"I strongly urge you to pick up "Forgotten Civilization; New Discoveries on the Solar Induced Dark Age," by Robert Schoch. Schoch: In "Forgotten Civilization" covers a lot of ground, including the very important issue of the cataclysm that ended the last ice age, approximately 12,000 B.P. (before the present). Schoch shows (to my satisfaction) that it was almost certainly a solar eruption that did in the ice age mega-fauna (and almost all of our ancestors), and not a comet. Schoch is almost certainly right. Read Schoch’s book if you’re interested in this. But be forewarned: Schoch doesn’t pull any punches about the coming cataclysm. He gives us multiple lines of evidence that mean it’s overdue."
Hueyatlaco is an archeological site in the Valsequillo Basin near the city of Puebla, Mexico. After excavations in the 1960s, the site became notorious due to geochronologists‘ analyses that indicated human habitation at Hueyatlaco was dated to ca. 250,000 years before the present (my emphasis).[1][2]
These controversial findings are orders of magnitude older than the scientific consensus for habitation of the New World (which generally traces widespread human migration to the New World to 13,000 to 16,000 ybp). The findings at Hueyatlaco are the subject of continued debate by the scientific community, and have seen only occasional discussion in the literature." [3]
"This fantastic skyscape lies near the edge of NGC 2174 a star forming region about 6,400 light-years away in the nebula-rich constellation of Orion. It follows mountainous clouds of gas and dust carved by winds and radiation from the region's newborn stars, now found scattered in open star clusters embedded around the center of NGC 2174, off the top of the frame.
Though star formation continues within these dusty cosmic clouds they will likely be dispersed by the energetic newborn stars within a few million years. Recorded at infrared wavelengths by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2014, the interstellar scene spans about 6 light-years. Scheduled for launch in 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope is optimized for exploring the Universe at infrared wavelengths."
"Well, it is our fate to live in a time of crisis. To live in a time when all forms and values are being challenged. In other and more easy times, it was not, perhaps, necessary for the individual to confront himself with a clear question: What is it that you really believe? What is it that you really cherish? What is it for which you might, actually, in a showdown, be willing to die? I say, with all the reticence which such large, pathetic words evoke, that one cannot exist today as a person – one cannot exist in full consciousness – without having to have a showdown with one’s self, without having to define what it is that one lives by, without being clear in one’s mind what matters and what does not matter.”
"You’re not going to hear it from the western media or politicians, let alone NATO, but overnight the Ukraine war, or special operation, ended. And Russia won, on all fronts and on their own terms. There’ll be some more skirmishes, and a few more body bags, but not because the outcome of the war could still be changed. It’s done.
It’s funny to see how the nazi Azov “soldiers” that surrendered are now portrayed as heroic defenders of Ukraine, after hiding in a steel plant for 80 days, but they still lost. There are probably a few hundred left there, the ones who have most to fear from being captured, and all Russia has to do is to wait for them to come out. Or not.
The reason they went from nazis to heroes in no time at all in the western and Ukrainian press was that they were counted on to be the “real fighters” their country needed. Now that they’ve surrendered, without “fighting to the end”, the country, army and civilians alike, will see its morale plummet. Ukraine lost, Zelensky lost, and NATO lost. While at the same time, “our” press keeps on coming up with stories of Russian losses and weakness etc. And war crimes.
The only sensible thing left to do is to negotiate a peace in the conflict, in which Russia will see - most of - its demands (no nukes, no nazis, no NATO) granted. It’s either that or Zelensky will become guilty of the death and long drawn-out misery of many of his compatriots, without gaining an inch, and it’s hard to see him desiring that. Don’t be surprised if Zelensky surrenders soon as well, or leaves the country, claiming that Russia wants him dead and his escape was “heroic”.
There is one alternative: a full scale NATO attack on Russia, but that would seem far-fetched. Behind the western rhetoric there are too many minds who have read about the defeats of Napoleon and Hitler when they tried that, and who also don’t like the risk of one of Russia’s 6,000 nuclear warheads landing on their territory.
The saddest thing is that there was never any reason for this. You can paint off Putin as a crazy monster a million times, and the special action as completely unprovoked, but you would have to ignore all of Russia’s warnings over decades that this is an “existential” issue for their country. Which means they won’t back down. And everybody knew.
And besides, a lot of NATO countries’ governments have an idea what would become of them without Russian resources, fertilizer, crops, oil, gas etc. They’re willing to support NATO only up to a point, including sanctions. They don’t want to be responsible for cold and hunger for their people. If only because that would end the careers of many a politician.
It’ll take some time to fabricate the language that allows for such a defeat to be presented as a victory, but Spin Doctors “R” Us. And all of the people who’ve displayed Ukrainian flags wherever they could will need to find a narrative to defend that as well, but time heals many wounds, also the imaginary ones.
And yes, all this changes the face of the world enormously. The US, and through it NATO, is officially no longer the unipolar ruler of the world. They will have to share that limelight with Russia, China, India and others (Brussels has sidelined itself). That may be bad news for whoever is in power in US/NATO, but for citizens it’s a different story. They have nothing to fear from Russia’s military, but a lot from missing out on Russian resources.
