"Rich Men North Of Richmond" Tops iTunes As Voice Of Working-Class Goes Viral"

"Rich Men North Of Richmond" Tops iTunes 

As Voice Of Working-Class Goes Viral"

by Tyler Durden

"The raw honesty of a former factory worker in what could be the protest song of our generation has become an internet sensation overnight. The song "Rich Men North of Richmond" has skyrocketed to No. 1 on iTunes this weekend.

Oliver Anthony, a former factory worker who decided to pursue a life in music last year and is living in the forgotten part of the US, Appalachia, an area plagued with an opioid crisis and abandoned factories, tells the story of the working-class folk who struggle daily while being ignored and mocked by political elites. Here is the first couple of lines from the song:

"I've been selling my soul, working all day, overtime hours for bullshit pay,

So, I can sit out here and waste my life away, drag back home, and drown my troubles away.

It's a damn shame what the world's gotten to for people like me - for people like you.

Wish I could just wake up and it not be true. But it is. Oh, it is."

Rich Men North of Richmond was first posted on YouTube four days ago by "radiowv," which shows Anthony performing an acoustic performance of what some are saying is the "anthem for 80+ million Americans who have been smeared, ignored, mocked, slandered, and robbed by their own government."

This song has gone viral because it resonates with working-class folk -- it's real and raw and just a man and his guitar, three dogs, and singing in his backwoods without a fancy Hollywood studio powered by artificial intelligence. The song continues:

"Living in the New World – with an old soul.

These rich men north of Richmond. Lord knows it all. Just want to have total control.

Want to know what you think, want to know what you do.

And they don't think you know. But I know that you do.

Because your dollar ain't shit, and it's taxed to no end

 because the rich men north of Richmond.

I wish politicians would look out for miners and not just minors on an island somewhere.

Lord, we got folks in the street, ain't got nothing to eat, and the obese milking welfare.

God, if you're five foot three, and you're 300 pounds, 

taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds.

Young men are putting themselves 6 feet in the ground 

because all this damn country does is keep on kicking them down.

Lord, it's a damn shame – what the world's gotten to for people like me, people like you.

Wish I could just wake up and it not be true. But it is. Oh, it is.

Living in the New World – with an old soul.

These rich men north of Richmond. Lord knows they all just want to have total control.

Want to know what you think, want to know what you do. 

And they don't think you know. But I know that you do.

Because your dollar ain't shit, and it's taxed to no end

 because the rich men north of Richmond.

I've been selling my soul, working all day, overtime hours for bullshit pay…"

Anthony's other songs, "Aint Gotta Dollar" and "I've Got to Get Sober" and "I want to go Home" and "Virginia" and "Rich Mans Gold" and Feeling Purdy Good" and "Always Love You" and "Stuck Living in the New World" have also jumped to the top 20 songs on iTunes.

Enjoy the song..."

Hat Tip to ZeroHedge for this material.

"Exclusive: Hunter Biden’s Secret Diary"

"Exclusive: Hunter Biden’s Secret Diary"

by John Wilder

"We here at Wilder, Wealthy, and Wise® have come across a huge scoop: we have found the diaries of Hunter Biden from grade school all the way up to last week. They were left on the doorstop of our law firm, Dewey, Cheatem, and Howe with a note that said, “Too hot for James O’Keefe! Good luck, Johnny, I’m your biggest fan! – J.”

Cataloging the material was difficult, and there were times where I became concerned. Later pages were covered with powdery substances, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be in trouble with the DEA if they raided Stately Wilder Manor. No problem – my dog, Foreshadowing, ate them and then ran around the house 43 times. Then all of Foreshadowing’s teeth fell out and checks from Ukrainian mobsters started showing up in my mailbox.

I’ve skipped much of the information in the diaries, since it’s probably good to keep what happens between a man, his dog, seventeen Filipino hookers and a jar of peanut butter private. Of course, none of that happened, which is why I’m grateful the word “parody” exists.

July, 1977: I wanted my dad to take me to see starwars agin but he said know because dad said that he was woried we’d grow up in a raciall jungle. I like jungles! I talked with Beau, and Beau told me to shut up because I was too stupid to understand. I said, no, Im seven so I know wat a jungle is, but Beau said I had brain damage. I think I wanna coke.

June, 1988: Holy cow, boys, having your dad running for president is just friggin’ awesome! I was busted in Jersey with a bunch of drugs. I just flashed my driver’s license. Biden, bitches! It cracks me up that the old man is all “let’s get tough on drugs” but when I get bussssted, nada happens. Old man says that he’ll make a phone call. Cracks me up when dad says in speeches that all drug users should be held accountable. Ha! Unless your name is Biden. Bitches!

In a dictatorship in Africa, we’d call this corruption. Here? We don’t talk about it.

June, 1994: So, dad explains it this way. My grades at Georgetown were crap, but he pulled strings and got me into Georgetown law, which sucks, because Georgetown is so low rent. Of course, Beau had to go to dad’s alma mater, Syracuse. Today, it all changed! Apparently, dad had Bill Clinton call the dean, Guido Calabresi (seriously Goodfellas vibes) at Yale, and I can transfer from Georgetown to Yale! Dad says that since I’m a Biden, well, “don’t worry about grades, son” and I won’t! Woooo! Yale! It’s awesome to have the name Biden, bitches!!!

