"A Look to the Heavens"

“A now famous picture from the Hubble Space Telescope featured Pillars of Creation, star forming columns of cold gas and dust light-years long inside M16, the Eagle Nebula. This false-color composite image views the nearby stellar nursery using data from the Herschel Space Observatory's panoramic exploration of interstellar clouds along the plane of our Milky Way galaxy. Herschel's far infrared detectors record the emission from the region's cold dust directly. 

The famous pillars are included near the center of the scene. While the central group of hot young stars is not apparent at these infrared wavelengths, the stars' radiation and winds carve the shapes within the interstellar clouds. Scattered white spots are denser knots of gas and dust, clumps of material collapsing to form new stars. The Eagle Nebula is some 6,500 light-years distant, an easy target for binoculars or small telescopes in a nebula rich part of the sky toward the split constellation Serpens Cauda (the tail of the snake).”

- http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160728.html 

"Let Us Not Make Any Mistake About It..."

"We have got some very big problems confronting us and let us not make any mistake about it, human history in the future is fraught with tragedy. It's only through people making a stand against that tragedy and being doggedly optimistic that we are going to win through. If you look at the plight of the human race it could well tip you into despair, so you have to be very strong."

- Robert James Brown

"Chaos Sweeps Across Texas As Panic Buying Frenzy Triggers Massive Food And Fuel Shortages"

Full screen recommended.

"Chaos Sweeps Across Texas As Panic Buying 

Frenzy Triggers Massive Food And Fuel Shortages"

by Epic Economist

"Panic-buying is once again causing ravaging shortages all over Texas, as residents are running to the stores to stockpile essentials and also to gas stations, waiting in mile-long lines, fearing they could be left without fuel for an indeterminate period. The storm's impact is all too similar to the problems faced earlier on the health crisis, when food supply chains broke down all across the country after people started to massively purchase food staples and cleaning products in face of the coming lockdowns.

Now, although power issues have been fixed in most parts of the state, water disruptions and snow and ice-covered roads have impacted the delivery of grocery supplies and gas. Residents are still facing major challenges as this chaotic situation has been lingering for weeks, with several stores and food banks revealing to be in "disaster mode" since food shortages are predicted to extend for much longer than previously expected. That's what we're going to expose in this video.

Last week, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, has finally resumed normal operations, ending a prolonged period of emergency interruptions. But according to PowerOutage.us, at least 58,000 Texans remain without power. And that's not even the most worrying problem the state is facing right now: about 7 million Texas residents are under “boil water” warnings, which means their water isn’t safe to drink without boiling first.

In total, over 14.9 million Texans have been severely affected by disruptions to water systems across the state. The damages registered up until this point have left the state on disaster footing as it still failing to promptly respond to what Austin City Council member Natasha Harper-Madison described in an interview as “a Katrina-scale crisis”. “I’m getting evidence of people’s infrastructure failing - people’s pipes failing, people’s toilets failing, people not having access to water because their homes have flooded,” said Harper-Madison.

According to the Texas Tribune, residents have also been suffering from food shortages, and due to the latest panic-buying spree, empty grocery shelves became a common sight. For weeks, water bottles were nowhere to be found. Even larger chains like H-E-B had no water inventory available across multiple facilities. H-E-B noted that there was a "severe disruption in the food supply chain”. Kroger said it had to temporarily shut down 15 stores across the state since its distribution center remains without power, impacting replenishment.

Moreover, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller sounded a red alert about the food supply chain, revealing that grocery retailers are unable to get dairy product shipments and farmers are dumping milk due to the lack of power on processing plants. "We're looking at a food supply chain problem like we’ve never seen before, even with the health crisis," Miller outlined.

Authorities are underlining that the panic-buying frenzy has been worsening shortages and leaving entire families without enough food. They have been asking residents not to hoard on essentials and to only get what they are going to actually consume. The heightened demand has sent food prices to exorbitant levels, even though Texas outlaws price gouging.

Additionally, across several cities, lines of cars waiting to get into gas stations are stretching for miles. Several gas terminals have either slowed down or rationed distribution, and many stations have started to shut off pumps as panicked consumers have been emptying a month's supply in a short few days. At this moment, one in every seven Texas gas stations is without fuel, and the Lone Star state might need to count on outside help. According to the Texas Food & Fuel Association, the number of gas stations and convenience stores with empty tanks hit 15 percent. For that reason, the association is urging motorists to avoid panic buying because the retail gas system is not prepared for everyone filling up their tanks all at once.