In short: the war is over. The US will try to send over another $40 billion in “aid” -at least half of it weapons-, but there’ll be nobody left to handle the small fraction that is not destroyed by Russia. And just like the Russians can simply wait for the last Azov troops to leave the steel compound, they can also sit back and track any NATO weapons deliveries, and then take them out. It is really over. Unless we go all out Napoleon. I don’t think we will.
Meanwhile, we should all be happy that the war is over. Well, are we?"
"Now we’re hearing from the CEO of Wells Fargo bank to tell us that we need to get ready for something that will be worse than a recession. Entire industries will be wiped out and retail is suffering knockout punches on a daily basis."
"If you thought that the economic news was crazy during the first half of 2022, just wait until we get to the second half. So many of the problems that we are experiencing now are going to continue to intensify, and Americans are becoming more pessimistic about economic conditions with each passing day. In fact, as you will see below, a whopping 85 percent of us believe that it is “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that the economy will go through a recession at some point during the next year. Of course the truth is that if all we have to suffer through is a “recession”, we would be extremely fortunate. Our leaders have lost control of the economy, and many of us are extremely concerned about what is coming next. The following are 12 nightmarish economic trends that we should expect to see during the second half of 2022…
#1 Gas prices will continue to surge higher, and many Americans will be shocked by how high they eventually go. If you can believe it, in Washington State at least one gas station has now reprogrammed their gas pumps “to make room for double-digit pricing”… At the 76 Gas Station in Auburn, Washington located at 1725 Auburn Way North, gas pumps have been reprogrammed to make room for double-digit pricing. In March, they still had single-digit programming.
A spokesperson at 76 confirmed to The Post Millennial that the gas pumps were reprogrammed to allocate for double-digit pricing. Although not confirming that they are expecting prices to increase up to $10.00 or more, the current trend suggests the possibility. Supplies of fuel will continue to get even tighter in the months ahead. Earlier today, I heard from a reader on the east coast and a reader in the middle of the country that both said that diesel is now being rationed where they live. So far, I have not been able to confirm that this is happening on a widespread basis.
#2 We are being warned that there could be extended blackouts in some parts of the nation during the summer months. It is being reported that the middle of the country is particularly at risk…"About 100 million Americans face power blackouts this summer as roasting weather, overstretched powerplants and unreliable green energy sources combine to create a perfect storm of problems. States stretching from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Ocean which are home to tens of millions of Americans could have a hard time producing enough power for their residents this summer. The ‘MISO’ part of America’s power grid – whose full name is the Midcontinent Independent System Operator is at greatest risk of a large-scale outage."
#3 Everyone pretty much agrees that food prices will continue to rise. Of course they have already reached levels that are absolutely insane…"Take the case of Jeff Good, who co-founded three restaurants in Jackson, Mississippi. Around 18 months ago, a 40-pound box of chicken wings cost him about $85. Now, it can go as high as roughly $150. Expenses for cooking oil and flour have nearly doubled in the past five months, he said. But it’s not just ingredient prices going up. He’s paying more for labor and services, too. Even the company that maintains his air conditioners has tacked on a $40 fuel charge per visit. To cope, he’s raised menu prices.
A 15-piece order of chicken wings, a signature dish at his Sal and Mookie’s pizzeria, went for $13.95 before Covid hit. Now, wing costs can vary so much they’re labeled at “market price,” like some restaurants do with lobster. At peaks, the menu price can be be about $27.95 - but that represents a barely-there margin - and Good estimates the “real cost” is closer to about $34. He’s trying to decide whether to keep raising prices or take wings off the menu. I don’t know about you, but I don’t ever see myself paying 34 dollars for an order of chicken wings.
#4 As our supply chains endure even more stress, shortages will continue to intensify. The extreme baby formula shortage that we are witnessing right now is just a preview of coming attractions…"Two children in Memphis have been hospitalized after needing IV fluids and nutritional support due to the baby formula shortage. The preschooler and toddler, both from different families, were rushed to Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital after their parents failed to secure formula as shelves across America go bare."
#5 The UN is telling us that we are heading into the worst global food crisis since World War II. In some parts of Africa, the number of people suffering from “extreme hunger” has already more than doubled…"More than 23 million people are experiencing extreme hunger in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya, according to a new report by Oxfam and Save the Children. That’s up from over 10 million last year. The region’s worst drought in 40 years is being exacerbated by conflict and the pandemic. And the war in Ukraine has sent food prices soaring to record levels."
#6 Widespread hunger will almost certainly lead to more civil unrest. Recent events in Sri Lanka give us an indication of what may be coming…"Protesters in Sri Lanka have burned down homes belonging to 38 politicians as the crisis-hit country plunged further into chaos, with the government ordering troops to “shoot on sight.” Police in the island nation said Tuesday that in addition to the destroyed homes, 75 others have been damaged as angry Sri Lankans continue to defy a nationwide curfew to protest against what they say is the government’s mishandling of the country’s worst economic crisis since 1948."
#7 The Federal Reserve is likely to continue to aggressively raise interest rates. In fact, Fed Chair Jerome Powell is openly admitting that his institution’s battle against inflation could cause “some pain” in the months ahead…"Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned Tuesday the U.S. could feel “some pain” as the central bank raises interest rates to fight inflation, insisting the Fed would do whatever it takes to curb price growth. During a live interview for The Wall Street Journal’s “Future of Everything” summit, Powell said the Fed will continue to raise interest rates until inflation starts to fall and the forces driving prices higher fade, even at the risk of a deeper economic slowdown."
