"As The Global Energy Crisis Explodes, They Are Warning That Heating Bills Will Be Extremely Painful This Winter"

"As The Global Energy Crisis Explodes, They Are

 Warning That Heating Bills Will Be Extremely Painful This Winter"

by Michael Snyder

"Whether you like it or not, a major global energy crisis is here, and it is going to hit all of us right in the wallet. Today, markets for energy are truly global, and that means that price spikes in one part of the planet will inevitably filter elsewhere. For example, a lot of natural gas that is produced in the United States is now heading for Europe, and that is pushing up prices here. As energy supplies get tighter and tighter, power bills are going to go higher and higher. In fact, the U.S. government is now warning American citizens to expect heating bills to rise more than 50 percent this winter. Needless to say, a lot of families out there simply cannot afford that.

For a while, the mainstream media was trying to deny what was happening, but now they are openly using the term “energy crisis” to describe what we are facing. Here is one example…"Far from emerging from the COVID shock awash with fuel, as might be expected after an economic slowdown, the world is entering a new energy crisis the like of which hasn’t been seen since the 1970s. European and Asian gas prices are at an all-time high, the oil price is at a three-year high, and the price of coal is soaring on the back of energy shortages across China, India and Germany."

Global demand for energy is only going to increase in the months ahead. Summer just ended a few weeks ago, and the middle of winter is still months away. So if you think that things are bad now, just wait until we get into early 2022.

At this point, even CNN is admitting the truth… "Astronomical increases in natural gas prices. Skyrocketing coal costs. Predictions of $100 oil. A global energy crunch caused by weather and a resurgence in demand is getting worse, stirring alarm ahead of the winter, when more energy is needed to light and heat homes. Governments around the world are trying to limit the impact on consumers, but acknowledge they may not be able to prevent bills spiking."

So exactly what kind of “spiking” are we talking about? Well, this week the federal government announced that it is now projecting that heating bills for U.S. consumers will be 54 percent higher this winter… "Get ready to pay sharply higher bills for heating this winter, along with seemingly everything else. With prices surging worldwide for heating oil, natural gas and other fuels, the U.S. government said Wednesday it expects households to see their heating bills jump as much as 54% compared to last winter."

Actually, if heating bills only go up by 54 percent this winter I think that we will be extremely fortunate. Many believe that they will shoot up a lot higher than that, because energy prices here in the U.S. have already been going completely nuts… "Natural gas in the United States, for example, has climbed to its highest price since 2014 and is up roughly 90% over the last year. The wholesale price of heating oil, meanwhile, has more than doubled in the last 12 months."

Another reason for the rise is how global the market for fuels has become. In Europe, strong demand and limited supplies have sent natural gas prices up nearly 350% this year. That’s pushing some of the natural gas produced in the United States to head for ships bound for other countries, adding upward pressure on domestic prices as well.

I know what a lot of you are thinking. Millions of families are not going to be able to afford these price increases, and that is going to cause widespread financial hardship. Even before this new energy crisis erupted, a large portion of the U.S. population had to “forego expenses for basic necessities” in order to pay their power bills… "To make ends meet, families are cutting deeply. Nearly 22% of Americans had to reduce or forego expenses for basic necessities, such as medicine or food, to pay an energy bill in at least one of the last 12 months, according to a September survey by the U.S. Census Bureau. Despite all of the money that the federal government has thrown at people over the past couple of years, much of the nation is still deeply suffering."

According to another recent survey, close to 40 percent of all U.S. households “have faced serious financial problems” within the past several months… "Nearly 40% of US households have faced serious financial problems, including struggling to afford medical care and food, in the last few months, according to a survey published on Tuesday.

The survey by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health also showed that in those last few months, as the US struggled to contain the infectious Delta coronavirus variant, the percentage of households reporting serious financial problems rose to 59% when they had an income under $50,000 a year."

Normally, a number like that would indicate that unemployment is rampant. But as I discussed the other day, the U.S. is actually in the midst of an epic shortage of workers right now. If you want a job, you can go out and get one. Of course the vast majority of the jobs that are available are very low paying jobs, and rampant inflation is devaluing the wages paid to such workers a little bit more with each passing day.

On Wednesday, we learned that on a year-over-year basis inflation is rising at the fastest pace in 30 years… "Consumer prices increased slightly more than expected in September as food and energy price rises offset declines in used cars, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. The consumer price index for all items rose 0.4% for the month, compared with the 0.3% Dow Jones estimate. On a year-over-year basis, prices increased 5.4% versus the estimate for 5.3% and the highest since January 1991."

Needless to say, the official government numbers greatly understate the real rate of inflation. According to John Williams of shadowstats.com, if inflation was still calculated the way it was in 1980, the official rate of inflation would be well into double digits at this point. And now this new energy crisis is going to make things even worse. Virtually everything that we buy has to be physically transported, and now shipping stuff around the country is going to become significantly more expensive.

In my last two books I specifically warned that inflation would spin wildly out of control, and now it is happening right in front of our eyes. The experts are telling us that this is going to be a really cold winter, and a lot of American families are going to be forced to make some very difficult choices. Many will decide to keep their thermostats uncomfortably low, but as long as the power stays on most of us will make it through the coming months okay.

The real danger would come if we start having blackouts like other parts of the globe are already experiencing. As we witnessed in Texas last winter, the loss of power for an extended period of time during a cold stretch can have absolutely disastrous consequences."

