:: 4-2-20 Hostile Living :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

2nd Apr 2020 by tomhach

The (New) Great Depression – Why America’s Response to Coronavirus Adds Disaster to Catastrophe

America’s response to Coronavirus has been, in a word, disastrous. It adds disaster to the catastrophe of a new global pandemic. If you’ve thought something like the above, you’re exactly right. And yet because the media is doing a fairly poor job of explaining just why, let me. America’s stimulus program gives a one-off payment of $1200 to people — and even that’s conditional on income. Good enough, right? Wrong. Every other rich country by now has guaranteed incomes, in some form or other. Sweden, to 90%. Denmark subsidizing 75% of incomes. Take the other most capitalist society in the world, Britain Even there, incomes have been guaranteed: Britain, to 80% of income. In Europe, most nations have gone even further, making not just emergency payments to workers for as long as the crisis will last, but mortgages have already been suspended, which is another way to guarantee incomes. By this measure, America’s paltry $1200 one-off payment looks inadequate — because it is. Deeply and profoundly so. Before I come to the other ways, let’s discuss why America’s response has been so dismal. The fear is that inflation will wrack the economy if people are to “get paid for free.” But nothing could be more wrong. Inflation, often misunderstood by Americans, because American economics, is to put it kindly, a joke, is really this: spirals in wages and prices. Now think of the average American. He or she is suddenly out of work — and facing the prospect of sudden and long-lasting bankruptcy. In other words, the average American is facing a deflationary shock. One so total, the like has never been seen in modern history. Overnight, literally, their income has gone to zero. That deflationary shock will ripple outwards through the economy. It will cause prices to fall, because people won’t have enough money to buy the same levels of stuff. Prices for what? For everything. For houses, food, cars, and so forth. That deflation probably won’t make the headlines, because they’ll be full of profiteering scandals. Of course profiteering will take place, but across the larger economy, the effect of deflationary shocks will be what it always is: depression. Depression means: After they lose their incomes Americans will then lose their savings, their homes, whatever other assets they had, like retirement and college and funds and so forth. They will struggle to afford the basics, even more than the already did — remember, America was already an economy in which 75% struggled to pay basic bills, like food, housing, and utilities, even before Coronavirus. Now imagine them being even poorer than that. The stage has now been set for a depression. Precisely because idea that a danger from the government supporting people during a catastrophe is “inflation” is backwards — the real danger is deflation. That deflationary shock is taking place as we speak, like a mega-earthquake, an extinction level event, which is making millions of Americans go from a relatively paltry income to…zero income. That is why a $1200 payment to people isn’t nearly enough. Those jobs aren’t suddenly going to magically come back. Why not? That brings me to the second reason America’s Coronavirus response is inadequate. Businesses are already going bankrupt. How many can you count? Just take a look down your block. How many small or medium sized businesses are shuttering their doors, or on the verge? Your local bakery, brewer, butcher — if you even had one left? America’s stimulus program offers little real support to the economy. It gives mega-corporations huge bailouts. But for everyone else, it offers little to no real support. Maybe — and I stress maybe — your average business gets a small loan or a tax break from the government. But what good is a loan or a tax break when the basis of your business has simply fallen apart? Think of a supply chain: it’s a complex web of businesses. Like an ecosystem, the shock of losing customers suddenly ripples outwards and upwards. Sure, all these businesses can take on loans and get minor-league tax breaks. So what? That doesn’t solve the problem of no income at all. Those businesses will all still soon fold, as their debt spirals out of control, while their revenues plunge to near zero — and no amount of tax breaks can fix that, either. Loans are not really a “stimulus.” The Fed doesn’t give banks “loans” during a crisis — it simply throws free money at them. It literally simply puts money in their accounts in the central bank. Yes, really. That is precisely what America should have done for businesses, too. It should have guaranteed their incomes, just as it should have guaranteed personal incomes. That’s what Italy and Germany did: businesses at risk don’t get loans, they get grants. And in Spain and France, they get government guaranteed funds, in which “guaranteed” means that any debt will probably be written off after the crisis. Just as the sudden loss of income for people creates an extinction level deflationary shock, so too does the sudden loss of income for businesses. That deflationary shock — business’s revenues suddenly falling to zero — will rip through the economy, causing mass layoffs, bankruptcies, and the extinction of whole sectors. Again: the stage for a historic depression has now been set. That brings me to the third and biggest reason. What’s missing from this “stimulus” package? Take a look at those brave doctors and nurses. They’re fashioning masks out of pizza boxes. They’re desperately trying to get patients to share scarce ventilators. What’s missing from this stimulus package is…stimulus. As in the real thing. What does that mean? A massive, historic, generational wave of investment in healthcare like America’s never seen before. Isn’t it obvious that’s what’s necessary right about now? That America’s barely functional healthcare system — and economy — can hardly cope with the magnitude of this shock? And yet, on the same day as it announced this stimulus package, the government also proclaimed it couldn’t spend a billion dollars on…ventilators. Wait, what? Perhaps you see the problem. Let me put it more plainly. This stimulus bill isn’t really one. It doesn’t put, say, a trillion dollars towards building new hospitals, clinics, care centers…and another trillions to new labs, research facilities, university research programs. It doesn’t recruit a million people or ten to do the sudden work of gearing a whole economy towards building the missing resources a society crippled by disease now urgently needs. What kind of work is that? This stimulus doesn’t create institutions like a Works Progress Administration — only this time for people to work in factories suddenly building ventilators and masks, or a million bright young people researching pandemics harder, or an army of everyday people visiting the elderly and making sure they’re ok, or legions making films about the pandemic, or writing about it — things which are the equivalent of digging ditches during a pandemic. Yet think about how much of that is the necessary, crucial work of this moment. Think how much work there is to really do — from building the resources we need, whether simple things like ventilators and masks, to doing new research and development, fast, to manning and managing it all, to chronicling this moment in literature and film, to building whole new hospitals and clinics, to creating a whole new sector of crisis planning. This stimulus doesn’t do any of that. It doesn’t even have a billion dollars for the scarcest and most urgently necessary resource of all — ventilators, for Pete’s sake — let alone new hospitals and clinics, or staffing existing ones better. The result is that America’s economy is still scarce of the resources it needs most to fight this pandemic, like ventilators and masks. This stimulus isn’t one because it doesn’t invest in anything new at all.

Related: Pandemic Protocol: Proven Steps to Prevent Infection Let me put all that in more formal, technical terms. A stimulus is not a stimulus when it doesn’t create any resources, lead to any larger surplus, in society. A stimulus is a stimulus when it suddenly, massively invests in society, so that new resources can be created. Often, whole new institutions must be built — like the Depression’s WPA or Reconstruction Finance Corporation — to coordinate and manage those investments. The whole point of a stimulus is to suddenly, rapidly expand society’s surplus of resources — especially desperately necessary ones — or it isn’t a stimulus at all. Those desperately necessary resources differ from crisis to crisis. What are they this time around? Ventilators. Masks. Hospitals. Care workers. Factories. Transportation. Meanwhile, mass unemployment has set in. See the obvious solution? The government can and should “employ” people who are suddenly unemployed and broke to balance that equation — to create those desperately necessary resources. If it needs to create new institutions to do that — A Healthcare Crisis Agency, a Pandemic Response Bank, a Reconstruction Finance Corporation — all the better: even more people are employed to create another scarce resource, planning and coordinating. That is what a stimulus is — when we genuinely take collective action to invest together to create a surplus of critical resources that we suddenly, desperately lack. This bill literally does none of that. As in: zero. And in that way, it’s not a stimulus at all. What it is is a bailout. It’s a rescue of corporations and Wall St and the same old. It’s a bailout of capitalism — at the expense of the economy, people, and life itself. What’s a depression? A society in desperate scarcity — whether of money, homes, income, medicine, and so on, the basics — usually, as the result of a sudden, catastrophic shock. The correct result is a real stimulus — as Keynes discovered a century ago — precisely so that society can have a surplus of those critical resources. Otherwise, a deflationary spiral sets in: wages and prices fall in tandem, and people get sharply poorer in real terms, fast. The prices of these few critical resources rise, of course — but only amidst fresh and terrible poverty.

But that poverty is disaster added to catastrophe. Because depression results from some shock — the loss of a war, natural calamity, in this case, pandemic. Poverty is a consequence of inaction, folly, negligence — the lack of collective action and shared investment. America’s response to Coronavirus is as flawed and inadequate as you probably think. Compared to other rich countries, America is essentially doing next to nothing. It sets the stage for depression — by being a bailout of capitalism’s mega-rich, who already have too much, while the average person and his or her small business have long had too little. Instead of massively investing to create a surplus of critical resources, it…doesn’t invest in anything at all. That is why we will go on hearing surreal horror stories about doctors making masks from pizza boxes and nurses dying because they treated the sick without protective gear…even as we lose our own jobs and incomes…while the mega-rich go on laughing all the way to the bank. Don’t get me wrong. This stimulus is better than nothing. But what it isn’t is nearly good enough for a society as broken as America to be able to cope with catastrophe — much less grow as an improbable result of it. There’s another, harder, way to put all that. Did you really expect a ruthlessly capitalist society to be able to save itself from a pandemic? Or was it always just going to use it as a way to exploit people even harder? Sadly, the answer, my friends, is one every country but America knows by now.

https://hostileliving.home.blog/2020/04/02/the-new-great-depression-why-americas-response-to-coronavirus-adds-disaster-to-catastrophe/ 

:: 4-2-20 Natural News :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Retail stores in large cities appear to be preparing for MASS RIOTS by boarding up their windows

Thursday, April 02, 2020 by: Franz Walker

(Natural News) As cities all over America have placed stay-at-home orders in response to the coronavirus, high-end retailers are worrying about potential civil unrest. Several shops, including those in one of Hollywood’s most famous shopping districts, are taking measures to protect themselves against possible looters. Shops on or around Beverly Hills’ Rodeo Drive seem to be preparing for the worse possible scenario during this current outbreak. Photographs have surfaced online of several of these stores having their doors and storefront windows boarded up with giant slabs of plywood. This is in addition to said stores clearing out their shelves of expensive merchandise.  When interviewed by TMZ, construction workers boarding up the Pottery Barn off Beverly Drive and Dayton Way, right near Rodeo, stated that what they were doing was only a temporary measure to protect that specific branch from bad actors. However, other photographs have now come in showing other stores in other major cities also doing the same. The defensive measures by retailers come after police departments have been hit hard by the ongoing pandemic. In some cities, hundreds of police officers have tested positive for the disease, while thousands have called in sick or are in isolation. High-end stores anticipating looting and civic unrest all over Rodeo Drive isn’t the only high-end shopping district that’s seeing it stores board up due to fears of possible looting and civil unrest. Numerous photographs have popped up over Twitter, showing shopping districts in cities around the country such as Chicago, San Francisco and more boarding up their windows. Closures of high-end retailers such as Dolce & Gabbana and Hermes at Chicago’s Magnificent Mile have prompted Luigi Zingales, professor of finance at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, to compare the situation to the 2019-20 Chilean protests where rioters looted shops and even churches in the capital of Santiago and other cities. Other cities where shops have been photographed boarding up include Kansas City and New York City. The latter is currently facing shortages of police officers due to the coronavirus. A shortage of police officers is a worry in the U.S. While open civic unrest and rioting have yet to happen in the U.S., retailers aren’t taking any chances. One of the reasons for this is that police departments themselves are being walloped by the coronavirus. A survey of over 40 law enforcement agencies done by the Associated Press shows that over 690 officers nationwide have been quarantined because of the virus. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) has been the hardest hit of all the departments surveyed. When the survey was conducted, 512 NYPD police officers had tested as positive for the virus. City officials, however, now expect the number to have ballooned to over 900 NYPD officers by March 30. (Related: Police officers are starting to die from coronavirus in US cities… what will happen if law enforcement can’t function?) One of the officers who tested positive has since died over the weekend, bringing the total of NYPD officers who’ve succumbed to it to three. Meanwhile, an even larger number of officers are in out sick or in isolation, with NYPD Police Commissioner Dermot Shea confirming that 5,000 officers were out sick as of Sunday. With police being hit as hard as they are, it’s no wonder that business owners are looking to other means to protect their stores. Should any mass riots occur, police departments may be too depleted to handle them. As such, more businesses are likely to follow suit and board up their storefronts to protect themselves.

https://www.naturalnews.com/2020-04-02-retail-stores-in-large-cities-preparing-for-mass-riots-boarding-up.html 

:: 4-2-20 The Daily Coin :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Something Very Strange Going On With Conflicting COVID-19 Coronavirus Reports As ‘Every Day Things Just Keep Getting Weirder’

by Susan Duclos · Published April 2, 2020 · Updated April 2, 2020

Conflicting reports, fake and inaccurate numbers, bizarre claims, nations in lockdown, and a virus that is acting differently now than when it began in Wuhan, China. Many believe there is much more going on behind the scenes than we know about, and with each new report and conflicting coverage, that belief is looking more probable every day. Along with discussion regarding each of the aforementioned areas, as part of a reader request, we want to hear from you about what you think is going on, how dealing with this stressful time is affecting each individual while cooped up in the home or yard. With so much coverage about COVID-19, is there something else going on that is weighing on your mind? Reader thoughts to all the above are encouraged in the comment section below.

CONFLICTING REPORTS AND NUMBERS Let us provide clear examples of conflicting reports and numbers.

Using Avast Secure browser, which uses the Bing search engine, when searching for “COVID-19” a information box comes up which shows the “official” numbers of confirmed cases, deaths and recovered, in the U.S. A screen shot of that information box is shown below: On Eve Of Small Business Bailout, Biggest US Bank Says It’s Not Ready To Accept Applications Those are the numbers we see quoted by some establishment media outlets, while Wall Street Journal reports how Italy’s numbers, which are included in the “official” global numbers, are completely off and their death toll is far higher than what they have reported to date.  In the areas worst hit by the pandemic, Italy is undercounting thousands of deaths caused by the virus, a Wall Street Journal analysis shows, indicating that the pandemic’s human toll may end up being much greater, and infections far more widespread, than official data indicate. It has also been reported that China has been manipulating not only their numbers of infected but also the “recovery” numbers. But civil servants tell Caixan that businesses are actually faking these numbers. Beijing had started checking Zhejiang businesses’ electricity consumption levels, so district officials ordered the companies to start leaving their lights and machinery on all day to drive the numbers up, one civil servant said. Businesses have reportedly falsified staff attendance logs as well — they “would rather waste a small amount of money on power than irritate local officials,” Caixan writes. In Wuhan, officials have tried to make it appear that recovery efforts are going smoothly. But when “central leaders” personally survey disinfecting regimens and food delivery, local officials “make a special effort” for them and them alone, one resident told Caixan. And in a video circulating on social media, residents can be seen shouting at visiting leaders from the apartments where they’re being quarantined — “Fake, it’s all fake.” Even the Washington Post, has started questioning the numbers coming out of Wuhan itself, where the virus reportedly originated. Other recent reports confirm China has been rigging the numbers and covering up the truth, since the beginning. Physical Silver Update 4220 – What’s Available / What Price? Here in America, ANP has been informed by medical professionals that deaths that have occurred before they were tested have list cause of death as “acute respiratory failure,” and other causes due to the lack of testing or resources. The point here is none of the numbers are accurate and there is a good chance that we will never have accurate numbers, yet the establishment media continues to cite those “official” numbers even as other headlines from the same sources, provides information that contradicts their own reports. They expect people to not notice or to wave it away because they themselves are refusing to acknowledge just how bizarre the MSM’s reporting on this has been since the beginning. We also have seen readers mention another tidbit of strangeness that the general public, those that still seem to trust the MSM, completely ignores. Pastors in Florida and Louisiana are being arrested for refusing to cancel church. Also in the headlines, inmates across the U.S. are being released from prison because of coronavirus.

https://thedailycoin.org/2020/04/02/something-very-strange-going-on-with-conflicting-covid-19-coronavirus-reports-as-every-day-things-just-keep-getting-weirder/ 

:: 4-2-20 The Hal Turner Radio Show :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

NYC: 10,000 HOSPITALIZED, 1500+ DEAD - ILLEGAL ALIENS TAKING AMERICAN HOSPITAL BEDS

Nation News Desk 02 April 2020

Natural-born Americans who live in New York City are finding themselves unable to be admitted into the hospital because . . . ILLEGAL ALIENS are occupying so many hospital beds in the city, as the coronavirus outbreak continues to grow. New York City’s coronavirus death toll topped 1,500 on Thursday, with more than 10,000 people now hospitalized with the illness, city data shows. Over 24 hours, 188 deaths from COVID-19 were recorded in the Big Apple, bringing the total to 1,562 as of 5 p.m. on Thursday. The number of people infected inched toward 50,000, as 4,000 more cases were tallied. About 21 percent of the cases, or 10,590 patients, required hospitalization. Of the 49,707 diagnosed with the virus in the city, 16,819 were in Queens, the hardest-hit borough. Brooklyn had 13,290 cases, followed by The Bronx with 9,343, Manhattan with 7,398 and Staten Island with 2,822. In boroughs outside Manhattan, the number of ILLEGAL ALIENS who are hospitalized is even larger than in Manhattan. How many of the liberals in New York who screamed for years demanding illegals be allowed to stay in America, will now themselves DIE because those illegals have hospital beds needed by the liberals? Some might call that poetic justice.

https://admin.halturnerradioshow.com/index.php/en/news-page/news-nation/nyc-10-000-hospitalized-1500-dead-illegal-aliens-taking-american-hospital-beds 

:: 4-2-20 You Tube :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Massive line at Florida food bank as unemployment sky rockets

•Apr 2, 2020

Shocking scenes in Orlando where half-mile line of cars wait for food bank after theme parks' shutdown put thousands out of work - as government reveals coronavirus has so far made 10 million Americans unemployed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBB4j5RI2Q8 

:: 4-2-20 The Common Sense Show :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Failed Alliances and the Globalist Three-Pronged Attack on America

Submitted by Dave Hodges on Thursday, April 2, 2020 - 16:59.

Many of my colleagues have come to very similar conclusions. The United States is under attack and it is a three-pronged attack. These three areas consists of the following:

The Coronavirus is wreaking havoc with the economy. The intent is to inhibit the peacetime to wartime conversion of our resources (eg auto manufacturers to tanks).  The TET offensive of simultaneous and continuous domestic terrorism, including bio and chemical attacks as well as mass public shootings. This is why Trump has let Democratic mayors so severely limit public exposure with ridiculous shelter in place policies in blue cities.  A Red Dawn invasion spurred by UN and globalist banking interests which will be launched when America is sufficiently . President Trump has tried repeatedly tried to align with the Presidents of China and Russia against the globalists. Each country has its own Deep State which blocks, to some degree the effectiveness of the efforts to align against the old Rothschild empire and their minion forces which is headquartered within the European Union. And as it turned out French President Macron and Canadian leader, Trudeau, have been spearheading an effort to take down any partnerships between countries with nation interests. Here is what I discovered in early 2019.  As Merkel decries the nation-state, France’s President Emmanuel Macron hammers Trump-inspired “nationalism” in the U.S. and beyond. “Europe” — not European nations — “must be stronger…and win more sovereignty,” Macron has claimed. EU members must give up their national overweight to Brussels as it pertains to “foreign affairs, migration, and development,” as well as “an increasing part of our budgets and even fiscal resources.” The globalist’s drive for a Euro-superstate is in full swing.  Putin and Trump, as previously stated here on the CSS, would very much like to establish a solid military alliance against the NWO. Conversely, French President Macron has repeatedly criticized both Trump and Putin for being nationalists. In fact, Macron has called for the creation of an European army to oppose Russian, China and the United States. The sides are being drawn into a future war between nationalists and globalists. The globalists are determined and desperate to keep the US and Russia apart. With the unleashing of the virus, that was has commenced in earnest. This is the reason behind Mueller's Russian-collusion-delusion. It is the reason that underlies Macron's call for a European army. First, we must ask the question: is America friend or foe to China? The accuracy of your answer depends solely on your perspective. In early 2019, I wrote the following, it has now come to fruition:  French leader Macron stated that a EU Army is needed to combat the nationalist desires of Russia, China and the Americans. On one hand, this makes the three super-powers de facto allies. However, the wild card here is whether or not Trump can control his administration. The same can be said for the leader of China, who Trump’s intelligence save him from a Deep State coup almost two years ago. If you look at China as being schizophrenic, first they make a pro-peace positive move only to undermine with another war-mongering move by China or by it ally in North Korea, now you know. Both Paul Preston and myself have independently come across information that demonstrates that China is partly under the control of the globalist-controlled Deep State and partly under control of the President China. Even the CCP is divided as is the military. China is ripe for a major civil war, however, the globalists are trying to hold China together as they attempt to dismantle Russia and the United States. I have learned that at least some of our intelligence sources believes that the embedded CHICOM forces in America and Mexico are now under the control of the Chinese Deep State and this makes the three pronged attack against America very volatile and unpredictable. I have also learned that China’s Deep State has a face to it, just America does. In the US, Schumer, Pelosi, Feinstein, Schiff, etc., form the operation entity that is bringing a Bolshevik Revolution to America. That is the face of our Deep State. In China, it is Wei Fenghe, the Defense Minister. He has gone rogue and is untouchable. Fenghe was the official, in a speech to the CCP last year who made a speech calling for bio-warfare against the United States. He advocates for the use of race-specific (white European) bioweapons to greatly lessen the population of the United States prior to invasion. China, he says, can only survive with our resources. I wrote a five part series last July based on a leaked transcript of his speech. To say that China is in a highly volatile positionn would be an extreme understatement. The Deep State is in China is desperate because their globalist master are very desperate. Everyone is in an extreme struggle for survival, including you, whether you realize it or not. Macron’s comments about going after Russia, China and the US are very revealing about the emerging war between the nationalists and the globalists and their proxy forces. From an American perspective, I would say the following:

EVERYTHING THAT IS HAPPENING AT THE BORDER, AS WELL AS THE FUTURE RED DAWN INVASION EMANATING FROM CENTRAL AMERICA INVOLVES FOUR GROUPS: (1) THE UNITED NATIONS; (2) GEORGE SOROS AND THE GLOBALISTS WHO ARE FUNDING THE MIGRANT INVASION (3) CHINESE CONTROL OF THE VARIOUS BORDER FACTIONS INCLUDING THE DRUG CARTELS AND THEIR MIDDLE EAST TERRORIST PARTNERS; (4) KEY MEMBERS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY WHO INCLUDE, BUT ARE LIMITED TO KAMALA HARRIS, DIANE FEINSTEIN, CHUCK SCHUMER, FORMER PRESIDENT OBAMA, NANCY PELOSI, ERIC HOLDER, COREY BOOKER, JOE BIDEN, THE SO-CALLED SQUAD HEADED BY AOC, BERNIE SANDERS, THE "JUSTICE DEMOCRATS" AND MOST OF ALL HILLARY CLINTON AND THE CLINTON FOUNDATION. THEY WANT WORLD WAR III AND THEY WANT TO BE AT THE VANGUARD OF THE DESTRUCTION OF AMERICA AND THE USHERING IN OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER.

https://thecommonsenseshow.com/agenda-21-health-radio-shows/failed-alliances-and-globalist-three-pronged-attack-america 

:: 3--20 Station Gossip :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Outrage as Vegas homeless are corralled into an empty parking lot and made to sleep on the bare concrete in boxed-off areas less than six feet apart

09:39 - News

Homeless people in Las Vegas have been corralled into a disused parking lot and made to sleep less than six feet apart on the concrete after a resident at their shelter caught coronavirus. Last week a homeless man at the Catholic Charities' homeless shelter tested positive for Covid-19, forcing it to close and leaving 500 people without a place to sleep. The City of Las Vegas provided the vacant parking lot of Cashman Center on Saturday night. They rolled out a thin layer of carpet for one section of the concrete, but another has been left bare. Furthermore, in contravention of CDC guidelines on social distancing, the homeless are sleeping within painted boxes which do not keep them six feet apart. It comes as the number of people infected by the deadly contagion in Nevada reached 920, with 15 deaths, with a total of more than 142,000 cases in the US and 2,509 deaths. Las Vegas casinos have been shut down because of the outbreak and showbiz acts have cancelled appearances. In a statement on Saturday, Clark County Commissioner Justin Jones said, 'We're proud to be working in collaboration with the city to meet the needs of our homeless population and appreciate the quick response of the participants in standing up the facility so soon.' The fully open-air facility, which is open to the homeless from 6pm to 8am, is anticipated to remain until at least April 3 or however long it takes for the Catholic Charities shelter to re-open. Touro University medical students and physician assistant students volunteered at the parking lot over the weekend as the city authorities set up the temporary facility. County Commissioner Justin Jones told Fox: 'We're planning for seven days, but certainly that's really dependent on how quickly Catholic Charities gets reopened and how quickly the other facility is open.' Mayor Carolyn Goodman told the Reno Gazette Journal: 'The city wants to make this site available because we know the obligation we have to help ease the overflow of the Homeless Courtyard.' Freeman's Carpet Service, GES Exposition Services and the Teamsters were among those helping with provisions for the homeless. 'We've had Republic Services donating trash resources, Touro University med students will be over here doing screening, so we've really seen the community come together,' Jones told Fox. 'All the government agencies and other folks to make sure that we serve our homeless population.'

http://www.stationgossip.com/2020/03/outrage-as-vegas-homeless-are-corralled.html 

:: 3-30-20 Daily Mail :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

EXCLUSIVE: Number of people attending crisis kitchen at Los Angeles' Skid Row TRIPLES in wake of coronavirus pandemic as charities say they are overwhelmed and fear worse is coming The number of people visiting LA's notorious Skid Row for free meals has tripled since the city went on lockdown on March 19, DailyMail.com can disclose

Already, the area is home to 5,000 homeless people - 3,000 of whom sleep in shabby tents or on the sidewalk itself Now, photos taken exclusively by DailyMail.com reveal there has been no decline in the number of rough sleepers in the area Local charities say they are being overwhelmed by the extra demand – which comes as donations decline Large crowds could also be seen outside other Skid Row non-profits at mealtimes when DailyMail.com visited last Wednesday and Thursday

Georgia Berkovich, of Skid Row's Midnight Mission which provides three meals a day to the area's homeless, says the crisis has seen the numbers shoot up

She said: 'We would normally see 400 to 600 a meal... This week, we've been seeing 1700 a meal'

The spike in demand for free meals came as it was announced that 3.3m people have signed up for unemployment benefits nationwide last week

The US has the highest number of cases, with 39,700 and more than 2,400 deaths. LA has 32 deaths and 1,817 cases

Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?

By Ruth Styles In Los Angeles, California, For Dailymail.com

Published: 09:00 EDT, 30 March 2020 | Updated: 11:23 EDT, 30 March 2020

The number of people visiting Los Angeles' notorious Skid Row for free meals has tripled since the city went on lockdown two weeks ago, DailyMail.com can disclose.

Skid Row is home to 5,000 homeless people – 3,000 of whom sleep in shabby tents or wrapped in blankets on the sidewalk itself. LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said the city would add thousands of temporary shelter beds to get the population off the streets to protect them from coronavirus on March 19. But photos taken exclusively by DailyMail.com reveal there has been no decline in the number of rough sleepers in the area, while local charities say they are being overwhelmed by the extra demand – which comes as donations decline. Georgia Berkovich, of Skid Row's Midnight Mission which provides three meals a day to the area's homeless, says the crisis has seen the numbers coming to them for food shoot up. She said: 'Around this time of the month, we would normally see 400 to 600 a meal, sometimes as it gets closer to the end of the month, we might go as high as 1.000 a meal. 'This week, we've been seeing 1,700 a meal. We're still serving three meals a day but we're seeing three times the number of people.' Large crowds could also be seen outside other Skid Row non-profits, including The Weingart Center and Fred Jordan Missions, at mealtimes when DailyMail.com visited last Wednesday and Thursday.  The spike in demand for free meals came as it was announced that 3.3 million people had signed up for unemployment benefits nationwide last week. Governor Gavin Newsom said last week that 1 million of those claims were made in California alone – parts of which have been shut down for weeks.

But for California's 151,000 homeless community, life has continued as normal despite the lockdown - and in spite of official attempts to help. In Los Angeles, which is home to 60,000 homeless people, Mayor Eric Garcetti has announced plans to spend $20 million on 1,600 extra shelter beds, with a further 6,000 to be delivered by the American Red Cross. Garcetti has also said he plans to put santizer stations around the city and increase the number of Porta Potty units available for the homeless to use. In a statement released on March 18, he said: 'We are taking immediate, urgent action to slow the spread of COVID-19 by helping people who are experiencing homelessness come indoors.' But when DailyMail.com visited Skid Row, hundreds of homeless people could be seen out on the street – virtually all with little or no protective equipment.  Some were clustered chatting together in groups, while others were slumped over in doorways or passed out under quilts on the sidewalk. Most shocking of all were the crowds that gathered at mealtimes outside the missions, crammed in on the sidewalk and far less than the recommended six feet apart. Approached by DailyMail.com about what the city is doing to control the crowds of people on Skid Row, a member of Garcetti's public affairs team said she had no explanation but would ask a member of the operations team to reach out with further information. At the time of publication, DailyMail.com was still waiting for a response. The homeless are among the most vulnerable people in Los Angeles with many suffering from underlying health conditions, as well as drink and drug addiction. According to a report released last year by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, heart disease is the third biggest cause of death among the homeless. It is also one of the serious underlying conditions that can produce a worse outcome in those who are infected with COVID-19.  Overdoses are a regular occurrence on Skid Row, with EMTs seen arriving three times in one hour on Wednesday.  Other hazards of life on Skid Row include low-level crime, traffic danger and violence – the same LA County report noted that murder accounts for six percent of deaths among residents every year. As a result, coronavirus could prove especially deadly if it is allowed to run rampant among California's homeless community. Berkovich thinks it may already be too late to stop it, telling DailyMail.com: 'There have not been any cases in the homeless community [officially] but I don't know…  'There hasn't been enough testing done to have a number and I suspect that there may be some who do test positive but we won't know because there are not enough tests right now.' Berkovich added: 'It's impossible to keep six feet apart in Skid Row. If you look at the homeless encampments, the tents are side by side. 'If it hits the community, there's going to be no way from stopping it from spreading.' But unlike the rest of Los Angeles, the residents of Skid Row cannot ride out the storm at home because – despite Garcetti's pledge of more beds – they have nowhere to go. Charities working in the area are attempting to stem the tide by insisting that all volunteers and staff have their temperatures checked before arriving for work each day. Cleaning has been stepped up, both in the missions and on the street itself where gaggles of street cleaners have been seen attempting to disinfect the area. And the hand sanitizer stations and extra Porta Potty units promised by Garcetti have materialized in small numbers. But there was little sign of any efforts to inform the homeless of the situation, with Berkovich saying they are more isolated than ever after being stripped of their usual opportunities to see the news in restaurants or cafes. The one tent on Skid Row that had a red cross on it was being used for religious rather than medical purposes, with lists of Bible reading times written on the side. Like Garcetti, Newsom has also pledged help and said last week that he plans to spend $150 million on housing the homeless in hotels and trailers for the duration of the crisis. On March 18, he said the state has already purchased 1,309 trailers and leased two hotels.

He said: 'California is deploying massive resources to get these vulnerable residents safely into shelter, removing regulatory barriers and securing trailers and hotels to provide immediate housing options for those most at risk.

'Helping these residents is critical to protecting public health, flattening the curve and slowing the spread of COVID-19.' But with 151,000 homeless people living in California, the extra beds already in place are far from being enough. Berkovich said: 'There is no Safer At Home for the people who have no home. This Safer At Home initiative just seems especially cruel for them.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8161433/LAs-Skid-Row-TRIPLE-number-locals-lining-food-city-went-lockdown.html 

:: 3-29-20 American Thinker :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

COVID-19: Distancing is no solution to a spiritual problem

By Herbert W. Titus and William J. Olson March 29, 2020

As the great Titanic continued to sink in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic, bringing certain death to the men remaining on board, some safety boat survivors remembered hearing the big ship’s string quartet playing the hymn Nearer My God to Thee. In that last dark hour, there was no one left to turn to. The title words from that moving hymn were most fitting, as James, the half-brother of Jesus had already reassured the passengers: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” James 4:8 (NAS). This lesson, having been well taught and understood in 1912, remains equally true for all generations everywhere. “For that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.” Romans 1:19-20. The current risk of infection and the risk of mortality and morbidity is tiny compared to being on a sinking ship, but on March 14, 2020, President Trump boldly called for focus on the spiritual, seeking God’s help in his message to the nation, and calling for a National Day of Prayer on the COVID-19 threat. It was disappointing that President Trump made no call to national repentance for the sins of the nation, but that was likely a bridge too far for large segments of the people. Indeed, in response to his call for prayer, the President received mocking from many, and there have been few references to an Almighty God since then. Instead, the rest of his Administration’s efforts have been earthly -- what we the American people, and our state and federal governments, can do in our own power. Foremost among the concrete steps urged, if not enforced, upon the general public is to practice social distancing, that is, stay home and wash your hands. But distancing is no solution to a spiritual problem. And it certainly does not work for everyone. Distancing does not protect persons who must work for a living in close proximity with others, who cannot risk losing a job, a car, or a house. It is not on option for those who provide necessary assisted living for the elderly or infirm. Nor is it available to first-responders, much less for those living and working inside our woefully over-populated prisons. And, although long-distance learning alleviates the burden of supervision, teachers are not yet robots-in-waiting, eliminating all need of actual classrooms for human interchange. At best, distancing modulates the behavior of those who enjoy the best of health, and those who would otherwise act presumptuously. But on the other hand, isolation and loneliness is said to deplete the immune system and increase susceptibility to illness. While there are no doubt benefits from the nation’s current distancing containment policy and practices, they fall short of attaining one necessary objective: the defeat of paralyzing and mind-clouding fear of falling prey of the influenza. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7. Fear produces a confused mind, rather than a sound, sober one. Fear will cause us to pull up the covers and hide in bed. Fear will result in accepting, even welcoming, sometimes demanding, assertions of government power which exceed constitutional limits. The virus will pass, but fear of it could destroy the foundations of our constitutional republic.

