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Debt Rattle September 20 2024

Sep 202024
 
 September 20, 2024  Posted by at 8:45 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,  72 Responses »


Paul Gauguin Haymaking in Brittany 1889

 

• The ‘War Party’ Makes Its Plans (Patrick Lawrence)
• Russia Slams NATO’s ‘Reckless’ Rejection of Putin’s Red Line on Ukraine (Sp.)
• Ukraine War Turns Into Russian Roulette (Bhadrakumar)
• This Ain’t No WWIII: This Is A War OF Terror (Pepe Escobar)
• ‘Victory Plan’ Ready – Zelensky (RT)
• Ukrainian Commanders Urged Zelensky Not To Invade Kursk (Antiwar)
• Russia’s Drone Production To Increase Tenfold – Putin (RT)
• Craig Murray Describes Transition Of UK, West In General Into Tyranny (PCR)
• Switzerland Dumps Neutrality (Sp.)
• Descendants of Native American Chief Want His Face Back In NFL (RT)
• Kamala Bucks (Jim Rickards)
• Trump Makes First Payment In Bitcoin (RT)
• FBI: Iran Hacked Trump Campaign Materials And Gave Them To Biden/Harris (MN)
• Russia’s Shadow Fleet is a Ticking Geopolitical Timebomb (Garcia)
• Pager Bomb Plot 15 Years In The Making – ABC News (RT)

 

 

 

 

RFK Trump

 

 

Simplicity

 

 

Trump ad
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836488676152361056

 

 

Trump Walz
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836601717825126588

 

 

Newsom

 

 

Teamsters

 

 

Nate Silver Sep. 17

 

 

Tucker Vance

 

 

O’Leary

 

 

Calley Means

 

 

 

 

A lot of war articles today. NATO et al are now saying Putin so far has not reacted very violently to breaches of red lines, therefore he won’t do so in the future either. Joe Biden: “I don’t think much about Vladimir Putin.” Your leaders are dragging you straight into a war that nobody wants but them.

• The ‘War Party’ Makes Its Plans (Patrick Lawrence)

The Biden White House and the Democratic Party machine trying to advance Kamala Harris from No. 2 in the regime to No. 1 gets more interesting by the week, I have to say. The Harris campaign has at last, two months after the party’s elites and financiers railroaded her candidacy past any semblance of a democratic process, published a platform it calls A New Way Forward, and I will get to this in due course. I am less interested now in words posted on a website than in two recent developments we ought to consider together even if no one has yet thought to do so. Slowly and very surely, it becomes clear by way of these weekly turns how a new Democratic regime, should Harris win on Nov. 5, proposes to manage the imperium’s business. And however many foolish voters may be illusioned otherwise, if Harris takes the White House her business will be neither more nor less than managing the imperium—the wars, the provocations, the illegal sanctions and other collective punishments, the terrorist clients in Israel, the neo–Nazis in Kiev.

Last Wednesday, Sept. 4, Liz Cheney surprised Washington and, I suppose, most of the rest of us when she announced she would support Harris’s run for the presidency. The onetime Wyoming congresswoman, a coup-cultivating warmonger who remains among the hawkiest of right-wing foreign-policy hawks, was not the first Republican to jump across the aisle this political season, and she was also not the last: Two days later, Liz’s pop did the same. Dick Cheney, of course, needs no introduction. Instantly, the Harris campaign declared its delight in having the support of these courageous patriots, as the organization called them in its official statements. A week after all this high-caliber politicking, President Biden convened in the Oval Office with Keir Starmer, the new British prime minister, to consider Ukraine’s proposal to fire Western-supplied missiles at targets well inside Russian territory.

The Brits are ready to oblige the Kiev regime, as are the French, but everyone—London, Paris, Kiev—needs Biden’s permission to widen the war in this fashion. At the moment, Biden and Secretary of State Blinken are in their “Well, maybe” phase, and we are meant to be on the edges of our seats wondering whether they will assent to these plans. But haven’t we seen this movie before and don’t we know how it ends? Wasn’t it, “Maybe we will send HIMARS rocket systems,” “Maybe M–1 tanks,” “Maybe Patriot missiles,” “Maybe F–16s”? Even before the Biden–Starmer encounter last week, Blinken and David Lammy, the British foreign secretary, during a visit to Kiev for talks with Volodymyr Zelensky, were already dropping heavy hints that Biden will once again acquiesce to the plans the Ukrainian president and the British PM were choreographed to present to him.

