Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Syrian Geopolitics Aka The Country That Never Existed / Politics / Syria
By: Andrew_McKillop
Stratfor's Deliberate Mix and Mingle
Writing for Stratfor, one of its leading analysts Reva Bhalla probably feels obliged to mix fact and fiction, news and opinions, to offer us a “deeper understanding” of the Syrian civil war. He for example kicked off his recent-published Stratfor Geopolitical Weekly article on Syria with the question of why, after the UN invited Iran to participate in the coming Jan 22 meeting in Switzerland, aimed at a possible settlement within rebel factions and between them and the Syrian regime of al-Assad, the Syrian rebel representatives could so quickly and successfully push for the Iran offer to be rescinded.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
What Does It Take to Be in the Top 1 Percent? Not As Much As You Think / Politics / Taxes
By: Frank_Holmes
When you think of the top 1 percent of all income earners in American households, how much do you think this group rakes in? Millions? Tens of millions? What about the top 10 percent or even top 20 percent?You might be surprised to learn that the top 20 percent of income earners bring in a household income of just over $100,000. The top 10 percent of earners have a household income of more than $148,687. To be considered in the top 1 percent, household income is at least $521,411.
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Tuesday, January 21, 2014
The Deflation Menace Government Propaganda / Politics / Deflation
By: Peter_Schiff
Dedicated readers of The Wall Street Journal have recently been offered many dire warnings about a clear and present danger that is stalking the global economy. They are not referring to a possible looming stock or real estate bubble (which you can find more on in my latest newsletter). Nor are they talking about other usual suspects such as global warming, peak oil, the Arab Spring, sovereign defaults, the breakup of the euro, Miley Cyrus, a nuclear Iran, or Obamacare. Instead they are warning about the horror that could result from falling prices, otherwise known as deflation. Get the kids into the basement Mom....they just marked down Cheerios!
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
The Geopolitics of the Syrian Civil War / Politics / Syria
By: STRATFOR
Reva Bhalla writes: International diplomats will gather Jan. 22 in the Swiss town of Montreux to hammer out a settlement designed to end Syria's three-year civil war. The conference, however, will be far removed from the reality on the Syrian battleground. Only days before the conference was scheduled to begin, a controversy threatened to engulf the proceedings after the United Nations invited Iran to participate, and Syrian rebel representatives successfully pushed for the offer to be rescinded. The inability to agree upon even who would be attending the negotiations is an inauspicious sign for a diplomatic effort that was never likely to prove very fruitful.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Smoking Gun: Global Food Waste Debunks Overpopulation Theory And Humanitarian Aid / Politics / Food Crisis
By: Sharon_Kayser
Would it be all about money again? To find out, let's follow Alice down the rabbit hole...
Would it be all about money again? To find out, let's follow Alice down the rabbit hole...
(countdown: time to choose Empathy over Fear)
The UN is quite a paradox onto itself as its reports continue to deliver excellent mathematical clues as why the system 'is clearly designed to fail'. Yes, you read well and instead of trying to patch its cracks getting larger and deeper it is about time to admit that Global Oligarchy is a 'cabal' whose century-long timeline has undeniable track records. Finally, the secret is more obvious than never. The flaws and evidence have become too huge to be concealed. Up to these days, not that many are aware that the UN (the ultimate aim of the cabal) was engineered by the very same club of elitist financiers that plotted the rise and downfall of the Soviets in order to replace Communism with its sugarcoated version, renamed Socialism. Isn't the 'Communist Manifesto' in favor of almighty elites ruling over the means of production (7th Plank), progressive taxation (2nd Plank) and centralization of credit (5th Plank) after all? As we shall see, Karl Marx must be laughing in his grave as you read this. This column isn't meant to take side but demonstrate that the system is utterly broken - beyond repair - and that we have to let it go in order to rebuild a new one from scratch. What kind of a system do we have left but Capitalism, would you ask? It is about time to quit thinking in these terms. The Right vs Left paradigm is a diversion preventing from seeing what is really going on while truth is hidden in plain sight. However, this being said, genuine Capitalism has never existed for long periods of time over the course of Human History and thus remains above all a theory for scholars and economists to fight over. Moreover, our current system has nothing to do with Capitalism at all, in a way a movement such as 'Occupy Wallstreet', against Capitalism, is mis/disinformed. This being said and let's face it: what we now globally have is a 'Fascistic Triumvira' composed of corporations, central banks and governments that have caged the Human Race in a prison that is so vast that bars and fences are invisible.