May, 2001: So, here I am at a law firm. My law firm! It’s called Oldaker, Biden and Belair. Join the firm, get your name on the door! How awesome is that? I think it’s because . . . I’m a Biden, bitches! Partner in one. The other thing is that absolutely no one here cares about how much you drink or how many drugs you do. Drink after lunch to take the edge off? Fine. My name’s on the door. Parties? Plenty of those, and the booze and, well, other things flow freely. I think I’m in heaven.

I love putting on warm underwear, fresh from the dryer. I then look around the laundromat and wonder who it belongs to.

September, 2008: Dad says I have to quit working as a lobbyist because Obummer said so. Dad said that being vice president was way better than being senator, so I have to stop doing God’s work, lobbying for online gambling, biotechnology companies, and colleges wanting federal funds, I mean, the most needy and moral people. I’m so sad.

February 19, 2014: Kicked out of the Navy Reserve today. Dad and I had a discussion, which means he yelled at me. “You idiot, you understood you were getting a drug test, right? And that coke is only detectable for a day or two, right? The head of the Joint Chiefs said that, and I quote, you had enough cocaine in your urine to qualify your urine as a controlled substance.” Yeah, it was bad. Not bad? My company, Rosemont Seneca Thornton, just got $3,500,000 sent to us from a Russian dude! Why? We’re not sure, but all I have to say is... Bidenz, Bitches!!!!

2014 was a very good year.

April, 2014: New job, new job, new job! This one has me being on the Board of Directors of some company in Ukraine. I think they make chlorine gas or helium gas or something. The best part? My salary. $1,000,000. A year! Bidenz, Bitches! Ha! Best part? I’m not sure I have to do anything!

April 14, 2017: My life has kinda been a haze since I got the job at Buriisma. Or however you spell it. A million bucks a year, but they cut my salary to half after dad was no longer veep. Dammit. Why couldn’t he have beaten Aunt Hillary? I think dad was scared, something about, “Don’t cross Hillary, that’s worse than the Chicago Mob.” But today I finally got divorced. Kathy was always upset about the cocaine and the crack and the Filipino prostitutes, but I think it was the video of the dog that got to her. She said, “Hunter, that’s enough. We’re done here.” I didn’t mention that Beau’s widow was looking pretty fine at the funeral... I wonder if that’s what finally put her over the edge? Or the fact that I was bangin’ Beau’s babe was on the front page of Page Six®?

Hunter’s date didn’t like bottles, she only liked it in the can.

August, 2018: Stripper? Arkansas? My kid? Jeez, how much crack did I do that night?

April, 2019: So, my laptop is broken. I think I dropped it off to get fixed, but I was so high that I’m not sure I did that or maybe the laptop ran away. I think the running away part was a dream. Regardless, what bad could come of that?

May, 2019 Met a girl, six days later we’re married. This will turn out well – Biden, Bitches!

October, 2020: Guess they found the laptop. Thankfully, all the CIA dudes signed a thing that said it wasn’t really mine. Whew! Dad would be mad about that if it was. I guess I believe the CIA guys, except a lot of those pictures look really familiar.

July, 2022: My art has done awesome! I must be good at art! My paintings have sold for lots of money! So far it’s over $1,300,000 for like 11 of them. It’s not as good as Buriisma money, but it’s still pretty good. I mean, some of those paintings took me hours to make. One person bought almost $900,000 of them. I’m not sure if she’s the one that dad appointed to that special commission, but, whatever. I’m an artist. Biden, bitches!

Shooting down the Chinese balloon is the only thing Biden has done to stop inflation.

June, 2023: My lawyer says I’m not in any trouble anymore. Turns out that he knows the DOJ guy and they have a deal worked out for special people like me that I can just claim I’ll pay my taxes in the future, and won’t buy anymore guns while all coked up. Excellent deal, plus they said they put in a sweetener – gets me immunity from essentially anything I’ve ever done up to now. Bidenz, Bitches!!!!

August, 2023: That stupid judge threw out my special deal. Dad says it will be fine, though. The same guy who negotiated it for the DOJ is now a “special prosecutor” which means that he “especially” won’t be prosecuting me for anything. And I have a child support deal that makes sure that Arkansas stripper’s kid gets some of my paintings. Sure! I can do about sixty of those a day!

You know, sometimes I like to reflect back on my life. I wonder if I would be an asset to society if I were living a clean, sober, honest life and financially supporting my children while not snorting enough drugs to paralyze Robert Downey, Jr while getting into less trouble for federal felonies than the average man would if they were arrested for jaywalking.

Nah."

- https://wilderwealthywise.com/

"Things Are About To Go From Bad To Much Worse... Here Is The Proof"

Gregory Mannarino, 8/14/23

"Things Are About To Go From Bad To 

Much Worse... Here Is The Proof"

- https://traderschoice.net/

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

"Economic Market Snapshot 8/14/23"

"Economic Market Snapshot 8/14/23"

Market Data Center, Live Updates:

- https://www.marketwatch.com/market-data 

○

Down the rabbit hole of psychopathic greed and insanity...