Defeating fear is possible, but only if the American people draw near to God. As Moses wrote: And [God] said, “if you will give ear to the voice of the Lord, and do what is right in his sight, and give ear to his commandments, and keep all of His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I put on the Egyptians for I, the Lord, am your healer.” Exodus 15:16. Many would dismiss this Biblical admonition on the ground that it is limited to its specific context, applicable only to Israel and her people. Ontologically, they are mistaken. There is not one disease, not one people, not one nation outside the healing power of God. As The Gospel of Matthew attests: [J]esus healed all who were ill. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: HE, HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES. Matthew 8:16(b)-17. "God's Light of Hope," licensed in the public domain by Robert Knacke Rather than focusing exclusively on running away one from another, distancing ourselves from friends and family in fear of COVID-19, we also ought to be running to Jesus, that “we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by his wounds [we] were healed.” 1 Peter 2:24. We know from Daniel 2:17 that “the Most High rules in the kingdom of men.” But we must come to the Lord on His terms, not ours. He has the power to remove temporal judgments from the people, but repeatedly in Scripture we see His precondition of repentance -- a change of mind, and a change of behavior. See 2 Peter 3. There is no repentance inherent in simply asking God to remove the current “plague.” Where are the calls from the Ministers of God to both believers and nonbelievers to repent? If repentance is ignored, why should we expect a righteous God to end the plague? How should we expect Him to respond to executive orders issued by some Governors to shut down all elective surgeries, except for the one procedure which is murderous? To the Lord, we sound like the people who “cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.” Revelation 16:11 (NIV). Not long after the nation saw God’s hand move as this nation was given its independence from a British Empire wielding the greatest military power on earth, our first President showed no reluctance to declare America’s utter dependence on our Creator God, as he entreated the Hebrew Congregations of Savanah, Georgia: May the same wonder-working Deity, who long since delivering the Hebrews from their Egyptian Oppressors planted them in the promised land, whose providential agency has lately been conspicuous in establishing these United States as an independent Nation, still continue to water them with the dews of Heaven and to make the inhabitants of every denomination participate in the temporal and spiritual blessings of that people whose God is Jehovah. May we Americans, individually and collectively, draw near to God in this time of crisis, “for He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6. Herbert W. Titus taught constitutional law for 26 years, concluding his academic career as founding dean of Regent Law School. William J. Olson held three positions in the Reagan Administration. They now practices constitutional law together, defending against government excess, at William J. Olson, P.C., Vienna, Virginia. E-mail wjo@mindspring.com , visit www.lawandfreedom.com , or follow www.Twitter.com/OlsonLaw .

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/03/covid19_distancing_is_no_solution_to_a_spiritual_problem.html 

:: 3-19-20 King World News :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Alasdair Macleod – Panic And The End Of Fiat Currencies

March 19, 2020

Alasdair Macleod discusses the current panic and the end of fiat currencies.

Panic And The End Of Fiat Currencies

March 19 (King World News) – Alasdair Macleod: The unilateral response from governments to the coronavirus is to helicopter money to people and their businesses in unlimited quantities. Their priority is to keep the debt-driven Keynesian show on the road, and policy makers are approaching the task with unseemly gusto. There was evidence that the credit cycle was already on the turn with the global economy entering its regular period of financial and economic crisis even before the coronavirus hit. Thinking it is only a matter of dealing with the pandemic before returning to normal is therefore a common and fatal mistake. The combination of current events is leading to an infinite problem: central banks, and the Fed in particular, are trying to backstop everything and they will undoubtedly fail. The central issue is the dawning inability of the Fed, in charge of the world’s reserve currency, to keep financial markets under control. The quantities of money required to rescue the US economy and dollar-centric supply chains abroad are potentially far greater than anyone realizes and will destroy not just the dollar, but the whole fiat money system of rigged financial markets upon which debt financing depends. The EU is in a similar but more parochial fix with the addition of a banking system visibly on the verge of collapse. The timescale for the demise of unsound fiat currencies is likely to be very short, by the end of 2020 – exactly three centuries since a similar fiat currency experiment failed in John Law’s Mississippi bubble. Introduction Doubting Thomases must surely realise by now that the central banks are in danger of losing control over financial market prices, not just for a short period of time, but more drastically than that. Besides a new round of quantitative easing announced last Sunday – $500bn into Treasuries and $200bn into agency debt – the new target for the Fed funds rate was lowered to 0 – ¼ %. This 1% cut followed an earlier reduction in the funds rate of ½ % as well as last Thursday’s announcement of a $1.5 trillion cap on three-month and one-month repos. To these sums we must add the $60bn in purchases of coupon-bearing securities also announced last Thursday. Taken together, that is a liquidity injection into the American banking system of $2.206 trillion, which in context will be the equivalent of a 59% increase in the Fed’s balance sheet since the repo crisis started in September. A further source of monetary inflation is in the dollar swap lines with the Bank of Canada, Bank of England, Bank of Japan, the ECB and the Swiss National Bank. Clearly, the Fed is doing everything it can to achieve a number of objectives simultaneously. It needs to ensure the funding is in place for the US Government, which is dramatically increasing its spending. It must ensure the banks have sufficient reserves so as not to foreclose on its customers, thereby preventing a deflationary contraction of bank credit. It needs to inject liquidity into wholesale money markets to ensure no financial entity becomes insolvent. It is trying to anticipate future negative effects of the coronavirus, which are likely to be far greater than anyone dares admit in public. Heroically, the Fed’s public mission is to rescue the American economy single-handedly by providing the money required. And last but not least, it must retain control over financial market pricing to deliver these objectives. Over the last fortnight that control was demonstrably lost. Equities crashed and government bonds soared, but values of the latter were somewhat false, because in the absence of liquidity market makers increased their bid/offer spreads and reduced their size; that is to say the quantity of bonds they were prepared to deal in on the widened quote were nominal. As well as volatility, the market makers, being brokerage subsidiaries of the banks, were restricted in the amount of liquidity provided by their parents, reflecting a wider systemic shortage. The Fed hopes that by providing an unprecedented quantity of dollar liquidity that normality will return, and all its objectives listed in the penultimate paragraph above can be achieved. But, returning to a theme of recent Goldmoney Insights, the relationship between the dollar and financial assets has become eerily similar to that between John Law’s livres and his Mississippi bubble three-hundred years ago. The massive printing of livres and livres bank credit to support Law’s asset bubble failed, firstly by undermining the purchasing power of his livres to zero measured against gold and silver, and then by failing to prevent a collapse in the targeted financial asset, his Mississippi venture. Today, the situation is only different in that the Fed is trying to save the status quo rather than construct a new one. But from December 2015 the gold price began to rise from $1050 to current levels, which is the appropriate non-fiat measure of the dollar’s purchasing power. This fact says much about gold and silver’s reaction last week and this, which was to fall heavily in paper form, while physical demand led to shortages and premiums everywhere. And now we have credible reports of refinery output being curtailed, particularly in Switzerland’s Ticino canton where three of the large Swiss refiners are based.

After the mid-eighties, gold was used as a low interest rate form of collateral for the purchase of other higher-yielding assets. In recent years that function has ceased, and it has become a plaything of bullion banks, skilled at using futures and forwards to soak up speculative demand in a highly profitable fleecing of speculative interest. The continuance of this game depended entirely on the Fed and other central banks setting the framework for prices of financial assets in the wider context by retaining an iron control over markets. Recent events have shown that that has almost certainly come to an end and increasingly the bullion banks see a logic in getting out of the gold and silver paper business by squaring their books. Estimating dollar liquidity requirements It is worth noting that the global economy as well as that of the US is on the cusp of a credit cycle that was turning into its regular contractionary stage, even before the coronavirus exploded onto the world stage. The massive expansion of both base money and bank credit since the Lehman crisis coupled with American trade protectionism replicates the situation in late-1929 when the Wall Street crash began, the Dow fell 89% and the great depression followed. The twin vectors behind those events are of different relative force today. Then, trade tariffs were jacked up 30% on average by the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, more than today’s American protectionism against Chinese imports. But this time, the expansion of money and bank credit over recent decades is far, far larger, and we are entitled to expect a synergistic effect between these two factors leading towards a similar result. That being the case, the coronavirus is an added burden on the world’s economy which was already tipping into a slump, and will be particularly damaging for its reserve currency, the dollar. The disruptions the pandemic brings to supply chains are a dramatic advancement and escalation of what would have happened over time anyway. Across all businesses there are those which have assets that can be sold and have cash at the bank to draw down, and there are those whose cash and liquid assets are limited or barely exist. When the former category draws down on cash reserves, deposits at the banks are reduced. The banks then have to either borrow the difference in money markets or reduce their holdings of assets, usually in the form of loans, Treasury bills, Treasury bonds, commercial bills or commercial bonds. Inevitably, the choice will devolve down to a reduction in the banks’ individual balance sheets, satisfied by reducing their loan books and by asset sales. On the other hand, there are businesses running on overdrafts, which will find out if their banks are still good for pre-agreed overdraft ceilings. Given the drawdowns on business deposits from their more liquid customers, it is likely they will seek to reduce overdraft ceilings to help balance their books. But businesses also face decisions as to whether they and their customers will survive the pandemic. Government promises to help is usually offered in loans, in which case they will have to be repaid, merely putting off the evil day. Many SMEs will choose to close in order for their owners to rescue what they can rather than face a drift into bankruptcy. Some will try to survive by cutting costs, such as airlines laying off staff on unpaid leave, or by lengthening payment times, passing the problem to their suppliers. The notional exposure of America’s banks to this aspect of difficulties faced by private sector businesses is illustrated in outstanding loans and leases, which according to the St Louis’s FRED database stands at $10.12 trillion. FRED’s chart above shows how the last credit crisis caused a contraction in outstanding loans and leases, and we know that this crisis is bound to do so again. But what will be the scale of the developing credit crisis, given that by bunching payment issues the coronavirus has increased the impact and its suddenness? To estimate a ballpark figure, we should look at gross output (GO). Unlike GDP, which captures final sales value, GO includes the payments between production stages, and is illustrated in FRED’s chart below. The effect of the last credit crisis in 2008-2009 was significant, knocking about $4 trillion off the total. This time, with the added burden of widespread supply chain payment failures it obviously will be far larger. We can only guess what a national shutdown will do. If, as in Italy and France, Americans end up only being able to buy pharmaceuticals and food, that would preserve only 8% of GO. Payment failures will therefore be a significant part of the remaining $36 trillion of the GO statistic. Not only are all goods, but services are affected as well. And supply chains are not as simple as the term might suggest with a one-dimensional series of inputs leading to a final product. Inputs from many other sources are required in each step of the way. It is no exaggeration to say that the interconnectedness of all these processes accounts for nearly all of private sector GO. That payment failures are beginning to have an impact is seen in the enhanced level of repo facilities daily extended by the Fed. It can only escalate from here. Dollar payments in supply chains are not confined to US domestic manufacturing but apply to dollar-denominated chains of imported goods in other jurisdictions, of which Apple’s iPhone manufacturing supply chain is a prime example. All it takes is one small delivery hitch and suddenly expected payments that do not materialise have to be covered all down the line, We cannot know the true extent of the likely problem, but with major economies being disrupted by the virus for more than a month or two and with everyone working on a just-in-time basis the banking system will end up with deposit drawdowns, demands for increased overdraft facilities and non-performing loans totalling as much as two or three times FRED’s total loans and leases outstanding from businesses, not just in America, but in dollar trade settlement chains abroad as well. No wonder there are emerging liquidity issues in the system. But with the Fed and the US government promising to underwrite all businesses facing difficulties as a consequence of the virus, the inflationary consequences for the dollar will be staggering. The responsibility of the dollar being the world’s reserve currency is that the Fed’s remit must also cover both domestic and foreign dollar settlements if it is to continue to maintain control over pricing in American financial markets. Realistically, the chances of success are close to nil, partly because the Fed will be slow to offer facilities to those parts of dollar-settling supply chains outside the countries with existing currency swap agreements. China, South Korea and Taiwan, and others will have to resort to liquidation of dollar reserves, including US Treasuries. And then there are those that rely on dollar funding in the broader sense: Credit Suisse’s Zoltan Pozsar highlights Scandinavia, Southeast Asia, Australia and South America, to which we can add the entire shadow banking systems in London and all other non-US financial centres. [i] Unless it implements Section 133.3 of the Federal Reserve Act (which allows the Fed to lend directly to non-banks) the only channel for liquidity flows is through commercial banks in the federal system. Even if the Fed makes infinite liquidity available to them, the Fed will be unable to stop banks from managing their risks as they see fit. Banks will at the margin reduce their balance sheet leverage and collectively risk descending into a cycle whereby collateral liquidation leads to falling values for financial assets, forcing further liquidation of collateral when formally secure lending becomes uncovered. This was one of the evils of fractional reserve banking identified by Irving Fisher in the great depression. And logic simply tells us liquidity provided by the Fed will be readily absorbed by the banks and not passed to many of their riskier customers, particularly in the SME sector. We should be in no doubt that while it is easy for the government and its central bank to promise funds to businesses so they can continue to trade, it is virtually impossible in practice for them to do so in a timely manner. But if, as hopefully this article has demonstrated, payment disruption and failure is likely to be on a scale far greater than outstanding loans and leases, the debauchment of the currency will without doubt undermine its purchasing power. As we have shown above, the total settlement chain at risk onshore in the US is captured in GO, which officially stands at $38 trillion. For comparison, the amount of money in public hands, that is cash, checkable deposits and savings deposits, is just under $14 trillion, the bulk of which is matched by bank credit, which will almost certainly contract. If the US Government and the Fed are to make good on their promise to rescue businesses from the coronavirus, they are committing themselves potentially to helicopter considerably more money through the banks than is currently held in public hands. It cannot happen in one hit: that would be absurd. It is more likely that it will be dispensed in tranches, of which last week’s $2.206 trillion is the first. Whether Mnuchin’s announcement of $1.2 trillion being helicoptered nationwide is part of or additional to that announced by the Fed is immaterial. Once that is absorbed, not only would markets depend on further tranches being rapidly announced and rapidly delivered, but they will begin to discount the consequences as well. Given that the Fed is backstopping it all by expanding its own balance sheet, in a matter of a few months its monetary base will have to expand to unknowable multiples of the current $3.44 trillion, shown in FRED’s chart, above. The government funding problem It will be impossible for the Fed to dramatically expand the monetary base without undermining the purchasing power of the currency, particularly since it had already been expanded by an unprecedented 350% in the wake of the Lehman crisis eleven years ago. The principal method deployed is expected to be the same, that is to say quantitative easing. The advantage to the Fed is QE funds the government borrowing requirement and bolsters commercial bank reserves at the same time. Before the current hiatus the Congressional Budget Office forecast a Federal Government budget deficit of just over a trillion dollars. Government spending, not least on coronavirus related issues, is likely to be greater than forecast, and tax revenues, if they are not merely put into abeyance will fall considerably. Consequently, the deficit will rise, and it is conceivable it will be running at twice the forecast level. When markets settle down from recent events, traders will be asking themselves who else, other than the Fed, will buy US Treasury bonds. And then there will be a further question: with banks, non-banks and foreigners dashing for dollar liquidity, who will buy their existing holdings of Treasury debt? The funding problem can only be estimated in an omnibus fashion, by wrapping up government borrowing needs, bolstering bank balance sheets, dealing with global payment failures etc. into one solution. Before the coronavirus hit and began dislocating the entire financial system, credit cycle analysis assumed a slump could double the budget deficit, adding a further trillion or so to existing government funding requirements. Rarely has consideration been given to additional systemic issues because they were unknown. That is no longer the case. Given that through QE or asset purchase programmes all the funding and liquidity problems highlighted in this article are likely to be addressed, it is no exaggeration to say that by the year-end that could involve doubling or tripling the quantity of US Treasury bonds and bills in the secondary market, perhaps taking them from $16.7 trillion currently to over $40 trillion. Then there is a secondary problem: of the existing pile of $16.7 trillion, $9.8 trillion is owned by foreigners, likely to be forced to sell them down in the search for liquidity or simply to avoid portfolio losses. Since we are focused on the dollar as reserve currency, we have not even scratched the surface of problems in other currencies. The eurozone in particular has banking problems, which given the likely economic and financial effects of the coronavirus will see major bank failures in a matter of months, if not in weeks. Only last night the ECB announced a further €750bn stimulus to its existing asset purchase programmes, from which individual nations will fund their promises to subsidise industry and employment. The British and European governments stand ready to shower their populations with money. The British this week announced a package of support amounting to an estimated £320bn, helicoptering money and bridging loan facilities to small businesses everywhere. Echoing Mario Draghi, in the words of both Boris Johnson and his Chancellor Rishi Sunak repeated multiple times, whatever it takes. France announced a similar €300bn package as well, Germany has promised €500bn, and others are following suit. The ECB’s €750bn is already too little. Everywhere, the fiat currency solution is print, print, print. With interest rates at or below the zero bound it is all that central banks can do, while their governments will face declining tax revenues as well as increasing welfare commitments. Thus far, there is no recognition yet of the pan-European supply chain problem. The EU’s GO is similar in scale to that of US GO, additional to all announced inflationary support allocated so far. It is suddenly becoming clear that the global Keynesian experiment of the last ninety years faces an existential crisis. The explosion of funding requirements can only be satisfied so long as bond markets maintain current valuation levels. In other words, we have become dependent and complicit on markets rigged by the state and are facing the same fate as that of John Law’s France exactly three hundred years ago. Once the problems started, his unbacked currency became valueless in about ten months. As then, the fate of financial markets today depends entirely on fiat currencies, because their issuers are becoming the only buyers of their own debt. Price inflation; myth and reality  Government statisticians have succeeded in goal-seeking a two per cent rate of price inflation by statistical method. Part of the market control mechanism has been for this and other government statistics to be accepted by investors as true. That being the case, a low-growth outlook, in other words one that does not threaten a rise in price inflation, broadly justifies the current pricing levels of government bonds. Given their personal experience that the rate of price inflation is actually considerably higher, one would think that managers of bond funds would realise the deceit, but the fact is that they are blind to it. Being prepared to ignore the reality of their own experience and accept the authorities’ version of the rate of price inflation is central to government control over price levels in financial markets. If, as independent sources such as Shadowstats.com and the Chapwood Index conclude, prices are rising at approximately a ten per cent clip then a 10-year maturity US Treasury bond should have a gross redemption yield of at least that, implying a market price below well below fifty cents on the dollar. A collapse in US Treasury prices of that magnitude would be a disaster for government finances, and the whole Keynesian scheme. The cost of debt funding would rapidly spiral out of control. Given our thesis that funding payment failures and other objectives will require a veritable explosion in the quantity of government debt forced on the market, it is almost certain the dollar’s value in terms of purchasing power will be fatally compromised. It will initially be reflected in the dollar price of gold, as described in the introduction to this article… Supplies of the basics that people buy for their day to day existence are already in short supply with supermarket shelves empty, which tells us that following the initial stages of the current economic and financial dislocation prices will rise, even before taking into account the acceleration of monetary debasement already in the works. Price rises of these staples could lead to price controls, which will only make things worse, a playbook seen throughout history from the time of Diocletian (284-305AD) onwards. But this inflation is different in many ways. Instead of being primarily a collapse of purchasing power driven by the public’s rejection of their state’s fiat currency, it will be driven by a matching, but slightly lagging collapse of the whole panoply of financial asset values. That at least is the lesson of the only other recorded instance of it happening, John Law’s pre-Keynesian scheme. The outlook for gold and silver

The current market hiatus has seen a breakdown between financial markets and physical bullion, with supplies of coin and small bars sold out. To add to supply problems, it is rumoured that the three major Swiss refiners based in the Ticino canton are either in lockdown or having logistical problems. The dichotomy is between the world of financial assets and the real world of people. Events over the last few weeks have raised the possibility that the central banks, particularly the Fed in whose dollars everything is priced, are losing control over the whole financial system. Normally scared into financial submission, ordinary people are not buying the establishment’s Kool-Aid anymore. They know nothing, they do not understand what is happening, but at the margin they want precious metals at any price.

The monetary find this behaviour unacceptable. They have routinely killed off embarrassing price rises in gold and silver as the means of subduing public interest. The prospect of monetary inflation following a coronavirus lockdown will make it impossible to repeat the exercise successfully, because of the monetary inflation involved. Meanwhile, bullion banks are in a bind, having far greater gold and silver obligations than their access to physical gold for cover. These obligations are overwhelmingly in paper, futures and forwards, as well as liabilities to customers with unallocated accounts. Anecdotal evidence also suggests that customers with allocated accounts have already had difficulties getting physical delivery in recent years. Therefore, while public demand for physical bullion has been increasing, the bullion establishment has become badly exposed to the monetary consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. Central banks and the Bank for International Settlements cannot afford to see a bullion bank blow-up, and doubtless have been working behind the scenes to prevent one. Gold is likely being leased to the bullion banks, giving them some liquidity on paper, but in practice it never leaves the central bank’s vault and therefore its possession. Futures are sold with the purpose of triggering the speculators’ stops, creating an avalanche effect on the price. The intention is for bullion banks to either get at least square in their positions or preferably long, because they know that when the suppression exercise is over, the price of gold and silver will rise dramatically in the face of fiat money expansion. What they don’t know yet is the fate of fiat currency. We know from analysing John Law’s experience in 1720 that in 2020 we are likely to see the end of it very soon. Conventionally expressed, that gives gold and silver prices of infinity, and moves of a hundred bucks or so are immaterial.

Also of importance…

Eric King: “John, people look around at the carnage in the mining sector and ask themselves, ‘What should I be buying?’ And your company has the most powerful fundamentals in terms of massive growth in production, high grade ounces, and dramatically expanding cash flow of any gold producer in the world.”

Massive Growth In Production And Cash Flow

John Lewins, CEO: “First and foremost you mentioned production growth. We produced 47,000 ounces of gold in 2018, and 82,000 ounces in 2019, both of which beat guidance. The guidance for this year is 110,000-120,000 ounces of production. And we are conservatively targeting 140,000 of production for 2021. But, Eric, K92 is also one of the lowest cost producers in the world in terms of cash costs and all-in sustaining costs of sub-$700 an ounce. So we have huge margins with the gold price today near $1,500.

A Staggering $100 Million Of Cash Flow

And even more exciting is the fact that all of this growth is being funded with existing cash flow. Meaning, there will be no dilution, and our cash on hand will expand from $20 million to $40-50 million by the end of the year, even with our aggressive expansion plans. And, importantly, in 2021 we expect our cash flow to be a staggering $100 million, even at today’s gold price. High Grade Production Will Increase To 250,000-300,000 Ounces And, Eric, we currently have a resource of 2.8 million ounces of gold, but we are about to release a new resource estimate that includes 18 months of drilling. That will dramatically expand our resource to roughly the 5 million ounce level. Every time we drill it, we expand it. Our hit rate from our drilling has been 100%, and we currently have 5 drill rigs continuing to expand that resource. It’s open at depth. It’s 1,100 meters at depth so far, and we haven’t drilled a hole at depth that hasn’t hit the system. And we haven’t drilled a hole to the south that hasn’t hit the system. So it’s open to the south and at depth. That is why we are planning to ramp up production to 250,000-300,000 ounces a year in the future. This will more than double our already ramped up production guidance for 2020. One Of The Greatest Growth Stories In The World We have already bought the equipment and committed the capital for that growth. And, again, we are using our existing cash flow for all of this future growth, while dramatically expanding our cash balance. So yes, Eric, K92 is one of the greatest and most exciting growth stories in the mining world, and this pullback in the mining space has created a tremendous opportunity for investors. K92, symbol KNT in Canada and KNTNF in the US.

***Also Released: Emergency Actions, Plus A Look At Gold & Silver CLICK HERE.

Global Market Panic  To listen to legendary billionaire Pierre Lassonde discuss what he is doing with his own money right now, how the global panic will unfold as well where he believes the gold price is headed from here CLICK HERE OR ON THE IMAGE BELOW.

https://kingworldnews.com/alasdair-macleod-panic-and-the-end-of-fiat-currencies/ 

:: 3-20-20 Rebel Planet Dispatch :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Friday, March 20, 2020

As America Falls We All Suffer  God Abases the Proud, but Exalts the Righteous.

To the Chief Musician; set to [the tune of] “Do Not Destroy.” A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.

We give thanks and praise to You, O God, we give thanks,

For Your [wonderful works declare that Your] name is near;

People declare Your wonders.

2 “When I select an appointed time,

I will judge with equity,” [says the Lord].

3 “The earth and all the inhabitants of it melt [in tumultuous times].

It is I who will steady its pillars. Selah.

4 “I said to the arrogant, ‘Do not boast;’

And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn [of self-glorification].

5 ‘Do not lift up your [defiant and aggressive] horn on high,

Do not speak with a stiff neck.’”

6 For not from the east, nor from the west,

Nor from the desert comes exaltation.

7 But God is the Judge;

He puts down one and lifts up another.

8 For a cup [of His wrath] is in the hand of the Lord, and the wine foams;

It is well mixed and fully spiced, and He pours out from it;

And all the wicked of the earth must drain it and drink down to its dregs.

9 But as for me, I will declare it and rejoice forever;

I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

10 All the horns of the wicked He will cut off,

But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.

Psalm 7

°°°°°°°°

Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

Three pillars of Trump’s case for reelection are collapsing all at once

Feb. 4 was probably the pinnacle of Donald Trump’s presidency.

A few minutes past 9 p.m. ET, Trump entered the ornate House Chamber and then glad-handed his way down the aisle, all to the sound of thundering applause from Republicans, who chanted “four more years.” This was Trump’s third State of the Union address. The 90-minute speech Trump delivered was packed with the confidence, self-flattery and showmanship that have become hallmarks of his tenure. Trump campaigned on “draining the swamp” of big government. Now he wants Americans to trust in big government to fight coronavirus and save the economy. godless Communist China was a backwards economy before Empire America Babylon got involved in the early 70's. This is a fact that you will never hear from greedy, corrupt Washington and the lying media. They moved nearly all US manufacturing, production and factories over there because it was cheaper and fit the agenda of the globalists. The corrupt Washington politician's took $$$ campaign contributions, PAC money and every bribe to allow a Communist government to become a diabolical threat to America. That is why corrupt Democrat Presidential candidate Joe Biden and his corrupt son Hunter Biden are not in Federal Prison for taking $$$ millions from China, Ukraine, etc as well as evil, greedy, corrupt, pervert Bill & Hillary Clinton with their money laundering, pay to play corrupt Global Initiative foundation.

