Tag Archives: WEF Social Credit Application

Mar 26 2022

The Hypocrisy of Biden Speaking About Democracy vs Autocracy in Poland Is Choking When Contrast Against Western Govt Behavior During COVID


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on March 25, 2022

There comes a time when a person has no more tongue to bite.  Joe Biden speaking to U.S. troops in Poland about “democracies at an inflection” point in history, is jaw-dropping when you consider the behavior of every western government leader over the past two years.

Once again, Joe Biden, the same authoritarian who mandated that every American worker undergo a medical procedure in order to qualify as a person who might earn a living, sits atop his high-horse and pretends that western government leaders have some inherent claim to the protection of democracy.

Given their collective behavior over the past two years, the hypocrisy of this continued talking point is beyond outlandish.

[Transcript] …”We’re in the midst of — and I don’t want to sound too philosophic here — but you’re in the midst of a fight between democracies and oligarchs.  Xi Jinping — who I’ve spent more time with, they tell me, than any other world leader — points out to me that he believes, in China, that democracies can’t succeed in the 21st century.  The reason is things are moving so fast, change is happening so quickly that democracies require consensus, and we can’t put together consensus as quickly as autocrats can.

So, what’s at stake — not just in what we’re doing here in Ukraine to try to help the Ukrainian people and keep the massacre from continuing — but beyond that, what’s at stake is: What’s — what’s — what are your kids and grandkids going to look like in terms of their — their freedom?  What’s happening?  The last 10 years, there have been fewer democracies that have been formed than we’ve lost in the world. 

So, this is — what you’re engaged in is much more than just whether or not you can alleviate the pain and suffering of the people of Ukraine. 

We’re in a new phase — your generation.  We’re at an inflection point.  About every four or five generations, there comes along a change — a fundamental change takes place.  The world ain’t going to be the same — not because of Ukraine, but — not going to be the same 10, 15 years from now in terms of our organizational structures. 

So, the question is: Who is going to prevail?  Are democracies going to prevail on the — and the values we share?  Or are autocracies going to prevail?  And that’s really what’s at stake. 

So, what you’re doing is consequential — really consequential.  (read more)

I know Emmanuel Macron, Boris Johnson, Jacinda Ardern, Scott Morrison, Justin Trudeau and Joe Biden himself, would like to think that we do not remember the past two years of complete unilateral dictatorship they enjoyed while hiding behind the shield of “emergency authorizations,” but this is one website that will continue to document – for the historical record – the brutal reality of these pontificating liars.

Do they really think we have forgotten how they never once asked the representative government for authorization before triggering their unilateral fiats?  The economic lockdowns, the loss of liberty, the collapse of freedom, the shutting down of any form of petition for grievance, the use and weaponization of the regulatory system, the manipulation of courts, the unilateral mask and vaccination mandates, the demands for compliance to some of the most ridiculous rules and regulations, and yes, even the lies and double-standards they applied to the masses while they themselves ignored the rules they forced upon everyone else….  Do they really thing we have forgotten this?

There’s a lot of white-hot anger amid the citizenry of those aforementioned nations, righteous anger – yet these government creatures of entitlement stand on a soapbox today and decry autocracy and/or oligarchs.

Seriously?

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping did not arrest moms in playgrounds in Michigan.  Russian police officers did not arrest paddleboarders off the beach in Malibu. The Chinese state police didn’t fill skate parks with sand, or shut down restaurants, or destroy the livelihoods of middle America.

It wasn’t the Kremlin police arresting people in New York City for going to restaurants without authorization papers.

It wasn’t the FSB firing bullets into the crowds in Melbourne, Australia, because the people refused to wear masks.  It wasn’t Moscow who created “bubbles” in New Zealand demanding a person apply for a permit before visiting their elderly parents, or arresting people for going to McDonalds and trying to navigate through police checkpoints and roadblocks.

It wasn’t the armed Chinese military who set up involuntary detainment facilities in Australia and then called them quarantine camps- where if you crossed the arbitrary yellow line painted on the porch, you would be arrested and thrown into solitary confinement.  It was “democratic” premiers and national democratic leaders of the Scott Morrison administration.

It wasn’t the North Korean army who monitored Facebook accounts in Canada and questioned people who dare speak about the concept of liberty, or raise concerns about totalitarian dictates.

