Today’s News 27th February 2024

• "A Power Grab": Doctors Say WHO Wants To Dictate US Health Policy
  “A Power Grab”: Doctors Say WHO Wants To Dictate US Health Policy

  Authored by Austin Alonzo via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  The World Health Organization is aiming to weaponize public health to advance centralized control over medicine and expand that power to anything else that it can define as a public health crisis.

  

  During a Conservative Political Action Conference panel hosted by Jan Jekielek, a senior editor of The Epoch Times, physicians Dr. Robert Malone and Dr. Brooke Miller explained what they see as a plan to expand the centralization of medicine.

  “This appears to be a power grab,” Dr. Malone, who hosts the EpochTV show “Fallout,” said during the event at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Fort Washington, Maryland, on Feb. 24.

  While the WHO and its director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, deny it, Dr. Malone said the WHO, an agency of the United Nations, is proposing an international treaty that would allow the WHO to establish treatment norms and define a public health crisis “for anything they wish.”

  He said this power could be used to tell the United States what to do about matters such as energy, carbon dioxide emissions, firearms, and abortion.

  “Everything falls under public health as an issue, and then they will have the authority to mandate what nation-states shall do in response to those public health emergencies,” Dr. Malone said.

  States that object, he said, would be subject to potential sanctions or other actions if they don’t follow the WHO’s directives. Dr. Malone argued that this is an unconstitutional action because the federal government isn’t granted public health authority under the U.S. Constitution.

  “This goes all the way down to the level of the WHO being able to stipulate what medical products or procedures you receive, what vaccines you take, what medicines you’re allowed to take,” he said.

  “This is centralized medicine on a global scale.”

  Both Dr. Malone and Dr. Miller lamented the shift away from patient-driven medicine toward what they called checklist medicine.

  During the COVID-19 pandemic, both physicians saw how the medical world rejected the research of novel ideas and treatments for the disease and instead followed the orders of the top public health authorities.

  Dr. Miller said when he was investigating treatments for COVID-19 and presented them to fellow doctors, they “didn’t want to hear about it.”

  “They only wanted to follow what the central planners told them to do,” he said.

  Even without a WHO treaty, Dr. Malone said, the medical profession is now becoming more centralized, and thinking outside the box is being punished.

  “In many states, many nations, there are now laws being enacted that physicians that speak about their opinions, their observations, which differ from the approved narrative, they’re subjected to jail time and major fines up to $200,000,” he said. “This is coming through in Canada and already is enacted in France.”

  This shift, Dr. Malone said, completely ignores the Hippocratic Oath that a doctor should swear to, which compels them always to do what’s best for the individual patient.

  The medical industry wants doctors to work off of a checklist and follow a set of prescribed orders, he said. Furthermore, Dr. Malone said, the breakdown of individualized care is part of a broader objective: artificial intelligence-driven medicine.

  “That’s where they want to go. … standardized medicine where you’re all a number, and you are processed through the system, given a diagnosis,” he said. “Checklist-driven medicine … is what’s being taught in medical schools right now, together with ‘wokeism,’ this is what’s being pushed all the way through the system.”

  Regular people need to get involved with their government to prevent the further centralization of medicine in the country, according to both doctors. Dr. Miller said citizens must not be afraid to stand up to the powerful.

  “We must demand that our government not sign this treaty. And I would say go even further, we must leave the WHO and defund the WHO,” he said.

  Dr. Malone said people need to get involved with their state governments, alert them of what’s happening, and urge them to resist. He also recommended forming a commission to review what’s happening within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Finally, he said, people need to seek out doctors who aren’t part of the corporate medical world.

  While many doctors may not want to be involved with corporate health care, the increasing complexity of paperwork forced by the Affordable Care Act and other regulations and the allure of money make it harder to avoid.

  “They work for the corporation, they don’t work for the patient,” Dr. Miller said.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 23:40

• Iran Has Enough Near-Weapons Grade Uranium For Almost 3 Nuclear Weapons: IAEA
  Iran Has Enough Near-Weapons Grade Uranium For Almost 3 Nuclear Weapons: IAEA

  At a moment the Middle East region stands at the precipice of spiraling toward a major regional war in relation to Gaza conflict spillover, the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has issued a fresh warning of ‘concern’ over Iran’s nuclear program.

  IAEA head Rafael Grossi said Monday that “public statements made in Iran regarding its technical capabilities to produce nuclear weapons” have only served to increase “concerns about the correctness and completeness of Iran’s safeguards declarations.”

  

  Grossi urged Tehran to “cooperate fully and unambiguously with the UN nuclear watchdog” after in recent years it has deactivated its nuclear program surveillance devices as well as barred inspectors while arguing that the US unilaterally collapsed the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal.

  But the perhaps most significant revelation from the IAEA contained in a new detailed report it issued is that Iran’s estimated stockpile of enriched uranium is currently at 27 times the limits imposed by the 2015 JCPOA (which again is no longer functioning as an active agreement).

  The AFP reports further of the findings: 

  According to a confidential International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report seen by AFP, Iran’s total enriched uranium stockpile was estimated at 5,525.5 kilogrammes as of February 10, up by 1,038.7 kilogrammes from the last quarterly report in November.

  Without doubt, Tel Aviv will be paying close attention, given also Israel is increasingly coming into a fuller proxy war with Iran in the region, and given the daily exchanges of fire with Tehran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the weekly Israeli attacks on Damascus and Syrian territory.

  But there’s an important caveat to the fresh reporting. While Iran’s enriched uranium is at this significantly higher level compared to 2015, the IAEA says the last several months have actually seen a reduction of its overall stockpile: 

  Iran reduced its stockpile of near weapons-grade nuclear material over the past 3½ months, the United Nations’ atomic watchdog said Monday, a surprise step likely to be welcomed by Western countries who have been alarmed by Iran’s buildup of highly enriched nuclear fuel.

  Iran still has enough near-weapons grade material to fuel almost three nuclear weapons, underlining its status as a threshold nuclear-weapon state. However, by diluting some of its 60% enriched uranium in recent weeks to lower-grade material, its stockpile fell for the first time since it started producing the 60% nuclear fuel in 2021.

  This could be Iran’s way of signaling that it wishes to avoid escalating tensions with Israel, also at a time the Shia Houthis continue blocking Red Sea commercial transit, especially to Israeli and US ships.

  The Wall Street Journal concludes that “The reduction in 60% enriched uranium will offer some respite to the U.S. and its European partners who have grown increasingly concerned about the expansion of Iran’s nuclear program.”

  The Islamic Republic’s leadership, particularly the Ayatollah, has officially denied and rejected that its seeking a nuclear bomb, issuing fatwas saying it is ‘unIslamic’. However the past years have seen a dramatic ramping up of uranium enrichment which definitely points to keeping the potential achievement of a nuclear weapon as an ‘option’. 

  Meanwhile, in new alarming statements Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said Israel’s air force lacks the necessary resources to completely stop Iran’s nuclear program even if the military devoted everything to it.

  Olmert said in an interview with The National that “We can destroy their headquarters, important projects, railways, roads, and airports .. Israel can do a lot to damage Iran’s infrastructure, but Israel has no means to be able to destroy the nuclear program of Iran.” Of course, this would involve an all-out attack by Israel on Iran, but as yet there is no evidence that Tehran is currently seeking to attack Israeli directly. 

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 23:20

• Study Finds Hearing And Balance Disorders Among COVID-19 Vaccinated
  Study Finds Hearing And Balance Disorders Among COVID-19 Vaccinated

  Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  More cases of hearing and balance disorders have been observed after people received COVID-19 vaccines, according to a recent study, which asked vaccinated people to remain alert to such complications.

  

  The Australian peer-reviewed study, published in the Vaccine journal on Feb. 22, aimed to determine whether there was an increase in “audiovestibular events” following COVID-19 vaccination in south-eastern Australia. Audiovestibular refers to conditions related to hearing and balance disorders.

  “Healthcare providers and vaccinees should be alert to potential audiovestibular complaints after COVID-19 vaccination,” the authors said.

  Increase in Incidences of Vertigo, Tinnitus

  Researchers found a rise in vertigo and tinnitus cases after vaccination. Tinnitus is a condition that makes an individual hear sounds like humming, ringing, or rushing, in the absence of external stimuli. Vertigo makes people feel like they’re spinning, and can result in dizziness.

  “Our study found an increased relative incidence of vertigo in the 42 days following mRNA vaccines, and an increased relative incidence of tinnitus in the 42 days following both Vaxzevria adenovirus vector and mRNA vaccines,” researchers wrote.

  “We are the first to confirm this increased relative incidence of tinnitus and vertigo post COVID-19 vaccines,“ they stated. They speculated that the audiovestibular events may be an ”immune mediated injury” triggered by the COVID-19 vaccines.

  No Rise in Cases of Hearing Loss

  In the same study, the researchers reported that there was “no increased relative incidence in hearing loss” in the 42 days following any COVID-19 vaccine.

  They noted that the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) data and studies conducted on the Finnish and Danish health care registry have found “found no association between sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) and COVID-19 vaccination.”

  As such, the authors concluded that their analysis “supports the opinion that there is no increased incidence of hearing loss following COVID-19 vaccines.”

  The authors pointed out a limitation—that their study could not account for any concurrent COVID-19 infections, which other studies have suggested could be associated with audiovestibular events.

  “COVID-19 infection is an important potential confounder of the association between COVID-19 vaccination and audiovestibular events,” they wrote.

  Figures

  Researchers collected vaccine-related data from two databases in Australia, selecting 45,350 records via SAEFVIC, and 4.94 million records via POLAR, for the time period from January 2021 to March 2023.

  SAEFVIC is the central spontaneous reporting service for adverse events following vaccinations in the Australian state of Victoria. The POLAR platform collects and processes general practice data on behalf of Primary Health Networks in Australia. Multiple researchers in the study declared receiving funding from the Department of Health, Victoria. SAEFVIC is funded by the department.

  Out of the 45,350 SAEFVIC records, researchers identified 415 cases of vertigo, 226 incidences of tinnitus, and 76 hearing losses. From the POLAR platform, 13,924 reports of vertigo, 4,000 incidences of tinnitus, and 3,214 hearing losses were identified.

  Researchers recorded the impact of two types of vaccines—AstraZeneca’s adenovirus vector vaccine and mRNA-based vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna.

  The researchers found an increase in vertigo incidence following mRNA vaccines, and an increase in tinnitus incidence following both AstraZeneca and mRNA vaccines.

  The reporting rate for audiovestibular events was found to be higher for AstraZeneca shots compared to the mRNA vaccines. In addition, more audiovestibular events were identified after the first dose of AstraZeneca than its second dose, while no such difference was observed for the mRNA vaccines.

  Sudden Deafness

  SSNHL, commonly known as sudden deafness, refers to an unexplained, rapid loss of hearing either at once or over a few days, caused by damage to the inner ear or the nerve from the ear to the brain. The condition usually affects only a single ear.

  Researchers noted that some studies did find an association between Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine and SSNHL, but that the population or the effect size in those studies “was very small.”

  One such study was published in February 2022—a cohort study of over 2.6 million patients in Israel. Of the 2,602,557 patients who received the first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, 91 cases of SSNHL were reported. Of the 2,441,719 people who received the second dose, 79 SSNHL cases were identified.

  While the “effect size is very small,” the researchers of that study said their findings suggest the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine “might be associated with increased risk of SSNHL.”

  Tinnitus Takes Toll on Quality of Life

  Back in 2021, Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group in Rochester, Minnesota, developed tinnitus after receiving his second shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. While he experienced ringing in both ears, the situation was worse in the left ear.

  “It was like someone suddenly blew a dog whistle in my ear … It has been pretty much unrelenting,” he said in an interview with MedPage Today in March 2022. The outlet did not specify which vaccine he received, however it noted that, “Given his personal situation, [Mr. Poland] will look to protein subunit vaccines that are in development but not yet authorized by the [Food and Drug Administration], such as those from Novavax, Medicago, and Sanofi.”

  At the time, Mr. Poland said there could be tens of thousands of people affected in the United States and potentially millions globally.

  “What has been heartbreaking about this, as a seasoned physician, are the emails I get from people that, this has affected their life so badly, they have told me they are going to take their own life,” he told the outlet.

  The World Health Organization said in 2022 (pdf) that, up to February 2021, it received 367 reports of tinnitus following COVID-19 vaccination, including 56 that were grouped with hearing losses. The majority (293 cases, or 80 percent) received the Pfizer vaccine. More than 70 percent of the total tinnitus cases were among females. Over a third of the reports were from healthcare professionals.