The stipulation Biden and Blinken now purport to insist upon is that they will not assent to letting Kiev use weapons provided by the U.S. — which seems to be different from weapons made by the U.S.—against targets in the Russian interior. This is no more than one of those hair-splits in which the Biden White House trades when it wants to look thoughtful and cautious but is neither. Will someone tell me what damn difference it will make to Russia if Moscow takes a hit from a missile sent from Britain, France or the United States? These people are convening to plan the Western powers’ reckless escalation of a proxy war they have no way of winning and know they have no way of winning. Desperation is as desperation does: This is my simple read of these deliberations. Between the war-planning and the shifting political loyalties, what have we witnessed over these past couple of weeks? This is our question.

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“..the use of long-range missiles against targets deep in Russia would “increase the threat of escalation,” which runs counter to European security interests.”

• Russia Slams NATO’s ‘Reckless’ Rejection of Putin’s Red Line on Ukraine (Sp.)

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Wednesday that dismissing Russian President Vladimir Putin’s warnings about the dangers of Ukraine using Western weapons to attack Russian territory is both provocative and perilous. “Such a ostentatious desire not to take seriously the statements of the Russian president is an absolutely short-sighted and unprofessional step,” Peskov told reporters. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg denied in an interview out on Tuesday that allowing Ukraine to use long-range Western weapons to strike deep into Russia would cross country’s “red line” despite warnings from Russian President Vladimir Putin. “There have been many red lines declared by him [Putin] before, and he has not escalated, meaning also involving Nato allies directly in the conflict,” Stoltenberg told The Times newspaper. Stoltenberg said that he supported the United Kingdom and France in their decision to lift restrictions on Kiev’s use of long-range weapons against Russia.

He argued that their use by Ukraine would not draw the alliance into conflict with Russia. Putin said that NATO countries were essentially deciding whether to get directly involved in the Ukrainian conflict. He warned that direct participation of Western countries in the conflict would change its nature, forcing Russia to respond to emerging threats. Meanwhile, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto stated on Wednesday that Hungary is concerned about the potential use of long-range arms to strike Russia, as this would contradict Europe’s security interests and heighten the risk of escalation. He emphasized that “Hungary is interested in peace, and every step that threatens escalation makes us concerned,” adding that the use of long-range missiles against targets deep in Russia would “increase the threat of escalation,” which runs counter to European security interests.

Putin balance
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836749250312417654

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“..Biden was plainly dismissive about the latest Kremlin warning, saying, “I don’t think much about Vladimir Putin.”

• Ukraine War Turns Into Russian Roulette (Bhadrakumar)

The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with the US President Joe Biden in the White House on Friday with the question of the use of long-range missiles by Ukraine to hit deep inside Russia on their agenda of conversation. But there were no announcements, nor was there any joint press conference. Starmer later told the media that the talks were “productive” but concentrated on “strategy” rather than a “particular step or tactic”. He did not signal any decision on allowing Kiev to fire long-range missiles into Russia. Starmer said no final decision had been taken on the Storm Shadow missiles and hinted that further developments may follow at the gathering of the UN General Assembly later this month. “We’ll obviously pick up again in UNGA in just a few days time with a wider group of individuals,” he said.

One reason for such extreme secrecy is that the US and UK are intensely conscious of the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s explicit warning on Thursday that any use of western long-range missiles to strike Russia “will mean that NATO countries, the United States, and European countries are parties to the war in Ukraine. This will mean their direct involvement in the conflict, and it will clearly change the very essence, the very nature of the conflict dramatically.” Putin added in measured words: “This will mean that NATO countries – the United States and European countries –- are at war with Russia. And if this is the case, then, bearing in mind the change in the essence of the conflict, we will make appropriate decisions in response to the threats that will be posed to us.” Admittedly, Putin has given similar warnings before also, but did not follow through even when western weaponry was used by Ukraine with impunity to invade Russia recently.

So much so that Biden was plainly dismissive about the latest Kremlin warning, saying, “I don’t think much about Vladimir Putin.” On its part, Moscow estimates that although no official decision on the matter has been announced, it has already been made and communicated to Kiev, and that Moscow would have to respond with actions of its own. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, Moscow’s point person on the diplomatic track, was quoted as saying on Saturday, “The decision has been made, the carte blanche and all indulgences have been given (to Kiev), so we [Russia] are ready for everything. And we will react in a way that will not be pretty.” Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chairman of the country’s security council, went a step further saying that the West is testing Russia’s patience but it is not limitless. He said Ukraine’s invasion already gave Russia formal grounds to use its nuclear arsenal.