It wasn’t Kim Jong-un who declared a national emergency, then arrested his political opposition for protesting in downtown Ottawa.  It wasn’t Chairman Xi who confiscated the bank accounts of dissident citizens who dared to raise their voices in support of truck drivers.  It was Justin Trudeau.

It wasn’t Beijing who hired state-sponsored hunters to track down unvaccinated citizens in Austria, fine them and confiscate their wages if they did not comply with vaccines.

It wasn’t Chairman Xi who blocked those citizens from shopping in supermarkets forcing citizens into a black-market just to scrounge for food and essential medicine.  It was the government of Austria.

It wasn’t the police in Pyongyang who set up vaccine checkpoints in Paris, and demanded formerly free citizens to show their authorization papers to sit outside at a cafe table.

If these Western leaders like Joe Biden think they have some credibility to stand in Poland and talk about the value of democracy, they would be well served if their handlers mentioned these insufferable protestations are falling on deaf ears.

Few things raise the anger of people to a level where foul language is the better option than the physical violence that might surface without it, but this level of hypocrisy and pretense is surely one of them.

To all the leaders of various “western democracies” who will now clutch their pearls as the backlash from the brutalized citizens starts to come full circle, you did this to yourself.

No one is to blame other than Biden, Trudeau, Ardern, Morrison, Macron, Johnson et al and the leaders of NATO who now suddenly need the support of the citizens they abused in order to fend off their new enemy, Vladimir Putin.

Western government leaders intentionally and willfully positioned themselves as the enemy of freedom.  They do not now get to grab back the torch of liberty and wield it as a talking point weapon against totalitarianism.

Mar 26 2022

India-Russia Rupee-Ruble Financial Trade Arrangement Could Be Ready in a Week


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on March 25, 2022 

The Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO) announced today they are likely to have the financial mechanism for a Russia-India currency exchange and trade process in place within a week.   Previously, India announced their decision to continue purchasing oil from Russia despite the western sanctions.  Prime Minister Modi is a pragmatic, tactical and shrewd business-minded politician.

India is becoming a major player in the geopolitical world, as recognized by former President Trump during his Indo-Pacific trade partnership discussions.  The population of India is over 1.4 billion people, and they are industrializing as a more democratic counterbalance to China. Prime Minister Modi has been a key political leader in generating economic alliances to the benefit of his nation, while maintaining a prudent stiff-arm toward the influence of major multinational corporations.

(Via CNBC) – India is expected to announce a payment arrangement that would allow trade with Russia to continue, the president of an Indian exporters’ association told CNBC’s “Street Signs” on Wednesday. 

The so-called rupee-ruble trade mechanism could come as early as next week, according to A Sakthivel, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).  The FIEO, a government-backed association representing over 200,000 exporters, oversees India’s export promotion councils.

India’s finance ministry and the Reserve Bank of India have not commented so far on the mechanism, which would let Indian exporters continue their business with Russia even after Western sanctions restricted international payment mechanisms. The arrangement would also allow India to buy Russian energy exports and other goods.

Sakthivel said the Indian government is working on a proposal to allow four to five nationalized Indian banks to be engaged in the trade, and there have been consultations between the central bank governor, the finance minister and banks.  (more)

(Left to Right) – Xi Jinping (China), Vladimir Putin (Russia), Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil), Narendra Modi (India) and Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa), the BRICS group.

REMINDER –  Stand back and look at the biggest of the big pictures.

A Build Back Better society, or “great reset”, is factually underway as triggered by the gateway of SARS-CoV-2 and the massive spending by western nations to subsidize the lockdowns, shut-downs, economic closures and forced unemployment.

Global inflation is being driven not only by the American spending spree, but also by the massive government spending programs of the EU, U.K, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and many western nations.

The bills for those subsidies and bailouts are due.  The labor of the citizens is going to have to pay those bills, while simultaneously we deal with inflation and massive debt balances on all nations’ balance sheets.

Into this mix comes the very real possibility of a declining U.S. trade dollar, as a result of geopolitical conflict between the west and Russia, China, Iran and OPEC in the geography of Ukraine.   The financial sanctions by NATO and western allies have factually created a rift in currency exchange valuations.