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Tuesday, January 21, 2014
When Net Neutrality Becomes Programmed Censorship / Politics / Internet
By: BATR
In essence, this is the corporate spin that the decision is about the future cost for being connected.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Sochi Terror Attack Alert - The Lost Lady Of Islam / Politics / Russia
By: Andrew_McKillop
Putin Winds Back His Gains of 2013
News reports now place the probable cost of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia at more than $51 billion making them the most expensive-ever. Security costs help explain this. Vladimir Putin's ironclad determination to make the games a success – makes them a rising political risk, not only for domestic political consumption but also a challenge to Russia's federal unity and relations with its Asian neighbors, and internationally. Making the Sochi games a PR disaster is the goal of Putin's enemies.
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Monday, January 20, 2014
Fukushima Radiation Spike Hits Record High / Politics / Nuclear Power
By: LewRockwell
A record high level of beta rays released from radioactive strontium-90 has been detected at the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant beneath the No. 2 reactor’s well facing the ocean, according to the facility’s operator.
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) measured the amount of beta ray-emitting radioactivity at more than 2.7 million becquerels per liter, Fukushima’s operator said as reported in Japanese media. The measurements were taken on Thursday.
Monday, January 20, 2014
United States 240 Wars in 237 Years Says it All / Politics / US Military
By: Pravda
The United States, an example of public and social order for the countries of the “golden billion,” has a unique history. In the 237 years of its existence, it has been either at war, or preparing for a new attack, looking for victims. During the period from 1798 to 2012 Washington used military force abroad 240 times, more frequently than annually.
The results of this military – aggressive development are impressive. Five percent of the world’s population who are lucky enough to be U.S. citizens consume, according to various estimates, from 25 to 30 percent of the planet’s resources. How did the country manage to achieve such prosperity for its 320 million people?
Monday, January 20, 2014
The National Security State - America's MostDdangerous Institutions / Politics / Intelligence Agencies
By: Michael_S_Rozeff
Predictably, President Obama has done nothing significant to diminish the National Security State. He presided over its expansion. Why should he want to undo it?
It’s a big mistake, however, in understanding the National Security State (NSS) and what to do about it to focus on Obama. The issue concerning the NSS is much deeper than one man, one president and a few terms of office.
Once we understand the NSS, we will see that it will only disappear in two cases. Either it falls when the American Empire falls, or it falls if Americans fundamentally rethink and change their entire government.
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Monday, January 20, 2014
Warfare, Welfare, and Wonder Woman - How Congress Spends Your Money / Politics / Government Spending
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Supporters of warfare, welfare, and Wonder Woman cheered last week as Congress passed a one trillion dollar "omnibus" appropriation bill. This legislation funds the operations of government for the remainder of the fiscal year. Wonder Woman fans can cheer that buried in the bill was a $10,000 grant for a theater program to explore the comic book heroine.
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Monday, January 20, 2014
Many Israeli's are Disenchanted With the Promised Land and Want to Leave / Politics / Israel
By: Stephen_Lendman
Many Israelis want out. Haaretz said "almost 40 percent of (them) are thinking of emigrating." Recent polling said they'd leave if financially able.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Energy Policy Freeze Frame In 1970s Mould / Politics / Energy Resources
By: Andrew_McKillop
Oil Fear
In a January 15, 2014 editorial titled 'Energy Antiquities' the Houston Chronicle underlined that when it concerns energy – we primarily mean oil – the thing to remember for the ever-expanding cohort of persons too young to remember the 1970s was that this decade, in a word, was the Forgettable Decade. Very forgettable.
