Submitted by SouthFront, The existing system of international relations and arms control treaties is slowly, but steadily crumbling. The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is dead, with both Washington and Moscow publicly developing previously banned short-to-medium range missiles. The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) is also moving towards its end in 2021, and it is […]

One of the architects of the US government’s waterboarding program, known as “enhanced interrogation techniques,” confirmed the role of a CIA officer known only as “the Preacher,” who would provoke detainees on a deeply religious level while working to extract information from them. According to James Mitchell – one of three men authorized by the […]

Authored by Tim Kirby via The Strategic Culture Foundation, Goldman Sachs has made a major stand for diversity by declaring that they are going to start “refusing IPOs if all directors are white straight men”. This is unusual because most diversity pushes come from the mainstream media or companies that offer concrete consumer products and […]

As of 24 January, according to the Information Analysis Center: Source: Information Analysis Center. Discussion of presence of Russian T-72-B3 tanks in Ukraine, here.

How quickly the tables can turn… Disgraced former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes literally phoned in her defense in an Arizona fraud lawsuit after her civil lawyers quit due to non-payment.  Holmes still maintains a team of “high caliber” attorneys for her criminal case in San Jose federal court, according to Bloomberg. But in the concurrent civil suit […]

Authored by Cat Ellis via The Organic Prepper blog, One of the problems with prepping for a pandemic is getting accurate information. When there’s a potential for a highly contagious and potentially deadly disease, people panic. Governments do what they can to minimize panic. This includes protective measures, like restricting travel. It can also mean controlling the […]

update: A US offical has confirmed to CNN that a total of three rockets struck the US Embassy in Baghdad Sunday evening. And importantly, the US has further confirmed one injured in the attack. There’s still been no claim of responsibility, however the State Department pointed the finger at Iran-backed militias, following over a dozen similar […]

Authored by Jon Queally via CommonDreams.org, A nearly 90-minute audio recording of a private dinner that took place with numerous individuals and President Donald Trump in 2018 was made public Saturday evening by the legal team of Lev Parnas, a close associate of the president’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, in which the president can be […]

Authored by Satyajit Das, op-ed via Bloomberg.com, Encouraging trends in emerging markets belie their volatility since the taper tantrum of 2013, when the Federal Reserve signaled it was pulling back on quantitative easing. Further turbulence is likely, despite the improving outlook for advanced economies, easing trade tensions and accommodative monetary policy. The International Monetary Fund estimates that growth […]

Surprise! After White House lawyers’ brief rebuttal (less than 3 hours) managed to tear apart Rep. Schiff and the House Managers’ 20-plus-hour ‘odyssey’ in the Senate impeachment trial, is anyone surprised that – right at the last minute – a ‘bombshell’ is leaked to the media that promises – as always – “this time we […]

Update (2020ET): China’s FTSE A50 Futures have collapsed over 5% in early trading and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is collapsing… Source: Bloomberg And Treasury yields are plunging… Source: Bloomberg *  *  * While gold is spiking higher and stocks are getting hammered lower after a weekend of ugly headlines surrounding the lethality and spread of […]

by Calculated Risk on 1/26/2020 08:04:00 PM

@TBPInvictus here: Long overdue: My pal David Rosenberg has finally decided to hang his own shingle: Please say hello to Rosenberg Research. I have known “Rosie” for about 20 years. I recall back in 2002, when he was tapped to be the Chief North American Economist for Merrill Lynch. I have had the privilege of […]

That’s what reader sammy asserts, trying to support the proposition that Chinese retaliatory tariffs on imports of US soybeans had no impact on US soybean prices. … chart of soybean prices there are a number of other commodity price charts, such as copper, wheat, coffee etc. They are unaffected by the tariff war yet are […]

Authored by Andrey Schevchenko via CoinTelegraph.com, Tether is now supporting a gold-backed stablecoin, Tether Gold (XAU₮), according to a Jan. 23 press release. One token represents ownership of one troy fine ounce of physical gold, currently worth approximately $1,550. image courtesy of CoinTelegraph The new product is available as an ERC-20 token on the Ethereum blockchain, […]