Meanwhile, food banks and pantries have been forced to close as it became impossible for staff and vehicles to get to the distribution centers. With grocery shortages, the suspension of school meal programs, and food bank deliveries interrupted by untreated, treacherous roads, millions of Texans are still in a precarious living situation with dwindling food supplies.

As Texas is still struggling to respond to the scale of the crisis even after weeks, the food supply disruption and widespread gas shortages show how poorly prepared the US is to manage climate crises. Our lack of planning and resilience to handle systemic failures will continue to put millions of lives in jeopardy while our nation dives into a never-ending chaos of economic catastrophes and natural disasters."

- https://www.epiceconomist.com

Gregory Mannarino, PM 3/9/21: "This Market Is Possessed... Literally"

Gregory Mannarino, PM 3/9/21:

"This Market Is Possessed... Literally"

- https://traderschoice.net/ 

The Daily "Near You?"

Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Thanks for stopping by!

"Shaya's Home Run"

"Shaya's Home Run"

by Paysach Krohn

"In Brooklyn, New York, Chush is a school that caters to learning-disabled children. Some children remain in Chush for their entire school careers, while others can be mainstreamed into conventional yeshivos and Bais Yaakovs. There are a few children who attend Chush for most of the week and go to a regular school on Sundays. At a Chush fund-raising dinner, the father of a Chush child delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he cried out, “Where is the perfection in my son Shaya? Everything that Hashem [G-d] does is done with perfection. But my child cannot understand things as other children do. My child cannot remember facts and figures as other children do. Where is Hashem’s perfection?” The audience was shocked by the question, pained by the father’s anguish and stilled by his piercing query.

“I believe,” the father answered, “that when Hashem brings a child like this into the world, the perfection that He seeks is in the way people react to this child.” He then told the following story about his son Shaya. Shaya attends Chush throughout the week and Yeshivah Darchei Torah in Far Rockaway on Sundays. One Sunday afternoon, Shaya and his father came to Darchei Torah as his classmates were playing baseball. The game was in progress and as Shaya and his father made their way towards the ball field, Shaya said, “Do you think you could get me into the game?”

Shaya’s father knew his son was not at all athletic, and that most boys would not want him on their team. But Shaya’s father understood that if his son was chosen in, it would give him a comfortable sense of belonging. Shaya’s father approached one of the boys in the field and asked, “Do you think my Shaya could get into the game?”

The boy looked around for guidance from his teammates. Getting none, he took matters into his own hands and said, “We are losing by six runs and the game is already in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we’ll try to put him up to bat in the ninth inning.” Shaya’s father was ecstatic as Shaya smiled broadly. Shaya was told to put on a glove and go out to play short center field, a position that exists only in softball. There were no protests from the opposing team, which would now be hitting with an extra man in the outfield.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shaya’s team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shaya’s team scored again and now with two outs and the bases loaded and the potential winning runs on base, Shaya was scheduled to be up. Would the team actually let Shaya bat at this juncture and give away their chance to win the game?

Surprisingly, Shaya was told to take a bat and try to get a hit. Everyone knew that it was all but impossible, for Shaya didn’t even know how to hold the bat properly, let alone hit with it. However as Shaya stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so that Shaya should at least be able to make contact.

The first pitch came in and Shaya swung clumsily and missed. One of Shaya’s teammates came up to Shaya and together they held the bat and faced the pitcher waiting for the next pitch. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shaya. As the next pitch came in, Shaya and his teammate swung the bat and together they hit a slow ground ball to the pitcher. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could easily have thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shaya would have been out and that would have ended the game.

Instead, the pitcher took the ball and threw it on a high arc to right field, far and wide beyond the first baseman’s reach. Everyone started yelling, “Shaya, run to first! Shaya, run to first!” Never in his life had Shaya run to first. He scampered down the baseline wide eyed and startled. By the time he reached first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second baseman who would tag out Shaya, who was still running. But the right fielder understood what the pitcher’s intentions were, so he threw the ball high and far over the third baseman’s head, as everyone yelled, “Shaya, run to second! Shaya, run to second.”

