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The U.S. lost in Syria. Donald Trump finally had the courage to admit that to the world when he ordered the pull out of all U.S. troops there.

Syria was to be the sparkling jewel in the Empire of Chaos’ Crown. A masterstroke of realpolitik which would advance every major U.S., Israeli and Saudi objective while thoroughly destabilizing the Levant and setting the stage for wiping out Iran and eventually Russia.

If the Assad government fell Syria would become something worse than Libya. It would become a source of abject chaos for decades to come. And the formation of greater Kurdistan would put advanced U.S. and Israeli military assets on Iran’s doorstep.

Carving up Syria, Iraq and possibly even Turkey, once Erdogan was removed from power, would put the U.S. and Israel in control of the oil assets to fund a jihadist-led insurgency across all of central Asia.

Moreover, the chaos would ensure a steady stream of refugees into Europe to destabilize it. That chaos would lead to further political integration of Europe under EU control.

You can see the remnants of this plan all around you today. In fact, a great deal of it is still on auto-pilot. Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron’s tag-team calls for ceding national sovereignty to the EU are a perfect example of this.

They can all feel the project slipping away from them. Despite their failing political power they are pushing their legislatures to ignore the people, calling them traitors.

Orwell would be proud of Macron for saying, ““patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism [because] nationalism is treason.”

The generals Trump just fired over his decision are another example. They still believe they can win a balkanization of Syria and Iraq. They just need more assets and more time.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Deplatforming Paves the Way for Cryptocurrency

December 16, 2018

Deplatforming Paves the Way for Cryptocurrency

The recent deplatforming of Sargon of Akkad by Patreon has a lot of people very nervous. I became worried we’d get to this state the first time they went after Gab for not allowing their app in the Google or Apple stores.

It became obvious then that we would wind up here today. It starts with saying that certain things are unacceptable based on arbitrary enforcement of Terms of Service and ends with backroom pressure to cut a person off from making money.

Google began demonetizing channels which were politically unpalatable to its senior management. So, a lot of demonetized YouTubers moved to Patreon, asking subscribers to support them directly rather than deal with intrusive ads.

And now Patreon has gotten into the game. But, we always knew that they would. They went after Laura Southern last year.

Alex Jones was simultaneously thrown off every platform and then Gab was taken down over a 48-hour period with no warning over having a particular user on its platform.

Yes, that guy shot up a synagogue. That’s not Gab’s problem.

It didn’t matter that Twitter still hosts all manner of violent and disgusting content or Facebook hosting sites of terrorist groups. Political opposition to the globalist plan of universal serfdom for us and unchecked power for them was to be snuffed out with extreme prejudice.

Alternatives Rise

Alternative platforms needed to be marginalized to blunt their growth. Steemit is in trouble due to poor governance and the crushing of the cryptocurrency markets now that Wall St. can use the futures market to disrupt the actual market.

The truth, however, is that by trying to marginalize these alternative voices and raise their cost of capital for growth all that they’ve done is made them more popular than they likely would have been otherwise.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

The End of France as We Know It?

December 13, 2018

The End of France as We Know It?

When an event grabs headlines like the protests in France have I temper my reactions to it. I didn’t give the Yellow Vest protests much thought at first wanting to see where they would lead.

Protests like this and even bigger ones like Catalonian independence are invariably betrayed by the European political establishment. They become an excuse to move towards tighter control — more cops, more surveillance, crackdowns on free speech, etc.

So, sometimes it’s hard to separate the manufactured reality show from the spontaneous uprising of human frustration.

But after the past two weekends of violent protests, after the French government backed down on the new diesel tax which was the inciting incident of this story, it’s safe to say this is real and there is real fear brewing among the political elite of Europe.

As Rev. Steve Turley points out in this video, the media across Europe and the U.S. are scared of where this leads.

A return of national sovereignty across Europe is no longer coming. I think it’s here. This can no longer be stage-managed as a relief valve of the massive discontent at neoliberal policies rammed down Europeans’ throats as it has in the past.

Something far more significant is here. They can’t cordon off this movement in France and use it to demonize the leadership and, by extension, the people.

It’s jumped borders. It’s part of the zeitgeist now.

No matter how many times rags like The Guardian, Der Spiegel and Politico call these people ‘far-right’ or ‘alt-right’ and link them to Nazism it doesn’t stop them because the protestors don’t see themselves that way.

And well they shouldn’t because they aren’t.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

OPEC Cuts Deep to Save Cartel

December 9, 2018

OPEC Cuts Deep to Save Cartel

With oil prices in free fall and the dawning realization that Great Reflation trade of 2017 is over, OPEC needed to do something drastic to remind everyone how important they are.