- http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/

The Poet: Theodore Roethke, “The Return”

“The Return”

“Suddenly the window will open

and Mother will call,

it's time to come in.

The wall will part,

I will enter heaven in muddy shoes.

I will come to the table

and answer questions rudely.

I am all right, leave me

alone. Head in hand I

sit and sit. How can I tell them

about that long

and tangled way?

Here in heaven mothers

knit green scarves;

flies buzz.

Father dozes by the stove

after six days' labor.

No - surely I can't tell them

that people are at each

other's throats.”

- Theodore Roethke

Viktor Frankl, "Life Changing Quotes" ("Man's Search For Meaning")

Full screen recommended.

Viktor Frankl, "Life Changing Quotes" ("Man's Search For Meaning")

"Viktor Emil Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist as well as a Holocaust survivor. Frankl was the founder of the logotherapy method and is most notable for his best-selling book Man's Search for Meaning."

Freely download "Mans Search For Meaning", by Viktor Frankl, here:

- https://www.booksfree.org/

○

Highest recommendation:

"Yes to Life, in Spite of Everything: Viktor Frankl’s Lost Lectures on Moving 

Beyond Optimism and Pessimism to Find the Deepest Source of Meaning"

"Cash Crucial During Collapse; Serious Financial Problems Afflict Millions; Dangerous Trends - Prepare"

Jeremiah Babe, PM 10/13/21:

"Cash Crucial During Collapse; Serious Financial 

Problems Afflict Millions; Dangerous Trends - Prepare"

"Americans Are Going To Be Absolutely Shocked By The Empty Shelves That They See"

Full Screen Recommended.

"Americans Are Going To Be Absolutely 

Shocked By The Empty Shelves That They See"

by Epic Economist

"Many Americans thought things would be getting back on track by now, but instead what we have is an economy plagued by rampant inflation and broken supply chains. For months, industry experts have been alerting about the worsening supply chain crisis but our leaders underestimated the severity of the problem, and now US consumers are about to get absolutely shocked by the shortages they see.

Instead of announcing a resolution, the White House just openly admitted that there will be significant shortages this holiday season and warned that supply chain problems aren't going to get better anytime soon. Most Americans have never experienced such extensive shortages, and it's safe to say that the younger generation never even dreamed that they were possible. After all, we're the richest country on the planet -- not only in wealth but also in resources.

However, as problems have been overlooked despite the series of warnings that have been made, the worst is yet to come. And the painful shortages and price increases we have gone through so far were just the beginning. The White House would ordinarily try to spin any negative story to make it positive, but there's nothing they can say to hide the fact that there are widespread shortages all over the country. And at this point, even the mainstream media is commenting on the government's lack of action to tackle this crisis.

According to the Daily Mail, White House officials are "warning American shoppers that they won't be able to get key items like popular kids toys for Christmas due to the ongoing supply chain nightmares that are strangling retail stores". When the corporate media starts to pay attention to our real issues, we know that things are already getting out of hand. In fact, the report even says that "stores across the country are becoming increasingly barren thanks to a series of bottlenecks in the global supply chain". And that "White House officials warned that Americans will face higher prices and empty shelves this holiday season".

Right now, many goods that are manufactured in China, such as toys, appliances, and clothes, are stuck either in Chinese factories or in containers onboard gigantic cargo ships that are waiting for a berth. The unprecedented port congestion has created a nightmare economic scenario where it has become impossible to meet the rising demand even though there's supply available, which is driving inflation and in turn raising prices for US consumers.

"President Biden did not comment on the issues at length, nor has he offered a solution for them. Earlier this year, he created a task force to tackle the issue, but so far they are yet to present a plan to fix the issues, the report highlighted. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve predicted an inflation spike of 4.2%, well above its 2% target. American consumers, unused to empty store shelves, may need to be flexible and patient, White House officials said.

"Major food and consumer product manufacturers being short of supply on some items will be a challenge in the grocery industry in the final months of the year," said Steve Howard, vice president of merchandising at Bristol Farms, a grocery chain in California. He revealed that his suppliers are warning about shortages of foods, glass jars, and packaging containers.

Some food brands have started imposing restrictions, or purchase caps, for certain products on grocery stores and distributors, while other vendors are warning of limited availability and dwindling inventory levels. These purchase limits could be particularly challenging for independent grocers, who have raised concerns in the past year that suppliers prioritize larger competitors over small stores. That's why at a local level, shortages can be way more severe than at huge supermarkets. However, big retailers are not immune from restrictions and scarcity.

The enormous backlog of containers awaiting berth at the ports of L.A. and Long Beach is causing major headaches for suppliers, shipping companies, and retailers. As a result, the cost of shipping is reaching absurd heights. Nationwide, more than 100,000 containers are waiting to get unpacked. But due to a massive worker shortage, it could take months until the congestion eases. These are such turbulent times, and much more turbulence is on the way. This is already the most dramatic supply chain collapse in modern history, and it's safe to say that more disruptions are just around the corner."

- https://www.epiceconomist.com

"Doug Casey on Why the US Is Headed into Its Fourth Turning"

"Doug Casey on Why the US Is Headed into Its Fourth Turning"

by International Man

"International Man: The economic, political, social, and cultural situation seems to have become increasingly volatile in the United States and more broadly in the West. Is this a unique situation or part of a recurring historical cycle? Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe introduced a popular theory in their book, "The Fourth Turning", outlining the recurring generational cycles that have occurred throughout American history. What are your thoughts?