As the proverbial west hammers those sanctions even harder and more deliberately, what they are doing is creating a stronger and greater likelihood that the dollar will be removed as the global trade currency, and we will enter a phase where two sets of nations exist:

One set of nations will run their economy on oil, gas and fossil fuels.  The other set of nations will be focused on running their economic engine on the premise of sustainability, or renewable energy.

The sanctions toward Russia actually help to drive this chasm even wider.

To me, this looks entirely purposeful – done by specific intent and design.

Two world groupings.  One group, oil-based energy (traditional) – let’s label them the RED GROUP; and one group GREEN energy (the build back better plan).  It is not accidental these two groups hold similar internal geopolitical views and perspectives.

♦ The important part to see is… there are going to be two sets of nations with two structurally different economies. A red group and a green group.

These two groups are going to end up in competition with each other.  It is as inevitable as sunrise, if you can see this cleaving I am talking about.

Now, think about the economic system of trade that exists between the Red and Green groups.  There has to be a way for them to exchange value if they are going to purchase from and sell to each other.

Additionally, and this is *key*, the Red group is going to have a strong strategic advantage in production costs.  The Red group is going to be using oil, coal and gas (fossil fuels), which are abundant, cheap and the infrastructure is already in place.

The Green group is going to be at a strong disadvantage, at least for a generation or two, as the costs associated with the production of goods and systems is going to be much more expensive to operate, as the transition into Build Back Better sustainable or renewable energy takes place.

In the macro view, stuff from the Red group is going to be cheap.  The exact same stuff from the Green group is going to be more expensive.

If you are still with me, hopefully, you can see how this is all coming together.

♦ The western debt incurred during COVID-19 is a problem.  However, this debt diminishes with inflation.  A $20 trillion debt is not as big a problem when bread costs $100/loaf and people are earning $50,000 a month.   The Green group is entering into this position.  In this position, the BlackRock approach of physical ownership of real estate and physical stuff is way more important than holding money or dollars which will immediately lose value.  Physical ownership of stuff is important.

♦ It is likely, based on the economic alignment, the Green group will be forced to assemble under one currency (set of financial valuations), and the Red group will then assemble under their own currency (set of financial valuations).  My hunch is the western group (green) will use a digital currency.

Once both sets of currencies are established, then trade between the Red group and Green group can be determined based on a central valuation done by, say, The World Bank.   In the Red group, a 20″ tire is worth 100 red bucks.  In the Green group, a 20″ tire is worth 150 digital green bucks.  Two vaults and two exchanges.

In order for all of this to come together, the population needs to be shifted in their perspective of money and material value.   That takes us back to where this conversation started: “owning nothing and being happy” is akin to “prizing experiences over possessions.”

The Western (green) financial mega-system operators are going to own the physical assets, and the people will live under that ownership – a modern structure of serfdom so-to-speak.  In the largest nations within the Red group, that social system (essentially) already exists – India is a prime example.

If we can get President Trump back into office, and then rally massive support around him, he will dismantle this handbasket they are determined to put us into.  However, I see no one else who is even remotely up to this challenge.   We need Trump!

Mar 26 2022

Joe Biden Just Implied the 82nd Airborne Is Going Into Ukraine – “You are going to see when you are there”


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on March 25, 2022 

March 25, 2022 | Sundance | 650 Comments

Joe Biden just told U.S. troops in Poland they are going into Ukraine.

Earlier today Joe Biden landed in Rzeszow, Poland, to get a firsthand look at international efforts to help some of the millions of Ukrainian refugees fleeing war in their country.  While there, he delivered remarks to the 82nd Airborne who are bolstering NATO’s eastern flank.

During his remarks, Joe Biden stated the troops are going to see heroic acts by the ordinary men and women of Ukraine.  He directly implied the 82nd airborne unit was going into Ukraine, and stated, “You are going to see when you are there.”  Standing next to Biden while those statements were made, is U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.  No one attempted to stop Biden from publicly saying we were sending troops into Ukraine.  WATCH (prompted):

https://youtube.com/watch?v=UVcHxGydbD4%3Fstart%3D115%26feature%3Doembed

After making the remarks about the troops going into Ukraine, Biden went into his ideological talking points about Democracy vs Autocracy again.  He’s literally completely oblivious to his own administration actions.

