lewrockwell--2020-05-14--Wake Up, Donald! Your Malpracticing Doctors Are the Real Killers

If you don ’ t think the fix is in , please take note of the big news of the morning .
Namely , that the allegedly ultra-busy Dr. Fauci had time last evening to ping Sheryl Gay Stolberg , correspondent for the “ failing New York Times ” , in order to dump a VLCC size tanker-load of cold water on the urgent need to end Lockdown Nation , now .
In a nanosecond , of course , Stolberg was on Twitter and on-line with Fauci ’ s stern admonition to the restless natives of Flyover America to shut-up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entire MSM had plenty of time to crank-up a feverish barrage of messaging during Fauci ’ s actual Senate appearance as to how Red State governors are jumping the gun and putting life and limp in danger throughout the country : “ The major message that I wish to convey to the Senate HLP committee tomorrow is the danger of trying to open the country prematurely , ” Fauci wrote in the email , which Stolberg posted on Twitter .
“ If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to : ‘ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country .
This will not only result in needless suffering and death , but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal , ” wrote Fauci , the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases .
For god ’ s sake , WAKE UP , Donald !
JUST IMAGINE ... : A SEC ... Holmes , Dr Joel S Buy New $ 7.95 The mad doctor ’ s plot against you ( and the American people ) is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a camarilla of wan na be public health rulers and their compliant media megaphones , who presume to control all that moves and all that stands still in America .
But for crying out loud , where does this supercilious old geezer come up with “ needless suffering and death ” if American workers , students , shoppers and consumers are let out of house arrest ?
The chart below shows 70 years of monthly change in total US employment .
How damn stupid does someone have to be to not recognize that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to plunge into such unfathomably deep waters that they have never before even been imagined .
The deepest monthly drop we can find over seven decades is the 1.2 million job loss at the very darkest bottom of the Great Recession in January 2009 .
But what the Donald ’ s malpracticing doctors triggered last month was 19X deeper at 22 .
4 million .
And they caused this to happen in the context of a wizened business cycle that is off-the-charts 130 months old , and barnacled with debt , malinvestment and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ instance , the current $ 75 trillion of debt weighing down the US economy is up from an already crushing $ 52 trillion on the eve of the 2008 finical crisis , and now the butcher ’ s bill is coming due .
So what Fauci and the Virus Patrol have decided to stop dead in the water is a badly crippled , hand-to-mouth economy in which the overwhelming share of households and small businesses have no material rainy day funds , no cash reserves and no balance sheet resilience .
The Chronic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Price : $ 16.55 Buy New $ 17.95 In medical terms , the US economy has virtually no antibodies to fight back .
Infect it with a massive , sudden loss of incomes and cash flow and you are virtually inviting a pandemic of canceled orders , ballooning payables , missed rents , credit delinquencies and soaring defaults that will surely ravage America ’ s body economic in the weeks and months ahead .
So , perforce , we must ask again , for what ?
But at least at today ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Washington who still has his head screwed on right , Senator Rand Paul , put it right in Fauci semi-quarantined face .
In a word , said the intrepid Senator from Kentucky , where ’ s the Bubonic Plague ?
“ The history of this when we look back will be wrong prediction after wrong prediction after wrong prediction… As much as I respect you , Dr. Fauci , I don ’ t think you ’ re the end all , I don ’ t think you ’ re the one person that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Paul – who added that we need to “ observe with an open eye what happened in Sweden , where the kids kept going to school.
” “ The mortality per capita in Sweden is actually less than France , less than Italy , less than Spain , less than Belgium , less than the Netherlands , about the same as Switzerland .
But basically I don ’ t think there ’ s anybody arguing that what happened in Sweden is an unacceptable result .
I think people are intrigued by it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I don ’ t think any of us are certain when we do all these modelings – there have been more people wrong with modeling than right .
We ’ re opening up a lot of economies around the US , and I hope that people who are predicting doom and gloom and saying ‘ oh , we can ’ t do this , there ’ s going to be a surge ’ – will admit when there isn ’ t a surge.
” Yet with what mendacious malarkey did Fauci counter Senator @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with an absolute red herring about an ultra-rare childhood disease called Kawasaki Syndrome , which been around since 1968 and that has been mooted as potentially present in a handful of Covid cases in , well , New York ( where else ? )
.
For example , right now children presenting with COVID-19 who actually have a very strange inflammatory syndrome , very similar to Kawasaki syndrome .
I think we better be careful that we are not cavalier in thinking that children are not immune to the deleterious effects .
Oh @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Undrai ... David A. Stockman Best Price : $ 12.72 Buy New $ 43.07 If your purpose is to scare the sh*t out of the the American public and spread hysteria like its Salem , MA circa 1692 , you couldn ’ t have given Senator Paul a more loaded answer .
So here are the actual facts about Covid and kids from the CDC own inflated body counts .
To wit , there are 60.9 million children under 15 years in America , and unfortunately , during the period between February 1 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them suffered an untimely death .
Yet by the CDC ’ s own expansive definitions , only 13 of these deaths were WITH Covid-19 .
That ’ s right .
During the past three months of national Covid Hysteria , the deaths WITH Covid among children amounted to just 0.22 % of all child mortalities , and , well , 0.00002 % of the under 15-years population .
And if you want to be expansive and count all the school-age “ kids ” through 24 years in America , there are 103.9 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 15th largest nation on planet earth .
Yet there have been only 79 WITH Covid deaths through May 2nd , which , again , amounts to just 0.62 % of all deaths under age 25 and 0.0001 % of the total population .
Moreover , Dr. Fauci ’ s waving the Kawasaki Syndrome red flag is outrageously inexcusable because it is a well recognized and studied affliction , albeit exceedingly rare , among children 5 years and younger , which according to the National Organization for Rare Disorders ( NORD ) , presents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adults : In many affected children , the initial symptom associated with Kawasaki disease is a high fever that typically rises and falls ( remittent fever ) and lasts for approximately one to two weeks without treatment…In many cases , affected children may have additional symptoms and findings , such as irritability , diarrhea , vomiting , coughing , and/or joint inflammation ( arthritis ) , pain , and swelling .
Although the exact cause of Kawasaki disease is not known , evidence indicates an infection or an inappropriate immune response to infection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this area , a specific infectious cause has not been identified… .
Kawasaki disease most frequently affects children five years of age or younger .
In extremely rare cases , Kawasaki disease may occur during adolescence or adulthood .
First reported in Japanese children in the 1960s , the disease is now recognized worldwide and occurs in individuals in all racial and ethnic groups .
However , Kawasaki disease appears to affect Asian children most frequently .
Estimates indicate that at least 3,000 cases of Kawasaki disease are diagnosed each year in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This is an unfortunate childhood disease with 3,000 annual cases , which has long been on the radar screen of the NORD , and which , now also has numerous effective treatment protocols , and is almost never fatal .
Yet the sainted Dr. Fauci found it necessary to ignore all of this and duck Rand Paul ’ s succinct evisceration of his entire Lockdown Nation fiasco by resort to rank demagoguery .
Unfortunately , the doctors plot against freedom and sanity in America has generated such an acute Covid-Hysteria , per @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it is turning much of America into a flock of supine , mask-wearing sheeples .
After all , when you have a governor solemnly pronouncing on his daily Covid-cast ( virtually every Dem governor in America has a daily Covid Realty TV show ) , as did the idiotic governor of Illinois , Jay Pritzker , that no more than two-people may ride in one boat , no matter how large the boat and how extended the family , then where is the tar and feathering party ?
That ’ s what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heartbeat when he recently extended Illinois ’ brutal Lockdown to the end of June .
Here ’ s why .
As of May 8 , fully 48 % of all WITH Covid deaths reported in Illinois have been among nursing home and long-term care facility residents .
That is , the very old and frail , who more often than not have life-threatening comorbidities of the very type the coronavirus pounces upon .
Indeed , in many counties in Illinois per the adjacent map , 60 % , 80 % and even 100 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nursing/retirement homes .
So why lockdown the entire state ?
In fact , when you remove the long-term care cases from the total , the statistics could not be more dispositive .
To wit , there are about 100,000 residents of long-terms care facilities in the state and there have been 1,553 WITH Covid deaths among them .
Unmasking Obama : The F ... Cashill , Jack Buy New $ 27.11 The implied IFR ( Infected fatality rate ) is thus 1500 per 100,000 ; and just one more proof as to why @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concentrated on the nursing homes .
By contrast , there have been just 1,688 WITH Covid deaths in Illinois outside of long-term care facilities among an non-institutionalized population of 12.570 million .
Needless to say , the implied IFR of 13 per 100,000 in no way , shape or form justifies ordering no more than 2 people per boat on Lake Michigan , the shuttering of almost all businesses involved in social congregation , and the continued house arrest of most of the state ’ s population .
In fact , the utter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is similar to that being still imposed in most Blue States in America , is underscored by the map above , as well as the state ’ s basic mortality statistics .
The entire state remains in Lockdown per the governor ’ s order , but it is self evident that outside of Chicago and so-called “ collar counties ” which surround it , there have been virtually no WITH Covid deaths at all outside of long-term care homes .
Likewise , the 13 per 100,000 IFR among the states population at large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state ’ s normal annual mortality rate of 870 per 100,000 .
That ’ s right .
In response to a death factor equal to just 1.5 % of normal mortalities , the governor has essentially incarcerated the state ’ s economy and thrown away the key .
But this is surely the Demagoguery of Death gone haywire .
After all , every year in the state of Illinois , there are more than 110,000 deaths with fatality rates per 100,000 as follows : There you have it .
By any stretch @ @ @ @ @ @ @ splendid isolation , Lockdown Nation is an exercise in sheer irrationality and hysteria .
Moreover , what has made the economic calamity even minimally tolerable to date is the even more calamitous Fiscal Eruption which has been unleashed in Washington , and which we will essay in greater detail in Part 3 .
So far , it has helped to make-up a high percentage of lost income and cash flow in the household and business sectors , respectively , but at a long-run price that is frightening to consider ; and which can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ months longer .
Suffice it here to say that Uncle Sam already plans to issue $ 5 trillion of debt during the current fiscal year alone , which is rank insanity .
Yet the Dems this very day tabled a third Everything Bailout with a price tag of $ 3 trillion – on top of the $ 3 trillion that has already been dropped into every nook and cranny of both Wall Street and main street alike .
Treasury Issuance Will Shatter Records in 2020 : New Marketable Treasury Issuance Of course , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the red hot printing presses at the Fed .
But , really , why in the world does anyone think that you can go from a balance sheet of $ 3.76 trillion last September 4 , to $ 4.24 trillion by March 4 , and then to $ 6.72 trillion in the week ended on May 6 , and do so with impunity ?
Yes , these fools have printed $ 3 trillion of fiat credit in the last eight months !
Needless to say , there is now brewing a speculative @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and when it blows the fallout will be horrible to behold .
To be sure , the Fed ’ s abject lunacy has kept the robo-machines and day-traders in the business of buying-the-dips , even as the US economy slides into a veritable conflagration that may chop-off more than 30 % of the GDP at an annual rate during the current quarter .
So what we have is the S & P 500 up nearly 33 % from the March 19 low , while marching in lockstep with the greatest and most rapid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recorded history during the last two months .
During today ’ s market hours , the averages finally rolled-over and went into nearly a bidless collapse in the final minutes .
Perhaps even the robo-machines have had enough .
Oh , yes , when and as Lockdown Nation is finally lifted , what lies in store is the next quasi-Orwellian phase of this madness – massive testing , contact tracing , immunity passports and forced quarantine of the allegedly infected .
We can surely hope that human nature and pro-liberty lawyers from both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the courts a constitutional kabash on the Virus Patrols .
But in the interim , the very economic foundation upon which American liberty and self-government rests is being imperiled like never before .
As we said at the beginning , WAKE-UP , Donald !
Your malpracticing doctors are plotting your and our demise .
The Best of David Stockman