Doug Casey: I read Strauss and Howe’s first book, "Generations," when it came out back in 1992. I thought it was brilliant. Let me start off by recommending both "Generations" and "The Fourth Turning" to everybody. Both books offer quite a scholarly, readable, and prescient view of the cyclicality of history. And offer a very plausible forecast for the 2020s.

History’s best seen as cyclical, rather than a straight-line progress to some preordained end the way both the Marxists and the Abrahamic religions see it. But then, Ecclesiastes has its famous quote that there’s nothing new under the sun. Plato in the Republic talks about how the younger generation - and we’re talking fourth century BC - can’t stand up to the moral values of their forefathers.

Older people have always thought that the younger generation wouldn’t quite measure up. In recent American history, you’ll recall, the younger generation were the beatniks in the ’50s, the hippies in the ’60s, and the yuppies in the ’80s—so it’s a passing parade. Older people have a tendency to think the world is going downhill. Nothing new there. But there’s always a rebirth.

Niccolò Machiavelli, in his "Florentine Histories," said: "Virtue gives birth to tranquility, tranquility to leisure, leisure to disorder, disorder to ruin… and similarly from ruin, order is born, from order virtue, from virtue, glory and good fortune."

The bottom line is that societies arise from poverty through moral strength - and that brings them prosperity. But that prosperity brings on arrogance, and the arrogance brings on laziness, which brings on weakness and moral decline. Then they’re reduced to a condition of slavery and poverty again. Change is the only constant - except in human nature.

As I look at the United States, it seems to me the peak of American culture was the time just before Teddy Roosevelt came into office. Teddy is certainly among the top five worst presidents. And there’s plenty of competition for that title. He was the first real "progressive" president; he wanted the government actively involved in all areas of life.

Now, that’s not to say that Teddy Roosevelt wouldn’t have been a really great drinking pal, a wonderful guy to go camping with, a fun guy to have an intellectual conversation with. He had a lot of admirable personal values. But he was a nationalist, a statist, and a warmonger. That’s why I say he was a horrible president.

The long-term trend of US overseas imperialism started with the Spanish–American War and the building of an overseas American empire in Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Hawaii - followed by World War I. The US has gone from being noninterventionist to now having many hundreds of bases around the world and trying to give orders to every other country in the world. That kind of arrogance always ends badly.

As a civilization - a culture - the US has been on an accelerating path downhill for about 120 years now. That’s true even while science and technology have greatly increased the general standard of living. It’s a mistake to conflate a higher standard of living with higher moral values - that’s what Machiavelli was talking about.

I question whether that trend will change - at least until we have a genuine crisis. Why not? Because a lot of the way a society acts comes from the way kids are brought up - the values that are inculcated in them when they’re young. And increasingly, kids are taught what I would call the wrong values. Saint Ignatius said this in the 17th century, and Lenin repeated it in the 20th century. They both said that if you indoctrinate someone in his youth, chances are you’ve directed his worldview for the rest of his life.

Cultural Marxists are now totally in control of the US educational system, and have been for a couple of generations. That’s absolutely the case in the colleges and universities but also in the high schools and even in the grade schools. Kids are being taught to be socialists, ecowarriors, social justice warriors, and "woke" from an early age. It’s really serious. And it’s not a cyclical phenomenon. This is one of the few areas in which I take some issue with The Fourth Turning. The trend towards collectivism and statism seems to be a secular long-term trend that’s still accelerating.

There are a few bright spots. Libertarians, for instance, are somewhat more prominent than in the past. But the fact that libertarians believe in personal freedom, in the face of a societal trend in the opposite direction, makes me tend to believe they’re actually genetic mutants. They’re just a small percentage of the population, whose nature has resisted the prevailing nurture.

I say that, only partially because of my own experience. I grew up in what could - jokingly - be called a cannibalistic death cult and was imbued with all kinds of strange notions by nuns and priests at the schools that I went to. I rejected them intuitively and intellectually, but they still stick to you like tar. It can take years to wash off the effects of early indoctrination.

I’m more of a maverick than most people are, however. Most just continue to believe what they’re taught as kids, reflexively and automatically - right or wrong. So I don’t think there’s really much hope of a serious change in the direction of American culture. At least until a major crisis - and the outcome of that is in doubt.

International Man: OK. That’s the long-term trend. Where are we in the generational cycle now? Are we moving into the fourth turning and headed for a crisis?

Doug Casey: Strauss and Howe take a cyclical point of view over the course of roughly 80 years, four generations. To very briefly summarize their theory, there are four "turnings": a "high," an "awakening," an "unraveling," and a "crisis."

Over the last couple of decades, we’ve been undergoing the unraveling, where old values fall apart. Next, Strauss and Howe predicted a crisis, starting about 2015, which tests the very existence of the society. Or at least the way it’s run. They go beyond seeing generations as being simply "liberal" or "conservative." According to Strauss and Howe, there are four generational archetypes that last over a cycle of 80 years - 20 years per generation - corresponding to the "turnings."

