lewrockwell--2020-01-15--2020 – a Year of Living Dangerously

2020 – a Year of Living Dangerously

The shocking crime being committed during this century under the unscrupulous initiative of a few evil men is ongoing and no longer hidden from those willing to open their eyes and see the truth .
As conspiracy theorists have proven to be right through the sacrifice of Snowden , Assange , and other patriots for truth , the Deep State psychopaths have double downed and are blatantly flaunting their power and control over the levers of government , finance and media .
Never in the history of mankind have such devious , unscrupulous , arrogant , narcissistic and downright evil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trade and politics .
A minority of billionaire oligarchs and their highly compensated apparatchiks , ingrained in government bureaucracies , surveillance agencies and media outlets refuse to relinquish their dominance and would rather burn the world to the ground than lose their ill-gotten riches , un-Constitutional power and unlawful control .
The Fourth Turning : An ... William Strauss , Neil ... Best Price : $ 6.50 Buy New $ 13.09 When I started pondering a theme for 2020 , the “ year of living dangerously ” immediately popped into my mind .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ d used that title before .
I did a search of my site and lo and behold I wrote 2012 – The Year of Living Dangerously eight years ago .
As I reread my predictions for 2012 , it was a humbling experience , as not only did most of my predictions not come to fruition in 2012 , they haven ’ t materialized during the next eight years .
My facts and reasoning were sound , but my naivety regarding the extreme measures the Deep State was willing to utilize , blinded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this game going .
In my year-end assessment of my 2012 predictions this was my conclusion : This statement has been applicable for an inexplicable length of time , with no indication of changing in the near future .
I thought the national debt reaching $ 16.5 trillion would surely trigger a crisis and recession .
Here we are eight years later , $ 7 trillion more in debt and still no recession .
I thought global debt , particularly in Europe , would lead to a global contagion and breakup of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 50 trillion , the EU is intact , and the world muddles on .
The coordinated efforts of central bankers in the U.S. , Europe , Japan and China has produced a flood of liquidity , elevating all markets , enriching the .1 % , impoverishing senior citizens , and creating inflation for average Americans – underreported by the BLS .
By artificially propping up GDP , the economy has not officially gone into recession , which has supported the stock market going up 150 % since 2011 .
Debt to GDP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when the Fed ’ s sole purpose is to enrich their Wall Street benefactors through money printing .
Home prices were still falling in 2011 and I expected it to continue in 2012 .
Again , I was unable to comprehend the lengths the ruling class would go to in order to reverse the verdict of free markets .
Little did I know the Fed , Treasury , and Wall Street would conspire to buy up millions of foreclosed homes , renting them back to the people they kicked into the street , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fannie and Freddie to again give mortgages to anyone who could fog a mirror .
It worked like a charm , as home prices bottomed in 2012 and now have surpassed the 2005 peak .
The official unemployment rate in 2011 was 8.7 % and I expected it to tick higher once the recession took hold .
But , QE3 was unleashed , staving off recession , propelling the stock market , and driving “ official ” unemployment to record lows of 3.5 % today , even though 101 million working age Americans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of QE to infinity and hundreds of billions in corporate stock buybacks have worked wonders for the .1 % , despite lackluster GDP and corporate income growth .
Oil reached the highest level in history during 2012 and continued higher in 2013 .
This normally would have triggered a recession , but QE and zero interest rates kept it at bay .
Then the “ shale miracle ” drove supply higher , oil prices crashed into the $ 30s , and have remained in the $ 60 range ever since .
The shale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ per day , but the companies fracking for the oil haven ’ t made a dime in seven years .
The “ miracle ” was created by the Fed ’ s easy money and Wall Street bankers financing companies with no possibility of ever being profitable .
With prices still hovering around $ 60 , frackers are going bankrupt in droves , output has peaked as new investment dollars dry up , and this boom goes bust , as all fraudulent schemes do when reality meets delusion .
As the presidential election approached @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at its height .
Just like the Tea Party movement before it , the Occupy movement was co-opted and trivialized within months by the Deep State and their minions in government and the media .
Bloomberg did his part and wiped out the Zuccotti Park encampment in one night .
Ron Paul ’ s libertarian attempt to capture the Republican nomination was derailed by the GOP establishment and my dreams of a 3rd party run were dashed .
The country ’ s last chance for redemption was lost .
My expectations of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gone unfulfilled , with tensions continuing to grow .
But at least the military industrial complex was able to profit from war in Syria , Yemen , and the never-ending war in Afghanistan .
Trump ’ s taking out a key Iranian general with drone strikes have certainly increased the risk of something bigger in the Middle East , but will probably not result in a bigger shooting war .
Eight years of keeping the balls in the air , as their toxic “ solutions ” poison the system and ensure a cataclysmic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has convinced millions abnormality is actually normal .
Living through my first and only Fourth Turning has proven to be more difficult than I realized .
I expected it to proceed at a much faster pace than has materialized .
Knowing the details of previous Fourth Turnings convinced me I could predict how this one would proceed .
But I failed to grasp the likely twenty-year length of this crisis and how actions and reactions will develop on their own timeline , not according to the annual forecast of prognosticators and pundits .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ debt , civic decay , and global disorder , triggered this crisis in 2008 , continue to gain momentum , and will ultimately merge into a lethal combination which will end the relatively short but eventful period of the American Empire .
My attempt at trying to predict what would happen in 2019 , based on the Fourth Turning – 2019 From a Fourth Turning Perspective – turned out to be wrong once again .
Not a shocker , since my timing has been off during the first eleven years of this Crisis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one year later .
The three driving factors of this Fourth Turning continue to hasten towards a fateful climax .
My assessment as we entered 2019 still applies as we enter 2020 : The stock market was falling and signs of imminent recession were appearing as we entered 2019 .
My prediction that a Fed discount rate of 3 % would trigger a recession , stock market collapse and a debt crisis looked solid , until the Treasury , Trump and Wall Street bankers pressured Powell to cease rate increases and corporate executives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shares .
Powell then folded like a cheap suit to Trump ’ s demands and lowered rates by .75 % to goose the stock market over the summer .
When the repo market showed the true underlying distress in the financial system , Powell introduced QE4 and added $ 500 billion to the Fed balance sheet , with no sign of slowing down .
This liquidity injection again boosted the wealth of the .1 % to stratospheric levels as the stock market skyrockets to new records daily .
There are clearly deep-seated structural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unpayable levels of debt .
So , the Fed will continue to run their electronic printing presses at warp speed until the inevitable banquet of consequences is served to all .
The optimism among the financial class has reached all-time highs .
As long as their sugar daddy Powell keeps the candy flowing , all is well on Wall Street .
Meanwhile , most economic indicators continue to point downward and our national debt grows by $ 4 billion per day .
Average Americans are up to their eyeballs in debt , as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , student loan delinquencies soar , auto loan debt is going bad at a higher rate than the 2008 crisis , and home prices are now 15 % above the previous bubble peak .
Rent and healthcare costs continue to grow at a much higher rate than reported by the government .
It feels like something has to give .
Reasonable , critical thinking , intelligent observers are flabbergasted by the outrageously blatant disregard for future generations being exhibited by the ruling class , as they pillage whatever is left of our national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The social distress I noted last year continues unabated today as the glorification of abnormality reaches new heights .
The flames of division and disarray are fanned unceasingly by the left-wing media in order to distract from the true desperate financial situation of the country .
As young generations , dumbed down and socially engineered in government run schools , are lured into believing socialism is the answer by corrupt lying politicians , they are willfully ignorant of what socialism has wrought in Venezuela and other 3rd world shitholes .
Rather than focus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Deep State and the Wall Street cabal have destroyed their financial futures through corrupt schemes and rigging the system for their benefit , they worship a thirteen year old regarding the climate change hoax .
The puppeteers using Greta as their puppet seek control of your lives , more taxes , and the power to take away your liberties and freedom , while enriching themselves .
The political distress as we entered 2019 was already at looming civil war intensity .
If possible , the decibel level has actually risen higher , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scale .
The Mueller investigation turned into a big nothingburger as the ongoing Deep State coup against Trump relentlessly marches onward .
The Democrats and their Surveillance State co-conspirators have determined the best way to cover-up their treasonous acts is to stay on the offensive by impeaching Trump on bogus charges .
Their media mouthpieces produce prodigious levels of propaganda designed to convince the masses Trump should be removed from office .
The majority of the public aren ’ t buying it , as the fake news media has lost its credibility after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Reprinted with permission from The Burning Platform .
The Best of Jim Quinn

