Today’s News 7th April 2024

• America Is Hurtling Toward A Full-Blown Hot Civil War
  America Is Hurtling Toward A Full-Blown Hot Civil War

  Authored by Justin Smith via The Burning Platform blog,

  It never ceases to amaze me at how little so many people in this country have done to train their minds to critically analyze information. They have eyes to see and ears to see, and yet, somehow the truth of any major issue still seems to evade them, or they simply refuse to recognize the truth with it standing right in front of them, slapping them in the face.

  So many things are currently plumb damned fouled up by this Biden regime and going awry on their own through the dynamics set in motion by this anti-American, lawless regime, that it’s nearly impossible to properly address them all in a single commentary. But I’ve tried to give the Reader as comprehensive an assessment as I possibly can with this piece.

  Michael Savage, a longtime renown radio host, was fond of noting that “liberalism is a mental disorder” and we’re witnessing the result of its heavy utilization for far too many years without being grounded in common sense and a certain amount of pragmatic realism. And so here we are, on the cusp of the final fall of America, short of a miracle from God or true patriots taking a firm stand with rifles in hand and refusing to give an inch of ground and any further movement towards the new world order desired by our amerikkan commies.

  It might sound quaint and out of touch with what some have now accepted as “the new normal”, but I say we should all wrap ourselves in the American Flag and send out the clarion call for a rush of strong, capable men to come to the aid of their country, in a manner as never before.

  ~ J.O.S.

  

  “I may be crazy. But it’s no measure of health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” ~ Ivor Browne, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the University College Dublin [2017]

  In an ideal and perfect world, all Americans would be following a righteously guided conscience and their better angels, and they could trust that their elected leaders were doing likewise; but, we live in a far from perfect world or society, and the fools of the country have abandoned Christian kindness, the Golden Rule and humanity for the evil of trans-humanism. Heartwarming words advocating for true freedom and liberty are far and few between in today’s society and political arenas, in a manner not too unlike the years between 1850 and 1860 that led to the Civil War; and tho’ some on both side of the political aisle still exude goodness in a way that makes each day seem a bit brighter, by and large, the Democratic Party has been completely infiltrated by Marxist-Maoist Communists, who are driving the nation towards the darkest tyranny and bloodiest days ever witnessed in America, as they attempt to stamp out the tenderness and beauty in each person’s soul and reduce us all to mere mindless cogs in their authoritarian machine.

  Look around. Half or more of America’s citizenry have lost their minds and are six steps or more removed from reality, either due to the mind-numbing communist indoctrination they have absorbed from their “education” in the public school system, something genetic or a trauma from their life, some new maniacal drug that has them hooked and out of their minds, or a combination of all three.

  Some would suggest that we set about immediately reforming public education to promote and defend the ideas that originally built America, but we don’t have time to change hearts and minds to counter a movement that started over a hundred years ago and now sits on the cusp of being able to solidify its current stranglehold on America, if the tide swings its way in the 2024 Election or they are able to steal the election through current fraud facilitating mechanisms. Although we can still move to properly educate the next generation in a newly reformed education system or through homeschool, now is the time to organize and assemble those within the country who already know and hold to the truth of American principles and all the freedom and liberty that follow — time to gather our like-minded American patriots and those Lions of Liberty who have had enough of witnessing this America we love so well so sorely abused, put upon and assaulted.

  It doesn’t help when we have self-serving, corrupt people in high office promising to save the gullible and ill-informed from their hell and the misery it brings, if only they will support more madness to be placed in U.S. code. Vote for more economy killing “climate change” change regulations and initiatives and “we’ll put more money on your EBT cards, courtesy of Uncle Sam and the American taxpayer”. “Help us make sure the government has the final say over everybody’s children and can kill babies as they exit the birthing canal, and we’ll make certain you get privilege over all other Americans”, one can almost hear Traitor Joe whispering in some dimly lit concert hall. “You can be a champion among champions”, they say — “Let us help you change your gender”.

  And if anyone stands in your way in the pursuit of any evil, it is they who will be called evil and fallen upon by the full weight of the U.S. Federal Government.

  Oh yea. And as if that isn’t bad enough, Biden is now moving as fast as he can to forgive $144 billion more in student loans. He plans to announce this on Monday, April 8th 2024, and for anyone with eyes to see, this is simply corruption at its worst and Biden buying votes in the upcoming presidential election. What a slap in the face of Americans who couldn’t afford to go to college but now will be forced to bear the tax burden this move will bring.

  I see the immorality growing every day, the people who revel in its evil, freaks from some futuristic sideshow that bodes ill and speaks to the destruction of humanity. and with each passing day, I find myself moving farther and farther away from those with whom I have little or nothing in common with, adrift from most of humanity too. Not in any manner that lends itself to any sadness over my situation, but rather as if to say “whew” in a realization of the relief that has come by way of my separation from those I despise most.

  It’s sort of like I’m standing on the river bank watching the “ship of fools” sailing over the river falls in denial of their own mortality, thinking their crazy ideas will save them and hold them invincible, or worse, knowing they are going to die and not caring who they drag to Hell along with them. They think we’re crazy for defending America’s righteous and true founding principles and virtues and the liberty associated with them, and we think them mad for denying God, reality and the best mankind has to offer in exchange for an evil, unrestrained, immoral freedom that is no freedom at all, a bringer of Death.

  Since 1965, the communists within the federal government, Congress and many state and local governments have essentially separated us and pitted us against one another as one aggrieved group or another, some special interest and through identity politics and racial hatred. They broke us into tribes and acted as if the represented each, all the while setting in place mechanisms that made us serfs to the government, The Leviathan, and reducing us all to poverty as they have gradually destroyed the bulk of the middle class in our country. The Constitution is so degraded and eroded now that any tyrant can impose his will by way of one flourish of a pen, which Traitor Joe has done through 118 executive orders, bypassing Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court.

  We have a national debt that’s rapidly approaching $35 trillion and counting, that to be sure rests on the shoulders of both parties, but it couldn’t have arrived to this abysmal point without both Marxist-Maoists and RINOs accepting the tenets of the Marxist-Keynesian Modern Monetary Theory and the notion that any one nation could print and borrow an endless supply of money forever without any terrible consequence, which is currently being proven wrong. Our people struggle to pay for food and rent and new high mortgage rates have put home ownership out of reach for this new Generation Z that is coming up and expecting a successful way of life to be attainable in some form or fashion, even tho’ many of them are a great part of the problem, some thirty percent claiming to be either queer themselves or supportive of the LGBTQ sickness running rampant through American society, advocating for every known sexual perversion and deviancy one might care to mention.

  Several decades ago, I realized every government in the world was using a Keynesian debt-based system, printing money as if there was no end to real assets or backing for it. Basically, the world had gone mad, as the greed of its so-called “leaders” knew no bounds, and the various governments of the world basically accepted the use of monopoly money. The charade is ongoing and the casino open, that is, ’til those at the very top decide to call in their markers and usher in the final forced phase of The Great Reset.

  In 2008, as I watched the near total collapse of our economic system and heard George [Bush] say that we had to temporarily abandon the free market capitalist system in order to save it, I received a strong sense that America may have peaked and was as good as it was going to get from there on out. I had a feeling that things were only going to continue to decline, especially as one major corporation after the next receive a taxpayer funded bailout after being deemed “too big to fail”.

  In unbelievable fashion, when the largest economic collapse in U.S. history hit in March 2020, to be followed by the Covid Lockdowns, pushed and kept going for years by traitors to America, such as Dr Anthony Fauci and Dr Deborah Birx, many of us saw it for the fraud it was. Still, whole swaths of our cultural freedoms and norms were very nearly destroyed, as a timid American people complied, by and large, because they couldn’t simply stand on their hind feet and tell the government despots “NO”. Even now, as many careers no longer exist and jobs are disappearing like cotton-candy on a rainy day, far too many, especially the communists among us, hold to the delusion that all is well and deny that out-of-control spending and massive national debt really do matter for the health of the nation’s economy.

  Who could have possibly known at the time — other than those Deep State bad actors behind the curtain — that this was a dire harbinger of things to come and but one of the first precursors to a validation of this current system of economic fascism as the preeminent and defining feature of what everyone still mistakenly calls our “free market capitalist system”. Who knew that — if one believes Obama and now Biden — the cure for debt was more debt; the cure for greed was more greed, and that envy of the neighbors’ possessions was perfectly acceptable, even if one easily walked on over to take them by force, through armed robbery. And who could have foreseen that every Marxist-Maoist of the Democratic Party would become modern day Jezebels, condemning the innocent by way of one false accusation after another, paving the way for a vile new phenomena and way of life for the misguided youth of America.

  But never in my wildest imagination did I expect to see every single government institution corrupted to its very core and heavily infiltrated by men and women seeking to destroy traditional America — to “transform America” — and bring great harm to all Americans in the process, as evil was called “good” and good was called “evil”, turning the world upside down as foretold in Isaiah 5:20, as we all witnessed in 2020, driven by the Democratic Party Communists and fascists and globalists of the country, for the most part. Never did I expect to see U.S. science so corrupted and in denial of real science, reality itself, as supposedly “educated” people were soon trying to convince the entire nation that men could really become women and women could become men — that men actually have periods and can have babies.

  And as the American people continue to fail to mount a strong and passionate rejection or effective defense against the current climate change directives from the Biden regime, the Biden regime has just recently [January 26th] ordered our international export of natural gas and natural gas extraction to be placed on hold; and it’s still on hold as of this writing [April 5th], while its impact on the environment is further scrutinized. And in the meantime, the movement towards greater control over our society by way of a digital currency is gaining momentum.

  I don’t think the Biden regime is going to be able to control much of anything once they completely destroy America’s energy infrastructure and our efficacy as an worldwide energy powerhouse, as we were under the Trump administration. It’s going to be damned difficult to control anything without electricity, fossil fuels or heat, and all hell will be unleashed once Americans start being forced to sit in the dark, shivering in the cold or sweltering in the heat.

  When I hear Rachel “Mad-Cow” Maddow and Chris “Cry-baby” Matthews talking about Republicans who support Trump being members of a cult with “crazy ideas”, I think how ironic, that they are perfectly describing themselves and their ilk. They are so insane that they don’t even recognize themselves in that description or what it is that they don’t know; they call themselves “the normal people” as their despot leader, Traitor Joe, dismantles and tears the American republic down around the shoulders of all Americans.

  In listening to many proponents of the Democratic Party Communist platform and agenda — Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Senator Nancy Pelosi and Senator Chuck Schumer for three in particular — I cannot help but wonder when did the wards for the mentally ill release all the inmates. And so here we are in America, where the inmates of mental institutions, federal prisons, Illegal Aliens, drug dealers and sexual deviants and child predators are running the country and the Oval Office today.

  I have noted in several past articles, I do believe the “united States” is currently hurling down a path on a fast track to a full blown, hot civil war. What will emerge will either be a nation squashed under an iron-fisted communist government or a people united in freedom and liberty under a limited government, restrained from ever growing or overreaching as the current Federal System has allowed and the Biden regime has done, trampling on the entire Constitution and our Inalienable God-given Rights in the process.

  Although I refuse to accept any excuse for the far-reaching, incredible and massive ignorance of so many of my countrymen in this day of the internet and information, with books aplenty in every public library too, there are an unbelievable number who accumulate scores, even hundreds, of bits and pieces of the bigger picture without the ability or the will to put them together to reach any worthwhile conclusion aimed at formulating a proper course of action to resist this current totalitarian-minded movement and save themselves, their families and communities and America herself. They do not currently seem to have any real sense of urgency, unless one looks at leadership in Texas and Florida and the current manufactured border crisis.

  Twenty-five state governors stood alongside Governor Abbot of Texas in the border dispute with the Biden regime, and the Governor of South Carolina sent his own National Guardsmen to the border to assist the Texas National Guard and Texas’s various law enforcement agencies who are in this struggle for America’s survival. So although I was speaking of the average citizen in the preceding paragraph, there are some holding key positions who see the rapidly approaching existential threats to all America and are reacting with a high level of urgency and accordingly, using everything within their power to stop this one segment of the madness emanating from the Biden regime.

  America has been cleaved into two separate and antithetical ideologies — two opposing worldviews — with the communists and radical takers of the country supporting a dark vision of tyranny and the conservatives and independent producers supporting the light of truth and a vision of freedom and liberty. They are both hanging in the balance and waiting for gravity or some monumental event to throw the lever that moves them to act and take the country by storm, with the Democrats willing to use every illegal means imaginable.

  The heavy infiltration of Illegal Aliens from many foreign countries that are unfriendly or outright enemies of America is one more dynamic and issue of concern for all who love America, since they will certainly come down on the side which is trying to destroy America. No one should be oblivious to the fact that various “sleeper cells” of Hamas and Hezbollah have been in America for several decades now. Taken in conjunction with thousands of military aged Chinese men entering the country illegally the coming chaos will be Biblical in proportion to anything we have witnessed in all American history.