Without going into all the details, they see the baby boomers as being a "Prophet" Generation. The authors are ideologically oriented - fire and brimstone types - very much like Bernie Sanders on the left and Donald Trump on the right. Kind of biblically apocalyptic by nature. They were quite correct in defining the Generation X types as the so-called "Nomad" Generation. These are kids who learned to take care of themselves - and are not so ideological in the way they think.

The Millennials are who are relevant at the moment. They correspond, in Strauss and Howe’s view, to the World War II generation. They’d be the frontline soldiers in the coming crisis and conflicts.

International Man: What happens after a crisis? Is there a positive way forward?

Doug Casey: Historically, the answer is, "Almost never" - in the short run. The best recent example is the French Revolution. It got worse with Robespierre - a Bernie Sanders of the era - followed by Napoleon. Or take the case of the Russian revolution. As necessary as it was to get rid of Nicholas II, it got worse with Lenin, and then it got even worse with Stalin. But even in those cases, France and Russia recovered.

If it all comes unglued in the US over the next decade, those two revolutions could be templates. Look at the way leading Democrats think, and listen to what they’re saying. They’re echoing Robespierre and Lenin. The Republicans aren’t much better, because although they sometimes talk the talk of peace and personal freedom, they almost never walk the walk. The two major US parties - and people in the Red counties and the Blue counties - seem to really hate each other.

It’s quite ugly sociologically. There are irreconcilable differences. They’re exacerbated by the fact we’re headed for a financial blow up. There’s no doubt about that.

Some years ago, there was a poll taken among Generation X types. It turned out that more of them believed that space aliens were going to invade than that they were ever going to collect Social Security. People have very little faith in "the system" anymore, the society, or the government.

If we go back to the beginning of the 20th century, the country really wasn’t very political at all. People worried about their own lives, their own families, and their own local communities. Americans shared a common culture, beliefs, and values - that’s no longer true. Now the country has become very politicized  - everybody has a loud voice and they use votes as weapons against their neighbors. It’s become a nation of nasty busybodies.

That makes me think the next upset will be something like a revolution. It’s likely to be really ugly, because we’re looking, simultaneously, at an economic catastrophe, political chaos, and a social and demographic upset - and probably a military situation as well. Government often sees war as a way to unite the country.

So, what’s going to happen? I’ll hazard a guess that 50 years from now, the United States and, for that matter, most countries are not going to exist in anything like their present form. The best solution is a peaceful break up into smaller political subdivisions. As opposed to a civil war - which is a contest between one or more groups for the control of a central government."

- internationalman.com

Musical Interlude:2002, "To Touch the Sky"

Full screen recommended.

2002, "To Touch the Sky"

"In Three Words..."

"A Look to the Heavens"

“While drifting through the cosmos, a magnificent interstellar dust cloud became sculpted by stellar winds and radiation to assume a recognizable shape. Fittingly named the Horsehead Nebula, it is embedded in the vast and complex Orion Nebula (M42). A potentially rewarding but difficult object to view personally with a small telescope, the below gorgeously detailed image was recently taken in infrared light by the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope. 

The dark molecular cloud, roughly 1,500 light years distant, is cataloged as Barnard 33 and is seen above primarily because it is backlit by the nearby massive star Sigma Orionis. The Horsehead Nebula will slowly shift its apparent shape over the next few million years and will eventually be destroyed by the high energy starlight.”

- http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130422.html

"Peak Focus for Complex Tasks, Study Music with Beta Isochronic Tones"

Full screen recommended.

"Peak Focus for Complex Tasks, 

Study Music with Beta Isochronic Tones"

by Jason Lewis - Mind Amend

"Experience intense focus when working on complicated tasks. Study music mix version of my 'Peak Focus For Complex Tasks' isochronic tones session. Listen to this when you need to maintain a high level focus to concentrate and study things like advanced mathematics, scientific formulas, financial analysis or any other complex mental activity."

If you are new to this type of audio brainwave entrainment, find out how isochronic tones work and how they compare to binaural beats here:

- https://www.mindamend.com/

○

A comment: I'm quite aware this blog's content has progressively turned into a virtual chamber of horrors - The Covid-19 pandemic hoax, the ongoing total economic collapse and it's inevitable consequences, loss of civil liberties, wars, poverty, climate change, rampant drug use - one disaster or horror after another - everything's going to Hell in a hand-basket and it's clearly displayed here. The world's a complex place, so the articles are sometimes lengthy of necessity. Not by choice - I'd much rather focus on other, better things, or be doing something else, but take a glance at the main-stream liars and propagandists, you won't see any of these things covered there, just more of the sensationalistic garbage and pure propaganda from all those cheaply bought low-life money whores. I've always believed you CAN handle the truth, given the chance to know it. Of course you can find truth, or the best version of it, elsewhere on many sites, if you know where to look (see the Favorites sidebars), and I hope you're doing that. 

I can only speak to what you'll find here. Please, don't come here expecting all sweetness and light, you'll be rudely disappointed. Anymore the blog article selection is really a threat-analysis and prioritization process, in hopes of keeping you informed about what's really happening behind the smoke screens and lies, and alerting you to imminent crises. We've run out of time, hence the sense of urgency. These things are upon us, they're here now, and you have an absolute right to know and understand how and why it's all happening as it is. That knowing may help you prepare, help you deal more effectively with inevitable changes we can do nothing about, may help you survive. But we will NOT go down without a fight! So, apologies for the sometimes grim article content, but that's real life, just how it really is, whether any of us like it or not. Stay informed, stay aware, and stay strong, always, and most of all thanks for stopping by!

