The Multipolar World Order (yes, it's here)

[Bill Ryan]

While there have been a number of posts about this over the last few months (mainly on WW3? Ukraine/US vs. Donbass/Russia (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?114491-WW3-Ukraine-US-vs.-Donbass-Russia) and The Putin thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?118635-The-Putin-Thread)), I felt it really needed to be its own standalone topic.

My decision was prompted by this most excellent new video, principally featuring geopolitical analysts Alexander Mercouris and Matthew Ehret (whose website is https://canadianpatriot.org).

The discussion is deep, well-informed, impeccably historically referenced, and two hours long. It's also the kind of thing one might listen to twice, the second time taking detailed notes. :)

So it's not for the fainthearted, but I learned a great deal more about this topic which will definitely become much more widely discussed in 2023. I'm not advocating listening to the entire video, unless you're already very interested in this (in which case it may be most worthwhile). But it's a perfect starting point for the new thread.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNh7pihcEgk

[ozmirage]

Shucks, the world's worst enemy has been usurers - for "only" 3500 years.
Every religion I checked denounced it - including Satanism (go figure).
Even ancient philosophers condemned it.
And yet millions and millions have personal, interest bearing bank accounts.
Of course, Academia apologizes for it and turns a blind eye to the fact that usury is mathematically unsustainable in a finite money token system.
Worse, the exponential equation for compound interest requires an INFINITE MONEY SUPPLY.
Bankers don't care what government or religion has the appearance of power, as long as they have their hooks in it, THEY are the RULERS.

[mojo]

The Multipolar World Order (yes, it's coming)

It's the yes it's coming part that bothers me. As such, does anyone see a brief respite of freedoms etc. before the New World order & one World Gov is ushered in? I know there are many that feel America will rise like the Phoenix once again. The alternative sucks.... If America falls so does the rest of the free World.

[Zem]

”Pluto enters Aquarius on March 23rd, 2023. The last time Pluto was in Aquarius was between 1778 and 1798, a period of massive change all over the world.”

https://astrobutterfly.com/2021/06/30/pluto-in-aquarius-2023-2044-power-to-the-people/

[Bill Ryan]

If America falls so does the rest of the free World.But America isn't the 'Free World' any more — and neither is Canada, the EU, the UK, Australia or New Zealand. Freedom needs to come from elsewhere now.

[Vicus]

If America falls so does the rest of the free World.But America isn't the 'Free World' any more — and neither is Canada, the EU, the UK, Australia or New Zealand. Freedom needs to come from elsewhere now.

In others words: the anglo/saxon project has failed, time to go. :sarcastic: :clap2: Next!...

[Ewan]

While there have been a number of posts about this over the last few months (mainly on WW3? Ukraine/US vs. Donbass/Russia (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?114491-WW3-Ukraine-US-vs.-Donbass-Russia) and The Putin thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?118635-The-Putin-Thread)), I felt it really needed to be its own standalone topic.

My decision was prompted by this most excellent new video, principally featuring geopolitical analysts Alexander Mercouris and Matthew Ehret (whose website is https://canadianpatriot.org).

The discussion is deep, well-informed, impeccably historically referenced, and two hours long. It's also the kind of thing one might listen to twice, the second time taking detailed notes. :)



Watched/listened to it this morning. A fascinating listen it was too and Matt Ehret had an amazing depth of knowledge that I was barely aware of.

It seems that the self-obsessed would be world-shapers and rulers of the world have seriously miscalculated and have zero kind of alternate contingency plans. They, (sadly I mean the West, where I reside), will become the vine that bears no fruit and we know what happens to that.

Sadly I doubt they'll fade away quietly. More likely they will double down on the lies and rhetoric and create chaos in the belief they can triumph in the long run. It has proven an effective strategy before.

The only thing that might prevent that is if truth continues to be revealed and enough 'good men' stand up to be counted. It would also require a considerable change in editorial policies from the MSM, perhaps they will see the writing on the wall and realise they never wrote that script and its too late to avoid it now. They'll be planning who can be the fall-guys soon.

[ExomatrixTV]

zgXIcs8N7VA


I wonder if the word: "Order" is so much more than just an opposite to "Disorder"


"Ordo Ab Chao" is Latin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin) for: "Order out of Chaos" ... When you have natural dynamic chaos that comes from real freedom & free spirits that are 100% non-violent & non-imposing, still it will be seen as "evil" for psychopathic control-freaks and framed as such.


So a need for order "any order" that wants to impose, to control, to enslave, to restrict, to mandate, to limit, to demonize, to steer, to manipulate >>> are all tied to a specific "Order".

And they sell it to fight "dis-order" ... What if some "disorder" and/or perceived "chaos" are 100% justified for a specific reason they do not want to allow any discussion to explain why it is justified!


What if some disorder and/or chaos are deliberately created to justify more rigid (more tyrannical) "order".

"Order" has many layers & angles, how to define the word "order" in the proper context related to (psychopathic) control freaks versus (spiritual minded) freedom fighters.

How many blindly assume that "order" is "always" a "good thing" because it "sounds right" ... right? :facepalm:


He who controls/manipulates the mass perceived (tunnel vision) pushed narratives controls the outcome if the masses are stupid enough to fall for it.
He who questions the mass perceived (tunnel vision) pushed narratives (full of bogus assumptions) exposes the outcome if the masses are smart enough to rise above it and move on.

cheers,
John Kuhles (https://whynotnews.eu) aka 'ExomatrixTV'
December 18th, 2022 🦜🦋🌳


https://www.freemason.pt/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ordo_ab_chao_hgtrtrf7667.jpg


https://i.pinimg.com/originals/09/e0/7f/09e07ffea0265bbaee3c5fea20499322.png


Max Igan ~ The Great Collapse "Ordo Ab Chao" (https://rumble.com/v1mc41m-max-igan-the-great-collapse-ordo-ab-chao.html)
Study Dozens of "Ordo Ab Chao" insights on Rumble (https://rumble.com/search/video?q=%22Ordo%20Ab%20Chao%22) & Bitchute (https://www.bitchute.com/search/?query=%22ordo%20ab%20chao%22&kind=video) :dog: (https://www.bitchute.com/search/?query=%22ordo%20ab%20chao%22&kind=video)

[Losus4]

Can you give a brief summary on the video?

[wegge]

I liked the idea that the west did what good drug dealers don't do - get high on their own supply - for the west it's believing in their own made up propaganda.

It's really an amazing video and I'm diving into Matt's book now. Thanks for posting it Bill!

[Bill Ryan]

The Multipolar World Order

And this is a new part of it, a very major development — the big first step towards the end of the Syrian war, with an imminent summit meeting between Erdogan (Turkey), Assad (Syria) and Putin (Russia).

The US is sidelined in all this, its forces isolated.

Here we see three world leaders being statesmen, as world leaders are meant to be... but which seems an alien, impossible idea to the Neocon hawks in the west and their clones in Europe.

A 19 minute historical summary from Alexander Mercouris:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uv_KTpuL6Gc

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1604603024076308482

1604603024076308482


https://thecradle.co/Article/news/19625

Iran, Nicaragua sign strategic agreement to boost bilateral relations
On 18 December, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian met with his Nicaraguan counterpart Denis Moncada Colindres in Managua to discuss ways to bolster bilateral relations and international and regional developments.

Amir Abdollahian praised the Central American state for retaining steady relations with Tehran, adding that the two countries should strive to boost economic cooperation and increase trade.

The foreign ministers signed a strategic plan to expand relations during the first Iran-Nicaragua joint commission. Colindres expressed hope that the newly signed agreement will have promising results soon.

The two counterparts last met on the sidelines of the 77th UN General Assembly session in New York back in September.

Due to the imposition of western sanctions against Iran, the Islamic Republic has attempted to expand its ties with other Latin American states, such as Venezuela, which also suffers from US-led sanctions.

In November, Iranian and Venezuelan delegates met to sign six bilateral agreements in Tehran.

These agreements revolve around cooperation in education, nanotechnology, biotechnology, petrochemistry, radiology, social data analysis, and the design of scientific-technological systems.

Weeks later, 1,000 vehicles from Iran were sent to the South American state as part of the agreements.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi later stressed that Tehran’s policy of enhancing cooperation with Latin American nations is a priority.

Raisi further emphasized the significance of consolidating relations with Latin American nations due to their diverse capacities and opportunities.

In July, Tehran increased its oil delivery to Venezuela so that Caracas could bolster its refineries’ productivity and increase the total output of its motor fuels.

During the year’s first half, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signed a 20-year cooperation agreement that increased their agriculture and food production.

“I believe that between the two of us we will create an indestructible friendship for the future of our people and we will witness how our countries grow in the face of difficulties and how a new world is growing,” Maduro told president Raisi.

The two sanctioned states increased cooperation to overcome the restrictions of US sanctions.

[Ravenlocke]

https://multipolarista.com/2022/12/01/latin-america-us-dollar-currency/

Latin America’s plan to challenge US dollar with new currency and ‘regional financial architecture’

The US dollar is used in the majority of international trade, and its status as the global reserve currency gives the United States an “exorbitant privilege” that underpins its geopolitical and economic dominance.

Yet opposition to Washington’s hegemony is growing around the world. Institutions of Eurasian integration are proposing their own currencies and payment systems. Latin America, too, has ambitious plans to end its dependence on the US dollar.

