Friday, December 30, 2016
The Arrogance of Fools
I watched the Kerry speech about Israel and the settlements with interest. As the speech dragged on and while watching this hypocritical attempt at sincerity and balance... the nausea took over. Most Jewish folk have a centuries old and ingrained sense of foreboding when confronted by hostility in sheep's clothing. Listening to John Kerry whine how he really loved Israel, had climbed Masada, how some of his best friends were Israeli's and what he was doing was for our own good, Einstein's definition of insanity (doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results) flashed through my mind.
The modern day Middle East was created by an Englishman and a Frenchman after the First World War. They manufactured countries by drawing lines on a map and dividing the area between England and France...The Sykes - Picot Agreement. They were secure in the knowledge that European culture and superiority would last for centuries while the barbarians in the area would do as they were told. The wheeling and dealing reached a peak when the members of the Hussein bin Ali family (hashemites) ruled Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Iraq. In short, Arab nation states were created by a stroke of a pen and ruled by brothers, uncles and cousins.
The importance of oil soon became evident and these nation states understood the power that came with the black gold. The UN quickly became inundated with men in flowing robes while Europe and the US kowtowed to the monster they had created. The monster instantly realized that with all this power, they could create nation states and so the myth of a Palestinian nation state was born. I could go into all the details of how the Arab nation states with all its billions kept the so-called potential Palestinian nation state poor and armed to the teeth, but that is a story for another day.
Bottom line, the Two State Solution, rejected by the arabs in 1948 was reborn. Decades went by without agreement and the oil weapon went into decline. A new messiah then arrived in the US by name Obama. Cheered on by Hollywood and CNN, encouraged by demonstrations in the Arab countries, he decided the time was right for the birth of democracy in the Middle East. On national TV he declared "Mubarak must go, Assad must go. Free and fair elections for all. An Arab Spring is on the horizon". Who could stop the great Obama revolution? Well, the rest is history. The Arab nation states disintegrated into civil wars. The Sykes - Picot map collapsed. Israel stood firm and flourished. But no...wait... another late twist in the tale.
This selfsame president, the same man whose foreign policy resulted in the death and destruction for millions and created a refugee problem of epic proportions, refused to believe the evidence before his eyes. After seeing the barbarism of ISIS, Assad and Hamas. After witnessing the terrorist attacks and the rape epidemic in Europe and finally after the collapse of the Arab nation states, this petty man sends his poodle John Kerry to advocate for the birth of a new mythical Arab nation state and blames Israel and the settlements for the lack thereof. So in conclusion, Obama the messiah is just a mere man blinded by his own intellectual ignorance. A man whom in his final year as president I regarded as a class act. Man, was I was wrong....big time!
The smaller the mind the greater the conceit - Aesop
Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it - George Orwell
The world is not fair, and often fools, cowards, liars and the selfish hide in high places - Bryant H. McGill
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
A Meaningless UN Security Council Resolution
George Friedman is regarded as the foremost geopolitical analyst in the world. He established "Stratfor" and recently has established "GPF Geopolitical Futures". He advises most major intelligence services around the world and when he analyzes, most world leaders read and take note. This is a long analysis and I have taken the liberty of shortening some paragraphs. The bottom line is clear.
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Sunday, December 25, 2016
A Knife in the Back!
Most folks think of Barack Obama as a a decent man and someone who thinks carefully before coming to a decision. When compared to Trump he appeared to have the makings of a president who will be revered by future generations. Not so after the UN decision to recognize the Western Wall in Jerusalem as "Occupied PalestinianTerritory" and building in Jewish Quarter of the old city of Jerusalem as "Illegal". Obama has returned to his roots and exposed to the Jewish people an insight into his dark and ugly soul. Reverend Wright must be dancing the cha-cha right now.
When Michelle Obama barks "When they go low...we go high!", she is not referring to her husband. The intellectual Obama clearly believes "when they go low...I go even lower!" With the UN vote, Obama has definitely exposed what a narrow minded, small, vengeful and irrelevant individual he is. Lets take a look at his record.
Weeks after shaking hands with Husni Mubarak and declaring him to be a friend of the US, Obama declared on national TV that "Mubarak must go!" A definite knife in the back, especially since Mubarak was jailed and Egypt was then taken over by the Muslim Brotherhood, an ally of today's ISIS. He then declared that Assad must go and and drew a red line in the sand. Guess what? He then delivered another knife in the back of Assad's opponents, culminating in the murder of hundreds of thousands of women and children in Aleppo and other places. Remember Aleppo Obama...its your legacy!
Add to this legacy of betrayal his "rebalancing" of US strategies by signing a weakling's agreement with Iran.They are still laughing all the way to the bank and signing their check books with the appropriate signature "B. Obama...The useful idiot." Recently he withdrew US support to Saudi Arabia for human rights abuses against Yemen. Human rights? "Look around you fool at what 's happening in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Sudan, Afghanistan, Europe and Africa. Your Arab Spring was the springboard of a human refugee crisis epic in its proportions."
Perhaps we could put it down to the inexperience of a new and naive president filled with intellectual purpose. But no....after eight years as president, in the dark of the night, when the political price was at minimum and all were asleep, he revealed the affliction in his soul. Obama thrust the cowardly knife he carried in the shadows, hidden for all these years and stabbed the Jewish people in the back. This mere man thinks he can change 3000 years of Jewish attachment to Jerusalem with the flick of a pen and a hidden knife. There is no cure for stupidity.
So when Purim comes around and Obama is relegated to the refuse heap of history, we will sing and dance and celebrate the demise of Obama, Haman and Arafat amongst others. Israel will continue to grow and be a shining light of democracy in a dark world. We will continue to build in the land of Israel and continue to toast "Next Year in Jerusalem"...wherever we may be.
It's hard to tell who has your back, from who has it long enough just to stab you in it.... ― Nicole Richie
The evil that is in the world almost always comes of ignorance, and good intentions may do as much harm as malevolence if they lack understanding - Albert Camus
Politicians and diapers should be changed frequently and all for the same reason -José Maria de Eça de Queiroz.
Friday, December 23, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.
1. The right wing revolution against the elites and the immigrants continues. First Brexit and now Trump. Soon Italy and then France and Holland. A fascinating chapter in humankind history. We will now witness how the politics of fear and the theory of "divide and conquer" play out. It's no longer important what Trump says....a divided US is already the name of the game. Its important what Trump does. COMMENT: Some folk believe Trump has a plan. I believe that what you see is what you get.
2.Stratfor: Beijing is set to invest an additional $8.5 billion in Pakistan's railways and energy infrastructure, Pakistan's Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said Nov. 23, Reuters reported. The funds come in addition to the two countries' $46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project, a deal aimed at building roads and energy infrastructure in Pakistan and connecting northwest China with Pakistan's deep-water Gwadar port. COMMENT: If Trump thinks that threatening China will bring the desired result...clearly the law of unintended consequences is showing a different result.
3.South Korean prosecutors raided Samsung’s headquarters and the country’s state-run pension on Nov. 23 fund over allegations that the office of embattled President Park Geun-hye pressured the fund’s decision to back the company’s merger plan in 2015, Yonhap reported. The president’s office is suspected of pressuring the state fund to support the company in return for favors given to Park’s close associate, Choi Soon-sil, who was indicted over the weekend on corruption charges. COMMENT: When it rains...it pours.
4.Financial Times columnist Wolfgang Münchau: "One day Italy will be led by a party in favour of withdrawal from the euro. When that happens, euro exit would turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. There would a run on Italy’s banks and its government’s bonds. The next Italian prime minister will need to explain to the next German chancellor, presumably Angela Merkel, that her choice will not be between a political union or no political union, but between a political union or Italy’s withdrawal from the euro.The latter would imply the biggest default in history.
5.Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said it foiled a terrorist attack plotted by the Islamic State, International Business times reported Dec. 15. An FSB statement said four suspects from Tajikistan and Moldova have been arrested in connection with the plot, which it said involved using improvised explosive devices in Moscow. It said a high-level Islamic State commander from Turkey helped plan the failed attack. Security forces reportedly seized automatic weapons, ammunition, chemicals and explosive devices during the arrest raids. COMMENT: This is a disease and nobody is immune.