- CP

"Ironic, huh?”

“Thought is real. Physical is the illusion. Ironic, huh?”

- Robin Williams, “What Dreams May Come”

Gregory Mannarino, "MELTDOWN? Inflation Is Skyrocketing, The Economy Cratering. Is The FED. About To Crash The Market?"

Gregory Mannarino, PM 10/13/21:

"MELTDOWN? Inflation Is Skyrocketing, The Economy Cratering.

 Is The FED. About To Crash The Market?"

- https://traderschoice.net/

○

"Supply Chain Disruptions Force White House

 to Ask Walmart, UPS, FedEx to Increase Output"

The Daily "Near You?"

Bacolod City, Bacolod, Philippines. Thanks for stopping by!

"Be Like The Bird..."

"What matter if this base, unjust life

Cast you naked and disarmed?

If the ground breaks beneath your step,

Have you not your soul?

Your soul! You fly away,

Escape to realms refined,

Beyond all sadness and whimpering.

Be like the bird which on frail branches balanced

A moment sits and sings;

He feels them tremble, but he sings unshaken,

Knowing he has wings."

– Victor Hugo

"Do You Want..."

"Do you want to live life, or do you want to escape life?"

- Macklemore

Albert Camus, "Life Changing Quotes"

Full screen recommended.

Albert Camus, "Life Changing Quotes"

Powerful quotations from the great French philosopher Albert Camus.

Narrated by Chris Lines

"Here And Now..."

"Someday stars will wind down or blow up. Someday death will cover us all like the water of a lake and perhaps nothing will ever come to the surface to show that we were ever there. But we WERE there, and during the time we lived, we were alive. That's the truth - what is, what was, what will be - not what could be, what should have been, what never can be."

- Orson Scott Card

"Now the voices and the sound of movement were gone, and the stream could be heard running quietly under its banks. The air was full of the scent of water and of flowers. She walked, quiet, while the house began to reverberate: a band had started up. She walked beside the river while the music thudded, feeling herself as a heavy, impervious, insensitive lump that, like a planet doomed always to be dark on one side, had vision in front only, a myopic searchlight blind except for the tiny three-dimensional path open immediately before her eyes in which the outline of a tree, a rose, emerged then submerged in dark. She thought, with the dove's voices of her solitude. Where? But where. How? Who? No, but where, where... Then silence and the birth of a repetition. Where? Here. Here? Here, where else, you fool, you poor fool, where else has it been, ever?"

- Doris Lessing

"How It Really Is"

 

"Headed to the Pampas"

"Headed to the Pampas"

by Bill Bonner

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – "An intriguing item in the Argentine press caught our eye. Referring to rising public anger in the midst of an economic crisis… the Buenos Aires Times reports that tempers: "…came to a boil one recent evening, when a hungry mob forced a [cattle truck] driver to let out a cow and proceeded to slaughter it right there on the street."

Hmmm… that’s not likely to happen in the U.S. America’s urban mob is probably unaware that beef comes from animals. And it would have no idea how to butcher one. Instead, annoyed by consumer price increases and the arrogance of the ruling elite, it will shut down airlines… hospitals… and the whole supply chain. Food will disappear from the shelves. Gasoline pumps will go dry. Mobs will form in the streets…

And who knows? Maybe Donald Trump will be re-elected! Then, with his customary numbskull bravado, he will make the situation even worse.

Fed’s Fraudfest: But wait, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. We saw yesterday, Ms. Janet Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury – along with the whole Elite Establishment – is seeking to eliminate anything and everything that might get in its way.

Debt ceiling… tax competition… And the privacy of bank accounts, too. Here’s The New York Times on a recent Biden Administration proposal: "…The administration wants banks to give the Internal Revenue Service new details on their customers and provide data for accounts with total annual deposits or withdrawals worth more than $600." Day by day, the ramparts are battered. The elite shock troops advance. Nothing will be allowed to stop the fraudfest. Tax… spend… borrow… print.

Good Guess: But where does it lead? Twenty years ago, looking into the future, we saw a long journey ahead. It would take the U.S. to Tokyo… then to Buenos Aires. By that, we meant we were in for a slog of punky asset prices and a sluggish on-again, off-again recession, à la Japan… to be followed by money-printing, leftish populism, and inflation, como en la pampa. Of course, we were just guessing. But we were right… and we were wrong.

America’s Main Street economy declined – just as it had in Japan. So far this century, GDP growth rates have been cut in half… real, net investment has been flat… and adjusted for inflation, real industrial production has gone down, despite the addition of 50 million people. And left-ish, Argentine-style populism arrived, too – in the form of the aforementioned Mr. Trump.

Boom to Bust: But over on Wall Street, it was a different story. It was get-down-and-boogie time, with a big bust in the Nasdaq in 2000… followed by a boom-bubble-and-bust cycle that ended in 2008… followed by another one ending in 2020. Each time, the bust was followed by a printing lalapaloosa at the Federal Reserve and a BTFD (buy the f**king dip) reaction by investors… leading to another bubble cycle. But it all depends on printing more and more money. And how long can that go on? Is it just a matter of time before stocks crash and cows are butchered in the streets of Boston?