  From the 367 cases, 97 incidents (26 percent) were recorded as serious. This included 59 cases classified as “other medically important condition,” 33 as “disabling/incapacitating,” and eight reports as “caused/prolonged hospitalization.” Two incidences were reported as “life-threatening.”

  The organization also separately reported 164 cases of hearing loss, of which 104 cases (63 percent) were found among females.

  In an interview with The Epoch Times, Mary, who declined to disclose her last name, said that she started experiencing tinnitus an hour after the first Pfizer shot in 2021. When she contacted the pharmacy where she was vaccinated, Mary was told that tinnitus wasn’t a side effect.

  Even after taking steroid therapy as recommended by a physician, her condition didn’t improve. “I complained about it so much in the beginning … especially in the first couple of weeks,” she said. ‘I cried. I broke down.”

  Despite facing difficulties, Mary could not openly discuss her concerns with her family, friends, or health providers. “I felt comfortable saying that I had tinnitus, but I was afraid to tell people that it started an hour after the vaccine … I didn’t want people to think that I’m an anti-vaxxer,” she stated.

  “But it’s my own experience, and the fact that I was afraid to say that is really sad.”

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 23:00

• Israel Attacks Lebanon's Bekaa Valley For First Time Of War, 100km From Border
  Israel Attacks Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley For First Time Of War, 100km From Border

  Israel on Monday unleashed a wave of airstrikes on a location in eastern Lebanon which had yet to be targeted in the war. Several attacks were conducted on the outskirts of Baalbek in the Bekaa Valley. This area hasn’t been struck by Israeli fire since the 2006 war.

  The Bekaa Valley has long been considered a Hezbollah stronghold and Israel choosing to attack it signals a definite expanse and escalation of the ongoing conflict far beyond the south Lebanon border region, given it lies a full 100km from said border. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed in a statement that it struck “Hezbollah terror targets deep inside Lebanon.”

  

  Targets hit reportedly included a convoy of trucks and sites connected to Hezbollah’s areal defense systems. At least two people were killed in the attacks, Reuters reports. The two had been working in a food warehouse run by Hezbollah.

  Earlier in the day an Israeli drone was downed by Hezbollah over Lebanon. Israel’s military said the fresh Bekaa operation was in response to the earlier launch of a surface-to-air missile by the Iran-backed paramilitary group.

  Social media videos reportedly from one of the strike locations in Bekaa Valley shows a damaged and burned truck and SUV amid an expanse of rubble strewn across a roadway. 

  مشاهد إضافية للآثار الغارة الإسرائيلية على بعلبك pic.twitter.com/EdGUCrPxof

  — bintjbeil.org (@bintjbeilnews) February 26, 2024

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  Hezbollah has unleashed large waves of missiles on northern Israel throughout the day, with one missile having fallen near a synagogue close to Nazareth.

  Specifically Hezbollah sources said that in response to Israel’s Bekaa attack its militants fired at least 60 rockets at an Israeli army headquarters in Golan Heights.

  Hezbollah politician Hassan Fadlallah announced of the Israeli strikes reaching far into Lebanese territory, even near the Syrian border that “Its aggression on Baalbek or any other areas will not remain without response.”

  Israeli bystanders filmed the following dramatic video as rockets rained down…

  ⚡️#BREAKING Missiles fired by Hezb-Allah fell on positions of zionist forces in the Golan Heights pic.twitter.com/ojRXZvqE6q

  — War Monitor (@WarMonitors) February 26, 2024

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  On Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that even if a deal with Hamas is achieved in the Gaza Strip, this doesn’t mean fighting with Hezbollah will stop:

  “If a temporary pause is reached in Gaza, we will increase the fire in the north separately, and will continue until the full withdrawal of Hezbollah [from the border] and the return of Israeli citizens to their homes,” he said.

  Israeli Golan base targeted by massive missile barrage, sending personnel scrambling for bomb shelters…

  اعلام العدو:
  هروب الجنود لحظة استهداف القاعدة في الجولان pic.twitter.com/EOki4cEsww

  — راصد #اعرف_عدوك (@rasseed01) February 26, 2024

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

  As of last week (Feb.18), Israel had begun to strike deeper into Lebanon, expanding its strikes far beyond the border region in the south. Large airstrikes rocked a town near Sidon, which lies 60km from the border.

  The Lebanese government fears the war might at any moment encompass the whole country, as it did in 2006 when Beirut International airport was bombed. Israel has demanded that the government reign in Hezbollah, but it reality it doesn’t have the power or military capability to do so, as the Lebanese Army is ill-equipped. 

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 22:40

• CCP Arrests More Than 1,000 Tibetans After Protests Against Dam Construction Project
  CCP Arrests More Than 1,000 Tibetans After Protests Against Dam Construction Project

  Authored by Frank Fang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  The State Department is expressing concerns about recent mass arrests of Tibetans in China, after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) launched a sweeping crackdown against the ethnic group over their peaceful protests against the construction of a hydropower dam.

  More than 1,000 Tibetans, including monks, were arrested in China on Friday, according to rights group International Tibet Network. The crackdown took place at Derge, a town in Dege County in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in southwestern China’s Sichuan Province.

  According to the rights groups, the dam construction project will forcibly displace residents of two villages and submerge six monasteries.

  “The current status of those arrested is currently unknown,” it stated, before adding that those arrested were held at different locations throughout Dege County.

  “Deeply concerned by reports of the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China] mass arrests of Tibetans protesting construction of a dam that threatens displacement of villages & destruction of monasteries,” said Uzra Zeya, undersecretary of state for civilian security, democracy, and human rights, in an X post on Feb. 25.

  “[China] must respect human rights & freedom of expression and include Tibetans in the development & implementation of water and land management policies,” Ms. Zeya added. “These centuries-old monasteries are home to hundreds of Tibetan Buddhist monks & contain irreplaceable cultural relics.

  “[The United States] stands with Tibetans in preserving their unique cultural, religious, and linguistic identity.”

  The protests began on Feb. 14, International Tibet Network said, when at least 300 Tibetans protested at Dege County Hall. Arrests began on Feb. 22, when Chinese authorities arrested over 100 protesting Tibetan locals and Tibetan monks, the group added.

  Chinese police officers reportedly used water cannons, pepper spray, and tasers to subdue protesters on Feb. 22, according to Radio Free Asia. Some of the arrested protesters were later admitted to a local hospital for medical treatment, the outlet added.

  “Outrageous what’s happening in Tibet right now … colonizers stealing everything we have and yet Tibetans continuing to resist by the thousands,” Tenzin Yangzom, advocacy officer at the Tibetan Association of Boston who also works for International Tibet Network, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Feb. 24.

  Benedict Rogers, human rights activist and deputy chair of the UK Conservative Party Human Rights Commission, took to X to call China’s repression of Tibetans “appalling and outrageous.”

  “Let us not forget Tibet. Let’s #FreeTibet,” Mr. Rogers added.

  Tibet

  The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) invaded Tibet in 1949 and forced upon Tibetans a 17-point agreement to legitimize the CCP’s rule. Despite rosy promises of Tibetan autonomy on paper, China’s communist regime has turned the region into a surveillance state and installed labor camps.

  The Dalai Lama, the region’s spiritual leader, went into exile in India in 1959 after the Chinese regime brutally crushed an uprising, killing tens of thousands of Tibetans. Later in the same year, the spiritual leader established a Tibetan exile administration, officially known as the Central Tibetan Administration.

  Sikyong Penpa Tsering, president of the Central Tibetan Administration, issued a statement on Feb. 24, saying that “the crackdown on non-violent protests in Derge is beyond condemnation.”

  “The Chinese authorities’ disregard for the rights of Tibetans is unacceptable by any measure. The punitive acts demonstrate China’s prioritization of its ideology and interests over human rights,” Mr. Tseringa added.

  “We call on the Chinese government to release all those detained and to respect the rights and aspirations of the Tibetan people. The world needs to hear the Tibetans’ voices and confront the truth of Chinese misrule in Tibet.”

  The construction of the dam, a 2,240-megawatt power station located in the upper regions of the Yangtze River, will result in the resettlement of about 2,000 locals, according to Tibetan rights group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT). One of the six monasteries affected, the Wonto Monastery, has murals dating back to the 13th century, it added.

  Earlier this month, House lawmakers passed the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Conflict Act (H.R.533) after a 392–28 vote. The bipartisan, bicameral legislation (S.138) has not been voted on in the Senate.

  The legislation aims to “jump-start negotiations” between CCP officials and the Dalai Lama or his representatives, as the two sides have not had formal dialogue since 2010, according to a press release.

  ICT Tibet President Tencho Gyatso issued a statement welcoming the passage of the House bill earlier this month.

  “Today’s vote shows that U.S. support for Tibet is only growing stronger even after 65 years of China’s control and occupation,” Mr. Gyatso said. China has been playing a waiting game, hoping that the international community would eventually abandon Tibet. Clearly that is not the case.

  “The Chinese government should take the hint and restart the dialogue process with Tibetan leaders. We thank Congressman McGovern and Chairman McCaul and all the representatives who helped pass the Resolve Tibet Act today.”

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 22:20

• Oil Spreads Soar As Physical Market Screams Tightness While Hedge Fund Press Shorts
  Oil Spreads Soar As Physical Market Screams Tightness While Hedge Fund Press Shorts

  Something odd is taking place in the oil market. While on one hand “data” dissembled by Biden’s Dept of Energy and specifically its statistical arm, the Energy Information Administration, has done everything it could to indicate there is a glut of oil, which is understandable – there is nothing Biden’s handlers fear more than an inflationary surge in oil and gasoline prices ahead of the November elections and will do everything in their power to mandate a dataset that has the most adverse impact on oil prices, the physical market is sending just the opposite signal, with spreads showing screaming physical tightness.

  Consider the Brent prompt spread which after tumbling to a multi-year low in late December, has exploded higher to a backwardation around 90 cents…

  

  … entrenching its strongest position since late October, while several other timespreads also the firmest since last September. The comparable WTI April-May spread was trading around 50 cents after hitting 75 cents last week.

  Commenting on the surge in time-spreads, Citi strategist Max Leyton – who is far less bearish than oil permabear Ed Morse who recently left the bank – says they strengthened on the “perfect storm” of Atlantic Basin supply issues, and notes that supply issues include “ongoing Red Sea vessel diversions, US freeze-offs hitting oil output, worker protests disrupting Libyan supply, UK oil terminal logistics limiting North Sea Forties supply, and buying up of crude cargoes at the Nigerian Dangote refinery.”

  “Most of these issues could ease,” and the second quarter “still looks like a surplus quarter for total oil balances, meaning current strength could pause.” Of course, the current strength could very well accelerate if there is even one small geopolitical hiccup in the middle east where nobody expects any surprises, and where all eyes remain on how much more of its bitch Iran can make Biden, before even the US president is forced to retaliate even if it means 4mm barrels taken off the daily market.

  The dramatic spikes in prompt timespreads across the crude complex was the Goldman chart of the week just a few days ago, and shows just how dramatically and rapidly the market has tigthened up as a result of sudden scarcity of physical which, however, has barely received any mention in daily discussions about the energy market.

  

  Below we share some more charts from Goldman looking at the most recent indicators in physical markets, starting with supply where Goldman is seeing distinct “firmness”…

  

  … while on the demand side of the equation, recent unseasonaly warm weather has lowered global oil demand by some 300kb/d.

  

  As a result of the tightness in supply, Goldman calculates that total OECD inventories are now about 21mb lower than the company’s end of February balance forecast of 2,765 mb, with estimates pointing to further tightness.

  

  Yet despite this continued decline in supply and inventories, oil prices remain rangebound and seem unable to breakout solidly about the low 80s. Why is that? In a word: financialization, aka “paper oil”, because while the physical oil market is screaming higher, financial players (managed money) continue to aggressively sell and short the sector as shown in the chart below.

  

  This desperate attempt by financial players to keep their underwater positions from getting stopped out and sparking a cascade of margin calls has also translated into a ravenous shorting of energy stocks which as we pointed out a week ago, are the most shorted sector in Goldman’s prime brokerage.

  

  This, in turn, has translated into some of the marquee energy names such as Exxon seeing the highest short interest on record…

  

  … even though the lifeblood of refiners such as the 3-2-1 Crack Spread is now surging higher.