Medvedev warned that Moscow could either resort to nuclear weapons in the end, or use some of its non-nuclear but still deadly novel weapons for a large-scale attack. “And that would be it. A giant, grey, melted spot instead of ‘the mother of Russian cities’,” he wrote on the Telegram messaging app, referring to Kiev. Putin, in his remark on Thursday once again rejected the Anglo-American sophistry that it is Ukraine that will be using any western long-range missiles and not NATO. He pointed out that the Ukrainian army “is not capable of using cutting-edge high-precision long-range systems supplied by the West. They cannot do that. These weapons are impossible to employ without intelligence data from satellites which Ukraine does not have. This can only be done using the European Union’s satellites, or US satellites – in general, NATO satellites…

“most important, the key point even – is that only NATO military personnel can assign flight missions to these missile systems. Ukrainian servicemen cannot do this. Therefore, it is not a question of allowing the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons or not. It is about deciding whether NATO countries become directly involved in the military conflict or not.” Interestingly, neither Washington nor London has so far refuted Putin’s above explanation and, curiously, it has been expunged altogether from British press reports — fearing, perhaps, that public opinion might militate against such direct involvement by the UK in a war against Russia in a combat role!

Moscow anticipates that the US-UK ploy may be to test the waters by first (openly) using Britain’s Storm Shadow long-range air-launched cruise missile, which has already been supplied to Ukraine. On Friday, Russia expelled six British diplomats assigned to the Moscow embassy in a clear warning that Uk-Russia ties will be affected. Russia has already warned the UK of severe consequences if the Storm Shadow were to be used to hit Russian territory. What makes the developing situation extremely dangerous is that the cat-and-mouse game so far about NATO’s covert involvement in the Ukraine war is giving way to a game of Russian roulette that follows the laws of Probability Theory.

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“This ain’t no party
This ain’t no disco
This ain’t no fooling around
No time for dancin’
Or lovey-dovey
I ain’t got time for that now..”

• This Ain’t No WWIII: This Is A War OF Terror (Pepe Escobar)

First we had action: President Putin – cool, calm, collected – warns that any attack on Russia with long-range NATO missiles will be an act of war. Then we had reaction: NATO rats scurrying back to the gutter – in haste. For now. All that was a direct consequence of the Kursk debacle. A desperate gamble. But the state of things in the proxy war in Ukraine was desperate for NATO. Until it became crystal clear it’s all basically non-recoverable. So there are two options left. Ukraine’s unconditional surrender, on Russia’s terms, tantamount to NATO’s complete humiliation. Or escalation to all-out war (italics mine) with Russia. The U.S. – but not the UK – ruling classes seem to have registered the essence of Putin’s message: if NATO is at war with Russia, “then, bearing in mind the change in the essence of the conflict, we will make appropriate decisions in response to the threats that will be posed to us.”

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov was ominously more precise: “The decision has been made, the carte blanche and all indulgences have been given [to Kiev), so we [Russia] are ready for everything. And we will react in a way that will not be pretty.” For all practical purposes, NATO is already at war with Russia: non-stop reconnaissance flights, high-precision strikes on airfields in Crimea, forcing the Black Sea Fleet to relocate out of Sevastopol, these are only some instances. With “permission” to strike as far as 500 km deep into Russia, and a list of several targets already submitted by Kiev for “approval”, Putin has clearly stated the obvious. Russia is fighting an existential war for the survival of the Motherland – what it has done repeatedly over centuries. The USSR suffered 27 million losses and emerged from WWII stronger than ever. That demonstration of willpower, in itself, scares the collective West to death.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov – whose Taoist patience seems to be exhausting – added some color on the Big Picture, drawing from English literature: “George Orwell had a rich imagination and historical foresight. But even he could not imagine what a totalitarian state would look like. He described some of its contours, but failed to penetrate the depths of the totalitarianism that we now see within the framework of the ‘rules-based order.’ I have nothing to add. The current leaders in Washington, who suppress any dissent, have ‘outdone’ him. This is totalitarianism in its purest form.” Lavrov concluded that “they are historically doomed.” Yet they don’t really have the guts to provoke WWIII. Trademark cowards can only resort to a War OF Terror. Here are some instances. The SVR – Russian foreign intel – discovered a Kiev plot to stage a Russian missile attack on a hospital or kindergarten on Kiev-controlled territory.

The objectives include raising the – collapsed – morale of the AFU; justify the complete removal of any restrictions on deep missile strikes inside the Russian Federation; and attract support from the Global South – which overwhelmingly understands what Russia is doing in Ukraine. In parallel, if this massive false flag works, the Hegemon would use it to “increase pressure” (How? Screaming at the top of their lungs?) on Iran and the DPRK, whose missiles would likely be the perpetrators of the carnage. As much as this seems far-fetched on a Maximum Stupidistan level, considering the Deep Dementia ranging from Washington and London to Kiev it does remain possible, as NATOstan de facto retains the strategic initiative in this war. Russia for its part remains passive. It is NATO that is choosing the method, the place and the time for its key, choice strikes.