6.A private 5 billion euro ($5.22 billion) recapitalization plan to save Italy's third largest lender, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, collapsed Dec. 21, Financial Times reported. The rescue plan failed to find an anchor investor, according to several informed sources. Italy's government will now move forward with a state-run rescue plan to save the bank, sources said. Both houses of the country's parliament approved Dec. 21 a possible 20 billion euro ($20.85 billion) rescue of some of the country's struggling banks. COMMENT:The Ukraine just nationalized its largest bank. It starts as a few drops....
7.Gatestone: The police released a report noting that Sweden is at the top of the EU's statistics on physical and sexual violence against women, sexual harassment and stalking. The report stated unequivocally that it is "asylum-seeker boys" and "foreign men" who commit the vast majority of the reported crimes. COMMENT: From the rape trucks of Syria to the blond emancipated women of Sweden.
8.Two Israeli women of Ethiopian descent were sworn in as judges by President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday, marking a first in the country’s history. The ground-breaking appointments of the two attorneys were announced by the Judicial Nominating Committee in late September. At the time, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said the appointments helped realize the wishes of late Israeli President Shimon Peres, who authorized the covert evacuation of thousands of Ethiopian Jews to Israel in 1984 while serving as prime minister.
COMMENT: Go Israel!!
Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity - Martin Luther King, Jr.
The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits - Albert Einstein
I am patient with stupidity but not with those who are proud of it - Edith Sitwell
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Trying to Understand the Refugee Conundrum
I was born in Apartheid South Africa. My first view of the world was through a lens where whites employed blacks as servants. We had servants who cleaned the house, cooked the meals, made our beds, weeded and watered the gardens. At our "whites only" schools we were taught that even though us whites were first class citizens and everyone else were second class citizens, the different ethnic groups were different from us and we needed to respect that difference (of course, as long as we remained the superior colour group).
So imagine my shock, landing in Israel in 1973 and heading for a restaurant only to find that some of the customers were black. Needless to say, I immediately retreated and went in search for a restaurant where there were no people of colour. The shock was multiplied when arriving at my kibbutz and discovering that not all Jews were white! There were Jews of every colour and extraction...all living together under the same roof....wow! To cut a long story short it took me many years to adjust to a new reality and for me, a real truth.
As a result, when I look at the above child and multiply this picture by the thousands, possibly millions, I shudder to imagine what life will look like for this lost generation of kids. All Omran has ever known is violence. In Aleppo today as Syrian forces advance, women are committing suicide simply because they understand what is awaiting them. What else has this child witnessed besides the ear-shattering explosion that brought his home down upon him. What were the discussions he heard in the family kitchen as massive explosions shook the building? His knowledge of the world is limited to rape trucks, murder, guns, food and survival. In Canada our kids knowledge is limited to love, warmth, security, education and fun.
In conclusion, I doubt whether the child in the photo will be able to adjust to a peaceful world. At best he will land in Europe and North America and understand how unfair his world is while trying to apply himself to the new reality. On the other hand, the more likely scenario is that he will revert to what he knows and understands. He will interpret the the kindness for weakness and unite with his peers to take by force what does not belong to him. Judging by the migrant rape crisis spiralling out of control in Europe and the emerging terrorism and anti-immigrant wave on that continent, it looks like the planet is in for a rocky future.
When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace - Jimi Hendrix
Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality. - Edgar Allan Poe
It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it - Aung San Suu Kyi
Friday, December 9, 2016
It all Started in the Spring.....
What is the connection between a Canadian real estate bubble, an Australian real estate bubble and an Israeli real estate bubble? Why are North American and Japanese equity markets rising into a bubble type formation? It all began In 2008 and continued in December of 2010. It began with the economic mismanagement of George Bush and continued with the intellectual arrogance of Barack Obama. But most of all, it began in the Spring of 2010 when a Tunisian set himself alight and started what today is termed "The Arab Spring". Wow! So let's follow the money.
In 2008 an economic bubble burst endangering the world banking systems. The American public fired the GOP and replaced them with a socialist leaning president. What could be easier than dealing with a burst credit bubble? Thats easy...create an even larger credit bubble. Its called "cheap (easy) money". Armed by a wave of popularity, swagger, rolled up sleeves and superior intellectualism, Barack Obama decided the time was right to spread democracy to the Middle East. Declaring that Mubarak and Assad "have to go" and cheered on by the liberal media Mr Obama set off a chain of events that have led to instability across the planet. The civil wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Sudan and Libya have led to a trickle of refugees which now has turned into a flood. Russia, trying to amplify the impression of power (lets face it sanctions + oil price = weakness) has intervened in Syria and hopes to face down US and Turkish interests in the area.
Europe in all its social glory opened the gates to millions of refugees from the different battle arenas, naively believing (like American liberals) that these folk are Westerners wearing different clothing. Nothing could be further from the truth. Europe knowingly imported millions of potential insurgents who know no better than violence of all types to achieve their goals. These refugees threaten Europe not only physically, but financially. They are enhanced by the Islamic threat to Russia and the Balkans. When one adds the above credit bubble to the mixture, it is easy to see why the money is running from Eurasia and seeking safe geopolitical havens.
Australia is a great example of a geopolitical haven. A continent far from the maddening crowd, to coin a phrase and physically safe from an impending explosion. Despite a 0.5% contraction in GDP, real estate prices in Oz are booming. The same goes for Canada. Nice and safe, plenty of water, land and raw materials. And of course, real estate markets are booming as anxious and fearful funds seek safety and security. Even Central banks are getting in on the act. Fear leads to diversification of assets. The Central banks of Japan, Switzerland and the ECB, amongst about 23% of all nations worldwide are purchasing stocks. Its amazing how physical and financial fears effect human nature. Add Brexit, Trump and the wave of an anti-establishment revolution and we have the makings of a new and fearful community running in all directions.
As for Israel, the boom continues. Israel is secured by a line of steel and arguably the best air force on the planet. Shouts of Heil trump in the US and the rise of anti-semitism worldwide have only led to more demand for Israeli real estate.
Choose your poison folks. One thing for sure is that the the stable world we once knew is no longer....and it all began in Spring.
“There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen.” - Lenin
You should be careful what you wish for, as the reasons for war get confused. One person can be very clear in their motives, but others can have different agendas -
Dougray Scott
Friday, July 15, 2016
Preposterous Predictions - Scorecard
Preposterous Predictions 2016
If we get 7 out of 10 predictions correct that would be pretty good.
Lets follow the money and the refugees
1.Stock markets and investors have become accustomed to markets continually recovering as a result of central bank manipulations. This will end in 2016 as markets come to terms with reality. The international credit bubble created as a result of the 2008 crisis will slowly disintegrate, punctured by collapsing raw materials demand and the demise of the oil market. The economic downturn will have a profound effect on our world and we predict a primary bear market in stocks and the continuation of the primary bull market in the US Dollar. - C So far completely wrong. The Central banks are succeeding in the attempt to create an illusion of stability.
2.The slowdown in China will continue at an increased pace. Potentially China can go one of two ways. Either it breaks down into separately governed regions (Coastal vs Inland) or a ruthless dictatorship will attempt to control economic dissatisfaction within the Chinese population. The Chinese currency (the Yuan) will continue to be devalued in an attempt to jumpstart fading Chinese exports. A - so far so good.
3.Historically the movement of refugees has created new geopolitical realities. The mass movement of refugees from unstable regions into the European Union is a geopolitical weapon of change that will create political, economic and violent chaos. Anti-immigration and anti-EU parties will strengthen and the movement towards fragmentation will be reflected in the value of the European symbol of unity, the Euro. B The Euro is still holding steady.
4.The Italian banking system will come under serious pressure this year accompanied by friction between old enemies France and Germany. All it takes are a few terrorist attacks to understand that the so-called liberal European multi-culturism is just a cover for a deeper and darker psyche lurking in the shadows. A - Reports are emerging about the Italian Bank problem.
5.Russia will weather an economic meltdown (the Russian people are made of sterner stuff than most) as its ruble crumbles, but not without chaotic conditions amongst neighbouring countries who rely on Russian support (and energy) for their economic wellbeing. Russia will also have to overcome an AIDS epidemic of major proportions. B Oil has stabilized for now and thus the ruble is breathing.
6. Apple will lose its shine as competing companies close the technological gap. They might even have to consider lowering their prices. A
7.Regardless of who the candidates might be, the Republicans will take the White House this year. President Obama's naive foreign policy of shaking hands with a crocodile, his alienation of US allies, his creation of a massive debt bubble and his inability to unite the American people will signal the demise of big government for the near and distant future. As for his legacy....need I say more? C Who would have believed?
