GOV/MIL Main "Great Reset" Thread

[marsh]

https://www.agweb.com/news/crops/corn/are-surprisingly-strong-cash-grain-bids-exposing-reality-us-corn-supplies

Are Surprisingly Strong Cash Grain Bids Exposing Reality of U.S. Corn Supplies?

By TYNE MORGAN June 28, 2022
Commodity markets continue to see wild swings to finish out the month of June, but a story that’s catching the eye of many farmers is basis. Strong cash grain bids are sparking questions about not only how tight corn supplies actually sit today, but severity of the issues getting the grain to feed users located in areas of the country that need it.

Joe Vaclavik of Standard Grain says the cash market is creating opportunities for farmers still holding on to old crop grain.

“It's not everywhere, but there's a lot of areas with positive corn basis, in particular, and I think we'll find out a little bit more on June 30 about that situation,” says Vaclavik. “What are the grain stocks? Where are they located? Why is it so tough for, say, an ethanol plant to procure corn, even when cash is $8 or better?”

Could USDA's Report This Week Reveal Answers?

Thursday, June 30, is when USDA will release its updated look at planted acres, as well as a more current snapshot of grain stocks in the U.S. and around the world. He says with current cash basis levels, it will be a major focus of Thursday’s reports.

“It's really a phenomenal situation,” says Vaclavik. “And it is an underlying positive in regard to the markets. Now, that doesn't mean that the board has to rally from here, but I'd say it's a supportive factor.”

Mike North of ever.ag works with livestock producers across the country. He says for feed users in the western half of the country, specifically California and the Southwest, sourcing grain is becoming more difficult. He says there are feed users even paying as much as $3 over the board just to get the grain they need.

“Basis absolutely suggests that corn supply is tight; there is no way around that fact when basis moves to the extremes that it is,” says North. “Even with high prices on the board, it is suggestive that it is hard to find, source and move corn from point A to point B. And as a consequence, you do start to question what the yield was last year, the stocks numbers that have been reported previously, or is it that we have enough corn just kind of sitting there that producers are unwilling to sell because they're comfortable? It's hard to fully answer that question.”

Issues Sourcing Feed Farther West
The other issue for producers in drought-stricken areas of the West is the fact feed is becoming more scarce, according to North.

“Water is already scarce,” he says. “There are allocations in California for usage, it's a difficult situation. And it's only getting worse, because as these allocations for water continue to shrink so does the capacity to grow crops. We're taking a feed pile that has already been running light and making it lighter.”

North says in order to keep these operations running, and to keep the animals fed, feed users are paying more.

“When we talk about the road ahead, what's going on in the Midwest will have big ripple effects as you work further out into the West and the South,” says North. “That becomes further complicated by railcar shortages and labor shortages and all of the other peripheral things that wrap themselves around just pure supply discussions.”

The Price Risk in Both Directions
Vaclavik says even with the updated look at acreage and stocks later this week, he thinks there’s a tremendous amount of risk in both directions for grain prices.

“Weather forecasts can turn on a dime and bring the markets along with them” he says. “At the same time, I think you've got a Federal Reserve and central banks that are essentially trying to induce a recession. They won't say that, but that's what they're trying to do. They need to reduce economic activity in order to reduce inflation. They don't even care if unemployment rises by 1% or 2%, I don't think at this point in time, so that you've got so many risks.”

From recession, to the reality of reduced grain flows due to the war in Ukraine, Vaclavik reminds producers the markets are wading through a combination of unknowns.

“I've never seen anything like this before,” says Vaclavik. “Just try to have an idea of your risk profile, know where you stand. If things work, lock them up. Because you know, these markets can move dollars, dollars per bushel and grains in the course of a week. It's possible and it's in both directions.”

 

[marsh]

https://www.dairyherd.com/news/business/railroad-issues-make-california-dairy-producer-worry-about-growing-corn-shortages

Railroad Issues Make California Dairy Producer Worry About Growing Corn Shortages

California dairy producer, Darlene Lopes worries that soon no corn will be available to feed her herd of 4,000 Holsteins cows.(Darlene Lopes)

By KAREN BOHNERT June 8, 2022
Despite high milk prices, California dairy producer Darlene Lopes is growing frustrated. She worries that soon no corn will be available to feed her herd of 4,000 Holsteins cows.

“We are running out of corn here in California,” she says. “We are all on emergency corn rationing.”

Lopes’ patience is wearing thin, as she tries to get to the bottom of why farms like hers are being allocated with contracted corn and more importantly when this problem will be fixed.

“I need corn today to feed my cows,” she says.

Lopes says this is the third time her farm has been short on delivered contracted corn this year, and the situation is only growing more dire.

“This time every feed company in California is out of corn and waiting on a train,” she reports.

According to Robin Schmahl, branch manager of AgDairy, there continue to be ongoing issues with grain moving to areas of the Southwest and West due to delays in rail service.

“There have been some issues previously, but wait times have increased significantly over the past few months,” he reports. “Some grain suppliers have actually run out of grain for a day or two before receiving a shipment.”

Earlier this week, Lopes reports that her feed company’s train came in and that they are unloading it.

“We were allocated one load on Tuesday, two on Wednesday and two on Thursday,” she shares.

“Then we will be out again.”

Lopes farms alongside her husband, Paul, and their son, Tony. In addition to the dairy, the family manages a 2,500 head of Angus-Crossbred cattle and farms approximately 2,100 acres of corn, oats, wheat, Sudan and alfalfa.

All of Lopes’ corn for June is contracted and yet they are not receiving all their corn.

“I use 11 truckloads a week,” she reports.

Schmahl says feed competitors have been working together to make sure livestock are being fed.

“The issue is not that there is no grain available, but the railroad workforce is less than required to keep trains running on schedule,” he says. “Lack of railroad workers is the greatest issue coupled with a few other issues that have impacted efficient service.”

While there is no good time to be out of corn, the problem grows urgent as the California central valley heat is about to hit. Retooling rations isn’t ideal, and cows often don’t come back into full production until the next lactation.

Schmahl says that the issue is not getting any better and is a significant concern for livestock and poultry producers.

“We are already losing production,” Lopes says.

Randy Edwards, a ruminant nutritionist with Alpha Dairy Consulting, concurs with Schmahl and says that the corn shortage has been a huge burden on California producers, especially those north of Fresno.

“There’s a number of train cars in Arizona that were derailed recently; Foster Farms and Associated Feed & Supply ran out of corn in the matter of a day,” Edwards reports.

Schmahl says producers are having to adjust their feed rations to accommodate what feed is available at times.

Although Edwards says replacing rolled corn is difficult to do, as other feed alternatives don’t offer the same feed value.

“You can attempt to replace corn with some corn silage, bakery, mill run, barley, rolled oats, ground wheat, corn gluten, molasses, corn germ, etc.,” he says. “But, some of these products can be difficult to find readily available in bulk. It can be challenging to bring in some of these commodities to replace the starch coming from corn in your diets without giving up too much effective fiber.”

In the meantime, Lopes tries to stay optimistic, but worries that the weeks to come won’t deliver any better outcome, with corn amounts continued being limited to farmers.

“I wish people knew just how bad this situation is,” she says. “This simply cannot continue.”

 

[marsh]

Michael Yon - Increase of Immigrant Flow In Darien Gap, Famine, Pandemic, And War 8:44 min

Michael Yon - Increase of Immigrant Flow In Darien Gap, Famine, Pandemic, And War
Bannons War Room Published June 28, 2022

(Yon talks about world famine bringing additional refugees through the Darien Gap. He talks about Egypt's failed strategy of price controls, seizing food from farmers. He predicts they will do this in the US. He is going to Europe (Poland, Hungary,) to assess the food/energy/and people situation, perhaps Africa and back down to the Darien Gap - paying close attention to nationalities coming through.

Also, one by one, south American countries are turning Communist and people are fleeing through the Darien Gap north to the USA. Apparently, Ecuador is also being squeezed hard by Putin and Xi.


Jack Posobiec - Fight for The Global South 3:30 min

Jack Posobiec - Fight for The Global South
Bannons War Room Published June 28, 2022

(BRICS Alliance -Brazil Russia, India, China and South Africa- Iran also wants to join. Brazil is the key piece for control of South America. India is the fulcrum for South Asia, Russia wants to balance power in the BRICS, China wants to be in the driver's seat. XI wants Taiwan for the chips, but also control of the maritime shipping routes in the South China Sea where 90% of the world's commerce passes. )

 

[marsh]

Optimism Among US Business Leaders Drops to New Low Amid Rising Inflation, Supply Issues, Labor Shortages

Optimism among business leaders regarding the outlook of the U.S. economy has drastically declined in the past year, according ...

www.theepochtimes.com

A man shops at a Safeway grocery store in Annapolis, Maryland, on May 16, 2022. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

INFLATION
Optimism Among US Business Leaders Drops to New Low Amid Rising Inflation, Supply Issues, Labor Shortages

By Katabella Roberts
June 28, 2022 Updated: June 28, 2022

Optimism among business leaders regarding the outlook of the U.S. economy has drastically declined in the past year, according to JPMorgan’s 2022 Business Leaders Outlook Pulse, released Monday.

More than 1,500 midsize business leaders participated in the survey (pdf), which was conducted between May 25 and June 10 across executives of midsize companies in the United States that have annual revenues from $20 million to $500 million.

It found that just one in five business leaders, or 19 percent, said they were optimistic about the national economy for the year ahead, representing the lowest percentage recorded in the 12 years that the survey has been conducted by JPMorgan. That figure is also down significantly from 75 percent one year ago.

Amid the decline in optimism, the survey showed that pessimism around the national economy jumped to 51 percent from 10 percent a year ago amid soaring inflation and interest rates and ongoing supply chain issues and labor shortages.

Meanwhile, just 9 percent of business leaders expressed optimism over the global economy.
Among those surveyed, 99 percent reported that their costs of doing business have increased in the past year, with 71 percent stating that their top challenge is rising costs, including inflation.

Labor issues, including recruiting, hiring, and retaining employees and labor shortages, came in at 70 percent, while 86 percent of respondents said that they believe inflation is worse than it was six months ago, along with interest rates at 65 percent.

Passing Costs Onto Customers
Inflation is currently sitting at a 40-year high in the United States, which has forced many businesses to pass those higher costs onto customers.

Of those surveyed by JPMorgan, more than three-quarters of businesses (76 percent) said they are raising prices, with 42 percent stating they have passed at least half of their increased costs to consumers via increased prices.

That trend is unlikely to disappear any time soon, according to the survey, which found that 81 percent of respondents are likely to keep raising prices in an effort to offset higher costs.
Despite the gloomy outlook, 73 percent of those surveyed said they expect increased revenue or sales for the year ahead, while 71 percent are optimistic about their company’s performance.

The survey comes shortly after a poll by Morning Consult found that optimism about the future of the United States is waning among adults.

According to that survey, which was conducted on a representative sample of 2,210 U.S. adults between June 16–20, just 45 percent of respondents said they were “very optimistic” or “somewhat optimistic” about the future of the country, marking a new record low.

Inflation, which the Biden administration has largely blamed on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has seen prices soaring in the United States, driving up the costs of everyday essentials including food and fuel.

On June 22, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs that the country faces an “uncertain” economic environment and that more inflation “surprises” could be on the horizon in the future.

A number of economists and experts, including those at Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley, are forecasting a recession in the near future.

“The first half of 2022 has really tested business leaders with pricing pressures and increased interest rates, on top of the supply chain- and labor-related issues they were already facing,” said Ginger Chambless, head of research at JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking.

“While it’s surprising to see how drastically sentiment has shifted, it is important to note that business leaders are still mostly upbeat when it comes to their companies and areas that they can more directly control.”


Katabella Roberts

 

[marsh]

How Bad Will the Food Shortage Get?

STORY AT-A-GLANCE It’s becoming increasingly clear that severe food shortages are going to be inevitable, more or less worldwide, and

americafirstreport.com

How Bad Will the Food Shortage Get?

BY DR. JOSEPH MERCOLA
June 28, 2022
Opinions
(Edited section on prepping recommendations)



STORY AT-A-GLANCE

• It’s becoming increasingly clear that severe food shortages are going to be inevitable, more or less worldwide, and whatever food is available will continue to go up in price
• The cost of agricultural inputs such as diesel and fertilizers is skyrocketing due to shortages — caused by a combination of intentional and coincidental events — and those costs will be reflected in consumer food prices come fall and next year
• Mysterious fires, alleged bird flu outbreaks and other inexplicable events are killing off livestock and destroying crucial infrastructure. Since the end of April 2021, at least 96 farms, food processing plants and food distribution centers across the U.S. have been damaged or destroyed
• The global food price index had risen 58.5% above the 2014-2016 average as of April 2022, due to a convergence of post-pandemic global demand, extreme weather, tightening food stocks, high energy prices, supply chain bottlenecks, export restrictions, taxes and the Russia-Ukraine conflict
• Combined, all of these factors set us up for guaranteed food shortages, food inflation and, potentially, famine in some places, so now is the time to prepare

Two years ago in May 2020, I predicted the COVID-19 pandemic would be followed by famine, thanks to the intentional shutdown of businesses and global supply lines.1

Depending on where you live, you’re now starting to see shortages to a greater or lesser degree. But regardless of how things appear right now, expect changes, potentially drastic ones, over the coming months and into 2023, because that’s when the diminished yields from this current growing season will become apparent.

With each passing week, it’s becoming increasingly clear that severe food shortages are going to be inevitable, more or less worldwide, and whatever food is available will continue to go up in price.
The cost of agricultural inputs such as diesel and fertilizers is skyrocketing due to shortages — caused by a combination of intentional and coincidental events — and those costs will be reflected in consumer food prices come fall and next year.

On top of that, mysterious fires, alleged bird flu outbreaks and other inexplicable events are killing off livestock and destroying crucial infrastructure. Since the end of April 2021, at least 96 farms, food processing plants and food distribution centers across the U.S. have been damaged or destroyed by fire (see below).2,3

An estimated 10,000 cattle also perished in Ulysses, Kansas, in mid-June 2022,4 under mysterious circumstances. The official claim is that the cattle died from heat stress, but that seems highly unlikely. Heat could conceivably kill some weaker cattle, but 10,000 on the same day?

Combined, all of these factors set us up for guaranteed food shortages, food inflation and, potentially, famine in some places.

Recorded temperatures were said to be around 100 degrees Fahrenheit at the time of the loss,5 but other states have also had 100-degree temperatures, with no recorded cattle deaths.

Combined, all of these factors set us up for guaranteed food shortages, food inflation and, potentially, famine in some places. If you’re still sitting on the fence, I would urge you to get off it and begin preparations. Those who fail to prepare are likely to find themselves in an incredibly difficult situation this fall and next year. Don’t let that be you.

How Bad Is It?
In May 2022, a number of experts started speaking out about the inevitability of coming food shortages. The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warned of “the specter of a global food shortage in coming months” unless international action is taken,6 and The Economist featured “The Coming Food Catastrophe” on its cover.7

During the 2022 World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, told attendees that “the anxiety about access to food at a reasonable price globally is hitting the roof,”8 and President Biden, in March 2022, told reporters that food shortages are “going to be real.”9

A May 30, 2022, Reuters report10 showed the global food price index had risen 58.5% above the 2014-2016 average as of April 2022, due to a convergence of “post-pandemic global demand, extreme weather, tightening food stocks, high energy prices, supply chain bottlenecks … export restrictions and taxes” combined with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Together, Russia and Ukraine account for as much as 12% of all globally traded calories,11 making the timing of the conflict a particularly perilous one for the world. Not surprisingly, countries that are heavily reliant on imports have seen the steepest food price increases.
In early April 2022, Rockefeller Foundation president Rajiv Shah and Sara Menker, founder of Gro Intelligence, published an op-ed12 in The New York Times blaming “Putin’s war” for the looming food crisis but, clearly, we were already on the path toward global famine long before Putin entered Ukraine.