#8 Higher interest rates will be devastating for the housing market in the United States. And that is very troubling news, because home sales have already fallen for three months in a row…"Home sales fell for the third consecutive month in April as rising mortgage rates and affordability challenges pushed many would-be home buyers out of the market."
#9 Defaults are likely to continue to rise higher. Just like we saw right before the last financial crisis, defaults on subprime loans are really starting to surge…"Consumers with low credit scores are falling behind on payments for car loans, personal loans and credit cards, a sign that the healthiest consumer lending environment on record in the U.S. is coming to an end.
The share of subprime credit cards and personal loans that are at least 60 days late is rising faster than normal, according to credit-reporting firm Equifax. In March, those delinquencies rose month over month for the eighth time in a row, nearing their prepandemic levels. Delinquencies on subprime car loans and leases hit an all-time high in February, based on Equifax’s tracking that goes back to 2007."
#10 As the economy slows down, we should expect layoffs to increase and jobless claims will eventually start to spike. In fact, we just learned that they have now hit a four month high.
#12 Many are warning that a recession is either already here or will arrive soon. And Americans are increasingly becoming more pessimistic about the economy. One survey that was recently conducted found that 85 percent of Americans believe that it is “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that there will be a recession at some point in the next year…"An overwhelming majority of Americans are expecting there to be a recession within the next year, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday. The poll found that 85 percent of Americans think it is likely for the country to go through an economic recession in the next year. Of those who responded, 45 percent said it is “very likely,” and 40 percent said “somewhat likely” for a recession."
The sort of historic economic meltdown that I have been warning about for years is rapidly approaching, and the mood of the nation will dramatically shift as conditions greatly deteriorate. Already, we are starting to see a tremendous amount of anger out there. Earlier today, I came across the following post on a very popular Internet discussion forum…
"Just want to vent. I am from middle Missouri, I am a single mom of 2 teens. My day job pays well and pays the bills well, a year ago my income would support us, bills, food, gas etc. i now have to work a second job just to feed us and put gas in my car. Eggs here went from .99 a carton to 1.99, ground beef went from 2.89 a pound to 4.99, and it goes on and on. Gas went from 1.90 to 4.29 a gallon. I am out of my mind scared it will only get worse. I have democrat friends that say “that’s how the economy works”. No it’s because Biden was giving out “covid” bucks to non working people taking advantage of the system, giving our money to Ukraine, shutting down gas lines in the US etc."
I can understand her anger. Most Americans are working as hard as they can, but our standard of living is being systematically destroyed by the very foolish policies of our leaders. Unfortunately, we are still only in the very early chapters of this crisis. It looks like the second half of this year will be even more challenging than the first half, and that is going to have enormous implications for all of us."
"What is about money that makes people do bad things? It seems a fair question when the news is dominated by misdeeds of the rich and powerful. "To researchers who study wealth and power, it's dismaying but not surprising, because it tracks so closely with our findings. The effect of power is sadly one of the most reliable laws of human behavior," said Dacher Keltner, a psychologist at the University of California at Berkeley who has spent decades studying wealth, power and privilege.
Six years ago, Keltner and a then-graduate student in his lab, Paul Piff, published influential innovative experiments that confirmed many of our worst assumptions about the rich and the corrupting power of wealth.
In one experiment, the researchers stationed themselves at a busy intersection with four-way stop signs and tracked the model of every car whose driver cut off others instead of waiting their turn. People driving expensive cars - like a brand-new Mercedes - were four times more likely to ignore right-of-way laws than those in cheap cars like an old beat-up Honda. "It told us that there's something about wealth and privilege that makes you feel like you're above the law, that allows you to treat others like they don't exist," Keltner said.
Next, they had a researcher play a pedestrian trying to cross at a crosswalk and tracked which cars stopped as the law requires and which blew right past him. The results were even more stark. Every one of the cheapest cars stopped, while half of the expensive cars ignored the pedestrian in the crosswalk - many even after making eye contact.
There have been warnings throughout the ages about the corrupting effects of wealth and power. Buddha, for example, gave up the rich life of a prince for enlightenment. Jesus warned his disciples a camel would have an easier time squeezing through the eye of a needle than a rich man trying to get into God's kingdom. Rapper Biggie Smalls reached a similar conclusion before his untimely death: "Mo money, Mo problems."
In one of the more surprising findings from their 2015 paper, Keltner and Piff found the rich are more likely to literally take candy from children. In that experiment, they first asked 129 subjects to compare their finances with people who had either more or less money. Then they gave their subjects a jar of candy and told them the sweets were intended for children in a nearby lab but they could take some if they wanted. Those who felt richer after comparing their finances to poorer people took significantly more candy for themselves.
The findings build on similar research in recent years that suggests wealth and power strip people of their inhibitions, increase risk taking and feelings of entitlement and invulnerability. At the same time, power makes people less empathetic and able to see others' perspectives.
