People are less likely to splurge for their daily morning $6 coffee amid a looming recession, and Starbucks stock is down over 30% this year. However, another main problem facing Starbucks stores is crime. CEO Howard Schultz announced that the company is closing 16 stores with “many more” closures to come. While potential union busting cannot be counted out as a reason for store closures, there is no denying that crime is running rampant in America right now.
“It has shocked me that one of the primary concerns that our retail partners have is their own personal safety,” Schultz said in a leaked video.“America has become unsafe.”It is of no surprise that the store closures are occurring in Democratic cities such as Philadelphia, Portland, Seattle, Los Angeles, West Hollywood, and Washington, D.C. The coffee giant is also considering banning the public from using its restrooms as safety issues grow. Employees are being trained on how to deescalate situations and, if needed, how to deal with an active shooter in the store.
In fact, stores are closing throughout the aforementioned cities as crime cannot be contained. Manzoor Chughtai, the president of the Franchise Owners Association of Philadelphia, said, “Right now we have a lot of problems with the city of Philadelphia. We are closing left and right. Robbers are coming in, they’re just robbing the place left and right.” Manzoor said that nobody wants to take over these stores as it has become very dangerous even to work in these areas. He estimates that the city has lost up to 20 stores already but will likely lose more solely due to crime.
Los Angeles has been forced to close countless stores after the Californian pro-crime government banned police from arresting shoplifters. I reported in April that the California Retailers Association (CRA) reported that San Francisco and Oakland alone lost $3.6 billion annually due to retail crime. As the economy continually turns down, we can expect crime to move in the opposite direction.
Posted originally on the conservative tree house on July 18, 2022 | Sundance
A strong testimonial in favor of concealed carry, self-defense and situational awareness.
A mass shooter named Douglas Sapirman opened fire at the Greenwood Park Mall in Greenwood, Indiana, shooting three people before he was stopped by a 22-year-old who reacted in seconds after the shooting started.
22-year-old Elisjsha Dicken (pictured left) told his girlfriend to get under a table at the mall food court, then engaged the gunman using his pistol. Dicken fired ten shots, killing the gunman who was armed with a long rifle as he attempted to retreat. Police are hailing young Mr. Dicken as a hero who likely saved the lives of many.
INDIANA – […] Elisjsha Dicken, an armed bystander, fired on Sapirman. Dicken fired 10 rounds hitting Sapirman as Sapirman tried to retreat into the bathroom but collapsed and died.
Dicken had no police training or military background, according to police. He was carrying under the new “Constitutional Carry” law and did not have a permit. Police said Dicken learned to shoot from his grandfather and that he had no military or police training.
“His actions were nothing short of heroic. He engaged the gunman from quite a distance with a handgun. Was very proficient in that, was tactically sound and as he moved to close in on the suspect, he was also motioning for people to exit behind him,” Ison said about Dicken’s actions. “Many people would have died last night if not for a responsible armed citizen that took action very quickly within the first two minutes of this shooting.”
Dicken has not yet spoken with the media about the shooting. However, his lawyer Guy A. Relford released a statement on Monday that said Dicken is waiting to speak about the shooting to respect the lives lost and the police’s investigation.
The full statement can be read here:
“I am proud to serve as Eli Dicken’s attorney and spokesperson. He is a true American hero who saved countless lives during a horrific event that could have been so much worse if not for Eli’s courage, preparedness and willingness to protect others. Because we want to respect the ongoing criminal investigation by the Greenwood Police Department and take time to honor the three innocent lives lost, we won’t be making any substantive comments on Sunday’s events until after the authorities’ investigation is closed. In the interim, we ask that you respect the privacy of Eli and his family.” (read more)
A brave young man. Well done Mr. Dicken. Well done.
Posted originally on the conservative tree house on July 18, 2022 | Sundance
During the White House press briefing today, the administration sent Jared Bernstein to the podium to discuss a recent drop in gasoline prices. Bernstein was claiming that Joe Biden had lowered gasoline prices when journalist James Rosen asked a question. {Direct Rumble Link}
James Rosen asked Bernstein why it was “Putin’s price hikes” when the gasoline prices are increasing, but not “Putin’s price plunge” when gasoline prices are decreasing. Bernstein attempted to clarify his position and ended up looking silly. WATCH:
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Meanwhile, the Dallas Federal Reserve held its energy survey, there was some important feedback noted from the Oil and Gas industry.
