investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Doug Casey: The Feds Will Blame the Depression on Coronavirus

Editor ’ s note : Regular readers know our founder , Doug Casey , has warned that a Greater Depression is on the horizon .
And while it might be easy to blame any economic crisis on the coronavirus pandemic , Doug is convinced that there are other culprits .
In part one of the latest Conversations With Casey , Doug explains why the virus is just a “ manufactured scam ” … and how the Deep State will use it to avoid any responsibility for the coming collapse… Plus , he shares his insights on the action in commodities… @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Read on below for Doug ’ s thoughts… and don ’ t miss part two of this conversation next week… Daily Dispatch : Doug , one of the biggest stories this year , perhaps for many years , is what happened to the oil price last month .
It went to minus $ 40 a barrel .
Have you ever seen anything like that before ?
Is there anything that compares to this ?
Doug Casey : I trade hog futures .
Maybe 20 years ago the price of hogs went to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t think that was possible , would you ?
I mean , a perfectly good hog .
How could it be worth less than nothing ?
It seems as metaphysically impossible as negative interest rates .
And it would be impossible in a simpler world , say on a family farm with a few hogs that got the table scraps as a diet supplement .
But we ’ re talking about production on an industrial scale .
It could happen again .
Those hogs have to be fed with tons of corn and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if an economic collapse makes them unaffordable ?
What if a month-long truckers ’ strike makes them impossible to ship ?
What are you supposed to do if they have no current value , but they cost you a fortune to maintain ?
Should you keep feeding them as it gets worse and worse ?
It ’ s a similar thing with oil .
The big problem is storage .
There are several reasons for this .
First , the Saudis and the Russians were fighting for market share , and so they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the last one standing in a knife fight .
They ’ re the second- and third-biggest producers in the world , and both governments – especially the Saudis – rely on oil income .
They both need as much of the 80 million barrel-per-day market as they can get .
But what happens when the demand falls overnight by a third ?
And the Nigerians , the Angolans , the Iranians , and a bunch of others are in the same situation .
The supply side becomes a big problem .
The second @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ridiculous hysteria about the coronavirus .
It has cut oil usage and it ’ s not going to bounce back overnight .
Especially as the Greater Depression deepens .
That ’ s a big problem , because when you have an industrial-size operation , you can ’ t close it down overnight for lots of reasons : technical , financial , and personnel .
For instance , in the case of the US , most of the production is from shale .
It ’ s from horizontal drilling and fracking .
All of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ debt .
They can ’ t stop production , even though it ’ s unprofitable for them at under $ 30 a barrel .
At least if they can peddle the oil at $ 20 , or at any price , they ’ re getting some cashflow .
If they stopped producing , they have zero cashflow , but most expenses remain .
It puts them between a rock and a hard place .
The reason it went to negative numbers is all this oil is still being produced .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They can ’ t stop it easily , and it needs to be stored – which also costs money .
Even disregarding the financial and personnel part of the equation , they don ’ t want to stop producing for technical reasons .
It ’ s like if you put a car up on blocks for the winter .
When you get back in the spring , you might find that you ’ ve got birds roosting under the hood and your gasoline has gone bad .
Where are they going to put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ filled all the tanks , they ’ ve filled all the tankers , the pipelines are full of it , and it ’ s still being produced .
The daily cost for use of a VLCC supertanker , to store it , is now around $ 150,000 a day , up from $ 5,000 a few years ago .
It ’ s actually very interesting .
The price of tankers is more volatile than that of oil itself .
Daily Dispatch : Do exchange-traded funds and other financial engineering play some part in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the US Oil Fund ( USO ) ETF has to roll its futures contracts each month , and it always does so either one or two days prior to expiry .
It means that something like 100 million barrels of oil in those contracts are on the line .
I bring this up because we ’ ve seen ETFs causing problems at other times .
A couple of years ago , there was the Short VIX ETF that suddenly went from $ 100 to zero overnight .
It was an ETF betting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the market .
So when volatility came out of nowhere , it went to zero .
Do you have a take on how this and other kinds of financial engineering has an effect on markets and prices ?
Doug Casey : The problem with many ETFs is that they don ’ t own the physical commodity , they own futures contracts .
Futures contracts are financial instruments , subject to different influences than the bulk commodity itself .
The whole country is now built on financial engineering .
Something like 20 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I don ’ t know what it “ should ” be , but a lot less in an economy geared around production , as opposed to paper shuffling .
It ’ s actually rather ridiculous .
The action , and the big money , is now in finance , where people are just trading paper with each other – “ Hello , New York , buy .
Hello , Chicago , buy .
Hello , Los Angeles , sell – New York and Chicago are buying.
” It ’ s mainly the fault @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Federal Reserve .
The whole US economy is over-financialized , because the dollar is now nothing but a trading sardine .
In fact , the whole country now depends on the Federal Reserve – an institution which should never have been created , and should be abolished .
They ’ re creating trillions of new dollars to bail out a myriad of failing entities , including the US Government itself .
I play poker .
Sometimes in a game a losing player “ goes on tilt , ” which is to say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get out even by making crazy bets because they ’ re so far behind .
The US Government is on tilt .
And of course , the main winners are going to be the Deep State guys , as usual .
They ’ ll be first in line to get their share of the trillions , long before some table scraps filter down to the little people in the hinterlands .
Among the big winners will be professional scam artists and assorted other criminals .
They ’ re quick on their feet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around willy-nilly in a matter of weeks , they ’ ll figure out how to steal scores of billions outright .
You can ’ t possibly know where you ’ re going to put trillions of new dollars in such a short time .
I ’ m sure that there are going to be many new Nigerian billionaires in a couple of months .
Daily Dispatch : Just getting back to commodities for a moment .
Could the situation with oil happen with other commodities ?
Could it happen with cattle , beef @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other commodities ?
If people are consuming less , they ’ re eating out less , and they ’ re buying fewer clothes .
Won ’ t that affect other commodities ?
Doug Casey : It could , despite the fact commodities are close to all-time lows in real terms .
But , as I ’ ve explained numerous times before , lower commodity prices are probably the longest trend in financial history .
Remember , one of the three definitions I use of a depression is a time when serious distortions in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The long-term distortion here is that debt and inflation have made people think , and act , like they ’ re richer than they really are .
So instead of eating beef , many will move down to pork , and from pork to chicken , and chicken to beans , and beans to dumpster diving .
Speaking of chickens , people used to trade broiler chickens .
If they still traded broiler chickens , they ’ d be a good bet for a price collapse because the breeding cycle for birds is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are put in banks of tens of thousands together .
If the distribution chain breaks down at any point , you ’ ve got a huge problem .
It ’ s the same problems with hogs , and it could still happen there .
US hog producers need to get roughly 60 cents a pound to break even ; right now they ’ re hemorrhaging money .
It ’ s less likely to happen with cattle because a lot of cattle can stay out in the pasture at lower costs – although in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go to feed lots .
Which leads us to milk .
Milk has fallen in price from roughly 16 to 17 cents , to about 10 cents .
It doesn ’ t matter if truck transport is limited , and milk processors are closed down – the cows still have to be milked .
So what do you do with the milk ?
You pour it out .
On the other hand , there are other things that will go into a real shortage .
It seems certain that farmers will be producing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Meanwhile , consumers are paying more , and trillions of new dollars are being created .
Which means even more distortions will need to be unwound , making the depression deeper and longer .
I don ’ t know how many billions of dollars the government ’ s going to throw at farmers , and some farmers are going to get a lot more of it than others .
The politically well-connected farmers , of course , will get a lot more of that money .
Many won ’ t be able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expensive John Deere tractors , or even fertilizer and seed .
And none of the agricultural commodities are profitable right now .
Look , corn is $ 3 a bushel .
Nobody ’ s making money right now .
Will a bunch of farmers go bankrupt and be unable to plant crops ?
It ’ s entirely possible .
Daily Dispatch : Okay , so that ’ s the commodities ’ side of things .
What about the rest of the economy ?
What ’ s going to happen next ?
All the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bailout this industry and that industry , and that we need to issue these loans and these grants , and everyone ’ s cheering it on .
But what happens next ?
What happens once they ’ ve made all these bailouts , and the economy ’ s still shut down ?
Will they do more ?
And how much worse will that make things ?
Doug Casey : Right .
You and I know that nobody should be bailed out .
But we ’ re an insignificant minority .
The only certainty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ come out of the taxpayers ’ and savers ’ pockets .
Just over the last several years , the top executives have paid themselves scores of millions in salaries and bonuses .
They ’ re not going to give that back to the airlines .
The airlines also bought back about $ 50 billion worth of their own stock in recent years .
Why ?
So that management would look good and their options would be worth a lot more money .
They can ’ t “ un-buy ” that stock .
Another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an inflation-generated stock market bubble .
Anyway , the airlines will cut through their $ 60 billion , or whatever , like a sharp knife through warm butter .
Look , airlines have gone bankrupt scores of times in the last couple of decades alone .
They should just go bankrupt again , punishing foolish investors , not taxpayers and savers .
The airplanes will still exist , and the pilots and the mechanics won ’ t lose their skills overnight .
There will just be a change of management and ownership .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ thing .
The bailouts will create huge new distortions in the economy – on top of not allowing the old ones to be liquidated .
And as you ’ ll recall , that ’ s one of the three definitions that I use for a depression .
The broadest one is it ’ s a period of time when most people ’ s standard of living falls significantly – that ’ s already happening , but it ’ s just started .
We ’ re definitely in a depression , from that point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a time when distortions and misallocations of capital are liquidated .
Well , they ’ re not letting them be liquidated .
That will make the depression even worse when they finally are liquidated .
This is really serious .
This shutdown has created even more distortions , made worse by the government ’ s helicopter money .
I don ’ t see any way out of it , other than completely disengaging the State from the economy .
But there ’ s no way that will happen at this point .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the depression on the virus .
The virus itself is basically a manufactured scam .
Globally , about 400,000 people die from the common seasonal flu each year .
And I doubt that the virus will even get that high – it ’ s just over 300,000 globally now , even though the numbers are being inflated for political reasons .
It ’ s a manufactured hysteria .
The biggest one since the witch hysteria of the 17th century .
It ’ s a convenient excuse for the collapse of the economy .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of all the distortions caused by the State .
But now , they can blame it on the virus .
Now they can say it ’ s really nobody ’ s fault .
It ’ s not the fault of the government .
It ’ s not the fault of the Federal Reserve .
It ’ s just an act of God that came out of nowhere .
So this is perfect for the government .
If I was them , I would look at this thing as manna from heaven .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s ever happened to them .
Not to mention an excuse for a vast increase in State power .
It ’ s better than 9/11 , global warming , and the 2008 financial crisis combined .
Daily Dispatch : So you still say that this virus is no more harmful than many other viruses throughout recent history .
It ’ s just that this time , governments and central banks have seized the opportunity to cover up the terrible economic mess they ’ ve created ?
Doug Casey : There have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ humanity through the ages .
Some are worse than others .
If you want to see a serious influenza episode , go back to 1918-1919 with the Spanish flu .
That was when about 650,000 Americans died , which would be like 1.8 million dying today .
That would be serious .
But still , there wasn ’ t a recession because of it in 1919 .
Life went on .
There was a recession a couple of years later , but that had nothing to do with the flu .
That had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Spanish Flu hit mostly people in the prime of life .
Covid-19 overwhelmingly attacks the elderly , the obese , and the sick .
The current shutdown , and the resulting hysteria , is entirely unnecessary .
Relative to a serious thing like the Spanish flu it ’ s totally trivial – just a severe seasonal flu .
It ’ s completely insane .
Daily Dispatch : Thanks for your time today , Doug .