Almost the entirety of the Western government leadership including Scott Morrison (AU), Jacinda Ardern (NZ), Emmanuel Macron (FR), Justin Trudeau (CA) and Joe Biden have been far more authoritarian and autocratic in their COVID-19 rules, regulations and mandates than most non-western nations. It really is stunning that someone in the White House doesn’t pull him back from this talking point.

Mar 25 2022

Are we Following the Path of Pearl Harbor?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Russia Re-Posted Mar 25, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: Dear Mr Armstrong.
You previously mentioned that the chance for world war 3 will come to play after 2027 … but nowadays you are warning that those dead head’s in the west are pushing the world into world war 3 right now.
Is there a change in the timeline?
With much appreciation,
Tal

ANSWER:  The post-2024 period appears to be a significant global war – all-in sort of thing. But will also be intermixed with shortages in commodities thanks to also weather conditions. Currently, the Neocons who have control of the Biden Administration are totally insane. They have used an executive order to do these sanctions bypassing Congress for as long as they do not send troops, they claim it is not an official declaration of war that ONLY Congress can issue. They are showing to the entire world that the very authoritarian regimes they hate, Russian and China, are precisely what they are doing in the United States intentionally trying to invoke war which they fully understand will NOT be sanctioned by Congress or the people.

The Neocons try to invoke patriotism so we follow whatever they say blindly when this is not a fight that is in the national interest. This is a fight for their hatred and they have no problem spilling the blood of our children as if this were some board game of war that makes them feel better because they defeated their enemy. These Neocons are HIGHLY dangerous and they are the reason for war and the end of Western Civilization. They are the real threat to the national security and the future of our children and grandchildren.

Their strategy is taken right out of the war book used during the FDR Administration. This is precisely what FDR did to get the United States into World War II. He was frustrated because Congress would not authorize joining the war. When FDR went to Boston, the Irish lashed out at him saying that the British starved the Irish and they were now not going to go defend them. Many people who fled Europe to America was to be free of the hatred and politics in Europe. So it was NOT a popular idea of coming to the rescue of Europe which they fled.

The Neocons during the FDR Administration followed a clever agenda to circumvent Congress as they are doing right now. They were racists and simply hated the Japanese as is the case with Russian right now. They started in 1938 with a series of escalating highly restrictive trade restrictions imposed on Japan. The Neocons terminated the 1911 commercial treaty with Japan in 1939. They then tightened the Export Control Act of 1940, which was intended to prevent the scarcity of critical commodities in a likely prewar environment. In addition, this Act was directly targeting Japan to restrict the exportation of material to Imperial Japan.

This was followed by the United States embargoed scrap-metal shipments to Japan and closed the Panama Canal to Japanese shipping. The Neocons were seeking to isolate Japan without engaging in war that only Congress could declare Japan, at the time, imported about 74% of its scrap iron from the US and over 90% of its copper.

Then on July 26, 1941, the US seized all Japanese assets in the United States in retaliation for the Japanese occupation of French Indo-China as they have done today with Russia’s reserves. This was followed on August 1 with an oil embargo and gasoline exports to Japan which also came from the United States. The oil embargo was the last straw when 80% of its energy supply came from the USA. The US also was proposing intervening to prevent Japan from getting oil from other sources.

The complete U.S. oil embargo was the last straw. The Japanese had to then seize Southeast Asia for resources which expanded the war instead of the old hatred between China and Japan. They needed to do that before they ran out of resources. To secure themselves in the Pacific, they attacked Pearl Harbor with no intention of actually invading the United States.

The racism was highly dominant in WWII and that led to the imprisonment of all Japanese regardless if they were born in America. The prjudice became widespread and unfortunately, things are following along the same path. They have ERASED the name of the first man in space changing history all because is is just a Russian. The same hatred is emerging and this is a very dark sign for the future.

BOTH sides have their Neocons and these people will manipulate society to achieve their goals. We are just the poawns on the chess board and they have discovered their clever ways to create wars with sanctions which then instage the military response because the people themselves never wanty war.

Mar 25 2022

Czech Republic to Seize All Russian People’s Assets


Armstrong Economics Blog/Uncategorized Re-Posted Mar 25, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

Leading Czech politicians are calling for all property within the Czech Republic of all Russians to be indefinitely ‘frozen’ in violation of international law. The onus would be on the victims to “prove” that they are against the Putin regime. There are about 40,000 Russians living in the Czech Republic, plus others who have property or businesses there.

