The Simple Solution to Ukraine


Armstrong Economics Blog/Russia Re-Posted Feb 23, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

COMMENT: You are wrong. Putin is the aggressor.

SK

REPLY: Look, the Minsk Agreement has dragged on for 8 years. You cannot simply blame Putin. Ukraine has refused to allow the people to vote on their own future. That is a denial of any democratic process and a denial of freedom. So now the propaganda that Putin is invading to deny freedom or democracy. It takes TWO to reach an agreement – not ONE!

The solution has been staring the world in the face. Let the people vote and decide their own fate. That would remove any excuse Putin would have to protect Russians if they voted to be Ukrainians. I was with a Ukrainian friend in Greece and they refused to even take a flight home that connected through Moscow. The resentment runs very deep and it is certainly justified thanks to Stalin.

Let me make this very clear. Zelensky is by no means doing this alone. The West desperately needs a diversion from COVID because politicians will never admit a mistake. But Zelensky is a fool. The West is willing to sacrifice even all of Ukraine if it then secures all the elections here in 2022 for those facing the public after COVID. The typical sales pitch will be you need them because now Putin is the threat, and you do not change horses in the middle of a river.

Let the people vote and abide by their vote. That would remove ANY excuse to invade Ukraine. If Putin then invades, then you can call him the aggressor. The solution is simple. It is staring out us straight in the eye. Territorial borders are a throwback to imperialism. These regions are ethnically Russian. But politicians need war. They will lie and twist facts to create the justification for war. Ukraine is not a one-sided affair. It takes two to tango as they say.

Canada Descends into Dictatorship


Armstrong Economics Blog/Canada Re-Posted Feb 23, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

Schwab has been very proud that he has infiltrated the Canadian Government. What the Conservatives should be demanding at this point is all communications between any of the Liberal Government members with the World Economic Forum and Klaus Schwab even personally.

Both Chrystia Freeland, who is Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and Mark Carney are actually board members of the World Economic Forum which is on public record that its goal is to even overthrow the United States government and create a one-world government with the United Nations at the head.

Blog/Canada

Posted Feb 23, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

Spread the love

more

Schwab has been very proud that he has infiltrated the Canadian Government. What the Conservatives should be demanding at this point is all communications between any of the Liberal Government members with the World Economic Forum and Klaus Schwab even personally.

Both Chrystia Freeland, who is Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and Mark Carney are actually board members of the World Economic Forum which is on public record that its goal is to even overthrow the United States government and create a one-world government with the United Nations at the head.

Video Player

00:53

01:28

If Freeland and Carney, being board members at the World Economic Forum, openly agree with what would be treason in the United States, what are their true intentions in Canada? I am shocked that the people are not storming the palaces of the Liberals for they have crossed the line, refuse to explain their justification, and refuse to relent on their powers that Freeland is already suggesting will be permanent financial constraints. Freeland is unfit to lead any country outside of communism. She has been freezing accounts of anyone who has supported the Truckers as well as journalists. Meanwhile, the Ottawa police acted on orders no different than the Nazis threatening to smash windows and arrest store owners who serve the protesters. Remember Kristallnacht when they destroy stores owned by the Jews in Germany?

Freeland is a total disgrace to any democratic state and should be removed from office immediately! This by no means is representing the people of Canada. This is pushing a foreign agenda. Just look at also Australia and New Zealand. This is an effort to impose Schwab’s economic theories by sheer force. Freeland and Carney have betrayed their own people for a foreign autocratic academic with dreams of grandeur.

Two Lawfare Prosecutors Leading Trump Inquiry in New York City Quit, Manhattan DA Doubts There Is a Case


Posted on the conservative tree house on February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 188 Comments

Sometimes things just fall on the side of the righteous.   The premise of the silly Manhattan case against Donald Trump was that he inflated the value of his real estate holdings in the city.  The DA was trying to make some kind of fraud case over it, but it always seemed ridiculous.

Consider the scenario, they are ultimately debating and trying to legally criminalize the subjective value of a physical asset.  Imagine the timing of such a case right now when the value of property is so high.

You tell a grand jury that Trump inflated the value, and then someone just asks what it’s worth, and the answer is, “well, right now, it’s worth a lot more than he claimed then,” and the silliness of the case gets worse.   I digress…

Splodey heads are happening today, because the two prosecutors in the case have quit, and the Manhattan district attorney says he doubts there’s any case here… and the salty tears of the far-left are crying, “curse you villain!”