Via Casey Research
Editor’s note: Regular readers know our founder, Doug Casey, has warned that a Greater Depression is on the horizon. And while it might be easy to blame any economic crisis on the coronavirus pandemic, Doug is convinced that there are other culprits.
In part one of the latest Conversations With Casey, Doug explains why the virus is just a “manufactured scam”… and how the Deep State will use it to avoid any responsibility for the coming collapse…
Plus, he shares his insights on the action in commodities… including why oil prices recently went negative.
Read on below for Doug’s thoughts… and don’t miss part two of this conversation next week…
Daily Dispatch: Doug, one of the biggest stories this year, perhaps for many years, is what happened to the oil price last month. It went to minus $40 a barrel. Have you ever seen anything like that before? Is there anything that compares to this?
Doug Casey: I trade hog futures. Maybe 20 years ago the price of hogs went to a negative number. You wouldn’t think that was possible, would you?
I mean, a perfectly good hog. How could it be worth less than nothing? It seems as metaphysically impossible as negative interest rates. And it would be impossible in a simpler world, say on a family farm with a few hogs that got the table scraps as a diet supplement. But we’re talking about production on an industrial scale.
It could happen again. Those hogs have to be fed with tons of corn and soy meal every day. But what if an economic collapse makes them unaffordable? What if a month-long truckers’ strike makes them impossible to ship? What are you supposed to do if they have no current value, but they cost you a fortune to maintain? Should you keep feeding them as it gets worse and worse? It’s a similar thing with oil.
The big problem is storage. There are several reasons for this. First, the Saudis and the Russians were fighting for market share, and so they decided to see who’d be the last one standing in a knife fight. They’re the second- and third-biggest producers in the world, and both governments – especially the Saudis – rely on oil income.
They both need as much of the 80 million barrel-per-day market as they can get. But what happens when the demand falls overnight by a third? And the Nigerians, the Angolans, the Iranians, and a bunch of others are in the same situation. The supply side becomes a big problem.
The second thing, obviously related, is this ridiculous hysteria about the coronavirus. It has cut oil usage and it’s not going to bounce back overnight. Especially as the Greater Depression deepens.
That’s a big problem, because when you have an industrial-size operation, you can’t close it down overnight for lots of reasons: technical, financial, and personnel.
For instance, in the case of the US, most of the production is from shale. It’s from horizontal drilling and fracking. All of the shale oil companies are deeply in debt. They can’t stop production, even though it’s unprofitable for them at under $30 a barrel.
At least if they can peddle the oil at $20, or at any price, they’re getting some cashflow. If they stopped producing, they have zero cashflow, but most expenses remain. It puts them between a rock and a hard place.
The reason it went to negative numbers is all this oil is still being produced. It’s a Sorcerer’s Apprentice situation. They can’t stop it easily, and it needs to be stored – which also costs money. Even disregarding the financial and personnel part of the equation, they don’t want to stop producing for technical reasons.
It’s like if you put a car up on blocks for the winter. When you get back in the spring, you might find that you’ve got birds roosting under the hood and your gasoline has gone bad.
Where are they going to put all this oil? They’ve filled all the tanks, they’ve filled all the tankers, the pipelines are full of it, and it’s still being produced. The daily cost for use of a VLCC supertanker, to store it, is now around $150,000 a day, up from $5,000 a few years ago. It’s actually very interesting. The price of tankers is more volatile than that of oil itself.
Daily Dispatch: Do exchange-traded funds and other financial engineering play some part in this? I’ve seen elsewhere that the US Oil Fund (USO) ETF has to roll its futures contracts each month, and it always does so either one or two days prior to expiry. It means that something like 100 million barrels of oil in those contracts are on the line.
I bring this up because we’ve seen ETFs causing problems at other times. A couple of years ago, there was the Short VIX ETF that suddenly went from $100 to zero overnight. It was an ETF betting against volatility when there was no volatility in the market. So when volatility came out of nowhere, it went to zero. Do you have a take on how this and other kinds of financial engineering has an effect on markets and prices?
Doug Casey: The problem with many ETFs is that they don’t own the physical commodity, they own futures contracts. Futures contracts are financial instruments, subject to different influences than the bulk commodity itself. The whole country is now built on financial engineering. Something like 20% of the market is financial stocks. I don’t know what it “should” be, but a lot less in an economy geared around production, as opposed to paper shuffling.
It’s actually rather ridiculous. The action, and the big money, is now in finance, where people are just trading paper with each other – “Hello, New York, buy. Hello, Chicago, buy. Hello, Los Angeles, sell – New York and Chicago are buying.”
It’s mainly the fault of a fractional reserve banking system and the Federal Reserve. The whole US economy is over-financialized, because the dollar is now nothing but a trading sardine. In fact, the whole country now depends on the Federal Reserve – an institution which should never have been created, and should be abolished. They’re creating trillions of new dollars to bail out a myriad of failing entities, including the US Government itself.
I play poker. Sometimes in a game a losing player “goes on tilt,” which is to say they start acting irrationally, trying to get out even by making crazy bets because they’re so far behind. The US Government is on tilt.
And of course, the main winners are going to be the Deep State guys, as usual. They’ll be first in line to get their share of the trillions, long before some table scraps filter down to the little people in the hinterlands.
Among the big winners will be professional scam artists and assorted other criminals. They’re quick on their feet, and with all these trillions being thrown around willy-nilly in a matter of weeks, they’ll figure out how to steal scores of billions outright. You can’t possibly know where you’re going to put trillions of new dollars in such a short time. I’m sure that there are going to be many new Nigerian billionaires in a couple of months.
Daily Dispatch: Just getting back to commodities for a moment. Could the situation with oil happen with other commodities? Could it happen with cattle, beef, corn, and all sorts of other commodities? If people are consuming less, they’re eating out less, and they’re buying fewer clothes. Won’t that affect other commodities?
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Doug Casey: It could, despite the fact commodities are close to all-time lows in real terms. But, as I’ve explained numerous times before, lower commodity prices are probably the longest trend in financial history.
Remember, one of the three definitions I use of a depression is a time when serious distortions in an economy are unwound and liquidated. The long-term distortion here is that debt and inflation have made people think, and act, like they’re richer than they really are. So instead of eating beef, many will move down to pork, and from pork to chicken, and chicken to beans, and beans to dumpster diving.
Speaking of chickens, people used to trade broiler chickens. If they still traded broiler chickens, they’d be a good bet for a price collapse because the breeding cycle for birds is so short. Furthermore, the birds are put in banks of tens of thousands together. If the distribution chain breaks down at any point, you’ve got a huge problem.
It’s the same problems with hogs, and it could still happen there. US hog producers need to get roughly 60 cents a pound to break even; right now they’re hemorrhaging money. It’s less likely to happen with cattle because a lot of cattle can stay out in the pasture at lower costs – although in the final months of their lives they go to feed lots.
Which leads us to milk. Milk has fallen in price from roughly 16 to 17 cents, to about 10 cents. It doesn’t matter if truck transport is limited, and milk processors are closed down – the cows still have to be milked. So what do you do with the milk? You pour it out.
On the other hand, there are other things that will go into a real shortage. It seems certain that farmers will be producing less and earning a lot less. Meanwhile, consumers are paying more, and trillions of new dollars are being created. Which means even more distortions will need to be unwound, making the depression deeper and longer.
I don’t know how many billions of dollars the government’s going to throw at farmers, and some farmers are going to get a lot more of it than others. The politically well-connected farmers, of course, will get a lot more of that money.
Many won’t be able to keep up the payments on their very expensive John Deere tractors, or even fertilizer and seed. And none of the agricultural commodities are profitable right now. Look, corn is $3 a bushel. Nobody’s making money right now. Will a bunch of farmers go bankrupt and be unable to plant crops? It’s entirely possible.
Daily Dispatch: Okay, so that’s the commodities’ side of things. What about the rest of the economy? What’s going to happen next? All the mainstream TV commentators say we need to bailout this industry and that industry, and that we need to issue these loans and these grants, and everyone’s cheering it on.
But what happens next? What happens once they’ve made all these bailouts, and the economy’s still shut down? Will they do more? And how much worse will that make things?
Doug Casey: Right. You and I know that nobody should be bailed out. But we’re an insignificant minority.
The only certainty is that the money will have to come out of the taxpayers’ and savers’ pockets. Just over the last several years, the top executives have paid themselves scores of millions in salaries and bonuses. They’re not going to give that back to the airlines. The airlines also bought back about $50 billion worth of their own stock in recent years. Why? So that management would look good and their options would be worth a lot more money. They can’t “un-buy” that stock. Another way the rich have gotten richer during an inflation-generated stock market bubble.
Anyway, the airlines will cut through their $60 billion, or whatever, like a sharp knife through warm butter.
Look, airlines have gone bankrupt scores of times in the last couple of decades alone. They should just go bankrupt again, punishing foolish investors, not taxpayers and savers. The airplanes will still exist, and the pilots and the mechanics won’t lose their skills overnight. There will just be a change of management and ownership. That’s likely a very good thing.
The bailouts will create huge new distortions in the economy – on top of not allowing the old ones to be liquidated. And as you’ll recall, that’s one of the three definitions that I use for a depression.
The broadest one is it’s a period of time when most people’s standard of living falls significantly – that’s already happening, but it’s just started. We’re definitely in a depression, from that point of view.
A depression is also a time when distortions and misallocations of capital are liquidated. Well, they’re not letting them be liquidated. That will make the depression even worse when they finally are liquidated. This is really serious. This shutdown has created even more distortions, made worse by the government’s helicopter money.
I don’t see any way out of it, other than completely disengaging the State from the economy. But there’s no way that will happen at this point. The problem is greatly aggravated by everybody blaming the depression on the virus. The virus itself is basically a manufactured scam.
Globally, about 400,000 people die from the common seasonal flu each year. And I doubt that the virus will even get that high – it’s just over 300,000 globally now, even though the numbers are being inflated for political reasons. It’s a manufactured hysteria. The biggest one since the witch hysteria of the 17th century.
It’s a convenient excuse for the collapse of the economy. The economy would have collapsed anyway, because of all the distortions caused by the State. But now, they can blame it on the virus. Now they can say it’s really nobody’s fault. It’s not the fault of the government. It’s not the fault of the Federal Reserve. It’s just an act of God that came out of nowhere.
So this is perfect for the government. If I was them, I would look at this thing as manna from heaven. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to them. Not to mention an excuse for a vast increase in State power. It’s better than 9/11, global warming, and the 2008 financial crisis combined.
Daily Dispatch: So you still say that this virus is no more harmful than many other viruses throughout recent history. It’s just that this time, governments and central banks have seized the opportunity to cover up the terrible economic mess they’ve created?
Doug Casey: There have been thousands of viruses that have cycled through humanity through the ages. Some are worse than others. If you want to see a serious influenza episode, go back to 1918-1919 with the Spanish flu.
That was when about 650,000 Americans died, which would be like 1.8 million dying today. That would be serious. But still, there wasn’t a recession because of it in 1919. Life went on. There was a recession a couple of years later, but that had nothing to do with the flu. That had already come and gone. Furthermore, the Spanish Flu hit mostly people in the prime of life. Covid-19 overwhelmingly attacks the elderly, the obese, and the sick.
The current shutdown, and the resulting hysteria, is entirely unnecessary. Relative to a serious thing like the Spanish flu it’s totally trivial – just a severe seasonal flu. It’s completely insane.
Daily Dispatch: Thanks for your time today, Doug.
Doug Casey: You’re welcome.