Prominent economist Andrés Arauz, a leftist leader who came close to winning Ecuador’s 2021 presidential elections, published a blueprint for a “new regional financial architecture” to unite Latin America, challenging the hegemony of the dollar and Washington-dominated institutions like the International Monetary Fund.

His plan centers around creating a new regional currency for international transactions, thereby bypassing the dollar.

The framework is based on a proposal made by Brazil’s President-elect Lula da Silva, who pledged before winning the October election that “we are going to create a currency in Latin America,” in order to “be freed of the dollar.”

The currency is expected to be called the Sur (“south” in Spanish), and would be overseen by a newly created Banco Central del Sur (Central Bank of the South).

To do all of this, Arauz has advised Lula to revive and strengthen existing institutions of regional integration like the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Banco del Sur (Bank of the South), which were undermined by US-backed coups and the rise of right-wing governments.

The goal is “to harmonize the payment systems of” the countries that make up UNASUR in order “to carry out inter-bank transfers to any bank inside of the region in real time and from a cellphone,” explained Arauz.

The Ecuadorian economist also insisted that Latin America should reject the US-dominated International Monetary Fund (IMF) and work with Africa to create debt relief and new economic opportunities

US dollar used in 96% of trade in the Americaa

Both Lula and Arauz have made it clear that the Sur would not replace local currencies, like the European Union’s euro. Countries in Latin America would still have their own national currencies, so they can pursue a sovereign monetary policy.

Rather, the idea is to use the Sur for bilateral trade between countries, in place of the dollar.

The proposal is very popular in Latin America, given that it is the world’s most dependent region on the US dollar.

The dollar was used in 96% of trade transactions between countries in the Americas from 1999-2019, according to the Federal Reserve.

The creation of the Sur currency could fundamentally change this.

Latin America’s combined economy is nearly one-half of the US economy

Most trade in the Americas is dominated by the United States, which has the world’s second-largest economy (after the People’s Republic of China, when measured with purchasing power parity).

The GDP of the United States is roughly $23 trillion, while that of Canada is nearly $2 trillion.

It is often reported that the nominal GDP of Latin America and the Caribbean is around $5.5 trillion, according to World Bank data, and that the three largest economies in the region are Brazil ($1.6 trillion), Mexico ($1.3 trillion), and Argentina ($491 billion).

But nominal GDP measurements can be misleading, and only reinforce the hegemony of the US dollar. A much more accurate measurement of GDP, purchasing power parity (PPP), takes into account the cost of living in each respective country.

Adjusted accordingly with PPP measurements, the more precise estimate of the GDP of Latin America and the Caribbean is actually $11.4 trillion, with Brazil at $3.4 trillion, Mexico at $2.6 trillion, and Argentina at $1.1 trillion.

This shows that the combined economies of Latin America and the Caribbean make up nearly half of the size of the US economy.

The region is also very rich in natural resources, including oil, minerals, and agriculture.

If Latin America could unify with its own independent financial institutions, it has enormous economic potential.

The (aborted) birth of the Bank of the South

Latin America’s vast economic potential has long been recognized by left-wing, anti-imperialist leaders in the region.

In the 2000s, the leftist presidents of Venezuela (Hugo Chávez), Brazil (Lula da Silva), Argentina (Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner), Bolivia (Evo Morales), Ecuador (Rafael Correa), and Paraguay (Fernando Lugo) made plans to create alternative financial institutions to challenge the US-dominated World Bank and IMF.

The World Bank and IMF have a history of trapping Global South countries in unpayable odious debt, and subsequently imposing neoliberal “structural adjustment” programs that force governments to implement suffocating austerity policies that benefit US corporations.

Following the vision of Venezuela’s revolutionary President Hugo Chávez, Latin America’s left-wing leaders agreed to create a bank aimed at regional unity, called the Banco del Sur (Bank of the South).

Chávez, Lula, the Kirchners, Morales, and Correa met in Argentina in 2007 and signed a treaty officially creating the bank.

But the launch of the Banco del Sur was delayed.

In 2009, the leaders of these countries met again for the Africa-South America Summit (ASA) in Venezuela, where they vowed a combined $20 billion in initial capital.

These plans were never realized, however.

Several leftist governments in Latin America were destabilized and overthrown in a series of brutal geopolitical attacks waged by the United States and right-wing oligarchies – namely several US-sponsored coups: a military coup in Honduras in 2009, judicial coup in Paraguay in 2012, internal coup in Ecuador in 2017, soft coups in Brazil in 2016 and 2018, and violent coup in Bolivia in 2019, as well as numerous failed coup attempts in Venezuela and Nicaragua.

These US attacks and the ensuing right-wing surge also led to the sabotage of another key instrument of regional integration, the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).

While the Banco del Sur was meant to economically integrate the region, political integration was be overseen by UNASUR.

UNASUR was formally created in a 2008 treaty, and officially operational by 2011.

But as Washington prepared another coup attempt against Venezuela, in 2018 and 2019, the right-wing leaders of Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Paraguay coordinated together to withdraw from UNASUR, leaving the institution very weak.

Another important regional institution created in parallel to the Banco del Sur and UNASUR was the ALBA: the Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América (Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America).

Venezuela and Cuba formed the ALBA in 2004 as an economic alliance of left-wing governments in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The ALBA created its own currency for inter-state trade in the region. Adopted in 2009, it was called the Sucre: the “Unified System for Regional Compensation.” (This acronym also referenced the South American revolutionary Antonio José de Sucre, who joined General Simón Bolívar in the anti-colonialist struggle against the Spanish empire in the early 19th century.)

At its peak, the ALBA brought together Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Honduras in a trade bloc, and they used the Sucre in more than $1 billion in bilateral trade in 2012.

Chávez’s dream of unifying the region was undermined by his untimely death in 2013, and what followed was a devastating US economic war waged against Venezuela, including an artificial US-orchestrated commodities crash in 2014, several violent Washington-backed coup attempts, the imposition of harsh sanctions that gradually escalated into a Cuba-style embargo, and the Donald Trump’s attempt to forcibly install unelected coup leader Juan Guaidó as supposed “interim president.”

The left again rises in Latin America

Despite setbacks in the previous decade, by 2022, the left is back on the rise in Latin America.

For the first time in history, the region’s seven most-populated countries are governed by left-wing leaders (Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Venezuela, and Chile).

Colombia’s deeply pro-US right-wing governments were always a thorn in the side of the patria grande (the project of Latin American unity). But that changed with the election in June of Colombia’s first-ever left-wing president: Gustavo Petro.

Recognizing the potential of this historic moment to realize true regional unity, Ecuador’s leftist leader Andrés Arauz has laid out a blueprint for not only political but also economic integration.

Arauz has called for reviving both UNASUR and the Banco del Sur, and strengthening them further with a new Banco Central del Sur (Central Bank of the South).

Arauz is an accomplished economist. He spent more than a decade working at Ecuador’s central bank, eventually serving as its general director. He is currently completing his PhD in financial economics.

Under Ecuador’s former socialist President Rafael Correa, Arauz served as minister of knowledge and human talent.

Arauz has since become a leading figure in Ecuador’s leftist Correísta movement, continuing the “Citizens’ Revolution” launched by Correa.

Arauz was Correísmo’s candidate in the 2021 presidential elections. He won the first round in a landslide, but lost the second round with 47.6% of the vote compared to the 52.4% of Ecuador’s current President Guillermo Lasso, a right-wing multi-millionaire banker notorious for his corruption.

Although he is not formally in office, Arauz has served as an economic advisor for left-wing politicians in the region.

Arauz is a co-founder of the Grupo de Puebla, a political forum bringing together progressive forces in Latin America. He is also a member of the council of the Progressive International.

Lula da Silva, who governed Brazil from 2003 to 2010, is closely allied with both of these organizations. This makes it likely that Arauz will serve in some capacity as an advisor for the new Brazilian government.

In 2020, Lula published an article at the Progressive International website, titled “For a Multipolar World.” In it, the Brazilian left-wing leader said he seeks “the creation of a multipolar world, free from unilateral hegemony and from sterile bipolar confrontation.”

During his presidential campaign, at a rally in May 2022, Lula promised, “We are going to create a currency in Latin America, because we can’t keep depending on the dollar.”

Lula won the October 30 presidential election and will once again become head of state of the largest country in Latin America on January 1, 2023.

Blueprint to revive the Bank of the South and UNASUR with new regional currency ‘Sur’

In response to Lula’s electoral victory, Arauz wrote a blueprint outlining steps that Brazil can take to help develop “a new regional financial architecture.”

The article, published at the pan-Latin American website NODAL, is a guide that Lula can follow when he becomes president.

“The goal: that on January 1, 2023, in the inauguration of Lula, the treaties are signed for the new UNASUR,” Arauz wrote.

“We must put in operation the Bank of the South and sign the founding treaty of the Central Bank of the South and the Sur, the regional currency – in addition to national currencies – that President Lula proposed,” he added.

“The initial step should be immediate,” Arauz stressed.

The system will seek “to harmonize the payment systems of UNASUR to carry out inter-bank transfers to any bank inside of the region in real time and from a cellphone,” he explained.

Arauz cautioned that these actions must be taken soon and quickly, because “the political window of opportunity is between January and September 2023, the date of primary elections in Argentina.”

Argentina’s right-wing opposition, which is much more pro-US and supportive of dollar hegemony and neoliberal economics, could win these elections, throwing a wrench into the project of regional unity.