Weather, for example — whether natural or manufactured — plays an important role. As noted by Shah and Menker, “historic drought” plagues many parts of the world, including the U.S. Midwest, Brazil, Argentina, North Africa, the Middle East13 and India.14 Meanwhile, China’s agricultural lands are drowning under the “heaviest rains in 60 years.”15

How Bad Will It Get?
While it’s difficult to predict just how bad it will get in any given area, it seems safe to say that everyone should prepare for some degree of food shortages, regardless of where you live, as we’re staring at a perfect storm of confounding factors that are global in nature and therefore can cause far-reaching and somewhat unpredictable ripple effects.

As noted by David Wallace-Wells in a June 7, 2022, New York Times op-ed, referring to the price index charts published by Reuters and Shah and Menker:16

“… one thing charts like these do not obviously signal is mass starvation. And yet, according to David Beasley, the former Republican governor of South Carolina who now leads the U.N. World Food Program [WFP], that is what they imply:

[T]he possibility that, as a result of an ongoing food crisis exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, climate change and the continuing effects of the coronavirus pandemic, 323 million people are ‘marching toward starvation’ as we speak, with 49 million ‘literally at famine’s door’ …

[It] is worth keeping in mind that 49 million is not the number facing ‘acute food insecurity,’ to use the W.F.P.’s technical category distinction.

That number is the much higher one: at least 323 million, which is up, Beasley says, from 276 million before the war, 135 million before the pandemic and 80 million when he joined the W.F.P. in 2017 — a fourfold increase in a single leadership term. Forty-nine million is just the number of those at most immediate risk of death.

Before the war, ‘I was already warning the world that 2022 and 2023 could be the worst two years in the humanitarian world since World War II,’ Beasley says, speaking with me from Rome on last Friday.

‘I’m trying to tell everybody how bad it is — how bad it’s going to be. And then, the next week, I’m like, you know, wipe that clean — it’s worse than what I was saying’ … Beasley believes that 2023 could take a still darker turn.

This year’s price crisis could be succeeded by a genuine supply crisis, in which food is pushed out of reach for many millions not just by price but by ongoing structural conditions (including the failure to plant next year’s harvest in Ukraine and the surge in the price of fertilizer, which can be one-third or more of farmers’ total annual cost), and the world could experience the once-unthinkable: a true shortfall of food.”

According to Menker, the current problem is “not cyclical” but rather “seismic” — “It’s not a moment in time that’s going to pass.”17 Wallace-Wells writes:18

“She cites a longer list of causes, including not just the demand shocks caused by the pandemic and related supply-chain issues but ‘a record number of supply shocks’ that are ‘all climate related,’ such as the rebound of China’s pig population from swine flu and the resulting increase in demand for feed, the problem of public debt in poor countries, the spillover effect of the price of one commodity driving up another and that driving up a third, and so on.

‘Any one of those issues on their own would be considered a big market event. But when you have five of them happening at the same time, that’s what makes it seismic,’ she says.

Russia and Ukraine’s transformation into ‘bread baskets of the world’ was ‘the agricultural miracle of the last sort of 30 years,’ she says, invalidating cataclysmic predictions made by people like Paul Ehrlich and the Club of Rome.

To take that supply off the market — ‘it’s not an inconsequential fuel to the fire,’ she says. As for the ultimate scale of the impact? ‘I think it’s going to be as big as we make it.'”

Globalization Is a Failed Model
That said, Wallace-Wells points out that agricultural economists appear somewhat more optimistic, as “most food is consumed domestically, not traded on international markets.” So, in many areas, there may be substitutes available for shortages.

According to agricultural economists, “at baseline, there is no true global food shortage, only that unassuming-sounding ‘price crisis,'” Wallace-Wells says,19 and price problems are fixable. It can take time, however, that many won’t have. Personally, I’m not so sure relying on agricultural economists’ optimism is a good idea.
Even though a lot of food is produced and consumed locally, farmers everywhere are struggling with soaring overhead and shortages of required inputs. And, if local farmers can’t grow food because of it, there won’t be any substitutes available when imports lag.

As by Daniel Greenfield with the Gatestone Institute International Policy Council notes, globalization has left the United States extremely vulnerable, as globalization “globalizes the ineptitude of the global order”:20

“Globalization advocates … just recreated Marxist central planning with a somewhat more flexible global model in which massive corporations bridged global barriers to create the most efficient possible means of moving goods and services around the planet …

What an interdependent world really means is Algerian Jihadists shooting up Paris, gang members from El Salvador beheading Americans within sight of Washington D.C., tampon and car shortages caused by a war in Ukraine …

The technocratic new world order of megacorporations consolidating markets and then doling out products with just-in-time inventory systems now flows through a broken supply chain. Rising inflation and international disruptions makes it all but impossible for even the big companies to plan ahead, and so they produce less and shrug at the shortages.

We’re in a wartime economy because our system has become too vast and too inflexible to adjust to chaos. Biden keeps trotting out the Defense Production Act for everything until, given time, the entire economy has been Sovietized. The more that the government tries to impose stability on the chaos, the less responsive and productive the dominant players become.

Market consolidation due to government regulations has left a handful of companies sitting atop the market. When one of them, like Abbott for baby formula, has a hiccup, the results are catastrophic …

Behind all the brands on the product shelves is a creaky Soviet system in which a handful of massive enterprises interconnected with the state lazily crank out low-quality products from vast supply chains that they no longer control and feel little competitive pressure to perform better …

Under stress, the failure points are all too obvious, and what is less obvious is that the system has no intention of repairing any of them … An out-of-touch elite responds to problems with meaningless reassurances, glib jokes and wokeness. Like Soviet propaganda, the only thing corporate statements communicate is the vast distance between the lives of those running the system and those caught inside its gears …

Biden and the Democrats have been eager to blame companies for ‘profiteering’ from the inflation created by federal spending … The Democrats were the biggest champions of globalization. Their regulations led to record market consolidation and domestic job cuts.

Corporations were pressured to export dirty Republican jobs to China and keep the ‘clean’ Democrat office jobs at home. The devastation wreaked havoc on the working class and the middle class, and rebuilt our entire economy to be dependent on China and a worldwide supply chain only globalists could believe was bulletproof … After selling off American economic sovereignty, globalists proved unable to maintain global stability.”

Expect Drastic Changes
Remember, The Great Reset includes the recreation of the global food system. That’s why we can be so sure that none of the current problems will be effectively addressed or counteracted.

They intend for the current food system to fall apart, so they can then “solve” the problem by introducing a new system based on patented lab-grown synthetic and genetically engineered foods, along with digital identity, carbon footprint tracking and a programmable centralized digital currency to track not only what you eat but also everything else you do.

The end game is total control of the global population, and this will require the destruction and dismantling of current systems, including the food system. The only way out of this intentional chaos is to become more self-sufficient and create alternative parallel systems locally, outside of the globalists control.

• 1 New York Times April 22, 2020 (Archived)
• 2 Think Americana June 16, 2022
• 3 Pro Deo et Libartate Substack June 11, 2022
• 4, 5 Progressive Farmer June 14, 2022
• 6, 8 NPR May 23, 2022
• 7 The Economist May 19, 2022
• 9 Farm Policy News March 25, 2022
• 10 Reuters May 30, 2022 (Archived)
• 11, 16, 17, 18, 19 New York Times June 7, 2022 (Archived)
• 12, 13 New York Times April 5, 2022 (Archived)
• 14 Down To Earth May 11, 2022
• 15 CNN June 21, 2022
• 20 Gatestone Institute International Policy Council June 20, 2022
• 21 Twitter Pissed off Panda June 12, 2022

 

[marsh]

Gov. Kristi Noem: Our Food Supply Is Threatened Because Of Biden’s Policy Changes
11:12 min

Gov. Kristi Noem (S. Dakota) : Our Food Supply Is Threatened Because Of Biden’s Policy Changes
Bannons War Room Published June 28, 2022

(Rough notes: National Security is food security -

Noem: When another country controls our food, then they control us. Foreign enemies of our country have been investing in our fertilizer plants, our chemical companies, buying up our food processing systems, investing in land and slowly but surely taking over our food supply.

We hear Joe Biden blame Putin for energy costs and availability, but it is his policies that have weakened America and put more control into the hands of our enemies. He has crippled our economy and threatened our way of life by making sure our national security is not a priority.

When Biden talks about energy and supply chain issues, we have to recognize that this is something Biden wants to have happen. There is no way he could have set us up for failure this badly without doing it on purpose.

S. Dakotans have a particular concern about the cost of fuel since it is so rural and work place and shopping can be distant trips each day. This is affecting their budgets. Their largest industry is agriculture. It is costing the average farmer $1000+ a week more just to fill his tractor. Farmers are highly leveraged. They borrow money to buy their land. They borrow more money for their equipment. Then they take out another loan to operate for a year with seed, fertilizer and chemicals. Then they put it all in the dirt. Then they hope it rains and in a couple of months they will be able to harvest something and take it to market, which they have no control over. Then they hope it is enough to pay their bills. They are extremely vulnerable and could lose everything in a year.

Years ago, we decided we wanted a safe food supply and an affordable food supply. Right now, both of those are threatened by the policies we've seen come out of DC: new regulations - Waters of the US, which gives the federal government control over every piece of property across the landscape; and for what Biden is doing to drive up costs for farmers.

Bannon: So the farmers believe these are acts of commission - not global forces, economic forces or weather patterns. That these are actual policy decisions by the Biden Admin.

Noem: You would have to be a dummy to think that this was by accident. We are getting crippled by all the regulations they're sending down to all these farmers. They are not letting our kids work on our operations like they did before. The fines coming down from OSHA on all these processing facilities are astronomical compared to what they were during the Trump Admin. Now they're talking about taxing them more. The Death Tax alone is forcing farms and small business to sell rather than pass the business on to the next generation.

Now they are aggressively pushing forward the 30 by 30 rule - federally taking over 30% of the land by 2030. They don't want people owning private property and this federal government, this White House, prioritizes China, Russia and N Korea over the US.

He's been around for 40 years and people talk about him being old and senile and his staff controlling him. This is not an accident. It is being done on purpose with an agenda to remake our country and to give government control.

Bannon: Do you believe the same of the border - that it is an act of commission - not just osmotic force of these countries collapsing in South America? Do you think that it is by design that he is allowing this invasion into our country?

Noem: The cartels feel so much freedom now. They know they won't be prosecuted. They know these individuals will be facilitated across the border. They're collecting checks, and moving drugs and humans across the border for profit and the Biden Admin. is facilitating it. Yeh it's on his hands because he is allowing it to happen, perpetuating it, not enforcing federal law and allowing it to happen.

We've had National Guard at the border. S. Dakota has been supporting the Texas and Arizona state efforts in trying to secure it. The federal government has failed to do their job and put America first.

​

 

[marsh]

Michael Yon @MichaelYon​ Jun 29, 2022 at 1:05am​

A Criminal Occupies the White House​ Supported by traitors with start on their shoulders. View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjlP-e_OPKY 3:45 min 'I think you're clear': Joe Biden's leaked call to Hunter revealed ​

 

[marsh]

Pull It Off the Market: 40,000 Deaths Is Unacceptably High 1:25 min

Pull It Off the Market: 40,000 Deaths Is Unacceptably High
Red Voice Media Published June 28, 2022

Dr. Peter McCullough: "Typical standard for any biologic product is 50 deaths. Pull it off the market; something's gone wrong. 50. Not 40,000!"

Full Video: Dr. Peter McCullough - Texas Senate Committee on Health & Human Services [VIDEO]

^^^^^^

Toby Rogers - FDA Abandons Science on Covid Shots 8:57 min

Toby Rogers - FDA Abandons Science on Covid Shots
Bannons War Room Published June 28, 2022

(FDA Expert Advisory Committee Approved a bivalent shot with the Wuhan strain and the Omicron BA4 and 5. There was no efficacy data or safety data on the Omicron part. No clinical data will be provided. Safety data will be tracked after the shots are given in the fall. Their reasoning is that this is just a tweak of the original vax so no new safety or efficacy data is needed.

 

[marsh]

7 Existential Threats to America and How to Fight Them 1:49:59 min

7 Existential Threats to America and How to Fight Them
The JD Rucker Show Published June 28, 2022

America has always faced existential threats, but never in modern history have we faced so many at the same time. We're getting hit from every angle and the threats are mounting. What can we, as America First patriots, do to fight them? Today's show is a long one but worth the time.

 

[marsh]

700 Million Worldwide Will Die from CV19 Vax by 2028 – Dr David Martin 1:03:20 min

700 Million Worldwide Will Die from CV19 Vax by 2028 – Dr David Martin
Greg Hunter's USAWatchdog.com Published June 28, 2022
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700 Million Worldwide Will Die from CV19 Vax by 2028 – Dr. David Martin
700 Million Worldwide Will Die from CV19 Vax by 2028 – Dr. David Martin
By Greg Hunter On June 28, 2022 In Political Analysis 26 Comments
By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com

Dr. David Martin has a deep medical science and investment resume. Dr Martin also runs a company (M·CAM International) that finances cutting edge innovation worldwide. He is also one of the key people seeking justice in lawsuits suing medical companies and the federal government involved in delivering the so-called vaccines for CV19. In simple terms, according to Dr. Martin, the CV19 vaccines are “bioweapons.” Big Pharma and the government knew it and also knew it would cause massive deaths and permanent injuries. Dr. Martin says, “It’s going to get much worse. . . . It is not a Corona virus vaccine. It is a spike protein instruction to make the human body produce a toxin. . . . The fact of the matter is the injections are an act of bioweapons and bioterrorism. They are not a public health measure. The facts are very simple. This was premeditated. . . . This was a campaign of domestic terror to get the public to accept the universal vaccine platform using a known biological weapon. That is their own words and not my interpretation.”

How many will die from the CV19 bioweapons? Dr. Martin says, “By their own estimate, they are looking for 700 million people globally, and that would put the U.S. participation in that of the injected population as 75 million to 100 million people. . . . There are a lot of reasons why they hope it will be between now and 2028 because there is this tiny little glitch of the illiquidity of the Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid programs. So, the fewer recipients of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the better. Not surprisingly, the recommendation was people over the age of 65 were the first ones to get injected.”

Dr. Martin thinks the catastrophic effects of the CV19 injections will hit the medical industry soon. Dr. Martin explains, “The dirty secret is . . . there are a lot of pilots having micro vascular and clotting problems, and that keeps them out of the cockpit, which is a good place to not have them if they are going to throw a clot for a stroke or a heart attack. The problem is we are going to see that exact same phenomenon in the healthcare industry and at a much larger scale. So, we now have, along with the actual problem . . . of people getting sick and people dying, we actually have that targeting the healthcare industry writ large. Which means we are going to have nurses and doctors who are going to be among the sick and dead. That also means the sick and the dying are also not going to get care.”

