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Saturday, November 23, 2024

"Now That Warheads Are Raining Down, Does Anyone Still Think The Russians Are 'Bluffing'?"

"Now That Warheads Are Raining Down,
 Does Anyone Still Think The Russians Are 'Bluffing'?"
by Michael Snyder

"This didn’t have to happen. Years of catastrophically bad decisions by the western elite have brought us to the brink of nuclear war. For more than two years, our leaders have assured us that the Russians were bluffing and that they would never actually risk nuclear war. But now that Russian warheads are raining from the sky, is there anyone out there that still believes such nonsense?

The Russians sent a very clear message to the entire world by pummeling Ukraine’s fourth-largest city of Dnipro with warheads from a ballistic missileKyiv Air Force said today that Russia had launched an ICBM at the city of Dnipro in the early hours of the morning. If firmed up, it marks the first time the nuclear-capable missile has ever been used as part of an ongoing conflict. Unverified footage appeared to show warheads from the ferocious R-26 Rubezh raining down on Dnipro overnight, lighting up the sky with explosions.

In a video that I just posted on my YouTube channel, I shared footage of these warheads raining down on the city…
Originally, it was being reported that these warheads came from an intercontinental ballistic missile, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called this “reckless and escalatory behaviour”…"And UK PM Keir Starmer blasted depot Putin for his “reckless and escalatory behaviour” after the suspected ICBM strike. He warned that such a move would take the war to another level, calling claims of their use “deeply concerning”. But shortly thereafter U.S. officials determined that it was a new intermediate-range ballistic missile and not an intercontinental ballistic missile…

Ukraine’s earlier claim that its territory had been struck by an intercontinental ballistic missile fired by Russia is being hotly disputed, hours after widespread reports first appeared. US officials are saying it appears to be a new intermediate-range ballistic missile and not an ICBM which targeted the central city of Dnipro

The NY Times has reported in follow-up of the attack that “several Western officials said that the weapon was not an ICBM and instead was likely an intermediate-range missile that flies shorter distances.” Zelensky himself had claimed Russia used a new class of missile. “All the parameters - speed, altitude - match those of an intercontinental ballistic missile,” he said. “All expert evaluations are underway.”

During a surprise television address to his nation, Vladimir Putin confirmed that it was a new hypersonic ballistic missile that they have been working on…"According to Putin, Russia retaliated on Nov. 21 with a combined strike against a Ukrainian defense industry facility. In addition, “a field test was conducted in combat conditions” for one of Russia’s newest medium-range weapon systems: a nuclear-free hypersonic ballistic missile. “Our engineers named it ‘Oreshnik’ [‘Hazel’],” Putin declared with a smile.

Putin said Russia is within its rights to use ballistic missiles against “Ukraine’s military targets” and to use weapons against military facilities of those countries that have authorized the use of their weapons against Russia."

Of course the range of this particular missile is not really important. What is important is the message that the Russians are sending. They are clearly trying to warn us that next time it could be nuclear warheads that are raining down. I guess they figured that their words weren’t getting through to our leaders, and so they better do something so over the top that nobody could misinterpret it.

Putin also warned that the Russians are “entitled” to hit the military targets of any nations that are supplying long-range missiles to Ukraine…"Putin also warned Russia was “entitled” to strike military targets of countries whose weapons are used by Ukraine to strike Russian territory in a thinly-veiled threat to the US and Britain. Ukraine used British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles to strike inside Russia for the first time, a day after using US-made ATACMs to hit a military facility in Bryansk. “In the event of an escalation of aggressive actions, we will respond just as decisively,” Putin added."

Do you understand what he is telling us? He is trying to get us to understand that if Ukraine keeps firing long-range missiles into Russia, they could strike U.S. military targets. In fact, the Russians have already publicly identified a new U.S. base in Poland as a potential target…"Russia has threatened to attack a new US defense base in Poland with “advanced weapons” - just hours after reportedly launching an intercontinental ballistic missile at Ukraine on Thursday.

Moscow leveled the warning after saying the opening of the ballistic missile defense base, located in the town of Redzikowo near the Baltic coast, would lead to an increase in overall nuclear danger. “Given the nature and level of threats posed by such Western military facilities, the missile defense base in Poland has long been added to the list of priority targets for potential destruction, which, if necessary, can be executed with a wide range of advanced weapons,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said." This is serious. Sadly, most Americans have absolutely no idea that we are literally on the verge of all-out war with Russia.