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Thursday, January 16, 2014
Does Everyone America Has a Lawyer on Speed dial ? The Chilling Economic Effect of Litigation / Politics / US Politics
By: Jeff_Berwick
Wendy McElroy writes: McDonald's is being sued again by a California woman who claims she was scalded by their hot coffee. In 1990, a New Mexico woman was awarded $2.9 million in a hot-coffee lawsuit against McDonald's; the award was later reduced to about $500,000. Meanwhile, a continent away, a New Jersey woman is suing a real estate developer for not disclosing the presence of a 'bad' neighbor when she purchased a house.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Hollande Versus Obama In The Race To The Bottom / Politics / France
By: Andrew_McKillop
Le Fait du Prince
Different countries have different styles. In France, power has always been concentrated in Paris, from the last days of the monarchy, and then even more so under Napoleon. When the prince, king, president, or Emperor as Napoleon liked to call himself exceeded his powers, and then gave himself more of them, the cry rang out that this was “Le fait du Prince”.
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Thursday, January 16, 2014
Parasitic Derivatives - One Quadrillion Dollars: Too Big to Understand / Politics / Derivatives
By: David_Hague
I recently returned from two weeks of ‘high level’ meetings with a group of Bankers [this is code for two weeks of subsidized debauchery with bankers] in Rome. As I sat at my desk, I was hoping to motivate myself to pursue a more chaste and pure existence. Unfortunately the Polar Vortex experienced by North America drained me of my good intentions. The bone chilling cold once again had me reaching for my trusty bottle of Jack Daniels for warmth and inspiration. My time in Rome had not been completely ‘wasted’, so to speak. I had secured a contract from the European Central Bank [ECB] to research the topic of Derivatives. I was to present my findings at the upcoming World Economic Forum in Davos later this month.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Piercing the Medical Guild - A Failed US Healthcare System Held Hostage / Politics / Healthcare Sector
By: Stephen_Merrill
Even in our crisis ridden world, the healthcare sector in the United States tops the list of present-day economic catastrophes.
According to figures issued by the World Bank for 2011, healthcare expenditures in the United States, astonishingly, consumed 17.9% of the gross domestic product. By comparison, healthcare spending in Canada was 11.2% of the economy, in Japan 9.3% and in Britain 9.3%. The proportion of healthcare spending in the US just about doubles the average figure for other major nations.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
US Drops Out of Top 10 Economic Freedom Countries Ranking / Politics / Social Issues
By: LewRockwell
After seven years of continuous decline in the rating, the US has gone down to 12th place in the 2014 Index of Economic Freedom. The report says the US is the only country to show such a prolonged decline.
The falling ranking was primarily caused by large reductions in property rights, freedom from corruption, and increasing government spending, says the study.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Popular Manifesto: Solutions For Restoring The United States / Politics / US Politics
By: Jim_Willie_CB
Back in late 2004 during the first year of the Hat Trick Letter, my father had a conversation with me on his front porch. He was concerned about a negative streak in my perspective and a critical slant in my analytic work. He actually helped me in writing style, not content, like to correct errors in sentence construction. He pointed out lack of parallels, dangling modifiers, vague antecedents, and competing imagery. Many smaller discussions had taken place about a broken economy, absent industry from offshore efforts, debt buildup, enormous imbalances, the war machine emphasis, banker corruption, and unsound money itself. He always was concerned about the federal debt, citing it many times, and was alarmed later in 2006 when informed that foreigners held more than half our debt. He challenged me to produce solutions to the current difficult situation in the United States, an invitation to embark upon a positive streak. He was warned to be discouraged by the task.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
U.S. Retirement Sunset Math: Number of Employed vs. Population Over Time / Politics / Demographics
By: Mike_Shedlock
As we face retirement sunset demographics, inquiring minds might be wondering how many people are left to foot the bill for retiree Medicare, health care, public union pensions, and Social Security promises vs. the number of people collecting benefits.
The following charts from reader Tim Wallace will help put things into perspective.
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