  Nineteenth century French economist and writer, Frederic Bastiat could have been speaking of America today and the situation She currently finds Herself, as he once stated:

  “When misguided public opinion honors what is despicable and despises what is honorable, punishes virtue and rewards vice, encourages what is harmful and discourages what is useful, applauds falsehood and smothers truth under indifference or insult, a nation turns its back on progress and can be restored only by the terrible lessons of catastrophe.”

  Americans from all across the country have either been complicit in this current treason to “fundamentally transform America”, into something strange and foreign to the Founding, or they have simply been so complacent as to allow the country to fall to her enemies-from-within, in a manner that’s proving fairly damned tough to counter for the moment due to a litany of reasons, from lawfare against conservative and independent patriots to the outright targeting of American patriots by the FBI and the DOJ. But basically, the nation is just about to reap the full, terrible consequences of what was sown so many decades ago, and everyone had better prepare as best as they can.

  We can’t stop what is headed down the road towards us, no matter if we stopped all unnecessary spending or the invasion at the border today — not if we outlawed all deviancy, abuse of children through gender assignment and men competing in women’s sports, or started drilling for oil and gas like crazy overnight. The die has been cast, and no one single man or woman, sitting in the Oval Office, can change what is coming, not Trump or RFK, JR or anyone else who wants to give it a try.

  All good and decent Americans, who can still remember what America used to be or who have been well taught from childhood and know what a great nation — an exceptional nation — She has been in years gone by, will soon be forced to fight against enemies-from-within and foreign enemies supported by the World Economic Forum and the United Nations, so that our friends, families and communities can survive this period and freedom and liberty shall not perish in our land. And as we fight, we must pray and hope that our side emerges victoriously from the din and cacophony of the conflagration and chaos, in order that we may purge the land of those who hate America and restore Her to a land that truly understands what “equality under the law” actually means, to be governed in a manner that actually defends and protects the Inalienable God-given Rights for all, restoring America as something better than She has been in a long, long time.

  This is the war that lays ahead of us, looming just over the horizon, and our very lives and the lives of our loved ones depend on our success. The death of America as She has stood is guaranteed, unless liberty-minded patriots rise from the ashes of the next civil war. That is the reality and the future we now must face.

  Keep ringing the bell … the Liberty Bell and the sound of Freedom from sea to shining sea.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 23:20

• Only 59% Of Americans Are 'Satisified' With Their Health
  Only 59% Of Americans Are ‘Satisified’ With Their Health

  Tomorrow, Sunday, marks World Health Day and the 75th anniversary of the World Health Organization.

  The theme this year is: “My health, my right” and was chosen by the WHO to “champion the right of everyone, everywhere to have access to quality health services, education, and information, as well as safe drinking water, clean air, good nutrition, quality housing, decent working and environmental conditions, and freedom from discrimination.”

  With this in mind, Statista’s Anna Fleck looks at data to find out: how satisfied are we with our health?

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  According to the Statista Consumer Insights macro-survey, respondents in Nigeria were particularly likely to say that they are satisfied or very satisfied with their general state of health in the last twelve months (85 percent).

  By contrast, respondents in South Korea responded more negatively, with only 36 percent answering that they are satisfied or very satisfied with their health.

  It’s worth noting here that this data does not necessarily mean that the inhabitants of South Korea are in worse health than those of Nigeria, for example, but that perceptions of health may differ.

  This survey does not offer a look at the level of health of the population, but a glimpse of how people in different countries perceive their general state of health.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 22:45

• Climate-Con & The Media-Censorship Complex – Part 1
  Climate-Con & The Media-Censorship Complex – Part 1

  Authored by Jesse Smith via TruthUnmuted.org,

  The gauntlet has been cast by the media-censorship complex. Just prior to this year’s annual globalist confab in Davos, the World Economic Forum (WEF) announced that misinformation and disinformation are currently the greatest threats to humanity, with the release of its Global Risks Report 2024.

  

  From a list of 34 risks, the WEF report identifies mis- and disinformation as the top threats to global stability over the next two years and the fifth most dangerous threats over the next 10 years. Of particular concern is false information that could affect elections, democratic processes, and social cohesion in various countries worldwide, as well as sentiment contradicting the “consensus” narrative about climate change.

  Echoing these same concerns, the United Nations (UN), its strategic partner in advancing the climate-focused 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, has previously stated much of the same.

  In Information Integrity on Digital Platforms, a June 2023 UN policy brief recommending a code of conduct for digital platforms, Secretary-General António Guterres stated:

  The ability to dissem­inate large-scale disinformation to undermine scientifically established facts poses an exis­tential risk to humanity (A/75/982, para. 26) and endangers democratic institutions and funda­mental human rights. These risks have further in­tensified because of rapid advancements in tech­nology, such as generative artificial intelligence. Across the world, the United Nations is monitor­ing how mis- and disinformation and hate speech can threaten progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. It has become clear that business as usual is not an option.”

  

  All the UN’s 2030 Agenda plans, activities, and expenditures are based on the belief that we face an existential climate crisis caused by human activity and dangerous greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide (CO2). This conviction is clearly outlined in a fact sheet produced by Verified, a joint initiative of the United Nations and Purpose, launched in 2020 to respond to mis- and disinformation about “intersecting crises like COVID-19 and climate change.” The document states unequivocally that:

  1. Climate change is happening.

  2. Climate change is caused by human activity.

  3. Scientists agree that humans are responsible for climate change.

  4. Every fraction of a degree of warming matters.

  5. The climate is changing faster than humans, plants, and animals can adapt.

  6. Climate change is a major threat to people’s health.

  7. Natural gas is a fossil fuel, not a clean source of energy.

  8. Clean energy technologies produce far less carbon pollution than fossil fuels.

  9. Entire countries already rely 100 percent on renewable electricity.

  10. Renewable energy will soon be the world’s top source of electricity.

  11. Renewable energy is cheaper than fossil fuels.

  12. Solar panels and wind turbines make good use of land.

  13. The transition to clean energy will create millions of jobs.

  By stating that disinformation is undermining these supposed scientific facts, Guterres rests his entire argument on the premise that each of the above statements is absolutely, indisputably, and undeniably true. Like Guterres, all who espouse this climate narrative have no tolerance for any opinion, theory, or evidence that runs contrary to this dogged notion.

  Verified is backed by powerful globalist NGOs including the Rockefeller Foundation and Omidyar Network. It has an extensive list of major media collaborators such as Al Jazeera, Clear Channel, Facebook, Reddit, Spotify, TikTok, and Twitter. Melissa Fleming, Verified co-founder and current UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, has made it known that social media is a huge threat to climate science and other UN initiatives and is particularly bothered by Twitter/X for allowing rampant disinformation.

  It is clear from these reports that any dissent from the established climate narrative threatens the advancement of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Now, urgent calls to extinguish these threats have been issued so they can proceed with transforming the world unimpeded.

  While many of the issues expressed in the Information Integrity report are legitimate and concerning, the UN via the World Health Organization (WHO) participates in disinformation by continuing to promote COVID-19 vaccines as safe and effective, when they have largely been proven to be ineffective and cause much harm. Their stance regarding climate change could also qualify as disinformation to the thousands of scientists who oppose this view but are being discredited as mere conspiracy theorists.

  The following statement from the report underscores their frustration with “climate deniers” and the platforms they use to oppose the UN’s agenda:

  …mis- and disinformation about the cli­mate emergency are delaying urgently needed action to ensure a liveable future for the planet. Climate mis- and disinformation can be under­stood as false or misleading content that un­dercuts the scientifically agreed basis for the existence of human-induced climate change, its causes and impacts. Coordinated campaigns are seeking to deny, minimize or distract from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change scientific consensus and derail urgent action to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement. A small but vocal minority of climate science de­nialists continue to reject the consensus po­sition and command an outsized presence on some digital platforms.”
  (p. 12, emphasis added)

  Globalists want conformity regarding climate change and will go to extreme lengths to marginalize, censor, and discredit dissenters. They talk a good game about enforcing universal freedom of expression, but on climate and other issues vital to their agenda, free speech is not tolerated. Though they readily acknowledge that controlling information may lead to greater levels of authoritarianism, surveillance, censorship, and the erosion of human rights, it seems they are willing to overlook these offenses to protect their precious climate agenda.

  If they can successfully shut down debate about climate change, then soon any topic that threatens their aims will be off limits. The UN deems itself a protector of human rights but plays a major role in the media-censorship complex. Its attempts at crushing opposition to the climate narrative betrays their mission and reveals authoritarian tendencies.

  COUNTERING DIGITAL HATE OR ADVOCATING SUPPRESSION?

  A recently released report issued by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) claims that new forms of climate denial have emerged. These new arguments don’t deny that the climate is changing and is caused by human activity, but instead contend that:

  • The impacts of global warming are beneficial or harmless.

  • Climate solutions won’t work.

  • Climate science and the climate movement are unreliable.

  

  The basis for their report stems from use of “an AI based model called CARDS,” short for Computer-Assisted Recognition of Climate Change Denial and Skepticism. CARDS is designed to identify and categorize climate denialist claims in text. The researchers used CARDS to analyze YouTube video transcripts from 96 mostly right-wing, conservative leaning channels including prominent ones like BlazeTV, Jordan Peterson, and the Heartland Institute.

  CCDH has a big gripe with social media companies they believe are not doing enough to stem the tide of rising climate denial. They want to eliminate the ability for any “climate denier” spreading “conspiracy theory statements” to financially benefit from their content, as evidenced in the following statements:

  To support the global efforts to avert climate disaster, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X should all demonetize and de-amplify New Denial content. Demonetizing climate denial removes the economic incentives underpinning its creation and protects advertisers from bankrolling harmful content. Moreover, de-amplifying climate denial limits its reach and visibility, allowing time for fact-checking and other protective measures to be applied where content is clearly contrary to the well-established scientific consensus on climate change”
  p. 34; emphasis added

  CCDH polling on social media usage tested respondents’ agreement with conspiracy theory statements, including the statement: “Humans are not the main cause of global temperature increases.” CCDH found that 43% of adults and 56% of teenagers who report high activity on social media expressed agreement with that statement. This link between social media usage and conspiracist belief illustrates why urgent action is needed to prioritize information integrity on digital platforms in climate policymaking”
  p. 34; emphasis added

  Their demonetization and censorship recommendations come even after admitting that the CARDS model is only up to 78% accurate, could not perform any fact checks on the claims made in the transcripts, and that lack of punctuation caused results to be skewed.

  

  Image: The New Climate Denial Report, Page 40

  The CCDH is a sketchy, UK-based, advocacy group that has produced various reports inciting censorship against those they disagree with. Their efforts against “anti-vaxxers” culminated in several reports that led to the deplatforming, demonetizing, and discrediting of many individuals and organizations exposing pandemic-related fraud and COVID-19 vaccine falsehoods.

  CCDH’s The New Climate Denial report has been promoted through mainstream outlets like CNN, MSN, Yahoo, and USA Today. It could impact the cited individuals and organizations the same way it affected those targeted in its Disinformation Dozen reports a few years ago. Though their stated mission is to “protect human rights and civil liberties online,” they practice the opposite by advocating the revocation of these rights for climate and vaccine narrative challengers.

  HOW THE MEDIA-CENSORSHIP COMPLEX PLANS TO TACKLE CLIMATE DISSENT

  Two things are very clear from the recent reports issued by the WEF, UN, and CCDH. One, is that climate skepticism is on the rise. The second, is that they are threatened by the very existence of those who dare to refute their narrative. Many strategies to stem the tide of climate cynicism have already been employed with new ones currently being tested.

  If one dares to publicly question the science regarding climate change, one or more of the following tactics may be used to impede the effort:

  • Awareness Campaigns

  • Artificial Intelligence

  • Censorship

  • Civic Listening

  • Content moderation

  • Demonetization and Financial censorship

  • Deplatforming

  • Digital armies

  • Education

  • Fact checking

  • Media and information literacy

  • Prebunking/psychological inoculation

  • Shadowbanning

  • Trusted Messengers

  • Text mining / Automated text analysis

  • Whole-of-society approach

  In addition to Verified and CCDH, other organizations utilizing these methods to silence opposers include:

  • Climate Feedback

  • Covering Climate Now

  • European Media and Information Fund

  • FactCheck.org

  • Global Disinformation Index (GDI)

  • International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) (Poynter Institute)

  • Media Wise (Poynter Institute)

  • Newsguard

  • PolitiFact (Poynter Institute)

  • Reuters

  Each of these organizations are fueled and funded by many of the entities responsible for advancing the climate agenda, especially as it relates to the UN SDGs. This globalized amalgamation of media watchdogs, fact checkers, and disinformation regulators is powered by billion-dollar corporations, democratic and undemocratic governments, influential foundations, and powerful NGOs. The list includes The White House, U.S. State Department, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), The National Science Foundation, United Nations, Poynter Institute, National Endowment for Democracy, Open Society Foundations, Omidyar Network, Rockefeller Foundation, Rockefeller Family Fund, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and many more.

  A plethora of legacy and social media companies also utilize the services provided by these organizations. A small sampling includes Associated Press, NPR, NBC News, Newsweek, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Nation, The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, WhatsApp, Twitch, and LinkedIn. A look at Covering Climate Now’s list of partners provides an even broader view of the media’s enforcement of the climate agenda.