The Russians have also declared that the UK is now “directly involved” in the war in Ukraine…"Britain is now “directly involved” in the Ukraine war after its Storm Shadow missiles were used to strike targets inside Russia, according to Moscow’s ambassador. Speaking to Sky News’ Mark Austin, ambassador to the UK Andrei Kelin also said Ukraine was using “plenty of mercenaries from different countries” in the war."

Here in the western world, we have convinced ourselves that we are not at war with Russia. But the Russians see things very differently. The good news is that the Russians see Donald Trump as the last best hope to avoid the sort of all-out war that I have been warning about for years.

So we have a window of opportunity right now. If we can just get to January 20th, the Russians are very eager to talk to Trump in order to see if something can be worked out. But if they ultimately determine that they can’t work out something with Trump, all bets are off. Let us pray that a peace agreement can eventually be reached, because if a full-blown nuclear war erupts most of the U.S. population will die."

Dan, I Allegedly, "Creepy, Annoying, And Downright Out of Control"

Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, AM 11/23/24
"Creepy, Annoying, And Downright Out of Control"
"HOAs Gone Wild: The Dark Side of Neighborhood Rules. Ever had someone overstep their bounds? I'm sharing shocking stories of HOA abuse, including illegal towing and absurd fines. In this video, we dive into the world of power-hungry HOAs, featuring a Florida case where cars were towed for slightly overdue registrations. I'll share my personal experiences with HOA nightmares and why these associations often bring out the worst in people. From Christmas wreath drama to cancer patients being targeted, these stories will make you think twice about living under HOA rule. Don't miss the tale of the aviation student who lost his grocery money to unfair towing practices."
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Friday, November 22, 2024

Jeremiah Babe, "An Ominous Reality, Americans Are Hurting; The Longest Food Line We Have Even Seen Got Even Longer"

Full screen recommended.
Jeremiah Babe, 11/22/24
"An Ominous Reality, Americans Are Hurting; 
The Longest Food Line We Have Even Seen Got Even Longer"
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Canadian Prepper, "Alert! A Crash The World Has Never Seen, False Flag Incoming?"

Full screen recommended.
Canadian Prepper, 11/22/24
"Alert! A Crash The World Has Never Seen, 
False Flag Incoming?"
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"McDonald’s Goes Empty As People Can't Afford Soaring Prices"

Full screen recommended.
Epic Economist, 11/22/24
"McDonald’s Goes Empty 
As People Can't Afford Soaring Prices"
"Nobody can deny that McDonald's is the king of fast-food. But its reign is being threatened by a series of critical challenges in 2024. Sales are collapsing across U.S. locations amid doubling prices, and its stock is being hammered due to a recent E. coli outbreak that will likely cost billions of dollars for the company. Now, thousands of McDonald's restaurants are going empty as customers are afraid of getting ill and struggling to keep up with soaring burger prices. Executives are desperately trying to fix the situation, but the chain is in much bigger trouble than they have anticipated. Today, we will show you why the largest fast-food company in the U.S. and the world is crumbling from within right now. So stay tuned until the end of the video."
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Musical Interlude: Vangelis, “Beautiful Planet Earth”

Full screen recommended.
Vangelis, “Beautiful Planet Earth”

"A Look to the Heavens"

"These two mighty galaxies are pulling each other apart. Known as the "Mice" because they have such long tails, each spiral galaxy has likely already passed through the other. The long tails are created by the relative difference between gravitational pulls on the near and far parts of each galaxy. Because the distances are so large, the cosmic interaction takes place in slow motion - over hundreds of millions of years. 
NGC 4676 lies about 300 million light-years away toward the constellation of Bernice's Hair (Coma Berenices) and are likely members of the Coma Cluster of Galaxies. The featured picture was taken with the Hubble Space Telescope's Advanced Camera for Surveys in 2002. These galactic mice will probably collide again and again over the next billion years so that, instead of continuing to pull each other apart, they coalesce to form a single galaxy."

"That One Chance..."

"You get that one chance; and damn it, you've got to take it! If there's one lesson I know I will take with me for eternity, its that there are those things that might happen only once, those chances that come walking down the street, strolling out of a café; if you don't let go and take them, they really could get away! We can get so washed out with a mindset of entitlement– the universe will do everything for us to ensure our happiness– that we forget why we came here! We came here to grab, to take, to give, to have! Not to wait! Nobody came here to wait! So, what makes anyone think that destiny will keep on knocking over and over again? It could, but what if it doesn't? You go and you take the chance that you get; even if it makes you look stupid, insane, or whorish! Because it just might not come back again. You could wait a lifetime to see if it will... but I don't think you should."
- C. JoyBell C.