Shaya ran towards second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously circled the bases towards home. As Shaya reached second base, the opposing shortstop ran towards him, turned him towards the direction of third base and shouted “Shaya, run to third!”

As Shaya rounded third, the boys from both teams ran behind him screaming, “Shaya, run home! Shaya, run home!” Shaya ran home, stepped on home plate and all 18 boys lifted him on their shoulders and made him the hero, as he had just hit the “grand slam” and won the game for his team.

“That day,” said the father who now had tears rolling down his face, “those 18 boys reached their level of perfection. They showed that it is not only those who are talented that should be recognized, but also those who have less talent. They too are human beings, they too have feelings and emotions, they too are people, they too want to feel important.”

That is the exceptional lesson of this episode. Too often we seek to find favor and give honor to those who have more than us. But there are people who have fewer friends than we, less money, and less prestige. Those people especially need attention and recognition. We should try to achieve the level of perfection in human relationships which the boys on the ball field at Yeshiva Darchei Torah achieved. Because if children can do it, we adults should certainly be able to accomplish it as well."

- http://www.livinglifefully.com/

"If We're Lucky..."

“Maybe we accept the dream has become a nightmare. We tell ourselves that reality is better. We convince ourselves it’s better that we never dream at all. But, the strongest of us, the most determined of us, holds on to the dream or we find ourselves faced with a fresh dream we never considered. We wake to find ourselves, against all odds, feeling hopeful. And, if we’re lucky, we realize in the face of everything, in the face of life the true dream is being able to dream at all.”

- Dr. Meredith Grey, “Grey’s Anatomy”

The Poet: Mary Oliver, "What I Have Learned So Far"

"What I Have Learned So Far"

"Meditation is old and honorable, so why should I

not sit, every morning of my life, on the hillside,

looking into the shining world? Because, properly

attended to, delight, as well as havoc, is suggestion.

Can one be passionate about the just, the

ideal, the sublime, and the holy, and yet commit

to no labor in its cause? I don't think so.

All summations have a beginning, all effect has a

story, all kindness begins with the sown seed.

Thought buds toward radiance. The gospel of

light is the crossroads of- indolence, or action.

Be ignited, or be gone."

~ Mary Oliver

"How It Really Is"

- https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/

"9 Signs That Chess Pieces Are Being Moved Into Place For A Major War In The Middle East"

"9 Signs That Chess Pieces Are Being Moved

Into Place For A Major War In The Middle East"

by Michael Snyder

"The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; 

the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a 

permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists."

- Ernest Hemingway

"The American people are really going to regret putting the warmongers back in control. Joe Biden has been in the White House for less than two months, and the warmongers that Biden has surrounded himself with have been feverishly setting the stage for the next war in the Middle East. I do not believe that it will start within the next week, but I do believe that it is inevitable.

While President Trump was in the White House for four years, the U.S. didn’t start any new conflicts, but now the Biden administration is quite determined to start projecting “American influence” all over the globe once again. Most Americans don’t understand the bigger picture, but the truth is that this is going to have very serious implications over the next few years.

In this article, I would like to examine some of the chess moves that have been made since Joe Biden entered the White House. As you will see, a very troubling picture emerges once you start putting all of the pieces together.

#1 Literally one day after Biden was inaugurated, a massive U.S. military convoy rolled into Syria: "A large US military convoy entered northeastern Syria on Thursday, Syrian state news agency SANA reports, citing sources on the ground. According to the report, the convoy included some 40 trucks and armored vehicles and was backed from the air by helicopters. President Trump had tried very hard to disengage from the war in Syria, but Biden has made it crystal clear that the U.S. will be heavily involved in that conflict moving forward."

#2 Just a few weeks later, Joe Biden conducted his first airstrike against Iranian-backed forces inside Syria: "The US has carried out an air strike targeting Iran-backed militias in Syria, in the first military action undertaken by the Biden administration. The Pentagon said the strike destroyed “multiple facilities” and was ordered in response to attacks against US and coalition personnel in Iraq. Militia officials said one person had been killed but a war monitor reported at least 22 fatalities."