Arauz warned, “We can’t give up this historic window of opportunity to the slow inertia of the foreign ministries and the backwardness of malinchismo” – a pejorative term that refers to people in Latin America who feel self-hate toward their own societies and have internalized the inferiority complex of cultural imperialism.

“Progressive presidents must create an immediate channel of communication between each other,” he emphasized. “The political will is there, there is no time to lose.”

If Latin America manages to create this “new regional financial architecture,” the Ecuadorian economist argued, it could “allow a breather for Argentina.”

Argentina has faced a deep economic crisis, caused largely by unpayable odious debt owed to the IMF, after the previous right-wing government in Buenos Aires took the largest loan in the fund’s history.

Arauz has been a vocal critic of the IMF. In his article, he said Latin America should take “collective action to retroactively nullify the illegal surcharges of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).”

IMF surcharges are extra interest payments that the US-dominated financial institution imposes on borrowing countries that owe it large debts.

The Bretton Woods Project noted that “civil society organisations, human rights experts and others have argued that surcharges effectively discriminate against and punish countries that are most in need of IMF assistance.”

Arauz proposed that, in order to annul these IMF surcharges, “if necessary,” Latin America and Africa should propose a resolution in the United Nations General Assembly.

He added that Latin America should work together with Africa to demand that the United States issue them IMF special drawing rights to help their economies.

The region could then “recycle” these special drawing rights to help Argentina, Arauz said.

The Ecuadorian economist also wrote that UNASUR could try to make some of the capital fleeing the region to the United States instead return to its countries of origin, by invoking article VIII.2.b of the founding articles of agreement of the IMF.

Arauz offered economic advice for Brazil’s domestic affairs as well.

Lula should “undo the de facto privatization of the Central Bank of Brazil that was implemented” by current far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, and “rearticulate the Central Bank of Brazil in the line of development, integration, and democracy,” he wrote.

“It is very difficult to be able to meet the goals of eradicating hunger and the reindustrialization the Brazilian people need if he has a central bank permanently boycotting it,” Arauz added.

He noted that Colombia’s central bank has already taken actions to oppose the proposed reforms of new left-wing President Gustavo Petro.

But Arauz pointed out that “this wave of regional integration cannot remain only at the level of presidents; it should be a true integration of the peoples.”

“That implies profound participation of the social movements of all of the region, but above all, immediate and tangible benefits for the citizenry,” he stressed.

“It also implies giving preferential treatment to the smallest countries,” Arauz added. “The leadership of President Lula is crucial to join together the countries with distinct ideological orientations.”

In the article, the Ecuadorian economist proposed another idea: creating a “massive program of student exchange,” so that “the youth of Latin American public education are able to study a semester or a year in another country in the region.”

The goal should be “a million youths in student exchange in” 2023, Arauz wrote. “This will be the motor of integration.”

He called for forms of cultural integration as well, proposing a regional contest inviting musicians, writers, and poets to make a hymn for UNASUR.

Arauz concluded the blueprint suggesting that Lula should create a “plenipotentiary ambassador for regional integration.”

The Ecuadorian leftist leader made it clear that he has major ambitions for the region.

It’s not enough for Latin America only to unite, Arauz argued. It needs more representation in international institutions.

“The countries of UNASUR should demand a collective position at the table of the G20, which the African Union is about to obtain,” he wrote.

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1604537107636158470

1604537107636158470

Trapped in IMF debt, Argentina turns to Russia and joins China’s Belt & Road

The United States constantly intervenes in the internal affairs of Latin America, organizing coups d’etat, destabilizing independent governments, trapping nations in debt, and imposing sanctions. Washington sees the region as its own property, with President Joe Biden referring to it this January as “America’s front yard.”

Seeking alternatives to US hegemony, progressive governments in Latin America have increasingly looked across the ocean to form alliances with China and Russia.

Argentina’s President Alberto Fernández did exactly that this February, taking historic trips to Beijing and Moscow to meet with his counterparts Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin.

Fernández signed a series of strategic agreements, officially incorporating Argentina into Beijing’s international Belt and Road Initiative, while expanding economic partnerships with the Eurasian powers and telling Moscow that Argentina “should be the door to enter” Latin America.

China offered $23.7 billion in funding for infrastructure projects and investments in Argentina’s economy.

In the meetings, Fernández also asked for Argentina to join the BRICS framework, alongside Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Xi and Putin reportedly both agreed.

“I am consistently working to rid Argentina of this dependence on the IMF and the US,” Fernández explained. “I want Argentina to open up new opportunities.”

The Argentine president’s comments and meetings with Putin and Xi reportedly angered the US government.

The rest is here,

https://multipolarista.com/2022/02/06/imf-debt-argentina-russia-china-belt-road/

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/NationalEr_Int/status/1603317963494494216

1603317963494494216

¤=[Post Update]=¤

https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1604349357532205057

1604349357532205057

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Inteldinner/status/1604061368910594049

1604061368910594049

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and India focus on a multipolar world order
The new tensions and conflicts among the global superpowers are opening new opportunities for ambitious middle-power countries.

While Europeans fear a division of the world into new blocs, with the U.S. and its allies on one side and China and Russia on the other, others are not at all unhappy with the new, confrontational global dynamic. For a number of self-confident middle powers, the end of undisputed global leadership by the United States offers an opportunity to rebrand and reposition themselves. These are countries that have close ties with the United States, especially in the area of security. At the same time, these countries refuse to be drawn into a confrontation. Instead, they are betting on a continuation of the profitable relationship with Russia and China, regardless of geopolitical tensions.

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and India are betting on a future «multipolar» world order that will allow them to diversify their relations – and position themselves as independent power-political «poles.» All three are in a different league than the U.S. and China. But they are large and influential enough to be heard globally and play an important role regionally. Each of these three countries balances among the great powers, each in its own way.

Red carpet for the Chinese president

Saudi Arabia just demonstrated its quest for independence again with its grand reception of the Chinese president. Admittedly, this was not Xi’s first visit to Riyadh. But the images of harmony from the Saudi capital contrasted sharply with the tensions in the Saudi-U.S. relationship that had been the focus of Biden’s visit in July. What is clear is that Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman’s red carpet for Xi also signaled to Washington that he has other options.

Riyadh has also forged close ties in recent years with Russia, which has once again become an important regional player via its intervention in Syria. Just how close the relationship is, the U.S. was forced to realize through gritted teeth in October. Biden’s visit to Riyadh had been aimed at persuading Saudi Arabia to put more oil on the market in order to bring down the price of oil, which had been increased by the Russian sanctions. But Riyadh did not care about the Americans’ concerns. On the contrary, in October Saudi Arabia and Russia together ensured that OPEC-plus actually reduced production volumes to achieve an increase in price through shortages.

However, it would be inaccurate to conclude from all this that Saudi Arabia also wants to orient itself permanently toward China in terms of security policy. Riyadh still needs the United States as a key partner in its regional rivalry with Iran and for the supply of advanced weapons. China has neither the capabilities nor the interest to become massively involved in the region in terms of security policy. De facto, China also remains dependent on U.S. management of the regional order.

A different idea of regional order

This is also true of Turkey, which, for all its tensions with the U.S., continues to view NATO membership as the foundation of its security. For all its struggle for independence and unwillingness to subordinate itself to American strategies, Ankara does not go so far as to seriously question the transatlantic relationship. But within this framework, Turkey is trying to achieve the greatest possible freedom of action in order to make room for its own ideas of regional order and its national interests.

This tension has crystallized in recent years, particularly over the issue of Turkey’s relations with Russia – and the dispute over Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system.

Turkey’s relationship with Russia is complex. There are elements of fierce competition. In Syria and Libya, and to some extent in the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the two countries are on opposite sides; both have claims to regional hegemony. Similar tensions exist with regard to Ukraine – it does not suit Ankara at all if Russia becomes even more powerful and dominant on the northern coast of the Black Sea. Therefore, Turkey supports the Ukrainian side militarily, especially by supplying armed drones and closing the Bosphorus passage for Russian warships.

A loophole for Russia

For all the competition, however, there is also a partnership between Putin and Erdogan. Both avoid allowing tensions and competition to spill over into direct conflict, both are united in their efforts to keep the West largely out of their region, and both are committed to keeping the bilateral relationship constructive, including in the economic sphere. Turkey is not joining the sanctions against Russia because of the Ukraine war and is even buying more Russian oil. There is also currently growing concern in Western capitals that Turkey is being used by Russia as a loophole to circumvent Western sanctions.

Despite all the Western anger at Turkey, the country has at the same time positioned itself as a central player that has a good relationship with all sides – and could thus move into pole position in mediation attempts. When Moscow and Kyiv were still negotiating in March, these talks took place in Istanbul. And the grain deal that opened a corridor for Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea came about under Turkish direction.

The rest is here,

https://www.nzz.ch/english/saudi-arabia-turkey-and-india-focus-on-a-multipolar-world-order-ld.1717258?mktcid=smsh&mktcval=Twitter

[Ravenlocke]

https://consortiumnews.com/2022/12/15/the-petrodollars-long-goodbye/

The Petrodollar’s Long Goodbye

As part of their concern about “currency power,” many countries in the Global South are eager to develop non-dollar trade and investment systems, writes Vijay Prashad.

