Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Friday, September 15, 2017
US Government’s Promised Entitlements Exceed the Budget Seven Times in Some States / Politics / US Debt
By: John_Mauldin
The US government balance sheet features $80 trillion to $200 trillion in unfunded liabilities. This amount stems from future entitlement program burdens that are, in effect, government promises.
No one is going to vote to reduce their entitlements. (Well, other than the very well-off, who don’t actually need those entitlements.)
Unfunded pension liabilities at the state and local have swollen to roughly $4–$6 trillion in the United States. And that may be understating the severity of the problem.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
Trump’s Path to IP Wars / Politics / Protectionism
By: Dan_Steinbock
As the White House is about to escalate trade friction in intellectual property, it has opted for a flawed, partisan approach. In mid-August, President Trump asked U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, a veteran Reagan administration trade hawk, to open an investigation into China's intellectual property (IP) practices.
The first public hearing about Chinese trade conduct is scheduled for October 10 in Washington.
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Thursday, September 14, 2017
The Only Real Europe is Greece / Politics / Euro-Zone
By: Raul_I_Meijer
European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, famous for his imbibition capacity and uttering -not necessarily in that order- the legendary words “when it becomes serious, you have to lie”, presented his State of the Union today. Which is of pretty much limited interest because, as Yanis Varoufakis’ book ‘Adults in the Room’ once again confirmed, Juncker is nothing but ventriloquist Angela Merkel’s sock puppet.
But of course he had lofty words galore, about how great Europe is doing, and how that provides a window for more Europe, in multiple dimensions. Juncker envisions a European Minister of Finance (Dutch PM Rutte immediately scorned the idea), and he wants to enlarge the EU by inviting more countries in, like Albania, Montenegro and Serbia (but not Turkey!).
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Tuesday, September 12, 2017
September Will Be The Most Politically Unstable Month Of This Year / Politics / US Politics
By: John_Mauldin
This month will be busy for us macro monitors.
The FOMC meets September 19–20 and will likely hike rates another notch, launch its balance-sheet-reduction plan, or both. I will be very surprised if they don’t do either.
The greater suspense is elsewhere in Washington.
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Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Red China is a Creation of Globalists / Politics / China
By: BATR
If one is blind to the truthful account of history, understanding of current events will never break the mind controlled barrier of sanitized awareness. The globalists or whatever synonym name you choose personifies the forces behind the screens that shape the political, economic and cultural impositions on the world. China has not been immune to the infliction of obscurity in the implementation of what actually is driving their regime. As the old Chinese curse has it: “May you live in interesting times”, has proven to be much more than a platitude, it is a model for planetary enslavement. How did this conquest begin and where is it going?
Monday, September 11, 2017
The United States of Hubris / Politics / US Politics
By: Antonius_Aquinas
If anyone should have any questions about whether the United States of America is not the most aggressive, warlike, and terroristic nation on the face of the earth, its latest proposed action against the supposed rogue state of North Korea should allay any such doubts.
Last week, the US circulated a draft resolution which it intends to present to the UN Security Council that would give the American Navy and Air Force the power to interdict North Korean ships at sea to determine if they were transporting “weaponry material” or fuel and that US forces would be given “the right” to use “all necessary measures” to “enforce compliance.”*
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Sunday, September 10, 2017
Only Political Dividing Line Left, Roots Based Politics / Politics / US Politics
By: Richard_Mills
Because of the rise of Globalism in the late 20th century the U.S. and Western Europe have recently seen stirrings of nationalist awakenings. Terrorism, turmoil in the Middle East and waves of Muslim refugees have fueled the trend.
Wikipedia says this about Nationalism; “a nation should govern itself, free from unwanted outside interference, and is linked to the concept of self-determination. Nationalism is further oriented towards developing and maintaining a national identity based on shared characteristics such as culture, language, race, religion, political goals or a belief in a common ancestry. Nationalism therefore seeks to preserve the nation's culture. It often also involves a sense of pride in the nation's achievements, and is closely linked to the concept of patriotism.”