The delusion and false hope 'Pride Before Destruction' Trump and his deep state AG Barr and deep state FBI Director Wray will never deliver any justice because evil America is too corrupt to fix. They're all corrupt as hell ! Another words - America cut its own throat and now America pays the Piper as we see California shut down as well as NY, etc. Much of the money the greedy US companies made over decades of cheap China labor has disappeared in a matter of days. Can anyone see the hand of God in judging the greedy, evil empire that worships Mammon $$$ and has turned far away from Him ?

~~~

Right after the elite$ of planet earth in rebellion against the Creator met in Davos, Switzerland @ the World Economic Forum where they plan and implement their satan inspired agenda we immediately have a global pandemic and global pandemonium strikes. They don't try and hide their agenda like they used to. It's more out in the open now. This is not a coincidence as we see China after 2 or 3 months rise from the Bat poop plague they delivered to the nations and we here in the US are being told it will be more long term, (18 months) and destructive to our $ (NWO agenda) and Italy, Europe suffering even more then the China dragon did. The US Dollar $ has to collapse for the Phoenix to arise from the ashes and that is what Congress, the Senate & President Trump are doing now. Notice how China did not destroy their economy and weathered their China Bat Virus much smoother than we are ! THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS !

Hat tip samson7able

BROTHERS, The Davos WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM of 2019, attended by Bill Gates and friends, set in motion a personal global ID, digital, financial, and for ALL peoples on the earth, including the "unbanked" peoples. There are strong indications that it will be connected to a MANDATORY VACCINE. . .

Here is one quote:  "BIG PHARMA AND MICROSOFT ARE TEAMING UP IN SOMETHING CALLED THE ‘ID2020 ALLIANCE’ THAT WILL COMBINE VACCINATIONS WITH IMPLANTABLE MICROCHIPS TO CREATE YOUR DIGITAL ID."

Here is the link to this article on a Christian site, which also has a link to a secular site with the same article published

https://www.nowtheendbegins.com/id2020-announces-certification-mark-complete-kiva-protocol-gravity-earth-coronavirus-vaccine-digital-id/ 

Here is a link to the DAVOS 2019 WEF information:

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/15/world-economic-forum-2019-who-is-going-to-davos-this-year.html 

It is time to make our calling and election sure. The mark of the beast is coming. It is coming as a SNARE , a trap to test everyone on the face of the whole earth. It is time to BE AWARE that the mark of the beast is coming cloaked in all manner of "good-for-humanity" clothing. Health, digital birth records, digital financial records, digital buying and selling. And it is being programmed for every person on the face of the whole earth. AGAIN... It is time to BE AWARE that the mark of the beast is coming cloaked in all manner of "good-for-humanity" clothing. Health, digital birth records, digital financial records, digital buying and selling. And it is being programmed for every person on this earth, no matter the tribe or culture.

The LORD JESUS said, " What I+ say unto you, I+ say unto ALL: WATCH."

https://rebelplanetdispatch.blogspot.com/2020/03/as-america-falls-we-all-suffer.html?m=1 

:: 3--20 Breitbart :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Ann Coulter: Cheap TVs, Expensive Flu

Here’s a thought: While self-quarantining with their families in multimillion-dollar Manhattan co-ops, Wall Street wives ought to have a chat with their Master of the Universe husbands about China, globalism and political correctness. Those are the vectors of their robber-baron wealth. Thanks to “globalism” — i.e., cheap goods from China — we’ve gotten many wondrous things, for example: — Toothpaste on American shelves made with a poison found in antifreeze.

— Toxic Chinese drywall installed in about 100,000 U.S. homes, emitting noxious fumes that destroyed electrical wiring and metal fixtures and sickened homeowners. Replacement of the drywall, pipes and wiring cost Americans billions of dollars.

— Hundreds, possibly thousands, of American dogs killed by melamine-laced Chinese dog food in 2007.

— The loss of about 200,000 beautiful maple trees lining the streets of small New England towns, eaten by Asian long-horned beetles that arrived on Chinese cargo ships in 1996. The U.S. taxpayer spends hundreds of millions of dollars to eradicate the repeated outbreaks that continue to this day, despite promises from the Chinese to do better.

— Viral pandemics — H1N1 (from China), bird flu (from China), SARS (from China) and now the Wuhan virus (from China).

Is it really worth paying $3 for a T-shirt at Walmart, rather than $9? The precise reason Chinese goods are so cheap is that they skip the crucial quality-control step.

The media’s reaction to this latest pandemic out of China is to say …

LET’S GET ONE THING STRAIGHT: THE CHINESE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!

Well, like most animal-to-human viruses, this one did originate in China and then spread across the globe when Chinese tourists infected people in other countries. As described by Melinda Liu in Smithsonian Magazine, the Chinese wet markets, “often poorly ventilated, with multiple species jammed together — create ideal conditions for spreading disease through shared water utensils or airborne droplets of blood and other secretions.” This 2017 article was titled: “Is China Ground Zero for a Future Pandemic?” When the pandemic arrived, at least the World Health Organization leapt to action. First step: Find a cure? Develop a vaccine? Demand protections for the elderly? NO!

WHO officials got together and worked on coming up with a new name for the “Wuhan virus” that sounded less Asian. Next, the WHO put out a “Fact Sheet” to ensure that those with Kung Flu would not be stigmatized. It instructed: “DO — talk about people ‘acquiring’ or ‘contracting’ #COVID-19.

“DON’T — talk about people ‘transmitting COVID-19,’ ‘infecting others’ or “spreading the virus’ as it implies intentional transmission & assigns blame.” As fear of the Chinese virus spread, Gloria Allred brought a lawsuit against a Los Angeles school for sending an Asian student to the school nurse after he coughed in class. Americans are cowering in their homes. Airlines, restaurants, beaches, ski resorts, professional sports, colleges and stores have been shut down. But we must never violate the fundamental civil right of an Asian to cough in class and refuse to see the nurse! The New York Times has also been on the racism beat, with these pressing stories:

As Chinese Grapple With a New Illness, an Old Stigma Is Revived

An Outbreak of Racist Sentiment as Coronavirus Reaches Australia

As Coronavirus Spreads, So Does Anti-Chinese Sentiment

And there’s more! Virus Fuels Anti-Chinese Sentiment Overseas

Coronavirus Outbreak Risks Reviving Stigma for China Wait – here’s another: For a Chinese Traveler, Even Paradise Comes With Prejudice

A few weeks ago — before a trillion dollars in wealth was destroyed by the coronavirus panic and we learned the real disease was racism — everyone, including the Times, admitted that the virus was brought to Italy by two Chinese tourists. “[T]here had not yet been any confirmed cases in Italy,” the Times reported, until Jan. 30, “when the government announced the first two cases.” The scientific director of an infectious diseases hospital in Rome identified them: “two Chinese tourists visiting Rome.” The Times buried this fact in an article perversely titled: “Cruise Passengers Are Held at Italian Port in False Alarm Over Coronavirus.” On one hand, a bunch of cruise passengers were inconvenienced for 12 hours; on the other hand, a viral pandemic that could kill millions was introduced to Italy. You write the headline. Lombardy is the Italian region most devastated by the Wuhan virus. As far back as 2003, a Library of Congress report cited Lombardy as having the highest concentration of Chinese immigrants in Italy. Our media refuses to tell us this fact today — or any day.

No hard feelings, but why not relieve people’s minds? West Virginians who have no contact with anyone visiting from China can rest easy! No need to stockpile toilet paper. While we’re at it, when will the media and the “medical community” get around to informing Americans that this latest Chinese pandemic poses little danger to anyone under 70 without certain chronic medical conditions? Italy has been ravaged by the Wuhan virus, but the average age of the dead is 81. According to the dire estimates of the Imperial College of London — whose assessment we are following — excepting those with underlying medical conditions, the new coronavirus could be less deadly than the seasonal flu to anyone under 60 years old and no worse than the 2017-18 flu season for those in their 60s. But it’s five to 10 times more deadly than the regular flu for those in their 70s and 80s, respectively. We ought to surround old folks homes with the National Guard and call it a day. It would probably save more lives and wouldn’t destroy the economy. But there’s no time to think about saving lives. The important thing is to stamp out the idea that a virus that originated in China has anything to do China.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/03/18/ann-coulter-cheap-tvs-expensive-flu/ 

:: 3-20-20 Word Press :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Many Americans Are Not Prepared To Deal With Depression Level Living: How Will You Cope With A Lower Standard Of Living?: Casey believes we are headed for what he calls a’ super depression’ created by the ending of a debt super cycle.

Gabi BB Uncategorized March 20, 2020

The forces are mounting that will eventually overwhelm most Americans and send their standard of living to unknown depths. Americans that have only known the post WWII prosperity are ill equipped and educated to deal with depression level living. Easy credit and instant gratification have created a nation of whining, self absorbed, entitlement minded people with no moral or mental toughness. Doug Casey believes we are headed for what he calls a super depression created by the ending of a debt super cycle. The bigger the debt cycle the bigger the depression that follows. That’s how reality works and most people are not prepared for reality. When this depression, which has already started, gets momentum, it will overwhelm the plans of a society that is expecting to get things like social security, pensions and payouts from retirement plans they have paid into for many years. All of those things will disappear almost overnight and leave society gasping and stupefied over what to do. Their reactions will be to yell and scream and try to identify who to blame but the only person they should blame is the one in the mirror. Many very smart people have raised the alarm and done their best to warn the sleeping public, but those slumbering masses have ignored the warnings and hit the snooze button one more time. The masses do not understand economics, do not want to understand economics and they will pay dearly for that ignorance in the coming days. When the real unemployment rate becomes common knowledge as it increases substantially, people will be left to survive on what resources they have saved up outside the banking system that cannot be stolen by the politicians and bankers. That is a key point here. The assets you have outside the system that cannot be stolen from you with a few key strokes on some computer. Those hoping for some miraculous event that will send the U.S. back to the days of manufacturing might and jobs for all will never see it happen. Those days are gone. The west line theory tells us our economy will slow down and become more modest as the shipping center of the world moves west to the next powerhouse region which is Asia. This is what history teaches us. When people suddenly wake up one morning and they have no job, their retirement is gone and they need to care for their family, what will they do? When government services have collapsed and they suddenly realize they are now living in a third world country with few government services, what will they do? When the banks are closed and only a select few connected people have any type of money or access to goods, what will they do? This is the reality that many people will face in the future and they have no idea how bad it can get. They refuse to contemplate the harsh reality they will be living in and take steps to mitigate the effects. To do so would be to acknowledge it could happen and they are taking personal responsibility. Personal responsibility is a dirty phrase in today’s entitlement society. To see some of the effects one only has to look at the collapse of society in Venezuela today to see what awaits. When it happens it will all fall back to you to take responsibility for your family and take care of them for the duration. To do that you need to plan now for that eventuality and build up the resources you will need to provide food, shelter, clothing and security when the system fails to do it for you. You need to be Noah on his ark not the people watching as he floated away. Having resources stored up is a must but it may not get you all the way through if the situation lasts for many years. That is why you need some type of plan to replace those resources as time goes by and have some way to generate some type of income or at least items to trade. Usable goods are for the short term and things like gold ,silver and production equipment are for the long term to help you get through the crisis with the least amount of pain. Even with proper planning the days ahead will not be easy as the standard of living of society will fall substantially to levels only seen in failed third world countries or old pictures. The assets actually owned by people today is very small compared to how they live. They will default on their home loan, their car loan, and their credit card debt leaving them with very few real possessions and few ways to move what they have left even if they have some place to go. Ultimately these people will become the new serfs to the wealthy class that will take possession of anything of value. Feudalism will once again rule. The lack of planning by society will make this a reality if it is allowed. What will you do when everything you have worked a lifetime for is suddenly taken away? Do you have a plan to keep what you have? Do you have a plan to make money when you cannot find a job? Do you have a way to take care of your family until things stabilize? Do you have a home you will not lose if the whole system breaks down? What will you do if electricity or fuel is too expensive to buy or not available to the general population? These are the questions you should be asking yourself now and you better have a good answer because your family will be asking them when the greater depression sets in.

[ :: 7-2-16 am service Camp Meeting 2016  ::  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::  ::]

etc You will also see the stock market, if you have got money there get it out, says the Lord, get it out now, for later will be too late.  Also you shall see many things taking place overseas like you have never seen before in your life.  And the political realm shall get even, even darker now, you shall hear things that you did not know, etc

:: 3--20 The Great Recession Blog :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

How Dead is the Fed?

You can only be so dead, and that’s just “plain dead.” But there is also Feddy Krueger dead. The kind of dead that keeps on happening like a demonic death that won’t stay dead. It is in that nightmarish Elm St. light that I’m going to review the Federal Reserve’s death. It’s happened via face-plant failures over past month that I’m going to lay out to show how savagely the Fed is dying a perpetual-motion death.

Let me pause to assure you, I’m not saying Feddy Krueger is down for the count and will not rise again. He always revives by inventing powers over market death never seen before. Feddy will return with extraordinary and permanent powers beyond those he once used to bring counterfeit salvation from the Great Recession. Feddy gets more empowered by scared government politicians each time the economy crashes. You can’t get rid of Feddy. At least, it seems. What I am saying in calling him “dead” is that all of his old powers are completely dead. Maybe “impotent” would be a better word, but I wish him dead. He is, for the moment, fangless and mangled. He has been able to accomplish nothing for a month, and he has never tried harder! That’s right where I said the Fed would be when markets returned to reality. Reality is a hard teacher. While looking dead on the ground at the moment, Feddy’s first resurrection will come from bringing back to life massive bailouts, which he is already working on in his laboratory (and which will be the subject of the next article I’m working on). Feddy will do all of this with full, desperate and almost unquestioning government support. Of course there will be a few obligatory questions in congress as window dressing just so politicians can look like they’re not asleep. Then congress will grant the powers Feddy wants because almost no one in society will speak out against these new powers, for even the masses want anything that will save them.

Screams of bank death already heard around the world Let us set the scene for Feddy’s death with screams in a dark nigh. These are the screams of central banksters and treasurers heard around the world, as they plead for life in a suddenly apocalyptic world. Nothing chills a banskter’s spine and brings a scream like the sight of massive red ink, pouring out of the arteries of banks through their ATMs. We call these “bank runs.” They only belong with the worst of crashes — cash crashes:

Speaking to journalists in Vienna, central bank governor Robert Holzmann said that Austrians have been far more active in pulling money from their banks, and have withdrawn more cash from ATMs last week, double to triple the normal average daily volume of €200MM. However, hoping to forestall a full blown bank-run, Holzmann said that the central bank has enough cash reserves for ATMs, companies, banks, that “deposits are safe because banks have made homework, built capital reserves”, and that he “doesn’t expect a bank run.” Zero Hedge That one sounds like just a close call; but, with smart words like that from a central bankster, Austria should have a nice bank run by tomorrow. And if Austria has a run, then Germany’s Deutche Bank HAS TO run, and if DB has to run, look for a runs at any bank near you. The screams from Austria’s lead bankster call to mind that surreal moment in December, 2018, when US Treasurer Steven Munchkin let the world know by tweeting from his floatie beside his lovely wife (the kind at greatest risk whenever Feddy is around a swimming pool) somewhere in the Caribbean that he had just called all the largest banks in the US to make sure they had enough capital to survive the storm (when the market dropped FAR less than now), so he could assure us everything was fine! Storm? What storm? Oh, Just a minute. The same article about potential Austrian bank runs actually continues (and I truly had not read this far before inserting the above Munchkin reminder, as I can barely keep up with the cascading crash now): Meanwhile, in the US, eager to avoid any such discussion, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC that “nobody has to pull money out of banks.” Well, that’s a grand way to avoid any such discussion. How chillingly reassuring! Just when I thought all was well, the scary music started playing behind the robotic Munchkin. Once again, the Treasury Secretary has alerted the world to a prospect we all possibly should consider with a shudder — “not pulling our money out of banks.” His comment makes me wonder if there was a reason I was supposed to be thinking of doing that. We’ve already seen toilet-paper runs all over the United States. And if people will go that crazy to get toilet paper before it runs out, maybe that will extend to other paper. Given the shortage in commercially available paper and the secretary’s concern about bank runs, maybe it will soon be more economical to withdraw all our bank funds in dollars bills and use them for toilet paper … if there are any more bills left in the vaults than there are rolls of TP on the shelves. Can the US central bank save us from the Munchkin’s chirpy tweets?

Feddy Krueger’s dramatic death throes

All of Feddy’s old tricks that strung the US stock market up for a decade are so far down the backside of the diminishing returns curve (yeah, economic laws are a bitch, but they still work as I said they would) that the Fed’s operations now create the inverse of everything those operations once accomplished. Let’s start with just a look at the Fed’s thrill ride of failed interventions this past weekend because it was wild: $1.5 Trillion in longer term repos. The Fed greatly increased the repo deluge and extended the length of those repos (as I explained was necessary in an earlier article: “Big Bond Bubble Begins to Blow!”). Because it knew that would not be enough, it also

Clearly announced that it was spreading its treasury purchases from their short-term restrictions to buying treasuries all across the maturity spectrum, putting to death its former argument that none of its salvation efforts are QE. Knowing that move would also not be grand enough, the Fed even promised to buy at least, $500 billion in Treasury securities and $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities over the coming months So, the Fed promised a total of $2.2 trillion worth of intervention in repos and outright purchases of US treasuries and mangy mortgage-backed securities in one weekend! And the stock market’s response the next day was what? It threw up! That’s what the victims do in a gory Feddy Krueger film. The market crashed down the longest set of stairs in terms of total points in its long beleaguered history. It was the third-biggest highest fall even if measured as a percentage of the total market, and that’s after the market had set several other records of similar violent upheaval. This past weekend, the Fed’s biggest economic stimulus efforts in history — surpassing any QE ever promised during the Great Recession — got nothing but a market barf. So, yes, as I’ve long said, when the Fed tried to return to QE after tightening, it would find itself so far down the backside of the diminishing returns curve that results will be steeply negative. Not a little negative but  screaming–in-the-trenches-because-you-just-got-belly-shot negative! Blow-your-legs-off negative. Feddy-Krueger-hacking-gore negative. Never in its history has the Fed gotten such a violently negative reaction to the promise of giving out free money! Yes, that was to the promise of free money … boatloads of free money! And the market said, “We don’t want your damned money!” Would you pause to take a bankroll from Feddie Krueger? Even after Feddy slashed interest down to the ground and made all the promises above, overnight repo interest still looked choppy. It did not want to stay down on the ground of the zero bound where the Fed set its own Fed Funds rate (which it uses to persuade overnight repos between banks to crawl that low, too): Feddy hacked repo down, and it got back up. So, he hacked again, and it got up again. So, the Fed temporarily spared the market — or tried to — by quickly throwing in another half a trillion of manic-money green on St. Patty’s Day in order to bring stability. As the Fed explained the extra repo offering it laid on the altar, the additional half a trillion step was merely “taken to ensure that the supply of reserves remains ample and to support the smooth functioning of short-term U.S. dollar funding markets.” Sounds as good as any other reason. Just taking care of a little half-trillion glitch in operations the day after the last half-trillion offering didn’t didn’t solve the last glitch; but the market would have none of it, and tumbled again today (Wednesday) — badly — down another long flight of steps. Secretly, the Fed’s real reason it needed to whirl up this monetary storm was to start unwinding that twisted, writhing mess of rehypothecated bonds that I described in my last article, “Big Bond Bubble Begins to Blow!” The Fed is fighting to prevent the bursting of the bond bubble, which is now unable to avoid the stresses being pressed upon it by the coronacrisis and is passing those stresses into the repo market. (That’s what happens when black swans crash in on a corrupt economy, haunted by its own demons that it has never exorcised.) What’s a villain to do? According to Credit Swiss’s Zoltan Pozsar, to whom the Feddy listens, all that’s needed now is a multi-faceted solution — just open lines of free or cheap funds that include all the swaps and repos needed without limits and as much QE as necessary. End all the caps, and we’ll be OK. In other words, say, “You banks and hedge funds and other financial operators just tell us whatever you need, and we’ll do it!” That should be confidence building. (And that’s why I’ve been saying since September this is QE4ever — meaning all limits off if we’re going to get any more fix out of the Fed’s old dinosaur medicine.) Are you starting to feel yet like the Repocalypse is “the little crisis that roared,” as I said it was way back last fall?

Just sayin’. And that was all just over the past weekend. Now look back at the Fed’s full list of recently spectacular fails: Fantastic Fed Failures How bad was the Fed failing before its final death throes this past weekend? Did I mention the $2.2 trillion in Fed follies that have been scheduled? Ah, I did …. but that was just the weekend turnover! The total of everything tbe Fed threatened to do to us comes to about 5-trillion free Fed dollars stitched together from all the old tricks Feddy could think of over the pasts couple of weeks. That amount, if all the offers were taken, would be equal to all the QE done over the entire seven-year course of balance-sheet expansion that started during the Great Recession. Only it’s been offered in less than a month!

Didn’t I also say something many times over in past years about the next recession being a return back into the belly of the Great Recession? That was certain to happen because the Fed and its pocket politicians hadn’t fixed ANYTHING that was corrupt and flawed that took us into the Great Recession in the first place. If all you do is cover cancer with makeup, it spreads and becomes worse. Remember all those times of everyone in congress talking about kicking the can down the road? Well, this is what “down the road” looks like when you get to the end of the road!

The nice thing about all the Fed’s new actions is that we are already starting down the road once more toward doing the whole last ten years all over again. Rinse and repeat. It’s not going to work, but they’ll invent bigger solutions like the ones I’ve been laying out for my patrons; but I want everyone to, at least, have a clear picture of the trouble that is coming.

We have wound up here as a result of piling up higher mountains of worse debt because we just pushed everything down the road, piling it ahead of us, while providing money for all the corrupt greed to run way out ahead of the rests of the economy. You see, Feddy creates all of his money out of debt. Somebody takes out debt for every penny Feddy makes. Usually that’s the US government. Feddy funds the Feds.

Now we’re seeing the emergence of the real flaws under the economy that I’ve been talking about — the garbage on the sea floor that all gets exposed when the water runs out of the bay just before the tsunami crashes in. It’s this stuff — like those rehypothecated bonds — that leaves us too weak to weather bad events because the substance that makes our financial world work all starts to unravel when we need to rely on it under pressure.

The Fed has been flopping around in useless spasms for weeks now as one can tell from the following long list of face flops that helped pound the stock market down like a pile driver every time the Fed screwed up with the wrong solution because its old play book doesn’t work anymore. Here’s the full list of all the major responses I’m aware of that the Fed has undertaken since the coronacrisis hit:

Bolted back to ZIRP, slashing interest rates from from a pathetic 1.25% straight to 0% in an emergency meeting for the first time since the Great Recession!

Pledged over $700 billion in Quantitative Easing (QE) through $500 billion in outright US treasury purchases and $200 billion in Mortgage-Backed Security purchases! (Yeah, all that garbage is upchucking again!)

Spread its treasury purchases from short-term only to full-spectrum, ending the “it’s temporary and short-term” argument the Fed used to claim last Fall this is “not QE.”

Offered a $1.5 TRILLION repo lending program that has already failed multiple times! (In half-trillion installments with one- and three-month terms every week to the end of March.)

Launched another $1 trillion repo program that also failed.

Allowed primary treasury dealers to start parking non-treasury assets at the Fed, including stocks, as collateral in exchange for short-term credit. (As a back door into essentially buying stocks through others to keep them from dumping them in a falling market, taking losses and pushing the market down harder.)

Opened Euro-Dollar swaps, implying systemically important banks in Europe like Deutsche Bank (?) are in danger of collapse. CBs involved in coordination with the Fed include the Bank of Canada, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, and the Swiss National Bank.

Is that not thermonuclear Fed already? These moves have been historic — bigger than anything the Fed tried during the Great Recession! Fed ammo SPENT! Dry powder LONG GONE! And the stock market is still falling and burning like a meteor in the earth’s now apocalyptic atmosphere. So, the Fed took another stab at it, which I’m coming to, but first …

There is now no question that the Fed cannot save this market with more of its old-style pumping. The stock market is dumping as I said it would at this point and chasing the economy down into the basement and the sub-basement … because reality rules. Reality always rules eventually. And that is why you must always be looking at and dealing with economic reality … or one day it bites you in the butt.

The economic crisis is now going full economic collapse. Let’s hope this, at least, breaks through the economic denial I’ve been trying futilely to break through for a decade. Otherwise, we will get to rinse and repeat the Great Recession all over again.

The Fed’s recovery died along with it. That failure burst into daylight with the Repo Crisis that resulted from the Fed tightening all the way into last summer, which caused an instant turn-around on the Fed’s part that did, as I said it would, come too little too late (even as big as their efforts appeared to be last fall, causing even me to think maybe they would do enough in time to forestall the recession anyway … until they got a shove from a deadly virus).

Have no fear. Good ol’ Ben BurnTheBanky and Grandma Yellen are here. They were just quoted in the Financial Times today as recommending EXACTLY what I said in my last Patron Post would most likely be the Fed’s first recourse in assuming new powers under the mantle of the Federal Government.

They have urged the Fed to begin buying stocks directly. Yes, the Fed will be enabled at last save its rigged market under any circumstances if the government will grant it this power to use its infinite money machine to buy stocks up to any price it wants. The Fed can print enough money to buy all the stocks in the world, except that it does not … yet … have the power to do this because it is not allowed under The Federal Reserve Act. Never let a good crisis go to waste.

Once this practice is allowed, it will probably be a good time to jump back into the most hated and rigged stock market on earth because the Fed will be able to print any price on any stock it wants until money, itself, collapses; and, when that happens, all bets for everything are off, except maybe those good ol’ precious metals, but I’ll give some warning below on that, too.

Gentle Ben and Grandma Yellen also urged the Fed today to do something I already wrote in the first draft of this article yesterday the Fed was working on. They’re using their august prestige to publicly and politically build the case for that which is already fully in motion. I’m referring to Feddy’s resurrection of an old commercial paper laundering “facility,” which will find little resistance from Trump and congress who want salvation at any price.

The evils beneath the surface

Wasn’t I saying something awhile back about the blowing up of the Everything Bubble being an event so broad it would leave the Fed with more wobbling plates than it could keep spinning. Here we are, and who knows what the knock-on effect will be if just one of the plates below hits the ground and shatters?

Zoltan Pozsar who in his latest note published this morning, writes that “all segments of funding markets – secured, unsecured and FX swaps – continue to show growing signs of stress”, prompting him to conclude that “the Fed may have to do more still.”

Zero Hedge

Let me cut to the chase on Pozsar’s recommended solutions (whose solutions, by the way, the Fed has always grasped at in a hurry because Pozsar is their repo guru): the Fed needs to become the dealer and funder of last resort on anything to anyone, from US CDs to Scandinavian bank credit-default swaps for banks and non-banks. Does that sound like a lot of plate spinning to you? I may be overstating the breadth of his solution a little, but not much! The Fed is pretty much up to now needing to throw in the whole kitchen and pantry and not just the sink. As Mark Cabana, formerly of the NY Fed, recently said, “the Fed has been on fire.” On fire and under fire, and it’s firing up even hotter. The results of the Fed Follies are in and ugly and they give evidence of where the economy is most foul:

The Repo Crisis will not die. First, it was oversubscribed … … then finally ignored as being apparently useless in the present catastrophe. Repos are useless now because they are temporary solutions to a longterm problem. That is why I said they would have to be rolled over forever UNTIL the Fed moved to full-on QE, which is why I claimed repos were just a falsified form of QE in the first place. Even with the massive overnight repos the Fed has been offering of $500 billion each operation, the repo rate has looked anything but stable: Obviously, we’ve passed that crisis! Don’t worry about it. Clearly the Fed has this under control, but you might want to walk a little faster past the graveyard on your way to the ATM because $2.2 trillion doesn’t seem to stretch far right now. If it needs to, the Fed can always print 220 trillion. Just add a zero now that we’re sliding down the backside of the results curve. The Fed describes commercial paper — business-to-business loans — as follows:

Commercial paper markets directly finance a wide range of economic activity, supplying credit and funding for auto loans and mortgages as well as liquidity to meet the operational needs of a range of companies. By ensuring the smooth functioning of this market, particularly in times of strain, the Federal Reserve is providing credit that will support families, businesses, and jobs across the economy.

Federal Reserve

One line there notes that CP is the loans businesses use to get emergency loans in times of strain from other businesses to carry out their immediate operating needs — like the loan a stressed bond fund might try to obtain from another financial institution or another business to meet the outflow demands coming from the fund’s fleeing investors.

Don’t worry. The Fed is getting this one under control, too. This is the part I had written in an earlier draft of this article that I said Ben and Janet were yellin’ about today in order to prepare the way. Feddy is resurrecting an old paper shredder in the basement for disposing of some toxic trash. It was last used in the pit of the Great Recession. After all the recent hacks by the Fed that failed, the Fed coughed up an old plan to solve the CP problems … and so did the Federal government’s chief treasurer.

Oh, first let me comfort you by saying there is clearly nothing to worry about here:

TD Economics warns:

Shortly after the collapse in the stock market into bear territory in December 2018, we produced analysis to argue against fearing stock market volatility….

Zero Hedge

Whoa! Stop! Did I hear right? Someone is finally admitting that the stock market DID crash into a mini bear market in December 2018, an event where I seemed to be the loan voice in calling it a bear ever since? OK, moving right along to the comfort I wanted to give, TD Economics was just saying you needn’t fear any of this stock market volatility because …

Granted the recent rout that dialed the S&P 500 Index back to late 2018 levels in a short period is not common.

Why fear anything that is highly uncommon? The sharp move corresponds to a 7 standard deviation from historical norms. Oh, that kind of “not common.” Only a standard deviation of 7. Isn’t that supposed to represent something like a one-in-seven-quintillion-billion chance? OK. Nothing to be concerned about then. A volatile roll-back of the stock market that had about the same chance of ever actually happening as being aborbed into a black hole tomorrow … just happened. Pretty standard, really.

However, our eyebrows have been raised at the broadening of financial stress across multiple bond, credit, liquidity and corporate indicators. This is a cause for concern of a possible larger negative credit-event.

Eyebrows raised? Oh, so maybe we should be afraid just as they were telling us not to be? Well, I’m glad something caught their attention! Didn’t I just write something about a threatening break-up in the bond market over the weekend? Of course, I should have noted in that article the problem extends to the leveraged-loan sector of the credit world, too. Anyway, it may be nothing more than “a possible larger negative credit-event” that you needn’t fear.  That credit event also involves a lot of “commercial paper,” hence Freddy’s need to get the shredder in the basement running again.

OK, but with all this extra liquidity now starting to flow in, financial conditions surely must be loosening up a little bit, right? Oops. Guess not. Fed actions failed in that market, too. Meanwhile, how has the Fed been doing at getting that non-fearworthy volatility in the stock market back down? Nice score. Slightly higher than the worst spike in the Great Recession! I guess that’s why they said this is standard-deviation 7 move!

Getting back to my original point in this section, all those signs of trouble are why the Fed over the weekend scrubbed up a recycled invention it is codeveloping with the US treasury to gobble up commercial paper. It announced it is creating a commercial paper (CP) bailout facility. There’s a favorite word coming back into play! Of course, they didn’t call it a bailout, they used more words, (and you’ll have to read all abut that in my next article because this one is running long.) That’s the shredder.

Before we close this tale, you need to hear the audience scream … just for fun.

Shrieks of dread were heard everywhere

Albeit not in today’s empty movie theaters.

‘Bearmageddon’ for stocks appears to be upon us, strategist says.

The stock market’s worst-case “Bearmageddon” scenario appears to have occurred … when the economy rolls over at a time of “maximum level” of easy monetary policy, while asset values like stocks are still expensive. “That combination of events becomes toxic because investors begin to express concern that the [Federal Reserve’s] monetary policy has become impotent. All of us have just witnessed a central bank expend all of its conventional and unconventional tools to support an equity market that is less than a month from all time highs…. The central bank continues to intervene without ever giving markets an opportunity to clear,” O’Rourke wrote. “This will only extend the length of time it takes for the market to stabilize.”

MarketWatch

“This is a break-the-glass moment” for the Fed, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. “They are throwing everything they’ve got at this. My sense is they must be nervous about the credit system not functioning properly. They are trying to shore up confidence.”

Associated Press

“The Fed has thrown most its weight behind this move, offering almost everything it has to give, which raises the inevitable question — if this doesn’t work, what will?” said Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Global Investors….

“When you have folks in power acting in a very panicky way, doing off-scheduled meetings and throwing everything they can at the situation, that doesn’t send a very reassuring signal to the general population.” said Max Gokhman, head of asset allocation at Pacific Life Fund Advisors, in an interview.

MarketWatch

After firing the biggest emergency “shock and awe” bazooka in Fed history, one which was meant to restore not just partial but full normalcy to asset and funding markets, Emini futures are not only not higher, but tumbling by the -5% limit down.

Zero Hedge

“This is all coming to a head very rapidly,” said Brian Barish, chief investment officer in Denver at Cambiar Investors…. “At this point, no sane investor should be concerned with 2020 earnings – they are cooked! – but with getting through to the other side of this.”

“The toxic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic’s bursting of the Fed’s ‘everything bubble’ has collided with the grotesquely over-leveraged and vulnerable U.S. corporate sector — this puts equity markets in an even more vulnerable position,” said Albert Edwards, a strategist at Societe Generale SA

“While the market may have been disappointed that Trump did not break out the bazooka last night, the reality is the Fed came close to doing that today — though the market remained unimpressed,” said RBC Capital Markets LLC economists Tom Porcelli and Jacob Oubina. “We continue to hear that liquidity is terrible in off-the-run Treasuries.”

Yahoo!

The U.S. economy could contract by a whopping 4% in the second quarter…. That’s the most recent guesswork by Capital Economics.

MarketWatch

Goldman Takes Out The Chainsaw: Cuts US Q2 GDP To -5%; Says Recession Has Begun.

Zero Hedge

We just witnessed a global collapse in asset prices the likes we haven’t seen before. Not even in 2008 or 2000. All these prior beginnings of bear markets happened over time, relatively slowly at first, then accelerating to the downside. This collapse here has come from some of the historically most stretched valuations ever setting the stage for the biggest bull trap ever.

Northman Trader

“The level of uncertainty is even beyond what we saw in 2008 immediately after Lehman Brothers collapsed,” Dan Galai, a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said. “It’s more violent, and it’s more persistent.”

Bloomberg

“History is riddled with disastrous outcomes born of really good intentions.. and I think we’re seeing it now…. It all started in the 80s with Fed Chair Greenspan…. Everybody got lazy … because they bought back stock, they paid their dividends, and off they went…. It’s freaking people out…. There’s nothing normal about this. The Federal Reserve ‘s job is not to make the stock market go higher” Some people apparently can learn and are willing to avoid using the coronavirus as an excuse for the market’s crash, but the rest at CNBC still don’t get it and are begging for salvation from themselves:

“Just Close The Whole Thing Up”: CNBC Anchors Beg For Market Closures

Few are dealing with the economic and market turmoil with more chaos and less class and resolve than the expert “buy and hold” class over at CNBC….

After the Fed bazooka failed to calm markets, it sent the popular talking heads into a typing panic.

Zero Hedge

“Buy and hold” has morphed into “close and hold” now that the bull is DEAD! How dead? Fed dead! That’s how dead the Fed is! (Or how impotent right now.) Markets, you see, should only be open and free when they are rising and when the Fed is control! And clearly it has totally lost control. So…

“Close Twitter, too”, they bellowed from their bullish hideaways. Shut ‘er down! lest news of how bad things are brings the markets down more”: Ya think! And, yet, I still get accosted on other sites from diehard bulls who are staying with the buy-and-hold mantra. OK. Then enjoy the crash! Maybe the new bull mantra should be “scream and hold on!”

And ABOVE ALL ELSE, BAIL US OUT, they are yelling:

The Federal Reserve’s (Fed) attempt to go for shock and awe seems to have been made with the idea that doing something unusual on Sunday night, after the market closed out strong on Friday, would be good for confidence. Of course, the market didn’t take it that way…. The market seemingly responded as if the Fed knows something we don’t know and it’s actually worse than we think.… It’s going to take some major firepower to resolve the forthcoming problems or the slide will continue.…

Our best estimates are that the Chinese economy is contracting in excess of 15 percent at an annualized rate, and I’ve seen numbers as big as negative 40 percent. Europe is probably already in a fairly severe recession at this moment. If the United States is not already in a recession, it will enter one shortly…. The risk is that for the first time since the 1930s we are facing the possibility of a downward spiral into something akin to a global depression … if policymakers don’t act quickly.

Guggenheim’s Scott Minerd

Well, that’s comforting.

(I’ll get into what Guggenheim is actually baiting policy makers to do as recommended solutions in the upcoming “Bailout Bonanza” article. There is just too much to cover in fully describing the Fed’s drawn-out death scenes.)

The market’s response today (Wednesday)? Another staircase down, and a lot more blood.

So, I think this pretty well shows that declarations of the Fed’s death are just about unanimous … at least when it it comes to the Fed’s expected life-giving power imputation to the stock market or any salvation from recession. It’s got nothing that works anymore. That’s because the market is now paying attention to one thing only — the economy. It’s rushing to catch down to where the entire global economy is running. Even free Fed funds are meaningless in this recession.

In conclusion

I know, at last! But Feddy Krueger’s don’t die in one fall. They don’t really die at all. They just keep dying. In this case, an unforeseeable little virus (a true “black swan”) lit everything on fire, but the forest was filled up with years of dead wood and a nice pile of tinder, gun powder and gasoline was laid by the master planners at the windward side of the forest for the virus to hit like a match. The Fed and other financial wizards of Wonderland and corporate CEOs created so much garbage throughout the economy over the past decade, that one little virus now owns the entire forest, and its taking it quickly! The Fed can be blamed in large part for that. So can anyone else who willingly played along.

That’s why I write this blog — not to advise people on how to invest — but to say, “Stop doing this!” Kill the Fed. (Not the people in the Fed, just the institution.) Stop bailouts for banksters, laying up moral hazards in the forest for the future. Stop all the share buybacks that were illegal for decades. Stop kicking the can down the road. Stop saving ourselves by piling up debts for our grandchildren to bear. Stop thinking we are generous to the needy because we give them welfare our children and grandchildren will have to pay for. Stop fighting wars all over the world that out children get the bill for. Stop saving the world with aid that we aren’t paying for when we cannot even save ourselves. Start revising corporate laws to hold the feet of corporate executives to the fire by putting all of their own personal wealth at stake when their company’s downfall is due to their own negligence or illegal activity. Start looking for who is at fault now and do put them in prison this time. Reinstate Glass-Steagall. Stop hiding the financial rubbish up in the attic or down in the basement. Stop saying the economy is strong when it clearly is riddled with cracks everywhere. Start planning for hard times and laying up stores for times like these. Be prudent. Stop hyperventilating the stock market into rarified atmosphere by being a stupid permabull. Start pricing your market bets based on the actual profits of businesses. Stop being a talking television head who says what everyone else says. And NOW keep the Fed from now going into buying stocks directly to pump the market up all over again. Let the market price to reality! Don’t let the Fed obtain new powers.

Along the way forward, if I can see any way you can save yourself from the crashing of the Everything Bubble where there are no safe havens anymore, I’ll let you know in my Patron Posts, but I haven’t figured that out yet. At least, I will scout the lay of the land as it is appearing before us if I have your continued support; but I’ll warn you, it is not a rosy picture.

While I know what transformative cures the economy needs, I don’t necessarily know how you can save your personal economy from what the general economy all around you is now going to do to you if you haven’t already taken the precautions I’ve given over the years of just being ready for hard times. If reading my blog got you to stop being a permabull a couple of months ago when I ripped into how dangerous the runaway bull market was (if you ever were a permabull), then I’ve already helped you a lot.

It’s time to act to stop the stupidity before it’s all repeated because the Fed is working on its resurrection now. We need to become a country of PRUDENT business people again. We need to stop the bailouts that are forming so as not to rerun the entire Great Recession! Stop the rinse-and-repeat massive recession cycles that result from Fed bubbles. Stop the greed!

Those behind the bailouts were all capitalists when the cash was rolling in and the credit was cheap. Now, they’re all socialists as soon as everything turns to loss. They are already pleading with the government to socialize their losses onto the back of the government, the Fed, and ultimately the tax payer. It’s time to Beat the Establishment before it beats all of us into the ground because the replay of the Great Recession has already begun. A step you can take for your own protection

There are no safe havens any longer, though gold is looking safer than anything, but just remember central banks own a lot of it to protect their currencies because they know people like it as a safe haven when they want to run from CB currencies. So, they own it as ballast to throw off if their own currency starts sinking — as a way to suppress the price and appeal of gold.

They own their governments too, and governments have put price controls and even possession controls on gold in the past. A case in point came from one of my regular readers this morning (Chris P):

The price of silver got hammered down this past week and none of the dealers have any in stock and the people you contact that are supposed to be reputable are asking $18-$19 and oz. So there is a $7 premium on silver since in my opinion the Fed didn’t want any competition with their $ or market.

The banks essentially own the COMEX where precious metals are traded. As Chris further noted, the COMEX looks broken because it appears recently to be pricing metals the opposite way from where they should be going when the economy is crashing; but that’s why central banks own hoards of PMs; so they can crash the metals market when they need to save their own proprietary product — money.

Still, precious metals look safer than other options at the moment, even at today’s heady prices, and prices of precious metals usually eventually return to their high. They will never go bankrupt or insolvent on you if you physically hold them (so long as they don’t get stolen, which is another risk). So, if you want to convert your 401Ks into gold, knowing full well that even precious metals are not guaranteed safety, you might investigate Perpetual Assets to see what is involved.

It’s not easy to convert your 401Ks into gold, though Perpetual Assets can guide you if you are thinking about doing that.

Full disclosure: I do get a commission from any business that comes their way due to that ad in my site’s left sidebar, and I haven’t used them yet myself. That means I cannot recommend them from personal experience. The reason I haven’t used them is that they are expensive, but the process of doing things legally is a bit involved, which is why I probably would use them if I were going to convert our 401Ks to precious metals.

However, losing half the value of your 401K is expensive, too. So, my failure to use them is inertia on my part, I guess. That said, see the ad at the bottom of the left sidebar if you want some help with converting 401Ks to precious metals. Even at today’s precious prices, their approach is becoming more tempting to me, and that’s why I’ve kept their ad around, even though I’ve never made a dime off of it so far. Do let all of us know how it goes if you use their services, as no one has gone to them from this blog so far and actually used them. If it’s not worthwhile based on your actual experience, I’ll take down the ad. But it may be worth an inquiry because there is a lot more market pain coming from many directions … in my opinion. I don’t think anything is safe with the Everything Bubble breaking all over the place.

Liked it? Take a second to support David Haggith on Patreon!

https://thegreatrecession.info/blog/how-dead-is-the-fed/ 

Ammo Seller Reports 276% Sales Increase Amid Coronavirus

Delaware alone triggers sales growth of 4,529% in numbers by state, according to Ammo.com

Kit Daniels | Infowars.com - March 18, 2020

A discount ammo seller reported a 276% sales increase in the past several weeks.

Ammo.com says the sales spike first started in late Feb., with a 53% sales increase, and it exploded in March with a 276% increase by March 15. A gun news outlet, Bearing Arms, crunched the sales numbers and reported that, obviously, it was due to the Coronavirus hype. “Much of the online traffic appears to be coming from states that either have reported a high number of COVID-19 cases, or states that border others where clusters have been reported,” reported Bearing Arms. “Delaware has seen a sales growth of 4,529%. The state’s own numbers are low, but it’s surrounded by a high concentration of cases in New Jersey and the Philadelphia area.” “Oklahoma saw a growth of 1,081% in sales and borders states like Texas and Colorado, both of which have been hit hard with COVID-19.” As expected, Texans overall were the biggest customers, with a 338% sales increase of already-large purchases.

“The most popular ammo at the moment seems to be 9mm, followed closely by .223/5.56, and .45 ACP,” Bearing Arms continued. “Other popular calibers at the moment include 7.62×39, 40 caliber, and 12-gauge shotgun shells.” Brick-and-mortar stores have also experienced a sales surge with the same rounds, popular with preppers, typically sold out. Local gun shops have also been stripped clean of in-stock firearms and ammunition. One gun shop in Austin, Texas, Central Texas Gun Works, suffered from its online store crashing due to high demand, and on Monday only had a handful of firearms left in stock at its physical location. Fortunately, however, other less-popular-but-still-popular rounds are readily available across the country.

