also at frightening levels among our young women.  I am sure that most of you know couples that desperately want to have children but have been unable to do so.

  Meanwhile, our culture has become rabidly anti-child and rabidly anti-family, and as a result there are vast hordes of young people that have decided that they never want to be parents.

  And thanks to the global reach of our entertainment industry, we are constantly exporting that culture to the rest of the world.

  So what we are witnessing should not be a surprise to any of us.

  We are simply reaping what we have sown.

  There are about 8 billion people living on our planet today.

  But it won’t stay that way for long.

  Population decline has already become a major political issue in nations all over the globe, and during the years ahead vast numbers of people will be wiped out by wars, pestilences, famines and natural disasters.

  Humanity has become incredibly selfish and self-centered, and as a result we have stopped caring about the future.

  All throughout human history, successful societies have always greatly valued marriage, family and children.

  But now we have embraced “new values”, and we are rapidly destroying the bright future that we could have had.

  *  *  *

  Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can check out his new Substack newsletter right here.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 17:40

• Putin Plotting 'Physical Attacks' On West, UK Intelligence Warns, Amid Spate Of Mystery Arsons
  Putin Plotting ‘Physical Attacks’ On West, UK Intelligence Warns, Amid Spate Of Mystery Arsons

  A top British intelligence official has issued a new alarmist warning concerning the ‘Russian threat’ to the West. Anne Keast-Butler, who for the last year has headed up the UK’s GCHQ, or signals intelligence operations (which is the equivalent of America’s NSA), has warned in her first major speech that President Putin is plotting “physical attacks” against Western targets.

  Addressing cyber security experts in Birmingham, the GCHQ director claimed that Moscow is busy “nurturing and inspiring” groups of cyber attackers, and is even “in some cases seemingly coordinating physical attacks against the West.”

  

  She said that alongside Russia, China poses an “epoch-defining” risk to long-term UK national security as well. She admitted that currently China is taking up “more resource… than any other single mission” at GCHQ.

  But ultimately she focused the speech on British intelligence being “increasingly concerned about growing links between the Russian intelligence services and proxy groups to conduct cyber-attacks – as well as suspected physical surveillance and sabotage operations.”

  She also said at a moment the major new Kharkiv offensive is underway that “Putin has not given up on his maximalist goal of subjugating the population of Ukraine.”

  Her dire assessment comes as the British government is seeking to crack down on Russian diplomatic sites in the UK which are suspected of being dual Russian intelligence hubs.

  There have also been recent new accusations of specific attacks on UK infrastructure being linked to Russia. For example The Telegraph writes that “Last week, a British man was charged with an arson attack in London and accused by prosecutors of working for Wagner Group, the Russian paramilitary organization.”

  The same report notes that “Russia has long been accused of protecting cyber gangs that target Western organizations, allowing them to operate with relative impunity as they carry out sophisticated hacks.”

  “Last week, the National Crime Agency named Dmitry Khoroshev, a Russian national, as the person behind LockBit – a ransomware group that had stolen hundreds of millions of pounds from businesses,” The Telegraph continues.

  There are other locations in Europe where recent ‘mystery fires’ or suspected sabotage attacks have occurred, raising the suspicions of NATO officials.

  🇷🇺NATO ACCUSES RUSSIA OF COVERT OPERATIONS WITH GANGSTERS

  NATO intelligence has warned of suspected Russian arson and sabotage in the US, UK, and EU, using local gangsters to disrupt arms shipments to Ukraine.

  Accusations involve arson at key sites:

  ⁠•⁠ ⁠ London warehouse… pic.twitter.com/mWBAY1uAPv

  — Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 12, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Days ago, The Daily Mail produced a highly speculative report which somewhat sensationally points the finger at “gangsters” hired by Moscow to “set Europe alight”: 

  Intelligence chiefs have warned ministers they fear Britain and other key Ukrainian allies are being targeted by Russian saboteurs following a series of suspicious incidents in recent months.

  These include a wave of fires at arms factories and military-related industrial sites in the West that are supplying Ukraine. There have also been attacks on computer systems, train derailments and even jamming of satellite signals for civil air flights.

  Last night [or last Friday night], a senior British security source said Western intelligence agencies feared a spate of industrial fires were connected to Moscow, saying ‘the b******s’ were trying to set Europe alight.

  ‘Lots of fires that we thought were accidents and unconnected have turned out to be connected,’ he said. 

  This source added that intelligence chiefs had warned ministers that Moscow was increasingly hiring gangsters and far-Right extremists to carry out attacks on Western interests.

  The aforementioned words of GCHQ director Keast-Butler seem to provide new confirmation that this is the view of British intelligence – that at the very least some of these incidents are being seen as the result of Moscow-linked sabotage.

  Likely many of these industrial incidents and fires (going back “months” we are told) could be accidents, and it’s unclear the degree to which there’s been any actual confirmed sabotage or arson. Still, it has set off some degree of panic in the top echelons of the UK government: 

  One Cabinet Minister insisted he could not discuss the suspected sabotage and arson attacks, even on a background basis, ‘for national security reasons’.

  But Tory MP Bob Seely, a Russian-speaking specialist on disinformation and member of the foreign affairs committee, said that Britain must wake up to the threat.

  ‘We need to understand that the Russian state believes it is in conflict with the UK and other leading Western nations,’ he added.

  ‘We have to defend ourselves. We don’t know the true scale of these operations. Some look amateurish – but they will get more sophisticated. They are in part for propaganda purposes to show that [Vladimir] Putin is hitting back at the West but also intended to stretch our security forces.’

  Again, all of these accusations have little in the way of verifiable evidence (or at least it hasn’t been made public). 

  

  Below is a key incident in Berlin as reported by The Daily Mail:

  Earlier this month, another fire broke out at a factory near Berlin run by a firm making air defense systems supplied to Ukraine.

  It took 223 firefighters to tackle the inferno, with billowing clouds of black smoke and fears of toxic contamination. Police said they suspected ‘negligent arson’ since there were ‘no indications of sabotage or an attack’.

  The wave of suspected Kremlin attacks go far wider than attacks on military supplies. Sweden, which joined Nato after the invasion of Ukraine, is investigating whether state-backed sabotage lies behind a series of train derailments.

  Poland – a key supporter of Kyiv and arms supply route -– disrupted a network of saboteurs thought to be planning an attack on their rail system.

  The Economist has made the same accusation in a headline this week that reads Russia is ramping up sabotage across Europe: The Kremlin believes it is in a shadow war with NATO. Here’s how the magazine described the same Berlin fire:

  The fire that broke out in the Diehl Metall factory in the Lichterfelde suburb of Berlin on May 3rd was not in itself suspicious. The facility, a metals plant, stored sulphuric acid and copper cyanide, two chemicals that can combine dangerously when ignited. Accidents happen. What raised eyebrows was the fact that Diehl’s parent company makes the IRIS-T air-defence system which Ukraine is using to parry Russian missiles. There is no evidence that this fire was an act of sabotage. If the idea is plausible it is because there is ample evidence that Russia’s covert war in Europe is intensifying.

  Interestingly, police have cited “negligent arson” as the cause for the disaster, which at one point caused area evacuations on fears of poison gas clouds as a result of the large fire.

  So apparently there are shadowy teams of Russian-backed saboteurs going around trying to derail trains and blow up manufacturing sites. While anything is possible – especially after over two years of horrific, grinding war in Ukraine – not one of these saboteurs has been caught in the act, other than the pair which allegedly surveilled an American military base.

  Several Britons charged in a plot to burn down a warehouse of a Ukrainian shipping company in East London, allegedly on orders of Russia’s Wagner Group. https://t.co/BbohaCLCvo

  — Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) April 26, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  There’s as yet no ‘smoking gun’ – despite these loud warnings from NATO officials. However, some suspects have reportedly been rounded up:

  In April alone a clutch of alleged pro-Russian saboteurs were detained across the continent. Germany arrested two German-Russian dual nationals on suspicion of plotting attacks on American military facilities and other targets on behalf of the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency. Poland arrested a man who was preparing to pass the GRU information on Rzeszow airport, the most important hub for military aid to Ukraine. Britain charged several men over an earlier arson attack in March on a Ukrainian-owned logistics firm in London whose Spanish depot was also targeted. The men are accused of aiding the Wagner Group, a mercenary group that has been active in Ukraine and is now under the GRU’s control.

  Earlier this month Britain did expel a Russian defense attaché from the country, accusing the official of being an undeclared intelligence officer under diplomatic cover. In this case too, the government hasn’t made the basis for its suspicions public.

  The body of reporting which alleges Putin is ultimately behind these ‘sabotage plots’ has grown over the last several weeks:

  Mysterious accidents at US, ally’s defense facilities spark sabotage fears https://t.co/cD9dmwV0Be

  — Newsweek (@Newsweek) April 19, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Throughout the war in Ukraine, Russia has also seen dozens of mysterious fires break out at industrial and defense-related sites and factories. In some causes the Kremlin has blamed West-backed Ukrainian saboteurs. Is Putin now returning the favor against Europe? 

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 17:20

• Will Tariffs Outweigh CPI?
  Will Tariffs Outweigh CPI?

  Authored by Peter Tchir via Academy Securities,

  Markets shrugged off high headlines on PPI, for a variety of valid reasons.

  Now we can move on to CPI (where I see the “whisper number” as a lower than expectations print).

  I’m more focused on tariffs.

  My recollection of tariffs was that far more economists reacted negatively to the initial round of tariffs imposed by President Trump in 2018.

  I figured I’d check with ChatGPT if my perception was correct.

  The media reaction to President Trump’s tariffs in 2018 was largely negative, with widespread criticism from economists, business groups, and various sectors impacted by the tariffs.

  1.  Economists’ View: The vast majority of economists believed that the tariffs would harm the U.S. economy. In a March 2018 Reuters survey, almost 80% of economists stated that the steel and aluminum tariffs would be detrimental, with none predicting economic benefits​ (Wikipedia)​. Many economists and organizations, including over 1,000 who wrote a warning letter, compared the tariffs to historical policy mistakes like the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, which contributed to the Great Depression​ (Wikipedia)​.

  2.  Economic Impact: Analyses indicated that the tariffs led to increased costs for U.S. consumers and businesses. A study found that by December 2018, the tariffs had reduced U.S. real income by $1.4 billion per month and increased consumer costs by $3.2 billion per month​ (Wikipedia)​. The prices of intermediate goods rose by 10% to 30%, and the tariffs were equated to a significant tax increase, potentially offsetting the benefits of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts​ (Tax Foundation)​.

  3.  Business and Industry Reaction: The Council on Foreign Relations highlighted the chaos and negative market reactions following the announcement of the tariffs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell significantly after the tariffs were announced, reflecting concerns about their impact on the global trading system and U.S. economic stability​ (Council on Foreign Relations)​.

  4.  Agriculture Sector: U.S. farmers were particularly critical of the tariffs due to the retaliatory measures from other countries, which significantly hurt their exports. The Trump administration attempted to mitigate this by announcing $12 billion in emergency relief for farmers, but this was met with mixed reactions. Many farmers and legislators criticized the relief as insufficient and labeled it as temporary “welfare” rather than a solution to the underlying trade issues​ (DW)​.

  Overall, the media and expert reaction to Trump’s tariffs in 2018 was predominantly negative, citing increased costs, economic disruption, and inadequate relief measures for affected industries.

  ChatGPT (version 4o specifically) seems to “think” that my recollection was accurate.

  I am not sure what it means that not only were the original tariffs kept in place long after the election (and are still in place), but we’ve now added to them?

  While I agree, many of these are useful and necessary, I do think that we’ve been our own worst enemy in some cases like solar panels (see With “Exceptionalism” Like This, Who Needs Enemies).

  • I am not sure how the tariffs won’t add to inflation and create some possible supply issues.

  • I am not sure how easy it will be for China to get around these by utilizing facilities in countries like Mexico? If they can, and are more incentivized than they already have been, it will continue to slow on-shoring and near-shoring efforts (and make them more expensive to execute).

  • I am not sure that China will come back with a “measured” response?

  I think the risk of renewed serious inflation has been put back on the table. It isn’t going to impact CPI tomorrow, but in 3 months? 6 months?

  

  I see the longer term benefits of creating an economy that is more secure (and am fully on board with that), but that doesn’t mean we haven’t created new and additional inflation risks.

  Do I become bearish on yields today, or wait until after what seems to be a widely expected post CPI rally?

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 17:00

Digest powered by RSS Digest

• US Says Putin's Dramatic Cabinet Reshuffle Smacks Of 'Desperation'
  US Says Putin’s Dramatic Cabinet Reshuffle Smacks Of ‘Desperation’

  The Biden administration has reacted to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s significant cabinet shake-up announced Sunday, wherein Putin tapped Andrey Belousov, a former deputy prime minister who specializes in economics, to move into the position of defense minister. Sergei Shoigu meanwhile has been moved to head Russia’s Security Council at the expense of Nikolai Patrushev. Shoigu can be seen as having in essence been given a promotion.

  This big shuffle was unexpected, and the surprise has been registered in European capitals and Washington, with the US saying that this shows signs of “desperation” for Moscow sustaining the high costs of the Ukraine invasion.

  “Our point of view is that this is further indication of Putin’s desperation to sustain his war of aggression against Ukraine, despite it being a major drain on the Russian economy and the heavy losses of Russian troops, with some estimates as high as 315,000 casualties,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said to a press briefing Monday.

  

  “The Kremlin’s mobilization of its war of aggression against Ukraine has caused so many families to suffer,” he stated. “Russia started this unprovoked war against Ukraine. Putin could end it at any time by withdrawing his forces from Ukraine.”

  To be expected, Britain is also joining in on the US critique, with current and former officials agreeing that Putin’s decision-making shows signs of ‘instability’: 

  Christopher Steele, a former MI6 intelligence officer, said the reshuffle suggested there was “serious instability right in the heart” of Russia’s regime.

  He told Sky News that Patrushev being removed from his role as secretary of the Russian Security Council was “astonishing”.

  “It’s important to understand that he’s been one of Putin’s closest allies, former head of the FSB and so on for many years… and was rated by people to be probably the second most powerful man in Russia after Putin himself,” he said.

  “I think what this indicates is not just a reshuffle along normal governmental lines. It’s really quite serious instability right in the heart of this regime”.

  And yet, when it comes to the war itself, there’s clear consensus even in Western press that Russia is advancing deeper into Ukraine.

  Here are today’s control-of-terrain maps for #Russia‘s invasion of #Ukraine from @TheStudyofWar & @criticalthreats. Full assessment to follow.

  Interactive map: https://t.co/nWJkG3YbEo

  1/ Kharkiv + Luhansk pic.twitter.com/rzAnRCYsm9

  — Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar) May 14, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Below is a statement via Russian state media’s RT revealing some of Belousov’s intended areas of focus as he is soon to take over the Ukraine war as defense minister:

  * * *

  During his confirmation hearing before the Federation Council on Monday, Belousov pointed out that servicemen fighting in the Ukraine campaign enjoy an adequate level of pay. “Today, the bar has been raised to at least 200,000 rubles ($2,200). In principle, people earn much more there. However, this is not just about cash payments and allowances. We still have work to do.”

  …Belousov expressed outrage that veterans of the Ukraine conflict who come home on vacation “are being kicked out of civilian medical facilities and sent to hospitals, which are often overcrowded.”

  Another issue is the red tape involved when military personnel seek to access their benefits, the nominee minister continued, adding that, ideally, this should be resolved with the help of electronic systems.

  As the hearing wrapped up, the Federation Council’s press service said, as quoted by TASS, that the chamber would not make a public assessment of Belousov’s candidacy and that a letter on the matter would be sent to Putin. The deliberations on the nomination are expected to continue on Tuesday.

  However, Valentina Matvienko, the head of the Federation Council, called the president’s pick for defense minister “a very fortunate choice.” She noted Russian senators are well acquainted with Belousov’s work and have interacted with him on numerous occasions.

  Matvienko recalled that Russia’s defense spending had more than doubled in the midst of the Ukraine conflict. “Everything that the Defense Ministry orders… must be in line with the capabilities of the economy… The defense minister must be in constant contact with other ministries to organize this process efficiently,” she said, adding that Belousov has a lot of experience in this area.

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 02:45

• 1000s Of Islamists Protest Against 'Censorship' After Calls For A Caliphate In Germenay Are Banned
  1000s Of Islamists Protest Against ‘Censorship’ After Calls For A Caliphate In Germenay Are Banned

  Authored by Thomas Brooke via ReMix News,

  The Salafist group organizers claimed unfair censorship after strict conditions were imposed on Muslims calling for a caliphate in Germany and against anti-Semitic rhetoric…

  

  Thousands of Islamists took to the streets of Hamburg again on Saturday for what organizers called a “defense of Islamic values” in the face of political intimidation and media censorship.

  The protest was organized by Muslim Interaktiv, a group under investigation by Hamburg’s domestic intelligence agency for “extremism.” It claimed on its social media accounts that over 6,000 Muslims had turned out to participate, although police estimates put the figure closer to 2,300.

  The demonstration was in response to recent attempts by German politicians to restrict the group’s activities after a recent march in the port city sparked outrage amid calls for Germany to become a caliphate under Sharia Law, and participants chanted anti-Semitic slogans.

  Muslim Interaktiv claimed it wanted to “set an example” to protect “Islamic identity,” and posted that the requirement for Muslims to “commit to Western values” was the “lie of the year.”

  The demonstration was allowed to take place under strict conditions, which included a wholesale ban on anti-Semitic rhetoric, calls for a caliphate using any medium, and a ban on any incitement of hatred or violence.

  Organizers called the conditions ahead of the march “repressive” and revealed it had been seeking legal advice to take action against the measures imposed on the group.

  Attendees held placards claiming they were being censored by the German government.

  BREAKING:

  3000 Islamists took to the streets of Hamburg today.

  The Salafist organization “Muslim Interaktiv” and the protesters called for German law to be replaced with Sharia Law and for the Caliphate to be established in place of the German state.

  🇩🇪 pic.twitter.com/KEqf9Gh9Oi

  — Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) May 12, 2024

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  After the controversial protest held last month, Germany’s Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser denounced the demonstration despite overseeing the country’s open borders immigration policy in recent years that has seen millions of Muslims, many of whom have originated from countries that practice fundamental Islam, arrive in Germany.

  “Seeing an Islamist demonstration of this kind on our streets is difficult to bear. It’s a good thing that the Hamburg police counteracted crime with a large presence,” she told Tagesspiegel.

  She told the Funke newspaper group last week the new conditions imposed on the group’s activities gave the police greater power to intervene and disperse the participants if necessary.

  “Anyone who would rather live in a caliphate, and therefore in the Stone Age, is against everything that Germany stands for. We defend our constitution — with the means of our constitution,” she said.

  Read more here…

  Tyler Durden
  Tue, 05/14/2024 – 02:00

• WHO Makes Key Concessions Ahead Of Pandemic Treaty Vote
  WHO Makes Key Concessions Ahead Of Pandemic Treaty Vote

  Authored by Kevin Stocklin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  The World Health Organization (WHO) has watered down some provisions of its pandemic agreements ahead of the upcoming World Health Assembly on May 27. Critics in the United States, however, say the changes don’t do enough to address the concerns over the policy.

  

  Provisions in prior drafts of the WHO pandemic treaty and International Health Regulations (IHRs) together aimed to effectively centralize and increase the power of the WHO if it declares a “health emergency.”

  The release of the latest draft of the amendments, dated April 17, are the first public update on the IHR draft, which was initially made public early 2023.

  “In most areas, and for all of those which most concerned us from a legal perspective, the interim draft reflects a major retreat by the WHO Working Group from the text of the original proposals,” write English solicitors Ben and Molly Kingsley in an April briefing paper regarding the new amendments.

  Some WHO-watchers remain wary, however.

  “Practically all the bad things are still there,” Dr. Meryl Nass, a U.S.-based physician and vocal critic of the WHO agreements, told The Epoch Times.

  “The language is gentler, but since there is so much to be decided later it is not clear the gentler language is meaningful,” Dr. Nass said.

  “My best guess is that they are desperate to get something passed, so the options are likely to be either a vanilla version of the treaty … or a delay. But they fear delay because people are waking up.”

  The WHO and its advocates—including celebrities, politicians, and religious groups—have launched a global campaign urging the 194 member states to sign the documents.

  “Give the people of the world, the people of your countries, the people you represent, a safer future,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a May 3 Geneva meeting. “I have one simple request: please, get this done, for them.”

  He urged any countries that don’t support the agreements to refrain from encouraging other states to oppose it.

  WHO ambassador and former U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown on March 20 lauded “a high-powered intervention by 23 former national presidents, 22 former prime ministers, a former U.N. general secretary, and 3 Nobel Laureates … to press for an urgent agreement from international negotiators on a Pandemic Accord.”

  Mr. Brown called for unified global action to “expose fake news disinformation campaigns by conspiracy theorists trying to torpedo international agreement for the Pandemic Accord.”

  He refuted criticisms that the pandemic treaty and IHR amendments would cede any sovereignty from member nations to the WHO.

  

  

  Critics Remain Unconvinced

  Despite these assurances, however, the efforts to vest more power within the WHO continue to face resistance.