“The Better Angels Of Our Nature: How Charles Dickens Influenced Abraham Lincoln"

“The Better Angels Of Our Nature:
How Charles Dickens Influenced Abraham Lincoln"
by Gene Griessman, Ph.D.

“Here’s the story of an obscure but beautiful quotation from Charles Dickens that found its way into the First Inaugural Address by Abraham Lincoln. In 1861, before his inauguration, Lincoln showed a draft of what he intended to say to William Seward, his Secretary of State. Seward recommended that Lincoln conclude with conciliatory words, and sketched out a few sentences for Lincoln to consider.

Seward’s rough draft, which has been preserved, contains the expression “better angel.” Twenty years earlier, in 1841, Charles Dickens had used “our better angels” in his novel “Barnaby Rudge.” There is no evidence that Lincoln read Dickens, but Seward did. Lincoln read Seward’s rough draft in which Seward had scratched out the words”better angel” and substituted in their place “guardian angel of the nation.” Lincoln then turned Seward’s discarded two words into the memorable expression “better angels of our nature.”

The quotation from Dickens is below. I like the entire quotation very much, not just because it contains the germ of a concept that Abraham Lincoln immortalized, but because of its wise and spiritual insight.

“The thoughts of worldly men are for ever regulated by a moral law of gravitation, which, like the physical one, holds them down to earth. The bright glory of day, and the silent wonders of a starlit night, appeal to their minds in vain. There are no signs in the sun, or in the moon, or in the stars, for their reading. They are like some wise men, who, learning to know each planet by its Latin name, have quite forgotten such small heavenly constellations as Charity, Forbearance, Universal Love, and Mercy, although they shine by night and day so brightly that the blind may see them; and who, looking upward at the spangled sky, see nothing there but the reflection of their own great wisdom and book-learning.

It is curious to imagine these people of the world, busy in thought, turning their eyes towards the countless spheres that shine above us, and making them reflect the only images their minds contain…So do the shadows of our own desires stand between us and our better angels, and thus their brightness is eclipsed.”

One final comment. Shakespeare used the words “better angel” in “Othello,” and we know for certain that Lincoln had read “Othello.” The expression is used in a remark made by Gratiano, a nobleman from Venice, after the death of Desdemona to describe enlightened and restrained human impulses. Gratiano speaks of pushing away the ‘better angel” which would hold him back from taking bloody revenge on Othello.”

The Daily "Near You?"

Peoria, Arizona, USA. Thanks for stopping by!

Gregory Mannarino, "2025: Final Nails In The Coffin; Middle Class Wipeout; Massive Wealth Transfer"

Gregory Mannarino, PM 11/22/24
"2025: Final Nails In The Coffin; Middle Class Wipeout; 
Massive Wealth Transfer"
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"Putin's Final Warning To NATO Amid Looming World War 3"

Times Of India, 11/22/24
"Putin's Final Warning To NATO Amid Looming World War 3"
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o
Danny Haiphong, 11/22/24
"Scott Ritter: Putin Just Called NATO's Bluff, 
Nuke-Ready Missile Destroys Ukraine, ft. Mark Sleboda"
"In this explosive analysis, Scott Ritter and Mark Sleboda dive deep into Russia's latest NUCLEAR-capable missile launch and its historic implications for Ukraine, NATO, and global security. Scot Ritter kicks off the discussion with a breakdown of he missile's capabilities, the timing the launch, and how this sends a direct message to the US, UK and NATO amidst escalating tensions. Mark Sleboda concludes the conversation by giving expert geopolitical insights into Russia's perspective, how NATO might respond, and what this signals about Russia's evolving military strategy. You don't want to miss this critical discussion!"
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o
Full screen recommended.
Science Simplified 4 All, 11/10/24
"Nuclear Bomb Explosion In A City:
 Stage-by-Stage Explanation With Real Video Footage"
"Imagine a miniature sun blazing in the heart of a city. In an instant, everything within kilometers is vaporized, while a wave of unimaginable heat and destruction sweeps outward. This is the terrifying reality of a nuclear explosion, an event so powerful that it's often described as 'hell on Earth.'