Moreover, with Qatar quitting the cartel last week it was then doubly necessary for OPEC to make the markets stand up and remember them.

So, after a few days of wrangling, a 1.2 million barrel per day cut was announced by OPEC, far larger than the market was expecting.

The Trump administration is fuming today over this result.

Predictably, oil prices jumped on the news. All is right with their world, yes?

Well, yes and no. The Saudis need $80 per barrel oil. Russia doesn’t get its hair mussed below around $50 and even then it simply scales back government spending in line with oil prices — auto-budgeting based on oil tariffs.

The free-floating ruble insulates Russia domestically from a sharp drop in oil prices far better than Saudi Arabia since the Riyal is pegged to the U.S. dollar.

But for Saudi Arabia, the stakes are far higher. And its chief rival, Iran, understands this very well. The reason the OPEC meeting was so touch and go was Iran exerting its leverage over the Saudis in response to U.S. sanctions.

Because while Russia agreed to a 200,000 barrel cut, which is nothing to them in the grand scheme of things, Iran was exempted from making any cuts.

Iran, Libya and Venezuela will be effectively exempt from the cuts, though the text of the deal will say they received “special considerations,” Iraqi oil minister Thamir Ghadhban said.

Saudi Loss Leader

Saudi leadership is weakening. Qatar left to pursue its own ambitions without OPEC getting in the way. That’s a nice way of saying they want to do business with Iran developing the shared North Pars gas field.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

The Ins and Outs of Israel’s Pipeline to Europe.

December 2, 2018

The Ins and Outs of Israel’s Pipeline to Europe.

Israel announced a major pipeline project from the gas fields off its shore involving four countries, terminating in northern Italy. The EastMed Pipeline could be one of the longest in history as well as one of the most technically difficult to pull off.

eastmed pipeline

The deal was announced on World Israel News a few days ago and has been in negotiation for a couple of years now.

It’s being billed as a counter to both Arab and Russian power but that’s not really true. This will supposedly deliver 20 bcm annually to Cyprus, Greece and Italy and come at a significant cost because of the challenge of it. But the first train will be 10 bcm according to IGI Poseiden’s website, the company building the pipeline. 10 bcm is similar in size to the Southern Gas Corridor bringing gas in from Azerbaijan.

The agreement has been some two years in the works, with the four countries’ energy czars signing a memorandum of understanding regarding the pipeline in December 2017. It is considered a technically difficult project to complete not only because of the depth of the undersea route, but also because it will have to pass through a volcanic area in the ocean bottom between Cyprus and Greece.

No discussion of cost was in the announcement.

It was all about the politics. But, the politics of this is Kabuki theatre. The Russians don’t care about more pipelines to Italy, now that Turkstream is ongoing and Europe’s gas needs are accelerating.

This is a European Union project developed by IGI Poseidon under the auspice of the EU’s Connecting Europe Facility program. The EU is footing a lot of the bill for this.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Salvini Takes Control of Europe’s Future

November 25, 2018

Salvini Takes Control of Europe’s Future

Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini just declared himself the leader of the Europe’s future. He refuses to budge one inch in negotiations with the European Union over Italy’s budget now threatening to take down the government.

And in doing this he not only speaks for Italians, he is now speaking for that growing part of the European population who sees what the EU is morphing into and recoiling in horror.

Protests in France over Emmanuel Macron’s new tax on diesel have turned violent. The British leadership has completely betrayed the people over Brexit. They may win this battle but the animosity towards the Britain’s leadership will only grow more virulent over time.

As the core leadership in France and Germany fades in popularity, held in place because of domestic political squabbling, Angela Merkel and Macron are ratcheting up the rhetoric against the rising nationalism Salvini represents and are now pushing hard for their Federation of Europe before both of them leave the scene in the next few years, at best.

If they lose their battles with Salvini and Hungary’s Viktor Orban they may be run out of office with pitchforks and firebrands.

Bernard Connelly, author of the brilliant expose The Rotten Heart of Europe (which should be required reading) asks the salient question about Brexit no one associated with Project Fear can confront.

If separation from the EU is so complicated, why was no one talking about blockades and economic catastrophe before the Scottish Independence referendum in 2014?

The answer is simple. No one in power expected the referendum to pass and when it didn’t the issue ended.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Forget Nordstream 2, Turkstream is the Prize

November 24, 2018

Forget Nordstream 2, Turkstream is the Prize

While the Trump Administration still thinks it can play enough games to derail the Nordstream 2 pipeline via sanctions and threats, the impotence of its position geopolitically was on display the other day as the final pipe of the first train of the Turkstream pipeline entered the waters of the Black Sea.