  As if governments, corporations, and organizations weren’t enough, universities such as Columbia, Harvard, Oxford, and University of Southern California also perpetuate the climate propaganda by training journalists in their institutions.

  By treating climate change as a national security threat, the U.S. Department of Defense and intelligence agencies have also been enlisted in the fight against mis- and disinformation.

  In addition, individuals within both the left and right wings of the two-party paradigm collude to curtail free speech. It is a grave mistake to believe that calls for censorship from either side of the political spectrum are beneficial. They are both integral to perpetuating the media-censorship complex.

  WHY HAS CLIMATE SCIENCE BECOME NONDEBATABLE?

  If it wasn’t apparent before, it should now be crystal clear that there is a vast empire united against those questioning the climate narrative. They are determined to perpetuate the myth that there is universal consensus on the facts.

  The truth is there is no real consensus on climate science. The UN and its network of public-private partnerships (PPP) just make it seem that way. In this regard, the UN climate stance is akin to Anthony Fauci’s claim that questioning him was like questioning science itself. Honest and open debate on the issue should be continued by allowing opponents opportunities to present their case without fear of censorship, harassment, exclusion, or cancellation. Instead, there is constant reinforcement of a fictional consensus while divergent opinions are labeled as dangerous conspiracies.

  Climate consensus figures as high as 97 and even 99.9 percent have been touted by former US Presidents, researchers, and media outlets in the past. But is this claim true? If it were, then why would there be so much effort to silence a mere one to three percent who deviate from the scientific echo chamber? Would all these battles be worth the time, energy, and money being spent on just a few dissidents, as they claim?

  Ninety-seven percent of scientists agree: #climate change is real, man-made and dangerous. Read more: http://t.co/4lEEBYtVqf

  — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 16, 2013

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  Much of what qualifies as climate research is funded by institutions that have already bought into the doomsday mantra of impending man-made disaster. The industry is rigged to favor researchers who set out to prove “official” claims. Funding and publication are often withheld from those who do not toe this line. As a result, statistics are skewed to make it seem like there is universal consensus.

  Past research has demonstrated claims of scientific consensus on climate change to be fraudulent. In a paper published in 2023, a team of researchers disproved the conclusions reached in a 2021 study claiming there was greater than 99% consensus on climate science in peer-reviewed scientific literature.

  The claims were refuted by demonstrating that studies expressing neutral opinions were misclassified and papers communicating skepticism were ignored. This clear case of academic malfeasance is not the only example where scientists used falsified research and conspired to silence those contradicting the alleged consensus. Even if the 99% consensus assertions were valid, the notion of consensus-as-truth does not pass the test for authentic scientific validation. The majority can still be wrong.

  A recent article posted by The Good Men Project, which “exposed” the climate deniers behind the recent farmer protests in Europe, proclaimed that “Scientific consensus on human-caused climate change is equivalent to that on evolution.” This statement came in response to a request from protest organizer James Melville for a national debate on climate and net zero policies. Never mind that evolution is not a proven fact. Equating climate change to evolution shows it is also unproven and can be argued against. Again, the majority can still be wrong!

  Remember when Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson made claims that their COVID vaccines were all well over 90% effective in stopping transmission? As evidenced in the following video, those proclamations did not hold up very well, did they?

  “The Vaccine is 100% Safe and Effective”

  🔊 … 🤣 pic.twitter.com/O1RbSvt2EY

  — Wall Street Silver (@WallStreetSilv) September 25, 2023

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  A massive army has been assembled to ensure that rival claims will not see the light of day for long. But why is it that the powers that be would rather falsify research, smear dissenters, and spend billions of dollars to silence critics rather than continuing to debate the issues?

  An article written by Gregory Whitstone, Executive Director of the CO2 Coalition, presents a valid argument for continued scientific debate on climate change, stating:

  You have likely heard that 97% of scientists agree on human-driven climate change. You may also have heard that those who don’t buy into the climate-apocalypse mantra are science-deniers. The truth is that a whole lot more than 3% of scientists are skeptical of the party line on climate. A whole lot more…

  There are some scientific truths that are quantifiable and easily proven, and with which, I am confident, at least 97% of scientists agree. Here are two:

  • Carbon dioxide concentration has been increasing in recent years.

  • Temperatures, as measured by thermometers and satellites, have been generally increasing in fits and starts for more than 150 years.

  What is impossible to quantify is the actual percentage of warming that is attributable to increased anthropogenic (human-caused) CO2. There is no scientific evidence or method that can determine how much of the warming we’ve had since 1900 that was directly caused by us.

  We know that temperature has varied greatly over the millennia. We also know that for virtually all of that time, global warming and cooling were driven entirely by natural forces, which did not cease to operate at the beginning of the 20th century.

  The claim that most modern warming is attributable to human activities is scientifically insupportable. The truth is that we do not know. We need to be able to separate what we do know from that which is only conjecture.

  How can greenhouse gases, particularly CO2 be the sole agent causing rising temperatures when it is an essential element for all life forms? Given the growing world population, it seems that greater levels of CO2would lead to greater benefits. Plants need CO2 to thrive, yet the fight against it is accelerating.

  Scientists have now stated that cow burps and farts and even human breathing are bad for the environment because they contribute to the emission of methane and nitrous oxide, both believed to contribute to global warming. This is beyond absurd!

  We are on the slippery slope to a dystopian nightmare if the trend toward censorship and marginalization continues. There is no good reason why continued debate featuring those on all sides of the issue should not be occurring, unless of course there are other reasons for ramming this fear-based agenda down our throats.

  We’ll examine the other reasons in Part 2 of this series.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 22:10

• These Are The World's Deadliest Behavioral Risk Factors
  These Are The World’s Deadliest Behavioral Risk Factors

  “Smoking kills” is but one of the slogans connected to anti-tobacco advocacy groups – and it’s quite true.

  When looking at behavioral risks, meaning types of risk that can largely be avoided, especially in highly industrialized nations, smoking cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products is connected to a variety of diseases responsible for 7.7 million deaths worldwide.

  As Statista’s Florian Zandt shows in the chart below, based on data from the 2019 Global Burden of Disease study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington shows, no other behavioral risk factor comes close to the disease burden of smoking.

  

  You will find more infographics at Statista

  Coming in second on a global level as well as in terms of risk-factor-associated deaths in the United States in 2019 is alcohol use with an estimated 2.4 million global and 137,000 U.S. deaths in 2019.

  Roughly 57 and 30 percent of global deaths associated with risk factors and connected to substance abuse and digestive diseases, respectively, can be traced back to alcohol use.

  While a high-sodium diet is connected to almost two million deaths on a global scale and therefore ranks third worldwide, the United States have a different problem: drug abuse.

  In 2019, around 105,000 people were estimated to have died from diseases connected to drug use, which constitutes a four-percent share of the overall deaths connected to behavioral risks in the country.

  This is especially striking compared to the same metric globally, where the share of deaths barely reaches one percent.

  The total number of deaths from risk factors in the United States amounted to 1.8 million, while the global number stood at 35 million.

  While the consumption of most drugs is illegal and often carries a social stigma, alcohol and tobacco are legal drugs permeating all levels of society. The risks of both are well-known and well-documented, with the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifying both as a group 1 carcinogen, which includes agents with “sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans [and] both strong evidence in exposed humans that the agent exhibits key characteristics of carcinogens and sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals.”

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 21:35

• Trump Accuses Biden Of Unfairly Targeting 71-Year-Old Jan. 6 'Hostage'
  Trump Accuses Biden Of Unfairly Targeting 71-Year-Old Jan. 6 ‘Hostage’

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

  Former President Donald Trump has criticized President Joe Biden and the Justice Department for “unfairly” targeting a 71-year-old woman dubbed the “J6 Praying Grandma” who entered the U.S. Capitol for around 10 minutes on Jan. 6, 2021.

  Rebecca Lavrenz was convicted on April 4 on four federal misdemeanor charges, including entering and remaining in a restricted building, and disorderly and disruptive conduct. She faces up to a year in prison and $200,000 in fines, with her sentencing scheduled for Aug. 12.

  

  President Trump took to social media on Friday to denounce the conviction.

  “Rebecca Lavrez, also known as the ‘J6 Praying Grandma,’ has been unfairly targeted by Crooked Joe Biden’s DOJ, and now faces up to 1 YEAR in prison for peacefully walking around the Capitol, and praying for our Failing Nation on January 6th!” he wrote in a post on Truth Social.

  President Trump said that Ms. Lavrez, a 71-year-old grandmother and small business owner from Colorado, has now become “one of Joe Biden’s J6 HOSTAGES!!!”

  President Trump has made the alleged mistreatment of Jan. 6 defendants a cornerstone of his reelection campaign, vowing to use executive power to issue pardons and free Jan. 6 “hostages” soon after taking office, if elected.

  “Crooked Joe Biden spends more time prosecuting Patriots like Rebecca, AND ME, than Violent Criminals, Thugs, Murderers, and ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS who are destroying our Country. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE UP AGAINST,” President Trump added in his post.

  President Biden has been sharply critical of President Trump’s statements about the Jan. 6 defendants, while Attorney General Merrick Garland has promised to press ahead with more Jan. 6 prosecutions—and to cast the Justice Department’s dragnet even more widely to include people who weren’t even present at the Capitol that day.

  “As I said before, the Justice Department will hold all January 6 perpetrators, at any level, accountable under the law—whether they were present that day or were otherwise criminally responsible for the assault on our democracy,” Mr. Garland said in a speech on Jan. 5.

  More than 1,350 people have been charged with various crimes in relation to the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, ranging from misdemeanor offenses such as trespassing to felonies such as seditious conspiracy and assaulting police officers.

  Of these, roughly 800 have been sentenced, with nearly two-thirds receiving some time in prison.

  ‘I Went There To Pray’

  Ms. Lavrenz, who calls herself the “J6 Praying Great-Grandma” in her X account bio, was convicted by a federal jury on April 4 on four criminal counts.

  After nearly 26 hours of deliberation, a jury found her guilty of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

  In an April 5 appearance on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” program, Ms. Lavrenz said she only spent 10 minutes inside the Capitol and that she traveled to Washington on Jan. 6 to pray for America’s future.

  “I went there to pray,” Ms. Lavrenz told Mr. Bannon. She explained that she was in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021 “because I love God, my country, and my family, and I knew that something wasn’t right in that 2020 election.”

  Ms. Lavrenz was captured on video surveillance entering the Capitol building through the East Rotunda doors, walking around the building, and speaking briefly with a police officer before exiting the building, according to charging documents.

  The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged in the complaint against her that Ms. Lavrenz volunteered photos of herself at the Capitol on the day of the breach to FBI agents. The complaint says the Falcon, Colorado, resident “admitted traveling to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021 to attend the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally on the mall and ‘following the crowd to the U.S. Capitol building.’”

  In its statement of facts against Ms. Lavrenz, the DOJ said the grandmother of seven entered the building despite seeing physical barriers “indicating the U.S. Capitol building grounds were a restricted area.”

  The filing also states that she “observed people getting into physical confrontations with police” and that she “saw a woman get injured in the exchange.” Video evidence confirmed Ms. Lavrenz’s statement that she was inside the building for only 10 minutes, per the court filings.

  

  Several days before the start of her trial, Ms. Lavrenz posted a video of herself online as she entered the Capitol grounds for the first time since Jan. 6, 2021.

  “My own country is treating me like a criminal just because I believe that my—they stole my rightful president, and just standing up for my country makes me a criminal,” she said in the video. “It’s not right. It feels so weird to be here.”

  A retired register nurse, Ms. Lavrenz also owns and operates a bed and breakfast near the Rocky Mountains in Falcon, Colorado.

  She has set up a GiveSendGo crowdfunding page to help pay for her legal bills and as of Saturday had received over $82,000 in donations.

  Alice Giordano contributed to this report.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 21:00

• Democrat Division Intensifies As Ex-Speaker Pelosi Joins Call For Biden To Stop Arming Israel
  Democrat Division Intensifies As Ex-Speaker Pelosi Joins Call For Biden To Stop Arming Israel

  A divide among Democrats over whether to halt defense aid to Israel is growing more fierce, causing a crisis and headache for Biden strategists ahead of the presidential election, which has only intensified in the wake of last week’s Israel Defense Forces (IDF) attack on the World Central Kitchen convoy in Gaza, which left seven international workers dead, including an American.

  This intensifying fragmentation of Biden’s base has been on display this weekend also given former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi – still very influential among Dems – has publicly come out against Biden’s policy to continue arming Israel. The issue is entering the heart of the Democratic establishment, threatening unity.

  Axios reports that she “signed onto a call by progressive members of Congress for the U.S. to stop transferring weapons to Israel over a strike that killed seven aid workers in Gaza.”

  

  The letter she signed, and which was led by Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), included the signatures of some 40 Democrats.

  “In light of the recent strike against aid workers and the ever-worsening humanitarian crisis, we believe it is unjustifiable to approve these weapons transfers,” the lawmakers stated in the letter addressed to President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

  “If this strike is found to have violated U.S. or international law, we urge you to continue withholding these transfers until those responsible are held accountable,” the lawmakers wrote.