If you don’t think the fix is in, please take note of the big news of the morning. Namely, that the allegedly ultra-busy Dr. Fauci had time last evening to ping Sheryl Gay Stolberg, correspondent for the “failing New York Times”, in order to dump a VLCC size tanker-load of cold water on the urgent need to end Lockdown Nation, now.
In a nanosecond, of course, Stolberg was on Twitter and on-line with Fauci’s stern admonition to the restless natives of Flyover America to shut-up and stay put. That way the entire MSM had plenty of time to crank-up a feverish barrage of messaging during Fauci’s actual Senate appearance as to how Red State governors are jumping the gun and putting life and limp in danger throughout the country:
“The major message that I wish to convey to the Senate HLP committee tomorrow is the danger of trying to open the country prematurely,” Fauci wrote in the email, which Stolberg posted on Twitter.
“If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to: ‘Open America Again,’ then we risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country. This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal,” wrote Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
For god’s sake, WAKE UP, Donald! JUST IMAGINE...: A SEC... Holmes, Dr Joel S Buy New $7.95 (as of 11:28 UTC - Details)
The mad doctor’s plot against you (and the American people) is being played out right in public by a camarilla of wanna be public health rulers and their compliant media megaphones, who presume to control all that moves and all that stands still in America.
But for crying out loud, where does this supercilious old geezer come up with “needless suffering and death” if American workers, students, shoppers and consumers are let out of house arrest?
Were not Friday’s catastrophic employment numbers a sufficient wake-up call?
The chart below shows 70 years of monthly change in total US employment. How damn stupid does someone have to be to not recognize that Lockdown Nation has caused the US economy to plunge into such unfathomably deep waters that they have never before even been imagined.
The deepest monthly drop we can find over seven decades is the 1.2 million job loss at the very darkest bottom of the Great Recession in January 2009. But what the Donald’s malpracticing doctors triggered last month was 19X deeper at 22. 4 million.
And they caused this to happen in the context of a wizened business cycle that is off-the-charts 130 months old, and barnacled with debt, malinvestment and speculative excess like never before.
For instance, the current $75 trillion of debt weighing down the US economy is up from an already crushing $52 trillion on the eve of the 2008 finical crisis, and now the butcher’s bill is coming due.
U.S. Nonfinancial Debt to GDP
Source: Guggenheim Investments, Haver Analytics. Data as of 12.31.2019.
So what Fauci and the Virus Patrol have decided to stop dead in the water is a badly crippled, hand-to-mouth economy in which the overwhelming share of households and small businesses have no material rainy day funds, no cash reserves and no balance sheet resilience. The Chronic Fatigue Sy... Ortleb, Charles Best Price: $16.55 Buy New $17.95 (as of 05:07 UTC - Details)
In medical terms, the US economy has virtually no antibodies to fight back. Infect it with a massive, sudden loss of incomes and cash flow and you are virtually inviting a pandemic of canceled orders, ballooning payables, missed rents, credit delinquencies and soaring defaults that will surely ravage America’s body economic in the weeks and months ahead.
So, perforce, we must ask again, for what?
But at least at today’s Senate hearing, the one man in Washington who still has his head screwed on right, Senator Rand Paul, put it right in Fauci semi-quarantined face.
In a word, said the intrepid Senator from Kentucky, where’s the Bubonic Plague?
“The history of this when we look back will be wrong prediction after wrong prediction after wrong prediction…
As much as I respect you, Dr. Fauci, I don’t think you’re the end all, I don’t think you’re the one person that gets to make a decision,” said Paul – who added that we need to “observe with an open eye what happened in Sweden, where the kids kept going to school.”
“The mortality per capita in Sweden is actually less than France, less than Italy, less than Spain, less than Belgium, less than the Netherlands, about the same as Switzerland. But basically I don’t think there’s anybody arguing that what happened in Sweden is an unacceptable result. I think people are intrigued by it, and we should be.”
“I don’t think any of us are certain when we do all these modelings – there have been more people wrong with modeling than right. We’re opening up a lot of economies around the US, and I hope that people who are predicting doom and gloom and saying ‘oh, we can’t do this, there’s going to be a surge’ – will admit when there isn’t a surge.”
Bravo!
Yet with what mendacious malarkey did Fauci counter Senator Paul’s truth?
Why, with an absolute red herring about an ultra-rare childhood disease called Kawasaki Syndrome, which been around since 1968 and that has been mooted as potentially present in a handful of Covid cases in, well, New York (where else?).
Said Fauci,
For example, right now children presenting with COVID-19 who actually have a very strange inflammatory syndrome, very similar to Kawasaki syndrome. I think we better be careful that we are not cavalier in thinking that children are not immune to the deleterious effects.
Oh, really? Peak Trump: The Undrai... David A. Stockman Best Price: $12.72 Buy New $43.07 (as of 11:40 UTC - Details)
If your purpose is to scare the sh*t out of the the American public and spread hysteria like its Salem, MA circa 1692, you couldn’t have given Senator Paul a more loaded answer.
So here are the actual facts about Covid and kids from the CDC own inflated body counts.
To wit, there are 60.9 million children under 15 years in America, and unfortunately, during the period between February 1 and May 2, about 5,880 of them suffered an untimely death. Yet by the CDC’s own expansive definitions, only 13 of these deaths were WITH Covid-19.
That’s right. During the past three months of national Covid Hysteria, the deaths WITH Covid among children amounted to just 0.22% of all child mortalities, and, well, 0.00002% of the under 15-years population.
And if you want to be expansive and count all the school-age “kids” through 24 years in America, there are 103.9 million, which would otherwise make them the 15th largest nation on planet earth.
Yet there have been only 79 WITH Covid deaths through May 2nd, which, again, amounts to just 0.62% of all deaths under age 25 and 0.0001% of the total population.
Moreover, Dr. Fauci’s waving the Kawasaki Syndrome red flag is outrageously inexcusable because it is a well recognized and studied affliction, albeit exceedingly rare, among children 5 years and younger, which according to the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD), presents almost exactly like flu or Covid-19 among adults:
In many affected children, the initial symptom associated with Kawasaki disease is a high fever that typically rises and falls (remittent fever) and lasts for approximately one to two weeks without treatment…In many cases, affected children may have additional symptoms and findings, such as irritability, diarrhea, vomiting, coughing, and/or joint inflammation (arthritis), pain, and swelling.