"Wealth is basically a mechanism for power, and power has a freeing effect on people. It takes away the constraints of society and frees people to act according to their dominant desires," said Adam Galinsky of Columbia Business School, whose experiments have explored how power often propels people's actions.
In some cases, those desires may be altruistic or helpful to society, so power heightens those goals and can give rise to effective philanthropists. Often, however, power leads to self-serving behaviors unrestrained by the usual concerns over rules or the consequences for others.
Because much of the psychological research into wealth and power is relatively new, many of the findings are still being tested and need to be confirmed by replication, researchers say. "I wouldn't say these questions are settled. There are disagreements about the exact effect of wealth and ethics and how large the effect is," said Michael Kraus, a social psychologist at Yale's School of Management.
But the research has never seen such booming interest and momentum - with growing inequality in America. "There's a lot of reasons we should care about the ethics of wealthy people," Kraus said. "Even if research found that they were no more unethical as anyone else, their influence on the world is so much greater. If someone like me steals something, it only affects only a handful of people. But if someone like them steals or lies or cheats, it affects so many more people. There are foreign governments and banks involved. You start getting into that area where it can affect the whole country and the course of democracy."
left behind by their dear leaders' best laid plans...
by Bill Bonner
"Let's drink to the hard working people,
Let's drink to the lowly of birth.
Raise your glass to the good and the evil,
Let's drink to the salt of the earth
Say a prayer for the common foot soldier,
Spare a thought for his back breaking work.
Say a prayer for his wife and his children
Who burn the fires and who still till the earth."
~ "Salt of the Earth" by the Rolling Stones
Youghal, Ireland - "Oh my… Today, we say a prayer for the hard working people… the factory girls and long-haul truckers… They’re going to need it.
Fox News: "The national average cost of a regular gallon of gasoline hit $4.589 early Thursday morning. This price topped Wednesday's previous record of $4.567, which had beat Tuesday's record of $4.523, which in turn had beat Monday's record of $4.470."
And here’s CBS News, looking ahead: "California drivers are grappling with the most expensive gas in the nation, shelling out an average $6.06 per gallon as of Thursday. That could soon be the fate of drivers in the rest of the nation, according to a JPMorgan analyst, who predicts the national average per gallon price could reach $6.20 this summer."
Rising house prices (thanks to the Fed’s ultra-low interest rates) forced middle- and lower- income workers to move further and further away from their work. Now, they may commute 40 miles or more just to get to the job. That’s about 2 gallons of gas… or about $12 worth. One way. At an average blue-collar wage, commuting alone costs over 10% of income. “Too bad…” say the elite. “But this will encourage them to use less fossil fuel. They should buy electric cars.” If that weren’t galling enough, there are early signs that the two legs of middle class prosperity – housing and jobs – are beginning to buckle.
Unsteady She Goes: First, the labor market may be rolling over. The New York Post: "The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, reaching a four month-high and potentially hinting at some cooling in demand for workers amid tightening financial conditions."
Second, house prices are rising at a double-digit annual rate. But with mortgage rates edging up, who can afford to buy them? CNBC: 'Home sales drop 18% in April' "The April drop in closings is the largest one-month decline since July 2010, when the homebuyer tax credit, a federal stimulus resulting from the subprime mortgage crash, expired. The average new house in the US now sells for $523,000. That’s up from $400,000 in January of last year. Interest rates are also up – by nearly 3%. If the entire amount were financed, that would mean a monthly mortgage payment about $1,500 higher."
So, yesterday we were wondering… How come… with so many problems here in the USA – stocks crashing… consumer prices rising by double digits… the baby formula crisis… and people killing shoppers in retail establishments or robbing them on the streets… our leaders go to a foreign country, give the folks there $40 billion, and promise undying support for their war with Russia? “You do the dying,” they say… “we’ll just send you our taxpayers’ money.” McConnell, Pelosi, Yellen... et al – from both wings of the Deep, Deep State… Republican and Democrat – are supposed to represent ‘the people.’ And yet… where’s the love?
We turn to Newsweek Magazine: “The Divide Isn’t Right v. Left; It’s Us Blue Collar Workers Fighting Elite Contempt”. "Charles Stallworth thinks the real divide is not a matter of Republican vs. Democrat or Black vs. White. It’s a matter of ‘class.’ He says the people who do the real work – butchers, carpenters, truck drivers – don’t get any respect. In the Covid panic, for example, the elite kept drawing their paychecks – working remotely – while the factories and workshops were shut down. The only working class people with jobs were the ones who delivered Door Dash food and Amazon packages to white collar homes."
Rules for Thee: And now that the Covid Panic has faded, the class divide is more visible than ever. In restaurants, stores, banks – clerks and servers wear masks; customers don’t.
Salt-of-the-earth commoners pay taxes to support local schools… where their children are taught that their non-college educated parents are failures. The only route to success is via ‘higher education,’ the youngsters are told. They are assured that if they go to college they will not only do more meaningful work – saving the planet! – they will also earn more money.
And now, the Biden Administration wants to cancel student debt. Who benefits? The fellows waiting tables, driving trucks or swinging hammers? Or the college graduates who waited tables and paid their own way through school? Un un. Bloomberg: "At least 30 senior White House staffers have student loan balances, according to 2021 financial disclosures Bloomberg News obtained from the Office of Government Ethics, including Biden’s new press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, and Bharat Ramamurti, deputy director of the National Economic Council."
