"The men the American people admire most extravagantly
are the most daring liars; the men they detest most
violently are those who try to tell them the truth. "
- H.L. Mencken
So, we rise from the rubble...
Thursday, May 5, 2022
"The Most Epic And Dangerous Economic STORM In History Is Now Upon Us"
"The Most Epic And Dangerous Economic
STORM In History Is Now Upon Us"
by Mike Adams
"The most epic and dangerous economic storm in history is now upon us… and there’s no way out. The central banks and government kleptocrats have set the trap for themselves, and now they’re caught with no escape. Yesterday the Fed just raised interest rates by 50 basis points (0.5%) in an effort to stem the tide of exploding inflation. But with real inflation at anywhere from 15% – 25%, the tiny gesture of 0.5% will have little effect at halting inflation.
It will, however, have a huge effect on real estate markets which, I publicly predicted three weeks ago, have already reached their peak. (I called the “top” of the real estate market around April 18th.) Higher interest rates mean higher costs to service mortgage loans, and that makes it more difficult for potential buyers to qualify for bank loans on overpriced housing and land. The result will be swift: A rapid unwinding of the housing bubble that was catapulted into place by absurdly low interest rates and seemingly endless money printing.
But that’s only the beginning of the news of the economic storm that’s now upon us. The US trade deficit has now soared to nearly a $110 billion deficit in one month (March), which means the US simply isn’t exporting much, compared to all the things it is importing. This is a frightening indicator for the state of the US economy in the long run.
In addition, as CNBC is reporting, a shocking new economic report reveals that US worker productivity fell by 7.5% in the first quarter of 2022. That’s almost like a plunge off a cliff. Yet even as worker output is plunging, worker costs are skyrocketing. So America’s businesses and manufacturers are paying more money for less productivity. Prices go up, output goes down. Not a good thing for the economy.
CNBC is also reporting that e-commerce activity is falling sharply, and e-commerce platforms are getting hammered in today’s 1,000+ point plunge in the DOW, with some stock prices for e-commerce giants trading down as much as 17% in one day.
With mad money printing continuing at a panic pace, it’s only a matter of time before the entire debt-based fiat currency deception machine implodes, leading to what financial analyst Gregory Mannarino predicts could be up to 80% losses in stocks, bonds and other dollar-denominated assets. See the Mannarino interview here:
That same channel on Brighteon, “Liberty and Finance,” also interviewed Andy Schectman, CEO of Miles Franklin, a large retailer of precious metals. In that interview, Schectman unveils his stunning analysis (which I agree is accurate) about how BRICS nations are poised to unleash their own gold-backed digital currency that will instantly unseat the dollar as the world reserve currency.
Importantly, Schectman explains this will happen in one day, without warning, with no exits for those left holding dollars. This is a very important interview to pay attention to (I’m going to be interviewing Schectman in a few weeks to get even more details about his analysis).
Bottom line? Andy nails it. He gets the big picture, and you should heed his warning or pay the price of losing literally all your dollar assets when the music stops. The days of dollar dominance are rapidly coming to an end. And that means the days of easy money, affordable consumer goods, low-cost loans and easy credit are also nearly over.
Governments of Switzerland and Germany suddenly urge their citizens to stockpile supplies and prepare for power grid collapse: Adding to the shocking turn of global events, the governments of both Germany and Switzerland are now publicly urging their citizens and businesses to stockpile essential supplies and prepare for scenarios such as power grid collapse or nuclear war.
As reported by Free West Media: "German Interior Minister: Citizens should start hoarding emergency supplies – Against the background of the Ukraine war, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser advised citizens to take survivalist precautions in the event of a crisis. This not only affects technical issues, “but also supplies for food, medicines or medical supplies”. There are still 599 nuclear shelters in Germany. There are also some that are used differently today. “It makes sense to reactivate some of them,” Faeser said."
And in Switzerland, even the mainstream corporate media there is reporting the near-panic at the highest levels of government: “Swiss companies told to brace for electricity shortages,” blares the SWI (Swissinfo.ch): In the absence of an electricity agreement with the European Union, such a scenario is likely if large power plants fail in Switzerland or abroad.
A power failure could cause damages of up to CHF4 billion ($4.3 billion) a day, the newspaper notes, citing government figures. Switzerland risks significant problem guaranteeing electricity in the short and medium term, especially in winter, in the absence of progress on a deal with the EU, according to experts. Nowhere in this article, of course, do they mention that Switzerland has violated its traditional position of neutrality and is now all-in with NATO nations that are sending weapons to Ukraine and carrying out economic weapons of mass destruction against Russia, the primary provider of natural gas that powers Europe’s electrical grid (including, to some extent, the power grid of Switzerland).
In essence, Germany and Switzerland are warning their citizens to prepare for an energy and economic crisis that was artificially created by their own governments. That’s the sheer stupidity of progressive socialist Europe, which will almost certainly see the complete destruction of the Euro currency in the next year or so, only adding to the economic suicide of the West.
Western Europe is about to experience an economic hellscape of their own making, yet their political leaders continue to issue destructive, insane decisions on a daily basis, no matter how stupid the ideas are. Anything that can be said to “punish Russia” - even if it severely harms European citizens - is being unleashed without any consideration whatsoever of long-term repercussions.
Get full details on all this and more in today’s Situation Update, which also expresses great relief for all men now that Joy Behar has announced she’s on a sex strike to protest the overturning of Roe vs Wade. Please God, dear God, give Joy Behar the strength to extend her sex strike to the end of time…"
Please view the "Situation Update" here:
Gerald Celente, "Trends In The News 5/5/22"
Full screen recommended.
Strong language alert!
Gerald Celente, "Trends In The News 5/5/22"
"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."