Only the consequences are real - to you!

○

"It's a Big Club, and you ain't in it. 

You and I are not in the Big Club."

- George Carlin

○

- https://www.asktraders.com/analysis/

○

A comprehensive, essential daily read.

- http://www.shadowstats.com/

○

Financial Stress Index

"The OFR Financial Stress Index (OFR FSI) is a daily market-based snapshot of stress in global financial markets. It is constructed from 33 financial market variables, such as yield spreads, valuation measures, and interest rates. The OFR FSI is positive when stress levels are above average, and negative when stress levels are below average. The OFR FSI incorporates five categories of indicators: credit, equity valuation, funding, safe assets and volatility. The FSI shows stress contributions by three regions: United States, other advanced economies, and emerging markets."

○

- https://www.dailyjobcuts.com/

Job cuts and much more.

○

- https://www.zerohedge.com/

○

- https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/

○

- https://wallstreetonparade.com/

○

- https://www.whatreallyhappened.com/

○

- https://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/

○

Commentary, highly recommended:

- https://www.theburningplatform.com/

○

"The more I see of the monied classes,

the better I understand the guillotine."

- George Bernard Shaw

○

Oh yeah... beyond words. Any I know anyway...

○

And now... The End Game...

o

Canadian Prepper, "Poland Prepares For Invasion"

Full screen recommended.

Canadian Prepper, 8/13/23

"Poland Prepares For Invasion; Crops Wiped Out; 

Nuclear Test; Fires Rage; Peak Oil Demand"

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

"Disney Sees Big Trouble In Housing Market; Small Banks Will Be Crushed"

Jeremiah Babe, 8/13/23

"Disney Sees Big Trouble In Housing Market; 

Small Banks Will Be Crushed"

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

"Ten Big Box Retail Stores Just Closed Their Doors Forever"

Full screen recommended.

"Ten Big Box Retail Stores Just Closed Their Doors Forever"

by The Economic Ninja

"Since 2017, Retail Dive has tracked major bankruptcies in the U.S. retail industry. Over the years, we’ve chronicled the long decline of once-dominant chains like Sears, and the unexpected and swift demise of others, like Lord & Taylor.

Even in that short timeframe, some retailers have fallen victim to bankruptcy not once, but twice. In 2019 alone, both Gymboree and Payless filed for their second bankruptcies in two years. And in 2020, with many retailers facing shuttered stores and slow traffic, a record number of retailers - including many who had been teetering for years - filed.

Some retailers that enter bankruptcy leave most of their stores behind, opting for a more digital-focused approach, while others are bought out by landlords and continue to operate large footprints. Some brands disappear entirely, while others seem to resurrect again and again. After Toys R Us’ swift liquidation in 2018, for example, the iconic toy brand is now sold at Macy’s.

Now the list includes: Lunya, Rockport Group, Christmas Tree Shops, Bed Bath & Beyond, Shoe City, Tuesday Morning, David’s Bridal, Independent Pet Partners, Party City, Forma Brands."

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

"The Retirement Crisis Will Push Nearly 50% Of All American Families To A Financial Disaster"

Full screen recommended.

"The Retirement Crisis Will Push Nearly 50% Of 

All American Families To A Financial Disaster"

by Epic Economist

"The retirement crisis can push half of all Americans to the brink of financial ruin, according to a new survey. In today’s video, we will present this and some of the most important statistics and insights that everyone should know about the state of retirement in the United States. Today, millions of individuals in their 60s and 70s are experiencing financial insecurity.

A new survey conducted by Third Way showed that 36% of adults feel less prepared for retirement than their parents. Currently, only 47% of workers in America have access to a retirement plan at their job. Although safety nets such as Social Security and Medicare are offered to some U.S. retirees, none of these can cover a comfortable retirement, and there is no guarantee that they will be sufficiently funded until 2030. We’re, in fact, in the first retiring generation in which more than half of the population doesn’t have a pension to cover part of their retirement costs. In other words, this is the first generation where the majority of Americans must rely on their own saving efforts to prepare for retirement. But at this point, 1 in 3 seniors are already facing a retirement crisis because they have no savings or are at risk of running out of money in the near future.

Meanwhile, 51% of consumers between the ages of 45 and 75 feel they do not have enough retirement savings to last their lifetime. And almost a third, or 32%, are not confident they will have enough money in retirement to cover basic monthly expenses.

Instead of achieving a comfortable retirement, most households in America are facing increasing distress and financial insecurity. While many families actually plan to swap the family house for a smaller one or to move to a less expensive community, when this is a choice, it can be an excellent way to boost your savings. But for many families, downsizing won’t just be an option. It will be almost mandatory.

That’s the result of a recent study published by Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research. The findings are alarming. Fully half of the nation’s working-age households will not have enough money to maintain their standard of living once in retirement. Making matters worse, this study assumes a strong working and saving life in which people work until age 65 and annuitize their assets, and even account for Social Security income.

Instead, 42 million out of 83 million working-age households will have to cut back on both luxuries and necessities in order to afford retirement. And inequities in our retirement system are holding younger workers back from achieving economic security during their later years.