“The real energy crisis isn’t even here yet. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts U.S. oil production to an average 12.5 million barrels per day for the next 30 years. This is all but impossible. Shale will likely tip into terminal decline in about five years as the main shale plays run out of location. Unfortunately, by then, most of the individuals with incumbent knowledge about offshore and international development will have retired. The brain drain in the industry will create a real and much larger crisis in the mid-to-late 2020’s.”
Posted originally on the conservative tree house on July 18, 2022 | Sundance
Jake Tapper called the latest CNN polling “shocking” as the results deepened his perpetually furrowed brow. Just about every metric surveyed in the poll of Joe Biden’s job performance is the lowest that CNN has ever polled. Unfortunately, despite the entire nation rejecting the Biden administration and having an adverse reaction to the outcomes of Biden policy, there is no indication anything is going to change.
As we have stated from the early moments after the election, Joe Biden is simply a disposable political puppet for the people who are really running the administration. Biden was selected and installed for his unique levels of selfishness, dementia and stupidity. He is the disposable front man for a single term of insane left wing policy execution centered around radical transformation of the U.S. economy via Green New Deal energy and social justice policies. CNN is simply measuring the American response. WATCH:
Posted originally on the conservative tree on July 18, 2022 | Sundance
As expected, the latest National Association of Home Builders survey [Data Here] shows the July confidence opinion of industry professionals now reflects the largest single month drop in the history of the survey (removing pandemic impact).
On a macro level, home values peaked in April/May and have been dropping ever since. Mortage rates have increased borrowing costs and inflation is squeezing home buyers out of their savings and/or down payment. Home sales have stalled in multiple regions and the prices of existing homes for sale are dropping, quickly. Many home building contracts are being cancelled and builders are now dropping prices in order to retain prior sales.
(Via Forbes) – […] Builder confidence in the market for new homes posted its seventh consecutive monthly decline in July, falling 12 points to 55 for its second-biggest single-month drop in history, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index released Monday.
[…] In emailed comments, Pantheon Macro chief economist Ian Shepherdson said confidence has “further to fall,” noting that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell last month alluded to the housing market’s “complicated situation,” saying potential home buyers “need a bit of a reset” as mortgage rates normalize at higher levels after remaining historically low during the pandemic.
“This is a meltdown,” says Shepherdson, noting home prices should soon start to drop and warning: “Pretty soon, anyone who has bought a home in recent months will be sitting on a loss.” (read more)
Posted originally on the conservative tree house on July 18, 2022 | Sundance
While the ranks of the MAGA rebel alliance continue to grow, it is obvious how the UniParty empire is striking back. On the presidential side of Republican politics, the Wall Street crowd are positioning their candidates:
The open-border GOPe crowd (Koch Inc.) have already put Kristi Noem into play with a book release and well financed marketing team. The foreign policy interventionist GOPe crowd (AIPAC lobby) are funding Nikki Haley and Mike Pompeo respectively. The GOPe white wine spritzer crowd (inside donor class) are funding the explorations of Mike Pence. And the GOPe Wall Street hedge funds (political insurance experts and short sellers) are betting other people’s money on Ron DeSantis.
There will likely be other fish, but for now that’s the inside crew being financially fed by those who run the Republican Club. Inside the death star, Decepticon Leader Mitch McConnell and the GOPe beltway control agents have contracted for the 2024 reupholstery of the club’s leather chairs, and the mahogany table is being refinished to remove scratches from the crystal brandy glasses that were slammed and shattered in prior bouts of UniParty frustration.
From the perspective of Republican club control, the MAGA rebellion must be crushed at all costs. Control over the mid-term outcome, which may include the intentional losing of key races in order to ensure full retention of club control, now heads into the championship rounds. Mike Pence will lead the current fight in the battleground of Arizona, where the republican club cannot –and will not– permit the MAGA rebellion to interfere with their larger responsibility for open-borders and cheap labor migration.
There are trillions at stake. [Please note my emphasis below]
Washinton Post – PHOENIX — Former vice president Mike Pence is endorsing Arizona gubernatorial candidate Karrin Taylor Robson, a developer who has long been involved in Republican politics, instead of former president Donald Trump’s chosen candidate, Kari Lake.
[…] The endorsement illustrates the division in the party between Trump supporters who value loyalty to him over all else and those who want to move on from endlessly litigating the 2020 election, including those who are grateful that Pence and other Republicans blocked Trump’s attempts to overturn the results. Trump and Pence, who are each thinking about running for president in 2024, both plan to be in Arizona on Friday to campaign for their chosen candidates ahead of an Aug. 2 primary.