In this video, we break down what happens when a nuclear bomb detonates in a populated area. We'll explore the chain reaction that unleashes this power, the stages of destruction, and how entire cities could be reduced to ash in seconds. You’ll see the intense impact through real footage, understand why these weapons are ironically called 'weapons of peace,' and learn about the ominous Dead Hand system - a chilling automation designed to retaliate even if leaders are wiped out.

From the fireball’s searing heat to the shockwave that flattens buildings, witness each stage of devastation that a 1-megaton bomb would unleash. Don’t miss this eye-opening journey into the science and horror behind the world's most powerful weapons."
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o
So we tempt Doomsday...

"Requiem"
 
“The crucified planet Earth,
should it find a voice and a sense of irony,
might now well say of our abuse of it,
"Forgive them, Father, they know not what they do."
The irony would be that we know what we are doing.

When the last living thing has died on account of us,
how poetical it would be if Earth could say,
in a voice floating up perhaps
from the floor of the Grand Canyon,
"It is done. People did not like it here.”

- Kurt Vonnegut

Judge Napolitano, "INTEL Roundtable w/Johnson & McGovern: Weekly Wrap"

Judge Napolitano - Judging Freedom, 11/22/24
"INTEL Roundtable w/Johnson & McGovern:
 Weekly Wrap"
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Dan, I Allegedly, "People Are Bailing Out"

Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, 11/22/24
"People Are Bailing Out"
"The auto industry's troubling trend is becoming impossible to ignore - buyers are backing out of car purchases at an alarming rate. In this eye-opening video, we explore why Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) and other major automakers are facing a crisis as customers cancel orders and dealerships struggle with sky-high prices. Discover the shocking reality behind $70,000 Jeeps and $56,000 Ford vehicles that are driving buyers away. We'll examine Advanced Auto Parts' closure of 700 stores, massive industry layoffs, and what this means for the future of auto manufacturing and repairs.

Get an inside look at how this crisis affects everything from auto parts distribution to repair shops, with exclusive insights into the industry's supply chain troubles and workforce reductions. Learn why experts are concerned about the auto industry's stability and what it means for consumers like you."
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"How It Really Is"

“We'll know our disinformation program is complete 
when everything the American public believes is false.”
- William Casey, former director of the CIA

"What Americans Fear Most In The JFK Assassination"

"What Americans Fear Most In The JFK Assassination"
by Jacob Hornberger 

"One of the fascinating phenomena in the JFK assassination is the fear of some Americans to consider the possibility that the assassination was actually a regime-change operation carried out by the U.S. national-security establishment rather than simply a murder carried out by a supposed lone-nut assassin. The mountain of evidence that has surfaced, especially since the 1990s, when the JFK Records Act mandated the release of top-secret assassination-related records within the national-security establishment, has been in the nature of circumstantial evidence, as compared to direct evidence. Thus, I can understand that someone who places little faith in the power of circumstantial evidence might study and review that evidence and decide to embrace the “lone-nut theory” of the case."
"Coup d'État"

What Americans fear most? The Truth...

"The Great and the Good"

"The Great and the Good"
Examining a crucial historical pivot in American history...
by Bill Bonner

"Sagest in the council was he, kindest in the hall.
Sure we never won a battle – ‘twas Owen won them all.
Had he lived – had he lived – our dear country had been free;
But he’s dead, but he’s dead, and ‘tis slaves we’ll ever be…"
"Lament for the Death of Owen Roe O’Neill", By Thomas Davis

Youghal, Ireland - "On November 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy was shot. He died soon after. Much of the world went into mourning. Never before or since has Washington seen such a gathering of dignitaries…nor so many common folk…all who came to pay their respects.

Jack Kennedy had made many friends. His New Frontier was widely applauded. At home, he lowered the top marginal tax rate from 91% to 65%. Abroad, he sought peace. He explained in a speech at American University that his kind of peace was “not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. 

And yet, after his death, American weapons were soon at work…creating a world, not at peace, but almost constantly at war. Before his assassination, JFK had sent out an order, bringing US troops back from Vietnam. That order was quickly forgotten. The new president, LBJ, had another program, much more to the liking of the ‘military industrial complex.’ Over the next 11 years, 2.7 million American soldiers would go to fight a war that Johnson had promised would be a war for the Vietnamese to fight. By the time the last US helicopter escaped from the US embassy roof in 1975, 58,000 Americans had died and a trillion dollars had been spent. More importantly, the good had given way to the great.