  However, a follow-up statement from a Pelosi representative to Axios has this to say: “Speaker Pelosi knows President Biden’s support for Israel and empathy with the innocent civilians in Gaza, and she respects his judgment in how to proceed.”

  This trend of the Gaza war becoming a bright red dividing line among Democrats is also on display with recent stories like the following from Epoch Times— Pro-Israel Democrat Group Endorses ‘Squad’ Primary Opponents:

  A Democrat pro-Israel group has endorsed candidates challenging incumbents who are members of the far-left congressional group “The Squad.”

  Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) announced on April 3 its backing of Westchester County Executive George Latimer and St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell.

  DMFI did not state its reasons for backing the two other than through announcing a slate of endorsements.

  So now the ‘fight’ is on and it’s becoming a real issue with campaign money lining up on either side. Still, those voters who put the Squad members in office in the first place are more than likely to come down on the anti-Israel side. 

  Another indicator that the internal Democrat divide is accelerating is that the controversy has completely altered a long-standing White House tradition. Muslim leaders are boycotting an annual White House Ramadan gathering which marks the end of the Muslim season of fasting:  

  The Biden administration is hosting a scaled-down Ramadan gathering for Muslim and Arab Americans after several community leaders declined the invite over the unrelenting and steadfast nature of US support for Israel’s war on Gaza.

  The event scheduled for Tuesday will be in stark contrast to previous Muslim celebrations and gatherings under the Biden administration, which have seen packed ballrooms of Muslims from all over the country joining the White House festivities. 

  This year, the iftar will be confined to staffers only, and a separate gathering will take place for Muslim community members.

  U.S. MUSLIMS REJECT BIDEN THIS RAMADAN

  After boycotting the White House’s annual Iftar invitation, American Muslims staged an Iftar protest outside demanding an end to U.S. arms to Israel & a ceasefire.

  Muslim community anger in America has risen over the U.S.’ loyal… pic.twitter.com/WTbXKELpBh

  — 5Pillars (@5Pillarsuk) April 3, 2024

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  One such Muslim community leader and activist told Middle East Eye that Palestinian-Americans are “vehemently opposed to any Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, or any person who has an ounce of humanity” attending the event.

  All of this is of course a plus for Trump’s chances of retaking the White House going into November, also given the Israel-Gaza issue is much less of a divisive flashpoint issue for Republican voters.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 20:25

• The Reality Of Vitamin D Supplementation
  The Reality Of Vitamin D Supplementation

  Authored by Sheramy Tsai via The Epoch Times,

  One in five Americans regularly reach for vitamin D supplements, yet most are unaware that they’re taking not just a vitamin –  but a hormone.

  While renowned for bolstering bone strength and immune health, vitamin D’s story is not straightforward. A blend of myth and established science invites a closer look into its true nature and impact.

  

  Vitamin D: Understanding Its Dual Role

  Vitamin D stands apart in the world of nutrients. It’s a sun-sourced substance acting as both a nutrient and a hormone. This dual role is significant, as hormones, which orchestrate many bodily functions, aren’t typically taken as supplements like vitamins.

  Endocrinologist Dr. Michael Holick, a leading vitamin D expert, tells The Epoch Times, “The body more effectively utilizes vitamin D when it’s naturally synthesized from sunlight, compared to standard supplement doses.”

  This difference is key to understanding vitamin D’s health role and the complexities of supplementing a hormone.

  Unlike most nutrients, the hormonal nature of vitamin D means it has a broader systemic impact, influencing not just bone health but also immune function, cell growth, and inflammation control. This understanding is crucial in guiding medical approaches to its use, including the potential risks and benefits of supplementation.

  Beyond Bone Health

  Vitamin D is more than just a bone health and immune system booster. Its multifaceted role in the body impacts everything from mood regulation to cardiovascular health.

  At its core, vitamin D is vital for calcium absorption in the gut, and essential for bone strength and health. “Without enough Vitamin D, the body can only absorb 10–15 percent of calcium,” Dr. Alex Foxman, a leading internist and preventive care specialist, told The Epoch Times. Insufficient calcium can result in weaker bones and heightened fracture risks.

  Moreover, vitamin D is pivotal for immune health. Dr. Holick observes, “Vitamin D receptors are in almost every cell, including immune cells.” Proper levels are vital for a balanced immune response and preventing autoimmune disorders.

  Dr. Nathan Goodyear, an integrative cancer physician and director of Brio Medical, an integrative cancer treatment center in Scottsdale, Arizona, stresses vitamin D’s essential role in immune functionality and its influence on chronic diseases, like cancer. He explains, “The immune system does not work well if vitamin D is not optimal,” emphasizing its role in cancer, where immune strength is crucial.

  Recent research, including melanoma studies, indicates that vitamin D supplementation can enhance treatment responses and prolong survival in cancer patients, even with currently insufficient daily dosage recommendations.

  Vitamin D also plays a significant role in heart health.

  Studies have linked low vitamin D levels to an elevated risk of heart disease. Those deficient in vitamin D are more likely to experience hypertension, heart failure, and strokes.

  Mental health is another arena where vitamin D plays a significant role.

  Kimberly Parker, a licensed psychotherapist, told The Epoch Times, “There’s a clear link between low levels of vitamin D and higher incidences of depression and mood disorders.”

  It also affects seasonal affective disorder, a depression variant tied to seasonal changes. “I have seen my patients have a reduction of symptoms once they started to become consistent with their vitamin D intake,” she reports.

  Vitamin D’s Journey From Sunlight to Cellular Powerhouse

  Vitamin D is vital for health, existing in different forms, each taking a unique path within our body. Grasping these forms is key to understanding how vitamin D functions in our system.

  Once vitamin D enters our body through sun, diet, or supplements, it transforms to become active.

  First, it changes into calcidiol in the liver, then into calcitriol, its active form, in the kidneys. Dr. Holick clarifies, “Calcitriol is the form that our body can use to perform various functions.”

  Interestingly, each form of vitamin D undergoes a similar conversion process in the body. The source of vitamin D might differ, but the pathway it takes in our bodies converges.

  The conversion efficiency of vitamin D can differ. The skin’s capacity to produce vitamin D3 diminishes with age and is influenced by skin pigmentation, geographical location, and lifestyle.

  Controversies in Vitamin D Testing

  The routine way to measure vitamin D levels in the body is through a blood test called 25-hydroxyvitamin D. This measurement reflects vitamin D levels from sunlight, food, and supplements. The less recommended 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D test fails to gauge vitamin D reserves, rendering it ineffective for patient monitoring.

  Vitamin D blood testing has surged, ranking as Medicare’s eighth most common lab test. Market reports pegged the 2023 testing market at $677.5 million, with projections reaching $1.06 billion by 2031.

  Once led by giants like Abbott, Siemens, and Quest Diagnostics, the vitamin D testing market is now seeing a surge in home testing kits from smaller companies. Dr. Holick recalls, “Years ago, I told Quest that this would be their number one seller.”

  “More than 10 million vitamin D blood tests are done annually in the United States, even though these tests are not recommended by major medical organizations,” Dr. Morton Tavel, a cardiologist and specialist in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease, told The Epoch Times. He references a 2020 Virginia health system study, where 10 percent of patients underwent vitamin D tests, often without medical indication.

  Beyond adults, vitamin D testing in children skyrocketed 30-fold in 15 years, as per a BMJ study, though it didn’t significantly alter low vitamin D diagnosis rates.

  This increase in vitamin D testing contrasts with medical associations’ guidelines, which generally discourage routine testing in asymptomatic, low-risk individuals.

  For instance, the Endocrine Society recommends screening only high-risk groups. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force sees insufficient evidence for universal screening. Choosing Wisely also advises against testing in low-risk groups, including the general population.

  Dr. Joel Finkelstein from Massachusetts General Hospital’s Bone Density Center, as reported in a Harvard Health blog, voices skepticism about the rampant vitamin D deficiency screening, deeming many checks on healthy individuals unnecessary.

  “Vitamin D has been hyped massively,” he states. “We do not need to be checking the vitamin D levels of most healthy individuals.” He challenges the evolutionary need for high vitamin D, noting its limited presence in natural foods and reduced synthesis in darker skin, common in sun-rich areas.

  However, many functional medicine and naturopathic doctors recommend regular vitamin D testing.

  The College of Naturopathic Medicine advises those in sun-poor climates to test routinely for better health maintenance.

  Aligning with this view, Dr. Goodyear emphasizes the tests’ relevance, particularly regarding inflammation and chronic diseases like cancer. He told The Epoch Times, “Vitamin D will always be low in the place of significant inflammation, both acute and chronic,” advocating for regular monitoring for proper supplementation.

  Dr. Goodyear draws an analogy to salmon swimming upstream against a current of inflammation, illustrating the challenges in increasing plasma vitamin D levels in such conditions. He likens this process to standard medical practices like monitoring blood pressure, emphasizing the need for a similar approach in natural therapies, “The process is to evaluate, dose, re-evaluate, and then re-dose,” he adds.

  Reflecting the views of Linus Pauling, considered to be the “father of vitamin C,” Dr. Goodyear criticizes the medical oversight of pharmacokinetics and dynamics in natural therapies. He explains that physicians learn drug dosage precision but often forget that this also applies to vitamins. He advocates for a tailored approach in vitamin D therapy, moving away from a one-size-fits-all methodology.

  Defining Optimal Vitamin D Levels

  According to the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force, “No consensus exists on the definition of vitamin D deficiency or the optimal level of total serum 25-hydroxyvitamin.”

  Some experts view 25(OH)D levels under 30 ng/mL as deficient. Common standards suggest 30-60 ng/mL as sufficient. Yet, many functional health practitioners advocate for an optimal range of 50–80 ng/mL.

  Recommendations according to the National Institutes for Health (NIH):

  

  The NIH clarifies that optimal vitamin D levels are unestablished, as they “vary by stage of life, by race and ethnicity, and with each physiological measure used.”

  Contrasting these guidelines, voices like Dr. Goodyear’s claim current vitamin D dose recommendations are too low. He labels the current U.S. recommended daily allowances as “woefully inadequate.”

  Dr. Goodyear notes that the conventional focus on preventing rickets overlooks the broader health benefits of higher vitamin D levels. This stance argues for higher optimal ranges, implying current standards don’t fully exploit the vitamin’s health potential.

  Too Much of a Good Thing?

  Vitamin D is vital, however, there’s concern about its overconsumption, particularly via supplements. Unlike water-soluble vitamins, which our bodies can quickly expel when in excess, vitamin D is fat-soluble and can accumulate in the liver and fat tissues to harmful levels, termed “vitamin D intoxication.”

  Dr. Holick cautions that vitamin D intoxication, though extremely rare, is severe. Sun exposure can’t cause Vitamin D toxicity, but excessive supplementation can. “Any excess vitamin D made by the sun is destroyed by the sun. You can never become vitamin D intoxicated from sun exposure, but you can from supplements if you take too much,” he warns.

  Vitamin D toxicity triggers excessive calcium in the blood, leading to nausea, vomiting, and weakness. If untreated, it can escalate to kidney damage, bone pain, and, rarely, death.

  Some practitioners, including Pam Schoenfeld, a registered dietitian, assert that excessive vitamin D intake can lead to the depletion of retinol, the active form of vitamin A. Ms. Schoenfeld told The Epoch Times, “The current landscape of vitamin D supplementation often neglects the intricate balance with other crucial fat-soluble vitamins.”

  In an article for the Weston Price Foundation, Ms. Schoenfeld cautions, “More astute practitioners know that supplementing with vitamin D, especially at levels of 5,000 IU per day … is not advisable unless attention is paid to ensuring vitamin A intake is optimal.” This perspective emphasizes the delicate balance between these essential nutrients, suggesting that maintaining optimal levels of both is crucial for health, particularly during pregnancy.

  Critics, like Dr. Holick, challenge this view, arguing that no substantial evidence supports the claim that Vitamin D adversely affects vitamin A levels. “It’s simply not true,” he notes.

  The Vitamin D Supplementation Dilemma

  Modern indoor lifestyles and diets low in vitamin D contribute to widespread deficiencies. Despite well-balanced diets, about 1 in 4 American adults and 70 percent of children fall short of necessary vitamin D levels.

  Given these challenges, supplementation is an important consideration. Current recommendations call for 400 international units (IU) for children up to age 12 months, 600 IU for people ages 1 to 70, and 800 IU for people over 70.

  Dr. Holick endorses supplements as a straightforward solution, especially for the sun-deprived, suggesting a total daily intake of 2000–3000 IU from diet, sun, and supplements.

  However, not all practitioners agree that supplementation is necessary for everyone. “Although many studies had linked low levels of vitamin D to an assortment of medical conditions, when scientists tried administering it as a means to prevent or treat those problems, this ‘wonder’ supplement failed miserably,” Dr. Tavel told The Epoch Times.

  Sunshine, a prime vitamin D source, can fulfill needs with minimal exposure. Dr. Tavel notes, “Your vitamin D storage generally lasts for about 10 to 12 weeks,” questioning the need for constant supplementation.