Gun buyers, especially first-timers, would be well advised to buy handguns and long arms chambered in cartridges they can still readily buy.

https://www.infowars.com/ammo-seller-reports-276-sales-increase-amid-coronavirus/ 

:: 3--20 The New York Times :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Coronavirus Outbreak: A Cascade of Warnings, Heard but Unheeded

David E. Sanger, Eric Lipton, Eileen Sullivan and Michael Crowley

:: 3-2-20 Daily Mail :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Worried families blast Washington nursing home where one man has died from coronavirus and 50 more are ill for 'not testing patients and ignoring phone calls' - as it emerges facility has history of failing to control the spread of illness

A nursing facility where the second man in the US to die of coronavirus was a patient has been blasted by the families of residents

Distraught relatives say they have been kept in the dark over the situation and ill relatives lie untested

Bonnie Holstad said her calls to Life Care center in Kirkland, Washington, have gone unanswered as she is desperate for news that her husband Ken is okay after he had a cough

Bridget Parkhill said her elderly mother, 77, has been sick for several days, but has not been taken to hospital

Pat Herrick said she is concerned her 89-year-old mother could die if the virus spreads further at the facility

The facility has a history of failing to control the spread of illness

In 2019, a state investigation blasted Life Care after two influenza outbreaks swept the care home, affecting 17 residents and seven employees

Two individuals - a resident and an employee at the care home - had been diagnosed with the infection on Saturday. More than 50 staff and residents were also showing some symptoms

By Rachel Sharp For Dailymail.com Published: 01:10 EST, 2 March 2020 | Updated: 02:26 EST, 2 March 2020

The Washington state nursing home where the second US man to die from coronavirus was a resident has been slammed by worried families who claim they are not being kept informed about the conditions of their loved ones. Six coronavirus cases have been confirmed at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, including one resident in his 70s who later died at hospital, while more than 50 staff and residents have shown symptoms and will be tested. It has also emerged that the facility has been slammed for failing to control the spread of viruses in the past. One distraught woman has come forward blasting the facility's handling of the outbreak, telling how she has been kept in the dark over her husband’s condition and treatment at the home. Bonnie Holstad said her husband Ken was staying at the facility after a fall caused by a broken hip but staff were refusing to speak to her about his condition. She says her calls to the center have gone repeatedly unanswered as she is desperate for news that he is okay after he had a cough. He also suffers from Parkinson's disease and dementia.

Holstad stood outside the facility on Sunday with a sign saying: 'No one at Life Care is answering the phones. He needs to be attended to ... what is his temperature?' The Life Care facility provides 24-hour care for residents, including physician and nurse coverage, many of whom have long-term and chronic conditions. Around 27 of the 108 residents and 25 of the 180 staff have shown some symptoms of the virus, including some cases where individuals had contracted pneumonia. On Sunday, four new cases were confirmed, including the deceased male, taking the infection rate at the facility to six and counting. The man in his 70s with underlying health conditions died at the EvergreenHealth hospital in Kirkland on Saturday. This is the same hospital where a man in his 50s died on Friday night - the US's first coronavirus-related death. Holstad told CNN that after she protested, a nurse did then check on him and told her he doesn't have a fever. 'I was so angry. How can this be that I have to do this, make a sign and go down there?' Holstad said. 'I'm very worried for my husband,' Holstad said. 'He's one of the vulnerable people,' because of his age and his Parkinson's disease. 'I have real problems with how they're handling the interface with family,' she said, remarking it was 'sort of like a movie about an epidemic in a little town, and they don't know how to handle the situation.' Holstad told how she only found out about the potential outbreak in the home when she arrived for a visit on Saturday and was turned away by a sign on the door saying no visitors allowed. She then got a message from the center telling her about the confirmed cases. Before then she had been told staff were wearing masks because some residents had colds. Holstad also said her husband had not been tested for coronavirus because he doesn't have all of the symptoms required for testing. Fears over the safety and care of residents now on lockdown within the care home come as it is revealed that the facility has a history of failing to take adequate steps to control the spread of illness. In 2019, a state investigation blasted Life Care after two influenza outbreaks swept the care home, affecting 17 residents and seven employees. Investigators said the facility had failed to ensure staff were trained in and followed 'transmission-based precautions' required under federal regulation. The nursing home pledged to provide training for staff on transmission precautions, controlling infections and hand hygiene and two months later said it was compliant with regulations. However, a Medicare health inspection rating ranked the facility just three out of five stars. Other concerned relatives of residents at the Life Care Center told The New York Times that the center is refusing to test sick patients for the deadly disease. Many of the residents are elderly and have pre-existing health conditions, meaning they are at greater risk of the virus turning serious. Bridget Parkhill has spoken out saying that her elderly mother, a 77-year-old resident, has been sick for several days, but has not been taken to hospital or been tested for the virus. She said her mother has been ruled out of being tested because she does not have a fever or respiratory distress. 'I'm extremely worried,' she said. Her sister, Carmen Gray, said their mother told them Sunday morning that people were wearing masks and protective gear when they brought her meals, but she had still not been tested. She said they could not understand why the facility would deny their mother a test for the infection. 'Since she has been sick for days and been around all these people, I don't understand why she's not being tested, if for nothing else to rule her out,' said Gray. The daughter of another Life Care resident said she is concerned her elderly mother could die if the virus spreads further throughout the home. 'The level of danger for her could be significant,' said Pat Herrick. 'She is 89 years old. It could take her.' One resident who is awaiting the results of his coronavirus test told the Times of his 'nightmare' ordeal since he had fallen ill at the nursing home around two weeks ago. From his hospital bed at EvergreenHealth Medical Center in Kirkland, where two people have died from coronavirus, Kenny McMillan, 60, said he was in rehab at the center for a broken foot when he developed flu-like symptoms back in February. McCillan has a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and physical injuries from his life's work in warehouses and assembly lines, so is at greater risk than most of contracting the disease. He took a turn for the worse around two weeks ago. 'All of a sudden one night, they came in and they couldn't revive me, because I was out of it,' he said. 'If they hadn't have revived me, I probably would've been gone. That's the only reason I'm here.' McCillan said he was transferred to EvergreenHealth Medical Center and moved in and out of the intensive-care unit. However, it was several weeks before he was considered a possible coronavirus case when the news broke of the first two cases testing positive at the home. He was finally tested Saturday night and is awaiting results - two weeks on from him first falling ill. Life Care's executive director Ellie Basham said in a statement that the facility is monitoring the situation closely.

'Current residents and associates are being monitored closely. As is normal this time of year, there are various cold and flu-like symptoms being exhibited from residents and associates,' the statement emailed to DailyMail.com read. 'The health department has advised us to monitor for an elevated temperature, cough and shortness of breath. We're consulting with the health department and possibly sending patients to a local hospital for formal COVID-19 testing.' A spokesperson for Life Care told DailyMail.com on Saturday that the facility was not accepting any visitors or new admissions, and was monitoring all residents and associates for the virus. They said the restricted access had only been put in place that morning. Medical staff wearing protective clothing and masks were pictured transporting a patient on a stretcher into an ambulance at the Life Care facility on Saturday. Other photos have emerged of more patients being taken from the home to hospital. The CDC and local health officials sent in an emergency response team to the Life Care facility on Sunday to try to control the escalating situation. One-quarter of Kirkland firefighters have also been quarantined after they responded to Life Care facility over the last week. First patient confirmed in New York City as nationwide cases rise to at least 77 Gov. Andrew Cuomo has confirmed the first coronavirus patient in New York, as the number of cases nationwide reached at least 77. Reports said that the woman is currently in Manhattan and is isolated inside her home. A statement from the Cuomo's office reveals that the patient, an unidentified woman in her late 30s, contracted COVID-19 while traveling abroad in Iran. 'The positive test was confirmed by New York's Wadsworth Lab in Albany, underscoring the importance of the ability for our state to ensure efficient and rapid turnaround,' Cuomo wrote. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention will now confirm the case. It's unclear when the woman was in Iran and when she returned to the U.S. At least 77 patients in the US have now been confirmed to have coronavirus, after one was reported in Rhode Island and a fifth 'unknown' origin case was found in Chicago on Sunday. Gov. Andrew Cuomo admitted that the deadly virus' entrance into New York's population of 19 million was a 'matter of when, not if.' He went on to say that there is a $40million emergency management authorization legislature that has been proposed to government officials and is anticipating it's quick approval. 'There is no reason for undue anxiety -- the general risk remains low in New York. We are diligently managing this situation and will continue to provide information as it becomes available,' he wrote. New York's first positive coronavirus case comes after officials confirmed new coronavirus cases on Sunday. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar confirmed the latest infection in Chicago during an appearance on Fox News Sunday, saying that authorities are now working to trace the source of the latest instance. So far, there are at least five reported cases nationwide where authorities do not know how the virus was contracted, according to the federal government - one in Chicago, one in Washington State, one in Oregon, and two in California -

The Chicago Tribune on Sunday reported that the third case of coronavirus was confirmed in Illinois.

A suburban Cook County resident was found to be a ‘presumptive case of novel coronavirus,’ the Illinois Department of Public Health announced. The patient is hospitalized in isolation, and protocols by the Centers for Disease Control have been implemented. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has asked hospitals across the state to do more testing to improve surveillance for the virus.  Alex Azar, the secretary of health and human services, said on Sunday that a new case of coronavirus was confirmed overnight in Chicago +25 Alex Azar, the secretary of health and human services, said on Sunday that a new case of coronavirus was confirmed overnight in Chicago The state was the first in the nation to provide for testing, according to the Tribune. The governor announced on Friday that there were now three labs in the state that could test for coronavirus - one in Cook County, one in Springfield, and a third in Carbondale. Officials said that the two other Illinois patients found to have the coronavirus have since made a full recovery. Also on Sunday, the Rhode Island Department of Health announced the first presumptive positive case of coronavirus. The patient is in their 40s and had traveled to Italy in mid-February, the state agency said. 'RIDOH is coordinating closely with the hospital where this person is currently being treated and all infection control protocols are being followed,' the department said in a statement. 'The Rhode Island Department of Health has been preparing for weeks to ensure that we have a structure in place to, to the best of our ability, limit or prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Rhode Island,' said Nicole Alexander-Scott, the director of the department. 'We fully anticipated having a first case of COVID-19. 'We are not seeing widespread community transmission in Rhode Island, and the general level of risk for Rhode Islanders is still low. 'However, everyone in Rhode Island has a role to play in helping us prevent the spread of viruses, just like the flu. 'It is very important that people wash their hands regularly, cover their coughs and sneezes, and stay home if they are sick.' On Sunday Night, the Florida Department of Health confirmed two patients have tested 'presumptive positive' for coronavirus. One is a resident of Hillsborough County, while the other is from of Manatee County. Both have been isolated. The Trump administration on Saturday announced measures aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus, including new restrictions on Americans and other who have traveled to Iran. The government is also advising citizens against travel to certain parts of Italy and South Korea, where significant outbreaks of the pathogen have been reported. Coronavirus has been spreading in Washington State for more than six weeks and HUNDREDS could be undiagnosed, say experts A scientist in Washington State believes coronavirus may have been spreading for six weeks before it was detected, and there could be a 'few hundred' people currently infected amid an 'already substantial outbreak'. At least 77 confirmed cases of COVID-19 had been reported as of Sunday afternoon with the majority being on the west coast of the United States but new cases were confirmed in Rhode Island - where a patient in their 40s had traveled to Italy in mid-February - and Illinois where the third ‘presumptive case of novel coronavirus,’ was announced. Two people have made full recoveries in Illinois. But anxious shoppers descended on supermarkets, stocking up on supplies like bottled water, canned food and Clorox wipes after more than half a dozen California residents were diagnosed with the disease in recent days. The number of confirmed infections in Washington reached eight Sunday as two men in their 60s - both with underlying health conditions - were in critical condition. One was stable at Valley Medical Center in Renton, the other was at Virginia Mason. Trevor Bedford of the University of Washington said the illness has likely spread within the community as none of the people confirmed to be infected had recently traveled. Bedford said a team at the Seattle Flu Study had compared the first reported case of COVID-19 in the United States to the second case, and found that it was on the same evolutionary tree.  Sharing a diagram, Bedford tweeted Saturday: 'This strongly suggests that there has been cryptic transmission in Washington State for the past 6 weeks.' Bedford posted on social media that case WA2 is likely to have come from case WA2 as they appear almost identical in make-up. The academic also noted that they were discovered in the same area of Washington State, Snohomish County, as he put the probability value at 0.3. Anything less than 0.5 is statistically significant and effectively rules out the chance the findings are random. 'It's possible that this genetic similarity is a coincidence and these are separate introductions. However, I believe this is highly unlikely. The WA1 case had a variant at site 18060. This variant is only present in 2/59 viruses from China,' Bedford continued. 'I'd assess the p-value for this coincidence at 2/59=0.03 and so is statistically significant. Additionally, these two cases are geographically proximal, both residing in Snohomish County. 'I believe we're facing an already substantial outbreak in Washington State that was not detected until now due to narrow case definition requiring direct travel to China.' Bedford said they will be working closely with Public Health Seattle and King County as well as the Washington Department of Health to fully investigate the outbreak. The virus, immunity and evolution expert added that they hope to provide an update on the number of infections in Washington State soon. 'An update, because I see people overly speculating on total outbreak size. Our best current expectation is a few hundred current infections,' Bedford tweeted Saturday. 'Expect more analyses tomorrow.' Scientists not affiliated with the research said the results did not necessarily surprise them and pointed out that for many people - especially younger, healthier ones - the symptoms are not much worse than a flu or bad cold. 'We think that this has a pretty high rate of mild symptoms and can be asymptomatic. The symptoms are pretty non-specific and testing criteria has been pretty strict, so those combinations of factors means that it easily could have been circulating for a bit without us knowing,' said Justin Lessler, an associated professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 'And that was what a lot of us was thinking was likely.' Virus claims more than 3,000 lives worldwide as flights from US to Italy are suspended Worldwide, the outbreak that began in Wuhan, China has sickened at least 88,583 people and killed more than 3,000 in 54 countries. The US will start screening travelers for coronavirus and ramp up production of masks and test kits as the government scrambles to reassure Americans while the disease spreads and businesses cancel conferences and flights. Donald Trump said on Sunday that travelers to the United States from countries at high risk of coronavirus would be screened before boarding and upon arrival, without specifying which countries. Delta Air Lines on Sunday said it is suspending until May flights to Milan in northern Italy where most of that country's coronavirus cases have been reported. Flights will continue to Rome. American Airlines Group Inc announced a similar move late on Saturday. The United States has imposed limits on travelers who have visited Iran and recommended against travel to hard-hit areas of Italy and South Korea. Trump said on Saturday that the United States was also considering shutting the country's southern border with Mexico to control the spread of the virus, adding, 'We hope we won't have to do that.' Mexico has reported four coronavirus cases. Its foreign ministry said on Saturday that both governments are in 'close and effective communication, especially the health authorities .' Meanwhile in Australia, the first human-to-human transfer of COVID-19 has been confirmed as the number of cases in the country hit 31. Tasmania has also confirmed its first case of the virus. Vice President Mike Pence said the government had contracted 3M Co to produce an extra 35 million respiratory masks a month. He urged Americans not to buy the masks, which he said were only needed by healthcare workers. Honeywell International Inc is the other major U.S. mask producer. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams asked the public to stop buying masks, saying they're ineffective against coronavirus. Pence, named by the president to be the point-person overseeing the government's response, said more than 15,000 virus testing kits had been released over the weekend. And, the administration is working with a commercial provider to distribute 50,000 more, he said. The vice president said testing was among the first issues raised by governors he's spoken with so far. Several states have begun their own testing, including Washington state, Oregon and Illinois. 'We're leaning into it,' Pence said. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said more than 3,600 people already have been tested for coronavirus and the capability exists to test 75,000 people. He forecast a "radical expansion of that" in the coming weeks. The United States has 75,000 test kits for coronavirus and will expand that number 'radically' in coming weeks, Azar told ABC's This Week on Sunday. He also told Fox News that clinical trials of a coronavirus vaccine would start in six weeks but that a vaccine will likely not be available this season. Democrats, who will challenge Trump for the presidency in the November 3 election, have criticized his administration for downplaying the crisis and not preparing for the disease to spread in the United States. Pence, whom Trump appointed last week to run the White House's coronavirus response, said Americans should brace for more cases, but that the 'vast majority' of those who contracted the disease would recover. 'Other than in areas where there are individuals that have been infected with the coronavirus, people need to understand that for the average American, the risk does remain low. We're ready,' Pence told NBC's 'Meet the Press'.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8063979/Worried-families-blast-nursing-home-one-man-died-coronavirus-not-testing-patients.html 

:: 3-1-20 New York Post :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Coronavirus may have been spreading in Washington state for weeks: experts

By Jackie Salo March 1, 2020 | 12:06pm

Washington state’s coronavirus outbreak that claimed a life over the weekend suggests that the bug has been spreading there for nearly six weeks, according to experts. Trevor Bedford, an associate professor at the University of Washington, said that one of the state’s recent cases appears to be linked to a Snohomish County man who was identified Jan. 19 as the country’s first coronavirus patient, the New York Times reported. Bedford and a research team found similarities while comparing the genetic sequence of the two samples that indicated the recent case had been descended from the other, suggesting that there has been community spread throughout the region, the outlet reported.  “I believe we’re facing an already substantial outbreak in Washington State that was not detected until now due to narrow case definition requiring direct travel to China,” Bedford tweeted. His findings come after officials confirmed a patient who died at a Seattle-area hospital was the first coronavirus death in the US. There were also two presumptive cases in the same suburb linked to a longterm care facility, Life Care Center of Kirkland. “In addition, over 50 individuals associated with Life Care are reportedly ill with respiratory symptoms or hospitalized with pneumonia or other respiratory conditions of unknown cause and are being tested for COVID-19,” Seattle and King County officials said.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Saturday that there have been 22 coronavirus cases detected across the country through the public health system. Meanwhile, there have been more than 86,000 people infected across the world and at least 2,900 deaths.

https://nypost.com/2020/03/01/coronavirus-may-have-been-spreading-in-washington-state-for-weeks-experts/ 

:: 3-1-20 Longroom :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Suddenly Emerging Coronavirus 'Hot Zones' Across America Suggest The 'Big Event' Is Happening Now & Many Americans Still Don't See The Tsunami About To Crash Down Upon Them!

allnewspipeline.com | 3/1/2020 | Staff

Now over 2 months into the coronavirus outbreak that apparently began in China (though Russia's claims it was a US bioweapon, Dr. Francis Boyle's claims it is an offensive Chinese bioweapon and the possibility COVID-19 was engineered to be a depopulation weapon by the 'global elite' cannot be dismissed), we're getting new signs that it's full arrival in America is something the 'average American' is completely unprepared for and something that, should the worst case scenario unfold here, something that changes everything in America in 2020. With 'hot zones' beginning to break out in more than one location across the country where a person with no ties to China or someone who had recently been to China has caught the disease with the route of transmission being unknown, proving to us that if it can happen to one person, it can happen to many more, as we had asked within this February 13th story, how many more 'walking time bombs' are walking the streets of America having no clue that they've caught the virus, spreading it to others unknowingly?

ANP - Readers - 'preppers - America - Start

So with ANP readers and 'preppers' across America getting a head start and stocking up on a month's worth (or hopefully more) of food, water and other necessities before 'the real panic shopping' begins, we'll be taking a look in this story at all of the latest news and signs that nothing may be able to stop the spread of this outbreak in America and while praying for and working towards the best, preparing for the worst. According to this new story over at Market Watch, this coronavirus outbreak is driving massive sales of face masks, "I Survived Coronavirus 2020" t-shirts and the virus-themed online game 'Plague Inc' in which the players strategize how to bring about the end of human history...

https://www.longroom.com/discussion/1814947/suddenly-emerging-coronavirus-hot-zones-across-america-suggest-the-big-event-is-happening-now-many-americans-still-dont-see-the-tsunami

-about-to-crash-down-upon-them 

:: 2-29-20 https://grandmageri422.me/2020/02/29/  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Luciferian Worship at the United Nations Will Usher in ANTICHRIST

On February 29, 2020 By Geri UngureanIn Antichristi system in UN agenda

This article was originally written in 2015. I believe that we are seeing God’s prophetic Word being fulfilled at such great speed – I felt the need to bring this piece back for the brethren to read and understand. Many believe that the U.N. is just a gathering of representatives from the nations of the world – who are there to keep peace among the nations. Brethren – this evil organization is not just anti-Israel, but they are guided by their deep belief in the New Age movement. They worship Lucifer, whom they believe is the enlightened one. This explains the bitter hatred of Israel and the Jewish people at the U.N. After all, Satan hates the Jews. The United Nations is waiting for a supreme teacher who goes by many names. We Christians call him by the name given to him by God Himself – and that name is Antichrist. Original article: Months ago, I wrote a two part article on the origins of the occult in the United Nations. I explained what is called the “Lucis Trust” and gave a brief history of Alice Bailey who was instrumental in bringing Luciferian worship to the U.N. In light of rapidly changing events concerning the United Nations; particularly the scheduled address by Pope Francis on Climate Change and world depopulation, I felt that it would be good to update the prior articles. Christians need to know what is happening and why it is happening. We need to be able to explain to the unsaved how the United Nations will be used by Satan to bring about the NWO – One World Government, and eventually the Antichrist himself. “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2: 1-4). The Beginning Alice Ann Bailey, a leading disciple of the Russian theosophist Madame Helena Blavatsky, formed the Lucifer Trust in 1920. In 1922, the name was changed to Lucis Trust. I can only imagine that this was done after realizing that the name of Lucifer would certainly alarm many who read and love the Word of God. But make no mistake, the inner workings and thrust of this group remained the same. Madame Helena Blavatsky is known as the “mother” of the New Age movement and modern occultism. In her “Secret Doctrine” she taught that Lucifer was higher and older than the God of the Bible, and that Lucifer had to be sacrificed and sent to earth, because of the coming dogma of the Church. She taught that Satan was truly “good” and that he was known by many names, but mainly as God of Wisdom — the cosmic reflection of God. She also called him “Son of the morning” and in many writings, called him Son of God. After years of contact with her so-called spirit masters,( we know they are demons) Blavatsky published “Isis Unveiled” in 1877; a hugely successful writing, followed by “Secret Doctrine” in 1888. She also established an Occult magazine in London, called “Lucifer.” By this time, Blavatsky had acquired a huge following. EXPOSED! Lucis Trust President Speaks ~ Satan, Lucifer, & the UN While Christianity teaches that Lucifer is the essence of evil, the New Age teachers embrace him as enlightened, and one to be worshiped. As he is adored, our God is detested. In occultism and New Age philosophy, Lucifer is regarded as an agent of intellectual and spiritual freedom. We who are born-again from above, know that Lucifer was cast from heaven by our God, after Lucifer had determined to be like the most high God: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! [how] art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.” – Isaiah 14:12-15 Alice Ann Bailey received her knowledge from “Ascended Masters” departed spirits. As Christians, we know that these spirits are merely demons, doing the bidding of their master – the devil. We know that Lucifer’s name was changed to Satan after being cast from heaven, the Luciferians continue to refer to him as Lucifer. What does this have to do with the UN? The Lucis Trust has been for years, the philosophical and religious consulting firm to all members of the U.N. It is interwoven into the fabric of the United Nations, and done so in such a deceptive way. The average person knows little to nothing of the Lucis Trust. “We have meditations at the United Nations a couple of times a week. The meditation leader is Sri Chin, and this is what he said about this situation: “… The United Nations is the chosen instrument of God; to be a chosen instrument means to be a divine messenger carrying the banner of God’s inner vision and outer manifestation. One day, the world will treasure and cherish the soul of the United Nations as its very own with pride, for this soul is all-loving, all-nourishing, and all-fulfilling.” – Donald Keys, president of Planetary Citizens and author of Earth At Omega “The United Nations is steadily becoming the center of a syncretic new world religion, a weird and diabolical convergence of New Age mysticism, pantheism, aboriginal animism, atheism, communism, socialism, Luciferian occultism, apostate Christianity, Islam, Taoism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. The devotees and apostles of this new faith include the kind of strange admixture of crystal worshipers, astrologers, radical feminists, environmentalists, cabalists, human potentialists, Eastern mystics, pop psychologists, and “liberal” clergymen one would normally tend to associate with the off-beat, sandals-and-beads counterculture of the 1960s. But today’s worshipers in this rapidly expanding movement are as likely to be scientists, diplomats, corporate presidents, heads of state, international bankers, and leaders of mainstream Christian churches.” source

As frightening and bizarre as this all may seem to us, it makes perfect sense that Satan would establish an institution such as the U.N. to unleash his diabolical deception and delusion upon the lost world. It is said “Knowledge is power.” For believers, having this knowledge of the U.N., and what is REALLY happening there, will help us to discern the times, and perhaps even to open the eyes of some of the unbelieving unsuspecting world. “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).

The Theosophical society’s mission is divulged in this statement: “To oppose every form of dogmatic theology, especially the Christian, which the Chiefs of the Society regard as particularly pernicious … to counteract, as far as possible, the effects of missionaries to delude the so-called “Heathen” and “Pagans” as to the real origin and dogmas of Christianity and the practical effects of the latter upon public and private character in so-called Christian countries.”-source

Satan has used God’s Word, but has twisted it and placed it upside down. Good is evil, evil good, just as the Prophet Isaiah said would happen. The Age of Enlightenment is seen by the elite as higher – loftier — more appropriate for a group of representatives from all over the globe. They look to their Ascended Masters for Enlightenment, not realizing that they are being played by their precious Lucifer. He is sending his minions of fallen angels (demons) to communicate with the leaders of mediation and psychic readings groups. Most people would be shocked to know that the U.N. is the largest gathering of Occult and New Age followers on the planet. Various quotes by Alice Ann Bailey on NWO:  “The new world order must meet the immediate need and not be an attempt to satisfy some distant, idealistic vision. The new world order must be appropriate to a world which has passed through a destructive crisis and to a humanity which is badly shattered by the experience. The new world order must lay the foundation for a future world order which will be possible only after a time of recovery, of reconstruction, and of rebuilding.” “In the preparatory period for the new world order there will be a steady and regulated disarmament. It will not be optional. No nation will be permitted to produce and organize any equipment for destructive purposes or to infringe the security of any other nation. The new world order must be appropriate to a world which has passed through a destructive crisis.” “We are concerned with only one subject, the ushering in of the new world order….the present world order (which is today largely disorder) can be so modified and changed that a new world and a new race of men can gradually come into being. Renunciation and the use of the sacrificial will should be the keynote for the interim period after the war (WWII), prior to the inauguration of the New Age.”

As you can see, clearly the goal of the United Nations is the establishment of the New World Order. This NWO sets the global stage for the coming of someone. We will see who this long awaited person will be.  For whom are they waiting? Knowing that the Lucis Trust was built upon a Satanic foundation, it is not difficult to surmise their ultimate goal. They are waiting for the “Lord Maitreya”, or as they call him “The Christ.” But don’t be fooled. This is beyond a shadow of a doubt not our Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Maitreya – A New World Order “This ‘end of an age’ inevitably produces a certain number of natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes, and we are seeing a dramatic climax in the number of disasters taking place around the world….Maitreya says: ‘The last time I came, as Jesus, it was written in the Bible that when I appeared again the very elements of nature would be disturbed.’ ” “…After the disasters have peaked there will come a period of calm -the violence and destruction will come to an end. As people gain awareness, their guilt will recede…”

Maitreya’s Mission, Volume Two, Benjamin Creme, Share International Foundation, 1993, pp186-187

When I read “their guilt will recede” I thought about the guilt of sin, and repentance. However, occultists do not speak of the need to repent of sin. They only speak of enlightenment. “The bible predicts many catastrophes in the book of Revelation, beginning with the polar shift of the sixth seal ( http://www.redmoonrising.com/list.htm , Section II), and including a meteor impact into the ocean (8:8), major famines and plagues (6:8), intense heat from the sun (16:8), and many others.” These Occultists use the Word of God when it is convenient, but invariably change and corrupt it for their purposes. There are millions of people involved in New Age practices, worldwide. Kabbalah, practiced in Israel, and all over the world, is New Age. There are even well respected Rabbis in Israel who are known as “Kabbalist Rabbis.” Undoubtably, the Antichrist will be New Age. It is not surprising that Israel will be deceived by this man of perdition during the first 3 /12 years of the tribulation. source – Lord Maitreya’s predictions Maitreya predicts the collapse of the current financial system. “When the US’s “oasis of prosperity” begins to dry up, as it must in the current global financial crisis, stock markets in the West will plunge. This collapse will provide an opportunity for governments to re-evaluate their economic priorities, says futurist Benjamin Creme. The nations of the world will meet together to discuss how to cope with the future in an orderly fashion.” – from the Share International websites. –source This is absolutely counterfeit and demonic. All we need to know is found in the Word of God. Satan is desperate to deceive as many people as he can. He knows what our Word says about the End Times, but he also knows that there are more people who do not believe God’s Word than do believe it. He wants to keep it that way. Brethren, there is so much more to write, but this article would be immense. I encourage you to go to the sources referenced in this piece. There you will find names of individuals and corporations who take part in the Lucis Trust, and many of the names will shock you.

I felt an urgency to write about these things. We who love the Lord Jesus Christ, need to know how the Strong Delusion will come upon the peoples of the earth. Now, with Pope Francis becoming the key note speaker at the U.N. in September on so-called Global Warming, the plot certainly thickens. This Pope is also a true Marxist and believes in a “global political authority.” He believes in redistribution of wealth. Incredibly, he also believes in depopulating the earth by almost 95%! Remember, Pope Francis is a Jesuit. The Jesuits have been called the Vatican’s army. They never thought that one of them would become the Pope himself! We are all watching these events, but Christians know what God’s prophetic Word says. We are blessed who know THE TRUTH. JESUS is TRUTH. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)

DO NOT BE DECEIVED! How Can I Be Saved? Shalom b’Yeshua MARANATHA!

To see the actual Lucis Trust website: http://www.lucistrust.org/ 

https://grandmageri422.me/2020/02/29/luciferian-worship-at-the-united-nations-will-usher-in-antichrist-2/ 

:: 3-2-20 I Know all news :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

United Airlines to cut more flights amid coronavirus fears

Posted on : March 2, 2020

United Airlines boss warns domestic and transatlantic flights will be cut after coronavirus fears leave planes empty of passengers

In an email to employees on Sunday, Oscar Munoz said the airline had been hit by sagging demand for flights as passengers avoid travel amid coronavirus fears

United already cut flights to Asia, mainland China and Hong Kong

On Friday, it then sharply slashed flights to Japan and South Korea

Short-term demand for its trans-Pacific routes was also down by 75%

This marks the latest blow for the airline industry as industry analysts warned that the impact of coronavirus on the airline industry was ‘worse than 9/11’

Coronavirus fears have intensified as the US recorded its first two deaths

United Airlines boss Oscar Munoz has said that the US airline will likely need to cut more flights as fears over the rapid spread of coronavirus are leaving planes empty. In an email sent to employees late on Sunday, Munoz said the airline had been hit by sagging demand for flights, as passengers avoid travel due to the coronavirus outbreak. ‘We are strategically managing our Atlantic and domestic service, mindful of travel directives from the federal government, fluctuating demand and of course, the advice of public health experts,’ the chief executive wrote. ‘Based on current trends, it is likely that additional schedule reductions will be necessary.’ United Airlines boss Oscar Munoz (pictured) sent an email to employees late on Sunday saying the airline will likely need to cut more flights as it had been hit by sagging demand for flights, as passengers avoid travel due to the coronavirus outbreak United had already cut flights to Asia and suspended services to mainland China and Hong Kong through April 30 and on Friday slashed flights to Japan and South Korea United had already cut flights to Asia and suspended services to mainland China and Hong Kong through April 30. On Friday, it then sharply slashed flights to Japan and South Korea. Munoz did not specify which routes would next face the chop. However, the Chicago-based company revealed last Monday that short-term demand for its trans-Pacific routes was down by 75% – excluding China where demand has almost disappeared. Among US airlines, United has the biggest international exposure, drawing about 40 percent of its revenues from overseas flights. The Chicago-based company revealed last Monday that short-term demand for its trans-Pacific routes was down by 75% – excluding China where demand has almost disappeared On Friday, United canceled its investor day that was set for March 5, saying it is not ‘practical to expect that it can have a productive conversation focused on its long-term strategy next week.’ That same day, it ended the day down 5.2 percent on Friday and down more than 22 percent over the last week. This marks the latest blow for the industry as industry analysts warned last week that the global coronavirus outbreak had left airlines some of the hardest hit. The reduction in global airline capacity, measured by how many seats remain grounded, is now greater than after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, according to the industry group IATA. After 9/11, airline revenue dropped an estimated $19.6 billion in 2002 dollars. The coronavirus crisis could cost the industry an estimated $29.3 billion in lost revenue for 2020, analysts said on Friday. This marks the latest blow for the industry as industry analysts warned last week that the global coronavirus outbreak had left airlines some of the hardest hit. A flight attendant from Denver with Frontier Airlines posted this photo of an empty plane on Wednesday as passengers avoid flying amid the global virus outbreak A traveler posted this picture from an empty flight on Tuesday They said countries with confirmed virus cases in excess of 90 — China, Italy, Iran, Japan, Singapore and South Korea — represent 25 per cent of global airline passenger numbers and 20 per cent of global passenger revenues. ‘Back after 9/11 at the end of 2001, it really took about nine months before we saw the industry recover from the impact of the events,’ said Wall Street Journal aviation correspondent Benjamin Katz. ‘Now, with the coronavirus, it’s a very different situation and it’s difficult to give an assessment, but analysts are expecting with the coronavirus this could actually last quite a bit longer,’ he continued. With the extent of the crisis still unknown, experts cautioned that the full impact on airlines remains to be seen. ‘If we look back in ten years time, will this be seen as a blip or a game changer?’ IBA Aviation Consultancy CEO Phil Seymour told the Journal. Several other airlines have been forced to cancel flights as the spread of coronavirus ramps up across the globe. Last week, Delta cut its South Korea flights in half, citing the outbreak and plummeting demand. Airlines have been forced to cancel flights as the spread of coronavirus ramps up across the globe. Last week, Delta cut its South Korea flights in half, citing the outbreak and plummeting demand Los Angeles International airport looks eerily quiet on February 27 as workers and passengers alike continue to take perecautionary measures against the spread of the virus South Korean soldiers wear protective gear spray disinfectant as part of preventive measures against the spread of coronavirus on March 2. Airlines are even feeling the squeeze on domestic US flights as companies reconsider the need for business travel and conferences. On Friday, Amazon deferred all non-essential travel, within the US and beyond, and Google set new restrictions for travel to South Korea and other places, as corporations moved to protect their employees from the spread of coronavirus. Canada’s TD Bank Group told Reuters it was suspending all non-essential business travel to China, Iran, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Its peer Bank of Nova Scotia has also reportedly halted non-essential travel. JetBlue which flies in the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, became the first US airline to offer waivers for all travel on Wednesday, announcing it would suspend change and cancellation fees for new flight bookings between February 27 and March 11 this year. Facebook also said it would cancel its annual developer conference in May because of the virus.

Coronavirus fears have intensified in recent days as the US has recorded its first two deaths from the disease and more than 89,000 people have been infected worldwide. Source: Read Full Article

https://iknowallnews.com/world-news/united-airlines-to-cut-more-flights-amid-coronavirus-fears/ 

:: 3-1-20 Newsmax :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Coronavirus Potentially Spreading for 6 Weeks in Washington

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 01 March 2020 01:59 PM

The coronavirus reportedly might have gone unreported and undetected for six weeks in Washington state, where the first U.S. death occurred this weekend and a nursing home has multiple cases. Genetic analysis from a Snohomish County carrier matches that of the first known carrier in the U.S., who traveled from China in January, according to The Washington Post. Researchers suggests the cases are a result of community transmission, which has been going for weeks. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency after a Seattle-area nursing home reported a 70-year-old woman and a 40-something care giver have contracted the coronavirus. Also, Saturday the first U.S. death came in Washington, a 50-something man with no recent travel or connection to those known to have been infected, but he did have underlying health issues, according to the report. The elderly and those with underlying health issues are most vulnerable to dying from the coronavirus, according to scientists. There have been around 3,000 deaths globally from the outbreak, although just one reported to date in the U.S. Related Stories:

Stavridis: Coronavirus a 'Crisis, Not Apocalypse'

US Surgeon General Pleads: 'Stop Buying Masks!'

https://www.newsmax.com/us/washington-virus-containment-outbreak/2020/03/01/id/956414/ 

:: 3-2-20 Money Control :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Last Updated : Mar 02, 2020 10:19 AM IST | Source: PTI

North Korea fires two unidentified projectiles: South's military

The two devices were fired eastwards over the sea from the Wonsan area on the east coast, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world/north-korea-fires-two-unidentified-projectiles-souths-military-4991411.html 

:: 3-1-20 BBC News :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Syria war: Turkey intensifies Idlib onslaught after air strike

1 March 2020

Turkey shot down two Syrian fighter jets on Sunday as it intensified military action in northern Syria.  The pilots parachuted to safety over Idlib province, where Turkish troops and rebels have been clashing with Syrian government forces. Turkey, which backs the opposition, said it had also targeted Syrian air defence systems and dozens of tanks. Tensions in Idlib escalated sharply last week when at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike. The incident sparked fears of a major escalation involving Turkey and Syria's main military ally, Russia. But, on Sunday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said the country did not want conflict with Russia. "We expect Russia to stop the regime's attacks," he said in a televised statement. "We don't have the desire or intention to clash with Russia."

Brutal endgame in Idlib risks spilling over

Why does the battle for Idlib matter?

Dozens of Turkish troops killed in Idlib

Mr Akar dubbed the latest operation against the Syrian army "Spring Shield". He said it had destroyed a drone, eight helicopters, 103 tanks, as well as rocket launchers and other military equipment. He added that 2,212 members of the Syrian forces had been "neutralised", a term used to mean killed, wounded or captured. But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, said 74 Syrian government troops and pro-Damascus fighters had been killed since 27 February. The latest developments have strained relations between Ankara and Moscow. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin next week. Meanwhile, the EU has called an emergency foreign ministers' meeting over the conflict. What's the context? Syrian government forces, supported by Russia, have been trying to retake Idlib from jihadist groups and Turkish-backed rebel factions. Idlib is the last Syrian province where Syrian rebel groups still control significant territory. The Syrian government advance has displaced nearly a million civilians who have fled to areas near the Turkish border. Turkey says it is already hosting millions of refugees and does not have the resources to let more enter. Turkey has some troops in observation points in Idlib under a 2018 agreement with Russia. President Erdogan had earlier threatened to confront Syrian government forces if they did not withdraw from positions near the Turkish observation posts.

The attack on Turkish troops last week came after Turkish-backed rebels retook the key town of Saraqeb, north-east of Balyun. Russia denies its own forces were involved in the fighting in the Balyun area. But Russia and Turkey are backing opposing sides in the civil war. Turkey is opposed to the government of Bashar al-Assad and supports some rebel groups. Russia has rejected calls in the UN Security Council for a humanitarian ceasefire in northern Syria, saying the only solution is to chase what it calls terrorists from the country. The Syrian government, which has regularly been accused of committing atrocities against civilians, says it is liberating Idlib from "terrorism". The Turkish and Russian presidents spoke by phone on Friday. They both expressed concern and agreed on the need for "additional measures" to normalise the situation. Why is Turkey so deeply involved in Syria? Its long border with Syria has brought it into close contact with the civil war and its strong opposition to the Assad government has made it a natural destination for refugees. But President Erdogan has said it cannot deal with the amount of people fleeing the civil war. Turkey has vowed to open its doors for migrants to travel to the EU. Turkey is also actively trying to prevent Syria's Kurdish community establishing control over the border region, fearing that this would encourage Kurdish separatism within Turkey itself. It has been accused of seeking to drive Kurds away from the border in order to establish a safe area within Syria to rehouse two million of the refugees it is hosting.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-51697980 

:: 3-1-20 The Hill :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Police fire tear gas at migrants trying to enter Greece from Turkey

By Zack Budryk - 03/01/20 04:19 PM EST

Greek police at the nation’s border with Turkey fired tear gas Sunday on migrants who attempted to cross the border after Turkey relaxed restrictions on their movement. Witnesses told Reuters police deployed tear gas against hundreds of migrants, many of whom were throwing stones, at the border crossing by the northeastern Greek town of Kastanies, according to the news service. Turkey announced late last week that it would no longer restrict asylum seekers passing through Turkey from traveling to Europe, which the nation previously agreed to under a 2016 agreement with the European Union, after 33 Turkish soldiers in northwestern Syria were killed in an airstrike. Ankara has also threatened to relax restrictions if the EU was not speedier in deliver of promised funds to deal with the influx of refugees, according to Reuters. EU officials have called for emergency meetings of migration ministers, while Frontex, the EU’s border enforcement agency, said negotiations with Greece to help add to its border defense are ongoing. Greece was the primary point of entry for asylum seekers into Europe during the 2015-2016 migrant crisis and tens of thousands remain in squalid conditions in crowded camps on the Aegean islands, according to Reuters. Greek officials have accused Ankara of aiding and abetting the migrants, with deputy defense minister Alkiviadis Stefanis telling Skai TV “Yesterday there were 9,600 attempts to violate our borders, and all were dealt with successfully … not only are they not stopping them, but they are helping them.”

https://thehill.com/policy/international/europe/485385-police-fire-tear-gas-at-migrants-trying-to-enter-greece-from 

:: 2-24-20 Shepherds Heart :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Behind the Scenes with Celeste

by Celeste Solum February 24, 2020

Government

Your data is the new oil of the emerging final empire of Global Governance. Using the Novel Corona Virus the "Regulators" are going to get your data if you travel and use enforcement measures if necessary to pry privacy from your hands whether you are alive or from your cold, dead hands. It begins with airlines and as the virus moves through the population, it will expand. This is in the pipeline: CDC requires airlines to collect and submit via electronic means to CDC, beginning within 24 hours of an order from the Director, certain data regarding passengers and crew arriving on flights arriving in the United States from foreign countries. CDC believes that this is the only mechanism by which it can efficiently obtain the information it needs for a public health response to outbreaks of communicable disease and that current regulatory requirements are not sufficient, especially in public health emergencies. CDC will exercise enforcement discretion where appropriate. We note that implementation of this interim final rule will entail technical and logistical difficulties for airlines. We are confident that all airlines will make every effort to comply with it. CDC, and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) more broadly, will in the exercise of its enforcement discretion take into account the good faith attempts at the compliance of any airline which may have difficulty in implementing the interim final rule in a timely fashion. Read more