"Economy Crashing While Stock Market Rises; Market Gains Will Evaporate; Recession Imminent"
Full screen recommended.
Jeremiah Babe, PM 5/5/22:
"Economy Crashing While Stock Market Rises;
Market Gains Will Evaporate; Recession Imminent"
"Stock Exchange Meltdown"; Gregory Mannarino, "Stocks Plummet!"
Live updates:
○
Gregory Mannarino, PM 5/5/22:
"Stocks Plummet! The MMRI At 'High Risk';
This Is What You Need To Know Now"
Link To The MMRI (Mannarino Market Risk Indicator),
FREE Downloads And More!
Bill Bonner, "Hard Landing Ahead"
"Hard Landing Ahead"
Captain Powell guides the plane... right into the ground.
by Bill Bonner
Youghal, Ireland - "Birds in the trees. Green, green grass. Wisteria cascading over the doorway. We’re glad to be back in our Irish cottage. But stalking the emerald isle is the same menace that dogs the rest of the world. The Irish Times reports: "Irish inflation soared to 6.9% in March, EU says. Annual inflation in Ireland soared to 6.9 per cent in March, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. The EU inflation measure differs slightly from the CSO’s consumer price index, but the two track each other very closely By way of comparison, Eurostat’s estimate for Irish inflation was 5.7 per cent in February, and just 0.1 per cent in March 2021."
All over the planet, prices are rising. Because, all over the world, central banks followed the same recipe and baked the same cake. Lots of sugary free money. Loads of leavening. And each time investors began to feel sick – 2008, 2020 – they dumped in more Jim Beam and methamphetamine. Ireland uses the euro. And Euroland inflation is running at 7.5%... not far beyond Dollarland inflation above 8%. In Turkey, inflation has reached 67%.
All over the world too – with the exception of Japan – central banks say they’ve taken the pledge: no more inflationary monetary policies. Yesterday, the Fed announced a rate increase of 50 basis points (0.5%). The Australian central bank raised its key rate earlier this week. The Russian central bank lends at 17%. And, naturally, Argentina is a head of the curve… with a 60% lending rate. So far, the European Central Bank has dragged its feet. But it, too, is expected to go on the wagon, with a ‘tightening cycle,’ soon.
Does this signal the end of inflation? Have central bankers learned their lesson… thrown out the old Keynesian cookbook… and with their right hands solemnly laid on a copy of Ludwig von Mises’ opus, “Human Action,” vowed never again to do anything so stupid? Not exactly.
Faux Hawks: The Fed’s 0.5% rate increase brings the Fed Funds rate to a real level of around MINUS 7.5%. Even with yesterday’s rise, the ‘risk-free’ 10-year Treasury bond yields MINUS 5% or so. Can you really rescue a man from drowning at the bottom of a pool by pulling him up a few inches? Can you really stop inflation when you’re lending money at negative interest rates? Not likely.
Investors realized immediately that the Fed was only pretending to be ‘hawkish.’ Barrons: "The stock market ripped higher Wednesday afternoon after the Federal Reserve delivered on its plan to fight inflation. The central bank hiked interest rates by a half-percentage point and started reducing the size of its balance sheet, which has ballooned during the pandemic. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 932 points, or 2.8%, after the announcement. The S&P 500 rose 3%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 3.2%. [Bond yields] dropped after the Fed signaled it wasn’t about to become even more aggressive in tightening monetary policy. The 2-year yield fell to 2.64% Wednesday afternoon, and the 10-year yield dropped to 2.92%."
But what now? Is the inflation threat history? Is pilot Jerome Powell bringing the US economy in for a landing so soft the passengers don’t even know they’re back on the ground? It would be one for the record books.
Meanwhile, Back on Earth… The problem is a familiar one – the wrong metaphor. A skillful pilot can pull back on the throttle, adjust his wings, raise the nose slightly… and set a plane down softly, even in a storm. But no amount of mechanical skill keeps a man from getting what he’s got coming. The best weatherman on earth can’t stop the wintry winds. And when the Ph.Ds at the Fed go out for lunch, the waiter still brings the bill, no matter what their ‘dynamic stochastic’ models tell them.
The US economy has $88 trillion in debt. The Fed turned the interest rate knob into negative territory; people took advantage of the opportunity to borrow at below-inflation rates. And now, down on earth… where the Fed says it intends to land… even a modest increase in interest rates could have catastrophic results. Just three percentage points, for example, would add more than $1 trillion in interest charges for the federal government alone… and $2.5 trillion more in total interest costs to the economy as a whole, an amount equal to nearly 100% of all US corporate profits.
Where would that money come from? What would stocks and bonds be worth then? And how about houses? Imagine mortgage rates at 10%. How many people could refinance their homes? How many houses would be suddenly on the market? What will happen to house prices – where most American families hold most of their wealth – when mortgage rates are back to ‘normal’?
And what about all that inflation already ‘in the pipeline?’ Energy, raw materials, rare metals – sooner or later, the ‘inputs’ must be passed along to final consumers. How can the Fed prevent it? What dial do they turn? What lever do they pull?
Soft landing? We don’t know, but if Jerome Powell can pull this off, maybe he can broker a peace deal in the Ukraine, so that the two sides walk away with no hard feelings? And maybe he can walk across the Potomac… and receive his Nobel Prize from God Himself?"
"Depression 2023 - The Countdown Has Begun"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, iAllegedly 5/5/22:
"Depression 2023 - The Countdown Has Begun"
"The Fed raises interest rates and it’s just the beginning of the end. The economy is going to get so much worse between now and the end of the year. I truly believe we are heading towards depressionary times. It’s going to be depression 2023."