  The vitamin D deficiency debate is complex. Dr. Tavel points out that “the widespread notion that much of America is walking around deficient in vitamin D came from a likely misinterpretation of the normal levels for vitamin D set by the Institute of Medicine more than a decade ago.” This has led to overestimation of deficiency rates and potentially unnecessary supplementation.

  Yet, he explains, there are specific scenarios where supplementation is beneficial. The American Academy of Pediatrics advises 400 IU of vitamin D daily for breastfed infants. Those with medical conditions or limited sun exposure might also benefit.

  Dr. Tavel warns that excessive supplementation, linked to increased fall risk and other hazards, underscores the need for balance in vitamin D intake.

  Supporting Dr. Tavel, New England Journal of Medicine research found no fracture risk reduction in healthy adults supplementing with 2000 IU of vitamin D compared to non-supplementers.

  Vitamin D’s necessity varies. Dr. Tavel reminds us, “For much of human history, people got their vitamin D mostly from the sun,” highlighting our body’s innate ability to regulate this nutrient.

  Determining vitamin D supplementation requires personal assessment, medical consultation, and an eye on guidelines. Generally, a mix of diet, sun, and occasional supplements suffices for most, claims Dr. Tavel.

  Expanding Vitamin D Supplement Industry

  The vitamin D supplement market is rapidly growing, valued at $1,560 million in 2023 and expected to reach $2,780 million by 2033, growing at 5.9 percent annually. Drivers include an aging population, heightened health awareness, and a surge in demand for vitamin-enriched products.

  In response to consumer demand, the industry is innovating with new delivery methods and formulations, like gummies, sprays, patches, creams, and potent capsules. This variety meets diverse preferences and needs, including ease of use and better absorption.

  The industry’s growth is also propelled by robust marketing and advertising. Pharma and wellness firms heavily promote vitamin D supplements as key to health, shaping consumer views and fueling market expansion.

  While this market growth mirrors a shift in health consciousness, it prompts concerns about self-prescribed supplementation and underscores the importance of a balanced approach to vitamin D consumption.

  Best Sources of Vitamin D

  Sun exposure is key in vitamin D production. UVB (ultraviolet B) rays convert skin cholesterol into vitamin D3, later transformed into calcitriol, its usable form. Interestingly, skin-produced vitamin D remains in the bloodstream for about twice as long as when ingested by food or vitamins.

  Sunlight’s vitamin D productivity varies by time, season, and location. The best synthesis is between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. in warmer months. However, above 37 degrees latitude, there’s negligible vitamin D production from November to March.

  A 2022 study concluded, “Sun exposure can significantly make up for deficiencies in subjects who consume insufficient dietary Vit D. Compared with the extra cost and time for building habits of Vit D supplementation, moderate sun exposure appears to be a simple and costless means for the public to start in daily practice.”

  The dminder app helps users identify optimal sun exposure times for vitamin D, offering real-time data based on location, time, and weather.

  Dietary sources, though fewer, contribute to vitamin D intake. Fatty fish and UV-exposed mushrooms are key sources. Incorporating these foods can help maintain vitamin D, especially in less sunny periods.

  Supplementation, particularly beneficial for those in higher latitudes, is another method. A study showed that while both sun and oral D3 supplements raise vitamin D levels, supplements were more effective due to compliance. Simply put, more people took supplements than spent time in the sun.

  Vitamin D supplements are available as D2 (from plants) and D3 (from animals). D3, mirroring the body’s sun-induced production, is often recommended for effectively raising and maintaining vitamin D levels.

  However, Dr. Holick asserts that “physiologic doses of D2 and D3 raise vitamin D levels in the blood the same,” effectively debunking myths about their differing impacts on health. Additionally, he confirms that the kidneys equally metabolize both forms.

  Dr. Holick also touches on the regulatory history of these supplements in the United States, explaining that vitamin D2 remains the only pharmaceutical form available due to historical U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval processes. “No one ever got approval for D3,” he notes, highlighting a regulatory, rather than a health-based, reason for vitamin D2’s dominance in the market.

  Though sunlight is the prime vitamin D source, its availability is inconsistent. Diet and supplements thus serve as vital alternatives to ensure sufficient vitamin D for optimal health.

  Key Considerations for Vitamin D Supplementation

  Understanding how to optimize vitamin D supplementation and reduce risks is crucial:

  Fat-Soluble Nature

  Contrary to popular belief and many recommendations, Dr. Michael Holick argues that vitamin D absorption doesn’t depend on dietary fat. He cites studies showing better absorption from skim milk, low in fat, than from full-fat milk. Hence, vitamin D can be taken with or without dietary fat.

  Conjunction With Other Nutrients

  • Vitamin K: Studies suggest taking vitamins D and K together may enhance bone health and reduce arterial calcification risks.

  • Magnesium: Magnesium aids vitamin D metabolism, and high vitamin D doses can deplete magnesium levels. Adequate magnesium is vital for effective vitamin D use.

  • Vitamin A: Vitamins A and D, both fat-soluble, work together, but consensus on taking them together has not been clearly established.

  • Timing of Dosage: Some suggest aligning vitamin D intake with circadian rhythms, proposing daytime consumption to avoid sleep disturbances. However, Dr. Holick indicates no evidence supporting the idea that vitamin D disrupts sleep, making it safe to take at any time.

  • Choice of Vitamin D Type: While D2 (ergocalciferol) comes from plants and fortified foods and D3 (cholecalciferol) from animal products and sunlight exposure, Dr. Holick states both forms raise and maintain vitamin D levels equally.

  • Consult Health Care Professionals: Before starting supplements, consulting a health care provider is essential to determine proper dosing and assess potential interactions with other medications or health conditions.

  While supplements may be useful, integrating them with natural vitamin D sources and a balanced lifestyle is crucial for overall well-being.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 19:50

• "West Point Mafia" Has "Systematically Destroyed The Nation's Maritime Strength" 
  “West Point Mafia” Has “Systematically Destroyed The Nation’s Maritime Strength” 

  Captain John Konrad, CEO of gCaptain, a website specializing in tracking the shipping industry, blames the “West Point Mafia” and decades of land wars in the Middle East for a hollowed-out US Navy that was entirely “unprepared” for the salvage operation of the collapsed 1.6-mile-long Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland. 

  Konrad explained, “Truth is bridges are an Army Corps of Engineers responsibility but they are so unprepared they gave the job to Navy Salvage to lead. Navy salvage is so broken they had to outsource it to the US subsidiary/partner of a European firm which is chartering equipment from private companies at great expense.”

  “And it’s the Army’s own fault. The West Point Mafia has systematically destroyed our nation’s maritime strength,” he said, adding that China would’ve had the Baltimore shipping channel “fully cleared in weeks,” not months (read more about the reopening timeline here). 

  Here’s more from Konrad on X and his epic rant against the “West Point Mafia”: 

  China could have the Baltimore ship channel fully cleared in weeks but yesterday @POTUS said yesterday for the Army Corps of Engineers it will take months.

  I blame the West Point Mafia and their budget demon. Please let me explain…

  Truth is bridges are an Army Corps of Engineers responsibility but they are so unprepared they gave the job to Navy Salvage to lead. Navy salvage is so broken they had to outsource it to the US subsidiary/partner of a European firm which is chartering equipment from private companies at great expense. Equipment that’s weak & small compared to what the European parent has overseas.

  And it’s the Army’s own fault. The West Point Mafia has systematically destroyed our nation’s maritime strength. 

  When I was 10 Vinzzini taught me the first lesson of war “You’ve fell victim to one of the classic blunders! Never get involved in a land war in Asia” 

  Yet in my adult life the United States fought not one but two wars in Asia. 

  How did we pay for those? By gutting our maritime capabilities. 

  With Chinese military capability growing exponentially, how do you win a war in Asia? The same way we did in WW2: with ships & marines with the Army and Air Force serving a support role 

  Except there is a problem, the current and last Secretaries of Defense are West Pointers. The SECDEF before that was a marine but he was forced out after a disagreement with the Secretary of State who was a West Pointer 

  Two decades of Land Wars in asia have decimated our Maritime capabilities as trillions was rerouted into Army coffers by the West Point mafia demon in DC 

  And now that the land wars are over is the Army Corps of Engineers helping rebuild shipyards and bridges? Is the Army rebuilding its once mighty fleet of dredges? Is it working jointly with the SeaBees and Merchant Marine? Is it rebuilding watercraft? 

  No today’s West Point mafia leader Jack Reed controls the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee & has blocked the Future of the Navy Commission That Congress created to develop a Naval rebuilding strategy 

  Now under General Lloyd Austin & Reed EVERY SINGLE navy shipbuilding project is delayed. 

  The West Point Mafia has gutted every Maritime service: 

  Navy National Guard (Naval Militia): now only a boat service in a small handful of states 

  United States Navy Armed Guard: gone 

  US Navy Reserve: zero ships in inventory 

  USCG Icebreaker fleet: down to one ship 

  US Navy salvage fleet: mostly gone 

  Seabees: cut to 7,000 active personnel 

  Merchant Marine: now less than 80 ships in international service 

  MARAD Ready Reserve Fleet: small & on average age a half century old 

  US Maritime Service: just a handful of officers at the US Merchant Marine academy 

  Marine Hospital Service; gone except the uniforms 

  NOAA Officer Corps: down to 330 officers 

  Army Corps of Engineers dredge fleet: includes ancient hulls like the 57-year-old dredge McFarland 

  Army Corps of Engineers salvage: the last SECDEF, @EsperDoD sold all Army salvage vessels in Baltimore

  Army Watercraft: gutted by at action by Esper 

  USCG: forced to cut 10 cutters this year alone 

  I could go on but I have something more important to say: 

  🚨 NOW THEY ARE COMING FOR THE CARRIERS AND SUBMARINES🚨

  (I will post the details of the carrier and sub delays in post 2 of the thread) 

  If Jack Reed & the West Point Mafia wins the next war in Asia will be lost. 

  Problem is there is nobody to stop them because the think tanks, defense contractors and DoD civil servants know who wields the power and nobody in Navy or Coast Guard uniform has the moral courage to ruin their career by calling out Jack Reed & General Austin in the media or during a senate hearing. 

  PS why am I using quotes from the Princess Bride & making light of the problem by creating the West Point Mafia Demon meme? Because it doesn’t require a PhD to see what is happening. 

  The gutting of every critical maritime capability to pour money into Land Wars is something any 10 year can see is idiotic.

  China could have the Baltimore ship channel fully cleared in weeks but yesterday @POTUS said yesterday for the Army Corps of Engineers it will take months 🤦‍♂️

  I blame the West Point Mafia and their budget demon. Please let me explain…

  Truth is bridges are an Army Corps of… pic.twitter.com/s8VmbaPT8G

  — John Ʌ Konrad V (@johnkonrad) April 6, 2024

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

  Konrad asks: “Why am I able to call out the Jack Reed and General Austin when NOBODY else in DC or the DOD is?”

  Why am I able to call out the Jack Reed and General Austin when NOBODY else in DC or the DOD is?

  Why can I call it them West Point Mafia without fear of repercussions? (in fairness General Berger, USMC obliquely tried last year)

  Because my service was the first killed and my… https://t.co/15j4NYxKkr

  — John Ʌ Konrad V (@johnkonrad) April 6, 2024

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

  Konrad describes a colossal mismanagement of the US Armed Forces despite record defense spending. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 19:15

• 'Animal Spirits' Update (Or Reflections On Another Fake Unemployment Report)
  ‘Animal Spirits’ Update (Or Reflections On Another Fake Unemployment Report)

  Authored by Elliott Middleton via ‘End Times Meditation’ Substack,

  The BLS is reporting the March unemployment rate down slightly to 3.8 percent, nowhere near the 4.5 percent that it will take to trigger a collapse of confidence. 

  ZeroHedge has detailed how fake the BLS’s numbers have become in a series of recent posts (yesterday’s highlights are here and here).

  

  When I was in academics, my research program was on the application of psychology to economics, especially the fundamental psychological law of sensitivity to adaptation level.

  Back in the 1990s, I was featured in a front-page article in the Wall Street Journal on “animal spirits” or confidence levels.

  I discovered that when the unemployment level rises above a 4-year exponential moving average of the unemployment rate (in which more recent observations are weighted more heavily), confidence collapses, the unemployment rate skyrockets upward, and economic activity contracts sharply.

  This event marks the end of the business cycle.

  While the economy has been stagnating for most people recently, we have not experienced this signal event, the collapse of confidence that occurs when the recession begins.

  The post below describes my intellectual journey and was published in ZeroHedge on June 21, 2022, and is highly recommended if you haven’t read it already.

  

  Read full story…

  We can expect laughable unemployment reports for the rest of the year. Meanwhile, private industry sources keep track of announced layoffs.

  Via intellizence.com:

  Leading Companies Announcing Layoffs And Hiring Freezes in 2024

  The following is the list of major layoffs, job cuts, and hiring freezes announced by leading companies in 2024.

  Since January 1st, 2024, 151,943+ companies have announced mass layoffs.

