The Intercept Publishes Diplomatic Cable Highlighting U.S. Pressure on Pakistan to Remove President Imran Khan


Posted originally on the CTH on August 9, 2023 | Sundance 

What do Pakistan’s Imran Khan, Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro, USA’s Donald Trump, Hungary’s Viktor Orban and Mexico’s Lopez-Obrador all have in common?

First, they are all strong nationalists. Second, the U.S. government has either influenced the removal and judicial incarceration or is currently seeking the removal and judicial incarceration of each of them.

As the U.S. State Dept. (Tony Blinken), USAID (Samantha Power) and CIA (Director Burns) conduct influence operations around the world to advance the interests of the multinationals; newly released diplomatic cables from inside Pakistan reveal the U.S. influence effort to remove former Pakistan President Imran Khan.

It sucks to wake up every day and accept the USA are the bad guys.

THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT encouraged the Pakistani government in a March 7, 2022, meeting to remove Imran Khan as prime minister over his neutrality on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to a classified Pakistani government document obtained by The Intercept.

The meeting, between the Pakistani ambassador to the United States and two State Department officials, has been the subject of intense scrutiny, controversy, and speculation in Pakistan over the past year and a half, as supporters of Khan and his military and civilian opponents jockeyed for power.

The political struggle escalated on August 5 when Khan was sentenced to three years in prison on corruption charges and taken into custody for the second time since his ouster. Khan’s defenders dismiss the charges as baseless. The sentence also blocks Khan, Pakistan’s most popular politician, from contesting elections expected in Pakistan later this year.

One month after the meeting with U.S. officials documented in the leaked Pakistani government document, a no-confidence vote was held in Parliament, leading to Khan’s removal from power. The vote is believed to have been organized with the backing of Pakistan’s powerful military. Since that time, Khan and his supporters have been engaged in a struggle with the military and its civilian allies, whom Khan claims engineered his removal from power at the request of the U.S.

The text of the Pakistani cable, produced from the meeting by the ambassador and transmitted to Pakistan, has not previously been published. The cable, known internally as a “cypher,” reveals both the carrots and the sticks that the State Department deployed in its push against Khan, promising warmer relations if Khan was removed, and isolation if he was not. (read more, including cable)

Gen X No Longer Saving for Retirement


Armstrong Economics Blog/Economics Re-Posted Aug 9, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

(click on the image above for a clear view)

A new survey by Clever Real Estate shows that 64% of Gen Xers have stopped saving for retirement. These are the people born between 1965 and 1980. Retirement has become a luxury, and people are working well into their golden years out of necessity. The cost of living is so high that the majority cannot afford to save for the future. Social Security will not be there to soften the blow, pensions are failing for those lucky enough to secure one, and we soon will have a nation of elderly individuals with no financial means. This is a great premise to usher in the Great Reset, where the government usurps all power, as people may have no other option.

According to the survey, 56% of respondents have less than $100,000 in savings, while 22% have absolutely nothing saved for retirement. Most (69%) would like to retire before the age of 65, but only 37% believe that is a possibility. In fact, 19% do not believe they will retire before 80, and 11% believe they will be working until the day they die.

The average 401K match from employers is at an all-time high of 4.7%, but people are still unable to stow away funds. Of those who never saved for retirement, 73% said they simply could not afford to save, while 30% said they were focused on paying off debt. Over half (52%) said they have over $10,000 in non-mortgage outstanding payments. Around 44% blame the poor economic conditions of the US for their dilemma.

Americans are falling deeper into debt and have no plans for financial management. Americans raked in a record $17.05 trillion in debt during Q1 of 2023 alone. Credit card debt is at an all-time high, and the cost of borrowing continues to rise. Public schools do not educate people on the importance of saving for retirement, and we are all paying into Social Security with no guarantee that it will be paid back to us. America is heading toward a retirement crisis.

European Companies Lost Over €100 Billion on Russia Amid War


Armstrong Economics Blog/World Trade Re-Posted Aug 8, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

The Financial Times estimates that European companies have lost at least €100 billion ($110 billion) since the Russia-Ukraine war began. Around 176 European companies noted significant losses in their fiscal year reports for 2022, and the future remains grim as tensions continue to grow.

Naturally, energy-related industries faced half of those losses, followed by banking, chemicals, industrial, and automotive. BP, TotalEnergies, and Shell lost 40.6 billion euros due to the war, but the spike in energy costs helped them to post favorable earnings reports. Numerous European companies cited “asset impairments, foreign exchange-related charges and other one-off expenses as a result of the sale, closure or reduction of Russian businesses.” Britain, Germany, and France reported the steepest losses, attributing to at least 20 billion of the 100 billion euros lost.