The poor working stiffs will end up paying the elite’s college expenses… and then, the educated upper classes can thank them: “Waiter… I said no ice in my [imported from Italy] sparkling water. I care about the environment. Thank you.”
Mr. Stallworth doesn’t mention the Fed. Twice this century, it bailed out the rich man’s stock portfolio with trillions of dollars in crisp new bills. But not a penny for the sweating masses.
We are waiting to see if it will repeat the trick. Already, some $30 trillion has been lost, worldwide, in the retreat from Peak Bubble. As the losses mount, the class divide will come front and center. Grosso modo, the ruling elite benefits from rising asset prices. The middle and lower classes benefit from falling consumer prices. It’s one or the other. The Fed can try to bail out the fund managers once again. But it will mean much higher prices for the truck drivers. Or, it can tackle inflation… but the elite will lose trillions. Which way will it go? Say a prayer for the hardworking people. More to come…"
“So we all ran around in mad, mindless, meaningless circles, as if we were in a cotton-candy eating contest where the grand prize was getting kicked in the face. We were oblivious to everything around us that no truly sane person would ever tolerate. And we needed someone else to tell us to stop it.”
"The DHS Disinformation Governance Board was put on pause this week as yet another disastrous desperate attempt to control the narrative falls apart for the Democrats in the Biden/Obama Administration. A new person at the board has been appointed, and that is Michael Chertoff. He is the former DHS Secretary in the Bush 43 Administration. The former Disinformation Board leader Nina Jankowicz resigned in disgrace after, wait for it - too much disinformation. Controlling alt media under the label of “disinformation” is a brazen unconstitutional and desperate attempt to try to take control of free speech in America. This is another sign that the Democrats do not feel they can win the upcoming election in November of 2022 without this sort of oppression.
According to the propaganda that is passed off as “news” at the New York Times, the Ukraine Army simply “ended its combat Mission in Mariupol” that has been under Russian Army siege for weeks. This fantasy portrayal of what went down is yet another piece of fake news propaganda by the NYT about the war in Ukraine. In reality, Ukraine forces were forced to surrender or be cut to ribbons by the Russian Army. More than 1,700 have surrendered in the last three days. It is another stunning defeat of the Ukrainian army. This is the country the U.S. Senate just approved another $40 billion to keep this farce of a war going instead of stopping it. The mainstream media sources like the New York Times are gaslighting the public into thinking this is going well for Ukraine when it is a total disaster. Talk about throwing good money after bad.
Looks like inflation is here to stay with record high fuel prices clocking in every week and skyrocketing food prices. This has all happened because of Biden/Obama Administration policies on everything from energy to war. What is the answer to this spiking inflation? It’s not a change in policies that got us here in little more than a year of the Biden/Obama Administration. It’s price controls under the new name of “gouging” legislation. Big time Democrat and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers calls this plan “dangerous nonsense” that will make the inflation problem far worse."
"Time, they say, is nature’s way of making sure that everything doesn’t happen at once. Then why does everything seem to be happening at once? These must be unnaturally strange times. Here comes Ukraine… there goes Ukraine… our money is worthless… no water for Las Vegas… buh-bye Roe v Wade…financial markets wobbling… vaccine injuries everywhere… diesel prices killing truckers… food shortages… UFOs… World War Three… white supremacists… no baby formula… whoa… duck-and-cover, here comes monkeypox!
So it goes with criticality in hyper-complex systems, the passing of thresholds into breakdown, all at the same time, failures mutually ramifying other failures seemingly unconnected, and weird things popping up in the dust and rubble like monsters in a bad dream. I know it’s disconcerting to see the world fly apart. Forgive me then, while you fret about the future of your loved ones and your retirement account, if I focus in on just one thing for the moment: the doings of federal attorney John Durham, the special counsel looking into matters pertaining to RussiaGate, the first step in America’s attempted suicide.
Mr. Durham is currently prosecuting a small fish, a sardine among the Lawfare sharks and killer whales of K Street, Michael Sussmann, for telling one measly lie to the FBI. Mr. Durham has been at this task for two years plus. That’s a long time to spend on a simple crime based on a few easy-to-get bits of evidence: a cell phone text, some emails, the testimony of one principal witness - and a pretext that no one ever took seriously in the first place: the punk-ass Alfa Bank conduit-to-Russia story.
So, in 2016, schlubby lawyer Michael Sussmann from Perkins Coie, the DC law firm representing the Hillary Clinton Campaign, asks for a meeting with his old DOJ colleague, Jim Baker, now General Counsel (top lawyer) for the FBI. He has some sensitive information that the Bureau might find interesting. He says he does not represent any particular client in the matter, he’s just stepping forward as a patriotic citizen. He emphasizes this point more than once, including a text, recorded in the digital cloud (uh-oh), the night before the meeting. He comes in out of the swampy Potomac heat to Mr. Baker’s air-conditioned lair at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue and spins a tale about a Russian-owned outfit called Alfa-Bank with computer servers located in the vicinity of Trump Tower in New York City, which, he alleges, are being used by candidate Donald Trump to communicate with bad guys in Russia.