The EU is increasing being viewed as an evil, lawless, government. However, the Eastern European EU members are now even worse than the Western ones. They seem to go further violating international law trying to prove to the West that they are good little obedient vassals. Fischer is violating every principle of what the EU was supposed to stand for – human rights. The Czech Republic has clearly begun a new cycle which began with the COVID  Crash.

Mar 25 2022

NATO – UKRAINE- RUSSIA


Armstrong Economics Blog/Russia Re-Posted Mar 25, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

COMMENT: Putin is a madman. He has invaded a sovereign nation and Russia has to pay for that.

SV

ANSWER: Obviously, you are believing the propaganda from the West. Putin has stated from the outset that he was NOT seeking to occupy or conquer Ukraine. Just look at the numbers. Estimates of Russian troop numbers in Ukraine have ranged from anywhere between 100,000 and 200,000 in recent weeks.  Now, if he was intending to really “invade” a sovereign nation, you would assumed that the standard military strength that you want is between 2 to 3 times your opponent.

OK. So the question becomes: What is the size of the Ukrainian Army? That is about 297,000 and they are NATO trained forces. They are not farmers and hicks – but professional soldiers. So the press that portrays that Putin is losing and this is taking too long are all based upon the idea that the objective is conquest. But Putin has stated from the outset, and he has NOT deviated, that he wanted Ukraine to be demilitarized and remains as “NEUTRAL” as according to the Belgrade Agreement.

This is a PROXY war and Putin understand that now. Zelensky is unwilling to let Donbas go nore Crimea and his statement that he asked to join NATO was rejected, but he states the “door remains open” and NATO has trained the Ukrainian Army so they are up to NATO standards without formally being in NATO. Putin understand all of this. He has an army of 850,000 active personnel and 250,000 in reserve. China had 2,695,000.00 in 2018 and may be approaching 3 million right now.

The biggest NATO force in Europe is Turkey with about 445,000. The next is France with 208,000, Germany 1ith 189,000, Italy with 174,000, the UK with 156,000, Spain at 123,000, Poland 121,000, Greece 106,000, and everyone else under 100,000. The US has 1,352,000 and Canada 71,000. This means that in Europe, NATO has 1.3 million. If China assasited Russia, that would be a force of 3.7 million.

The problem this time is that the US has 1.3 million total, down from 2.2 million under Reagan. The US is clearly counting on non-conventional weapons. So have we reached the point where nukes are the ONLY line of defense?

You can see that Ukraine with 297,000 actually has the largest army in continental Europe that confronts Russia. Therefore, if Ukraine was part of NATO, it would have a conventional force of about 1.6 million including Turkey. That would outnumber Russia at about 1.1 million and that once again means a conventional attack on Russia would need to go nuclear to defend against Europe.

The risk of escalation here will be 8.6 weeks into this confrontation which will bring us to the week of April 18th, followed by the first week of May. The sanctions imposed on Russia are more than just insane, they have set in motion famine in Europe. Even French President Macron has been briefed on this real threat. He has urged an immediate emergency plan for food security at the G7 that has been triggered by the war in Ukraine. Moscow has urged that the longer the battle in Ukraine continues being the breadbasket of Europe, this war could result in “inevitable famine” as soon as 12 to 18 months from now. Because the bulk of the exports from Ukraine feed Northern Africa, he has warned this could be serious. Indeed, our model is pointing to rising civil unrest over food and corruption.

This DEMONIZING Putin is highly dangerous. All the Russian leaders see this as a proxy war and they will respond even much more aggressively if Putin was not there. My concern is the US keeps cheering on the Ukrainians and they NEVER have any strategy other than the immediate victory. The aftermath they seem to never consider. Remove Putin and this is an attack upon Russia and its culture, that pushes the world to the brink and we cannot rule out that it wo0uld be a warning to all of Europe by nuking Kyiv as a warning to all of Europe – is this what you really want?

Mar 25 2022

Biden Turns Unstable and Angry When He Receives One Non Preapproved Question During NATO Presser


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on March 24, 2022 

Within the background game we are supposed to ignore, the people behind Joe Biden pre-select and pre-approve the questions he receives.  The approved journalists and questions are written on a sheet for him to use; today was no exception.  However, during the NATO press briefing the importance and subject matter of the venue put pressure on him to answer one non-approved question.

