"The New Tyranny Few Even Recognize"

"The New Tyranny Few Even Recognize"

by Charles Hugh Smith

"It's pretty much universally recognized that authorities use crises to impose "emergency powers" that become permanent. This erosion of civil and economic liberties is always sold as "necessary for your own good." Of course the accretion of ever greater power in the hands of the few is for our own good. How could it be otherwise? (Irony off)

In this environment of "emergency powers", it's almost refreshing to find a power grab so blatant that its sheer boldness boggles the mind. I'm talking about the Federal Reserve's FedNow, a proposed system of instant payments and digital dollars. This paper from the Cleveland Fed describes the system: FedNow paper from clevelandfed.org (PDF) (via Cheryl A.)

The rationale for the system is two-fold: The Fed sees the current ACH (automatic clearing house) payment system used by banks as too slow and limited. Payments need to be instantaneous and there must be a way to reach unbanked households, the roughly 9 million U.S. households without a bank account. In the current system, stimulus payments couldn't reach these households quickly. The solution is a new payment system in which every household and business in the nation would have an account at FedNow, so the Fed can transfer funds directly and instantaneously into every household account (and presumably every business that the Fed has chosen to fund).

The second part of FedNow is the creation of a digital dollar which is just like the existing dollar with one tiny little difference: unlike cash (for example, a $20 bill), the digital dollars won't be anonymous. Each newly created digital dollar will be trackable. The Fed's rationale is that panic-hoarding of coins and cash by households is a problem, as the Treasury has to go to a lot of trouble to mint more coins and print more cash. The FedNow digital dollars will be quick and easy to create and distribute - and, ahem, track.

Do you see the monstrous power grabs this we're-here-to-help system would institute?

1. The power to borrow and distribute money that is currently reserved for the elected representatives in Congress would be bypassed by FedNow. Why wait around for slow, corrupt Congress to agree on stimulus, Universal Basic Income (UBI), etc.? With FedNow, the Fed can create trillions out of thin air and distribute the dough to households without any Congressional approval.

What's interesting about this is that Congress has no power to stop the Fed from printing endless trillions and distributing the money however the Fed chooses. As an independent quasi-public agency, intended to be apolitical and outside the reach of corrupt politicos, the Fed is free to create and distribute as much new digital currency as it sees fit.

With FedNow, Congress has lost the government's monopoly power to distribute funds. Congress can still borrow and spend money, of course, but the citizenry's elected officials no longer have the monopoly granted by the Constitution.

2. The anonymity of the nation's money will be lost to the Fed's digital dollars. Perhaps the Fed will declare that only those who wear their underwear outside their clothing will avoid penalties. (Referencing the 1970s film "Bananas".) Who's to say what the Fed will track, and for what purposes? The Fed, that's who.

There's a whiff of desperation in these FedNow power grabs. It's possible that the Fed has concluded that the elected legislative branch of government is now so thoroughly corrupt and dysfunctional that the Fed is forced to save the day, so to speak, by grabbing the power to create and distribute endless trillions to keep the increasingly impoverished and powerless citizenry from rebelling against the status quo.

The irony of course is that the primary source of the impoverishment of soaring inequality is the Fed itself, as the Fed's "permanent emergency powers" of sluicing trillions in free money for financiers has goosed the wealth of the top 0.1% while leaving 95% of the citizenry worse off as wage stagnation and rising inflation has eroded the standard of living/purchasing power of labor.

It's a nice trick, isn't it? First the Fed creates the inequality that makes rebellion inevitable and then it rides to the rescue with a power grab that nullifies the monopoly over governmental allocation of money the Constitution grants to Congress, and it destroys the anonymity of the "free money" it plans to distribute in the ultimate bread and circuses.

Clearly, the Fed reckons the public is foolish enough to believe the Fed's money will actually be "free." Check out what you've lost before declaring anything "free."