8.Climate change will have positive (yes, positive) and negative results as the trend continues. Countries like Canada and parts of the US and Europe will definitely have the advantage, whereas parts of the Middle East and Africa (Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, Sudan and others) will continue to pay the price. A
9. Islam will continue to implode leading to a Sunni-Shiite face off. The violence being the product of dictatorships, religious fanaticism and the inability by over a billion people to compete economically. The stream of refugees will turn into a flood creating change wherever they flow. A
10.North and South America will be the least affected by the refugee fallout, being continents geographically insulated from the deluge. Unless of course some politician decides to play saviour and opens the door. A
11.Last year I wrote about Israel..."Israel is always at number 11 and outside the ten forecasts. Why you may ask? Israel from year to year remains a shining light to the world, regardless of the tinted sunglasses with which some may view this." This year all that is needed is to "copy and paste" AA
If we get 7 out of 10 predictions correct that would be pretty good.
Lets follow the money and the refugees
1.Stock markets and investors have become accustomed to markets continually recovering as a result of central bank manipulations. This will end in 2016 as markets come to terms with reality. The international credit bubble created as a result of the 2008 crisis will slowly disintegrate, punctured by collapsing raw materials demand and the demise of the oil market. The economic downturn will have a profound effect on our world and we predict a primary bear market in stocks and the continuation of the primary bull market in the US Dollar. - C So far completely wrong. The Central banks are succeeding in the attempt to create an illusion of stability.
2.The slowdown in China will continue at an increased pace. Potentially China can go one of two ways. Either it breaks down into separately governed regions (Coastal vs Inland) or a ruthless dictatorship will attempt to control economic dissatisfaction within the Chinese population. The Chinese currency (the Yuan) will continue to be devalued in an attempt to jumpstart fading Chinese exports. A - so far so good.
3.Historically the movement of refugees has created new geopolitical realities. The mass movement of refugees from unstable regions into the European Union is a geopolitical weapon of change that will create political, economic and violent chaos. Anti-immigration and anti-EU parties will strengthen and the movement towards fragmentation will be reflected in the value of the European symbol of unity, the Euro. B The Euro is still holding steady.
4.The Italian banking system will come under serious pressure this year accompanied by friction between old enemies France and Germany. All it takes are a few terrorist attacks to understand that the so-called liberal European multi-culturism is just a cover for a deeper and darker psyche lurking in the shadows. A - Reports are emerging about the Italian Bank problem.
5.Russia will weather an economic meltdown (the Russian people are made of sterner stuff than most) as its ruble crumbles, but not without chaotic conditions amongst neighbouring countries who rely on Russian support (and energy) for their economic wellbeing. Russia will also have to overcome an AIDS epidemic of major proportions. B Oil has stabilized for now and thus the ruble is breathing.
6. Apple will lose its shine as competing companies close the technological gap. They might even have to consider lowering their prices. A
7.Regardless of who the candidates might be, the Republicans will take the White House this year. President Obama's naive foreign policy of shaking hands with a crocodile, his alienation of US allies, his creation of a massive debt bubble and his inability to unite the American people will signal the demise of big government for the near and distant future. As for his legacy....need I say more? C Who would have believed?
8.Climate change will have positive (yes, positive) and negative results as the trend continues. Countries like Canada and parts of the US and Europe will definitely have the advantage, whereas parts of the Middle East and Africa (Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, Sudan and others) will continue to pay the price. A
9. Islam will continue to implode leading to a Sunni-Shiite face off. The violence being the product of dictatorships, religious fanaticism and the inability by over a billion people to compete economically. The stream of refugees will turn into a flood creating change wherever they flow. A
10.North and South America will be the least affected by the refugee fallout, being continents geographically insulated from the deluge. Unless of course some politician decides to play saviour and opens the door. A
11.Last year I wrote about Israel..."Israel is always at number 11 and outside the ten forecasts. Why you may ask? Israel from year to year remains a shining light to the world, regardless of the tinted sunglasses with which some may view this." This year all that is needed is to "copy and paste" AA
Tuesday, July 5, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.
1.Germany is to pay 600 million euros in massive deal with Israel for the lease of 5 Eitan drones capable of carrying bombs and rockets; German chief of staff preferred Israeli model to American competitors. The German Chief of Staff, General Volker Wieker, who visited Israel a few weeks ago, prefered the Israeli ‘Heron’ drone over its American competitor - the ‘predator’ and the ‘Raptor’. COMMENT: Another message to those politicians who claim that Israel is more isolated than ever. What BS! Read more:
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4821568,00.html
2.Geopolitical Futures: The Italian government has struggled to effectively address the problem of non-performing loans, while economic growth remains sluggish. The impact can be seen in the performance of Italy’s two largest banks. UniCredit, the country’s biggest bank, lost about 70 percent of its stock value since the beginning of the year, while Italy’s second largest bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, lost about half its stock value.COMMENT: This would be a Greek crisis on steroids.
3.Hillel Yafa Ariel, a 13 year old Israeli girl, has died of her wounds after a terrorist broke into her house in Kiryat Arba and stabbed her in her bed Thursday morning. The Palestinian terrorist climbed over the security fence surrounding the Harsanina neighborhood, infiltrated one of the houses located just yards away from the fence, and stabbed Ariel, critically wounding her. The girl suffered from stab wounds all across her upper body, and was evacuated to the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem where she later died of her wounds. COMMENT: Its time to call a spade a spade. There is no difference between ISIS, Al Qaeda and the so called "Palestinians". Pompous and strutting by nature and cowards by heart.
4.Gatestone: Muslim students now outnumber Roman Catholic students at middle and secondary schools in Vienna, Austria according to official statistics, which show that Muslim students are also on the verge of overtaking Catholics in Viennese elementary schools. The data confirms a massive demographic and religious shift in Austria, traditionally a Roman Catholic country. COMMENT: Adolf must be turning over in his grave!
5.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued a damning 63-page report on the German banking and insurance sector yesterday. It is a long and thorough report, with the key point buried on page 42: “Deutsche Bank appears to be the most important net contributor to systemic risks in the global banking system.” The markets punished Deutsche Bank, already reeling from Brexit, forcing shares down at one point to their lowest level in 30 years. In just the last year, Deutsche Bank has laid off tens of thousands of workers and has seen rating downgrades from both Fitch and Moody’s on its long-term debt and its deposit ratings. Deutsche Bank is also sitting on $41.9 trillion (not a typo) worth of derivatives. The crisis is no longer invisible. The IMF, Germany and the markets all see it. COMMENT: As an indicator, watch how the price of gold is quietly moving up in price.
6.Tanzania told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday that the East African country would be opening an embassy in Israel for the first time...Fourteen years after Israel was booted out, Kenya is backing Israel’s bid to regain observer status at the African Union, the country’s president announced Tuesday...Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Monday lauded Israel’s famed July 4, 1976, Entebbe rescue of a hijacked Air France plane, saying at a memorial service to mark its 40th anniversary that the Jewish state was right to launch the operation on his country’s territory...COMMENT: Israel has been a lone voice in the war against Islamic terror for years. Now that the same scum are in their backyards they are dancing to the beat of a different drummer. Some more quickly than others. Israel isolated?...Its just a matter of time before the Bernie Sanders breed find themselves terrified and alone
7.Hungary will hold a popular referendum Oct. 2 aimed at countering EU migrant resettlement efforts, the office of President Janos Ader said July 5, AP reported. Hungary has erected fences along its southern border to prevent migrants from passing through the country, and Prime Minister Viktor Orban has pushed the referendum as a way to oppose what he sees as a violation of Hungarian sovereignty by Brussels. Left-wing opposition parties in the country have called for a boycott of the referendum. COMMENT: Austria is having an election re-run on the same day. If anyone imagines that Brexit was a one time thing, they are mistaken.
If God wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates - Jay Leno
If we got one-tenth of what was promised to us in these
State of the Union speeches, there wouldn't be any
inducement to go to heaven - Will Rogers
Politicians are people who, when they see light at the end of the
tunnel, go out and buy some more tunnel - John Quinton
1.Germany is to pay 600 million euros in massive deal with Israel for the lease of 5 Eitan drones capable of carrying bombs and rockets; German chief of staff preferred Israeli model to American competitors. The German Chief of Staff, General Volker Wieker, who visited Israel a few weeks ago, prefered the Israeli ‘Heron’ drone over its American competitor - the ‘predator’ and the ‘Raptor’. COMMENT: Another message to those politicians who claim that Israel is more isolated than ever. What BS! Read more:
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4821568,00.html
2.Geopolitical Futures: The Italian government has struggled to effectively address the problem of non-performing loans, while economic growth remains sluggish. The impact can be seen in the performance of Italy’s two largest banks. UniCredit, the country’s biggest bank, lost about 70 percent of its stock value since the beginning of the year, while Italy’s second largest bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, lost about half its stock value.COMMENT: This would be a Greek crisis on steroids.