The pipe was sanctioned by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who shared a public stage and held bilateral talks afterwards. I think it is important for everyone to watch the response to Putin’s speech in its entirety. Because it highlights just how far Russian/Turkish relations have come since the November 24th, 2015 incident where Turkey shot down a Russian SU-24 over Syria.

When you contrast this event with the strained and uninspired interactions between Erdogan and President Trump you realize that the world is moving forward despite the seeming power of the United States to derail events.

And Turkey is the key player in the region, geographically, culturally and politically. Erdogan and Putin know this. And they also know that Turkey being the transit corridor of energy for Eastern Europe opens those countries up to economic and political power they haven’t enjoyed in a long time.

The first train of Turkstream will serve Turkey directly. Over the next couple of years the second train will be built which will serve as a jumping off point for bringing gas to Eastern and Southern Europe.

Countries like Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Greece, Serbia and Slovakia are lining up for access to Turkstream’s energy. This, again, is in stark contrast to the insanely expensive Southern Transport Corridor (STC) pipeline set to bring one-third the amount of gas to Italy at five times the initial cost.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Can We Escape Control of The Wire?

November 18, 2018 / 1 Comment on Can We Escape Control of The Wire?

Can We Escape Control of The Wire?

“He’ll See Everything! He’ll See the Big Board!“
— Dr. Strangelove

What is The Wire?

Why is it so important?

Who controls it?

Answer those three questions and you can answer a number of problems plaguing our world today.

The Wire is simply a metaphor for the transmission of information. The Wire takes many forms. And if you aren’t sure whether something is The Wire just ask if you have control over it or not.

The Internet? The Wire.

Electricity? The Wire

Roads? The Wire.

Media? The Wire.

Money? The Wire.

In short, The Wire is the main conduit through which we communicate with each other. Money? Really? Yes, really. What are prices if not information about what we are willing to part with our money in exchange for?

Without The Wire modern society fails. So, government can’t shut it down but neither can it allow unconstrained access to it.

Electricity, commerce, communications, everything, goes over The Wire.

This isn’t a radical concept but like all important ideas, once it is presented to you you can’t unsee it.

But, identifying The Wire isn’t the important thing. What’s important is knowing who controls The Wire and what they are willing to do to maintain that control.

If you look at all of the things listed above you will see massive government intervention into these markets. They need control of them to maintain the illusion they have control over you.

They sell you on the idea that speech, speed, education, commerce, defense, information, etc. all need to have sensible limits placed on them. But do they really or is this just yet another example of some jackass talking his book?

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Attack on Gab Proves Speech Was Never Free

October 29, 2018

Attack on Gab Proves Speech Was Never Free

“Who Runs Bartertown!?”
– Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome

The First Amendment protects your right to say whatever you want free from government prosecution. It does not protect you from saying hateful things on private properties or privately-owned forums without fear of repercussion.

That is the very definition of freedom of association.

Friday’s attack by an unhinged, vile piece of human excrement on a Synagogue in Pittsburgh wasn’t hours old before real world agendas pushed to the top of the news.

Twitter alternative Gab was immediately dropped by PayPal without specific reasons.

Then immediately, Gab’s latest hosting service unilaterally gave the company a 48-hour termination notice of its contract.

This is the second time Gab has had to switch providers this year. They have been denied an app in the iOS store. Google will not allow their Android app to be in the Play Store.

Why is Gab targeted?

Because Gab is a true alternative to Twitter which exists outside of the control of the financial and political oligarchy.

With the recent passing of the EU’s “Link Law” which is designed to shut down opposition voices, the merged corporate/political oligarchy are moving to ensure that all speech is criminalized.

But to do that they first have to square the circle around that pesky First Amendment in the U.S.

And that means outsourcing the censorship to the companies who own the internet access points – the app platforms, the social media giants, the hosting firms and payment processors.

If you can’t build and maintain a business then you can’t oppose their rule.

With apologies to Trey Parker and Matt Stone, “Free Speech isn’t Free… it costs a buck o’ five.”

This is classic barrier-to-entry stuff that the government engages in to protect the market share of the favored companies over their competition.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

The Boomer Bomber, Naked Emperors and the End of Civility

October 28, 2018

The Boomer Bomber, Naked Emperors and the End of Civility

Recently Hillary Clinton picked herself up off the couch to declare that it was time to end being civil to her political opponents. Honestly, I thought this statement rich from someone who has so many dead bodies her scattered behind her.