“A shocking crime was committed on the unscrupulous initiative of few individuals, with the blessing of more, and amid the passive acquiescence of all.” Tacitus, Publius Cornelius
The shocking crime being committed during this century under the unscrupulous initiative of a few evil men is ongoing and no longer hidden from those willing to open their eyes and see the truth. As conspiracy theorists have proven to be right through the sacrifice of Snowden, Assange, and other patriots for truth, the Deep State psychopaths have double downed and are blatantly flaunting their power and control over the levers of government, finance and media.
Never in the history of mankind have such devious, unscrupulous, arrogant, narcissistic and downright evil men seized hegemony over global finance, trade and politics. A minority of billionaire oligarchs and their highly compensated apparatchiks, ingrained in government bureaucracies, surveillance agencies and media outlets refuse to relinquish their dominance and would rather burn the world to the ground than lose their ill-gotten riches, un-Constitutional power and unlawful control. The Fourth Turning: An... Howe, Neil Best Price: $7.92 Buy New $12.04 (as of 08:30 UTC - Details)
When I started pondering a theme for 2020, the “year of living dangerously” immediately popped into my mind. But I had a feeling I’d used that title before. I did a search of my site and lo and behold I wrote 2012 – The Year of Living Dangerously eight years ago. As I reread my predictions for 2012, it was a humbling experience, as not only did most of my predictions not come to fruition in 2012, they haven’t materialized during the next eight years. My facts and reasoning were sound, but my naivety regarding the extreme measures the Deep State was willing to utilize, blinded me to how long they could keep this game going. In my year-end assessment of my 2012 predictions this was my conclusion:
“It seems I always underestimate the ability of sociopathic central bankers and their willingness to destroy the lives of hundreds of millions to benefit their oligarch masters. I always underestimate the rampant corruption that permeates Washington DC and the executive suites in mega-corporations across the land. And I always overestimate the intelligence, civic mindedness, and ability to understand math of the ignorant masses that pass for citizens in this country. It seems that issuing trillions of new debt to pay off trillions of bad debt, government sanctioned accounting fraud, mainstream media propaganda, government data manipulation and a populace blinded by mass delusion can stave off the inevitable consequences of an unsustainable economic system.”
This statement has been applicable for an inexplicable length of time, with no indication of changing in the near future. I thought the national debt reaching $16.5 trillion would surely trigger a crisis and recession. Here we are eight years later, $7 trillion more in debt and still no recession. I thought global debt, particularly in Europe, would lead to a global contagion and breakup of the EU. Global debt has risen by $50 trillion, the EU is intact, and the world muddles on.
The coordinated efforts of central bankers in the U.S., Europe, Japan and China has produced a flood of liquidity, elevating all markets, enriching the .1%, impoverishing senior citizens, and creating inflation for average Americans – underreported by the BLS. By artificially propping up GDP, the economy has not officially gone into recession, which has supported the stock market going up 150% since 2011. Debt to GDP ratios and stock market valuations are meaningless when the Fed’s sole purpose is to enrich their Wall Street benefactors through money printing.
Home prices were still falling in 2011 and I expected it to continue in 2012. Again, I was unable to comprehend the lengths the ruling class would go to in order to reverse the verdict of free markets. Little did I know the Fed, Treasury, and Wall Street would conspire to buy up millions of foreclosed homes, renting them back to the people they kicked into the street, artificially suppress interest rates, and use Fannie and Freddie to again give mortgages to anyone who could fog a mirror. It worked like a charm, as home prices bottomed in 2012 and now have surpassed the 2005 peak.
The official unemployment rate in 2011 was 8.7% and I expected it to tick higher once the recession took hold. But, QE3 was unleashed, staving off recession, propelling the stock market, and driving “official” unemployment to record lows of 3.5% today, even though 101 million working age Americans aren’t working. The combination of QE to infinity and hundreds of billions in corporate stock buybacks have worked wonders for the .1%, despite lackluster GDP and corporate income growth.
Oil reached the highest level in history during 2012 and continued higher in 2013. This normally would have triggered a recession, but QE and zero interest rates kept it at bay. Then the “shale miracle” drove supply higher, oil prices crashed into the $30s, and have remained in the $60 range ever since. The shale miracle certainly created millions of new barrels per day, but the companies fracking for the oil haven’t made a dime in seven years. The “miracle” was created by the Fed’s easy money and Wall Street bankers financing companies with no possibility of ever being profitable. With prices still hovering around $60, frackers are going bankrupt in droves, output has peaked as new investment dollars dry up, and this boom goes bust, as all fraudulent schemes do when reality meets delusion.
As the presidential election approached, the Occupy Wall Street movement was at its height. Just like the Tea Party movement before it, the Occupy movement was co-opted and trivialized within months by the Deep State and their minions in government and the media. Bloomberg did his part and wiped out the Zuccotti Park encampment in one night. Ron Paul’s libertarian attempt to capture the Republican nomination was derailed by the GOP establishment and my dreams of a 3rd party run were dashed. The country’s last chance for redemption was lost.
My expectations of a war between Iran and Israel have still gone unfulfilled, with tensions continuing to grow. But at least the military industrial complex was able to profit from war in Syria, Yemen, and the never-ending war in Afghanistan. Trump’s taking out a key Iranian general with drone strikes have certainly increased the risk of something bigger in the Middle East, but will probably not result in a bigger shooting war.
Eight years of keeping the balls in the air, as their toxic “solutions” poison the system and ensure a cataclysmic demise to this debt-based Ponzi scheme, has convinced millions abnormality is actually normal. Living through my first and only Fourth Turning has proven to be more difficult than I realized. I expected it to proceed at a much faster pace than has materialized. Knowing the details of previous Fourth Turnings convinced me I could predict how this one would proceed.
But I failed to grasp the likely twenty-year length of this crisis and how actions and reactions will develop on their own timeline, not according to the annual forecast of prognosticators and pundits. The key factors driving this crisis: debt, civic decay, and global disorder, triggered this crisis in 2008, continue to gain momentum, and will ultimately merge into a lethal combination which will end the relatively short but eventful period of the American Empire.
My attempt at trying to predict what would happen in 2019, based on the Fourth Turning – 2019 From a Fourth Turning Perspective – turned out to be wrong once again. Not a shocker, since my timing has been off during the first eleven years of this Crisis. Nothing in my assessment has changed one year later. The three driving factors of this Fourth Turning continue to hasten towards a fateful climax. My assessment as we entered 2019 still applies as we enter 2020:
Debt, civic decay and global disorder are on center stage as we enter the fateful year of 2019. A madness seems to be gripping the nation, a melancholy realization all is not right. Everything has a chaotic feel, as financial markets are falling, politicians threaten and attack each other, government dysfunction is laid bare for all to see, Deep State snakes slither behind the scenes trying to bring down Trump, racial tensions grow, foreign governments topple, Russia and China challenge U.S. hegemony, and the global debt Ponzi scheme is entering its collapse phase.
The stock market was falling and signs of imminent recession were appearing as we entered 2019. My prediction that a Fed discount rate of 3% would trigger a recession, stock market collapse and a debt crisis looked solid, until the Treasury, Trump and Wall Street bankers pressured Powell to cease rate increases and corporate executives did their part by buying back their shares. Powell then folded like a cheap suit to Trump’s demands and lowered rates by .75% to goose the stock market over the summer.
When the repo market showed the true underlying distress in the financial system, Powell introduced QE4 and added $500 billion to the Fed balance sheet, with no sign of slowing down. This liquidity injection again boosted the wealth of the .1% to stratospheric levels as the stock market skyrockets to new records daily. There are clearly deep-seated structural issues with a financial system saturated with unpayable levels of debt. So, the Fed will continue to run their electronic printing presses at warp speed until the inevitable banquet of consequences is served to all.
The optimism among the financial class has reached all-time highs. As long as their sugar daddy Powell keeps the candy flowing, all is well on Wall Street. Meanwhile, most economic indicators continue to point downward and our national debt grows by $4 billion per day. Average Americans are up to their eyeballs in debt, as they need their credit cards to survive, student loan delinquencies soar, auto loan debt is going bad at a higher rate than the 2008 crisis, and home prices are now 15% above the previous bubble peak.
Rent and healthcare costs continue to grow at a much higher rate than reported by the government. It feels like something has to give. Reasonable, critical thinking, intelligent observers are flabbergasted by the outrageously blatant disregard for future generations being exhibited by the ruling class, as they pillage whatever is left of our national wealth. The children be damned.
The social distress I noted last year continues unabated today as the glorification of abnormality reaches new heights. The flames of division and disarray are fanned unceasingly by the left-wing media in order to distract from the true desperate financial situation of the country. As young generations, dumbed down and socially engineered in government run schools, are lured into believing socialism is the answer by corrupt lying politicians, they are willfully ignorant of what socialism has wrought in Venezuela and other 3rd world shitholes.
Rather than focus on how politicians of both parties, the Deep State and the Wall Street cabal have destroyed their financial futures through corrupt schemes and rigging the system for their benefit, they worship a thirteen year old regarding the climate change hoax. The puppeteers using Greta as their puppet seek control of your lives, more taxes, and the power to take away your liberties and freedom, while enriching themselves.
The political distress as we entered 2019 was already at looming civil war intensity. If possible, the decibel level has actually risen higher, to 11 on a 1 to 10 scale. The Mueller investigation turned into a big nothingburger as the ongoing Deep State coup against Trump relentlessly marches onward. The Democrats and their Surveillance State co-conspirators have determined the best way to cover-up their treasonous acts is to stay on the offensive by impeaching Trump on bogus charges. Their media mouthpieces produce prodigious levels of propaganda designed to convince the masses Trump should be removed from office. The majority of the public aren’t buying it, as the fake news media has lost its credibility after three years of lies and misinformation.
Reprinted with permission from The Burning Platform.
The Best of Jim Quinn