3.Hillel Yafa Ariel, a 13 year old Israeli girl, has died of her wounds after a terrorist broke into her house in Kiryat Arba and stabbed her in her bed Thursday morning. The Palestinian terrorist climbed over the security fence surrounding the Harsanina neighborhood, infiltrated one of the houses located just yards away from the fence, and stabbed Ariel, critically wounding her. The girl suffered from stab wounds all across her upper body, and was evacuated to the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem where she later died of her wounds. COMMENT: Its time to call a spade a spade. There is no difference between ISIS, Al Qaeda and the so called "Palestinians". Pompous and strutting by nature and cowards by heart.
4.Gatestone: Muslim students now outnumber Roman Catholic students at middle and secondary schools in Vienna, Austria according to official statistics, which show that Muslim students are also on the verge of overtaking Catholics in Viennese elementary schools. The data confirms a massive demographic and religious shift in Austria, traditionally a Roman Catholic country. COMMENT: Adolf must be turning over in his grave!
5.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued a damning 63-page report on the German banking and insurance sector yesterday. It is a long and thorough report, with the key point buried on page 42: “Deutsche Bank appears to be the most important net contributor to systemic risks in the global banking system.” The markets punished Deutsche Bank, already reeling from Brexit, forcing shares down at one point to their lowest level in 30 years. In just the last year, Deutsche Bank has laid off tens of thousands of workers and has seen rating downgrades from both Fitch and Moody’s on its long-term debt and its deposit ratings. Deutsche Bank is also sitting on $41.9 trillion (not a typo) worth of derivatives. The crisis is no longer invisible. The IMF, Germany and the markets all see it. COMMENT: As an indicator, watch how the price of gold is quietly moving up in price.
6.Tanzania told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday that the East African country would be opening an embassy in Israel for the first time...Fourteen years after Israel was booted out, Kenya is backing Israel’s bid to regain observer status at the African Union, the country’s president announced Tuesday...Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Monday lauded Israel’s famed July 4, 1976, Entebbe rescue of a hijacked Air France plane, saying at a memorial service to mark its 40th anniversary that the Jewish state was right to launch the operation on his country’s territory...COMMENT: Israel has been a lone voice in the war against Islamic terror for years. Now that the same scum are in their backyards they are dancing to the beat of a different drummer. Some more quickly than others. Israel isolated?...Its just a matter of time before the Bernie Sanders breed find themselves terrified and alone
7.Hungary will hold a popular referendum Oct. 2 aimed at countering EU migrant resettlement efforts, the office of President Janos Ader said July 5, AP reported. Hungary has erected fences along its southern border to prevent migrants from passing through the country, and Prime Minister Viktor Orban has pushed the referendum as a way to oppose what he sees as a violation of Hungarian sovereignty by Brussels. Left-wing opposition parties in the country have called for a boycott of the referendum. COMMENT: Austria is having an election re-run on the same day. If anyone imagines that Brexit was a one time thing, they are mistaken.
If God wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates - Jay Leno
If we got one-tenth of what was promised to us in these
State of the Union speeches, there wouldn't be any
inducement to go to heaven - Will Rogers
Politicians are people who, when they see light at the end of the
tunnel, go out and buy some more tunnel - John Quinton
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
The Chain Theory
Today's world is a function of economic globalism. It wasn't always like this. In the good old days of Trump, it was believed that when Wall Street sneezed the world caught cold. Somewhere along the line American capitalism found itself at a crossroads. America as a market place was saturated. Many families had a home, cars and all the latest electronic devices and toys. The only way to expand was to create new markets...and thus the global economy was born.
The global economy or the "Chain Theory" as named by yours faithfully, consists of five links. The USA, Europe, Japan, China and the emerging markets. The chain of course is only as strong as its weakest link(s). The most obvious but not the only weak link is the European Union. The geopolitical concept that 28 countries divided by history, language, tradition, ancient hatreds, culture and geography could unite under one currency and a single unelected leadership is doomed to failure. This European leadership was sorely tested in 2008 when a corrupt and greedy US banking system fell apart at the seams. Trillions of dollar debt was created to save a system that was "too big too fail". Europe wobbled but somehow regained a woefully weak balance...once again by the creation of debt.
The next crack in the European link was a crisis between the hot blooded financially irresponsible Greeks and the cold blooded efficient Germans which eventually forced Greece into a generations long economic depression. The chain survived but the European link was further weakened.
History is marked by a long list of decisions that lead to unintended consequences. Islam is in the process of imploding leading to civil wars and waves of refugees. The new EU in all its multicultural intellectualism welcomed these refugees with open arms. Try to picture 28 different cultures loosely based on Christianity and with a history of racism and war mongering trying to absorb millions of refugees into an economy already bedevilled by unemployment. Now add to the mixture refugees who have a different language, religion and no idea of what freedom and democracy mean. The stunned Europeans were beset by crime and rape (yes folks...rape) epidemics across the continent. The politically correct European leaders tried desperately to turn the other cheek. Just Google "refugees rape in Europe".
The winds of change in Europe were emphasized by the Brexit vote that surprised many, but not all. Without thinking but acting instinctively the British jumped off the European Band wagon. Perhaps intuitively they understood, like many in Europe today, that in the long term the EU is a failed experiment by well meaning folks. Immediately in the aftermath of Brexit the EU issued an earth-shattering statement that was partially or wholly ignored by the press...perhaps they do not understand. George Friedman writes: "Today, foreign ministers from the European Union’s six founding member states issued an extraordinary statement, declaring that they will “recognize different levels of ambition amongst Member States when it comes to the project of European integration.” This was a landmark capitulation by the major European powers, accepting the idea that uniformity across the bloc is impossible and nations can choose the terms of membership.
The Chain has been further weakened. Brexit is another symptom of a failed experiment. Will the chain hold? Only time will tell, but my guess is that someone searching for a durable link in the chain will not find it in Europe.
United we stand...divided we fall - Father John Dickinson
Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it. - George Santayana
The problem with revolutions is that they always end right where they begin - Matthew Catania
When Money or debt is created in large amounts, the rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class is doomed - The Peanut Gallery
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.
1.The big news of the day: The British are leaving the EU. The two largest centres of the "Remain" support were Scotland and London. London is where the majority of Muslim immigrants and British intellectuals reside. The British have been watching the EU's multicultural ideology at work for decades and clearly they have said "enough!" The Peanut Gallery believes that this vote is the beginning of the end of an unelected EU and a philosophy that has benefitted Germany to the detriment of others. The global trend toward nationalism will continue as will the attack on political elitism. COMMENT: As for those watching Trump cheering the process...the markets have given a miniscule preview of what might happen if he is elected.
2. The U.N. refugee agency said June 20 that the number of people in the world displaced by conflict has reached more than 65 million, the highest it has ever been, BBC reported. That means that roughly one in 113 people throughout the world is either a refugee, an asylum seeker or an internally displaced person. One-third of these people come from Afghanistan, Syria or Somalia, according to the United Nations. Moreover, despite the media's heavy focus on Europe's refugee crisis, the vast majority of those displaced by war — around 86 percent — are currently living in low- and middle-income countries such as Turkey and Pakistan. COMMENT: Refugees change the course of history and the case in question is no different.
3. International concerns are showing interest in Israel and Jordan's Red-Dead Sea pipeline. Sources inform "Globes" that 17 groups of Israeli and international companies yesterday bid in the tender for construction and operation of the project. Bidders in the $800 million tender include Chinese, Lebanese, Egyptian, Japanese, Korean, Canadian and Israeli companies. The project is designed to save the Dead Sea, whose level has been falling year by year, and arrange the division of water between Israel and Jordan. COMMENT: Politicians and analysts who argue that Israel is more isolated than ever, should get their heads out of their....whatever.
4. The US has arguably some of the smartest people on the planet. They also arguably have amongst the population members of the scum of the earth variety. Listening to these pro gun types spouting their hypocrisy on national TV can be nauseating to say the least. "Its a terrorism thing" they say or "its much worse in other countries". They must be thinking of failed states like Syria and Yemen. I wonder how they would define the Sandy Hook shooting? For the record...