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Formerly known as the “peace plan”.

• ‘Victory Plan’ Ready – Zelensky (RT)

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky declared his secretive ‘victory plan’ complete on Wednesday in a video address. Moscow has dismissed Kiev’s designs as incapable of altering the course of the conflict. Details of the Ukrainian roadmap for defeating Russia remain murky, but Zelensky has been giving regular updates on its progress. On Monday, he said it was more than 90% ready, while he now describes it as “fully prepared,” adding that “the most important thing is the determination to implement it.” Russian officials have dismissed the plan, which Zelensky first announced in August. ”We have heard such statements from the representatives of the Kiev regime many times. We realize what the nature of this regime is. We will continue our special military operation and realize all our goals,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at the time.

US President Joe Biden and the presidential nominees of the country’s two main parties, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, are the primary targets of the proposal, according to Zelensky. He intends to travel to the US to brief the Americans, which will reportedly happen as soon as next week. However, officials in Washington are already aware of what Zelensky will be bringing to the table, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield has indicated. ”We have seen President Zelensky’s peace plan,” she told journalists on Tuesday, before expressing confidence that it “can work.” According to media reports, Zelensky will press his backers for Ukrainian membership in NATO and the EU, continued Western military aid, and other perks.

In August, Kiev sent thousands of troops into Russia’s Kursk Region in an operation Zelensky called an element of the victory plan. The incursion was aimed at forcing Russia to redeploy forces from the front in the east and serve as a bargaining chip in eventual peace talks, according to Ukrainian officials. Russian advancements in Donbass have continued despite the gamble. Moscow has meanwhile ruled out negotiations with Kiev, citing attacks against local Russian civilians whom Ukrainian troops allegedly targeted on purpose. The Russian army has been pushing Ukraine back in Kursk Region, which Zelensky claimed aligned with his plan. Kiev is currently lobbying Washington and its allies to allow long-range strikes with donated Western weapons deep inside Russia. President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow would consider any such strike an act of war by NATO and react accordingly.

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“..he “opposed a task that didn’t correspond to the brigade’s strength.”

“..he thought the brigade would be too exposed inside Russia and would suffer heavy casualties..”

• Ukrainian Commanders Urged Zelensky Not To Invade Kursk (Antiwar)

Some of Ukraine’s top military commanders opposed President Volodymyr Zelensky’s plans to invade Russia’s Kursk Oblast, but he went through with the assault anyway, POLITICO reported on Tuesday. The report, which cited Ukrainian military officials, said that Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, the former commander-in-chief and current ambassador to the UK, opposed the offensive when Zelensky first broached the idea earlier this year. Zaluzhny opposed the offensive because there was no clear second step once the border was breached. “He never got a clear answer from Zelensky,” one of the Ukrainian officials said. “He felt it was a gamble.” Another Ukrainian officer who opposed the invasion was Emil Ishkulov, the former commander of Ukraine’s 80th Air Assault Brigade. He was removed from his position in July, which drew protests from senior Ukrainian military officials, who said they didn’t understand why Ishkulov was dismissed.

Ukrainian media reported at the time of his dismissal that Ishkulov was removed because he “opposed a task that didn’t correspond to the brigade’s strength.” Two senior Ukrainian military officials told POLITICO that Ishkulov opposed the Kursk invasion because he thought the brigade would be too exposed inside Russia and would suffer heavy casualties. Russia recently began a counteroffensive in Kursk and has recaptured some villages. One purpose of the Ukrainian invasion was to distract Russia from the Donbas region, where Russian forces have been making steady gains. But that has failed as Russian troops continue to close in on the Donetsk city of Pokrovsk.

Another purpose of the invasion was to psychologically impact Russian civilians, a strategy that was praised by Richard Moore, the head of the British spy agency MI6, during a joint public appearance with CIA Director William Burns. Moore said the operation was “typically audacious and bold on the part of the Ukrainians, to try and change the game” and that it had “brought the war home to ordinary Russians.”

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“Along with the development of drones, we need to look for means of their electronic and conventional destruction..”