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--‘Iran Must Begin Acting Like A Normal Nation,’ Says Totally Normal Nation

The government which runs a globe-spanning empire led by a reality TV host keeps talking about the lack of normality in the nation of Iran .
“ What we want all countries to join in , ” said State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus in a recent Fox News interview , “ is to help us not only to de-escalate any tensions with Iran , but to help us bring Iran to a place where they are ready to stop their terrorist and malign behavior , and where they are ready to discuss with the United States , with Europe , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ change their behavior to act like a normal nation.
” “ We want Iran to simply behave like a normal nation , ” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a press statement the other day .
“ We believe that the sanctions we imposed today further that strategic objective.
” These would be the additional sanctions which have been expanded to include virtually the entire Iranian economy , deliberately targeting Iran ’ s already sanction-starved populace , with the explicit goal of fomenting a civil war in that nation .
Which is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do , from a perfectly normal nation .
This would be the same Iran whose cultural heritage sites were threatened with destruction if it retaliated for the totally normal assassination of its top military official via flying robot .
The same Iran whose financial system was just threatened with destruction using the totally normal hegemony of American central banking .
Perfectly normal , perfectly healthy .
So what can Iran do to become a “ normal nation ” ?
Well , since it ’ s the United States making this demand , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the model Iran should look to .
Amazon.com Gift Card i ... Buy New $ 10.00 In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to expand its interests from the region and begin toppling noncompliant governments and invading nations all around the world .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to circle the planet with hundreds of Iranian military bases .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to obtain thousands of nuclear weapons , and actually use a couple of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ normal nation , Iran will need to become the most dominant military , economic and cultural force in the world , and then use that dominance to destroy any government , political party , ideology , faction , movement or person who stands in its way .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to arm violent extremist factions all around the world with the goal of eliminating all governments that refuse to bow to its interests .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , music and TV shows and use this influence to propagandize its power structure ’ s ideology to every possible cultural sphere .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to begin meddling in scores of democratic elections all around the world and then crying for years at the possibility of any nation returning the favor .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to shore up economic control of the world so that it can crush any sort of disobedience by starving civilians and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it ’ s a force for peace .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to indefinitely occupy a vast region on the other side of the planet with thousands upon thousands of troops and trillions of dollars in military equipment , to no benefit of a single ordinary Iranian , and against the will of the people who live there .
In order to become a normal nation , Iran will need to create a presidency led by a reality TV star oligarch who is only supported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disgusted with the status quo of their government..
I am kidding , of course .
The US government does not want Iran to become like the US .
The US government does not want any nation to become like the US .
The US likes its abnormality among nations just the way it is , thank you very much .
The US is the exception to all its own rules .
That ’ s how American exceptionalism works .
This is one of those “ do as I say , not as I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t want Iran to be like America .
The US wants Iran to be like the other nations which have allowed themselves to be absorbed into the blob of the US-centralized empire .
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting like Saudi Arabia : arming terrorist factions , beheading heretics , committing war crimes and deliberately creating humanitarian disasters for geostrategic convenience , yet aligning fully with US military , financial , and resource control agendas .
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which constantly bombs adjacent nations , interferes in the US and other nations ’ politics to shore up support , works toward the slow extermination of its indigenous population and fires upon protesters with live ammunition .
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting like Canada , the UK , Australia , New Zealand or the EU : obedient military/intelligence assets who function as extra American states when it comes to foreign policy and international affairs .
That is what the US means by acting “ normal ” .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Certainly not acting like the US .
It means acting obedient , compliant , and enslaved .
Which is precisely what Iran is resisting .
Thanks for reading !
The best way to get around the internet censors and make sure you see the stuff I publish is to subscribe to the mailing list for my website , which will get you an email notification for everything I publish .
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The government which runs a globe-spanning empire led by a reality TV host keeps talking about the lack of normality in the nation of Iran.
“What we want all countries to join in,” said State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus in a recent Fox News interview, “is to help us not only to de-escalate any tensions with Iran, but to help us bring Iran to a place where they are ready to stop their terrorist and malign behavior, and where they are ready to discuss with the United States, with Europe, with everyone, about how they can change their behavior to act like a normal nation.”
“We want Iran to simply behave like a normal nation,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a press statement the other day. “We believe that the sanctions we imposed today further that strategic objective.”
These would be the additional sanctions which have been expanded to include virtually the entire Iranian economy, deliberately targeting Iran’s already sanction-starved populace, with the explicit goal of fomenting a civil war in that nation.
Which is of course a perfectly normal thing to do, from a perfectly normal nation.
.@StateDeptSPOX: We want all countries to join us in encouraging #Iran to behave like a normal nation. pic.twitter.com/XvnG8x0YZ8 — Department of State (@StateDept) January 12, 2020
This would be the same Iran whose cultural heritage sites were threatened with destruction if it retaliated for the totally normal assassination of its top military official via flying robot. The same Iran whose financial system was just threatened with destruction using the totally normal hegemony of American central banking. Perfectly normal, perfectly healthy.
So what can Iran do to become a “normal nation”? Well, since it’s the United States making this demand, we can safely assume that it’s the model Iran should look to. Amazon.com Gift Card i... Buy New $10.00 (as of 08:25 UTC - Details)
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to expand its interests from the region and begin toppling noncompliant governments and invading nations all around the world.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to circle the planet with hundreds of Iranian military bases.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to obtain thousands of nuclear weapons, and actually use a couple of them.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to become the most dominant military, economic and cultural force in the world, and then use that dominance to destroy any government, political party, ideology, faction, movement or person who stands in its way.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to arm violent extremist factions all around the world with the goal of eliminating all governments that refuse to bow to its interests.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to become the dominant producer of films, music and TV shows and use this influence to propagandize its power structure’s ideology to every possible cultural sphere.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to begin meddling in scores of democratic elections all around the world and then crying for years at the possibility of any nation returning the favor.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to shore up economic control of the world so that it can crush any sort of disobedience by starving civilians and depriving them of medical care while pretending that it’s a force for peace.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to indefinitely occupy a vast region on the other side of the planet with thousands upon thousands of troops and trillions of dollars in military equipment, to no benefit of a single ordinary Iranian, and against the will of the people who live there.
In order to become a normal nation, Iran will need to create a presidency led by a reality TV star oligarch who is only supported because Iran’s populace is so disgusted with the status quo of their government..
Sec. of State Mike Pompeo: “The goal of our campaign is to deny the regime the resource to conduct its destructive foreign policy. We want Iran to simply behave like a normal nation. We believe the sanctions that we impose today further that strategic objective.” pic.twitter.com/f4Wz0c1q9r — CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) January 10, 2020
I am kidding, of course. The US government does not want Iran to become like the US. The US government does not want any nation to become like the US. The US likes its abnormality among nations just the way it is, thank you very much. The US is the exception to all its own rules. That’s how American exceptionalism works. This is one of those “do as I say, not as I do” situations.
The US doesn’t want Iran to be like America. The US wants Iran to be like the other nations which have allowed themselves to be absorbed into the blob of the US-centralized empire.
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting like Saudi Arabia: arming terrorist factions, beheading heretics, committing war crimes and deliberately creating humanitarian disasters for geostrategic convenience, yet aligning fully with US military, financial, and resource control agendas.
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting like Israel: a nuclear-armed military outpost which constantly bombs adjacent nations, interferes in the US and other nations’ politics to shore up support, works toward the slow extermination of its indigenous population and fires upon protesters with live ammunition.
The US would be perfectly happy for Iran to begin acting like Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand or the EU: obedient military/intelligence assets who function as extra American states when it comes to foreign policy and international affairs.
That is what the US means by acting “normal”. Not acting moral. Not acting healthy. Certainly not acting like the US. It means acting obedient, compliant, and enslaved.
Which is precisely what Iran is resisting.
________________________
Thanks for reading! The best way to get around the internet censors and make sure you see the stuff I publish is to subscribe to the mailing list for my website, which will get you an email notification for everything I publish. My work is entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, liking me on Facebook, following my antics on Twitter, checking out my podcast on either Youtube, soundcloud, Apple podcasts or Spotify, following me on Steemit, throwing some money into my hat on Patreon or Paypal, purchasing some of my sweet merchandise, buying my new book Rogue Nation: Psychonautical Adventures With Caitlin Johnstone, or my previous book Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers. For more info on who I am, where I stand, and what I’m trying to do with this platform, click here. Everyone, racist platforms excluded, has my permission to republish or use any part of this work (or anything else I’ve written) in any way they like free of charge.
Bitcoin donations:1Ac7PCQXoQoLA9Sh8fhAgiU3PHA2EX5Zm2