  In recent months, Louisiana and Florida passed laws stating that state officials will not obey WHO directives, and other states, such as Oklahoma, are considering similar legislation.

  On May 8, attorneys general from 22 states signed a letter to President Joe Biden urging him not to sign the WHO agreements, and stating that they will resist any attempts by the WHO to set public health policy in their states.

  “Although the latest iteration is far better than previous versions, it’s still highly problematic,” the attorneys general wrote. “The fluid and opaque nature of these proceedings, moreover, could allow the most egregious provisions from past versions to return.

  “Ultimately, the goal of these instruments isn’t to protect public health. It’s to cede authority to the WHO—specifically its director-general—to restrict our citizens’ rights to freedom of speech, privacy, movement (especially travel across borders), and informed consent.”

  Amid this recalcitrance, the WHO has stepped back from some of the more controversial measures. The Biden administration is involved in negotiating the WHO treaty and have expressed support for it, but haven’t stated a definite intention to sign.

  The Latest Draft

  Struck from the latest draft is a provision that member nations “recognize WHO as the guiding and coordinating authority of international public health response” and commit to follow the WHO’s directives during a health emergency. The latest draft also states that WHO recommendations are non-binding.

  Read more here…

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 23:40

• South Korea Still Dominates The World With The Highest Density Of Robot Workers
  South Korea Still Dominates The World With The Highest Density Of Robot Workers

  China’s huge investment in industrial robotics has made it one of the most automated nations on the planet in the space of just a few short years.

  As Statista’s Anna Fleck reports, according to the latest study by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), the number of operational robots in China’s manufacturing industry reached a ratio of 392 units per 10,000 employees in 2022, a robot density now similar to that of Japanese industry.

  China currently ranks fifth in the world, behind South Korea (1,012 per 10,000 employees), Singapore (730), Germany (415) and Japan (397).

  As the following infographic shows, China and South Korea are the countries that have made the most progress in the race to industrial automation in recent years.

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  In Europe, robot density has seen a pretty big jump in Swiss industry, with the ratio more than doubling between 2017 and 2022 – from 129 to 296 robots per 10,000 employees.

  France’s manufacturing industry still had a lower level of robotization than most of its neighboring European industries: 180 robots per 10,000 employees in 2022 – compared, for example, with 216 in Belgium (and Luxembourg) and 219 in Italy.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 23:20

• The Masked And The Super Masked
  The Masked And The Super Masked

  Authored by Roger L. Simon via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  We live in an era of masks, only not the fun kind you might find at Carnivale in Venice, Italy.

  

  Something considerably more sinister is going on.

  This era began, as almost all of us realize now, with COVID-19 when all of us were told to put on masks or our friends and relatives might die. We might expire ourselves.

  How necessary this was has been the subject of much discussion. My “Spidey sense” says no. Others may differ.

  Nevertheless, as with all pandemics—real, imagined, or something in between—the need eventually diminished. People were liberated. Sort of.

  Only masks are still around us, startlingly so. In some cases they are more around us than ever.

  I think it was on Clay Travis and Buck Sexton’s radio show I first heard the masks referred to, ironically, as a “fashion statement.” True enough—they do often tell us where the wearer stands on a whole raft of things—but that was a few months ago. It almost seems like ancient history.

  Now masks are upon us with a vengeance—black ones, miscellaneous scarves, and, of course, keffiyehs. The wearers have various intents—to scare us; to hide their identities from the police, college administrators, or potential employers; or simply, pathetically, to be a faddist, part of what they think of as an “in crowd.”

  We have seen this song before during Antifa and Black Lives Matter demonstrations. Exercise your right of free speech but don’t tell us who you are. We could call this cowardly, because it is, but it is also quite dangerous as it expands.

  In some ways it reminds me of internet trolls, especially paid ones, who turn up virtually everywhere under assumed names, some obvious and some not. Does the First Amendment give you permission—legally, or more importantly, morally—to lie about who you are while exercising your right of free speech? Interesting question.

  Many of the masked demonstrators on our campuses, we have been told—and considering the numbers who aren’t students, it is almost certainly true—are also paid for their “work,” not to mention transportation, tents, food, etc.

  Who pays?

  These are the people I termed in my title the Super Masked. They are the truly nefarious. The masked are their witting or unwitting foot soldiers.

  It is the Super Masked who are behind the anti-Americanism, anti-Westernism, anti-free market capitalism, open borders, anti-religion, anti-Semitic, often pro-Chinese communist, gender fluid movements, and so forth.

  Someone is paying for the campus chaos across our country. It doesn’t come free.

  Who, then, are the Super Masked, and why are they doing this?

  Park MacDougald has some answers in his Tablet article “The People Setting America on Fire.” Mr. MacDougald isolates, as have others, three groups as the principal organizers of the protests—Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), and Within Our Lifetime (WOL).

  Who is behind them? Mr. MacDougald has interesting details of the various cutouts, but it comes down to many of the “usual suspects”—the Rockefeller Foundation, George Soros in his various guises, and, to a great degree, the Tides Foundation. The author has this to say about Tides:

  “Tides, you might have noticed, is a name that keeps coming up again and again. The Tides Nexus, of which the Tides Foundation is a part, is one of largest progressive dark-money networks in the country, controlling upward of a billion in assets; its list of major donors is an all-star cast of left-wing billionaires and foundations, including Soros, Peter Buffett and his NoVo Foundation, eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the Ford Foundation, and the New Venture Fund, controlled by another Democratic dark-money powerhouse, Eric Kessler’s Arabella Advisors. A pioneer of what critics have called ‘charitable money-laundering’ through the use of fiscal sponsorships to obscure money trails through multiple layers of bureaucracy, Tides, through its donations and fiscal sponsorships, has emerged as a major backer of the anti-Israel protest movement across the country.”

  This is, needless to say, not just about anti-Israel activities but about every progressive cause imaginable. Tides might be described as the king of the Super Masked.

  One is tempted to channel the immortal words of President Ronald Reagan and say, “Mr. Tides, tear off that mask!”

  My intention is to point out the level of often-deliberate obfuscation going on and the amount that people are being used, their ignorance exploited, consciously or unconsciously.

  It’s easy to say that the infamous “globalists” are behind all this, and quite possibly it’s true, but I think there is a level at which people of all sorts have been swept up in causes they think are good without stopping to realize what they really are doing. It’s “my team,” and I will do what they say, even if it involves using “dark money.” And hiding my identity behind a mask.

  The fight for transparency in our culture has been going on for some time with, unfortunately, little success. Meanwhile, we hear endless blather about preserving “democracy.” But without transparency, there is no democracy or constitutional republic, whichever you prefer.

  So, tear off those masks!

  End of sermon.

  BUT NOT QUITE!

  After I wrote the above, the most amazing report came out in the New York Post (May 9) that could break your brain. Black Lives Matter is suing the Tides Foundation? What is going on here?

  “A progressive nonprofit that has been shelling out cash to anti-Israel protest groups is being sued by Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation for fraud and withholding more than $33 million in donations, a bombshell lawsuit claims.

  “Tides Foundation, which has managed hundreds of millions in donations for progressive groups since it was founded in 1976, has ‘refused to honor its promises and continues to commandeer BLMGNF’s donations,’ according to the 285-page lawsuit filed in California Superior Court, Los Angeles County, on Monday.

  “Instead, Tides doled out an undisclosed amount of donations to a radical BLM breakaway group run by anti-police activist Melina Abdullah — who lost a ‘frivolous’ lawsuit against BLMGNF — according to court papers and an attorney for BLMGNF.”

  What was it that Sir Walter Scott said? “What a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!”

  Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times or ZeroHedge.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 23:00

• Which Countries Have The Highest Infant Mortality Rates?
  Which Countries Have The Highest Infant Mortality Rates?

  Infant mortality rates are generally regarded as the barometer of an overall population’s health. A higher rate indicates unmet needs of a population, especially with regards to food availability and sanitation.

  Visual Capitalist’s Pallavi Rao visualized the top 15 countries with the highest infant mortality rates, according to 2023 estimates from the CIA World Factbook. It is measured as the number of infant deaths under the age of one, per 1,000 live births in a given year.

  

  ℹ️ Comoros has been excluded from the map for visibility reasons.

  Ranked: Countries With the Highest Infant Mortality Rates

  Afghanistan currently has the highest infant mortality rate in the world at 103 deaths per 1,000 babies born. Decades of conflict have pushed the country to the brink and a prolonged drought since 2021 has made food more scarce.

  

  Meanwhile, the other 14 countries on this list are all from Sub-Saharan Africa. Some of them are also experiencing civil unrest, a breakdown of state machinery, and high undernourishment rates.

  While this is concerning, Africa’s infant mortality rate as a whole has improved tremendously in the last seven decades. Between 1950–2024, the continent’s average fell 73% to 41 deaths per 1,000 births.

  Expansion of healthcare, improving nutrition, access to clean drinking water, and mass immunization programs are some of the reasons behind this massive decline.

  Estimates assume Africa’s infant mortality rate will improve further to 25 per 1,000 live births by 2050—which is roughly the same as Asia today.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 22:40

• Go Nuts About Nuts To Help Keep Cancer At Bay
  Go Nuts About Nuts To Help Keep Cancer At Bay

  Authored by Alexandra Roach via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  In their many variations, nuts are a superfood praised as rich sources of minerals, vitamins, amino acids, proteins, and other bioactive compounds.

  

  Chestnuts are champions for vitamin C, for instance. Pistachios contain the most vitamin A and potassium. Both are high in folic acid. Cashews enrich us with magnesium. The level of vitamin B3 (niacin) is the highest in peanuts, and vitamin E (tocopherol) is found in almonds.

  Walnuts are especially high in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a neuroprotective omega-3 fatty acid important for normal growth and development. It also has been shown to induce apoptosis (programmed death of cells) in breast cancer cells.

  Our bodies cannot produce ALA, hence, nutritional intake is a must, as it is with many other key nutrients.

  Research Supports the Benefits of Nuts

  A 2023 review published in the journal Foods, found mounting evidence that a nut-rich diet can potentially prevent numerous chronic illnesses.

  According to the report, “The ingestion of phytochemicals from nuts and their positive influence on several diseases (cancer, heart disease, stroke, hypertension, birth defects, cataracts, diabetes, diverticulosis, and obesity) are established.”

  In addition to the improvement of cardiovascular disease, depression, and cognitive function, nut consumption is correlated with lower cancer incidence and cancer mortality, and decreased all-cause mortality, states a 2021 review.

  The Nut/Cancer Health Connection

  The World Health Organization predicts a considerable increase in cancer, with a potential of 32.6 million cases worldwide by 2045.

  Effective strategies, such as increasing dietary fiber, eating more fruits and vegetables, and physical activity, could potentially reduce cancer risk factors by approximately 42 percent.

  The journal Chronic Diseases and Translational Medicine published a 2023 review about the interrelation of nut consumption and different types of cancer, including women-related and gastrointestinal cancers.

  Data suggests that eating nuts not only reduces “cancer-related risk and mortality,” but possibly prevents the occurrence of certain types of cancer and its advancement. Nuts contain active anticarcinogenic compounds such as “folate, phytosterols, saponins, phytic acid, isoflavones, ellagic acid, α-tocopherol, quercetin, and resveratrol,” according to the review.

  The research points to certain phytochemicals and their mechanisms as preventatives for cancer.

  Accordingly, walnuts, pecans, almonds, and pine nuts contain polyphenols, which inhibit carcinogenesis that is chemically induced. Likewise, hazelnuts and brazil nuts hold helpful properties, called isoflavonoids, to balance hormonal mechanisms.

  Most nuts are strong antioxidants that counteract oxidative stress and guard our DNA—the health benefits list of nuts is long.

  Nuts at a Glance

  Walnuts

  A review published in the journal Nutrition outlines the cancer-preventative properties of walnuts, as researched in animal studies with mice. It summarizes the following points:

  • A diet enriched with walnuts prevented the increase of “human breast cancers implanted in nude mice by [approximately] 80%.”
  • Mammary gland tumors were reduced by approximately 60 percent through a diet containing walnuts in a mouse model.
  • “Walnuts slowed the growth of prostate, colon, and renal cancers by antiproliferative and antiangiogenic mechanisms.”

  Another interesting fact was shared in the review. Comparing the intake of whole walnuts to a diet equally rich in n-3 fatty acids, the reduction of tumors in the mammary gland was greater when ingesting whole nuts. This reinforces the idea that active components in walnuts act synergistically to suppress cancer.

  Walnuts also proved their antitumorigenic qualities in an animal study in vivo in mice. Compared to the corn-oil-based control group, the walnut group featured two major improvements—the tumor growth rate was slowed by 27 percent, and the tumor weight was reduced by 33 percent.

  Reducing inflammation in the body benefits many health conditions, amongst others cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer. Walnuts have proven valuable in all.

  A randomized controlled trial tested a daily intake of 56 grams of walnuts (366 calories) in 46 overweight adults. Another trial analyzed the same amount on diabetic patients. Both results showed that the increased nut intake improved endothelial function significantly, which is key for healthy blood and lymph vessels. In turn, endothelial cells are needed to protect from vascular malfunctions—the hallmarks of several types of malignant disorders.

  Almonds

  Contrary to common belief, regular almond intake does not lead to weight gain, although the nuts contain almost 50 percent fat. Instead, almonds “appear to promote weight loss,” affirms a research paper published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, which benefits obesity-related illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer.

  However, almonds also contain the highly controversial and much-researched bioactive compound glycoside amygdalin. Highly controversial because its pharmaceutical development as an anti-cancer treatment continues to be a topic of discussion in the pharmaceutical world.

  As a commercial drug, amygdalin is distributed under the name Laetrile but has since been shown to have serious side effects, such as damage to nerves and the liver, a lack of oxygen in the blood, and confusion. Furthermore, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved Laetrile and has said that the compound shows only little anticancer effect.

  In contrast, a review in the Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics praises amygdalin’s few side effects, its low cost, and especially its excellent results in the battle against multidrug resistance. Furthermore, the compound can be easily naturally sourced as it occurs in the kernels of many fruits and is a compound in nuts.

  A 2023 comprehensive review published in the International Journal of Molecular Science relates the same hopeful message: “Amygdalin seems to be a promising naturally occurring agent against cancer disease development and progression.”

  While Amygdalin has proven its anti-tumor qualities, it is still not recommended as an extensive remedy, as some challenges need to be overcome.

  Its correct dosage heavily depends on the type of bacteria present in a person’s gut. Therefore, researchers have not been able to find an across-the-board therapy. “Unfortunately, there is currently no foolproof method for determining the microbial consortium and providing a safe oral dosage for every patient,” researchers state in a 2022 review.

  Scientists place their hope in modern nano-technologies as they further explore the qualities of amygdalin in cancer treatment. “There are several pieces of evidence to support the idea that amygdalin can exert anticancer effects against lung, breast, prostate, colorectal, cervical, and gastrointestinal cancers.” The compound “has been reported to induce apoptosis of cancer cells, inhibiting cancer cells’ proliferation and slowing down tumor metastatic spread,” according to the above-mentioned 2023 review.

  A 2019 article published in Cancer Medicine that dials in on amygdalin, primarily found in bitter almonds, not only highlights its “antioxidative, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory activities,” but investigates the clinical value of the anticancer agent.

  The compound introduces cytotoxicity and apoptosis in the body and balances the immune function, which affects especially “solid tumors” such as lung or bladder cancer and renal cell carcinoma.

  Despite limiting factors, such as the “primary stage” of both clinical and experimental research and the lack of high-quality publications on the topic, researchers still believe these studies to be promising regarding cancer treatments.

  Many may not be surprised that walnuts and almonds provide us with these health benefits. However, the following nut, which botanically speaking, is a legume, often gets a “bad rap” as a common allergen. Nevertheless, research shows its valuable qualities in cancer therapy.

  Peanuts

  A human study published in the journal Gynecologic and Obstetric Investigation showed that “High consumption of peanuts, walnuts, and almonds appears to be a protective factor for the development of breast cancer.”

  The study group included 97 female patients suffering from breast cancer, and a control group of 104 healthy women. Researchers analyzed their seed consumption via the Mantel-Haenszel test method and found a correlation between dietary nut intake and the development of breast cancer.

  Peanuts once again portrayed their qualities as functional food in a study that investigated phytosterols (PS), a natural compound that lowers cholesterol levels and prevents cardiovascular diseases. This research suggests that their sterol beta-sitosterol, in particular, holds protective anticancer effects against “colon, prostate, and breast cancer.”

  With 207 milligrams PS per 100 grams, unrefined peanut oil has the highest concentration of valuable beta-sitosterol—even higher than olive oil. Peanut butter “contains 144-157 mg PS/100 g.” Further refinement of the product results in lower rates of the active compound.

  Another healthy property of peanuts is the polyphenol phytochemical resveratrol—the target of a review focused on anticancer agents. In addition to peanuts, sources of resveratrol include grapes, red wine, and other berries.

  Researchers point out that people benefit from the consumption of this powerful antioxidant, as it displays “strong anti-tumor activities through inhibiting tumor cell proliferation, inducing cell apoptosis, promoting tumor cell differentiation, preventing tumor invasion and metastasis, and further moderating the host immune system to kill tumor cells.”

  In fact, the nickname “French Paradox” was given to resveratrol’s impact on the health of the French people, as it seems that the compound counteracts the French diet, which is often high in fats, and protects consumers from cardiovascular disease and more.

  Pistachios

  Another inconspicuous nut with plenty of healthy properties comes from the cashew family.

  In comparison to other nuts, the health profile of pistachios is even more advantageous. They are low-fat, a good source of vegetable protein, contain a remarkable amount of minerals (potassium) and vitamins (C and E), and are high in dietary fiber.

  Both, in vitro and in vivo models have indicated significant regulatory properties in pistachios on oxidative stress, according to a 2022 review. Consequently, eating pistachios also positively affected the risk of chronic diseases, including cancer.

  Another 2022 review highlighted resveratrol in pistachios and its favorable role in breast cancer treatment.

  Unfortunately, the high cost of this nut often keeps people from regular intake, which would be beneficial to their health.

  Diet, Inflammation, and Cancer

  It has long been known that lifestyle and diets greatly impact our health.

  A 2010 review describes the multistage process of cancer as “initiation, promotion, and progression,” and explains that oxidative stress plays a role in all three phases of tumorigenesis (the formation of cancer), as does chronic inflammation in the body—conditions fought by nuts.

  A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids is beneficial to cancer survival, according to a review published in the Journal of Nutrition that examined several animal studies. In addition, it can lessen side effects that come with chemotherapy and increase the treatment’s efficacy. The review goes as far as stating that the “consumption of omega-3 fatty acids might slow or stop the growth of metastatic cancer cells,” after appropriate cancer treatment.

  Walnuts contain the highest amount of omega-3 fatty acids.

  Attention to Quality

  As phenolic compounds in nuts are highly unstable, they may be impacted by various processing techniques.

  Unfortunately, studies are rare, as certain types of nuts also react differently. Research that does exist indicates that thermal treatment negatively impacts nuts, such as hazelnuts, where most of the polyphenol content is found in the skin.

  Roasting also alters the profile of nutrients in nuts, which can lead to increased allergenicity and changed protein levels, for instance in peanuts. This processing technique seems to affect almonds and pistachios less—they stay stable or might even slightly benefit from the process. In contrast, the antioxidant profile of hazelnuts and walnuts suffers.

  A 2023 overview published in the journal Foods mentions that peanuts blanched in 100 degree Celsius water for 20 minutes were less allergenic. On the other hand, “boiling almonds for 10 min[utes], or cashews and pistachios for 60 min[utes] did not affect their properties.”

  Authors of the overview suggest that consumers best educate themselves about the variation of bioactive compounds in nuts and the impact of food processing methods, as well as finding a quality source.

  Recommended Daily Intake

  A 2020 narrative review highlights the extremely low consumption of nuts and seeds worldwide.

  Although nuts are continuously praised as a superfood, and the per-capita consumption in the United States increased to 5.6 pounds per person in 2022, recommended consumption is rarely met.

  The Global Burden of Disease Study found in 2017 that “global consumption was only 12 % of the recommended level” of a daily intake of 21 grams. In 2019, the Eat-Lancet Commission upped the recommended everyday consumption to 50 grams of tree nuts and/or peanuts. With an average daily intake of 7 grams of nuts, we do not come even close to that goal.

  As a rule of thumb, a 2021 study comes to the conclusions that eating a “handful of nuts” is a practical way of “achieving recommended nut intakes.” Researchers explained that combining various types of nuts in a medium-size handful averages at about 36.3 g, which “resulted in a high proportion of individuals taking at least 80% of the recommended intake of nuts.”

  Feel free to mix and match, bake with nuts and seeds, or add them to your salads, lunch, and dinner. Mostly though, just have fun going “nuts about nuts” and assisting your health at the same time.

  Alexandra Roach is a board-certified holistic health practitioner, herbalist, and movement teacher who has also worked as a journalist, TV news anchor, and author. She has earned citations from U.S. Army commanders for her work with military personnel and writes with a broad perspective on health.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 22:20

• Services No Longer Required: Which Jobs Are Most At Risk?
  Services No Longer Required: Which Jobs Are Most At Risk?