"Biden’s Economic Case For Nuclear War"
"Biden’s Economic Case For Nuclear War"
by John Wilder
“Two hundred years have passed since the nuclear war raged to an end and the computers took over what was left of the world - sealed it off from the outside - and made it perfect. Now, in the Domed City in this year 2319, living is unending joy.” – "Logan’s Run"
"When we lived in Fairbanks, my hobby in the summer was getting firewood. I was the Bubba (from Forrest Gump) of firewood: “There’s lots of ways to have birch. There’s split birch, there’s dry birch, there’s stacked birch, there’s birch that the bark fell off of, there’s birch that still has bark, there’s wet birch, there’s birch logs...” you get the idea. Now imagine that James Spader was saying it. That will become important later.
As such, we spent a lot of time in the (mostly Gump-free) forest. The Mrs. would generally keep an eye on the (then four-year-old) The Boy. Outside of moose and grizzly bear, the forest was safe. Oh, did I mention the wasps? Yeah. Fairbanks was infested with them. So, one day while I was knocking down trees and sawing them up, The Boy was playing near a tree.
Then The Boy started screaming. If you noticed the clear foreshadowing, it certainly wasn’t a bear or a moose, but rather The Boy had been jumping up and down (unknowingly) on a subterranean wasp nest. Wasps have a sense of humor. Oh, no, they don’t. They’re hatred wrapped up in spite with a side order of malice and animosity. So, they did the only thing their stupid malignant minds can comprehend: they stung The Boy. Repeatedly.
Fast forward a few months. We had abandoned all of that sweet, sweet birch that we were going to combust in order to liberate the carbon back into the atmosphere and move from Fairbanks to Houston. Ugh. In the backyard, though, a beautiful butterfly came fluttering by bouncing from flower to flower. I could see the wonder and amazement in The Boy’s eyes as he tracked it across the backyard. He moved close.
“Be careful,” I said, “they bite!” He ran screaming into the house, and now I had a four-year-old son that was deathly afraid of butterflies and also the problem of explaining to The Mrs. how I was really just kidding and not intentionally emotionally scarring our child.
Good times.
“What,” you might ask, “does that story have to do with nuclear war? I can read the title, John Wilder, and I didn’t come here for twisted tales of how you made a child cry by telling him that butterflies sting.” Well, bear with me.
What if nuclear war is not so bad? What if nuclear war is Joe Biden’s cunning plan to revive our economy? I mean, giving trillions of dollars just seemed to work for a while, and now everyone’s tired of having all that free money. Giving billions to the vaxx companies so that they could, um, prevent oops, lessen the likelihood the vaxxed got COVID oops, lessen the impact of COVID oops, make billions of dollars in profits.
The next best idea that Biden had, besides eating crayons and attempting to have sex with his desk was just more of the “print trillions of dollars” idea. That didn’t go as well once people figured out they weren’t the ones getting the money, and they had to trade internal organs for a tank of gasoline.
Giving billions of dollars to Ukraine seemed safe, but outside of asking for more money, Zelinsky’s prime impact on the war effort in Ukraine appears to be walking around sweaty in an olive drab t-shirt while looking for escorts with Hunter Biden. Huh. That doesn’t seem to be working.
So, how about provoking a nuclear war? I can just imagine the conversation with the cabinet...
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (SECDEF): “Are you sure, Mr. President? Don’t you think that giving Ukraine, and I quote, ‘a whole bejeebus load of guns and stuff’ might provoke the Russians?”
Vice President Kamala Harris (VP): (unintelligible giggling, possibly drunk)
Secretary of State Antony Blinken (STATE): “I’d like to remind you, Mr. President, there are a lot of Ukrainians that we’ve got left. I mean, the Russians have to run out of artillery shells at some point.”
Joseph R. Biden (BRANDON): “But, hey, man, have you thought this through? If we bomb the Russians, and they bomb us, we can (long pause) you know the thing. Build better boobies.” (waves hands while looking uncomprehendingly at imaginary people behind him)
Vice President Kamala Harris (VP): (giggling) “You said boobies! Check out this rack!” (lifts blouse)
Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen (TREAS): (ignoring VP) “He has a point. Think of all the industrial activity we would get if a nuclear war hit the United States. Look at (checks notes) Japan. We nuked them twice, and look how their economy skyrocketed!”
Joseph R. Biden (BRANDON): “Yeah, man, he has a good point. Is it a good point? Who has the good point?”
Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen (TREAS): “You, sir.”
Vice President Kamala Harris (VP): (giggling) “So, it’s settled! Margaritas for everyone! This has been a long, hard day, if you know what I mean.” (winking at Yellen)
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (SECDEF): “Sounds great! I’m in. Just one more thing to do before I call it a day!” (picks up phone to call NORAD) “Brandon has authorized Operation McChicken™, repeat, Brandon has authorized Operation McChicken©, authorization code “PEZ BRAVO JOHNNY DEPP.” (hangs up phone) “Now where’s that margarita?”
So, if it appears that that the Biden Administration is being run by people who have all of the competence of Bulgarian mall lawyers attempting to fix a seventeen-year-old copier by poking and prodding it with whatever pens and paperclips their greasy fingers can find hoping against hope that their random actions will fix whatever “ERROR 031” is?
No. The Bulgarian mall lawyers, though only dimly aware that their random actions are little more effective than hitting the machine with a hammer while chanting Sheryl Crow songs in the nude, at least were bright enough to not vote for Biden.
So, perhaps like that butterfly, nuclear war won’t be so bad? Despite how good Biden makes it sound, I’ll take my chances without having a nuclear war, thank you.
I’d love to write more, but I’m watching a movie with James Spader and it requires all of my attention because he might be Jack the Ripper."
"More Price Increases At Kroger! What's Next? When Will It End?"