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--The Long Planned US Assassinations in Iraq

The Trump administration has given various justification for its assassination of Major General Qassem Soleimani and commander Abu Mahdi al Muhandis .
It claimed that there was an ‘ imminent threat ’ of an incident , even while not knowing what , where or when it would happen , that made the assassination necessary .
Trump later said the threat was a planned bombing of four U.S. embassies .
His defense secretary denied that .
That has raised the suspicion that the decision to kill Soleimani had little to do with current events but was a long planned operation .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ exactly the case : The idea to kill Soleimani , a regular General in an army with which the U.S. is not at war , came like many other bad ideas from John Bolton .
Against the Left : A Ro ... Llewellyn H Rockwell Jr Best Price : $ 13.57 Buy New $ 8.00 Then unknown forces fired 30 short range missiles into a U.S. base near Kirkuk .
The salvo was not intended to kill or wound anyone : Without presenting any evidence the U.S. accused Katib Hizbullah , an Iraqi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the missiles .
It launched airstrikes against a number of Katib Hizbullah positions near the Syrian border , hundreds of miles away from Kirkuk , and killed over 30 Iraqi security forces .
This led to demonstrations in Baghdad during which a crowd breached the outer wall of the U.S. embassy but soon retreated .
Trump , who had attacked Hillary Clinton over the raid on the consulate/CIA station in Benghazi , did not want to get embarrassed with a full embassy breach .
The media claim that it was the embassy breach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an operation that had already been planned for a year before Trump signed off on it seven months ago .
As the New York Times describes it : It was the embassy breach and a war-industry lobbyist who convinced Trump to finally pull the symbolical trigger : Trump signed off and it further developed from there .
There was no intelligence of any ‘ imminent threat ’ or anything like that .
This was an operation that had been worked on for 18 months .
Trump signed off on it more than half @ @ @ @ @ @ @ planned it just waited for a chance to execute it .
We can not even be sure that the embassy bombing had caused Trump to give the final go .
It might have been that the CIA and Pentagon were just waiting for a chance to kill Soleimani and Muhandis , the leader of Katib Hizbullah , at the same time .
Their meeting at Baghdad airport was not secret and provided the convenient opportunity they had been waiting for .
Together Soleimani and Muhandis were the glue that kept the many Shia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ones as well as the political ones .
Soleimani ’ s replacement as Quds brigade leader , Brigadier General Ismail Qaani , is certainly a capable man .
But his previous field of work was mainly east of Iran in Afghanistan and Pakistan and it will be difficult for him to fill Soleimani ’ s role in Iraq : After Soleimani ’ s death , Ayatollah Khamenei appointed Soleimani ’ s deputy Ismail Qaani to succeed him .
Qaani does not speak Arabic , does not have an in-depth knowledge of Iraq , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ability to balance the different positions of Iraq ’ s factions with the opinions of Ayatollah Khamenei and the religious authorities in Najaf.The question is how the successor of Soleimani will manage his new responsibility including the thorny issues in Iraq .
The escalation of the Iranian-American conflict is , according to many , an escalation towards war and the destabilization of the region in which the rules of engagement have changed .
The question remains how , and not whether all of this will impact the situation in Iraq .
Today the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his own militia , and Iraqi PMU leaders met in Qom , Iran , to discuss how the foreign troops can be expelled from Iraq .
Gen. Qaani will likely be there to give them advice .
Yesterday Hassan Nasrallah , the leader of the Lebanese Hizbullah , gave another speech .
In it he called on the Kurds in Iraq to pay back their debt to Soleimani and Hizbullah , which is owed for their fight against ISIS , and to help to evict the foreign soldiers from Iraq : 85-Nasrallah : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
1 ) Iraq : Iraq is the first country concerned w/responding to this crime , because it happened in Iraq , and because it targeted Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis , a great Iraqi commander , and because Soleimani defended Iraq.86-Nasrallah : I ask Masoud Barazani to thank Soleimani for his efforts in defending Erbil and Kurdistan Region , because Soleimani was the only one to respond to your call .
Soleimani and with him men from Hezbollah went to Erbil .
87-Nasrallah : Barazani was shaking from fear , but Soleimani and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unprecedented threat ; and now you must repay this good by being part of the effort to expel the Americans from Iraq and the region .
Amazon.com Gift Card i ... Buy New $ 10.00 The Barzani family , which governs the Kurdish part of Iraq , has sold out to the Zionists and the United States a long time ago .
It will certainly not support the resistance effort .
But Nasrallah ’ s request is highly embarrassing to the clan and to Masoud Barzani personally .
So far I only found @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As military leader both Soleimani and Muhandis are certainly replaceable .
The militia groups they created and led will continue to function .
But both men also played important political roles in Iraq and it will take some time to find adequate people to replace them in that .
That makes it likely that the already simmering political situation in Iraq will soon boil over as the Shia factions will start to fight each other over the selection of a new Prime Minister and government .
The U.S. will welcome that as it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will reject the Iraqi parliament decision to remove the foreign forces from Iraqi territory .
Reprinted with permission from Moon of Alabama .