The story goes nowhere fast. The FBI discounts it. Turns out that Mr. Sussmann billed the hours spent on this folderol to Hillary for America, which, prima facie, indicates he was working for her campaign at the time. Six years later, he’s indicted. Anyway, perhaps unbeknownst to Mr. Sussman, the FBI, in July 2016, had already ramped up an investigation into the Trump campaign with the sexy name “Crossfire Hurricane” - a lyric bit from the ancient Rolling Stones’ hit “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” - so anointed by FBI sexy super-agent Peter Strozk, who was at the time jumpin’ in-and-out of bed with colleague Lisa Page, legal counsel to FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.
“Crossfire Hurricane” was predicated (depending on who you believe, and as yet to be actually determined) on various cockamamie stories featuring sketchy characters such as “Maltese Professor” (that is, CIA informant-and-operator) Joseph Mifsud, Australian diplomat and International-Man-of-Mystery Alexander Downer, Cambridge visiting professor (Ha! You mean DOD errand boy) Stefan Halper, and quite a few other slippery players all revolving around the previous FBI investigation, “Midterm Exam,” into emails “stolen” off of Hillary Clinton’s unauthorized private server located at her home in Chappaqua, New York. The case had been summarily dropped by FBI Director, James Comey - who, incidentally, had no authority to decide whether the “matter” ought to be prosecuted or not (that was up to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, an old crony of Hillary Clinton’s). But this began the FBI and DOJ “coup” or “witch hunt” that ran several years, involved scores of active participants, and climaxed in the malicious and fruitless escapades of the Mueller Investigation.
All of which brings us back to schlubby Mr. Sussmann, the sardine among sharks and whales - and to my theory of the case. Special Counsel Durham was appointed by AG William Barr to determine the origins of the giant hairball called RussiaGate. As you can see, the Sussmann matter amounts to an almost insignificant little thread of the greater scandal. Did Mr. Durham spend two-plus years on it, to the exclusion of a stupendous mass of seditious lying, deception, and roguery by scores of government officials? I don’t think so.
Now, Mr. Durham has brought the case into the DC federal district courtroom of Judge Christopher Cooper, appointed by Barack Obama. Judge Cooper’s wife, Amy Jeffress is the attorney for the same Lisa Page of Jumpin’ Jack Flash fame. Meanwhile, several jurors seated in the trial revealed that they were donors to the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign - something one might expect in a city that voted over 90 percent for Mrs. Clinton in that election. Mr. Durham must have known that prosecuting the case under those circumstances would be a slog.
Win or lose on Sussmann, I think Mr. Durham is using the case to test certain evidentiary parameters. I think he will turn around in the weeks ahead, perhaps during the summer, and bring indictments against many higher-up figures in the DOJ, FBI, and elsewhere in government on much graver charges bundled into a RICO rap, for the simple reason that RussiaGate was obviously a seditious conspiracy. Therefore, this is a conspiracy theory. Theories exist to be proven. Federal cases are brought to furnish proof. If I’m wrong about this, then the long Durham investigation has been a joke. Personally, I don’t think Mr. Durham intends to go down in history as a joker."
“A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear.”
"In today's vlog we are noticing empty shelves everywhere in the grocery stores around here! We are here to explain skyrocketing prices, and a lot of empty shelves! It's getting rough out here as stores seem to be struggling with getting products!"
"The Trends Journal is a weekly magazine analyzing global current events forming future trends. Our mission is to present Facts and Truth over fear and propaganda to help subscribers prepare for What’s Next in these increasingly turbulent times."
"The U.S. housing market bubble is ready to pop! Many pieces of evidence are pointing to a sizable correction in property values this year as affordability continues to worsen amid soaring mortgage rates. A recent study has shown that home price appreciation has largely outpaced wages in most regional housing markets across the country, with some cities recording a staggering increase of 90% in home prices over the past 24 months. Now, realtors, policymakers, economists, and sellers are starting to worry because a reckoning is threatening to push property values back to their historic norms, reversing the trend that allowed the average price of a home to hit the $400,000 mark.
Applications for mortgages to purchase a home dropped 12% from the prior week, and were down 15% from a year ago. Rising mortgage rates are damaging housing affordability all around the nation. Since the start of the year, mortgage rates have risen over 2 full percentage points, and home prices are more than 20% higher than they were a year ago. Data from the St. Louis Fed showed that median home prices skyrocketed almost 33% from spring 2020. This week, applications to refinance a home loan continued their landslide, dropping another 10%. Compared to a year ago, refinance demand plunged by 76%, marking the end of the refinance boom witnessed during the pandemic. Right now, there is simply a very small pool of borrowers who can actually benefit from a refinance.
At this point, the current state of the market only favors wealthy cash buyers and speculators, who are virtually unaffected by changes to the interest on mortgage loans. “This trend, coupled with low inventory, is causing multiple offers across all price points which are driving prices up even further on top of some crazy asking prices to begin with. With rising interest rates, it is the trifecta of the perfect storm, unfortunately for buyers and would-be buyers who would sell their home if they could afford somewhere else to go,” said Cara Ameer, a realtor at Coldwell Banker in Orange County, California.