  [Last update: April 01, 2024]. [emphasis added]

  The Biden administration is aware of my work and apparently will do anything to prevent the reported unemployment number from climbing to 4.5 percent before the election, which would trigger a collapse of confidence.

  The adaptation level is currently at 4.53 percent. Look at the graph below.

  There is still a gap of 4.53 – 3.8 = 0.73 unemployment percentage points, too wide for people to feel that “things are getting worse than what we’re used to.”

  

  The difference between the unemployment rate and the adaptation level can be flipped to be presented as a confidence level. By this metric, confidence is still quite high (though trending lower).

  

  Real per capita personal income is almost exactly on trend for the past 30 years.

  Consumers may have a lingering COVID-bubble-stimmy-checks-induced feeling of wealth as well, having recovered from a dip in 2022.

  The recent experience has been nothing like the years following the Great Financial Crisis.

  

  Unfortunately, more fake data from the BLS coming on top of all the fake data from the FDA and CDC over the past four years will only further extinguish any confidence the American people have in their government’s statistical releases. Or in their government in general.

  Perhaps the BLS will simply stop reporting an unemployment number. This is what the Chinese did with their youth unemployment series.

  Or perhaps they’ll issue a report with all the data redacted like the FDA did with their myocarditis analysis. Every page was redacted.

  The “strong” report this morning suggests that rates will stay higher for longer than many expect. Note in the chart below, showing the inflation rate and the 3-month T-bill rate, that the peak in short-term interest rates came a year after the peak in inflation, the last time the Fed was battling with inflation during the 1980-1982 recessions.

  

  With the WEF Cabal pursuing their goal of global famine by destabilizing oil production in the Middle East, thereby especially starving China of the means to run its economy and feed its population, a global oil shock appears to be in the making.

  Crunch coming. Will there even be an election?

  We are approaching maximum uncertainty.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 18:40

• Next Big Mineral Trade Revealed By Morgan Stanley 
  Next Big Mineral Trade Revealed By Morgan Stanley 

  Abandoning petrol-burning vehicles and adopting low-­carbon technologies to power tomorrow’s economy are trends accelerating across the nation. To do this, access to rare earth metals, key ingredients in many of these ‘green’ technologies, must be sourced domestically – not from China, an emerging national security threat to the US. As the world fractures into a multipolar state, there is a big push domestically to revive America’s metals and mining industry and reduce reliance on Asia. 

  Morgan Stanley analyst Carlos De Alba recently conveyed his optimistic outlook for the US metals and mining sector to clients. He highlighted that investment levels in the industry have reached their lowest level in decades. He believes the sector is poised for massive investments and outlines the companies that will benefit. 

  

  “US reliance on import critical minerals has reached a 30-year high, and investment in the industry is near its lowest point in decades,” the analyst said, pointing out America’s heavy reliance on imported minerals from China:

  “The US government has identified 50 minerals it deems critical to the US economy and to national security; for 43 of those critical minerals, more than 50% of domestic consumption depends on imports. 

  Since 1990, the US has seen a significant increase in both the variety of imported minerals and the level of dependence on these imports. In 1990, the US was fully reliant on imports for the supply of 9 minerals, and imports exceeded 50% of consumption for 27 minerals (including all minerals, not only critical ones).

   These figures have risen to 15 and 51, respectively, as of 2022. China currently dominates the global mineral processing/refining industry, and the US is heavily reliant on China (>50% of net import reliance) for imports of 26 minerals.” 

  China’s global dominance in rare earth metals is a national security threat. Were Western leaders asleep at the wheel over the last three-plus decades to allow this to happen? 

  The analyst detailed how China dominates the global supply of rare earth minerals and cautioned against rising vulnerabilities in US mineral supply chains, especially given the ongoing tensions in Sino-US relations:

  “China is in a powerful position to influence the global mineral markets and has already started to flex its strength through mineral export restrictions. For US policymakers, the US’s mineral dependence on imports highlights the growing vulnerability of the US mineral supply chain and the urgent need to strengthen domestic supply chains. In addition, the US faces a multi-decade decline in investment in the domestic mining and exploration industry, which has fallen from ~2.0% of GDP in 1960 (and a peak of ~3.1% in 1981) to just ~0.5% today.”

  After being asleep at the wheel for decades, the bloated US government, thank former President Trump – has awakened from its slumber and realized that it must play a serious “catch-up” game with policy reform and incentives for private industry to rebuild America’s domestic mining and separation sector. 

  

  “US permitting reform and other government incentives will likely act as a tailwind for the domestic mining industry through encouraging the development and helping mitigate the associated risks of building new mine supply,” the analyst said.

  He said the big winner of “permitting reform” that is “geared toward promoting the development of mining projects” will be the “Junior Mining and Exploration industry.” 

  One company that stands to benefit is MP Materials, the largest US-based miner of rare earths. The analyst said this company is a “play on accelerating adoption of electric vehicles and electrification trends in wind turbines.” 

  He continued:

  “The company’s mission is to restore the full US rare earth supply chain. MP has executed on its plan of restarting the Mountain Pass mine in California and it is currently ramping a refining facility to produce rare earth oxides. The company will get into the production of NdFeB alloy flake and permanent mag-nets (critical components for electric vehicles and wind turbines) with a plant that is under construction in Texas.” 

  Shares of MP Materials have roundtripped Covid lows. 

  

  He said Cleveland-Cliffs Inc and United States Steel Corporation are “key beneficiaries to building ex-China supply chains given CLF is currently the only producer of electrical steel in the US and X is ramping up a greenfield electrical steel facility this year.” 

  He added: “All steel names under our coverage (NUE, STLD, CLF and X) will broadly benefit from re-shoring trends given manufacturing facilities, and the equipment to outfit them is often steel intensive.” 

  And the analyst listed a few junior miners with assets in the US that should interest investors:

  • American Rare Earths Ltd (ARR.AX | Market Cap ~A$138 million): ARR is a rare earth exploration & development company. Their 100% owned flagship project, Halleck Creek deposit, is located in Wyoming and has extensive rare earth mineralization. According to the company, the project has the potential to be amongst the largest rare earth deposits in the US

  • USA Rare Earth (Private): According to USA Rare Earth, the company owns the only scalable, sintered neo-magnet manufacturing system in the Western Hemisphere (located in Oklahoma). The company is targeting magnet production in 2024 and is aiming to supply the plant with rare earth feed stock mined from the Round Top property in Texas in late 2025 or early 2026. USA Rare Earth owns an 80% stake in the Round Top property, Texas Mineral Resources (OTCBQ: TMRC) owns the remaining 20% stake.

  • Perpetua Resources (PPTA.TO | Market Cap ~C$360 million): Perpetua’s flagship development project is the Stibnite Gold Project located in Idaho, which according to the company has one of the largest economic reserves of antimony and could supply ~35% of US demand in the first six years of production. Antimony is considered a critical mineral and is used in batteries, munitions and semiconductors. The company was recently awarded up to $15.5 million in funding for the Department of Defense to help demonstrate a fully domestic antimony trisulfide supply chain.

  • IperionX Ltd. (IPX.AX, IPX.O | Market Cap ~A$525 million): IperionX goal is to re-shore a fully integrated titanium metal supply chain to the US. The company plans on extracting titanium minerals from its Titan Project in Tennessee, in addition to producing rare earths and zirconium as co-products. The company plans on producing high-performance titanium alloys, from titanium minerals or scrap titanium

  In addition to profiting from what could soon be an explosion of investment in the mining sector, we outlined to readers days ago another big trade theme in a note titled “The Next AI Trade.”

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 18:05

• SEC Forced To Halt Climate Reporting Mandate For Businesses
  SEC Forced To Halt Climate Reporting Mandate For Businesses

  Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) paused the implementation of its climate disclosure requirements for companies as legal challenges against the rules are pending in a circuit court.

  

  In March, the SEC finalized a controversial rule requiring publicly traded companies to disclose any climate-related risks to their business. The SEC’s Final Rules also required some midsize and large firms to reveal how much CO2 is emitted from their operations. This led to several Republican states, companies, and business groups filing lawsuits against the regulations, asking for the SEC rule to be stayed. Two energy companies—Liberty Energy Inc. and Nomad Proppant Services LLC—sought an administrative stay on the rule, which was granted by the Fifth Circuit court on March 15.

  According to SEC rules, businesses must report on the potential impact climate risks may have on their financial condition as well as the strategies undertaken to mitigate such risks. Businesses have to disclose their climate targets and the losses suffered due to severe weather events.

  Other legal challenges against the rule were filed at the Second, Sixth, Eighth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit courts. All the lawsuits, including the Fifth Circuit one, were consolidated into a single case, with the Eight Circuit set to hear the challenge.

  On March 26, the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, the Texas Association of Business, and the Longview Chamber of Commerce filed a motion in the Eighth Circuit, seeking a stay of the SEC rules pending judicial review.

  Challenging SEC

  Lawsuits from Republican states claim that the SEC breached their rule-making authority by asking public firms to disclose climate risks while such regulations have not received approval from Congress.

  SEC’s rules create costly, unnecessary “red tape” for businesses. They accused the climate rules of being part of the Biden administration’s push to make sure investment decisions in the country are driven by climate considerations rather than financial returns.

  On April 4, SEC Secretary Vanessa Countryman issued an order staying the agency’s climate rule requirements while litigation proceeded in the Eighth Circuit.

  Ms. Countryman argued that given the procedural complexities involved in litigating the multiple cases filed against the climate rules, the SEC’s stay “will facilitate the orderly judicial resolution of those challenges.”

  In addition, “a stay avoids potential regulatory uncertainty if registrants were to become subject to the Final Rules’ requirements during the pendency of the challenges to their validity.”

  Though the SEC is issuing a stay on the climate rule, the agency continues to hold the view that the regulations are “consistent with applicable law” and within the authority of the commission, the order stated.

  “Thus, the Commission will continue vigorously defending the Final Rules’ validity in court and looks forward to expeditious resolution of the litigation.”

  ‘Outrageous’ Climate Mandate

  Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, one of the Republican AGs that led 25 states to file lawsuits against the climate rules, called the SEC’s April 4 stay a “victory” that “shuts down the most outrageous climate mandate for businesses since Biden took office.”

  “The SEC’s job is to protect people from fraud. It has no business slapping companies with extremist climate mandates. We are making it clear that Biden has to follow the law like everyone else,” she said.

  “By halting this mandate, we are protecting businesses from costly red tape, securing our supply chain, and defending family farms. Next, we are going to make this win permanent!”

  In addition to Iowa, other states in the lawsuit are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

  The SEC rule “will also require businesses to disclose climate-related risks, including higher insurance rates from weather disasters, and release a plan to adapt to climate-agenda recommendations. The plan is estimated to cost businesses billions of dollars every year.”

  SEC Votes

  When the SEC finalized its climate rules in March, agency commissioners had voted 3–2 to pass the measure. The votes were done along party lines, with all Democrats voting in favor of the rule and Republican commissioners voting against it.

  Republican commissioner Hester Peirce had pointed out that the climate rules would be expensive and burdensome for businesses while creating a large amount of inconsistent information overwhelming investors.

  “However well-intentioned, these particularized interests don’t justify forcing investors who don’t share them to foot the bill,” he said. The SEC estimates the climate rule to impact around 2,800 American firms.

  The rules adopted in March were a watered-down version of an earlier draft that contained more stringent measures, including requiring companies to report certain indirect emissions. These stringent measures triggered intense opposition from the business community.

  In an interview with The Epoch Times in June 2022, Sean Griffith, a professor at Fordham University School of Law, suggested that SEC rules enforce viewpoint discrimination since the regulations are essentially forcing companies to endorse certain assumptions about how the earth’s climate is being affected by human actions.

  “The reason why the climate rules are so problematic is that either they’re politically driven—which is very plausible—or they are driven by this desire to appease the institutional asset manager community, which has its own profit interest because they generate revenue from the assets under management of those ESG portfolios. At the end of the day, it’s not about investors.”

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 17:30

• More Easy Money Will Plunge Us Into Stagflation
  More Easy Money Will Plunge Us Into Stagflation

  Authored by Daniel Lacalle via The Mises Institute,

  Thirty major central banks are expected to cut rates in the second half of 2024, a year when more than seventy nations will have elections, which often means massive increases in government spending. Additionally, the latest inflation figures show stubbornly persistent consumer price annualized growth.

  In the United States, headline PCE inflation in February will likely grow by 0.4%, compared with a 0.3% rise in January, and consensus expects a 2.5% annualized rate, up from 2.4% in January. This is on top of the already 20% accumulated inflation of the past four years. Core inflation will likely show a 0.3% gain, according to Bloomberg Economics, which means an annualized 2.8%, building on top of the price increases of the past years.

  Thirty central banks easing and seventy national governments increasing spending in an election year means more fuel for the inflation fire in a year in which money supply growth has bounced significantly from its 2023 lows.

  Central banks ignored monetary aggregates when they shrugged off the risk of inflation in 2020, and now they are, again, easing way too fast when the battle against inflation has not finished.