#3 Of course it was inevitable that Iranian-backed forces would respond, and they retaliated by launching rockets at a military base in Iraq where U.S. forces are stationed. Just a couple days ago, new Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that there will be a U.S. military response “at a time and place of our own choosing”: "Defense Sec. Lloyd Austin tells @MarthaRaddatz the U.S. is still assessing who carried out recent rocket attack on base in Iraq housing U.S. troops - and that if the U.S. decides to respond, it will be “at a time and place of our own choosing.”

#4 More U.S. airstrikes may come sooner rather than later. In fact, it is being reported that the U.S. has just sent six B-52 bombers to Diego Garcia: "The U.S. Air Force is sending six B-52 Stratofortress bombers to Diego Garcia, a military hub that acts as a strategic location for operations in both the Middle East and the Pacific. Citing a U.S. official, CNN on Monday reported that the Cold War-era bomber will be “available for operations against Iran if ordered.”

#5 The Biden administration is also sending approximately 10,000 more U.S. troops to the Middle East: "Once the amphibious assault ship Bataan, which is moving toward the Middle East, arrives, the U.S. will have added roughly 10,000 personnel to the area within the last week, according to The Wall Street Journal."

#6 Russia has been busy making moves in the region as well. On Friday, Russia conducted an air strike on an oil-loading facility in Syria that is used by opposition forces that are backed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Biden administration: "A suspected missile strike on an oil-loading facility used by Turkey-backed opposition forces in northern Syria sparked a massive blaze across a large area where oil tankers are normally parked, aerial and satellite images show.

Syrian opposition groups and at least one war monitor blamed Russia for the strike Friday night near the towns of Jarablus and al-Bab, near the border with Turkey. In a report, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Britain, said Russian warships in the Mediterranean had fired three missiles that struck primitive oil refineries and tanker trucks in the region."

#7 Meanwhile, Israel continues to hit strategically important targets inside Syria on a regular basis. The following comes from a news report that was published in late February: "Syrian air defenses were activated in the capital Damascus and its southern suburbs Sunday night to repel an Israeli missile attack, state media reported. There was no word on casualties. State TV quoted an unnamed military official as saying that most of the Israeli missiles were shot down before reaching their targets near Damascus."

#8 Israel is particularly interested in keeping Iran from developing nuclear weapons. In an interview with Fox News, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz just stated that Israel is ready to attack Iran without any U.S. help: "The Israeli military is updating plans to strike Iranian nuclear sites and is prepared to act independently, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz told Fox News. Israel has identified numerous targets inside Iran that would hurt its ability to develop a nuclear bomb. “If the world stops them before, it’s very much good. But if not, we must stand independently and we must defend ourselves by ourselves,” Gantz said in his first sit-down interview with an American outlet."

#9 During a phone call last Thursday between Kamala Harris and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister made it exceedingly clear that his nation is ready to do whatever it takes to prevent the Iranians from developing their own nukes: “The prime minister said we would continue to strengthen our intelligence and security cooperation and said during their conversation that as prime minister of Israel, he is totally committed to preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons that are meant for our destruction.”

Of course the Iranians have no plans to back down, and that makes a military conflict between Israel and Iran inevitable. There will be war in the Middle East, and the horror of that conflict will shock the entire planet. And once that war begins, it will greatly accelerate our economic problems and the ongoing political turmoil in this country. So enjoy this brief period of relative stability while you can, because our world is about to start changing in dramatic ways."

- https://www.zerohedge.com/

MUST WATCH! "Bank Meltdown Coming To America And Will Lead To An Apocalyptic End Game"

Full screen recommended.

"Bank Meltdown Coming To America And

 Will Lead To An Apocalyptic End Game"

by Epic Economist

"A dramatic bank meltdown might soon occur as the economic fallout of the health crisis has greatly shaken global financial stability. America has fallen into such a steep recession that previous crises now look like "good times". Up until this point, over 70 million jobless claims were registered, and at least 10% of the entire U.S. workforce remains unemployed. The amount of debt accumulated by households and businesses all across the country has made banks record roughly $1 trillion in losses, with hundreds of billions more forecasted. Simply put, the U.S. bank system is on the verge of disaster, and mounting difficulties could spark a bank collapse that is likely to push America even deeper into the economic meltdown. That's what we're going to expose in this video.