Although the exact cause of Kawasaki disease is not known, evidence indicates an infection or an inappropriate immune response to infection. However, despite much research in this area, a specific infectious cause has not been identified….
Kawasaki disease most frequently affects children five years of age or younger. In extremely rare cases, Kawasaki disease may occur during adolescence or adulthood. First reported in Japanese children in the 1960s, the disease is now recognized worldwide and occurs in individuals in all racial and ethnic groups. However, Kawasaki disease appears to affect Asian children most frequently. Estimates indicate that at least 3,000 cases of Kawasaki disease are diagnosed each year in the United States.
That’s right. This is an unfortunate childhood disease with 3,000 annual cases, which has long been on the radar screen of the NORD, and which, now also has numerous effective treatment protocols, and is almost never fatal.
Yet the sainted Dr. Fauci found it necessary to ignore all of this and duck Rand Paul’s succinct evisceration of his entire Lockdown Nation fiasco by resort to rank demagoguery.
Unfortunately, the doctors plot against freedom and sanity in America has generated such an acute Covid-Hysteria, per Fauci’s deplorable performance today, that it is turning much of America into a flock of supine, mask-wearing sheeples.
After all, when you have a governor solemnly pronouncing on his daily Covid-cast (virtually every Dem governor in America has a daily Covid Realty TV show), as did the idiotic governor of Illinois, Jay Pritzker, that no more than two-people may ride in one boat, no matter how large the boat and how extended the family, then where is the tar and feathering party?
That’s what should have happened to Pritzker in a heartbeat when he recently extended Illinois’ brutal Lockdown to the end of June.
Here’s why. As of May 8, fully 48% of all WITH Covid deaths reported in Illinois have been among nursing home and long-term care facility residents. That is, the very old and frail, who more often than not have life-threatening comorbidities of the very type the coronavirus pounces upon.
Indeed, in many counties in Illinois per the adjacent map, 60%, 80% and even 100% of the deaths have been in nursing/retirement homes.
So why lockdown the entire state? In fact, when you remove the long-term care cases from the total, the statistics could not be more dispositive.
To wit, there are about 100,000 residents of long-terms care facilities in the state and there have been 1,553 WITH Covid deaths among them. Unmasking Obama: The F... Cashill, Jack Buy New $27.11 (as of 04:59 UTC - Details)
The implied IFR (Infected fatality rate) is thus 1500 per 100,000; and just one more proof as to why the war on Covid should have been concentrated on the nursing homes.
By contrast, there have been just 1,688 WITH Covid deaths in Illinois outside of long-term care facilities among an non-institutionalized population of 12.570 million.
Needless to say, the implied IFR of 13 per 100,000 in no way, shape or form justifies ordering no more than 2 people per boat on Lake Michigan, the shuttering of almost all businesses involved in social congregation, and the continued house arrest of most of the state’s population.
In fact, the utter irrationality of the Pritzker Lockdown, which is similar to that being still imposed in most Blue States in America, is underscored by the map above, as well as the state’s basic mortality statistics.
The entire state remains in Lockdown per the governor’s order, but it is self evident that outside of Chicago and so-called “collar counties” which surround it, there have been virtually no WITH Covid deaths at all outside of long-term care homes.
Likewise, the 13 per 100,000 IFR among the states population at large is a tiny rounding error compared to the state’s normal annual mortality rate of 870 per 100,000.
That’s right. In response to a death factor equal to just 1.5% of normal mortalities, the governor has essentially incarcerated the state’s economy and thrown away the key.
But this is surely the Demagoguery of Death gone haywire. After all, every year in the state of Illinois, there are more than 110,000 deaths with fatality rates per 100,000 as follows:
Heart disease: 203;
Cancer: 188;
Accidents: 47;
Strokes: 46;
Lower respiratory: 45;
Alzheimer: 32;
Diabetes: 23;
Kidney diseases: 21;
Influenza/pneumonia: 20;
COVID-19: 13
There you have it. By any stretch of even public health considerations viewed in splendid isolation, Lockdown Nation is an exercise in sheer irrationality and hysteria.
Moreover, what has made the economic calamity even minimally tolerable to date is the even more calamitous Fiscal Eruption which has been unleashed in Washington, and which we will essay in greater detail in Part 3.
So far, it has helped to make-up a high percentage of lost income and cash flow in the household and business sectors, respectively, but at a long-run price that is frightening to consider; and which cannot possibly be sustained even a few months longer.
Suffice it here to say that Uncle Sam already plans to issue $5 trillion of debt during the current fiscal year alone, which is rank insanity.
Yet the Dems this very day tabled a third Everything Bailout with a price tag of $3 trillion – on top of the $3 trillion that has already been dropped into every nook and cranny of both Wall Street and main street alike.
Treasury Issuance Will Shatter Records in 2020: New Marketable Treasury Issuance
Source: Guggenheim Investments, Haver Analytics, US Treasury. Data f
Of course, all of this is being made possible by the red hot printing presses at the Fed.
But, really, why in the world does anyone think that you can go from a balance sheet of $3.76 trillion last September 4, to $4.24 trillion by March 4, and then to $6.72 trillion in the week ended on May 6, and do so with impunity?
Yes, these fools have printed $3 trillion of fiat credit in the last eight months!
Needless to say, there is now brewing a speculative bubble like never, ever before, and when it blows the fallout will be horrible to behold.
To be sure, the Fed’s abject lunacy has kept the robo-machines and day-traders in the business of buying-the-dips, even as the US economy slides into a veritable conflagration that may chop-off more than 30% of the GDP at an annual rate during the current quarter.
So what we have is the S&P 500 up nearly 33% from the March 19 low, while marching in lockstep with the greatest and most rapid explosion of unemployment and economic collapse in recorded history during the last two months.
During today’s market hours, the averages finally rolled-over and went into nearly a bidless collapse in the final minutes. Perhaps even the robo-machines have had enough.
Oh, yes, when and as Lockdown Nation is finally lifted, what lies in store is the next quasi-Orwellian phase of this madness – massive testing, contact tracing, immunity passports and forced quarantine of the allegedly infected.
We can surely hope that human nature and pro-liberty lawyers from both the left and right will eventually secure from the courts a constitutional kabash on the Virus Patrols. But in the interim, the very economic foundation upon which American liberty and self-government rests is being imperiled like never before.
As we said at the beginning, WAKE-UP, Donald!
Your malpracticing doctors are plotting your and our demise.
PEAK TRUMP, IMPENDING CRISES, ESSENTIAL INFO & ACTION
Reprinted with permission from David Stockman’s Contra Corner.
The Best of David Stockman