(New York) – The two prosecutors leading the Manhattan district attorney’s investigation into former President Donald J. Trump and his business practices abruptly resigned on Wednesday amid a monthlong pause in their presentation of evidence to a grand jury, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The stunning development comes not long after the high-stakes inquiry appeared to be gaining momentum and throws its future into serious doubt.

The prosecutors, Carey R. Dunne and Mark F. Pomerantz, submitted their resignations after the new Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, indicated to them that he had doubts about moving forward with a case against Mr. Trump, the people said. Mr. Pomerantz confirmed in a brief interview that he had resigned but declined to elaborate. Mr. Dunne declined to comment. (read more)

.

White House Releases Statement After Russia Begins Military Operation in Ukraine


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 680 Comments

The White House released the following statement, with Joe Biden promising to talk tomorrow:

WHITE HOUSE – The prayers of the entire world are with the people of Ukraine tonight as they suffer an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces. President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering.

Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way. The world will hold Russia accountable.

I will be monitoring the situation from the White House this evening and will continue to get regular updates from my national security team.

Tomorrow, I will meet with my G7 counterparts in the morning and then speak to the American people to announce the further consequences the United States and our Allies and partners will impose on Russia for this needless act of aggression against Ukraine and global peace and security.

We will also coordinate with our NATO Allies to ensure a strong, united response that deters any aggression against the Alliance. Tonight, Jill and I are praying for the brave and proud people of Ukraine. (link)

It is worth remembering what President Trump said in 2018 to NATO General Secretary Stoltenberg about the EU position toward Russia and their short-sighted vulnerability in all of this (see below):

Republican Candidate Wins Closely Watched Jacksonville City Council Seat, MSNBC Haz Sad


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 146 Comments

It seems like a small indicator, but Republican Nick Howland flipped a Jacksonville City Council seat in a special election seen as a “big test” for both parties in Duval County, Florida.  Democrats had held the swing seat for the last two elections and lost it this time by four points.

If the Communist Democrats had won the seat, it would have led the newswires at CNN and MSNBC.  Alas, they have a case of the sads.

BOOM, Trudeau Reversal Motive Surfaces – Canadian Banking Association Was Approved by World Economic Forum To Lead the Digital ID Creation


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 633 Comments

Sunlight is the best disinfectant.  A promotional video from the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) helps to neatly connect all the dots about why the Canadian government made such a quick reversal in their bank asset seizures in the last 24 hours {Go Deep}.  And yes, as we suspected, it was almost certainly contact from the World Economic Forum to Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland that triggered the change in position.

When Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced they would use the Emergency Act declaration to target the financial support systems, banks and accounts of the people who were protesting against COVID mandates, they not only undermined the integrity of the Canadian banking system – but they also inadvertently stuck a wrench into the plans of the World Economic Forum and the collaborative use of the Canadian Bankers Association to create a digital id.

Against the backdrop of the Canadian government action, WATCH THIS VIDEO:

If the Canadian government can arbitrarily block citizen access to their banking institution without any due process, what does that say about the system the Canadian Banking Association (CBA) was putting into place as part of their Digital ID network?

If the CBA digital identity were in place, the same people targeted by Trudeau’s use of the Emergency Act would have their entire identity blocked by the same government measures.  The realization of the issue, reflected by a severe undermining of faith in the banking system, is a dramatic problem for those working to create and promote the Digital ID.

It is not coincidental the financial targeting mechanism deployed by Trudeau/Freeland, the Canadian banking system, is the same system being used to create the digital identity.  As a result of the government targeting bank accounts, Finance Minister Freeland just created a reference point for those who would argue against allowing the creation of a comprehensive digital identity.

The motive for the World Economic Forum and Canadian Bankers Association to immediately reach out to Trudeau and Freeland and tell them to back off their plan is crystal clear.  THAT is almost certainly why Freeland appeared so admonished, shocked and incapable of getting her footing yesterday {Go Deep}, and why the Canadian government simultaneously informed Parliament they were unfreezing the bank accounts.