~~~

If you die abroad from Novel Coronavirus or other reasons, can your remains come home?

In the regulatory pipeline:

HHS/CDC's role is to ensure that human remains imported into the United States do not contain a communicable disease or an infectious biological agent that could threaten public health. In recent years, HHS/CDC has received an increased number of notifications regarding the importation of body parts that are improperly packaged (e.g., contained in garbage bags or coolers susceptible of leaking fluid) or that lack proper documentation (e.g., importers stating only that the remains are to be used for “training.”). In some cases, importers have misrepresented the contents of the package or the remains were found to be leaking. Read more

~~~

Enhancing Privacy in Today's Internet of Things

People navigating the digital landscape of today's internet are bombarded with notices about how their data is being collected. But in the physical world — where the internet of things (IoT) technologies increasingly track our activities — few, if any, notices are provided. A team of researchers has created an app and an entire infrastructure to change that. Read more

https://shepherdsheart.life/blogs/behind-the-scenes-with-celeste/behind-the-scenes-with-celeste-30 

:: 2-25-20 DC Dirty Laundry :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Don’t Mess With God! The Seven Plagues of Communist China

Photo of David L Brockett David L Brockett February 25, 2020

Some Old Testament Smackdown

Depending on your religious background you may, or may not, remember the plagues of Egypt that befell the Pharaoh until he allowed the Israelites to leave. I’m guessing Xi must feel a little bit like the Old Testament Pharaoh, as calamity after calamity befalls his reign as China’s Central Party president.  To communists there is no God but the state, and Deities are not allowed to influence the party faithful. Religion is to be countered in any form. One of Chairman Mao’s Cultural Revolution goals was the eradication of all religion. Xi is certainly doing everything he can to accomplish that goal. Intensifying religious persecution of Christians and creating a new translation of the Bible, bringing it in line with Communism. Thus, the Plagues are falling upon their heads You can’t have a good biblical story without a central character working on behalf of God. Now, it may be pretty difficult to see Donald Trump as a savior come down out of the heavens, but he is the first president in many decades to sincerely promote Judeo-Christian values. Whether it’s his stance on abortion, or his determination to stop Muslims from destroying Israel, he stands tall with an unshakeable faith in God and this nation. Plague One 

President Trump’s election was Xi’s first test. The Chinese could no longer count on buying political and economic loyalty from Washington. Trump campaigned on reworking bad trade agreements, and he followed up immediately upon taking office.

Plague Two By taking a hard line on trade with China, Trump forced them to come to his terms, or pay dearly with tariffs. As Xi dragged his feet hoping Trump would be curtailed, or our economy would suffer from the tariffs (it didn’t), China’s economy began to tank. Eventually they gave in to Trump’s “America First” demands.

https://mailchi.mp/gensix/true-legends-branson-2020-conference-invitation-to-register-1002145?e=7b8a8b75d3 

:: 2-24-20 Daily Mail :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Thousands of people queue to buy face masks in astonishing drone footage from South Korea as the country is gripped by coronavirus outbreak

South Korea has highest number of coronavirus cases outside China, at 830

City of Daegu is at the centre of the outbreak after disease spread among a cult

Hundreds of people were pictured queuing up to buy face masks in the city

President Moon Jae-in declared a national 'red alert' on Sunday as daycare centres were shut, school holidays extended and public gatherings banned

By Chris Pleasance for MailOnline Published: 06:35 EST, 24 February 2020 | Updated: 12:35 EST, 24 February 2020

Thousands of people have been filmed queuing up to buy face masks in the city at the centre of South Korea's coronavirus outbreak. A long line of people snaked out the doors of a supermarket in the city of Daegu on Monday as people tried to protect themselves against the spread of the disease amid fears of a global pandemic. South Korea now has the largest number of confirmed cases outside of mainland China after infections spiked at the weekend, standing at 830 by Monday morning Eight people have also died from the disease in the Asian country. The astonishing scenes outside the supermarket were captured by South Korean newspaper Maeil Shinmun. More than 140 of South Korea's new cases were in and near Daegu, the city of 2.5 million people where most of the country's infections have occurred. Five of the deaths were linked to a hospital in Cheongdo, near Daegu, where a slew of infections were confirmed among patients in a psychiatric ward. While officials have expressed hope they could contain the outbreak to the region surrounding Daegu, some experts noted signs of the virus circulating nationwide. They pointed to a number of cases in the capital, Seoul, and elsewhere that were not immediately traceable. 'In Daegu, the number of new cases that are being confirmed by tests is quite large, and if we fail to effectively stem community transmissions in this area, there would be a large possibility (that the illness) spreads nationwide,' South Korean vice health minister Kim Gang-lip said. He said that health officials plan to test all of the city's residents exhibiting cold-like symptoms, which he said would be about 28,000 people. Health workers are also screening some 9,000 followers of the Daegu branch of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, where a woman in her 60s attended two services before testing positive for the virus. Of the country's 161 new cases, 129 were related to the church. Officials are also investigating a possible link between churchgoers and the spike in infections at a hospital in nearby Cheongdo. Worldwide, cases have now topped 80,000 with more than 2,600 deaths as experts warned the globe is on the brink of a pandemic. A pandemic occurs when the same disease threatens different parts of the globe simultaneously. Until this weekend, the spread of coronavirus had been largely isolated to mainland China, with most foreign cases being linked to travellers from the country. But a wave of infections in northern Italy - which has been placed on lockdown - and in Iran, where 50 deaths were reported Monday, suggested the disease was spreading freely elsewhere. Several countries reported cases connected to travel to Iran.

Kuwait confirmed its first cases on Monday in three people who had travelled from Iran, while Bahrain and Iraq reported their first cases, also linked to Iran. The United Arab Emirates said new cases there included Iranian tourists. A number of countries have closed their borders with Iran or effectively barred travellers from there, a similar step to the actions numerous countries have taken to ward off the spread of the illness from China. On Monday, Italy's northern Lombardy region, which includes the nation's financial capital, Milan, reported the death of the fourth victim. Authorities said they had registered 38 more cases beyond the 152 reported nationwide late on Sunday, bringing Italy's total to at least 190. Venice, which is full of tourists for carnival events, reported its first two cases. As Italy scrambled to check the spread of the virus, authorities announced that all carnival events had been called off as well as major league football matches in the stricken region. Cinemas and theatres were also ordered shuttered, including Milan's legendary La Scala. Warning that China's virus epidemic is 'still grim and complex,' President Xi Jinping called for more efforts to stop the outbreak, revive industry and prevent the disease from disrupting spring planting of crops. Mr Xi defended the ruling Communist Party's response as 'timely and effective' in a video conference with officials in charge of anti-disease work, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8037595/Coronavirus-Thousands-queue-buy-face-masks-South-Korea.html 

[ :: 12-30-01  At the altar after PM Service  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::]

Put your money, your time, your efforts into what I tell you to do, for I will cause you to have a victory such as you have never seen. And it shall be so clear, yes; it shall be so clear what you are all to do. Yes, for I shall speak to you, my power shall be awesome and miracles shall come to pass. It shall not be the fake gold or the fake feathers or the false shaking or the animal noises or the falling under the power and not coming away with permanent results or changed lives. My prophetic shall speak concerning things to come in a clear concise manner that no one shall want to miss or read second hand. For they will want to hear it under the anointing of the prophets and to receive the anointing of the prophet that shall manifest miracles, signs and wonders. People shall now see the signs of the last days like never before. Not only in a strange and confusing weather, the heat, the drought, the floods, the forest fires, the volcanoes, lack of jobs, shortage of money, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, sandstorms, straight wind, electrical storms, electrical shortages, hail, locusts, pestilence’s, the sicknesses, terrorists attacks, wars, the uniting of the false church under the false prophet, the rise of the anti-christ, the riots, the crime, the drugs, alcoholism, great open gay activities and movies, more open sex on TV, more street people, homeless, lack of crops, food shortages, great fear in those who do not know me. No peace as my word says for the world. The UN taking more control, martial law established, rationing and many more disasters that shall now begin to come. etc.

:: 2-25-20 The Big Wobble :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Tuesday, 25 February 2020

One Maine Theme In February: (Apart from the coronavirus and locusts plagues) Floods. Flooding around the world broke record after record during the 2nd month of 2020

After months of bushfires drought and heatwaves, NSW receives record rainfall in February credit ABC

Indonesia

Torrential rain flooded Indonesia’s overpopulated capital on Tuesday for the second time this year, paralyzing wide areas and prompting rescue workers to evacuate people by boat from murky, brown waterways. Jakarta was hit by some of the heaviest rain since records began at the beginning of the year, causing floods that killed more than 60 people and displaced about 175,000. Several other minor floods have hit different parts of the city since. Indonesia’s weather agency linked the rains to tropical cyclones, but the agency head also said such extreme weather events were happening with greater intensity and more frequently. Jakarta and surrounding areas are home to more than 30 million people and extremely vulnerable to flooding. Parts of the city are below sea level and uncontrolled population growth has exacerbated the problem. Reuters

Peru

Massive mudslides and flooding in the Cusco Department of Peru have left at least 3 people dead, 20 missing and 300 homes destroyed. The tragedy follows weeks of severe weather in Peru. Days earlier at least 3 people died in flash flooding and mudslides in Tacna Department. Peru’s disaster authority, Centro de Operaciones de Emergencia Nacional (COEN), said that heavy rain caused a sudden increase of the Salkantay River, triggering flooding and mudslides in Santa Teresa district, La Convention province, Cusco, on 23 February 2020. Floodlist

Bolivia

Bolivians clean up after river flood forces evacuation The Bolivian town of Tipuipaya in the central region of Cochabamba was evacuated after intense precipitations led the Taquina River to overflow. Several residents trapped by the floods had to be flown out by helicopters. The area was affected two years ago by a similar disaster which was attributed to deforestation work carried out to clear out land to build housing. EuroNews

Sweden

Flood warning: Swedish towns on high alert after rivers burst their banks. Halmstad in south-western Sweden has called for national aid as flood warnings rise to the highest level possible. A total of 15,000 sandbags and 1,500 metres of barriers were being sent to the Halland region by Sweden's Civil Contingencies Agency on Monday, as the region braced itself for rising water levels. The Local

Samoa

Residents stranded after Cyclone Wasi floods rivers in Samoa. Some residents on the Samoan island of Savai'i are stranded due to rivers flooded by the weekend's Cyclone Wasi. Although there were no casualties or major building damage reported due to the cyclone, some rivers and roads remained flooded. The Samoa Observer reported two rivers on Savai'i, Mali'oli'o River and Sasina Fiord rose to dangerously high levels and have cut off-road access. Residents from Letui and Aopo - who attended a church gathering at Faletagaloa Safune on Sunday - were stranded and unable to travel home because the water at Sasina Fiord was so high after the heavy rain. RNZ

Malawi

Streets of the capital were flooded up to 1.5 metres deep, causing severe traffic disruption. The severe weather also caused major damage to a newly built hospital in the city. Police in Malawi report that 3 people died in the Lilongwe River in the Kawale area of the city. Floodlist

South Africa

The government of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province in South Africa reports that thunderstorms have caused widespread damage in the province, and one person has died in flash floods. KZN Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) said it has dispatched disaster management teams to several areas in the province following severe thunderstorms. The storms uprooted trees, damaged roofs and caused localised flooding in multiple locations across the province. Cogta said Disaster Management teams responded to a number of incidents in Umuziwabantu, Umgeni, Ndwedwe, Umvoti, Kokstad, Umzumbe, Newcastle, Ubuhlebezwe and Umzimkhulu municipalities. Floodlist

Texas

Last week, days of heavy rain caused rivers and dams in Mississippi and Tennessee to rise, prompting evacuations and some flood rescues. Among the worst-hit areas in Jackson, Mississippi, where the Pearl River exceeded Major Flood stage and reached 36.67 feet on 17 February 2020, its third-highest level on record. The state government of Mississippi moved quickly in anticipation of the flooding and declared a state of emergency on 15 February. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves said: “This is a historic, unprecedented flood. With projections showing the potential of this being the 3rd worst flood in our state’s history, I’ve declared a state of emergency to deploy the necessary resources to take care of all Mississippians impacted…Protect yourself and your family — have a plan in place and evacuate if and when you are asked.” TBW

Europe

Last week Storm Dennis Bomb Cyclone Update: Record wind gust of 255.6 km/h (159 mph) hit Iceland: The Met Office issued a 'Danger to life' warning: 2nd most intense storm in the North Atlantic ever: All-time-lowest pressure on record for a North Atlantic storm. Two people drowned as Storm Dennis brought more chaos to North-Western Europe with 70mph winds and further flood misery and hundreds of flights were cancelled. The Army was drafted into towns still reeling from last week's Storm Ciara. The powerful cyclone combined forces with another intense storm currently that pounded Iceland and Greenland, bringing extreme waves and hurricane-force winds. This storm-battered northwestern Europe just days after Storm Ciara pounded several countries with high winds and torrential rain and killed at least eight people. Storm Dennis, named by the U.K. Met Office, rapidly intensified over the North Atlantic Ocean and the U.K and Iceland. It is the second most intense winter storm in the North Atlantic since records began more than 150 years ago. Already, the United Kingdom has received wind gusts as high as 87 mph and several inches of rain. TBW

European storms continue: the UK has 6 weeks rain in 24 hours: 15-meter / 50-feet waves hit Ireland and the UK: winds as high as 200 kph (124 mph): Up to 500,000 without power. A storm-battered Europe faced hurricane-force winds and heavy rains, killing at least seven people and causing severe travel disruptions as the latest storm moved eastward across the continent and bore down on Germany. After striking Britain and Ireland on Sunday, the storm moved on, leaving a trail of damage including power cuts for tens of thousands of homes across Europe. A woman and her 15-year-old daughter died in Poland after the storm ripped off the roof of a ski rental equipment building in the mountain resort of Bukowina Tatrzanska and sent it hurtling into people standing near a ski lift, police said. Three people also were injured in the incident. TBW

UK

The homes and businesses flooded in the UK are now in the thousands after three once-in-a-lifetime storms have hit the UK in the first two months of 2020, with yet another storm rolling in from the Atlantic today. Almost 2,000 homes had been flooded by Storm Dennis more than a week ago, and the rain has been relentless since last October.

More people have been rescued by fire crews as river levels continue to rise in Shropshire. Two severe "danger to life" flood warnings are in place for the River Severn at Shrewsbury and Ironbridge. Shaun Davies, leader of Telford and Wrekin Council, said it looked "like the barriers will be breached at some point over the next 24 hours". Shrewsbury's three main shopping centres have been closed "for the safety of staff and customers". TBW

Australia

There are currently two tropical systems along northern Australia, the Severe Tropical Cyclone #Ferdinand and remnants of the Tropical Cyclone #Esther. Both look quite interesting on the satellite. While Ferdinand is very intense and should remain over the open waters this week, remnants of Esther are likely to organize back into a Tropical Cyclone when it ejects back to the sea this weekend. SWE  After months of heat, drought and bushfires New South Wales was battered by rain, wind and flooding which plagued the state on the 11th of Feb. Sydney suffered the worst downpour in recent history. At least 134,000 NSW households were left without power on as utility companies scrambled to deal with the rain, wind and flooding plaguing the state. Ausgrid tweeted Sunday night that power was out for more than 110,000 of its customers across Sydney, the Central Coast and Newcastle." Crews worked in the rain and storms to make areas safe and restore power. TBW

Led by CAIR-Philadelphia and MPower Change, and supported by Community Responders Network, About Face, and Common Defense, the campaign drew more than 1800 signatures and received widespread support from its interfaith allies.  The referenced “petition” (see here) was essentially a hysterical screed; it claimed that if I, a supposed “racist” and enabler of “white nationalism”—despite my Egyptian heritage—am given a chance to speak before a supposedly already “racist” U.S. military, I would incite American servicemen to randomly start murdering Muslims both at home and abroad (see near the middle of petition).  In retrospect, it’s interesting to learn now that this CAIR/MPower petition from last summer received a mere 1,800 signatures—despite its insistence that supporters sign it. By contrast, the much more reputable National Association of Scholars, which delivered a petition in my support to the White House, received three times as many signatures (5,349), many from well-respected scholars affiliated with numerous universities.

CAIR continues:  Ibrahim’s writings advance a discredited theory known as the “Clash of Civilizations” and argues that “Islam and the West” have been engaged in a centuries-long war. The lecture is based on Ibrahim’s 2018 book “Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West.” That book promotes the unsubstantiated thesis that Islam, since its beginning, has “terrorized the West.” For the record, my lecture will revolve around my book, per the War College’s request—hence why CAIR regularly targets it. As such, here one must ask: if the book’s findings are so “unsubstantiated,” why does CAIR fear it so much? Does CAIR have such a low opinion of the intellectual capacity of the U.S. Army War College and its students, as to expect them to believe anything they are told, without adequate evidence? Or could it be that CAIR is terrified at just how well-documented and substantiated the book’s thesis really is—so that, once made known, there is no rebutting it? Rather tellingly, for example, in none of CAIR’s and its allies’ long press releases and screeds—past and present—do they once highlight a certain passage or excerpt from Sword and Scimitar to support the accusation that it “is based on poor research.” The reason is simple: although long suppressed, the history presented in the book—and which will be presented in condensed form at the War College lecture—is ironclad, verifiable, and beyond well documented; with about a thousand end-notes, the 352-page book is heavily based on primary sources, many of which are Islamic, and from eyewitnesses. And this history makes abundantly clear that—to reiterate my supposedly self-incriminating words—Islamic terrorism and extremism are intrinsic to Islam, and have been from its first contact with Western civilization in the seventh century. Think of the atrocities committed by the Islamic State but on an exponential scale—and for over a millennium—bombarding every corner of Europe, and even America, so that the latter’s very first war as a nation was with jihad-practicing Muslims. These facts are precisely what CAIR is afraid of. As such, and because CAIR concludes its press release by urging its followers “to call the U.S. Army War College at 717-245-3972 to register their concerns,” so too do I conclude by saying that, if you disagree with CAIR, call that same number and voice your concerns against those who would quash free speech on Islam at such a critical juncture as this.

https://www.raymondibrahim.com/2020/02/24/terrorism-linked-cair-protests-my-scheduled-talk-at-us-army-war-college-again/ 

:: 2-24-20 RT :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Ancient woman with ‘ALIEN-LIKE' SKULL unearthed in Russia (VIDEO)

24 Jan, 2019 19:14 / Updated 1 year ago

The remains of a woman, believed to be from antiquity, with an elongated alien-like skull has been found during excavations of an ancient burial site in southern Russia. Since 2017 bones belonging to humans and numerous wild and domestic animals, along with a large number of ceramics, ornaments and bronze arrowheads have been discovered at the remarkable Gamurzievsky settlement in the city of Nazran, Ingushetia. However this week’s discovery of a woman’s skeleton – which dates back to between the 4th and 6th century – is particularly unique because of the fascinating intentional deformation of her skull and neck. The practice of changing the shape of one’s head, scientifically known as artificial cranial deformation (ACD), is a known tradition among many peoples of the world. Today, the result resembles Hollywood’s perception of what a alien from outer space might look like.  “History knows many examples of purposeful change in the shape of the head,” said a representative from the Yevgeny Krupnov Archaeological Center carrying out the dig. Skulls were elongated from infancy using rings and repeated bandaging for the first few years of life as a sign of a special status to command certain privileges in society. Remains of elite ancestors from various tribes including the Sarmatians, Alans, Huns have also been found to have elongated skulls. Last year scientists finally identified the 1,500-year-old remains of several high-ranking “treaty brides” from Bulgaria and Romania discovered with tower-shaped skulls. In Peru some 38 high-ranking members of the pre-Inca population were also found with teardrop-shaped heads that represented their prestige and social rank.

https://www.rt.com/russia/449641-elongated-skull-woman-russia/ 

[ :: 11-13-16 pm service  ::  ::  :: ::  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::]

For many signs are in the sky, many things I am doing that the world may see and know and understand the hour is very late. etc

:: 2-25-20 Meteor Shower Tonight :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Meteor Fireballs Explode in the Night Sky Over Spain, Russia and the Caribbean (Videos)

By MeteorShowerTonight - February 25, 2020

The sky is on fire!

Within the last few days, large meteor fireballs have been caught disintegrating in the sky over Spain, Russia and the Dominican Republic. Here are the videos: Bright fireball explodes over Andalusia on February 23, 2020 The sky event lit up the night sky on Feb. 23rd, around 00:22 a.m. local time. According to first measurements it was generated by a rock from an asteroid that hit the atmosphere at about 43,000 km/h. The disintegration began at an altitude of 70 km over Almería (Andalusia) and ended at 29 km over the Mediterranean Sea. Cameras at Calar Alto (Almería), Sierra Nevada (Granada), La Hita (Toledo), and Sevilla recorded the bright meteor disintegration. On Feb. 18th and 19th, two other bright space objects were reported shooting across the night sky of Andalusia. Huge meteor changes night into days in Karelia, Russia on Feb. 21st A huge meteor fireball changed night into day on February 21, 2020 at 4:35 local time in the Segezhsky district of the Russian Republic of Karelia. A loud booming noise was heard after the bright flash of light. Large fireball over the caribbean on February 11, 2020 On Feb. 21st, a small space rock exploded over the Caribbean. The explosion was so bright it was captured by cameras in Puerto Rico: As well as an all-sky camera operated by the Sociedad de Astronomia del Caribe in Puerto Rico: According to satellite pictures, the bright meteor disintegrated over the Dominican Republic at 07:30 UTC (Feb. 21st): I bet there is a good change of finding some meteorites. What do yout think? Here the next meteor showers that will light up the night sky in February 2020: Meteor showers in February 2020. Sorry I am a bit late for February... But here are the meteor showers you will see peaking in the February sky as of tomorrow night. Enjoy the shows! Manuel Chi Capricornids, minor, peaks on February 13... See More Keep your eyes to the sky and send us your meteor fireball videos.

https://meteorshowertonight.org/meteor-fireball-spain-russia-caribbean-video/ 

:: 2-24-20 Sputnik :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Scientists Discover How Earthquakes Distort Earth's Gravity - Report

While the researcher’s findings may eventually help predict the emergence of such destructive phenomena as tsunamis, the new study’s coordinator warns that there’s still plenty of work to be done.  It appears that researchers at the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences have come up with a concept that might help improve mankind’s capability to detect earthquakes early. According to a GFZ news release published by EurekAlert!, this new algorithm is based on the fact that earthquakes emit the so called Prompt Elasto-Gravity Signals (PEGS), that are essentially "sudden changes in gravity caused by a shift in the earth’s internal mass", which travel "at the speed of light" – much faster than seismic waves whose speed is only about 8 kilometers per second. Therefore, if one was able to detect these signals, it would be possible to detect earthquakes before the arrival of the destructive tremors or tsunami waves. "Since the gravity that can be measured locally depends on the mass distribution in the vicinity of the measuring point, every earthquake generates a small but immediate change in gravity", scientific of the new study Rongjiang Wang explained. The algorithm devised by Wang’s team allows calculating "PEGS signals with high accuracy and without much effort for the first time", with Sebastian Heimann, data analyst at GFZ, revealing that they first applied said algorithm to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan where "measurements on the strength of the PEGS signal were already available", and "the consistency was perfect". The researchers hope that, in the future, examining the changes in gravity caused by earthquakes might help determine whether these tremors may cause a tsunami, for example. As Wang himself has noted, however, there’s still plenty of work to be done, as "today’s measuring instruments are not yet sensitive enough, and the environmentally induced interference signals are too great for the PEGS signals to be directly integrated into a functioning tsunami early warning system."

https://sputniknews.com/science/202002241078395462-scientists-discover-how-earthquakes-distort-earths-gravity/ 

:: 2-24-20 South China Morning Post :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Tamu Massif even more massive: world’s largest volcano almost same size as Japan, widest in solar system

Joint China-US team hails its birth as one of the most spectacular events in earth’s history, says it is larger than Olympus Mons on Mars by surface area, describes its creation as ‘a miracle’

Stephen Chen in Beijing Published: 8:31am, 24 Mar, 2016

The biggest volcano on earth is larger than was previously thought, with a surface area unmatched by any in our solar system, according to a joint study by researchers from China and the United States.  They hailed its birth as one of the most spectacular events in the history of our planet, and a “miracle” of creation given its rarity. Tamu Massif, an extinct submarine shield volcano formed about 145 million years ago during the Late Jurassic period, is located 2 kilometres below sea level between Japan and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Although there is still some dispute as to whether it can be classified as a single volcano, the possibility of this was first suggested in September 2013 and corroborated by William Sager, a marine geophysicist from the department of earth and atmospheric sciences at the University of Houston. But after analysing more seismic data and mapping the volcano’s underlying structure, the same team found they may have underestimated the volcano’s actual size. They put the total area of the Shatsky Rise, an elevated oceanic plateau created after the Tamu Massif erupted, at 533,000 sq km. Tamu Massif is the largest mountain on the Shatsky Rise. Previously, the volcano was considered to be smaller overall by 20 per cent than Olympus Mons on Mars, long hailed as the largest volcano discovered in our solar system. Tamu Massif reaches a height of 4km while Olympus Mons is 22km WATCH: Dr William Sager returns to Tamu Massif in October 2015 But the new study, led by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ South China Sea Institute of Oceanology in Guangzhou, in southern China’s Guangdong province, claims that the surface area of Tamu Massif should now be 80 per cent larger than its Martian relative. “Tamu Massif created a much wider dome. It surpasses every other known volcano in the solar system in terms of surface area,” said Dr Zhang Jinchang, lead scientist of the new study, adding that it was hard to say for certain which one is larger overall in terms of mass. Tamu Massif is about the size of Japan, larger than Olympus Mons, Zhang said. The latest study was published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters. Professor Jun Korenaga, a geologist at Yale University in the United States, co-authored the paper. Volcanos of such magnitude are extremely rare, and were previously considered impossible on earth. The largest active volcano today is Mauna Loa in Hawaii, which has a base measuring about 5,000 sq km. It is only one seventieth the size of Tamu Massif WATCH: the eruption of Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano Moreover, of the two ways volcanoes were known to be formed, neither was considered able to generate enough substance from the earth’s mantle - a silicate rocky shell measuring thousands of kilometres thick - to form one of such magnitude as Tamu Massif. Scab theory posits that a volcano is created after the earth’s crust is torn open by the shifting of tectonic plates, allowing lava to bubble up to the surface; pimple theory states that magma moves up through a tunnel in the crust and piles in a heap on the surface. “We are speculating that Tamu Massif may have been formed by the two mechanisms working together,” Zhang said. “The effect would be similar to pricking the same pimple with a knife again and again for several million years,” he said. “The chance of such an event occurring is very low - no more than one in a thousand, so it’s something of a miracle.” Tamu Massif became extinct sometime during the Early Cretaceous period, which ended 100 million years ago, meaning it “died” just a few million years after it was born. Fossils of marine creatures found in the underwater dome suggest its peak may, at the time, have been above the surface of the water. As such, dinosaurs could have witnessed its spectacular eruption. But Zhang said there is no chance of the volcano coming back to life. His study found that the Mohorovic Discontinuity (often abbreviated to Moho), a boundary between the earth’s crust and mantle, descended over 30km below the base of Tamu Massif. This would create an almost impenetrable barrier between deposits of magma and the ocean floor, he said. Professor Zhai Shikui, a marine geologist with the Ocean University of China in Qingdao, Shandong province, praised the study for mapping the internal structure of the Shatsky Rise for the first time, but said more solid evidence would be needed to support any claim that it is a single volcano. “Seismic analysis cannot completely rule out the possibility that [its] unique structure was created by more than one volcano. The most direct and solid evidence would need to be rock samples,” he said.

https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/1929458/tamu-massif-even-more-massive-worlds-largest-volcano-almost 

:: 2-24-20 Town Hall :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Wow: Trump Given Incredible Welcome in India

Leah Barkoukis @LeahBarkoukis Posted: Feb 24, 2020 8:10 AM

To say President Trump was welcomed in India is an understatement. While thousands of people lined the streets to greet America’s 45th president, that was just the beginning. Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke in Motera Stadium, the world’s largest cricket stadium, to an electrified crowd. The 110,000-seat arena was completely filled, and many were donning white caps that read “Namaste Trump” with the Indian and American flags on the brim. “The First Lady and I have just traveled 8,000 miles around the globe to deliver a message to every citizen across this nation: America loves India — America respects India — and Americans will always be true and loyal friends to the Indian people,” Trump said in Gujarat. He thanked India for the incredibly warm welcome they were given, saying they "will remember it forever." "From this day on, India will always hold a very special place in our heart," he said. The president is in the country to discuss bilateral trade and security issues. The trip comes amid a tit-for-tat trade dispute between the two countries. Negotiators worked to try to secure a deal before Trump's visit, but talks fizzled over India’s protectionist policies and a scope of differences including e-commerce and digital trade, according to a senior administration official who briefed reporters ahead of the trip. The U.S. wants more access to Indian markets on agricultural products and medical devices while India is aiming to restore its preferential status in a trade program for developing countries. Trump said he planned to continue trade discussions with Modi during his visit, calling the prime minister a "tough" negotiator. He said he planned to make a "very very major - among the biggest ever - trade deals," but added talks were in "the early stages. (USA Today) "I think that the Prime Minister and I can reach a fantastic deal that is good and even great for our two countries…except he's a very tough negotiator," Trump said.

The president also announced a $3 billion defense deal. “The United States looks forward to providing India with the best and most feared military equipment on the planet. We make the greatest weapons ever made – airplanes, missiles, rockets, ships. We make the best, and we are dealing now with India,” Trump said. “I am pleased to announce that tomorrow our representatives will sign deals to sell over $3 billion in the absolute finest, state-of-the-art military helicopters and other equipment to the Indian armed forces,” he added. As he wrapped up his speech, he again thanked the country for the "phenomenal welcome." "God bless India, God bless the United States of America. We love you India, we love you very much!" Catch up on the entire event below:

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2020/02/24/trump-india-n2561780 

:: 2-24-20 New York Post :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Julian Assange put US sources at ‘grave and imminent risk,’ prosecutors say

By Lee Brown February 24, 2020 | 12:23pm | Updated