lewrockwell--2020-05-14--Who Is This Evil Fauci and Why Is He Running the White House and Congress?

“ A pandemic influenza would mean widespread infection essentially throughout every region of the world.
” Tony Fauci got his wish , or at least he and others were able to manufacture a scenario that would make his wish come true .
One of yesterday ’ s reports after Fauci testified before Congress stated : “ Fauci , a member of Trump ’ s coronavirus task force , told the Senate Health , Education , Labor and Pensions Committee that the nation ’ s efforts to battle the deadly virus and the COVID-19 disease it triggers should be “ focused @ @ @ @ @ @ @ containment and mitigation.
” In other words , everyone should remain in lockdown , which of course means home prison , and this is known by the perpetrators of this fraud to cause severe stress that kills the immune system , thus guaranteeing more sickness , more death , and more tyranny .
Fauci knows this , as does his partner in crime , Bill Gates .
The longer people are isolated and stressed , the more disease that will occur , and that plays right into the hands of those like Fauci @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order to gain for themselves .
JUST IMAGINE ... : A SEC ... Holmes , Dr Joel S Buy New $ 7.95 Fauci said today that no schools should open this fall .
One of Fauci ’ s trained seals , Senator Lamar Alexander said , “ All roads back to work and back to school run through testing.
” That sounds like it is a foregone conclusion that Phase 2 has already begun in the minds of the enforcers .
Testing legislation is breaking out everywhere , with language that would allow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authorities ” so as to forcibly test residents , and remove any they deem necessary .
The federal version was allowed to be numbered H.R.6666 , and there is no way that was an accident .
Testing seems to be the first order of business , but testing is fatally flawed , and the FDA approved tests were never reliable , and in fact were laced with Covid-19 , so why would anyone voluntarily take one of these tests ?
Is that the reason that government wants to make testing mandatory ?
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many people sick as possible until the vaccine comes out , with the carrot being dangled that all will be normal as soon as everyone is injected with poisonous viruses and toxins , especially the children and the old .
Of course , evil people like Fauci have a vested interest in vaccinating all on earth , as he is in bed with Gates , and sits on the Leadership Council of Gates ’ Decade of Vaccines Collaboration .
Fauchi also personally holds patents , and gets royalties on other inventions and drugs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ taxpayer money .
In addition , Fauci and others at NIH were caught concealing millions of dollars in royalties from government-funded experimental treatments in the past .
This corruption and these contradictions are rarely mentioned , and never in the mainstream media .
Fauci and Gates have had close ties for a long time , and recently , Fauci through the NIH , got $ 100 million from the Gates Foundation .
Gates is currently funding seven factories in attempts to create a coronavirus vaccine , and is a large contributor , along @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UK ) , the WHO , EU , and DERA , to The Pirbright Institute ( UK ) , which holds the patent of the Coronavirus .
All these links are not benign or irrelevant , and in fact are extremely damning , especially considering that Fauci is controlling from the top level the national narrative concerning this so-called outbreak .
It is all too convenient and conspiratorial .
There are many , many more indiscretions apparent in Fauci ’ s past and present , and Dr. Judy Mikovits has bravely exposed his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress to testify .
She has been horribly abused by this government , jailed , silenced , and is now having most everything she says taken down by every mainstream outlet , communication companies , social media , large internet providers , and government .
Damage control and censorship at this level means only one thing , and that is that the information she is providing is dangerous to Fauci , the pharmaceutical companies , and the criminals in government due to their nefarious plots .
They are all attempting to hide the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ understanding the corruption that is obviously evident .
There is absolutely nothing concerning those like Fauci and Gates that consists of honest charity or help for mankind .
The kind of philanthropy practiced by Gates and his ilk is that of deception , for his desire to help people is just a cover for his real aspirations of money , power , and control .
Philanthropy at this level is meant to achieve large-scale objectives , objectives that are aimed at the masses and allow for wealth transfer and control .
There is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ large-scale philanthropy , and the latter is most always about sinister intent .
As I write this , the government has announced that a contract for $ 138 million has been issued to fund production of 500 million pre-filled Covid-19 vaccine “ injection devices , ” this before any vaccine is available or tested .
The contract was awarded to ApiJect Systems America , and these projects have been named “ Project Jumpstart , ” and “ RAPID USA.
” These names sound like those conjured up for covert war strategies , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This is a war against all of us , and is meant to accomplish mandated and forced vaccination of the world with vaccines filled with poison .
In my opinion , certain areas targeted will also contain sterilization agents meant to accomplish population control sought by those in power .
The Chronic Fatigue Sy ... Ortleb , Charles Best Price : $ 16.55 Buy New $ 17.95 Anthony Fauci said in light of this news : “ There ’ s no guarantee that the vaccine is actually going to be effective.
” He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Health , Education , Labor and Pensions during a hearing on reopening businesses .
There are continued warnings daily by Fauci and others that there is a second wave coming soon , and they know that due to all the isolation and stress that more people will get sick , and all this sickness will be said to have been caused by Covid-19 .
That will be an absolute lie .
It is imperative in order for the ruling class , the politicians , the pharmaceutical companies , and those in “ health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this coronavirus in order to achieve their true goals .
This can not be allowed to happen .
The first to be preyed upon concerning any new untested vaccine will be the children , as this vaccine will immediately be mandated for all kids in public schools .
How can any parents allow their children to be the guinea pigs for this heinous government experiment in terror due to the lies of evil men like Fauci .
Will the sheep in this country ever wake up to see the true nature of government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in cowardice and apathy at the hands of a most evil government ?
“ The worst evils which mankind has ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments.
” ~ Ludwig Von Mises ( 1985 ) .
“ Omnipotent Government : The Rise of the Total State and Total War ” , Libertarian Press The Best of Gary D. Barnett

“A pandemic influenza would mean widespread infection essentially throughout every region of the world.”
~ Anthony Fauci–“H5N1 – Killer Flu”. “Wide Angle” with Bill Moyers, www.pbs.org. September 20, 2005.
Tony Fauci got his wish, or at least he and others were able to manufacture a scenario that would make his wish come true. One of yesterday’s reports after Fauci testified before Congress stated:
“Fauci, a member of Trump’s coronavirus task force, told the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that the nation’s efforts to battle the deadly virus and the COVID-19 disease it triggers should be “focused on the proven public health practices of containment and mitigation.”
In other words, everyone should remain in lockdown, which of course means home prison, and this is known by the perpetrators of this fraud to cause severe stress that kills the immune system, thus guaranteeing more sickness, more death, and more tyranny. Fauci knows this, as does his partner in crime, Bill Gates. The longer people are isolated and stressed, the more disease that will occur, and that plays right into the hands of those like Fauci that desire total control over society in order to gain for themselves. JUST IMAGINE...: A SEC... Holmes, Dr Joel S Buy New $7.95 (as of 11:28 UTC - Details)
Fauci said today that no schools should open this fall. One of Fauci’s trained seals, Senator Lamar Alexander said, “All roads back to work and back to school run through testing.” That sounds like it is a foregone conclusion that Phase 2 has already begun in the minds of the enforcers. Testing legislation is breaking out everywhere, with language that would allow homes to be invaded by state “authorities” so as to forcibly test residents, and remove any they deem necessary. The federal version was allowed to be numbered H.R.6666, and there is no way that was an accident.
Testing seems to be the first order of business, but testing is fatally flawed, and the FDA approved tests were never reliable, and in fact were laced with Covid-19, so why would anyone voluntarily take one of these tests? Is that the reason that government wants to make testing mandatory? The goal seems to be to keep as many people sick as possible until the vaccine comes out, with the carrot being dangled that all will be normal as soon as everyone is injected with poisonous viruses and toxins, especially the children and the old. Of course, evil people like Fauci have a vested interest in vaccinating all on earth, as he is in bed with Gates, and sits on the Leadership Council of Gates’ Decade of Vaccines Collaboration. Fauchi also personally holds patents, and gets royalties on other inventions and drugs that were discovered while using nearly unlimited taxpayer money. In addition, Fauci and others at NIH were caught concealing millions of dollars in royalties from government-funded experimental treatments in the past. This corruption and these contradictions are rarely mentioned, and never in the mainstream media.
Fauci and Gates have had close ties for a long time, and recently, Fauci through the NIH, got $100 million from the Gates Foundation. Gates is currently funding seven factories in attempts to create a coronavirus vaccine, and is a large contributor, along with DARPA, The Wellcome Trust (UK), the WHO, EU, and DERA, to The Pirbright Institute (UK), which holds the patent of the Coronavirus. All these links are not benign or irrelevant, and in fact are extremely damning, especially considering that Fauci is controlling from the top level the national narrative concerning this so-called outbreak. It is all too convenient and conspiratorial.
There are many, many more indiscretions apparent in Fauci’s past and present, and Dr. Judy Mikovits has bravely exposed his corruption, and offered to appear before Congress to testify. She has been horribly abused by this government, jailed, silenced, and is now having most everything she says taken down by every mainstream outlet, communication companies, social media, large internet providers, and government. Damage control and censorship at this level means only one thing, and that is that the information she is providing is dangerous to Fauci, the pharmaceutical companies, and the criminals in government due to their nefarious plots. They are all attempting to hide the truth, and keep the public from understanding the corruption that is obviously evident.
There is absolutely nothing concerning those like Fauci and Gates that consists of honest charity or help for mankind. The kind of philanthropy practiced by Gates and his ilk is that of deception, for his desire to help people is just a cover for his real aspirations of money, power, and control. Philanthropy at this level is meant to achieve large-scale objectives, objectives that are aimed at the masses and allow for wealth transfer and control. There is a huge difference in heartfelt charity and large-scale philanthropy, and the latter is most always about sinister intent.
As I write this, the government has announced that a contract for $138 million has been issued to fund production of 500 million pre-filled Covid-19 vaccine “injection devices,” this before any vaccine is available or tested. The contract was awarded to ApiJect Systems America, and these projects have been named “Project Jumpstart,” and “RAPID USA.” These names sound like those conjured up for covert war strategies, and that is exactly what this is. This is a war against all of us, and is meant to accomplish mandated and forced vaccination of the world with vaccines filled with poison. In my opinion, certain areas targeted will also contain sterilization agents meant to accomplish population control sought by those in power. The Chronic Fatigue Sy... Ortleb, Charles Best Price: $16.55 Buy New $17.95 (as of 05:07 UTC - Details)
Anthony Fauci said in light of this news:“There’s no guarantee that the vaccine is actually going to be effective.” He told this to a Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions during a hearing on reopening businesses. There are continued warnings daily by Fauci and others that there is a second wave coming soon, and they know that due to all the isolation and stress that more people will get sick, and all this sickness will be said to have been caused by Covid-19. That will be an absolute lie. It is imperative in order for the ruling class, the politicians, the pharmaceutical companies, and those in “health” organizations to perpetuate the myth of this coronavirus in order to achieve their true goals. This cannot be allowed to happen.
The first to be preyed upon concerning any new untested vaccine will be the children, as this vaccine will immediately be mandated for all kids in public schools. How can any parents allow their children to be the guinea pigs for this heinous government experiment in terror due to the lies of evil men like Fauci. Will the sheep in this country ever wake up to see the true nature of government, or will they continue to wallow in cowardice and apathy at the hands of a most evil government?
“The worst evils which mankind has ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments.” ~ Ludwig Von Mises (1985). “Omnipotent Government: The Rise of the Total State and Total War”, Libertarian Press
The Best of Gary D. Barnett