- https://www.oftwominds.com/

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"FedNow Aimed At Transforming The US Payment System

 Approved By The Board Of Governors Of The Federal Reserve"

Must Watch! “California Closing; Economic Abyss; Inflation Unstoppable; Stores Closing; China Economy Surging”

Jeremiah Babe,

“California Closing; Economic Abyss; Inflation Unstoppable;

 Stores Closing; China Economy Surging”

"The World..."

"The world is a comedy to those that think, a tragedy to those who feel. " 

- Horace Walpole, In a Letter, 1770

"China Heading To A Major Food Shortage! You Need To Get Prepared For Worldwide Starvation"

"China Heading To A Major Food Shortage!

 You Need To Get Prepared For Worldwide Starvation"

by Epic Economist

"China, the world's most populous country. is facing massive food shortages. Just a couple of days ago, China has ascended as the largest global economy. However, the country still has a fair amount of national hardships to deal with in face of major supply disruptions witnessed this year. Despite Chinese government officials' efforts to reassure everything is going to be just fine, released data keeps showing that the country is presenting staggering food insecurity levels. 

The Chinese supply chains have been continuously hit by several natural disasters, and many products have already become scarce on grocery shelves, while others are seeing a dramatic spike in prices. According to recent analysis, the trend will extend worldwide - and this is just the beginning. For that reason, today, we are going to investigate the food crisis that is now taking place in China, which will shortly resonate throughout the globe. The worldwide business shutdowns, drastic supply chain interruption, and natural catastrophes were problems not exclusive to China this year. Many countries had their economies severely damaged and are now finding themselves on the brink of a food crisis, which indicates this winter may be the toughest ever recorded. Meanwhile, the Chinese government is publicly acknowledging that further food shortages are coming.

In fact, as of August, the government has issued an anti-food-wasting campaign to encourage people to eat smaller portions and finish their plates. On the outside, the plan seems to be forward-thinking, promoting the idea of sustainable consumption. But behind the cheerful exterior that displays soldiers, factory workers, and schoolchildren polishing their plates clean of food, there is a harsh reality. As Eva Dou describes in a NY Times article published earlier this month, "China does not have enough fresh food to go around — and neither does much of the world."

In China, the two most scarce food products are pork and corn. The nation's pigs were hardly affected by African swine fever, while millions of acres of corn crops were ruined by floods. Overall, fresh foods of all sorts are in short supply as well - eggs, seafood, leafy green vegetables are nowhere to be found.

However, the State media and the government have been dismissing suggestions that China is facing a crisis of food shortage. For the Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the food thrift campaign envisions to end to food waste, a problem he considers to be "shocking and distressing". He doesn't directly admit a shortfall in food production but describes the sanitary outbreak as a warning sign: "Though China has reaped a bumper grain harvest for years, it is still necessary to have the awareness of a food security crisis.

In Shanghai, strict regulations were enacted forcing individuals and companies to correctly recycle their food waste. Those who didn't comply had to face fines or penalties to their social credit rating, which seems controversial because it directly affects people's economic and social prospects. In Changsha, it was registered that a popular chain of restaurants have set up two scales and asked patrons to weigh themselves before entering. After entering their weight and personal information into an app, the customers were provided with the restaurant’s suggested menu items. The system sparked discontentment on social media and netizens started to accuse the chain of fat-shaming. The "N-1" plan also faced lots of criticism online, with some outlining that it was "too rigid". 

To make things worse, Beijing's developing-world allies are living through their worst food crisis in decades, with millions that managed to stay afloat during the past few years, once again pushed inside poverty statistics. Also, The Shanghai Green Food Bank, one of China’s rare private food banks, noted that growing numbers of the city’s migrant workers are not managing to make ends meet and are in need of food assistance. 

This distressing outlook for food insecurity happening on the supposed world's largest economy is an unfortunate sign that many other countries will go down the same path as well. Considering that even China - which has enormous stockpiles of grains and other goods and has been restructuring its economy amid a global economic collapse, is facing acute disruptions on its supply chains and alarming its citizens about food insecurity - the situation in less-developed countries and nations who were deeply affected by the current crisis will be even more worrisome.