However, this undermined confidence and faith in the banking system cannot be restored quickly.  The toothpaste cannot be put back into the tube. The horse has left the barn.  This is now a moment for damage control by the Canadian government. That is why Justin Trudeau just dropped the declaration of the Emergency Act.

It all makes sense now.  All of it.

Indeed, the government leaders who take their instructions from the multinational corporations in charge of the World Economic Forum, which is to say almost all of them, are so entrenched in their need to use COVID-19 as the pry bar for the Build Back Better agenda, they simply cannot let it go.

Without COVID-19, they can’t keep the vaccination push.  Without the vaccination push, they can’t keep the vaccine passport process in place.  Without the vaccination passport registration process to track and monitor human behavior, the governing authorities cannot fulfill the mission of a comprehensive digital identity and social credit tracking system.  Indeed, everything they seek is contingent upon keeping the premise of COVID-19 alive.

It is not accidental the World Economic Forum is at the epicenter of this

As we previously noted, the architects of the Build Back Better society (WEF) are guiding various governments on ways to create efficient registration and compliance systems, i.e. ways that permit citizens to prove their vaccinated and compliant status.  As these discussions are taking place, it is prudent to pause and think very carefully, wisely.

We all know, as we are reading this, under the guise of enhancing our safety, the U.S. Federal Government is in discussions with the medical community, multinational corporations and employers of citizens to create a more efficient process for you to register your vaccine compliance.

We know their conversation under the terminology of a COVID Passport.  The current goal is to make a system for us to show and prove our authorized work status, which, as you know, is based on your obedience to a mandated vaccine.

Beta tests are being conducted in various nations, each with different perspectives and constitutional limitations, based on pesky archaic rules and laws that govern freedom.

For the western, or for lack of a better word ‘democratic‘ outlook, Australia, New Zealand, France and Europe are leading the way with their technological system of vaccination check points and registered state/national vaccination status tied to your registration identification.

New York City joined the vaccine checkpoint process, as their city now requires the vaccine to enter all private businesses.  Los Angeles soon followed.

The Australian electronic checkpoints are essentially gateways where QR codes are being scanned from the cell phones of the compliant vaccinated citizen. Yes comrades, there’s an app for that.

Currently, the vaccine status scans are registered by happy compliance workers, greeters at the entry to the business or venue. Indeed, the Walmart greeter has a new gadget to scan your phone prior to allowing you custody of a shopping cart.

In restaurants, the host or hostess has a similar compliance scanner to check you in prior to seating or a reservation confirmation.

It’s simple and fun. You pull up your QR code on your cell phone (aka portable transponder and registration device), using the registration app, and your phone is scanned delivering a green check response to confirm your correct vaccination status and authorized entry.

The Australian government, at both a federal and state level, is working closely with Big Tech companies (thirsting for the national contract) to evaluate the best universal process that can be deployed nationwide.

As noted by all six Premiers in the states down under, hardware (scanners) and software (registration) systems are all being tested to find the most comprehensive/convenient portable units to settle upon. Meanwhile in the U.S., cities like Los Angeles and New York await the beta test conclusion before deploying their own version of the same process.

In Europe, they are also testing their vaccine checkpoint and registration processes known as the EU “Green Pass.”

The “Green Pass” is a similar technological system that gives a vaccinated and registered citizen access to all the venues and locations previously locked down while the COVID-19 virus was being mitigated. What would have been called a “vast right-wing conspiracy theory” 24 months ago, is now a COVID passport process well underway.

As with all things in our rapid technological era, you do not have to squint to see the horizon and accept that eventually this process will automate, and there will be a gadget or scanning gateway automatically granting you access without a person needing to stand there and scan each cell phone QR code individually.

The automated process just makes sense. You are well aware your cell phone already transmits an electronic beacon enabling your Uber or Lyft driver access to your location at the push of a touchscreen button, another convenient app on your phone. So, why wouldn’t the gateways just accept this same recognizable transmission as registration of your vaccine compliant arrival at the coffee shop?

The automated version is far easier and way cooler than having to reach into your pocket or purse and pulling up that pesky QR code on the screen. Smiles everyone, the partnership between Big Tech and Big Government is always there to make your transit more streamline and seamless. Heck, you won’t even notice the electronic receiver mounted at the entry. Give it a few weeks and you won’t remember the reason you were laughing at Alex Jones any more than you remember why you are taking off your shoes at the airport.