Dr. Martin and his group are suing everybody from President Biden along with the FDA, CDC, Pfizer, Moderna and many others over the deaths and injuries from the CV19 bioweapons fraudulently passed off as “vaccines.” The next big court case is July 6, 2022, in federal court in Utah. Dr. Martin contends “this is far worse” than the Nuremberg trials of Nazis after WWII and adds, “This is organized crime. . . . They have hidden behind the immunity shield that absolves them of product liability by naming the delivery of a bioweapon–a vaccination program. . . . This is actually a criminal act. This is an act of domestic terror, and it is an anti-trust violation. This is racketeering. This is old school racketeering, and it is no different than the mob in the 1920’s.

This is old school racketeering for personal gain and profit at the expense of human lives. You need to call it what it is, and it’s organized crime. I would say the Nazis were better than the people who are doing this. . . . The real question is why did American citizens develop a weapon to kill Americans and get paid to do it? That is a morally outrageous question, and, unfortunately, almost no one is asking it.”

There is much more in the 1-hour and 3-minute interview.

Join Greg Hunter od USAWatchdog.com as he interviews Dr. David Martin, the top expert in the ongoing and unfolding CV19 vax genocide and litigation for 6.21.22.

 

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Biden Admin Grants ‘De Facto Amnesty’ By Dismissing Immigration Cases In Court 1:40 min

Biden Admin Grants ‘De Facto Amnesty’ By Dismissing Immigration Cases In Court (Rep. Brian Babin R-TX)
Just the News - Not Noise Published June 28, 2022

Rep. Brian Babin says Biden and Sec. Mayorkas are granting “de-facto amnesty” by violating the law and dismissing tens of thousands of immigration cases in federal courts.

Watch LIVE➡ bit.ly/ravroku

 

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Farmer Uprising: Dutch Agriculturists Revolt Against the Government .27 min

Farmer Uprising: Dutch Agriculturists Revolt Against the Government
Red Voice Media Published June 28, 2022
In the Netherlands, farmers blocked the country's highways for the second consecutive day against the government's overreaching climate change propositions.

Source: Anonyme Citoyen

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

Escobar: Behind The Tin Curtain - BRICS+ Vs NATO/G7

TUESDAY, JUN 28, 2022 - 09:05 PM
Authored by Pepe Escobar via The Cradle,

The west is nostalgically caught up with outdated 'containment' policies, this time against Global South integration. Unfortunately for them, the rest of the world is moving on, together.



Once upon a time, there existed an Iron Curtain which divided the continent of Europe. Coined by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the term was in reference to the then-Soviet Union’s efforts to create a physical and ideological boundary with the west. The latter, for its part, pursued a policy of containment against the spread and influence of communism.

Fast forward to the contemporary era of techno-feudalism, and there now exists what should be called a Tin Curtain, fabricated by the fearful, clueless, collective west, via G7 and NATO: this time, to essentially contain the integration of the Global South.

BRICS against G7
The most recent and significant example of this integration has been the coming out of BRICS+ at last week’s online summit hosted by Beijing. This went far beyond establishing the lineaments of a ‘new G8,’ let alone an alternative to the G7.

Just look at the interlocutors of the five historical BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa): we find a microcosm of the Global South, encompassing Southeast Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, Africa and South America – truly putting the “Global” in the Global South.

Revealingly, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s clear messages during the Beijing summit, in sharp contrast to G7 propaganda, were actually addressed to the whole Global South:

• Russia will fulfill its obligations to supply energy and fertilizers.
• Russia expects a good grain harvest – and to supply up to 50 million tons to world markets.
• Russia will ensure passage of grain ships into international waters even as Kiev mined Ukrainian ports.
• The negative situation on Ukrainian grain is artificially inflated.
• The sharp increase in inflation around the world is the result of the irresponsibility of G7 countries, not Operation Z in Ukraine.
• The imbalance of world relations has been brewing for a long time and has become an inevitable result of the erosion of international law.

An alternative system
Putin also directly addressed one of the key themes that the BRICS have been discussing in depth since the 2000s — the design and implementation of an international reserve currency.

“The Russian Financial Messaging System is open for connection with banks of the BRICS countries.”

“The Russian MIR payment system is expanding its presence. We are exploring the possibility of creating an international reserve currency based on the basket of BRICS currencies,” the Russian leader said.

This is inevitable after the hysterical western sanctions post-Operation Z; the total de-dollarization imposed upon Moscow; and increasing trade between BRICS nations. For instance, by 2030, a quarter of the planet’s oil demand will come from China and India, with Russia as the major supplier.

The “RIC” in BRICS simply cannot risk being locked out of a G7-dominated financial system. Even tightrope-walking India is starting to catch the drift.

Who speaks for the ‘international community?’
At its current stage, BRICS represent 40 percent of world population, 25 percent of the global economy, 18 percent of world trade, and contribute over 50 percent for world economic growth. All indicators are on the way up.

Sergey Storchak, CEO of Russian bank VEG, framed it quite diplomatically: “If the voices of emerging markets are not being heard in the coming years, we need to think very seriously about setting up a parallel regional system, or maybe a global system.”

A “parallel regional system” is already being actively discussed between the Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU) and China, coordinated by Minister of Integration and Macroeconomics Sergey Glazyev, who has recently authored a stunning manifesto amplifying his ideas about world economic sovereignty.

Developing the ‘developing world’
What happens in the trans-Eurasian financial front will proceed in parallel with a so far little known Chinese development strategy: the Global Development Initiative (GDI), announced by President Xi Jinping at the UN General Assembly last year.

GDI can be seen as a support mechanism of the overarching strategy – which remains the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), consisting of economic corridors interlinking Eurasia all the way to its western peninsula, Europe.

At the High-level Dialogue on Global Development, part of the BRICS summit, the Global South learned a little more about the GDI, an organization set up in 2015.

In a nutshell, the GDI aims to turbo-charge international development cooperation by supplementing financing to a plethora of bodies, for instance the South-South Cooperation Fund, the International Development Association (IDA), the Asian Development Fund (ADF), and the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Priorities include “poverty reduction, food security, COVID-19 response and vaccines,” industrialization, and digital infrastructure. Subsequently, a Friends of the GDI group was established in early 2022 and has already attracted over 50 nations.

BRI and GDI should be advancing in tandem, even as Xi himself made it clear during the BRICS summit that “some countries are politicizing and marginalizing the developmental agenda by building up walls and slapping crippling sanctions on others.”

Then again, sustainable development is not exactly the G7’s cup of tea, much less NATO’s.

Seven against the world
The avowed top aim of the G7 summit in Schloss Elmau at the Bavarian Alps is to “project unity” – as in the stalwarts of the collective west (Japan included) united in sustainable and indefinite “support” for the irretrievably failed Ukrainian state.

That’s part of the “struggle against Putin’s imperialism,” but then there’s also “the fight against hunger and poverty, health crisis and climate change,” as German chancellor Scholz told the Bundestag.

In Bavaria, Scholz pushed for a Marshall Plan for Ukraine – a ludicrous concept considering Kiev and its environs might as well be reduced to a puny rump state by the end of 2022. The notion that the G7 may work to “prevent a catastrophic famine,” according to Scholz, reaches a paroxysm of ludicrousness, as the looming famine is a direct consequence of the G7-imposed sanctions hysteria.

The fact that Berlin invited India, Indonesia, South Africa and Senegal as add-ons to the G7, served as additional comic relief.

The Tin Curtain is up
It would be futile to expect from the astonishing collection of mediocrities “united” in Bavaria, under de facto leader of the European Commission (EC), Fuehrer Ursula von der Leyen, any substantial analysis about the breakdown of global supply chains and the reasons that forced Moscow to reduce gas flows to Europe. Instead, they blamed Putin and Xi.

Welcome to the Tin Curtain – a 21st century reinvention of the Intermarium from the Baltic to the Black Sea, masterminded by the Empire of Lies, complete with western Ukraine absorbed by Poland, the Three Baltic Midgets: Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Czechia and even NATO-aspiring Sweden and Finland, all of whom will be protected from “the Russian threat.”

An EU out of control
The role of the EU, lording over Germany, France and Italy inside the G7 is particularly instructive, especially now that Britain is back to the status of an inconsequential island-state.

As many as 60 European ‘directives’ are issued every year. They must be imperatively transposed into internal law of each EU member-state. In most cases, there’s no debate whatsoever.

Then there are more than 10,000 European ‘rulings,’ where ‘experts’ at the European Commission (EC) in Brussels issue ‘recommendations’ to every government, straight out of the neoliberal canon, regarding their expenses, their income and ‘reforms’ (on health care, education, pensions) that must be obeyed.

Thus elections in every single EU member-nation are absolutely meaningless. Heads of national governments – Macron, Scholz, Draghi – are mere executants. No democratic debate is allowed: ‘democracy,’ as with ‘EU values,’ are nothing than smokescreens.

The real government is exercised by a bunch of apparatchiks chosen by compromise between executive powers, acting in a supremely opaque manner.

The EC is totally outside of any sort of control. That’s how a stunning mediocrity like Ursula von der Leyen – previously the worst Minister of Defense of modern Germany – was catapulted upwards to become the current EC Fuhrer, dictating their foreign, energy and even economic policy.

What do they stand for?
From the perspective of the west, the Tin Curtain, for all its ominous Cold War 2.0 overtones, is merely a starter before the main course: hardcore confrontation across Asia-Pacific – renamed “Indo-Pacific” – a carbon copy of the Ukraine racket designed to contain China’s BRI and GDI.

As a countercoup, it’s enlightening to observe how the Chinese foreign ministry now highlights in detail the contrast between BRICS – and BRICS+ – and the imperial AUKUS/Quad/IPEF combo.

BRICS stand for de facto multilateralism; focus on global development; cooperation for economic recovery; and improving global governance.

The US-concocted racket on the other hand, stands for Cold War mentality; exploiting developing countries; ganging up to contain China; and an America-first policy that enshrines the monopolistic “rules-based international order.”

It would be misguided to expect those G7 luminaries gathered in Bavaria to understand the absurdity of imposing a price cap on Russian oil and gas exports, for instance. Were that to really happen, Moscow will have no problems fully cutting energy supply to the G7. And if other nations are excluded, the price of the oil and gas they import would drastically increase.

BRICS paving the way forward
So no wonder the future is ominous. In a stunning interview to Belarus state TV, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov summarized how “the west fears honest competition.”

Hence, the apex of cancel culture, and “suppression of everything that contradicts in some way the neoliberal vision and arrangement of the world.” Lavrov also summarized the roadmap ahead, for the benefit of the whole Global South:

“We don’t need a new G8. We already have structures…primarily in Eurasia. The EAEU is actively promoting integration processes with the PRC, aligning China’s Belt and Road Initiative with the Eurasian integration plans. Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are taking a close look at these plans. A number of them are signing free trade zone agreements with the EAEU. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is also part of these processes… There is one more structure beyond the geographic borders of Eurasia.”

“It is BRICS. This association is relying less and less on the Western style of doing business, and on Western rules for international currency, financial and trade institutions. They prefer more equitable methods that do not make any processes depend on the dominant role of the dollar or some other currency. The G20 fully represents BRICS and five more countries that share the positions of BRICS, while the G7 and its supporters are on the other side of the barricades.”
...
“This is a serious balance. The G20 may deteriorate if the West uses it for fanning up confrontation. The structures I mentioned (SCO, BRICS, ASEAN, EAEU and CIS) rely on consensus, mutual respect and a balance of interests, rather than a demand to accept unipolar world realities.”

Tin Curtain? More like Torn Curtain.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

Gas Prices Squeezing Americans As More Rate Biden's Economy "Poor"

TUESDAY, JUN 28, 2022 - 06:25 PM
By Lydia Saad of Gallup

Two-thirds of Americans say recent increases in the price of gas are causing them hardship, which is up from 52% feeling this financial pinch in April. Although more Americans say they are experiencing "moderate" rather than "severe" hardship, the percentage describing the hardship as severe has risen from 14% to 22%.



The latest results are based on a June 1-20 Gallup survey. The 67% experiencing hardship is among the highest levels Gallup has found when asking this question at other times of rising gas prices since 2000. The last time it was at this level was in May 2011.

Americans' reaction to gas prices reflects the relatively sharp increase in pump prices this year, rising by nearly a dollar a gallon in recent months and now averaging close to $5.00 per gallon nationally. Americans were paying just over $2.00 a gallon, on average, at the start of 2021.

Experiencing hardship due to gas prices is, naturally, strongly related to household income.

• Eight in 10 adults in lower-income households -- those earning less than $40,000 per year -- say the rise in gas prices has caused them financial hardship, with 40% saying it has been severe.
• Nearly as many households making between $40,000 and $99,999 -- 73% -- report a hardship, although just 20% say it has been severe.
• Half of households earning $100,000 or more report a hardship due to gas prices, with 12% calling it severe.

Majorities Say Summer Driving and Vacations Being Affected

More than six in 10 Americans say the price of gas has caused them to drive less this summer than they might have otherwise. This exceeds the percentages reporting they were curtailing their driving at other times of high gas prices, including in 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005 and 2018. Gallup did not ask this question during the period of high gas prices in 2008.



Fifty-five percent of Americans also say the price of gas is causing them to alter their summer vacation plans. The one time Gallup asked this previously, in May 2005, 46% reported altering their plans. At the same time, slightly fewer than now, 59%, said rising gas prices were causing financial hardship.

Gallup Economic Confidence Index Now Lowest Since 2009
As gas prices have become more burdensome for Americans, their view of the U.S. economy has continued to dim, as indicated by Gallup's Economic Confidence Index (ECI). The index, which is a summary of Americans' ratings of current economic conditions and outlook for the economy, has sunk 13 points over the past month to -58. The index has a theoretical range from +100 if all respondents describe the economy in positive terms and think it's improving to -100 if all describe it in negative terms and think it's worsening.

Today's -58 ECI score represents a substantially negative skew in public opinion about the economy and is the lowest measured since a -64 reading in February 2009. At the time, the country was still embroiled in the 2007-2009 recession and confidence was starting to recover after hitting the all-time low of -72 in October 2008.



The latest drop in Gallup's ECI score reflects harsher assessments of the economy on both aspects of the index:

• The percentage of Americans calling current conditions "poor" has risen eight percentage points in June to 54% -- the first time a majority has called conditions poor since 2009. Just 11% say conditions are "good" and 34% "only fair." Less than 1% describe them as "excellent."
• A striking 85% in June say the economy is getting worse, up from 77% in May and only two points shy of the record high on this, from June 2008.

Perceptions of Nation's Most Important Problem Are Steady
Currently, 40% of U.S. adults mention some aspect of the economy when asked to name the country's chief problem, including 18% mentioning the high cost of living or inflation and 5% citing gas prices explicitly. Another 13% say the economy in general is the top problem, and 1% say it's the "recession" among a handful of other aspects of the economy mentioned by no more than 1% for each.

A unique aspect of Americans' current attitudes about the nation is that their top-of-mind mentions of the economy are not nearly as high as would be expected from their explicit ratings that compose the ECI.

While up sharply from 23% a year ago and 19% in June 2020, current net economic mentions are far below the 70% and higher level seen in 2008 and 2009, when economic confidence was similar to or just slightly worse than today. Fewer name economic problems today than did so between 2010 and 2014, when economic confidence was significantly better than it is now.