  

  Which begs the question: how much tighter will physical oil have to get before it finally breaks the financial oil shorts?

  The full Goldman note is available to pro subscribers in the usual place.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 22:00

• The Administrative State Is Destroying Our Country
  The Administrative State Is Destroying Our Country

  Authored by Bobbie Anne Flower Cox via The Brownstone Institute,

  It is clear to me that we are increasingly being governed by an “Administrative State” instead of by our chosen representatives. Indeed, we are more and more becoming a “Regulation Nation” which is a true threat to our Constitutional Republic.

  

  What do I mean by that? 

  I mean that we are being governed by regulations and rules issued by administrative agencies, instead of being governed by laws duly passed by our elected officials. 

  Why does that matter?

  Because agencies are run by unelected, government bureaucrats who are beholden to nobody but the person who appointed them. They don’t care what the voters think or want or don’t want. They don’t need to care. They don’t need your vote to stay in power. They only have to appease the politician(s) who appointed them. If they just follow the yellow brick road, they will land on the other side of the rainbow.

  Shockingly, some legislators are okay with this, because it allows them to escape any sort of responsibility or blame for an unpopular (or illegal) rule that is implemented by the bureaucrats sitting in the agencies (you know, the ones with no accountability to us voters). But, legislators should not only care, they should actively work to stop the Administrative State, because not only do many of these “regulations” usurp a legislator’s law-making power, but they are wholly unconstitutional!

  You will remember from grade school Social Studies class that our government is comprised of three, co-equal branches: the Legislative branch (senators and assemblymembers who make our laws), the Executive branch (governors and the president who are supposed to enforce our laws), and the Judicial branch (judges and courts which adjudicate our laws). Each branch has its own powers and authorities, as bestowed upon them by our Constitution. Any power that is not delineated in our Constitution is reserved for the people. Remember my long-uttered phrase that, the Constitution was written to keep the government in check, not to keep we the people in check!

  There is no fourth branch of government. There is no branch called the Administrative State. There is no authority in the Constitution to have agencies that make rules/regulations that employ the force of law. And yet, we see at the federal level as well as at the state level, Executive branches that are chock full of bloated, power-hungry agencies that have given themselves an astonishing amount of never-authorized-by-the-people power. In many cases, those powers are unconstitutional, meaning the agency did not have the authority to make the rule or do the thing they are doing (or trying to do).

  Let me give you a few real-life scenarios so it’s easier to digest.

  For starters, my quarantine camp lawsuit is a perfect example. For those not familiar with this case, what happened there is that the NYS Department of Health (DOH) issued an “Isolation & Quarantine Procedures” regulation. The head of the DOH is a commissioner who is appointed by the Governor. Everyone that works for the DOH is unelected. They do not need to listen to voters wants and needs. Quite presumably, if the Commissioner or any of the government workers below him don’t do the bidding of their “boss,” then their days at the DOH would surely be limited. 

  So, what happened in my quarantine case is that the DOH created a wholly unconstitutional regulation (Rule 2.13) that allowed them to pick and choose which New Yorkers they could lock up or lock down.  That could have been forced isolation in your home, or they could have removed you from your home and put you into a quarantine facility of their choosing. For however long they wanted. With no notice. With no right to an attorney until after you were locked up. With no procedure for you to regain your freedom once you were incarcerated. 

  There was no age restriction, so they could have taken you, your child, your grandchild… And they didn’t even have to prove that you were sick, or that you had even been exposed to a communicable disease! Guilty until proven innocent.

  The DOH gave themselves this phenomenal power. If that is unclear what I mean there, I will explain. The DOH wanted this unbridled power to be able to control 19 million New Yorkers with the stroke of a pen, but the NYS Legislature wouldn’t give it to them in the form of failed Assembly bill A416 (because the legislators knew it would be political suicide). So, the DOH simply made Rule 2.13 and gave themselves the power they wanted, anyway. No legislative consent given. No voter input had. Zilch. A clear breach of Separation of Powers. A clear affront on our Constitution. A perfect example of the “Regulation Nation” as run by an Administrative State.

  This was the most unconstitutional regulation I had ever read in my 25 years of practicing law. It was an attack on the very basis of our freedom, and a dangerous chipping away at the bedrock of our free society…a government by the people, and for the people. Without question, I knew I had to stop it.

  So, I sued Hochul and her DOH on behalf of a group of NYS legislators (Senator George Borrello, Assemblyman Chris Tague, Congressman Mike Lawler) together with a citizens’ group called Uniting NYS. Our argument was clear: the DOH does not possess the power to make a law, and this was surely a law, despite the fact that they called it a regulation or rule. It conflicted with the Constitution. It conflicted with NYS law. As Assemblyman Tague said at a press conference we held when we first filed our lawsuit in 2022:

  This policy’s aim to forcibly isolate law-abiding citizens is reminiscent of actions taken by some of the ugliest tyrannical regimes history has ever known. It has no place standing as law here in New York, let alone anywhere in the United States. Policies as dangerous as this should be debated and scrutinized in a public setting by elected representatives, not quietly slinked through regulatory approvals.

  In July 2022, the Judge ruled in our favor and struck down this stunning display of tyranny. You can read that decision here. Of course Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James appealled the court’s decision so they could try to get back that heinous power. In November of 2023, the appellate court dismissed our case for lack of standing (a true dodging of the merits of a lawsuit if I ever saw one). So, now I am appealing that calamitous decision to the Court of Appeals (our State’s highest court).

  I have done numerous interviews about my quarantine lawsuit and this “Regulation Nation” phenomenon, and you can access some of those on my website, www.CoxLawyers.com. One such interview was with Steve Gruber on America’s Voice Live, and can be accessed HERE.

  *  *  *

  Republished from the author’s Substack

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 21:40

• Bulk Of Republicans Locked In On Support For Trump
  Bulk Of Republicans Locked In On Support For Trump

  Authored by Lawrence Wilson via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  News Analysis

  CHARLESTON, S.C.—Republican voters delivered a decisive result for President Donald Trump in the South Carolina presidential primary. The former president demonstrated his command over Republican voters in the fourth and final early primary, defeating the state’s former governor Nikki Haley by 20 percentage points on Feb. 24.

  “The people spoke for Trump,” Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) told The Epoch Times, virtually waving a white flag over the Haley campaign, of which he had been a notable proponent.

  Ms. Haley has vowed to continue her run for the White House at least through Super Tuesday, March 5, when 15 states will conduct presidential primaries.

  Yet the overwhelming support for President Trump in South Carolina, which builds on the momentum generated in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada, validates Mr. Norman’s assessment.

  Neither legal battles, nor age, nor mean tweets, nor the outcome of previous elections will keep the party from nominating its favorite son.

  Republicans want Donald Trump, and nobody but Donald Trump, and many appear immune to any argument to the contrary.

  Age and Vitality

  Ms. Haley has begun to criticize the former president, albeit gingerly. One line of attack was a veiled reference to his age and the insinuation that he represents an older generation.

  Ms. Haley tied President Trump to incumbent President Joe Biden, whose age and mental acuity have become a concern to many voters. Ms. Haley frequently repeated polling numbers suggesting that 70 percent of Americans do not want either man in office, and said that electing either one would be voting for “more of the same.”

  Referring to herself as a fresher, more vigorous alternative, Ms. Haley often used the phrase “new generational leader.”

  The idea sticks with many Haley supporters, who picture her as a fresher, more vigorous candidate.

  “I don’t want either old man in the White House,” Haley supporter Diane Derusha, 75, of Mt. Pleasant told The Epoch Times.

  

  However, the argument failed to persuade President Trump’s core voters in the Palmetto state, most of whom believe he is actually more fit for the job as leader of the free world than Ms. Haley.

  Among Republican voters in South Carolina, 69 percent said Trump has the physical and mental health to be president, according to exit polling reported by CBS. Just 62 percent of them said the same of Ms. Haley.

  Electability

  Ms. Haley’s most direct attack on President Trump centered on his ability to win a general election. “Donald Trump can’t win,” she said in stump speeches. “He lost in 2018. He lost in 2020. He lost in 2022, and he continues to lose.”

  Referring to polling data on hypothetical matchups between President Trump vs. President Biden and herself vs. President Biden, Ms. Haley told reporters in Columbia on Feb. 2, “Trump doesn’t defeat Joe Biden … I defeat Biden.”

  Indeed, a number of polls show that Ms. Haley would fare better in the general election than would President Trump. The latest, conducted by Marquette University, shows Ms. Haley with a 16 percent lead over President Biden. Other polls show a lead of about 3 percent.

  Polls involving President Trump have shown him winning by about 2 percentage points. Others indicate that he would lose to President Biden.

  

  Haley supporters are well-attuned to that polling and are convinced Ms. Haley is the more electable candidate.

  “If you look at the big picture, do we want to win?” Melanie Sabelhaus, co-chair of Women for Nikki, said on Feb. 23. “Wake up America! We want to win. The polls are saying … she can beat Joe Biden.”

  Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has also seen the same opportunity, noting that the GOP results from South Carolina show this is a “three-way race,” thanks to those who won’t vote for President Trump or President Biden.

  Tonight’s results in South Carolina proved this is officially a three-way race.

  A recent NBC poll showed that in a three-way dead heat, 34% of Americans could see themselves voting for me right now. I have the highest net favorability of any candidate and continue to gain…

  — Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) February 25, 2024

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  Part of Ms. Haley’s favorable polling against President Biden could be that she draws strong support among moderates, independents, and even some Democrats. In the New Hampshire primary, 70 percent of voters choosing Mrs. Haley were independents.

  In South Carolina, 53 percent of Haley voters were independents, and 70 percent described themselves as moderates.

  “I’ve already voted for Nikki,” Kurt Kehelbeck, 64, of Charleston, told The Epoch Times, having cast his ballot during the early voting period.

  But to win the Republican primary, a candidate must have the support of Republican voters. And most of that support has gone to President Trump.

  As for electability in the general election, most Republican voters still believe President Trump would fare better than Ms. Haley.

  Of Republican primary voters, 83 percent said President Trump was either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to defeat President Biden in a general election. For Ms. Haley, just 59 percent said the same.

  Normalcy

  Ms. Haley has positioned her candidacy as a return to “normalcy” after what she described as disorder and unpredictability surrounding President Trump, who pitches his presidency around efforts to “drain the swamp.”

  “Chaos follows him,” she told rally goers in Columbia on Feb. 1.

  “He’s gotten more unstable and unhinged,” Ms. Haley said of President Trump in a speech at Clemson University on Feb. 20.

  After the New Hampshire primary, Ms. Haley added a line to her stump speech about President Trump’s reaction to her 40 percent share of the vote.

  “Donald Trump had a temper tantrum on stage. He was completely unhinged. All he did was talk about revenge … and my dress,” she told supporters in Myrtle Beach on Feb. 22.

  But two days earlier, when Laura Ingraham asked what revenge meant to him during a Fox News town hall, President Trump was given a chance to respond to the media coverage about his alleged plans for vengeance.

  “I don’t care about the ‘revenge’ thing. I know they use the word ‘revenge,’ ‘Will there be revenge?’” he said. “My revenge will be success.”

  

  Ms. Haley’s supporters are apt to use words like “disrespectful” or “arrogant” to describe President Trump. They appear to see Ms. Haley as calmer and more level-headed.

  “The most important thing she can do is bring a divided country together. She can reach across the aisle and begin to heal what’s broken,” Mark Wilson, 65, of Mt. Pleasant told The Epoch Times.

  Many of President Trump’s supporters, on the other hand, seem more likely to believe that America is in the midst of an internal conflict that needs to be won rather than healed.

  Of those who voted for President Trump in this primary, 90 percent said the most important characteristic they look for in a candidate is someone who “fights for people like me.”

  “If we don’t take this country back, we’re going to be like Afghanistan or Iraq or Iran or some third world country,” Douglas Benton of Myrtle Beach told The Epoch Times. If things didn’t change, he said, “It’s going to get ugly.”

  Lawsuits

  As President Trump’s legal problems have mounted over the past year, Ms. Haley has leveraged them as an argument against his presidential candidacy.

  “He spent $50 million of his campaign funds to pay for legal fees. Are you kidding me?” she told reporters in Columbia on Feb. 1. “How’s he going to campaign against Joe Biden when he has no money?” she asked, adding that his court cases will continue throughout the year.

  To many Trump supporters, the former president’s legal woes have no bearing on his ability to get elected or to govern. Many view the cases against him as abuses of prosecutorial power intended to scare away voters and keep him out of office. As such, his candidacy is cast as a quest for justice.