Full screen recommended.
Adventures with Danno, 5/5/22:
"More Price Increases At Kroger! What's Next? When Will It End?"
"In today's vlog we are at Kroger, and are noticing even more price increases! For the past few weeks we have seen a steady increase in food prices around the country. In addition we are also seeing a lot more empty shelves. It's getting rough out here as stores continue to struggle to get in products!"
Gregory Mannarino, "Meltdown: US Productivity Falls To A 75 Year Low! Labor Costs Skyrocket!"
Gregory Mannarino, AM 5/5/22:
"Meltdown: US Productivity Falls To A 75 Year Low!
Labor Costs Skyrocket!"
"The Long, Lucrative & Bloody Road To World War 3"
"The Long, Lucrative & Bloody Road To World War 3"
by Connor Freeman
Excerpt: "Well, this war in Ukraine will last “months and years.” At least, that is what the leaders of the D.C. foreign policy blob, the media, President Joe Biden’s men, Pentagon and NATO leadership have decided. Their plan is to pour oil on the flames and keep the fire raging. Also, Americans are going to have to cough up the dough for another massive aid package, with $20 billion worth of weapons to keep the blood flowing. In total, this next package will cost the taxpayer $33 billion. With Biden’s proposed $813 billion “defense” budget for 2023, the U.S. is spending more on the military and war now than ever before in the country’s history.
Now that we have our very own Ministry of Truth, it would appear any national debate over these polices, indeed if such a debate is ever allowed to take place, will likely have to be moderated by cockroaches and Keith Richards.
NATO is set to expand again, bringing in Finland and Sweden. This will extend the alliance’s border with Russia by greater than 800 miles and further stoke nuclear tensions, bringing the current brinksmanship to a whole new level. Moscow plans to respond including by increasing air and naval forces in the Baltic Sea and reinforcing its Kaliningrad exclave, which lies between NATO members Poland and Lithuania, with additional nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles. Until 2004, it was unthinkable that NATO would ever expand to Russia’s borders until that actually happened. Like most of our issues with Russia, this is all Bill Clinton and George W. Bush’s fault.
Even as Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and other leaders in Moscow repeatedly warn of nuclear conflict and World War III, even directly comparing the current situation to the Cuban Missile Crisis, senior Pentagon officials say they are not concerned.
Nor do our all-knowing rulers appear concerned with the fact that they have “almost zero” ability to keep track of the myriad sophisticated weapons systems they are sending to Ukraine. CNN quoted briefed sources saying intelligence shows American arms are falling into a “big black hole.” They say it’s worth it.
Nor do they seem to be concerned with the Russians’ warnings regarding how the West’s weapons flood in Ukraine threatens to expand the war into NATO territory and destabilize Europe. UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss demands the West must “double down” on arms shipments, insisting particularly on “heavy weapons, tanks, airplanes—digging deep into our inventories, ramping up production. We need to do all of this.”
Please view this complete article here:
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Related:
"Putin then put the West on notice that Russia will use its super weapons if it feels threatened or cornered into defeat. “We have all the weapons we need for this. No one else can brag about these weapons, and we won’t brag about them,” Putin stated. “But we will use them,” Putin concluded. Putin’s remarks came just days after Russia completed a successful test of its Satan-2 missile, which can carry up to 15 nuclear warheads and obliterate an area the size of France."
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Full screen recommended.
"Russian State TV Threatens Nuclear Strike on
UK And Warns of Radioactive Tidal Wave"
"Intense Cognitive Workout, Enter a Highly Focused Mental State - Isochronic Tones"
Full screen recommended.
Headphones are NOT REQUIRED for this video/track.
Jason Lewis - Mind Amend,
"Intense Cognitive Workout,
Enter a Highly Focused Mental State - Isochronic Tones"
"This is a high-intensity audio brainwave entrainment session, using isochronic tones. Use this video to increase focus and concentration while studying, working and doing any mentally taxing activity. Listen to this track with your eyes open while doing the task/activity you want to focus on. Although headphones are not required you may find they produce a more intense effect, because they help to block out distracting external sounds.
Isochronic tones are a fast and effective audio-based way to stimulate your brain. Among many of the benefits, they can help improve focus, relaxation, energy levels, sleep and more, without taking drugs or needing any special equipment. What isochronic tones essentially do is guide your dominant brainwave activity to a different frequency while you are listening to them, allowing you to influence and change your mental state and how you feel."
○
"Isochronic Tones –
How They Work, the Benefits and the Research"
This is a brainwave entrainment audio session using isochronic tones combined with music. The isochronic tones are the repetitive beats you can hear on top of the music throughout the track. If you are new to this type of audio brainwave entrainment, find out how isochronic tones work and how they compare to binaural beats here:
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Works for me... Listen folks, whether you want to know it or not we're in the fight of our lives, for our lives right now, and it's going to get unimaginably worse. I'll take any edge I can get, and you should too...
Wednesday, May 4, 2022
"This Is Why Democrats Are Taking Us To War With Russia"
Full screen recommended.
Tucker Carlson, 5/4/22:
"This Is Why Democrats Are Taking Us To War With Russia"
"Euphoric Stock Market Melt Up, FED Saves The Day Again; Inflation Will Run Wild"
Full screen recommended.