  Long before the emergence of ChatGPT and other AI tools threatening to take over our jobs, technological advancements have altered the way people work, making some occupations disappear, while others emerged.

  Did you know, for example, that people used to work as living alarm clocks before actual alarm clocks became a thing?

  “Knocker uppers”, as they were called, would walk around in industrial England, wielding a long stick with which they’d tap on workers’ doors to wake them in time for their shifts.

  There also used to be “computers” long before the arrival of personal computers. They were persons performing mathematical calculations, a service that is no longer required today.

  So which jobs might be next?

  As Statista’s Felix Richter reports, each year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes its Occupational Employment Projections – a report that’s looking at the U.S. labor market as a whole for the next 10 years, projecting changes in employment by occupation and revealing which jobs are most at risk from automation or other technological and societal shifts. In its latest edition covering the 2022-2032 period, the BLS identified four occupational groups that are projected to lose jobs over the next decade: office and administrative support occupations, production occupations and sales and related occupations as well as occupations in farming, fishing and forestry.

  As the following chart shows, cashiers, who are at risk of being replaced by self-checkout, are projected to see the biggest drop in employment over the next decade with 348,100 fewer jobs in 2032 than in 2022.

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  Other jobs high on the list are secretaries, office clerks and customer service representatives, with each of these occupations expected to see employment decline by more than 150,000 jobs until 2032.

  When looking at relative employment changes, word processors and typists (-39 percent) and watch and clock repairers (-30 percent) are most at risk of losing their jobs, with other relatively rare occupations also high on the list.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 22:00

• Oil – A Global Tax
  Oil – A Global Tax

  Authored by Robert Burrows via BondVigilantes.com,

  Few commodities wield as much influence in the intricate web of global economics as oil. Oil is pivotal in driving economic growth and development as the primary energy source for transportation, manufacturing, and countless other sectors. However, beneath its surface lies a hidden truth: oil can act as a tax on growth, imposing significant costs on economies worldwide. 

  The Economic Impact of Oil Prices

  Oil prices have a profound impact on virtually every aspect of the economy:

  1. Cost of Production: For industries reliant on oil as a primary input, such as transportation, manufacturing, and agriculture, fluctuations in oil prices directly influence production costs. Higher oil prices translate into increased business expenses, squeezing profit margins and potentially leading to higher prices for goods and services.

  2. Consumer Spending: Rising oil prices can have a ripple effect on consumer spending patterns. As the cost of gasoline and other energy-related products increases, consumers may cut back on discretionary purchases or reallocate their budgets to cover higher fuel expenses, dampening overall consumption and economic growth.

  3. Inflationary Pressures: Oil prices significantly impact inflationary pressures within an economy. As production costs rise, businesses may pass on these higher costs to consumers through higher prices, contributing to inflationary pressures and eroding purchasing power.

  4. Macroeconomic Stability: Fluctuations in oil prices can disrupt macroeconomic stability, leading to volatility in financial markets, exchange rates, and interest rates. Oil-exporting countries may experience windfall profits during periods of high oil prices while oil-importing nations face trade imbalances, budget deficits, and currency depreciation.

  Essentially, a high oil price acts as a tax on growth via its impact on economic activity, as businesses and consumers bear the financial costs – the same level of GDP, but at a higher cost. So far, there is nothing that we don’t know.

  The oil dynamics have been changing over the years, which has been interesting to note. The most important change has been the shale revolution in the US. US oil production has boomed since 2005 due to fracking, recently resulting in the US becoming a net oil exporter and, as such, energy independent.

  

  Source: US Energy Information Administration, May 2024

  This changing dynamic has important implications regarding foreign policy and energy security. The US’s reliance on the Middle East is no longer what it once was. As a result, the US could be more hands-off in the future and potentially leave the ‘policing’ up to Europe. Presidential candidate Trump has suggested support for Ukraine could be withdrawn unless Europe increases its defence spending meaningfully. It’s fair to say that Europe needs to prepare for wavering US support and, as a result, has been scrambling to increase defence spending, which it can ill afford. 

  An escalation in the Middle East with the potential for less involvement from the US would not be good and would likely increase volatility in the price of oil. It would be in Europe’s best interest to ensure oil price stability.

  Geopolitics aside, this newfound global supply should result in excess supply. This, in theory, should mean lower prices for us all. Unfortunately, this is too simple a view; oil prices are heavily influenced by both supply (largely OPEC) and demand (economic growth) factors. Another consideration is the shift to renewable energy, which should force the price of oil downwards, assuming supply remains constant, which it won’t. This renewable energy shift has been slow; oil will likely remain the dominant energy source for years to come.

  So I ask myself, ‘is oil expensive or cheap? The answer: it depends.

  Looking at inflation-adjusted oil prices in the US, we see that prices are in fact sitting at the long run average:

  

  Source: Bloomberg, M&G, May 2024

  Prices could double from here before having a meaningful impact on the US. The moderate price of Oil is no doubt contributing to some of the strength that we currently see in the US. This does, however, bring up an interesting dynamic. As we know, oil is priced in US dollars, and countries other than the US are hostage to the price of oil in dollars. Looking at the cost of oil in a foreign currency tells a very different story. The chart below looks at the inflation adjusted price of oil in JPY:

  

  Source: Bloomberg, M&G, May 2024

  Oil prices trading at or near the highs will become problematic for the Japanese economy as they are a heavy net importer. The factors discussed above will be at play. Inflation will continue to increase as the Yen weakens, potentially forcing the BoJ’s hand to raise rates more meaningfully, which is a challenge given the debt level.

  Circling back to the oil price in US dollars, it has, in fact, been relatively stable despite the instability in the Middle East. A political misstep could see oil prices lurch higher, putting energy importers with very weak currencies in a very difficult position indeed. 

  Back in 1985, the Plaza Accord was signed, an agreement between the major economies to depreciate the dollar by intervening in currency markets. The dollar depreciated significantly as a result. There are similarities between then and now. Back then, monetary policy was tight, implemented by Paul Volker, and set against expansionary fiscal policy by the government at the time. This powerful cocktail sucked in capital, resulting in an extremely strong dollar. Sound familiar?

  In fact, just recently, the US, Japan and South Korea met to “consult closely” on currency markets. What exactly this means is unclear, but it is very interesting. Speculation is rife about whether Japan recently intervened in currency markets as the yen hit 160 to the dollar. Are we inching towards a new Plaza Accord? The stresses and strains don’t look particularly stretched when you compare the DXY ( a weighted dollar index versus international currencies) from 1985 to today, so a new Plaza Accord may be some way off:

  

  Source: Bloomberg, M&G, May 2024

  That said, the composition of the world we find ourselves in today is very different. Countries have become increasingly unstable as debt levels continue to rise and the share of GDP between developed and emerging markets has completely flipped. The US has a dual mandate of stable prices and full employment; perhaps international stability should also be a consideration.

  

  Source: IMF, May 2024

  Emerging markets and highly indebted oil importers with weak currencies will struggle to continue fighting the strong dollar due to the fact that it is the currency of international trade and settlement.

  Something is likely to break unless the Fed changes course. It’s hard to see the Fed cutting rates anytime soon, leaving us waiting for something to break. Will oil be the catalyst?

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 21:40

• How Americans Feel About Federal Government Agencies
  How Americans Feel About Federal Government Agencies

  Come election time, America won’t hesitate to show its approval or disapproval of the country’s elected political representatives. That said, feelings about the federal bureaucracy and its associated agencies are a little harder to gauge.

  Visual Capitalist’s Pallavi Rao charts the results from an opinion poll conducted by Pew Research Center between March 13-19, 2023. In it, 10,701 adults—a representative of the U.S. adult population—were asked whether they felt favorably or unfavorably towards 16 different federal government agencies.

  

  ℹ️ Access Pew Research’s methodology document to find out how they conducted their survey.

  Americans Love the Park Service, Are Divided Over the IRS

  Broadly speaking, 14 of the 16 federal government agencies garnered more favorable responses than unfavorable ones.

  Of them, the Parks Service, Postal Service, and NASA all had the approval of more than 70% of the respondents.

  

  Note: Figures are rounded. No answer responses are not shown.

  Only the Department of Education and the IRS earned more unfavorable responses, and between them, only the IRS had a majority (51%) of unfavorable responses.

  There are some caveats to remember with this data. Firstly, tax collection is a less-friendly activity than say, maintaining picturesque parks. Secondly, the survey was conducted a month before taxes were typically due, a peak time for experiencing filing woes.

  Nevertheless, the IRS has come under fire in recent years. As per a New York Times article in 2019, eight years of budget cuts have stymied the agency’s ability to scrutinize tax filings from wealthier and more sophisticated filers.

  At the same time poorer Americans are facing increasing audits on wage subsidies available to low income workers. According to a Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse report, this subset of filers was audited five-and-a-half more times the average American.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 21:20

• Pressure On China Heightens As Capital Outflow Chokes Liquidity
  Pressure On China Heightens As Capital Outflow Chokes Liquidity

  Authored by Simon Black, Bloomberg macro strategist,

  The latest money data from China shows its capital-outflow problem is worsening, pressuring policymakers to allow a further weakening in the currency.

  China released money and inflation data over the weekend. CPI and PPI were not great reading, but money supply data was even more downbeat: M2’s growth disappointed, while M1 growth is moldering, falling 1.4% year-on-year versus +1.2% expected.

  Real M1 growth is now also contracting, which is ominous for China’s thus far gingerly-improving growth.

  

  China has a capital-outflow problem that is putting pressure on liquidity.

  It has a nominally closed capital account, but we can infer capital outflow by looking at the difference between the trade surplus and official reserves at the central bank, plus FX held at other banks.

  

  Emerging markets typically have foreign reserves forming their monetary base due to the difficulty in reliably borrowing in their own currency cost efficiently. When capital leaves a country that can comfortably borrow in its own currency, the central bank can print money to replace the lost liquidity.

  But in a country like China, capital outflow leads to a mechanical fall in domestic liquidity.

  Cuts in the required reserve ratio, with another one expected next month, and interest-rate reductions can help alleviate this decline. Another lever is the currency. A weaker yuan eases the pressure on the fall in the monetary base as capital leaves.

  USD/CNY continues to bump up against the upper band of the yuan fix, signaling the pressure the currency is under.

  

  Foreign FX at banks is falling. Some of this likely due to capital outflow, but some is also due to China directing state banks to intervene to prevent the currency from weakening too far.

  

  China continues to incrementally ease to try to kickstart a post-Covid traumatized economy.

  With a low debt-to-GDP ratio, the central government has scope to borrow more. That is happening, with the Ministry of Finance today announcing it would issue the first CNY 40 billion of ultra-long special sovereign bonds of a total of CNY 1 trillion between now and November.

  Despite all this, the stock market has been recovering most of the year.

  Oversold conditions hinted a bottom was near.

  Excess liquidity (real money growth minus economic growth) is supportive for the advance to continue, as even though real money growth is weak, so is economic growth, implying there is enough “free” liquidity to find its way into the market.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 21:00

• UN Unleashes Controversy, Accusations Of Deception, Over 'Revised' Gaza Casualty Data
  UN Unleashes Controversy, Accusations Of Deception, Over ‘Revised’ Gaza Casualty Data

  Since the start of the brutal Gaza conflict in the wake of Oct.7, a public ‘info-war’ has raged over the numbers of wartime casualties, especially on the Palestinian side. Something similar happened in the Syrian war, as well as in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war: either side’s true casualties became a matter of tightly guarded internal secrets on the one hand, and an issue of public propaganda to demean the enemy and hurt their global standing on the other.

  Israel especially has faced immense international criticism of late amid allegations of ‘genocide’ given the very obviously high death toll among Gaza civilians. It is even the case that some Israeli officials have at times admitted to extraordinarily high civilian deaths during the campaign, but they have also blamed Hamas for using civilians as ‘human shields’ and launching rockets from densely populated urban areas.

  Fresh controversy has been unleashed Monday over how the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) counts the war dead, and the extent to which it relies on Palestinian and Hamas sources:

  The United Nations on Monday clarified that the overall number of fatalities in Gaza tallied by the Ministry of Health in Gaza remains unchanged, at more than 35,000, since the war broke out between Israel and Hamas on October 7.

  The clarification comes after the UN humanitarian agency OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) published a report on May 8 with revised data regarding the number of Palestinian casualties in the war. The UN agency in its report reduced the number of women and children believed to have been killed in the war by nearly half.

  The number was reduced because the UN says it is now relying on the number of deceased women and children whose names and other identifying details have been fully documented, rather than the total number of women and children killed. The ministry says bodies that arrive at hospitals get counted in the overall death count.

  

  According to more via CNN:

  UN spokesperson Farhan Haq told a daily briefing at the UN that the health ministry in Gaza recently published two separate death tolls – an overall death toll and a total number of identified fatalities. In the UN report, only the total number of fatalities whose identities (such as name and date of birth) have been documented was published, leading to confusion.

  Earlier in the day a FOX headline had alleged that the new UN figures show that almost 50% less women and children were killed than previously reported by the UN office:

  According to an infographic published in OCHA’s daily report on May 6, the number of women killed in the fighting was said to be 9,500, while the organization, which admits to relying on figures from the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza, claimed that 14,500 children had been killed since the war began on Oct. 7. 

  Two days later, in its May 8 report, the U.N. agency appeared to have cut the number nearly in half, showing instead that some 4,959 women and 7,797 children had been killed so far in the war, which began after thousands of Hamas-led terrorists infiltrated southern Israel from Gaza, slaughtering more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking some 240 people hostage. 

  

  Israel’s long-running complaint is that the Hamas-Run Gaza Health Ministry consistently exaggerates the death figures, or else tends round up or impose demographic classifications even when details of a particular death are unknown or unverified. On Monday the ministry said that total deaths since Oct.7 have surpassed 35,000.

  Critics of the UN have been quoted as saying, “U.N. agencies have consistently shown they prefer to trust the numbers coming out of Hamas-controlled sources rather than doing basic due diligence.”

  Pro-Israel critics of both the UN office and Gaza’s health ministry have pointed to deep inconsistencies in accounting for casualties and have rejected the “fog of war” defense…

  @Mike_Wagenheim @JNS_org: The Director of UNICEF Catherine Russell indicated in mid-March, she was citing Hamas health ministry numbers, 13,000 children had died in Gaza. The UN released totals yesterday showing that less than 8,000 children have died in Gaza as a result of the… pic.twitter.com/wCtvC7bxE5

  — Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) May 12, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Israel has also long maintained that a huge proportion of the total number of Palestinian deaths were actually armed Hamas combatants – and herein lies the heart of the controversy and questions over discrepancies. 

  However, it should be kept in mind that all parties to some extent admit that civilian casualties are tragically and horrifically high.

  Even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself has recently acknowledged a very high number of Palestinians civilians dead…

  Death toll in Gaza acknowledged during the extensive Dr. Phil chat with Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu:

  Israel “killed 14,000 terrorists” & a “slightly bigger number, about 16,000 civilians.”

  Netanyahu states that those civilians “were killed in the places where the… pic.twitter.com/7WRRECDY2T

  — Margaret Brennan (@margbrennan) May 12, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Ultimately, Netanyahu blamed Hamas for the Palestinian deaths, but admitted Israel “killed 14,000 terrorists” & a “slightly bigger number, about 16,000 civilians” according to a recent interview with Dr. Phil in Israel.

  The Israeli leader said those civilians “were killed in the places where the terrorists won’t let them leave” – thus ultimately seeking to absolve his own forces from any responsibility. He has also echoed this in other recent media interviews:

  “Fourteen thousand [Hamas terrorists] have been killed, combatants, and, probably around 16,000 civilians have been killed,” Netanyahu told the “Call Me Back” podcast.

  The estimate is slightly lower than the numbers provided by the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, which put the total death count at more than 35,000. The ministry’s estimate does not differentiate between terrorists and civilians.

  Still, the grim reality remains that this far outpaces civilian deaths even from more than 2-years of the Ukraine war.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 20:40

• Man Who Attacked Times Square Police Officers With Machete Sentenced To 27 Years
  Man Who Attacked Times Square Police Officers With Machete Sentenced To 27 Years

  Authored by Ryan Morgan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  A federal judge has handed down a 27-year prison sentence to the suspect who pleaded guilty to attacking a trio of New York Police Department (NYPD) officers in Times Square on New Year’s Eve 2022 in the name of radical Islamic extremism.

  

  Trevor Bickford, 20, of Wells, Maine, pleaded guilty in January to multiple counts of attempting three attempted murder charges and three charges of assaulting U.S. employees or officers just over a year prior on Dec. 31, 2022. Together, the charges carried a maximum potential penalty of up to 120 years in prison.

  On Thursday, May 9, U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel sentenced Mr. Bickford to serve 324 months in prison for the attack, a period lasting 27 years. The sentence is longer than the 10-year prison term Mr. Bickford’s lawyers requested but less than the 50-year prison term prosecutors had sought.

  During the 2022 attack, Mr. Bickford allegedly shouted “Allahu Akbar,” an Arabic phrase meaning “God is great,” that perpetrators have shouted in past Islamic extremist incidents. Federal prosecutors had alleged and were prepared to present evidence at trial, including post-Miranda statements from Mr. Bickford, indicating he had desired to travel abroad to wage “jihad” but instead chose to carry out his attack closer to home.

  The U.S. Department of Justice said Mr. Bickford had spent months consuming radical Islamist materials, “including materials promoting the Taliban and reflecting the teachings of Sheikh Abu Muhammad Al-Maqdisi, a prominent radical Islamic cleric who was a spiritual mentor of al Qaeda,” prior to carrying out the attack.

  “The defendant’s brutal ambush of three New York City police officers keeping watch over New Year’s Eve celebrations was a premeditated act of terrorism,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said Thursday.

  The New Year’s Eve attack began near the edge of a high-security zone where revelers were to be screened before joining the celebrations in Times Square. Mr. Bickford admitted to swinging a 13-inch machete-like chopping blade called a khukuri toward the heads of NYPD Officers Michael Hanna, Louis Lorio, and Paul Cozzolino, causing injuries to all three men.

  

  The three officers sustained lacerations to their heads during the attack.

  Mr. Lorio said he could barely remain conscious after a large cut to his scalp required seven stitches that night. He told the court he now has migraine headaches several days a week and is likely to be forced into retirement after a decade-long police career as he copes with anxiety and depression that cause him to “burst out crying for no reason” or cripple him with waves of sadness. Therapy, though, has helped, he added.

  Mr. Cozzolino, who had graduated from the police academy only a day before the attack, said some of his physical pain, such as headaches, will last forever.

  As he swung his blade at the NYPD officers, Mr. Bickford also allegedly attempted to take one of the officer’s guns.

  It was Mr. Hanna who, despite being injured, reportedly managed to put an end to the attack by drawing his service weapon and shooting Mr. Bickford in the shoulder.

  Mr. Bickford’s legal team pointed to mental illness as a contributing factor in the attack.

  “I understand that I left scars, physical and mental,” Mr. Bickford said when given the chance to address the court during his sentencing. “My mental illness took me down a dark path.”

  Defense attorney Marisa Cabrera said her client is “deeply remorseful.“ She said her client came from a family with a background in U.S. military service and said her client had sought to join the military before his mental illness prevented that possibility. Ms. Cabrera said her client ”has returned to his old self with the aid of medication and treatment.”

  Judge Castel noted Mr. Bickford’s history of mental health issues and his relatively young age as reasons for granting some leniency in his sentence.

  NTD News reached out to Ms. Cabrera for comment following the sentencing decision but did not receive a response by press time.

  The Associated Press contributed to this article.

  From NTD News

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 20:20

• "Combat Illegal Corporate Behavior" – Dem Lawmakers Urge Biden To Use Executive Action Against High Food Prices 
  “Combat Illegal Corporate Behavior” – Dem Lawmakers Urge Biden To Use Executive Action Against High Food Prices 

  Greedflation is a myth, and Democrats are well aware of this. However, they will never acknowledge that corporate greed isn’t the root cause of inflation, as greed tends to be constant in the economy. What changed is the overstimulation of the economy through failed Bidenomics, which involves spending $1 trillion every 100 days. 

  In the early days of Russia’s ‘special operation’ in Ukraine, the Biden administration was able to scapegoat any failed economic policy on the ‘Putin Price Hike’ narrative – but not so much anymore – as they’ve pivoted the propaganda cannon from Putin to mega-corporations through their cheerleaders at leftist corporate media outlets. Now it’s all about popular buzzwords ‘greedflation’ and ‘shrinkflation.’ 

  Shown below via Bloomberg data, headlines featuring ‘greedflation’ in corporate media spiked in the summer of 2023, right around the time the administration launched the Bidenomics propaganda campaign. We all know Bidenomics has stoked a complete inflation shitstorm. However, Biden’s team is giving greedflation one last shot ahead of the November presidential elections to deflect blame on corporations for why working poor Americans can no longer afford to pay rent, eat at restaurants, afford the $1,000 monthly auto loan, and any other luxuries they were accustomed to before the worst inflation mess since the 1970s. Basically, Goldman’s brightest warned the other day: low-income consumers are in trouble. 