In conclusion, The World Food Program economist Arif Husain has recently projected that 270 million people across the globe will suffer from acute hunger this year, twice last year’s count. And this figure doesn’t even include China, the United States, and European nations traditionally considered food secure. “No region has been spared,” he said. “Literally the whole world is affected.”

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIChSjDRPb4

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Related:

"Food Shortages Hit China: 

There Is 'Not...Enough Fresh Food To Go Around'"

Gregory Mannarino, "Waiting On The Freak Show. Deal Or No Deal?"

Gregory Mannarino,

PM 10/20/20: "Waiting On The Freak Show. Deal Or No Deal?"

- https://traderschoice.net/

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Related:

“'January Is Going To Be A Mess' – 

A Tsunami Of Evictions Expected Across US"

Musical Interlude: Juzzie Smith, "Bluesberry Jam"

Juzzie Smith, "Bluesberry Jam"

"A Look to the Heavens"

 “The Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) is one of the best known planetary nebulae in the sky. Its more familiar outlines are seen in the brighter central region of the nebula in this impressive wide-angle view. But the composite image combines many short and long exposures to also reveal an extremely faint outer halo. At an estimated distance of 3,000 light-years, the faint outer halo is over 5 light-years across. 

Planetary nebulae have long been appreciated as a final phase in the life of a sun-like star. More recently, some planetary nebulae are found to have halos like this one, likely formed of material shrugged off during earlier episodes in the star's evolution. While the planetary nebula phase is thought to last for around 10,000 years, astronomers estimate the age of the outer filamentary portions of this halo to be 50,000 to 90,000 years. Visible on the left, some 50 million light-years beyond the watchful planetary nebula, lies spiral galaxy NGC 6552.”

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

The Poet: David Whyte, "One Day"

"One Day"

"One day I will say

the gift I once had has been taken.

The place I have made for myself

belongs to another.

The words I have sung

are being sung by the ones

I would want.

Then I will be ready

for that voice

and the still silence in which it arrives.

And if my faith is good

then we'll meet again

on the road,

and we'll be thirsty,

and stop

and laugh

and drink together again

from the deep well of things as they are."

- David Whyte,

"Where Many Rivers Meet"

"The poem is a little myth of man's capacity of making life meaningful.

And in the end, the poem is not a thing we see -

it is, rather, a light by which we may see - and what we see is life."

- Robert Penn Warren

"To Tell The Truth..."

"In ordinary times we get along surprisingly well, on the whole, without ever discovering what our faith really is. If, now and again, this remote and academic problem is so unmannerly as to thrust its way into our minds, there are plenty of things we can do to drive the intruder away. We can get the car out or go to a party or to the cinema or read a detective story or have a row with a district council or write a letter to the papers about the habits of the nightjar or Shakespeare's use of nautical metaphor. Thus we build up a defense mechanism against self-questioning because, to tell the truth, we are very much afraid of ourselves."

- Dorothy L. Sayers

The Daily "Near You?"

Acerra, Campania, Italy. Thanks for stopping by!

"An Impartial Review of Trump’s Record"

"An Impartial Review of Trump’s Record"

by Bill Bonner

"The excitement! A real cliffhanger! The Dow closed down about 400 points yesterday as investors sat on the edge of their seats. Today is the deadline set by Madam Pelosi. This morning, there is still no bailout agreement. But the House Speaker said they are making progress. “We may not like this, we may not like that, but let’s see on balance if we can go forward.” Inadvertently, Ms. Pelosi described the state of partisan politics circa 2020… and sealed the fate of the nation.

No Deal: Republicans and Democrats might disagree on the details, but they will go forward, hand in hand, over the cliff… together. On the table is a $2.2 trillion spending lalapalooza – a Christmas pudding with something in it for almost everyone. The president revealed that he is willing to go along with whatever wild and crazy boondoggle the Democrats come up with. But – at least, as of midday Eastern Standard Time – the great dealmaker hasn’t been able to make a deal.