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough Has COMPLETELY Lost It! Watch His Childish Meltdown Live on the Air!

Mark Finklestein from NewsBusters reports , Rarely does a day go by without Morning Joe averring some variation on the @ @ @ @ @ not “ well.
” But perhaps the time has come for Joe Scarborough himself to @ @ @ @ @ the mirror .

Mark Finklestein from NewsBusters reports, Rarely does a day go by without Morning Joe averring some variation on the notion that President Trump is not “well.” But perhaps the time has come for Joe Scarborough himself to take a hard look in the mirror.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Read More/Source/Credit/FairUse:
www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/…


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--If one didn’t know better, it’s almost like this is a conspiracy to destroy the economy..

They have moved the goal so many times who can keep up .
It seems like the goal is just @ @ @ @ @ costs .

by Playaguy
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
They have moved the goal so many times who can keep up. It seems like the goal is just to stay closed at all costs.


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Vladimir Putin on Russian state television responds to President Trump’s ‘Super Duper Missile’ comme

Vladimir Putin on Russian state television responds to President Trump’s ‘Super Duper Missile’ comment

Putin claims that Russia possesses unique types of weapons that no other country has .
Kremlin-controlled Russian state media translates @ @ @ @ @ his “ super-duper missile ” as “ super-pooper , ” compares his rhetoric to that @ @ @ @ @ about computer games .
”

Putin claims that Russia possesses unique types of weapons that no other country has. Kremlin-controlled Russian state media translates Trump’s bragging about his “super-duper missile” as “super-pooper,” compares his rhetoric to that of a “schoolboy raving about computer games.”
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Putin claims that Russia possesses unique types of weapons that no other country has. Kremlin-controlled Russian state media translates Trump's bragging about his "super-duper missile" as "super-pooper," compares his rhetoric to that of a "schoolboy raving about computer games." pic.twitter.com/immFnDLESA — Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) May 16, 2020
AC


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Collateral damage: “Staggering number” of extra deaths in UK community not explained by Wuhan virus

As if no one could have predicted this… The BMJ ( a peer-reviewed medical journal , formerly known as the British Medical Journal ) published an article this week entitled , “ Covid-19 : “ Staggering number ” of extra deaths in community is not explained by covid-19.
” The articles findings include the following : “ Only a third of the excess deaths seen in the community in England and Wales can be explained by covid-19 , new data have shown .
The Office for National Statistics ( ONS ) data , which cover deaths in hospitals , care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and elsewhere , show that 6035 people died as a result of suspected or confirmed covid-19 infection in England and Wales in the week ending 1 May 2020 ( where deaths were registered up to 9 May ) , a decline of 2202 from the previous week .
Although the number of deaths in care homes has fallen for the second week in a row , more covid related deaths are being reported in care homes than in hospitals and are tailing off more slowly .
However , David Spiegelhalter , chair of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Communication at the University of Cambridge , said that covid-19 did not explain the high number of deaths taking place in the community .
At a briefing hosted by the Science Media Centre on 12 May he explained that , over the past five weeks , care homes and other community settings had had to deal with a “ staggering burden ” of 30 000 more deaths than would normally be expected , as patients were moved out of hospitals that were anticipating high demand for beds .
Of those 30 000 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the death certificate .
While Spiegelhalter acknowledged that some of these “ excess deaths ” might be the result of underdiagnosis , “ the huge number of unexplained extra deaths in homes and care homes is extraordinary .
When we look back .
.
.
this rise in non-covid extra deaths outside the hospital is something I hope will be given really severe attention.
” He added that many of these deaths would be among people “ who may well have lived longer if they had managed to get to hospital.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thing everyone around the world shutdown their economies and healthcare systems in such a panic .
All in order to “ save just one life .
”

by
As if no one could have predicted this…
The BMJ (a peer-reviewed medical journal, formerly known as the British Medical Journal) published an article this week entitled, “Covid-19: “Staggering number” of extra deaths in community is not explained by covid-19.”
The articles findings include the following:
“Only a third of the excess deaths seen in the community in England and Wales can be explained by covid-19, new data have shown.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) data, which cover deaths in hospitals, care homes, private homes, hospices, and elsewhere, show that 6035 people died as a result of suspected or confirmed covid-19 infection in England and Wales in the week ending 1 May 2020 (where deaths were registered up to 9 May), a decline of 2202 from the previous week.
Although the number of deaths in care homes has fallen for the second week in a row, more covid related deaths are being reported in care homes than in hospitals and are tailing off more slowly.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
However, David Spiegelhalter, chair of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication at the University of Cambridge, said that covid-19 did not explain the high number of deaths taking place in the community.
At a briefing hosted by the Science Media Centre on 12 May he explained that, over the past five weeks, care homes and other community settings had had to deal with a “staggering burden” of 30 000 more deaths than would normally be expected, as patients were moved out of hospitals that were anticipating high demand for beds.
Of those 30 000, only 10 000 have had covid-19 specified on the death certificate. While Spiegelhalter acknowledged that some of these “excess deaths” might be the result of underdiagnosis, “the huge number of unexplained extra deaths in homes and care homes is extraordinary. When we look back . . . this rise in non-covid extra deaths outside the hospital is something I hope will be given really severe attention.”
He added that many of these deaths would be among people “who may well have lived longer if they had managed to get to hospital.”
Read the whole article here.
Good thing everyone around the world shutdown their economies and healthcare systems in such a panic. All in order to “save just one life.”
DCG


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Twitter Removes Trump Retweet About Tech Censorship

The jokes just write themselves !

by nyctob0t
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
The jokes just write themselves!