  

  We suspect the greedflation narrative won’t stick—just like the failed Bidenomics campaign—because Americans are waking up to the out-of-control spending in Washington, DC. 

  But anyway, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who once identified as a Native American, and other leftist lawmakers penned a very public letter (all about optics) to the Biden administration, requesting the immediate use of executive action to lower food prices. 

  “We commend the important steps your administration has recently taken on this issue, including steps to combat illegal and unfair corporate behavior, encourage competition in the food and grocery sectors, and more. The federal government should use every possible tool to lower food prices,” Warren and other lawmakers wrote. 

  They continued, “We believe you can exercise your executive authority to take additional action to address rising food prices without congressional action. Americans are facing sky-high food prices, caused by excessive price gouging by food and grocery giants.” 

  Democrats begging for price controls sounds like what communist or socialist lawmakers in third-world countries do. Yet, these lawmakers never learn a proper lesson (look at Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela), where imposing price controls triggers shortages or surpluses, longer lines, lower quality products, and, of course, misallocation of products. 

  

  But, honesty, Democrats could care less. They have a mission of spending to bankrupt the nation literally, somehow lower prices in an inflation storm, and enable illegal aliens to vote. 

  Instead of blaming corporations, let’s remind readers again that overstimulating the economy generates price increases and windfall profits, so it’s not smart for lawmakers to do so. And this overstimulation, which Duquesne Family Office Chairman & CEO Stan Druckenmiller pointed out last week, is likely one of the biggest economic policy errors ever:

  If I was a professor, I’d give them an F. Basically, they misdiagnosed COVID and thought it was — we were going into a depression. The Fed did, too. I worried about it, too, in early days. The Fed eventually pivoted, better late than never. Treasury — Treasury is still acting like we’re in a depression.

  We outlined last summer that “stealth stimulus” was propelling Bidenomics, with the government spending  $1 trillion every 100 days. Now, with stagflationary threats emerging, the US economic situation is quickly deteriorating. 

  And here’s what comes next when the government starts calling for price controls, as explained by Alt-Market’s Brandon Smith:

  This same pattern has been witnessed from 1920s Weimar Germany to 1970s America to 1990s Yugoslavia to 2000s Argentina and Venezuela and beyond. But what happens next? In each case the trend leads first to price controls on producers and distributors, which ultimately fail. Then comes government rationing and the complete takeover of necessities including the food supply.

  Smith continued:

  The problem is simple, price controls lead to lost profit incentive which leads to less production. Less production leads to less supply and less supply leads to rising prices. This is on top of the root cancer that is fiat money creation. Politicians will rarely if ever address the actual cause of an inflationary crisis:  The government and the central banks. Instead, they try to blame free markets, “greedy” businesses and profit taking in times of distress.

  He concluded:

  Historically speaking, though, both Democrat and Republican presidents have tried price controls in the past. Public pressure must be applied (at the state level at minimum) to stop this from happening. As convenient as it might seem to blame producers and distributors, the real threat is coming from governments and banks. We cannot let the people who caused the crisis also benefit from it by giving them even more power.

  It’s a slippery slope from here… 

  *    *    * 

  Here’s the full letter:

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 20:00

• 'I Gave Up Shame Years Ago': Clinton Denounces Trump For Doing What She Did In 2016
  ‘I Gave Up Shame Years Ago’: Clinton Denounces Trump For Doing What She Did In 2016

  Authored by Jonathan Turley,

  “I gave up shame years ago.” Those words from actor John Lithgow appear to have been taken to heart by Hillary Clinton who has severed any sense of self-awareness or shame in her public comments. Lithgow, who played Bill Clinton in Broadway production of Hillary and Clinton, appears to have inspired the subject of his play. In a recent interview, Hillary Clinton heralded the prosecution of former president Donald Trump in Manhattan as “election interference” by keeping “relevant information” from voters before an election. For those of us who criticized Clinton for the funding of the infamous Steele dossier, it was a perfectly otherworldly moment.

  

  In the interview, Clinton went after the Supreme Court for delaying a trial of Trump despite the push by Special Counsel Jack Smith for a verdict before the election. She then left many in disbelief with the following statement:

  “And the one going on now currently in New York is really about election interference. It is about trying to prevent the people of our country from having relevant information that may have influenced how they could have voted in 2016 or whether they would have voted.”

  In the same election, it was Hillary Clinton’s campaign that lied about funding the Steele dossier and then hiding the funding as a legal expense through then Clinton General Counsel Marc Elias.

  

  (MSNBC/via YouTube)

  The Clinton campaign staff has never been known for transparency. Buried in the detailed account is a  footnote stating that Elias “declined to be voluntarily interviewed by the Office.” Likewise, John Durham noted that “no one at Fusion GPS … would agree to voluntarily speak with the Office” while both the DNC and Clinton campaign invoked privileges to refuse to answer certain questions.

  Elias, his former partner Michael Sussmann, and the campaign were later found involved in not just spreading the false claims from the Steele dossier but other false stories like the Alfa Bank conspiracy claim.

  It was Elias who managed the legal budget for the campaign. We now know that the campaign hid the funding of the Steele dossier as a legal expense.

  New York Times reporter Ken Vogel said that Elias denied involvement in the anti-Trump dossier. When Vogel tried to report the story, he said, Elias “pushed back vigorously, saying ‘You (or your sources) are wrong.’” Times reporter Maggie Haberman declared, “Folks involved in funding this lied about it, and with sanctimony, for a year.”

  Elias was also seated next to John Podesta, Clinton’s campaign chairman, when he was asked about the role of the campaign, he denied categorically any contractual agreement with Fusion GPS. Even assuming that Podesta was kept in the dark, the Durham Report clearly shows that Elias knew and played an active role in pushing this effort.

  Elias is now ironically advising Democratic campaigns on election ethics and running a group to “defend democracy.” He is still counsel to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) headed by Rep. Suzan Kay DelBene, D-Wash. Elias was later severed by the Democratic National Committee from further representation and has been previously sanctioned in federal court in other litigation.

  Notably, the Federal Election Commission sanctioned the Clinton campaign for hiding the funding as a legal expense. The Clinton campaign litigated the issue and insisted that the term is broadly used to cover a wide array of payments through counsel. That is precisely what the Trump team is arguing in the Manhattan case.

  Lying to the media and hiding the funding was a conscious effort to hide “relevant information that may have influenced” voters. With the help of the media, these false stories were spread throughout the country and later were used to start the Russian collusion investigation.

  Famous philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal once declared that “the only shame is to have none.” Hillary has finally achieved that ignoble status. She appears now to have lost even the capacity for shame.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 19:40

• Pro-Israel PAC Guns For Massie – Did Speaker Johnson Encourage Attack?
  Pro-Israel PAC Guns For Massie – Did Speaker Johnson Encourage Attack?

  A prominent pro-Israel super PAC is gunning for Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, in retribution for his many recent votes against bills that advance Israel’s agenda in Washington. The group may have had some high-placed encouragement: Massie says House Speaker Mike Johnson recently threatened to sic the Israel lobby on Republicans who didn’t toe the pro-Israel line. 

  

  The vaguely-named United Democracy Project — the independent campaign-spending arm of the mighty American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) — announced that it’s pouring $300,000 into advertisements on Fox television affiliates in Massie’s home state of Kentucky. “We are trying to shine a light on the radical anti-Israel record of Tom Massie,” spokesman Patrick Dorton told the Louisville Courier Journal. “We want every single voter in the state of Kentucky to know about his anti-Israel actions.”

  With its statewide attack, AIPAC likely intends to influence the 2026 election as well: McClatchyDC reports that Massie is considered to be one of three favorites for the 2026 Republican nomination to replace retiring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. 

  Clearly crafted to appeal to the religious right, the 30-second ad says “Israel, the Holy Land under attack by Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah…and Congressman Tom Massie,” and points to 15 Massie votes in April against measures favored by Israel’s advocates inside the United States. The ad concludes by saying, “Everyone who cares about the Holy Land needs to know: Tom Massie is hostile to Israel.”  

  https://t.co/hEJYFaBcPp pic.twitter.com/yoIdIg0pEX

  — United Democracy Project (@UnitedDemocProj) May 9, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Rather than having “attacked the Holy Land,” Massie has simply tried to defend the US Treasury from being plundered for the benefit of a foreign country that’s among the world’s richest.

  When Speaker Mike Johnson announced he would advance a bill to give another $14.3 billion to Israel, Massie — knowing he would face the wrath and perhaps the dollars of the Israel lobby — tweeted that he would vote “no.” His rationale: “Israel has a lower debt-to-GDP ratio than the United States. This spending package has no offsets, so it will increase our debt by $14.3 billion plus interest.”

  Massie also tried to defend the First Amendment, as one of only 19 representatives voting against the Antisemitism Awareness Act. Still pending in the Senate, it characterizes various statements about Israel as being antisemitic, subjecting colleges and universities to civil rights enforcement action if someone says the wrong thing. “Policing speech, religion and assembly is not the role of the federal government. In fact, it’s expressly prohibited by the U.S. Constitution,” said Massie. 

  Kentucky’s Republican primary will be held on Tuesday, May 21. Massie, a star of the libertarian movement, is being opposed by two GOP challengers, Eric Deters and Michael McGinnis. 

  Via his campaign’s X account, Massie said the pro-Israel super PAC was targeting him “because I am often the lone Republican for freedom of speech, against foreign aid, and opposed to wars in the Middle East.” He added that he was “urgently requesting” like-minded Americans to help him thwart the attack by donating to his campaign.   

  Massie told the Courier Journal there’s reason to think Johnson may have encouraged the AIPAC to give Massie’s primary challengers some indirect help:

  “This week in our GOP conference meeting, as members groused about blowback from the latest anti-antisemitism resolution, Speaker Johnson pledged to call his contacts at Jewish/Israel groups if [dissident GOP representatives] mustered opposition…

  This, and the timing of the ad announcement, does raise the question of whether the ads were suggested by or sanctioned by Speaker Johnson.”

  In addition to now being creatively accused of attacking the Holy Land, Massie has endured baseless accusations of antisemitism, including this gem from the editor of Commentary magazine: 

  Of course you’re a no, you disingenuous piece of anti-Semitic filth. https://t.co/pI4FM6hdm5

  — John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) February 4, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Massie has previously suggested that AIPAC’s role in US politics amounts to “foreign interference in our elections.” Critics called that sentiment an antisemitic “trope.” Undeterred, Massie last week posted a poll asking if AIPAC should be forced to register as an agent of Israel under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).  

  Foreign interest lobbying group AIPAC is running $300,000 of ads as part of a pressure campaign to influence my votes in Congress.

  The Foreign Agents Registration Act requires agents of foreign principals to register & disclose certain information. Should AIPAC register w/FARA?

  — Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) May 10, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 19:20

• Will The Fed Lose Control?
  Will The Fed Lose Control?

  Authored by Ron Paul via The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity,

  According to new reports from the Social Security and Medicare trustees, Social Security and a Medicare fund that pays for hospital expenses will both begin running deficits in 2035 and 2036. Disappointingly, but not surprisingly, Congress was too preoccupied spending billions more on military aid for foreign countries and banning TikTok to pay attention to the looming bankruptcy of the two largest federal entitlement programs.

  Many in Congress no doubt believe they can ignore the impending bankruptcy of Social Security and Medicare because they can count on the Federal Reserve to do the “dirty work” of cutting real benefits and raising taxes.

  This result can be produced via the hidden, and regressive, “inflation tax.”

  The Federal Reserve makes the debt-financed welfare-warfare state possible by monetizing the federal debt.

  

  This is one reason why, even though interest on the debt is now the third largest item in the federal budget behind Social Security and Medicare and ahead of military spending, there are so few in Congress serious about cutting welfare or warfare. Those few who seek real spending cuts in welfare are smeared as “heartless” while those seeking real cuts in warfare are smeared as “anti-American” by the uniparty.

  The government’s excessive spending and debt is leading to what some economists call “fiscal dominance.” Fiscal dominance occurs when a central bank must prioritize monetizing ever higher levels of government debt, giving Congress de facto control over monetary policy.

  The Federal Reserve’s purchase of federal debt will result in price inflation. It will also encourage more government spending by reinforcing the uniparty delusion that, as former Vice President Dick Cheney said, “deficits don’t matter.” The Federal Reserve’s inflationary policies artificially lower the interest rates, which are the price of money. The artificially low interest rates distort the signals sent to investors and entrepreneurs, leading to malinvestment. This creates bubbles resulting in illusionary prosperity. Eventually, economic reality will catch up with the Fed-created illusions and the bubbles will burst, causing an economic downturn.

  The next economic crisis will likely either be caused by or result in a rejection of the dollar’s world reserve currency status. Congress will be forced to make drastic cuts in spending while the Fed will be enabled to monetize the debt. This will result in massive public unrest potentially resulting in violence, the rise of authoritarian movements on the left and right, and increasing authoritarianism.

  The only way to avoid this fate is for a critical mass of Americans to demand Congress immediately begin rolling back the welfare-warfare state, starting with our bloated military budget. The savings from this can be used to help protect those currently reliant on government welfare and entitlement programs as those programs are phased out and the job of providing aid is returned to private charities, churches, and local communities. Congress should also rein in the Federal Reserve by passing the Audit the Fed bill, legalizing alternative currencies, and forbidding the Fed from purchasing government debt.

  Since the 2008 meltdown, Federal Reserve apologists have spent a lot of time saying that Audit the Fed puts Congress in charge of monetary policy while ignoring the fact that a real threat to the central bank’s autotomy is the growth in federal spending and debt. The goal, though, should be to abolish the Federal Reserve, not protect it. Those who truly want a monetary system free from political interference should join the movement to restore government’s constitutional limits and separate money and state.  

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 19:00

• "Sand Volcano" Emerges In Central Florida
  “Sand Volcano” Emerges In Central Florida

  Devo Seereeram, a Consulting Geotechnical Engineer and the owner of Devo Engineering has deemed the anomaly that has emerged in Central Florida to be a “sand volcano”. 

  The issue surfaced at a 300-million-gallon wastewater reservoir located west of State Road 429 in Apopka, near Golden Gem Road. This facility holds water intended for irrigating Apopka, Altamonte Springs, and nearby regions. It stores excess rainwater for use during dry periods, according to FOX 35.

  But mother earth has responded that the facility may not be located at the best possible location, Seereeram said: “This is ‘Mother Nature’ telling us we can’t do certain things, and we are going to respect that and respond and modify.”

  Speaking about the facility, Seereeram continued: “It’s one of the most important facilities we can be built in Central Florida. From an environmental standpoint, there’s absolutely no way we can keep putting treated wastewater into our streams, directly into the streams anymore.”

  

  FOX 35 reported that the construction team excavated too deeply and excessively thinned the land while building the storage area. This overburdened the ground, leading to a collapse similar to snow breaking through a roof.

  A sinkhole formed, and the combined air and water pressure ruptured a protective tarp, releasing 130 million gallons of water back into the upper Floridan aquifer and forming a sand volcano.

  Devo Engineering has previously addressed similar issues and is planning to reinforce and fill in parts of the land, reducing storage capacity but preventing further sand volcanoes. The engineers are now racing against time to complete the repairs before Central Florida’s rainy season begins, the report says.

  Seereeram concluded: “Here we have a situation where we have, fortunately, discovered it early. But it gave us enough time. So it was not a catastrophic release of water like a dam failure.”

  What’s the over/under on how long it takes Democrats to blame this obviously man-made anomaly on climate change, before using it to try and pass trillions of dollars in new spending?

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 18:40

• Leftists Triggered By Trump Policy To Potentially Execute Child Sex-Traffickers
  Leftists Triggered By Trump Policy To Potentially Execute Child Sex-Traffickers

  Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

  Leftist outlet The Huffington Post is upset that Donald Trump has suggested that the death penalty should be extended to drug kingpins and child sex traffickers.

  

  In an article headlined “There’s A GOP Plan For An Execution Spree If Trump Wins The White House,” the outlet points to remarks Trump made two years ago.

  The Huffington Post is freaking out that #DonaldTrump allies are planning to expand the #deathpenalty to include sexual abuse of children – There’s A #GOP Plan For An Execution #Spree If Trump Wins The White House – https://t.co/07ovo9g9Sv

  — Jeff Hertzog (@_jeffhertzog) May 11, 2024

  He stated that while it “sounds horrible” to advocate for the death penalty, countries that don’t have a “drug problem” are “those that institute a very quick trial, death penalty sentence” for traffickers.

  “You execute a drug dealer, and you’ll save 500 lives, because they kill on average 500 people,” Trump asserted at the time.

  The article cites former Trump DOJ official Gene Hamilton, noting that he previously advocated pursuing the death penalty for violent criminals, particularly those convicted of sexual abuse of children. 

  Hamilton wrote that the DOJ “should also pursue the death penalty for applicable crimes—particularly heinous crimes involving violence and sexual abuse of children—until Congress says otherwise through legislation.”

  By referring to past court decisions, the piece subtly argues that the death penalty for child rape “would violate constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment.”

  It also negatively points to efforts in states such as Florida to expand the death penalty to such horrific crimes, before pointing out that Joe Biden has previously opposed execution entirely, but is currently remaining silent.

  The article then points to multiple bills in the House and Senate that seek to abolish the death penalty for any crime.

  Why is the left apparently triggered by the suggestion to extend the death penalty to make it an option for convicted violent child rapists?

  *  *  *

  Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 18:20

Digest powered by RSS Digest

• Shocking Headline Of The Day: Germany To Re-Introduce Slavery
  Shocking Headline Of The Day: Germany To Re-Introduce Slavery

  Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

  Young Germans will have to choose between the Bundeswehr (military service) and unpaid social service work. Libertarians to a person, will call this slavery, because that is what it is.

  

  Germany to Re-Introduce Slavery

  Please consider the Eurointelligence headline story Germany to Re-Introduce Slavery

  The headline might be bordering on the hysterical, but the big idea in German politics right now is to re-introduce the general draft. This is not happening because Germany expects to be at war. It is not about the military at all. Under the plans, young people, male and female, can choose between the Bundeswehr or a year of forced labour in the social services, essentially uncompensated.

  The main reason we see is that their fiscal rules have depleted them with the resources to fund the Bundeswehr and critical social services like old-age care. For example, there is a big row going on right now within the coalition currently between Boris Pistorius, the defence minister, and Christian Lindner, over Pistorius’ demands for another €6bn for the Bundeswehr. The discussions on the reintroduction of the draft are at an early stage. They won’t affect the current budget dispute. But it could go some way to fix the Bundeswehr’s budget issues.

  The SPD leader Lars Klingbeil sugar-coated the idea as giving young people an opportunity to serve the state at one point in their lives. Another underlying assumption is that young people are infinitely stupid. German high school goes until the age of 19. This is higher than elsewhere because German children do not start school until they are 6. With a year of enforced military or social services, they won’t start their studies or apprenticeship until they are 20. A Bachelor’s degree takes three, but this is usually not sufficient. So they will be 24 or 25 when they hit the labour market. This puts them at a distinct disadvantage to young people elsewhere.

  We expect mass emigration as a result. Young Ukrainian men who try to escape the draft often do so at the risk of their lives. Romanian police have discovered bodies of young Ukrainians trying to swim through the Tisa river into Romania. Young Germans won’t have to swim through the Rhine. They can just go anywhere within the Schengen area, and study where they like. For a country that is facing structural labour shortages, the re-introduction of the draft is about the worst policy decision imaginable. The smart people will leave.

  The political support is strengthening. The FDP has called for it. The SPD is also now in favour. The CDU says it is open to a discussion. The AfD will naturally support it. The Greens and the Left Party are opposed, but that won’t be enough to stop it.

  Not an “Opportunity”

  What’s being proposed is not an opportunity. It’s a mandate for servitude.

  I don’t know if it would pass, but Eurointelligence knows more about the internals of German politics than anyone else, so I expect forced servitude is on a train for passage at the moment.

  Mass emigration would undoubtedly be the result. Who wants to give up four years of their life taking care of immigrants, elderly, or preparing for war?

  And the more you prepare for war, the more like it is. Vietnam would not have happened without a draft. Mass protests finally ended it.

  Liberty at Stake

  I replied to a reader moments ago, about unalienable Rights, before I saw the Eurointelligence story.

  In response to Hospitals Turn to Pay In Advance, In Full a reader said there was a “right” to healthcare.

  I responded there was no such right.

  From the Declaration of Independence “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

  I love the wording “unalienable” and “self-evident”. No one can take those rights away.

  I oppose the draft and support anyone anywhere, especially Ukrainians, who decides is is their unalienable right to “liberty” and “pursuit of happiness”, no matter what the government of Ukraine says and does.

  Vivek Ramaswamy

  I seriously cannot understand why many alleged Libertarians support Vivek Ramaswamy.

  For example, Vivek Ramaswamy, the youngest GOP presidential candidate, wants civics tests for young voters 18 to 24

  Though he’s campaigning as the “young” candidate, Ramaswamy would like to make it a little harder for the nation’s youngest voters to cast a ballot. 