A caravan of Central American migrants was stopped in its tracks last week by the Mexican National Guard, which arrested migrants as they crossed the river at the border town of Tecun Uman and hauled them off to a detention center in the nearby city of Tapachula. “I can see that these caravans are no […]

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) defended her plan to pay off college loans after being confronted by a father in Iowa in an exchange that went viral. Senator Elizabeth Warren is confronted by a father who worked double shifts to pay for his daughters education and wants to […]

Over the weekend, there were numerous media reports published in hopes of easing fears that the coronavirus spread was uncontained, and informing the general public just how seriously China takes its quarantine of no less than 17 cities and roughly 60 million people. Take this report from AFP, according to which Police at a roadblock […]

Italians in Emiglia Romagna and Calabria are heading to the polls on Sunday to vote in critical local elections that could dramatically shift the balance of power in the Italian government, and possibly trigger the collapse of a fragile ruling coalition already showing signs of strain. The candidate of the League-led center-right coalition is expected […]

Authored by Richard Mills via SafeHaven.com, Owning gold is a way to get out of this “debt trap”, but governments don’t want you to own gold, especially in Germany Germans, like Indians and Chinese, love their gold – although their reasons for buying and keeping bullion are somewhat different.  In China and India, gold jewelry […]

What are the best things to read to estimate what’s going to happen from here? In particular, what is the best way to think about how to make inferences, or not, from extrapolating current trends about case and death numbers? What is “what happens from here” going to be most sensitive to in terms of […]

By Jerri-Lynn Scofield, who has worked as a securities lawyer and a derivatives trader. She is currently writing a book about textile artisans. Recent years have not been kind to the island of Puerto Rico, nor to her people. First, Puerto Rico’s public finances were ravaged by vulture funds, leading to the imposition of extreme […]

Nancy Packes Inc., an online real estate data services covering the five boroughs of New York City and all residential transactions, reports that nearly half of all new condo units built after 2015 in Manhattan, or about 3,695 of 7,727 apartments, remain unsold. Despite trillions of dollars printed by global central banks and hundreds of […]

Summary: Over 2000 cases, 56 Official deaths Incubation is asymptomatic, contagious, and can be as long as 14 days 5M may have left Wuhan for Lunar New Year 1st case was Dec 1 NOT Dec 31 so infect pop may be much bigger US, Russia, Thailand begin plans for evacuation *  *  * Update (0950ET): […]

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk, The alleged masterful Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, failed his primary mission. Yet he’s still the EU’s negotiator. Barnier Flashback Revealing words from Michel Barnier in 2016, quoted in @LePoint. “I would have succeeded in my task if, in the end, the deal is so hard on the British that […]

Update (11:54 am EST.): Yesterday it was the U.S. and Russia arranging charter flights to evacuate their citizens from the epidemic-stricken Chinese city of Wuhan.  Now Thailand has four Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport planes on standby to airlift its citizens from the city as the coronavirus outbreak spreads uncontrollably, reported the Bangkok Post.   Royal Thai Air Force Chief […]

Today is the 70th anniversary of the Indian Republic. Happy Republic Day! It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! The Midair Collisions Menacing Air Travel Wired The Troubling Decline of International Law Craig Murray Why America’s Urban Dreams Went Wrong American Conservative. James Howard Kunstler’s review of a book by Alex Krieger on America’s cities. You […]

I enjoyed the Dracula mini-series on Netflix–it’s smart, stylish and a fresh take. Also, at just three episodes, it’s satisfying without requiring a huge time investment. Dracula has some pointed commentary on contemporary mores, including economics. After sleeping for a hundred years he finds himself in an ordinary home and speaks to the owner, Kathleen: […]

You’re always worried about going too far. Athlete, musician, writer, performer…you strive to be in the zone. When you’re not even thinking about the work, you’re just riding the wave of inspiration and then… It’s over. It’s not like working for the man. It’s not like business. The first rule of business is “get along.” […]