• Russia’s Drone Production To Increase Tenfold – Putin (RT)

The Russian military is set to receive ten times more drones in 2024 than it did in the year before, President Vladimir Putin announced on Thursday during a meeting of the Military-Industrial Commission on the development of unmanned aircraft systems. The president stated that in 2023, the Russian Armed Forces received nearly 140,000 drones of various types and their production rate has since gone up significantly. “This year, the production of drones is planned to increase several times, or to be more precise, almost ten times,” Putin said. He said that the range of unmanned systems is being expanded and that unmanned boats are being developed as well.

“The key task is to produce a wide range of unmanned aerial vehicles and to set up serial production of such promising technology as quickly as possible,” Putin explained, adding that it is necessary to “fully meet” the needs of the armed forces and increase drone production and the technical and tactical characteristics of UAVs, which includes actively introducing elements of artificial intelligence. “Along with the development of drones, we need to look for means of their electronic and conventional destruction. This will save the lives of our military personnel, civilians and more reliably protect military equipment, civilian infrastructure, and critically important facilities,” the president said.

Putin stated that the design, testing, and serial production of drones is set to be carried out in special scientific and production centers, 48 of which are planned to be created across the country by 2030. Earlier on Thursday, the president personally visited the Special Technology Center (STC) in St. Petersburg which specializes in the production of unmanned aerial vehicles, electronic warfare systems and communications. Putin also inspected an exhibition of robots that have already been supplied to Russia’s forces on the front line and was shown several examples of kamikaze drones, reconnaissance systems, and a model of a loitering munition.

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“If you refuse to turn over your electronic devices, it is two years in prison. Two years in prison for refusing to answer a question.”

• Craig Murray Describes Transition Of UK, West In General Into Tyranny (PCR)

Here is a summary of the speech in the video below of former British Ambassador Craig Murry describing the transition of Britain and the West in general into Tyranny. The UK has criminalized dissent. A new Public Order Act makes it illegal to hold a rally or demonstration if it “inconveniences” anyone. This gives the state unlimited power to clamp down on any demonstration. A new National Security Act makes it illegal to accept funding if it comes from “a hostile state” (there is no definition of what qualifies as a “hostile state”) A new Public Safety Act makes it a criminal offense to publish “misinformation” (there is no definition of “misinformation” — the government decides). It is all about control of the narrative. Zionist lobbies have great influence on official narratives across the West.

Citizens of the West are not allowed to accuse Israel of genocide; this is increasingly being equated with being a “terrorist”. Anti-terrorism powers are being used to prevent any criticism of Israel. Murray, a former British Ambassador, was arrested at the airport under the “Terrorism Act” for attending a pro-Palestine demonstration in Iceland. Under the Terrorism Act, if you are arrested at an airport, you have no right to remain silent, no right to a lawyer, you must turn over all your electronic devices with the passwords. If you refuse to turn over your electronic devices, it is two years in prison. Two years in prison for refusing to answer a question.

Many people are being detained under anti-terrorist legislation, including a professor from Paris and several independent journalists, who all have been detained as was Murray. There is a continual attempt to connect people to Russia. The FBI detained an American professor who spoke with Murray at a pro-Palestine demonstration and had all his electronic devices confiscated. Crackdowns on free speech, freedom of assembly, and any form of dissent are happening all across the Western world in an increasing frequency. As the West trumpets the importance of “freedom and democracy”, it simultaneously limits the freedoms of its own peoples and moves towards complete totalitarianism.

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Their greatest asset.

• Switzerland Dumps Neutrality (Sp.)

The Swiss Council of States, the upper house of the parliament, said on Wednesday that it had voted against a ban on the participation of its military in joint NATO drills. “The participation of Switzerland in joint defense exercises with NATO must not be banned. The Council of States rejected a motion from the National Council to this effect on Wednesday by 29 votes to 12 and after a lively debate,” the upper house said in a statement. Swiss senators believe that in case of an attack on the country, its neutral status will disappear, so Switzerland’s army needs to be ready to defend itself. Switzerland is neither an EU or a NATO member, but Bern has joined almost all European sanctions against Russia since February 24, 2022. In 2024, the Swiss military will take part in 20 exercises outside its territory and four drills on its territory, all of them with the participation of NATO countries.

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Ha ha ha! Here’s to the do-gooders.

• Descendants of Native American Chief Want His Face Back In NFL (RT)

Descendants of John Two Guns White Calf, a Native American chief who inspired the now-retired logo of the Washington Commanders football team (previously known as the Redskins), have called for his return to NFL events. “The fans want him back and we want him back,” Thomas White Calf, a great nephew of the celebrated early-20th-century Blackfeet tribe leader, told Fox News last week. “Our ancestor was the most famous and most photographed native in history,” he added, speaking on the phone alongside his mother, Delphine White Calf. “I’m proud of him. The Blackfeet are proud of him.” The conservative news network interviewed the family after they met Montana Senator Steve Daines – a vocal critic of the 2020 decision to rebrand the franchise. The lawmaker brought up what he believes to be a historic wrong in Congress and in the media on multiple occasions.