Half of the 1,871 European companies previously operating in Russia are still conducting full or limited business there, according to the Kyiv School of Economics. Russia has since required foreign companies fleeing Russia to pay a 10% exit fee and sell their assets to Russian companies at a 50% discount. It is nearly impossible for companies to operate in Russia due to high sanctions, logistics, and public pressure. Businesses that did not flee will be faced with massive charges from Moscow and are practically stuck between forfeiting their businesses or attempting to operate amid an escalating war.

Big Picture Interview of Martin Armstrong


Armstrong Economics Blog/Armstrong in the Media Re-Posted Aug 7, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

The following image is what the WEF and the Neocons have planed for us.

Planned Parenthood – Eugenics and Population Control Report


Armstrong Economics Blog/USA Current Events Re-Posted Aug 7, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

Planned Parenthood released its annual report for 2021-2022, congratulating themselves for the work they have done. Bans off our bodies – sure. I do not take the authoritarian route on any personal choice. But there is no mistaking the targeted eugenics program at the foundation of Planned Parenthood. They have been openly targeting Black and Brown babies since the beginning. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, who Hillary Clinton calls her idol, openly believed that minorities were unfit to have children. Sanger attended KKK rallies to promote abortions and gain funding. She endorsed the 1927 Buck v. Bell decision that allowed the US government to forcibly sterilize “unfit” mothers without consent, resulting in thousands of women losing their right to reproduce.

It could not be more obvious. Sanger began the “Negro Project” in 1939, where she hired Black nurses and doctors to eliminate fears of racism. She even recruited Black religious leaders. Sanger opened clinics in the South in predominately Black neighborhoods, and to this day, Planned Parenthood clinics are in predominately Black neighborhoods.

In 2022, Planned Parenthood ACTIVELY MARKETED its services to “reach new audiences,” predominately in the Black and Latino communities. Page 25 of their report discusses how they enrolled the help of Black, Latina, and non-binary creators to reach minorities and successfully received over 20 million views and 135,000 new followers. They specifically want minorities to walk through their doors. They make no mention of marketing to the White or Asian communities for a reason. This is not merely about abortion; it’s a eugenics program.

So in 2021, Planned Parenthood performed 374,155 abortions, amounting to 1,200 abortions per day. Only 1,803 women opted to put their babies up for adoption. The clinics saw fewer clients but performed more abortions, meaning the education piece is not a priority. They now offer the abortion pill through telemedicine as well. They are promoting gender transitioning services to reduce further the number of people who can reproduce, and even have a guideline on how to talk to your PRESCHOOLER about gender identity.

So sure, make your decision based on your own circumstances. The government need not tell us what to do on any level. That is between you, your doctor, and God. But this organization was never intended to empower women. From the beginning, their mission has been to rid the world of those deemed undesirable and unfit to live by the founders. Hence, the US government supplements 35% of its funding as reducing the global population is the goal.

Modern Analysis for the 21st Century


Armstrong Economics Blog/Reports and DVDs Re-Posted Aug 4, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: Hello Martin. I’ve been a long-time follower and one of the first subscribers to Socrates “Basic.” Your information is always valuable! I’d classify myself as a retired, middle class fellow, who has put away enough funds to be comfortable. But, I got very uncomfortable when you just posted “We cannot rule out the Biden Administration canceling the dollar before the 2024 election.” My fears for myself and my family are being caught offguard in investment, location, and security. I can’t afford going to your annual events; would you consider a large treatise or book on how to survive in the middle class?

LC

ANSWER: These are the next two books. The first, Modern Analysis for the 21st Century, dives into technical analysis and why fundamental analysis has been so wrong. I am trying to make an authoritative work that perhaps after I am dead will force academia to change the course of its methodology, particularly in economic analysis. The Geometry of Time will deal with cyclical analysis. I think we are all here for some purpose and then we get to leave. I hope this is what I leave behind.

United States Debt Downgraded to AA+


Armstrong Economics Blog/Economics Re-Posted Aug 4, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

Inflation was transitory. Now, the credit rating of the United States plummeting from AAA to AA+ by Fitch is “arbitrary,” according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “In Fitch’s view, there has been a steady deterioration in standards of governance over the last 20 years, including on fiscal and debt matters, notwithstanding the June bipartisan agreement to suspend the debt limit until January 2025,” the rating agency said in a statement. The last time an AA+ rating was issued was August 5, 2011, and the market took a hit.

In 2011, Standard & Poor cut its rating also after a debt ceiling crisis caused by politicians. The global markets felt the impact of that news. Fitch has been warning of a possible downgrade since May 2023, due to the massive debt burden and political mismanagement. The White House continued its spending spree and our politicians could not agree on a limit for the debt ceiling. The warnings were there.

It is concerning that Yellen is trying to stifle this news. “I strongly disagree with Fitch’s decision. The change announced today is arbitrary and based on outdated data,” Yellen insisted. Again, this is the same woman who insisted, along with Powell, that inflation was transitory and nothing to be concerned about. Yellen believes some of Fitch’s models do not accurately indicate the state of the US. Yell said “governance,” under Joe Biden, has improved due to mass infrastructure packages and investments in America that will make the country more competitive.