However, as this process is created, it is worth considering that you are being quietly changed from an individual person to a product. Some are starting to worry in the beta test:

[…] “you must become an object with attributes sitting in a database. Instead of roaming around anonymously making all sorts of transactions without the government’s knowledge, Australians find themselves passing through ‘gates’. …

All product-based systems have these gates to control the flow of stock and weed out errors. It is how computers see things. The more gates, the more clarity.

You are updating the government like a parcel pings Australia Post on its way to a customer. If a fault is found, automatic alerts are issued, and you are stopped from proceeding. In New South Wales, this comes in the form of a big red ‘X’ on the myGov vaccine passport app (if you managed to link your Medicare account without smashing the phone to bits).

Gate-keeping systems have been adapted from retail and transformed into human-based crowd solutions to micromanage millions of lives with the same ruthless efficiency as barcodes tracking stock. There is no nuance or humanity in this soulless digital age. Barcodes are binary. Good – bad. Citizen or dissident.

Even if you have all the required government attributes to pass through the gates – two vaccines, six boosters, and a lifelong subscription to Microsoft – something could go wrong. If your data fails the scan, you’ll slip into digital purgatory and become an error message. (read more)

It could be problematic if your status fails to register correctly, or if the system identifies some form of alternate lifestyle non-compliance that will block you from entry. Then again, that’s what beta tests are for, working out all these techno bugs and stuff. Not to worry…. move along….

Then again… “For those in the privileged class allowed to shop, take note of Covid signs which encourage cashless transactions under the guise of ‘health’. Messaging around cards being ‘safer’ will increase until the Treasury tries to remove cash entirely, almost certainly with public approval.”

Wait, now we are squinting at that familiar image on the horizon because we know those who control things have been talking about a cashless society for quite a while.

We also know that data is considered a major commodity all by itself. Why do you think every system you encounter in the modern era requires your phone number even when you are not registering for anything. It, meaning you, us, are all getting linked into this modern registration system that is defining our status. We also know that system operators buy and sell our registered status amid various retail and technology systems.

Yeah, that opaque shadow is getting a little clearer now.

Perhaps you attempt to purchase dog food and get denied entry into Pet Smart because you didn’t renew the car registration.  Or perhaps you are blocked from entry because you forgot to change the oil on the leased vehicle you drive, and Toyota has this weird agreement with some retail consortium.   You head to the oil change place that conveniently pops up in the citizen compliance App –it’s only two blocks away– they clear the alert after they do the oil change, and you are gateway compliant again.

Missed your booster shot? We’re sorry citizen, your bank account is frozen until your compliance is restored… please proceed to the nearest vaccination office as displayed conveniently on your cell phone screen to open access to all further gates (checkpoints)…. tap to continue!

Vote for the wrong candidate?  Attend, or donate to, a trucker protest?

Yes, it seemed transparently obvious where this was heading, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau just awakened the masses:

Facing Financial Peril and a Pending Senate Rebuke, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Revokes Emergency War Measures Act


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 499 Comments

In the bigger picture, the Canadian banking and financial system was hit hard by the deployment of the Emergency Act which highlighted the ability of the government to arbitrarily freeze and seize money, assets and financial investment capital without any due process.

There are also strong rumors in the financial sector, that in addition to Canadians removing money from the banking system, previous investment funds from Hong Kong had been moved – and, making matters even worse, digital currency exchanges were no longer offering secure services in Canada.

Simultaneous to the mounting domestic and international backlash against the financial system, the Canadian Senate was likely to rebuke the government of Justin Trudeau and not support the invocation of the Emergency War Measures Act against Canadian citizens.

As a result of multiple issues of backlash with severe consequence, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet are trying to save face, and yet walk away from the Emergency War Measures Act by revoking it before they faced the humiliation of a public defeat in the Canadian Senate. WATCH:

After his prepared remarks about his reversal in position, Trudeau was softly questioned about internal documents discovered by the Canadian Senate that point toward Trudeau’s cabinet discussing the political benefits they would gain by invoking the Emergency Act.  The prime minister dodged the question twice, instead saying a parliamentary investigation will review why the Emergency Act was needed.

Keep an eye on the story of this Senate discovery.  From all indications, even the liberal allies of Trudeau in the Senate were unable to support the Emergency Act after they reviewed the non-public documents.  There’s something very damaging in those documents, likely internal emails between Trudeau and his various ministers.