  He’s proposing a constitutional amendment that would require citizens 18 to 24 to pass a civics test in order to vote — the same one immigrants take to become naturalized U.S. citizens. Under his proposal, young Americans could, as an alternative, perform six months of military or first-responder service. But if none of these requirements are met, they would have to wait until they turn 25 before they could vote in their first election.

  The Ramaswamy campaign emphasized that this isn’t a plan to raise the voting age because younger voters would still be able to participate if they met the requirements. But Ramaswamy has previously used language that explicitly stated he would try to raise the voting age. 

  “People like Vivek Ramaswamy who are using their age as an element to try and stand out to Gen-Z, they’re very obviously wolves in sheep’s clothing,” said Lucas Robinson, a young voter from Texas. “People our age can really see through people like that.”

  Savanah Now comments “It’s worth noting that Politico reported this year that even Ramaswamy’s own campaign staff didn’t like the idea. The Washington Post reports that younger conservatives don’t like it.”

  Of course, younger voters don’t like it. And if Trump was dumb enough to pick Vivek as his running mate, it could easily cost Trump the election.

  From Vivek2024.Com “The United States faces a 25% recruitment deficit in the military and just 16% of Gen Z say they’re proud to be American. The absence of national pride is a serious threat to our Republic’s survival. At a time when young Americans are taught to celebrate their differences, Civic Duty Voting – and in particular the service path – creates a sense of shared purpose and experience. Serving your nation, knowing something about your nation, or at least living in your nation for a short time as an adult isn’t too much to ask. Our lost civic pride won’t reappear automatically. Reviving it will require boldness.”

  If that does not sound like support for a draft, what does?

  Flashback to the 60s

  Also consider Vivek Ramaswamy wants young voters to pass a civics test. These Americans call it a flashback to the 1960s.

  Today, some Black Americans say Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s proposal to implement a civics test for voters ages 18 to 24 gives them flashbacks to the hurdles.

  Though the 15th amendment guaranteed the right for Black men to vote, some Southern states passed literacy test requirements and offered exemptions for white people after the Civil War, Olga Koulisis, assistant professor of history at Murray State University, explained.

  Vivek Could Not Pass His Own Civics Test

  AP News comments: Nikki Haley promises to send American special forces into Mexico. Vivek Ramaswamy has accused Mexico’s leader of treating drug cartels as his “sugar daddy” and says that if he is elected president, “there will be a new daddy in town.”

  Politico quotes Vivek: Using military force on cartels without Mexico’s permission “would not be the preferred option, but we would absolutely be willing to do it,” entrepreneur and conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy said in an interview.

  Bombing Mexico to stop the drug trade, a clear act of war. It’s not the preferred method, but’s that’s OK, he would do it anyway.

  Vivek could not pass his own civics test on who gets to declare war. Notably, his position is close to that of Nikki Haley.

  Vivek, Not a Libertarian

  Vivek is no Libertarian. He’s a charlatan who all along had a single mission, running for Vice President.

  A draft, or forced servitude by any means, is in direct conflict with the unalienable right to liberty. Thus, anyone who says they believe in unalienable rights but supports a draft under any circumstances either does not understand the word unalienable or is a liar,

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 05/13/2024 – 02:00

• RFK Jr. Unleashed: Biden's Israel "Bait And Switch", COVID Censorship, And Backing Treasuries With Gold And Bitcoin
  RFK Jr. Unleashed: Biden’s Israel “Bait And Switch”, COVID Censorship, And Backing Treasuries With Gold And Bitcoin

  Submitted by QTR’s Fringe Finance

  This weekend I had the pleasure of sitting down with independent 2024 Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for an hourlong interview.

  Our interview started with me asking Mr. Kennedy why, if you don’t follow the mainstream media narrative, you are automatically painted in a vile and unfavorable light. He told me: “I think a lot of it is driven by, or fortified at least, by financial interests. Upton Sinclair made this very, very useful statement that it’s almost impossible to persuade a man of a fact if the existence of that fact will diminish his salary.”

  “And we know that the media is dependent on the people that I’ve been suing and critical of for many, many years: the military-industrial complex, the pharmaceutical industry, big oil and coal, the carbon incumbents and big polluters, processed food companies like Kellogg’s, and the people who are poisoning a generation of American kids,” he continued.

  “People who challenge that narrative are outsiders. They become heretics. You cannot debate a heretic; you have to burn them down at the stake. You have to punish them.”

  He continued, talking about pushback from the Covid era: “And I think the way that I look at this, a lot of what I experienced, what a lot of dissenters experienced during COVID or during the McCarthy era or other parts of our history, or, you know, you can see this in countries all around the world, is that dissenters have to be silenced.”

  ---

  Listen to the full hourlong exclusive interview here.

  ---

  “And, you know, one of the ways you do that is through character assassination by applying pejoratives to them that marginalize them. Pejoratives like ‘anti-vaxxer,’ ‘conspiracy theorist,’ ‘anti-science,’ ‘quack’—all of these pejoratives that have been applied to me—it’s a way of silencing me so that nobody has to listen to me because I’m a lunatic, I’m a crazy person,” he told me.

  Explaining further, he said: “And really, what I do, what they call ‘conspiracy theories,’ is me saying, ‘Well, wait a minute. Are you sure these COVID vaccines are going to prevent transmission?’ Which I said in, you know, March of 2020 or May of 2020. And I was saying that because I was looking at the monkey studies, and in the monkeys, they did not prevent transmission.”

  “And yet, Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates and, you know, all of the panjandrums of the medical cartel were up there saying, ‘Do what you’re told. You’re protecting grandma. Protect society. If you take it, it will not spread. You cannot spread it to others.’ And I was looking at the monkey study and saying, ‘There is nothing in these studies that indicate that’s true.’ But when I raised it, that became a conspiracy theory,” he told me.

  He added: “When I suggested that glyphosate, which is the active ingredient of Roundup, was carcinogenic, that was a conspiracy theory — until we won a $2.2 billion jury verdict.”

  

  Mr. Kennedy continued, explaining that the mainstream media drove the narrative during Covid: “We heard from the outset of COVID, repeated again and again on CNN and all the other networks, MSNBC, that you have to trust the experts. Don’t do research yourself. Shut off your capacity for critical thinking. People who go and actually do their own research on the Internet are contemptible, you know, for this.”

  Then he explained why this logic simply doesn’t make sense: “And it was such a weird thing because that ‘trusting the experts’ is not a thing. It’s certainly not a feature of democracy. It’s not a feature of science. It’s the opposite of science. In science, you’re supposed to question everything. In democracy, you’re supposed to question authority. It is a feature of totalitarian governments, and it is a feature of religion.”

  When I asked Mr. Kennedy how we can more fairly assess and debate issues in the future, instead of having to wait for the official narratives to fail — as just happened with Chris Cuomo and ivermectin, as well as the pulling of the AstraZeneca vaccine off of the market — he told me: “We need to raise our children, we need to educate our public to sniff out that bias. And, you know, bias can be financial conflicts of interest, but there are all kinds of biases. There are biases that come from being raised in certain areas, raised in certain neighborhoods, members of certain clubs, and just, you know, the bias that we all have.”

  ---

  🔥 65% off today only: Readers can take 65% off a full year subscription – a discount they can keep for life – by using this link: Zero Hedge 65

  ---

  Kennedy summed it up: “If we’re really going to live fulfilling lives and lives of enlightenment, we have to undergo a process of self-questioning, of self-examination to eliminate biases.

  “And as a country, as a democracy, if we’re going to fulfill our destiny as the world’s exemplary nation, we need to be educating our citizens to have that practice about government institutions.”

  I then asked for Mr. Kennedy’s response to Joe Biden’s recent decision to withhold aid from Israel. He told me: “I think Israel’s war is a moral war. They’ve been attacked for 16 years by Hamas. And then, on October 7th, in this, you know, extraordinarily brutal invasion, every nation has a right to self-defense. And, you know, self-defense means destroying Hamas.”

  “It’s not Israel’s fault that Hamas uses civilian shields. Any other country, any nation faced with this kind of onslaught from a militarily superior nation, would give up and surrender to save their civilian population. Why is Hamas not doing that?” he added.

  “Hamas has no negotiating position. It says that the only concession that Israel could make is the annihilation of the Jewish state. And it actually has, in its charter and in all of its public statements, said that any negotiation with Israel is a violation of Islamic law, except as a ruse.”

  Mr. Kennedy continued, explaining that Israel has “no choice” but to destroy Hamas: “So people are out there demanding a ceasefire, but there have been five ceasefires, and every ceasefire Hamas has used to regroup, to rearm, to hoist the banner, and then to do another surprise attack. Well, I don’t see that Israel has any choice but to destroy Hamas.”

  Speaking about the collateral damage of the war, he commented: “Of course, it’s horrible. The civilian deaths are horrifying to all of us. But look, if you have a bank robbery and one of the robbers takes a hostage, is holding a hostage in his arms as a shield and firing at the police, and the police fire back and the hostage by mistake is killed, you don’t blame the police. The law and public opinion blame the bank robber. And the same thing is true in Gaza. Hamas is victimizing the Palestinian people. It’s pursuing an agenda by Iran, and the Palestinian people are suffering. Gaza should be one of the, you know, it should be a Mecca of economic development.”

  Responding directly to President Biden withholding aid, he commented: “President Biden pulled a kind of bait-and-switch, and I think the longer they prolong the war—and U.S. policy, President Biden’s policy, has, I think, prolonged the war and amplified the human suffering. I think the best thing for Palestine, for Gaza, is if the war ends quickly, which means the elimination of Hamas as quickly as possible and with as little civilian casualties as possible.”

  “And, you know, President Biden went to Congress with a $23 billion aid package, and now he’s not, on that pretense that he was going to get weapons, allowing the purchase of weapons by Israel.”

  Putting the conflict in context, Mr. Kennedy told me: “It’s weird that people say that the only country that shouldn’t be doing this is the one Jewish state. And by the way, there are much bloodier battles with much higher civilian casualties going on right now. In Yemen, I think 300,000 kids have been killed. In Syria, the Uighurs in China, there are conflicts happening all over the world right now, and nobody talks about them, and nobody cares. In the Congo, a million people have already died, and nobody talks about it.”

  “The only thing people want to talk about is when Jews start defending themselves, and there’s something very disturbing about that.”

  When I asked Mr. Kennedy how he plans on managing the country’s budget, given all of our foreign aid, and how he plans on protecting the sanctity of our country’s economy and the U.S. dollar, he explained: “You know, we need to cut our military budget probably in half. We need to cut chronic disease in our country, which is our biggest expense. That’s $4.3 trillion a year. We need to cut waste in government, and there are ways we can do that now that AI can actually help us do in ways we’ve never been able to before.”

  “I’m going to use all of those tools, but we also need to understand that we need to make investments in America’s future and grow our economy. You can’t just cut your way out of inflation. We need to create new industries, we need to reindustrialize our economy, and we need to make our economy larger so that the budget deficits become proportionately smaller.”

  “But, you know, we need to start by making the cuts, and that needs to happen very, very quickly.”

  When I asked him about sound money and possibly returning to a gold standard, he told me: “One of the issues that we’re toying with now is a Treasury bill that is based at least partially—maybe starting at one percent and increasing it—on a hard currency. On base currencies, like maybe a basket of currencies that include platinum, gold, silver, and Bitcoin. You know, my uncle tried to do something like this just before he died with the silver certificate and the gold certificate, to give Americans a hedge against inflation.

  “And there are lots of ways we can do that. We’re talking about making, for example, Bitcoin available and stopping the war against Bitcoin so that middle-class people, working-class people who want to hedge against inflation can do that. They don’t have to rely on fiat currency.”

  “And that will insert a discipline into the printing of money. If Americans have a choice, it will inject a discipline into the printing of money that we do not have right now.”

  You can listen to the full hour long interview audio at this link.

  

  QTR’s Disclaimer: Please read my full legal disclaimer on my About page here. In addition, please understand I am an idiot and often get things wrong and lose money. I may own or transact in any names mentioned in this piece at any time without warning. Contributor posts and aggregated posts have been hand selected by me, have not been fact checked and are the opinions of their authors. They are either submitted to QTR by their author, reprinted under a Creative Commons license with my best effort to uphold what the license asks, or with the permission of the author. This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any stocks or securities, just my opinions. I often lose money on positions I trade/invest in. I may add any name mentioned in this article and sell any name mentioned in this piece at any time, without further warning. None of this is a solicitation to buy or sell securities. These positions can change immediately as soon as I publish this, with or without notice. You are on your own. Do not make decisions based on my blog. I exist on the fringe. The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided in this page. These are not the opinions of any of my employers, partners, or associates. I did my best to be honest about my disclosures but can’t guarantee I am right; I write these posts after a couple beers sometimes. Also, I just straight up get shit wrong a lot. I mention it twice because it’s that important.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 23:30

• CFTC Aims To Ban Derivatives Based On Elections, Athletic Competitions And Awards Contests
  CFTC Aims To Ban Derivatives Based On Elections, Athletic Competitions And Awards Contests

  Previously enjoyed betting on the outcome of an event, like a Presidential election? The CFTC wants to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

  According to the Wall Street Journal, the regulator is now targeting “derivatives contracts based on political elections, athletic competitions and awards contests” to try and draw more prominent lines between investing and gambling. 

  The Commodity Futures Trading Commission proposed a regulation to oversee event contracts, a rapidly growing market where investors bet on event outcomes, the report said. 

  The proposed regulation won’t affect sports betting through traditional sportsbooks regulated by state commissions or popular online platforms like DraftKings. Nor will it impact offshore platforms like Betfair, which currently allows U.S. election bets.

  The proposal, approved 3-2 along party lines, will undergo public review before a final vote in the coming months. Democratic commissioners emphasized the potential threat to election integrity posed by political event contracts, particularly with a Biden-Trump rematch looming.

  Christy Goldsmith Romero, a Democratic commissioner, said: “Never before has the sanctity of elections been so critical or so under threat. The CFTC should not allow products in our markets with an unacceptable risk of unchecked abuse and manipulation that could threaten the sanctity of elections, thereby threatening democracy and national security.”

  

  Yet the proposal was called “grossly overbroad” by Summer Mersinger, a Republican commissioner, the report noted. 

  One company that offers “yes” or “no” betting questions has been Kalshi. Event contracts, though small compared to stocks or futures, have grown rapidly since Kalshi launched in 2021. Recent Kalshi contracts included wagers on whether “Oppenheimer” would win Best Picture and if Columbia University’s president would be ousted. 

  CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam, a Democrat supporting the proposal, noted that more event contracts were listed in 2021 than in the previous 15 years combined. 

  The CFTC has previously blocked U.S. trading platforms from launching political betting markets. Last year, it prevented Kalshi from offering contracts based on which party controls Congress, prompting Kalshi to sue the agency in November over the rejection.

  “We look forward to continuing to engage with our regulators and Congress, as we have always done, to ensure that our customers can participate in legitimate trading with legitimate use cases on a legitimate, regulated exchange and not on offshore and illegal markets where there is no customer protection or market integrity,”  Mansour told WSJ. 

  CFTC regulations established after the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act prohibit event contracts involving terrorism, assassination, war, gaming, or illegal activities, but the lack of a clear definition of “gaming” led to disputes over whether it applies to sports and political contracts, prompting Friday’s proposal to explicitly ban wagers on elections, sports, or awards contests.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 23:00

• The New York Times Denounces Cancel Culture… After Fueling Cancel Culture For Years
  The New York Times Denounces Cancel Culture… After Fueling Cancel Culture For Years

  Authored by Jonathan Turley,

  For those of us who have criticized the cancel culture in higher education for years, the attacks and shunning have been unrelenting. The media has played a role in that culture and none more prominently than the New York Times. Recently, however, the mob came for liberal professors and media who have remained silent for years as conservatives and others were targeted on campus.

  Suddenly, there is a new interest in free speech and academic freedom, including by the Times editors who blamed cancel culture for the recent demonstrations and disruptions on campus.

  

  Until good liberals were targeted on campus, cancel culture was treated as free speech. It did not matter that preventing others from speaking or being heard is the very antithesis of free speech.

  The New York Times reached true infamy in the controversy over publishing Sen. Tom Cotton’s (R., Ark.) op-ed where he argued for the possible use of national guard to quell violent riots around the White House.

  It was one of the lowest points in the history of modern American journalism. Cotton was calling for the use of the troops to restore order in Washington after days of rioting around the White House.  While Congress would “call in the troops” six months later to quell the rioting at the Capitol on January 6th, New York Times reporters and columnists called the column historically inaccurate and politically inciteful.

  Reporters insisted that Cotton was even endangering them by suggesting the use of troops and insisted that the newspaper cannot feature people who advocate political violence. One year later, the New York Times published a column by an academic who had previously declared that there is nothing wrong with murdering conservatives and Republicans.

  Later, former editors came forward to denounce the cancel culture at the Times and the censorship of opposing views.

  At the same time, the Times has embraced “advocacy journalism.” Former New York Times writer (and now Howard University Journalism Professor) Nikole Hannah-Jones is a leading voice for advocacy journalism. Indeed, Hannah-Jones has declared “all journalism is activism.”

  Now, however, liberal professors and writers are being targeted. After years of turning a blind eye to conservative and libertarian figures being purged from faculties or canceled in events, the Times is alarmed that

  …students and other demonstrators disrupting college campuses this spring are being taught the wrong lesson — for as admirable as it can be to stand up for your beliefs, there are no guarantees that doing so will be without consequence.

  What is most striking is how the editors chastise administrators for lacking the courage that they have not shown for years in standing up to their cultural warriors:

  For several years, many university leaders have failed to act as their students and faculty have shown ever greater readiness to block an expanding range of views that they deem wrong or beyond the pale. Some scholars report that this has had a chilling effect on their work, making them less willing to participate in the academy or in the wider world of public discourse. The price of pushing boundaries, particularly with more conservative ideas, has become higher and higher…

  It has not gone unnoticed — on campuses but also by members of Congress and by the public writ large — that many of those who are now demanding the right to protest have previously sought to curtail the speech of those whom they declared hateful.

  It is certainly good to see the “Old Gray Lady” have second thoughts about cancel culture. However, she might want to look inwardly before casting more cultural stones.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 22:30

• Coffee Is Anti-Aging, Linked To Prevention Of Dementia And Sarcopenia: Study
  Coffee Is Anti-Aging, Linked To Prevention Of Dementia And Sarcopenia: Study

  Authored by Ellen Wan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Enjoying a cup of joe can offer more than just a pick-me-up: It has been shown to have numerous health benefits, especially for older people. Research has found that the natural molecule in coffee, trigonelline, can help improve sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss) and maintain muscle function during aging.

  

  Muscle mass and function gradually decline as we age, potentially leading to sarcopenia. This can hinder mobility and even result in dependence and disability. The hallmarks of sarcopenia include a decline in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) levels and mitochondrial dysfunction.

  Recent Research

  A study published in Nature Metabolism in March found that trigonelline is a precursor to NAD+. Increasing the therapeutic dose of trigonelline can raise the levels of NAD+ in the cells of sarcopenia patients. Supplementing trigonelline also enhanced mitochondrial activity, NAD+ levels, and muscle function in aged mice. Furthermore, long-term supplementation of trigonelline significantly increased grip strength in the forelimbs of aged mice.

  However, the study also pointed out that sarcopenia is a multifactorial disease, and trigonelline cannot reverse all its causes. It must be combined with other nutrients that help maintain muscle, such as protein, vitamin D, or omega-3 fatty acids.

  Nutrition and physical activity are important for older people to maintain healthy muscles. Assistant professor Vincenzo Sorrentino from the Health Longevity Translational Research Program at the National University of Singapore Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, who participated in the study, stated in a press release that this research on trigonelline has increased the potential for achieving healthy longevity and addressing age-related diseases.

  Trigonelline is found in plant-based foods such as coffee beans and fenugreek seeds.

  A study involving 1,781 older Korean men indicated that coffee consumption was associated with a reduced risk of sarcopenia. Compared to those who drank less than one cup of coffee per day, individuals who drank at least three cups of coffee per day had a significantly lower probability of developing sarcopenia. However, the risk reduction was less pronounced among those who consumed one or two cups of coffee daily.

  Understanding the Benefits and Drawbacks of Coffee Consumption

  Many people drink coffee without considering its health benefits or risks. However, debates about coffee have been ongoing for a long time.

  Coffee is a complex mixture containing approximately 1,000 chemicals. Human reactions to coffee or caffeine vary, and the effects can vary significantly depending on the amount consumed.

  One study found that drinking three to five cups of coffee per day in midlife was associated with a 65 percent lower risk of developing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease in old age. Another study found that compared to light coffee drinkers (one to two cups per day), heavy coffee drinkers (more than six cups per day), non-coffee drinkers, and those who drank decaffeinated coffee had higher odds of developing dementia.

  A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2020 showed that consuming three to five cups of coffee daily was associated with a reduced risk of several chronic diseases. However, considering that excessive caffeine intake may have some adverse effects, it is recommended that adults who are not pregnant or breastfeeding limit their daily caffeine intake to 400 milligrams, while pregnant and breastfeeding women should limit their daily caffeine intake to 200 milligrams. Additionally, research has found that very high caffeine intake (more than 1,000 milligrams per week) is a risk factor for anxiety and depression.