On Dec. 9, China’s President Xi Jinping met with the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss deepening ties between the Gulf countries and China.

At the top of the agenda was increased trade between China and the GCC, with the former pledging to “import crude oil in a consistent manner and in large quantities from the GCC” as well to increase imports of natural gas.

In 1993, China became a net importer of oil, surpassing the United States as the largest importer of crude oil by 2017. Half of that oil comes from the Arabian Peninsula, and more than a quarter of Saudi Arabia’s oil exports go to China. Despite being a major importer of oil, China has reduced its carbon emissions.

A few days before he arrived in Riyadh, Xi published an article in al-Riyadh that announced greater strategic and commercial partnerships with the region, including “cooperation in high-tech sectors including 5G communications, new energy, space, and digital economy.”

Saudi Arabia and China signed commercial deals worth $30 billion, including in areas that would strengthen the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Xi’s visit to Riyadh is one of his few overseas trips since the Covid-19 pandemic.

His first was to Central Asia for the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in September, where the nine member states (which represent 40 percent of the world’s population) agreed to increase trade with each other using their local currencies.

At this first China-GCC summit, Xi urged the Gulf monarchs to “make full use of the Shanghai Petrol and Gas Exchange as a platform to conduct oil and gas sales using Chinese currency.” Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia suggested that it might accept Chinese yuan rather than U.S. dollars for the oil it sells to China.

While no formal announcement was made at the GCC summit nor in the joint statement issued by China and Saudi Arabia, indications abound that these two countries will move closer toward using the Chinese yuan to denominate their trade. However, they will do so slowly, as they both remain exposed to the U.S. economy. (China holds just under $1 trillion in U.S. Treasury bonds).

Talk of conducting China-Saudi trade in yuan has raised eyebrows in the United States, which for 50 years has relied on the Saudis to stabilise the dollar. In 1971, the U.S. government withdrew the dollar from the gold standard and began to rely on central banks around the world to hold monetary reserves in U.S. Treasury securities and other U.S. financial assets.

When oil prices skyrocketed in 1973, the U.S. government decided to create a system of dollar seigniorage through Saudi oil profits. In 1974, U.S. Treasury Secretary William Simon — fresh off the trading desk at the investment bank Salomon Brothers — arrived in Riyadh with instructions from U.S. President Richard Nixon to have a serious conversation with the Saudi oil minister, Ahmed Zaki Yamani.

Simon proposed that the U.S. purchase large amounts of Saudi oil in dollars and that the Saudis use these dollars to buy U.S. Treasury bonds and weaponry and invest in U.S. banks as a way to recycle vast Saudi oil profits. And so, the petrodollar was born, which anchored the new dollar-denominated world trade and investment system.

If the Saudis even hinted towards withdrawing this arrangement, which would take at least a decade to implement, it would seriously challenge the monetary privilege afforded to the U.S.

As Gal Luft, co-director of the Institute for Analysis of Global Security, told The Wall Street Journal, “The oil market, and by extension the entire global commodities market, is the insurance policy of the status of the dollar as reserve currency. If that block is taken out of the wall, the wall will begin to collapse.”

The petrodollar system received two serious sequential blows.

First, the 2007–08 financial crisis suggested that the Western banking system is not as stable as imagined. Many countries, including large developing nations, hurried to find other procedures for trade and investment.

The establishment of BRICS by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa is an illustration of this urgency to “discuss the parameters for a new financial system.” A series of experiments have been conducted by BRICS countries, such as the creation of a BRICS payment system.

Second, as part of its hybrid war, the U.S. has used its dollar power to sanction over 30 countries. Many of these countries, from Iran to Venezuela, have sought alternatives to the U.S.-dominated financial system to conduct normal commerce.

Support CN’s Winter Fund Drive!

When the U.S. began to sanction Russia in 2014 and deepen its trade war against China in 2018, the two powers accelerated upon processes of dollar-free trade that other sanctioned states had already begun forming out of necessity.

At that time, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin called for the de-dollarisation of the oil trade. Moscow began to hurriedly reduce its dollar holdings and maintain its assets in gold and other currencies. In 2015, 90 percent of bilateral trade between China and Russia was conducted in dollars, but by 2020 it fell below 50 percent.

When Western countries froze Russian central bank reserves held in their banks, this was tantamount to “crossing the Rubicon,” as economist Adam Tooze wrote. “It brings conflict in the heart of the international monetary system. If the central bank reserves of a G20 member entrusted to the accounts of another G20 central bank are not sacrosanct, nothing in the financial world is. We are at financial war.”

BRICS and sanctioned countries have begun to build new institutions that could circumvent their reliance on the dollar. Thus far, banks and governments have relied upon the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) network, which is run through the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Clearing House Interbank Payment Services and its Fedwire Funds Service. Countries under unilateral US sanctions — such as Iran and Russia — were cut off from the SWIFT system, which connects 11,000 financial institutions across the globe.

After the 2014 U.S. sanctions, Russia created the System for Transfer of Financial Messages (SPFS), which is mainly designed for domestic users but has attracted central banks from Central Asia, China, India and Iran.

In 2015, China created the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS), run by the People’s Bank of China, which is gradually being used by other central banks.

Alongside these developments by Russia and China are a range of other options, such as payment networks rooted in new advances in financial technology (fintech) and central bank digital currencies.

Although Visa and Mastercard are the largest companies in the industry, they face new rivals in China’s UnionPay and Russia’s Mir, as well as China’s private retail mechanisms such as Alipay and WeChat Pay.

About half of the countries in the world are experimenting with forms of central bank digital currencies, with the digital yuan (e-CNY) as one of the more prominent monetary platforms that has already begun to side-line the dollar in the Digital Silk Roads established alongside the BRI.

As part of their concern over “currency power,” many countries in the Global South are eager to develop non-dollar trade and investment systems. Brazil’s new minister of finance starting on Jan. 1, 2023, Fernando Haddad, has championed the creation of a South American digital currency called the sur (meaning “south” in Spanish) in order to create stability in interregional trade and to establish “monetary sovereignty.”

The sur would build upon a mechanism already used by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay called the Local Currency Payment System or SML.


The rest here,

https://consortiumnews.com/2022/12/15/the-petrodollars-long-goodbye/

[Anchor]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNh7pihcEgk

Didn't watch the video, want to comment on the idea behind the thread title.

Obviously the world order will change as the timeline we follow progresses.

At one (theoretical) end of the spectrum of outcomes we have pure anarchy - that is individual freedom, with no archons or rulers. At this end of the spectrum there are as many "poles" as there are humans. This one can only stabilize over the longer term if everyone is more interested in helping people other than themselves.

At the other end of the spectrum we have pure tyranny, and a uni-polar world order. I think tyranny would only be stable and maintainable in an environment of scarcity - necessary for the control system to operate with appropriate ruthlessness.

All the other options are varying degrees of abundance. In a world of abundance (which I believe is already alive and kicking if we could all see it) serving the needs of others is not actually much of a stretch when your own needs are taken care of.

We will settle somewhere on this spectrum, and it will be a place far different from today.

Conclusion: it is obviously correct that the world order will be n-polar where n>2. So not even bi-polar! Multi-polar is definitely where its at :)

Anchor the anarchon!


----
[9eagle9 of times past once pointed out to me that anchor is an anagram of archon - it almost made me want to change my handle on this forum!!]


Anchor/John..

[palehorse]

We are already seeing Anarchist communities rising elsewhere, I do know it will have a great division and it will affect everyone very personally, with that beloved family member that decided to go along with the game of deceive and so on. It already happened, and will just get worse, when the tyrannic forces pass more and more laws, labeling people in the other side of the spectrum as criminals.. we know how it goes on.

[shaberon]

There are some important negatives to it:


No One World Currency

No One World Government


Which, we could probably say, the United Nations had this under its hood, as part of a plan, which is not going to work out.

Some of the advice that seems to be going around is simply not to do business with the London and Swiss bankers.

It may become more of an issue for AngloZionist regions to remain relevant.

What do you do when you have forced other nations to invent phrases like "agreement incapable"?

[Vicus]

Putin reaffirmed that the North-South Transport Corridor is among Russia's top priorities

https://www.sott.net/image/s33/665972/large/bcc8710c_08c7_47e0_91dc_7a14b6.jpg

This multipolar megaproject was given a second wind following years of lackluster progress after emerging as Russia's only remaining outlet to the international economy as a result of this year's dramatic developments, which in turn accelerated that Eurasian Great Power's grand strategic convergence with Iran and India.

Conversations about Eurasian connectivity had hitherto been dominated by China's Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) and in particular its potential to pioneer more robust East-West integration. That all changed with the onset of Russia's special operation and the unprecedented sanctions that the US-led West imposed in response, which immediately rendered the Eurasian Land Bridge politically unviable. Nevertheless, Moscow's Greater Eurasian Partnership (GEP) continues, albeit with a North-South focus.

To that end, it's prioritized the eponymous North-South Transport Corridor (NSTC) between Iran and India, which had been stillborn for years prior. It was given a second wind after emerging as Russia's only remaining outlet to the international economy, however, which in turn accelerated its grand strategic convergence with Iran and India. Those three are now trying to create a third pole of influence in International Relations, which will revolutionize the global system upon their plans' completion.