An Historical Pivot: We are reviewing a ‘pivot’ in recent American history. It was the moment when the military/industrial/spook/Congressional complex – the most powerful industry in the world – took control of US politics...and the empire took on a life of its own.

Specifically, we are recalling the history of the 1960s – aided by the recollections and research of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. – and our own personal history. Bob Dylan, the Doors, Aretha Franklin…marijuana…the Rolling stones…bell bottoms – and the hope of a better world – it is all coming back into focus. We were not born cynical, dear reader; it took many fads, rascals, bear markets and political campaigns to make us what we are today.

One clear memory…It was a summer evening in 1967. We had gone with a friend to the banks of the Chesapeake. Percy Sledge’s great hit – ‘When a man loves a woman’ – was on the radio. We were back from college, regaling each other with our adventures. But Tommy had dropped out. He set his sights on a different life – simpler, more local. He had read Faulkner and Hemingway. His goal was success at home…not abroad. It was success as a person he wanted, not as captain of industry nor of infantry. “Aren’t you worried about getting drafted?” “No…I’m going to sign up. Get it over with.” “Aren’t you worried about getting killed? And what’s the point, anyway? The war seems like a waste.” “Yeah…but otherwise, I’ll have to listen to my mother complaining about me dropping out of college.” That was the last time we saw Tommy. .

Life is full of casualties. Some are more tragic and pointless than others. Tommy was one of them.

America the Great? What the Kennedys seemed to be aiming for was a government that practiced restraint and reduced the casualties. A good nation does not tax too heavily, does not spend too much, treats people with respect (even those with whom it doesn’t agree) and only fights when it has to. But after Kennedy was assassinated, the US took a different course. Lyndon Johnson promised action…activism…empire. Bombs and bamboozles. Attila was great. Alexander was great. Caesar was great. Napoleon was great. Why not Lyndon? Why not Ronald…Donald…or Joe?

“The People” took the cue. The masses always come to think what they must think when they must think it. Americans were no different. Flattered by the best military money could buy, they came to believe that they were an exceptional race. Madeleine Albright, then Secretary of State, must have reached some apotheosis of conceit when she proclaimed that “if we use force, it is because we are America. We stand tall….we see further into the future.”

We have argued that there are patterns to markets (the Primary Trend)…and patterns to history. A normal man is held in check by his friends, his wife, and his children. When he makes a jackass of himself, they are quick to let him know. So too is a humble nation held in check by its neighbors, its resources and its own people. It may be good or bad. But sometimes – with the wind at its back – the lust for greatness takes over. A nation seeks not just to get along, but to dominate…and control; it becomes an empire. But the Kennedys stood in the way.

Concrete Boots: First, Robert Kennedy took on the mobsters. Appointed Attorney General by his brother, RFK had a ‘Manichean approach’ to law enforcement. There were good guys and bad guys. He wanted to put the bad ones in jail.

At the time, the mafia was gaining power…and corrupting the US justice system (suborning witnesses, bribing judges…). He aimed to put them out of business. In Senate hearings, he brought in Anthony “Tony Ducks” Corallo; Joe “Little Caesar” DiVarco; Carlos “The Little Man” Marcello…and dozens of other colorful mobsters. In his first three years as Attorney General, RFK filed 673 indictments against organized crime figures.

The mafiosos didn’t forget. And didn’t forgive. What’s more, they felt betrayed. They believed that the Kennedys would protect them, not prosecute them. There are several competing stories to explain it. One tells us that Joe Kennedy had made a deal with the mob; if they helped deliver the votes in Chicago… he would tell his sons to lay off them. Another story is that the Kennedy boys were connected to the mob on their own. Their sister, Pat, was married to Peter Lawford, one the famous “Rat Pack,” along with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. Sinatra installed a heliport at his residence in Palm Springs so the president could come to visit. Jack Kennedy may even have shared a mistress – Judith Campbell Exner – with Sinatra’s mafia pal, Sam Giancana.

Whatever the origins of the story, the mob felt betrayed when Bobby Kennedy went after them with a vigor they had never seen before. “Livarsi na petra di la scarpa,” said Carlos Marcello in 1962. The old Sicilian curse has an English variant, said to have been invoked by Henry II: “Will no one rid me of that turbulent priest?” In another documented exchange, mobster Santo Trafficante assured Cuban exile leader Jose Aleman that he needn’t worry about President Kennedy: “No, Jose, he is going to be hit.”