The Trump administration has given various justification for its assassination of Major General Qassem Soleimani and commander Abu Mahdi al Muhandis. It claimed that there was an ‘imminent threat’ of an incident, even while not knowing what, where or when it would happen, that made the assassination necessary. Trump later said the threat was a planned bombing of four U.S. embassies. His defense secretary denied that.
That has raised the suspicion that the decision to kill Soleimani had little to do with current events but was a long planned operation. NBC News now reports that this is exactly the case:
President Donald Trump authorized the killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani seven months ago if Iran’s increased aggression resulted in the death of an American, according to five current and former senior administration officials.The presidential directive in June came with the condition that Trump would have final signoff on any specific operation to kill Soleimani, officials said.
The idea to kill Soleimani, a regular General in an army with which the U.S. is not at war, came like many other bad ideas from John Bolton. Against the Left: A Ro... Rockwell Jr, Llewellyn H Best Price: $2.85 Buy New $8.00 (as of 07:59 UTC - Details)
After Iran shot down a U.S. drone in June, John Bolton, Trump’s national security adviser at the time, urged Trump to retaliate by signing off on an operation to kill Soleimani, officials said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also wanted Trump to authorize the assassination, officials said.But Trump rejected the idea, saying he’d take that step only if Iran crossed his red line: killing an American. The president’s message was “that’s only on the table if they hit Americans,” according to a person briefed on the discussion.
Then unknown forces fired 30 short range missiles into a U.S. base near Kirkuk. The salvo was not intended to kill or wound anyone:
The rockets landed in a place and at a time when American and Iraqi personnel normally were not there and it was only by unlucky chance that Mr. Hamid was killed, American officials said.
Without presenting any evidence the U.S. accused Katib Hizbullah, an Iraqi Popular Militia Unit, of having launched the missiles. It launched airstrikes against a number of Katib Hizbullah positions near the Syrian border, hundreds of miles away from Kirkuk, and killed over 30 Iraqi security forces.
This led to demonstrations in Baghdad during which a crowd breached the outer wall of the U.S. embassy but soon retreated. Trump, who had attacked Hillary Clinton over the raid on the consulate/CIA station in Benghazi, did not want to get embarrassed with a full embassy breach.
The media claim that it was the embassy breach that the led to the activation of an operation that had already been planned for a year before Trump signed off on it seven months ago. As the New York Times describes it:
For the past 18 months, officials said, there had been discussions about whether to target General Suleimani. Figuring that it would be too difficult to hit him in Iran, officials contemplated going after him during one of his frequent visits to Syria or Iraq and focused on developing agents in seven different entities to report on his movements — the Syrian Army, the Quds Force in Damascus, Hezbollah in Damascus, the Damascus and Baghdad airports and the Kataib Hezbollah and Popular Mobilization forces in Iraq.
It was the embassy breach and a war-industry lobbyist who convinced Trump to finally pull the symbolical trigger:
Defense Secretary Mark Esper presented a series of response options to the president two weeks ago, including killing Soleimani. Esper presented the pros and cons of such an operation but made it clear that he was in favor of taking out Soleimani, officials said.
Trump signed off and it further developed from there.
There was no intelligence of any ‘imminent threat’ or anything like that.
This was an operation that had been worked on for 18 months. Trump signed off on it more than half a year ago. Those who had planned it just waited for a chance to execute it.
We can not even be sure that the embassy bombing had caused Trump to give the final go. It might have been that the CIA and Pentagon were just waiting for a chance to kill Soleimani and Muhandis, the leader of Katib Hizbullah, at the same time. Their meeting at Baghdad airport was not secret and provided the convenient opportunity they had been waiting for.
Together Soleimani and Muhandis were the glue that kept the many Shia factions in Iraq together. The armed ones as well as the political ones. Soleimani’s replacement as Quds brigade leader, Brigadier General Ismail Qaani, is certainly a capable man. But his previous field of work was mainly east of Iran in Afghanistan and Pakistan and it will be difficult for him to fill Soleimani’s role in Iraq:
After Soleimani’s death, Ayatollah Khamenei appointed Soleimani’s deputy Ismail Qaani to succeed him. Qaani does not speak Arabic, does not have an in-depth knowledge of Iraq, nor the insight of Soleimani and his ability to balance the different positions of Iraq’s factions with the opinions of Ayatollah Khamenei and the religious authorities in Najaf.The question is how the successor of Soleimani will manage his new responsibility including the thorny issues in Iraq. The escalation of the Iranian-American conflict is, according to many, an escalation towards war and the destabilization of the region in which the rules of engagement have changed. The question remains how, and not whether all of this will impact the situation in Iraq.
Today the Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who has his own militia, and Iraqi PMU leaders met in Qom, Iran, to discuss how the foreign troops can be expelled from Iraq. Gen. Qaani will likely be there to give them advice.
Yesterday Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese Hizbullah, gave another speech. In it he called on the Kurds in Iraq to pay back their debt to Soleimani and Hizbullah, which is owed for their fight against ISIS, and to help to evict the foreign soldiers from Iraq:
85-Nasrallah: Now, the rest of the path. 1) Iraq: Iraq is the first country concerned w/responding to this crime, because it happened in Iraq, and because it targeted Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, a great Iraqi commander, and because Soleimani defended Iraq.86-Nasrallah: I ask Masoud Barazani to thank Soleimani for his efforts in defending Erbil and Kurdistan Region, because Soleimani was the only one to respond to your call. Soleimani and with him men from Hezbollah went to Erbil. 87-Nasrallah: Barazani was shaking from fear, but Soleimani and the brothers from Hezbollah helped you repulse this unprecedented threat; and now you must repay this good by being part of the effort to expel the Americans from Iraq and the region.
Amazon.com Gift Card i... Buy New $10.00 (as of 08:25 UTC - Details) The Barzani family, which governs the Kurdish part of Iraq, has sold out to the Zionists and the United States a long time ago. It will certainly not support the resistance effort. But Nasrallah’s request is highly embarrassing to the clan and to Masoud Barzani personally.
So far I only found this rather confusing response from him:
Nihad N. Arafat @NihadArafat – 7:44 UTC · Jan 13, 2020The Kurdistan Regional Government’s response to the immoral speech uttered by Hassan Nasrallah through the anti-terror apparatus is a clear message from the regional government to those terrorists that the response to the terrorists must be through the anti-terror apparatus.
As military leader both Soleimani and Muhandis are certainly replaceable. The militia groups they created and led will continue to function.
But both men also played important political roles in Iraq and it will take some time to find adequate people to replace them in that. That makes it likely that the already simmering political situation in Iraq will soon boil over as the Shia factions will start to fight each other over the selection of a new Prime Minister and government.
The U.S. will welcome that as it will try do install a candidate that will reject the Iraqi parliament decision to remove the foreign forces from Iraqi territory.
Reprinted with permission from Moon of Alabama.


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--Shoring up a Dissolving Society

Shoring up a Dissolving Society

Graham McAleer has written a review of R.R Reno ’ s new book , Return of the Strong Gods .
I will offer some thoughts based on this review ; at some point I may get my hands on a copy of the book .
First , from the Amazon book review : Reno ’ s book is an examination of the liberalism of the West , a liberalism that took root in the Enlightenment and gave fruit – both for good and evil – in the twentieth century .
It is a difficult – even dangerous – topic to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evil that is attributable to Enlightenment thinking .
Yet , today , the dissolution of Western society appears to be the final – and some would say – inevitable – outcome .
Return of the Strong G ... R. R. Reno Best Price : $ 18.92 Buy New $ 19.94 Returning to McAleer ’ s review : The West is losing credibility .
This can be seen via China and Russia ; it can be seen in Brexit and Trump ; it can be seen in the arbitrary power of an unelected EU @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more : A West that doesn ’ t care about its history , traditions , or future ; increased suicides and drug additions ; the system ’ s obvious bias for the few and against the many ; it can be seen in perpetual war .
It can be seen – but is rarely noted – that much of this is made possible only due to modern central banking .
I will not comment on specifics of these individuals named until I read the book .
Suffice it to say , they represent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pushback – but , perhaps , in a less than healthy direction – against that liberalism .
It certainly is a reasonable summary of the social and economic ethos of the years since World War II .
It has bred disenchantment , replacing “ hearth and home with fluidity , blendedness , and self-creation.
” As he sees Freud crushing the family , he sees Hayek crushing the state .
I will not get into Hayek ’ s muddiness regarding the state as evidenced in The Road to Serfdom .
I will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Reno ) confuse the state with governance .
To the extent Hayek criticized the state as it has metastasized in the last centuries , he was quite correct .
To the extent that those supportive of governance can only find it in the state , they are deathly wrong .
In any case , this strong individualism ( to summarize much thought in a single word ) and its current extreme ( and inevitable ) manifestations are causing their own blowback : It seems to me even worse , as the idea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violent racism – is almost non-existent in the West – at least by the so-called deplorables .
It is trotted out as a tool for control , nothing more .
Demonstrating something that I have felt for some time , what is understood today as the post-modernism of Derrida has much to be considered : The Road to Serfdom ( T ... FriedrichA.VonHayek Best Price : $ 10.99 Buy New $ 23.99 Diagnosis is one thing ; treatment and cure is another .
McAleer offers a path forward , one apparently not considered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the child of Hume and Smith offer something approaching sympathy , it is a pale facsimile of the real thing .
The mechanism was offered long ago , and can be only found , I believe , there .
I know where it will not be found .
It will not be found in anything approaching the modern state ; it will not be found in the offspring of Hume and Smith .
It will only be found via churches , universities , and other educational and thought-leading institutions teaching and calling for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ home .
For my more detailed thoughts on this , start here .
It should be noted : the thinkers not named in this review .
Ludwig von Mises and Murray Rothbard wrote often enough about tradition , family , community .
In this , one can discover one reason among many why these two are ignored by the mainstream to the favor of Hayek and Friedman .
The Best of Bionic Mosquito