lewrockwell--2020-05-14--A Nation of Sheep

A Nation of Sheep

“ When the people fear the government , there is tyranny .
When the government fears the people , there is liberty.
” — Thomas Jefferson ( 1743-1826 ) To Thomas Jefferson , the fulcrum between the people and the government they have elected was fear .
He argued succinctly that the government would only respect liberty if it feared losing power .
Today , the relationship between people and government is power .
Does the government have the power to tell us how to make personal choices , or do we have the power to tell the government to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ does the government work for us or do we work for the government ?
Jefferson ’ s answer to that question in 1801 , the year he became president , was that the government worked for us .
Today , unfortunately , this same question has two answers — a functional one and a formal one .
One would stumble answering this question if one looked only at how some state governors are treating the people for whom they claim to be working .
One needs to look as well at the nature @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Suicide Pact : The Radi ... Napolitano , Andrew P. Best Price : $ 0.25 Buy New $ 2.84 Six months ago , no one could have imagined where we are in America today .
Then , if anyone had suggested that the governors of all 50 states , in varying degrees of severity , would be using police to interfere with personal choices — choices that we and our forbearers have all made without giving a second thought to the preferences of the government — no one would have believed it .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ would have reacted to any pre-COVID-19 idea that the police in America — using not the force of opinion but the force of arms — would prevent you from going out of your home , operating your business , jogging in a park , patronizing a restaurant or clothing store , buying a garden hose , going to Mass or church or temple or mosque or even joining a small public gathering of folks who want to protest these prohibitions .
Where did these prohibitions come from ?
They have come from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who rely on the ever-changing evaluations of medical data from an ever-changing cast of scientific experts .
They are the pronouncements of politicians who have forgotten that they are elected to enforce laws , not to write them , and to be the servants of the people , not their masters .
Why do Americans accept this ?
We are a nation born in a bloody revolution against a king .
The founders of America made the profound and indisputable choice of establishing a government dedicated to the cacophony of liberty over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ choice in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution .
The former states , unequivocally , that no government is legitimate without the consent of the governed and that government ’ s principal duty is to secure our rights .
The latter — which expressly protects the right to make personal choices — is the supreme law of the land , and thus all governmental acts are subordinate to it .
We have fought wars against tyrants who wanted to tell us how to live .
Today , we have elected our masters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seem to accept the restrictions on our rights to speech , religion , travel and commercial activities simply because the origin of those restrictions is a popularly elected person .
But even an elected government can be tyrannical .
Should you bow to these restrictions merely because their authors were elected and they have persuaded your neighbors that the prohibitions are for their own good — the Declaration and the Constitution be damned ?
Stated differently , the governments that have interfered with our well-established rights to go about our daily lives as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we cross the street , drink a glass of water , bite into food , sit next to a stranger on a train or at a baseball game , or go through a green light in our vehicles — have failed their first obligation , which is to safeguard our freedoms to take those chances .
Instead of safeguarding our freedoms — our natural rights to make personal choices — the governors and their police enforcers have treated us as if we work for them .
Does the government work for us or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Formally , it works for us .
We elect officials because we trust their judgment .
We authorize those officials to protect our rights , and we prohibit them from interfering with our personal choices .
Thomas Jefferson : The ... Jon Meacham Best Price : $ 2.53 Buy New $ 9.24 For a few weeks now , I thought the most extreme of these governors has been Gov .
Phil Murphy of New Jersey , who publicly admitted that he didn ’ t think or care about the Bill of Rights , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uphold it .
Yet , Gov .
Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania has surpassed him .
When Wolf learned that some Pennsylvania county sheriffs would not use force to enforce his non-law edicts , and some public accommodations would open their doors — consistent with public safety but in defiance of his non-law edicts — he threatened to withhold state aid from all who live in those counties and to close the liquor stores that , by his non-law edicts , remain open .
This is straight out of 1930s Germany — punish the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few .
In Wolf ’ s Pennsylvania , the people work for the government .
My colleagues at The Wall Street Journal have unearthed the facts that more Americans die annually from heart disease , cancer , accidents and non-COVID-19 respiratory failure than die annually ( annualized ) from this coronavirus .
Every death diminishes me .
So does every suppression of liberty .
So does every denial of the right to make choices and take risks .
Does the government really work for us , or are we afraid of it ?
@ @ @ @ @ @

Shop all books by Judge Napolitano
“When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty.” — Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
To Thomas Jefferson, the fulcrum between the people and the government they have elected was fear. He argued succinctly that the government would only respect liberty if it feared losing power. Today, the relationship between people and government is power. Does the government have the power to tell us how to make personal choices, or do we have the power to tell the government to take a hike?
Stated differently, does the government work for us or do we work for the government?
Jefferson’s answer to that question in 1801, the year he became president, was that the government worked for us. Today, unfortunately, this same question has two answers — a functional one and a formal one. One would stumble answering this question if one looked only at how some state governors are treating the people for whom they claim to be working. One needs to look as well at the nature of government in a free society. Suicide Pact: The Radi... Napolitano, Andrew P. Best Price: $0.25 Buy New $2.84 (as of 04:15 UTC - Details)
Six months ago, no one could have imagined where we are in America today. Then, if anyone had suggested that the governors of all 50 states, in varying degrees of severity, would be using police to interfere with personal choices — choices that we and our forbearers have all made without giving a second thought to the preferences of the government — no one would have believed it.
Think for a moment of how you would have reacted to any pre-COVID-19 idea that the police in America — using not the force of opinion but the force of arms — would prevent you from going out of your home, operating your business, jogging in a park, patronizing a restaurant or clothing store, buying a garden hose, going to Mass or church or temple or mosque or even joining a small public gathering of folks who want to protest these prohibitions.
Where did these prohibitions come from? They have come from the ever-changing edicts of governors and mayors, who rely on the ever-changing evaluations of medical data from an ever-changing cast of scientific experts. They are the pronouncements of politicians who have forgotten that they are elected to enforce laws, not to write them, and to be the servants of the people, not their masters.
Why do Americans accept this? We are a nation born in a bloody revolution against a king. The founders of America made the profound and indisputable choice of establishing a government dedicated to the cacophony of liberty over the illusion of safety.
They embedded that choice in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The former states, unequivocally, that no government is legitimate without the consent of the governed and that government’s principal duty is to secure our rights. The latter — which expressly protects the right to make personal choices — is the supreme law of the land, and thus all governmental acts are subordinate to it.
We have fought wars against tyrants who wanted to tell us how to live. Today, we have elected our masters who are doing just that.
Americans seem to accept the restrictions on our rights to speech, religion, travel and commercial activities simply because the origin of those restrictions is a popularly elected person. But even an elected government can be tyrannical. Should you bow to these restrictions merely because their authors were elected and they have persuaded your neighbors that the prohibitions are for their own good — the Declaration and the Constitution be damned?
Stated differently, the governments that have interfered with our well-established rights to go about our daily lives as we see fit — taking chances whenever we cross the street, drink a glass of water, bite into food, sit next to a stranger on a train or at a baseball game, or go through a green light in our vehicles — have failed their first obligation, which is to safeguard our freedoms to take those chances.
Instead of safeguarding our freedoms — our natural rights to make personal choices — the governors and their police enforcers have treated us as if we work for them.
Does the government work for us or do we work for the government? Formally, it works for us. We elect officials because we trust their judgment. We authorize those officials to protect our rights, and we prohibit them from interfering with our personal choices. Thomas Jefferson: The ... Jon Meacham Best Price: $2.53 Buy New $9.24 (as of 06:55 UTC - Details)
For a few weeks now, I thought the most extreme of these governors has been Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey, who publicly admitted that he didn’t think or care about the Bill of Rights, even though he took an oath to uphold it. Yet, Gov. Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania has surpassed him.
When Wolf learned that some Pennsylvania county sheriffs would not use force to enforce his non-law edicts, and some public accommodations would open their doors — consistent with public safety but in defiance of his non-law edicts — he threatened to withhold state aid from all who live in those counties and to close the liquor stores that, by his non-law edicts, remain open. This is straight out of 1930s Germany — punish the community because of the resistance of a few. In Wolf’s Pennsylvania, the people work for the government.
My colleagues at The Wall Street Journal have unearthed the facts that more Americans die annually from heart disease, cancer, accidents and non-COVID-19 respiratory failure than die annually (annualized) from this coronavirus. Every death diminishes me. So does every suppression of liberty. So does every denial of the right to make choices and take risks.
Does the government really work for us, or are we afraid of it?
Reprinted with the author’s permission.
The Best of Andrew P. Napolitano