It was therefore predictable in hindsight that President Putin reaffirmed that the NSTC remains among Russia's top priorities during his extended speech that he gave to the Presidential Council for Strategic Development and National Projects on Wednesday. He declared that

"We are also focusing on the North-South international transport corridor, with plans to expand the transport and logistics infrastructure towards the Caspian Sea.

"As early as next year, the Volga-Caspian Sea Shipping Canal will allow passage of vessels with a draft of no less than 4.5 metres, which will significantly expand Russia's routes to the countries in the Middle East and India."

As can be seen, the southern vector of Russia's GEP is more important than ever, especially since it enables Moscow to maintain balanced relations with Beijing instead of becoming disproportionately dependent on it if no alternatives like the NSTC existed.

To be clear, the Russian-Chinese Strategic Partnership remains strong in spite of the People's Republic actively exploring the parameters of a New Détente with Moscow's American nemesis, the details of which can be read here. President Putin even spent a lot of time elaborating on that neighboring Great Power's importance to his country's grand strategy, particularly with respect to further enhancing their comprehensive connectivity.

Nevertheless, he's also wise enough to preemptively avert the inevitable pitfalls inherent in becoming disproportionately dependent on it too, which explains the importance that he attaches to the NSTC. This grand strategic imperative is mutually beneficial for Iran and India as well, both of which share Russia's vision of breaking through the bi-multipolar impasse of the global systemic transition by collectively creating a third pole of influence to that end.

With that in mind, the US-led West's Mainstream Media and its sympathizers in the Indian intelligentsia who've speculated that the Russian-Indian Strategic Partnership is supposedly on the ropes after Prime Minister Modi's inability to travel to Moscow this year are indulging in nothing but wishful thinking. There's no way that India would ever abandon the Eurasian vector of its New Cold War balancing act, let alone by pulling out of the NSTC. All three parties remain fully committed to this game-changing project.


https://www.sott.net/article/475426-Putin-reaffirmed-that-the-North-South-Transport-Corridor-is-among-Russias-top-priorities

[East Sun]

Please pardon this off topic note.

On the map notice the erroneous placement of
the word England right on top of Ireland.
Not very professional.

[Vicus]

The US is using Africa as a stepping stone against China

Washington’s multi-billion-dollar investment pledge only exists because African nations are needed to counter Beijing’s influence

Last week, the Biden administration hosted a summit of African leaders in Washington, DC. The meeting, the first of its kind in over a decade, aimed to increase US engagement on the continent with a view to countering China.

The US has become increasingly anxious about Beijing’s growing ties with African nations, accusing its rival of employing so-called ‘debt traps’ and other expansionist policies across the region. Accordingly, Washington now claims it will invest $55 billion across the continent in the next three years, although there is no indication as to where that money will come from.

The true goals of this effort are transparent, as illustrated by an AP headline that read “China casts long shadow over US-Africa Leaders Summit.” Washington’s message is summarized as “The US offers a better option to African partners.” If it wasn’t clear already, the US only has one thing in mind with its new-found love for Africans, and that is its own interest in countering China. Could it have cared less otherwise? Definitely not.

When the US takes an interest in your country, it will always frame itself as a messenger of the greater good and a representative of your ‘true’ interests. America has everything you want, everything you need, and you shouldn’t trust those other bad countries that you might be dealing with, because they definitely plan to use and abuse you. There’s been plenty of that on display at the China-Africa summit, even to the point that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin accused China, groundlessly, of destabilizing the region.

But the truth is that there’s a fundamental reason why African nations have been engaging more with China in recent decades, and that’s not because China is more cunning and deceptive, but rather because America’s record on the continent speaks for itself. US actions are a mix of a legacy of total negligence, foreign intervention in the form of military action or sanctions, or worse, the total depletion of African economies in the 1980s and ’90s through programs led by the IMF which forced brutal neoliberal austerity regimes on many countries and severely lowered standards of living.


continue: https://www.rt.com/news/568474-us-africa-summit-china/

[mojo]

Hi all, I still feel that the U.S. is currently involved with Devolution in process. There are are few counter points that come to mind. I don't think it's just a Western influence that is corrupted but equally throughout other cultures including Eastern cultures. Also I truly believe that there has been a plan to take down the swamp and all that we see is to awaken the masses and show them the corruption. Patriots will never give up and are willing to make the great sacrifices.

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1606215189115740165


1606215189115740165

[Justplain]

If you think freedom will sprout elsewhere than in the west, I think you haven't been objectively watching what's going on. The G20 signed an agreement to let the WHO run the show during the next pandemic, including forcing the use of vaccine passports. All the nations I have heard of are pursuing the establishment of a central bank digital ID. Everyone seems to be on board with the centralized control of the population. My wife, a Russian, tells me that the city of Moscow is touting a program to turn it's citizens into cyborgs. China already is establishing a social credit digital monitoring system. India has already established biometric IDs for most of its citizens, under the auspices of a buddy of bill Gates.

So where is this freedom loving non-western world going to come from? Iran that's executing protestors for removing hijabs? From China that practices genocide against uigers or the falon gong? From Russia that invades and destroys it's neighbour for wanting to go it's own way? From North Korea which starves it's population whilst further developing nuclear weapons?

Show me the peaceful, freedom loving nations that are going to lead the world to harmony. You can't because they don't exist

[Bill Ryan]

My wife, a Russian, tells me that the city of Moscow is touting a program to turn it's citizens into cyborgs.Thanks — that got me interested (because I have to say it does seem a little hard to believe, to say the very least), and so I searched but failed to find a single reference, even in satire. Does your wife have anything that supports anything close to this, maybe on Russian social media?


From Russia that invades and destroys it's neighbour for wanting to go it's own way? I also have to say that if your wife also believes this, she's falling for a whole organized layer of crafted lies that are designed to misinform, propagandize and manipulate the opinion of good people. (And I'm quite sure your lovely wife is a good person. :heart: )

[palehorse]

This website is ALL about biometrics

https://www.biometricupdate.com/

In Thailand they already got the chip into the passport since 2020, what is coming now is the integration of the health status (vaccine status), their deadline is 2030. In Thailand more or less about 1/6 of the Thai population actually has a passport, they are coming for the Thai national ID.

In The Philippines they got 10 million people into the Digital ID, here is the article from the horse's mouth.
https://www.philsys.gov.ph/a-major-milestone-psa-undersecretary-mapa-reacts-to-10-million-ephilids-issued/


https://www.biometricupdate.com/202008/thales-led-consortium-delivers-thailands-new-biometric-passports


Another thing I can report first hand because it happened to me, my SIM card was cancelled a little while ago, for no reason and then I heard someone with the same problem, and then another one, the thing is my SIM card had no biometric data attached to it, for what I know now they started doing it since around end of 2020, if you don't update your data with the SIM provider, they shut you off (there was a deadline for that, sure I missed it :ROFL:).
There was reports as well they are doing it constantly in the south border with Malaysia, since i live in the south, I guess they are targeting this region, because I didn't hear anyone with the same issues in Bangkok or up north of the country.

[Justplain]

My wife, a Russian, tells me that the city of Moscow is touting a program to turn it's citizens into cyborgs.Thanks — that got me interested (because I have to say it does seem a little hard to believe, to say the very least), and so I searched but failed to find a single reference, even in satire. Does your wife have anything that supports anything close to this, maybe on Russian social media?


From Russia that invades and destroys it's neighbour for wanting to go it's own way? I also have to say that if your wife also believes this, she's falling for a whole organized layer of crafted lies that are designed to misinform, propagandize and manipulate the opinion of good people. (And I'm quite sure your lovely wife is a good person. :heart: )


Hi Bill,.apparently the Moscow city website has removed the transhumanist agenda post, however my wife found a couple of articles that refer to this program, which is called "Moscow Smart City 2030" (it's in Russian Cyrillic of course). The bloggers are saying that the Moscow 2030 agenda is posted on the website of the mayor of the city of Moscow, however we are currently unable to link to that site as well. Here are the articles that reference this program.

https://globalcio.ru/discussion/15793/

https://realnoevremya.ru/articles/176163-bloger-mihail-aleksanyanc-o-nastuplenii-epohi-kontrolya

Regarding Russia being the aggressor in the Ukraine, that's my conclusion, not my wife's. You talk of historical perspective, and this is a good point. In the thread on the Donbass War here on Avalon, I pointed out that Russia was using the old Soviet tactic of pulverizing the opposition with artillery before marching in. I gave video evidence from maripol of how the buildings were pock marked with shell holes. Now, some avalonians have Pooh Poohed my assertion here, saying the Ukrainians did it to themselves. I cannot express how absurd this assertion is. Anyway, if you want historical perspective in how Russia has used this technique before, just do a little research on the second Chechen war, see how Grozny was flattened with artillery. If you do a little more research you'll find that this war was started due to "terrorist bombings" of Russian apartment buildings. This was very likely a false flag because at the time Russian news reported that FSB agents with explosives had been caught in similar buildings at the same time, and were released due to whom they worked for.

Like I've said all along,the Russian government is leading that nation into transhumanist hell and is using old Soviet methods to dominate the Ukraine. You can think whatever you like, but you won't convince me otherwise.

[shaberon]

In the thread on the Donbass War here on Avalon, I pointed out that Russia was using the old Soviet tactic of pulverizing the opposition with artillery before marching in. I gave video evidence from maripol of how the buildings were pock marked with shell holes.


Ukranian cannons are parked in houses. They get demolished by better Russian ones.