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange needs to face justice in the US, because his leaks put secret sources at “grave and imminent risk” — with some even disappearing, prosecutors said during opening statements in his extradition case Monday. Assange’s attorney said in the UK court hearing that the journalist would not get a fair trial in the US, where he faces a maximum sentence of 175 years for violating espionage laws and poses a clear suicide risk. However, James Lewis, representing the US government, insisted Assange should not be protected as a free-speech champion but treated as a “straightforward” criminal who put lives at risk with “one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the United States.” Assange’s work also helped America’s enemies — with WikiLeaks documents found in al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s compound after he was killed in Pakistan, Woolwich Crown Court was told. “What Mr. Assange seems to defend by freedom of speech is not the publication of the classified materials but the publication of the names of the sources, the names of people who had put themselves at risk to assist the United States and its allies,” Lewis told the court. Hundreds of people across the world had to be warned after the 2010 dump of hundreds of thousands of secret military documents and diplomatic cables, Lewis said. Some were relocated, while others “subsequently disappeared,” Lewis claimed, conceding that it had not been proven to be a direct result of the disclosures. It is not the role of the British court to determine whether Assange is guilty, he reminded the hearing. “This is an extradition hearing, not a trial,” he said. “The guilt or innocence of Mr. Assange will be determined at trial in the United States, not in this court.”

Assange watched the proceedings from the dock in the courtroom — brought there from Belmarsh Prison next door, where he has been held for 10 months. The hearing brought out a large show of support — so much so that Assange complained about not being able to hear all the testimony because of the chants from outside. Celebrity supporters there included fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, who wore a headband with the word “angel” on it and said she was “the angel of democracy.” “It is not a crime to publish American war crimes,” she said. “It’s in the public interest, it is democracy, that he is allowed to do this.”

https://nypost.com/2020/02/24/julian-assange-put-us-sources-at-grave-and-imminent-risk-prosecutors-say/ 

:: 2-25-20 Express Informer :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Woman is diagnosed with coronavirus after testing negative EIGHT TIMES during quarantine

February 25, 2020 Express Informer

Hotel worker, 56, is diagnosed with coronavirus after testing negative EIGHT TIMES in 17 days during quarantine

The 56-year-old from Sichuan Province went into isolation earlier this month

Medical workers gave her eight tests, and none of them came back positive

She was found to be infected yesterday after doctors performed further tests

The incubation period is typically 14 days, but can be up to 24 days in rare cases

By Tracy You For Mailonline Published: 15:16 GMT, 25 February 2020 | Updated: 16:15 GMT, 25 February 2020

A hotel worker in China has been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus after eight consecutive tests failed to detect her condition when she was in quarantine, officials revealed. The 56-year-old from Sichuan Province went into isolation earlier this month after one of her colleagues had been infected with the virus, a report said. She was confirmed to have the deadly disease yesterday after being put under quarantine for three weeks. The 56-year-old woman from Sichuan was confirmed to have the deadly disease yesterday after being put under quarantine for three weeks. The above photo shows a woman wearing a mask and goggles to protect herself while riding a bicycle on a street in Beijing on February 25 The case was revealed by health officials in Anyue County, Sichuan, and reported by Sichuan Online today. It is said that the patient, known by her surname Tang, works in a hotel in Chongqing as a dishwasher. She returned to her hometown in Anyue on January 23 to celebrate the Lunar New Year with her family. After one of her colleagues was diagnosed with the coronavirus, Ms Tang was taken to a quarantine camp by the authority on February 2. The report said Ms Tang had visited her local clinic the day earlier but did not explain why she had gone there. The novel coronavirus has killed at least 2,705 people and infected more than 80,320 globally During February 7 and 23, medical workers gave her eight tests by taking throat swabs. The medics carried out nucleic acid detection tests using ‘polymerase chain reaction’ (PCR) techniques – a method for amplifying specific sequences of DNA – to see if Ms Tang was carrying the virus. All of the eight tests came back negative. The woman was classified as a suspected patient on February 16 while being quarantined at the People’s Hospital of Anyue County. She was transferred to the No. 1 People’s Hospital of Ziyang on February 21. Doctors there yesterday diagnosed her with the coronavirus after combining the results from further clinical and laboratory tests. The new coronavirus – known as COVID-19 – has killed at least 2,663 and infected more than 77,660 people inside China. The picture shows medics disinfecting themselves after coming back from the severe pneumonia inpatient wards at a hospital in Chongqing on February 1 Hubei, situated in central China, accounts for more than 80 per cent of the confirmed cases and 95 per cent of the deaths worldwide. The picture shows a medical worker treats a patient at an isolation ward at a hospital in Chongqing on February 1

The local health officials are currently looking for people who have been in close contact with Ms Tang.

The typical incubation period of the virus is two weeks, but Chinese experts previously said it could be as long as 24 days in rare cases.

The new coronavirus – known as COVID-19 – has killed at least 2,663 and infected more than 77,660 people inside China.

Hubei, situated in central China, accounts for more than 80 per cent of the confirmed cases and 95 per cent of the deaths worldwide.

Wuhan, the provincial capital with 11 million residents, went into lockdown on January 23 in the wake of the outbreak. The majority part of Hubei then followed suit.

Overnight, the Hubei health officials reported 499 new cases out of a nationwide total of 508 and 68 of the 71 new deaths across China.

Globally, the coronavirus epidemic has killed at least 2,705 people, infected more than 80,340 and spread to at least two dozen countries.

https://expressinformer.com/woman-is-diagnosed-with-coronavirus-after-testing-negative-eight-times-during-quarantine/ 

:: 2-25-20 Zero Hedge :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

8,000 Californians Under "Self-Imposed Quarantine", South Korea Locks Down City Of 2.5 Million People: 

Virus Updates by Tyler Durden Tue, 02/25/2020 - 04:39  Summary:

Stocks slide as CDC releases new US case numbers

The number of cases worldwide topping 80,000.

Italy reports 7th death, 200+ confirmed cases

Spain reports 3rd case

WHO says outbreak not yet a 'pandemic'

WH reportedly considering expulsion of Chinese journalists in retaliation for WSJ reporters

US consulate in Milan temporarily halts visas

California has 8,000 under 'self-imposed quarantine'

CDC warns Americans against travel to South Korea

Italian finance minister suspends tax payments in virus-hit areas

First cases reported in Oman, Bahrain

WHO kowtows to China in statement

Wuhan issues order to loosen lockdown, then U-turns

NHC says outbreak is fading, though situation remains "grim"

2 new cases confirmed in Canada

China approves crackdown on wildlife trade after WHO says virus likely came from bats

Iranian lawmaker says more than 50 deaths in Qom; officials say 12

Hong Kong bars South Koreans

South Korean cases rise 60 to 893, Daegu city locked down.

* * *

Update (2000ET): The number of cases worldwide topping 80,000...

In their latest update, South Korea has admitted 60 more cases, making a total of 893. And, as the virus spreads, South Korea is about to go 'full China' on its people as Yonhap reports the cities of Daegu and Gyeongbuk, where the virus is spreading rapidly, have been designated as special disease management areas for infectious diseases. Simply put, this means that, as Democratic Party spokesman Hong Ik-pyo explained, "A blockade is being considered by the government, and we are considering using some administrative power in areas such as movement."

Locals have called this a strategy to "enforce the maximum containment policy" - in other words, full lockdown of a city of 2.5 million people (the 4th largest in the country).

* * *

Update (1845ET): The CDC has outmaneuvered the State Department and issued a travel warning on South Korea. CDC WARNS AMERICANS ON TRAVEL TO SOUTH KOREA

This just hours after President Trump tweeted that it's time to buy stocks because the crisis is under control.

* * *

Update (1825ET): As we mentioned earlier, the state of California has thousands of individuals under a 'self-imposed quarantine'. But what, exactly, does this mean? As the SF Chronicle points out, this figure is up from 6,700 last week. The Press Democrat reports that all of the people under self-imposed quarantine recently visited China, but have no other connection to a sick individual, and have shown no other signs of the virus. These people returned to the US either on or after Feb. 2 as countries started tightening borders. While making a case for full-on quarantine might be difficult, Italy and SK have identified cases where the chain of infection is murky. Some haven't traveled abroad. Some visited hot zones weeks ago and are just beginning to show symptoms. It's certainly something to think about consider that, as we reported earlier, the CDC only has only tested about 400 individuals.

* * *

Update (1745ET): Here's more news while we wait for the new China and South Korea numbers to hit.

In the latest virus-related update out of Europe, Spain just reported its third case, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais.

According the report, the individual is a "traveler" from Italy.

SPAIN REPORTS 3RD CASE OF COVID-19 TRAVELER FROM ITALY - EL PAIS NEWS

In other virus news, two companies, UAL withdrew its 2020 forecasts on Monday night, citing a "~100%" decline in near-term demand from China. Mastercard also forecast lower revenue growth, citing the virus impact.

* * *

Update (1450ET): We spotted an interesting tidbit at the bottom of a recent update to the Monday's NYT coronavirus liveblog:

The new virus presents Europe with perhaps its greatest challenge since the 2015 migration crisis. It could test the principle of open borders within much of Europe and the vaunted but strained European public health systems. Could the outbreak present an opening for Matteo Salvini as he struggles to displace the Five Star-PD coalition and become prime minister? In a country as badly in need of revenue as Italy, it would take a true disaster to suspend tax collection. Alas, it looks like that has finally happened, as Italy's finance minister suspended tax payments in regions hard-hit by the virus.

* * *

Update (1425ET): Following the CDC confirming 18 new cases in the US, including two that were non-Diamond Princess related, Canadian public health officials have just confirmed that two individuals have tested positive for the virus, bringing the total number of infected in the US's northern neighbor to 11, the Washington Post reports.

Like their American counterparts, Canadian officials insisted that the overall risk to the population remains "low".  In British Columbia, a man in his 40s tested positive for the virus, provincial health officer Bonnie Henry told reporters. He is a close contact of a woman who health officials said last week tested positive for the virus after traveling to Iran, and is in stable condition at home.

Henry described the woman’s case as a “sentinel event” because it indicated that there could be “more widespread transmission” of the virus since she had not traveled to China or its neighboring countries.

Earlier Monday, Eileen de Villa, Toronto’s medical officer of health, said that a woman in her 20s who recently traveled to China also tested positive for the virus. She arrived in Toronto on Friday and had spent some time in Wuhan, the city at the epicenter of the outbreak.

Earlier, WaPo reported that the White House is alarmed by gaps in the American supply chain that could impact the response to the coronavirus if the outbreak becomes an out-of-control catastrophe.

The US insists that all of the cases in the country so far were infected in China, excerpt for 2, according to the NYT:

All the new cases reported Monday occurred among people who were flown back from Asia to the United States by the State Department, the C.D.C. reported, and nearly all involve former passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Japan. They are in quarantine on military bases in California and Texas.

Twelve other cases occurred in people who had traveled to China, returned on their own and became ill after arriving back in the United States. Two of their close contacts also became infected.

Those 14 people are either isolating at home (under supervision from health officials), being treated at hospitals, or have already done so. Four of those infected people have recovered, been through the quarantine periods and are back out in the world.

* * *

Update (1420ET): We're noting some new info from the CDC about the latest cases diagnosed in the US. Of the 14 non-Diamond Princess-related cases cited earlier, two of them are new: One is in Humboldt County, and the other in Sacramento County, both in California, per the Guardian.

The CDC added that it's preparing for outbreaks that could warrant the closure of schools and universities in the US.

* * *

Update (1350ET): Reports claim Washington is weighing a decision to expel Chinese journalists after Beijing cancelled the press credentials of 3 WSJ reporters over an allegedly 'racist' opinion column.

In response to Beijing's decision, the State Department published an official condemnation. By expelling Chinese journalists, the US would be seeking to show Beijing that it won't stand idly by and tolerate these press restrictions. For President Trump, whose administration has been characterized by a deep and abiding animosity toward the press, it marks an unusual example of Trump siding with the American media. It also comes after the State Department last week designed five Chinese media organizations as "foreign missions": these included Xinhua and the PD. Also, it's notable that the meeting where the administration officials reportedly discussed the retaliation was led by Matt Pottinger, a deputy national security advisor and former WSJ reporter who is purportedly the administration's point man on Asia policy.  The administration’s options were to be discussed in a meeting of senior administration leaders at the White House later Monday led by Matt Pottinger, the deputy national security adviser who was once a Wall Street Journal reporter in Beijing, according to U.S. officials familiar with the deliberations.  There’s an intense debate over how severely to respond to the expulsions last week. Some advocate ordering dozens -- and perhaps hundreds -- of Chinese reporters to leave, while others say that’s not legally possible or in keeping with American values on freedom of the press, according to several of the officials.

While declining to comment on specific actions under consideration, John Ullyot, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said Friday that China’s move against the American reporters was an “egregious act.”

It's also notable that WSJ is owned by Trump ally Rupert Murdoch.

In other news, the American consulate in Milan has said it will halt visa approvals until March 2 as the outbreak in Italy worsens. Can't say we blame them: Here's an update of our chart of the cases in four of the countries with the largest outbreaks outside China. Update (1340ET): A Chinese airline is reopening domestic flights as Chinese officials start to lower their crisis-level outbreak standards, while UAL said Monday that it wouldn't cancel flights between the US and South Korea.

As China tries to encourage its people to get back to work, it looks like the CCP is now telling villagers that only obedience to The Party will cure the virus. Update (1220ET): US stocks took another leg lower, falling to their lowest levels of the session with the Dow down 1,000 points, following the latest headlines out of the CDC confirming 39 cases of the virus have been detected among the rest of the ~300 individuals from the 'Diamond Princess'.

The CDC reportedly opposed the State Department's decision to allow 14 individuals who were confirmed to be infected to travel on the evac flight after their cases were confirmed just before takeoff, thanks to one of the many botched, drop-the-ball moments attributed to Japanese health officials.

This is exactly what they warned about: In addition to the 14 people who were already infected, it appears another 25 were infected on the flight back - where the sick individuals were separated by the rest using duct tape and a thin tarp-like sheet.

That brings total US cases to 53.

Meanwhile, the CD isolated 14 cases outside those who caught the virus aboard the DP.

U.S. CDC SAYS 14 CONFIRMED CASES OF COVID-19 AS OF FEB. 24, 39 CASES AMONG THOSE REPATRIATED TO U.S.

Six of these cases are believed to be in San Antonio, according to local press reports.

* * *

Update (1215ET): Just figured we'd point out: While WHO warns that there's nothing to fear, Beijing is trying to force its population back to work after six provinces outside Hubei lowered their emergency ratings earlier. * * *

Update (1115ET): Shortly before it voted to postpone its annual national congress, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in China passed legislation approving a crackdown on the illegal wildlife trade on Monday.

Though SJWs have insisted that criticizing Chinese practices like eating 'bat soup' is 'racist', WHO scientists warned Monday morning that initial research suggests that the virus was transmitted to the first human cases via consumption of a bat, or possibly a pangolin that had been exposed to the virus via a bat, WaPo reports. We published an explainer about how the wildlife trade, which has been illegal on paper for years, managed to flourish in the Chinese countryside as a king of grey market due to its immense profitability. Now, it appears local farmers will be forced to return to growing crops, a far less lucrative trade than hawking bats and snakes, apparently.

* * *

Update (1015ET): As the White House prepares to request an emergency spending package from Congress as soon as this week - a package that could seek close to $1 billion, as we've previously noted - WHO's Dr. Tedros said during the organization's Monday morning press briefing that the outbreak isn't yet a true "pandemic" because the world hasn't seen "large-scale deaths". That's right: On the same morning that the Chinese government is marching people back to work, warning them that if they get infected, they're on their own, as if the entire country was one giant concentration camp, the WHO - which has repeatedly run interference for the regime - is insisting that the outbreak isn't really that bad. The cases in Italy and South Korea are definitely concerning he said, but are we seeing an uncontrolled outbreak? No. An Iranian lawmaker just blew the whistle on some 50 deaths in Iran, and now suddenly cases are popping up all over the Middle East and Europe, and the situation isn't really that bad. But Tedros says we're not witnessing "uncontained global spread" and that "using the word pandemic does not fit the facts. We must focus on containment while preparing for a potential pandemic." All nations battling the outbreak should prioritize three areas, Dr. Tedros added. These include: the safety of hospital workers, communities most at risk like the elderly, and others with co-occurring health conditions. "This is a shared threat," Tedros said. "We can only face it together, and we can only overcome it together." This comes nearly one month after the WHO declared the outbreak a global public-health emergency. And this is what the curve looks like for cases outside China: Nothing to see here, gentlemen. Please, focus on the excellent dip-buying opportunity in front of you.

Finally, repeating some of his florid praise from the early days of the outbreak, Tedros said "other countries need to learn from China's response". Which we presume means that medieval lockdown is the way to go - but if you can tweak one thing, maybe try to get on top of the situation a little sooner.

Meanwhile, as Stars & Stripes reported earlier, US soldiers in South Korea are doing everything in their power to prevent an outbreak on an American base - a huge risk for US national security officials and the Pentagon - after the widow of a retired soldier who recently visited stores on a base in the southeastern part of South Korea.

* * *

Update (1000ET): Following this morning's WHO circle-jerk, where the team of foreign doctors and experts refused to challenge Beijing's narrative despite widespread skepticism and criticism of the government's early decision to censor information about the outbreak, the Global Times editor-in-chief has just declared that the "risk of the virus spreading widely in China" has passed. Update (0925ET): ANSA reports a 7th death in Italy as the situation looks increasingly grim.

Here's the latest chart: * * *

Update (0910ET): The coronavirus is already forcing Iranians to tweak certain practices, including their daily greetings. Meanwhile, the first indications that the virus has already spread from Iran to some of its regional neighbors have already emerged: Oman has reported the first two confirmed coronavirus cases. The two cases are individuals who recently visited Iran.

This follows Bahrain reporting its first case overnight. * * *

Update (0835ET): As the WHO team wrapped up its Monday press conference with what was essentially tantamount to a global confidence-building exercise in China's response, a senior official from China's National Health Commission said the coronavirus risk from Wuhan had gone 'way down.' Of course, if that's true, then why did officials cancel a planned easing of the lockdown? The official added that China has managed to stop the 'rapid rise' of infections in Wuhan, though they haven't stopped the epidemic yet, and that the situation remains "grim and complex" - as President Xi said over the weekend. Meanwhile, over in Italy, ANSA reports that a sixth person has died. Even more alarming for futbal fans across the country: Four Serie A matches were postponed on Sunday, while others on Saturday went ahead.

* * *

When American traders logged off on Friday, they might have noticed a few suspicious headlines out of Italy reporting a sudden spike in cases. But anybody who spent the weekend away from their desks and Twitter might be surprised to find that the Europe's third-largest economy is now host to a genuine crisis. As we reported over the weekend, more than a dozen towns in Lombardy - the hardest hit region with 167 confirmed cases and 4 deaths - are on complete lockdown. According to the latest update, there are now 219 confirmed cases in Italy, as well as five deaths. Angelo Borrelli, head of the country's civil protection agency, said Monday during a press briefing that another 91 people are currently in isolation inside their homes. Following the weekend spike, Italy's neighbors are getting nervous. Austria is exploring border controls, though Germany said Monday that it's not currently considering closing its borders with Italy, an obvious attempt by the de facto leader of the EU to try and quell a continent-wide panic. Elsewhere, more countries are tightening restrictions on South Koera. Hong Kong on Monday declared that it would stop non-residents from South Korea from entering Hong Kong. This has sparked a bemused response from Hong Kongers on twitter: A recent poll showed that a majority of the people in Hong Kong don't trust the data provided by the Chinese government or the WHO.

* * *

In Italy, it seems like most of the dead fit the profile of elderly patients with co-occurring health problems. One of the two most recent deaths was reported to be a man from the village of Val Alzano Lombardo. He died at the Papa Giovanni XXIII hospital in Bergamo, near Milan. The hospital said the 83-year-old man (reports on his age differ) had a serious underlying health problem, but it didn't specify what it was, according to CNN. As WHO officials finished off preparations for their big press conference Monday morning, Beijing announced that it would delay the National People's Congress, which had been set for early March. The move was telegraphed by leaked media reports well in advance. Officials said Monday the key political meetings, originally due to take place from March 5, would be rescheduled. Analysts said the government in Beijing was worried about the optics of holding a large-scale public event while millions are living under lockdown. We agree - that would not be a good look for the CCP right now, especially after all of those videos of police rounding up violators of the lockdown who were probably just trying to find something to eat. President Xi said one day earlier that China is in a "crisis" that would inevitably impact the country's economy. But whatever the fallout, he promised it would be brief and manageable. Following the departure of the WHO team from Wuhan, local authorities made an extraordinary decision: all of a sudden, the cities' most senior officials announced a loosening of the city's lockdown. Millions rejoiced. But they were soon disappointed: Because three hours later, the order was reversed, we assume, after Beijing caught wind of it. According to the SCMP, the retracted announcement was issued by a 'subordinate working group' that didn't have official approval from their superiors. The individuals responsible will be 'reprimanded'. The lockdown has been in effect since Jan. 23. The order would have allowed non-residents with no symptoms and no contact with infected patients to leave, a decision that would have freed thousands of foreign students. In other news, Guangdong, China's second worst-hit province, has downgraded its level of alert, with local officials saying the outbreak has mostly been contained to Hubei. As we reported last night, figures released early Monday in China reported 409 new cases of the novel coronavirus and 150 new deaths from the outbreak on Sunday. That brings the total number of confirmed cases to 77,150, with a death toll of 2,592 (which will be higher if the Iran deaths are confirmed). The majority of new cases, 398, were in Hubei. In Israel, PM Benjamin Netanyahu is fighting for his political future in a critical upcoming election that could see him jailed if he doesn't hang on to power. So the heavy-handed measures to contain foreigners suspected of carrying the virus are hardly a surprise. In the latest step to contain the virus, Israel will send hundreds of East Asian nationals back to their home countries in the coming days, according to the Israel Airport Authority. While Iran remains the epicenter of the outbreak in the Middle East, and several neighbors have already closed their borders, the first confirmed case was detected in Bahrain overnight. Now, just imagine if Trump did that. Vietnamese airline Bamboo Airways is suspending all flights to South Korea starting from Feb. 26. In closing, we bring you comments made by Warren Buffett in an interview with CNBC, a clip of which was released on Monday. The 'Oracle of Omaha' said the virus is 'scary stuff'. But it shouldn't impact humans' decisions about whether to buy or sell stocks, Buffett said, alluding to the old Ben Graham axiom that stocks should be bought and held based on the fundamental value of the underlying company. But as twitter's Mark Spiegel joked, Buffett's remarks had an unexpected connotation:

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/wuhan-eases-lockdown-then-retracts-order-3-hours-later-italy-cases-soar-past-200-live 

:: 2-24-20 Strange Sounds :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Three Earthquakes Rattle Dangerous New Madrid While Two Rare Tremors Hit Maine

By Strange Sounds - Feb 24, 2020

Yesterday, two rare earthquakes were felt in Maine. A few hours later, 3 other quakes hit within the New Madrid Seismic Zone. The New Madrid Fault is one of the most dangerous earthquake zone in the U.S. and is best known for its massive jolts in 1811-1812. In comparison, there are no known geologically active fault zones in Maine. So when a quake hit, it’s quite a sensation! Yesterday, both zones recorded minor but shallow tremors that were felt widely.  2 earthquakes near Sabattus, Maine The two earthquakes were felt and heard by residents of Sabattus and nearby cities, around 6 p.m. on Sunday evening. M2.2 – 1km WSW of Sabattus, Maine; reported by 180 people M 1.5 – 1km SSE of Sabattus, Main; reported by 13 people The depth of the strongest quake was just over 3 miles and this also the reason so many people felt it, despite its M2.2. Maine sits in the middle of the North American Plate, which slightly moves every year. The motion puts stress on the entire crust of North America and when it is released, it creates some small earthquakes and rumbling noises like those people felt and heard around Sabattus, yesterday. 3 earthquakes rattle the New Madrid Fault Zone Just a few hours later, 3 minor and shallow earthquakes also rattle the New Madrid Fault. 2 right in the ‘red zone’ of the fault line and one a bit aside.

M2.8 – 11km SE of El Dorado, Arkansas, reported by 18 people

M2.7 – 6km ENE of Malden, Missouri, reported by 11 people

M2.2 – 5km SSE of Manila, Arkansas, no reports

While those earthquakes aren’t extravagant at all, they just remind us that we are overdue for a giant eruption of this very active seismic fault zone. This means that a devastating ‘Big One’ could occur any time now. More earthquake news on Strange Sounds or Steve Quayle. [News Center Maine]

https://strangesounds.org/2020/02/earthquakes-new-madrid-maine-usa.html

[ :: 12-31-09/1-1-10 New Years Eve Service (first word)  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::]

etc. For the disasters that shall take place are many, the flooding shall be far greater than in times past, the mudslides far greater than in times past, the earthquakes shall be more numerous and far greater than in times past. The tornadoes, oh the savageness of the tornadoes that shall rip across the land, the straight winds, the hurricanes, the forest fires, the volcanoes shall erupt, the rising of the sea level that will be marked not in inches but in feet. etc.. 

:: 1-18-09 am service (1^st word) :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::]

etc. Keep your eyes upon me, watch and listen, even as volcanoes begin to erupt, landslides and avalanches, flooding overseas, soon to America. But keep your eyes on the things that I have told you and realize that my church shall go through this time in great victory.

[ :: 12-31-10 / 1-1-11 New Years Eve Service  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::]

etc. The storms will be far greater than the storms you have seen before, more hurricanes, more tornadoes, more typhoons, more cyclones, more tidal waves, more earthquakes, more flooding, more mudslides, oh, the trouble, the trouble, the trouble that shall come.  At times you may wonder what is taking place, and I say unto you, get into my word, look in my word, know what Jeremiah has said, know what Ezekiel has said, know what Joel told you etc

:: 2-24-20 The Big Wobble :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Monday, 24 February 2020

Thousands of homes flooded after three once-in-a-lifetime storms have hit the UK in the first two months of 2020: Some areas expecting a months rainfall today

The English Bridge may have to close if barriers breach at Coleham, Shropshire Council said, credit BBC The homes and businesses flooded in the UK are now in the thousands after three once-in-a-lifetime storms have hit the UK in the first two months of 2020, with yet another storm rolling in from the Atlantic today. Almost 2,000 homes had been flooded by Storm Dennis more than a week ago, and the rain has been relentless since last October. Flooding in Shrewsbury could reach its "highest ever" level and will close off the city centre today as another one month worth of rainfall is expected. The Met Office has today issued almost a hundred flood warnings and two hundred flood alerts, with some areas expecting another 50 mm of rain to an already soddened ground.

http://www.thebigwobble.org/2020/02/thousands-of-homes-flooded-after-three.html?m=1 

[ :: 2-8-02 At the altar after the pm service (second word)  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::]

etc. a terrible dark cloud has covered the earth, sickness, pain, suffering, bloodshed, drought, hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, fire, famine, pestilences, heartaches and sorrow, the anti-christ rising to power and fame. Oh, what a day that has now come.

:: 2--20 What the Finger :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

'Typhoid Mary' Infected 51 People Without Showing Symptoms: Now We Have Evidence 'Coronavirus Mary's' Are On The Loose And 'Untraceable Outbreaks' Are Happening Around The World – Was This Pandemic Forecast In The Apocalyptic Denver International Airport Murals? allnewspipeline.com

Susan Duclos 2 days ago in Opinion

Two stories published within the last few days underscore why this Coronavirus 'pandemic' can be the stuff of medical, political and humanitarian nightmares. While officially as of this moment, this 'outbreak' has not been labeled a 'pandemic', these two stories show us why it soon will be. According to this new story at the NY Post, 'untraceable' coronavirus cases have emerged in three countries; cases where people have fallen ill to the virus but authorities have been unable to trace it back to anyone who had either lived in or visited China recently or had met with someone who recently had visited China. The second story from the International Business Times proves that the world may have a number of 'super spreaders' on the loose as we had reported in this February 11th ANP story, but with a ghastly addition. As the IBT story reported, while 10 towns in Italy have now been quarantined (now up to 12 and that number sure to grow in the days ahead) with all public gatherings banned completely, including church services, carnivals, dances and sporting events, after a cluster of coronavirus cases emerged among a group of people who had attended a bar together, including 5 doctors, one member of that group had dinner earlier this month with a man who had visited China in January, and had later shown flu-like symptoms, but has since tested negative for the virus, Italian media said. It had already reported that doctors had confirmed that 'asymptomatic' people could have this virus, be contagious to others while showing no symptoms themselves or even know they are sick. With what's happening in Italy reminding us immediately of 'Typhoid Mary', who was the first person in the United States identified as an asymptomatic carrier of the pathogen associated with typhoid fever, of note: Mary Mallon was presumed to have infected 51 people, three of whom died, over the course of her career as a cook. She was twice forcibly isolated by public health authorities and died after a total of nearly three decades in isolation. So with evidence out of Italy that a man who had visited China, was testing negative for the virus, but he was also the likely source of 15 people getting infected by the outbreak in Italy, and now untraceable coronavirus cases in South Korea, Singapore and Iran, those who aren't paying attention to what's now happening should listen to the words of those now being struck by it and outside of China with quarantines now in Europe. Codogno mayor Francesco Passerini said the news of the cases "has sparked alarm" throughout the town south of Milan. The 38-year old, who works for Unilever in Lodi, was in a serious condition in intensive care. A football friend of his, the son of a bar owner in Codogno, has also tested positive, along with three regulars at the bar. The three, all of whom are retired, live in the small town of Castiglione d'Adda. The mayor there said the locals were "extremely worried" about the spread of the deadly disease.

https://magazine.whatfinger.com/story/typhoid-mary-infected-51-people-without-showing-symptoms-now-we-have-evidence-coronavirus-marys-are-on-the-loose-and-untraceable-outbreaks

-are-happeni/ 

[ :: 7-2-16 am service Camp Meeting 2016  ::  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::  ::]

Let your spiritual eyes be open, for many things shall come to pass, many things you shall see, for you have not seen the big terrorist attack here in America yet, but you will see it, you will see it.  For you shall yet see great and mighty attacks here in the United States, you shall see these things come to pass.  You will also see the stock market, if you have got money there get it out, says the Lord, get it out now, for later will be too late.  Also you shall see many things taking place overseas like you have never seen before in your life.  And the political realm shall get even, even darker now, you shall hear things that you did not know, etc