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Tell us again why we should give the Pentagon another trillion or two.

Pentagon : “ The United States would be defeated in a sea war with China and would struggle to stop @ @ @ @ @ Mike @ Doranimated · 21m “ The United States would be defeated in a sea @ @ @ @ @ struggle to stop an invasion of Taiwan , according to a series of “ eye-opening @ @ @ @ @ Pentagon .
”

Pentagon: “The United States would be defeated in a sea war with China and would struggle to stop an invasion of Taiwan”
SMH
Mike
@Doranimated
·
21m
“The United States would be defeated in a sea war with China and would struggle to stop an invasion of Taiwan, according to a series of “eye-opening” war games by the Pentagon.”
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
www.thetimes.co.uk/article/us-would-lose-any-war-fought-in-the-pacific-with-china-7j90bjs5b
h/t Builder


INDICTMENTS INBOUND!

Reps. Scalise and Collins : It was a coup and indictments are coming t.co/BJqSsQ1j2Q

#TheSaraCarterShow
Reps. Scalise and Collins: It was a coup and indictments are coming t.co/BJqSsQ1j2Q
— Sara A. Carter (@SaraCarterDC) May 16, 2020


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--Large Data Leak From China Shows True Picture of 640,000 Chinese Infected With Covid

But it tracks some 640,000 COVID-19 cases across the country between early February and late April .
It records the map coordinates of hospitals , apartment blocks , hotels , supermarkets , restaurants , schools and places of worship .
The number of cases linked to each location is listed .
As are the numbers of those who had recovered , and those who had died .
Foreign Policy and co-publisher 100Reporters has not yet made the leaked database publicly available .
And 15-page international intelligence dossier given to The Daily Telegraph accuses Beijing of a massive cover-up .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the coronavirus outbreak in an ‘ assault on international transparency ’ that cost tens of thousands of lives , ” The Daily Telegraph reports the Five-Eyes alliance ( Australia , Canada , the UK , US and New Zealand ) dossier as concluding .
“ It states that to the ‘ endangerment of other countries ’ the Chinese government covered-up news of the virus by silencing or ‘ disappearing ’ doctors who spoke out , destroying evidence of it in laboratories and refusing to provide live samples to international scientists who were working @ @ @ @ @ @ @ difference between China and he US , The US didn ’ t cover up their numbers .

It’s not a complete dataset.
But it tracks some 640,000 COVID-19 cases across the country between early February and late April.
It records the map coordinates of hospitals, apartment blocks, hotels, supermarkets, restaurants, schools and places of worship. The number of cases linked to each location is listed. As are the numbers of those who had recovered, and those who had died.
Foreign Policy and co-publisher 100Reporters has not yet made the leaked database publicly available.
And 15-page international intelligence dossier given to The Daily Telegraph accuses Beijing of a massive cover-up.
“China deliberately suppressed or destroyed evidence of the coronavirus outbreak in an ‘assault on international transparency’ that cost tens of thousands of lives,” The Daily Telegraph reports the Five-Eyes alliance (Australia, Canada, the UK, US and New Zealand) dossier as concluding.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
“It states that to the ‘endangerment of other countries’ the Chinese government covered-up news of the virus by silencing or ‘disappearing’ doctors who spoke out, destroying evidence of it in laboratories and refusing to provide live samples to international scientists who were working on a vaccine.”
www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/global/coronavirus-china-leaked-database-could-expose-real-covid19-numbers/news-story/1647278759a45b115c405235e6252420
That is the difference between China and he US, The US didn’t cover up their numbers.
The CCP is a lying scumbag fascist regime.
AC


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--TRUMP signs EO banning importation of goods made, mined, manufactured using slave labor or child lab

TRUMP signs EO banning importation of goods made, mined, manufactured using slave labor or child labor!

EO on the Establishment of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force Under Section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act ECONOMY & JOBS Issued on : May 15 , 2020 NEWS By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America , including section 301 of title 3 , United States Code , and section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act ( Act ) ( Public Law 116-113 ) , it is hereby ordered as follows : Section 1 .
Establishment of Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( Task Force ) is hereby established to monitor United States enforcement of the prohibition under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 ( 19 U.S.C .
1307 ) .
32 Before President Trump left the White House for Camp David yesterday , he enacted into law the most powerful Executive Order ever seen in modern American history called the “ EO on the Establishment of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force Under Section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act ” —that upon being executed by President Trump , put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Code § 1307.Convict-Made Goods ; Importation Prohibited that makes it illegal to bring into the United States : “ All goods , wares , articles , and merchandise mined , produced , or manufactured wholly or in part in any foreign country by convict labor or/and forced labor or/and indentured labor under penal sanctions shall not be entitled to entry at any of the ports of the United States , “ Forced labor ” , as herein used , shall mean all work or service which is exacted from any person under the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily .
For purposes of this section , the term “ forced labor or/and indentured labor ” includes forced or indentured child labor ” .

EXECUTIVE ORDERS EO on the Establishment of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force Under Section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act
ECONOMY & JOBS Issued on: May 15, 2020
NEWS
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 301 of title 3, United States Code, and section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (Act) (Public Law 116-113), it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Establishment of Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force. The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (Task Force) is hereby established to monitor United States enforcement of the prohibition under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307).
www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/eo-establishment-forced-labor-enforcement-task-force-section-741-united-states-mexico-canada-agreement-implementation-act/
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
32 Before President Trump left the White House for Camp David yesterday, he enacted into law the most powerful Executive Order ever seen in modern American history called the “EO on the Establishment of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force Under Section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act”—that upon being executed by President Trump, put into immediate full legal force 19 U.S. Code § 1307.Convict-Made Goods; Importation Prohibited that makes it illegal to bring into the United States: “All goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in any foreign country by convict labor or/and forced labor or/and indentured labor under penal sanctions shall not be entitled to entry at any of the ports of the United States, “Forced labor”, as herein used, shall mean all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty for its nonperformance and for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily. For purposes of this section, the term “forced labor or/and indentured labor” includes forced or indentured child labor”.


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--HOW THE WH KNEW: Comey Briefed Clapper on Flynn-Kislyak Call as a Result of Pen Register on Flynn Ph

HOW THE WH KNEW: Comey Briefed Clapper on Flynn-Kislyak Call as a Result of Pen Register on Flynn Phone…

First things first : ♦Understand Obama ’ s Surveillance Operation HERE .
♦Michael Flynn wasn ’ t under a FISA ( Title-1 ) HERE … .
that ’ s the background .
The riddle of how the White House discovered the telephone call and subsequent content between Michael Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak appears to have been solved .
The FBI used a “ Pen Register.
” There was no unmasking , and no warrant .
A pen register is a device/process which records the telephone numbers of outgoing calls .
Monitoring outgoing call numbers does not require a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2016 election Lt. Gen Flynn was given a government issued secure cell phone ; a blackberry device for use .
However , with Flynn under a preexisting FBI investigation the phone numbers Flynn was calling in December ’ 16 and January ’ 17 were being monitored .
A review of prior testimony by former FBI Director James Comey [ HERE ] ; prior testimony by former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe [ Here ] ; and a cross-reference of recent releases of Flynn unmasking documents [ Here ] tells the full story .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Michael Flynn was under a sketchy FBI Counterintelligence investigation for possible coordination with Russia .
According to recent documents and the Comey transcript , the Flynn investigation began in the summer of 2016 ; that investigation was ongoing in late December .
After President Obama initiated sanctions against Russia on December 29 , 2016 .
The Obama administration was trying to figure out why Russia was not reacting .
According to James Comey testimony the intelligence community , writ large , was tasked to find out why Russia was not reacting more severely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have anything [ redacted ] that might reflect on this ?
” Could pertain to the incoming administration , a person , or an intelligence capability .
However , to identify the “ that “ , we turn to the McCabe testimony ( page 212 ) : The individual or group initiating the task is redacted ; however the redaction ends with the letter “ f ” , so it is most likely “ redacted staff.
” However , the other important facet is the “ had the pen on that response.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that response .
It takes ‘ trap and tracer ’ authority to monitor the ‘ incoming.
’ Ambassador Kislyak was a foreign official whose surveillance would not require a pen register ; however , a warrantless pen register would apply to Michael Flynn .
So the discovery of the contact reflects a review of Flynn ’ s calls ; not just Kislyak ( who can be monitored for any purpose ) .
The FBI discovers the contact via a pen register that was monitoring Flynn ’ s phone .
Then James Comey takes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Back to Comey transcript : At this point it looks like James Comey uses the pen register to generate a non traditional intelligence product ; perhaps a memo or rough draft of the transcript , or the pen register result itself ; which , because of the content , contains Michael Flynn ’ s name .
Clapper then takes the document and uses it to brief President Obama .
This is how President Obama discovers the content of the call between Kislyak and Flynn : The Clapper briefing of President Obama… likely happening @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regular intelligence documentation… is almost certainly the impetus for the unmasking request from President Obama ’ s Chief of Staff Denis McDonough which happened on January 5 , 2017 : The January 5th unmasking request applies to a document about Flynn where Flynn ’ s name is unmasked .
That request is almost certainly the result of the White House receiving the official intelligence transcript of the Flynn-Kislyak call .
We know this because the non-traditional document that Comey gave to Clapper was not masked .
So the question becomes , what exactly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Comey gave to Clapper to brief President Obama ?
For that answer we go back to Andrew McCabe ’ s transcript as he described it ( pg 213 ) : As you can see above McCabe describes the document as a “ summary ” of the call that “ wasn ’ t an intelligence product ” , and any unmasking would be unnecessary because Michael Flynn ’ s name within it was not masked .
That information flow is also why Lisa Page and Peter Strzok were saying “ incidental collection ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their text messages .
There was no unmasking because Flynn ’ s contact with Kislyak was not picked up as part of incidental collection , it was picked up because the FBI was using a pen registry to monitor all of Flynn ’ s contacts : SUMMARY : Flynn was under FBI investigation .
Per the IG report there was no FISA on Michael Flynn .
In the document generated by James Comey to share with DNI James Clapper , … to brief President Obama… Michael Flynn ’ s name was not masked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ result of a pen register monitoring the outgoing contacts and phone numbers of Michael Flynn ’ s phone .
• Flynn ’ s call was the subject of a “ pen registry ” .
• The pen registry identified the specific calls from Flynn to Kislyak .
• An “ agency ” provided the FBI with call content .
• No unmasking , no warrant , no FISA .
That ’ s how the White House got the call without unmasking request .