The future of our population has never looked so uncertain. For half of all Americans, retirement will not be something to look forward to. It will be an era of struggle and want. It will be a time of despair in the United States. Financial literacy and information are the only way out of this. But unfortunately, that may seem too much for a nation where ignorance is applauded."

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

Musical Interlude: 2002, “Land of Forever”

Full screen recommended.

2002, “Land of Forever”

"Among the Celtic legends is the epic story of the mystical land of Tír Na nÓg, (Land of Eternal Youth). It's a land that knows no sorrow and where nobody ever ages. The beautiful Princess Niamh lives there. If a traveler should find their way there and stay for a few days, they may find when they return to their own land that hundreds of years have passed."

"A Look to the Heavens"

"This popular group leaps into the early evening sky around the March equinox and the northern hemisphere spring. Famous as the Leo Triplet, the three magnificent galaxies found in the prominent constellation Leo gather here in one astronomical field of view. Crowd pleasers when imaged with even modest telescopes, they can be introduced individually as NGC 3628 (right), M66 (upper left), and M65 (bottom). All three are large spiral galaxies but tend to look dissimilar, because their galactic disks are tilted at different angles to our line of sight. 

NGC 3628, also known as the Hamburger Galaxy, is temptingly seen edge-on, with obscuring dust lanes cutting across its puffy galactic plane. The disks of M66 and M65 are both inclined enough to show off their spiral structure. Gravitational interactions between galaxies in the group have left telltale signs, including the tidal tails and warped, inflated disk of NGC 3628 and the drawn out spiral arms of M66. This gorgeous view of the region spans over 1 degree (two full moons) on the sky in a frame that covers over half a million light-years at the trio's estimated distance of 30 million light-years. Of course the spiky foreground stars lie well within our own Milky Way."

- https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210320.html

The Poet: William Stafford, “Starting With Little Things”

“Starting With Little Things”

“Love the earth like a mole,

fur-near. Nearsighted,

hold close the clods,

their fine-print headlines.

Pat them with soft hands -

Like spades, but pink and loving; they

break rock, nudge giants aside,

affable plow.

Fields are to touch;

each day nuzzle your way.

Tomorrow the world.”

- William Stafford

"O You..."

"Life passes like a flash of lightning, whose blaze barely lasts long enough to see. While the earth and sky stand still forever, how swiftly changing time flies across mans face. O you who sit over your full cup and do not drink, tell me, for whom are you still waiting?" 

- Hermann Hesse

The Daily "Near You?"

Highlands Ranch, Colorado, USA. Thanks for stopping by!

"'NATO Is Sending Us Here To DIE', Ukrainian Commanders Admit They Are Cannon Fodder For NATO"

Full screen recommended.

Redacted, 8/13/23

"'NATO Is Sending Us Here To DIE', Ukrainian 

Commanders Admit They Are Cannon Fodder For NATO"

"Captured Ukrainian commanders are admitting that NATO is sending inexperienced soldiers to the front lines, essentially turning them into cannon fodder. Western media is waking up to the fact that Ukraine’s counter offensive that started on June 4th was not a counter offensive at all but a total failure. Meaning that they sent tens of thousands of Ukrainian men to their deaths. So...now what?"

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

And 400,000 Ukrainian soldiers have died...

"‘I Cry Quietly’: A Soldier Describes the Toll of Russia’s War"

Full screen recommended.

"‘I Cry Quietly’: 

A Soldier Describes the Toll of Russia’s War"

"For Valentyn, a Ukrainian soldier in the Donetsk region, the war’s death toll is more than a statistic. He is tasked with moving wounded troops - and dead bodies - away from the front lines, often under Russian fire."

"Under Russian Fire, 

A Ukrainian Soldier Evacuates the Wounded"

By Yousur Al-Hlou and Masha Froliak

Near Kremmina, Ukraine - "The sound of artillery launching and landing along the front line punctures the stillness of the forest just a few miles away, where combat medics are waiting to receive the wounded. On the horizon, a military vehicle moves along a dusty road and screeches to a halt when it reaches the trees. A soldier named Valentyn parks it there for natural camouflage from Russian drones scouting for Ukrainian military positions.

A group of soldiers, visibly shaken, quickly unloads three bodies that have just been recovered from the front line, placing each one into a plastic body bag and zipping it closed. Their position was shelled and then attacked by a drone, they say. “They’re shooting at you from all sides. You turn, you run, they hit you, and it’s impossible to get away,” said Maksym, who survived the attack. “This is a big tragedy for us.” “One more body is left behind with the Russian soldiers,” he added.

While much of the world’s attention was fixated on the bloody urban battle taking place in Bakhmut, Russia’s campaign in eastern Ukraine was also raging in forests and fields about 50 miles north of the city, near Kreminna. Here, soldiers take positions in trenches surrounded by tall, slim trees, crouching to avoid the direct line of sight of their Russian enemies. “People say it’s harsh in Bakhmut,” said Valentyn, who joined the army seven months ago. “But it’s harsh here, too.”

For the past month, Valentyn has been stationed at this evacuation point, traveling back and forth to the front line almost daily to rescue wounded soldiers and recover the dead. His job requires him to drive directly toward Russian forces, and he has come under fire at times. “There is nothing good about it,” Valentyn said. “What is this war for?”