An Empire Unchallenged: Another group that didn’t like the Kennedys was the aforementioned War Industry. Their business, too, was being severely hampered by the Kennedys’ desire to give peace a chance…and their general distrust of both the military and the spies. By this time, the CIA and the mobsters were working together. Their target was supposed to be Fidel Castro. The mafia had its connections in Cuba. The CIA’s mission was to assassinate Fidel, at which, it failed.

The assassination of JFK, however…like the murder of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury in 1170… was a shocking success. Who did it? Did the CIA aim for Castro and hit Kennedy? Did the mafia settle its score with the Kennedy family? Or was it a ‘lone gunman,’ as the Warren Commission concluded? We don’t know. But since then, no president has ever seriously challenged the empire’s agenda."

Gregory Mannarino, "Expect Another False Flag Soon; Expect Accelerated Currency Devaluation"

Gregory Mannarino, AM/11/22/24
"Expect Another False Flag Soon; 
Expect Accelerated Currency Devaluation"
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Bill Bonner, "How Did It Happen?"

"How Did It Happen?"
What happens when higher debt levels hit higher interest rates?
Asset prices fall. Combine that with stifled trade... and mass deportations... 
and we could be asking for a major depression.
by Bill Bonner
Baltimore, Maryland - "Sometime in the post-apocalyptic future...Surviving historians will brush off the dust... tidy up the graves... and try to make sense of it. Gathered around an open fire in a discarded oil drum, they will warm their hands and ask: What? How? Huh? We’ve looked at the best case... and some ‘worse cases.’ Now we focus on the worst-case scenario - an apocalyptic combination of inflation, depression... and war.

Inflation is the only way the feds can finance their big deficits. It is still running above 3% - the longest period of more than 3% core inflation in thirty years. Transportation rose more than 8% over the last year... and auto insurance is up more than 50% over the last three years.

Meanwhile, long-term interest rates are rising, even as the Fed cuts short-term rates. It’s been two months since the Fed began its rate cutting cycle... and the 10-year Treasury note yield has gone up 76 basis points (three-quarters of a percent). What happens when higher debt levels hit higher interest rates? Asset prices fall. Combine that with stifled trade... and mass deportations... and we could be asking for a major depression.

And then, there is the last refuge of scoundrels... war - the worst-case scenario of all. Yes, people go mad from time to time... so do whole societies. It seems unpredictable... almost random. And yet, there are signs, trends, and patterns. So, we look ahead and wonder what it might be like...if the world had been at war for almost ten years... maybe twenty years. West vs. East... one side clustered around NATO... the other around the BRICS.

On one side had the most ‘lethal’ military in the world. But on the other was the fighting experience of the Russians, who had been at war on their European flank for many years... combined with the technological innovations and manufacturing prowess of the Chinese.

The ‘rule of law’ has been abandoned entirely. It’s the rule of the jungle, now. The strong do what they will; the weak suffer what they must. Whole cities have been destroyed in tit for tat nuclear exchanges. But the elites have no death wishes. Moscow, Beijing, London and Washington have been, so far, spared.

Along the borderlands... the Eastern front in the Ukraine... and the Near Eastern kill zone... the destruction has been almost unbelievable. New weapons flatten whole neighborhoods. AI-enhanced firepower leaves nothing alive.

By now, much of the Mideast resembles Gaza in 2025. Backed by the Trump team, Israel tried to ‘finish the job’ by seizing the West bank, wiping out Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon, and striking at the ‘heart of evil,’ Iran. But the more people the Israelis killed, the more there were who wanted to kill them. Thousands of orphans grew up with one goal - to take revenge. Israel then had no choice... but to continue bombing; after all, it had a right to defend itself. Ten years later, the bombing, shelling, and sniping continues.

In the Ukraine theater, too, the war got hotter. One escalation led to another. Fox News: "Biden authorizes Ukraine to use US long-range missiles to strike inside Russia."

Moscow Times: "Russia Fired ICBM for First Time in War, Ukraine’s Military Claims."

One step at a time. Until the nukes got to work. Fortunately, nuclear strikes were limited. But they were effective. Each side took big losses... and kept on fighting... with millions of deaths and millions more refugees... some fleeing West... some East.

It was in Southeast Asia that the nightmare brought a real surprise. No one knows what set it off... but when the US fleet got into a shooting war with the Chinese, it didn’t take long before a swarm of drones... in the air, on the surface of the water, and under it... had sunk most of America’s military assets in the area.