The top-named noneconomic problem is the government, cited by 18% of Americans, which ties with inflation as the top-named specific problem overall. The government has consistently ranked among the top two mentions since 2016.

Eight percent this month, up from 1% in May, mention guns or gun control as the most important problem facing the country, reflecting Americans' focus on the issue in the aftermath of mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas. This is the highest percentage mentioning guns since August 2019, after back-to-back mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio.

Another 2% this month mention school shootings, bringing overall concern about gun violence to 10%. That is close to the record-high 13% recorded in March 2018, following the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting.

Other noneconomic issues mentioned by at least 3% of Americans include crime (6%), immigration (5%), lack of unity in the country (5%), ethical/moral decline (4%), race relations (3%) and poverty/homelessness (3%).

 

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Christine Anderson:She speaks truth to power fearlessly and has an important message for EU Citizens 2:11 min

CHRISTINE ANDERSON:SHE SPEAKS TRUTH TO POWER FEARLESSLY AND HAS AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR EU CITIZENS (Digital Green Certificate)

• WATCH

 

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US Emergency Oil Reserves Fall to 25 Days as Biden Releases More Crude Into Market

President Joe Biden's efforts to lower energy prices have reduced the nation's emergency oil reserves, new data show.

www.theepochtimes.com

Crude oil pipes and valves at the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in Freeport, Texas, on June 9, 2016. (Richard Carson/Reuters)

US Emergency Oil Reserves Fall to 25 Days As Biden Releases More Crude Into Market

By Andrew Moran
June 28, 2022 Updated: June 28, 2022

President Joe Biden’s efforts to lower energy prices have reduced the nation’s emergency oil reserves, new data shows.

According to the Department of Energy, inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) declined 6.9 million barrels in the week ending June 24.

In total, the world’s largest emergency supply of crude oil stood at 497.9 million barrels, the lowest level since April 1986.

Federal government data show that 6 million barrels of sour crude and nearly 1 million barrels of sweet crude were injected into the energy market during this span.

With the U.S. consuming close to 20 million barrels per day, based on the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) 2021 estimate, the country maintains 25 days’ worth of supply.

At this rate, the SPR will shrink to its lowest level in 40 years by the fall as supply is depleting faster than the output of some medium-sized countries a part of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), including Algeria and Angola.


U.S. President Joe Biden announces the release of 1 million barrels of oil per day for the next six months from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve during remarks at the White House on March 31, 2022. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

The petroleum reserve was established in 1975 following the 1973-1974 oil embargo. The U.S. government wanted to prevent future supply disruptions, so it launched the world’s largest known emergency supply on the planet, with underground tanks in Louisiana and Texas.

Tapping Into Stockpiles
According to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, the president has the authority to order crude releases from the reserve if he declares “a severe energy supply interruption” that could threaten the economy or national security.

Some lawmakers have proposed restricting releases unless Congress approves legislation or a joint resolution.

The White House has been tapping into these stockpiles to help stabilize the global energy market and bring down oil prices. In November, Biden released 50 million barrels of crude from the reserves. Two months later, the administration authorized the release of more than 13 million barrels.

In March, the White House confirmed that it will release 1 million barrels per day of oil for six months, the largest-ever SPR reduction.

“The scale of this release is unprecedented: the world has never had a release of oil reserves at this 1 million per day rate for this length of time. This record release will provide a historic amount of supply to serve as [a] bridge until the end of the year when domestic production ramps up,” the administration said in a statement.


A woman fills her car with gas amidst record high petrol prices in Irvine, Calif., on Feb. 23, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

While the decision provided temporary relief to skyrocketing commodity prices, industry experts dismissed the move, arguing that it would not resolve energy’s structural imbalance that had been years in the making.

“There are many factors behind rising energy costs, from geopolitical volatility and supply chain constraints to policy uncertainty, and the American people deserve real solutions,” American Petroleum Institute (API) CEO Mike Sommers said in a statement. “[The release] may provide some short-term relief, it is far from a long-term solution to the economic pain Americans are feeling at the pump.”

U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Marty Durbin, who is also the president of the Global Energy Institute, purported that the administration was misdiagnosing the problems, “one of which is their own reluctance to process permits.”

Buyback Campaign
In response to growing concerns about a depleted reserve, the Department of Energy revealed plans to replenish emergency stocks. This fall, it will launch a buyback process to repurchase 60 million barrels of oil, or one-third of the six-month 180-million-barrel emergency release.

“The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the largest emergency supply in the world, is a valuable tool to protect the American economy and consumers from supply disruptions—whether caused by emergencies at home or petrol-dictators weaponizing access to energy resources,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm in a statement.

“As we are thoughtful and methodical in the decision to drawdown from our emergency reserve, we must be similarly strategic in replenishing the supply so that it stands ready to deliver on its mission to provide relief when needed most,” she said.

Still, has this broader strategy paid off?

Since the announcement this past spring, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices have surged more than 6 percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent, the international benchmark for oil prices, also advanced about 5 percent on London’s ICE Futures exchange. The national average for a gallon of gasoline has climbed 12 percent to $4.88, although it recently topped $5.

Best Solution?
Despite U.S. crude poised for a decline of approximately 3 percent in June, crude is still up roughly 50 percent year-to-date. Although the White House is exploring multiple avenues, such as urging OPEC to open the taps and pushing gasoline stations to diminish the pain at the pump, the best solution is greater North American output, says Tortoise Senior Portfolio Manager Rob Thummel.

“The best solution remains increasing oil and natural gas production from reliable supply sources like U.S. and Canada that will assist in balancing the global energy markets and reduce the geopolitical risk premium embedded in global oil and natural gas prices resulting in lower prices at the pump,” Thummel stated during a recent TortoiseEcofin QuickTake podcast.

Biden announced last week that he is encouraging Congress to lift the 18-cent federal gas tax for three months.


Andrew Moran

 

[marsh]

Pro-Beijing Disinformation Operators Target Australian, US, Canadian Rare Earth Miners

A pro-Beijing online influence campaign known as Dragonbridge is focusing on major Australian, U.S., and Canadian rare earth ...

www.theepochtimes.com

Screenshot of Dragonbridge-backed social media campaign targeting Australian rare earth miner Lynas (Courtesy of Mandiant).

AUSTRALIA
Pro-Beijing Disinformation Operators Target Australian, US Rare Earth Mining Firms

By Daniel Y. Teng
June 29, 2022 Updated: June 29, 2022

A pro-Beijing online influence campaign, known as Dragonbridge, has targeted major Australian, U.S., and Canadian rare earth miners who pose a threat to China’s dominance of supply chains for the precious resource.

U.S. cybersecurity firm Mandiant has been tracking Dragonbridge since June 2019, revealing that the group comprised a network of “thousands of inauthentic accounts” spread across social media platforms, websites, and forums promoting the political interests of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

Earlier this year, Mandiant identified fake social media and discussion forum accounts posing as Texan residents feigning concern over environmental and health issues surrounding the construction of a major rare earths processing facility by Australian giant Lynas, the world’s largest rare earth miner outside China.

The campaign also leveraged existing criticism—including from U.S. politicians—of U.S. President Joe Biden’s March decision to invoke the Defense Production Act to expedite rare earth production.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, successful completion of the project will see Lynas produce “approximately 25 percent of the world’s supply of rare earth element oxides.”

One social media account owned by a “Jackie Eberhart” wrote, “We must stand up and boycott Lynas. For the health of the local people and for the sake of our next generation.”


Screenshot of Dragonbridge-backed social media campaign targeting Australian rare earth
miner Lynas (Courtesy of Mandiant)

.
A screenshot of Dragonbridge-backed social media campaign targeting Australian rare earth miner Lynas (Courtesy of Mandiant).

While a “Cox Teri” claimed: “If nothing is done, Lynas’ waste discharge will directly or indirectly affect the health of local residents, and this pollution is irreversible.”

Online Influencers Target Key Competitors to China
In early June, cyber campaigns were launched against Canadian miner Appia Rare Earths and Uranium Corp. after it announced the discovery of a new rare earth deposit in Northern Saskatchewan in Canada.

U.S. rare earth supplier U.S.A. Rare Earth faced similar treatment after announcing plans for a new processing facility in Oklahoma in mid-June.

Mandiant said it had contacted all three miners (Lynas, Appia, and U.S.A Rare Earth) about the activity.

“While the activity we detail here does not appear to have been particularly effective and received only limited engagement by seemingly real individuals, the campaign’s microtargeting of specific audiences suggests the possibility of using similar means to manipulate public discourse surrounding other U.S. political issues to the PRC’s advantage,” Mandiant said in a statement on June 28.

“Notably, Dragonbridge’s targeting of additional rare earths mining companies underscores the campaign’s ability to monitor developments and respond accordingly, as well as its investment in attempting to ensure the PRC’s market dominance in the industry.”

Rare earths and critical minerals are used in a range of high-tech products, including missile guidance systems, aircraft engines, smartphones, EV batteries, and wind turbines.

Currently, however, Chinese firms dominate the resource supply chains, sparking concerns that it could be leveraged in a geopolitical dispute.

“China currently controls 50 percent to 60 percent of global rare earth mining, 80 percent to 90 percent of the market in the intermediate processing stage where the elements are separated and refined into metals and alloys, and at least 60 percent to 70 percent in downstream manufacturing for products like permanent magnets,” according to Kristin Vekasi, a professor of political science at the University of Maine.

Mandiant said Dragonbridge’s activities revealed how attuned the group was to the strategic interests of the Chinese Communist Party.

“We may see other global competitors to PRC firms in other industries targeted by such information operations.”

 

[marsh]

Biden administration report shows massive fossil fuel industry job losses

The Department of Energy released its annual energy job report showing massive year-over-year losses in the fossil fuel industry, but large gains in the clean energy sector.

www.foxbusiness.com

Biden administration report shows massive fossil fuel industry job losses
A spokesperson for a petroleum association says the Biden administration has worked 'overtime on restricting American natural gas and oil production'

By Thomas Catenacci Fox Business


The Biden administration published its annual U.S. Energy and Employment Report (USEER) Tuesday, showing large fossil fuel industry job losses.

The Department of Energy (DOE) report found that the fuels technology sector experienced job losses totaling 29,271 jobs in 2021, a 3.1% year-over-year decline, with the majority coming in the fossil fuel industry. Onshore and offshore petroleum companies shed 31,593 jobs, a 6.4% decline, the coal industry lost 7,125 jobs, down 11.8% year-over-year, and fossil fuel extraction jobs declined by 12%.

"The DOE jobs report is not only reflective of the broader pandemic slowdown, but also highlights an Administration that has worked overtime on restricting American natural gas and oil production," Independent Petroleum Association of America spokesperson Jennifer Marsteller told Fox News Digital in an email.

"We are confident in our sector, and in the work oil and natural gas employees do to bring energy safely and reliably to our country and the world," she continued. "We urge President Biden to get on board with that same made-in-America pride in our workers."


video 5:18 min

US has 'got to be leading producer' of oil in the world: Rep. Williams
Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, weighs in after French President Emmanuel Macron was caught on camera at the G7 telling President Biden that the UAE and Saudi Arabia say they can barely increase oil production.

The fuels sector category was the only category that saw overall declines, according to the USEER.

The Biden administration has pursued an aggressive climate agenda since taking office, canceling the Keystone XL pipeline, limiting oil and gas lease sales on public lands and pushing environmental regulations impacting fossil fuel project development.

"The American natural gas and oil industry is proud to support nearly 11 million U.S. jobs," an American Petroleum Institute spokesperson told Fox News in a statement. "While we have grappled with many of the same labor shortages that the rest of the U.S. economy is facing due to the pandemic, we have seen a slow but steady rebound in both drilling and oil & gas support service employment in 2022."

GRANHOLM TRIPLES DOWN ON ‘GREEN’ AS ‘THE ONLY WAY OUT’ OF HIGH GAS PRICES A DAY AHEAD OF MEETING ENERGY CEOS

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm testifies before a Senate committee on May 5. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The DOE, meanwhile, highlighted the growth reported in renewable energy sectors. The agency also applauded the growth in the electric power generation sector.

"DOE’s USEER report shows that jobs critical to our clean energy transition are on the rise and poised for continued expansion thanks to the historic investments from the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law," Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement.

In 2021, the solar industry added 17,212 jobs, 5.4% year-over-year growth and the wind sector added 3,347 jobs, an increase of 2.9% compared to 2020.

 

[ainitfunny]

AINITFUNNY that just now, NOTHING could have "saved" the Democrat control of governance and the elections LIKE REPEALING ROE VS WADE RIGHT NOW.

That is just what they NEEDED.
WAS IT AN "ARRANGED" DEFEAT OF
Roe vs Wade? In Democrat interests?
They dont care about women's rights, ONLY
about WHO HOLDS POWER!


Conservatives and pro-lifers are celebrating a "victory" which may be a temporary thing, a "victory" setting us up to lose the war! By moving all young people and all "pro-choice" voters back to the OTHERWISE flagging ranks of DEMOCRATS, in spite of inflation, insane gas prices, censorship, gun grabbers, and Bidens teetering on the edge of WW3!

I think we've been GASLIGHTED.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

It's Not The End Of The World

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 03:30 AM
Authored by Jeff Thomas via InternationalMan.com, Gold

Periodically, I’ll encounter someone who has read one of my essays and has decided not to pursue them further, stating, “You’re one of those ‘End of the world’ guys. I can’t be bothered reading the writings of someone who thinks we’re all doomed. I have a more positive outlook than that.”

In actual fact, I agree entirely with his latter two comments. I can’t be bothered reading the thoughts of a writer who says we’re all doomed, either. I, too, have a more positive outlook than that.

My one discrepancy with such comments is that I don’t by any means think that the present state of events will lead to the end of the world, as he assumes.



But then, neither am I naïve enough to think that if I just hope for the best, the powers that be will cease to be parasitical and predatory out of sympathy for me. They will not.

For any serious student of history, one of the great realisations that occurs at some point is that governments are inherently controlling by nature. The more control they have, the more they desire and the more they pursue. After all, governments actually produce nothing. They exist solely upon what they can extract from the people they rule over. Therefore, their personal success is not measured by how well they serve their people, it’s measured by how much they can extract from the people.

And so, it’s a given that all governments will pursue ever-greater levels of power over their minions up to and including the point of total dominance.

It should be said that, on rare occasions, a people will rise up and create a governmental system in which the rights of the individual are paramount. This was true in the creation of the Athenian Republic and the American Constitution, and even the British Magna Carta.

However, these events are quite rare in history and, worse, as soon as they take place, those who gain power do their best to diminish the newly-gained freedoms.

Such freedoms can almost never be destroyed quickly, but, over time and “by slow operations,” as Thomas Jefferson was fond of saying, governments can be counted on to eventually destroy all freedoms.

We’re passing through a period in history in which the process of removing freedoms is nearing completion in many of the world’s foremost jurisdictions. The EU and US, in particular, are leading the way in this effort.

Consequently, it shouldn’t be surprising that some predict “the end of the world.” But, they couldn’t be more incorrect.

Surely, in 1789, the more productive people of France may have felt that the developing French Revolution would culminate in Armageddon. Similarly, in 1917, those who created prosperity in Russia may well have wanted to throw up their hands as the Bolsheviks seized power from the Romanovs.