  Michael Large, 62, of Moncks Corner told The Epoch Times he wanted to “show my support for a man that I believe is being politically persecuted and deserves another chance. That’s really why I want him in office.”

  

  Exit polls showed that 67 percent of Trump supporters believed his legal problems don’t matter, and 61 percent said he would be fit to hold office even if convicted of a crime.

  Perhaps the most telling finding of the exit pollsters is that Republican voters were largely unpersuadable in the days before this primary.

  Most Republican voters had made their choice long before heading to a polling site. More than two-thirds of Trump voters had locked in their choice more than a month before the election.

  If the mindset of Republican voters generally mirrors that of South Carolinians, the grail quest for a dozen Republican candidates whose last name is not “Trump” and a significant number of Republican and independent voters in the GOP presidential race appears to be futile.

  Voters are saying, there simply is no Republican alternative to Donald Trump.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 21:20

• A Host Of Notable COVID-19 Vaccine Adverse Events, Backed By Evidence
  A Host Of Notable COVID-19 Vaccine Adverse Events, Backed By Evidence

  Authored by Marina Zhang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  

  Since the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, a significant number of vaccinated people have reported various adverse reactions.

  Some adverse events are widely acknowledged, like blood clots and myocarditis. Others are less publicly discussed but are still present in the research literature.

  The Epoch Times reviewed the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), the United Kingdom’s Yellow Card Reporting system, South Africa’s VAERS database, and numerous peer-reviewed studies, selecting the top reported adverse events with literature support. Their severity determines the order of the events.

  It is worth noting that VAERS is a passive reporting system that relies on people to send in reports of their experiences. It may not determine causality but “is especially useful for detecting unusual or unexpected patterns” that might indicate a possible vaccine safety signal, according to the official website.

  Some of the adverse events have been previously reported by The Epoch Times. These are supplied with links to past articles with more information.

  What Causes COVID-19 Vaccine Adverse Reactions?

  Clinicians treating persistent vaccine adverse reactions believe that the leading cause of such injuries is the COVID-19 spike protein.

  Spike proteins exist on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that invades cells and causes disease. The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines also induce the body to make spike proteins. The cells that are exposed to the mRNA produce spike proteins and then display these proteins on their surfaces. The immune system then attacks these spike proteins, thereby forming an immunity against them. The cells may also be destroyed.

  Other types of COVID-19 vaccines use similar tactics.

  

  However, the spike protein is highly inflammatory and toxic, and clinicians have observed that although people generate antibodies after vaccination, some start suffering from a wide variety of unexplainable symptoms.

  Clinicians have put forward six pathways through which the spike protein can cause damage:

  1. Immune dysregulation
  2. Blood clotting and vascular damage
  3. Mitochondrial dysfunction
  4. Mast cell activation syndrome
  5. Autoimmune reactions
  6. Tissue damage through spike persistence

  The lipid nanoparticles in the mRNA vaccines may also contribute to reported adverse events. Studies show that lipid nanoparticles activate inflammatory chemicals and affect immune activity.

  COVID-19 Vaccine General Adverse Events

  The most common COVID-19 vaccine adverse events are those that affect the body generally.

  

  • Chest pain may be a sign of myocarditis, but it can also be due to inflamed rib joints, lung inflammation, or neuropathy in the chest—all of which will be explained later in the article.
  • Fatigue after vaccination is mostly transient. However, some people may experience persistent and debilitating fatigue, where even taking showers or doing a basic chore leaves them exhausted for the remainder of the day. Around 8 percent to 80 percent of vaccinated individuals report fatigue as a side effect, with most cases being mild. However, for some people, fatigue may never seem to get better. A study that followed 498 vaccinated physicians and dentists showed that around 6 percent reported long-term fatigue post-vaccination. One possible reason for the fatigue is mitochondrial dysfunction. Mitochondria are the body’s cellular powerhouse, present in most cells and responsible for producing energy for the body.
  • Fever and chills may manifest due to the body’s immune system fighting off the vaccine and are usually transient.
  • Swelling and pain at the injection site is usually transient. Pain can also happen throughout the body.
  • Armpit pain may indicate that the body’s immunity is fighting off infections. The armpit area houses a cluster of lymph nodes that contain immune cells. These lymph nodes can become swollen after infection and vaccinations, leading to pain in the underarm area.

  Nervous System Disorders

  Nervous system disorders are some of the most common adverse events reported. In the Pfizer trials, these disorders were the third most common, coming after general and muscle-related adverse events, while they were the second most common in the Moderna trials.

  Animal and model studies have shown that spike proteins can cross the blood-brain barrier. A 2023 preprint study found spike proteins in the brain tissues of deceased COVID-19 patients. The histological brain examinations of the late German pathologist Dr. Arne Burkhardt showed that spike proteins damage blood vessels in the brain.

  Spike proteins share structural similarities with proteins present in the human nervous system, and when our bodies attack the spike protein, collateral damage to the nerves may also occur. mRNA vaccines also contain a prion region and have been shown to accelerate the formation of misfolded proteins, which are potentially linked to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

  

  Guillain-Barré Syndrome

  The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognizes Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) as a safety signal of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine. A study published in Scientific Reports found that COVID-19 vaccine recipients have a 42 percent increased incidence of developing GBS.

  GBS is an autoimmune disease. COVID-19 spike proteins share similarities with over 28 human proteins, including glial tissues and brain growth factors. Therefore, if the body attacks the spike protein, some of the antibodies formed may also attack the brain and the nervous system, potentially leading to neurological disorders.

  Dementia

  While COVID-19 vaccination has not been directly linked to dementia, it has been linked with cognitive deficits, memory loss, and delirium, all of which are symptoms of dementia.

  A study funded by the National Institute on Aging reported delirium the day after vaccination in older people in a nursing home, but it was resolved within two weeks.

  The Italian NEURO-COVAX population-based study evaluating over 19,000 people found that almost 2 percent reported cognitive fog after vaccination.

  Seizures

  In October 2022, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) researchers detected seizures as a safety signal for children aged 5 and under who received the mRNA vaccines. A Japanese study that followed 332 people with epilepsy observed seizure worsening following vaccination in 5.7 percent of those who received their first and second COVID-19 vaccines.

   

  Data from the Global Vaccine Data Network (GVDN) showed that the first and second doses of the Moderna vaccine were associated with an increased risk of febrile seizures, convulsions in children caused by a fever. The first dose of the Moderna vaccine and fourth dose of the Pfizer vaccine were associated with an increased risk of generalized seizures.

  Additionally, the first dose of the Moderna vaccine was also associated with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, a type of autoimmune condition that may present as seizure attacks.

  Gait Disturbance

  One review linked four cases of gait disturbance to the COVID-19 vaccine. Another paper published in Cureus reported four neurological case studies, with one patient developing gait disturbance from Guillain-Barré syndrome and one from meningitis-retention syndrome.

  Researchers at the University of Florida followed several Parkinson’s disease patients who experienced worsening Parkinsonian symptoms after vaccination, with gait disturbance being the most common.

  Bell’s Palsy

  Bell’s palsy manifests as facial muscle weakness or paralysis and has been recognized as a COVID-19 vaccine safety signal by researchers at the FDA. An FDA preprint found that older people who received the Pfizer booster had a higher rate of developing Bell’s palsy.

  Data from the GVDN similarly found that the first doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines were associated with an increased risk of Bell’s palsy.

  Tremors

  Tremors may be a sign of brain and neural damage, causing impairment in motor control.

  A case study published by clinicians at the Cleveland Clinic reported a man who developed tremors in all four limbs 12 days after he took the second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Additionally, the Italian NEURO-COVAX study found that 1.5 percent of vaccinated individuals reported tremors, and the same amount reported muscle spasms.

  Sensory Changes

  Sensory changes such as pins and needles, temperature intolerance, pain, and lack of sensation are all indicators of neuropathy. The Epoch Times has reported on neuropathy that occurs after vaccination.

  Neuropathy is when sensory neurons in the periphery are damaged. If the neuron is meant to detect heat, then the damage may cause a burning sensation or reduced ability to detect temperature. Damage to the neurons meant to detect touch may result in a pins-and-needles feeling, diminished sensation, or even a feeling of electric shock.

  Headaches and Dizziness

  Though many people have temporary headaches or dizziness after vaccination, some may also experience persistent and painful migraines that affect daily living. These headaches may be the result of neuroinflammation induced by the spike protein.

  Fainting, or a temporary loss of consciousness, can occur due to decreased blood flow to the brain.

  Cardiac Disorders

  Spike proteins have been shown to damage the endothelium lining of the heart, causing inflammation and fusing the heart muscle cells, as demonstrated by research conducted at the Mayo Clinic. Both processes can harm the heart muscles’ functioning, leading to various conditions.

  A German study published in the British Journal of Pharmacology showed that heart cells exposed to the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines produce spike protein and exhibit different abnormalities.

  

  Cardiac Arrest

  There has only been a few studies linking cardiac arrest with COVID-19 vaccination. Analysis of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) adverse events database showed that the COVID-19 vaccines were associated with an increased risk of cardiac arrest in those older than 75 years of age.

  Only one peer-reviewed study has linked cardiac arrest with the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, in which a 59-year-old male with no significant past medical history received a third dose of the mRNA shot and experienced cardiac arrest within seven hours.

  Cardiomyopathy

  Cardiomyopathy is a condition affecting the heart muscle. The heart cavities may become enlarged, with the muscles becoming thicker or stiffer, causing a weakened heart and even leading to heart failure or cardiac arrest.

  A 2022 global review on stress cardiomyopathy cases reported post-vaccination found that, on average, most symptoms occurred around three days after vaccination. The authors concluded that the problem is rare but can be life-threatening. Medical journals documented several cases of cardiomyopathy, including one healthy 63-year-old woman with no cardiovascular risk factors who was admitted to the emergency room one day after her first dose of the Moderna vaccine.

  Heart Attack

  Spike protein damages blood vessels and is also prone to forming blood clots, which can block coronary arteries, leading to heart attacks. The WHO’s adverse events database showed that the COVID-19 vaccines are associated with an elevated risk of heart attacks in those older than 75.

  Several case studies have reported heart attacks within 24 hours of vaccination, including one Japanese case study and one Harvard University study.

  Myocarditis and Pericarditis

  Reports of myocarditis as a safety signal have been extensively reported in The Epoch Times’ premium reports. Recently, FDA researchers have also detected myocarditis as a safety signal for the latest COVID-19 monovalent vaccines.

  It can occur as a result of spike protein damaging the heart muscles. A paper published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that the Moderna vaccine was associated with a higher rate of myocarditis than the Pfizer vaccine for young men.

  Like myocarditis, pericarditis is also a type of heart inflammation, but the outside heart lining is affected rather than the heart muscles. Pericarditis can lead to pericardial effusion, which occurs when fluid builds up around the heart. The Epoch Times has reported on a professional mountain biker who was diagnosed with pericarditis after vaccination and was hospitalized.

  Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)

  Cases of POTS have increased in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. POTS is a condition that causes rapid heart rate when a person changes positions from lying down to standing up, indicating dysfunction between the nervous and cardiovascular systems.

  Dr. Tae Chung, director of the Johns Hopkins POTS program, noticed some unusual cases among medical students or physicians who were vaccinated but not infected with COVID-19. Later, a large cohort study identified a possible link between the COVID-19 vaccine and the disease.

  In July 2023, The Epoch Times spoke to two women in their 20s who were diagnosed with POTS after COVID-19 vaccination.

  Arrhythmia

  Arrhythmias occur when there is an electrical malfunctioning of the heart, with heartbeats becoming too rapid, slow, or irregular.

  A study published in Vaccine: X found an increased risk for arrhythmias without myocarditis within 14 days of a second dose of mRNA vaccine in adults. The Moderna vaccine presented a greater risk than the Pfizer. A systematic review concluded that “the incidence rate … of cardiac arrhythmia post-COVID-19 vaccination is rare and ranges between 1 and 76 per 10,000.” Another 2023 review said the problem is “not uncommon.”

  Atrial fibrillation, the most common type of arrhythmia, has also been reported in the literature.

  Hypertension

  As the vaccination campaign continues, evidence of possible blood pressure alteration has accumulated. The mechanism is unknown; it may be linked to the reduction of angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE-2) receptors in the body, as spike proteins bind to ACE-2 receptors to enter cells.