Like I've said all along,the Russian government is leading that nation into transhumanist hell and is using old Soviet methods to dominate the Ukraine. You can think whatever you like, but you won't convince me otherwise.


Swedish. The Swedish Empire had already demonstrated the supremacy of cannon on the field of battle--hence her "strength through neutrality".

This sounds like a firmly-held belief. I am not sure it reflects the opinion in the new Russian states. Or the old ones. It does sound like a pre-conceived notion we are already familiar with. I will keep my eyes open, but, usually there doesn't seem to be anything of it other than doublespeak.

This is a bit like putting laws against Christians charging interest. Jews naturally occupy the banking sector. Laws against Russian commerce make larger nations fill the void. I would have said such a multi-polarity was inevitable, but who would predict something like this would start rushing along due to some backfiring stupid policies?

It is odd because it is nearly the same thing Viktor Bout said--"cultural suicide" is taking place here. I can easily see what we might call "issues of under-development". So I tend to agree something like that is already true here.

It is not particularly unusual for a city to post a framework of its possible plans. Threat level on that one is somewhat low.


To attempt to end these Roman Dark Ages one more time, Humanism (https://books.google.com/books?id=NPA0DwAAQBAJ&lpg=PA1&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=false) is the name for the "break" of Greek from western Europe in the 600s, later attempting to return with the Paleologues, Gemisthos Plethon, etc., but only truly remaining in Greek-fluent areas.

Humanism is combined with the Christian religious practice Hesychasm (https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/33345/1/502556.pdf):


Nevertheless, the two spiritual and theological
movements of the 14th century, namely hesychasm and humanism, had some
bearing on artistic development during the so-called Palaeologan renaissance.


And so even though the Humanism of the "Renaissance" in western Europe was also driven out, the sphere moved the other way:

Zoe Palaiologina (Medieval Greek: Ζωή Παλαιολογίνα), whose name was later changed to Sophia Palaiologina (Russian: София Фоминична Палеолог; ca. 1449 – 7 April 1503), was a Byzantine princess, member of the Imperial Palaiologos family, and Grand Princess of Moscow as the second wife of Grand Prince Ivan III.


Humanism is the very name of the thing the "collective west" has driven away and attacked since the early days of recorded history.

"Zone B" may change, overnight, and decide to purge itself. Right now I am going to guess that Humanism still has enough followers to gain a voice.

[wegge]

Regarding Moscow and a transhumanist agenda, Matthew Ehret made some interesting points in part 3 of his trilogy „Clash of the two Americas.“

He talks about some key players of a Russian deep state, one of them being the Moscow Mayor, another the Russia Today boss, along with some pharma players. In a Yin Yang plot twist, it seems that in Russia (and China) local governments and states were fully onboard with draconian Covid measures, and had to be countered by the central government. Contrary to the US, where some states refused the centralist government.

Coming back to Cyborgs in Moscow, it seems possible that a Schwab-loving mayor would try to further this agenda, but it’s not necessarily the whole of Russia doing so.

[syrwong]

Geopolitical analysis looks at the world from a wide perspective, bypassing the mostly inaccurate and bias details in Youtube and social medias. This is what should be done because these platforms have been used by evil forces for psychological operations and they have been very successful. The human brain is more adapted to perceiving personalities and less to viewing the world in the wider political and historical perspectives. Therefore by bombarding people with the perception that Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein as evil dictators and equating the nations and civilizations with their images worked very well and the audience has no sympathy for the suffering of the people after their destruction. On the other hand if we view what Libya under the leadership of Gaddafi had done for its people and Africa, or how prosperous and stable Iraq was from this wider angle, the assessment cannot deviate from the truth by much.

The key geopolitical analysis must focus on uni-polarity vs multi-polarity. Those who espouse the former is leading the world to dystopia under absolute totalitarian technocracy. Those who defend the latter is also defending natural development and freedom, and they are not coincidentally the ancient civilizations represented by the China, Russia, the Muslim countries and Africa and South America.

[Vicus]

END OF UNIPOLARITY

''Attempts to create a unipolar world have acquired an absolutely ugly configuration in recent times and they are absolutely unacceptable for the overwhelming majority of states on this planet'' ~ Vladimir Putin (Source)

Putin speaks out as a voice of reason and truth against the Empire of Lies.

''The West is ready to cross every line to preserve the neo-colonial system which allows it to live off the world, to plunder it thanks to the domination of the dollar and technology, to collect an actual tribute from humanity, to extract its primary source of unearned prosperity, the rent paid to the hegemon. The preservation of this annuity is their main, real and absolutely self-serving motivation. This is why total de-sovereignisation is in their interest. This explains their aggression towards independent states, traditional values and authentic cultures, their attempts to undermine international and integration processes, new global currencies and technological development centres they cannot control. It is critically important for them to force all countries to surrender their sovereignty to the United States.

In certain countries, the ruling elites voluntarily agree to do this, voluntarily agree to become vassals; others are bribed or intimidated. And if this does not work, they destroy entire states, leaving behind humanitarian disasters, devastation, ruins, millions of wrecked and mangled human lives, terrorist enclaves, social disaster zones, protectorates, colonies and semi-colonies. They don't care. All they care about is their own benefit.[...]

[...]I want to underscore again that their insatiability and determination to preserve their unfettered dominance are the real causes of the hybrid war that the collective West is waging against Russia. They do not want us to be free; they want us to be a colony. They do not want equal cooperation; they want to loot. They do not want to see us a free society, but a mass of soulless slaves.'' ~ Vladimir Putin (Source)

The Russian president has an alternative future in sight, in which nobody on Earth will be considered a second-rate player and all nations are equal and sovereign.

Around this strengthened leadership, Russia is building new geopolitical configurations and balances of power in various regions of the world - from Central Europe, Transcaucasia to West and Central Africa. Over a dozen countries have now applied to join BRICS, including Saudi-Arabia, Algeria, Iran and Argentina. A new reality is taking shape: the uni-polar world is irretrievably receding into the past and a multi-polar world is being born.

https://www.sott.net/image/s33/666515/large/BRICS.jpg

continue: https://www.sott.net/article/475658-Vladimir-Putin-Leading-Humanity-Through-the-Transition

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1609178823014354949

1609178823014354949

https://twitter.com/ANoroozee/status/1609114977788379139

1609114977788379139

[christian]

Matthew Ehret (whose website is https://canadianpatriot.org)

Matthew Ehret, who is presented as the star of this video, idolizes Putin (for example in this article (https://strategic-culture.org/news/2022/10/05/importance-leadership-time-crisis-why-putins-words-reflect-new-potential-trajectory-for-humanity/)). I find this disturbing, as Putin has proven himself to be a murderous tyrant (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com/putinmurders/). If he wanted to help the Russian minority in Ukraine, he could have offered them Russian citizenship. The current invasion of Ukraine obviously hurts pro-Russian Ukrainians (and other Ukrainians and Russians) more than it helps.

Ehret seems optimistic about the coming multipolar world and that big countries other than the US seem to be genuinely interested in benefiting and cooperating with smaller countries around the world. However, to me it seems more like networking among crooks—i.e. the heads of state and business—while the general population is forced into submission. In Congo, China operates the largest cobalt mines under horrendous conditions (https://nypost.com/2022/12/24/joe-rogan-guest-siddharth-kara-reveals-dark-side-of-cobalt/). It's modern-day slavery to put batteries into phones, cars, etc. China also exports its surveillance state model and technology across Africa (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-01-10/china-s-digital-silk-road-is-looking-more-like-an-iron-curtain), enabling local rulers to emulate China's authoritarianism.

Praising international figureheads coming together seems to me like praising Bilderberg, the Trilateral Commission, or the CFR. Although the latter are strongly influenced by the US and the new multipolar world seems more diverse, it's all a convergence of megalomaniacs.

In the end, many feuds between powerful countries seem like a show to me, meant to distract the public.

Anthony Sutton wrote in The Best Enemy Money Can Buy that "there is no such thing as Soviet technology. Almost all—perhaps 90-95 percent—came directly or indirectly from the United States and its allies. In effect, the United States and the NATO countries have built the Soviet Union. Its industrial and its military capabilities. This massive construction job has taken 50 years. Since the Revolution in 1917. It has been carried out through trade and the sale of plants, equipment, and technical assistance."

In "From a China Traveler" (https://www.nytimes.com/1973/08/10/archives/from-a-china-traveler.html), published by the New York Times in 1973, David Rockefeller expressed his sincere admiration for the compelling force of Chinese politics. I can't believe that US politicians and businessmen built up China the way they did without either working with them behind the scenes or having some failsafe mechanism to shut down China when it's convenient. Why would they risk building up a foreign state and thus endangering their own hegemony? My money is on "it's all a big show, and there's some sort of cooperation behind the scenes".

Also during the CoViD plandemic there was lots of cooperation between China, the US, many other countries, and globalist organizations such as the WEF or the UN. At the end of the day, I see authoritarians in virtually every country. They might not agree on everything, but they do seem to agree on their intent to rule in an authoritarian way. The more they cooperate, the more they constitute a power cartel that might eventually turn into some globalized system, whether it's via US hegemony or via a multipolar world. The essential war of our times, in my eyes, is not some countries against other countries, but a tiny class of authoritarians in politics and business against the masses of the people.