Being an Enemy of Hilly has a very short lifespan.

But, her statement itself is nothing more than the latest mask being removed by the global oligarchy I like to call The Davos Crowd in their pursuit of retaining their illusion of control over the direction of the world we live in.

That’s right, illusion. They don’t actually control anything. If they did they wouldn’t be freaking out right now. They wouldn’t be paying Hondurans to storm the U.S. Border, mailing fake pipe bombs to themselves or rigging elections.

In short, they wouldn’t be losing.

Always remember, control is an illusion. The Emperor is always naked.

And no would-be-Emperor is more naked than Hillary Clinton (Yes, I apologize for the image this metaphor conjures up).

But now, at least, I have your attention.

Because the reality is that Hillary’s call for the End of Civility is one that was also always coming. Those that have the most to lose by a shift in the power structure are always the ones who resort to ever more histrionic behavior to protect their place.

And Hillary is the very definition of that type of person.

But, this article isn’t about Hillary per se.

It is simply a reminder that Hillary is the symbol of where the Progressive left’s end game always was. Politics is the art of masking the use of violence to achieve political and social goals.

It is the process of empowering the State, itself an instrument of violence, to impose one group’s will over that of another.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Germany Admits it Needs More from Russia than Nordstream 2

October 26, 2018

Germany Admits it Needs More from Russia than Nordstream 2

During the years the U.S. and its satraps in Poland and the Baltics fought the Nordstream 2 pipeline it was always apparent Germany was in the driver’s seat. It was also apparent that this would be the wedge issue that would ultimately force Germany to pursue independent policy from the U.S.

Nordstream 2 is and was always a reaction to the U.S.’s meddling in Europe’s energy policy which this cycle of began with the scuttling of the South Stream pipeline in 2013.

From the EU’s perspective changing the rules under which South Stream would operate after the contracts for it were signed was a way of gaining leverage over Russia and Gazprom. So too was the help protesters in Kiev received to overthrow the Yanukovich government from the U.S. and the EU.

That operation was meant to put the Ukrainian pipelines under EU control where they could dictate terms to Gazprom and choke the profit out of its gas deliveries. It would also advance NATO and the EU to Russia’s western border and there was to be nothing Putin could do to stop the U.S. from putting nukes targeting Moscow there.

Too bad for them it didn’t work out that way.

This is one of the reasons why the U.S. is so incensed with Russia and Putin over Ukraine. It’s why his chickenhawks in his cabinet and John McCain pushed so hard for sanctions and weapons support to Ukraine before the dearly-departed Brain Tumor killed him.

Obviously, the other was being stymied in taking over Crimea and forever losing the opportunity to grab the port at Sevastopol.

So, why the history lesson?

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

By Going Nuclear the EU Has Already Lost Its Battle with Italy

October 23, 2018

By Going Nuclear the EU Has Already Lost Its Battle with Italy

“Here’s where we hold ’em by the nose, and kick ’em in the ass”
— Patton

If you ever want to know who’s losing an argument simply look at who’s doing the most threatening.

Not who’s shouting the loudest or who’s the angriest, but who is threatening.

Those who threaten are doing so because they feel their power is, itself, under attack.

It doesn’t matter if it is an argument with your kids or a big, geopolitical disagreement, as I always say, he who goes nuclear is losing.

Now, you might think I’m talking about the U.S. and President Trump’s incessant financial bullying of allies and enemies alike. I am somewhat, but not primarily.

Because as important as Trump’s mad flailing to try and remake the U.S.’s trade position around the world is, it pales in comparison to the acute crisis brewing in Europe.

Yes, Europe is more important. Why?

Because the EU just went nuclear on Italy.

Former Dutch Minister of Finance and former President of the Eurogroup, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, went on CNBC on Friday to declare all-out financial war on Italy.

That’s the way Zerohedge put it.

As a ‘former’ big wig it was his job to go out and state the position of those currently in power who can safely hide behind his words.

And if you watch the clip from CNBC in the linked article you’ll note that CNBC excised the most important quotes, where Dijsselbloem threatened the Italians that no exit from the euro is on the table.

But, why would he say this when Italy hasn’t brought it up at all?

In fact, Italy’s leadership has been nothing but supportive of the European Project while standing firm on it adopting fairer rules for member countries.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Has China Finally Lifted its Thumb off of Gold?

October 19, 2018

Has China Finally Lifted its Thumb off of Gold?

There’s a lot of talk about the Yuan price of gold falling out of a price suppression channel. Both Zerohedge and Nomura have weighed in on this.