“Make no mistake, this logo was inspired and envisioned … as a tribute to Native Americans. It is not a caricature. It is a depiction of pride and strength. Of courage and honor,” he said at a Senate subcommittee hearing in May. Both the name and the mascot were retired in 2020, against the backdrop of racial protest following the death of George Floyd. Major investors and shareholders put pressure on the team’s top sponsors, claiming that the branding promoted negative stereotypes about Native Americans. The management caved in, though the Redskins were renamed as the Commanders only two years later.

A spokesman for the team told Fox News that it is collaborating with Senator Daines “to honor the legacy of our team’s heritage and the Native American community,” but had no intention of reviving the old logo. The news outlet pinned the blame for the naming controversy on the non-profit National Congress of American Indians. Among other things, it seeks to eradicate what it perceives as inappropriate mascots in sports and complained against the Redskins in 2013 in a 29-page report on the issue. “Today’s harmful ‘Indian’ mascots are very much an extension of the commercialization of race such as black face and African-American stereotypes,” the document claimed.

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“A change in leadership is probably our last hope in stopping this madness from continuing.”

• Kamala Bucks (Jim Rickards)

We’re still trying to process the latest assassination attempt on Donald Trump, which took place on Sunday in West Palm Beach. But while that’s important to dissect as the election gets closer, it’s important to consider a development I’ve been warning about for over two years. President Trump has long been an opponent of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) or as I call them Biden Bucks. (Now that Biden is essentially out of the picture, maybe I should rename them Kamala Bucks.) I called them “Biden Bucks” because I wanted Biden (and his partner Kamala) to take full credit for what I consider to be crimes against American citizens. More on that shortly. For now, let’s focus on Trump. At a New Hampshire campaign rally earlier this year, Donald Trump reiterated what he’s been saying for months: CBDCs are dangerous and he would never allow one if elected. For too long, the average American has been squeezed by the big banks and financial elites. It’s time we take a stand — together.

This would be a dangerous threat to freedom, and I will stop it from coming to America. Such a currency would give a federal government absolute control over your money. They could take your money, and you wouldn’t even know it was gone. In fact, Trump recently pledged to ban CBDCs, promote the creation of a national crypto reserve and guarantee that the government will not sell crypto obtained through law enforcement seizures. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: “Welcome aboard, Mr. President.” Again, I’ve been sounding the alarm about Biden Bucks for over two years. I’ve been warning about Joe Biden’s plan to control your money and take away your privacy rights completely. President Trump is right. Biden Bucks are a dangerous threat to freedom. They’re a threat to our constitutional liberties and give the government total control of our private financial information. A change in leadership is probably our last hope in stopping this madness from continuing.

Maybe you’re a new reader who’s not familiar with Biden Bucks, or maybe you’re an existing reader who hasn’t thought of them for a while. To catch you up, here are the basics: They would replace physical cash with new electronic currencies. These Biden Bucks would have the full backing of the U.S. Federal Reserve. To be clear, they won’t just be a complement to cash. They will entirely, or very nearly entirely, REPLACE the cash (“fiat”) dollar we have now. In other words, the dollar will be strictly digital. This digital dollar would be the sole, mandatory currency of the United States. What does this mean for you? It would put your money under direct government control as President Trump has said. You could use it only at the government’s discretion. We are already seeing how many retailers are no longer accepting cash across America. What happens when physical cash is eliminated from any payment transactions?

Imagine this. To further advance the Biden/Harris Green New Scam, what if the Dems and their deep state enablers decide that gasoline needs to be rationed? Your Biden/Kamala Bucks could be rendered useless at the gas pump once you’ve purchased a certain amount of gasoline in a week. You want gas, but all you get is a one-word message: Declined. How’s that for control? That’s just one example. Biden Bucks would create new ways for the government to control how much you can buy of an item or even restrict purchases. They would keep score of every financial decision you make. In a world of Biden Bucks, the government will even know your physical whereabouts at the point of purchase. It’s a short step from there to putting you under FBI investigation if you vote for the wrong candidate or give donations to the wrong political party. If any of this sounds extreme, fantastical or otherwise far-fetched, I promise you it’s not. It’s happening right now. And given all the abuses of power the government’s engaged in over the past few years, why should you be surprised that Biden/Kamala Bucks wouldn’t invite even more abuse?

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“The purchase of burgers by Trump “was one of the most important Bitcoin transactions of all time..”