That singular question ‘triggered’ the angry Biden disposition to surface, when he was asked to reconcile his current sanctions regime against previous statements about sanctions being a deterrent to Russian aggression.  Biden gets agitated easily. WATCH (prompted):

https://youtube.com/watch?v=zgvQOEQrmYc%3Fstart%3D690%26feature%3Doembed
Mar 25 2022

Biden Briefs Media After NATO Summit Over Ukraine Crisis, Russia Status in G20 Challenged, Global Food Shortages Discussed


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on March 24, 2022

With less than a quarter of the U.S. population having any confidence in Biden’s ability to handle the Ukraine crisis [AP Poll], the installed White House occupant headed to NATO to discuss consensus opinion.

Cliff Notes from Presser – Biden was bullish about the NATO alliance, yet everyone essentially agreed to resist Ukraine’s call for them to enforce a no-fly zone in the country.  During the presser [VIDEO], Biden said he wanted Russia’s ouster from the G20 but conceded it likely won’t happen and deferred to the larger group. Biden unveiled new sanctions but acknowledged that they haven’t been and will not be a deterrent. Then said while his administration wants to get Europe to stop relying on Russian energy, he recognizes it can’t be done.

When Biden was questioned about potential food shortages, he admitted the discussion did actually take place. “With regard to food shortage… it’s gonna be real,” Biden said, while admitting the price of the sanctions is not just going to surface in Russia and Europe but is likely to show up in other nations including the United States.

Don’t downplay the food shortage issue.  The absence of food can change things very quickly.  How the various national leaders respond to food shortages, and/or prices for food that makes food insecurity a very real issue, is an unknown.  However, a food crisis -and the subsequent solutions- could change the direction of many policies.

Call me crazy or whatever, but when you watch and listen to all of these NATO members either individually or collectively, you can get the distinct impression that they’re waiting on advice from some other organization and/or entity that usually provides them instructions.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=zgvQOEQrmYc%3Ffeature%3Doembed

Mar 24 2022

Should we Cheer for Putin to Lose?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Russia Re-Posted Mar 24, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

While the Neocon strategy of DEMONIZING an adversary as they have done to Putin, the very same strategy was used to get people to absolutely hate Donald Trump. The more someone hates Trump still, the more susceptible they are to simple techniques of mind manipulation. This has led many to cheer for the Ukrainians to defeat Russians and we have the White House calling Putin a War Criminal when you could say the same thing about the US leaders that started the endless saga of wars on false pretenses or took out civils with drones when they wrongly thought they were terrorists.

The White House appears to be under the influence of the Neocons who just always advocate war. Make no mistake about it, these Neocons are not confined to just the Democrats or Republicans. They share a love for war and the hatred of everyone they perceive to be an enemy. It’s tempting to think that Putin will suffer a defeat and democracy could revive in Russia, but a more likely scenario is total world chaos. Russia is also comprised of Muslims who number about 14 million or roughly 10% of the total population. Then there are different cultures and you will see internal chaos and separatist movements armed with nukes.

Putin is not a fool and he is actually honoring his word. He is not trying to conquer Ukraine. His column of tanks had stopped as a show of force and intimidation. He has not ordered just total annihilation. The US strategy is we go in and flatten everything targeting water and power grid. Put took the power station but did not turn off the power. The West portrays this as Putin is stalled and the Ukrainians could defeat the Russians. But this seems to be propaganda all designed to wear down the moral of the Russian troops and sway public opinion for Ukraine.

While the press also portrays that Putin’s nation has now been subjected to an isolation greater than any nation has ever experienced by any major power in history, it was US sanctions to cut off the fuel to Japan that caused them to attack Pearl Harbor. There were later even Congressional investigations into FDR and did he deliberately try to create a situation to get the USA into World War II. Congress simply said the allegations were inconclusive.

Since late February, Russia has been hit with punishing economic, trade and financial sanctions. Putin struck back and said all energy sales to unfriendly nations will now be in Rubles. Saudi Arabia also agreed with China to sell oil in Yuan. These are historically critical events that have torn the world economy asunder. There will NEVER BE A RETURN TO NORMAL.

So while the Western Press cheers and reports that Russia is careering toward a debt default, they forget that the default will be on the West. A very rapid technological decoupling is also underway dividing the world economy and that will threaten free trade and the end of economic growth. Indeed, US GDP Growth rate peaked in real terms.