The Yuan price of gold surged overnight to above CNY 8500 per ounce which is a major breakdown But it’s also indicative of something that has long been suspected during this gold bear market.

China doesn’t want the price of gold to rise. Those accumulating gold — China and Russia — have zero incentive to accumulate at higher prices. And the gold chart of the last three years bears out that they have had to come in at higher prices on pullbacks because market bottoms keep coming in higher and higher.

The 2015 low was around $1050. 2016 at $1146. 2017 the low after a pullback in July couldn’t breach $1208 during a strong post-U.S. election rally. This year the price was briefly pushed below $1200 in the longest downtrend of the seven year bear market but has since popped back over $1230 with its sights now set on $1250.

China may have no choice here but to let the price of gold rise. Because conditions in other markets are changing rapidly. So, ultimately, what China wants really may not matter anymore.

Remember, the eurodollar markets broke in late May this year as Jeffrey Snider at Alhambra Partners reminds us daily.

The PBoC cut the reserve ratio again recently to free up liquidity in Chinese banks but it doesn’t seem to have stemmed the tide. And that’s why it has continually loosened the Yuan fix rate, now approaching 7 vs. the U.S. dollar.

Offshore dollar markets are the pool of real savings in the global economy and it determines where we are headed. And the offshore dollar hoarders are pulling out of China… and Europe… and Japan…. and South America.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Muli-Polar Political Project Pushed Forward by Putin In India

October 13, 2018

Muli-Polar Political Project Pushed Forward by Putin In India

I have to wonder when Russian President Vladimir Putin sleeps. He’s busier than any other leader, traveling the globe while consistently changing the board state geopolitically.

While everyone, including me, has had their eye on the turmoil in U.S. political circles over the past couple of weeks, Putin visited India and in a little less than two days ended most speculation as to where India stands in the emerging multi-polar world that Putin and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping are building.

Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inked deals with huge future consequences for both countries. So, while the headlines were all about the Trump Administration trying to pressure India into not buying S-400 missile defense systems from Russia, Putin and Modi put the final touches on Russia building India no less than six more nuclear power plants.

One of the things holding India back as a first-world economy is a reliable electricity grid. Having eight Russian-designed and built plants operating around the country will upgrade the landscape for India’s electricity usage immensely.

Part of the reason India is such a large oil and gas importer is their electricity base load needs are being met with expensive hydrocarbons. Shifting that to nuclear,more like France and the U.S., changes everything, especially in the long run, from a foreign exchange perspective.

Bernard at Moon of Alabama was first on interpreting what the scope of these deals mean for the U.S.’s attempt to cleave India from the BRICS alliance. He rightly linked the western media’s finally picking up the Rafale fighter jet corruption scandal dogging Modi as a sign that the U.S. is very angry over these deals and is beginning the process of undermining Modi’s government.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Signs of the Gold Apocalypse: M&A and Fund Extinction

September 25, 2018

Signs of the Gold Apocalypse: M&A and Fund Extinction

For bear markets to truly end investor sentiment has to get to a point where they would rather walk on broken glass than buy that asset or asset class. We’re reaching that point in the precious metals market.

In conjunction with that we also have to see arrogance on the part of short-sellers convinced that all rallies will be sold, keeping a lid on prices. It doesn’t matter if buyers come in at higher prices or above significant technical support levels, they will push because they become convinced this is a one-way trade.

We see this in the government bond markets as well. In traderspeak it’s called the [Insert Head of Central Bank Here] Put. The Greenspan Put begat the Bernanke Putwhich morphed into the Yellen Put.

Over the past few months we’ve seen sign after sign that the gold and silver markets are nearing the end of their bear markets. These are signs of extreme distress. The first I’ve already mentioned, record speculative short positions among futures traders.

Then there was the re-balancing of Vanguard’s $2.3 billion Gold and Precious Metals fund into the Global Capital Cycles Fund, trimming exposure to precious metals to 25% of AUM — Assets Under Management.

And now we’re seeing the M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) phase of the bear market. Where companies begin merging to shave costs after having already cut back on production to preserve cash flow.

It was just announced that American Barrick Corp (NYSE:ABX) and RandGold Corp (NASDAQ:GOLD) are merging into one company. The largest mining company by market cap in the world at around $18 billion.

Primary silver producers like Endeavor Silver (NYSE:EXK) are shuttering high-cost mines in this pricing environment. Well run companies with low debt and strong balance sheets don’t do mergers like this, they tough it out or go on a hostile raid of assets under-valued by the market.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

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