Reno – editor of the important Catholic magazine, First Things – is surely right that our crisis is not how to forestall the return of fascism but how to shore up our dissolving society.
Graham McAleer has written a review of R.R Reno’s new book, Return of the Strong Gods. I will offer some thoughts based on this review; at some point I may get my hands on a copy of the book.
First, from the Amazon book review:
After the staggering slaughter of back-to-back world wars, the West embraced the ideal of the “open society.” The promise: By liberating ourselves from the old attachments to nation, clan, and religion that had fueled centuries of violence, we could build a prosperous world without borders, freed from dogmas and managed by experts.
Reno’s book is an examination of the liberalism of the West, a liberalism that took root in the Enlightenment and gave fruit – both for good and evil – in the twentieth century. It is a difficult – even dangerous – topic to tackle, precisely for the good and evil that is attributable to Enlightenment thinking. Yet, today, the dissolution of Western society appears to be the final – and some would say – inevitable – outcome. Return of the Strong G... R. R. Reno Best Price: $15.95 Buy New $19.25 (as of 09:53 UTC - Details)
Returning to McAleer’s review: The West is losing credibility. This can be seen via China and Russia; it can be seen in Brexit and Trump; it can be seen in the arbitrary power of an unelected EU bureaucracy.
It can be seen in more: A West that doesn’t care about its history, traditions, or future; increased suicides and drug additions; the system’s obvious bias for the few and against the many; it can be seen in perpetual war. It can be seen – but is rarely noted – that much of this is made possible only due to modern central banking.
For the horrors of WWII, leftist and libertarian thinkers – Popper, Camus, Hayek, Derrida, and Friedman, to name a few – blamed not perverse singular ideologies, but the West’s establishment.
I will not comment on specifics of these individuals named until I read the book. Suffice it to say, they represent both the liberalism of the West and the pushback – but, perhaps, in a less than healthy direction – against that liberalism.
McAleer summarizes Reno’s views of these individuals:
A corrosive combination of progressivism and libertarianism, [Reno] claims, birthed a postwar consensus in which potent ideals – the “strong gods” of family, nation, noble sacrifice – were replaced by a neo-liberalism of open borders, markets, and currency flows, hitched to an educational ethos of skepticism and gentle hearts relishing diversity and multiculturalism.
It certainly is a reasonable summary of the social and economic ethos of the years since World War II. It has bred disenchantment, replacing “hearth and home with fluidity, blendedness, and self-creation.” As he sees Freud crushing the family, he sees Hayek crushing the state.
I will not get into Hayek’s muddiness regarding the state as evidenced in The Road to Serfdom. I will offer that McAleer (and, perhaps, Reno) confuse the state with governance. To the extent Hayek criticized the state as it has metastasized in the last centuries, he was quite correct. To the extent that those supportive of governance can only find it in the state, they are deathly wrong.
In any case, this strong individualism (to summarize much thought in a single word) and its current extreme (and inevitable) manifestations are causing their own blowback:
The Left is right, racism is disgusting, but its ideas are a stimulant to the problem, not its solution.
It seems to me even worse, as the idea of racism – real, meaningful, violent racism – is almost non-existent in the West – at least by the so-called deplorables. It is trotted out as a tool for control, nothing more.
Demonstrating something that I have felt for some time, what is understood today as the post-modernism of Derrida has much to be considered: The Road to Serfdom( T... FriedrichA.VonHayek Best Price: $20.21 Buy New $23.99 (as of 09:53 UTC - Details)
The postmodernism of Derrida is dismissed as subversion when he might best be characterized as a modern-day David Hume, a skeptic throwing down a challenge to the West’s belief in science, rational order, and Logos.
Diagnosis is one thing; treatment and cure is another. McAleer offers a path forward, one apparently not considered by Reno:
…we might turn to the Scottish Enlightenment for a path forward out of our crisis. Reno assumes the alternative is between the weak loves of neo-liberalism and the strong loves of a revivified (European style) conservatism. There is another option: to further explore the resources of the ethics of sympathy. Thinkers like Hume and Smith wanted to find a mechanism to balance the liberty of the individual with the solidarity offered by establishment.
To the extent that the child of Hume and Smith offer something approaching sympathy, it is a pale facsimile of the real thing. The mechanism was offered long ago, and can be only found, I believe, there.
Conclusion
The West needs transcendent purpose, a sense of home, not deflation. But how to re-populate this metaphysically barren world?
I know where it will not be found. It will not be found in anything approaching the modern state; it will not be found in the offspring of Hume and Smith. It will only be found via churches, universities, and other educational and thought-leading institutions teaching and calling for a transcendent purpose, a sense of home.
For my more detailed thoughts on this, start here.
Epilogue
It should be noted: the thinkers not named in this review. Ludwig von Mises and Murray Rothbard wrote often enough about tradition, family, community. In this, one can discover one reason among many why these two are ignored by the mainstream to the favor of Hayek and Friedman.
Reprinted with permission from Bionic Mosquito.
The Best of Bionic Mosquito


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--‘This Is Insanity!’ – Jim Rogers Warns of ‘Horrible Time Ahead’

The Fed has increased its balance sheet over 500 % in the past decade ; The Bank of Japan is @ @ @ @ @ and stock ETFs ; and The European Central Bank is mired in insane negative interests @ @ @ @ @ legendary investor Jim Rogers , they will continue this “ madness ” as long as @ @ @ @ @ interview with RT ’ s Boom Bust , Rogers exclaims , that interest rates around @ @ @ @ @ this low : Amazon.com Gift Card i ... Buy New $ 10.00 In 2008 , @ @ @ @ @ problems because of too much debt , however , “ since then the debt has @ @ @ @ @ s going higher and higher .
We are going to have a horrible time when @ @ @ @ @ end.
” And when that happens , Rogers warns that central banks will print even @ @ @ @ @ assets .
When it comes to an end , Rogers laments , “ it will @ @ @ @ @ lifetime.
” Reprinted with permission from Zero Hedge .
The Best of Tyler Durden

The Fed has increased its balance sheet over 500% in the past decade; The Bank of Japan is printing money to buy bonds and stock ETFs; and The European Central Bank is mired in insane negative interests. And, according to legendary investor Jim Rogers, they will continue this “madness” as long as its necessary.
In an interview with RT’s Boom Bust, Rogers exclaims, that interest rates around the world have never been this low:
“… this is insanity, that’s not how sound economic systems are supposed to work.”

Amazon.com Gift Card i... Buy New $10.00 (as of 08:25 UTC - Details) In 2008, Rogers notes that we had problems because of too much debt, however, “since then the debt has skyrocketed everywhere and it’s going higher and higher. We are going to have a horrible time when this all comes to an end.”
Adding that:
…eventually, the market is going to say: ‘We don’t want this, we don’t want to play this game anymore, and we don’t want your garbage paper anymore’.”
And when that happens, Rogers warns that central banks will print even more and buy even more assets.
“And that’s when we will have very serious problems… We all are going to pay a horrible price someday but in the meantime it’s a lot of fun for a lot of people.”
When it comes to an end, Rogers laments, “it will be the worst of my lifetime.”
Reprinted with permission from Zero Hedge.
The Best of Tyler Durden


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--The Odds of Getting a Good Leader