[pounamuknight]

I find this disturbing, as Putin has proven himself to be a murderous tyrant (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com/putinmurders/). If he wanted to help the Russian minority in Ukraine, he could have offered them Russian citizenship

Source: La Russophobe (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com) Seriously?! Why not just HateRussia.com

Just a reminder

Russophobe - noun. (From Russian and other Greek φόβος - fear)

A person with a biased, suspicious, hostile, hostile attitude towards the Russian people, Russia, Russian language, Russian culture and history, within a specific direction in ethnophobia.


wikipedia

My definition of La Russophobe: Operation Mockingbird 7.0 cutout

Last defining word of La Russophobe goes to the witty Anatoly Karlin (https://akarlin.substack.com)


La Russophobe is a hate blog (http://exile.ru/articles/detail.php?ARTICLE_ID=8450&IBLOCK_ID=35) run by a bigoted egomaniac. Its holier-than-thou sincerity goes hand in hand with a slanderous campaign against other Russia watchers who don’t toe its party line, making La Russophobe its own best parody.

Many of the commentators it attracts are even more deranged, not to mention morbidly entertaining (like the artworks of Damien Hirst). If you’re forced to sink so low to vilify Russia, then it can’t be that bad, now can it?

Oh yeah, about the "if Putin wanted to help them, just give them Russian citizenship" thing

Russia did

[christian]

Source: La Russophobe (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com) Seriously?! Why not just HateRussia.com

It's a lengthy, detailed article (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com/putinmurders/). You address none of the content, but only the name of the blog. That's an "ad hominem", which is almost at the bottom of the hierarchy of arguments. To quote you: Seriously?!

https://thefederalistpapers.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/imageedit_3691_8088826470.jpg


Oh yeah, about the "if Putin wanted to help them, just give them Russian citizenship" thing

Russia did

That's great. And then Putin ****ed up much of Ukraine and caused death and destruction beyond anything that the criminal regime in Kyiv had done.

[Tintin]

Cross posting from Bill here from the Putin thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?118635-The-Putin-Thread&p=1525312&viewfull=1#post1525312):

A highly prescient Nexus Magazine article, published in 2017, 5 long years ago. (This is one of the 200 free articles presented in this thread: 200 free Nexus magazine articles from the last 14 years) (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?119809-200-free-Nexus-magazine-articles-from-the-last-14-years)

Who Is Vladimir Putin? Why Do the US Government and the Western Media Demonise Him?

https://projectavalon.net/Who_is_Vladimir_Putin.pdf

https://projectavalon.net/Who_is_Vladimir_Putin.pdf

[Mashika]

Matthew Ehret (whose website is https://canadianpatriot.org)

Matthew Ehret, who is presented as the star of this video, idolizes Putin (for example in this article (https://strategic-culture.org/news/2022/10/05/importance-leadership-time-crisis-why-putins-words-reflect-new-potential-trajectory-for-humanity/)). I find this disturbing, as Putin has proven himself to be a murderous tyrant (https://larussophobe.wordpress.com/putinmurders/). If he wanted to help the Russian minority in Ukraine, he could have offered them Russian citizenship. The current invasion of Ukraine obviously hurts pro-Russian Ukrainians (and other Ukrainians and Russians) more than it helps.

Ehret seems optimistic about the coming multipolar world and that big countries other than the US seem to be genuinely interested in benefiting and cooperating with smaller countries around the world. However, to me it seems more like networking among crooks—i.e. the heads of state and business—while the general population is forced into submission. In Congo, China operates the largest cobalt mines under horrendous conditions (https://nypost.com/2022/12/24/joe-rogan-guest-siddharth-kara-reveals-dark-side-of-cobalt/). It's modern-day slavery to put batteries into phones, cars, etc. China also exports its surveillance state model and technology across Africa (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-01-10/china-s-digital-silk-road-is-looking-more-like-an-iron-curtain), enabling local rulers to emulate China's authoritarianism.

Praising international figureheads coming together seems to me like praising Bilderberg, the Trilateral Commission, or the CFR. Although the latter are strongly influenced by the US and the new multipolar world seems more diverse, it's all a convergence of megalomaniacs.

In the end, many feuds between powerful countries seem like a show to me, meant to distract the public.

Anthony Sutton wrote in The Best Enemy Money Can Buy that "there is no such thing as Soviet technology. Almost all—perhaps 90-95 percent—came directly or indirectly from the United States and its allies. In effect, the United States and the NATO countries have built the Soviet Union. Its industrial and its military capabilities. This massive construction job has taken 50 years. Since the Revolution in 1917. It has been carried out through trade and the sale of plants, equipment, and technical assistance."

In "From a China Traveler" (https://www.nytimes.com/1973/08/10/archives/from-a-china-traveler.html), published by the New York Times in 1973, David Rockefeller expressed his sincere admiration for the compelling force of Chinese politics. I can't believe that US politicians and businessmen built up China the way they did without either working with them behind the scenes or having some failsafe mechanism to shut down China when it's convenient. Why would they risk building up a foreign state and thus endangering their own hegemony? My money is on "it's all a big show, and there's some sort of cooperation behind the scenes".

Also during the CoViD plandemic there was lots of cooperation between China, the US, many other countries, and globalist organizations such as the WEF or the UN. At the end of the day, I see authoritarians in virtually every country. They might not agree on everything, but they do seem to agree on their intent to rule in an authoritarian way. The more they cooperate, the more they constitute a power cartel that might eventually turn into some globalized system, whether it's via US hegemony or via a multipolar world. The essential war of our times, in my eyes, is not some countries against other countries, but a tiny class of authoritarians in politics and business against the masses of the people.

Hi Christian, i have a few questions i would like to ask, several and it would take a long while to go through all of that, very likely several long posts

But before any of that happens, i would like to ask just one question, and this one, to be honest, is meant to asses how much do you actually know (vs what you have read or being told and that you accepted as truth and point of view)

Here you go:

Why do you think Boris Yeltsin pointed the finger at Vladimir Putin to be the next president of Russia and what were the implications for modern democratic 'New Russia' when a 'democratic' leader basically skipped democracy to single-handedly select a candidate like Putin, which went against the US desires and plans for 'New Russia'?

NOTE: Consider that Yeltsin was bought & placed as president of 'democratic Russia' by the US back then, and he was meant to do the bidding of the US as far as Russia's future

Depending on this, very honestly, we may have an interesting conversation, or not have one at all :)

I'm asking basically because of this statement you made



If he wanted to help the Russian minority in Ukraine, he could have offered them Russian citizenship


Which when you were told he did, then you skewed it to say something meaningless like this



That's great. And then Putin ****ed up much of Ukraine and caused death and destruction beyond anything that the criminal regime in Kyiv had done

When you could have easily said "Oh, i did not know he had offered them Russian nationality and now i have read about it and i was wrong"

I mean, the answer was clear and direct, he did offered Russian nationality, you were wrong. So this to me implies you have not read much about the actual state of things but instead have just been reading or letting someone else tell you what you should think or how you should see this issue with Ukraine

Honestly, you were wrong, why not just accept it instead of name calling? That's on your pyramid, and to make it worse, you called Putin a murderous tyrant but you provided only a link to backup your claims?

Here's how it should have been done:

You posted a link, someone replied and say the source is not serious or valid because of xxx reasons
You provide a counter-response that shows evidence of why the source should be considered serious and valid

You did not do that. So now it puts you in a position in which it may seem like you are not well informed or have a way to backup your statements, since you chose to instead derail into a separate argument about "ad-honimem" and distance the conversation away from the main point made by pounamuknight, which is that the source is not serious and valid since it is 100% biased and directed by hate

So maybe i should rephrase that pounamuknight observation into a question of my own

Why do you think the Russophobe website should be considered serious and valid?

Thanks for reading. I may not be able to answer in a day or two or more, but i will definitely come back to check and answer as soon as i can

:flower:

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/MaxBlumenthal/status/1611095995340791808

1611095995340791808

[Rahul]

Dear Bill, first, as this is my first posting of the new year, a happy new year to all Project Avalon forum members.
About the multipolar world, it does seem to me that for most of the 'west' (which for people in Asia is usually western Europe plus north America), multipolar has to include China and Russia. These being included because Russian was the American cold war enemy, and China is the early 21st century antithesis to westen liberal democracy.
Whether this is true or not, surely the people of the 'west' understand that especially because the subject is 'multipolar', having a western view about the multiple poles is hardly going to describe it.
Also, there's a lot to multipolarity that isn't about Russia, China, the EU and USA. India (my home country) is generally considered (by those who like to spend their time considering such things) to be one of the heavyweights of multipolarity.But is it really? In India's case, the 'multi' is only as assumption, and a rather weak one.
By the globalists and their corporate empires, India is considered to be no more than a large country with a very large middle class, all now predisposed to becoming reliable consumers.
Other large countries with large populations are the same: Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria. In which case, what is felt and experienced by tens of millions of households the world over is not participation in multipolarity but participation in choosing from a very short set of foods and goods, and then some more participation merely as a way to "keep fit".
The mammoth fraud of the last three years called covid ought to have divided any human settlement into those like them, and those like us. Unfortunately for us, it needs more, and that more is yet to be broadcast.

[Vicus]

https://rense.com/1.mpicons/slider20200710/bp.jpg

[shaberon]

Along the way of de-dollarization, here is something I had not noticed from an article about the beginning of the Petroyuan (https://sputniknews.com/20230108/china-using-petroyuan-in-oil-imports-may-lead-to-new-world-energy-order-1106127192.html):

It pointed to “the prospect of cheap energy”, which is “already luring western industrial businesses to China”, where Germany’s BASF’s main plant in Ludwigshafen was recently moved (as an example).