Enough said.
5.Ynet Israel: The March 2016 cycle of Desert Reconnaissance Battalion soldiers were sworn in on Thursday, consisting largely of Muslim Bedouins, along with some Christian and Muslim Arabs, all of whom volunteered for army service; 'I understood how important it was to give and do my part for the country in which I was born, that I live my life in, and that I'm proud of.' COMMENT: Are you watching Mr Trump? Kolhakavod L Tsahal!
6.Iraqi forces recaptured the last district held by Islamic State militants in the city of Fallujah on June 26, ending the battle after nearly five weeks of fighting, the commanding general said, Reuters reported. The offensive has been backed by a U.S.-led coalition mostly in the form of airstrikes. At least 1,800 ISIS fighters were killed in the operation to retake Fallujah, and the rest had fled, officials said. Fighting to recapture the Iraqi city has forced more than 85,000 residents to flee to overwhelmed government-run camps. COMMENT: Say what you like about Obama..."Slowly but surely" works for him.
7.A new report from Germany's domestic intelligence agency catalogued a 42 percent rise in violence by right-wing extremists in 2015, Reuters reported June 28. The report listed more than 1,400 acts of violence throughout the year, including dozens of arson attacks against refugee centers and attacks against politicians and journalists. During 2015 Germany took in more than one million migrants, many of who were fleeing violence in the Middle East, Afghanistan and North Africa. The influx of migrants also led to a record performance during the country's March regional elections for the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. COMMENT: Here we go again!
We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to
public office - Aesop
Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge
even where there is no river - Nikita Khrushchev
1.The big news of the day: The British are leaving the EU. The two largest centres of the "Remain" support were Scotland and London. London is where the majority of Muslim immigrants and British intellectuals reside. The British have been watching the EU's multicultural ideology at work for decades and clearly they have said "enough!" The Peanut Gallery believes that this vote is the beginning of the end of an unelected EU and a philosophy that has benefitted Germany to the detriment of others. The global trend toward nationalism will continue as will the attack on political elitism. COMMENT: As for those watching Trump cheering the process...the markets have given a miniscule preview of what might happen if he is elected.
2. The U.N. refugee agency said June 20 that the number of people in the world displaced by conflict has reached more than 65 million, the highest it has ever been, BBC reported. That means that roughly one in 113 people throughout the world is either a refugee, an asylum seeker or an internally displaced person. One-third of these people come from Afghanistan, Syria or Somalia, according to the United Nations. Moreover, despite the media's heavy focus on Europe's refugee crisis, the vast majority of those displaced by war — around 86 percent — are currently living in low- and middle-income countries such as Turkey and Pakistan. COMMENT: Refugees change the course of history and the case in question is no different.
3. International concerns are showing interest in Israel and Jordan's Red-Dead Sea pipeline. Sources inform "Globes" that 17 groups of Israeli and international companies yesterday bid in the tender for construction and operation of the project. Bidders in the $800 million tender include Chinese, Lebanese, Egyptian, Japanese, Korean, Canadian and Israeli companies. The project is designed to save the Dead Sea, whose level has been falling year by year, and arrange the division of water between Israel and Jordan. COMMENT: Politicians and analysts who argue that Israel is more isolated than ever, should get their heads out of their....whatever.
4. The US has arguably some of the smartest people on the planet. They also arguably have amongst the population members of the scum of the earth variety. Listening to these pro gun types spouting their hypocrisy on national TV can be nauseating to say the least. "Its a terrorism thing" they say or "its much worse in other countries". They must be thinking of failed states like Syria and Yemen. I wonder how they would define the Sandy Hook shooting? For the record...
Enough said.
5.Ynet Israel: The March 2016 cycle of Desert Reconnaissance Battalion soldiers were sworn in on Thursday, consisting largely of Muslim Bedouins, along with some Christian and Muslim Arabs, all of whom volunteered for army service; 'I understood how important it was to give and do my part for the country in which I was born, that I live my life in, and that I'm proud of.' COMMENT: Are you watching Mr Trump? Kolhakavod L Tsahal!
6.Iraqi forces recaptured the last district held by Islamic State militants in the city of Fallujah on June 26, ending the battle after nearly five weeks of fighting, the commanding general said, Reuters reported. The offensive has been backed by a U.S.-led coalition mostly in the form of airstrikes. At least 1,800 ISIS fighters were killed in the operation to retake Fallujah, and the rest had fled, officials said. Fighting to recapture the Iraqi city has forced more than 85,000 residents to flee to overwhelmed government-run camps. COMMENT: Say what you like about Obama..."Slowly but surely" works for him.
7.A new report from Germany's domestic intelligence agency catalogued a 42 percent rise in violence by right-wing extremists in 2015, Reuters reported June 28. The report listed more than 1,400 acts of violence throughout the year, including dozens of arson attacks against refugee centers and attacks against politicians and journalists. During 2015 Germany took in more than one million migrants, many of who were fleeing violence in the Middle East, Afghanistan and North Africa. The influx of migrants also led to a record performance during the country's March regional elections for the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. COMMENT: Here we go again!
We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to
public office - Aesop
Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge
even where there is no river - Nikita Khrushchev
Monday, June 20, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.
1.Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch: The numbers are daunting if not shocking: $12.3 trillion of money printing, nearly $10 trillion in negative-yielding global bonds, 654 interest rate cuts since Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008. And what have we gotten for all of this quantitative easing, interest rate slashing, and central bank monetary manipulation? Economic growth in advanced economies that won’t likely eclipse 2% this year and a global debt problem that has only grown more acute. COMMENT: I've always wondered what the twighlight zone looks like....this is it!
2.For the first time ever, Israel was elected to head a permanent committee at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly, despite intense efforts by Arab and Muslim states to stop the nomination. In a secret ballot Monday in New York, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon was elected chairman of the GA’s Sixth Committee, which deals with legal issues. “This is a historic achievement for the State of Israel. We broke the glass ceiling: Despite the opposition of many countries, including Iran and others that tried to prevent the vote, we managed to be elected for the first time to head a committee at the UN,” Danon said. COMMENT: Amazing how at the end of the day money talks and Bullshit walks and the oil money is not just walking...it's running!
UPDATE: At least four Arab nations voted in favor of Israel’s successful and historic candidacy to head a major United Nations committee, the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Quds al-Arabi reported earlier this week.
3.Fact Check: Donald Trump says that US trade imbalances with China and Japan are caused by currency manipulation and that these countries (and others) are deliberately devaluing their currencies to make their products cheaper and thus more attractive.The reality is that China has not devalued its currency in the last five years and has REVALUED its currency by 23% over 10 years. The Japanese Yen has REVALUED by 14.2% over ten years. In fact the biggest manipulator of its currency over ten years has been the US! What does that say about Trump's business acumen?
UPDATE: And now Trump has fired his campaign manager.....Perhaps he is of the opinion that he can fire the senate or congress if they disagree with the him.
4.Shanghai Disneyland, Disney's first theme park in mainland China, is big by every measure. In fact, it's the entertainment company's largest overseas outpost. Here's a few of the monster numbers that brought the "happiest place on earth" to the world's second-largest economy.
100,000 Workers estimated to have worked on the park's construction, with thousands more working on the accompanying resort infrastructure
5.5 Billions of dollars it cost to build the park
3.6 Millions of liters of water needed to fill Treasure Cove
16 Millions of meals Disney expects to sell each year
150 Dishes on offer in the theme park, representing the eight major cuisines of China
700 Kilograms of rice Disney expects to serve each day
600,000 Giant turkey legs visitors are expected to consume in a year
12 Million heads of bok choy that workers are expected to trim in a year
COMMENT: Life is good in Disneyland.
5.Over the next several decades, the biggest and wealthiest generation in U.S. history will transfer roughly $30 trillion in assets to their Gen X and millennial children, and if studies are accurate, most of those children will promptly fire their parents' advisors.
"Studies regularly show that when wealth passes to another generation, in the majority of cases, the heirs change financial advisors," said Gauthier Vincent, head of Deloitte's U.S. Wealth Management practice. "The relationship between assets, asset owners and financial advisors is unraveling before our eyes." COMMENT: Interesting how an entitled generation of millennials will handle all this money with all the sharks and hustlers awaiting in the shadows.