Jeremiah Babe, 5/4/22:
"Euphoric Stock Market Melt Up,
FED Saves The Day Again; Inflation Will Run Wild"
"Nuclear Emergency Imminent... This is INSANE"
"Nuclear Emergency Imminent... This is INSANE"
Full screen recommended.
by Canadian Prepper
○
A comment: I wish... I wish many things. I wish I didn't have to read and post all this bad news every day, but you have the right to know what's really happening, and it's all I can do to help you know and understand the absolutely insane reality we're all living in. I'd much rather post poetry, and music, and heart warming human interest stories, all the "feel good" stuff. Alas, the true horror of reality demands total focused attention, just so much happening, and it truly is insane, literally everywhere you look nothing's right, nothing's good, and the psychopaths are destroying everything, and may well get us all killed in a nuclear war, and there's nothing we can do about it. So, thank you for understanding the tone of the posts now. I won't apologize for posting the truth, but oh my God, I wish it were better. Stay strong, folks, survive...and never, ever give up!
- CP
"20 Reasons To Feel Really Depressed About The Direction Of The Economy"
Full screen recommended.
"20 Reasons To Feel Really Depressed
About The Direction Of The Economy"
by Epic Economist
"The current outlook for the U.S. economy is leaving Americans increasingly hopeless. Our systems are coming apart at the seams, and there are a whole lot of indications that things are about to get even worse. While consumer prices are soaring, paychecks are not. And while housing and rent prices reach new record highs with each passing month, millions of American families are drowning in debt.
As our buying power collapses, all of the recent polls show that the faith of the American people in our economy is eroding, and we can definitely understand why. It can be a devastating experience to work as hard as you can and yet just barely be able to pay the mortgage and put food on the table for you and your kids. The reason why so many Americans believe that we are moving towards another recession is because they can already feel life getting harder and harder every single day. Inequality in America is worsening by many measures — especially when it comes to employment.
The number of Americans getting depressed about the direction of the economy has continued to grow over the past two years. At first, most of us expected the U.S. economy to bounce back as "it always does" after the downturn caused by the effects of the health crisis, but now hope is turning into desperation as people start realizing that this time things are different.
In 2020, most Americans were very eager for things to go back to normal. By now, most of us have already accepted that this is the new normal. Unfortunately, our economic problems are still being aggravated by a perfect storm of factors that will continue to accelerate throughout 2022. Meanwhile, those in positions of power continue to act like everything is just fine, and as our economy continues to be caught in a death spiral they are only deflecting our attention from the challenges that are coming.
The sad reality is that our growth prospects are getting increasingly limited. In fact, with each passing month, more American families slip out of the middle class and into poverty. Millions of people out there will not be able to tonight because they are being eaten alive by worry and fear.
If we fail to solve our economic issues, there will be even more American families that are living in their cars and unable to afford enough to eat. This extended economic decline seems like a horrible nightmare that never seems to end. We are literally watching the greatest economy on the planet disintegrate right before our very eyes. So if you feel depressed about all this, you're not alone.
And if you still can, try to pull yourself together and get yourself and your family prepared because really hard times are coming for us. Today, we compiled some worrying stats that reveal why we've become so pessimistic about our economic future."
Celente And The Judge, "No Warrant Needed? NSA Has 60,000 People Out to Capture Every Piece of Data You Send"
Full screen recommended.
Celente And The Judge,
"No Warrant Needed? NSA Has 60,000 People Out
to Capture Every Piece of Data You Send"
"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."
Musical Interlude: Moby, "Love Of Strings"
Full screen highly recommended!
Moby, "Love Of Strings"
Life, magnificent, precious Life...
"A Look to the Heavens"
"In the center of this serene stellar swirl is likely a harrowing black-hole beast. The surrounding swirl sweeps around billions of stars which are highlighted by the brightest and bluest. The breadth and beauty of the display give the swirl the designation of a grand design spiral galaxy.
The central beast shows evidence that it is a supermassive black hole about 10 million times the mass of our Sun. This ferocious creature devours stars and gas and is surrounded by a spinning moat of hot plasma that emits blasts of X-rays. The central violent activity gives it the designation of a Seyfert galaxy. Together, this beauty and beast are cataloged as NGC 6814 and have been appearing together toward the constellation of the Eagle (Aquila) for roughly the past billion years."
"The New American Nightmare"
"The New American Nightmare"
by Doug Casey
"An International Man lives and does business wherever he finds conditions most advantageous, regardless of arbitrary borders. He’s diversified globally, with passports from multiple countries, assets in several jurisdictions, and his residence in yet another. He doesn’t depend absolutely on any country and regards all of them as competitors for his capital and expertise.
Living as an international man has always been an interesting possibility. But few Americans opted for it, since the U.S. used to reward those who settled in and put down roots. In fact, it rewarded them better than any other country in the world, so there was no pressing reason to become an international man.
Things change, however, and being rooted like a plant – at least if you have a choice – is a suboptimal strategy if you wish to not only survive, but prosper. Throughout history, almost every place has at some point become dangerous for those who were stuck there. It may be America’s turn.
For those who can take up the life of an international man, it’s no longer just an interesting lifestyle decision. It has become, at a minimum, an asset saver, and it could be a lifesaver. That said, I understand the hesitation you may feel about taking action; pulling up one’s roots (or at least grafting some of them to a new location) can be almost as traumatic to a man as to a vegetable.
As any intelligent observer surveys the world’s economic and political landscape, he has to be disturbed – even dismayed and a bit frightened – by the gravity and number of problems that mark the horizon. We’re confronted by economic depression, looming financial chaos, serious currency inflation, onerous taxation, crippling regulation, a developing police state, and, worst of all, the prospect of a major war. It seems almost unbelievable that all these things could affect the U.S., which historically has been the land of the free.
How did we get here? An argument can be made that things went bad because of miscalculation, accident, inattention, and the like. Those elements have had a role, but it is minor. Potential catastrophe across the board can’t be the result of happenstance. When things go wrong on a grand scale, it’s not just bad luck or inadvertence. It’s because of serious character flaws in one or many – or even all – of the players.