The mass withdrawal of American firms from Russia will have a profoundly negative impact moving forward and the world economy is shrinking rapidly. Russia isn’t some weak power like Iraq. Russia is a major power whose population was, until recently, deeply connected to its larger global environment. The White House thinks that Russians will blame Putin rather than Biden. Eastern European states like Serbia and in the Middle East are looking at the United States as the problem being arrogant and interfering in everyone else’s affairs. It is without question that the United States has declare war on Russia. This is how World War II began with countries attacking one another in the financial markets.

So while the Neocons lick their lips at the thought of overturning Putin and controlling Russia before they turn on China, they are clearly not looking long-term. They took out Saddam Hussein who kept the religious zealots in their place. Once he was removed, the Middle East saw the rise of ISIS. The US has been covertly funding the Ukrainian Nazis to keep up their fight against Donbass.

Let us may no mistake here. The Neocons pushed and funded through the CIS the Taliban for then they were the anti-Soviet resistance. The CIA Special Activities Division sent paramilitary officers to equip the Mujihadeen forces against the Soviet Army. The US therefore funded Taliban mainly to assist in ending the Soviet’s occupation in Afghanistan. However, the Neocons can never think past the end of their nose. They have no long-term strategies, only win what is immediately in front of them. The taliban benefited from expanded foreign military support from the United States. They then used that training against US troops who were in search of terrorists from 911.

The foolish view among the Neocons is they think bringing Democracy to the Middle East or now to Russia and China will somehow make them friends or stable is an absolute joke. The idea of creating a “Moscow Spring” by punishing the Russian people until they do what the CIS and Neocons demand does not make the costs of conflict lead worth it. Marx brought his ideas and it cost over 200 million lives to install communism. America is hated for its interference by the Neocons in many circles.

Both China and Russia have American arrogance as a common enemy and the Russian or Chinese people will not send them flowers and Xmas cards thanking them for destroy everything they have built since 1989. However, RELIABLE sources in the Middle East, the UAE, Egypt and even Israel are angry over Biden’s sanctions. Yet the Neocons claim that total isolation forced regime change in South Africa. However, they also had no military power to fight back. That is like claiming a fight is fair with one kid has a rubber band and the other a baseball bat.

Somebody in Washington needs to start thinking strategically and realistically about this endeavor to isolate Russia for all that is unfolding at a rapid rate is the disintegration of the world economy. In 1989, then President George H.W. Bush understood there were serious risks with the collapse of the Soviet Union and Communism. Russia is big and powerful enough that its role in the world economy is vital to the overall health of the international order . The US NEEDS Russia as an economic friend not and adversary for nobody will win with that result.

The Western propaganda is that Russia and China represent authoritarian rule. However, Western governments are no better. Sure, we have elections but then the candidate arrives in Washington and they are told they will vote according to the Party Agenda rendering the image of free elections only just that. In Europe, the people do not vote for the Commission which makes the laws nor for the head of state. We do not live in a Democracy for the people never are allowed to vote on an issue like war or peace.

The likelihood of Putin being overthrown and Democracy is sudden born has less than a zero change of ever being correct.

Mar 24 2022

It’s Not Just Energy – It’s Also Metals


Armstrong Economics Blog/Base Metals Re-Posted Mar 24, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

The outrageous sanctions imposed by Biden on Russia has undermined the entire world economy. Sanctions have never worked and this time they were designed to try to hurt the Russian people so profoundly that they would overthrow Putin. The Ukrainians are even naming Alexander Bortnikov, the Russian Director of the Federal Security Service and a member of Putin’s inner circle, as a successor to the president. Bortnikov has come out and said that Stalin’s Great Purge was necessary whereas Putin rejected Lenin. Be careful what you wish for, as they say.

Stickers are showing up plastered all over gasoline pumps throughout the USA despite Biden trying to blame Putin for his the disruption to the world economy. The US had no national security issue at risk with either Crimea nor DonBass. The Neocons just hate Putin and have used Ukraine as a proxy war toy to get at Putin. Even in Poland the government is pushing for war. Europe desperately needs war for 8.6 years of NEGATIVE interest rates has wiped out pension funds. NY banks will no longer lend against European sovereign debt. They cannot fund the governments any longer and the central bank cannot buy their debt endlessly. The only solution that they see is to default under the pretense of the Great Reset so they NEED war as the diversion with a new Bretton Woods.