The Odds of Getting a Good Leader

The larger the country , the less the likelihood of getting a leader who can be trusted with the job .
On the surface of it , this would seem to be an illogical claim .
Surely the size of a country has no bearing upon whether its leadership is competent or trustworthy , and yet , it ’ s very much the case .
This is due to a combination of conditions that can be found in every country .
First , studies have long revealed that , in any population , roughly 4 % , or one in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traits .
These traits are as follows : Against the Left : A Ro ... Llewellyn H Rockwell Jr Best Price : $ 13.57 Buy New $ 8.00 Picture a leading politician in your own country , of any party .
Whether you supported this individual in the last election or opposed him , he is very likely to possess these traits .
But why should that be ?
Why should it be likely that sociopaths would rise to the top in politics ?
Well , the answer is quite simple .
First @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be drawn to a job that allows for self-aggrandisement and minimal consequence for actions taken , plus considerable rewards , both in income and power .
Second , a sociopath will have fewer scruples than others , so he ’ ll be prepared to do whatever it takes to gain office , whilst others are more likely to have limitations as to how far they ’ ll go to succeed .
That suggests that the 4 % will not only be more attracted to a career in politics , they will be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of course we know this to be true , as we so commonly note the above traits when describing most any specific politician .
But why , then , is this more likely to occur in a larger country than a small one ?
Well let ’ s take two examples .
The country that ’ s my primary residence is small , with a population of only 65,000 .
However , those who can legally run for office are those born within the country , or 20,000 people .
At 4 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 800 potentially bad actors out there who , if they ran for public office , would be destructive leaders .
If one in 100 actually pursued politics , that means that , at any given time , the country might have eight pathological types rising to the top .
And based upon my knowledge of them as individuals , I ’ d say that that ’ s about what we have at any given time .
As that number represents less than half our legislature , they ’ re unquestionably a nuisance and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
However , at that number , even the worst can be dealt with .
However , if we look at the US as an example of a larger country , we have a possible 327,000,000 possible contenders .
Given the same math , 13,000,000 of them might rise to the top .
That ’ s a lot for a country with only about 650 top positions ( Congress , plus the president and cabinet ) .
And remember , the most pathological are the ones that are likely to work the hardest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the math , we recognize that , in all likelihood , an individual in a senior political position ( state representative on up ) is pathological .
Whilst , conceptually , the mind recoils at the thought , the numbers illustrate that it ’ s not only possible but highly likely .
Small wonder , then , that on the odd occasion that we see a highly principled individual throw his hat into the ring , he ’ s almost always trounced in the primaries .
Should he actually attain office , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ term or two before he ’ s had enough of “ the swamp.
” He either drops out or becomes a swamp creature himself .
And of course , this is a fact we ’ ve all observed on the rare occasions when a truly admirable candidate has appeared on the scene .
If we step back and assess what this means to the system itself , we conclude , “ Of course it ’ s a failed system .
How could it be anything else ?
It ’ s not intended for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the electorate ; it ’ s meant to serve the rulers.
” And that leads us to an even more unsettling conclusion : Since the system is populated by pathological individuals , they ’ ll have no intention of rectifying the problem .
Regardless of party affiliation , they are , in fact , the problem .
And by extension , it means that the problem can not be fixed without employing Thomas Jefferson ’ s solution of throwing them all out periodically and starting over .
The tree of liberty must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any form of government becomes destructive of these ends , life , liberty , and the pursuit of happiness , it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it , and to institute new government .
But of course , most of us might be inclined to think that , whist we might like to see the halls of state cleansed of bad actors , we recognize that nothing short of revolution would bring about Mister Jefferson ’ s solution .
Even if we were to think a revolution were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wish to see the economic and social devastation that would accompany it .
We do , however , have a choice as to whether we choose to continue to reside in a jurisdiction where we have no contact whatever with our leaders and no real ability to remove them on a wholesale basis .
Amazon.com Gift Card i ... Buy New $ 10.00 Today , a growing number of people are choosing to internationally diversify themselves , choosing the best country in which to have a bank account , another country in which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ third country in which to reside .
In each case , they select the best country from a world of possibilities .
In choosing a country for residence , we can consciously select one that has a small population and therefore a small , more controllable government .
Not surprisingly , small countries are often freer and offer greater opportunity for the individual , in addition to a more representative government .
As libertarian author Ron Holland has observed , Small countries are more free and prosperous than large nation-states .
We can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will rule over us , but we can examine what the odds are and take action to increase the likelihood of capable leadership .
Whilst this is true even in the best of times , it may prove to be critical in the tumultuous times that we ’ re likely to be passing through in the very near future .

The larger the country, the less the likelihood of getting a leader who can be trusted with the job.
On the surface of it, this would seem to be an illogical claim. Surely the size of a country has no bearing upon whether its leadership is competent or trustworthy, and yet, it’s very much the case.
This is due to a combination of conditions that can be found in every country.
First, studies have long revealed that, in any population, roughly 4%, or one in 25 people, will display significant sociopathic traits. These traits are as follows:
Glibness and Superficial Charm
Manipulativeness and Cunning
Grandiose Sense of Self
Pathological Lying
Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt
Shallow Emotions
Incapacity for Love
Continual Need for Stimulation
Against the Left: A Ro... Rockwell Jr, Llewellyn H Best Price: $2.85 Buy New $8.00 (as of 07:59 UTC - Details) Picture a leading politician in your own country, of any party. Whether you supported this individual in the last election or opposed him, he is very likely to possess these traits.
But why should that be? Why should it be likely that sociopaths would rise to the top in politics?
Well, the answer is quite simple. First, those with this pathology are likely to be drawn to a job that allows for self-aggrandisement and minimal consequence for actions taken, plus considerable rewards, both in income and power. Second, a sociopath will have fewer scruples than others, so he’ll be prepared to do whatever it takes to gain office, whilst others are more likely to have limitations as to how far they’ll go to succeed.
That suggests that the 4% will not only be more attracted to a career in politics, they will be more likely to be successful. And of course we know this to be true, as we so commonly note the above traits when describing most any specific politician.
But why, then, is this more likely to occur in a larger country than a small one?
Well let’s take two examples. The country that’s my primary residence is small, with a population of only 65,000. However, those who can legally run for office are those born within the country, or 20,000 people.
At 4% of the population, this translates to 800 potentially bad actors out there who, if they ran for public office, would be destructive leaders. If one in 100 actually pursued politics, that means that, at any given time, the country might have eight pathological types rising to the top. And based upon my knowledge of them as individuals, I’d say that that’s about what we have at any given time.
As that number represents less than half our legislature, they’re unquestionably a nuisance and on many occasions need to be curtailed. However, at that number, even the worst can be dealt with.
However, if we look at the US as an example of a larger country, we have a possible 327,000,000 possible contenders. Given the same math, 13,000,000 of them might rise to the top. That’s a lot for a country with only about 650 top positions (Congress, plus the president and cabinet).
And remember, the most pathological are the ones that are likely to work the hardest to succeed. If we simply do the math, we recognize that, in all likelihood, an individual in a senior political position (state representative on up) is pathological. Whilst, conceptually, the mind recoils at the thought, the numbers illustrate that it’s not only possible but highly likely.
Small wonder, then, that on the odd occasion that we see a highly principled individual throw his hat into the ring, he’s almost always trounced in the primaries. Should he actually attain office, he’s likely to last only a term or two before he’s had enough of “the swamp.” He either drops out or becomes a swamp creature himself.
And of course, this is a fact we’ve all observed on the rare occasions when a truly admirable candidate has appeared on the scene.
If we step back and assess what this means to the system itself, we conclude, “Of course it’s a failed system. How could it be anything else? It’s not intended for the system to work for the betterment of the electorate; it’s meant to serve the rulers.”
And that leads us to an even more unsettling conclusion: Since the system is populated by pathological individuals, they’ll have no intention of rectifying the problem. Regardless of party affiliation, they are, in fact, the problem.
And by extension, it means that the problem cannot be fixed without employing Thomas Jefferson’s solution of throwing them all out periodically and starting over.
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time… Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government.
But of course, most of us might be inclined to think that, whist we might like to see the halls of state cleansed of bad actors, we recognize that nothing short of revolution would bring about Mister Jefferson’s solution.
Even if we were to think a revolution were justified, very few of us would wish to see the economic and social devastation that would accompany it.
We do, however, have a choice as to whether we choose to continue to reside in a jurisdiction where we have no contact whatever with our leaders and no real ability to remove them on a wholesale basis. Amazon.com Gift Card i... Buy New $10.00 (as of 08:25 UTC - Details)
Today, a growing number of people are choosing to internationally diversify themselves, choosing the best country in which to have a bank account, another country in which to earn a living and possibly a third country in which to reside. In each case, they select the best country from a world of possibilities.
In choosing a country for residence, we can consciously select one that has a small population and therefore a small, more controllable government. Not surprisingly, small countries are often freer and offer greater opportunity for the individual, in addition to a more representative government. As libertarian author Ron Holland has observed,
Small countries are more free and prosperous than large nation-states.
We cannot be guaranteed what sort of leader will rule over us, but we can examine what the odds are and take action to increase the likelihood of capable leadership.
Whilst this is true even in the best of times, it may prove to be critical in the tumultuous times that we’re likely to be passing through in the very near future.
Reprinted with permission from International Man.