Of course, if no deal is made, it’s not necessarily Trump’s fault. There are trends in motion that no one can contradict, least of all Donald J. Trump. In the news this morning is this headline from CNN: "A son drove his 94-year-old mother more than 300 miles each way so she could vote."

Why? Will it make any difference? Who will win? What will it mean?

Impartial Review: Today, we examine the record of Mr. Donald Trump’s presidency. Does the Big Man deserve re-election? And what will happen if he is defeated? Of course, we’ve been on the president’s case since the get-go. But here, we attempt an impartial review, intending neither to bow down before him nor to spit upon his political grave… Instead, we will uncover a far more disagreeable truth, which we will get to presently…

Promises, Promises: So, let’s turn to the record. In 2016, Mr. Trump set forth a set of goals and promises, somewhat incoherent, but which could be broadly summarized as follows…

Build a wall (widely interpreted as a metaphor for tighter border controls, less immigration, and more protection for native-born Americanos)…

Pull out of the unwinnable, imperial wars in the MidEast…

Reduce the trade deficit (and thereby favor domestic manufacturers)… 

Drain the Swamp (that is, reduce the “permanent government” of lobbyists, cronies, hacks, and has-beens, aka The Deep State)…

Put China in her place…

“Repeal and replace” Obamacare…

Balance the budget and pay off the federal debt…

Total Failure: Making no judgment as to whether they were worth doing or not, what happened? As near as we can tell, at least superficially, all were failures. There is no wall. The forever wars continue. The trade deficit is higher than ever. The Swamp is deeper than ever. China is stronger than ever. Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act) is still the law of the land. The budget is more out of balance than ever. And the federal debt is greater than ever.

Of course, there are extenuating circumstances in every case. We can perfectly well believe Mr. Trump sincerely wanted to do these things. But like the Pelosi bailout scheme… he just couldn’t make them happen. The Democrats wouldn’t go along with his wall, for example. He had to take money from the military. He says he is bringing the troops home from Afghanistan by Christmas (four years after taking his seat in the Oval Office)… but he seems to have forgotten to tell the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, he keeps doing his tough-guy act, threatening even more forever wars with Iran and China. Trying to revive manufacturing in the U.S. was a good idea. But Mr. Trump never understood what had caused its death in the first place.

And he surrounded himself with incompetents and nitwits, such as Peter Navarro, and wasted his time renegotiating trade deals… rather than attacking the real source of the problem – America’s fake money system. It’s easier to print dollars than to make automobiles or TV screens. So, Americans pay in dollars… and let foreigners do the hard work.

This year, the dollars gushed like never before. Between the Federal Reserve and the deficits, there was almost $6 trillion in potential extra liquidity. What happened? Did entrepreneurs rush to build factories, hire machinists, or compete with the foreigners? No, they bought more stuff from overseas… and the trade deficit swelled to a new record.

Greasy Cash: Drain the Swamp? There might have been a little evaporation early on as a number of regulations were cut back. But then, the Swamp got two major floods of greasy cash.

First, the trade wars themselves were worth hundreds of billions to the Swamp critters. Tariffs brought endless litigation and non-stop lobbying… as companies had to angle for special subsidies, dispensations, exclusions, and the like. Some 3,500 companies – including Tesla and Home Depot – have filed suit over the tariffs, a gold mine for Washington law firms, think tanks, political funds, and lobbyists.

Then came the biggest Swamp-filler ever: COVID-19. As the bug approached, The Donald was bamboozled by his own public health apparatchiks. Anthony Fauci, Deborah Birx, and Robert Redfield – all are on his payroll. They’re part of the executive branch; as chief executive, he is their boss. As soon as it became clear that the coronavirus was not a threat to the nation, approximately a week after he issued his “national emergency” declaration in mid-March, the president should have fired them all and gotten a new team.

 

Instead, the Coronavirus Cavalry ran roughshod over the Constitution and the economy… stifling the lives of 300 million in order, supposedly, to protect the 30 million who were actually at risk. But numbers have since shown that the “Lockdown” approach doesn’t seem to work. Some states locked down hard… others, lightly. The results are all over the place. And, according to the World Health Organization, not known for its extreme libertarian positions, lockdowns may do more harm than good (millions of poor people may die early). And they should only be used as a last resort.