:: 2-24-20 You Tube :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Dow Futures Plunge 800 Points. Now Comes the 25% Crash, Warns Analyst

875 views

•Feb 24, 2020

Cryptocurrency News

Please change your life!!! Click on the link! http://youtube.com+watch=@3162039724/ ...

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Software at the best prices: http://amzn.com@3162039724/f3ANs 

The U. S. stock market looks set for a disastrous open with Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures down 800 points on Monday morning. Investors are finally taking the coronavirus seriously as the deadly virus spread rapidly in Italy and South Korea over the weekend. Speaking to CNBC, Sunaina Sinha Haldea of Cebile Capital warned a major stock market correction is now on the cards. You’re now finally seeing [financial markets] price in the downside scenario of the economic impacts. I think you can see stocks come down 20-25% at this point from where we are today if the economic news and repercussions in the real world continue. Bank of America strategists also weighed in, saying the chance of recession is now significantly higher. Dow futures contracts took an immediate hit overnight as China’s Xi Jinping said his country still didn’t have the virus under control and admitted “shortcomings” in the government’s response. The market continued to bleed out into the early hours of U. S. premarket trading. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq Composite futures were down 2.56% and 3% respectively. The deadly coronavirus took a turn for the worse over the weekend with cases ramping up outside China. Italy confirmed a total 152 cases on Monday and locked down 50,000 people in northern regions near Milan. South Korea raised its alert to the highest level after numbers shot up to 600 cases. The economic impact of the coronavirus going global is impossible to predict. But investors are cashing out and heading for safety. Vishnu Varathan, head of economics and strategy at Mizuho Bank Ltd., Singapore stated: With cases of COVID-19 still rising, it is hard to tell when manufacturing will bottom, potentially setting the stage for prolonged weakness … This is a safe-haven trade – you’re getting rid of risk in your portfolio –That flight to safe havens is happening at a blistering pace with gold up to $1,700 this morning. The stock market selloff is unnerving, but the biggest warning sign is the bond market. The 30-year Treasury yield hit a record low overnight on high demand. Even more telling is the 10-year yield. Last week, Bank of America warned that a drop below 1.4% would be a breaking point for potential recession. Indeed, breaking 1.4% in an on-hold context for the Fed creates a significant inversion of the curve, pushes recession signals higher. Well, it broke overnight, falling to 1.39%. Despite predicting a 25% fall in stocks, Sunaina Sinha Haldea pointed to some buying opportunities around the world. There are certain geographies that are benefiting from the coronavirus news cycle. India might be one of them, Vietnam is another, as you see supply chain diversification, as you see other economies start to look a little bit better in the light of China weakness, which is not just trade troubles but now real economy troubles and slowdown. According to her analysis, the most bearish sectors remain travel and leisure. [Investors will be] staying away and potential shorting leisure, travel, discretionary consumer and so on. Even conservative estimates put the potential economic impact of the coronavirus at trillions of U. S. dollars. Experts came up with the rough estimate by extrapolating the economic impact of the SARS outbreak in 2003. The full impact of the latest COVID-19 outbreak on global trade, travel, healthcare and logistics is so far unknown.

All data is taken from the source: https://www.ccn.com/ 

Article Link: https://www.ccn.com/dow-plunge-800-po ...

#market #news2you #financialtimessubscription #news #nytimes #cnn #newsnow

Dow Futures Plunge 800 Points. Now Comes the 25% Crash, Warns Analyst: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoB6B... 

:: 2--20 Hal Lindsey :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

The Prince of Planet Earth

By Hal Lindsey

When a person or a nation runs from God, that person or nation may think they are running toward atheism. But it doesn’t work out that way. Human beings are religious by nature. Pascal spoke of a God-shaped void within every person. In fact, a person without Christ is his own God-shaped void. We are made in God’s image. Nothing less than God can fulfill us. But people try anyway. They attempt to fill the void with everything else. The emptiness within reaches out to money, drugs, relationships… you name it. The world today is running from God but starving for deity. Those two things make a dangerous mix.  Karl Marx envisioned a communist nation as being utterly free of religion. In Russia, the Bolsheviks tried to put that into practice. They basically outlawed the worship of God and the preaching of His word. In doing so, they made the state their religion. Look at the life of Lenin. Look at the eternal life they tried to give him in the mausoleum on Red Square. The Soviet Union became one of the most “religious” nations in history. Stalin saw to it that everyone worshipped Lenin, the state, and himself.  For some, science becomes the religion. An article in Quartz magazine by Jamie Holmes, said, “A small group of contemporary psychologists have published a series of provocative experiments showing that faith in science can serve the same mentally-stabilizing function as religious beliefs.” But science is not meant to be stable. It changes with every new discovery. Despite the inherent variability of scientific thought, many of today’s scientists have formed a priesthood and formulated a creed. If you do not strictly adhere to the creed of scientism, you are shut out from academic success in certain fields. Older climate scientists often question the creed of global warming. But younger scientists can’t afford to question the creed if they ever intend to enter that field of study at a high level. I hear evolutionists brag that only a few esteemed biologists disagree with Darwinian evolution. But that’s like bragging that all Tibetan monks believe in the benefits of meditation. If you don’t believe the basic tenants of the religion, you’ll never be invited to a high-ranking position in that religion. One of the best ways to see that these things have turned into religion is to look at the rage of adherents when you disagree with them. Recently, French intellectual Renaud Camus was given a 2-month suspended sentence for pointing out the danger that mass immigration poses for France. He said present-day French immigration policies will cause, “The replacement of the population.” Camus said, “The ethnic substitution, the great replacement, is the most important event in the history of our nation since it has existed; as with other people, if the story continues, it will not be that of France.” You would expect his alarming, yet logical statement to be debated. But instead, they convicted of a crime. Present attitudes on Muslim immigration in Europe do not allow for discussion. And enforced silence is a hallmark of religion. Turning away from God does not equal a turn from religion. And a turn toward religion is not the same as turning toward God. He is interested in personal relationships. Yes, He wants us to be part of a larger fellowship of like-minded people. But the core relationship must be One-to-one.

“Al-Quds Brigades [Islamic Jihad’s military wing] announces that it has finished its military response to the assassination crimes in Khan Yunis and Damascus,” PIJ said in a statement. “It promises our people and nation that it will continue its struggle and that it will respond to any continued [aggression] by the occupation against our people and land.” Nevertheless, an Israeli security official said Jerusalem has received “messages from various ranks within the PIJ regarding a desire for an immediate ceasefire,” but Israel was skeptical of the claims and only would believe actions on the ground rather than words. “The IDF will continue to act until quiet is restored to the south,” the official said. Of the 100 rockets fired toward Israel, 90% were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile-defense system, the IDF said. While the majority of rockets struck open fields, some fell in residential communities. One landed near a playground in Sderot, as well as in the yard of a home. In Netivot, rocket shrapnel fell near a house. The IDF carried out retaliatory strikes against PIJ targets across the Gaza Strip throughout Monday, including a military compound in Khan Yunis used for training and to store weapons, as well as underground infrastructure and rocket launchpads used to fire rockets into Israel. Following the PIJ ceasefire announcement, an incoming rocket siren was activated around 8 p.m. in Kissufim after a mortar was fired from Gaza. One wave of rocket fire from Gaza just before 4 p.m. lasted more than 90 minutes. Sirens wailed in Ashkelon, Sderot and Netivot and surrounding communities. The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced that due to the rocket fire, the Erez crossing with Gaza would be closed, no merchants would be able to cross into Israel, and the fishing zone would be reduced to six nautical miles. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was in Ariel with US Ambassador David Friedman, warned that Israel may launch a broader campaign against Hamas in Gaza if rockets are not totally stopped. “Last night, we attacked in Gaza and in Syria,” he said. “I don’t plan to let up... Beyond the hard strikes on our enemies, Hamas and Islamic Jihad need to understand: This won’t continue. If they do not completely stop, we will have to activate the plan we prepared for a broad campaign.” Netanyahu said these are not just words, and the plan goes beyond the past three IDF operations in Gaza. However, he said, war is the final option.  “I am not hurrying into war,” Netanyahu said. “I know the price that our soldiers and the families of the fallen pay... Woe to Hamas and Islamic Jihad when that day comes. It’s their choice.” “We will do what it takes to bring back total security for the residents of the South,” he said. Netanyahu visited an Iron Dome battery in Ashdod, where he said: “Yesterday, we attacked on several fronts, in Syria and in Gaza, and we are continuing to strike now, with planes, tanks and helicopters. We will continue to strike until it is quiet again. We have a message to the heads of terrorist organizations: If the quiet doesn’t return, you’re next.” Defense Minister Naftali Bennett met with citizens and council heads in Sderot and the Gaza border communities on Monday. “We are not interested in a broad campaign, but we are preparing a plan, and if there is no choice, we will put it into action,” he said. “We won’t tell the enemy when and where.” UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov called on Hamas and Islamic Jihad to halt its rocket and mortar fire against Israel, which “only risk dragging Gaza into another round of hostilities with no end in sight.” In a video briefing to the UN Security Council in New York, he said: “The indiscriminate launching of rockets against civilian population centers violates international law and must end.” “The past 48 hours have once again showed us how fragile the situation in Gaza is,” Mladenov said. “Its population suffers under Hamas’s rule and Israeli closures, while militant activity forces Israeli communities to live in constant fear of the next rocket attack. No amount of humanitarian or economic support on its own will resolve either the situation in Gaza or the broader conflict. Gaza ultimately requires a political solution.” “The situation is escalating as we speak,” he said. “The UN team is in contact with Egyptian officials on the ground. We call for a cessation of rocket fire against a civilian population, which violates international law.” UN Ambassador Danny Danon contacted UNSC members ahead of the meeting, telling them that the 50-plus rockets fired into Israel “indicate a clear intention by terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip to escalate the situation. Israel is acting with determination and resolve to end the threat to its citizens. We will not hesitate to continue our defensive actions.” He called on the international community to condemn the rocket fire from Gaza and to take action against the terrorist organizations shooting at Israel. Al-Quds Brigades warned earlier on Monday that it was “ready to confront any aggression. The enemy should know that if it continues [to carry out aggression], we will respond with force.”  Earlier in the day, Netanyahu spoke with Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi and Ashkelon Mayor Tomer Glam, updating them on the security situation. He also held a telephone security consultation with the heads of the security establishment. Shortly before a barrage of rocket fire in the early afternoon, Bennett said that Israel is “preparing a plan to fundamentally change the situation in the Gaza Strip. I really understand the situation of the people of the South. They deserve peace and security.”  “We have eliminated at least six terrorists over the last day – not only in Gaza,” Bennett said during a conference in Jerusalem on Monday. “But we have also made progress in hurting the source of the problem. But deterrence is not built in a moment.” The hostilities began on Sunday when the IDF killed a PIJ terrorist who planted an explosive device and prevented Palestinians from retrieving his body. Israel then came under an intense barrage of 26 rockets, 13 of which were intercepted by Iron Dome.

On Sunday night, Israel carried out retaliatory airstrikes against PIJ targets in Syria and throughout the Gaza Strip following earlier rocket fire, killing at least six terrorists. Amid fears of violence, IDF Home Front Command announced that roads, schools and the railroad line to Beersheba near the Gaza Strip would be closed. The areas and roads that are blocked are all agricultural access routes west of Route 232. Highway 4 will be closed from Zikim Junction to the intersection of Kibbutz Netiv Haasara in both directions, Route 34 from Yad Mordechai Junction to Kibbutz Nir Am and Route 232 from Kibbutz Mefalsim to Kfar Aza Junction will also be closed. In addition, Kobe Hill in Sderot, Black Arrow Memorial, Bells Hill, Nazeemite Hill and Lone Horseshoe Hill will also be prohibited. Zikim Beach is closed to the public. Israel Railways said trains between Ashkelon and Beersheba would stop operating, and the stations in Sderot, Netivot and Ofakim would be closed. Hamas and PIJ had earlier threatened to avenge the killing of a terrorist by the IDF after he tried to plant explosives along the Gaza border fence early Sunday morning. Graphic footage from the scene showed an armored IDF bulldozer driving at high speed toward a group of Palestinian youth throwing stones to prevent them from retrieving the body. Several people were seen carrying one individual, but the bulldozer was seen lifting the body of the deceased suspect from the ground before it returned to Israel along with an IDF Merkava tank that had been guarding it. The dead terrorist was identified as Muhammed Ali al-Na’im, 27, a Quds Brigade commander in the Khan Yunis area. In response to the ongoing criticism of how the IDF took the body, Bennett on Monday said his goal was not to release terrorists until the bodies of the fallen IDF soldiers are returned to Israel. “I have a goal: to bring the bodies of Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul home, not by releasing murderers. I sent them both to fight in Protective Edge, and the way to get them back is by increasing the pain for Hamas.” Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.

https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/IDF-hits-Palestinian-Islamic-Jihad-targets-in-Gaza-and-Syria-618547

:: 2--20 Hal Lindsey :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

The Modern Rise of an Ancient Evil

By Hal Lindsey

The March 2020 issue of The Atlantic carries a sad, but fascinating story headlined, “Why Witchcraft Is on the Rise.” In the print edition, it’s called “The Witching Hour.” The magazine takes a sometimes bemused, mostly respectful approach to the topic of witchcraft. The sub headline reads, “Americans’ interest in spell-casting tends to wax as instability rises and trust in establishment ideas plummets.”  According to the article, “A 2014 Pew Research Center report suggested that the United States’ adult population of pagans and Wiccans was about 730,000 — on par with the number of Unitarians. But Wicca represents just one among many approaches to witchery, and not all witches consider themselves pagan or Wiccan. These days, Diaz told me, ‘everyone calls themselves witches.’” The “Diaz” mentioned is one Juliet Diaz. The article says she “describes herself as a seer capable of reading auras and connecting with ‘the other side’… one in a long line of healers in her family, which traces its roots to Cuba and the indigenous Taíno people, who settled in parts of the Caribbean. She is also a professional witch: Diaz sells anointing oils and ‘intention infused’ body products in her online store, instructs more than 8,900 witches enrolled in her online school, and leads witchy workshops that promise to leave attendees ‘feeling magical af!’ In 2018, Diaz, the author of the best-selling book Witchery: Embrace the Witch Within, earned more than half a million dollars from her magic work and was named Best Witch — yes, there are rankings — by Spirit Guides Magazine.” Diaz said that when she was growing up, “her family’s spellwork felt taboo. But over the past few years, witchcraft, long viewed with suspicion and even hostility, has transmuted into a mainstream phenomenon. The coven is the new squad.” When I released Satan is Alive and Well on Planet Earth back in 1973, satanism, witchcraft, and other forms of the occult were exploding onto the American scene. But they were still viewed with shock and suspicion. Today, they permeate society, and no one is shocked. Last year, Wired Magazine ran a story with the headline, “Trump's Presidency Has Spawned a New Generation of Witches.” Whatever you think of President Trump, it ought to be surprising that thousands of people have turned to witchcraft and the occult in order to oppose him. This is supposedly an era of science and enlightenment, and these people are sticking pins in orange-haired dolls. People feel powerless and afraid. The world seems out of control. Many have a sense that something awful looms on the horizon and they feel desperate to shield and empower themselves. They’re trying to prepare for what they think may be coming by turning to an ancient evil — Satan. 2 Corinthians 4:4 calls him “the god of this world.” Ephesians 2:2 refers to him as “the prince of the power of the air.” Those things are attractive to a fallen human nature. Galatians 5:19 says, “The deeds of the flesh are evident.” Verse 20 lists two of the deeds as “idolatry” and “sorcery.” But Satan gives only an illusion of empowerment and independence. In reality, he crushes and kills. He empowers humans in order to enslave them. His name means “adversary.” In John 8:44, Jesus called him the father of lies. The Spirit of God works in opposite ways. Instead of death and destruction, God brings life and joy. After Galatians 5 tells us about the “deeds of the flesh,” it speaks of the Holy Spirit’s fruit in our lives. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).

Want power? That’s power!

https://www.hallindsey.com/ww-2-19-2020/ 

:: 2-24-20 Christian Post :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Confessions of a Teenage Witch

By Sarah Anne Sumpolec Guest Writer

– When I opened the door, he turned and leveled the shotgun at me. The bedroom was ice cold and he stood inside of a wooden laundry hamper wrapped from head to toe in a blanket. All I could see were his eyes and the gun. I threw up my hands in surrender. “Dad! It’s me. Sarah.” He kept the gun leveled at me. “What are you doing here? Go! Go outside! He’s hiding in the trees.” He gestured with the gun. “Go look in the trees!” I turned and ran downstairs, out the back door and into the frigid air. I looked up at my parent’s bedroom window where the gun barrel now rested on the windowsill and the blanket shaped figure peered out. I looked up in the trees thinking I’d see my father’s hallucination. Thinking that my father couldn’t be wrong about intruders living in our attic and outside in the trees. Suddenly, he disappeared from the window and I shivered. My mother had left me there while she took my sister somewhere safer. I had nowhere to go but back inside. That was the day my whole world shifted. I was fifteen and I had grown up as “daddy’s girl”. In my eyes, there was nothing he couldn’t do. Until that horrible day. The cocaine made my father a different person, someone I could no longer trust, and even though I was far from grown up, I felt like I was all on my own. So I became a witch. Just like that. Witchcraft was something my father had introduced me to through an old book he once gave me. I dabbled in it for years, but never really took it seriously until I realized that I needed more help than I was getting. (And I think a small part of me wanted to do something that I knew my father would approve of). My encounter with the barrel of that gun made me wonder what life was really about. I began visiting New Age bookshops, reading books on witchcraft, and looking for answers. Within months I had collected crystals, conducted séances, and built an altar in my room to worship the god and goddess I had chosen. I read incantations, used Tarot, cast spells and took on a brand new identity. I was a witch, and proud of it. Resources were a little harder to come by back in the pre-Internet days, but it never stopped me. My mom was more than willing to shell out money to buy the stuff I wanted. My father eventually got clean, but our relationship was severely damaged. Things were a mess at home, they were a mess at school, and I became more and more depressed. I wanted out, and I began to believe that the answer was to kill myself. In fact, my “spirit guide” seemed to confirm that this was the very thing I was supposed to do. I desperately wanted things to change, but no matter what I tried, things just got worse. So one night I drove away in my car intending to never come home again. As I was driving on the back roads, waiting for the carbon monoxide leak in my car to do its work, I remember feeling relieved. Perhaps now, I thought, I can finally escape. All I remember now is that I woke up face down in a small park some time later. I don’t remember parking the car, or getting out, but there I was – very much alive. I felt like a failure, I couldn’t even kill myself. Yet because I had failed, and college was just a few months away, I figured I would just stick it out till then. Maybe if I got away from my family, I’d be able to get my head cleared. I continued to practice the witchcraft, though not as enthusiastically. I moved into my freshman dorm and to my utter horror, I was placed in a room with two Christian roommates. I was not amused. I was completely dumbfounded by these two girls who talked about God and carried their Bibles around. They could even quote things out of it. At first, I thought they were just weird, but they were totally serious about it. They didn’t swear or smoke or drink – which meant that our room was a no-party zone. Which I was also not happy about. But I couldn’t deny that they had a peace and security about life that I had never experienced. Despite being a witch, I was intrigued by their faith and began to eavesdrop on their Bible studies. And it wasn’t long before I accepted their weekly invitation to the Friday night Intervarsity meeting. It was there that I heard a message that made me think that I could get a fresh start on life after all. I made God an offer that night, right before Thanksgiving. I told him that if he was real, and if he really wanted me, then I was his. He took me up on the offer. Things shifted in my world once again, but this time, I wasn’t alone. It took me a while to get my footing with God, but even though my parents hated that I had become a Christian, I knew that it was exactly what I was missing all along. Many people assume that witches are the fake sort with pointy hats and brooms that we see every year around this time. But they aren’t. They are people just like you and me. People who are searching for answers. They just happen to be searching in the wrong place. Gretchen, a character in my book The Alliance said, “It’s like a religion without the rules.” The practice of witchcraft is very open-ended, allowing you to practice in any way you choose, so it can be very fascinating to some. But it’s deadly – it nearly killed me. And there is also the fact that God strictly forbids it. Most of you probably know that. So instead, I want to look at why. Why is witchcraft such a dangerous activity? It’s the wrong power source. Any supernatural power that does not come directly from God comes from Satan. Satan is a real being (see Job 1:6) that likes to masquerade as an “angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14). So even though most witches do not believe in Satan, they are playing in his playground rather than God’s. That’s always a dangerous place to be. It’s real. Since the power source that witchcraft taps into comes from Satan, a lot of stuff actually happens. I don’t even like to think about the things I saw. Yet, just because “stuff happens” doesn’t mean that it’s truth. Satan does have some limited power on earth, so that’s why psychics are sometimes right and why witchcraft seems to “work”. Don’t mistake Satan’s power for God’s. They can’t even compare! It’s an assault on God’s nature. Think about it this way. God gave us his most precious gift when he sent Jesus so that we wouldn’t have to pay the price for our sins. He doesn’t withhold any good thing from us (Psalm 84:11). So if we go elsewhere to get guidance or power or entertainment, then we are basically telling God that he’s not enough for us. We act like he is keeping something from us. When he is really trying to keep us from being led astray by a very convincing enemy. Satan is an enemy of God. When we dabble in witchcraft, we are playing with a very real predator. Most predators don’t simply grab someone off the street by force. They tempt and lure us with innocent questions or pleas for help or even offers of gifts. Once the predator lures you close enough, it’s only then that he can snatch you away. Satan works the same way. He uses innocent looking activities to lure us farther and farther away from the truth. (Check out 1 Peter 5:8)  The truth – God’s Word – is really your best weapon against the enemy. The more familiar you are with God’s Word, then the easier it will be for you to tell when Satan tempts you with something fake. So you don’t need to become an expert on witchcraft in order to talk to someone involved in it. You just need to know God, and His Word. It’s all the ammunition you’ll need. After I became a Christian, I gathered all of my materials, the idols, crystals, books and candles I had used, and burned them all in a big bonfire. I know God was pleased with that. I had traded a whole lot of nothing for a whole lot of God. It was a pretty good deal if you ask me. Sarah Anne Sumpolec is the author of the YA series, Becoming Beka and lives in Virginia with her husband and three little girls. She speaks to teens and parents and continues to write both fiction and non-fiction that deals with the tough issues that young adults face today. She is one of the founders and a contributing author to Girls, God and the Good Life ( www.girlsgodgoodlife.blogspot.com ), a daily blog ministry for teen girls designed to encourage them to grow in their faith and is active online through her own website www.sarahannesumpolec.com  and blog, www.girlsandgod.blogspot.com .

Following the death of his grandfather, Jacob was next in line to assume the position of chief witch doctor in his village. During the initiation rites with other witch doctors, he was forced to ingest harsh substances that promised immense supernatural power. Overwhelmed at first, he wondered how could he walk in the footsteps of such a great witch doctor, without his presence to guide? “As it turns out, he had nothing to be concerned about. Jacob became so famous that people traveled from other nations to witness his power. His spells could bring either healing or death; his words could calm the tortured mind or drive people mad,” according to a report by The Timothy Initiative. In order to attain power within his profession, a blood sacrifice was required. To gain the greatest power, human blood must be shed. Stunningly, the witch doctor community demanded he sacrifice the lives of those closest to him. Following their counsel, he killed his cousin, mother, wife, and even his own son.  This brought him even greater supernatural power, but guilt began to gnaw away at his soul. To find solace, he turned to alcohol and began drinking heavily. It was the only way to dull the pain he felt inside day after day. One day at the bar, he overheard people talking about a movie that was to be shown in the village that night. Curious, he decided to attend. As he watched the JESUS Film, grief flooded his heart as the Holy Spirit brought conviction. MORE

https://www.christianpost.com/news/witch-doctor-killed-his-cousin-mother-wife-and-son-then-he-met-jesus.html 

[ :: 10-14-12 am service ( first word ) :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::]

[ :: 7-2-16 am service Camp Meeting 2016  ::  :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::  ::  ::]

Let your spiritual eyes be open, for many things shall come to pass, many things you shall see, for you have not seen the big terrorist attack here in America yet, but you will see it, you will see it.  For you shall yet see great and mighty attacks here in the United States, you shall see these things come to pass.  You will also see the stock market, if you have got money there get it out, says the Lord, get it out now, for later will be too late.  Also you shall see many things taking place overseas like you have never seen before in your life.  And the political realm shall get even, even darker now, you shall hear things that you did not know, etc

:: 2-16-20 The Economic Collapse :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Japan’s GDP Is Collapsing, And Experts Are Warning That China Will Be Next

February 16, 2020 by Michael Snyder

Global economic conditions are really starting to deteriorate quite rapidly. Economists were projecting that Japan’s GDP would shrink by 3.8 percent on an annualized basis in the fourth quarter, but instead it greatly surpassed expectations by plunging 6.3 percent. If Japan’s GDP falls again during the first quarter of 2020, and thanks to the coronavirus outbreak that seems very likely, then the world’s third largest economy will officially be in a recession. But of course the outlook for China is even worse. At this point, economic activity in China has come to a standstill, and this has thrown global supply chains into a state of chaos. It certainly appears that the entire global economy will shrink during the first quarter, and that will be the very first time that has happened in more than a decade. And if this coronavirus outbreak continues to intensify in the months ahead, the economic consequences are going to be absolutely catastrophic. Even though the experts were anticipating a slowdown in Japan, nobody had any idea that it would be this bad… Japan’s gross domestic product shrank at an annualized pace of 6.3 percent from the previous quarter in the three months through December, according to a preliminary estimate by the Cabinet Office released Monday. Economists surveyed had predicted a fall of 3.8 percent, flagging the adverse impact of a sales tax increase, weak global demand and typhoon disruption. The sales tax increase is being primarily blamed for this collapse in GDP, and without a doubt consumer spending in Japan was way down last quarter…

Consumer spending fell 11.1% after the national sales tax was raised in October to 10% from 8%. During the same month, Typhoon Hagibis ravaged a large swathe of the country. Capital spending declined 14.1% and exports slipped 0.4% due to the fallout from the U.S.-China trade war. Japanese officials were hoping that GDP would bounce back this quarter, but now the coronavirus outbreak has changed everything. At this point it is very difficult to be positive about the immediate future of the Japanese economy, and an increasing number of experts are now anticipating a recession. Here is one example… “I’m getting ready for another contraction in Japan’s first quarter. There just aren’t any positive factors to build a positive growth forecast,” said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Daiwa Securities Co., flagging her view that the economy is likely falling into recession. The Japanese economy greatly benefits from the horde of tourists that usually come over from China, and the two nations have developed a very close trading relationship. Now that those two factors are being disrupted, the outlook for the second quarter is decidedly grim… “There is a good chance of Japan’s economy falling into a recession,” Yoshiki Shinke, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, said before Monday’s data was released. He flagged the risks of supply chains being affected if the outbreak was prolonged. The coronavirus is taking a toll on the number of Chinese tourists to Japan and manufacturing activity due to the economy’s close ties with China, prompting some economists to forecast a contraction lasting two quarters. Ultimately, it is going to be exceedingly difficult for Japan to avoid a recession. But if Chinese GDP also plunges into recession territory this year, that will be even bigger news. According to the New York Times, “the entire global economy could suffer from a prolonged shock in China”, and so investors will be watching the development of this crisis very carefully. The number of confirmed cases and the official death toll both continue to rise, and the draconian measures that the Chinese have taken to contain the outbreak have slowed the Chinese economy to a crawl. The following is how Zero Hedge summarized the recent economic data that we have seen come out of China… While not perfect, and certainly not a comprehensive view of what is really taking place “on the ground”, the above data is a useful real-time indicator of how the people in China perceive the threat of the coronavirus pandemic, and one thing is abundantly clear: as the pandemic spreads further without containment, and as the charts above flatline, so will China’s economy, which means that while Goldman’s draconian view of what happens to Q1 GDP is spot on, the expectation for a V-shaped recovery in Q2 and onward will vaporize faster than a vial of ultra-biohazardaous viruses in a Wuhan virology lab. Of course many in the financial world are still hoping that things won’t be too bad. For example, Dun and Bradstreet is hoping that the crisis in China will only “cause a drag of approximately one percentage point on global GDP”… China, the world’s second largest economy after US, contributes about 20 percent to the world’s gross domestic product (GDP). However, according to a report by Dun and Bradstreet, the Chinese economy might cause a drag of approximately one percentage point on global GDP if prevention of Coronavirus gets delayed beyond the summer of 2020. That is a wildly optimistic projection, but hopefully they are right. Hopefully the coronavirus will fizzle out with the arrival of warmer weather and the global economy can start to get back to normal. Unfortunately, a return to “normal” is probably not in the cards. Even before this coronavirus outbreak, the global economy was really starting to slow down. Economic numbers were absolutely dismal all over the world, and many experts were warning that we were right on the verge of the next global recession. Now that this outbreak has erupted, we definitely have much more momentum in a downward direction. Very challenging times are ahead, although most people in the western world still don’t understand what is happening. As far as the coronavirus is concerned, the key will be what happens to the number of confirmed cases outside of China. Over the past week that number has roughly doubled, and if that keeps happening every week we will soon have a full-blown global pandemic on our hands. There are now 75 confirmed cases in Singapore, 59 confirmed cases in Japan and 57 confirmed cases in Hong Kong. It is becoming increasingly difficult to keep this virus contained, and we are rapidly approaching a major tipping point.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/japans-gdp-is-collapsing-and-experts-are-warning-that-china-will-be-next 

:: 2-18-20 Zero Hedge :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

HSBC To Cut 35,000 Jobs, Shed $100 Billion In Assets As Profits Plunge

by Tyler Durden Tue, 02/18/2020 - 07:04