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--Why the Russian Orthodox Church Celebrates Christmas on January 7th

Many people ask us why the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on January 7th .
These same people may also have wondered why the Soviet Union celebrated the “ October Revolution ” on November 7th , and the answers to both questions are related .
At the time the communists seized power in Russia , Russia still used the Julian calendar , so named for Julius Caesar , who established it as the official calendar of the Roman Empire .
This was the calendar used throughout the Christian world until Pope Gregory XIII introduced a revised calendar in 1582 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calendar .
The Julian calendar assumes that the solar year is 365.25 days , and so normally a year is 365 days , but every fourth year ( called the leap year ) an extra day is added to the month of February , and the year is 366 days .
The problem is that the actual solar year is 11 minutes shy of being precisely 365.25 days , which does not seem like much , but about every 128 years , this results in a day ’ s difference .
When Pope @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the difference between the two calendars was 10 days .
Since that time , the difference has increased to 13 days .
Roman Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar immediately , but Protestant and Orthodox Christian Countries did not adopt it for some time .
In fact , when George Washington was born , the British Empire was still using the Julian calendar .
Britain finally made the change in 1752 .
However , Orthodox Countries continued to use the Julian calendar until the 20th century .
It was only after the Communists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gregorian calendar as its civil Calendar .
But since the October Revolution happened before this change , a revolution that occurred on October 25th on the Julian calendar was celebrated by the Soviets on November 7th on the Gregorian calendar .
Likewise , though the Russian Church celebrates Christmas on December 25th on the Julian calendar , this happens to fall on January 7th on the Gregorian calendar .
The Orthodox Church : A ... Timothy Ware Best Price : $ 11.16 Buy New $ 11.69 There was an attempt by the Soviet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to accept the “ New ” calendar , but this attempt failed .
The adherence to the “ Old ” Calendar became a powerful symbol of resistance to the Communist goal of eradicating the Church , as a well as a resistance to other negative trends in the 20th Century ( such as attempts to “ modernize ” Church tradition and doctrine ) .
As a result , the Russian Church has continued to use the Julian calendar to this day , as do the Orthodox Churches of the Ukraine , Serbia , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Jordan , Sinai , and Mount Athos .
Several local Orthodox Churches did change to the New Calendar , including the Churches of Greece , Romania , and Bulgaria .
This has resulted in the unfortunate problem of having Orthodox Christians celebrating feasts , such as Christmas , on different days , and this is a problem that may take some time for the Orthodox Church as whole to resolve .
Hopefully there will be some agreement before the difference between the two calendars increases from 13 days to 14 .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Orthodox Church ) continue to use the Julian Calendar ’ s Paschalion for the purposes of determining the date of Easter ( Pascha ) , which is why Orthodox Easter is usually at least a week after that of the Gregorian Calendar , and can be as much as a month later ( as it will be this coming year ) .
This originally appeared on Fr .
John Whiteford ’ s Commentary and Reflections .

Many people ask us why the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on January 7th. These same people may also have wondered why the Soviet Union celebrated the “October Revolution” on November 7th, and the answers to both questions are related. At the time the communists seized power in Russia, Russia still used the Julian calendar, so named for Julius Caesar, who established it as the official calendar of the Roman Empire. This was the calendar used throughout the Christian world until Pope Gregory XIII introduced a revised calendar in 1582, to address an error in the Julian calendar. The Julian calendar assumes that the solar year is 365.25 days, and so normally a year is 365 days, but every fourth year (called the leap year) an extra day is added to the month of February, and the year is 366 days. The problem is that the actual solar year is 11 minutes shy of being precisely 365.25 days, which does not seem like much, but about every 128 years, this results in a day’s difference. When Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar, the difference between the two calendars was 10 days. Since that time, the difference has increased to 13 days.
Roman Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar immediately, but Protestant and Orthodox Christian Countries did not adopt it for some time. In fact, when George Washington was born, the British Empire was still using the Julian calendar. Britain finally made the change in 1752. However, Orthodox Countries continued to use the Julian calendar until the 20th century. It was only after the Communists seized power, that Russia adopted the Gregorian calendar as its civil Calendar. But since the October Revolution happened before this change, a revolution that occurred on October 25th on the Julian calendar was celebrated by the Soviets on November 7th on the Gregorian calendar. Likewise, though the Russian Church celebrates Christmas on December 25th on the Julian calendar, this happens to fall on January 7th on the Gregorian calendar. The Orthodox Church: A... Timothy Ware Best Price: $11.16 Buy New $11.69 (as of 10:54 UTC - Details)
There was an attempt by the Soviet government to force the Russian Orthodox Church to accept the “New” calendar, but this attempt failed. The adherence to the “Old” Calendar became a powerful symbol of resistance to the Communist goal of eradicating the Church, as a well as a resistance to other negative trends in the 20th Century (such as attempts to “modernize” Church tradition and doctrine). As a result, the Russian Church has continued to use the Julian calendar to this day, as do the Orthodox Churches of the Ukraine, Serbia, the Georgian Republic, the Holy Land, Jordan, Sinai, and Mount Athos.
Several local Orthodox Churches did change to the New Calendar, including the Churches of Greece, Romania, and Bulgaria. This has resulted in the unfortunate problem of having Orthodox Christians celebrating feasts, such as Christmas, on different days, and this is a problem that may take some time for the Orthodox Church as whole to resolve. Hopefully there will be some agreement before the difference between the two calendars increases from 13 days to 14. These Churches (along with the rest of the Orthodox Church) continue to use the Julian Calendar’s Paschalion for the purposes of determining the date of Easter (Pascha), which is why Orthodox Easter is usually at least a week after that of the Gregorian Calendar, and can be as much as a month later (as it will be this coming year).
This originally appeared on Fr. John Whiteford’s Commentary and Reflections.


lewrockwell--2020-01-15--Vaccine Bombshell as UN Health Experts Admit Toxic Vaccine Ingredients are Harming Children Worldwid

Vaccine Bombshell as UN Health Experts Admit Toxic Vaccine Ingredients are Harming Children Worldwide

A Dec. 2 , 2019 World Health Organization “ Global Vaccine Safety Summit ” video has been found and leaked to the world , revealing shocking admissions of the health hazards posed by vaccines and their toxic ingredients .
A first-wave compilation of some of the more damning quotes was created by Del Bigtree ’ s “ Highwire ” organization , which posted the video to YouTube .
Knowing that video would quickly be banned , we posted it to Brighteon.com , where “ Highwire ” is expected to launch a channel very soon .
You can watch the full @ @ @ @ @ @ @ For a related article that covers this , see this link at TheHighWire.com .
A full transcript of this video compilation is offered below .
Watch the video here , via Brighteon : Some of the highlights : An admission that vaccine adjuvants increase cell death and damage to vaccine recipients .
For this paragraph , the term “ reactogenicity ” means vaccine adverse reactions and side effects , including those that are known to be extremely harmful and cause long-term damage or even death : Dr. Stephen Evans , Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ multiply the immunogenicity of the antigens that they are added to , and that is their intention .
It seems to me they multiply the reactogenicity in many instances , and therefore it seems to me that it is not unexpected if they multiply the incidence of adverse reactions that are associated with the antigen… Dissolving Illusions : ... Suzanne Humphries MD , ... Best Price : $ 20.00 Buy New $ 17.17 Jabbed : How the Vaccin ... Brett Wilcox Best Price : $ 18.80 Buy New $ 19.16 Keep Calm And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 8.27 Buy New $ 6.99 Amazon.com Gift Card i ... Buy New $ 25.00

A Dec. 2, 2019 World Health Organization “Global Vaccine Safety Summit” video has been found and leaked to the world, revealing shocking admissions of the health hazards posed by vaccines and their toxic ingredients.
A first-wave compilation of some of the more damning quotes was created by Del Bigtree’s “Highwire” organization, which posted the video to YouTube. Knowing that video would quickly be banned, we posted it to Brighteon.com, where “Highwire” is expected to launch a channel very soon.
You can watch the full video at this link on Brighteon. For a related article that covers this, see this link at TheHighWire.com.
A full transcript of this video compilation is offered below. Watch the video here, via Brighteon:
Some of the highlights:
An admission that vaccine adjuvants increase cell death and damage to vaccine recipients. For this paragraph, the term “reactogenicity” means vaccine adverse reactions and side effects, including those that are known to be extremely harmful and cause long-term damage or even death:
Dr. Stephen Evans, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology – It seems to me that adjuvants multiply the immunogenicity of the antigens that they are added to, and that is their intention. It seems to me they multiply the reactogenicity in many instances, and therefore it seems to me that it is not unexpected if they multiply the incidence of adverse reactions that are associated with the antigen…
Read the Whole Article
Dissolving Illusions: ... Bystrianyk, Roman Best Price: $38.50 Buy New $21.60 (as of 11:00 UTC - Details) Jabbed: How the Vaccin... Wilcox, Brett Best Price: $18.85 Buy New $19.03 (as of 12:00 UTC - Details) Keep Calm And Donu2019... James Anderson Best Price: $8.27 Buy New $6.99 (as of 06:25 UTC - Details) Amazon.com Gift Card i... Buy New $25.00 (as of 06:10 UTC - Details)