  Due to the differences in coffee bean varieties and extraction methods, the caffeine content can vary significantly. Therefore, when consuming coffee daily, checking the actual caffeine content listed on the product packaging is recommended.

  It is also important to note that many commercially available coffees are often mixed with heavy cream and flavored syrups, which can add extra calories, sugar, and saturated fat, diminishing the health benefits of black coffee.

  Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte

  Johns Hopkins Medicine shared an easy-to-make and healthy coffee recipe on its website:

  Ingredients:

  • 1 cup brewed coffee
  • ½ cup canned plain pumpkin
  • ½ cup milk
  • 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or ½ teaspoon each of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 ice cubes

  Preparation: Blend all ingredients for a seasonally-inspired beverage. Adding pumpkin helps increase fiber intake, which is beneficial for gut health.

  Note: It is advisable to use as little sugar as possible. If you must add a sweetener, consider using a small amount of pure maple syrup.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 21:30

• Seattle Could Shutter 20 Elementary Schools Due To Budget Constraints
  Seattle Could Shutter 20 Elementary Schools Due To Budget Constraints

  When happens when your city pisses away all of your tax revenue on trying to feed, shelter and coddle activists and homeless people? You wind up having to make budget cuts. And, in Seattle, those cuts could be coming in the form of closing up to 20 elementary schools. 

  The district’s budget deficit has reached more than $100 million, according to new reporting from MYNorthwest. 

  And Superintendent Brent Jones’ proposal for ‘Well-Resourced Schools’ might lead to the shutdown of over a quarter of the district’s 73 elementary schools, the report says. 

  According to the Seattle Public Schools, 29 of these schools have fewer than 300 students each, and are considered under-enrolled. The district warns that keeping these schools open may necessitate cuts or the elimination of preschool programs, a reduction in core staff, larger class sizes, and fewer curriculum offerings.

  The plan has been met with considerable opposition from both parents and teachers, who expressed their concerns at Wednesday’s meeting.

  

  Ben Gitenstein, a parent of a student in the SPS district commented: “It’s not 20 schools, it’s 20 communities. All the kids who thought they knew who their next year’s teacher would be. All the local mom-and-pop stores that sell ice cream to the kids after school, they’re all going to be seriously impacted.”

  He continued: “Closing neighborhood schools is really bad for neighborhoods and it’s really bad for all of us because, at the end of the day, the real problem here is enrollment.”

  Superintendent Brent Jones commented: “We’re trying to make sure we’re focused on the students’ experience and not just a building.”

  The report concluded stating that, at the meeting, Jones reflected on his own experiences as a student within SPS, noting that he attended four different elementary schools. He described each transition as a positive experience.

  School closures, under his plan, would not take place until the 2025-2026 school year at the earliest. He is scheduled to present an initial recommendation at a school board meeting on June 10.

  Good luck with that.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 21:00

• Newsom Forced To Slash California Budget, Blames Crippling Deficit On "Rain Bombs" And Tax Shortfalls
  Newsom Forced To Slash California Budget, Blames Crippling Deficit On “Rain Bombs” And Tax Shortfalls

  In the course of two years, California has turned a $100 billion surplus into a $73 billion deficit, forcing governor Gavin Newson (D) to propose painful (token) spending cuts on Friday while announcing his revised state budget.

  

  When asked how the state was able to achieve such a monumental fail, Newsom – who claims the deficit is actually $27.6 billion (to which even AP called him out) – blamed a reduction in taxes from capital gains income, which surged in 2021 amid a raging stock market and plummeted in 2022. Then, in 2023, the state ‘continued to collect less tax revenue than projected’ due to capital loss carryovers. He also blamed “unexpected rain bombs” – which caused the IRS to extend the tax filing deadline for most California taxpayers in 2023 following severe winter storms. When those taxes were eventually collected, they were 22% below expectations, according to the Governor’s office.

  Watch:

  According to AP, Newsom will cut $6.7 billion set aside for doctors who treat Medicaid patients, cut off healthcare to 14,000 disabled migrants in their home, saving $94.7 million, and slashed $550 million that was headed towards state schools in order to build new facilities.

  Republican State Senator Brian Dahle called the cuts a “hollow gesture, at best,” adding “The governor’s national ambitions have triggered a massive exodus of people and businesses creating an enormous revenue shortfall of personal and corporate income taxes.”

  “You can’t have a good government without a strong private sector. Plain and simple, people are being priced out of California from bad policies and mismanagement,” Dahle continued.

  In total, Newsom is proposing $32.8 billion in cuts over two years – including an 8% cut to state operations, which he says will shore things up.

  Of course, we know that’s bullshit.

  Refreshing your memory from early April, Mike Shedlock gave a sobering view into reality;

  *  *  *

  The City Journal founder Ed Ring comments on the Golden State Budget Fantasy

  While finalizing the upcoming fiscal year’s state budget back in May 2022, California governor Gavin Newsom boasted of an extraordinary projected surplus: $97 billion. The governor immediately collaborated with an enthusiastic state legislature to spend it all. Of course, new spending on new programs and benefits tends to become permanent.

  This has happened repeatedly in California. Between fiscal year 2012–13 and fiscal year 2022–23 (the year with the projected $97 billion surplus), per capita general-fund spending doubled, from just over $3,000 per resident to just under $6,000. (All figures are in 2022 inflation-adjusted dollars.)

  The State Office of Legislative Analyst’s latest report projects a $73 billion dollar deficit for the next fiscal year. It won’t be easy to paper over this debt, but the state may use its opaque accounting system to hide the ball.

  California’s general-fund budgets are reported on a cash basis. The state’s balance sheet, however, uses “accrual-based accounting.” Without getting too far into the weeds, this is an apples v. oranges situation. Instead of the algebraic perfection of private-sector income statements, balance sheets, and cash flows, government accounting provides no easy way to reconcile what you see on the budget.

  Some watchdogs, however, have succeeded in cracking the code. John Moorlach, one of the only certified public accountants to serve in the California State Senate, just published a review of the state’s fiscal health, focusing on the balance sheet. According to Moorlach, California’s balance sheet is in trouble.

  Moorlach declared in a March California Insider interview that the state “now has the largest unrestricted net deficit in the US: $222 Billion.” In plain English, Moorlach is saying that California’s state government accounts have liabilities that exceed assets by $222 billion. No matter how creative Newsom and his financial wizards may be, someday that money will have to be paid.

  A remedy that California has turned to over the years and will undoubtedly turn to now is to accumulate additional long-term debt. Emulating the federal government, but lacking its dollar-printing ability, California’s state and local governments and agencies have racked up over a trillion dollars in debt, primarily in bonds and unfunded pension liabilities. These liabilities, too, must be paid. Since that’s all but impossible, the liabilities must be serviced with payments that, just as at the federal level, will eat up more and more of the operating budgets.

  How Much Is California in Debt?

  The above link says over a trillion. That’s being very generous to California. Click on it to discover … California State and Local Liabilities exceed $1.6 Trillion.

  California’s total state and local government debt now stands at almost $1.6 trillion, or about half the state’s GDP.

  That isn’t an alarming ratio when compared to the national debt, which has now soared to 128 percent of U.S. GDP with no end in sight. But Californians carry this $1.6 trillion state and local debt ($40,000 per capita) in addition to their share of the national debt (about $90,000 per capita).

  That article was from February of 2022. I suspect the liabilities are now close to $2 trillion.

  Cost of Running a McDonalds Jumps $250,000 in CA

  On February 4, I noted the Cost of Running a McDonalds Jumps $250,000 in CA Due to Minimum Wage Hikes.

  A blowback is underway.

  California Restaurants Cut Jobs

  On March 26, I commented California Restaurants Cut Jobs as Fast-Food Wages Set to Rise

  Proposition 103 Backfires

  Citing wildfire risk, State Farm will not renew policies on 30,000 homes and 42,000 business in California.

  

  Also on March 26, I commented Proposition 103 Backfires, State Farm to Cancel 72,000 California Policies

  Blame the state, not insurers.

  Congratulations to NY, IL, LA, and CA for Losing the Most Population

  

  People in California, increasingly getting sick of the state’s progressive madness, are voting with their feet.

  For discussion, please see Congratulations to NY, IL, LA, and CA for Losing the Most Population

  Absolute Basis Losers

  • New York: -631,104

  • California: -573,019

  • Illinois: -263,780

  California Leads the Nation in Unemployment

  The BLS metro shows unemployment rates were up in 218 of 389 metro areas. Nonfarm employment only rose in 59 areas.

  

  On March 15, I noted Unemployment Rates Rose in 218 of the 389 Metropolitan Areas

  Unsurprisingly, California has the highest unemployment rate in the nation at 5.7 percent vs. 4.1 percent nationally.

  A Booming Economy?

  California has massive problems although the stock market is at a record high and the economy is allegedly booming. The next recession will hit California exceptionally hard, and it’s not too far off. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 20:00

• Kansas Democrat Governor Vetoes Bill Restricting Foreign Ownership Of Land Near Military Bases
  Kansas Democrat Governor Vetoes Bill Restricting Foreign Ownership Of Land Near Military Bases

  Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a bill on Friday that aimed to prevent companies of China and other “foreign adversaries” from acquiring real property near military installations in the state.

  

  Senate Bill 172 aims to block individuals or companies from “countries of concern” from owning any interest in land located within a 100-mile radius of a military installation in Kansas.

  Under the bill, any foreign principal that owns or acquires any interest in real property in Kansas would be required to file registration with the attorney general and divest of the property.

  The Democratic governor has vetoed the proposed legislation, saying that the bill contains provisions that are “overly broad” and “not narrowly tailored” to protect the state from foreign adversaries.

  “While I agree that it is important for our state to implement stronger protections against foreign adversaries, this legislation contains multiple provisions that are likely unconstitutional and cause unintended consequences,” Ms. Kelly said in a statement.

  “Additionally, the retroactive nature of this legislation raises further serious constitutional concerns,” she added.

  Ms. Kelly said the legislature should consider proposals that protect Kansas from “bad actors” without affecting the state’s legitimate business relationships with potential trading partners and small businesses.

  “I am not willing to sign a bill that has the potential to hurt the state’s future prosperity and economic development,” the governor stated.

  According to a report by Kansas State University, foreign investors from China own a single acre of privately held agricultural land in the state. China is among the countries listed as U.S. foreign adversaries.

  As of 2021, China ranked as the third-largest export market for Kansas, trailing behind Mexico and Canada, according to a Kansas Export Statistics Executive Summary.

  Republicans Voice Disappointment

  Kansas Republicans have criticized Ms. Kelly’s decision to veto the bill. House Speaker Dan Hawkins, Majority Leader Chris Croft, and Speaker Pro Tempore Blake Carpenter issued a joint statement saying that the governor is putting military installations in Kansas at risk.

  “Foreign adversaries, such as China, have made their intentions toward the U.S. and our democracy abundantly clear,” Mr. Hawkins said in the statement.

  “It’s shameful that our governor has chosen not to take those threats seriously, leaving Kansas’ critical infrastructure and military installments exposed,” he added.

  Mr. Croft described the governor’s veto as “beyond disappointing,” saying that it leaves the state’s military bases and other critical infrastructure “wide open for adversarial foreign governments.”

  “The assets of this state are too important for us to sit on our hands and wait until it’s too late,” he stated. “This bill was carefully designed with input from everyone who wanted a say on how we should move forward.”

  Mr. Carpenter said he remains committed to protecting the military installations in Kansas and “ensuring that the Chinese Communist Party and other foreign adversaries do not compromise Kansas’s safety.”

  Similar Legislation in Other States

  Similar legislation has been introduced in several states, including Georgia, Iowa, Utah, and Oklahoma. The South Carolina Senate passed a bill in March that will partly ban companies or citizens of foreign adversaries from acquiring real property in the state.

  Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition aimed at ending discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, has condemned the measure and said it could stoke “xenophobia” among Asian American communities.

  “These land ban laws label our communities as untrustworthy, blame them for the actions of another country’s government, and stoke the flames of racism, xenophobia, and hate,” Cynthia Choi, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, said in a statement after Georgia’s passage of the bill.

  As of December 2021, China accounted for 383,935 acres of the 40 million acres of U.S. agricultural land owned by foreign investors, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

  While the acreage under Chinese ownership is slightly less than 1 percent of all foreign-held agricultural land, it represents a nearly 30-fold leap from 13,720 acres in 2010, according to a U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission report.

  Caden Pearson contributed to this report.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 19:30

• Ukraine Warns Against Questioning Zelensky's Legitimacy Due To Wartime Suspension Of Elections
  Ukraine Warns Against Questioning Zelensky’s Legitimacy Due To Wartime Suspension Of Elections

  The end of Volodymyr Zelensky’s five year term as president of Ukraine is set to end by the close of May, at least according to what was stipulated upon his getting elected, however, the government has made it clear there will be no new election.

  Officials have cited martial law due to the Russian invasion to say that after his five-year term ends on May 21, there won’t be a new election until after martial law and wartime regulations are lifted.

  

  Ukraine’s Minister of Justice, Denys Malyuska, confirmed this in a fresh weekend interview with BBC News Ukraine. “The president’s powers endure until the election of his successor. However, certain provisions of the Constitution are open to interpretation, inviting speculation or conspiracy theories,” Malyuska said when asked about ongoing speculation over what happens after May 21st.

  He explained, “There may be considerable debate and criticism, particularly considering that the Constitution’s framers may not have fully anticipated the possibility of Ukraine being embroiled in a large-scale conflict, leading to some provisions being inadequately formulated.”

  When asked about appealing to a Constitutional Court in order to seek clarification, Malyuska said that it is ill-timed. Or in essence he said it won’t happen and warned against such an effort.

  “Such an appeal would imply legitimate questions and doubts, warranting resolution by the Constitutional Court. Given the country’s communication and security challenges, openly questioning the president’s legitimacy would be a grave error.”

  “Therefore, I see no merit in approaching the Constitutional Court presently. Perhaps, in the future, under different circumstances, it could be considered, but not at this juncture,” Malyuska followed with.

  Meanwhile, at a moment that Russia’s new cross-border Kharkiv offensive is in full swing, President Zelensky is telling the nation not to panic:

  Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on his people not to panic amid Russia’s ongoing advance in the Kharkiv region that’s jeopardizing a local city.

  Ukrainians should trust in their army defending the country’s northeastern border area and not “yield to emotions” despite the fierce fight there and the “extremely difficult” situation on the outskirts of Vovchansk, Zelenskiy said in his regular evening statement on Sunday.

  “The advance in the Kharkiv region aims to stretch our forces and undermine their morale and motivation,” Zelensky said. “Defense battles have never been simple, and they become even more challenging when an enemy manages to instill fear.”

  There are reports that Russian forces have been rapidly advancing in the north this weekend…

  #BREAKING Russia is unexpectedly opening a new front in northern Ukraine – Sky News

  The Russian army has taken control of Strelche, Krasnoe, Pilna, and Borisovka in the Kharkiv region. pic.twitter.com/2DEMYUWbuk

  — Russian Market (@runews) May 10, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Russia is said to be seeking to create a 10km deep ‘buffer zone’ inside Ukrainian territory in order to better deter against cross-border mortar and drone attacks on the Belgorod region. According to the latest Sunday headlines:

  • RUSSIA CLAIMS CAPTURE OF MULTIPLE VILLAGES IN KHARKIV REGION, INCLUDING VOVCHANSK, PROMPTING MASS EVACUATIONS – SOURCES
  • UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT ZELENSKIY URGES CALM AMIDST RUSSIAN ADVANCES IN KHARKIV, EMPHASIZING TRUST IN THE ARMY’S DEFENSE EFFORTS – SOURCES
  • DESPITE REPORTS OF RUSSIAN GAINS, UKRAINIAN FORCES RESIST AND ATTEMPT COUNTER-ATTACKS IN THE REGION – SOURCES
  • FOCUS OF RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE APPEARS TO BE ESTABLISHING A BUFFER ZONE RATHER THAN DIRECT ASSAULT ON KHARKIV CITY, ACCORDING TO ANALYSTS – SOURCES
  • UKRAINIAN FORCES RESIST AND ATTEMPT COUNTER-ATTACKS IN THE REGION

  Scores of Russian civilians have been killed and wounded over the last several months by such shelling. Moscow has warned it will punish Ukraine for such attacks directly on Russian territory.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 19:00

• Blame Canada? Justin Trudeau Creates Blueprint For Dystopia In Horrific Speech Bill
  Blame Canada? Justin Trudeau Creates Blueprint For Dystopia In Horrific Speech Bill

  Authored by Matt Taibbi via Racket News,

  On February 21st, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave a press conference in Edmonton, announcing his government’s decision to introduce the Online Harms Act, or Bill C-63. It was described in Canadian media as a “bill to protect kids” that would stop the “exploitation of children,” and Trudeau’s curt speech focused solely on minors. The scarf-clad PM angrily dismissed criticisms the bill might have a broader focus.

  “I look forward to putting forward that Online Harms bill, which people will see is very, very specifically focused on protecting kids, and not on censoring the Internet,” he said sharply. “I think everyone, wherever they are in the political spectrum, can agree that protecting kids is something governments should be focused on doing.”

  Soon after, on February 26th, Trudeau’s government introduced the bill. Canada’s stable of retreating, credulous on-air personalities announced its rollout like the arrival of penicillin. “Tonight, Web of Harm,” gushed CTV’s Omar Sachedina. “Tackling online dangers and safeguarding children… The long-awaited framework for protecting the vulnerable…”

  There was little initial uproar. What could be wrong with increasing child safety, or “protecting the vulnerable”?

  Then people read the bill.

  “If you look at the purpose of this law, it’s actually quite noble and most lawyers would agree with it,” says Canadian attorney Dan Freiheit. “Online safety, protecting children’s physical and mental health.” But the actual text?

  “It’s wild,” Freheit says.

  Trudeau was lying when he said C-63 was “very, very specifically focused on correcting kids.” The purview of the Online Harms Act extends far beyond speech, reimagining society as a mandated social engineering project, creating transformational new procedures that would:

  • enlist Canada’s citizens in an ambitious social monitoring system, with rewards of up to $20,000 for anonymous “informants” of hateful behavior, with the guilty paying penalties up to $50,000, creating a self-funded national spying system;

  • introduce extraordinary criminal penalties, including life in prison not just for existing crimes like “advocating genocide,” but for any “offence motivated by hatred,” in theory any non-criminal offense, as tiny as littering, committed with hateful intent;

  • punish Minority Report pre-crime, where if an informant convinces a judge you “will commit” a hate offense, you can be jailed up to a year, put under house arrest, have firearms seized, or be forced into drug/alcohol testing, all for things you haven’t done;

  • penalize past statements. The law gets around prohibitions against “retroactive” punishment by calling the offense “continuous communication” of hate, i.e. the crime is your failure to take down bad speech;

  • force corporate Internet platforms to remove “harmful content” virtually on demand (within 24 hours in some cases), the hammer being fines of “up to 6% of… gross global revenue.”

  Things you’re saying, things you’ve already said, things an administrative judge thinks you might say, all barred, with neighbors deputized as enforcers? Good times. Leave it to Trudeau, a frequent trailblazer in new forms of illiberalism in the digital age, to come up with this quantum leap downward on the rights front. C-63 is a Frankenstein’s Monster combining the worst censorship ideas already deployed by supposed ally government-in-laws like Europe’s Digital Services Act, Australia’s updated Australian Communications and Media Authority Act (ACMA), and Scotland’s Hate Crime and Public Order Act, which saw 7,152 complaints in its first week when the law took effect last month.

  Trudeau’s creation is a turbo-charged social surveillance law aimed first at forcing big platforms like Facebook and Twitter to “self-police,” but secondarily targeting individuals and doling out civil and criminal penalties for speech and thought on a scale not seen anywhere. What constitutes hateful conduct? While the bill newly defines hate speech as “likely to foment detestation or vilification” of Canada’s growing list of protected groups and individuals, Canadian lawyers interviewed were generally unsure of what the standard might look like in practice.

  “It’s impossible to know what exactly it’s going to mean,” says Bruce Pardy, Executive Director of Rights Probe. “So you’re going to have to rely upon the court in a criminal prosecution, or the human rights tribunal in a human rights proceeding, to put their own interpretation on that, and figure out where the line is.”

  Despite being split on how serious the immediate impact might be (“We’re not looking at prisons full of people doing life for misgendering” said one), most attorneys seemed to agree C-63 will be a game-changer if passed, aimed beyond speech at the very concept of individual rights, chipping away at ideas like the presumption of innocence and the right to face one’s accuser, and using traditionally dubious tools like ex post facto laws.

  On one level, it’s not surprising, given Canada’s historically diffident attitude toward rights — the first section in the country’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, ironically introduced when Trudeau’s father Pierre was Prime Minister, is essentially a giant loophole — but this Prime Minister appears determined to swap out Canada’s reputation for brotherhood, humor, and generosity for a new one based on rigidity and collective paranoia.