Yellen and others refuse to admit that the United States has deteriorated under the Biden Administration. “Governance” is one of the nation’s weakest points right now, but that would put blame on the current administration. The right and left are more polarized than ever and cannot agree on anything. The US government is heavily investing in one foreign government to fuel the proxy war while lining the pockets of “the big guy.” This administration has ruined America and there is no sugar coating what’s to come.

A Non-Pretending Discussion About Barack Obama


Posted originally on the CTH on August 4, 2023 | Sundance | 512 Comments

Every once in a while, you stumble upon an article that is insightful and valuable. This outline is intended to draw everyone’s attention to one of those articles.  ~ SEE HERE

Writing in Tablet Mag, David Samuels outlines his discussion with very well-respected historian David Garrow about Barack Obama and Dr. Martin Luther King, but mostly about Obama.

It is an intensely interesting albeit very long read, much of it drawn from a transcript of the conversation initiated by Samuels about the research Garrow did for his 2017 book on Obama called “Rising Star.”

The type of intense, deeply cited and granular research that David Garrow did for his book, is the type of research historians 50-years from now will be citing as they outline the legacy of President Obama.  This is also the type of research and non-pretending analysis you will never see approved for conversation by those who currently maintain the false pretense of the subject.

“I doubt that in the long run, Obama’s foreign-policy failures are going to be seen as the most important part of his legacy. I think future historians are going to look at the Obama presidency and see it as the moment when this new oligarchy merged with the Democratic Party and used the capacities of these new technologies and the power of this new class of people, the oligarchs and their servants, to create a new apparatus of social control. How far they can go with it, what the limits are … you see them trying to test it out every week or so.”  ~ David Samuels

Garrow and Samuels both discuss Barack Obama in a way that is extremely accurate; as a result, antithetical to the populism that surrounds the former President.  People who have followed political events will bathe in the truthfulness of the discussion.  Obama, a man created by his own intent and purpose, to present himself and his transitional identity to a select audience of affluent white liberals.  This audience would help Obama achieve his narcissistic life goal to have a “valet and private plane”, while simultaneously assuaging their white guilt.  The plan worked swimmingly.

Samuels talks about the curiosity of President Obama maintaining his residence in the nation’s capital, an often-visited command center in Washington DC, where important members of the current administration assemble at times, and secret service vehicles are often spotted coming and going. Yet, for some odd reason, the DC media network who are directly responsible for tracking and outlining the comings and goings of those in power, are seemingly incurious about this home/headquarters.

[…] Samuels: “The easy explanation, of course, is that Joe Biden is not running that part of his administration. Obama is. He doesn’t even have to pick up the phone because all of his people are already inside the White House. They hold the Iran file. Tony Blinken doesn’t.”

[Garrow interjecting] “Rob Malley was the guy on that.”

Samuels: “Rob Malley is just one person. Brett McGurk. Dan Shapiro in Israel. Lisa Monaco in Justice. Susan Rice running domestic policy. It’s turtles all the way down. There are obviously large parts of White House policymaking that belong to Barack Obama because they’re staffed by his people, who worked for him and no doubt report back to him. Personnel is policy, as they say in Washington.

Which to me is a very odd and kind of spooky arrangement. Spooky, because it is happening outside the constitutional framework of the U.S. government, and yet somehow it’s been placed off the list of permitted subjects to report on. Which is a pretty good indicator of the extent to which the information we get, and public reactions to that information, is being successfully controlled. How and by whom remain open questions, the quick answer to which is that the American press has become a subset of partisan comms.”  (link)

There is a perspective of genuine historically correct discussion between Samuels and Garrow that is very interesting.  Factually, there are a lot of reference citations in the Obama tenure that reconcile well with how Garrow outlines the process inside the mind of Barack Obama.

You might remember, the day after the Sept 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, a seemingly detached Obama hops a flight aboard AF1 that morning at 6:00am to go west campaigning and collecting donor checks in Nevada and California.  The ego legacy superseding the potential for damaging political consequences.

In addition to Garrow outlining the lack of deep consequential relationships in the life of Obama, a man perpetually unmoored from any roots or familial guidance, able to morph himself to the framework of an image he also was responsible for creating – there are a lot more events in/around the era of Obama that reconcile.

I am going to draw attention to one such example, because this is the first time I have seen anyone, other than myself, connect the dots of the new surveillance state to the intents and purposes of Obama’s tenure in office.   As noted during the conversation, David Samuels says…

….”So Obama starts out as an eloquent opponent of the Patriot Act, etc., etc. By the end of his presidency, his people are unmasking intercepts of his political opponents every day, and the FBI is spying on Donald Trump.”… 

The response from Garrow is as succinct as it is accurate, “that’s right!