Pence called Taylor Robson “the best choice for Arizona’s future” in a statement provided to The Washington Post.” (more)
Well, obviously, because all the best republicans provide advanced notice of intent to The Washington Post. [[ insert massive eyeroll here ]]
Successful republican club politics always involves the illusion of choice.
Republican party candidates, those funded by the various mechanisms that eventually all lead back to Wall Street and the multinational banking and finance interests of the professional donor class, are more akin to Russian matryoshka nesting dolls. Remove the top of one doll and the doll underneath is an exact duplicate, only smaller. Keep removing them and eventually you get to the least visible doll, the one easiest to control, which is the one that all others are created to hide.
Pence is the biggest and most visible DeceptiCon in the republican club’s matryoshka operation.
I suspect Noem and/or DeSantis will be the doll we will find after all the other club masks fall.
Yet another shake-up among Schwab’s leaders. Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas stepped down from her role on a technicality before being reappointed a day later. Kallas’ Reform Party reached an agreement with the Social Democrats and Isamaa Party to form a new three-party coalition.
Estonia shares a 180-mile border with Russia and has strongly supported Ukraine before the war began. Estonia is a small nation with a population of around 31 million and a GDP of $36.29 billion USD. Their inflation rate is among the highest in Europe after spiking to 22% in June.
Estonia has a large Russian population but has the comfort of being a NATO nation. The new government is aiming to eliminate their Russian ties by banning Russian from being spoken in school. Russians and Belarusians now have a more difficult time immigrating to Estonia or even traveling there without a visa.
Estonia is cracking down on potential spies or intelligence agencies at the border. The poster above has appeared around the border, with the government encouraging people to turn in anyone who they suspect is involved with Russian intelligence agencies. Kallas also has the epigenetic fear of her neighbor as her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother were once deported to Siberia. The small nation will use its strategic position to help the West’s proxy war, and Kallas herself said that negotiating a peace deal with Putin is off the table.
Housing availability dropped by nearly 50% from December 2021 to March 2022. The situation worsened once borders reopened as visa holders and tourists re-entered the nation. The vacancy rate, according to the CBD, has declined to 1.5% after peaking at 5.7% during the pandemic.
Some estimate that the “economic time bomb” of under-investment in affordable housing will cost taxpayers A$25 billion per year by 2051. Housing All Australians founder Rob Pradolin believes this figure is closer to A$110 billion, and believes a $55 billion investment could deliver a 2:1 cost-benefit ratio. At least 2 million Australian low-income households will be under “housing stress” by 2051. That is an optimistic forecast.
Similar to America, the UK, and many other nations, shelter inflation has caused housing costs to become one of the biggest budget expenses.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been accused of being out of touch by suggesting Australians simply buy a house. That is simply not possible for many, especially after the government-imposed lockdowns and shuttered countless businesses during COVID. Morrison has suggested allowing people to access their super (similar to pensions) early in order to purchase a home. Superannuation Minister Jane Hume said that this would result in rising home prices. Labor leader Anthony Albanese also criticized the plan by calling it a desperate “attack on future savings” and future generations. “If you take super away from people, then you’ll have higher deficits and bills from the government in the future,” he told reporters.
Oddly enough, Mr. Morrison vacated his own home, branded “Squat Morrison,” after losing the election to Albanese and taking his time leaving the property.
Unfortunately, Albanese has a worse plan in mind. Low-income residents will have the opportunity to buy a home, with the help of Big Brother government. The government will pay between 30% to 40% of total housing costs for 10,000 buyers annually. Instead of paying back the banks, the people must pay the government back if they can afford to do so.
COMMENT: I thought you were just a Trumper warning what would happen if Biden won. I have come back to your site because I can see inflation approaching 10% as you said and the dollar is rising which made no sense as gold stalled. I think you also said that real estate will decline perhaps into 2023. Has there ever been such a wild combination of events?
Thanks
Pete
ANSWER: It gives me no pleasure to deliver such forecasts. They are NEVER my personal opinion. In all honesty, it truly takes a computer to sort out all the global trends. Personal opinions will not cut it when you enter a period that has not unfolded in a very long time.
I have told the story before that back in 1985 when we were going to open our first office in Europe, I went to lunch with one of the heads of a Swiss bank when I was there. I had a list of names we came up with like European Advisers or something like that because I knew there was a lot of anti-Americanism in Europe. He asked me to name one European analyst. I could not. I was embarrassed but he said there were none.