First things first: ♦Understand Obama’s Surveillance Operation HERE. ♦Michael Flynn wasn’t under a FISA (Title-1) HERE …. that’s the background.
The riddle of how the White House discovered the telephone call and subsequent content between Michael Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak appears to have been solved. The FBI used a “Pen Register.” There was no unmasking, and no warrant.
A pen register is a device/process which records the telephone numbers of outgoing calls. Monitoring outgoing call numbers does not require a search warrant or FISA.
After the 2016 election Lt. Gen Flynn was given a government issued secure cell phone; a blackberry device for use. However, with Flynn under a preexisting FBI investigation the phone numbers Flynn was calling in December ’16 and January ’17 were being monitored.
A review of prior testimony by former FBI Director James Comey [HERE]; prior testimony by former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe [Here]; and a cross-reference of recent releases of Flynn unmasking documents [Here] tells the full story.
In December of 2016 incoming National Security Advisor Michael Flynn was under a sketchy FBI Counterintelligence investigation for possible coordination with Russia. According to recent documents and the Comey transcript, the Flynn investigation began in the summer of 2016; that investigation was ongoing in late December.
After President Obama initiated sanctions against Russia on December 29, 2016. The Obama administration was trying to figure out why Russia was not reacting. According to James Comey testimony the intelligence community, writ large, was tasked to find out why Russia was not reacting more severely. See Transcript:
Note:
…”And so we were all tasked to find out, do you have anything [redacted] that might reflect on this? That turned up these calls at the end of December, beginning of January.”
“do you have anything [redacted] that might reflect on this?” Could pertain to the incoming administration, a person, or an intelligence capability.
However, to identify the “that“, we turn to the McCabe testimony (page 212):
…”in an effort to respond to the tasking from [REDACTED], and so the results of what we found were communicated to the Agency, who I think had the pen on that response.”
The individual or group initiating the task is redacted; however the redaction ends with the letter “f”, so it is most likely “redacted staff.”
Tasking from: NSC staff? NCTC staff? White House staff?
However, the other important facet is the “had the pen on that response.” Meaning had the pen register responsibility on that response.
Pen Registers only monitor ‘outgoing‘ numbers.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
It takes ‘trap and tracer’ authority to monitor the ‘incoming.’ Ambassador Kislyak was a foreign official whose surveillance would not require a pen register; however, a warrantless pen register would apply to Michael Flynn. So the discovery of the contact reflects a review of Flynn’s calls; not just Kislyak (who can be monitored for any purpose).
The FBI discovers the contact via a pen register that was monitoring Flynn’s phone. Then James Comey takes the information to DNI James Clapper. Back to Comey transcript:
“And then I briefed it to the Director of National Intelligence, and Director Clapper asked me for copies [REDACTED] which I shared with him.”…
At this point it looks like James Comey uses the pen register to generate a non traditional intelligence product; perhaps a memo or rough draft of the transcript, or the pen register result itself; which, because of the content, contains Michael Flynn’s name.
Director Comey then shares with DNI Clapper.
Clapper then takes the document and uses it to brief President Obama. This is how President Obama discovers the content of the call between Kislyak and Flynn:
The Clapper briefing of President Obama… likely happening prior to January 5th… using some non regular intelligence documentation… is almost certainly the impetus for the unmasking request from President Obama’s Chief of Staff Denis McDonough which happened on January 5, 2017:
The January 5th unmasking request applies to a document about Flynn where Flynn’s name is unmasked. That request is almost certainly the result of the White House receiving the official intelligence transcript of the Flynn-Kislyak call. We know this because the non-traditional document that Comey gave to Clapper was not masked.
So the question becomes, what exactly was that ‘non-traditional’ intelligence document that Comey gave to Clapper to brief President Obama?
For that answer we go back to Andrew McCabe’s transcript as he described it (pg 213):
As you can see above McCabe describes the document as a “summary” of the call that “wasn’t an intelligence product”, and any unmasking would be unnecessary because Michael Flynn’s name within it was not masked.
That information flow is also why Lisa Page and Peter Strzok were saying “incidental collection” is the “incorrect narrative” in their text messages. There was no unmasking because Flynn’s contact with Kislyak was not picked up as part of incidental collection, it was picked up because the FBI was using a pen registry to monitor all of Flynn’s contacts:
SUMMARY: Flynn was under FBI investigation. Per the IG report there was no FISA on Michael Flynn. In the document generated by James Comey to share with DNI James Clapper,… to brief President Obama… Michael Flynn’s name was not masked. The document was generated as a result of a pen register monitoring the outgoing contacts and phone numbers of Michael Flynn’s phone.
Flynn’s call was the subject of a “pen registry”.
Flynn’s device was government issued.
Flynn’s “outgoing” calls monitored without warrant.
Kislyak’s number was known.
The pen registry identified the specific calls from Flynn to Kislyak.
An “agency” provided the FBI with call content.
Comey provided call content (w/ a document) to James Clapper.
Clapper shared with White House during briefing.
No unmasking, no warrant, no FISA.
That’s how the White House got the call without unmasking request.


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--DOJ to Hit Google w/Antitrust Case in the Summer—GOOD!

Both the Justice Department and a group of state attorneys general are likely to file antitrust lawsuits against Alphabet Inc. ’ s Google—and are well into planning for litigation , according to people familiar with the matter .
The Justice Department is moving toward bringing a case as soon as this summer , some of the people said .
At least some state attorneys general—led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton , a Republican—are likely to file a case , probably in the fall , people familiar with the matter said .
Much of the states ’ investigation has focused @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The company owns the dominant tool at every link in the complex chain between online publishers and advertisers .
The Justice Department likewise is making Google ’ s ad technology one of its points of emphasis .
But it is also focusing more broadly on concerns that Google uses its dominant search business to stifle competition , people familiar with the matter said .
Though the coronavirus pandemic has complicated work for the Justice Department , Attorney General William Barr has devoted considerable resources to the Google probe and continues to treat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barr told The Wall Street Journal in March that he wanted the Justice Department to make a final call this summer .
Google controls 80 % of search .
That means it controls what the internet looks like .
And it ’ s continuing to erase conservatives from the internet .
I ’ m just the latest victim .
Its censorship and creepy surveillance have reached new heights during the pandemic .
It needs to be stopped .
Google is extremely vulnerable to anti-trust litigation on paper .
The DOJ is going after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ business , which is also the root of its violations .
But Google is also a massively wealthy company and has deep networks and pockets .
And the DOJ track record for bringing Big Tech to heel over these matters is very poor over the decades .
This will be a major test .
Red state AG ’ s and the DOJ are going to try and hit Google with both barrels .
Win or lose , it ’ ll be a long struggle .
But the future of free speech is at @ @

Both the Justice Department and a group of state attorneys general are likely to file antitrust lawsuits against Alphabet Inc.’s Google—and are well into planning for litigation, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Justice Department is moving toward bringing a case as soon as this summer, some of the people said. At least some state attorneys general—led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican—are likely to file a case, probably in the fall, people familiar with the matter said.
Much of the states’ investigation has focused on Google’s online advertising business. The company owns the dominant tool at every link in the complex chain between online publishers and advertisers. The Justice Department likewise is making Google’s ad technology one of its points of emphasis. But it is also focusing more broadly on concerns that Google uses its dominant search business to stifle competition, people familiar with the matter said.
Though the coronavirus pandemic has complicated work for the Justice Department, Attorney General William Barr has devoted considerable resources to the Google probe and continues to treat it as a top priority. Mr. Barr told The Wall Street Journal in March that he wanted the Justice Department to make a final call this summer.
___________________
This is a major priority.
Google controls 80% of search. That means it controls what the internet looks like. And it’s continuing to erase conservatives from the internet. I’m just the latest victim. Its censorship and creepy surveillance have reached new heights during the pandemic.
It needs to be stopped.
Google is extremely vulnerable to anti-trust litigation on paper. The DOJ is going after DoubleClick, the root of its ad business, which is also the root of its violations. But Google is also a massively wealthy company and has deep networks and pockets. And the DOJ track record for bringing Big Tech to heel over these matters is very poor over the decades. This will be a major test.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Red state AG’s and the DOJ are going to try and hit Google with both barrels. Win or lose, it’ll be a long struggle.
But the future of free speech is at stake.
www.frontpagemag.com/point/2020/05/doj-hit-google-wantitrust-case-summer-daniel-greenfield/
More on this—
www.wsj.com/articles/justice-department-state-attorneys-general-likely-to-bring-antitrust-lawsuits-against-google-11589573622
www.politico.com/news/2020/05/15/google-anti-trust-justice-261434
www.cnbc.com/2020/05/15/doj-and-state-ags-likely-to-file-antitrust-lawsuit-against-google-wsj.html
h/t 1guynAz