  A meta-analysis study published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Development and Disease examining data on 357,387 vaccinated individuals found that around 3.2 percent reported an increase in blood pressure in post-vaccination reports filed 15 minutes to days after vaccination.

  Heart Palpitations

  Heart palpitation is a sign of underlying heart disease, though it is typically transient and non-severe.

  Blood Disorders

  A major side effect reported following vaccination is blood clots. Spike proteins are particularly prone to clotting. While most blood clots require the presence of thrombin and platelets, spike proteins can form clots even in the absence of these proteins.

  Early in the vaccine rollout, the now discontinued J&J vaccine was shown to cause blood clotting despite low platelets in the blood. The mRNA vaccines have similar problems.

  Spike proteins also change the structure of the proteins inside the clot, resulting in amyloid-like blood clots that are much larger and harder to break down. Multiple studies have shown that spike proteins directly bind to clotting factors in the blood, promoting both large and microclot formations.

  Depending on where the blood clots form, patients may develop various pathologies related to the clotting.

  Read more here…

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 21:00

• Ukraine's Top Spy Chief Says Navalny Died From Blood Clot, Rejects 'Murder' Narrative
  Ukraine’s Top Spy Chief Says Navalny Died From Blood Clot, Rejects ‘Murder’ Narrative

  In a very unexpected plot twist, Ukraine appears to be in agreement with the Kremlin on Alexei Navalny’s death inside a far northern Russian prison which occurred on Feb. 16 and was listed by Russian authorities as officially due to “natural causes”. The dominant Western narrative has thus far been that Putin had him “murdered”. 

  Yet now Kiev sources are saying that the anti-Putin activist supported by the West died of a blood clot. Surprisingly, this explanation is being advanced among Ukraine media sources after none other than Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, chief of the Main Directorate of Intelligence (HUR), bluntly stated it to a group of journalists on Sunday. “I may disappoint you, but as far as we know, he indeed died as a result of a blood clot. And this has been more or less confirmed,” Budanov stated.

  

  “This wasn’t sourced from the internet, but, unfortunately, natural [causes],” he added in the remarks which were also caught on video. The spy chief’s words were also picked up in The Daily Mail, though predictably US mainstream outlets have been slow to acknowledge the assessment.

  Further, the NATO-friendly pundit Anton Gerashchenko, who also served as former Ukrainian Advisor to Internal Affairs Minister, has said the following:

  Vladimir Osechkin, founder of Gulagu. Net, says that, according to his sources, Navalny was killed (finished off with a blow to the chest) after being tortured with frost.

  Head of Ukrainian military intelligence Kyrylo Budanov said that according to his sources, “it was a blood clot.”

  Over the weekend Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, said her son’s body was finally released to the family. She has said Russian officials are seeking to pressure the family into doing a ‘secret funeral’ so as not to attract public demonstrations. “We do not know if the authorities will interfere to carry it out as the family wants and as Alexey deserves,” she said previously.

  Navalny’s wife has laid ultimate blame on Putin for his death, while President Biden too and other Western leaders have said “Putin is responsible.”

  “What has happened to Navalny is yet more proof of Putin’s brutality,” Biden had said immediately after Navalny’s death was announced by Russian prison services. Some European leaders quickly branded Putin’s government a “rogue regime” as a result, urging that Moscow “must be held accountable”. The whole situation seems akin to the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage, where there was a rush to blame Moscow, but allegation which were later quieted and walked back.

  Meanwhile, Russia hawks in the US are urging the administration to go beyond last Friday’s large round of new anti-Moscow sanctions…

  Lindsay Graham: “Let’s make Russia a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law. Let’s make them pay for Navalny’s death…”

  “President Biden told Putin, if something happens to Navalny, you’re going to pay a price.

  President Biden: I agree with you. The price they should pay… pic.twitter.com/FXFBey68UH

  — Ben Swann (@BenSwann_) February 21, 2024

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  Another stunning development and further plot twist has emerged via Bloomberg reporting on Monday. Navalny was supposedly very close to being released amid secret talks involving the US and Germany:

  Alexey Navalny had been close to release in a prisoner exchange with the US and Germany shortly before his death in an Arctic prison, a top aide to the Russian opposition leader said.

  “Navalny was supposed to be freed in the coming days,” Maria Pevchikh said in a video statement posted Monday. Russian President Vladimir Putin was offered an assassin imprisoned in Germany in exchange for Navalny and two US citizens, she said.

  Moscow has long been seeking to gain the freedom of Vadim Krasikov, who is currently serving a life sentence in Germany for the 2019 assassination of a former Chechen rebel in a Berlin park. Krasikov is widely believed to be part of Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB. Washington had reportedly previously rebuffed any prisoner swap deal involving Krasikov (related to talks in the context of the Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout swap).

  Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, ex-Marine Paul Whelan, and schoolteacher Marc Fogel are all still in Russian custody. Two Americans were supposed to be part of this alleged impending Navalny swap. According to more from Bloomberg, citing a Navalny family spokesperson: 

  Pevchikh didn’t name the two Americans involved in the deal. “Putin was clearly told that the only way to get Krasikov is to exchange him for Navalny,” said Pevchikh. Instead, he decided to “get rid of the bargaining chip” and “offer someone else when the time comes.”

  Meanwhile, news of Navalny’s funeral arrangements will likely emerge in the coming days. His family has hinted at their desire to see it happen in Moscow, which could spark anti-Kremlin protests.

  As for the aforementioned blood clot narrative offered by Ukraine’s military intelligence chief and possible context helping to explain why such a top level Kiev official would essentially “side” with the Kremlin on this, what’s missed in the West is the fact that Navalny had always been a fairly hardline nationalist. From a Ukrainian perspective, he wasn’t necessarily seen as an “ally” per se, even though he was anti-Putin. For more crucial context, see the below brief segment discussing Navalny’s checkered past…

  Surprising observations by @Alexey__Kovalev on PodSave w/ @TVietor08 @brhodes

  He says Navalny is actually to the right of Putin on key issues, and is anti-immigrant like Trump

  Looked into it more and found a horrific skit by Navalny doing a mock execution of a Muslim immigrant pic.twitter.com/fr5gogPmXn

  — Erik Sperling 🌍 (@ErikSperling) January 29, 2021

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  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 20:55

• "Heightened Risks": Goldman Points To Leading CRE Indicator That Shows Pain Train Not Over
  “Heightened Risks”: Goldman Points To Leading CRE Indicator That Shows Pain Train Not Over

  Commercial real estate is the third-largest asset class, trailing only behind fixed income and equities. Despite the “Magnificent Seven” driving broad equity indexes to new highs, CRE markets are experiencing a worsening downturn, particularly in the office sector. A series of notable CRE loan defaults and regional bank failures underscores this mess. 

  Goldman’s senior equity research analyst Susan Maklari penned a note for clients on Monday titled “Non-Residential Construction: January Data Indicates Soft Start to the Year” (avail. to pro subs in the usual place). 

  

  Maklari cited data from the Dodge Momentum Index, a 12-month leading indicator of construction spending for nonresidential buildings. She found that the index rose 0.1% in January to 184.1 from 183.9 in December but was down 8% from 199.3 a year ago. 

  “We will continue to monitor readings in the coming months given heightened risks surrounding commercial sub-sectors,” she said. 

  

  Meanwhile, the Architecture Billings Index is in contraction territory. Here’s more from the analyst

  The Architecture Billings Index (ABI) decreased to 46.2 from 46.5 in December. The commercial/industrial component fell to 47.0, from 47.2 in December, while the pace of institutional decline improved to 48.5 from 47.9 last month. Despite weaker backlogs, we believe the macro backdrop will support activity in certain verticals this year. We note the ABI is a leading indicator of spending for non-residential construction activity, with an average lead time of 9-12 months. 

  

  Our guess is that a continued gloomy outlook for CRE construction spending and waning demand for construction products and services will persist this year because of tight financial conditions. 

  And let’s not forget Morgan Stanley’s latest note explaining that the “greatest headwind” facing the office segment of the CRE market is “years of supply.” 

  

  It remains to be seen if upside momentum in the Dodge Momentum Index returns this year as fears of inflation re-accelerating has repriced rates market from 7 to 3 cuts this year. The first expected rate cut has been pushed from March to July. 

  

  It’s safe to say the CRE downturn will continue throughout the year.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 20:40

• The Only Rx For Drug Shortages Is Competition
  The Only Rx For Drug Shortages Is Competition

  Authored by Thomas McArdle via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Price controls lead to shortages. This axiom is as dependable and scientifically absolute as the law of gravity. And it is the case even when the controls are elaborately disguised.

  

  So, when the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reacts to the shortages suffered in the aftermath of the COVID-19 lockdowns of vital hospital drugs, including those used in chemotherapy like Methotrexate and fludarabine, by launching a probe of distribution companies, it’s like the Federal Aviation Administration searching for ways of blaming the ground for getting in the way of the jetliner that crashed.

  To FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan, the solution of shortages is a government investigation that “scrutinizes the practices of opaque drug middlemen.” Presumably, the distribution firms under scrutiny will be Cardinal Health, Cencora, and McKesson, while the collective hospital purchasing firms in the federal viewfinder are likely HealthTrust, Premier, and Vizient.

  Demand for these life-saving drugs has been on the increase; no one disputes that. In a market with minimum state interference, such demand would be taken advantage of either by existing producers increasing capacity or by new firms entering the fray to deliver what the buyers are ready and willing to purchase. But when you deny manufacturers the ability to make profits in taking advantage of demand, you make delivery of new supply difficult if not impossible.

  Treating health care as a right is a deceptive description of what is actually the removal of the profit motive from the production and delivery of things and services of value. When you do that in any field, you exit the reality of human nature. What, after all, is more valuable than medicines and treatments that maintain your health? And the scientists, physicians, and businesspeople who have the expertise, or even genius, to invent, mass produce, and deliver medical care to patients must expect to be compensated based on market value—which, in bad news for the envious, ends up being many, many multiples of the minimum wage—otherwise they will devote their abilities elsewhere.

  In other words, like anything else for sale, health care must be opened to customer scrutiny. When it comes to generic drugs, sadly, owing to the laws on the books, it’s like walking down the aisle at the supermarket and finding all the boxes of cereal or jars of jam identical, except for the price differences. No labels, no brand names, and the brand’s accompanying reputations based on past experience buying them. The healthcare consume—be it a patient, a pharmacist or a hospital—can only make a blind, ignorant-by-design comparison.

  The Hatch-Waxman Act of 1984 vastly expanded the production and accessibility of generic medicines by shrinking regulatory delays in the approval of generic versions of patented drugs. Prices of generics plummeted and their use skyrocketed. The main driver was lots of competition among generics.

  But sometimes various factors can reduce that competition for certain of the products; narrow profit margins, for instance, can lead to a manufacturer getting out, and—human nature being what it is—the companies remaining finding little reason not to raise their prices, sometimes with the power of a near-monopoly. New suppliers, in the meantime, face massive regulatory hurdles; the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a backlog of thousands of applications from generic manufacturers awaiting approval, and the wait time is years. The FDA jealously and outdatedly guards its approval power even though there is no evidence that the drug supply in the United States today is any less safe than that of other developed countries. Approval in those countries should be trusted here when it comes to often vitally needed imported generics, a move that would make more drugs available, lower their prices, and improve the health of Americans.

  When in 2022 a labor shortage at Teva Pharmaceuticals caused delay in production of the  generic Adderall, a treatment for attention-deficit hyperactivity, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s harsh production quotas imposed on rival manufacturers prevented them from coming to the rescue and making up for loss of supply.

  Brookings Institution Center on Health Policy senior fellow Marta Wonsinska notes, “The price pressure on manufacturers is tremendous and certain types of drugs, especially generic sterile injectables, are particularly vulnerable.” This artificial environment in which buyers are forced to choose based only on price, not weighing it alongside quality, is not a true market.

  The Obama administration reacted to less serious prescription drug shortages by issuing a directive on Halloween of 2011 that, among other things, ordered the FDA to work with the Department of Justice on any findings of shortages being used for stockpiling and price increases. As with the FTC today, government is always seeking a villain and refusing to gaze into the mirror.