lewrockwell--2020-05-14--The Best 5 Minutes on the Internet

The Best 5 Minutes on the Internet

The Covid debate about the lockdown is often posed as a choice between the economy ( wealth , money ) and lives .
There are many with whom I agree with that turn this debate into lives versus lives , as the health cost of the lockdown is already enormous for many reasons .
For example , in the short term the mental health of people in isolation will deteriorate potentially leading to suicide .
All other healthcare is being ignored .
An old student of mine who runs an emergency unit in a hospital told me the patient load @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Were all of those strokes and heart attacks fake ?
In the medium term , a country racked by an economic depression will not have the same healthcare system as a prosperous one .
As Robert Wenzel reports , the rising food costs will really hurt social security recipients .
Stopping production across the country while creating trillions in new dollars is a recipe for economic disaster that has never been witnessed in the United States .
handling MR. HYDE : que ... Katz , Ira Best Price : $ 17.20 Buy New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the long term a different aspect to this Covid response that has nothing to do with data or modelling .
That is the unprecedented restrictions on the population .
The rule of law , freedom of assembly , freedom of worship , the freedom to work and use property ( closing of businesses ) have devastated the last vestiges of our constitutional order .
If we understand the ratchet effect as developed by Robert Higgs , the freedom lost in this debacle will never be fully recovered short of a revolution .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Patriot Act , the TSA , and forever wars .
Now the choice between lives and freedom is often put forward by our fearless leaders in Washington who fight behind computer screens .
They gladly sacrifice thousands of soldiers and millions in civilian collateral damage as a necessary cost for our freedom .
What is coming in forced vaccination and tracking of the population is truly frightening .
And yet now , most people meekly accept this legal and moral travesty to protect lives .
The face of the Covid response , if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is of course Tony Fauci .
His decades burrowed into the federal bureaucracy has given him a scientific power base using influence , money and bullying to control the public health response to infectious disease .
The putrid undergrowth of his career as described by Judy Mikovits and others makes him the J. Edgar Hoover of public health .
His insistence on vaccine , vaccine , vaccine as the only viable response to Covid , as Ron Paul and Daniel McAdams described in his Senate testimony , could be a turning point because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we must wait at least another year to restart normal life .
Imagine a whole year of school missed over the whole country .
Will Tony isolate seniors for a whole year with no visitors .
You might as well shoot them now .
People must recognize that this is madness .
Crisis and Leviathan : ... Robert Higgs Best Price : $ 7.96 Buy New $ 7.42 From a philosophical point of view , this Covid response places one aspect of health as the highest priority ( a false idol ) above @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( and all other religious gatherings ) are closed .
This point was made in a wonderful way in a discussion that I think is the best 5 minutes I have seen on the internet in a long time .
There is a little corner of the internet that I came to know through Jordan Peterson that is an in-depth discussion of the Meaning Crisis ( see my description here ) .
Now I want to mention again the YouTube channel A Quality Existence created by Sevilla King , who delves into the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ e.g.
, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance ) .
She recently posted a discussion with Christopher Mastropietro .
He works with John Vervaeke , a professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Toronto , who has created a project called Awakening from the Meaning Crisis .
Mastropietro is a young man who speaks spontaneously in beautiful poetic phrases about philosophy .
King as well has a soothing mellifluous voice ( she is a practicing therapist ) .
Together they discuss among other things the Covid situation .
They make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk-benefit tradeoffs .
A proper balance is essential .
Starting about minute 49 Mastropietro illustrates this point with the example of smoking .
Can you imagine the beauty of smoking !
I have never inhaled myself , though I often thought of taking up the habit as solidarity to the truly oppressed class called smokers .
I recommend watching the whole conversation , but you must see the 5 minutes about smoking starting at about 49:00 .
It is wonderful .
The Best of Ira Katz

The Covid debate about the lockdown is often posed as a choice between the economy (wealth, money) and lives. There are many with whom I agree with that turn this debate into lives versus lives, as the health cost of the lockdown is already enormous for many reasons. For example, in the short term the mental health of people in isolation will deteriorate potentially leading to suicide. All other healthcare is being ignored. An old student of mine who runs an emergency unit in a hospital told me the patient load is about 5% of normal. Were all of those strokes and heart attacks fake?
In the medium term, a country racked by an economic depression will not have the same healthcare system as a prosperous one. As Robert Wenzel reports, the rising food costs will really hurt social security recipients. Stopping production across the country while creating trillions in new dollars is a recipe for economic disaster that has never been witnessed in the United States.
handling MR. HYDE: que... Katz, Ira Best Price: $17.20 Buy New $12.98 (as of 04:58 UTC - Details) But let’s consider in the long term a different aspect to this Covid response that has nothing to do with data or modelling. That is the unprecedented restrictions on the population. The rule of law, freedom of assembly, freedom of worship, the freedom to work and use property (closing of businesses) have devastated the last vestiges of our constitutional order. If we understand the ratchet effect as developed by Robert Higgs, the freedom lost in this debacle will never be fully recovered short of a revolution. From September 11th we still have the Patriot Act, the TSA, and forever wars. Now the choice between lives and freedom is often put forward by our fearless leaders in Washington who fight behind computer screens. They gladly sacrifice thousands of soldiers and millions in civilian collateral damage as a necessary cost for our freedom. What is coming in forced vaccination and tracking of the population is truly frightening. And yet now, most people meekly accept this legal and moral travesty to protect lives.
The face of the Covid response, if not the true power behind it, is of course Tony Fauci. His decades burrowed into the federal bureaucracy has given him a scientific power base using influence, money and bullying to control the public health response to infectious disease. The putrid undergrowth of his career as described by Judy Mikovits and others makes him the J. Edgar Hoover of public health. His insistence on vaccine, vaccine, vaccine as the only viable response to Covid, as Ron Paul and Daniel McAdams described in his Senate testimony, could be a turning point because it is so ridiculous. He says we must wait at least another year to restart normal life. Imagine a whole year of school missed over the whole country. Will Tony isolate seniors for a whole year with no visitors. You might as well shoot them now. People must recognize that this is madness. Crisis and Leviathan: ... Robert Higgs Best Price: $7.96 Buy New $7.42 (as of 05:25 UTC - Details)
From a philosophical point of view, this Covid response places one aspect of health as the highest priority (a false idol) above all else. Afterall, the churches (and all other religious gatherings) are closed. This point was made in a wonderful way in a discussion that I think is the best 5 minutes I have seen on the internet in a long time. There is a little corner of the internet that I came to know through Jordan Peterson that is an in-depth discussion of the Meaning Crisis (see my description here). Now I want to mention again the YouTube channel A Quality Existence created by Sevilla King, who delves into the philosophy and literature of Robert Pirsig (e.g., Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance). She recently posted a discussion with Christopher Mastropietro. He works with John Vervaeke, a professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Toronto, who has created a project called Awakening from the Meaning Crisis. Mastropietro is a young man who speaks spontaneously in beautiful poetic phrases about philosophy. King as well has a soothing mellifluous voice (she is a practicing therapist). Together they discuss among other things the Covid situation. They make the point that life always consists of risk-benefit tradeoffs. A proper balance is essential. Starting about minute 49 Mastropietro illustrates this point with the example of smoking. Can you imagine the beauty of smoking! I have never inhaled myself, though I often thought of taking up the habit as solidarity to the truly oppressed class called smokers.
I recommend watching the whole conversation, but you must see the 5 minutes about smoking starting at about 49:00. It is wonderful.

The Best of Ira Katz


How Bad Is It?