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Friday, September 08, 2017
Object Lesson: War on Cash Backfires on India’s Economy / Politics / War on Cash
By: MoneyMetals
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a surprise attack on cash in late 2016. He gave Indians a few days to convert the two largest denomination bills then circulating to bank deposits, after which point any undeposited notes would become worthless. The move was intensely controversial. Transactions completed using cash represented the vast majority of economic activity in the country.
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Friday, September 08, 2017
If America exits the Paris Accord, climate risks will intensify for emerging Asia / Politics / Climate Change
By: Dan_Steinbock
Even before Irma and its successors, Typhoon Hato and Hurricane Harvey caused massive devastation from the US to Asia. If America will withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, emerging Asia will pay the highest price.As I left Manila, tropical storm Isang passed the Batanes area in northern Philippines. When I flew to Guangzhou, the low-pressure area morphed into a tropical depression southeast to Taiwan and then into a typhoon in the South China Sea. On August 23, Hato’s eye was directly over Hong Kong as rapid intensification turned it into a category 3-equivalent typhoon. Days later, Hato had left behind 26 people killed, and damages amounting to $1.9 billion in mainland China.
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Tuesday, September 05, 2017
Washington D.C. Dysfunction and Central Bank Chaos / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Michael_Pento
On September 5th, the members of both houses of Congress of the United States will clean the beach sand from between their toes and return to work. Our public servants who occupy The House of Representatives have been working on their respective tans since July 29th. The Senate has had a little less time in the sun; they held their final vote on August 3rd despite their pledge to stay until August 11th.
Hopefully, they got a lot of rest, because they have a lot to do upon their return. By the end of September Congress will need to pass a budget bill to avoid a government shutdown. Expect Tea Party Republicans to hold their ground on spending cuts while Trump petitions for his wall. According to recent tweets, Trump is pushing for this fight and welcomes a government shutdown. Get out the popcorn this could get interesting.
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Tuesday, September 05, 2017
Google is the Master Spy of the Intelligence Community / Politics / Google
By: BATR
Is there anyone on the planet that does not have their personal lives exposed to the data collection behemoth of the corporatist and government partnership? Google was developed with and under the intelligence funding of the deep state. The marvel of a premier digital search engine was welcomed as a tremendous achievement by everyone who longed for a definitive method to secure access to sites that reflected market or research results. Few companies names become synonymous with the product or service provided. Who does not refer to making a copy reproduction as Xerox the document? Likewise, as a pure commercial function, Google defined the designation for internet searches. Fast forward to the current state of draconian governance. What stands out is that the systematic rewriting of history and access to a free exchange of ideas and questioning has been supplanted by an approved filter with limited options.
Monday, September 04, 2017
Varoufakis: The Book / Politics / Euro-Zone
By: Raul_I_Meijer
About a month ago, I finished reading former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis’ book “Adults in the Room”, subtitled “My Battle With Europe’s Deep Establishment”, and published by The Bodley Head. I started writing about it right away, but noticed I was writing more about my personal ideas and experiences related to Greece than about the book. So I let it rest a bit.
I read the book in, of all places, Athens, sitting outside various old-style cafés. That got me a lot of reactions from Greeks seeing the cover of the book, most of them negative, somewhat to my surprise. Many Greeks apparently do not like Varoufakis. Of course I asked all the time why that is. “He’s arrogant” was/is a frequent one.
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Monday, September 04, 2017
North Korea 'Begging for War', 'Enough is Enough', is a US Nuclear Strike Imminent? / Politics / North Korea
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The normally dovish US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley was busy banging the war drums at the UN today, effectively warning of a US pre-emptive first strike unless North Korea virtually immediately ceases its missile and nuclear tests.
"Enough is enough, we have taken an incremental approach, and despite the best of intentions, it has not worked."
"War is never something the Unites States wants - we don't want it now, but our country's patience is not unlimited. We will defend our allies and our territory."