Banks around the world are supposed to benefit the most from central banks inflating assets, and hyperinflating stock markets, but over the past few years, central banks have instead caused some of the biggest bank job cuts in half a decade. HSBC, Europe's largest bank and troubled lender, although not nearly as troubled as Deutsche Bank, said it would cut upwards of 35,000 jobs, shed $100 billion in assets, and take a massive $7.3 billion hit to goodwill as part of a major overhaul under Chairman Mark Tucker, the company said in a press release on Tuesday morning. This comes months after HSBC's interim CEO Noel Quinn unveiled plans to "remodel" large parts of the bank. The restructuring of the London-based bank is being led by Quinn, who replaced John Flint in August on an interim basis. Quinn is vying for the permanent role of CEO, which the bank said will be decided this year. Europe's biggest bank by assets is expected to focus more on Asia and the Middle East, while it winds down operations in Europe and the US; HSBC derives at least 50% of its revenue in Asia. The bank said net profit plunged 53% to $5.97 billion last year, due to the $7.3BN goodwill hit and also thanks to the record low interest rates and NIRP unleashed by central banks. Tucker said the bank faces substantial challenges in the UK, Hong Kong, and mainland China. He also issued a warning over the Covid-19 outbreak in China and quickly spreading across Asia to Europe, indicating that the virus could impact the bank's performance this year. Quinn confirmed the bank would cut 15% of its workforce over the next two-three years. This is on top of the 10,000 jobs it axed in Oct. "The totality of this program is that our headcount is likely to go from 235,000 to closer to 200,000 over the next three years," Quinn told Reuters. adding that "HSBC will be “exiting businesses where necessary." “Around 30% of our capital is currently allocated to businesses that are delivering returns below their cost of equity, largely in global banking and markets in Europe and the U.S.,” he noted. In its long-struggling U.S. arm, Quinn said HSBC will cut assets in investment banking and markets by almost half, and shut around 70 of its 229 branches. As of September, HSBC was the U.S.’s 14th largest commercial bank according to Federal Reserve data, with around $181 billion assets. Mr. Quinn said he had considered putting the unit up for sale but decided against it because the U.S. is a crucial part of the bank’s global network. The benefits of the restructuring will be evident largely from 2023 onward, said Citigroup analyst Ronit Ghose, who recommended investors sell HSBC shares. And to think it was only last year when 50 banks laid off 77,780 jobs, the most since 91,448 in 2015. With the global economy quickly decelerating, and a virus shock that could tilt the world into recession, if we had to guess, tens of thousands of more banking jobs will be slashed this year.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/hsbc-cut-35000-jobs-profits-plunge 

:: 2-15-20 Long Room :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

The Convoluted Thinking Of The Left Creates Dictators, Genocides & Death On An Industrial Scale - Americans Should Never Give Up Our Right To Defend Ourselves Against Such Evils!

allnewspipeline.com | 2/15/2020 | Staff

"The Best Mix Of Hard-Hitting REAL News & Cutting-Edge Alternative News On The Web"

The Convoluted Thinking Of The Left Creates Dictators, Genocides & Death On An Industrial Scale - Americans Should Never Give Up Our Right To Defend Ourselves Against Such Evils!

Speech - Laws - Are - Democrats - Attempt

'Hate Speech Laws' Are Democrats Attempt To Do Away With The 1st Amendment

Apparently, two wrongs now make a “right”, stealing is now a “right” and might makes “right”. How did I arrive at these conclusions? Let me elucidate my reasoning.

Bygone - Days - Years - People - America

In bygone days, more than a hundred years ago now, “some” people in America had slaves. Those who had them lived largely in the South (By the way, a lot of white men in the North died to set the slaves free. Do they get compensation?). Some who held slaves were white and some were black. The slaves were largely black, although some might consider indentured white servants to have also been slaves. It doesn’t matter. We must punish ALL white people today for actions (which by the way were not considered crimes in their time period) for the actions of very few. I will not (and do not) condone slavery. So do not impute any animus to my statement above. It is a simple fact. It was not a crime in the South at the period in time. Nor was it a crime throughout most of humanity’s history. Was it right? No, it was not. But it was prevalent throughout most of our past. Guess what? It wasn’t limited to black people either. Every ethnicity on the planet has been a slave at one point or another in humanity’s history. At no point did any of them receive any kind of compensation and every single one of the other groups managed to pull themselves out of the...

(Excerpt) Read more at: allnewspipeline.com 

https://www.longroom.com/discussion/1798822/the-convoluted-thinking-of-the-left-creates-dictators-genocides-death-on-an-industrial-scale-americans-should-never-give-up-our-right-to-

defend-ourselves-against-such-evils 

:: 2-18-20 Sky Watch TV :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

DEVISING PSYCHOTRONIC WEAPONS FOR ANTICHRIST: Redefining Neuroweapons Is New Focus Of Emerging Capabilities In Neuroscience And Neurotechnology

February 18, 2020 by SkyWatch Editor

As global conflicts assume increasingly asymmetric and “gray zone” forms, the ability to employ current and newly developing techniques and tools of neurocognitive science to manipulate human thought and behavior must be viewed as a present and increasing challenge. Ongoing developments in neuroscience and technology, which trend toward 5 to 10 year trajectories of progression, make the brain sciences valid, viable, and of growing value for operational use in warfare, intelligence, and national security (WINS) applications […] particular advances in neuroscience-tech have an increased potential for dual use and direct use in… applicability of gene editing methods, nanoparticles, and other tools that can modify the central nervous system… (READ MORE)

https://www.skywatchtv.com/2020/02/18/devising-psychotronic-weapons-for-antichrist-redefining-neuroweapons-is-new-focus-of-emerging-capabilities-in-neuroscience-and-neurotechnology/ 

:: 2-20-20 Sky Watch TV :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Author Archives: SkyWatch Editor

SHADOWLAND—PART 12: Jeffrey Epstein and ‘Brothers of the Shadow’ (OR: Earth Temples, Magic Circles, Sorcerers, And The Fine Art Of Demon Conjuring)

February 20, 2020

Having a long history predating the time of Christ by thousands of years, ritual locations like Epstein’s Orgy Island typically employed three main components—a temple (often domed like the one on Epstein’s island as documented in Shadowland), a second area where ceremonials— frequently elaborate—were performed, and a third geometric pattern area (circle, square or rectangle) where the main sacrificial altar was located.

According To This Attorney, The New Book SHADOWLAND Is On To Something—FBI Has Been Lying About The Murder Of Seth Rich… Obama, Hillary, Comey, Clapper, Brennan Implicated In Cover Up

February 20, 2020

An attorney has uncovered heavily redacted emails from the FBI, which indicated the agency has been providing false testimony on former DNC staffer Seth Rich who was murdered in 2016. One America’s Caitlin Sinclair has more from New York.

Israel’s Top Rabbi: “I’m Currently In Discussions With The MESSIAH Himself”

February 20, 2020

A Haredi rabbi, privy to secrets concerning the Messiah, was sworn to silence for several decades by hidden righteous men but they have now ordered him for the first time to publicize their messages about current events and the imminent arrival of the Messiah. They tell him that it is literally a matter of life or death. Rabbi Zissholtz explained that he had been charged by these hidden righteous men to break his silence and to begin informing the public of the imminent arrival of the Messiah. “Getting the word out now that the Messiah is closer than ever is a matter of life and death,” Rabbi Zissholtz said. “Haven’t you heard of…

Convention Of ‘Christian Witches’ To Gather In Salem On Easter Sunday To Use Bible For Casting Spells

February 20, 2020

A group of “Christian witches” will be holding their annual convention on Easter in Salem, Massachusetts. The gathering of “Witches, Sorcerers/Soceresses, Wizards, Warlocks, Necromancers, Readers” and “like-minded Magickal Beings” is being organized by Rev. Valerie Love (aka KAISI). Scheduled for April 10-12, it will coincide with the Christian holiday of Easter and feature elements of witchcraft as well as Christian prayers. Love bills herself as a spiritual life coach and “ordained Minister of Spiritual Consciousness.” On her website, Love claims to have been born a witch, and, as a child, “saw spirits and communed with otherworldly entities.” She also claims to be a practicing Christian Witch and founded the Covenant of Christian Witches Mystery School which she claims is in the “Solomonic tradition.” In an Instagram post, Love stated that the Book of Psalms “is really a book of spells…

Sanhedrin Assembly On Third Temple Brings Representatives From Sons Of Ishmael

February 20, 2020

On Sunday night, the Sanhedrin hosted a conference to discuss the role of the Arabs and Muslims in the Third Temple. The conference featured a lecture by Dr. Mordechai Kedar, a senior lecturer in the Department of Arabic at Bar-Ilan University. Dr. Kedar has frequently referred to the claim that Jerusalem is holy to the Muslims as “fake news.”

Is The Prophesied End-Times Apostasy Happening Right Before Our Eyes?

February 20, 2020

I listened as a man “deconstructed” his Christian faith for nearly 1 million podcast subscribers, saying, “I have jumped ship,” taking his wife and children with him “into the waters.” A local pastor resigned following his own deconstruction of the faith. What prior generations called “a crisis of faith,” this generation terms “deconstruction,” stemming from hard faith questions that seem to have no answers (or perhaps the answers are too hard to bear). The Bible calls it abandoning, falling away or departing from the faith (Matt. 24:10) and it is one of the signs Jesus said we would see prior to His return. The signs are not only prominent today, but converging…

https://www.skywatchtv.com/author/skywatch-editor/ 

:: 2-15-20 You Tube :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Food Supply to Collapse after Outbreak? Billionaires Predict "Global Problems"

A 2015 Soros-funded think tank predicted a 2020 breakdown of the global food supply following an outbreak -- just as Bill Gates' 2019 "event 201" simulated a global pandemic. Why are multiple billionaires been speaking to outbreaks and food insecurity in 2020? Because Agenda 21/2030 isn't just a name: it's a war on all of us, and it has gone HOT.

FULL SHOW NOTES: http://www.iceagefarmer.com/2020/02/1... 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBDZVexL3RQ 

:: 2-17-20 Hal Turner Radio Show :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

AMERICA: This is Why YOU need to prepare, RIGHT NOW, over Coronavirus: Quarantine=No Trucking

Nation News Desk 17 February 2020

Most Americans remain grossly uninformed about the coming MEDICAL QUARANTINES over the continuing - and worsening - Coronavirus outbreak. Those who are keeping up to date, think they still have time to prepare "if things get bad." They're wrong. Your time is almost up. You have only DAYS left. Here's why . . . When the government finally cannot hide the spread here in the United States, they will be forced to utterly lock down the country. There simply won't be any other choice because this virus -- which is actually a military Bio-Weapon that escaped China's only Level 4 Bio-Lab (Story Here) -- is so contagious. It spreads by AIR, Coughing, Sneezing, Urination, Bowel movements. The virus can live on surfaces for up to 28 days, which means door handles, public toilets, cashier counters in stores and supermarkets, computer keyboards and most everything else. It flows through public sewer lines from toilet flushes, then can evaporate up out of manhole covers. The virus has an eighty-three percent (83%) Infection rate. That means if 100 people get EXPOSED to it, 83 of them will get sick. About half of those who get sick, develop serious pneumonia, requiring hospitalization. Of those, about half require Intensive care, intubation and a respirator to breathe. Of the people who get hospitalized, fifteen percent DIE. And that's __if__ they get top-notch hospital care. For those who do not get hospital care, about sixty-five percent die. Now, some quick math: In the United States, there are about 2.4 hospital beds for every 1,000 population. Yes, you read that correctly: 2.4 hospital beds for every 1,000 people. Here's the math: If 1,000 people get exposed, 830 will get sick (83%). About half will need hospitalization. So about 400 people will need a hospital bed. But there are only 2.4 hospital beds for them . . . . So the rest will NOT be able to get care. Certainly not "top-notch" care. 15% of those 2.4 people will die. 65% of the 398 remaining sick people, will die. That converts to 258 people DEAD out of every 1,000 INFECTED. Those are the real world statistics for this virus. The numbers claiming otherwise from inside China are completely false. They are intentionally lying about the number of deaths to make it APPEAR the Communist regime is still in control. It is not. That's why, as of today, 17 February, 2020, a total of seven-hundred-sixty MILLION people in 70 cities in China, are under Quarantine. Health officials here in the USA are already concealing the number of confirmed infections. From officials at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, who are concealing "over 1,000 cases" as of two weeks ago (Story Here), to the local county Health Commissioner in Erie County, New York (Near Buffalo, Rochester and Watertown) who issued a GAG ORDER preventing police, fire and EMS from talking to anyone about Coronavirus cases, (Story Here), the people in the USA are NOT being told the truth. Officials fear mass-panic will occur if people find out, so they are INTENTIONALLY keeping the whole thing "hush-hush." Now, here's the uglier part . . . Quarantines mean no one in, and no one out. That means no trucks for deliveries. According to an analysis of the United States transportation network, performed by the American Trucking Association, here's what "No trucks" turns into: You must prepare right now while you still can. Here are suggestions: The best strategy for this is NOT to be exposed. Fat chance of that; we ALL go out: Work, school, shopping, recreation, and so forth. So how might we protect ourselves while we're out? Well, the fact this virus can be spread by air, in addition to staying alive on surfaces like counter tops, desks, water fountains, door handles, inside cars and buses, product packages on store shelves that someone else handled, or sneezed-on or coughed-on, - including ones that get delivered by mail, FedEx, UPS, etc. -- complicates things greatly.

Step One: Stay home. Do not go out unless you absolutely MUST.

Step Two: Presuming you have to go out (we ALL do) wear a filter mask eye and hand protective gear (below). The N-95 filter masks are almost completely sold out already, nationwide. So you can get a better mask rated as N-100 or P-100 for the time being until THEY sell out. Links to various suppliers are HERE-N-95 and HERE N-100. (I am NOT the seller)

You can also get the VASTLY AVAILABLE 3M 7500 (HERE) which uses 3M 2091 filters (HERE) This mask system is more expensive, but it works and is widely still available. (Again, I am NOT the seller)

Get Eye Protection, either cheap swimmer goggles (HERE) or better safety goggles (HERE)

Get a box of rubber/nitrile Gloves (Here) Wear this gear when you go out. Yes, you'll look and feel ridiculous. But you are much more likely to have the last laugh because YOU are protecting yourself.

THIS IS URGENTLY IMPORTANT: The absolute moment you get home, take off your shoes and leave them in the foyer. DO NOT WALK AROUND YOUR HOUSE IN SHOES YOU WORE OUTSIDE. You may have walked on a large amount of infected material as you were out and if you wear those shoes in the house, the virus will spread in the house. Next: Go into the bathroom, take off your clothing, put it in a hamper or plastic bag, and take a shower. You HAVE TO WASH OFF any virus that may have landed on your body or hair, while you were out. Put on clean garments. You cannot go sit in your chair or lay on your couch or bed in clothing you wore outside. The virus will come off the clothing, onto the furniture and pow, someone in the house catches it. Make every person in your household do this the absolute moment they come home. This virus is HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS and it KILLS people. We cannot skimp or get lazy protecting ourselves. Eat right, take vitamins (I use Centrum), and, I don't want to sound hokey, or like some Bible thumper, pray to Almighty God that you be protected by Him during this crisis. I'm not kidding. I mean it: PRAY. Even if you haven't prayed in decades, start now. "Hi God, it's me (so and so). I know I haven't prayed to you in a long time, but I'm coming back to you now. . . . ." And then talk honestly and earnestly to him, in a very quiet voice. Just remember, this is God, not a magician to be summoned to do tricks or render services at our beckon call. He made us. We are HIS to do with a HE sees fit. OTHER "PREPS" with Links Have Emergency food (HERE, HERE, and HERE) in the house in case Quarantine gets implemented, so you and your family can eat for the 6 weeks or so such Quarantines are likely to last.

Have Emergency Water (HERE) stored up in case the water supply gets contaminated.

Here is a complete list of "Preps" that folks might consider for themselves. RELATED:

CORONA VIRUS PROVEN TO BE MILITARY BIO-WEAPON

I am doing what I can to help YOU survive. Please help ME, my radio show and this web site survive with a donation using the donate button below or click an ad to generate revenue from advertisers to my site. If you cannot or will not use online financial transactions, please mail cash, check or money order Payable to: HAROLD TURNER

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Those in foreign countries can mail cash from their country and I will have it converted to US Dollars once it arrives. Thanks!

:: 2-18-20 Yahoo News :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

If Apple is hurting due to the coronavirus, its suppliers and rivals likely are too

[Reuters] By Stephen Nellis and Josh Horwitz Reuters February 18, 2020

SAN FRANCISCO/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Apple Inc's <AAPL.O> surprise warning that it will likely fall short of this quarter's sales target due to the coronavirus epidemic points to much pain for its chip and other suppliers as well as for rivals who also rely on China to build their products. Revising guidance set just three weeks ago, the world's most valuable tech company said while many factories that make iPhones have reopened for work, they were ramping up more slowly than anticipated. The outbreak, which has infected more than 72,000 and prevented many employees from returning to work due to travel and quarantine restrictions, was reverberating throughout the U.S. firm's supply chain, a source familiar with Apple's operations in China said. "If one component factory stays closed and they're the only supplier, then everyone has to stop and wait. And if there are two suppliers and one is shut down, then we need the other to do more," said the source who was not authorized to speak to media and declined to be identified. Stacy Rasgon, a Bernstein analyst, said Apple's woes probably also mean fewer chips will be sold throughout the mobile device industry because the overwhelming majority are made in China. "Maybe this is the wake up call. I would be astonished if Apple is the only one," he said. "Every electronic supply chain runs through China in a big way.  "Research firm Canalys estimates both Apple, which outsources much of its manufacturing to Taiwan's Foxconn <2317.TW>, and rival Huawei Technologies [HWT.UL] have 99% of their production in China. The world's No. 1 smartphone market is likely see sales halve in the first quarter due to the virus, analysts have said.

Chinese rivals Oppo, Xiaomi Corp <1810.HK> and Vivo have 83%, 72%, and 65% of their production in China respectively. Reuters reported last week that roughly 10% of Foxconn's workers in China have resumed production, while other plants in the country remain largely shuttered. Foxconn denied the reports in a company filing without elaborating. A SLEW OF SUPPLIERS Shares of Apple's chip suppliers fell on the news on Tuesday, with Samsung Electronics <005930.KS> losing 2.8%, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) <2330.TW> down 2.9% and SK Hynix <000660.KS> shedding 2.9%. Analysts at ANZ noted Qualcomm Inc <QCOM.O> was vulnerable to disruptions caused by the epidemic as it supplies mobile modem chips to almost all major smartphone makers and generates nearly half of its sales from China. U.S.-based suppliers that do a lot of business with Apple include Broadcom Inc <AVGO.O>, Qorvo Inc <QRVO.O> and Skyworks Solutions Inc <SWKS.O>.

Broadcom makes a range of wireless components for iPhones and said last month it had signed a deal to supply Apple for contracts worth as much as $15 billion. Sales to Apple accounted for 20% of its annual revenue in fiscal 2019. Qorvo, which sells parts that help phones connect to wireless data networks, generated around one third of its revenue from Apple in fiscal 2019. Skyworks, another wireless component supplier, got more than 10% of its annual revenue from Apple. Other U.S. suppliers to Apple include Texas Instruments Inc <TXN.O>. Its battery charging chips have been found in iPhone teardowns, although the company sells across a broad spectrum of the electronics industry. In Europe, the Netherlands' NXP Semiconductors <NXPI.O> supplies Apple with the near-field communications chips used in the iPhone's Apple Pay contactless payments feature, according to TechInsights teardowns and industry analysts. Chips made by Franco-Italian firm STMicroelectronics <STM.MI> <STM.PA> are used for wireless battery charging and for infrared cameras in iPhones, according to teardowns. Its shares lost 3.5% in morning trade. Investors in chipmakers have until now have been willing to look past temporary coronavirus disruptions, hoping for a sales recovery in the second half, said Bernstein's Rasgon. Mike Fawkes, who previously ran supply chain operations for Hewlett-Packard, said even if it wanted to, Apple was unlikely to find alternative production sources soon. "They're stuck with China for some period of time," he said. "It's very hard when you're managing a big battleship like they are." (Reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco and Josh Horwitz in Shanghai; Additional reporting by Hyunjoo Jin in Seoul; Editing by Greg Mitchell, Miyoung Kim and Edwina Gibbs)

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-hurting-due-coronavirus-suppliers-100627015.html 

:: 2-17-20 End of the American Dream :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

10 Plagues That Are Hitting Our Planet Simultaneously

February 17, 2020 by Michael Snyder

All of a sudden, really crazy things are starting to happen all over the world. Giant swarms of locusts are absolutely devastating entire regions, extremely unusual storms are confounding meteorologists, earthquake and volcanic activity are both on the rise, and five very dangerous diseases are sweeping across the globe. So far in 2020, it has just been one thing after another, and many are speculating about what could be ahead if events continue to escalate. The other day my wife mentioned that one of her friends suggested that I should put together a list of all the weird stuff that has been taking place, and so that is what I have decided to do. The following is a list of 10 plagues that are hitting our planet simultaneously… #1 Armies Of Locusts – As I detailed the other day, swarms of locusts the size of major cities have been devouring entire farms in Africa in as little as 30 seconds. These swarms have also been spreading throughout the Middle East, and now we have learned that they have even reached China…

A gigantic swarm of locusts that belong to a plague that has ravaged millions of acres of crops across east Africa has been spotted reaching the Chinese border.

Billions of the insects have destroyed food supplies across Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia in what has been described as the worst plague for decades.

#2 Extremely Bizarre Weather Patterns – It is almost as if virtually all of the old rules have suddenly been thrown out the window. An all-time record 209 mph wind gust just hit Calfiornia, and absolutely crazy storms are happening all over the planet. For example, just check out what just took place in Australia… Sydney has been thrown into chaos by a devastating storm that saw two months of rainfall in just two days – forcing mass evacuations, leaving 150,000 homes without power, and prompted warnings not to drive to work. The storm dumped 400mm of rain on the city over the weekend, causing mayhem for commuters on Monday morning with roads blocked, ferries canceled and trains suffering major delays across the network.

#3 Unprecedented Flooding – We are seeing unusual flooding all over the world right now, and the flooding that is devastating the southern U.S. at this moment is being called “unprecedented”…

In Jackson, Mississippi, hundreds of residents either watched their homes flood over the weekend or worried their residence would soon be drenched as the Pearl River crested Monday at 36.8 feet, its third-highest level ever recorded – behind only 1979 and 1983.

Calling the Jackson floods “historic” and “unprecedented,” Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said in a Sunday press conference that “we do not anticipate this situation to end anytime soon. It will be days before we are out of the woods and the waters recede.”

#4 Major Earthquakes – Really big earthquakes are happening with such frequency now that it is very difficult for me to write about them all. For example, a magnitude 7.7 quake recently struck off of the coast of Jamaica, but I have been so busy writing about other disasters that I have not even mentioned it until now… A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Tuesday about 80 miles from Jamaica, shaking people in the Caribbean and as far away as Miami.

A tsunami of 0.4 feet was recorded in the Cayman Islands at George Town, but no tsunami was observed at Port Royal, Jamaica, or Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

#5 Unusual Volcanic Eruptions – Seismic activity has been rising all over the globe, and over the past couple of months we have seen volcanoes all over the world pop off like firecrackers. One of the most notable eruptions that we have seen in recent days was the most powerful eruption of Mount Merapi in 90 years…

One of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, Mount Merapi just experienced its most powerful eruption since 1930! The eruption reportedly took place on Thursday and was caught on video displaying a powerful and terrifying eruption showing the moment the crater exploded and launched lava and ash an estimated 2,000 meters into the air forcing local residents to stay outside of the designated no-go zone 3km (1.8 miles) from the crater.

#6 The Coronavirus – Needless to say, the coronavirus outbreak in China has been getting more headlines than anything else on this list. The numbers continue to rise, and many are speculating that this could potentially become the worst global pandemic since the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918. In a desperate attempt to keep the truth from getting out, the World Health Organization is asking the major social media companies to censor their users… The World Health Organization has held talks with tech giants to stop the spread of coronavirus “misinformation,” despite the fact that some things once labeled “misinformation” have since turned out to be true.

The meeting was organized by the WHO but hosted by Facebook at its Menlo Park campus in California. Attendees included representatives from Amazon, Twilio, Dropbox, Google, Verizon, Salesforce, Twitter, YouTube, Airbnb, Kinsa and Mapbox.

#7 The African Swine Fever – “Pig Ebola” has already wiped out millions upon millions of pigs in China, and it has now spread to more than 40 other countries. The price of pork is absolutely skyrocketing in China right now, and to help fill the demand the Chinese are increasingly importing pork from U.S. sources…

Tyson Foods Inc. says it’s just starting to see the benefits of the African swine fever outbreak in China, which includes a 600% year-over-year increase in pork orders to China in the fiscal first quarter.

#8 The H1N1 Swine Flu – Unlike the African Swine Fever, the H1N1 Swine Flu can actually kill humans. In fact, it has already killed more people outside of China than the coronavirus outbreak has. For instance, 13 people in Taiwan died from the virus in one recent week alone…

As of now, the H1N1 virus is posing a great threat once again as it has claimed 13 lives in Taiwan in the last week. This virus is highly contagious and is known to spread from human to human. It is especially dangerous for those with a compromised immune system like those suffering from chronic medical conditions and long-term health conditions.

#9 The H5N1 Bird Flu – This strain of the bird flu caused a massive global scare a number of years ago, and now it is experiencing a stunning resurgence. China has had to kill thousands of chickens so far, and experts are warning that this outbreak could be just getting started…

China also is reportedly dealing with an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 bird flu in chickens in the Hunan province, an area that borders the province where the coronavirus emerged, according to the South China Morning Post.

As of Feb. 1, local authorities had culled 17,828 poultry after the H5NI outbreak, according to a statement by China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

#10 The H5N8 Bird Flu – This strain is different from the H5N1 bird flu, but many believe that it is even more frightening. It has started to pop up in numerous places around the globe, and experts were really surprised when it recently made an appearance in Germany…

Germany has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu virus in a backyard in the southwestern part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Monday.

The virus killed 44 birds out of a flock of 69 in Bretzfeld, in the Baden-Wurttemberg region, the Paris-based OIE said, citing a report from Germany’s food and agriculture ministry.

Can any of you remember a time when we have been hit by crisis after crisis like this all at once?

2020 has certainly started off with quite a bang, and many expect global events to continue to accelerate.

So hold on to your hats, because things are likely to get even crazier in the months ahead.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

:: 2--20 Coercion Code :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Mitt Romney Caught Taking Big Money Donations from George Soros

Mitt Romney has taken big money donations from George Soros Anti-Trump Republican Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) has been caught taking large donations from liberal billionaire George Soros, financial records have revealed.  The globalist financier’s Soros Fund Management invests heavily in political figures, including Democrat powerhouses such as former President Barack Obama, Sen. Chuck Schumer, twice-failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and others. Back in 2012

George Soros stated that he saw little difference between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama.

According to political donations records, it has now been revealed that Romney is now also on the George Soros’ payroll. The Utah senator left his Republican colleagues stunned when he sided with Democrats to shun his own party and vote to convict President Donald Trump in the partisan impeachment trial. Records show Mitt Romney took $17,250 from George Soros via Soros Fund Management According to OpenSecrets.org, Romney has accepted at least $17,500 from Soros Fund Management.  The organization is a left-wing influence operation funded by George Soros. The donations listed are the ones made by publically by Soros, who has a track record for “immoral” financial activity.  Hungarian-born Soros is widely regarded as the man who broke the Bank of England in 1992. He was also declared a “financial terrorist” in Malaysia and found guilty of insider trading in Europe. George Soros has a reputation for having little respect for the law and no interest in playing by the rules. By accepting money from Soros, the move will surely raise further questions regarding Romney’s credibility. Remarkably for a Republican, Romney actually makes the top 20 of politicians who have accepted money from Soros Fund Management. Mitt Romney shunned his Republican colleagues to side with Democrats in their anti-Trump impeachment campaign Romney’s vote during the Democrats’ impeachment campaign has certainly ruffled the feathers of his fellow-Republicans.

First, he was notified by a tweet from the chair of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Matt Schlapp that he was “not invited” to the annual conference.  Schlapp’s decision came after Romney became one of two Republicans in the Senate to vote to call additional witnesses in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.  “The ‘extreme conservative’ and Junior Senator from the great state of Utah, @SenatorRomney is formally NOT invited to #CPAC2020,” Schlapp tweeted. And now a lawmaker has filed a bill to allow Utah citzens to recall an elected United States senator. The lawmaker, Rep. Tim Quinn, R-Heber City, told the Deseret News in an interview shortly after the bill was made public that it’s not meant to target any specific sitting Utah senator — but it comes amid heightened national attention on Sen. Mitt Romney, who has been among the few Republican senators publicly critical of President Donald Trump.  While Quinn said his bill isn’t aimed at Romney or any specific senator, he acknowledged his bill comes at a time that people will likely construe it that way.   “I know that’s what’s going to be the narrative,” Quinn said.  “If it were, then it might make sense to have a sunset on it.”

:: 2-17-20 South China Morning Post :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Two arrested after armed gang makes run for toilet rolls in HK$1,600 heist as coronavirus panic shows no signs of easing

Masked men struck outside Wellcome store in Mong Kok around 6am, escaping with about 50 packets holding 600 rolls

Barrister says case is serious and toilet paper in current circumstances can be considered valuable

Chan Ho-him

Published: 11:26am, 17 Feb, 2020

Armed robbers stole about HK$1,600 worth of toilet paper from outside a Hong Kong supermarket on Monday morning, as panic over the spread of the coronavirus showed little signs of easing. Three masked men stole 600 rolls in about 50 packets from a delivery man outside a Wellcome store in Mong Kok, at around 6am on Monday. Police said one of the men was armed with two knives. Two people, aged 49 and 54, had been arrested by midday on Monday, and the force said they were hunting down three more people thought to be aged between 20 and 30. The stolen toilet rolls were found in a guest house on Sai Yee Street, not far from where it was taken. Detectives from the Mong Kok criminal investigation unit are handling the case. Wellcome said its staff were threatened and robbed while they were unloading a delivery of toilet rolls from a lorry at the store. No one was injured. “This is a senseless act and we are shocked,” a spokeswoman from the supermarket chain said. She added all Wellcome stores had sufficient supply of toilet rolls with regular supply coming in, as she urged customers not to bulk purchase in panic. “A temporary shortage was caused by a sudden and unusual surge in demand. We will do our utmost to speed up replenishment in our stores until the situation stabilises,” she said. etc.

:: 2--20 What Finger News :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Bloomberg Bloomies: Elitist racist Democrat billionaire Michael Bloomberg wants to be your nanny fellowshipoftheminds.com 

Dr Eowyn 3 days ago in Politics 0

Bloomy (adj.): covered with fruit; fruity.

Michael Bloomberg, 78, the 12th richest person in the world with a net worth of $64 billion, is spending $millions in his quest to be the Democrat Party’s 2020 presidential nominee. But Bloomberg is an elitist who has only contempt for the “little people”. Here’s the damning evidence.

Japan Releases First 500 'Diamond Princess' Passengers As 14-Day Quarantine Ends

by Tyler Durden Wed, 02/19/2020 - 04:49

Summary:

Death toll passes 2,000 as Hubei reports 132 deaths for Tuesday

Japan to release first wave of 500 passengers + crew at 10:30 am in Tokyo

Florida health officials mysteriously refuse to share virus info with reporters

Russia bars all Chinese from entering

NYT notes signs of impending economic distress

South Korea announces "emergency steps" to prepare for outbreak.

South Korea announces 15 new cases

* * *

Update (1940ET): It's Wednesday morning in Yokohama. So you know what that means.