  Furthermore, the only real tool that central banks have used is hiking rates, because different parallel measures of money growth, including reverse repo liquidity injections, have kept money supply growth at an elevated rate even when the balance of the G7 central banks was moderating, albeit at a slower pace than announced.

  Cutting rates may come too late because, by the time it is implemented, it will cause a double negative.

  Government deficits will be cheaper to refinance, bloating an already record-high public debt yet again, but those cuts may have little impact on small and medium enterprises and families because they suffer significantly more from the accumulated effects of inflation, which means weaker margins, more difficulties to make ends meet, and impoverishment.

  We must also remember that these persistent levels of official inflation come after relevant tweaks in the calculation of the consumer price index. We certainly know one thing: consumers do not pay attention to the annualized rate of growth in prices, but to the accumulated level of destruction of their purchasing power, and everyone, from Europeans to Americans, knows that they have become artificially poorer by the insane fiscal and monetary policies implemented in 2020.

  Nobody who takes inflation seriously would even consider easing in an election year, adding trillions of dollars of deficit spending to the fire of inflation. Furthermore, the history of inflation warns us about giving up easily and too fast.

  

  The Fed is making a big mistake by cheering the headline economic figures that come from disguising a private sector recession with a massive increase in public debt and weakening employment figures embellished by temporary jobs and public sector hiring. Additionally, it is making a mistake by giving dovish signals that make market participants take more risk. There has been no relevant reduction in the money supply if we include the different layers of liquidity injections. Announcing forthcoming rate cuts will certainly make speculative debt rise but will hardly change the credit demand from the backbone of the economy, small businesses, and families. Since the US government has rejected any calls for normalization and instead added more deficits and debt as if rising bond yields were not a problem, citizens and businesses have already suffered greatly from ongoing inflation and rate increases. As such, the rate cuts will help an already bloated government spending and the zombie corporations that keep access to capital markets. Everyone else will be hurt both ways, with inflation and lower access to credit.

  You may think all the above problems are policy mistakes, but they are not. This is a slow process of nationalizing resources. Inflation and artificial money creation through deficits and monetization are a gradual transfer of wealth from real salaries and deposit savings to the government. You are basically becoming poorer to sustain an ever-increasing government size. The next time you read that massive deficits and monetary easing are good policies for the middle class, ask yourself why you find it harder each year to pay for goods and services. The mistakes made in 2020–2024 will cost the middle class many more taxes, even if the government promises it will only be “taxes on the rich,” the oldest gimmick to raise your taxes.

  More taxes, persistent inflation, the hidden tax, and the loss of value of your wages. That is “easing” for you. A private sector recession with headline economic figures bloated by government debt. The recipe for stagflation.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 16:20

• Arabica Coffee Prices See Largest Weekly Jump In Nearly Three Years 
  Arabica Coffee Prices See Largest Weekly Jump In Nearly Three Years 

  As if hyperinflating cocoa bean prices and re-accelerating global food inflation weren’t enough, Arabica coffee futures hit their highest level in over a year and a half. 

  Arabica coffee futures with May delivery jumped 12.5% on the week (the largest weekly gain since July 2021), closing at $2.12 per pound. 

  

  The contract is at its highest level since early October 2022. 

  

  As for weekly CFTC data on futures and options, managed money-only long contracts hit a record high. 

  

  “The current move can largely be attributed to a heat wave in Vietnam affecting Robusta coffee production and as a result, providing carryover support for premium Arabica beans,” Aakash Doshi, senior commodities strategist at Citi, wrote in a note to clients. 

  Doshi forecasts Arabica coffee futures to be trading between $1.88 and $2.15 through the 2024 calendar year. He indicated prices could go higher if the physical outlook tightens. 

  Separately, Hernando De La Roche, a senior vice president at StoneX Financial Inc., told Bloomberg that dealers were caught in a vicious “short and forced to cover while funds have been adding long positions,” adding that importers were forced to abandon hedges. 

  Meanwhile, the recent surge in Brent crude prices due to the worsening geopolitical situation in the Middle East could begin to lift global food prices. 

  

  Food inflation is not going away. This is more bad news for central banks. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 15:45

• Too Hot To Handle: Gold Due For A Correction?
  Too Hot To Handle: Gold Due For A Correction?

  Via SchiffGold.com,

  With gold hitting yet another awe-inspiring all-time high in the wake of Powell’s remarks reassuring markets (more or less) to expect rate cuts in 2024, a few analysts are pointing out risk factors for a correction – so is there really still room to run?

  

  The Wall Street Journal points out that oil price spikes driven by the acceleration of war in the Middle East could cause the Fed to reverse its position of cutting rates three times this year – especially as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has reached historic lows.

  Since Biden took office, the SPR has been drained by over 40% — ironically, as part of a desperate gambit to keep oil prices artificially low in the face of its proxy war in Ukraine and out-of-control inflation, which can only get even worse after the Fed cuts rates. Now that the SPR won’t be refilled as expected (itself a taxpayer-funded sale), Americans will feel even more of the inflationary reality when they head to the gas pumps.

  For context, the SPR was founded in 1975 and is now hovering at levels not seen since the early 80’s:

  

  Source: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=pet&s=mcsstus1&f=a

  But as the conflict in Gaza and beyond continues to accelerate, the US will find more excuses to expand its own involvement as it has from the start.

  Whatever form the meddling takes, the US will inevitably need to finance it by printing money. So, as usual, the Fed is damned if they do and damned if they don’t, defeated by their own games: they need to finance the Middle East meddling with money printing, but both the money printing required to fund the war and the effects of the war itself will work together to drive oil prices up.

  Coincidentally, both factors will also work together to push gold to hit fresh all-time highs this year, unless the Fed decides to buck the Military-Industrial Complex and renege on its rate cut promises, making it much more challenging for Biden administration war hawks to keep the US involved to the extent they’d like.

  On the same topic of Russia and the Middle East, the BRICS countries’ continuing de-dollarization efforts mean that we can expect them to keep stockpiling gold as they continue to divest from petrodollar dependence. Russia says they’ll be doubling their gold and foreign currency purchases, and China’s central bank just hit a new reported record high for its gold reserves late last month.

  Still, some are skeptical, saying that gold and other metals are overbought and due for a correction, and interpreted Powell’s remarks on Wednesday as mildly hawkish. Powell did say that more progress needs to be made on inflation in order for the Fed to move forward with rate cuts. These statements added a dash of uncertainty for some:

  “We do not expect that it will be appropriate to lower our policy rate until we have greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably down towards 2 percent…Reducing rates too soon or too much could result in a reversal of the progress we have seen on inflation and ultimately require even tighter policy to get inflation back to 2 percent.”

  But even as Powell admitted the fight against inflation is “not done” (an epic understatement), markets were reassured that the Fed is still expecting to lower interest rates, saying that the data doesn’t justify changing the current course:

  “The recent data do not, however, materially change the overall picture, which continues to be one of solid growth, a strong but rebalancing labor market, and inflation moving down toward 2 percent on a sometimes bumpy path.”

  So is gold too overbought, or does the macro environment provide enough upward pressure to give it room to keep running?

  While short-term corrections are always something to consider during such dramatic price-run ups, I’d call them buying opportunities.

  And if the mainstream media’s reaction is to be used as a barometer, the true reality of what the skyrocketing price of gold truly means for the economy and the US dollar still hasn’t been priced in. As Peter Schiff tweeted earlier this week:

  The mainstream media has finally noticed #gold, but has no idea why it’s rising, or has any appreciation for how high it’s going. They’re also not encouraging anyone to buy it. All of this is a good sign that the rally still has a long way to go before any meaningful correction.

  — Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) April 3, 2024

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

  The more skeptical analyses acknowledge that it will be an uphill battle for it to sustain the same awe-inspiring upward pace that it has had since the start of the year. But even they, like I, still expect a confluence of factors in 2024 to continue pushing it higher.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 15:10

• Mexico Breaks Diplomatic Ties With Ecuador After Police Raid On Quito Embassy 
  Mexico Breaks Diplomatic Ties With Ecuador After Police Raid On Quito Embassy 

  Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is severing diplomatic relations with Ecuador following a police raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito, Ecuador’s capital, where they arrested former Vice President Jorge Glas, who had sought political asylum in the embassy after being indicted on corruption charges. 

  AMLO announced Friday night that Ecuadorian police raided the Mexican embassy to arrest Glas. He has been hiding in the embassy since December as diplomatic relations between the two countries deteriorated. 

  By order of the president of Ecuador 🇪🇨, Daniel Noboa, the Ecuadorian army stormed the Mexican 🇲🇽 Embassy and arrested former socialist vice president Jorge Glas, who was about to escape to Mexico through a safe conduct granted by López Obrador.
  pic.twitter.com/BB7Q2nPkWm

  — BowTiedMara (@BowTiedMara) April 6, 2024

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  “This is not possible. It cannot be. This is crazy,” Roberto Canseco, head of the Mexican consular section in Quito, told local press, as quoted by AP News. 

  Canseco continued, “I am very worried because they could kill him. There is no basis to do this. This is totally outside the norm.”

  Glas, one of the most wanted men in the South American country, was recently convicted of bribery and corruption. 

  AMLO called Glas’ arrest an “authoritarian act” and “a flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico.”

  Hours before the raid, Mexico granted Glas political asylum – something the Ecuadorian government viewed as illegal. 

  Ecuador’s Presidency wrote in a statement, “Ecuador is a sovereign nation, and we are not going to allow any criminal to stay free.” 

  On social media platform X, Alicia Bárcena, Mexico’s foreign relations secretary, said her team will take Glas’ detainment to the International Court of Justice “to denounce Ecuador’s responsibility for violations of international law.”

   

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 14:35

• World War II Didn't End The Great Depression
  World War II Didn’t End The Great Depression

  By Brian McGlinchey via Stark Realities

  A principal goal of Stark Realities is to “expose fundamental myths across the political spectrum” — and few myths are as universally embraced as the notion that US participation in World War II lifted the American economy out of the Great Depression.

  This myth is dangerous not only because it leads citizens and politicians to see a bright side of war that doesn’t really exist, but also because it helps foster a belief that government spending is essential to countering economic downturns. That belief, in turn, has helped propel us to a point where the national debt now exceeds $34.6 trillion, with interest payments alone on pace to reach $1 trillion a year in 2026, inviting financial catastrophe.

  In part, the wartime-prosperity myth springs from the fact that, during conflict on the scale of World War II, broad, macroeconomic measures like gross national product (GNP) and the unemployment rate are completely untethered from the economy’s most important facet: the standard of living enjoyed — or endured— by everyday people.

  Between 1940 and 1944, real GNP rose at an unprecedented 13% annual clip. Using GNP alone, one would think the war delivered a major improvement in the standard of living, with Americans enjoying a greater abundance of goods, accompanied by a rise in quality, selection and affordability.

  The reality was the exact opposite: Americans endured rationing, shortages, declining product quality, and the outright unavailability of many new goods, such as cars, trucks and stoves. This was the inevitable result of factories and raw materials being redirected from the creation of things consumers want to building things like tanks and fighter planes that do nothing whatsoever to improve people’s lives (setting aside the separate issue of the war’s justness).

  

  In many respects, America experienced an outright economic devolution. In the preceding century, industrialization and the division of labor led to enormous increases in productivity. During World War II, however, shortages motivated people who’d contentedly relied on farmers to start growing their own food and canning it. The scarcity of new clothing led homemakers to redirect time and energy to sewing their own garments and resewing them to stretch as much use out them as possible.

  “Those remaining on the home front were forced to produce for themselves what they had previously been able to purchase,” wrote Steven Horwitz and Michael J. McPhillips. “The household again became a center of production rather than consumption alone.”

  GNP wasn’t the only measure falsely signaling wartime prosperity; employment numbers from the era were likewise misleading. The US unemployment rate plummeted from 17% in 1939 to 1.2% in 1944. Note, however, that military service members are not considered part of the labor force — which means that the draft extracted 11.5 million men from the denominator in the unemployment rate calculation.

  Another 6.3 million volunteered, though many signed up because they preferred to secure a role they favored rather than face the chance of being drafted as an infantryman.

  While it’s true that draftees and volunteers were “employed” by the armed forces, all these millions of men — no matter how noble their overseas missions may have been — weren’t doing anything to create prosperity at home.

  

  That’s not to say the war machine didn’t demand laborers. With so many able men taken out of the economy, the slack was taken up by teenagers, women and retirees, many who’d have preferred to be doing other things.

  In a growing economy, more people are producing goods and services, and elevating standards of living in the process. That was far from the case during World War II. Factories were humming, but they were making bayonets, bombs and battleships. “Four-tenths of the total labor force was not being used to produce consumer goods or capital capable of yielding consumer goods in the future,” noted Robert Higgs.

  Defying conventional wisdom about “wartime prosperity,” Americans’ standard of living suffered tremendously from their government’s entry into World War II. In The Reality of the Wartime Economy, Horwitz and McPhillips tapped some interesting source material to bring the grim economic realities of American life during World War II into sharp focus.