How bad is it ?
That is the question on everyone ’ s mind as we come to grips with the economic carnage caused by global economic shutdowns , supply chain disruptions , and ongoing quarantines of million of people .
Do we face another Great Depression , or simply a deep recession more like 2008 ?
And equally important , are soft Americans prepared for either ?
Have we started to process all of this psychologically ?
Have we really come to terms with the enormity of the situation , with the unprecedented risk posed by business shutdowns ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ material standard of living that they do not understand how fragile it is ?
Here is what we know .
S America ’ s Great ... Murray N. Rothbard Best Price : $ 3.02 Buy New $ 14.16 ince February , 30 to 40 million of Americans have been thrown out of work .
Four or 5 million file new unemployment claims each week .
The real unemployment rate is probably over 20 percent , while the labor force participation rate drops like a stone .
In states like Hawaii unemployment may approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an absolutely staggering 40 percent reduction in US GDP for the second quarter of 2020 .
Meanwhile , millions of American households and businesses simply stopped paying rent or mortgages on March 1 , and bankruptcies spread across major American retailers like wildfire .
Countless small local businesses , many left out of the running for the new SBA ( Small Business Administration ) loans recently created by Congress , simply will not reopen regardless of what happens over the next few months .
So although we have a sense of how deep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only guess how long it may last .
Will the virus remain a threat , real or perceived , for months or years ?
And if so , how long will state governments maintain at least partial business lockdowns ?
Will the US economy enjoy a vaunted V-shaped bounce-back recovery , as promised by Trump administration cheerleader Larry Kudlow ?
Will it look more like a U , with months or years of stagnation at the bottom ?
Or worse still , like an L with no rebound in sight ?
Looking back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ argument against a quick recovery later this year .
Most roller coasters feature what is known as a “ lift hill , ” a chain-driven steep ascent at the beginning which takes nervous riders to the top of of a sharp drop-off .
Going over this first hill not only creates the most thrilling moments , but also generates energy to propel the coaster cars farther along the path of the ride .
How much farther and faster the ride goes depends on the height of the hill and the mass of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a more precipitous fall .
Absent some kind of additional mechanical intervention , the coaster never again reaches the height of the initial hill due to simple friction .
Congress and the Fed are busy attempting to overcome this friction using government stimulus and central bank “ liquidity.
” But per our analogy , the coaster ’ s potential energy is highest during the pregnant pause at the peak of the lift hill ; its kinetic energy is highest at the bottom of the first drop .
No subsequent hill , twist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of that first free fall .
What Has Government Do ... Murray N. Rothbard Best Price : $ 7.04 Buy New $ 6.50 Recall , from those terrible days of 2008 , how a crash gathers speed .
At first a few cars on the coaster crest the hill , well before the rest of the train plummets .
In mid-September of that year , Lehman Brothers was the first car in the coaster to go over the hill into the abyss .
It took a few weeks , until September 29 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happening and send the Dow plummeting in the largest single-day loss in history .
But the Dow did not reach its ultimate low until March 2009 .
Nine million lost jobs were not recovered until well into the next decade .
And US housing prices didn ’ t bottom out until 2012 .
Crashes are fast , like that first hill on a coaster .
Recoveries are not , for the simple reason that production is more difficult than destruction .
Although the Great Recession of 2008 “ lasted ” eighteen months in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ longer and are still felt today .
Its scars remain particularly visible on two bookend generations , Millennials and Baby Boomers .
In stark terms , many of the former failed to launch and many of the latter found comfortable retirement out of their grasp .
Millions of Millennials sought more education and degrees ( with resulting debt ) to ride out the soft job market ; millions of older workers simply gave up and limped along until they were eligible for Social Security .
Now both face another crisis just a decade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Crash of 2020 be ?
Even more unsettling is the question of whether it represents a self-inflicted wound , caused by state-mandated business shutdowns which increasingly appear wildly disproportionate to the actual threat posed by the COVID virus .
Economist Daniel Lacalle and I will attempt to answer both during a live webinar later this week , particularly in the context of what governments and central banks have done in recent months .
The first step in addressing a crisis is understanding how severe it really is .
Note : The views expressed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Mises Institute .
The Best of Jeff Deist

How bad is it?
That is the question on everyone’s mind as we come to grips with the economic carnage caused by global economic shutdowns, supply chain disruptions, and ongoing quarantines of million of people. Do we face another Great Depression, or simply a deep recession more like 2008? And equally important, are soft Americans prepared for either? Have we started to process all of this psychologically? Have we really come to terms with the enormity of the situation, with the unprecedented risk posed by business shutdowns? Are Americans so accustomed to a certain material standard of living that they do not understand how fragile it is?
Here is what we know.
S America’s Great ... Murray N. Rothbard Best Price: $3.02 Buy New $14.16 (as of 07:55 UTC - Details) ince February, 30 to 40 million of Americans have been thrown out of work. Four or 5 million file new unemployment claims each week. The real unemployment rate is probably over 20 percent, while the labor force participation rate drops like a stone. In states like Hawaii unemployment may approach 35 percent. Deutsche Bank economists predict an absolutely staggering 40 percent reduction in US GDP for the second quarter of 2020. Meanwhile, millions of American households and businesses simply stopped paying rent or mortgages on March 1, and bankruptcies spread across major American retailers like wildfire. Countless small local businesses, many left out of the running for the new SBA (Small Business Administration) loans recently created by Congress, simply will not reopen regardless of what happens over the next few months.
So although we have a sense of how deep the economic damage runs, we can only guess how long it may last.
Will the virus remain a threat, real or perceived, for months or years? And if so, how long will state governments maintain at least partial business lockdowns? Will the US economy enjoy a vaunted V-shaped bounce-back recovery, as promised by Trump administration cheerleader Larry Kudlow? Will it look more like a U, with months or years of stagnation at the bottom? Or worse still, like an L with no rebound in sight?
Looking back at the 2008 crisis provides a sober argument against a quick recovery later this year.
Consider this analogy:
Most roller coasters feature what is known as a “lift hill,” a chain-driven steep ascent at the beginning which takes nervous riders to the top of of a sharp drop-off. Going over this first hill not only creates the most thrilling moments, but also generates energy to propel the coaster cars farther along the path of the ride. How much farther and faster the ride goes depends on the height of the hill and the mass of the coaster train. Bigger and higher make for a more precipitous fall.
Absent some kind of additional mechanical intervention, the coaster never again reaches the height of the initial hill due to simple friction. Congress and the Fed are busy attempting to overcome this friction using government stimulus and central bank “liquidity.” But per our analogy, the coaster’s potential energy is highest during the pregnant pause at the peak of the lift hill; its kinetic energy is highest at the bottom of the first drop. No subsequent hill, twist, or turn quite matches the feeling of that first free fall. What Has Government Do... Murray N. Rothbard Best Price: $7.04 Buy New $6.50 (as of 05:50 UTC - Details)
Recall, from those terrible days of 2008, how a crash gathers speed. At first a few cars on the coaster crest the hill, well before the rest of the train plummets. In mid-September of that year, Lehman Brothers was the first car in the coaster to go over the hill into the abyss. It took a few weeks, until September 29, for investors to fully grasp what was happening and send the Dow plummeting in the largest single-day loss in history.
But the Dow did not reach its ultimate low until March 2009. Nine million lost jobs were not recovered until well into the next decade. And US housing prices didn’t bottom out until 2012.
Crashes are fast, like that first hill on a coaster. Recoveries are not, for the simple reason that production is more difficult than destruction.
Although the Great Recession of 2008 “lasted” eighteen months in official terms, its effects lasted far longer and are still felt today. Its scars remain particularly visible on two bookend generations, Millennials and Baby Boomers. In stark terms, many of the former failed to launch and many of the latter found comfortable retirement out of their grasp. Millions of Millennials sought more education and degrees (with resulting debt) to ride out the soft job market; millions of older workers simply gave up and limped along until they were eligible for Social Security. Now both face another crisis just a decade later.
How bad will the Great Crash of 2020 be? Even more unsettling is the question of whether it represents a self-inflicted wound, caused by state-mandated business shutdowns which increasingly appear wildly disproportionate to the actual threat posed by the COVID virus. Economist Daniel Lacalle and I will attempt to answer both during a live webinar later this week, particularly in the context of what governments and central banks have done in recent months.
The first step in addressing a crisis is understanding how severe it really is.
Note: The views expressed on Mises.org are not necessarily those of the Mises Institute.
The Best of Jeff Deist


lewrockwell--2020-05-14--Who Thought This One Up?

Who Thought This One Up?