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-17--FOX: “Cafe tells customers to wear pool noodles to enforce social distancing” (Image)

( CNN ) — A cafe in Germany has celebrated its grand reopening to customers after lockdown by handing out @ @ @ @ @ distancing .
Last Saturday the owners of the Cafe Rothe in Schwerin — a town @ @ @ @ @ ’ s home state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania — were allowed to reopen their doors to @ @ @ @ @ lifted .
While people enjoyed the company and the weather , the motto at the @ @ @ @ @ the social distance .
”

Image at the link:
fox8.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2020/05/hypatia-h_b83921d0eca7b6fddfef0349cf154317-h_413c2a2138afca7e48372095696d4839.jpg?resize=1040,1386
(CNN) — A cafe in Germany has celebrated its grand reopening to customers after lockdown by handing out pool noodles to maintain social distancing.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Last Saturday the owners of the Cafe Rothe in Schwerin — a town in German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s home state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania — were allowed to reopen their doors to visitors after coronavirus restrictions were lifted.
While people enjoyed the company and the weather, the motto at the cafe was: “Keep the social distance.”
fox8.com/news/coronavirus/cafe-tells-customers-to-wear-pool-noodles-to-enforce-social-distancing/


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--China Threatens GOP Lawmakers – Their Responses Are Perfect!

Leah Barkoukis from Townhall reports , Republican-led efforts to hold China accountable for the spread of the Wuhan CV are @ @ @ @ @ communist regime .
State-run media reported Thursday that Republican lawmakers will “ face severe consequences @ @ @ @ @ China , pursuing lawsuits , and pushing “ anti-China ” legislation .

Leah Barkoukis from Townhall reports, Republican-led efforts to hold China accountable for the spread of the Wuhan CV are being watched closely by the communist regime. State-run media reported Thursday that Republican lawmakers will “face severe consequences” for speaking out against China, pursuing lawsuits, and pushing “anti-China” legislation.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Read More/Source/Credit/FairUse:
townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbar…


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--REAL Economic Data Reveals Collapse SYSTEMIC as Financial System Buckles Under Pressure

As expected , worst sales data came through .
Factory data also plummeted .
The Fed is now concerned about @ @ @ @ @ is present and could easily set off a new 1930 ’ s breakdown .
The @ @ @ @ @ the debt has added up to levels never seen in history .
But nobody really @ @ @ @ @ is so trendy these days .
Well , i ’ m glad… U.S .
Factory @ @ @ @ @ Records to 1919 – Bloomberg

As expected, worst sales data came through. Factory data also plummeted. The Fed is now concerned about the major downward trend that is present and could easily set off a new 1930’s breakdown. The deficit spending is historic and the debt has added up to levels never seen in history. But nobody really cares anyway since ignoring reality is so trendy these days. Well, i’m glad…
US retail sales plunge a record 16.4% in April 2020
www.cnbc.com/2020/05/15/us-retail-sales-april-2020.html
106539060-1589546289435-20200515_retail_sales_april_2020.png (740×451)
image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/106539060-1589546289435-20200515_retail_sales_april_2020.png?v=1589546300&w=740&h=451
106539105-1589547224663-20200515_retail_sales_april_2020_by_category.png (740×416)
image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/106539105-1589547224663-20200515_retail_sales_april_2020_by_category.png?v=1589547234&w=740&h=416
U.S. Factory Production Plummets by Most in Records to 1919 – Bloomberg
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-15/u-s-factory-production-plummets-by-most-in-records-to-1919
One-Quarter of American Restaurants Won’t Reopen, OpenTable Says – Bloomberg
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-14/one-quarter-of-american-restaurants-won-t-reopen-opentable-says
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
JCPenney Paid Top Execs Huge Bonuses Before Edging Toward Bankruptcy | Observer
observer.com/2020/05/jcpenney-pay-exec-bonus-amid-filing-bankruptcy-coronavirus-layoff/
2020-05-15.png (919×762)
www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2020-05-15.png?itok=Tu1hTXGX
bfmE595_0.jpg (955×554)
www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/bfmE595_0.jpg?itok=Ot5a9hma
Cass Transportation Index Report | April 2020 | Cass Information Systems
www.cassinfo.com/freight-audit-payment/cass-transportation-indexes/april-2020
‘Stealth Bailout’ Shovels Millions of Dollars to Oil Companies
www.bloombergquint.com/politics/-stealth-bailout-shovels-millions-of-dollars-to-oil-companies


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--YOU’VE BEEN LIED TO ABOUT THE DEATH TOLL Biden says “MILLIONS” Dead!

On Thursday afternoon Biden held a “ virtual roundtable ” despite what seems a past half-year of his team finding @ @ @ @ @ him away from interacting with the public , given the number of times things go @ @ @ @ @ embarrassment .
Actually if you listen carefully he first says “ billions ” of people @ @ @ @ @ to “ millions ” .

On Thursday afternoon Biden held a “virtual roundtable” despite what seems a past half-year of his team finding any excuse possible to keep him away from interacting with the public, given the number of times things go horribly wrong into hilarity and embarrassment.
Biden struggles badly during "virtual roundtable" as gaffes continue to pile up t.co/qbQHpvOj0Q pic.twitter.com/df27XS4yXS — Disrn (@DisrnNews) May 14, 2020
Actually if you listen carefully he first says “billions” of people died, but then changes to “millions”.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
h/t Natura Naturans


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Forget Global Warming, Global Cooling Coming to a Planet Near YOU

Global Cooling !
!
Low Solar Activity To Cause Temperatures To Plummet , Say Scientists The Sun is entering a @ @ @ @ @ ” that could cause temperatures to plummet by up to 2C over 20 years and @ @ @ @ @ according to experts .
Solar activity has entered a deep decline with scientists saying there @ @ @ @ @ this year where the sun has displayed zero sunspots .
NASA boffins say this means @ @ @ @ @ about to experience a new “ Dalton Minimum , ” the period between 1790 and @ @ @ @ @ severe prolonged cold snap and massive volcanic eruptions .
“ This means were could be @ @ @ @ @ period of sunshine recession which could trigger long periods of cold , famine and other @ @ @ @ @ Daily Star .
The Sun has now recorded two consecutive years of record setting spotlessness @ @ @ @ @ of the time in 2019 and 76 % of the time so far this year @ @ @ @ @ solar minimum is coming which will cause temperatures to drop drastically .

Global Cooling!! Low Solar Activity To Cause Temperatures To Plummet, Say Scientists
Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Summit News,
The Sun is entering a period of “solar minimum” that could cause temperatures to plummet by up to 2C over 20 years and trigger a global famine, according to experts.
Solar activity has entered a deep decline with scientists saying there have already been 100 days this year where the sun has displayed zero sunspots.
NASA boffins say this means that the earth could be about to experience a new “Dalton Minimum,” the period between 1790 and 1830 which led to a severe prolonged cold snap and massive volcanic eruptions.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
“This means were could be entering one of the deepest period of sunshine recession which could trigger long periods of cold, famine and other issues,” reports the Daily Star.
The Sun has now recorded two consecutive years of record setting spotlessness, being blank 77% of the time in 2019 and 76% of the time so far this year.
This means a deep solar minimum is coming which will cause temperatures to drop drastically.
www.zerohedge.com/health/global-…scientists


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Meet LA COUNTY HEALTH DIRECTOR, Wraith Queen of Lockdowns

She explains how LA has managed to allow the virus to kill over 51 % of victims in “ institutional @ @ @ @ @ that removes a big part of LA ’ s budget for taking care of the @ @ @ @ @ her lockdowns did for all those dead nursing home patients .