  

  There’s a long backstory of important recent laws and Supreme Court cases that helped push Canada down a path toward C-63, but this bill still stands apart as a unique problem, and only a few domestic media outlets have been willing or able to criticize it. One of those is Rebel News, whose founder Ezra Levant says Canadians could really use America’s help in sounding the alarm. “Canadians need to fight for our own freedom, but the Canadian political and media establishment are obsessed by what U.S. journalists and politicians have to say about us,” Levant says. “So any attention Americans can bring to this civil liberties bonfire really makes a difference. Frankly, we need your help.”

  How bad is C-63? See for yourself, in a tour through its key sections:

  The biggest headline-grabber in C-63 involves new provisions for life imprisonment for speech offenses. There are really two. “Advocating genocide” is already a crime in Canada, but C-63 boosts its maximum penalty from five years to life. “Life sentences for sending out some words. That’s heavy,” Canada’s former Supreme Court Chief Justice, Beverley McLachlin, told journalist Edward Greenspon.

  Andrea MacLean of the Calgary-based JSS Barristers is among the lawyers who don’t necessarily foresee an avalanche of life sentences for speech offenses, but does worry the draconian life sentence provisions might have serious downstream effects.

  “They might encourage people to take plea deals they wouldn’t otherwise take,” MacLean says.

  

  As bad as the “sending out some words” portion is, a more frightening provision prescribes potential life sentences for any “offence motivated by hatred.” This is a difficult concept, but what the law proscribes is any violation of any “Act of Parliament,” no matter how minor, combined with hateful motivation. One example given was crumpling up an anti-gay flier and throwing it out the window in a national park, which would combine a federal littering prohibition with hate speech. Another attorney suggested this could refer to something like denial of restaurant service, and marveled that “this takes civil offenses and makes them into crimes.”

  I heard conflicting takes on this section, and it’s worth noting that Justice Minister Arif Virani has repeatedly described this “offence motivated by hatred” section as hateful intent mixed with a “criminal” offense like theft, assault, or murder. But the text reads like a parody of the American “hate crime enhancement” idea:

  

  The “prior restraint” portion of C-63 describes the process by which a person can be punished preemptively if an informant convinces a judge that either a “hate propaganda offence” or the aforementioned “offence motivated by hatred” has a “reasonable” chance of occurring:

  

  This clause might particularly affect a high-profile person like J.K. Rowling who’s already declared an intention to keep saying things deemed offensive to Canadians, who in 2017 passed a law (C-16) forbidding “gender identity” discrimination. Pardy, who described the 2017 measure as a “weaponization of human rights law,” says C-63 is like that act “on steroids.” This pre-crime provision includes a long list of potential punishments, ranging from house arrest, scheduled exit and entry from the home, ankle monitoring, and seizure of firearms. MacLean pointed out that this guts Canada’s Section 11 guarantee of presumption of innocence unless guilt is proven “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Again, a “reasonable” chance the crime will occur is sufficient to justify detention…

  Subscribers to Racket can read the rest here…

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 18:25

• Israeli Attacks Intensify Across Gaza, Rafah Civilians Have Nowhere To Go
  Israeli Attacks Intensify Across Gaza, Rafah Civilians Have Nowhere To Go

  Via Middle East Eye

  Israeli tanks have moved into eastern Jabalia in northern Gaza following a night of intense bombardment, which has killed some 19 Palestinians and flattened residential blocks, according to health officials.

  Israeli fire targeted ambulances near the camp’s Unrwa clinic, Wafa news agency is reporting. The Israeli army said that the latest incursion on the camp was to prevent Hamas from “rehabilitating military capabilities” there.

  

  In other areas of Gaza, Israeli air strikes reportedly killed some 27 Palestinians overnight. In Rafah, 18 Palestinians were killed in air strikes,  including several children, according to Wafa.

  Wafa is also reporting that the continuing air strikes have killed dozens more in the past few hours, with 12 bodies arriving at Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, in northern Gaza.

  The director of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Sam Rose, has warned that Palestinians in Rafah are being instructed to evacuate to a nearby “expanded humanitarian area” which is already overcrowded and lacking in essential services.

  In an interview with BBC news, Sam Rose explained that al-Mawasi is “essentially sand dunes on the Mediterranean coast that are crowded with hundreds of thousands of people” who have already been displaced.

  “There is no water network, there is no infrastructure, sewage, sanitation,” he said.

  .@BarakRavid @axios sources suggest the Israelis are going to try to salami-slice Rafah to avoid crossing Biden’s “red line”: https://t.co/ND4EgQ4McI

  — Sam Heller | سام هيلر (@AbuJamajem) May 10, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Here are some of the latest updates:

  • The Israeli military has intensified attacks across Gaza in the past 24 hours, with 27 Palestinians killed overnight, including several children in southern Rafah.

  • Israeli forces “carpet-bombed” Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, killing and wounding several Palestinians, Wafa news agency is reporting. Residential houses and evacuation centres have been flattened. The death toll is currently unknown.

  • In the West Bank, Israeli forces have raided the Arroub refugee camp near Hebron on Sunday, Wafa is reporting.

  • UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres renewed calls for an “immediate ceasefire”.

  • UN agencies have warned that food supplies for distribution in southern Gaza will run out today.

  • Unrwa estimates that 300,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah in the last week, emphasising that displaced people have “nowhere safe to go”.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 17:15

• Watch: Pelosi Dismantled In Real Time In Masterclass On Populism
  Watch: Pelosi Dismantled In Real Time In Masterclass On Populism

  Two weeks ago, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was thoroughly savaged during a debate at Oxford University over the question of whether populism is a “threat to democracy.” In case you missed it, read on as it’s making the rounds. If you have 14 minutes to spare, jump right in:

  Opening the case for the left was Rachel Haddad, Secretary of the Oxford Union. She argued that populist leaders like Donald Trump and Nigel Farage pose a threat to democracy, and are not a “new generation of geniuses” who can find simple solutions to longstanding, complex problems.

  Pelosi closed the debate for the proposition, defining populism as an “ethno-nationalist populism, generated by an ethnic negativity to immigrants, people who are different from them and the rest” (so, ‘they’re racists!’).

  Speaking against the motion were Union committee members Sultan Kokhar (Chair of Consultative Committee) and Oscar Whittle (Director of Research), as well as former Mumford & Sons lead guitarist, Winston Marshall – now a podcaster for The Spectator – who got into an exchange with Pelosi during parts of his speech.

  Marshall started out by saying:

  “Words have a tendency to change meaning when I was a boy, “woman” meant “someone who didn’t have a cock.”

  Populism has become a word used synonymously with “racists.” We’ve heard “ethno-nationalist,” with “bigot,” with “hillbilly,” “redneck,” with “deplorables.”

  Elites use it to show their contempt for ordinary people.”

  He then noted that Barack Obama, while still president, tried to frame he and Bernie Sanders as actual populists vs. Donald Trump, who ‘doesn’t care about working people.’

  But then, “If you watch Obama’s speeches after that point, more and more recently, he uses the word “populist” interchangeably with “strong man,” with “authoritarian.” The word changes meaning, it becomes a negative, a pejorative, a slur.”

  “To me, populism is not a dirty word. Since the 2008 crash and specifically the trillion-dollar Wall Street bailout, we are in the populist age, and for good reason. The elites have failed,” Marshall continued.

  He then got into it with Pelosi after drawing a parallel between January 6th and June 2020, saying: “I’m sure Congresswoman Pelosi will agree that the entire month of June 2020, when the federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon was under siege, and under insurrection by radical progressives, those too were dark days for America.”

  To which Pelosi shot back, “You are not. There is no equivalence there,” adding “It is not like what happened on January 6, which was an insurrection incited by the president of the United States.”

  Read on for Marshall’s complete masterclass in populism (transcript courtesy of RealClear Politics).

  My point, though is that all political movements are susceptible to violence, and indeed insurrection. And if we were arguing that fascism was a threat to democracy, I’d be on that side of the House.

  Indeed, the current populist age is a movement against fascism. I’ve got quite a lot to get through.

  Populism as you know, is the politics of the ordinary people against an elite, populism is not a threat to democracy. Populism is democracy, and why else have universal suffrage, if not to keep elites in check?

  Ladies and gentlemen, given the success of Trump, and more recently, Javier Milei taking a chainsaw to the state behemoth of Argentina’s bureaucratic monster, you’d be mistaken for thinking this was a right-wing populist age, but that would be ignoring Occupy Wall Street. That would be ignoring Jeremy Corbyn’s “for the many, not the few,” that would be ignoring Bernie against the billionaires, RFK Jr. against Big Pharma, and more recently, George Galloway against his better judgment. Now all of them, including Galloway, recognize genuine concerns of ordinary people being otherwise ignored by the establishment.

  I’m actually rather surprised that our esteemed opposition, Congressman Pelosi, is on that side of the motion. I thought the left was supposed to be anti-elite. I thought the left was supposed to be anti-establishment today, particularly in America, the globalist left have become the establishment. I suppose for Miss Pelosi to have taken this side of the motion, she’d be arguing herself out of a job.

  But it’s here in Britain, where right and left populists united for the supreme act of democracy, Brexit. Polls have showed the number one reason people voted for Brexit was sovereignty, for more democracy.

  What was the response of the Brussels elite? They did everything in their power to undermine the Democratic will of the British people and the Westminster elite were just as disgraceful. As we’ve heard, David Cameron called the voters “fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists.” The liberal Democrats did everything they could to overturn a democratic vote. Keir Starmer campaigned for a second referendum. Elites would have had us voting and voting and voting until we voted their way. Indeed, that’s what happened in Ireland and in Denmark.

  Let’s look at some of the other populist movements. The Hong Konger populist revolt is literally called the Pro-Democracy Movement. In the Farmer revolts from the Netherlands to Germany, France, Greece, to Sri Lanka, farmers are taking their tractors to the road to protest ESG policy that’s floated down to us from those all-knowing, infallible elites of Davos. The trucker movement in Canada became anti-elitist when petty tyrant Prime Minister Justin Trudeau froze their bank accounts, not the behavior of a democratic head of state. The Gilets Jaunes France, ULEZ in London, working people protesting policy that hurt them. And how are they treated? They’re called conspiracy theorists. They’re called far-right, by the mayor as well.

  Ladies and gentlemen, populism is the voice of the voiceless. The real threat to democracy is from the elites. Now don’t get me wrong, we need elites. If President Biden has shown us anything, we need someone to run the countries. When the president has severe dementia, it is not just America that crumbles, the whole world burns.

  But let’s examine the elites. European corporations spend over €1 billion a year lobbying Brussels, U.S. corporations spend over $2 billion a year lobbying in DC, and two-thirds of Congress receive funding from pharmaceutical companies. Pfizer alone spent $11 million in 2021. They made over $10 billion in profit. No wonder then that 66% of Americans think the is rigged against them for the rich and the powerful.

  And by the way, we used to have a word for when big business and big government were in cahoots. And I think any students here of early 20th-century Italian history will know what I’m talking about.

  What about Big Tech? Throughout the pandemic, Biden’s team, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security colluded with Big Tech in censoring dissenting voices. Not kooky conspiracy theorists, people like Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the Stanford epidemiologist, people like Harvard scientist Martin Kulldorf, people spreading true information, not misinformation, true information at odds with the government narrative.

  Need I remind you, democracy without free speech is not democracy.

  This was a direct breach by the way of the First Amendment. Before COVID, Intelligence services colluded with Big Tech to have Trump suspended off Twitter. Yes, the same platform which hosted the Taliban and Ayatollah “Death To Israel” Khomeini. They thought the president crossed the line when he tweeted on Jan 6 quote, “Remain peaceful. No violence! Respect the law and our great men and women in blue.” That’s a quote.

  You may be thinking now that Trump is a populist. You are right. He didn’t accept the 2020 elections and he should have. So should Hillary in 2016. So should Brussels, and so should Westminster in 2016. And so too should Congresswoman Pelosi, instead of saying the 2016 election was quote, “hijacked.”

  PELOSI: That doesn’t mean we don’t accept the results, though!

  WINSTON MARSHALL: What about the mainstream media? Let me read you some mainstream media headlines. The New Yorker the day before the 2016 election, “The Case Against Democracy.” The Washington Post, the day after the election, “The Problem With Our Government Is Democracy.” The LA Times, June 2017, “The British Election Is A Reminder Of The Perils Of Too Much Democracy.” Vox, June 2017, “Two eminent political scientists say the problem with democracy is voters.” New York Times, June 2017, “The Problem With Participatory Democracy Is The Participants.”

  Mainstream media elites are part of a class who don’t just disdain populism, they disdain the people. If the Democrats had put half their energy into delivering for the people, Trump wouldn’t even have a chance in 2024. He shouldn’t, he shouldn’t have a chance. You’ve had power for four years. From the fabricated Steele dossier, to trying to take him off the ballot in both Maine and Colorado, the Democrats are the anti-Democrat party. All we need now is the Republicans to come out as the pro-Monarchist party.

  Ladies and gentlemen, populism is not a threat to democracy, but I’ll tell you what is. It is elites ordering social media to censor political opponents. It’s police shutting down dissenters, be it anti-monarchists in this country or gender-critical voices here, or last week in Brussels, the National Conservative Movement.

  I’ll tell you what is a threat to democracy. It’s Brussels, DC, Westminster, the mainstream media, big tech, big Pharma, corporate collusion and the Davos cronies. The threat to democracy comes from those who write off ordinary people as “deplorable.” The threat to democracy comes from those who smear working people as “racists.” The threat to democracy comes from those who write off working people as “populists.”

  And I’ll say one last thing. This populist age can be brought to an end at the snap of a finger. All that needs to be done is for elites to start listening to, respecting, and God forbid, working for ordinary people. Thank you.

  And of course, being Oxford, the Union voted for ‘populism bad’ – with 177 members voting for the motion, and 68 voting against. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 16:40

• Climate "Reparations" Numbers Are Rigged
  Climate “Reparations” Numbers Are Rigged

  Authored by Paul Mueller via the American Institute for Economic Research,

  Nobel Prize–winning economist Esther Duflo thinks rich countries should pay poor countries $500 billion in compensation each year for climate-change damages. It is our “moral debt.” She proposes an international 2-percent wealth tax on the ultra-rich and an increase in the global minimum corporate tax rate to fund this $500 billion transfer. 

  

  You and I may be shocked by such a suggestion but don’t worry: “It’s really necessary. And it’s reasonable. It’s not that hard.” Only someone in an elite, progressive bubble could say something like that. Let’s check her reasoning.

  Duflo claims that climate change creates costs, specifically through “excess” deaths due to excessive heat. Poorer countries from the global south near the equator will see more days of extreme heat, and so will see a disproportionate increase in excess deaths. 

  Other economists translated those deaths into an externality cost of $37 per ton of CO2. Multiply that by the roughly fourteen billion tons of CO2 emitted by the US and Europe and voila, wealthy countries generate $500 billion in externality costs per year.

  She proposes paying for this by increasing the global minimum corporate tax rate from 15 percent to 18 percent and introducing an international 2-percent wealth tax on the ultra-rich, which she defines as the 3000 richest billionaires. We can’t go into the many problems and obstacles to such funding mechanisms here — suffice it to say such ideas will be nearly impossible to implement.

  But Duflo’s back-of-the-envelope calculations, besides missing the bigger picture, are so speculative as to require playing make-believe. Let’s play along for a moment to see why. We’ll start by reverse-engineering her $500 billion number into a measure of harm.

  Regulatory agencies and insurance companies use the concepts of “statistical value of life” or the “statistical value of a life-year” to do cost-benefit analysis on risk and the monetary value of life. These concepts are slippery, however, and calculated in a variety of ways with a wide range of estimates. 

  To keep things simple, let’s assume that the value of one life-year is $200,000. The $500 billion number proposed by Duflo suggests that the cost imposed by wealthy countries burning fossil fuels is the loss of roughly 2.5 million life-year” in poor countries per year.

  That sounds like a staggering number!

  But what about the benefits that have accrued to developing countries from activities that generate CO2 emissions? Important advances in medicine, such as antibiotics and vaccines, were developed in modern industrialized countries. So, too, were refrigeration, cars, the internet, smart phones, radar; modern agricultural methods with herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers; improvements in plumbing, building materials, manufacturing, and much more. “Polluting” activities in industrialized countries improved nutrition and safety around the world. These advances, and many others, significantly increased people’s life expectancies — especially in poor countries.

  Surely the value of these improvements should weight the opposite side of the scale from the expected harm of climate change — especially since the crusade against fossil fuels and carbon emissions will assuredly slow economic growth and innovation. Let’s consider the case of India for a moment.

  Life expectancy in India has basically doubled from about 35 years in 1950 to about 70 years in 2024. If you consider that India has just over a billion people living in it, modern technology developed by rich CO2-emitting countries has added 35 billion life-years in India alone. 

  Translating life-years back into dollars, 35 billion life-years times $200,000 per life-year means that the benefits from greater life expectancy in India over the past 75 years is the equivalent of $7 quadrillion dollars — or in annualized terms, an annual benefit of about $93 trillion dollars. In other words, the benefits to India alone are over a hundred times larger than Duflo’s estimate of costs!

  Nor is India cherry-picked. China has a similar story with life expectancy rising from 43.45 years to 77.64 years. Similar improvements in life expectancy occur across the global south. 

  In Africa: 

  • Mali (26.35 years to 60.86 years)
  • Chad (35.28 years to 55.44 years)
  • Libya (35.28 years to 73.59 years)
  • Kenya (41.05 years to 67.70 years)
  • Democratic Republic of Congo (38.15 years to 61.86 years)
  • Tanzania (39.86 years to 66.67 years)
  • Sudan (43.02 years to 66.30 years). 

  In South America: 

  • Panama (55.19 years to 79.27 years)
  • Nicaragua (40.44 years to 75.43 years)
  • Colombia (49.48 years to 78.04 years). 

  In southeast Asia: 

  • Indonesia (39.77 years to 72.50 years)
  • Malaysia (52.80 years to 76.79 years)
  • Vietnam (51.24 years to 75.91 years).

  Of course, one could argue that developed industrial countries are not solely responsible for increases in life expectancy around the world. But one could just as easily say the same about whether developed industrial countries are solely responsible for global CO2 emissions, climate change, or harm to people in the global south due to hotter weather. Connecting these two issues makes perfect philosophical sense, because the production of CO2 has historically been directly associated with increases in economic growth; which in turn is necessary for all the developments increasing longevity around the world.

  Even if we massage the assumptions in Duflo’s favor, the results remain favorable to industrialization. Suppose western technology and industrial activities contribute 50 percent to improvements in life expectancy. That’s still a $46 trillion annualized benefit to India. Reduce the value of a statistical life-year to $100,000 — that’s still a $23 trillion/year benefit from industrialization in the west. Exclude India from the analysis and cut the population we focus on down to 500 million people — that’s still over $12 trillion/year in benefits. Reduce the improvement in life-expectancy by six years — that still leaves about $10 trillion/year in benefits.

  So, even after making tons of assumptions to reduce their size, the estimated benefits of industrialization are still about twenty times larger than Duflo’s estimate of its costs. 

  Worrying about hypothetical, indirect costs of CO2 emissions when it comes to human well-being is like scrounging for pennies while ignoring $100 bills lying on the sidewalk. Actually, it is worse than that. It is like lighting $100 bills on fire to help you search a dark alley for some pocket change of human welfare.

  Economic development, driven largely by Adam Smith’s dictum “peace, easy taxes, and a tolerable administration of justice” which includes strong private property rights and limited government intervention, has improved human living standards in unprecedented ways over the past 300 years. These remarkable improvements in human welfare are not limited to wealthy, developed economies but are enjoyed around the world. 

  Duflo talks about the (external) costs of industrialization on certain countries without considering the truly massive (external) benefits of industrialization to those same countries.

  If anything, with a proper accounting, developing countries owe rich countries gratitude for the benefits they have received from industrialization and the corresponding CO2 emissions.

  Paul Mueller is a Senior Research Fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research. He received his PhD in economics from George Mason University. Previously, Dr. Mueller taught at The King’s College in New York City.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 16:05

• Citadel Ken Griffin Rises Up Against Left's "Cultural Revolution," Says Time To Embrace "Western Values"
  Citadel Ken Griffin Rises Up Against Left’s “Cultural Revolution,” Says Time To Embrace “Western Values”

  The woke takeover of America’s higher education system, transforming classrooms into woke indoctrination camps, has been on full display over the last several years. More recently, the pro-Palestinian protests on campuses have been a shocking eye-opener for many, which only reveal America’s future leaders are being transformed into toxic, leftist creatures, used as ‘useful idiots’ by leftist-funded non-governmental organizations (funded by you know who), in a sinister plan masqueraded underneath social justice movements to start an actual revolution, destroy capitalism, and ultimately, conquer America. 

  If you don’t believe us, we’ve got some news that might change your mind.

  Late last month, one very outspoken speaker at a pro-Palestinian campus protest said the quiet part out loud:

   “There’s only one solution, intifada revolution. We must have a revolution so we can have a socialist reconstruction of the USA.” 

  An extremist on the mic says: “There’s only one solution, intifada revolution. We must have a revolution so we can have a socialist reconstruction of the USA.”