With demand slowing due to payment shocks, borrowers pulling back, and the ripple effect of rising rates starting to push the market down, the CEO of real estate data analytics firm Reventure Consulting, Nicholas Gerli, is warning that investors should prepare themselves for another housing bubble burst. In such an environment, a correction in property values has to occur because eventually wages and home prices have to converge again, whether it's by wages catching up or by home prices coming down.
This is only the second time in U.S. history that home prices have risen faster than inflation and wages. The last time this happened was in 2006, just before the housing crash of 2008 - and Gerli warned that since prices today are much higher by comparison than during the previous bubble, the coming correction is likely to be far more acute.
In his view, this nearly doubling in the growth of housing costs has far outpaced national median wages and rent growth, which rose only 5% and 24% respectively over the same time period. For this reason, he believes that Austin and other cities that have experienced the highest growth in annual house payments will see a housing bubble burst first, and the downfall of these markets will be the catalyst to trigger a knock-on effect on prices nationwide.
Needless to say, a housing crash would be horrifying for the US economy given that the housing sector is of paramount importance: a house is usually the biggest asset in American’s savings, comprises a large chunk of the labor force, and is a large contributor to inflation indices. As policymakers continue to play with fire, they may soon end up sparking an explosion that throws not only the housing market but the entire country into disarray."
“To some, the outline of the open cluster of stars M6 resembles a butterfly. M6, also known as NGC 6405, spans about 20 light-years and lies about 2,000 light years distant. M6 can best be seen in a dark sky with binoculars towards the constellation of Scorpius, coving about as much of the sky as the full moon.
Like other open clusters, M6 is composed predominantly of young blue stars, although the brightest star is nearly orange. M6 is estimated to be about 100 million years old. Determining the distance to clusters like M6 helps astronomers calibrate the distance scale of the universe.”
“I remember several years back I heard something that changed my life forever. Up until that point I had been struggling through life – doing everything the hard way. I couldn’t figure out why my life wasn’t going the way I felt it should be. I saw some people going through life effortlessly and seemingly with less tension and frustration while I was wondering if I could ever straighten out the mess my life had turned out to be. I was behind on my dreams, my promises, and my bills. Then one day I was listening to a tape and the lady was talking about the power of having dreams and goals and all of the other stuff that those motivational speakers talk about. By that point I had listened to hundreds of such tapes, but it seemed as if nothing worked for me.
Probably the only reason I was listening to that one was because I had developed a habit of listening to cassette tapes while driving my car. The statement the lady said was simple and I think I had even heard it somewhere before but this time a light bulb went on in my head. I remember stopping the tape and rewinding it over and over again to hear the 17 words she said. I couldn’t believe it was so basic and simple. I was looking for something sophisticated and complicated. I thought I had to attend a $10,000 seminar. I didn’t know I could find it on a $10 tape program.
I’m taking the time to tell you all of this preliminary information because when I tell you the 17 words, I really want you to get it and get it NOW! Because if you get it NOW, your life will never be the same. You will be using the same principle that all who have became wealthy before you have used. Even those who became wealthy and can’t tell you how they did use this same principle without even being aware of what they are doing. Well, are you ready for the 17 words that made a powerful and positive impact on my life and on the life of tens of thousands of individuals who have achieved unimaginable success? Of course you are… Well, here they are…
For things to change, you must get a
picture of what you want them to change to.
Yes, it’s as simple as it sounds and as easy as it seems… Don’t try to make it any complicated than this because it will only frustrate you.
You must know exactly what you want and the more specific and clear you can get, the better. This is important because Human Beings are Teleological in nature… In other words, we move towards the pictures we constantly hold in our minds. Let me give you an example… Suppose you went to the store and bought a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle but it didn’t have a picture on the box of what the end result should look like.
Would you have a much harder time putting the picture together? Of course. You may eventually figure it out; however, the person who has a clear picture of what the end result should look like will be more than 100 times ahead of you. The question is are they 100 times ahead of you because their IQ is 100 times greater? Is it because they are 100 times better looking than you? Maybe it’s because they live 100 times closer to the person who created the puzzle? Ohh, I know – they were one of the first students to take the Evelyn Woods mind-expanding speed-reading and comprehension course right? If none of this is true then what is?
Yes, the person who had the clear and specific picture of what the outcome was supposed to be was simply operating in accordance to how our brain works. It moves towards the pictures we hold in our mind. It’s interesting because once you know exactly what it is you are moving towards, you seem to automatically know the steps to take or the necessary steps will soon become noticeable.
Your brain's subconscious mind, operating similar to a magnet, will start to attract in your direction the conditions, people, and circumstances that will help you move closer to the mental picture you maintain in your mind and it will repel all of those things that do not correlate to the picture you have in your mind. Therefore, the people who are clear and specific about what they want are using the powers of the Universe to assist them. This is, indeed, an awesome power. A person who knows how and uses this awesome power of the Universe to his or her advantage is a person who is working smart. A person who struggles every day trying to move closer to the success that they have no idea how it’s supposed to look is a person who is working hard.