Rules and Regulations: But while the lockdowns stunted lives and caused trillions in economic losses, they were honeysuckle to the Swamp bees. And now… Washington is abuzz with regulations, disputes, rules, laws, and court cases. What’s an essential business? What’s essential travel? Will you be allowed to have Thanksgiving? Is it protected by the right of assembly? What if you only invite family? Is a brother-in-law or a second cousin considered family? Can employees be required to come back to work? Will they have to take the vaccine? What if people are made sick by it?

Washington lawyers drool in the reflecting pool. “Health” bureaucrats get battlefield promotions. And pharma industry executives are already calling their architects, developing plans for even bigger and more hideous palaces in Palm Beach and Aspen.

More Failure: Nor did Mr. Trump succeed in repealing or replacing Obamacare. He may have improved it by eliminating the mandatory coverage requirement, but Obamacare is still the law of the land. As for putting China in her place… polls show the Middle Kingdom rising in world esteem, as the U.S. falls. Here’s the Financial Times: "China’s economy expanded 4.9 per cent year on year in the third quarter as industrial growth powered the country’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The expansion in gross domestic product missed expectations but was well ahead of a 3.2 per cent increase in the second quarter and represented a sharp turnaround from a historic decline at the start of the year."

The recovery in the world’s second-largest economy, which has been stoked by a state-backed industrial boom, now shows signs of extending to consumption at a time when global growth remains under severe pressure. Industrial production in China leapt 6.9 per cent in September – its highest level this year and the same rate as in December before the coronavirus outbreak. By comparison, U.S. GDP fell at a 31% rate in the second quarter. It is now believed to be down about 9%. And its recovery is stalling."

Bad Ideas: Was any of this Mr. Trump’s fault? Yes and no. Of course, he was stymied by the Democrats. But he was also particularly unsuited to be the nation’s chief executive. He was easily distracted… and seemed to lack any clear idea of what to do or how to do it. And he had some very bad ideas to start with. His was a kind of “improv government”… mixed with America’s funniest political videos. Moving quickly from tweet to tweet, he had no time to think or to develop a coherent plan. Nor did he have the patience to stick with it.

With no firm hand on the rudder, like a drunken boat, the ship of state drifted downriver… swirling around in pointless eddies… running aground in swamps and on sandbanks…going with the flow – as the Bush and Obama vessels did before it – towards bigger government, more debt, and more dopey meddling. And then, even before the coronavirus hit, the poor, confused bark was headed for the chutes…

Could a stronger captain have done better? Yes, of course. As we will see, almost anyone might have done better. But would it make any difference? Or are the currents so strong, they can’t be resisted? Let us pause here to catch our breath. This is the story we’ve been following for the last nearly four years. It deserves more than a paragraph or two… We’ll pick it up again tomorrow."

- www.rogueeconomics.com

"Again And Again And Again..."

“What are the facts? Again and again and again – what are the facts? Shun wishful thinking, ignore divine revelation, forget what “the stars foretell,” avoid opinion, care not what the neighbors think, never mind the un-guessable “verdict of history”– what are the facts, and to how many decimal places? You pilot always into an unknown future; facts are your single clue. Get the facts!” 

- Robert A. Heinlein

And always remember...

"When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains,

however improbable, must be the truth."

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, "Sherlock Holmes"

“Global Risk Is At Maximum, Debt Implosion Coming”

“Global Risk Is At Maximum, Debt Implosion Coming”

by Palisade Radio

"In this interview, Egon von Greyerz speaks to Tom Bodrovics from Palisade Radio about the cyclical and repetitive nature of the current economic situation and shares his concerns about increasing debt and central banks’ response. “The world is at a point where the risk is at absolute maximum” says Egon, stating that a debt implosion is inevitable.

Governments are spending more money than they are receiving and are running deficits. As has happened throughout history, the response of central banks and governments is to print more money. But where will this lead?