Tomorrow’s News: Today, we saddle up… with a cushy fleece on the hard Argentine seat; we aim to range wide and far. We’re going to explore that enchanting land south of the Río de la Plata. What are we looking for? A glimpse at tomorrow’s headlines, of course. If we’re right, Americans are headed to the pampas…

Here’s a headline from the Buenos Aires Times that we think we’ll see here in the U.S. in a few years: "World Bank Economist Rules Out Risk of Hyperinflation in Argentina." The World Bank has ruled out the risk of hyperinflation in Argentina, where year-on-year prices have surged more than 50 percent, and believes a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding the country’s multi-billion-dollar debt will further reduce that possibility.

“I don’t see that risk,” said William Maloney, the World Bank’s chief economist for Latin America and the Caribbean, at a press conference on Wednesday, when asked about the threat of consumer prices spiralling out of control in consumer prices in Argentina. Inflation is around 50 percent but the government still has some tools to prevent the crisis from deepening.”

What a relief. The gaucho feds only steal half your savings every year… or 100% in 24 months. Is that what’s coming in the U.S., too? Just change “Argentina” to “USA”? We can live with that, right? Right? We’ll find out more, tomorrow…"

- www.rogueeconomics.com

“Knowing..."

“Knowing can be a curse on a person’s life. I’d traded in a pack of lies for a pack of truth, and I didn’t know which one was heavier. Which one took the most strength to carry around? It was a ridiculous question, though, because once you know the truth, you can’t ever go back and pick up your suitcase of lies. Heavier or not, the truth is yours now.”

- Sue Monk Kidd

"It's All Getting Worse - Energy, Supply Chains and Inflation"

Full screen recommended.

Dan, iAllegedly, AM 10/13/21:

"It's All Getting Worse - Energy, Supply Chains and Inflation"

"The ports are showing no sign of easing the congestion with the cargo ships. Gas, coal and oil prices are sky high. The Fed is finally admitting that inflation is going to continue well into 2022."

Gerald Celente, "Watch What You Say Or They Will Send You To Guantanamo"

Gerald Celente, Judge Andrew Napolitano

"Watch What You Say Or They Will Send You To Guantanamo"

"The Trends Journal is a weekly magazine analyzing global current events forming future trends. Our mission is to present Facts and Truth over fear and propaganda to help subscribers prepare for What’s Next in these increasingly turbulent times."

- https://trendsresearch.com/

Gregory Mannarino, AM 10/13/21: "The US Economy Is Collapsing FASTER"

Gregory Mannarino, AM 10/13/21:

"The US Economy Is Collapsing FASTER"

- https://traderschoice.net/

Greg Hunter, "Just 72 Hours from Anarchy"

"Just 72 Hours from Anarchy"

by Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com

"Financial writer and precious metals expert Bill Holter has long predicted the bloated indebted financial system, at some point, was going to go down. According to Holter, the wait is over, and he says, “It’s imploding now. When will it fully go down? It could be few days a few weeks or maybe a few months, but the system is coming down now. ”

The $62 trillion “Ponzi scheme” real estate market in China is imploding and reportedly has at least $6 trillion in sour debt. In America and the rest of the world, they are printing more just to keep the system afloat. It’s in the process of sinking, and that could unleash a financial crash no one alive has ever seen before. There is big unretractable inflation, labor shortages and severe supply chain disruptions, and it’s going to get worse. It’s a nightmare of deflation and inflation at the same time. Holter explains, “In Chinese real estate, the volume has dried up and prices are now following. That’s obviously a deflation. Just look worldwide at goods that people need like food and basics. There is inflation everywhere throughout the entire world. That inflation is a function of the money supply that has been pumped into the system. Now, the problem is central banks have put too much money into the system, and you are obviously seeing the inflation. 35% of all dollars outstanding today have been created in the last 12 months.”

Holter paints a picture of a near perfect storm for crashing the economy while inflation has been set on fire. The labor situation is just throwing gas on the inflation fire. Holter points out, “Of course, inflation is being exacerbated now by the supply chain problems. You had economies start and stop and start and stop all over the world. That hurt supply chains. Now, you have these ridiculous mandates where people value their lives more than they value getting stuck with a clot shot. So, you’ve got workers that are walking off in the middle of a supply chain crunch only making it worse.”

In closing, Holter says, “At this point, every day you wake up you are only 72 hours away from anarchy. The reason being is 72 hours is three days. A person can go three days without food and then pretty much lose it. If you have a system that goes down and store shelves are empty or stores are closed or whatever, you are going to see anarchy. Compared to two years ago, this is night and day. We are on the doorstep of total tyranny, and at the same time, you have supply problems and obvious financial problems. You have a broke U.S. Treasury talking about spending another $5 trillion. Really? Where is the $5 trillion going to come from? Oh, we’ll just print it.”

Holter’s advice, “Buy real stuff now,” and “stock up on everything you think you are going to need for the next few years.” Holter also likes gold and silver, especially silver because “it is the most undervalued asset on the planet.” (There is much more in the 34 min. interview.)"

https://usawatchdog.com/

Join Greg Hunter on Rumble as he goes One-on-One with financial writer, 

precious metals expert and broker Bill Holter of JSMineset.com.