Whenever a deterioration in rule is underway, as it is once again now, the observer has three choices:

1. Declare the End of the World
There are many people, worldwide, but particularly in the centres of the present deterioration – the EU and US – who feel that, since the situation in their home country is nearing collapse, the entire world must also be falling apart. This is not only a very myopic viewpoint, it’s also quite inaccurate. At any point in civilization in the past 2000 years or more, there have always been empires that were collapsing due to intolerable governmental dominance and there have always concurrently been alternative jurisdictions where the level of freedom was greater. In ancient Rome, when Diocletian devalued the currency, raised taxes, increased warfare and set price controls, those people who actually created the economy on a daily basis found themselves in the same boat as Europeans and Americans are finding themselves in, in the 21st century.

It may have seemed like the end of the world, but it was not. Enough producers left Rome and started over again in other locations. Those other locations eventually thrived as a result of the influx of productive people, while Rome atrophied.

2. Turn a Blind Eye
This is less dreary than the above approach, but it is nevertheless just as fruitless. It is, in fact, the most common of reactions – to just “hope for the best.”

It’s tempting to imagine that maybe the government will realise that they’re the only ones benefitting from the destruction of freedom and prosperity and they’ll feel bad and reverse the process. But this clearly will not happen.

It’s also tempting to imagine that maybe it won’t get a whole lot worse and that life, although not all that good at present, might remain tolerable. Again, this is wishful thinking and the odds of it playing out in a positive way are slim indeed.

3. Accept the Truth, But Do Something About It
This, of course, is the hard one. Begin by recognising the truth. If that truth is not palatable, study the situation carefully and, when a reasonably clear understanding has been reached, create an alternative.

When governments enter the final decline stage, an alternative is not always easy to accept. It’s a bit like having a tooth pulled. You want to put it off, but the pain will only get worse if you delay. And so, you trundle off to the dentist unhappily, but, a few weeks after the extraction, you find yourself asking, “Why didn’t I do this sooner?”

To be sure, those who investigate and analyze the present socio-economic-political deterioration do indeed espouse a great deal of gloom, but this should not be confused with doom.

In actual fact, the whole point of shining a light into the gloom is to avoid having it end in doom.

It should be said here that remaining in a country that is tumbling downhill socially, economically and politically is also not the end of the world. It is, however, true that the end result will not exactly be a happy one. If history repeats once again, it’s likely to be quite a miserable one.

Those who undertake the study of the present deterioration must, admittedly, address some pretty depressing eventualities and it would be far easier to just curl up on the sofa with a six-pack and watch the game, but the fact remains: unless the coming problems are investigated and an alternative found, those who sit on the sofa will become the victims of their own lethargy.

Sadly, we live in a period in history in which some of the nations that once held the greatest promise for the world are well on their way to becoming the most tyrannical. If by recognizing that fact, we can pursue better alternatives elsewhere on the globe, as people have done in previous eras. We may actually find that the field of daisies in the image above is still very much in existence, it’s just a bit further afield than it was in years gone by.

And it is absolutely worthy of pursuit.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

How Representative Is The G7 Of The World It's Trying To Lead?

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 03:55 AM

The leaders of some of the world’s wealthiest democracies assembled in the Bavarian Alps on Sunday, where the 48th G7 Summit takes place from June 26 to June 28. The summit kicked off with a series of bilateral meetings on Sunday, before the bloc’s leaders will jointly discuss the most pressing global issues on Monday. That includes the Russian invasion of Ukraine, surging food and energy prices, Covid-19, the world economy as well as the climate crisis at a time not short on global challenges.

While the Group of Seven, as the G7 is officially called, still claims a global leadership role,

Statista's Felix Richter notes that some experts are questioning the bloc’s relevance against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving global economy.

In 2018, Jim O’Neill and Alessio Terzi wrote that the G7, “in its current formulation, no longer has a reason to exist, and it should be replaced with a more representative group of countries.”

They called for a revised G7 group, which would replace Germany, France and Italy with a common Eurozone representative, swap Canada for Brazil and most importantly add China and India, making it more representative economically and in population terms without adding more seats to the table.

As the following chart shows, the G7 countries currently represent 43 percent of the world economy, down from nearly 70 percent three decades ago.


You will find more infographics at Statista

In terms of population, the bloc is even less representative with its member countries accounting for less than 10 percent of the world’s people, according to latest estimates from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA).

Despite these numbers, proponents of the G7 think the group still has value.

“It’s sort of a manageable steering group of the West,” Stewart M. Patrick, Senior Fellow in at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) says. “They’re a repository, an embodiment of common values and a similar rules-based approach to world order.”

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CO07Fj19KDk
45:03 min

Responding to New Migration Flows in Europe | Davos | #WEF22

Jun 29, 2022


World Economic Forum

The invasion of Ukraine has displaced millions of people both internally and in flows of refugees into the rest of Europe. What actions should European policy-makers and business leaders take to respond to the immediate and longer-term humanitarian consequences of the Ukraine crisis? This session was developed in partnership with Euronews. The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. We believe that progress happens by bringing together people from all walks of life who have the drive and the influence to make positive change.

 

[marsh]

Michael Yon @MichaelYon​ Jun 29, 2022 at 1:05pm​

Netherlands Alert​ 26 June 2022 Mexico Got information from a source known to me: Farmers very angry with Brussels for ‘energy policy’ in the name of the global warming cult that will severely damage Dutch farmers. Obviously the farmers normally are very busy and do not have time for meaningless protests. They are not, after all, leftist nutters with time on their idle hands. Source told me this hour Dutch politicians are panicking. (He’s in the government — works with politicians). Source says farmers plan to close key parts of the country next Monday. Close Amsterdam airport, border crossings, main highways. Truth in lending: I make no representation of being a neutral party. I am firmly on the side of the farmers against these hostile takeovers. Farmers are our backbone. Dutch, American, German, French, Japanese, Aussie, Thai, Canadian…in nearly all cases I end up discovering the farmers are the people with the most common sense in any society. ​

^^^^^
Border CLOSED: Dutch Farmers Fight Back Against Arbitrary Climate Restrictions .41 min

Border CLOSED: Dutch Farmers Fight Back Against Arbitrary Climate Restrictions
Red Voice Media Published June 29, 2022

 

[marsh]

Frank Gaffney - The CCP Is At War With America

Frank Gaffney - The CCP Is At War With America

rumble.com

4:04 min

Frank Gaffney - The CCP Is At War With America
Bannons War Room Published June 29, 2022

^^^^

Webinar: The CCP is at War with America

The Chinese Communist Party’s COVID-19 Biological Warfare Attack and What’s Next

presentdangerchina.org

Webinar: The CCP is at War with America
Published On: June 28, 2022

CPDC Webinar:
The CCP is at War with America:
The Chinese Communist Party’s COVID-19 Biological Warfare Attack and What’s Next

June 30, 2022
1:00 p.m. ET

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
The Committee on the Present Danger: China, a project of the Center for Security Policy, will hold a webinar at 1 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 30, 2022 to highlight the Center for Security Policy’s Team B III report, The CCP is at War with America.

The Team is co-chaired by former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Pete Hoekstra and former Deputy Under Secretary of Defense Lieutenant General William “Jerry” Boykin, U.S. Army (Ret.).

In addition to Messrs. Hoekstra and Boykin, Team B III consists of:

• Charles “Sam” Faddis, Clandestine Service Officer, Central Intelligence Agency (Ret.); Senior Editor, AND Magazine
• Kevin D. Freeman, Host, “Economic War Room with Kevin Freeman”; author, Secret Weapon and Game Plan; Senior Fellow, Center for Security Policy
• Frank J. Gaffney, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy (Acting); Vice Chairman of the Committee on the Present Danger: China; Executive Chairman, Center for Security Policy
• Dr. Steven Hatfill, MD, MSc, M.Med, Former Senior Medical Advisor to the Executive Office of the President; author, Three Seconds Until Midnight; Senior Fellow, London Institute for Policy Analysis
• Brian T. Kennedy, Chairman, Committee on the Present Danger: China; former President, Claremont Institute; President, American Strategy Group
• Colonel John Mills, U.S. Army (Ret.); former Director of Cybersecurity Policy, Strategy, and International Affairs, Office of the Secretary of Defense; Senior Fellow, Center for Security Policy
• J.R. Nyquist, Author, Origins of the Fourth World War, essayist at JRNyquist.blog

 

[marsh]

https://www.agweb.com/news/crops/crop-production/nebraska-farmers-face-cropping-challenges-could-cut-yield?mkt_tok=ODQzLVlHQi03OTMAAAGFUBWBEhUsqZctQ8kVWF2mUeoEuXt_Ejtz70uAXOax3ZO9MHHr-IkxCEtId8i2PgqTk1wwRoayBcLfjRDUIJv_4P1xj2FJT55QuplabH1H64i7QbYiPko

Nebraska Farmers Face Cropping Challenges that Could Cut Yield

Crop Challenges 062922
By MICHELLE ROOK June 29, 2022

Mother Nature has thrown about every challenge she can at producers in Nebraska this spring. State Ag Director Steve Wellman also farms south of Omaha and says they've faced some real adversity.

Steve Wellman, Nebraska Department of Agriculture Director says, "We've had all kinds of weather issues across the state. We can start with the wildfires in southwestern Nebraska over the panhandle. You know lack of rain, too much rain, hailstorm, wind, tornado. It's been pretty rough in May and June so far."

Plus, multiple storms have left a path of destruction, especially in central Nebraska, where Mark Jagels farms near Davenport. He says hundreds of irrigation units have been damaged, including on his operation. "I mean in our area probably in about a 40 mile radius I mean I would guess that there would be somewhere between 500 and 700 pivots, just a lot of storms.

And maybe not full pivots but sidearms were tipped over." Wellman says, "So hopefully they're not damaged too much but that's part of a key piece of production here in many parts of Nebraska is irrigation. Almost 9 million acres of crops are irrigated here in Nebraska."

However, Jagels says some of those pivots may not get fully repaired in time for the prime irrigation season. He says, "The steel they can get to replace the swing arms and stuff but the electronics just in everything. The electronics are definitely the things that are slowing up rebuilds."

Many farmers in that area were also hit by hail and early frost and are still in the process of replanting.

Jagels says, "We had to replant some soybeans after a frost there's been numerous hailstorms, hail systems that have come through the state that have pretty much wiped things out and I mean I would say corn this size have gone down to nothing."

Plus many counties have already been declared designated disaster areas due to drought, including in the southwest. Adam Heskett farms in southwest Nebraska around Culbertson. He says, "We're pushing towards the drier side for sure. I'd say too in this spot we've probably had less than four inches of measurable precip since January 1 so that's not normal. "

He says they usually catch most of their rain in June, so the dryland crops are running out of time.

He says, "Yield prospects in the area. So these are dryland acres if we don't catch some rain in the next 30 days for our dryland corn and soybeans and grain sorghum, which will cover the majority of the dryland acres around here we'll zero them out they won't product."

And even irrigated yields may be limited in that area due to water allocations. Heskett says, "They'll have to stop pumping irrigation water when they hit their allocation which will be the issue and we could see some major yield impacts."

So another year like 2021 where the state had record corn and soybean yields, may be out of reach.

Wellman says, "I would say we've lost the top end yield potential that's for sure across many areas of the state yeah. There's just been too many weather challenges. You know last year was a record yield for both corn and soybeans here in Nebraska and I can't imagine that we're going to reach that this year."

Yet Wellman and other farmers are trying to stay optimistic, and they say the state as a whole could still see normal to above normal yields as long as weather for the rest of the season doesn't turn back hot and dry.

Crop development is running behind normal in many areas of Nebraska, especially where farmers are replanting. So they're hoping they don't have an early frost because they need a full season to allow the crop to get to maturity.

 

[marsh]

https://www.agweb.com/news/livestock/beef/texas-drought-approaching-2011s-historic-levels

Texas Drought Approaching 2011’s Historic Levels

Texas Drought 2011 - 2022(U.S. Drought Monitor)
By GREG HENDERSON June 29, 2022

More than 45% of the contiguous US is currently in drought, with many parts of the southwest experiencing severe, extreme or exceptional drought. And no state has it worse than Texas.

Officials say 2022 is already one for the record books in Texas, with more than 80% of the state facing drought conditions most of the year. Comparisons are already being made to the drought of 2011, with some believing this year could eclipse 2011 as the state’s worst.

About 17% of all land in Texas is experiencing “exceptional” drought, the highest such figure for late June since 2011. That year, over 70% of the state’s land experienced “exceptional” drought in late June.

The driest year on record for Texas was 2011, causing an estimated $7.62 billion in crop and livestock losses.

New data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows there is a reason for Texans to be concerned about the weather this year: Last month tied for the warmest May on record in the state, along with May 2018. The early heat was followed by more drought.

The wide-spread drought in West Texas has already surpassed some 2011 records. Midland, Tex., had its driest period on record from September 2021 to May 31, when it received only 8% of its normal rainfall. The second driest was in 2011.

In the same time period, Lubbock experienced its seventh-driest time on record overall, but the driest since 2011. Lubbock also had six days reach 100 degrees or higher from March through May — tying for the third-highest number of 100-degree days in those months in Lubbock’s records, going back to 1914.

Texas can expect more of the same in the season ahead, the lead meteorologist for the state’s principal grid-management agency reported on June 21, the first day of summer.

It’s “close to a lock” that Summer 2022 in Texas will be hotter than last year’s summer, the forecaster, Chris Coleman, told ERCOT’s board. In the immediate prelude to the just-starting summer, May 2022 was hotter in Texas than May 2011, Coleman added.

 

[marsh]

The Invisible Power Controlling the US Government

How Trump's "Schedule F" could have drained the swamp.

rwmalonemd.substack.com

The Invisible Power Controlling the US Government

How Trump's "Schedule F" could have drained the swamp.

Robert W Malone MD, MS
1 hr ago


I have written extensively on inverted totalitarianism, that being the once nascent, now entrenched form of government that truly controls the levers of federal power in the United States. This behemoth has turned the USA into a “managed democracy”; a bureaucracy which cannot be held accountable by the elected representatives of the people. Sometimes called the 4th estate, this monster is also referred to as the “deep state” the civil service, or the administrative state.

Inverted totalitarianism does not have an authoritarian leader, but instead is run by a non-transparent group of bureaucrats. This unelected, invisible ruling class runs the country from within. They are easily influenced by corporate interests due to both the lure of powerful jobs after federal employment and the capture of our legislative bodies by the lobbyists serving concealed corporate interests.

One element of inverted totalitarianism is that the administrative state typically inserts stricter and stricter rules and regulations to control the populace. Not at the behest of Congress or the President, but rather by and for the interests of the administrative state itself. Power begets power. We the people are forced into compliance by an unknown and unknowable invisible ruling class, with no way to even understand who, what, or how they are forcing this compliance upon us. As if that is not bad enough, in these modern times, the globalist corporations and financial groups have come to play a larger and larger role in controlling this administrative state.

The Brownstone Institute’s Jeffery Tucker recently wrote an article about an executive order passed by Trump shortly before his departure, which would have enabled huge progress towards reigning in the power of the administrative state. This executive order would have created a federal employee category referred to as “Schedule F”.

This new employee classification system would have included federal workers in "confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character," which are "not normally subject to change as the result of a presidential transition."

The executive order would have allowed agencies to reclassify policy jobs under a new schedule, and had proposed to give senior managers greater flexibility in hiring candidates and firing employees.

Significantly, this new executive order was one of the first to go when President Biden began his presidency.