6.Geopolitical Futures: The success of an anti-establishment party in Italy’s local elections on June 19 highlights that the country’s banking problems, sluggish economic growth and combative relationship with the European Union are changing the perception of Italian voters. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which ran a campaign focused on corruption and promises of change and supported a possible referendum on eurozone membership, won mayoral positions in both Rome and Turin. The party’s popularity tripled in Rome compared to the 2013 local elections. COMMENT: The cracks are appearing all over the EU. Brexit or no Brexit this movement is gaining in strength.
7.India announced big reforms June 20 to its policies regarding foreign direct investment (FDI) that will open the country's civil aviation and defense sectors to full outside ownership, Reuters reported. The move, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted would make India's economy the most open in the world for FDI. COMMENT: India is the new China. Quietly and without much fanfare this economy is reaping the fruits of lowers energy prices, a stable and rising currency and strong GDP growth. Israel will be a huge benefactor of these reforms.
8. Stratfor: In Asia, fish and other marine foodstuffs play a greater role in diets than in the West. Seafood production is an important source of employment and a vital component of national economies. Asian fisheries make up half the global total capture production, and six of the top 10 producers of marine products are in Asia. In the South China Sea, maritime security and naval forces are growing in size, assertions of national sovereignty are becoming more concrete, and keeping track of the 1.72 million fishing vessels in the South China Sea alone is not only a daunting task, it is one that can draw neighbors into more active confrontation. COMMENT: Interesting take on the powder keg that is the South China Sea.
“A trillion here, a trillion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.”
—Daniel Hannan, British politician, journalist, and EU Parliament member
Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might
be better to change the locks - Doug Larson
1.Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch: The numbers are daunting if not shocking: $12.3 trillion of money printing, nearly $10 trillion in negative-yielding global bonds, 654 interest rate cuts since Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008. And what have we gotten for all of this quantitative easing, interest rate slashing, and central bank monetary manipulation? Economic growth in advanced economies that won’t likely eclipse 2% this year and a global debt problem that has only grown more acute. COMMENT: I've always wondered what the twighlight zone looks like....this is it!
2.For the first time ever, Israel was elected to head a permanent committee at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly, despite intense efforts by Arab and Muslim states to stop the nomination. In a secret ballot Monday in New York, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon was elected chairman of the GA’s Sixth Committee, which deals with legal issues. “This is a historic achievement for the State of Israel. We broke the glass ceiling: Despite the opposition of many countries, including Iran and others that tried to prevent the vote, we managed to be elected for the first time to head a committee at the UN,” Danon said. COMMENT: Amazing how at the end of the day money talks and Bullshit walks and the oil money is not just walking...it's running!
UPDATE: At least four Arab nations voted in favor of Israel’s successful and historic candidacy to head a major United Nations committee, the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Quds al-Arabi reported earlier this week.
3.Fact Check: Donald Trump says that US trade imbalances with China and Japan are caused by currency manipulation and that these countries (and others) are deliberately devaluing their currencies to make their products cheaper and thus more attractive.The reality is that China has not devalued its currency in the last five years and has REVALUED its currency by 23% over 10 years. The Japanese Yen has REVALUED by 14.2% over ten years. In fact the biggest manipulator of its currency over ten years has been the US! What does that say about Trump's business acumen?
UPDATE: And now Trump has fired his campaign manager.....Perhaps he is of the opinion that he can fire the senate or congress if they disagree with the him.
4.Shanghai Disneyland, Disney's first theme park in mainland China, is big by every measure. In fact, it's the entertainment company's largest overseas outpost. Here's a few of the monster numbers that brought the "happiest place on earth" to the world's second-largest economy.
100,000 Workers estimated to have worked on the park's construction, with thousands more working on the accompanying resort infrastructure
5.5 Billions of dollars it cost to build the park
3.6 Millions of liters of water needed to fill Treasure Cove
16 Millions of meals Disney expects to sell each year
150 Dishes on offer in the theme park, representing the eight major cuisines of China
700 Kilograms of rice Disney expects to serve each day
600,000 Giant turkey legs visitors are expected to consume in a year
12 Million heads of bok choy that workers are expected to trim in a year
COMMENT: Life is good in Disneyland.
5.Over the next several decades, the biggest and wealthiest generation in U.S. history will transfer roughly $30 trillion in assets to their Gen X and millennial children, and if studies are accurate, most of those children will promptly fire their parents' advisors.
"Studies regularly show that when wealth passes to another generation, in the majority of cases, the heirs change financial advisors," said Gauthier Vincent, head of Deloitte's U.S. Wealth Management practice. "The relationship between assets, asset owners and financial advisors is unraveling before our eyes." COMMENT: Interesting how an entitled generation of millennials will handle all this money with all the sharks and hustlers awaiting in the shadows.
6.Geopolitical Futures: The success of an anti-establishment party in Italy’s local elections on June 19 highlights that the country’s banking problems, sluggish economic growth and combative relationship with the European Union are changing the perception of Italian voters. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which ran a campaign focused on corruption and promises of change and supported a possible referendum on eurozone membership, won mayoral positions in both Rome and Turin. The party’s popularity tripled in Rome compared to the 2013 local elections. COMMENT: The cracks are appearing all over the EU. Brexit or no Brexit this movement is gaining in strength.
7.India announced big reforms June 20 to its policies regarding foreign direct investment (FDI) that will open the country's civil aviation and defense sectors to full outside ownership, Reuters reported. The move, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted would make India's economy the most open in the world for FDI. COMMENT: India is the new China. Quietly and without much fanfare this economy is reaping the fruits of lowers energy prices, a stable and rising currency and strong GDP growth. Israel will be a huge benefactor of these reforms.
8. Stratfor: In Asia, fish and other marine foodstuffs play a greater role in diets than in the West. Seafood production is an important source of employment and a vital component of national economies. Asian fisheries make up half the global total capture production, and six of the top 10 producers of marine products are in Asia. In the South China Sea, maritime security and naval forces are growing in size, assertions of national sovereignty are becoming more concrete, and keeping track of the 1.72 million fishing vessels in the South China Sea alone is not only a daunting task, it is one that can draw neighbors into more active confrontation. COMMENT: Interesting take on the powder keg that is the South China Sea.
“A trillion here, a trillion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.”
—Daniel Hannan, British politician, journalist, and EU Parliament member
Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might
be better to change the locks - Doug Larson
Friday, June 10, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
1. The United Methodist Church has rejected several resolutions calling for the 12-million-member Protestant church to divest from companies engaging in business with Israel over its treatment of Palestinians. Church committees over the weekend voted down four Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions resolutions brought to a vote at the church’s quadrennial United Methodist Church General Conference in Portland, Oregon, taking place this week. The resolutions “pretty much went down in flames,” UMC delegate and BDS opponent John Lomperis told Religion News Service on Sunday. COMMENT: This BDS crowd appear to be an uncontrolled rabble of fringe group anti-semites who, quite frankly are almost obsolete....waiting in the corridors for a Bernie Sanders type hypocrite to appear.
2.Bloomberg: Under the economic plan known as Vision 2030 promoted by the king’s powerful son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, the government is signaling it wants to wean the kingdom’s economy off oil revenue, lessening the need to manage prices. Moreover, the planned privatization of Saudi Arabian Oil Co. will make the nation the only member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries without full ownership of its national oil company. COMMENT: Goodbye OPEC.
3. Travel planning site Hipmunk reported that it has seen first-quarter bookings for Trump Hotels decline 59.3 percent year over year, while overall bookings through the site have generally risen during the same period.Which Trump hotels are suffering?
Percent change in bookings between the first quarter of 2016 and 2015.
Trump Soho New York-74%
Trump International Hotel Las Vegas -71%
Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto -47%
Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago -31%
The Trump Taj Mahal (Atlantic City) -17%
Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk +4%
COMMENT: Looks like Trump supporters cannot afford Trump prices.
4.(CNN)The leader of a Pakistani Islamic council has proposed a bill that allows husbands to "lightly beat" their wives as a form of discipline.In the 75-page proposal, Mohammad Khan Sheerani suggests a light beating is acceptable should the need arise to punish a woman. The proposal bans forceful beating, saying only a small stick is necessary to instill fear. COMMENT: What say you folks? Is this guy making Pakistan great again?
5.One of Bernie Sanders biggest mistakes....standing up for the rights of Israel's enemies and accusing the the IDF of " murdering innocent Palestinians" while exaggerating the numbers of these so called innocents. The Jews of New York let him have it with both barrels and now the Jewish communities of New Jersey and California rocketed him with a cruise missile. Feel the Bern Bernie? I do.....I'm loving every second of it....Burn baby burn! Pass the popcorn please.