- https://rumble.com/

“California Just Decimated The Working Class; Expect Runaway Inflation; The FED Has Lost Control”

Jeremiah Babe, PM 10/12/21:

“California Just Decimated The Working Class; 

Expect Runaway Inflation; The FED Has Lost Control”

"Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave, October 12, 2021"

Full screen recommended.

"Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave, October 12, 2021"

"The most dangerous street in Philadelphia. Violent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. The city’s violent crime rate is higher than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas. Also alarming is Philadelphia’s drug overdose rate. The number of drug overdose deaths in the city increased by 50% from 2013 to 2015, with more than twice as many deaths from drug overdoses as deaths from homicides in 2015. A big part of Philadelphia’s problems stem from the crime rate and drug abuse in Kensington.

Because of the high number of drugs in Kensington, the neighborhood has a drug crime rate of 3.57, the third-highest rate by neighborhood in Philadelphia. Like a lot of the country, a big part of this issue is a result of the opioid epidemic. Opioid abuse has skyrocketed over the last two decades in the United States and Philadelphia is no exception. Along with having a high rate of drug overdose deaths, 80% percent of Philadelphia’s overdose deaths involved opioids and Kensington is a big contributor to this number. This Philly neighborhood is purportedly the largest open-air narcotics market for heroin on the East Coast with many neighboring residents flocking to the area for heroin and other opioids. With such a high number of drugs in Kensington, many state and local officials have zoned in on this area to try and tackle Philadelphia’s problem."

Full screen recommended.

Bruce Springsteen, "Streets of Philadelphia"

"Panic In The Sky: Southwest Airlines Cancels More Than 3,000 Flights As Disruptions Increase"

Full screen recommended.

"Panic In The Sky: Southwest Airlines Cancels 

More Than 3,000 Flights As Disruptions Increase"

by Epic Economist

"The US is suffering from a massive labor shortage and the situation is rapidly evolving into a major national crisis as more and more workers are either leaving or being fired from their jobs for not complying with President Biden's vaccination mandate. The federal government's response to the health crisis has certainly caused deep divisions in our society, and now the mandates are threatening to trigger widespread disruptions in our economy. One of the latest interruptions happened in Florida over the weekend and is still unfolding as we speak. Southwest airlines' pilots and air traffic controllers seemingly engaged in a sickout to protest against the vaccine mandate, prompting mass flight cancellations and leaving airports in total chaos.

Between Saturday and Sunday, nearly 2,000 flights were suddenly canceled, but the company cited weather problems as the reason for doing so. However, no other airlines in the area reported being affected by weather problems, which then started to raise suspicions that something else was going on behind the scenes. On October 4, Southwest CEO Gary Kelly announced that Southwest Airlines would join their industry peers in complying with the federal government’s vaccination directive, and explained that the company works as a federal contractor and needs to comply with the President's vaccine mandate for federal employees and contractors. As a consequence, Southwest’s pilot union, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, filed a lawsuit against the company and is seeking a court injunction against the mandate.

On Sunday morning, exceedingly long lines could be seen at Southwest’s ticket counter in the Tampa airport, according to local media. One passenger named B.J. Romero told Fox News: "I have two kids. I have appointments. I have work. I can’t miss work. I have people relying on me, so I have to be home. That’s not going to work for me.” When asked about Southwest’s claim that bad weather caused mass cancelations, Romero balked at the suggestion. “That sounds like baloney to me,” he said. “The weather is fine in all connecting areas, there’s no bad weather.” Weirdly enough, no other major airlines had been affected by the same issues, that's why discussions that Southwest airlines' employees had staged coordinated walk-outs intensified.

On Monday, the company was one more time at the top of the cancellation list. According to FlightAware data, almost 30% of Southwest airlines' flights were canceled that day, which led Senator Ron Johnson to tweet: "As a loyal Southwest customer who has been flying safely throughout the [past year] and is utterly opposed to vaccine mandates, I’m asking, stop the madness before more damage is done."

As the airline recently imposed a December 8 deadline for vaccinations, the Pilots Union protested the measure and said that it forces "new conditions of employment and threatens termination". What was a minor temporary event for other carriers devastated Southwest Airlines because our operation has become brittle and subject to massive failures under the slightest pressure," said Casey Murray, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association. "Our pilots are tired and frustrated because our operation is running on empty due to a lack of support from the company."

The situation now unfolding in our airports is also happening in pretty much every industry in America. In fact, the worker shortage plaguing our airlines is just a fraction of the overall picture. Nationwide, we're facing the most devastating labor shortage ever recorded. Our supply chains are falling apart due to the lack of personnel. Hospitals, schools, grocery shops - you name it, they're all incredibly short-staffed, and we just started to see the effects of these mandates. As workers are forced out of their jobs, more and more sectors become overwhelmed and our economy starts to slide back into recession again.

If millions of qualified workers are pushed out of their posts because of the mandate in the weeks and months ahead, we can expect unprecedented chaos all across the country. A weekend of canceled flights can be very inconvenient, but it is nothing compared to the complete and utter nightmare our society will be facing if workers start to walk away from their jobs en masse. Of course, it isn’t just the airline sector that is crumbling. Our entire economic infrastructure is falling to pieces, and experts are warning that things will continue to break down in the coming months."

- https://www.epiceconomist.com​

Musical Interlude: Ludovico Einaudi, "The Royal Albert Hall Concert" ( 2010 )

Full screen recommended.