  This isn’t just about Israel/Palestine. It’s an attempt of the Marxist takeover of America. Our colleges have become… pic.twitter.com/2IEqRyuorB

  — A Man Of Memes (@RickyDoggin) April 30, 2024

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  The question law-abiding Americans need to ask is why leftist radicals in the Biden administration, who quite honestly hate America, allow toxic woke ideologies to flow through the education system, promoting hate and violence at colleges and universities. 

  Entire education curriculums have been infected with Marxist teachings, and purple-haired folks who are confused about their gender are infecting the vulnerable minds of youngsters with woke ideologies such as diversity, equity and inclusion, and queer theory. 

  With some calling for the federal government to intervene and save the republic from this chaos, the most unlikely heroes of our time are the billionaires, such as Elon Musk, Bill Ackman, and Ken Griffin, who are stepping up to the plate to defend Old Glory and the nation. 

  Musk is on X, awakening the world’s population to various forms of Marxism, pushed by dark money-funded NGOs, which is spreading across governments and society like stage four cancer. On the other hand, Ackman and Griffin have denounced woke Ivy League schools, such as Harvard, in very public ways. 

  The latest is Griffin, who founded the $63 billion hedge fund Citadel. In an interview Saturday, Griffin told the Financial Times that Harvard needs to embrace “Western values.” The school’s major donor said the campus crisis is a byproduct of a “cultural revolution.” 

  

  He said the US had “lost sight of education as the means of pursuing truth and acquiring knowledge” over the past decade.

  “The narrative on some of our college campuses has devolved to the level that the system is rigged and unfair, and that America is plagued by systemic racism and systemic injustice,” he noted.

  Griffin continued, “What you’re seeing now is the end-product of this cultural revolution in American education playing out on American campuses, in particular, using the paradigm of the oppressor and the oppressed.” 

  “The protests on college campuses are almost like performative art, and we’re not actually helping Palestinians or Israelis with these surreal protests,” the billionaire said, adding that in previous humanitarian crises, Americans would focus on practical aid. 

  As we’ve pointed out, the campus riots have nothing to do with helping the poor Palestinians. Similarly, adjacent pro-Palestinian protests, shutting critical infrastructure, such as highways, bridges, and airport terminals nationwide, have zero to do with helping these folks and everything to do with collapsing America. 

  The woke cult has been activated and unleashed in the US, as its objective is to scream racism over and over until communism is installed. If that’s the solution to their alleged problems – well – this should be a wakeup call – that communism has yet to work in the world – killing more than 100 million people and counting. 

  Here’s Morgan Freeman on ending racism:

  Morgan Freeman on ending racism: pic.twitter.com/Jw6lEymC8D

  — The Rabbit Hole (@TheRabbitHole84) April 23, 2024

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  FT asked Griffin on how to fix Harvard, and his response: 

   “Harvard should put front and centre [that it] stands for meritocracy in America and will educate the next generation of leaders in American business, government, healthcare, and the philanthropic community. Harvard will embrace our Western values that have built one of the greatest nations in the world, foster those values with students, and ask them to manifest these values throughout the rest of their life.”

  The billionaire added: “Freedom of speech does not give you the right to storm a building or vandalize it. That’s not freedom of speech. That’s just anarchy.”

  So again, the unlikely heroes of our time are an elite class of billionaires; they’re strapping on their combat shoes in this culture war and are signaling enough is enough. 

  Perhaps it’s time to upload antivirus woke software in America’s schools, not just higher education but the entire damn system in a major overhaul – we suspect the Trump admin team will do that. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 15:30

• Putin Unveils Dramatic Reshuffling Of Closest Advisors: Shoigu Out As Defense Minister
  Putin Unveils Dramatic Reshuffling Of Closest Advisors: Shoigu Out As Defense Minister

  Russian state media is confirming a huge breaking development that President Putin has removed his longtime Defense Minister and personal friend Sergei Shoigu as defense chief, who has overseen the Ukraine war since its beginning in Feb. 2022. He will now serve as head of the nation’s security council.

  “Sergei Shoigu is likely to lose the post of Minister of Defense of Russia to acting First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov,” English-language RT is reporting. “His candidacy was proposed by President Vladimir Putin, the Federation Council announced on Sunday.”

  

  Putin has also reportedly dismissed Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev, according to Interfax.

  This appears in order to shuffle Shoigu into that position. Putin has now appointed Shoigu as new Secretary of the Russian Security Council. Likely Patrushev is also being moved to another position too.

  Wow, indeed. Looks like Putin is pushing out his long-time Defense Minister and Siberian forest hiking partner Sergei Shoigu. https://t.co/XUYoKmR1UO

  — Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) May 12, 2024

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  The proposed candidate for new defense chief, Belousov, has a background in Russia’s central bank and economics and finance…

  Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey Belousov as candidate for Defense Minister, Tass reports https://t.co/jLuFF5g6b8

  — Bloomberg (@business) May 12, 2024

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  Below is some background on Belousov and his last two decades of government experience, though specific military decision-making or army experience on a strategic level appears to be absent, interestingly:

  2000‒2006: General Director, Centre for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting.

  2000‒2006: External adviser to the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.

  2006‒2008: Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Deputy Minister of Economic Development.

  2008‒2012: Director, Government Department of Economy and Finance.

  2012‒2013: Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.

  2013‒2020: Presidential Aide.

  21 January 2020: First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, appointed by executive order of the President of Russia.

  Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov addressed this lack of military experience as follows in a late Sunday press briefing:

  Explaining Shoigu’s replacement with a non-military official, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was “natural” for Putin to decide that a civilian official to head the Defense Ministry.

  “The Defense Ministry must be absolutely open to innovation, to introduce advanced ideas and to create conditions for economic competitiveness — that’s why the president chose the candidacy of Andrei Removich Belousov,” Peskov told reporters.

  According to more details of Putin’s big reshuffling via RT:

  Senators are scheduled to engage in consultations regarding the nominees put forth by the president during committee sessions on May 13 and during a Federation Council meeting on May 14, as announced by the upper house of the Russian parliament.

  No further alterations have been made to the roster of candidates Putin has submitted for cabinet positions. His nominations include Vladimir Kolokoltsev for the position of interior minister, Alexander Kurenkov for minister of emergency situations, Sergey Lavrov for foreign minister, and Konstantin Chuichenko for justice minister.

  Denis Manturov, who served as deputy prime minister and head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade during Putin’s last term in office, has been nominated for the position of first deputy prime minister.

  Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman, says the Kremlin wanted to appoint an economic official to run the defense ministry after Russia’s security budget ballooned to 6.6 per cent of gross domestic product.

  “This demands special attention,” he told reporters.

  — max seddon (@maxseddon) May 12, 2024

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  And TASS has this further confirmation and backgrounder on Belousov (machine translation)…

  “Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed the candidacy of Andrei Belousov for the post of Minister of Defense, which was previously held by Sergei Shoigu. This is stated in a message on the Telegram channel of the Federation Council. In the previous government, Belousov worked as first deputy prime minister.”

  “65-year-old Belousov at various times held the positions of assistant to the head of state Vladimir Putin on economic issues, Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, director of the Department of Economics and Finance of the Government of the Russian Federation, general director of the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting, and worked at the Russian Academy in 1981-2006 Sciences (until 1991 – USSR Academy of Sciences). From April 30 to May 19, 2020, during Mishustin’s hospitalization with coronavirus infection, Belousov served as acting head of the Cabinet.”

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 14:44

• US Is Offering Israel A Strange Incentive To Hold Off Rafah Offensive
  US Is Offering Israel A Strange Incentive To Hold Off Rafah Offensive

  Over the weekend The Washington Post has reported a strange incentive and quid pro quo that the US is offering Israel if it agrees to hold off on the Rafah offensive. 

  The Biden administration is ready to hand over to Israel “sensitive intelligence” on the whereabouts of top Hamas leaders. The Washington Post cited four unnamed sources as saying the US “is offering Israel valuable assistance if it holds back, including sensitive intelligence to help the Israeli military pinpoint the location of Hamas leaders and find the group’s hidden tunnels.”

  The ‘offer’ is bizarre and somewhat unprecedented given one would think that Washington’s aim alongside Israel would be to dismantle a designated terror organization and ultimately bring down its top leadership. 

  But instead this is apparently being dangled like a carrot. Washington is holding out hopes that a ceasefire deal can be accomplished with Qatari and Egyptian mediation, but that still appears to be going nowhere. A full-scale Rafah assault is likely to put an end to Hamas-Israel talks, at least for the near future.

  

  According to more of the ‘incentives’ for Israel to abandon its Rafah ground offensive: “American officials have also offered to help provide thousands of shelters so Israel can build tent cities — and to help with the construction of delivery systems for food, water and medicine — so that Palestinians evacuated from Rafah can have a habitable place to live, said the officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity to disclose secret diplomatic talks,” WaPo writes.

  “President Biden and his senior aides have been making such offers over the last several weeks in hopes they will persuade Israel to conduct a more limited and targeted operation in the southern Gaza city,” the report continues.

  Separately, public comments made by White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby during a Thursday briefing appeared to confirm the Post’s reporting.

  Kirby had said, “We could also, in fact, help them target the leaders, including [Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar, which we are, frankly, doing with the Israelis on an ongoing basis.”

  Part of the White House’s plan is to first get the bulk of Rafah civilians—which have been widely reported to be at over one million Palestinians—safely removed and evacuated before major fighting begins. But the main question echoed by almost all is: where will they go?

  “The aid community generally is very skeptical there’s any safe way to relocate people out of Rafah,” Jeremy Konyndyk, president of Refugees International, was quoted in The Washington Post as saying.

  People in Rafah sending me photos of the new evacuation orders from Israeli military for Al-Shaboura, Al-Geneina and Khirbet Al-Adas. “Everyone in these areas is risking their lives and the lives of their family members. For your safety – we ask you to evacuate immediately” pic.twitter.com/39B9f7VUq4

  — Bel Trew (@Beltrew) May 11, 2024

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  It of course remains unknown the degree to which US intelligence actually has more info on Hamas leaders’ whereabouts compared to Israeli intelligence.

  Presumably such intel would come through intercepted communications, or perhaps even a human source that had infiltrated Hamas. However, it’s highly doubtful the US has its own intelligence officers on the ground – other than possibly those working alongside IDF forces.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 14:20

• Alvin Bragg's Office Deleted Phone Call Records Of Michael Cohen And Stormy Daniels' Lawyer
  Alvin Bragg’s Office Deleted Phone Call Records Of Michael Cohen And Stormy Daniels’ Lawyer

  Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  A paralegal from Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg’s office testified on Friday during former President Donald Trump’s “hush money” trial that some phone call records between Michael Cohen and Stephanie Clifford’s (a.k.a. Stormy Daniels) lawyer were deleted, raising questions about evidentiary integrity.

  In a bid to challenge some of the evidence being put forward in President Trump’s business records falsification trial in Manhattan, Trump attorney Emil Bove asked paralegal Jaden Jarmel-Schneider in court on May 10 about roughly three pages worth of records that the attorney claimed Mr. Bragg’s office had deleted.

  Mr. Jarmel-Schneider confirmed some deletions. He acknowledged that some phone call records from 2018 between Mr. Cohen and Keith Davidson (Ms. Clifford’s lawyer) had been deleted, along with some records of conversations between Ms. Clifford’s manager Gina Rodriguez and then-National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard about Ms. Clifford’s claim that she had an affair with President Trump.

  The Trump attorney alleged that the deletions were “significant,” prompting Mr. Jarmel-Schneider to dispute that characterization, though he acknowledged that some of the records had indeed been deleted.

  Prosecutors have submitted the call records into evidence in a bid to bolster their case that the alleged affair—which President Trump has denied—took place and that the former president falsified business records to conceal payments allegedly made to Ms. Clifford to stay silent.

  President Trump has denied any wrongdoing and maintains the case is a politically motivated bid to undermine his 2024 presidential campaign.

  The fact that prosecutors submitted the call records into evidence but didn’t tell the Trump defense team that some of them had been deleted raises questions about the integrity of the proceedings, according to Trump attorneys, and others.

  “Insanity! How on earth is this not a felony committed by Bragg and his minions? It sure would be if team Trump did it,” the former president’s eldest son, Don Trump Jr., said in a post on X.

  Insanity! How on earth is this not a felony committed by Bragg and his minions? It sure would be if team Trump did it.

  I’d love if we had actual journalists that would report on this ongoing travesty.

  Sadly, proper journalism is dead. They’re just scribes for the regime. https://t.co/vQkLDk3t1T

  — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) May 10, 2024

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  Mr. Trump Jr. was presumably referring to the fact that evidence tampering is a class E felony in the state of New York.

  Mr. Bragg’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the deleted records.

  The development comes at the tail end of an intense week that saw President Trump subjected to gag order sanctions, two failed attempts by the defense team to have a mistrial declared, and Ms. Clifford taking the stand.

  Mr. Cohen is expected to take the stand next week.

  Trial End in Sight

  After four weeks in court, prosecutors signaled that the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president will be coming to an end.

  Jurors will soon have to decide whether prosecutors have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump was involved in falsifying business records as part of a scheme to influence the 2016 election.

  President Trump was charged by Mr. Bragg with 34 counts of falsifying business records. Typically, this is a misdemeanor charge, but in this case prosecutors allege the records were falsified to cover up a scheme to influence the 2016 election and therefore amounts to a felony.

  A number of legal experts have challenged the way Mr. Bragg elevated the misdemeanor into a felony. This includes retired Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, who argued that Mr. Bragg was operating on an invalid legal premise because he invoked federal statutes over which New York has no jurisdiction.

  Mr. Dershowitz also recently said that he believes that Mr. Bragg’s office has violated voters’ rights with the Trump prosecution, with the legal scholar arguing that the case amounts to a criminal conspiracy to influence elections.

  Prosecuting attorney Joshua Steinglass said Friday that prosecutors plan to call just two more witnesses and that it’s “entirely possible” that the prosecution will rest its case at the end of next week.

  Mr. Cohen, [a total liar] who is set to testify next week, made the original claims that led to the case. Specifically, the allegation of falsified business records pertains to 11 checks Mr. Cohen received and their corresponding invoices and vouchers.

  The defense team says that Mr. Cohen was paid attorney’s fees, while prosecutors allege that the legal expense categorization of the payments was fraudulent in order to cover up that they were meant to buy Ms. Clifford’s silence about the alleged affair.

  Ms. Clifford testified over the course of two days, with attorneys and the judge expressing some frustration that she frequently responded to questions with commentary that did not directly answer the question.

  Defense attorneys moved for a mistrial, arguing that her statements were “extremely prejudicial” and would improperly influence the jury.

  The judge denied that motion.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 13:45

• Goldman Asks: "Might This Be A Monetary Juncture Akin To 1995 Or 2011" 
  Goldman Asks: “Might This Be A Monetary Juncture Akin To 1995 Or 2011” 

  In a client note on Friday, Goldman’s Mark Wilson commented on the money supply (M2) growth, which has noticeably turned upward following the most significant crash since the Great Depression. He questions if this is an inflection point in a “monetary juncture akin to 1995 or 2011.” 

  “Although we may be 12 months past the inflection in M2, the historic analog of that chart does pose the interesting macro question of might this indeed be a monetary juncture akin to 1995 or 2011,” Wilson wrote. 

  M2% Y-o-Y chart via Wilson’s note:

  

  As a reminder, the complete disinflation trend followed the M2 growth slump and really should’ve fallen faster if deficit spending wasn’t so out of control. The latest CPI bounce comes after the money supply bottomed about one year ago and, of course, rising deficits, with the federal government spending $1 trillion every 100 days. 

  

  On a separate note, Tressis chief economist Daniel Lacalle recently pointed out, “The massive deficit means more taxes, more inflation, and lower growth in the future,” adding, “Deficits are not a tool for growth; they are tools for stagnation.” 

  Ahead of next week’s April CPI print, we outlined to pro-subs on Friday that traders should expect a “downside surprise” as the lagging OER “crashes” and catches up with real-time metrics. 

  And now comes the April CPI “downside surprise” as OER crashes down to catch up with real time metricshttps://t.co/yRwuFen2e4

  — zerohedge (@zerohedge) May 1, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  However, we’ll leave you with this from Dohmen Capital Research: “The Fed is being forced to step on the accelerator to enable the financing of the record deficits at the US Treasury. They know that is inflationary, but they have no alternative.” 

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 13:10

• The Davos Class Is Desperate
  The Davos Class Is Desperate

  Authored by Marty Bent via bombthrower.com,

  One of Davos’ favorite front men, Yuval Noah Harari, joined the BIS Innovation Summit earlier this week to spread some laughable anti-bitcoin propaganda.

  “The root problem with conventional currency is all the trust that’s required to make it work. The central bank must be trusted not to debase the currency, but the history of fiat currencies is full of breaches of that trust.” – Satoshi Nakamotopic.twitter.com/EsB4PBdQ0D

  — Marty Bent (@MartyBent) May 10, 2024

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  During his chat, Harari opined that “as a historian” he does not like bitcoin because it is a “currency based on distrust”. Here’s exactly what he said:

  When I look at bitcoin as a historian I don’t like it because this is a money built on distrust. The central idea of bitcoin is basically electronic gold, that we don’t trust the banks, the governments so we don’t want to give them the ability to create as much money as they like. So we create this bitcoin. It’s a currency of distrust.

  I do think that the future belongs to electronic money, but what we’ve seen over the last centuries is that it is actually a good idea to give banks and governments the ability to create more and more money in order to build more trust within society. So, I’m not sure what money would look like in 20 years or 30 years, but I hope that it would be a currency of greater trust and not a currency of distrust. -Yuval Noah Harari, famed Malthusian Nihilist and mediocre author

  Wow. This is what we in the psy-op world like to call “gaslighting”. It’s a tactic used to make someone believe something that is totally false and most likely never happened is actually true. When it comes to Harari’s specific comments on the history of humanity he is attempting to gaslight people into believing that giving governments and central banks the ability to “create more and more money in order to build trust within society” has actually happened. Nothing could be further from the truth and one only needs the ability to pick their head up from their phone, look around at the state of the world and recall four years of history to refute this objectively insane point of view.

  Do you all remember when a majority of the world’s governments banded together to shut down the global economy while flooding the global economy with TRILLIONS of dollars of liquidity? I think we can all agree that this was most likely the most extreme example of central planning on the political and monetary fronts that the world has ever seen. If we are to follow Harari’s logic that this level of coordination and central control over the monetary system, one would have to be able to look out at the world right now and confidently say that collective trust in governments and banking institutions by the people is at an all time high.

  Clearly, this is not the case. In fact, the exact opposite is true. Trust in political and financial institutions is as low as it has ever been. The Common Man is suffering under the weight of price inflation and is beginning to question the validity of government spending programs. Particularly here in the US. The geopolitical landscape is shifting toward a multi-polar world as large governments are finding it impossible to trust each other. This increasing distrust is being driven by the fact that some governments used their “trusted” control over the international monetary system to freeze the assets of a sovereign nation. We don’t even have to mention the bail out of the banks during the Great Financial Crisis, the forever wars in the Middle East, or the silencing of the whistleblowers who tried to make people aware that their governments cannot be trusted. Harari is either completely disconnected from reality or being completely disingenuous. I have a feeling it’s most likely the latter.

  This particular line of thinking shouldn’t be surprising coming from Harari and the fact that he said this at a digital summit thrown by the Bank for International Settlements should be even less surprising. The BIS is the top borg bank that would like to cattle herd the world into a digital panopticon that runs on a CBDC that can be granularly controlled by “trusted banks and governments”. Bitcoin is, quite literally, the biggest threat to their existence because it enables individuals to opt-out of a system dependent on trusting central planners.

  Trying to tap into people’s emotions by framing the discussion of “electronic money” myopically and attempting to reduce the decision making process to a knee jerk reaction based on the connotation of the juxtaposition of “distrust v. trust” is truly some lowest denominator argumentation. One would have to truly believe that most people are not only dumb, but extremely dumb.

  “Distrust in government bad. Trust in government good. Therefore, government controlling money good.” Caveman shit.

  Luckily for us, no one is buying Harari’s BS and Satoshi Nakamoto designed bitcoin in a way that allows us to break free from the madness of trusting governments and central banks. As he pointed out in February of 2009, the history of currencies is littered with breaches of trust by governments and central banks. Trusting these entities with the power to issue currency has proven to be catastrophic for whole societies. Trust needs to be completely removed from the process by leveraging a system that cannot be controlled by any individual, group, company or government and that is what bitcoin brings to the world. Individuals shouldn’t have to trust anyone but themselves to know what’s going on with their money. “Don’t trust, verify” is the ethos that bitcoin embodies and empowers individuals with. It’s a beautiful thing and it scares the ever living shit out of the Harari’s of the world.

  The Davos class is desperate and scared, as is evidenced by the nonsensical assertion put forth by Harari earlier this week. This should encourage you. Lean in. They know their losing the narrative battle.

  We’re going to win.

  *  *  *

  Follow Marty Bent on Twitter and subscribe via Tftc.io.

  The CBDC Survival Guide will give you the tools and the knowledge to navigate coming era of Monetary Apartheid. Bombthrower subscribers will get free when it drops (and The Crypto Capitalist Manifesto while you wait), sign up today.

  Tyler Durden
  Sun, 05/12/2024 – 12:35