The challenges ahead are complex and the path is uncertain. Unemployment rates largely exceeded Great Depression levels, hundreds of thousands of businesses have permanently closed, and over 25 percent of small businesses predict declaring bankruptcy in the next six months. Industries such as oil and gas, travel, and retail, were the hardest-hit by the recession and are likely to be completely restructured. For its part, banks were affected by record-low interest rates and a flattened yield curve, which means net interest income has significantly declined. Credit losses are expected to exceed $1 trillion. And the effects of it will extend over many years, perhaps more than a decade.

American banks are burdened with a staggering amount of credit losses. According to experts with the management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, credit losses may range from $400 billion to $1 trillion between 2020 and 2024, and net interest income may decline by up to $200 billion from its 2019 baseline, considerably compromising revenues over the next 18 months, and possibly sparking a widespread bank collapse.

Consequently, loan, securities, and derivatives portfolios are likely to face extreme downward pressures, setting the stage for a banking collapse particularly considering that several other sources of bank income have already started to dry up. After the previous financial crisis of 2007-08, policymakers tried to improve a series of safeguard measures to reduce the chances of instability in the banking system, which have contributed to the initial resilience seen on the system at the beginning of the current recession.

Some banking sectors, such as shadow banking, however, needed immediate government intervention. The Federal Reserve, then implemented extraordinary emergency measures, including stimulus plans, tax rebates, and record low-interest rates, in an effort to prevent total collapse, since the entire economy was at stake. But as we have repeatedly discussed in this channel, very quickly things spiraled out of control, and the primary response to the issues brought on by the health crisis was the issuance of more and more liquidity.

If policies aren't reversed and borrowers become massively delinquent on their loans, the potential bank meltdown will affect several other financial institutions, such as pension funds, mutual funds, and insurance companies. Some experts argue that the banking collapse will be fueled by banks greed to make more profits no matter what. Before the health crisis ever started, bankers were repeating the same mistakes they did during the previous financial crisis.

We are seeing the exact same scenario, but the unexpected arrival of a ravaging health crisis added a twist bankers and bondholders couldn't see it coming. Suddenly, a large chunk of the population and countless businesses lost their ability to meet their loan payments, and so far have accumulated over $40 billion in rental and mortgage debt. The same that happened before is happening once again right now: the subprime mortgage market is becoming a ticking bomb, ready to explode at any time.

The credit crunch will then affect businesses' and individuals' ability to financially recover. It can impact entire cities, as major urban centers are witnessing a commercial real estate collapse, and municipal bonds are used to used to fund cities' maintenance, colleges, and hospitals. Every aspect of the economy will be on the hook. And the higher interest rates go, the lower will be borrowers' ability to meet their late payments, which will result in more defaults, and worsen the current recession. To put it another way, a bank collapse is only a matter of time, and it will create a financial tsunami that will jeopardize America's recovery and growth for years and years."

- https://www.epiceconomist.com

○

Related:

"Global Derivatives Market Now Valued at $1.14 Quadrillion!"

"The Bank of International Settlements, which seems to be the only institution that tracks the derivatives market, has recently reported that global outstanding derivatives have reached 1.14 quadrillion dollars: $548 Trillion in listed credit derivatives plus $596 trillion in notional/OTC derivatives. Yes, that is Quadrillion. One and 15 zeroes!

Derivatives, as you may know, are essentially unregulated, high-risk credit bets. Unlike the earnest farmer who might employ a futures contract to hedge the price of the beans he’s worked so hard to grow, many of today’s institutions use futures, forwards, options, swaps, swaptions, caps, collars and floors - any kind of leverage device they can cook up - to bet the hell out of virtually anything. (While earning fat commissions for doing so. - CP)

What drives derivatives, at their very roots (if you can somehow get back that far), are base assets that get leveraged to a demented degree. Martin Mayer writing for the Brookings Institute, said, “the receiver of the payments on these loans or securities has bought the securities for the duration of the swap on 95% margin, even though the law says nobody can buy securities without putting up half the price.”

Please view this complete article here:

- https://news.goldcore.com/

○

This is what the psychopaths have done.

This isn't a tsunami.

This horror is a margin call supernova of absolutely total obliteration.

"Abandon Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here" indeed...