Ukrainian and Russian military officials have been reluctant to release data on casualties within their ranks, though the U.S. government and military experts estimate that both sides have suffered significant losses in the tens or hundreds of thousands.

For Valentyn, the work of responding to the casualties has been both grim and relentless. “There is blood everywhere,” he said, while cleaning it from his vehicle. “It has a smell. Especially fresh blood.” Bright red liquid trickled through his fingers as he rinsed out a bloodied cloth. He drained the cloth and used it again to wipe off the back seat. “It’s difficult to see young boys die,” Valentyn said. “Sometimes I cry quietly.”

In calmer moments when there is no one to evacuate, Valentyn travels deep into the forest to transport soldiers to and from the contact line, where Ukrainian and Russian soldiers are sometimes positioned just hundreds of meters apart. He said at least one group of soldiers couldn’t make it to their position because Russian troops had already taken it over.

“Every day is scary here,” said Viktor, a soldier who returned with Valentyn. “I feel constant anxiety, for our country and our lives.” His stoic face reflected the fear and horror known only to those who had witnessed the fight in the forest. “Those who haven’t been there will never understand.”

- https://www.nytimes.com/

The ZMan, "The Crisis At The Window"

"The Crisis At The Window"

by The ZMan

"For about six months, starting last winter, Western media talked about a Ukrainian counter-offensive that was supposed to change the direction of the war. These stories coincided with stories about the delivery of various types of equipment, along with expert opinions from retired generals. Late in the spring Washington sent reliable toadies over to Kiev to see the plans and then talk to the media about how the Ukrainians were preparing to deal a death blow to Moscow.

As we get into the heart of August and the third month of the offensive, it is clear to most everyone that it has been a disaster. First came the images of Western armored vehicles trapped in minefields. Images of burning tanks were then followed by video of Ukrainian soldiers struggling to escape the same minefields after their armored vehicles were disabled by mines. Then came weeks of reports in the West about revised tactics that achieved nothing along the front.

As things stand, the most enthusiastic Ukraine supporters say that the counter-offensive has managed to capture about ten square miles. In reality, the Ukrainians failed to make it through the security zone of Russian defenses. This is the area in front of the first defensive lines that are used to slow an attack. In the south, Ukraine managed to capture a few abandoned villages, but relentless Russian attacks from artillery and airpower turned those into Ukrainian cemeteries.

At the start of the offensive, independent observers and Russian sources said the Ukrainians had enough resources to continue their offensive into August. At that point they will have exhausted men and material. At that point, they would have no choice but to stop offensive operations and fall back into defensive positions. Otherwise, they would be forced to cannibalize their lines and leave themselves open to Russian attacks in other areas along the line of contact.

That may have been a generous assessment. Over the last couple of weeks Russian forces in the north have steadily pushed the Ukrainians back. Ukraine has just moved their northern headquarters west to get clear of the Russian advance. They have also ordered the evacuation of Kupyansk, an important town located on the bank of the Oskil River in the Kharkiv Oblast. Reports suggest the Ukrainians simply lack the manpower and equipment to defend the area.

Washington is in a panic because they promised everyone that the Ukrainians would easily smash through Russian lines in the south. The plan was to rush through to the Sea of Azov, thus severing the land bridge between Russia and Crimea. Once that happened, attacks would begin on Crimea. The Russian army would either revolt after the humiliation or simply collapse, causing political chao in Moscow. It is hard to believe, but this was the official narrative.

Interestingly, the narrative was not just another pack of lies from the Kagan cult, but an official assessment from the Pentagon. It has been Western military doctrine that the way to defeat the Russians in a land war is with a rapid, concentrated attack on their defensive lines using armor and infantry. Here is a paper on the topic from 2017 and here is a recent video discussing it in connection with this war. This strategy actually goes back to the Cold War days.

The short version is that Russia organized its army around groups of 800 to 1000 men that operate independently within the defensive formation. These units have, tanks armored personnel carriers and artillery. The NATO strategy was to send overwhelming force at these units, forcing them to retreat in order to preserve their equipment. Russia is known for trading land for resources. They did this in the Kharkiv region last year and in the Kherson region last spring.

What Washington did not notice is that the Russians have moved away from the Battalion Tactical Group to more flexible arrangements based on the situation, terrain, and their own resources. In the south when Ukraine launched its main attack, they did not face battalions, but divisions. Further, the Russians had prepared complex defensive positions designed to trap advancing armored columns. In other words, the Russians read that paper and were ready for it.

Another thing Washington did not notice is that the Russian army has changed in other ways since the Cold War. They have a wide range of electronic warfare systems that work well against modern weapons. They also have incorporated drones in massive numbers that are highly effective against Western armor. The internet is full of videos where a Lancet drone takes out a Ukrainian armored vehicle. The Russians have quickly become the masters of drone warfare.

The main reason the Ukrainian offensive is a catastrophe is the side with the trillion-dollar annual budget has not updated their understanding of the Russian army since the last century. They have not bothered to notice what has been happening on the battlefields over the last eighteen months. Instead, the world’s most expensive military has gone along with the crackpot plans of the Kagan cult, either not understanding what is happening or indifferent to the inevitable results.