She explains how LA has managed to allow the virus to kill over 51% of victims in “institutional settings”
Well, guess that removes a big part of LA’s budget for taking care of the elderly.
Lot of good her lockdowns did for all those dead nursing home patients.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
abc7.com/los-angeles-county-covi…s/6183073/
h/t Natura Naturans


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--The US Needs to Cut Ties With China, Says Gordon Chang

FS Insider recently spoke with Gordon Chang on the emerging tech war between the U.S. and China .
Gordon explained what key areas the U.S. is falling behind in and shared his take on the coronavirus and what role he believes China may have played .
Read below for excerpts from his interview on FS Insider .
If you ’ re not already a subscriber , click here .
For audio , see Gordon Chang on the Great US-China Tech War .
You ’ ve written that the U.S. and China are locked in a cold tech war , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 21st century .
In which areas do you see America falling behind ?
We ’ re behind in two areas in particular .
One of them is 5G , the fifth generation of wireless communications .
China ’ s Huawei Technologies is wiring much of the world— we don ’ t have an American company that provides a comprehensive solution .
That ’ s not to say that we ’ re not in 5G because there is Qualcomm which makes chips and Cisco is getting in there as well .
But by and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the dust .
We ’ ve got to remember why this is important .
This is the internet of things , almost every device is going to be connected to them , which means that China will be able to filter a lot of data which will feed into its artificial intelligence systems .
It also gives them the capability of remotely manipulating the devices of tomorrow .
The second area where we ’ re far behind is quantum communications .
Beijing has figured out how to use this ‘ spooky phenomena , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of particles at great distances moving in tandem .
They ’ ve already got communication satellites .
They ’ ve got quantum communications on the ground between Beijing and Shanghai .
They ’ re at least five years ahead of us .
So this provides them with unhackable communications .
And that means they ’ ve got a big leg up on us .
Don ’ t miss How the Coronavirus May Accelerate the Use of Blockchain and AI .
Stay ahead of the news !
Subscribe to our premium weekday podcast How @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lead in a number of these technologies ?
Is it just by funneling a ton of money into each of them ?
What are some of the methods that they ’ re using ?
Well , yeah , it certainly is .
I mean , China ’ s leaders , and this goes back before Xi Jinping , they ’ ve identified technology as an area of focus .
And so , Xi Jinping , in addition to the 13th and now the 14th five-year plan , he has the Made in China @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 10 areas where Beijing should be dominant at the end of that 2025 period .
They ’ ve now expanded the number of areas .
They just think of technology all the time .
So , for instance think of Xi Jinping ’ s Belt and Road initiative announced in 2013 .
The goal was to connect China with the rest of the world just by infrastructure .
Well , this is more than just ports or airports .
In 2017 , Xi Jinping announced his digital Silk Road initiative , which complements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they ’ re always thinking about technology .
They ’ re always thinking about how they can steal it .
They can think about how they can develop it , but we ’ ve got to remember one thing in terms of how government can influence progress in a country .
Remember , the U.S. was way behind the Soviets in space .
The Soviets put the first Satellite Sputnik in orbit .
They had the first human in space .
They had the first spacewalk .
But there was a guy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no , the U.S. is going to get to the moon first .
He went to Rice University and said , we ’ re going to the moon .
We ’ re going to the moon because it ’ s important .
And he was able to marshal the resources of the federal government and of the private sector .
We got to the moon and we got to remember that no other country has left the Earth ’ s orbit .
But the Chinese have learned that lesson and they are doing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to get to Mars to do all these things .
And you know , we saw a demonstration of this a few days ago with its successful test of its Long March 5 .
This will get them to Mars and to the moon .
This will get their space station up in orbit around the Earth .
China ’ s making fast progress .
What are some of the steps that you believe Trump , or the U.S. , should be taking in order to combat this threat ?
So , no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but I think we have to cut our ties with China .
Chinese communism is not reformable , which means that we are going to remain vulnerable as long as we have contacts with it .
That means we ’ ve got to cut commerce , because with commerce , even in items which are not considered to be especially sensitive , China is using the proceeds of trade to engage in all sorts of activities which are anathema to us .
Of course , they ’ re using proceeds of trade to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to kill Americans .
So unfortunately , I think we ’ ve got to cut trade .
We certainly have to stop investment to China ’ s financial markets ; we have to force disinvestment .
We have to prohibit new licenses , and we have to cut technology sharing agreements .
This is going to hurt us .
But I don ’ t see how we have a choice… To listen to our full-length interview with Gordon Chang , and to find out his take on the coronavirus and what role he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here .
Read his recent booklet , The Great US-China Tech War .
If you ’ re not already a subscriber to our FS Insider podcast where we interview book authors , strategists and industry experts from across the globe on all things economics , finance and markets…

by FS
FS Insider recently spoke with Gordon Chang on the emerging tech war between the U.S. and China. Gordon explained what key areas the U.S. is falling behind in and shared his take on the coronavirus and what role he believes China may have played. Read below for excerpts from his interview on FS Insider. If you’re not already a subscriber, click here.
For audio, see Gordon Chang on the Great US-China Tech War.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
You’ve written that the U.S. and China are locked in a cold tech war, and the winner will end up dominating the 21st century. In which areas do you see America falling behind?
We’re behind in two areas in particular. One of them is 5G, the fifth generation of wireless communications. China’s Huawei Technologies is wiring much of the world— we don’t have an American company that provides a comprehensive solution. That’s not to say that we’re not in 5G because there is Qualcomm which makes chips and Cisco is getting in there as well. But by and large, we are being left in the dust. We’ve got to remember why this is important. This is the internet of things, almost every device is going to be connected to them, which means that China will be able to filter a lot of data which will feed into its artificial intelligence systems. It also gives them the capability of remotely manipulating the devices of tomorrow. The second area where we’re far behind is quantum communications. Beijing has figured out how to use this ‘spooky phenomena,’ as Albert Einstein called it, of particles at great distances moving in tandem. They’ve already got communication satellites. They’ve got quantum communications on the ground between Beijing and Shanghai. They’re at least five years ahead of us. So this provides them with unhackable communications. And that means they’ve got a big leg up on us.
Don’t miss How the Coronavirus May Accelerate the Use of Blockchain and AI.
Stay ahead of the news! Subscribe to our premium weekday podcast
How is it that China is gaining a lead in a number of these technologies? Is it just by funneling a ton of money into each of them? What are some of the methods that they’re using?
Well, yeah, it certainly is. I mean, China’s leaders, and this goes back before Xi Jinping, they’ve identified technology as an area of focus. And so, Xi Jinping, in addition to the 13th and now the 14th five-year plan, he has the Made in China 2025 initiative. Initially, it identified 10 areas where Beijing should be dominant at the end of that 2025 period. They’ve now expanded the number of areas. They just think of technology all the time. So, for instance think of Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative announced in 2013. The goal was to connect China with the rest of the world just by infrastructure. Well, this is more than just ports or airports. In 2017, Xi Jinping announced his digital Silk Road initiative, which complements the Belt and Road initiative. So, they’re always thinking about technology. They’re always thinking about how they can steal it. They can think about how they can develop it, but we’ve got to remember one thing in terms of how government can influence progress in a country. Remember, the U.S. was way behind the Soviets in space. The Soviets put the first Satellite Sputnik in orbit. They had the first human in space. They had the first spacewalk. But there was a guy named John F. Kennedy who said, no, the U.S. is going to get to the moon first. He went to Rice University and said, we’re going to the moon. We’re going to the moon because it’s important. And he was able to marshal the resources of the federal government and of the private sector. We got to the moon and we got to remember that no other country has left the Earth’s orbit. But the Chinese have learned that lesson and they are doing their best to get to the moon to get to Mars to do all these things. And you know, we saw a demonstration of this a few days ago with its successful test of its Long March 5. This will get them to Mars and to the moon. This will get their space station up in orbit around the Earth. China’s making fast progress.
What are some of the steps that you believe Trump, or the U.S., should be taking in order to combat this threat?
So, no one really wants to do this, but I think we have to cut our ties with China. Chinese communism is not reformable, which means that we are going to remain vulnerable as long as we have contacts with it. That means we’ve got to cut commerce, because with commerce, even in items which are not considered to be especially sensitive, China is using the proceeds of trade to engage in all sorts of activities which are anathema to us. Of course, they’re using proceeds of trade to develop their military, which is configured to kill Americans. So unfortunately, I think we’ve got to cut trade. We certainly have to stop investment to China’s financial markets; we have to force disinvestment. We have to prohibit new licenses, and we have to cut technology sharing agreements. This is going to hurt us. But I don’t see how we have a choice…
To listen to our full-length interview with Gordon Chang, and to find out his take on the coronavirus and what role he believes China may have played, click here. Read his recent booklet, The Great US-China Tech War. If you’re not already a subscriber to our FS Insider podcast where we interview book authors, strategists and industry experts from across the globe on all things economics, finance and markets…


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Reuters: U.S. companies discover the dark side of a COVID-19 business boom

Eric Schnur , CEO of specialty chemical maker Lubrizol Corp. , owned by Warren Buffett ’ s Berkshire Hathaway Corp , said he anticipates “ many millions in extra costs associated with responding to COVID-19.
” Lubrizol ’ s business boom includes a three-fold increase in its output of the gelling agent used to make hand sanitizer .
Schnur said the extra costs go beyond stepped up cleaning and safety equipment and includes “ significant increases in supply chain and logistics costs as we work to get our materials to those who have the greatest need.
” Another company facing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Calumet , Mich. , which said it has spent $ 80,000 on everything from soap to mobile desks to keep workers safe through the crisis .
For Emerald , orders surged 150 % in March and were up another 7 % in April .
But there ’ s a dark side to that surge , both in terms of cost and complexity .
All the steps the company has taken — both to boost output and keep workers safe — are expected to add at least $ 350,000 to costs by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t include the lost production time , which adds up to at least an hour each day , that machines have to be shut down for cleaning .
Kelly , Emerald ’ s chief executive officer , said he hasn ’ t figured out what this will do to his profits , but he expects a big hit to his margins .
Emerald is a family-owned business with annual sales of about $ 85 million .
Even the company ’ s rag bill exploded .
They used to buy 2,000 rags a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The cost of that one item has jumped from $ 300 a month to $ 1,000 , while disposable glove use has tripled .
Michael Rincon , Emerald ’ s director of operations , says each week brings new twists .
For instance , they ’ ve discovered that having workers constantly wiping surfaces with isopropyl alcohol erodes signs and buttons — but they only realized that after it was too late .
On one machine in the factory , the word “ danger ” printed in bright red has blurred .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to put through a price increase to offset some of these expenses .
But a few weeks ago , his biggest customer let him know that was a non-starter .
The customer told Kelly he was going to see who else might be able to supply him with produce bags , presumably at a better price .
TL ; DR : Some businesses ’ orders bloom , but their total profit at the end may stagnate or even go down due to supply chain disruptions and needing additional PPE/cleaning to maintain operations .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ incur pushback from clients or even public outcry .
There are separate articles about the chaos in the food processing industry , such as milk being dumped but milk prices going up due to insufficient retail milk packaging capability , and meatpacking industry ’ s employees not showing up for work .
I have noticed numerous grocery staples ’ prices had gone up over the weeks , and that ’ s a double whammy for the unemployed who might still be waiting for their benefits from the backlogged systems .