"System Is Collapsing - Get Out; Market Meltup; Time Is A Valuable Asset; Don’t Prepare, Watch Oprah"

Jeremiah Babe,

"System Is Collapsing - Get Out; Market Meltup;

Time Is A Valuable Asset; Don’t Prepare, Watch Oprah" 

"The American Rescue Plan"

"The American Rescue Plan"

by Brian Maher

"Today the sun glows brighter...The air is crisper, the grass grows greener, the birds chirp louder. There is more joy in heaven…For rescue is at hand.

On Saturday, the United States Senate passed Mr. Biden’s $1.9 trillion “stimulus” package - the American Rescue Plan by title. Tomorrow it ships to the House of Representatives… where passage is certain… then on to America’s rescue. Individuals collaring under $75,000 per year will receive $1,400 giveaways. Married couples collaring under $150,000 will receive the identical $1,400. But should you think the rescuing is limited to pandemic relief… please have another guess.

What About the Other $1.45 Trillion? “The government” would spend roughly $435 billion to slip a $1,400 cheque in every American wallet. Yet the American Rescue Plan does not spend $435 billion. The American Rescue Plan spends $1.9 trillion. The Washington Post informs us this legislation “showers money on Americans, sharply cutting poverty...”Why previous administrations did not sharply cut poverty by showering money on Americans… we do not pretend to know. But President Biden insists we must “act big.” Act big we will.

What extravaganzas account for the remaining $1.45 trillion of America’s rescue plan? Jim Rickards: "COVID relief sounds like something that's badly needed and most Americans support it. But, that's not what this bill is. Only about $200 billion of the $1.9 trillion goes directly for COVID-type assistance in terms of public health, vaccine distribution, testing and aid to hospitals and other public health facilities. The rest goes for a wish list of Democratic welfare spending.

Which includes: An extra $300 per week in unemployment benefits (that's $15,000 per year on top of usual benefits), a tax exemption for the first $10,200 in unemployment benefits (which increases their value by 24%)... a $3,600 fully refundable tax credit for children under 6-years old and $3,000 per child if they're under 17, up to $8,000 in child-care tax credits, Obamacare subsidies, converting the earned income tax credit into a pure tax credit whether you have income or not and much more."

Towards Guaranteed Basic Income and an Expanded Entitlement State: Have you no compassion, Jim? One can debate the equities of each of these policies. But, they have nothing to do with COVID or public health. This is a huge leap in the direction of guaranteed basic income and an expanded entitlement state. Jim’s suspicions are our suspicions.

A fellow grows accustomed to his government cheques. He bellyaches mightily if he stops receiving them. And he registers his distress in the voting booth. Vox correspondent Dylan Matthews: "Cash’s bipartisan popularity, and its ability to muster large-scale public interest and support, suggests that the future might involve a lot more policies like checks — even when the pandemic has passed. Covid-19, in other words, may have done what years of basic income advocacy could not do on its own..."

What politician is unwilling to reach into a man’s left pocket… seize his cash... and sink it into the right pocket? The poor fellow fails to notice the transfer.

40% of the Entire Budget From Two Years Ago: The federal government ladled out $4.4 trillion in 2019. The American Rescue package costs a walloping 40% of that total. And the year is youthful. Trillions in additional spending will come hemorrhaging by year’s end. Jim: "With the ink not yet dry on the new spending, congressional leaders are already planning a new multi-trillion dollar deficit spending package to be passed later this year, probably by August... The details are still being debated, but some suggestions include a $4 trillion spending package paid for with $2 trillion of tax increases and $2 trillion of new deficits financed with borrowings."

Is additional narcotic the cure for a narcotics addiction? Does a man trim his waistline by doubling, tripling - quadrupling - his calories? Does the same man attain wealth by purchasing $5 of goods for each $1 he hauls in? We find very little evidence that he would… and much evidence that he would not. Nor are we convinced that the government - millions of men chained together - is different. Yet our position is the uneducated position, say the spenders.

Debt Is Wealth: The government runs by an alternate accounting, they insist. Government accounting is not the accounting of the household. The household must balance its books. The federal government does not. Each borrowed dollar the printing press spits settles in somebody’s hand, a private hand. The fellow who catches it throws it at this gewgaw or that gimcrack. The gewgaw peddler or gimcrack peddler proceeds to throw it at the restaurateur… who throws it at the automobile salesman. On this dollar goes into the next hand and the next hand after that one.