This is my happy place.  I cannot tell you how refreshing it is to see an article that drops all of the pretending and starts to talk about the reality of our situation.  If we stop pretending we unite as a country, because we all start to accept the same baselines.

The fraud that has been purposefully deployed as a tool for fundamental change, can only exist if people pretend that fraud and corruption does not exist.  Stop pretending, and the sunlight of commonality begins to unite our nation.

This weaponized national security state will be the legacy of President Obama.

While future historians may reference the obvious failures in almost all of Obama’s foreign policy, specifically the events in the Middle East and ISIS manifest, the core of what will be attributed to President Obama will be the weaponized surveillance state using all the tools created, fine-tuned and deployed during his time in office.

All of that machinery within the, DHS, NSA, FBI, DOJ-NSD, ODNI, is still running on autopilot – massively controlling the mechanics of communication and social media, thanks to the pathways, networks and systems President Obama authorized.

More to follow…

Trudeau’s Tinder Profile


Armstrong Economics Blog/Humor Re-Posted Aug 4, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

Must be a quadruple-vaccinated conformist who rejects all freedoms. Open to all genders or non-genders! Must enjoy long plane rides to Davos, the occasional lockdown, and be interested in implementing the New World Order with me and my friends at the World Economic Forum. Absolutely no truckers or family members of truckers — swipe left if you even own a large vehicle. My friends would say I am overprotective and controlling. I will likely freeze your bank account if you break up with me. Swipe right if you want to be remembered as the next Eva Braun of Canada!

US Credit Rating & the Sovereign Debt Crisis


Armstrong Economics Blog/Politics Re-Posted Aug 3, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: What do you make of the US debt downgrade? Do you think this has anything to do with indicting Trump in three courts? I know many people decided to donate to Trump today, even for the first time, as a sign of disapproval of the Biden Administration and the RINOs.

HJ

ANSWER:

It is time for the Credit Rating Agencies to knock off the BS. Yes, Fitch Ratings downgraded US long-term debt late on Tuesday from AAA to AA+, citing this spring’s debt ceiling standoff as a significant reason. That is nonsense. NO government ever intends to pay off its debts. Historically they ALWAYS default. The global financial system has relied on the promise that the US government will always repay its debts. Some wrongly believe that this is what makes the US dollar the most widely held currency worldwide. The backing behind the dollar is twofold.

  1. Largest Consumer-based economy in the world that everyone needs to sell into
  2. The deepest financial market in the world to park money as well as finance projects and float stocks

This is why the US markets barely reacted to the news in after-hours trading on Tuesday, and US Treasuries were holding steady. Of course, you have the traditional bearish prognosticators who claim the last time there was a downgrade, and the market crashed by 6.5%. The real question is – sell stocks, and the traditional flight to quality is you buy bonds – which were just downgraded. Hm? Many are starting to wake up that the only safe place for wealth will be in tangible assets, for this Biden Administration is completely desperate and out of control. You cannot threaten China and Russia with war and then ask them to buy your debt. China is disinvesting in US government debt ASAP. That is also the reason for the downgrade.

These indictments against Trump, while Biden and Hunter actually could be charged with Treason, have undermined the confidence in the United States government internationally more than anything. They are trying to prevent Trump from running in 2024, for the Neocons know they would be fired if not put on trial for treason themselves. Trump vowed to run for office from prison. RFK should join as the VP and abandon the Democrats, for they will NEVER allow him to gain a toe in their Washington club.

Yes, I have gotten many emails saying people are donating to Trump’s 2024 campaign as a matter of protest against this Biden Administration. All I can hope is that even Democrats wake up before it is too late and stop this hate-Trump nonsense, for what lurks in Washington is so much worse. This judge in Washington will put Trump in prison in the blink of an eye. This judge has been handing out time in excess of the prosecutor’s recommendations. That is unheard of.  You are about to witness the complete collapse of the Rule of Law in the United States, and once that goes – it is time to turn out the lights.

The US will eventually descend into civil war at worst, just as China and Russia did when faced with the rise of the LEFT. Some states will separate from this absolutely corrupt government. We cannot rule out the Biden Administration canceling the dollar before the 2024 election, for the Neocons do not care about the economy – only their geopolitical goals. With the Neocons in such a desperate position, they may not wait for the election and connect a dollar cancelation to some geopolitical event. The EU would most likely do the same on a coordinated basis, and both Canada and the UK will follow suit with Japan, Australia, and South Korea.

If the Neocons manufacture a geopolitical conflict before the election, beware of the 2nd quarter next year. That does NOT mean we should lose all hope. You cannot create a new system without purging the old one. Keep your fingers crossed for post-2032, and we get to start anew just as the Founding Fathers overthrew the monarchy and created a new political system.

C