The Ukraine war is becoming a microcosm of the crisis of competence. It is not just the scarcity of talented people in the ranks. They still exist in sufficient numbers to keep the system operating reasonably well. The issue is the selection pressure at the top is for true believers and sycophants. The only way to get in the room to discuss the Ukraine war is to be fully on board with the dream of destroying Russia or be willing to humiliate yourself by telling these people what they want to hear.

Imagine the tag team of Victoria Nuland and General Milley replicated throughout the managerial system. Nuland is the maniacal imbecile in charge for no other reason than zealotry, while Milley is the oleaginous flunky with the credentials to provide legitimacy to the rantings of Nuland. The competent are driven from the room, leaving this combination to chart public policy. The general decline in competence that is driving demographics, is driven by this combination at the top.

In the movie Braveheart, Longshanks returns from France to confront his son who was charged with putting down the Scottish revolt. His son has his “advisor” with him, who makes the mistake of speaking out of turn. This is what has happened in the West, except Longshanks died of a heart attack and his son is in charge. The advisor now busies himself telling the son what he wants to hear. Meanwhile, outside the castle walls, the kingdom rattles toward collapse."

- https://thezman.com/

400,000 dead Ukrainian soldiers, 30,000 dead Russians...

"Get Ready for the 90 Year Mortgage"

Full screen recommended.

Dan, I Allegedly 8/13/23

"Get Ready for the 90 Year Mortgage"

"You can’t make this up. People are so behind and don’t want to pay a higher interest-rates. They are getting behind. This is making mortgages go as long as 60, 70 and 90 years."

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

"How It Really Is"

"'Bidenomics' Has Been A Disaster"

"Aldi Saver Deals Everyone Should Be Buying This Month"

Full screen recommended.

Adventures With Danno, 8/13/23

"Aldi Saver Deals Everyone Should Be Buying This Month"

"In today's vlog, we are at Aldi and are finding all kinds of their Aldi Saver Deals! As grocery prices continue to rise in most of our main supermarkets, Aldi has put together some pretty amazing sales that we should definitely take advantage of! We show you all of the savings, so get your notepad ready!"

Comments here:

- https://www.youtube.com/

Greg Hunter, "Full Faith & Credit of a Bankrupt Insolvent Government – Bill Holter"

"Full Faith & Credit of a Bankrupt 

Insolvent Government – Bill Holter"

by Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com 

"Precious metals expert and financial writer Bill Holter says there is a long list of financial trouble coming to America sooner than later. There is the commercial real estate implosion, rising interest rates, an exploding federal budget, banana republic political problems, but the at the top of the list is the monster unpayable debt problem and the soon-to-be failing U.S. dollar. Holter says, “You can’t have a third of the federal taxes paid out in interest, and that number is only going to grow over time. If the markets would not collapse ahead of time, which they certainly will, but if they did not, we would get to the point where the interest would eat up all the tax receipts. That is a mathematical impossibility. We’re broke. On the other side of it, we have two rules of law. We have one rule of law if you are a liar from the left and another rule of law if you are a conservative and you don’t support the bull crap rules they are putting out there. This is an illustration that this country has already become a banana republic. The problem with that is the dollar issued by this country is the world’s reserve currency. It’s a huge problem.”

Holter says the dollar is going to take a big hit in the next financial crisis that has already started. When it hits, Holter predicts, “The actual bottom line is dollars are just pieces of paper backed by our government. The dollar is backed by the full faith and credit of a bankrupt insolvent government, and people will figure that out very quickly. When it comes to survival, people are not going to give up something real for nothing. We are in the weeds right now because of interest rates, look at mortgage rates, they are well over 7% for a 30-year mortgage. So, that’s going to hurt housing. Commercial real estate has already been destroyed. I think we are in the weeds because interest rates are at a point that nothing can be refinanced and rolled over.”

In closing, Holter says, “This is not my opinion, it’s a mathematical equation. The debt cannot be paid back. It’s not possible. We will default one way or another. We will print the crap out of the dollar and devalue it, or outright nonpayment.”

Holter predicted years ago we would end up in a “Mad Max” scenario when credit dries up and store shelves empty. Holter contends that credit is drying up with the money supply shrinking for eight straight months. The “Mad Max” world Holter is still predicting is now looking like it’s going to come true sooner than later. There is much more in the 42-minute interview."

- https://usawatchdog.com/

Join Greg Hunter as he goes One-on-One with 

financial writer and precious metals expert Bill Holter. 

- https://rumble.com/

"Still, Sometimes..."

“The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can’t pretend we haven’t been told. We’ve all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still, sometimes, we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today’s possibility under tomorrow’s rug, until we can’t anymore, until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin meant: That knowing is better than wondering. That waking is better than sleeping. And that even the biggest failure, even the worst, most intractable mistake, beats the hell out of never trying.”

- “Meredith”, “Grey’s Anatomy”

Free Download: Albert Camus, "The Plague"

"Foolishness has a knack of getting its way; as we should see if we were not always so much wrapped up in ourselves. In this respect our townsfolk were like everybody else, wrapped up in themselves; they did not believe in plagues."