And so this borrowed dollar takes a fantastic journey through the economic highways, through the economic byways. It enriches every hand it touches. It performs heroic duties. Thus the public debt is a private blessing. That is what the wiseacres tell us. This is what they often neglect to tell us: The borrowed dollar must be repaid - with a bit of interest into the bargain.

Stick ‘em Up! As we have argued and argued again: Government claims no resources of its own. It corrals money in one of two ways. Here is the first: It presses a pistol against the citizen’s ribs… and plunders his wallet. Here is the second: It takes to the credit markets, sinks to its knees, and extends an empty cup.

But even if the government borrows, the pistol goes against the ribs. Recall, the citizen must pay taxes to service the borrowing. And how - again - does the government take in taxes? In both instances, the pistol comes out… and the citizen puts his hands up. In days such as these, we might recall the timeless principles of economics…

The Light: Here is Henry Hazlitt from his masterly primer on economics, "Economics in One Lesson": Everywhere government spending is presented as a panacea for all our economic ills. Is private industry partially stagnant? We can fix it all by government spending. Is there unemployment? That is obviously due to “insufficient private purchasing power.” The remedy is just as obvious. All that is necessary is for the government to spend enough to make up the “deficiency”…

Here we shall have to say simply that all government expenditures must eventually be paid out of die proceeds of taxation; that to put off the evil day merely increases the problem… Once we look at the matter in this way, the supposed miracles of government spending will appear in another light."

But who will look into this light? Not Democrats… certainly. And Republicans only view the light when Democrats direct the show. When in the director’s seat, Republicans spend grandly, magnificently, lavishly. Their vision suddenly fails them. Our vision detects another light, presently hoving into view. It is the headlight of the steam locomotive barreling down the rails…

Runaway Train: The locomotive is the nation’s debt. It is careening for $30 trillion… $35 trillion… $45 trillion. Meantime, the economy is sweating and panting dreadfully. It is struggling to outrace the thing. This hulking menace adds speed with every additional dollar of debt... another shovelful of coal into the boilers. But the economy bleeds speed with every additional dollar of debt... creaking and groaning under the impossible weight... frantically piling up more and more debt… shedding more and more speed... The onrushing light grows brighter by the day. One question remains in our estimation - which we cannot yet answer: When is the inevitable crack-up?"

- dailyreckoning.com

○

Freely download "Economics in One Lesson", by Henry Hazlitt, here:

- https://www.liberalstudies.ca/

Gregory Mannarino, Post-Market 3/8/21 "More Updates Plus! ALERT: Watch For Another BIGGER "Attack" On An Oil Facility"

Gregory Mannarino, Post-Market 3/8/21:

"More Updates Plus! ALERT: 

Watch For Another BIGGER "Attack" On An Oil Facility"

- https://traderschoice.net/

Musical Interlude: Deuter, "Sea and Silence"

Deuter, "Sea and Silence"

"A Look to the Heavens"

"Would the Rosette Nebula by any other name look as sweet? The bland New General Catalog designation of NGC 2237 doesn't appear to diminish the appearance of this flowery emission nebula, at the top of the image, atop a long stem of glowing hydrogen gas. Inside the nebula lies an open cluster of bright young stars designated NGC 2244. 

These stars formed about four million years ago from the nebular material and their stellar winds are clearing a hole in the nebula's center, insulated by a layer of dust and hot gas. Ultraviolet light from the hot cluster stars causes the surrounding nebula to glow. The Rosette Nebula spans about 100 light-years across, lies about 5000 light-years away, and can be seen with a small telescope towards the constellation of the Unicorn (Monoceros)."

- https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210214.html

Chet Raymo, "Why We Need Poets"

"Why We Need Poets"

by Chet Raymo

"The poet Jane Hirshfield referred in a poem to the number of atoms it takes to make a butterfly. Ten to the 24th power, I think she said. I thought I'd check it out. A typical butterfly might weigh about half a gram. The exact ratio of elements I don't know, but mostly hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen. Let's assume an atomic weight of ten for a typical atom; that is, an atom with ten nuclear particles (Hydrogen=1, carbon= 12, oxygen=16, and so on). A proton or neutron has a weight of about 1.6 X 10-24 grams. About 3 X 1022 atoms in a butterfly.

If I'm remembering Hirshfield's reference correctly (and I may not be), we are off by one or two orders of magnitude. No matter. It's a very big number. You want to make a butterfly? You will need 30,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 atoms. And every one in exactly the right place.