From Brownstone:

The administrative state for the better part of a century, and really dating back to the Pendleton Act of 1883, has designed policy, made policy, structured policy, implemented policy, and interpreted policy while operating outside the control of Congress, the president, and the judiciary.

The gradual rise of this 4th branch of government – which is very much the most powerful branch – has reduced the American political process to mere theater as compared with the real activity of government, which rests with the permanent bureaucracy…

From 2020 and onward, the American people got to know this administrative state well. They ordered us to wear masks. They deployed their influence to close small businesses and churches. They limited how many people we could have in our homes. They festooned our businesses with plexiglass and told everyone to stay six-feet apart. They demanded two weeks of quarantine when crossing state borders.

They decided which medical procedures were elective and non-elective. And they finally demanded compliance with vaccine mandates at the penalty of job loss.

None of this was ordered by legislation. It was all invented on the spot by the permanent staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We had no idea they had such power. But they do. And that same power which allowed those egregious attacks on rights and liberties also belongs to the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Homeland Security, and all the rest.

With luck, both the House and Senate will have significant turn-over in the 2022 election. This may pave the way for legislative action. It is a nice to imagine that, by 2024, Congress could pass and implement a bill that includes a provision such as “Schedule F.” This should be a permanent addition to our code of federal regulations. Of course, the uni-party, with its reliance on corporate dollars to finance their election campaigns, will be loath to pass such sweeping legislation.

If they can not pass such legislation, an executive order similar to Trump’s should be enacted as soon as a new President is inaugurated. If we wish to preserve our democracy, the administrative state cannot be allowed to continue to operate unchecked. The bureaucratic swamp is dark, deep and wide. Someone needs to drain it.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

White House Is Quietly Modeling For $200 Oil "Shock"

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 05:05 PM

While the Biden administration is hoping and praying that someone - anyone - will watch the comical "Jan 6" kangaroo hearsay court taking place in Congress and meant to somehow block Trump from running for president in 2024 while also making hundreds of millions of Americans forget that the current administration could very well be the worst in US history, it is quietly preparing for the worst.

As none other than pro-Biden propaganda spinmaster CNN reports, when it comes to what really matters (at least according to Gallup), namely the economy, and specifically galloping gasoline prices, the White House is in a historic shambles.

For an administration that ended last year forecasting a leveling off of 40-year high inflation and eager to tout a historically rapid recovery from the pandemic-driven economic crisis, there is a level of frustration that comes with an acutely perilous moment. Asked by CNN about progress on a seemingly intractable challenge, another senior White House official responded flatly: "Which one?"

The suspects behind the historic implosion are well known: "soaring prices, teetering poll numbers and congressional majorities that appear to be on the brink have created no shortage of reasons for unease. Gas prices are hovering at or around $5 per gallon, plastered on signs and billboards across the country as a symbolic daily reminder of the reality -- one in which White House officials are extremely aware -- that the country's view of the economy is growing darker and taking Biden's political future with it."

"You don't have to be a very sophisticated person to know how lines of presidential approval and gas prices go historically in the United States," a senior White House official told CNN.

A CNN Poll of Polls average of ratings for Biden's handling of the presidency finds that 39% of Americans approve of the job he's doing. His numbers on the economy, gas prices and inflation specifically are even worse in recent polls. What CNN won't tell you is that Biden is now polling well below Trump at this time in his tenure.



The CNN article then goes into a lengthy analysis of what is behind the current gasoline crisis (those with lots of time to kill can read it here) and also tries to explains, without actually saying it, that the only thing that can fix the problem is more supply, but - as we first explained - this can't and won't happen because green fanatics and socialist environmentalists will never agree to boosting output.

Which brings us to the punchline: as CNN's Phil Mattingly writes, "instead of managing an economy in the midst of a natural rotation away from recovery and into a stable period of growth, economic officials are analyzing and modeling worst-case scenarios like what the shock of gas prices hitting $200 per barrel may mean for the economy."

Well, in an article titled "Give us a plan or give us someone to blame", this seems like both a plan, and someone to blame.

But unfortunately for Biden - and CNN which is hoping to reset expectations - it's only going to get worse, because as we noted moments ago, while nobody was paying attention, Cushing inventories dropped to just 1 million away from operational bottoms at roughly 20MM barrels. This means that the US is officially looking at tank bottoms.



But wait, there's more... or rather, it's even worse, because as even Bloomberg's chief energy guru Javier Blas notes, over the last 2 weeks, the US gov has drained 13.7 million barrels from the SPR, "and yet, commercial oil stockpiles still fell 3 million barrels over the period."



Just imagine, Blas asks rhetorically, "if the SPR wasn't there. Or what would happen post-Oct when sales end."

OIL MARKET: Over the last 2 weeks, the US gov has injected 13.7 million barrels from the SPR into the market. And yet, commercial oil stockpiles still fell 3 million barrels over the period. Just imagine if the SPR wasn't there. Or what would happen post-Oct when sales end #OOTT
— Javier Blas (@JavierBlas) June 29, 2022

And here is the punchline: at the current record pace of SPR drainage, one way or another the Biden admin will have to end its artificial attempts to keep the price of oil lower some time in October (or risk entering a war with China over Taiwan with virtually no oil reserve). This means that unless Putin ends his war some time in the next 5 months, there is a non-trivial chance that oil will hit a record price around $200 - precisely the price the White House is bracing for - a few days before the midterms. While translates into $10+ gasoline.

And while one can speculate how much longer Democrats can continue the "Jan 6" dog and pony show as the entire economy implodes around them, how America will vote in November when gas is double digits should not be a mystery to anyone.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

US Emergency Oil Reserves Tumble To Record Low 27 Days Worth Of Supply

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 02:20 PM
As we detailed earlier in the week, the latest weekly release has pushed the SPR below the 500 million barrels mark for the first time since 1986...



And as the chart above shows, the plummeting SPR is not having the impact on prices that President Biden hoped (which explains why he is blaming everyone and everything else for the rise in gas prices - as it becomes clear it's a refining capacity issue as much as anything else).

While that is ominous by itself, we note that in the context of US demand, it is even more of a concern as based on the latest Department of Energy estimate of Implied Crude Demand, there is just 27 days of supply left in the emergency oil reserve... a record low...

"Congress has been irresponsibly selling the SPR down," said Bob McNally, who in the early 2000s oversaw the Energy Department's efforts to replenish the SPR under former President George W. Bush, adding that "draining the reserve leaves the country and the world more vulnerable to geopolitical shocks."

Finally, we note that in response to growing concerns about the depleted reserve, the Department of Energy revealed plans to replenish emergency stocks.

This fall, it will launch a buyback process to repurchase 60 million barrels of oil, or one-third of the six-month 180-million-barrel emergency release.



As Andrew Moran writes at The Epoch Times, although the White House is exploring multiple avenues, such as urging OPEC to open the taps and pushing gasoline stations to diminish the pain at the pump, the best solution is greater North American output, says Tortoise Senior Portfolio Manager Rob Thummel.

“The best solution remains increasing oil and natural gas production from reliable supply sources like U.S. and Canada that will assist in balancing the global energy markets and reduce the geopolitical risk premium embedded in global oil and natural gas prices resulting in lower prices at the pump,” Thummel stated during a recent TortoiseEcofin QuickTake podcast.

Biden announced last week that he is encouraging Congress to lift the 18-cent federal gas tax for three months...

 

[marsh]

JUST PADDLING WHILE THE EMPIRE BURNS

The phrase “fiddling while Rome burns” is an intriguing idiom, referencing the great fire which ravaged Rome for six days in 64 A.D. and the legend that Nero, one of the most sadistic, decadent, an…

www.theburningplatform.com

JUST PADDLING WHILE THE EMPIRE BURNS

The phrase “fiddling while Rome burns” is an intriguing idiom, referencing the great fire which ravaged Rome for six days in 64 A.D. and the legend that Nero, one of the most sadistic, decadent, and cruel rulers of all-time, instead of taking action to stop the fire, played his lyre while composing a song about Rome’s destruction. The Roman historian Tacitus wrote that Nero was rumored to have sung about the destruction of Rome while watching the city burn but it’s likely this was just a myth.

The fire destroyed seventy percent of the city and left half the population homeless. There are those who believe Nero set the fire on purpose, especially after he used land cleared by the fire to build his Golden Palace and its surrounding pleasure gardens. Being a soulless autocrat at heart, Nero did what all feckless politicians do, he blamed the Christians (an obscure religious sect at the time) for the fire and had many arrested and executed.

Whether this story is true or just a parable, the messages are pertinent throughout history, and never more so than now. Occupying one’s time doing inconsequential things while a catastrophic event is underway is the ultimate in leadership failure. Focusing on trivial matters while your people are suffering during a time of crisis is the mark of an ineffectual irresponsible leader or one whose true purpose is to burn down society so it can be “built back better” in the form of a communist totalitarian state ruled by a globalist elite cabal.

One cannot ignore the parallels to our American empire in flames as Biden, the hordes of hyena politicians in Washington DC, their captured corporate propaganda media mouthpieces, central banker fiat printing enablers, and the Davos billionaire cadre are attempting a controlled burn of our world, but it has become a conflagration destined to rage out of control and consume the planet in flames.

We are most certainly living in a time of crisis, as this Fourth Turning hastens towards our rendezvous with destiny. Not only is the American empire burning in an abstract sense, but once the ANTIFA, BLM and pro-abortion terrorist groups (all funded by Soros and Gates) hit the streets, the country is literally burning. The chaos, havoc, violence, and vitriol are all being engineered by the puppeteers/invisible government who control the minds of the masses through media manipulation, non-stop propaganda, technological deceit, and social indoctrination through government schooling. It was succinctly described by Edward Bernays nearly a century ago and has been perfected by those in governing the world today.

“The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country. We are governed, our minds are molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of. This is a logical result of the way in which our democratic society is organized. Vast numbers of human beings must cooperate in this manner if they are to live together as a smoothly functioning society. In almost every act of our daily lives, whether in the sphere of politics or business, in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires which control the public mind.” – Edward Bernays – Propaganda (1928) pp. 9–10

I wonder if the people of Rome were as baffled by their emperor’s total disregard for their well-being and safety as their city burned to the ground as the minority of critical thinking Americans are today watching Biden, his Obama handlers, and their toadies in congress systematically burn our once great republic to the ground. There is no doubt Biden is an incompetent, low IQ, hapless, dementia ridden, racist, pedophile, but what is happening in this country and across the globe is not due to incompetence, but a purposeful destruction of all productive structures, small businesses, Constitutional rights, and societal norms, in order to implement a totalitarian techno-gulag across the world run by a global elite of billionaires and their evil apparatchiks.

A crucial aspect of this New World Order is a massive depopulation of the planet to the desired number of serfs needed to do the slave labor necessary to keep the overlords in luxury and splendor. Private jets, yachts and fenced luxurious 25 bathroom mansions with private armed security for them. The serfs will own nothing, eat bugs, and be happy, or be swiftly terminated, since guns will have been outlawed. Our nation is beset by traitors within.

The pockets of firestorms swirling out of control across the world, purposely ignited by those running the show, makes it difficult to distinguish between fires detonated as distractions and the real inferno destined to reduce the world to ashes. Everything roiling the world over the last twenty-seven months has been initiated and/or utilized by the ruling oligarchs to implement their master plan of “building back better” after they burn the world to the ground. Even the distractions are designed to further their agenda. The latest distraction being the Supreme Court ruling on abortion.

The lunatic left is rioting and protesting in left wing cities where they can murder an unborn child any time they want, while woke corporations’ virtue signal, and insane females have mental breakdowns on Tik Tok. It gives the left-wing media something to scream about other than the January 6 “insurrection” hearings that no one watched. Pride month is nothing but a giant distraction, where drag queens, teachers grooming children, and transgender bullshit are jammed down our throats while corporations attempt to capitalize on the worship of abnormality to increase their profits. The government has achieved the goal put forth by William Casey in 1981.

The January 6 joke of an “armed insurrection” without arms, led by Buffalo guy and initiated by FBI plants (Ray Epps) and ANTIFA infiltrators, is another engineered distraction, with the current fake news hearings revealing much ado about nothing, and all designed to cover-up the traitorous coup conducted against Trump by the Deep State players in the Oval Office (Obama), FBI, NSA, DOJ, CIA, DOD, and the wicked witch herself – Hillary Clinton. The Washington establishment (One Party) initiated another distraction last week under the guise of protecting the children, with another un-Constitutional gun grabber law which will be overturned by the Supreme Court.

Red flag laws have already been deemed un-Constitutional by the Supreme Court, but that didn’t stop Pelosi, Schumer, and a bunch of traitorous Republican senators from virtue signaling with a new law. Until it is overturned, it will be used to take away the guns of anyone not toeing the government line. Just like Biden’s un-Constitutional demand that all employers mandate the poisonous gene altering jabs, knowing it was un-Constitutional, ignoring and tearing the Constitution to shreds is the goal. Biden’s previous ruse worked, as tens of thousands of employers mandated the jab before it was deemed illegal.

Just as Nero blamed the Christians for the disaster he created, Biden blames Putin, Trump, oil companies, the un-vaxxed, lawful gun owners, and the 70 million voters who still consider him an illegitimate president, for the ten-alarm fire engulfing the economy, stock market, and a society he continues to debase with far-left policies. At the current trajectory Biden may go down in history as infamous as Nero, with his fatally reckless actions trying to initiate World War 3 with Russia.

He and his NATO cronies have been outmaneuvered, outwitted, and embarrassed by Vladimir Putin regarding the Ukraine conflict, which they provoked and have continued to exacerbate with economic sanctions and attempting to incite Putin into a greater conflict. It has all blown up in Biden’s face, as his sanctions haven’t hurt Russia, but have certainly destroyed the finances of average Americans. The ruble is at a seven year high versus the USD, Russia’s oil revenues are soaring, Biden’s approval ratings are lower than whale shit, and the US and EU have entered a self-inflicted recession.

As Biden spends his days in a dementia haze, falling off bikes, crapping his pants, smelling little children, pumping green energy fantasies, honoring mentally damaged LGBTQ+ icons and pretending to be president, while his handlers orchestrate everything he does, says or thinks, the country accelerates towards economic implosion, global war, civil chaos, and hardship not experienced since the 1930s for the average American.

Everybody knows the 2020 election was stolen. Everybody knows we are on the wrong path.

Everybody knows Biden is brain dead. Everybody knows Kamala is the dumbest human being on the planet. Everybody knows Biden’s team are a bunch of incompetent diversity hires.

Everybody knows we pissed $54 billion down a Ukrainian toilet and Biden is responsible for double digit inflation and $5 gas. Everybody knows bad things are going to happen in the next two years, which will require an entire chapter in history books, if the world still even exists.

Leonard Cohen captures how everybody feels today.
Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That’s how it goes
Everybody knows
Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died
Everybody Knows – Leonard Cohen

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gxd23UVID7k
5:37 min

I keep being drawn back to the theory Nero purposely burned Rome to clear space for his Golden Palace and pleasure gardens. Essentially his build back better plan. Despite the non-stop parade of distracting events, narratives, and false flags, the big picture has come into focus for me. What even I would have considered conspiracy theory a year ago, now makes the most sense based upon the incoming facts and actions of the major players.