Of course, stocks crashed a long time ago... in 2025... and they never recovered. Not in real terms. Prices went up like a rocket... assets as well as consumer products. Inflation reached 50% per year. It was an ‘inflationary depression,’ they said. With so little trade, and so much of the GDP spent on war, most people - at least those not associated with the government or the firepower industry - got poor. For those in the ‘hot’ zones, however, it was much worse. They lost everything... their jobs, their houses... and often, their lives.

And then... finally, the fever broke... and after years of death, poverty, and pain, came the questions. How did it happen? Why? More on Monday."
o

Jim Kunstler, "In the Weeds of the Swamp"

"In the Weeds of the Swamp"
by Jim Kunstler

“The National Security Divisions of the DOJ and FBI are the greatest domestic 
threats to the American people and the concept of Constitutional rule of law today.” 
- Scott Ritter

"Okay, you’ve had enough post-election euphoria. Time to wake TF up. Rats from inside the walls of the Deep State are trying to gnaw their way into the Trump cabinet. Ever hear of an outfit called Cipher Brief? Of course not. Cipher Brief is sort of the McKinsey of blob-world (a.k.a. the “national security” network), a combination Human Relations / Public Relations firm, totally spooked-up with former CIA officers. Quite a few of the spooks who signed the infamous letter in October 2020 that said Hunter Biden’s laptop was “Russian disinformation” are contractors there. They all knew the heinous laptop was genuine, though, and they did it anyway to queer the election for “Joe Biden.” Why? Because...Trump.

One Cipher Brief operative is a character named Dan Hoffman, a retired CIA “clandestine service” officer who ran the agency’s Middle East Bureau, among other things. He’s now a sometime talking head on Fox News. Hoffman has scuttled his way to the sidelines of the Trump transition team, trying to punk them on personnel. I received my own intel about Dan Hoffman and his current operations.

“Hoffman talks the talk,” I’m informed. “He was involved in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. He is 100-percent Deep State. They think he is a brother-in-arms. He is not. Hoffman and the people around him are in direct contact with Tulsi Gabbard [DNI-designate] and John Ratcliffe [CIA Director-designate]. Remember, agency ops officers are trained to be all things to all people, to manipulate them, detect their vulnerabilities, and exploit them. Their game vis-a-vis Donald Trump? To kneecap his attempts to lower tensions world-wide, stop efforts to reduce and reform the intel and defense communities, push a generally Globalist policy agenda, keep the American ‘empire game’ running so they can cash out, and keep non-Beltway Americans from having any say in our foreign policy.

“Hoffman is not a minor figure. He is heading up the cabal trying to co-opt Ratcliffe and Gabbard. Understand that [this group] essentially took over Agency operations during the so-called Global War on Terror [GWOT] after 9/11. Not only did these assholes lead America into the quicksand of the Middle East, they feathered their own nests and those of their buddies with hundreds of millions in ‘contracts’...they cooked up the Ukraine War. Nobody associated with Cipher Brief should be anywhere near Ratcliffe or Gabbard, period. They should be blacklisted. They are the people who worked to take down Trump, and now they are trying to cover their tracks and sneak into the new administration.” Dan Hoffman, remember the name."

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Canadian Prepper, "Russia's Next Move; US Preparing For 'Limited' Nuclear War;

Full screen recommended.
Canadian Prepper, 11/21/24
"Russia's Next Move; US Preparing For 'Limited' Nuclear War; 
Iran Starts Nuke Production"
Comments here:

"WW3 Alert! Putin Declares Ukraine War Is Now A Global War After NATO Strikes Inside Russia"

Full screen recommended.
Redacted, 11/21/24
"WW3 Alert! Putin Declares Ukraine War Is 
Now A Global War After NATO Strikes Inside Russia"
Comments here:

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..."
God help us...

Jeremiah Babe, "Something Is Very Wrong, Things Are Too Good To Be True"

Full screen recommended.
Jeremiah Babe, 11/21/24
"Something Is Very Wrong, 
Things Are Too Good To Be True"
Comments here:

Adventures With Danno, "Recalls: We Need To Talk About This, It's Out Of Control"

Adventures With Danno, 11/21/24
"Recalls: We Need To Talk About This, 
It's Out Of Control"
Comments here:

Musical Interlude: 2002, "Kindred Spirits"

Full screen recommended.
2002, "Kindred Spirits"
"Once we sailed upon the seas. Now we sail among the stars. This song was composed as a tribute to our friend, harpist Hilary Stagg, who left us far too soon. Hilary loved the sea and he loved the stars."