Now consider the miracle of metamorphosis. The caterpillar builds a chrysalis. Wraps itself up in its closet. And there, in the privacy of its self-sufficiency, it rearranges those arrangements of atoms. The caterpillar's six stumpy front feet are turned into the butterfly's slender legs. Four wings develop, as do reproductive organs. Chewing mouthparts become adapted for sucking. A crawling, insatiable, leaf-eater is transformed into a winged, sex-obsessed nectar sipper.

This is why we need poets. It's one thing to count atoms, or draw diagrams of the 22 amino acids, or suss out their sequence on the long chains that are the proteins. Or read out the genome that controls the machinery that turns a creeping leaf-cruncher into a winged angel. But all that biochemistry, as wonderful as it is, leaves the essential mystery intact. The hum. The unceasing hum that is life. The inextinguishable continuity. Sing, poets. Sing your hosannas."

- http://blog.sciencemusings.com/

The Poet: Mary Oliver, "Can You Imagine?"

"Can You Imagine?"

"For example, what the trees do

not only in lightning storms

or the watery dark of a summer's night

or under the white nets of winter

but now, and now, and now - whenever

we're not looking. Surely you can't imagine

they don't dance, from the root up, wishing

to travel a little, not cramped so much as wanting

a better view, or more sun, or just as avidly

more shade - surely you can't imagine they just

stand there loving every

minute of it, the birds or the emptiness, the dark rings

of the years slowly and without a sound

thickening, and nothing different unless the wind,

and then only in its own mood, comes

to visit, surely you can't imagine

patience, and happiness, like that."

- Mary Oliver, "Long Life"

Paulo Coelho, "Walking the Path"

"Walking the Path"

by Paulo Coelho

"I reckon that it takes about three minutes to read my text. Well, according to statistics, in that same short period of time 300 people will die and another 620 will be born. It takes me perhaps half an hour to write a text: here I sit, concentrating on my computer, books piled up beside me, ideas in my head, the scenery passing by outside my window. Everything seems perfectly normal all around me; and yet, during these thirty minutes, 3,000 people have died and 6,200 have just seen the light of the world for the first time.

Where are all those thousands of families who have just begun to weep over the loss of some dear one, or else laugh at the arrival of a son, grandson or brother? I stop and reflect for a while: perhaps many of these deaths are reaching the end of a long, painful sickness, and some persons are relieved that the Angel has come for them. Besides these, in all certainty hundreds of children who have just been born will be abandoned in a minute and transferred to the death statistics before I finish this text.

What a thought! A simple statistic that I came upon by chance and all of a sudden I can feel all those losses and encounters, smiles and tears. How many are leaving this life, alone in their rooms, without anyone realizing what is going on? How many will be born in secret, only to be abandoned at the door of shelters or convents? And then I reflect that I was part of the birth statistics and one day I will be included in the toll of the dead. How good that is to be fully aware that I am going to die. Ever since I took the road to Santiago I have understood that although life goes on and we are eternal, one day this existence will come to an end.

People think very little about death. They spend their lives worried about really absurd things, putting things off and leaving important moments aside. They risk nothing because they believe that is dangerous. They grumble a lot, but act like cowards when it is time to take certain steps. They want everything to change, but they themselves refuse to change. If they thought a little more about death, they would never fail to make that telephone call that they have been putting off. They would be a little more crazy. They would not be afraid of the end of this incarnation because you cannot be afraid of something that is going to happen anyway.

The Indians say: "Today is as good a day as any other to leave this world." And a sorcerer once remarked: "May death be always sitting beside you. That way, when you have to do something important, it will give you the strength and courage you need." I hope, reader, that you have accompanied me this far. It would be silly to let the subject scare you, because sooner or later we are all going to die. And only those who accept this are prepared for life."

- http://paulocoelhoblog.com/

○

"We're all going to die. We don't get much say over how or when, but we do get to decide how we're gonna live. So, do it. Decide. Is this the life you want to live? Is this the person you want to love? Is this the best you can be? Can you be stronger? Kinder? More compassionate? Decide. Breathe in. Breathe out and decide."

- "Richard", "Grey's Anatomy"

The Daily "Near You?"

Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania, USA. Thanks for stopping by!