6.What a difference a decade makes! The terrorist attack at the Sarona Market in Tel Aviv' was reported by CNN as an attack by terrorists who murdered and wounded innocent Israelis. No longer "gunmen" or "Palestinian gunmen shot dead x amount of Israeli's" or "Palestinian fighters, guns blazing stormed an Israeli market place. There are casualties on both sides". COMMENT: Its taken a while and the odd terrorist attack by Muslim terrorists in Europe and the US for reality to sink in. Better late than never.
7.Central Banks continue to manipulate markets by purchasing equities, buying and selling futures, supporting oil prices amongst other things. Mark my words folks...this will end badly, its only when and not if. Its time to be really cautious. Preservation of capital is more important than profits. Stay safe.
Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and
campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect
each from the other - Oscar Ameringer
A politician is a fellow who will lay
down your life for his country - Tex Guinan
4.(CNN)The leader of a Pakistani Islamic council has proposed a bill that allows husbands to "lightly beat" their wives as a form of discipline.In the 75-page proposal, Mohammad Khan Sheerani suggests a light beating is acceptable should the need arise to punish a woman. The proposal bans forceful beating, saying only a small stick is necessary to instill fear. COMMENT: What say you folks? Is this guy making Pakistan great again?
5.One of Bernie Sanders biggest mistakes....standing up for the rights of Israel's enemies and accusing the the IDF of " murdering innocent Palestinians" while exaggerating the numbers of these so called innocents. The Jews of New York let him have it with both barrels and now the Jewish communities of New Jersey and California rocketed him with a cruise missile. Feel the Bern Bernie? I do.....I'm loving every second of it....Burn baby burn! Pass the popcorn please.
6.What a difference a decade makes! The terrorist attack at the Sarona Market in Tel Aviv' was reported by CNN as an attack by terrorists who murdered and wounded innocent Israelis. No longer "gunmen" or "Palestinian gunmen shot dead x amount of Israeli's" or "Palestinian fighters, guns blazing stormed an Israeli market place. There are casualties on both sides". COMMENT: Its taken a while and the odd terrorist attack by Muslim terrorists in Europe and the US for reality to sink in. Better late than never.
7.Central Banks continue to manipulate markets by purchasing equities, buying and selling futures, supporting oil prices amongst other things. Mark my words folks...this will end badly, its only when and not if. Its time to be really cautious. Preservation of capital is more important than profits. Stay safe.
Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and
campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect
each from the other - Oscar Ameringer
A politician is a fellow who will lay
down your life for his country - Tex Guinan
Thursday, May 12, 2016
The Peanut Gallery
Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.
1.For years there have been rumours that China has been falsifying economic statistics. China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) revealed on its website Wednesday that it had found more than 300 NBS employees guilty of providing data for financial gain. The CCDI didn’t just announce that hundreds of NBS staff had taken money in return for providing official statistics. The investigation has also discovered that NBS funds were used not for data collection, but rather to rent fancy office rooms or vehicles, and that at least 19 people were given promotions within the bureau that were not deserved. COMMENT: Notable that the corruption is so rife that the CCDI published it on a government website!
2.InvestYourself.com: "Central Banks are buying equities to shore up stock markets. Nations have come forward to actually tell you to your face that they're supporting stocks. The Swiss National bank holds 97 billion worth of stocks. In Japan the Central Bank could become the #1 shareholder in about 40 of the Nikkei's companies by the end of 2017, according to Bloomberg calculations." Add to that massive purchases by the Chinese Central Bank and Denmark's Central bank, we can start referring to this as a trend. COMMENT: Folks, when this goes south, the results are not going to be pretty. Don't fool yourselves that the powers that be know what they are doing. They don't!
3.Bloomberg: China’s leading Communist Party mouthpiece acknowledged the risks of a build-up of debt that is worrying the world and said the nation needed to face up to its nonperforming loans. High leverage is the “original sin” that leads to risks in the foreign-exchange market, stocks, bonds, real estate and bank credit, the People’s Daily said in a full-page interview with an unnamed “authoritative person” starting on page one and filling the second page on Monday. COMMENT: Don't look for economic growth in China any time soon.
4.Austria’s chancellor, Werner Faymann, resigned May 9 after losing the support of his Social Democratic party, AFP and The Guardian reported. The move comes amid political turmoil following anti-immigration candidate Norbert Hofer's landslide victory in last month's first round of the presidential election. Hofer, a member of the right-wing Freedom party, is expected to win a run-off scheduled for May 22. COMMENT: The disintegration of the EU has taken another step forward.
5.Donald Trump dubs himself the "king of debt." Experts say he doesn't have a clue -- at least when it comes to U.S. government debt. Only a few weeks ago, Trump said he could eliminate federal debt in just eight years, a nearly impossible task. Trump's own tax plan would add trillions to the debt. Now he says the U.S. should just borrow more and renegotiate the terms later. "I would borrow, knowing that if the economy crashed, you could make a deal," Trump said on CNBC last week.(He obviously thinks the economy is a hotel!)
"Mr. Trump doesn't have a coherent idea of what he's talking about," says Michael Strain, an economic policy expert at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. "This is the bond market equivalent of 'we're going to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it." COMMENT: This is turning from a reality show into a Mickey Mouse comedy.
6.Defense News: Israel — Imagine an intuitively trained special missions operative endowed with 360-degree vision who works alone or in packs to breach high-risk safe houses and bunkers, ready to shoot to kill within a second of an officer’s command. That’s exactly what General Robotics Ltd., a high-tech firm tucked away in this rural community south of Tel Aviv, has developed with its trademarked Dogo, a 12-kilogram, pistol-packing killer robot for close-quarter combat and counterterrorism operations. Read more: http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/international/mideast-africa/2016/05/08/introducing-israeli-12-kilo-killer-robot/83970684/
7.May 11 (Reuters) - Shares in Banco Popolare (italy) plunged 14 percent on Wednesday after a surprise first-quarter loss driven by loan writedowns -- the main focus of investor concerns over Italian banks. Italian banks have lost nearly 40 percent of their market value so far this year. COMMENT: This could effect the global economy. Italy is much, much larger than Greece. Red Flag waving!
8. Happy 68th birthday Israel. The more morbid statements we hear predicting that the end is near for the Jewish State, the stronger Israel gets while her enemies continue to implode. Truly a light unto the nations! Lechayim!
The problem with political jokes is they get elected.
~Henry Cate, VII~
When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become
President; I'm beginning to believe it.
~Clarence Darrow~
1.For years there have been rumours that China has been falsifying economic statistics. China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) revealed on its website Wednesday that it had found more than 300 NBS employees guilty of providing data for financial gain. The CCDI didn’t just announce that hundreds of NBS staff had taken money in return for providing official statistics. The investigation has also discovered that NBS funds were used not for data collection, but rather to rent fancy office rooms or vehicles, and that at least 19 people were given promotions within the bureau that were not deserved. COMMENT: Notable that the corruption is so rife that the CCDI published it on a government website!
2.InvestYourself.com: "Central Banks are buying equities to shore up stock markets. Nations have come forward to actually tell you to your face that they're supporting stocks. The Swiss National bank holds 97 billion worth of stocks. In Japan the Central Bank could become the #1 shareholder in about 40 of the Nikkei's companies by the end of 2017, according to Bloomberg calculations." Add to that massive purchases by the Chinese Central Bank and Denmark's Central bank, we can start referring to this as a trend. COMMENT: Folks, when this goes south, the results are not going to be pretty. Don't fool yourselves that the powers that be know what they are doing. They don't!
3.Bloomberg: China’s leading Communist Party mouthpiece acknowledged the risks of a build-up of debt that is worrying the world and said the nation needed to face up to its nonperforming loans. High leverage is the “original sin” that leads to risks in the foreign-exchange market, stocks, bonds, real estate and bank credit, the People’s Daily said in a full-page interview with an unnamed “authoritative person” starting on page one and filling the second page on Monday. COMMENT: Don't look for economic growth in China any time soon.
4.Austria’s chancellor, Werner Faymann, resigned May 9 after losing the support of his Social Democratic party, AFP and The Guardian reported. The move comes amid political turmoil following anti-immigration candidate Norbert Hofer's landslide victory in last month's first round of the presidential election. Hofer, a member of the right-wing Freedom party, is expected to win a run-off scheduled for May 22. COMMENT: The disintegration of the EU has taken another step forward.