"A Look to the Heavens"

"A gorgeous spiral galaxy, M104 is famous for its nearly edge-on profile featuring a broad ring of obscuring dust lanes. Seen in silhouette against an extensive central bulge of stars, the swath of cosmic dust lends a broad brimmed hat-like appearance to the galaxy suggesting a more popular moniker, the Sombrero Galaxy. This sharp optical view of the well-known galaxy made from ground-based image data was processed to preserve details often lost in overwhelming glare of M104's bright central bulge.
Also known as NGC 4594, the Sombrero galaxy can be seen across the spectrum, and is host to a central supermassive black hole. About 50,000 light-years across and 28 million light-years away, M104 is one of the largest galaxies at the southern edge of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster. Still the colorful spiky foreground stars in this field of view lie well within our own Milky Way galaxy. "

The Poet: T.S. Eliot, "The Hollow Men"

"The Hollow Men" (read by Tom O'Bedlam)

"My Favorite Poem"
by Craig Boehman

"I’ve been experimenting with several of the AI platforms, attempting to learn all that I can about how the systems work and how to produce the best images from the prompts that I provide. My favorite platform is Midjourney, which is what I used to create the images for this poem. It’s a relatively straight-forward process over all, but there is a bit of learning when it comes to some of the finer aspects of telling AI exactly what it is that you want. Whether then AI can actually provide you with your desired results is another issue altogether, as I’ve discovered first-hand over the past week. 

Which brings me to "The Hollow Men" by T.S. Eliot, my favorite poem. I thought what better way to put Midjourney’s AI to the test? Surely, not even artificial intelligence can handle all of Eliot’s lines in a cohesive manner. I found this to be true. But in some cases, the visuals came pretty close to matching a visual interpretation of the lines. I’ll let you be the judge though. 

For each of the images below, the corresponding lines from the poem were fed into the bot as prompts, exactly as written, no other commands given except to make the images all in a 3:2 ratio. Other than that, you’re seeing only the results from Eliot’s own words."

"The Hollow Men"

I

We are the hollow men,
We are the stuffed men,
Leaning together,
Headpiece filled with straw. Alas!

Our dried voices, when
We whisper together
Are quiet and meaningless,
As wind in dry grass,

Or rats’ feet over broken glass
In our dry cellar.

Shape without form, shade without color.
Paralyzed force, gesture without motion;

Those who have crossed
With direct eyes, to death’s other Kingdom,

Remember us - if at all - not as lost
Violent souls, but only
As the hollow men.
The stuffed men.


II

Eyes I dare not meet in dreams
In death’s dream kingdom,

These do not appear:
There, the eyes are
Sunlight on a broken column

There, is a tree swinging,
And voices are
In the wind’s singing,

More distant and more solemn
Than a fading star.

Let me be no nearer
In death’s dream kingdom.

Let me also wear
Such deliberate disguises
Rat’s coat, crowskin, crossed staves
In a field,

Behaving as the wind behaves
No nearer -

Not that final meeting
In the twilight kingdom.


III

This is the dead land,
This is cactus land.
Here the stone images
Are raised, here they receive
The supplication of a dead man’s hand
Under the twinkle of a fading star.

Is it like this
In death’s other kingdom,
Waking alone,
At the hour when we are
Trembling with tenderness,
Lips that would kiss
Form prayers to broken stone.


IV

The eyes are not here,
There are no eyes here
In this valley of dying stars,
In this hollow valley,
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms.

In this last of meeting places
We grope together
And avoid speech,
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river.

Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual starm
Multifoliate rose
Of death’s twilight kingdom,

The hope only
Of empty men.


V

Here we go round the prickly pear,
Prickly pear prickly pear,
Here we go round the prickly pear,
At five o’clock in the morning.

Between the idea
And the reality,
Between the motion
And the act
Falls the Shadow.

                                                                                      For Thine is the Kingdom.

Between the conception
And the creation,
Between the emotion
And the response,
Falls the Shadow

                                                                          Life is very long.

Between the desire
And the spasm,
Between the potency
And the existence,
Between the essence
And the descent,
Falls the Shadow.

                                                                                              For Thine is the Kingdom.

For Thine is,
Life is
For Thine is the...

This is the way the world ends,
This is the way the world ends,
This is the way the world ends,
Not with a bang but a whimper."

- T. S. Eliot