  The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) was long ago complaining of a “gray market” taking advantage of shortages, “with the potential for price gouging” by secondary wholesalers, causing “serious concerns for patient safety.” It was also long ago recommended that PhRMA set out to forestall more government regulation by advocating an industry‐​wide policy, by brand-name and generic manufacturers alike, to require purchase only from the manufacturers themselves and sales made only directly to pharmacies and hospitals, thus eliminating the effect on prices of a gray market distribution chain. Pharmacies and hospitals would require documents recording a drug’s distribution route. The industry’s motivation for embracing this idea is the higher revenues for manufacturers that would result, and the increased safety of the drug supply chain.

  Returning to the matter of human nature, setting a high price for medicines when the situation allows is not always as crass and greedy as it may sound. About 90 percent of proposed medicines that go through testing ultimately fail to be offered to health providers and patients because they are found to be unsafe or not to affect a cure or a proper treatment. Thus, the cost between invention and sale to the public comes in on average at billions of dollars for each drug. That means that these evil, greedy pharmaceutical companies recoup their astronomical investments from the one in ten medicines that do make it to shelves.

  When you turn these firms into villains, declare their profits to be obscene, shake them down and force them to cut their revenues, all you are doing is making them again and again not devote the money needed to bring new cures to patients. And this remains the truth in spite of the fact of their being bad actors—gougers, con artists, and the like—to be found in the field of medicine, as they are to be found in any and every other walk of life.

  As the Manhattan Institute’s Tim Rice warns, “With too many barriers to recouping their investments, pharma companies will stop taking risks, and innovation will suffer.”

  Having government treat health care as a right renders that care a scarce commodity. The way for the maximum number of patients to receive the highest quality of care,  including highly expensive, innovative drugs, is to accept the real world of profit and price as necessary mechanisms of distribution in a free society, and keep the heavy, self-serving hand of government out as much as possible.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 20:20

• "California-Proof": Cybertruck's 'Armor Glass' Thwarts Break-In By Criminals
  “California-Proof”: Cybertruck’s ‘Armor Glass’ Thwarts Break-In By Criminals

  Tesla’s armored pickup truck, with shatter-resistant windows and ultra-hard stainless steel exoskeleton, appears to be thief-proof and now “California-tested” after a new video shows an unsuccessful break-in by a group of thieves. 

  “Cybertruck is California-proof. Armored glass beats criminals trying their best to break in – even when jumping on the roof,” X user Arash Malek said in a post. 

  Cybertruck is California-proof. Armored glass beats criminals trying their best to break in – even when jumping on the roof. @Tesla @cybertruck @elonmusk @teslaownersSV @oaklandpoliceca

  Don’t mess with Cybertruck. 📐 pic.twitter.com/S8Wt1tCcNC

  — Arash Malek (@MinimalDuck) February 26, 2024

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

  Tesla’s chief Elon Musk has said the Cybertruck’s “Amor Class,” a combination of ultra-strong glass and a polymer-layered composite, is designed to absorb and redirect impact force and is durable enough to survive Class 4 hail. 

  One X user said: “Apocalyptic Vehicles now required in Cali… Now all we gotta do is figure out how to electrify the stainless steel skin as a shocking deterrent.” 

  Apocalyptic Vehicles now required in Cali…
  Now all we gotta do is figure out how to electrify the stainless steel skin as a shocking deterrent. ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/hLsyMHC6yN

  — JoshWest247 ⚡️ (@JoshWest247) February 26, 2024

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

  Given that Democrats in the imploding progressive state fail to enforce ‘common sense’ law and order, the Cybertruck might be the best apocalypse vehicle with security and design to survive the crime crisis. 

  How about electrifying the stainless steel skin? 

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 20:00

• Biden's Key Policy Changes That Transformed America's Borders
  Biden’s Key Policy Changes That Transformed America’s Borders

  Authored by Emel Akan and Lawrence Wilson via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  President Joe Biden took office with a commitment to overturn the previous administration’s immigration policies, calling them “cruel and reckless.” He emphasized that his plan would establish a “fair, orderly, and humane” immigration system while implementing smarter measures to secure the border.

  

  But his administration is now grappling with a historic crisis.

  Republicans blame President Biden for eliminating and reversing policies put in place by the Trump administration.

  Many people, including those in the liberal media, have also pointed fingers at the Biden administration for the crisis that has now spread to large cities around the country.

  Polling suggests that American voters trust former President Donald Trump—the Republican frontrunner in November’s election—more than President Biden on immigration and border-security issues. According to the Pew Research Center, 80 percent of Americans, including 73 percent of Democrats, think the U.S. government has done a bad job of handling the illegal immigrant influx.

  The illegal immigrant surge has escalated significantly throughout President Biden’s presidency, shattering record after record. The past six months of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data show it’s getting worse.

  As taxpayer expenses pile up, communities nationwide are feeling the strain. And there seems to be no end in sight.

  So how did we get here?

  2019: The Campaign Trail

  President Biden’s pledges to potential illegal immigrants began early in his campaign.

  During a Democratic primary debate on June 27, 2019, candidate Biden raised his hand when the host asked if his government health care plan would provide coverage for illegal immigrants.

  He raised his hand again when the host said, “Raise your hand if you think it should be a civil offense rather than a crime to cross the border without documentation.”

  The host then specifically asked Mr. Biden if someone who is here illegally should be deported if that is his or her only offense.

  

  “That person should not be the focus of deportation,” Mr. Biden responded.

  A couple of months later, during another debate on Sept. 12, 2019, Mr. Biden said: “I would, in fact, make sure that there is, that we immediately surge to the border all those people who are seeking asylum. They deserve to be heard. That’s who we are. We’re a nation that says, ‘If you want to flee, and you’re fleeing oppression, you should come.’”

  January 2021: Biden Ends National Emergency

  To fulfill his campaign promises, President Biden has implemented more than 500 actions on immigration in the first three years of his presidency, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

  To better understand the reasons behind the surge at the southern border, critics say, it’s important to review the actions the president took on his first day in office.

  On Jan. 20, 2021, President Biden ended President Trump’s national emergency declaration on the border, which called for the construction of a border wall.

  President Biden halted the construction, calling it “a waste of money.” He also declared that no more taxpayer dollars would be diverted to wall-construction projects, despite already-allocated congressional funds for the project.

  He also reversed a ban on travelers from terror-prone countries. The ban, imposed during the Trump administration, barred people from entering the United States from certain terror hotspots that didn’t provide robust security background checks on prospective travelers. President Biden stated that these bans were inconsistent with American values.

  A few months later, The Epoch Times reported that Border Patrol agents had apprehended two Yemeni men who were on the FBI’s terrorism watch list and the no-fly list.

  Also on his first day in office, President Biden suspended deportations of illegal aliens for 100 days. The policy applied to almost everyone who entered the country illegally before November 2020. A week later, however, a federal judge in Texas blocked the policy.

  With another executive order issued on his first day in office, the president strengthened the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for children who were brought into the country illegally.

  On day one, the administration also stopped adding illegal immigrants to the “Remain in Mexico” program. The Trump administration implemented the program, which required asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico until their U.S. immigration court date, at end of 2019. The program has been touted by border-security advocates as the most effective for stemming illegal immigration because it ended “catch-and-release,” the practice in which illegal immigrants are released into the interior of the United States with a court date potentially many years down the road.

  

  Biden Introduces Immigration Reform Plan

  On his first day in office, President Biden introduced the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, which he referred to as a “comprehensive immigration reform plan.” The bill included an array of changes to existing law that would have made it quicker and easier for those who enter the country legally to gain citizenship and, in a sweeping amnesty, would have provided a pathway to citizenship for millions of people who had entered the country illegally.

  The bill offered little to decrease the flow of illegal immigrants into the country apart from requiring the Department of State to “advance reforms in Central America” to address the reasons people are migrating to the United States and to create refugee-processing centers in the region.

  President Biden has said Republicans in Congress blocked the bill. But Democrats, who controlled both the House and the Senate in 2021, made no apparent effort to advance the bill, and it died in committee in both chambers, never receiving a hearing.

  The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, slammed President Biden’s U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, calling it “the most radical piece of immigration legislation” and saying that it seeks to reward illegal aliens at the expense of Americans.

  In a report, the organization criticized the bill for prioritizing “illegal aliens, smugglers, cartels, and gangs” over border security.

  February 2021: New Asylum Policy

  Thirteen days later, President Biden signed three more orders, including loosening the criteria for asylum. He announced the restoration of asylum processing at the border and the creation of a task force to reunify any remaining families that were separated during the previous administration.

  The new orders on Feb. 2 also included reversing the Trump administration’s public charge rule and developing a strategy to address “irregular migration across the southern border.”

  The public charge rule required family sponsors to repay the government if noncitizen relatives received public benefits.

  Republicans have blamed the Biden administration for encouraging illegal immigration by signaling a lax border policy through these executive orders.

  Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials announced new interim guidelines on Feb. 18 for handling the arrest, detainment, and deportation of illegal immigrants.

  DHS said the three priority criteria—national security, border security, and public safety—outlined in the interim guidelines are effective immediately for all Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions.

  

  Any ICE agent who encounters an illegal immigrant who falls outside of the three categories must get preapproval from his field office before taking any action, a DHS official said, and he must consider the following criteria: the nature and recency of a non-citizen’s convictions, the type and length of sentences imposed, whether the enforcement action is otherwise an appropriate use of ICE’s limited resources, and other relevant factors, including mitigating factors.

  The mitigating factors, the official said, include consideration as to whether “someone might be suffering from serious physical or mental illness.”

  “We want [ICE agents] to think about ties to the community, whether the individual has family here in the United States, U.S. citizen family members, and other considerations,” he said.

  March 2021: Biden’s First Political Test

  President Biden promised to develop a more humane and efficient immigration system, but this promise met with a significant test less than two months into his term with a rapid influx of unaccompanied children crossing the border illegally.

  In March 2020, the Trump administration began using the COVID-19 emergency measure Title 42 to allow U.S. authorities to quickly expel illegal immigrants.

  When President Biden took office, he announced that children would not be subject to the Title 42 health order. A significant uptick in unaccompanied minors was observed soon after that announcement.

  Some Democrats and policy experts at the time blamed President Trump for the uptick.

  Ruth Wasem, a professor of public policy at the University of Texas at Austin, argued that the spikes were attributable to a migration backlog caused by President Trump’s rigid immigration policies.

  “Trump basically shut down our immigration system and ended the laws on the books,” Ms. Wasem told PolitiFact in March 2021. “So there’s going to be a pent-up number of people that were waiting to come, or that were en route.”

  Yet, after images of unaccompanied minors in overcrowded shelters appeared in the media, President Biden found himself under fire from all sides.

  “The situation we are currently facing at the southwest border is a difficult one,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a lengthy statement in March 2021. “We are tackling it. We are keeping our borders secure, enforcing our laws, and staying true to our values and principles.”

  

  February 2021 saw 9,400 unaccompanied minors, mostly from Central America, being apprehended, almost doubling the numbers from the prior months. By March 2021, the reported number had almost reached 19,000. The Epoch Times reported at the time that the average cost to care for one child in a temporary emergency facility had increased to $775 per day.

  The influx of unaccompanied children has persisted in the following years, creating substantial logistical and humanitarian challenges for the administration. Since President Biden took office, the Department of Health and Human Services has received more than 370,500 unaccompanied minors, according to the agency. The department has been sheltering these children until they’re placed with a sponsor in the United States.

  A New York Times report last year revealed that the agency had lost contact with one-third of illegal immigrant children since they began living with their U.S. sponsors. Some of them have ended up working dangerous factory jobs in the United States, according to the report.

  Some critics argue that President Biden’s policies have also worsened human and drug trafficking. According to a study from the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, 60 percent of unaccompanied children are caught by cartels and exploited for child pornography or drug trafficking.

  By the end of March, the Biden administration had moved away from sending family units back across the border using Title 42.

  The Epoch Times reported at the time that the vast majority (upward of 85 percent) of family units apprehended by Border Patrol after crossing the border illegally were quickly released into the United States.

  President Biden tapped Vice President Kamala Harris as “border czar.” Her role was to lead the effort to stem the flow of illegal immigration by addressing the “root causes” of migration from Central America and Mexico.

  April 2021: ICE Deportations Plunge

  The number of deportations conducted by ICE in April 2021 reached a historic low despite a surge in illegal crossings.

  ICE carried out 2,962 deportations in April, excluding Title 42 expulsions, showcasing the limitations imposed on the agency by the Biden administration. During March, more than 172,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended along the southern border.

  June 2021: Migrant Deaths Surge

  With the rise in illegal immigration, the number of deaths also increased. In June, 109 bodies were recovered by Border Patrol, up from 61 in May. The majority of deaths over the summer months were due to dehydration and hyperthermia.