So is there a root cause of all the problems I’ve cited? If we can find it, it may tell us how we personally can best respond to the problems. In this article, I’m going to argue that the U.S. government, in particular, has been overrun by the wrong kind of person. It’s a trend that’s been in motion for many years but has now reached a point of no return. In other words, a type of moral rot has become so prevalent that it’s institutional in nature. There is not going to be, therefore, any serious change in the direction in which the U.S. is headed until a genuine crisis topples the existing order. Until then, the trend will accelerate.
The reason is that a certain class of people – sociopaths – are now fully in control of major American institutions. Their beliefs and attitudes are insinuated throughout the economic, political, intellectual, and psychological/spiritual fabric of the U.S.
What does this mean to you, as an individual? It depends on your character. Are you the kind of person who supports "my country, right or wrong," as did most Germans in the 1930s and 1940s? Or the kind who dodges the duty to be a helpmate to murderers? The type of passenger who goes down with the ship? Or the type who puts on his vest and looks for a lifeboat? The type of individual who supports the merchants who offer the fairest deal? Or the type who is gulled by splashy TV commercials?
What the ascendancy of sociopaths means isn’t an academic question. Throughout history, the question has been a matter of life and death. That’s one reason America grew; every American (or any ex-colonial) has forebears who confronted the issue and decided to uproot themselves to go somewhere with better prospects. The losers were those who delayed thinking about the question until the last minute.
I have often described myself, and those I prefer to associate with, as gamma rats. You may recall the ethologist’s characterization of the social interaction of rats as being between a few alpha rats and many beta rats, the alpha rats being dominant and the beta rats submissive. In addition, a small percentage are gamma rats that stake out prime territory and mates, like the alphas, but are not interested in dominating the betas. The people most inclined to leave for the wide world outside and seek fortune elsewhere are typically gamma personalities.
You may be thinking that what happened in places like Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, and scores of other countries in recent history could not, for some reason, happen in the U.S.. Actually, there’s no reason it won’t at this point. All the institutions that made America exceptional – including a belief in capitalism, individualism, self-reliance, and the restraints of the Constitution – are now only historical artifacts.
On the other hand, the distribution of sociopaths is completely uniform across both space and time. Per capita, there were no more evil people in Stalin’s Russia, Hitler’s Germany, Mao’s China, Amin’s Uganda, Ceausescu’s Romania, or Pol Pot’s Cambodia than there are today in the U.S. All you need is favorable conditions for them to bloom, much as mushrooms do after a rainstorm.
Conditions for them in the U.S. are becoming quite favorable. Have you ever wondered where the over 50,000 people employed by the TSA to inspect and degrade you came from? Most of them are middle-aged. Did they have jobs before they started doing something that any normal person would consider demeaning? Most did, but they were attracted to – not repelled by – a job where they wear a costume and abuse their fellow citizens all day.
Few of them can imagine that they’re shepherding in a police state as they play their roles in security theater. (A reinforced door on the pilots’ cabin is probably all that’s actually needed, although the most effective solution would be to hold each airline responsible for its own security and for the harm done if it fails to protect passengers and third parties.) But the 50,000 newly employed are exactly the same type of people who joined the Gestapo – eager to help in the project of controlling everyone. Nobody was drafted into the Gestapo.
What’s going on here is an instance of Pareto’s Law. That’s the 80-20 rule that tells us, for example, that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your salesmen or that 20% of the population are responsible for 80% of the crime.
As I see it, 80% of people are basically decent; their basic instincts are to live by the Boy Scout virtues. 20% of people, however, are what you might call potential trouble sources, inclined toward doing the wrong thing when the opportunity presents itself. They might now be shoe clerks, mailmen, or waitresses – they seem perfectly benign in normal times. They play baseball on weekends and pet the family dog. However, given the chance, they will sign up for the Gestapo, the Stasi, the KGB, the TSA, Homeland Security, or whatever. Many seem well intentioned, but are likely to favor force as the solution to any problem.
But it doesn’t end there, because 20% of that 20% are really bad actors. They are drawn to government and other positions where they can work their will on other people and, because they’re enthusiastic about government, they rise to leadership positions. They remake the culture of the organizations they run in their own image. Gradually, non-sociopaths can no longer stand being there. They leave. Soon the whole barrel is full of bad apples. That’s what’s happening today in the U.S.
It’s a pity that Bush, when he was in office, made such a big deal of evil. He discredited the concept. He made Boobus americanus think it only existed in a distant axis, in places like North Korea, Iraq and Iran, which were and still are irrelevant backwaters and arbitrarily chosen enemies. Bush trivialized the concept of evil and made it seem banal because he was such a fool. All the while, real evil, very immediate and powerful, was growing right around him, and he lacked the awareness to see he was fertilizing it by turning the U.S. into a national security state after 9/11.
Now, I believe, it’s out of control. The U.S. is already in a truly major depression and on the edge of financial chaos and a currency meltdown. The sociopaths in government will react by redoubling the pace toward a police state domestically and starting a major war abroad. To me, this is completely predictable. It’s what sociopaths do."
Gregory Mannarino, "Fed. Raises Rates 50bp...Economy In Freefall, Stocks Take Off! Several Things To Know NOW!"
Gregory Mannarino, PM 5/4/22:
"Fed. Raises Rates 50bp...Economy In Freefall,
Stocks Take Off! Several Things To Know NOW!"
Bill Bonner, "Reaping the Whirlwind"
"Reaping the Whirlwind"
by Bill Bonner
"Sow the wind; reap the whirlwind."