• Trump Makes First Payment In Bitcoin (RT)

Donald Trump used Bitcoin to buy cheeseburgers and beer for his supporters at a bar in New York City on the National Cheeseburger Day. This made Trump the first ever incumbent or former US president to make a payment using the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, according to media reports. The Republican presidential candidate visited PubKey, a Bitcoin-themed bar and restaurant in Manhattan, shortly before his Long Island campaign rally on Wednesday.The 78-year-old was helped by the bar’s employees to perform the transaction using his phone and a tablet belonging to PubKey. “I just made the first transaction in Bitcoin,” Trump announced to cheers from Bitcoin enthusiasts, who packed the establishment. Paying with cryptocurrency was “very easy,” he added.

“They have been treating you very badly at the SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) and we are going to treat you very fairly,” he told the crowd. “Get out and vote because if you vote, we cannot lose,” the former president said. The purchase of burgers by Trump “was one of the most important Bitcoin transactions of all time,” one of PubKey’s owners, Thomas Pacchia, told the Bitcoin Magazine. “We are very excited he was here… to show his support to the Bitcoin community.” Bitcoin, which was introduced in 2009, has grown in value by more than 500% during the past five years. The current price for one Bitcoin is above $61,000.

On Monday, Trump and his children unveiled their own cryptocurrency venture, called World Liberty Financial. There is so far little information available about the project, which is expected to be a borrowing and lending service to trade cryptocurrencies. According to Donald Trump Jr., its goal is to provide opportunities to entrepreneurs who are unable to obtain financing from traditional banks. Trump appears to have made a U-turn on cryptocurrencies during the current presidential campaign. In 2021, he told Fox News that they were a “scam” and “potentially a disaster waiting to happen.” The dollar should remain “the currency of the world,” and investing in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies “hurts the US currency,” he argued at the time.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1836512155077898279

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Do we believe the FBI?

• FBI: Iran Hacked Trump Campaign Materials And Gave Them To Biden/Harris (MN)

The AP is reporting that the FBI has uncovered evidence that Iranian hackers stole materials from the Trump campaign in the Summer and provided them to what was then the Biden/Harris campaign. The report notes that the emails were sent to “people who were associated with Biden’s campaign” in June and July when he was still the Democratic nominee. The FBI uncovered the “unsolicited” evidence as part of its efforts to investigate election interference. The emails “contained an excerpt taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump’s campaign as text in the emails,” a government statement noted. It is not known if the Biden/Harris campaign reviewed the materials. Hilariously, however, the Harris campaign issued a statement saying that they were “victims” of the hack. Last night in New York, Trump referred to the development, calling it “foreign election interference,” and charging that “Biden is working with Iran.”

It is clear that there is a concerted effort to undermine Trump’s campaign, with officials revealing in August that further internal communications were hacked and provided to at least three media organisations, with the perpetrators suspected to be Iranian hackers. As we previously highlighted, the Secret Service also uncovered an assassination plot against Trump by Iran on the same weekend as the Butler shooting in July.

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Antonio Garcia doesn’t seem overly happy that Russia sidesteps the sanctions.

• Russia’s Shadow Fleet is a Ticking Geopolitical Timebomb (Garcia)

In response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union and several other Western countries imposed extensive sanctions on Russia, attempting to stop the trade of Russian oil. In December 2022, the G7 countries decided on an oil price cap. However, Russia has found ways to circumvent these sanctions, primarily through the creation of a “shadow fleet” of oil tankers. Despite robust US Treasury sanctions targeting the shadow fleet, Russia continues to expand it by incorporating new tankers, allowing for stable exports and further evasion of oil price caps. Only 36% of Russian oil exports were shipped by IG-insured tankers. For other shipments, Russia utilized its shadow fleet, which was responsible for exports of ~2.8 mb/d of crude and 1.1 mb/d of oil products in March 2024. Kpler data shows that in April 2024, 83% of crude oil and 46% of petroleum products were shipped on shadow tankers. The shrinking role of the mainstream fleet fundamentally undermines the leverage of the price cap.

The shadow fleet is a collection of aging and often poorly maintained vessels with unclear ownership structures and lack of insurance. The number of old, outdated ships departing from Russia has increased dramatically. The EU has recently introduced legislation aimed at cracking down on the sale of mainstream tankers into the Russian shadow trade, but the problem persists. Russia managed to expand its shadow tanker fleet, adding 35 new tankers to replace 41 tankers added to OFAC’s SDN list since December 2023. These tankers, all over 15 years old, are managed outside the EU/G7. With 85% of the tankers aged over 15 years, the risk of oil spills at sea is heightened.