I believe the entire Covid scheme, and the mRNA concoctions were planned and coordinated by those constituting the “invisible government” as a slow-motion depopulation plot designed to reduce the global population to a number they believe can be managed and manipulated to maximize their wealth, power, and control. First, the Wuhan flu gave a final push to the old, infirm, and obese. The lockdowns drove others to commit suicide, die of Chinese fentanyl overdoses, or die from undiagnosed cancers and heart disease.

The most sadistic and insidious aspect of this depopulation conspiracy is the so-called vaccines, that don’t keep you from contracting, spreading, being hospitalized, or dying from Covid, pumped into the bodies of almost 5 billion people. Critical thinking doctors, not bought off by Big Pharma, warned over a year ago about the potential side effects, anti-body dependent enhancement (ADE) created by the vaccines, and dangers of myocarditis in young seemingly healthy people. They also warned about the potential impact on fertility. Most were banned from Twitter and Facebook for their views.

Even though the government, the CDC, FDA, Fauci, Pfizer, Moderna and their captured MSM mouthpieces continue to lie and obfuscate, the data continues to mount, unequivocally proving these genetic altering spike proteins are causing hundreds of thousands of seemingly healthy people to “die suddenly”. Young athletes are dying. Pregnant women are losing their babies.

Life insurance companies are reporting deaths in young age brackets far exceeding what actuarial tables predict. And now studies are showing fertility rate declines in Germany that are 9 sigma events – virtually impossible.

I am now convinced what seems to be chaos, coincidence, and covid insanity is actually coordinated, conceived by Schwab, Gates, Soros, et al, and created to remake the world in the image these tyrant’s desire. They want supply chain disruptions. They want food shortages and starvation in 3rd world countries. They want an energy crisis where fossil fuels become too expensive to afford. They want mass shootings as a reason to confiscate your guns. They want the cities to burn and murderers to roam free on the streets. They want financial markets to collapse and wipe out the middle class.

They want to decrease the “surplus population” by having the vaccines kill off billions in a slow methodical manner. They aren’t kidding with their slogans about you owning nothing and being happy. We are nothing but annoying parasites to these elitist overlords. They are at war with humanity and the vast majority of humans are too distracted by their social media likes, crypto accounts, sports betting, virtue signaling, and techno-gadgets to notice they are being herded, corralled, and being led to slaughter.

Part 1 of 2

 

[marsh]

Part 2 of 2

As I ponder these unthinkably diabolical big picture issues, I still have to live my life. Having been trapped working in my basement for the better part of two years and not being invited to anyone’s house due to our un-vaxxed status, we haven’t been travelling the highways and byways of Montgomery County for most of the last two years. Now that covid has subsided, we have been invited to a few family gatherings and spent a week of vacation at the Jersey shore.

My big picture view of an empire in flames is confirmed by my observations on the ground. As I drove on Ridge Pike towards the Royersford area on Memorial Day weekend I was met with a consistent theme – a country in decay. Despite government passing trillion-dollar infrastructure bills (just as Obama did in 2009) the roads are at 3rd world standards. They are uneven, crumbling, potholed and patched. The sewer and water pipes below are leaking, decaying, and bursting. Our clueless leaders only know about it when it becomes a disaster.

As we traversed the ten or so miles on a once thriving route, you recognize the plethora of boarded up crumbling buildings, vacant strip malls, For Lease signs dotting the landscape, once flourishing small manufacturing businesses, restaurants, bars, boutique retail, independently owned gas stations, auto repair shops and numerous other formerly prosperous businesses either closed a decade ago during the great financial crisis or put out of business by the government mandated covid lockdowns.

It was not a mistake that hundreds of thousands of small businesses were destroyed, while the mega-corps like Amazon, Target and Wal-Mart reaped the spoils. The mega-corporations work hand in hand with the globalist cabal and their government apparatchiks. You can easily determine what a society values by observing the businesses that are thriving and expanding.

We most certainly value our vehicles, as high end car dealerships abound, and mega- gas station/food stores (Wawa, Royal Farms) are spaced every three miles along the route. While you are spending $130 to fill up your $90,000 leased Range Rover, you can dash into the Wawa and pick up a supersized Italian hoagie, with a bag of Funyuns, and 32 ounce Mountain Dew to wash it down. The only retail still standing are the national chains who were deemed essential and were allowed to stay open during the entire plandemic.

Even they have stopped expanding and are just milking the last vestiges of consumer debt financed purchases of Chinese crap Americans can’t afford and don’t need. The other three thriving business classes appear to be banks, national fast food joints, and hospital/medical facilities. Even though everyone can do their banking on-line there are still brand spanking new branches on every other corner. It is plainly evident the Wall Street banks are rolling in dough handed to them by the Federal Reserve, so building money losing bank branches doesn’t faze them. These whores will always be bailed out by their pimps at the Fed.

You can’t pass a McDonalds, KFC, Taco Bell, Burger King or Chick-fil-A without seeing a long line of cars at their drive through window. Because walking into the store to buy your 1,500 calorie snack would be too exhausting. The prolific number of these fast food outlets selling the most vile, mass produced, toxic sludge, disguised as food, is the main reason for the proliferation of medical facilities designed to treat the fall-out from Americans consuming this crap, along with the mass produced packaged foodstuff sold at grocery stores.

The fast food industry works hand in hand with the sickcare industry to enrich the corporations peddling poison and pills. As we see with the Big Pharma money grab related to the covid flu, which has proven to be no more deadly than the common flu, their “vaccines” don’t prevent you from ever getting covid (as previous vaccines for polio and smallpox did) and will require boosters every six months or so. The sickcare industry doesn’t want to cure anything. They want to treat you for life and reap ungodly profits while doing so.

My previous article – American Freakshow – detailed my observations from an hour or so on the Wildwood boardwalk. After spending a week at the shore, my initial observations were reconfirmed. The obesity epidemic, created by the corporate peddlers of toxic sludge fast food and manufactured foodstuff, is on full display in Wildwood. The obese are in heaven on the Wildwood boardwalk as they have their choice of fried Oreos, funnel cake (deep fried dough) dipped in sugar, pizza covered in cheese fries, triple cheeseburgers and pure sugar disguised as lemonade.

There is no shortage of miss-applied high self-esteem as 250-pound females jam themselves into bikinis and parade on the beach and boardwalk for all to see. The self- mutilation with tattoos and piercings among the young and old is astonishing and leads to the relevant response – WHY? It certainly isn’t because they make them more appealing, as 90% of the tattoos are hideous and 100% of the piercings are ghastly. Are they just following the herd? Are they trying to stand out in a world where they feel like a faceless nameless cog in the machine? Or do they want to self-mutilate as a cry for help? I certainly don’t know but see it as another example of a society in rapid decline.

The motels, hotels, and condos are filled. Rental prices have skyrocketed. Prices of properties have doubled in the last three years. The beaches are packed. The restaurants and bars are overflowing. It reminds me of those scenes when the ocean mysteriously receded and those unaware of what that meant ventured out to pick up the shiny seashells where the ocean was supposed to be. They were clueless that a tsunami was about to descend upon them and end their lives in torrent of waves and destruction.

Whether you chose an empire burning or a tsunami of consequences headed our way, the figurative description does not do justice to what is happening and will happen to this world over the next several years. Putting your head in the sand and allowing your normalcy bias or abnormalcy bias to keep you from seeing the facts will not save you. At this point, even the most prolific preppers may not avoid the fate of the unprepared. Economic and societal collapse, combined with global war, is not a recipe for a return to normalcy or a long life. So, what are our choices?

We have no other choice than to keep on living and attempt to survive the biggest crisis in eighty years, because that is how Fourth Turnings roll. Sixty-five million people died during the last Fourth Turning, or about 3% of the global population at the time. A similar death rate today would be 240 million. With our advances in killing technology, along with the vaxx depopulation time bomb, and potential for mass starvation as our modern society descends into the dark ages, I’d take the over.

Personally, I continue to work to provide for my family, write articles and run my blog to warn those who are willing to listen and think critically, prepare as best I can on a quarter acre in a suburban neighborhood, and try to enjoy my remaining time on earth as best I can. On Memorial Day we didn’t go to a big cookout or huge gathering. We did what we have come to enjoy the most. We kayaked on the Green Lane Reservoir and hiked along the trails surrounding the reservoir.

Paddling out on the serene glass like waters engulfed by sounds of silence, momentarily interrupted by the echoes of birds whistling, croaking, and chirping across the vast expanse of beauty calms the nerves and allows the darkness, doom, and negativity of our current world situation to temporarily dissipate from my consciousness. Letting the peripheral burdens about the world, weighing on my mind, fade for an hour, or two helps keep me sane. With the unrelenting avalanche of lies, disinformation, and bullshit dumped on our heads on a daily basis it is essential to escape into nature to realize what is really important. Many are not able to enjoy the serenity and natural beauty of this habitat because their lives were cut short.

Whenever we go to Green Lane Park, we stop and sit on Tyler’s bench. It is now nine years since my oldest son’s best friend was killed in a tragic car accident at the age of 20. Kevin, Tyler, and their friends would come to the reservoir to fish and shoot the shit as teenagers. Tyler’s death was shocking and changed my son forever. I think his decision to move to Colorado after graduating college was spurred by Tyler’s death. He wanted to live life to the fullest because you never know when your time will be up. I don’t know what the future holds for me, my family, my country, and the world. There are evil forces in this world who appear to have the upper hand, but there also millions of good people fighting for a better future. A showdown is coming, and the outcome is in doubt. I’ll continue to fight for what I believe is good and right.

Meanwhile, we’ll keep paddling, even as the empire burns.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

83% Of Americans Cut Back On Spending As Economy Careens Towards Crisis , Poll Finds

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 11:25 AM

US consumer sentiment and confidence have deteriorated for households amid slowing economic growth and persistently high inflation that suggests stagflation.

A new study lends credibility to the current souring macroeconomic backdrop of high inflation and shortages, altering consumer lifestyles, behavior changes, and expectations, all of which show "Bidenomics" could be one greatest failures since the Carter administration of 1977-1981.



Provident Bank, based in New Jersey, found that 83% of respondents slashed personal spending due to soaring prices of food and gasoline, with 23% indicating they had to make "drastic changes" to their spending for financial survival.

According to the survey results of 600 adults, 10.5% of respondents eliminated all non-essential purchases, and nearly 72% said they made at least some changes to personal travel habits.

While some consumers have cut back on some non-essential spending, like dining out and unnecessary travel, others reported much more drastic changes such as skipping meals, conserving water, and eliminating meat from their diets. People are feeling an immense amount of financial pressure right now. Unfortunately, this is not surprising after the Labor Department reported earlier this month that the United States Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit a 40-year high in May. -- Provident Bank

Respondents said rising prices of groceries and gas had put the most significant dent in their pocketbooks. According to the survey results, 53% said they now spend between $101 - $500 more per month on groceries, and 32% spend between $101 - $250 more on gas. They also said that skyrocketing prices of baby products, meat, utilities, household goods, milk, and alcohol have led to economic discomfort.

There's no question this survey outlines consumers are being squeezed by negative real wage growth and inflation at 40-year highs. Many folks have maxed out credit cards and drained personal savings. Much of this economic despair has sent consumer sentiment crashing:



The third reading of Q1 GDP on Wednesday said it all: personal consumption growth has collapsed.



High inflation plus a rapidly slowing economy could be the emergence of stagflation, a dangerous economic environment that the Federal Reserve doesn't want to see. Already, the souring environment is altering lifestyle patterns and expectations of the vast majority of Americans struggling to survive Biden's "Build Back Better" economy.

Suppose the consumer is tapping out under the weight of inflation, maxed out credit cards, collapsed personal savings, and negative real wage growth. In that case, it is an ominous sign the consumer-driven economy is careening toward a crisis.

Even more shocking is how a very underreported tidal wave of evictions could be imminent as millions of Americans can't pay rent.

History doesn't repeat itself, but it certainly rhymes with the stagflation era of the 1970s. Back then, former President Jimmy Carter was a one-term president.

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

Oil Markets Could Face A Doomsday Scenario This Week

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 11:05 AM
Authored by Cyril Widdershoven via Oilprice.com,

• Expect lots of oil price volatility in the coming months as markets finally discover just how much spare capacity OPEC members really have.
• Oil production outages in Libya and the continued impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are going to push oil prices higher if new supply isn’t found.
• While some analysts are predicting oil demand destruction in the near future, there is little evidence to back up those claims.

Global oil markets are going to be very volatile in the coming months if news emerging from OPEC’s main producers about production capacity constraints turns out to be true.

OPEC will be meeting again in the coming days to discuss its export agreements, while today the oil group is presenting its Annual Statistical Bulletin (ASB) 2022. While the media is likely to be focused on rumors in the next 24 hours of a possible change in the export strategy of OPEC+, the real focus should be on whether or not the oil cartel is even capable of substantially increasing its production.

For years, OPEC producers have been the main swing producers in oil markets. With a presumed spare capacity of more than 3-4 million bpd, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have always been seen as a point of last resort in case of a major crisis in oil and gas markets.

During the former global oil glut, it seemed nothing could threaten the oil market, even when major conflicts emerged in Libya, Iraq, or elsewhere. The re-opening of the global economy after COVID-19, however, has brought fear back into the market that leading oil producers, including the USA and Russia, are unable to supply adequate volumes to the market. OPEC kingpins Saudi Arabia and the UAE are now being looked upon to increase production to historically high levels and bring oil prices down. Russia’s war against Ukraine, removing a possible 4.4 million bpd of crude and products in the coming months, has thrown this spare capacity problem into sharp relief.



This week, a possible doomsday scenario could emerge in oil markets, based not only on OPEC+ export strategies but also due to increased internal turmoil in Libya, Iraq, and Ecuador. Possible other political and economic turmoil is also brewing in other producers, while US shale is still not showing any signs of a substantial production increase in the coming months.

Global oil markets have long believed that OPEC has enough spare production capacity to stabilize markets, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE just needing to open their taps. There is ,however, no real evidence to suggest that OPEC has increased production capacity in place in the short term. A research note by Commonwealth Bank commodities analyst Tobin Gorey already noted that OPEC’s two leaders are producing at near-term capacity limits. At the same time, UAE Minister of Energy Suhail Al Mazrouei put even more pressure on oil prices as he stated that the UAE is producing near-maximum capacity based on its quota of 3.168 million barrels per day (bpd) under the agreement with OPEC and its allies. That comment could still indicate that there is some spare capacity left in Abu Dhabi, but the remarks were made after French President Emmanuel Macron had stated to US president Biden during the G7 meeting that not only is the UAE producing at maximum production capacity, but also that Saudi Arabia only has another 150,000 bpd of spare capacity available.

Macron stated that UAE’s president Mohammed bin Zayed (MBZ) told him that the UAE is at maximum production capacity while claiming that Saudi Arabia can increase production by another 150,000 bpd. Macron also claimed that Saudi Arabia won’t have a huge additional capacity within the coming six months. The official figures for both OPEC producers counter this narrative, however. Saudi Arabia is producing at 10.5 million bpd, with official capacity between 12-12.5 million bpd. The UAE is producing around 3 million bpd, claiming to have a capacity of 3.4 million bpd. The two countries’ spare production is still officially slated to be around 3.9 million bpd combined. Most analysts, however, have been questioning these figures for years.