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Monday, September 04, 2017
Christopher Columbus and the Falsification of History / Politics / US Politics
By: Antonius_Aquinas
The Los Angeles City Council’s recent, crazed decision* to replace Christopher Columbus Day with one celebrating “indigenous peoples” can be traced to the falsification of history and denigration of European man which began in earnest in the 1960s throughout the educational establishment (from grade school through the universities), book publishing, and the print and electronic media. It is amazing that, as of yet, the federal holiday commemorating the Genoese explorer’s world- changing voyage has not come under attack. It is doubtful that in the current radicalized leftist ideological atmosphere, the national government’s recognition of Columbus will survive much longer.
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Sunday, September 03, 2017
US Paving the Way for Massive First Strike on North Korea Nuclear and Missile Infrastructure / Politics / China US Conflict
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The emerging Chinese super powers North Korean Proxy continues to accelerate towards being able to punch a hole through the US Military Empires encirclement of China as every other day brings North Korea a step closer towards it's primary objective of hitting and destroying the US Military base on Guam, home to over 10,000 troops and 160,000 US citizens, and which as the following map illustrates is just 1 of 400 US military bases in Asia for the express purpose of encircling and containing China.
Friday, September 01, 2017
Trump Reset: US War With China, North Korea Nuclear Flashpoint - Video / Politics / China US Conflict
By: Nadeem_Walayat
This is my latest video in my Trump Reset War with China series that details the key mega-trend geopolitical consequences of the Trump Presidency, of why the United States under Trump would be trending towards an inevitable war with China, economic, cyber and even outright military conflict, something that many were skeptical of when I wrote my 3 pieces of in-depth analysis before Trump took office, but given what has subsequently transpired should be recognised as now being far more probable.
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
The Swamp Strikes Back / Politics / US Politics
By: John_Browne
On August 21st many Americans witnessed the moon cast a historic but short-lived shadow across the United States. One day later, President Trump reversed his previously stated position on the 16 year old Afghan War, thereby eclipsing the possibility that the United States would finally come to its senses and rethink a failed strategy that is likely to fail for years, perhaps decades, to come. The abrupt change, in what had been a central plank in candidate Trump’s appeal to voters thirsting for change in American foreign policy, came hard after the departure of Steve Bannon from the White House. As a self-avowed nationalist, Bannon had represented a true break in interventionist Republican thinking that had entangled the United States in intractable conflicts around the globe. To put an exclamation point, Sebastian Gorka, the last remaining proponent of the Bannon perspective, was forced out of the White House. The counter-revolution appears to be complete.
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
How to Get GCSE Exam A*'s, 9 in Maths and English, Top 10 Tips! / Politics / Education
By: N_Walayat
It was GCSE exam results day last Thursday when Britain's 16 year olds found out if they achieved their expected GCSE grades allowing them to move up the education ladder to A Levels and vocational training on the path to University. Therefore it is a good time to find out from those who did well what are their top tips for getting A* GCSE Exam Grades for future exam entrants.
Monday, August 28, 2017
Trump’s Decision On North Korea Will Define His Administration / Politics / North Korea
By: John_Mauldin
BY GEORGE FRIEDMAN AND JACOB L. SHAPIRO : Most US presidencies are defined by their foreign policies, and most foreign policies are defined by wars—those that were fought and those that weren’t.
The biggest decision an American president faces is whether to send the nation’s soldiers into certain danger to protect and defend the national interest.
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Sunday, August 27, 2017
Why Can’t Wheeler-Dealer Trump Cut a Deal with North Korea? / Politics / North Korea
By: Mike_Whitney
The United States and South Korea are currently engaged in large-scale, joint-military war games that simulate an invasion of the North, the destruction of the DPRK’s nuclear weapons sites, and a “decapitation operation” to take out the supreme leader, Kim Jong-un. The objective of the operation is to intensify tensions between North and South thereby justifying the continued US occupation of the peninsula and the permanent division of the country.