  During President Biden’s first two years in office, deaths of illegal immigrants hit a record high. CBP recorded a total of 880 illegal immigrant deaths in fiscal year 2022, the highest number of deaths since data became available in 1998. The second-highest number on record was fiscal year 2021, with 566 deaths.

  

  Fall 2021: False Information and Loss of Trust

  President Biden’s border policies began to strain Border Patrol agents, leading to a significant drop in morale. Some even contemplated quitting their jobs or retiring earlier than planned.

  The frustration among border agents escalated in September 2021 after the Biden administration falsely accused several officers on horseback in Del Rio, Texas, of “whipping” Haitian immigrants.

  DHS Secretary Mayorkas had evidence that the claim was false, but he didn’t attempt to correct the record during a press briefing at the White House. He called the images depicting the alleged abuse “horrifying” and tied them to “systemic racism.”

  President Biden also blamed the horse-patrol agents, calling the incident “outrageous.”

  “There will be consequences,” he told reporters. “It’s an embarrassment. But beyond embarrassment, it’s dangerous; it’s wrong.”

  Read more here…

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 19:40

• "It's An Airbnbust": Home In Palm Springs Falls Quicker Than Meme Stock
  “It’s An Airbnbust”: Home In Palm Springs Falls Quicker Than Meme Stock

  DFW housing and macro analyst Amy Nixon has raised concerns about the potential for an ‘Airbnbust’ to increase inventory in the housing market. Although this scenario has yet to materialize, it remains to be seen whether owners of heavily leveraged Airbnb properties can withstand a prolonged downturn in the short-term rental market.

  On X, Nixon pointed out that Zillow housing data shows a home in Palm Springs, California, that sold for $1.3 million in May 2023 and was recently listed for $625k. She called this the latest example of an “Airbnbust.” 

  “Just because it hasn’t happened at scale, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening,” Nixon said. 

  This home in Palm Springs, CA sold for $1,300,000 in May of 2023

  It’s now being dumped for $625,000

  It’s an Airbnbust

  Just because it hasn’t happened at scale, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening

  The company (ABNB) is fine. The person who bought this is not pic.twitter.com/uceIjU9CZ6

  — Amy Nixon (@texasrunnerDFW) February 25, 2024

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  Nixon followed up the post with this chart! 

  Is this a meme stock chart?

  Failed crypto token?

  No, it’s a house

  This home has round-tripped back to within striking distance of 2020 pricing pic.twitter.com/cFZrqh7TqJ

  — Amy Nixon (@texasrunnerDFW) February 25, 2024

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  One X user commented on Nixon’s post: “It’s a town of 45k. Like talking about the housing market of Saginaw.” 

  She responded: “These are exactly the kinds of towns that got bid up in speculative frenzies during the pandemic.” 

  These are exactly the kinds of towns that got bid up in speculative frenzies during the pandemic

  I highlighted it because my Case Schiller National home price forecast for 2024 is nominally slight positive, with pockets of distress

  This is a pocket of distress

  — Amy Nixon (@texasrunnerDFW) February 25, 2024

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  “The first thing that jumps out is Short Sale on the listing. This was so common for years after 2008 but had not seen it for a long time,” another X user said. 

  The first thing that jumps out is Short Sale on the listing. This was so common for years after 2008 but had not seen it for a long time

  — John Ahmuty (@Cjcdad0925) February 25, 2024

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  Over the last 12 months, vacation rental owners and real estate agents have described what they say is a downturn in the short-term rental market. Some on X have used the hashtag “Airbnbust.” 

  Is X done talking about the AirbnBUST?

  Well, we’re not done with those former STR’s hitting the market 😅 pic.twitter.com/WKN6QaChQN

  — Nick El-Tawil (@tawillionaire) February 25, 2024

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  According to Zillow, there are currently 341 homes available for sale in Palm Springs, CA

  🚨172 of them have been listed or relisted in the last 4 weeks 🚨

  Inventory literally DOUBLED in January in the Airbnbust epicenter pic.twitter.com/y9vxYnWjvO

  — Amy Nixon (@texasrunnerDFW) February 2, 2024

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  Sabrina Must,37, who owns a one-bathroom Airbnb property in Encinitas, California, about 25 miles north of San Diego, complained to WSJ in an interview that her listing only fetches $275 per night. During Covid, she had the property listed for $1,000 per night. 

  “I’ve felt a massive drop,” adding, “I am so beyond stressed by it.” 

  According to data from AllTheRooms, the number of Airbnb rentals in the US jumped from 200,000 seven years ago to nearly 1 million in 2023. 

  As for all those millennials and GenZers who used stupid amounts of leverage to buy Airbnb properties, it’s widely understood some of them have the weakest balance sheets to weather a prolonged downturn in the short-term rental market, which might force them to panic sell. 

  Let’s not forget we have penned two notes about the coming Airbnb bust in “Why AirBnB Owners Are About To Be Forced Property Sellers” and “AirBnB Bubble Bursts: Investor Home Purchases Crash 45% In Biggest Drop Since 2008.”

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 19:20

• War + Inflation = Gold
  War + Inflation = Gold

  Authored by Egon von Greyerz via VonGreyerz.Gold,

  All the fundamentals are now in place for the above equation to be true: 

  • Wars will sadly not go away but instead escalate since there is ZERO desire for peace from the US neocons or the weak Europeans. 

  • Inflation and interest rates will increase rapidly, driven by deficits and exponential growth of debt.

  • Wars and inflation will lead to a major shift into GOLD by Central Banks, the BRICS  as well as for wealth preservation purposes.

  “Poverty is the parent of revolution, crime and war” is what Aristotle stated 2,300 years ago. I added “war” since this is often the consequence of poverty and bankruptcy for a nation in a desperate attempt to borrow more money and blame the war for the economic woes.

  As the US is now totally losing its hegemony, we can on a daily basis follow the desperate actions that a failing super power takes. 

  As every empire and nation that fails, the US has followed the same pattern whether we talk about the Roman, Mongol, Ottoman, Qing or British Empires. 

  Initial economic success as well as military might lead to illusions of grandeur and infallibility. 

  Riches, often stolen from other nations, turn to deficits and debts, collapsing currencies and decadence. That leads to money printing followed by the collapse of the currency. At that stage wars are often started which generally have disastrous consequences. 

  The RISK OF A COLLAPSE OF THE global geopolitical and economic SYSTEM is crystal clear BUT the outcome is extremely murky.

  So let us look at what is clear on the geopolitical side:

  • The US is not led by a visible leader but by an invisible and unaccountable group of neocons who only want war. And in Europe there is not a statesman to be found. Instead, weak European leaders follow the headless US.

  • The US Neocons want to crush Russia by any means, even if it leads to nuclear war. Thus the US has implemented sanctions against Russia and forced Europe to take their full part by also sending weapons, money and military expertise to Ukraine. The cost of these measures is destroying the European economy and making the US even more bankrupt than it is, by running a deficit approaching $2 trillion with total US debt at soon $100 trillion. Remember it was $1.7 trillion in 1971 when Nixon closed the gold window.  See graph further down. 

  • If the US war against Russia (carried out in Ukraine) escalates, Russia will have many friends on their side like China, North Korea and Iran. The US and NATO do not have the capacity to win a war on the ground so any war involving the West will be in the Air and very likely nuclear. 

  • The US also wants to crush the Muslim/Arab world. Iran is currently the principal enemy. But the US is also supporting Israel against Hamas and the Houthis in Yemen. The Muslim world has no capacity for a major war against the West but they have a much more effective method of paralysing the West which is terrorism on a major scale.  Most Western countries have well armed Muslim cells, most probably also with dirty nuclear weapons. So surprise attacks on strategic buildings or major shopping centres  in the US, UK  and rest of Europe are probable. That would totally paralyse the countries involved.

  • A cyber war is also very likely. Whether Russian and Chinese missiles can take out major communication satellite systems, as recently published, remains, to be seen. But they have well developed skills for cyber attacks anywhere. 

  • The US has no desire for peace. They and other NATO countries are not sending a single peacemaker to Russia but only weapons and money. 

  • The majority reaction to the recent Tucker Carlson 2 hour interview is typical for the propaganda led hatred for Putin. Most people in the West have been told by MSM to hate Putin and blame him for all evil acts and thus not listen to the interview. I am by no means saying that Putin is an angel because he definitely isn’t. But nor is any other leader of course. Nevertheless Sun Tzu, the Chinese General, strategist and philosopher told us 2,500 years ago: KNOW YOUR ENEMY.  

  

  • So how can anyone in the West understand Russia or Putin when they are not prepared to listen to him calmly presenting the Russian side for 120 minutes? 

  • Tucker Carlson – Biden interview. Some US politicians wanted to ban Tucker Carlson from coming back to the US after the interview. Instead I would suggest that Tucker would be given a 2 hour interview with Biden. Just like with Putin, there should be no advisors present, no crib sheets and no teleprompters. 

  • Let the world thereafter compare the quality of the argument of the two leaders, their clarity and if they are both Compos Mentis. After all, these are the minimum requirements for a leader of a major power and someone who personally can press the nuclear button. 

  I  have above covered the global geopolitical situation which is “crystal clear” from a risk point of view. 

  I have since the Ukraine war started been very clear that Ukraine can never beat Russia. After a lot of initial enthusiasm for the underdog and a lot of fake news that Ukraine was winning, the world now realises that this war is a human catastrophe with both sides reporting big losses for the enemy and minimal for themselves. Total deaths are probably well above 500,000 but we will never know. 

  The tragedy is of course that the leaders sit in their safe offices and send 100s of thousands of men to their slaughter with no resolution in sight. 

  How this war will play out in detail, we will of course only know afterwards. But in the end it will be seen as another futile war with no winners and one or several million losers, just like most wars that megalomanic leaders start. 

  THE RISK OF A COLLAPSE OF THE WESTERN ECONOMY IS CRYSTAL CLEAR

  So let us now look at the global economic picture. 

  The risk of your wealth declining by 70-90% in the next 5-7 years is today probably greater than any time in history. 

  The US market is driven by a handful of tech stocks which are massively overvalued. 

  On any measure, US stocks are greatly overvalued and as the US debt disaster starts to dominate the discussion, markets will quickly realise that the US is bankrupt.

  TOTAL US DEBT IS NOW GROWING EXPONENTIALLY  

  

  US debt has almost quadrupled this century. 

  As I have set out in several articles, the interest cycle bottomed in 2020 and we will now see a long term trend up for 20-30 years.  

  

  US Federal debt has doubled every 8 years on average since 1980. With the state of the US finances, the debt is likely to now grow super exponentially. Thus it is likely that $100 trillion Federal debt will be reached before 2036 as a mere doubling every 8 years would result in. 

  So with $100 trillion or more of Federal debt within the next 10-12 years, the US economy will default, especially if interest rates reach 10% or more. Remember they were around 20% in the late 1970s and early 80s. 

  Obviously, at that point, or more likely well before it, the US dollar will have collapsed and gold will be the only real money that central banks and ordinary investors will be willing to hold. 

  Yes, there will probably be a few rounds of other forms of fake money in between like CBDC’s issued by central banks, in the next few years. But they will fail as CBDC’s will just be another Fiat currency backed by debt and no assets. 

  So there we have it. Aristotle’s prediction is coming to pass. The US debt and deficit is the Poverty for the country as a whole and will rapidly spread to the people as the financial system implodes. Revolution or internal conflicts will follow both in the US and Europe. The truckers’ action in the US and in many European countries is the start of a form of Revolution.  But it will get much worse. There will be conflict between various political fractions whether it is Trump supporters against the system or neo-Nazis against immigrants or just ordinary people against the wealthy. Extreme income and wealth inequalities, like we are currently seeing in the West,  normally lead to conflicts or revolutions. 

  And anyone living in the WEST knows that Crime (as Aristotle said) is rampant and the prisons in most countries are full.

  Anyone who doesn’t see that we are at the end of a major era, with massive calamities next, will soon have a rude awakening. 

  So overvalued stock markets will crash as will bond markets with interest rates surging. 

  SO WHAT ABOUT CASH IN A BANK– will that save investors?

  Your cash in a bank belongs to the bank: And that is where most people keep their cash. 

  What people don’t realise is that your cash in the bank isn’t your money. 

  No, all you have is a claim on the bank as an unsecured creditor. 

  And as soon as the bank receives your electronic money, it lends it out up to 10X!