In this enlightening discussion, Egon explains how these problems date back to the beginning of the century and previous economic crises, such as the 2006-9 global recession. According to Egon, we saw the first warning signs in September 2019, but we’re starting to see the real effects now.

Egon goes on to discuss how COVID-19 was the catalyst, but not the cause, for today’s events, and how he fears that we are heading for a period of serious decline. Debt can’t be fixed with more debt, but central banks and governments don’t seem to understand this fact. That’s why everyone needs to prepare today for the inevitable decline."

- https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/

"How It Really Is"

 

Oh yeah, just what we need...

"Will the Stock Market Be Dragged to the Guillotine?"

"Will the Stock Market Be Dragged to the Guillotine?"

by Charles Hugh Smith

"The belief that the Federal Reserve and its rigged-casino stock market are permanent and forever is touchingly naive. Never mind the existential crises just ahead; the financial "industry" (heh) projects unending returns of 7% per year, or is it 14% per year? Never mind the details, the Fed has our back and since the Fed is forever, so too will be the gains for everyone playing the rigged games in the Fed's casino.

What makes this presumption so childishly naive is the tides of history are about to sweep away the era of central banks, their fiat currencies and their rigged casino markets. That the global citizenry might realize these are all forms of financial tyranny doesn't occur to to the Financial Aristocracy, which has luxuriated in the neofeudal dominance of finance--the modern-era equivalent of Monarchy and the rights of royalty.

Under the guidance of the Financial Aristocracy, so-called democratic governance has mutated into totalitarian democracy, that is, a "democracy" in name only, a carefully managed simulacrum that props up a facade of "democracy" that is pure PR.

The Fed is busy planning a pivot to becoming "the people's source of free money forever" to save itself from oblivion. The pivot is called FedNow, an instant-payment system which bypasses both the traditional private banking sector and Congressional control of distributing money.

With FedNow, the Fed will be able to create trillions of dollars out of thin air and distribute the trillions directly into household accounts at the Fed. The idea here is that an economy that is no longer financially viable can be propped up indefinitely by Fed free money; all we need to do is bypass the obsolete private banking sector (sorry about that, buckos) and the equally obsolete shards of totalitarian democracy (Congress, the presidency, etc.) and stave off the revolt with endless free money.

That endless free money stripped of the last vestiges of discipline will stoke an inflationary death spiral--well, we'll worry about that tomorrow. The irony here is the Fed is only accelerating the demise of central banking, fiat currency and its rigged-casino stock market with its FedNow scheme to maintain its financial tyranny.

Alas, tyranny is still tyranny, feudalism is still feudalism, and history remains unkind to totalitarian regimes - even those which have morphed into a clever totalitarian democracy.

The Fed's rigged-casino stock market will be dragged to the guillotine by one route or another: either a populist reform that dismantles the neofeudal financial tyranny of central banks and their soon-to-be-worthless fiat currencies, or the implosion of the entire corrupt neofeudal financial system of central banking, fiat currencies and rigged casino markets, all of which are nothing more than engines of inequality."

- https://www.oftwominds.com/

Gregory Mannarino, "Updates: The Freak Show Continues; Stimulus! Will They Or Won't They?"

Gregory Mannarino,

"Updates: The Freak Show Continues;

 Stimulus! Will They Or Won't They?"

- https://traderschoice.net/

"Covid-19 Pandemic Update 10/20/20"

by David Leonhardt

10/20/20

"A virus update, in three charts: Let’s check in on the state of the coronavirus this morning, with help from three charts. Here’s the first:

Click image for larger size.

As you can see, the number of new virus cases in the U.S. is surging - and not far from this summer’s peak. You’re probably familiar with versions of that blue line. It is the most common metric for tracking the virus. The rising line mostly reflects reality: The virus is surging, especially in the Upper Midwest. Cooler weather is leading to more indoor activity, which often leads to new cases, and many Americans seem tired of pandemic restrictions.