~ Hosea: 8,7
Dublin, Ireland - "Fox News reports: 'USAID Chief says food shortage crisis will 'hasten transition' to green energy.' Biden official Samantha Power told ABC's George Stephanopoulos that fertilizer shortages would push farmers to more green, "natural" solutions like manure and compost. Speaking of the global consequences of Russia’s war with Ukraine, the Biden official said that fertilizer shortages would provide farmers the opportunity to "hasten" their "transition" from fertilizer to more "natural" resources.
It made us wonder? Has this woman ever been on a farm? We looked her up. Turns out she’s an Irish woman… who moved to America and – in the tradition of Eliza Lynch who, in the 1860s allegedly egged on her lover, the Paraguayan president, to get into a devastating war with three of his neighbors at the same time – has caused nothing but trouble. And no, there is no record of her ever having the slightest stain of manure on her boots. Instead, she has moved from one political appointment… one hack assignment… and one richly-carpeted meddle to another... up and up…The only bright spot in her entire record is when she called Hillary Clinton – off the record – a ‘monster,’ for which she later apologized in order to get back in the monster’s good graces.
It’s the Money, Stoopid! In the real world, no farmer is eager to hasten his transition to more natural resources. He struggles with the real world of wind and weather, rising costs and encroaching regulations… just to earn a living. If he could spread manure on his farm, instead of chemical fertilizers, he would be happy to do so. But everything has a cost… and a return on investment. There are no free lunches in the farmers’ world. And no tractor yet invented is powered by a windmill.
Prime farmland in England is now selling for 9,000 pounds (about $11,000) per acre. For reference, the equivalent price in Argentina is less than a third of that. But land prices are going up everywhere. And the Financial Times reports that there is a new kind of buyer on the scene – a hedge fund manager who is either trying to preserve his capital or improve his lifestyle.
One of the unique features of the current wave of inflation is that it is not limited to one currency or one nation. Making a long story short, the US ‘inflated’ its currency. Other nations had to inflate theirs too or risk a trade disadvantage; a ‘strong’ currency means higher costs which make exports more expensive.
The easiest way to stay competitive was simply to link one’s currency to the dollar. As the dollar lost value against goods and services, so did your own currency. At one point, the Trump administration even accused China of ‘currency manipulation’ – simply because the yuan, linked to the dollar, followed the greenback down.
The result of all this currency inflation is consumer price inflation almost everywhere. Bloomberg: "Euro-area inflation climbed to a fresh all-time high, raising pressure on the European Central Bank to remove crisis-era stimulus and lift interest rates. Consumer prices were up 7.5% from a year earlier in April, in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. A gauge excluding volatile items such as food and energy jumped to 3.5%."
And a special source of hurt is likely to come – warns the Biden Administration – from the farm. Here’s the Financial Times: "Commodity prices have spiraled following Russia’s invasion of [the] Ukraine. The two countries supply about 30% of the world’s wheat and are big producers of organic seed, chicken feed and fertilizer."
Dear readers may jump to the conclusion that this is a great time to be a farmer. Farmers will make ‘windfall’ profits, perhaps?
American Nomenklatura: Alas, there’s more to the story… and it ain’t that nice. While farm output prices have risen, farm in-put prices have risen even more. The Consumer Price Index in the US is rising at an 8.5% rate. But the “agflation” rate – fuel, fertilizer and animal feed – is going up at almost 30% per year. This is bad news for almost everyone. For farmers, it means tighter margins; they will reduce expensive inputs – fertilizer herbicides and pesticides. And yes, of course, they will switch to lower-cost, ‘natural’ in-puts if they can. But the consequence will be lower yields. That is to say: less food….
The New York Post: "President Biden on Thursday warned of global food shortages as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine - predicting that the war would upend global wheat supplies. Russia and Ukraine jointly supply about a fourth of the world’s wheat exports. “With regard to food shortages, yes we did talk about food shortages. And it’s going to be real,” Biden said at a press conference in Belgium after attending meetings of NATO and G7 leaders."
Rich people like Samantha Power and the rest of America’s nomenklatura may not notice the food shortages. But poorer people will – especially the 9 million or so desperate people who starve to death even in a good year.
Yes, dear reader… now coming into focus is the whole scope of the feds’ crackpot flimflam:
They shut down the economy, supposedly to save lives.
The lockouts reduced output.
They then tried to replace the missing output with phony ‘printing press’ money.
The new money caused inflation.
Inflation drives up food prices, causing millions of people to die.
And the elite look on the bright side – it helps hasten the Green Transition."
Gerald Celente, "Ukraine War: Pelosi Visits Kyiv, Biden Admin Wants More War; Fed Set to Raise Rates"
Full screen recommended.
Strong language alert!
Gerald Celente, "Trends Journal" 5/4/22:
"Ukraine War: Pelosi Visits Kyiv, Biden Admin Wants More War;
Fed Set to Raise Rates"
Oh, Gerald's in fine form... lol
"The Fed Has To Do More Than Just Raise Interest Rates"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, iAllegedly 5/4/22:
"The Fed Has To Do More Than Just Raise Interest Rates"
"Do you believe if they raise interest rates half a point that it is really going to solve our inflationary problem? I think that this is a problem that is so much deeper than that. This is a worldwide problem."
○
Related:
ThisisJohnWilliams, 5/4/22:
"Biggest Global Bubble in History Has Just Popped!"
"It's Over..."
"The Most Terrifying Thing I've Ever Heard Of"
"The Most Terrifying Thing I've Ever Heard Of"
by JP Sears
"What’s up freedom fighter? In a recent announcement from the Biden Administration, we learned that they are forming a Ministry of Truth aka a disinformation governance board. Its purpose is to dictate to the American people what is true and what is false.
This does not just step on our First Amendment, it does way more than that. It puts the First Amendment in a blender, grinds it up, feeds it to a horse, and once the horse poops it out, then it steps on it. You probably don’t have to be a communications expert to understand that this does not sit well with me. I address the Ministry of Truth in my latest video "How the Biden Administration Creates Policies."