  The consequence of that is if one borrower out of the ten can’t repay his loan, you have lost all your money. 

  This process is now happening slowly but just as debt is accelerating exponentially, so will defaults. I explain the process in this article. 

  First Gradually and then Suddenly – The Everything Collapse

  

  Banca Rotta or Bankrupt: This expression comes from the Italian financial system in Florence in the 1600s when banking was conducted on a bench or desk. If the banker couldn’t honour his obligations, his bench was broken. And that is where the word Bankrupt (Banca Rotta in Italian) derives from. 

  So there we have it, a broken or rotten banking system is what the world is looking at now. 

  We had the first signs just under one year ago when four US banks had to be saved, starting with Silicon Valley Bank. Shortly thereafter Credit Suisse, Switzerland’s second largest bank, had to be saved by the Swiss National Bank and government and then UBS were made an offer by the Swiss government that they weren’t allowed to refuse and bought Credit Suisse. 

  What we saw during the Ides of March last year (March 15 when Caesar was murdered), was the first warning signal for the world that the banking system is broken.

  The pressure on the banking system continues. The number of companies that failed to meet required repayments increased by 83% in 2023. 

  US corporate debt has increased by 18% since 2000 and is now at $13.7 trillion.

  Further deterioration is expected for 2024 due to higher rates. 40% of debt Rated B- or below is risking to be downgraded in 2024. 

  The market is hoping for lower rates in 2024 but as I have stated many times, inflation and continued deficits will put pressure on the debt markets.

  Commercial property is a real timebomb with vacancy rates approaching 15% and rents under pressure. Office sales prices are also falling rapidly by between 20% and 66% (in San Francisco).

  The commercial property market is likely to lead to major write-offs for the banks and eventually either rescue actions (=money printing) or defaults – Banca Rotta!

  But let’s face it, the exponential growth of total US debt is unsustainable. 

  Please read my article on how exponential moves explode towards the end. So whether US debt goes to $200 trillion, $500t or quadrillions will be determined in particular by the collapse of the derivative market. 

  I have in many articles explained that the outstanding derivatives are likely to be a lot higher than the BIS figure of just under $700 trillion like in this article: $2 quadrillion debt precariously resting on $2 trillion gold.

  There are sources quoting up to $7 quadrillion derivatives but since I cannot prove it, I cannot make that claim myself. But since there are so many “bets” outside the banking sector and in the shadow banking sector, most of them uncollateralised, we will never know the true size until the system implodes. But whatever the sum is “only” $700 trillion or as much as $7 quadrillion, it is at least 8X global GDP which is enough to break the world financial system and collapse the world economy. 

  This is not a fantasy. It is a nightmare. Because when counterparties fail the gross outstanding derivates cannot be netted and the gross amount outstanding is due. 

  Initially governments will assist banks in turning the derivatives into on balance sheet debt but as the sheer weight of the debt becomes unmanageable and hyperinflation ravages, that’s when the system will fail. 

  Yes, central banks will issue CBDS (Central Bank Digital Currencies)  and try to hide the debt but CBDS is just another form of fake money and will suffer the same fate as paper money. 

  Besides the risk of the financial system, governments and central banks around the world, have throughout history destroyed our money without fail. 

  Only since the early 1700s over 500 currencies worldwide have become extinct, the majority through hyperinflation. 

  Just take the dollar which has lost 98% of its purchasing power since 1971 and 86% since 2000. 

  GOLD

  As I declared in a recent article – Catch the Goldwagon or lose your Fortune.

   

  If stocks crash there might be some short-lived gold sales but 

  GOLD IS ON THE CUSP OF A MAJOR MOVE AS:

  • Wars will continue to ravage the world.

  • Inflation will rise strongly due to ever increasing debts and deficits.

  • The world flees from stocks, bonds, and the US dollar. 

  • The BRICS countries continue to buy ever bigger amounts of gold.

  • Central Banks buy major amounts of gold as currency reserves instead of US dollars.

  • Investors rush into gold at any price to preserve their wealth. 

  SO PLEASE DO NOT MISS THE GOLD WAGON BECAUSE IT WILL BE YOUR LAST CHANCE TO PRESERVE YOUR WEALTH

  

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 19:00

• Putin Responds To NATO Chief's Vow That "Ukraine Will Join NATO" On War's Anniversary
  Putin Responds To NATO Chief’s Vow That “Ukraine Will Join NATO” On War’s Anniversary

  In weekend remarks made on the occasion of the Russia-Ukraine war hitting the two-year mark, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg issued some ultra-provocative predictions regarding Kiev’s future with the Western military alliance. 

  “Ukraine will join NATO. It is not a question of if, but of when,” he said in a video message released Saturday, Feb. 24, which marked an exact two years since Russian forces poured across the Ukrainian border.

  Important message from NATO:

  “Ukraine will join NATO, it’s not a question of if but when”

  🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/iaQsfRWv53

  — Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) February 25, 2024

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  “As we prepare you for that day, NATO will continue to stand with Ukraine. For your security, and for ours,” Stoltenberg added. This ‘vow’ of future NATO membership comes at a moment where even Ukraine’s staunchest external supporters acknowledge its forces are in retreat.

  Stoltenberg acknowledged this “extremely serious” state of battlefield affairs and asserted “there are no indications” President Vladimir Putin is preparing for peace.

  Still he praised and sought to spin reports of the latest major losses as Kiev forces are in retreat (especially from Avdiivka), instead emphasizing recent ‘positive’ naval actions and developments in the Black Sea, such as the sinking of a Russian landing ship this month.

  “You have recaptured half of the territory seized by Russia. Pushed Russia back from large parts of the Black Sea. And inflicted heavy losses on the Russian forces,” the NATO chief said. 

  Referencing billions of dollars of Western defense aid poured into Kiev so far, including “artillery ammunition, air defence, and combat boats … F-16 equipment and spare parts, drones, and demining equipment” – he pledged that “more support is on the way.”

  In a response the following day, President Putin warned that European countries will “automatically be pulled into a war with Russia” if Ukraine is allowed to enter NATO.

  PUTIN🇷🇺: ‘If Ukraine joins NATO and attempts to bring Crimea back by military means, it means the European countries will automatically be pulled into a war conflict with Russia.

  Of course, NATO and Russia’s potentials are incomparable. We understand it. But we also understand… pic.twitter.com/KfW0y1tTfO

  — Afshin Rattansi (@afshinrattansi) February 26, 2024

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  Putin said the following in televised remarks translated by The Daily Mail:

  If Ukraine joins NATO and attempts to bring Crimea back by military, it means the European countries will automatically pulled into a war conflict with Russia.?

  NATO and Russia potentials are incomparable. We understand it. But we also understand that Russia is one of the leading nuclear states. And by some modern components, it even outperforms many.

  That’s when the Russian leader stressed that in such a scenario “There will be no winners” as “you will be pulled into this conflict against your will. You wont even have time to blink your eye when you execute Article 5. I don’t want it.”

  Last week Stoltenberg had also for the first time issued a greenlight on behalf of NATO for Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory, or to choose targets “outside Ukraine” – as he put it.

  “Ukraine has the right to self-defense,” he had told Radio Free Europe on Tuesday. “And that includes also striking legitimate military targets, Russian military targets, outside Ukraine. That is international law and, of course, Ukraine has the right to do so, to protect itself.”

  First footage of a Ukrainian M1A1 Abrams MBT in combat, sporting woodland camouflage, seen here shelling Russian positions in Stepove, Donetsk Oblast. pic.twitter.com/pv0VNIqiuQ

  — OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) February 23, 2024

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  While Ukraine has already long been doing this, and is positively boasting about it – including attacks on oil and energy infrastructure and even civilian centers such as Belgorod city – NATO has never issued such blunt statements openly encouraging these attacks. If anything Western leaders have until now officially urged restraint on attacks deep into Russia (publicly anyway). Thus it seems the war is entering a new, darker phase wherein dirtier tactics are authorized and even encouraged by the West.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 18:40

• Nigeria Blocks Access To Coinbase, Binance, & Kraken As Naira Falls To Record Lows
  Nigeria Blocks Access To Coinbase, Binance, & Kraken As Naira Falls To Record Lows

  Authored by Nik Hoffman via BitcoinMagazine.com,

  Nigeria has taken drastic measures in to attempt to stabilize its plummeting national currency, the naira, by blocking access to major cryptocurrency exchanges, reported the Financial Times.

  

  This move comes as the Nigerian government attempts to crack down on currency speculation amid record lows for the naira.

  JUST IN: 🇳🇬 Nigeria blocks access to Coinbase, Binance and Kraken as their national currency falls to record lows, Financial Times reports.

  — Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) February 22, 2024

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  The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) issued orders to telecoms companies late on Wednesday to restrict consumer access to websites of major cryptocurrency platforms like Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken. As a result, consumers experienced only intermittent access to these sites on Thursday.

  Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser Information and Strategy to the President of Nigeria, took to X to say a local report of the government blocking access to the exchanges was correct.

  Premium Times is correct.

  Forex Crisis: Nigerian govt blocks Binance, OctaFX, Coinbase, others https://t.co/cq6DoxqInj

  — Bayo Onanuga (@aonanuga1956) February 22, 2024

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  Cryptocurrency exchanges have played a big role in establishing unofficial market prices for the naira, with platforms like Binance often serving as benchmarks for local foreign currency exchange rates. The government’s move to block access to these platforms is an effort to regain control over the currency valuation of the naira.

  “Binance, facing regulatory showdown in many countries, and causing disruptions in the currency market, should not be allowed to dictate the value of the naira, not on its crypto exchange platform,” Onanuga further stated.

   “Crypto should be banned in our country or else this bleeding of our currency will continue unabated.”

  Nigeria’s adoption of rash methods to defend its currency, including shutting down price-setting websites and declaring certain cryptocurrency entities illegal, highlights the challenges the country faces in managing its economic stability. 

  

  Nigeria’s national currency has lost over 70% of its value since their central bank lifted its dollar peg in June.

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 18:20

• Houthis Have Knocked Out Several Undersea Internet Cables: Report
  Houthis Have Knocked Out Several Undersea Internet Cables: Report

  There are new reports saying Yemen’s Houthis have knocked out several underwater telecommunications cables linking Europe and Asia, however, some of the accounts of the extent of damage remain conflicting.

  Multiple Israeli publications are reporting Monday that four underwater communications cables between Saudi Arabia and Djibouti have been damaged in recent months – the result of Houthi sabotage. The reporting appears to have originated in Israel’s financial daily outlet Globes.

  

  But one industry publication cautions, “One cable operator has confirmed damage to a cable in the region, but said it didn’t know the cause yet.” Reportedly only the Seacom operator has issued confirmation that it has had cable issues at Djibouti.

  According to the Israeli media report:

  Three months after the Houthis began attacking merchant ships, the Yemenite rebels have carried out another one of their threats. “Globes” has learned that four submarine communication cables have been damaged in the Red Sea between Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and Djibouti in East Africa.

  According to the reports, these are cables from the companies AAE-1, Seacom, EIG and TGN. This is causing serious disruption of Internet communications between Europe and Asia, with the main damage being felt in the Gulf countries and India.

  Other impacted cables are operated by the companies Tata, Ooredoo, Bharti Airtel, and Telecom Egypt, but these did not issue immediate comment or confirmation as to the reported damage or outages.

  But the Seacom outage is now being confirmed by NetBlocks…

  ⚠️ Confirmed: Metrics show a disruption to network connectivity at the Djibouti Data Center which connects the country’s landing stations; the incident comes as Israeli media report four submarine cables across the Red Sea including SEACOM have been targeted by Houthi rebels ✂️ pic.twitter.com/tjlBLAgYd4

  — NetBlocks (@netblocks) February 26, 2024

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  Israel’s Globes says repairs could take up to eight weeks, but the waters in the region remain high risk due to what are now daily Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping. The Houthis have lately made veiled threats they could take out the underwater fiber optic cables.

  “The repair of such a large number of underwater cables may take at least eight weeks according to estimates and involve exposure to risk from the Houthi terror organization,” the report says. “The telecommunications companies will be forced to look for companies that will agree to carry out the repair work and probably pay them a high risk premium.”

  Analyst Alberto Rizzi has explained that “at low depths, trained divers/ship anchors are enough to damage them” and that “Bab-el-Mandeb/Aden is a chokepoint where damage can impact multiple cables at once.”

  Tyler Durden
  Mon, 02/26/2024 – 18:00

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