by COMPUTER1313
Eric Schnur, CEO of specialty chemical maker Lubrizol Corp., owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Corp, said he anticipates “many millions in extra costs associated with responding to COVID-19.” Lubrizol’s business boom includes a three-fold increase in its output of the gelling agent used to make hand sanitizer. Schnur said the extra costs go beyond stepped up cleaning and safety equipment and includes “significant increases in supply chain and logistics costs as we work to get our materials to those who have the greatest need.” Another company facing added costs is Calumet Electronics Corp., in Calumet, Mich., which said it has spent $80,000 on everything from soap to mobile desks to keep workers safe through the crisis. For Emerald, orders surged 150% in March and were up another 7% in April. But there’s a dark side to that surge, both in terms of cost and complexity. All the steps the company has taken — both to boost output and keep workers safe — are expected to add at least $350,000 to costs by the end of the year. This doesn’t include the lost production time, which adds up to at least an hour each day, that machines have to be shut down for cleaning. Kelly, Emerald’s chief executive officer, said he hasn’t figured out what this will do to his profits, but he expects a big hit to his margins. Emerald is a family-owned business with annual sales of about $85 million.
…
Even the company’s rag bill exploded. They used to buy 2,000 rags a week. Now it’s 7,000. The cost of that one item has jumped from $300 a month to $1,000, while disposable glove use has tripled. Michael Rincon, Emerald’s director of operations, says each week brings new twists. For instance, they’ve discovered that having workers constantly wiping surfaces with isopropyl alcohol erodes signs and buttons — but they only realized that after it was too late. On one machine in the factory, the word “danger” printed in bright red has blurred.
…
Kelly said he even thought about trying to put through a price increase to offset some of these expenses. But a few weeks ago, his biggest customer let him know that was a non-starter. The customer told Kelly he was going to see who else might be able to supply him with produce bags, presumably at a better price.
…
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
“The toughest thing is that there isn’t much direction from the state or the federal government,” Pallavi Joyappa, Emerald’s chief operating officer, said. “You are kind of making it up as you go along.”
www.wired.com/story/why-farmers-dumping-milk-people-hungry/
www.cnn.com/2020/04/29/business/meat-processing-plant-workers-reaction-executive-order/index.html
TL;DR: Some businesses’ orders bloom, but their total profit at the end may stagnate or even go down due to supply chain disruptions and needing additional PPE/cleaning to maintain operations. Excessively jacking up prices to compensate may incur pushback from clients or even public outcry.
There are separate articles about the chaos in the food processing industry, such as milk being dumped but milk prices going up due to insufficient retail milk packaging capability, and meatpacking industry’s employees not showing up for work. I have noticed numerous grocery staples’ prices had gone up over the weeks, and that’s a double whammy for the unemployed who might still be waiting for their benefits from the backlogged systems.


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Brazil’s Petrobras ($PBR )warns economy has changed forever as it books massive impairment

RIO DE JANEIRO , May 14 ( Reuters ) – Brazil ’ s Petrobras took a 65.3 billion real ( @ @ @ @ @ on its exploration and production assets on Thursday , warning investors that changes in consumer @ @ @ @ @ pandemic were likely permanent .
The impairment led Petroleo Brasileiro SA PETR4.SA , as the @ @ @ @ @ to book a first-quarter net loss of 48.5 billion reais .
The company wrote off @ @ @ @ @ shallow-water assets , and said it did not expect to resume production at six high-cost @ @ @ @ @ for sale .
Total impairments came to 57.6 billion reais for its deepwater assets , @ @ @ @ @ oilfield , and 6.6 billion reais at its shallow-water fields .
Other unspecified assets comprised @ @ @ @ @ of writedowns .
The impairment served as a warning by the state-run oil giant that @ @ @ @ @ recover following the novel coronavirus pandemic , even as some major economies are already attempting @ @ @ @ @ following widespread lockdowns .

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 14 (Reuters) – Brazil’s Petrobras took a 65.3 billion real ($11.2 billion) impairment on its exploration and production assets on Thursday, warning investors that changes in consumer behavior resulting from the coronavirus pandemic were likely permanent.
The impairment led Petroleo Brasileiro SA PETR4.SA, as the firm is formally known, to book a first-quarter net loss of 48.5 billion reais. The company wrote off the entire value of its shallow-water assets, and said it did not expect to resume production at six high-cost production assets that are currently for sale.
Total impairments came to 57.6 billion reais for its deepwater assets, including the massive Marlim Sul oilfield, and 6.6 billion reais at its shallow-water fields. Other unspecified assets comprised the remaining 1.1 billion reais of writedowns.
The impairment served as a warning by the state-run oil giant that the oil market may never recover following the novel coronavirus pandemic, even as some major economies are already attempting to tiptoe back to normality following widespread lockdowns.
www.nasdaq.com/articles/brazils-petrobras-warns-economy-has-changed-forever-as-it-books-massive-impairment-2020-05


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Isn’t this the whole point? Aren’t we incentivizing people not to go back to work so as not to sprea

Isn’t this the whole point? Aren’t we incentivizing people not to go back to work so as not to spread the disease?

Is n't this the whole point ?
Are n't we incentivizing people not to go back to work so as @ @ @ @ @ ?
t.co/nFkYxY1J73

Isn't this the whole point? Aren't we incentivizing people not to go back to work so as not to spread the disease? t.co/nFkYxY1J73
— Big Bottom (@paulmichelmusic) May 16, 2020


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--This happens at the top of credit cycles.  Fork it.  It is over.

This happens at the top of credit cycles .
Fork it .
It is over .
pic.twitter.com/Lg0g6FhtzJ How to create @ @ @ @ @ bubble .
Step 1 ) Take interest rates to 0 Step 2 ) Cut trading @ @ @ @ @ ) Deposit trillions of dollars directly into peoples bank accounts Step 4 ) Shut down @ @ @ @ @ and force everyone to sit at home t.co/qxb64WALdO

This happens at the top of credit cycles. Fork it. It is over. pic.twitter.com/Lg0g6FhtzJ
How to create the worlds biggest stock market bubble.
Step 1) Take interest rates to 0
Step 2) Cut trading commissions to 0
Step 3) Deposit trillions of dollars directly into peoples bank accounts
Step 4) Shut down all the offices and sports and force everyone to sit at home t.co/qxb64WALdO
— hks55 (@hks55) May 16, 2020


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--Trump needs to demote Pence to Press Secretary and make this woman VP

Trump needs to demote Pence to Press Secretary and make this woman VP pic.twitter.com/kQnLFQT5as
— Quoth the Raven (@QTRResearch) May 16, 2020


investmentwatchblog--2020-05-16--$5 trillion in handouts in two months. $7 trillion on the feds balance sheet. $25 trillion in gov de

$5 trillion in handouts in two months. $7 trillion on the feds balance sheet. $25 trillion in gov debt . The size of the entire economy is only $17 trillion right now. What the fuck is going on. t.co/9xrjuAxiC9 — hks55 (@hks55) May 16, 2020
House passes $3T coronavirus relief —
the most expensive bill in history 😉 pic.twitter.com/9S5nUi7nG5 — Reminiscences of an American Capitalist (@4Awesometweet) May 16, 2020
Remember when They were predicting a 10% decline lol t.co/jzbollkJnV — Elmer Spud (@PlugInFUD) May 16, 2020
Buffett sells most of Goldman stake is very surprising to me. Not great for a signal for the sector. — Wait Capital (@WaitCapital) May 15, 2020
People are not spending like they used to..probably will see this everywhere >>#China’s Cautious Economic Reboot Is a Warning for the World t.co/ICEzbhtUZz #retailspending pic.twitter.com/XHmIjaLjwA — 𝕮𝖍𝖎 🛢 (@chigrl) May 16, 2020
Fed issued a stark warning that stock and other asset prices could suffer significant declines should the coronavirus pandemic deepen, w/commercial real estate market being among the hardest-hit industries. t.co/YwECfV7wwU pic.twitter.com/bfs3Z92CzP — Holger Zschaepitz (@Schuldensuehner) May 15, 2020
FED SAYS CLO DOWNGRADES COULD FORCE MARGIN CALLS, FORCED SALES AMONG SOME LEVERAGED INVESTORS — FxMacro (@fxmacro) May 15, 2020