- Albert Camus, "The Plague"

"'The Plague' is a cultural classic fictional novel written by French author Albert Camus. The novel is originally written in French and named “La Peste”. The novel was initially published in 1947 and was later translated into English and published by Stuart Gilbert as 'The Plague.' The novel covers the unfortunate events and horrific scenes of a plague in Northern Africa in Oran, a city in French Algeria.

The inspiration behind this novel was some plagues that hit Oran before. The stories in the novel are from the choleric epidemic and bubonic plague. The author has shown these epidemics more extreme and deadlier. The book is considered existentialism.

The author describes the plague as a natural equalizer as it has no preferences and no targets. The plague comes and takes everyone with it whether someone is poor, rich, evil, innocent, religious, atheist or anyone else everyone is going with this nature’s marvel. The author emphasizes that despite so much horror, wreckage, and devastation this natural phenomenon teaches or at least makes people survive whether they try or not. The author also discusses the reaction of the people at this difficult time of life as not everyone reacts the same in such a harsh atmosphere."

Freely download "The Plague", by Albert Camus, here:

- https://tu.tv/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/The_Plague.pdf

"The World As I See It: Albert Einstein's Thoughts on the Meaning of Life”

"The World As I See It:

Albert Einstein's Thoughts on the Meaning of Life”

by Paul Ratner

“Albert Einstein was one of the world’s most brilliant thinkers, influencing scientific thought immeasurably. He was also not shy about sharing his wisdom about other topics, writing essays, articles, letters, giving interviews and speeches. His opinions on social and intellectual issues that do not come from the world of physics give an insight into the spiritual and moral vision of the scientist, offering much to take to heart.

The collection of essays and ideas “The World As I See It” gathers Einstein’s thoughts from before 1935, when he was as the preface says “at the height of his scientific powers but not yet known as the sage of the atomic age”.

In the book, Einstein comes back to the question of the purpose of life on several occasions. In one passage, he links it to a sense of religiosity. “What is the meaning of human life, or, for that matter, of the life of any creature? To know an answer to this question means to be religious. You ask: Does it many any sense, then, to pose this question? I answer: The man who regards his own life and that of his fellow creatures as meaningless is not merely unhappy but hardly fit for life,” wrote Einstein.

Was Einstein himself religious? Raised by secular Jewish parents, he had complex and evolving spiritual thoughts. He generally seemed to be open to the possibility of the scientific impulse and religious thoughts coexisting. "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind," said Einstein in his 1954 essay on science and religion.

Some (including the scientist himself) have called Einstein’s spiritual views as pantheism, largely influenced by the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza. Pantheists see God as existing but abstract, equating all of reality with divinity. They also reject a specific personal God or a god that is somehow endowed with human attributes.

Himself a famous atheist, Richard Dawkins calls Einstein's pantheism a “sexed-up atheism,” but other scholars point to the fact that Einstein did seem to believe in a supernatural intelligence that’s beyond the physical world. He referred to it in his writings as “a superior spirit,” “a superior mind” and a “spirit vastly superior to men”. Einstein was possibly a deist, although he was quite familiar with various religious teachings, including a strong knowledge of Jewish religious texts.

In another passage from 1934, Einstein talks about the value of a human being, reflecting a Buddhist-like approach: “The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained liberation from the self.”

This theme of liberating the self is also echoed by Einstein later in life, in a 1950 letter to console a grieving father Robert S. Marcus: “A human being is a part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest- a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. The striving to free oneself from this delusion is the one issue of true religion. Not to nourish it but to try to overcome it is the way to reach the attainable measure of peace of mind.”

In case you are wondering whether Einstein saw value in material pursuits, here’s him talking about accumulating wealth in 1934, as part of the “The World As I See It”: “I am absolutely convinced that no wealth in the world can help humanity forward, even in the hands of the most devoted worker in this cause. The example of great and pure characters is the only thing that can lead us to noble thoughts and deeds. Money only appeals to selfishness and irresistibly invites abuse. Can anyone imagine Moses, Jesus or Gandhi armed with the money-bags of Carnegie?”

- http://bigthink.com/

○

Freely download "The World As I See It", by Albert Einstein, here:

- https://www.colonialtours.com/ebook/ebooks/

“Are You Sane?”

“Are You Sane?”

by Charles Hugh Smith

“A sane person to an insane society must appear insane.”

- Kurt Vonnegut, “Welcome to the Monkey House”

“Madness has engulfed the entire world, with a concentration of power in the hands of a few psychopathic financial elite wielding an inordinate and dangerous expanse of power over the lives of the common man. They are a modern day version of Al Capone, except their weapons of choice aren’t machine guns, but a printing press, peddling debt, creating derivatives of mass destruction, and peddling heaping doses of disinformation. The contemporary criminal class wears Hermes suits, Rolex watches and diamond studded pinky rings, drops $500 to dine at Masa in NYC, travels by chauffeured limo, lives in $10 million NYC penthouse suites, occupies luxurious corner offices in hundred story glass towers, and spends weekends hobnobbing with the other financial elite at their villas in the Hamptons. They have nothing but utter contempt for the lowly peasants who depend upon a weekly paycheck to make ends meet. Why work when you can steal $1 or $2 billion from farmers with no consequences?