Full announcement video and presser below:

USA Freedom Convoy Departs California, Let’s Roll America Ground Report, Detail and Links for Updates


February 23, 2022 | Sundance | 392 Comments

Early this morning, The People’s Convoy [Facebook Page Here] departed for a 10-day freedom convoy from California to DC. The final stop is in Hagerstown, Maryland.  Friend of the Treehouse, John Spiropolous is traveling with the convoy and will be sharing ground reports along the route.

Facebook Page ~ Official Convoy Website Here ~ Press Release pdf Here

The truckers will drive anywhere from a minimum of 216 miles a day to 375 miles a day. Travel times daily range from a minimum of three and a half hours of driving to a maximum of five and three quarters hours of driving a day.  Today they departed from Adelanto Stadium, CA, and will arrive in Kingman, AZ for overnight stay. John was with the convoy as they prepared and departed, WATCH:

As John Spiropolous notes, “obviously, an individual trucker can make it from California to DC a lot faster. But for safety and security reasons, coordinating what they expect to be thousands of truckers, they’re going to take their time. My own opinion is that like that old phrase, “Life is a journey, not a destination,” the convoy’s message is the journey. The convoy gets 10 days of publicity. And with no intention of going into DC, much less encircling the Capitol, they’ll avoid a J6 type false flag op.”

Quoting the press release. “The People’s Convoy will abide by agreements with local authorities, and terminate in the vicinity of the DC area, but will NOT be going into DC proper.”  The trip should take approximately 10 days. 2,533 miles.

The message of The People’s Convoy is simple. The last 23 months of the COVID-19 pandemic have been a rough road for all Americans to travel: spiritually, emotionally, physically, and – not least – financially. With the advent of the vaccine and workable therapeutic agents, along with the hard work of so many sectors that contributed to declining COVID-19 cases and severity of illness, it is now time to re-open the country.

The average American worker needs to be able to end-run the economic hardships of the last two years and get back to the business of making bread – so they can pay their rents and mortgages and help jumpstart this economy. To that end, it’s time for elected officials to work with the blue collar and white-collar workers of America and restore accountability and liberty – by lifting all mandates and ending the state of emergency – as COVID is well-in-hand now, and Americans need to get back to work in a free and unrestricted manner.” (LINK)

Former DC journalist and ally of the Rebel Alliance, John Spiropoulos, is part of a 4-person team (2 reporters and 2 cameramen) covering the 2,500 mile event. He will be sending daily videos during the trip which will be far better than mainstream media reports.

If you would like to support John’s reporting of the convoy and help defray the costs and expenses, he has a GiveSendGo crowdfunding account set up:

GiveSendGo – Let’s Roll America

John previews what to expect:

.

The People’s Convoy Route*
*Route subject to change

Day 1: Wednesday, February 23
Morning – Depart Adelanto Stadium, CA
Evening – Arrive in Kingman, AZ for overnight stay

Day 2: Thursday, February 24
Morning – Depart Kingman, AZ head east on I-40, toward Lupton, AZ
Evening – Arrive in Lupton, AZ for overnight stay

Day 3: Friday, February 25
Morning – Depart Lupton, AZ on I-40 eastbound thru New Mexico
Evening – Arrive in Glenrio, TX for overnight stay

Day 4: Saturday, February 26
Morning – Depart Glenrio, TX
Evening – Arrive in Elk City, OK area for overnight stay

Day 5: Sunday, February 27
Morning – Depart Elk City, OK area
Evening – Arrive in Vinita, OK area for overnight stay

Day 6: Monday, February 28
Morning – Depart Vinita, OK area
Evening – Arrive in Sullivan, MO area for overnight stay

Day 7: Tuesday, March 1
Morning – Depart Sullivan, MO area
Evening – Arrive in Indianapolis, IN area for overnight stay

Day 8: Wednesday, March 2
Morning – Depart Indianapolis, IN area
Evening – Pause for rest in Indianapolis, IN area for overnight stay

Day 9: Thursday, March 3
Morning – Depart Indianapolis, IN area
Evening – Arrive in Cambridge, OH area for overnight stay

Day 10: Friday, March 4
Morning – Depart Cambridge, OH area
Evening – Arrive in Hagerstown, MD area for overnight stay

Day 11: Saturday, March 5
Morning – Depart Hagerstown, MD area
Evening – Arrive in the DC Beltway area

The People’s Convoy will abide by agreements with local authorities, and terminate in the vicinity of the DC area, but will NOT be going into DC proper.