All this financial talk is over most people ’ s heads .
That is why the financial classes get away with their crimes .
To understand the crime requires learning a new language : “ Fed balance sheet , ” “ deflationary spiral , ” “ stock buy backs , ” etc .
What the average Joe doesn ’ t understand is that the economy was intentionally crashed under the guise of a viral epidemic , then Congress passes laws giving the big companies billions , so no harm , no foul FOR THEM !
The lenders then have their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or foreclosed ) taken off their accounting books and placed on the FEDERAL RESERVE ’ s balance sheet ( $ 12 trillion now ) .
Don ’ t you wish you had an uncle who would take all the debts off your accounting books and place them on his ledger so you falsely looked profitable ?
So , there is no incentive to stop doling out home loans to people who can ’ t afford to buy a house .
What do you do when nobody can make their house payment ?
Biowarfare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New $ 12.95 Now the banks will come back and buy your home cheaply and own everything — no asset-based wealth for the masses !
Everybody becomes a renter .
Your bank becomes your landlord .
The plundering of the so-called middle class .
The small businessman is offered two months of payroll to keep workers on the job , but THERE ARE NO CUSTOMERS !
Who thought this one up ?
They aren ’ t even allowed to go to your shop .
THIS IS BAILOUT INSANITY ?
The cost of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus is costing you all your wealth and savings .
Unless you are Black , or reside in a nursing home , your chance of dying from the coronavirus is remote ( 0.00001 or 1 in 100,000 ) .
But you must stay indoors , away from sunlight , and experience a decline in your immunity and develop mental depression from the lack of vitamin D , and the death count never goes down .
Billionaire venture capitalist from Canada , Chamath Palihapitiya , is the antithesis of Bill Gates .
In a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • Insulating the stock market from the economy does so at the cost of human life .
The consumer economy will collapse while the stock market rises .
• All this bailout has done almost nothing to put food on people ’ s plates , or assuage the anxieties of small business owners , • Paying workers more money in unemployment benefits than they earned in wages , creates a perverse system of incentives .
CHAMATH PALIHAPITIYA Talks About Making Main Street A Priority Instead Of Insulating Wall Street From The Economy Yes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the economy so it is just fine .
Those are the priorities .
Human life is not .
Main Street is not .
Consumer economy will falter while stock market rises .
Social Capital founder and former Facebook exec Chamath Palihapitiya joined the hosts of CNBC ’ s “ Squawk Box ” for an interview Tuesday morning where he warned that the Fed ’ s coronavirus response will create serious long-term problems for the American economy .
Chamath started the interview by going all-in on the Fed and the White House ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the coronavirus , skewering programs like ‘ PPP ’ for funneling money to companies that didn ’ t really need it and once again bashing the Fed for once again pumping up asset prices while placing Main Street at immense risk .
“ There should be no doubt now that we ’ ve completely divorced the economy from stock and bond markets… ” Palihapitiya warned .
The end result of this trend , he added , will be a “ deflationary supercycle ” as the Fed ’ s abuses come back to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ All this money going in to prop of companies – what you are going to start or accelerate is a really bad deflationary super cycle.
” “ There should be no doubt now that we have completely divorced the economy from the stock and bond markets , ” says @ Chamath .
“ All this money going in to prop of companies–what you are going to start or accelerate is a really bad deflationary super cycle.
” Trumpocalypse : The End ... Anderson , Troy Best Price : $ 13.90 Buy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s balance sheet well on its way to $ 12 trillion by year ’ s end , levels that were deemed to be unfathomable just months ago , Palihapitiya reiterated that the rebound in equity markets has done almost nothing to put food on people ’ s plates , or assuage the anxieties of small business owners , as an NFIB reportreleased earlier would suggest .
“ Asset inflation does not solve income disparity .
It actually doesn ’ t solve full employment .
It doesn ’ t do any of the things @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be a robust economy .
What it does is it allow people who play in the financial markets to make money , ” says @ chamath .
Exactly how might this “ deflationary spiral ” happen ?
The former Facebook executive explains that by doling out money to massive corporations that have spent the last 10 years borrowing money to buy back stock , while paying workers more money in unemployment benefits than they earned in wages , creates a perverse system of incentives that , once the crisis has ended , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ played out in Japan during the 1990s .
With the flood of cheap money , the financially shell-shocked consumers will save more , preventing the consumer-driven economy from generating the roaring growth needed to compensate for the crisis , while leaving the US in a kind of limbo as growth slows , prices fall , savings rise ( despite rates remaining extraordinarily low , or negative ) and productivity lapses while employment never really recovers .
The best example of this is , of course , Japan .
We ’ d note that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Japanification ” of the US economy and monetary policy for some time ) .
“ If you don ’ t break this cycle and teach a new pattern of behavior , we ’ re going to be looking at a Japanese-style deflationary period , ” says @ chamath on the Fed ’ s actions during the crisis .

All this financial talk is over most people’s heads. That is why the financial classes get away with their crimes. To understand the crime requires learning a new language: “Fed balance sheet,” “deflationary spiral,” “stock buy backs,” etc.
What the average Joe doesn’t understand is that the economy was intentionally crashed under the guise of a viral epidemic, then Congress passes laws giving the big companies billions, so no harm, no foul FOR THEM!
The lenders then have their bad debts (non-performing loans in default or foreclosed) taken off their accounting books and placed on the FEDERAL RESERVE’s balance sheet ($12 trillion now). Don’t you wish you had an uncle who would take all the debts off your accounting books and place them on his ledger so you falsely looked profitable?
So, there is no incentive to stop doling out home loans to people who can’t afford to buy a house. What do you do when nobody can make their house payment? Biowarfare and Terrorism Boyle, Francis Anthony Buy New $12.95 (as of 04:59 UTC - Details)
Now the banks will come back and buy your home cheaply and own everything — no asset-based wealth for the masses! Everybody becomes a renter. Your bank becomes your landlord. The plundering of the so-called middle class.
The small businessman is offered two months of payroll to keep workers on the job, but THERE ARE NO CUSTOMERS! Who thought this one up? They aren’t even allowed to go to your shop. THIS IS BAILOUT INSANITY?
The cost of an 0.0003% risk of dying from a coronavirus is costing you all your wealth and savings. Unless you are Black, or reside in a nursing home, your chance of dying from the coronavirus is remote (0.00001 or 1 in 100,000). But you must stay indoors, away from sunlight, and experience a decline in your immunity and develop mental depression from the lack of vitamin D, and the death count never goes down.
Billionaire venture capitalist from Canada, Chamath Palihapitiya, is the antithesis of Bill Gates. In a feature article at ZEROHEDGE.com Palihapitiya says:
Insulating the stock market from the economy does so at the cost of human life. The consumer economy will collapse while the stock market rises.
All this bailout has done almost nothing to put food on people’s plates, or assuage the anxieties of small business owners,
Paying workers more money in unemployment benefits than they earned in wages, creates a perverse system of incentives.
See here.
CHAMATH PALIHAPITIYA Talks About Making Main Street A Priority Instead Of Insulating Wall Street From The Economy
Yes, we’ve insulated stock market from the economy so it is just fine. Those are the priorities.
Human life is not. Main Street is not. Consumer economy will falter while stock market rises.
Social Capital founder and former Facebook exec Chamath Palihapitiya joined the hosts of CNBC’s “Squawk Box” for an interview Tuesday morning where he warned that the Fed’s coronavirus response will create serious long-term problems for the American economy.
Chamath started the interview by going all-in on the Fed and the White House’s response to the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus, skewering programs like ‘PPP’ for funneling money to companies that didn’t really need it and once again bashing the Fed for once again pumping up asset prices while placing Main Street at immense risk.
“There should be no doubt now that we’ve completely divorced the economy from stock and bond markets…” Palihapitiya warned.
The end result of this trend, he added, will be a “deflationary supercycle” as the Fed’s abuses come back to haunt the American economy and the dollar.
“All this money going in to prop of companies – what you are going to start or accelerate is a really bad deflationary super cycle.”
“There should be no doubt now that we have completely divorced the economy from the stock and bond markets,” says @Chamath. “All this money going in to prop of companies–what you are going to start or accelerate is a really bad deflationary super cycle.” Trumpocalypse: The End... Anderson, Troy Best Price: $13.90 Buy New $15.99 (as of 04:55 UTC - Details)
With the Fed’s balance sheet well on its way to $12 trillion by year’s end, levels that were deemed to be unfathomable just months ago, Palihapitiya reiterated that the rebound in equity markets has done almost nothing to put food on people’s plates, or assuage the anxieties of small business owners, as an NFIB reportreleased earlier would suggest.
“Asset inflation does not solve income disparity. It actually doesn’t solve full employment. It doesn’t do any of the things we need it to do for it to be a robust economy. What it does is it allow people who play in the financial markets to make money,” says @chamath.
Exactly how might this “deflationary spiral” happen? The former Facebook executive explains that by doling out money to massive corporations that have spent the last 10 years borrowing money to buy back stock, while paying workers more money in unemployment benefits than they earned in wages, creates a perverse system of incentives that, once the crisis has ended, could create the same economic dynamic that played out in Japan during the 1990s.
With the flood of cheap money, the financially shell-shocked consumers will save more, preventing the consumer-driven economy from generating the roaring growth needed to compensate for the crisis, while leaving the US in a kind of limbo as growth slows, prices fall, savings rise (despite rates remaining extraordinarily low, or negative) and productivity lapses while employment never really recovers.
The best example of this is, of course, Japan. We’d note that Zero Hedge has been warning about the “Japanification” of the US economy and monetary policy for some time).
“If you don’t break this cycle and teach a new pattern of behavior, we’re going to be looking at a Japanese-style deflationary period,” says @chamath on the Fed’s actions during the crisis.
See this.