He then explained that everyone was using our firm on currency because “You do not give a shit if the dollar goes up or down.” He elaborated that in Europe if any analyst ever said their currency would decline it would have been seen as treason since the politicians had used currency to prove they did a good job rebuilding Europe after the war.
I learned many years ago, that the only way to operate was to call the shots as they unfold. My personal opinion means nothing. I cannot make a market rise when its trend is down. I am here to simply deliver what the computer projects. No matter how loud I could scream, it does not matter. What will be – will be.
Real Estate is undergoing three separate trends. First, there has been mass evacuation from cities and high-taxed states thanks also to draconian COVID laws. Secondly, we have the flight of capital to flee banks, etc which is part of just getting capital off the grid. Then thirdly, there has been a flight of international capital fleeing to the United States because of geopolitical instability in Europe.
The standard claim is that real estate will drop by 50% all because of interest rates pointing to some cities declining by 4% in June alone. This is merely confusing the people for they are looking at only the big cities that are already in decline for a separate reason from interest rates.
The claim that interest rate hikes imply that real estate will decline is very old school and once more it presumes everyone is buying on leverage. In 2021, cash sales represented 25% of existing home sales in the key markets that were a level unmatched since 2016. Nationally, buyers paid cash for almost 15% of the homes in 2021 in markets that were booming from migration from other states.
Florida, the Tampa market was even hotter. Single-family homes saw 45.5% more buyers paid cash than in 2020. The number of condo buyers paying cash went up 33.2%. While more people paid cash, the inventory dropped, with 29.2% fewer active listings of single-family homes in the 2021 third quarter than in 2020. Condo listings dropped even more, at 52.2% fewer available. Speaking to a local realtor, houses in excess of $1 million in the Tampa area were 95% cash deals.
This market has been LESS impacted by interest rate hikes than any previous booming market all because of the migration from interstate within the US and the flood of European buyers looking for assets outside of Europe as war keeps getting closer and closer. I have warned that real estate will decline in those states where people are fleeing. It has boomed in places they have been migrating to such as Texas and Florida. Obviously, you can no longer make a blanket forecast in real estate. Then there has been Blackrock which has bought over 20,000 homes in Florida in the lower-end of the market for cash.
I have warned many times that the standard nonsense that gold rises with inflation has been a sales pitch as trustworthy as a used car salesman. Gold rises during the collapse in the confidence of the government. Everyone will respond based on their own currency. As the dollar rises, gold has declined in US$, but the pattern will be different for every other currency.
Posted originally on the conservative tree house on July 17, 2022 | Sundance
If I had to hazard a guess about what this was, I’d say it is most likely: (a) part of the massive Ukrainian stores of mortars and landmines in eastern Ukraine that were moved in order to keep the Russians from capturing them; or (b) the actual arms that were captured by Russian and then sold on the world arms market. Either way, somehow, they end up as part of an arms deal from Serbia to Bangladesh.
With the new and improved western weapons provided by the United States, Ukraine is likely upgrading and selling their old weapons to various nefarious arms dealers.
This shipment happened to crash, and that’s the only reason we are hearing about it.
(Via Daily Mail) – Soldiers in hazmat suits searched for signs of nuclear and chemical substances at the crash site of a Ukrainian cargo plane transporting nearly a dozen tons of mortar shells and land mines.
The Antonov An-12 light aircraft, which was transporting the weapons from Serbia to Bangladesh, had eight Ukrainian crew members onboard. They were all killed.
An official at Kyiv cargo operator Meridian told Reuters: ‘Of course they didn’t survive this.’ Eyewitnesses filmed the fireball crash in the early hours today, with explosions continuing for two hours and the charred wreckage burning until morning.
Drone images from the scene showed debris from the bulking aircraft strewn in fields. Serbia’s defense minister said the plane was carrying 11.5 tonnes of products made by its defense industry and the buyer was Bangladesh defense ministry. Greek authorities could not provide any more information on the aircraft’s cargo. (more)
Previously Russia was reporting to have captured a massive Ukranian military weapons cache near Kharkov (northeastern Ukraine). I wrote about it HERE. However, the video (partial screengrab below) was quickly removed by the internet police.
The doomed weapons shipment supposedly originated from Serbia, so the original source could be either Ukraine or Russia. Who knows? Amid all of the propaganda, Ukraine corruption and furious U.S. arms shipments into Ukraine, there are multiple sketchy participants likely involved in selling the arms on the global black market.
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