Based on your observations over the years, do you think that most people are working hard or working smart? People who just work hard day in and day out without a clear picture of what they are moving towards are about as exciting as a tulip. Even though they may seem to be willing to work hard and put in the hours, they don’t seem to have much life in them. And people want to follow people who seem to have some life in them. If they want to find people who don’t seem to have much life in them, all they have to do is go to their job. People will follow people who look like they know where they are going and look like they are excited about the journey.
You must understand that your strength comes from knowing what you want. This will ignite the fire inside of you and enable you to borrow from the promise of the future so you can engage in the activities today that will move you closer and closer to what you want. It will enable you to go through the trials and tribulations that may be necessary so you can arrive at your destination. But remember the journey will be more important than the destination because in the journey you will become the person you require to become to finally arrive at your destination. So when you reach your destination, look at the person you have become and set a new destination so you can continue to grow and develop.
Whatever you do, just always remember that for things to change, you must get a picture of what you want them to change to. These are the "17 Words that Changed My Life Forever"… why not allow them to change yours too?”
"Contrary to first impressions, I am not a doom-and-gloomer; I'm a systems-cycles-er, meaning I'm interested in where systems and cycles are heading. Cycles work because we're still running Wetware 1.0 which entered beta testing around 200,000 years ago and was released, bugs and all, around 50,000 years ago. Since the processes and inputs haven't changed, neither do the outputs.
Nature is a mix of dynamic, semi-chaotic systems (fractals, etc.) and cyclical patterns which tend to operate within predictable parameters. Why should human nature and human constructs (societies, economies and political realms) be any different?
So longterm success breeds complacency, hubris, economic and intellectual sclerosis, draining political infighting and the overproduction of parasitic elites, to use Peter Turchin's apt description. Consumption of resources expands to soak up every last bit of what's available and then the supply of goodies plummets for a multitude of completely natural and predictable reasons (sunspot/solar activity, El Nino, etc.) and a host of unpredictable but equally natural semi-chaotic extremes (100-year droughts, floods, etc.).
Wetware 1.0's go-to solutions to all such difficulties are rather limited:
1. Ramp up magical thinking. If a couple of human sacrifices ensured good harvests in the good old days, let's slaughter a couple hundred now - and if that doesn't work, then...
2. Do more of what's failed spectacularly and slaughter a couple thousand fellow humans, because darn it, maybe everything will turn around if we just kill another couple dozen. This requires ignoring the novelty of the current challenges and clinging to what worked so well in the past even as whatever worked in the past can't possibly work now because circumstances are fundamentally different.
3. Seek scapegoats. It's those darn witches. Burn a bunch of them and our troubles will magically disappear.
4. Go take what we need from some other tribe. What's our oil doing under their sand?
5. Consolidate power and wealth in the hands of elites whose failures exacerbated the crisis. Because the obvious solution (to the elites with cushy offices around the palaces and temples) to repeated failures of a leadership that only excels in one thing, squandering rapidly depleting resources on infighting and self-aggrandizement, is to give us all the remaining wealth and power. Hey, this makes perfect sense once you understand #2 above.
6. Demand sacrifices of the many to protect the privileges of the few. The Empire needs some warm bodies to fend off the Barbarians, because it would be a real shame if the Barbarians reached our palatial estates and disrupted the flow of wine and festivities. No worries when you come back on your shield; the bureaucracy will give you a decent burial and your spouse and kids can join the multitude of half-starved beggars waiting for the dwindling distributions of bread and circuses. But never mind that, did you hear about the upcoming games in the Coliseum? Good seats are going fast.
7. Eat your seed corn to keep the party going awhile longer. Not every human group had the luxury of borrowing "money" to keep the fast-unraveling party going awhile longer, so they consumed their seed corn and drained the last of their reserves--which is the same thing as borrowing "money" from a future with diminishing resources and productivity.
8. Maintain supreme confidence that "it will all work out fine because it's always worked out fine" without any sacrifice required of "those who count." What's forgotten is that the luxe greatness that is now teetering on the precipice of ruin was won by the sacrifices of the elites far exceeding the sacrifices of the many.
Back in the day, joining the elite and maintaining one's position required constant sacrifices on behalf of the common good, and strict adherence to public virtue. Now that's all forgotten, and all that remains are elites possessed by the demons of shameless greed and self-interest. The idea that debt, leverage, speculation, greed, exploitation and parasitic elites can expand exponentially forever is magical thinking. Yet that is precisely what America and the rest of the global economic order insists is true and will always be true, forever and ever.
By all means, reject those horrid, awful doom-and-gloomers who look at systems and cycles. Everything will be fine as long as you secure seats for the next games at the Coliseum - they should be spectacular - but not in the way you expect."
“I know the world seems terrifying right now and the future seems bleak. Just remember human beings have always managed to find the greatest strength within themselves during the darkest hours. When faced with the worst horrors the world has to offer, a person either cracks and succumbs to ugliness, or they salvage the inner core of who they are and fight to right wrongs. Never let hatred, fear, and ignorance get the best of you. Keep bettering yourself so you can make the world around you better, for nothing can improve without the brightest, bravest, kindest, and most imaginative individuals rising above the chaos.”
"Hold on to your seats. No matter what you think about all of this, one thing is very clear. The worst is yet to come in the economy. We are seeing problems in so many different industries from retail, construction, manufacturing and now finance is having big problems."
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