Support John Spiropoulos HERE

Armstrong v Schwab


Armstrong Economics Blog/ECM Re-Posted Feb 23, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

While Nigel Farage spoke at our 2019 WEC in Rome, he said he came because our events were the “alternative to Davos.” For years Schwab and I have been on opposite sides of the table. The stark difference between myself and that of Klaus Schwab boils down to the divergence in economics between Adam Smith and Karl Marx.

Smith approached the subject from the realization of not knowing how the economy functioned. He embarked upon a path of discovery and came upon his monumental revelation of the Invisible Hand. Innovation can only come from the frontlines, and that is the individual who witnesses an opportunity to create something to fill a need. That can never be the role of government and the movie “Mr. Jones” illustrated what happens under government central control. Communism could not produce enough food so Stalin stole it from the Ukrainians, causing 7 million to die of starvation all to pretend communism did not fail.

That came to a head with the famous 1959 Kitchen Debate where Nixon showed that private innovation raised the living standards of the people because it came only from those of the frontlines — the people. This idea of material “equality” and focusing only on that aspect dehumanized society and deprived it of innovation from the people. This became the stark difference between Smith and Marx, which to this day distinguishes even me from Klaus Schwab.

It was the academics who rejected the idea of laissez-faire and the Invisible Hand and took the idea that they could improve society by manipulating the people assuming the business cycle was not inevitable. They took the position that the government held the power to control the economy at will. This became the “New Economics” or Keynesian Economics, which even Keynes admitted he was wrong before he died. Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Paul Volcker, said in his “Rediscovery of the Business Cycle”: “[T]he ‘New Economics’ had become orthodoxy. Its basic tenet, repeated in similar words in speech after speech, in article after article, was described by one of its leaders as “the conviction that business cycles were not inevitable, that government policy could and should keep the economy close to a path of steady real growth at a constant target rate of unemployment.”

Schwab is not evil. He is just an academic who believes that government has the power to alter the economy and the future. He has created his Young Global Leaders and his Global Shapers all to be indoctrinated with his philosophy that we are not individuals but mere worker bees in a hive destined to serve the queen or, in this case, the government.

These academics look down upon society with disgust – the great unwashed. They fail to see that all innovation comes only from the freedom to think. They are repulsed by the thought that we are of any value to society. They believe they are far more intelligent than the workers below, so why bother to even speak to us? Julian Huxley was part of the establishment of the United Nations setting out the goals of UNESCO where he outright stated that “unrestricted individualism is equally erroneous.” He saw the individual as meaningless.

This is the philosophy that individualism is evil because they need to make sure that nobody has more materially than anyone else. They fail to understand that all innovation comes from the individual, and some dream of owning their own business, while others want no responsibility and just to earn what they need to in order to go off with other pursuits. That is human nature. We are individuals, not worker bees.

I had written before that while I was doing my historical research at Princeton University, one professor with who I became friends said that I reminded him of Einstein. I was shocked. I did not see myself in the same category. Then he explained it did not matter what field; the key was curiosity. Leonardo Da Vinci dug up dead bodies because he was curious about how the body functioned.

Then I understood what the comparison was. It was not a level of intelligence of average v genius. The key was simply “curiosity” about what makes anything function. Einstein had that curiosity in physics. Adam Smith in economics and Da Vinci was interested in the human body.

I was curious about what made empires, nations, and city-states rise from nothing and fall into the dust of history. I saw the world evolve in cycles. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Arthur Burns and Paul Volcker also came to the realization that the business cycle was in fact unbeatable.

Hence, the difference between Klaus Schwab and me is that I believe that indeed the business cycle is inevitable. In contrast, Schwab believes, as do most academics, that it can be manipulated, tempered, controlled, and eliminated. But to do so, you must extinguish humanity, for it is collectively the individual spirit that results in the rise and fall of empires, nations, and city-states. It is impossible to defeat the business cycle for contained within it is not just the individual, but everything including climate change, which is cyclical and has also been a key factor that once again cannot be controlled by this nonsense of powerful state regulation. It is not fossil fuels that cause climate change, for CO2 was also released when society throughout the ages burned wood to stay warm in winter. In 535 AD, then Emperor Justinian I declared the first environmental law called the clean air act. As much as we think things change, they remain the same — history repeats.