This serves as a reminder for freedom lovers like you and me, to renew our commitment to being the change of freedom we wish to see. We must have a mindset that says, I will not comply with rules made up by the tyrants. You and I will never have to wait for permission to be what we already are, which is free as long as we remember that’s what we are.
By the way, if you want a deeper dive into the Ministry of Truth as well as food shortages that the authoritarians are “predicting”, check out my latest podcast episode!
Remind yourself every once in a while that you were born in freedom and that you are always free - the responsibility you and I have is to act on that truth."
Yours in freedom,
JP
○
Related:
"This Is The Point Where We Have To Draw The Line"
Fox News host gives take on the 'Ministry of Truth'
leader on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."
"The Military Situation In Ukraine"
"Capitulation", by Petr Krivonogov, 1946
"The Military Situation In Ukraine"
by Contributing Reporter
Excerpt: "Is it possible to actually know what has been and is going on in Ukraine? Jacques Baud is a former member of the Swiss strategic intelligence and specialist in Eastern countries. He takes a fact-driven down-to-earth approach to analyze the conflict and the role the West plays in it."
Please view this excellent, lengthy, factually accurate full article here,
with my very highest recommendation:
○
Full screen recommended.
Russian state TV threatens nuclear strike on
UK and warns of radioactive tidal wave.
"UK Backs Right Of Ukraine To Attack Russian Territory -
Kremlin Warns London Of 'Proportional Response'"
by Tyler Durden
Excerpt: "Later in the day Moscow responded by warning of a "proportional response" in such a scenario of aggression laid out by Heappey... "We would like to emphasize that London's direct provoking of the Kiev regime for such actions, in the event that they are implemented, will lead to an immediate and proportional response by Russia", the MoD said.
"As we have warned, the Russian Armed Forces are on round-the-clock standby to launch long-range precision-guided retaliatory strikes against the relevant decision-making centers in Kiev", the ministry asserted, according to a state media translation."
Given the weekly and near-daily escalation in both rhetoric and the heavier and more sophisticated weapons that the West is willing to pour into the conflict, the rising concerns of a Russia-NATO collision course are indeed warranted. Commenting on reports that Germany has approved sending anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine, journalist Glenn Greenwald questions... "Virtually every week, Biden announces new massive aid of cash and weapons to Ukraine. Every week, US/NATO announce greater involvement that, weeks earlier, was deemed unthinkable. It's a full-on proxy war. The risks are mind-boggling. What is being achieved that warrants this?"
Please view this complete article here:
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"There are a multitude of fuses affixed to dozens of powder-kegs and little kids with matches are on the loose. I don’t know which of the fuses will be lit and which powder-keg will blow, but someone is bound to do something stupid, and then all hell will break loose. It could happen at any time. One military miscue. One assassination. One violent act that stirs the world. And the dominoes will topple, setting off fireworks not seen on this planet since 1939 – 1945. I can see it all very clearly."
- Jim Quinn
"Massive Price Increases At Family Dollar! What's Next?"
Full screen recommended.
Adventures with Danno, 5/4/22:
"Massive Price Increases At Family Dollar! What's Next?"
"In today's vlog we are at Family Dollar with empty shelves everywhere! We are here to check out a massive increase in prices, and a massive food shortage! It's getting rough out here as stores seem to be struggling with getting products!"
MUST WATCH! Gregory Mannarino, "Economic Disaster - Prepare For a Worst Case Scenario!"
Gregory Mannarino, AM 5/4/22:
"Economic Disaster -
Prepare For a Worst Case Scenario!"
"Doctor StrangeDem?"
Just one image today: My version of a nuclear
fireball over Los Angeles, as seen from an Arizona truck stop.
"Doctor StrangeDem?"
by Allan Weisbecker
"You all know how I feel about Tucker Carlson, but if not: He’s one of the only MS pundits that I take seriously, although he is limited hangout, an entertaining and smart version thereof, but still limited hangout. Worth listening to with the knowledge that he avoids important truths.
I bring this up because of this recent podcast. In it he explains how/why we are on the brink of a nuclear exchange - which could escalate to WW3 - for reasons I hadn’t yet considered. (Yes, for our purposes here I am assuming nukes are real.) Give it a look, but to sum it briefly: According to Tuck, the dems are apparently stupider and/or more reckless than they even seem (holy sh*t!), and the basis of their dementia goes back to the 2016 election and their insistence that Putin was behind Trump’s victory. Right: Nuts. (In other words, they may actually believe this ridiculous premise, rather than just using it to stir up more division. I actually hadn’t considered this.)
So now Pelosi and others (mainly Adam Schiff) are over in Ukraine, having already said we need to arm Ukraine ‘…so we can fight Russia over there and not here (in the U.S.)’. This was before the current mess. Now they are telling the world that they don’t want a settlement in Ukraine; they want total victory, i.e., Putin out. And they are willing to fight a war to get that.
As I say, this hadn’t occurred to me.
Rather than my going on, please give Carlson (and his clips) a listen. Listen to the lunatic dems telling us they are ready for a shooting war with Russia.
Addendum: Keep in mind that Putin has outright told us that he will use nukes if he feels threatened existentially. In other words, if NATO is on the verge of total victory. And Pelosi/Schiff are saying they will not accept any Ukraine outcome other than total victory. See the problem?
Whaddya think? Is this all more bullsh*t to scare the hell out of us? First death by COVID, now this? Can we trust a word we’re hearing on the MS media, including Tucker Carlson? (A Tucker quote: ‘This is the most reckless foreign policy… in American history.’)
Me, I’m wondering."
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