But you’ll notice that the red line on the chart - the number of Americans currently hospitalized with virus complications - looks less bad. It has risen lately, but it is not close to its peak. Why? Partly because the number of virus cases is not actually rising as much as the official case numbers suggest.

That brings us to chart No. 2:

Click image for larger size.

The U.S. is conducting a lot more tests than in the summer or spring. More widespread testing means that the official numbers are capturing a larger share of new virus cases than earlier this year. “We have probably gotten better at finding cases, as testing capacity has increased, and so we can’t directly compare the size of the waves based on case counts alone,” Caitlin Rivers of Johns Hopkins University told me. “That’s a good development.”

The third chart also suggests some encouraging news:

Click image for larger size.

Even as case numbers have soared and hospitalizations have risen, deaths have held fairly steady. That’s happened as many older people - who are most vulnerable - have been careful about avoiding exposure. A greater share of current new cases is among young Americans.

The quality of virus treatments is also improving. Remdesivir, dexamethasone and monoclonal antibodies all seem to help, as my colleague Donald G. McNeil Jr. points out. Just consider how quickly both President Trump and Chris Christie recovered, despite their age and underlying health risks.

The full picture: There are some silver linings. The statistics on new virus cases that get so much attention are somewhat exaggerating the severity of the current outbreak, because of the rise in testing. And treatments have improved, reducing the death count. But the virus’s toll has still been horrific - and worse than in many other countries. More than 220,000 Americans have died, and hundreds of people are still dying every day.

The overall situation is also getting worse, as the hospitalization numbers make clear. In some states, hospitals are almost full, and the virus continues to spread. “I’m just waiting to see if our community can change our behavior,” Debra Konitzer, the top health officer in Oconto County, Wis., recently said. “Otherwise, I don’t see the end in sight.” As Donald McNeil says, “The fall wave has just begun.”

Oct 20, 2020, 8:14 AM ET:

 Coronavirus Map: Tracking the Global Outbreak 

The coronavirus pandemic has sickened more than 40,458,400 

people, according to official counts, including 8,255,429 Americans.

      Oct 20, 2020 8:14 AM ET: 

Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count

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- https://www.zerohedge.com/

OCT 20, 2020 9:35 AM: "India Reports Fewest COVID-19 Cases In 3 Months; Argentina 5th Country To Top 5 Million Cases: Live Updates"

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Updated 10/20/20, 6:24 AM ET

Click image for larger size.

- https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

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A highly recommended "must read":

"We Destroyed the World’s Greatest Economy for No Reason"

“Stock Market Needs Stimulus Now; Debt Killing The Economy; 6 Million Missed House Payments”

Jeremiah Babe,

“Stock Market Needs Stimulus Now; Debt Killing The Economy; 

6 Million Missed House Payments”

Musical Interlude: "Raise Positive Vibrations"

Spirit Tribe Awakening, "Raise Positive Vibrations". 528Hz Positive Energy, Self Healing with 417Hz Solfeggio frequency. Peaceful, empowering and soothing music and nature to nurture your mind, body, and soul. Supporting and empowering you on your life journey."

I can't praise this visually beautiful, and very effective, video enough. In these incredibly highly stressful times, please be kind to yourself and take the time to savor this exquisite work in full screen mode. Headphones suggested but not necessary. It works, as simple as that...

- CP

"A Look to the Heavens"

"Is this what will become of our Milky Way Galaxy? Perhaps if we collide with the Andromeda Galaxy in a few billion years, it might. Pictured below is NGC 7252, a jumble of stars created by a huge collision between two large galaxies. The collision will take hundreds of millions of years and so is effectively caught frozen in time in the above image. The resulting pandemonium has been dubbed the Atoms-for-Peace galaxy because of its similarity to a cartoon of a large atom. 

The above image was taken by the MPG/ESO 2.2 meter telescope in Chile. NGC 7252 spans about 600,000 light years and lies about 220 million light years away toward the constellation of the Water Bearer (Aquarius). Since the sideways velocity of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is presently unknown, no one really knows for sure if the Milky Way will ever collide with M31."

- http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap101116.html