Ludovico Einaudi, "The Royal Albert Hall Concert" ( 2010 )

"A Look to the Heavens"

"NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, is a about 25 light-years across blown by winds from its central, bright, massive star. A triumvirate of astroimagers ( Joe, Glenn, Russell) created this sharp portrait of the cosmic bubble. Their telescopic collaboration collected over 30 hours of narrow band image data isolating light from hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The oxygen atoms produce the blue-green hue that seems to enshroud the detailed folds and filaments. Visible within the nebula, NGC 6888's central star is classified as a Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136). The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun's mass every 10,000 years. 

The nebula's complex structures are likely the result of this strong wind interacting with material ejected in an earlier phase. Burning fuel at a prodigious rate and near the end of its stellar life this star should ultimately go out with a bang in a spectacular supernova explosion. Found in the nebula rich constellation Cygnus, NGC 6888 is about 5,000 light-years away."

- https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210617.html

don Miguel Ruiz, “Don’t Take Anything Personally”

“Don’t Take Anything Personally”

by don Miguel Ruiz

“Whatever happens around you, don’t take it personally. Using an earlier example, if I see you on the street and I say, “Hey, you are so stupid,” without knowing you, it’s not about you; it’s about me. If you take it personally, perhaps you believe you are stupid. Maybe you think to yourself, “How does he know?  Is he clairvoyant, or can everybody see how stupid I am?”

You take it personally because you agree with whatever was said. As soon as you agree, the poison goes through you, and you are trapped in the dream of hell. What causes you to be trapped is what we call personal importance. Personal importance, or taking things personally, is the maximum expression of selfishness because we make the assumption that everything is about “me.” During the period of our education, or our domestication, we learn to take everything personally. We think we are responsible for everything. Me, me, me, always me!

Nothing other people do is because of you. It is because of themselves. All people live in their own dream, in their own mind; they are in a completely different world from the one we live in. When we take something personally, we make the assumption that they know what is in our world, and we try to impose our world on their world.

Even when a situation seems so personal, even if others insult you directly, it has nothing to do with you. What they say, what they do, and the opinions they give are according to the agreements they have in their own minds. Their point of view comes from all the programming they received during domestication.

If someone gives you an opinion and says, “Hey, you look so fat,” don’t take it personally, because the truth is that this person is dealing with his or her own feelings, beliefs, and opinions. That person tried to send poison to you and if you take it personally, then you take that poison and it becomes yours. Taking things personally makes you easy prey for these predators, the black magicians. They can hook you easily with one little opinion and feed you whatever poison they want, and because you take it personally, you eat it up.

You eat all their emotional garbage, and now it becomes your garbage. But if you do not take it personally, you are immune in the middle of hell. Immunity to poison in the middle of hell is the gift of this agreement.

When you take things personally, then you feel offended, and your reaction is to defend your beliefs and create conflicts. You make something big out of something so little, because you have the need to be right and make everybody else wrong. You also try hard to be right by giving them your own opinions. In the same way, whatever you feel and do is just a projection of your own personal dream, a reflection of your own agreements. What you say, what you do and the opinions you have are according to the agreements you have made- and these opinions have nothing to do with me.

It is not important to me what you think about me, and I don’t take what you think personally. I don’t take it personally when people say, “Miguel, you are the best,” and I also don’t take it personally when they say, “Miguel, you are the worst.” I know that when you are happy you will tell me, “Miguel, you are such an angel!” But, when you are mad at me you will say, “Oh, Miguel, you are such a devil! You are so disgusting. How can you say those things?” Either way, it does not affect me because I know what I am. I don’t have the need to be accepted. I don’t have the need to have someone tell me, “Miguel, you are doing so good!” or “How dare you do that!”

No, I don’t take it personally. Whatever you think, whatever you feel, I know is your problem and not my problem. It is the way you see the world. It is nothing personal, because you are dealing with yourself, not with me. Others are going to have their own opinion according to their belief system, so nothing they think about me is really about me, but it is about them.

You may even tell me, “Miguel, what you are saying is hurting me.” But it is not what I am saying that is hurting you; it is that you have wounds that I touch by what I have said. You are hurting yourself. There is no way that I can take this personally. Not because I don’t believe in you or don’t trust you, but because I know that you see the world with different eyes, with your eyes. You create an entire picture or movie in your mind, and in that picture you are the director, you are the producer, you are the main actor or actress. Everyone else is a secondary actor or actress. It is your movie.

The way that you see that movie is according to the agreements you have made with life. Your point of view is something personal to you. It is no one’s truth but yours. Then, if you get mad at me, I know you are dealing with yourself. I am the excuse for you to get mad. And you get mad because you are afraid, because you are dealing with fear. If you are not afraid, there is no way you will get mad at me. If you are not afraid, there is no way you will hate me. If you are not afraid, there is no way you will be jealous or sad.

If you live without fear, if you love, there is no place for any of these emotions. If you don’t feel any of those emotions, it is logical that you will feel good. When you feel good, everything around you is good. When everything around you is good, everything makes you happy. You are loving everything that is around you, because you are loving yourself. Because you like the way you are. Because you are content with you. Because you are happy with your life. You are happy with the movie you are producing, happy with your agreements with life. You are at peace, and you are happy. You live in that state of bliss where everything is so wonderful, and everything is so beautiful. In that state of bliss you are making love all the time with everything that you perceive.”

- http://www.livinglifefully.com/