The shadow fleet poses a significant and rising threat to the environment. The aging and underinsured vessels increase the risk of oil spills, a potential catastrophe for which Russia would likely refuse to pay. The vessels can cause collisions, leak oil, malfunction, or even sink, posing a threat to other ships, water, and marine life. With estimates suggesting over 1,400 ships have defected to the dark side serving Russia, the potential for environmental damage is substantial. For instance, since the beginning of 2022, 230 shadow fleet tankers have transported Russian crude oil through the Danish straits on 741 occasions. Also, a shadow fleet tanker on its way to load crude in Russia collided with another ship in the strait between Denmark and Sweden. Last year, a fully loaded oil tanker lost propulsion and drifted off the Danish island of Langeland for six hours. Recovery after any potential oil spill could take decades.

Added to the environmental issue, seaborne Russian oil is almost entirely heading to the Asian markets, with India, China, and Turkey being the biggest buyers. In 2023, 86% of oil exports went to friendly countries compared to 40% in 2021, and 84% of petroleum product exports compared to 30% in 2021. This shift in export destinations highlights the changing geopolitical landscape of the oil market due to the sanctions and the rise of the shadow fleet. Several measures have been proposed to address the challenges posed by the shadow fleet. These include stricter sanctions on individual vessels, increased scrutiny of financial institutions involved in Russian oil deals, and fines that would limit sales or decommission tankers.

The G7 countries are taking measures to tighten control over the price cap and further pressure Russia. The US has introduced a series of sanctions against ships and shipowners suspected of violating the price cap. However, concerns remain that these measures could lead to higher energy prices and escalate tensions with Russia. The Danish foreign ministry has stated that “The Russian shadow fleet is an international problem that requires international solutions.” The shadow fleet has allowed Russia to circumvent Western sanctions and continue profiting from its oil exports, but it has come at a significant cost. The environmental risks posed by these aging and poorly maintained vessels are alarming, and the shift in oil trade patterns is reshaping the geopolitical landscape. Addressing this complex issue will require concerted international efforts and a delicate balance between maintaining sanctions and ensuring stable energy markets. The situation is unsustainable, and the need for action is becoming increasingly urgent.

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For the amount of time and effort put in, it doesn’t look very successsful. There must have been a “better” plan.

• Pager Bomb Plot 15 Years In The Making – ABC News (RT)

Israeli intelligence services have been contemplating an operation along the lines of this week’s mass explosions of Hezbollah electronic devices for at least 15 years, a US intelligence source has told ABC News. Thousands of people were injured in Lebanon by a series of blasts linked to pagers, walkie-talkies, and other equipment used by the militant group. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the incident, although media reports have widely described it as a Mossad plot that involved rigging the gadgets with remotely-triggered explosive charges. Speaking to ABC News, a US source called it a “supply chain interdiction,” adding that the CIA has long been reluctant to employ similar tactics due to the risk of collateral damage. In Lebanon, children were among some two dozen people killed in the attack, which also left many victims mutilated.

The New York Times previously reported that the supply of sabotaged devices started in the summer of 2023, citing multiple officials familiar with the operation. The ABC News report suggested that BAC Consulting, a Hungarian-based firm subcontracted by Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Gold Apollo to produce pagers for Hezbollah, was an Israeli front. The devices were never in Hungary and BAC was “a trading intermediary, with no manufacturing or operational site” in the country, a government spokesperson told the outlet. The administration of Taiwan has distanced the self-ruled Chinese island from the wave of violence in Lebanon. “The components are [mainly] low-end IC [integrated circuits] and batteries,” Economy Minister Kuo Jyh-huei told reporters on Friday, as quoted by Reuters. “I can say with certainty they were not made in Taiwan.”

Beirut and the Hezbollah leadership have blamed Israel for the incident and have declared that Lebanon is now in a state of war with its neighbor. The Israel Defense Forces intensified cross-border attacks on Thursday, in what observers fear may be a prelude for a major ground invasion. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday announced a “new phase in the war” with the militant movement. An Israeli commando division previously involved in military action in Gaza has moved to the north amid the sharpening tensions. Israel launched large-scale military action in Lebanon in 1982 – leading to a three-year partial occupation and the rise of Hezbollah as a prominent military and political force – and again in 2006, in what turned out to be a month-long incursion.

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Dominion

 

 

Rogan shooter
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836496582973194256

 

 

Close up
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836642625509568992

 

 

Penguins
https://twitter.com/i/status/1836474470703210503

 

 

Shark

 

 

Transformation

 

 

 

 

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