The willfully ignorant masses are kept at bay by the selling them a false dichotomy of Republicans versus Democrats, conservatives versus liberals, and capitalism versus socialism. The ruling class distracts the public with fake wars on poverty, drugs and terror, while using these storylines to further enrich themselves and keep the public alarmed and frightened. We’ve been “fighting” the wars on poverty and drugs for over four decades and poverty is at record levels, while drugs are easier to obtain than candy in a candy store. The war on terror is nothing more than a corporate arms dealer welfare plan. The end of the Cold War put a real crimp in the bottom lines of Lockheed Martin and the rest of the peddlers of death. 9/11 and the subsequent undeclared wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria, with Iran on the horizon, have been a godsend to the bottom lines of the corporations Eisenhower warned about in 1961.

In reality, the politicians are interchangeable and bought off by corporate and special interests. The people are sold a fable, and controlled opposition is the fairy tale. They perpetuate the welfare/warfare state that enriches Wall Street, the military industrial complex, the healthcare service complex, politically connected mega-corporations and the corporate media propaganda complex. The American people are given the illusion of choice by their keepers. The system is rigged. The real decisions are made by unelected secretive men who operate in the shadows and use their wealth to direct the decision making of the politicians, government bureaucrats, and corporate entities that benefit from those decisions. Edward Bernays described a society that existed in the 19th Century, 20th Century, and has now grown to immense proportions in the 21st Century:

“Political campaigns today are all sideshows. A presidential candidate may be ‘drafted’ in response to ‘overwhelming popular demand,’ but it is well known that his name may be decided upon by half a dozen men sitting around a table in a hotel room. The conscious manipulation of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country.” 

– Edward Bernays

The manipulation of the masses has been perfected by the ruling class through decades of corporate mass media messaging the purposeful dumbing down of the populace through government public school education that teaches children how to feel rather than how to think. The conscious manipulation of the masses has been designed to produce obedient non-thinking consumers of corporate products, educated to believe the accumulation of material goods with debt constitutes wealth, to fear whatever the government tells them to fear, and never look up from their iGadgets long enough to actually think for themselves. We are bombarded with Orwellian memes designed to keep us sedated and pliant, as the ruling class pillages the national wealth and expands their power and control over our lives.

Conform; Stay Asleep; Do Not Question Authority; Obey; Consume; Reproduce; Submit; Watch TV; Buy; Follow; Doubt Humanity; No New Ideas; Feel, Don’t Think; Fear; Accumulate; Honor Apathy; Believe Experts; Surrender; Spend; No Independent Thought; Win; Want More; Hate; Succumb To Desire; Yield To Power; Choose Safety Over Liberty; Choose Security Over Freedom

This insane world was created through decades of bad decisions, believing in false prophets, choosing current consumption over sustainable long-term savings based growth, electing corruptible men who promised voters entitlements that were mathematically impossible to deliver, the disintegration of a sense of civic and community obligation and a gradual degradation of the national intelligence and character.

Vonnegut and Huxley’s social commentary reveals a basic truth that societies and human beings have been prone to bouts of madness over the course of decades and centuries. Humans are a weak species, susceptible to the vagaries of greed, lust, gluttony, wrath, sloth, envy and pride. The seven deadly sins are in full bloom today, as the American empire descends through Dante’s inferno of reality TV, celebrity worship, religious zealotry, adulation of wealthy titans, military conquest and worship of false idols.

This is where the interests of those in power and those being ruled have coincided, as a fiat based monetary system allowed unlimited spending to keep the welfare/warfare state growing, enriching the crony capitalists, deepening the power of the state, and providing the masses with foreign made trinkets, baubles, corporate logoed clothing, techno-gadgets, and pimped out financed wheels. The concepts of self-restraint, discipline, saving for a rainy day, prudence, discretion, and deferred gratification are rarely displayed in modern day America. In a case of mass delusion, Americans have convinced themselves to live for today, recklessly ignore their futures, irresponsibly spend money they don’t have on things they don’t need, neglect their civic duty towards future generations, choose ignorance over knowledge, and vote for spineless politicians who promise them entitlements that are mathematically impossible to honor. The public’s foolish attitude towards debt accumulation matches the arrogance of our gutless, intellectually dishonest leaders.”

- http://www.theburningplatform.com/

Musical Interlude: The Moody Blues, “Blue World”

Full screen recommended.

The Moody Blues, “Blue World”

"A Look to the Heavens"

"Galaxies don't normally look like this. NGC 6745 actually shows the results of two galaxies that have been colliding for only hundreds of millions of years. Just off the below digitally sharpened photograph to the lower right is the smaller galaxy, moving away. The larger galaxy, pictured above, used to be a spiral galaxy but now is damaged and appears peculiar. Gravity has distorted the shapes of the galaxies.

Although it is likely that no stars in the two galaxies directly collided, the gas, dust, and ambient magnetic fields do interact directly. In fact, a knot of gas pulled off the larger galaxy on the lower right has now begun to form stars. NGC 6745 spans about 80 thousand light-years across and is located about 200 million light-years away."

- http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120930.html