Civilization has expanded ONLY during warming periods. It always contracts during global cooling periods. One blunt reason for that has been simply that crops fail during winters and need the warmth of the sun to grow. Thus the food supply has declined during global cooling, and that has promoted the cycles in plagues as well. Even during the American Revolution, the ground would be frozen two feet deep. Pictures of Washington Crossing the ice-packed Delaware River was an example, for we were coming out of the Little Ice Age that bottomed in the mid-1600s. I never saw such ice in the Delaware River, and that is where I grew up.

There stark difference between Klaus Schwab and me boils down to the fact that the business cycle always wins. NEVER has anyone who has taken upon themselves to restructure the world economy based solely upon this belief that they can defeat and control the business cycle ever actually succeeded. All these theories of state control have ever caused is nothing but death, civil war, and international war.

Hence, I believe in humanity and that we are not all the same. Some are great physicians and others traders, and yet others are content to just spend time with their family and career is secondary. That is what the business cycle embraces. Those who are simply jealous of the material wealth of others and create theories to justify robbing others for their own personal gain have been around for a long time. I have always found it curious that it is one of the prohibitions in the Ten Commandments not to covet other people’s wealth implying that this has been the dark side of humanity that has always risen and fallen over the ages.

For this reason, my curiosity has led me to see that society is like a rainforest. It is so complex that academics will never see it from a lofty window looking down upon the people they regard as inferior to them mentally – the great unwashed. We cannot create a rainforest, for the complexity is far beyond our comprehension. Every species is a food source for another, and that includes plants. Remove just one, and the ripple effect unleashed is unpredictable. For example, importing cane toads to Australia or releasing Burmese pythons that were once pets into the Everglades that eat alligators altered the balance in nature as new preditors emerged without their own checks and balance.

This is the danger of the theories that Schwab has embraced. The arrogance of elitism without understanding how the business cycle truly works.

more

Categories: ECMEconomicsUnderstanding Cycles
Tags: Adam SmithBusiness CycleCommunismindividualismInvisible HandKeynesKeynesian economicsLeonardo Da VinciMarxSchwab

Ottawa Mayor Suggests Selling Confiscated Trucks


Armstrong Economics Blog/Corruption Re-Posted Feb 23, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

Mayor Jim Watson of Ottawa is proposing using the powers granted by the Emergencies Act to sell off the confiscated trucks. Over 170 people have been arrested along with nearly 50 trucks. Watson said that he believes the funds should be used to pay for the costs the city incurred during the protest, but the real reason he wants to sell off the trucks is to further punish the protestors. “I want to see them sold. I don’t want the return to these people who’ve been causing such frustration and angst in our community,” Watson said. “You can’t come to Ottawa anymore and shut down our city for four weeks.”

They are taking away these protestors’ livelihoods and leaving them with nothing left to lose. Civil forfeiture permits the government to seize property and assets. All they need to do is claim that a crime was committed. This is a very common practice and governments are the greatest thieves. Countless police agencies factor in confiscated assets in their budget.

Trudeau has suspended all civil liberties. He is attempting to use the truckers as an example – do not disobey or else.

Government theft originated as an ancient law that the King of England adopted as a means to pretend he was God and entitled to confiscate everyone’s money on a whim. The United States Supreme Court in J.W. Goldsmith Jr., Grant Co. v. The United States, 254 U.S. 505 (1922), noted the origins of government forfeiture power in the historical practice of Deodand.

The court cited Sir William Blackstone (1723–1780) in his “Commentaries of the Laws of England,” which noted that this practice extended back to the times of ancient Greece. A Deodand is something forfeited or given to God, specifically, in law, an object or instrument that becomes forfeited because it has caused a person’s death. The English common law of Deodands traces back to the 11th century and was applied, on and off, until Parliament finally abolished it in 1846. Deodand is not technically practiced in the United States or Canada, yet it has transformed into the government’s right to seize your property even if you have done nothing wrong. The object commits the offense, not you.