Looking at OPEC+'s own production targets, the group has not been producing at agreed levels for months. At the Middle East and North Africa-Europe Future Energy Dialogue in Jordan, UAE’s Al Mazrouei said that OPEC+ was running 2.6 million barrels a day short of its production target. That means a potential shortage in the market, which could increase even further if internal turmoil causes further production decreases. For July-August, OPEC+ agreed to increase output by another 648,000 bpd, which would mean that the total output cut during COVID-19 pandemic of 5.8 million bpd has been restored. Whether or not OPEC+ is able to reach that level in the coming weeks remains very uncertain.



Pressure will build in the coming days, as Al Mazrouei’s remarks seem to rebuke claims of a spare capacity shortage, but as always “where there is smoke, there is a fire”. A possible spare production capacity shortage, or non-availability at all, combined with an expected force majeure of Libya’s NOC in the Gulf of Sirte, and a suspension of Ecuador’s oil output (520,000 bpd) in the coming days due to anti-government protests, are likely to lead to an oil price spike.

There is still some optimism in markets about a real demand-supply crunch, as high inflation levels and a possible global economic slowdown could lead to lower demand. Until now, however, that optimism has not materialized at all, demand is still increasing, even though gasoline and diesel prices are breaking historical price levels. The re-opening of the Chinese economy, a natural gas shortage globally, and higher temperatures in the coming weeks, combined with the normal peak in demand due to the US and EU driving season, all look set to push oil prices higher.

OPEC’s future is at stake if spare production capacity really has run out. For years, analysts (including myself) have been warning about a lack of investment in upstream worldwide. That has already led to lower production capacity of independent oil companies, such as most IOCs, and for national oil companies, the situation appears to be similar. Even though Saudi Aramco, ADNOC, and some others, have been keeping their upstream (and downstream) investments level during the last decade (even during COVID), other main OPEC producers have seen dwindling investment budgets or even full-scale crises. Most OPEC producers could increase their overall production still, but only for a limited period of time. Where most spare production capacity is short-term based, partly to avoid damaging reserves in the long run, the current oil crisis is a much more prolonged long-term issue. Western sanctions on Russia, combined with existing sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, will hurt markets for years to come.

There is no quick-fix solution to the current oil market crisis, even the lifting of sanctions on Venezuela or Iran will not result in substantial volume increases. At the same time, increased Western political interference in the already struggling market will hit volumes too.

The growing call in the USA, UK, and EU, to put a windfall tax on oil and gas companies will not only constrain further investments in upstream but will also lead to higher prices at the pump. Consumers are not going to feel any positive price effects and can expect steadily increasing energy bills in the coming months.

No statements made by OPEC in the coming two days are going to be able to remove the worries in the market. OPEC’s future depends fully on its power to stabilize markets. At present, there appear to be no options available to the cartel. Without new oil production hitting markets soon, OPEC leaders MBZ and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman need to try to maintain the illusion of spare capacity. If spare production capacity is revealed to be under 1.5-2 million bpd, the future of both OPEC and oil markets would be bleak.

 

[marsh]

Harnwell: “Biden gives $2.72bn for food security at G7 — but not one dollar for hungry Americans” 7:32 min

Harnwell: “Biden gives $2.72bn for food security at G7 — but not one dollar for hungry Americans”
Bannons War Room Published June 29, 2022

no summary given. have not yet watched.

 

[marsh]

Stephen Moore: ‘We are in a Biden Recession’ 1:54 min

Stephen Moore: ‘We are in a Biden Recession’
Prime Time with Dr. Gina Published June 29, 2022

(We are already in a Biden recession. Supply chain, fuel supply and gas prices all due to Biden's progressive socialist policies. They were all tried in CA before and failed.)

 

[marsh]

Putin’s Role in The New World Order 36:43 min

Putin’s Role in The New World Order
The New American Published June 29, 2022

As the president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin has reduced abortions, fought against the LGBTQ agenda, freed up homeschooling, expanded the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church, and withdrawn Russia from membership in both the World Trade Organization and World Health Organization. However, is a he a foe or friend of the New World Order? Alex Newman, senior editor of The New American, examines Putin’s role in the socialist New World Order and the regional integration of Europe and Eurasia.

 

[marsh]

Michael Yon @MichaelYon​ Jun 29, 2022 at 3:07pm​

The Deadly, Fake Vaxxines: New Diseases named after these poisons​ At least 40,000 deaths attributed to the fake vaxxines. Global recall called for. America and others still pushing into adults and children. Vast majority of new CCP virus patients in hospitals are fully vaxxed. Global effort to mass-vaxx public every six months. Even while bodies stack high. Severe fertility signals coming from Germany, Switzerland, Taiwan. Dr. Peter McCullough Testifies Before Texas Senate Health & Human Services Committee 17:51 min Dr. Peter McCullough Testifies Before Texas Senate Health & Human Services Committee Sunfellow on COVID-19 Published June 29, 2022 Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH, Texas Senate Testimony, Health and Human Services Committee, "Lessons Learned on Pandemic Response" June 27, 2022. Senator Lois Kolkhorst, Chair. Original Rumble Video: Dr. Peter McCullough, MD, MPH, Jun 27, 2022 Texas Senate HHS Testimony Full Meeting (10 Hours, 37 Minutes): Senate Committee on Health & Human Services - Jun 27th, 2022 ​

 

[raven]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

White House Is Quietly Modeling For $200 Oil "Shock"

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 05:05 PM

While the Biden administration is hoping and praying that someone - anyone - will watch the comical "Jan 6" kangaroo hearsay court taking place in Congress and meant to somehow block Trump from running for president in 2024 while also making hundreds of millions of Americans forget that the current administration could very well be the worst in US history, it is quietly preparing for the worst.

As none other than pro-Biden propaganda spinmaster CNN reports, when it comes to what really matters (at least according to Gallup), namely the economy, and specifically galloping gasoline prices, the White House is in a historic shambles.

The suspects behind the historic implosion are well known: "soaring prices, teetering poll numbers and congressional majorities that appear to be on the brink have created no shortage of reasons for unease. Gas prices are hovering at or around $5 per gallon, plastered on signs and billboards across the country as a symbolic daily reminder of the reality -- one in which White House officials are extremely aware -- that the country's view of the economy is growing darker and taking Biden's political future with it."

"You don't have to be a very sophisticated person to know how lines of presidential approval and gas prices go historically in the United States," a senior White House official told CNN.

A CNN Poll of Polls average of ratings for Biden's handling of the presidency finds that 39% of Americans approve of the job he's doing. His numbers on the economy, gas prices and inflation specifically are even worse in recent polls. What CNN won't tell you is that Biden is now polling well below Trump at this time in his tenure.



The CNN article then goes into a lengthy analysis of what is behind the current gasoline crisis (those with lots of time to kill can read it here) and also tries to explains, without actually saying it, that the only thing that can fix the problem is more supply, but - as we first explained - this can't and won't happen because green fanatics and socialist environmentalists will never agree to boosting output.

Which brings us to the punchline: as CNN's Phil Mattingly writes, "instead of managing an economy in the midst of a natural rotation away from recovery and into a stable period of growth, economic officials are analyzing and modeling worst-case scenarios like what the shock of gas prices hitting $200 per barrel may mean for the economy."

Well, in an article titled "Give us a plan or give us someone to blame", this seems like both a plan, and someone to blame.

But unfortunately for Biden - and CNN which is hoping to reset expectations - it's only going to get worse, because as we noted moments ago, while nobody was paying attention, Cushing inventories dropped to just 1 million away from operational bottoms at roughly 20MM barrels. This means that the US is officially looking at tank bottoms.



But wait, there's more... or rather, it's even worse, because as even Bloomberg's chief energy guru Javier Blas notes, over the last 2 weeks, the US gov has drained 13.7 million barrels from the SPR, "and yet, commercial oil stockpiles still fell 3 million barrels over the period."



Just imagine, Blas asks rhetorically, "if the SPR wasn't there. Or what would happen post-Oct when sales end."

And here is the punchline: at the current record pace of SPR drainage, one way or another the Biden admin will have to end its artificial attempts to keep the price of oil lower some time in October (or risk entering a war with China over Taiwan with virtually no oil reserve). This means that unless Putin ends his war some time in the next 5 months, there is a non-trivial chance that oil will hit a record price around $200 - precisely the price the White House is bracing for - a few days before the midterms. While translates into $10+ gasoline.

And while one can speculate how much longer Democrats can continue the "Jan 6" dog and pony show as the entire economy implodes around them, how America will vote in November when gas is double digits should not be a mystery to anyone.

and where is all the oil going?

 

[marsh]

Steve Gruber explains the History of the Chevron Doctrine

"When the government gives that much power to unelected bureaucrats it doesn't just stop at the power station, now it goes all the way to the socket in your home." Steve Gruber explains the whole case

rumble.com

2:15 min

Steve Gruber explains the History of the Chevron Doctrine
RealAmericasVoice Published June 29, 2022

"When the government gives that much power to unelected bureaucrats it doesn't just stop at the power station, now it goes all the way to the socket in your home."

Steve Gruber explains the whole case of West Virginia vs. EPA and what it means to the country.

(Notes: Since the New Deal under Franklin Roosevelt, agencies of unelected bureaucrats, not our members of Congress, have been given the power to dictate to us what the laws of the land are. It is Called the Chevron Doctrine. When an agency is created, Congress can pass on to them the task of making rules and regulations. The EPA could control the power grid down to SMART meters under the Clean Power Act. )

 

[marsh]

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

"It Is Possible - Even Probable - That The World System Will Shatter"

WEDNESDAY, JUN 29, 2022 - 07:45 AM
By Michael Every of Rabobank

"and such small portions"
Another messy market day with bond yields down slightly, stocks by more, and oil up a lot. That was on the back of ugly US data, in particular consumer confidence expectations tumbling to 66.4, the lowest in years, and China reducing quarantine times from two to one week, which despite suggestions that Zero Covid will stay for five years(!), is a possible sign of opening up.

The irony is that if China does, or stimulates, growth will pick up, commodity prices will go up, and the Fed will have to act more aggressively. The dollar had an up day, perhaps smelling that too.

The news-flow was of utopian plans that can’t be enacted. Like the Woody Allen joke about the Catskills hotel with terrible food “and such small portions”, is this a good or bad thing?

The ECB said it will roll out its anti-fragmentation toolkit from Friday, the same day it stops doing QE. How will it work? Don’t know. Will it work? Don’t know. What is the true price of assets against a backdrop of the ECB both removing and injecting bond market liquidity? Don’t know.

The G7 was all about Russia. The major policies announced were: a “pursuit” of discussions about ideas about a price cap on Russian oil imports (so no actual action); a short-term push for LNG from anyone but Russia; the formation of ‘climate clubs’; and a pledge of $4.5bn to help fight the global food crisis, taking the headline total for that to $14bn.

The ‘oil cap’ is simple in theory: the G7 will refuse to provide insurance to any vessel that carries Russian oil unless the cargo is sold with an agreed price cap. Yet it won’t work and will just push oil prices higher. Russia will never agree. China and India will never agree either.

Russia and China may offer their own underwriting services, which would force the West into physically blocking cargoes and confronting China - as a Russian-oil carrying ship is stopped in the US, says the Wall Street Journal. Plus, the G7 are already not taking Russian oil: they are taking Russian oil from India and China that is being on-sold.

In this economic war, the G7 continue to tell their opponents that they will invade in exactly six months, and where, and with which forces, and in the interim demand they are allowed to use that country’s beaches: Russia just counterattacks unannounced (but not unexpectedly).

Russian gas flows to the EU will remain low enough for long enough to teach the West a lesson.

On LNG, the G7 says investment is "appropriate as a temporary response” but warns against locking in fossil-fuel use because that would make climate goals unachievable. In short, we need lots of investment and supply - which will then be abandoned. This stance upsets both the environmental lobby and potential LNG exporters and investors.

The G7 also says DM polluters and EM economies should join 'climate clubs' to create global markets for green products through carbon pricing or other climate-mitigation strategies. Just what we need during an economic war – market mechanisms! What this likely means is carbon border adjustment tariffs or quotas on imports from ‘non-green’ countries.

These are actually protectionist measures that will separate EM like China from the DM like the US, EU, and Japan, something I have flagged for a long time.

Today sees FT’s Martin Wolf’s promised answer to our global structural dilemmas in his op-ed ‘In an era of disorder, open trade is at risk’. It is, as feared, ‘42’.

He admits we are in an epoch of world disorder, and we can only save the neoliberal trade order with “great difficulty”. Yet his proposed solutions, besides giving small countries a voice on trade --how? By them going on strike?-- are:

1. Sustainability. Which means ‘climate clubs’, which means DM vs. China green tariffs. It also needs huge DM capital flows to EM to finance green transitions during a food and energy crisis, and when the global system breaking down involves EM capital flows to DM via trade surpluses.
2. Security. Which means diversifying Western supply chains, which China will fight tooth and nail. It also means allowing governments to set up negative national security lists. Isn’t this happening, and part of the problem, not the solution?
3. Blocs. Don’t allow them. Friend-shoring is not to be embraced. Neither is regionalisation, because it might mean North America and Europe are locked out of Asia. In short, ‘don’t do anything’. Global problem solved!
4. Standards. We need them. But not on labour, perhaps, just the environment and digital services. Who gets to set them, to what end? Isn’t this part of China’s and Russia’s gripe?
5. Domestic policy. We need to “[educate] the public on the cost of protection” and help “all those adversely affected by economic changes.” 40+ years into neoliberalism, and 14 years after the Global Financial Crisis, this is the best we can do?! We just saw ‘Build Back Better’ turn into high inflation, food and energy crises, higher rates, and a looming recession. Somehow bleating “Free trade gooood; tariffs baaaad!” and spending public money on those left behind *without producing any inflation* will solve our problems. If it doesn’t, Wolf warns “an ill-informed nationalism is bound to sever the bonds of commerce.”

Indeed, Wolf is honest at the end: “It is possible --perhaps even probable-- that the world system will shatter.” Colour me unsurprised. If this wasn’t the pattern of history, many readers would be Romans. However, he still begs for someone, if not the US, to save global free trade.

Which country wants to import from everyone else and deindustrialize in the process? This then takes us back to a more realpolitik great power world. (As has been argued here for many years.)

Yet even in that territory, utopian plans are the order of the day. It appears Türkiye will now let Sweden and Finland join NATO. However, NATO has announced its armies will be carbon neutral by 2050. Nice: but how about being capable of winning dirty wars first? As National Defence Magazine was saying a year ago, ‘Electric Vehicles for the Military Still a Pipedream’.

You can’t wait 8 hours to recharge a tank in combat in the middle of a muddy field. You can’t power long-range electric fighter jets. And I don’t think bombs are carbon neutral.

UK PM Johnson has had to abandon his ‘CPI +0.5% until 2028’ defense spending pledge after CPI rose to 9.1%. Welcome to the real world of real economic power and realpolitik. (As Scotland announces an unofficial independence referendum for October 19, 2023, promising even greater economic uncertainty.) Meanwhile, China has 2.1% CPI and is growing its military spending very rapidly. “Freedom has to be better armed than tyranny,” said UK Foreign Secretary Truss recently. Well, freedom needs a new economic plan then, pronto.

Indeed, we all do. We rightly focus on the Fed and the ifs and buts and maybes of its pivots and divots, as another 75bps for the next meeting is waved as a prospect. But if it’s “perhaps even probable” that “the world system shatters”, perhaps markets should start thinking about what it implies for rates and FX? That thinking is currently served up in such small portions.