  For example, a series of newspaper ads placed by Canton Electric Light & Power Company — a local New York State utility — present a vivid, time-lapse portrayal of rapidly declining conditions following the December 1941 declaration of war:

  • Foreshadowing anticipated shortages, a March 17, 1942 ad for appliances is headlined “You Can Still Buy Them.” The ad includes a qualifier that’s upbeat while still signaling creeping scarcity: “We have a fairly good supply.”

  • Just two months later, Canton Electric’s ad says “Now Is The Time” to buy various appliances and equipment, warning that “production of most of these items has stopped and only the supply in your dealers’ stock is available.”

  • Another two months later, a July 1942 ad indicates that some items that were briefly not available are back in inventory.

  • In November of that first year of America’s World War II participation, Canton Electric switched to warning consumers that, “due to the war emergency, it is quite impossible to get replacement motors for civilian use,” and urging them to ensure they’re properly maintaining their “stokers and oil burners.”

  • Later that same month, Canton Electric punted on advancing its retail business altogether, instead using its ad space to encourage readers to grow their own food, eat everything on their plates and comply with ration-stamp rules.

  

  Horwitz and McPhillips also drew on letters written between 1942 and 1945 by Saidee Leach to her son serving in the Pacific. Contrary to the image of prosperity supposedly indicated by leaping GNP or plummeting unemployment, she tells him of:

  • Conserving scarce home-heating fuel during the coldest days by wearing fur coats indoors and residing only in their kitchen

  • Having her typewriter seized by the government, and now using a lesser model she acquired from a Howard Johnson “which had to close due to the ban on pleasure driving.”

  • Making an Easter dinner centered on fried Spam, because she “could not get fresh meat of any kind,” and later noting that “potatoes have entirely disappeared”

  • Local farmers refusing to sell their turkey flocks for Thanksgiving meals at the prices set by the Office of Price Administration — illustrating the folly of government price controls.

  That is not the picture of an economy delivered from the Great Depression. Rather, “World War II institutionalized the falling standards of living of the depression through wage and price controls, and extensive rationing of consumer goods and services,” wrote Peter Ferrara. “The economic deprivation, and reduced standards of living, continued, although people perceived it was now for a good cause.”

  America’s postwar experience presents another pointed contradiction of the myth of wartime prosperity.

  As the war’s end grew closer, Keynesian economists unanimously predicted peace would bring economic disaster. For example, Paul Samuelson said America would experience “the greatest period of unemployment and dislocation any economy has ever faced.” 

  Alvin Hansen warned that the economy must be kept on a centrally-controlled wartime footing, even in peacetime: “When the war is over, the government cannot just disband the Army, close down munitions factories, stop building ships, and remove all economic control.”

  

  However, that’s pretty much what happened — and Hansen, Samuelson and their fellow economic flat-Earthers couldn’t have been more wrong about the consequences. “The year 1946, when civilian output increased by about 30 percent, was the most glorious single year in the entire history of the U.S. economy,” wrote Higgs.

  This despite the fact that government purchases of goods and services collapsed by 68% between the second quarter of 1945 and the first quarter of 1946 — and upwards of a million civilian government employees were laid off and millions of service members discharged.

  As war-fighting men poured back into civilian life, millions of women withdrew from the labor force, contentedly returning to duty as mothers and home managers. Rather than soaring as predicted by the “experts,” unemployment merely edged higher, from 1.9% in 1945 to 3.9% in 1947.

  “Less than a year and a half after VJ-day,” crowed President Truman, “more than 10 million demobilized veterans and other millions of wartime workers have found employment in the swiftest and most gigantic change-over that any nation has ever made from war to peace.” (Note this happened despite — and in part because of — Truman’s failure to institute a higher minimum wage as the war ended.)

  Having been proven enormously wrong about the economic implications of peace, Keynesians scrambled to credit the war with enabling the postwar boom, arguing that it was fueled by people drawing down savings accumulated while the supply of consumer goods was sharply restricted. However, as Higgs determined by studying the data of the time, “Holdings of liquid assets did not decline at all after the war. People financed their spending for consumer goods by reducing their saving rate.”

  

  Contrary to the myth, it was only after World War II that — free from the government’s commandeering of factories, workers and resources, and saddled with fewer price controls and other federal market intrusions — America was finally able to emerge from the Great Depression.

  You wouldn’t know that if you evaluated the economy’s health using Keynesians’ preferred measure. Just as the GNP gauge provided a 180-degree misreading of wartime economic realities, it failed in similarly spectacular fashion during the postwar boom: From 1945 to 1947, GNP plummeted 22%.

  In addition to further illuminating the shortfalls of aggregate economic measures, America’s postwar economic experience delivered another broadside to the myth of World War II-fostered prosperity, and to the idea that government spending, central planning and market interventions are essential to economic achieving economic recovery.

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

  

  * * *

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

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 14:00

• "The Allegation Is False": CIA Denies Meddling In Hunter Biden IRS, DOJ Investigations
  “The Allegation Is False”: CIA Denies Meddling In Hunter Biden IRS, DOJ Investigations

  The CIA has denied a whistleblower allegation that the agency “intervened in the investigation of Hunter biden to prevent the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) from interviewing a witness,” according to a response issued to House Republicans on Friday.

  

  According to the whistleblower, in August 2021, the IRS wanted to interview Hunter Biden associate (who loaned Hunter $6.5 million), Patrick Kevin Morris – and that “the CIA intervened to stop the interview.“

  “Two DOJ officials were allegedly summoned to CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia for a briefing regarding Mr. Morris,” at which “it was communicated that Mr. Morris could not be a witness during the investigation.”

  CIA Denies

  Two weeks later, the CIA has responded in a letter to House Oversight Chair James Comer and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (‘obtained first’ by CNN).

  “Without confirming or denying the existence of any associations or communications, CIA did not prevent or seek to prevent IRS or DOJ from conducting any such interview. The allegation is false,” CIA Director of Congressional Affairs, James A. Catella, wrote to the Chairs.

  House Republicans push back

  In response to the response, House Judiciary Committee spokesman Russell Dye told CNN “The allegation is not false.”

  In a Friday post to X following the CNN report, the House Judiciary GOP said “The CIA is wrong. But what’s new?”

  The CIA is wrong. But what’s new? https://t.co/BGQb5Z1kZt

  — House Judiciary GOP (@JudiciaryGOP) April 5, 2024

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  Raskin POUNCES

  Following the CIA’s reply, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) slammed the Republicans for not sharing their source.

  

  “This is a serious charge, but you have completely ignored my staff’s requests to be allowed to review the information that you say prompted your letter and upon which your letter is putatively and entirely based,” Raskin wrote to Comer on Friday.

  Republicans have raised questions over Morris’ loans to Hunter Biden, which Morris claims has nothing to do with President Joe Biden..

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  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 13:25

• Ukrainian Men Paying Disabled Women To Marry Them To Avoid Frontlines: Report
  Ukrainian Men Paying Disabled Women To Marry Them To Avoid Frontlines: Report

  Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

  Ukrainian men are reportedly paying disabled women in the country to marry them, as a way of avoiding being drafted to fight on the frontlines of the war with Russia.

  

  An investigation by Ukrainian outlet NGL Media found that fighting age men are exploiting a loophole in the country’s martial law that allows them to skip military service.

  If they have a disabled dependant, they are able to apply for a deferral from military duty as well as being allowed to cross the border, at which point many are fleeing for good.

  

  The investigation found scores of Facebook and Telegram groups in which men are posting marriage proposals, and disabled women are offering marriage to the highest bidders.

  There are even people profiting from the practice by acting as intermediaries.

  The investigation notes that a payment of around €3,000 is usually enough to secure a sham marriage to a disabled woman.

  Yevhen Filipets, a lawyer in Ukraine, told the outlet “In my experience, out of 100 cases of servicemen who apply for discharge for family reasons, 95 cases use that topic, i.e., if their wife, their parents or their wife’s parents have a disability.”

  “To get an exemption, it is enough to have such a marriage,” the lawyer added.

  Filipets further noted that “it is almost impossible to prove the marriage is fake; it is possible only through a court decision. And one of the spouses has the right to go to court to recognise such a marriage as fake. Will he or she apply in these circumstances? I don’t think so. (…) Ukrainian people are very resourceful.”

  As we highlighted earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law that lowers the country’s age of conscription by two years to make up for troop shortfalls.

  The new legislation lowers the age of mobilization from 27 to 25 years, meaning more young men will be removed from the struggling Ukrainian economy and sent off to the meatgrinder in anticipation of another Russia summer offensive.

  Videos have previously emerged which purport to show Ukrainians who tried to avoid being conscripted being thrown off a bus and beaten by SBU, Ukraine’s equivalent of the FBI.

  “Ukrainians thrown out of the bus on top of each other and beaten like dogs by the SBU”

  SBU – Ukraine’s equivalent of the FBI.

  People taken from their homes sent to the front to die for Biden’s war in Ukraine which many gave him a standing ovation. “Churchillian speech” yuck🤡 pic.twitter.com/9q1BSQtwQG

  — sulatron1ka 🕊️ (@sulatron1ka) March 9, 2024

  The average age of a Ukrainian soldier is now over 40 years of age, the same as Russia, underscoring how the whole conflict has been a devastating bloodbath for both sides.

  Well over 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed already, forcing Ukraine to call up older personnel.

  As we previously highlighted, shocking videos have emerged showing a mentally disabled people on the front lines of the war being mocked by other soldiers.

  Last month, General Rajmund Andrzejczak, the ex-chief of the Polish General Staff, said that Ukraine is losing the war.

  “More than 10 million people are missing. According to my estimates, losses should be in the millions, not hundreds of thousands. The country has no resources, no one to fight. Ukrainians are losing this war,” said the general.

  Also this week, US State Department consultant Edward Luttwak says that NATO countries will have to send soldiers to Ukraine or “accept catastrophic defeat,” and that Britain and France are already making preparations to do so.

  *  *  *

  Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 12:50

• Fani Opened Up To Felony? DA Willis Now Accused Of Illegally Recording Lawyer, Given Till Monday To Recuse
  Fani Opened Up To Felony? DA Willis Now Accused Of Illegally Recording Lawyer, Given Till Monday To Recuse

  Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has been accused of illegally recording a lawyer in the Trump-Georgia case.

  

  During an interview with Townhall columnist and legal analyst Phil Holloway, an attorney for Trump co-defendant Harrison Floyd, Christopher Kachouroff, claimed that Willis recorded a phone call between herself and one of his colleagues in Maryland.

  “Fani did reach out to one of my colleagues in Maryland” said Kachouroff. “And was rude and abrupt with him on the phone … and she ended up recording him.“

  He further noted that Maryland is a “two party state,” meaning that both parties on a phone call have to consent to being recorded.

  “So, are you saying she illegally recorded a phone call?” asked Holloway.

  “Oh yeah, it’s a felony in Maryland,” Kachouroff replied.

  Watch:

  Fani Willis ILLEGALLY recorded a 📞 call with my lawyer.

  Its a felony!

  She is a DEI thug with a law license.

  Will anyone in GA stand up to her❓#fultoncounty #corrupt #Georgia pic.twitter.com/2ZPqckPVzD

  — Harrison Floyd 🇺🇸 (@hw_floyd) April 4, 2024

  Maryland is one of 11 states which require two-party consent. Under the state’s Wiretap Act, recording a private conversation without consent from both parties is punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

  Harrison Floyd, the defendant, has given Fani until noon on Monday to recuse herself from the case or he “may have no other choice than to pursue all lawful remedies.”

  👀👀

  Well now, this has escalated quickly

  Did #FaniWillis violate Maryland law? https://t.co/WgJRlZu0Xp

  — Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) April 5, 2024

  As Redstate notes: 

  In Floyd’s tweet, it refers to Willis providing a copy or a recording of a call to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution between herself and Carlos J.R. Salvado, an attorney in Maryland, who also represents Floyd on an unrelated matter. 

  Atlanta News First and Newsweek have reached out to Willis’ office for comment on this new allegation but she doesn’t appear to have weighed in yet. It will be interesting to see what her response to this allegation is. 

  Floyd, who served as a senior campaign staffer for Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign, was indicted by Willis on three felony counts stemming from his alleged efforts to help Trump overturn his loss in the state. The charges include conspiracy to solicit false statements, influencing witnesses, and racketeering. He has also been accused of assaulting an FBI agent in Maryland. He has pleaded not guilty.

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jshttps://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsFani’s wiretapping accusation is the latest debacle involving Willis’ RICO case against Trump and his allies.

  On Wednesday, special prosecutor Nathan Wade’s estranged wife filed contempt of court proceedings against him. Wade and Willis’ romantic relationship was the focal point of the disqualification efforts against the district attorney’s office. However, Judge Scott McAfee ultimately allowed Willis to remain on the prosecution so long as Wade stepped down. Wade handed in his resignation hours after McAfee’s ruling. –Newsweek

  Floyd, a former Black Voices for Trump leader, turned himself in without a lawyer or bond agreement on August 24 of last year, and was released August 30 on $100,000 bond. He is one of 19 defendants in the case. 

  Tyler Durden
  Sat, 04/06/2024 – 12:15

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