5.Donald Trump dubs himself the "king of debt." Experts say he doesn't have a clue -- at least when it comes to U.S. government debt. Only a few weeks ago, Trump said he could eliminate federal debt in just eight years, a nearly impossible task. Trump's own tax plan would add trillions to the debt. Now he says the U.S. should just borrow more and renegotiate the terms later. "I would borrow, knowing that if the economy crashed, you could make a deal," Trump said on CNBC last week.(He obviously thinks the economy is a hotel!)
"Mr. Trump doesn't have a coherent idea of what he's talking about," says Michael Strain, an economic policy expert at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. "This is the bond market equivalent of 'we're going to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it." COMMENT: This is turning from a reality show into a Mickey Mouse comedy.
6.Defense News: Israel — Imagine an intuitively trained special missions operative endowed with 360-degree vision who works alone or in packs to breach high-risk safe houses and bunkers, ready to shoot to kill within a second of an officer’s command. That’s exactly what General Robotics Ltd., a high-tech firm tucked away in this rural community south of Tel Aviv, has developed with its trademarked Dogo, a 12-kilogram, pistol-packing killer robot for close-quarter combat and counterterrorism operations. Read more: http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/international/mideast-africa/2016/05/08/introducing-israeli-12-kilo-killer-robot/83970684/
7.May 11 (Reuters) - Shares in Banco Popolare (italy) plunged 14 percent on Wednesday after a surprise first-quarter loss driven by loan writedowns -- the main focus of investor concerns over Italian banks. Italian banks have lost nearly 40 percent of their market value so far this year. COMMENT: This could effect the global economy. Italy is much, much larger than Greece. Red Flag waving!
8. Happy 68th birthday Israel. The more morbid statements we hear predicting that the end is near for the Jewish State, the stronger Israel gets while her enemies continue to implode. Truly a light unto the nations! Lechayim!
The problem with political jokes is they get elected.
~Henry Cate, VII~
When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become
President; I'm beginning to believe it.
~Clarence Darrow~
Monday, May 9, 2016
Its Personal....
Ever since I can remember, I have had a basic dislike for loudmouthed bullies, arrogant braggarts and wannabe tough guys. In my experience they tend to be either cowards who abuse those they perceive to be easy targets (women, kids, minorities etc) or those they understand to be perhaps smarter or more accomplished than themselves. By now an observant person might understand that I am profiling the commonplace Trump type and his classic supporter. That is not to say that Mr Trump would not make a successful president. He might. What I am saying is that this type of individual would not darken my family doorstep. Its personal.
In 1982 during the First Lebanon War our IDF unit penetrated far into the Eastern region of Lebanon and faced off against Syrian forces in the area of Lake Qaraoun. Listening to some of the radio chatter it was astounding to hear the arrogance and confidence of some of the unit, and how they were going to rattle the Syrian cage. With a pulsating heart I remember thinking of how tough these guys were. Well to cut a long story short, The Syrians began pounding us that evening with artillery barrages and we dived for any form of cover we could find. Through the cacophony of explosions I heard one tough guy crying out for his mother. Another peed his pants and a third was wailing in fear and and babbling a prayer. Young Harry was taught a major life lesson in those chaotic moments. There is no such thing as a "tough guy", only brave guys and many loudmouthed wannabees. Significantly, the same windbags were heard later on explaining how they had taught the enemy a lesson.
This blog is definitely not for your typical Trump supporter since the majority of these folk don't appear to be interested in the truth, facts or practicality of anything he is saying. Rather he is feeding into their "anger" and therefore they believe anything he says to be possible. To be fair, he did not create the political and economic climate of today (that belongs to Bush and Obama). Like the typical Queens con man ("I know somebody who knows somebody etc") he saw an opportunity and jumped at it. And man....did the fish bite or what! A wild feeding frenzy by the PC commercial media intellectuals on the left and across the board to the white trailer trash in the deep south, ensued. Nobody bothered to fact check the statements coming out of this campaign. This was a reality TV revolution at its best....something most Americans are familiar with. The real world looked on in shock while the liberal media watched gleefully as the hate fest exploded onto our screens.
Anyone who believes a "successful businessman" can run a country is bordering on the delusional. The modern presidents who achieved the most — Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and Ronald Reagan — had virtually no commercial background. Some who did, George W. Bush and Herbert Hoover, fared worse in the White House. Robert Rubin: “In business, the single, overriding purpose is to make a profit,” he wrote. “Government, on the other hand, deals with a vast number of legitimate and often potentially competing objectives — for example, energy production versus environmental protection, or safety regulations versus productivity. This complexity of goals brings a corresponding complexity of process.” He then noted that a big difference between the two realms is that no political leader, not even the president, has the kind of authority every corporate chief does. CEOs can hire and fire based on performance, pay bonuses to incentivize their subordinates, and promote capable people aggressively.
So what will the Donald do when confronted by a hostile senate....after all he doesn't sign the cheques. Trump is using a typical "divide and conquer strategy" which in a diverse America of today is paradoxically playing right into the hands of the Dem strategists. Either way, for this "tough guy" to mutate into a viable leader he will have to unite Americans and America. Not just his own party. I wish him luck with that....but like I said at the outset, the bad taste in my mouth is personal.
“I don't trust society to protect us, I have no intention of placing my fate in the hands of men whose only qualification is that they managed to con a block of people to vote for them.”
― Mario Puzo, The Godfather
Boxing is real easy. Life is much harder - Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
In 1982 during the First Lebanon War our IDF unit penetrated far into the Eastern region of Lebanon and faced off against Syrian forces in the area of Lake Qaraoun. Listening to some of the radio chatter it was astounding to hear the arrogance and confidence of some of the unit, and how they were going to rattle the Syrian cage. With a pulsating heart I remember thinking of how tough these guys were. Well to cut a long story short, The Syrians began pounding us that evening with artillery barrages and we dived for any form of cover we could find. Through the cacophony of explosions I heard one tough guy crying out for his mother. Another peed his pants and a third was wailing in fear and and babbling a prayer. Young Harry was taught a major life lesson in those chaotic moments. There is no such thing as a "tough guy", only brave guys and many loudmouthed wannabees. Significantly, the same windbags were heard later on explaining how they had taught the enemy a lesson.
This blog is definitely not for your typical Trump supporter since the majority of these folk don't appear to be interested in the truth, facts or practicality of anything he is saying. Rather he is feeding into their "anger" and therefore they believe anything he says to be possible. To be fair, he did not create the political and economic climate of today (that belongs to Bush and Obama). Like the typical Queens con man ("I know somebody who knows somebody etc") he saw an opportunity and jumped at it. And man....did the fish bite or what! A wild feeding frenzy by the PC commercial media intellectuals on the left and across the board to the white trailer trash in the deep south, ensued. Nobody bothered to fact check the statements coming out of this campaign. This was a reality TV revolution at its best....something most Americans are familiar with. The real world looked on in shock while the liberal media watched gleefully as the hate fest exploded onto our screens.
Anyone who believes a "successful businessman" can run a country is bordering on the delusional. The modern presidents who achieved the most — Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and Ronald Reagan — had virtually no commercial background. Some who did, George W. Bush and Herbert Hoover, fared worse in the White House. Robert Rubin: “In business, the single, overriding purpose is to make a profit,” he wrote. “Government, on the other hand, deals with a vast number of legitimate and often potentially competing objectives — for example, energy production versus environmental protection, or safety regulations versus productivity. This complexity of goals brings a corresponding complexity of process.” He then noted that a big difference between the two realms is that no political leader, not even the president, has the kind of authority every corporate chief does. CEOs can hire and fire based on performance, pay bonuses to incentivize their subordinates, and promote capable people aggressively.
So what will the Donald do when confronted by a hostile senate....after all he doesn't sign the cheques. Trump is using a typical "divide and conquer strategy" which in a diverse America of today is paradoxically playing right into the hands of the Dem strategists. Either way, for this "tough guy" to mutate into a viable leader he will have to unite Americans and America. Not just his own party. I wish him luck with that....but like I said at the outset, the bad taste in my mouth is personal.
“I don't trust society to protect us, I have no intention of placing my fate in the hands of men whose only qualification is that they managed to con a block of people to vote for them.”
― Mario Puzo, The Godfather
Boxing is real easy. Life is much harder - Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
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