But Biden’s sanctions have gone far beyond just energy. Nickel is a vital for it is the largest component in stainless steel production. Alloy steel is also called special steel. Nickel can increase the strength of the alloy and maintain its good plasticity and toughness. Then nickel is also used in the field of batteries, mainly nickel-hydrogen batteries, chromium-nickel batteries, and nickel-manganese batteries. Lastly, very fine nickel powder is often used as a catalyst in the chemical industry. Hence, nickel is vital and it goes beyond just the coins in your pocket which at these prices will be worth more in metal content soon enough.

Yet these sanctions that Biden swore would target only Russia, have disrupted the entire world and not just energy. Tsingshan Holding Group is a major producer of Nickel and it sold hedging position forward to secure its production. But prices doubled thanks to Biden and Tsingshan tried to buy back its hedging positions and that has set off a collapse of the Nickel market in London. Nickel was already breaking out thanks to COVID restrictions. Then the Biden Russian sanctions were insane and you can see the drastic price rally as Tsingshan tried to buy back its hedge.

Nickel prices began to soar after Biden’s sanction on Russia. The rally became a crisis for the LME as producers such as Tsingshan’s brokers desperately tried to buy those nickel contracts back causing a near 70% rise in a single session to stem losses and avoid escalating margin calls. The trading became erradic as brokers kept trying to cover short hedged positions. Hedge funds and other participants were frantically buying nickel, which only propelled the market even higher. Nickel prices had more than doubled reaching more than $100,000 a metric ton.

The LME was sent into crisis. Several smaller brokers were saying they would default at the 9 a.m. margin call if prices stayed at those levels. The LME was forced to suspend the market shortly after 8 a.m. local time or suffer a catastropiuc collapse of the exchange. The brokers could not meet the expected margin calls. Thus, the LME adopted the drastic step of canceling trades that took place before the suspension. They is said to have wiped out $3.9 billion in transactions. Of course, the hedge funds were furious for they were looking a huge unrealized profits. Because of the sudden price shock, the LME had no choice but to suspend trading in hopes that the brokers would collect the funds from their clients. However, the decision to wipe out trades that took place in a free market in good faith is really unprecedented and has shaken the confidence in free markets.

It may be true that the suspension and the canceled trades to settle the catastrophic damage to the free markets created by the Biden sanctions has prevented a near-term collapse of the LME. However, failing to do so may have brought down the entire exchange ending the market where producers can hedge forward.

Tsingshan still owes its brokers, which included JPMorgan, Standard Chartered and BNP as well as a unit of state-owned China Construction Bank Corp. The demand for cash to settle margin calls for a hedger who has sold future production presents a serious crisis. There are serious questions being raised if the price seen in this spike truly reflects the shortage in the supply or just an aberition created by a short-term panic.

Ironically, it was the great expanse of China’s economy which drove Nickel to $54200 a metric ton back in 2007. Nevertheless, where our computer has been bullish on Nickel and it elected even the third Quarterly Bullish Reversal at the end of the 3rd quarter 2021. There was no way the market was heading lower. Clearly, those in charge of hedging were calling the shots from an opinion perspective – not quantitative. For early 2021, Tsingshan began to accumulate a short position. It made statements on its website reflecting its view that the Nickel market was flush and prices should decline. Tsingshan’s short hedge position was equivalent to having sold about 190,000 metric tons on the LME. That would be worth $9.1 billion based on closing prices.

The forecasting view of Tsingshan regarding Nickel is just unfounded. Our model showed that we would start to see a rise in 2022 in price volatility but this is continuing into 2024. The price high may not arrive until 2023 and we may be looking at a new record. This is just another domino in the future of the world economy that just fell over. These Biden Sanctions are not going to be reversed and the pride of politicians is now threatening the entire world economy.

You have not made any comment about the LME Nickel market. In my opinion, this is onether chip of the domino falling which comes to confirm that the collapse of the West is in motion. The loss at Tsingshan is said to be about $8 billion. I have been called in to similar crisis where major corporations have lost billions due to improper hedging. This amount is staggering and clearly reflects that the firm has totally incompetent people in charge of hedging who may be listening to bankers and fundamentals rather than the markets.