A few recently-published similar ideas from Africa (https://sputniknews.com/20230108/west-is-losing-influence-in-africa-says-eritrean-ambassador-to-russia-1106122351.html):


According to him, "another world" is being built at the moment, and Africans can "breathe freely," gaining full independence from American and French influence.

Tseggai added that regardless of the West’s opinion, Eritrea will continue military and technical cooperation with Russia and underlined that his country also wishes to develop a partnership with Moscow in the sphere of mineral exploration and oil production.

Analysts underline that America is unlikely to succeed competing with China in Africa due to fundamental differences in approaches.



Those things look like the status quo for years to come. As the western system, perhaps in its death throes, does strange things, here is one from a long list of British companies taking taxpayers' money for Personal Protective Equipment during Covid response. This study *only* looks at domestic companies and does *not* consider testing kits or other materials. The concern was at first how many of the items had simply gone to "not for use". Here is the cake winner from PPE (https://archive.vn/vsUXH#selection-977.0-1003.348):


Most people will have never heard of Full Support, a small family-owned business based in Wellingborough, a market town in Northamptonshire. Yet its owners, Sarah Stoute, 49, a former nurse, and her husband, Richard, 52, are the recipients of easily the single biggest PPE contract of the pandemic.

They received payments for protective equipment including gloves, medical gowns and masks valued at £2 billion. The year before the pandemic, the annual cost of running Trident, Britain’s strategic nuclear deterrent, was £2.3 billion, according to House of Commons library. The couple scrambled to order consignments of PPE after receiving a “tip-off” about a deadly virus in China in late 2019. Then, they waited.

In March, as the first wave hit Britain, Full Support was directly awarded orders worth billions, but they did not need to be competed for or declared in the normal way because the company had an existing agreement with the government through which it already to supplied NHS trusts. Since then, the married couple have lived a life of luxury.

Recent purchases include: a £6.75 million home with 19,000 sq ft of space, 18 acres of landscaped gardens, lawns and two lakes; an equestrian centre to cater for Sarah’s love of horse-riding; and a £30 million villa in the Caribbean. As for the precise extent of their profits, last summer the Stoutes based their company offshore in Jersey, a tax haven. Filings at Companies House do not disclose revenue or profit.

They say that the firm and its immediate parent entity owed £7,006 in corporation tax as of last September, but do not say what they paid HMRC in total last year. What we do know, according to official data, is that their company ultimately produced 140 million items designated “do not use” by health officials. Their estimated value: £84 million.

[christian]

Why do you think Boris Yeltsin pointed the finger at Vladimir Putin to be the next president of Russia and what were the implications for modern democratic 'New Russia' when a 'democratic' leader basically skipped democracy to single-handedly select a candidate like Putin, which went against the US desires and plans for 'New Russia'?

I have no clue.


I'm asking basically because of this statement you made



If he wanted to help the Russian minority in Ukraine, he could have offered them Russian citizenship

Which when you were told he did, then you skewed it to say something meaningless like this



That's great. And then Putin ****ed up much of Ukraine and caused death and destruction beyond anything that the criminal regime in Kyiv had done

When you could have easily said "Oh, i did not know he had offered them Russian nationality and now i have read about it and i was wrong" […]

Honestly, you were wrong, why not just accept it instead of name calling? That's on your pyramid…

It's not my pyramid, it's Graham's Hierarchy of Disagreement (https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Hierarchy_of_disagreement). I didn't call pounamuknight anything, or please show me where I did.

Why is it meaningless to add that Putin ****ed up much of Ukraine and caused death and destruction beyond anything that the criminal regime in Kyiv had done? I think it's highly relevant to the whole situation. I honestly think it's great that Putin offered Ukrainians Russian citizenship, I didn't know that before. I think he should have left it at that, or at least he definitely should not have ****ed up Ukraine as he did.


…and to make it worse, you called Putin a murderous tyrant but you provided only a link to backup your claims?

Here's how it should have been done:

You posted a link, someone replied and say the source is not serious or valid because of xxx reasons
You provide a counter-response that shows evidence of why the source should be considered serious and valid

You did not do that. So now it puts you in a position in which it may seem like you are not well informed or have a way to backup your statements, since you chose to instead derail into a separate argument about "ad-honimem" and distance the conversation away from the main point made by pounamuknight, which is that the source is not serious and valid since it is 100% biased and directed by hate

It's a link that leads to a lot of information. pounamuknight said it's not a serious source because of its name. I think that's a weak argument as it's an "ad hominem" argument, why would it be derailment to point this out? I did respond to that argument as I mentioned that it's a detailed, lengthy article. I was hinting at content, and I think that's a better argument than saying the blog is not to be trusted because of its name.

I'm in contact with lots of Ukrainians who escaped Ukraine, it's hard not to run into them in Berlin. I have German friends who go to Ukraine on a frequent basis, providing support for the resistance against the invasion. I read quite a bit about the whole situation, I look at it from many different angles, and I understand that suffering in Ukraine is worse now than it has ever been since the US-supported revolution. But even though the current Ukrainian government is criminal/illegitimate and committed war crimes of its own, the Russian invasion dwarfs any crime that happened in the country in the previous years (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War).

I think it's wrong to demonize Russians in general and I think it's wrong to pretend that Putin is some archvillain while Western leaders are somehow the good guys. I think they're all criminals, especially in the case of Ukraine. I think Putin's "support" for the Russian minority in Ukraine is feigned, it's really about power politics. In general, I think it's foolish to lionize any major politician today, they're all crooks. I think it's essential to realize how the current situation is used to divide people, we can see that here on this thread. I'm antagonized because I'm not pro-Putin. I think we should beware of taking the side of any politician on this issue (or in general) and rather focus on our common humanity and creating peace. I think it was wrong what the regime in Kyiv did to the Russian minority in Ukraine, and I think Putin's response to that was neither helpful nor legitimate. What is legitimate is that people who are attacked defend themselves in accordance with the principle of proportionality. It's not OK to go beyond that.

When I came to this thread, my main point was that authoritarian rulers all over the world "constitute a power cartel that might eventually turn into some globalized system, whether it's via US hegemony or via a multipolar world." Nobody responded to that, instead we're talking a lot about the Ukraine situation, I think that would belong into another thread.

[pounamuknight]

pounamuknight said it's not a serious source because of its name

If La Bigot is a serious source for bigots, sure

A reminder what La Russophobe (I'm not linking to it either) rabidly states that it is:


Russophobic - noun. (From Russian and other Greek φόβος - fear)

A biased, suspicious, hostile, hostile attitude towards the Russian people, Russia, Russian language, Russian culture and history, within a specific direction in ethnophobia


wikipedia

[christian]

A reminder what La Russophobe (I'm not linking to it either) rabidly states that it is:


Russophobic - noun. (From Russian and other Greek φόβος - fear)

A biased, suspicious, hostile, hostile attitude towards the Russian people, Russia, Russian language, Russian culture and history, within a specific direction in ethnophobia


wikipedia

I cannot find that quote anywhere on the website of La Russophobe, nor on Wikipedia. Do you have a link to the source?

For some reason, you say the quote comes from La Russophobe, yet in the quote box you add that it's from Wikipedia. I don't understand why you did that, can you explain?

The closest match that I find to the quote you shared appeared on realresearcher.com (https://realresearcher.com/media/survey-public-opinion-on-russophobia/), a completely different website.

Here's what the authors of La Russophobe state about their intent and about the name of their blog:


We are a Not-for-Profit Russia blog recording the rise (and hopefully fall) of the Neo-Soviet Union. We are the #1 independent English-language Russia politics blog in the world. No independent Russia politics blog in English has close to as much daily traffic as we do, and no blog in the English language draws close to as many reader comments or links from other blogs. When you join us as a reader or contributor, you join the struggle for democracy in Russia.

We were founded in April 2006 by Kim Zigfeld, who is now the Russia correspondent for Pajamas Media and a columnist for Russia! magazine. Our blog has been linked-to by such powerful institutions of mainstream media as the Associated Press, the Moscow Times and the Washington Post, among many others.

We are team blog, the work product of many dedicated and talented people working for a common goal: To see Russia become a prosperous, democratic, contributing member of the world community — rather than the scourge, blight and nuisance that it is now.


The difference between a “russophobe” and a “russophile” is that while both “love” Russia, they define “love” differently: the “russophile” does everything he can to destroy the country, while the “russophobe” does everything he can to save it from destruction.

You never bothered to address the content of the article I linked to, instead you went on a campaign against the name of the blog, which is a low-quality argument. And while doing that, you interpreted the name of the blog in the most uncharitable way possible while ignoring the authors' actual self-description and intent.

[Ewan]

The difference between a “russophobe” and a “russophile” is that while both “love” Russia, they define “love” differently: the “russophile” does everything he can to destroy the country, while the “russophobe” does everything he can to save it from destruction.



That literally makes zero sense, unless it was lifted from the pages of an Aldous Huxley novel.

[christian]

The difference between a “russophobe” and a “russophile” is that while both “love” Russia, they define “love” differently: the “russophile” does everything he can to destroy the country, while the “russophobe” does everything he can to save it from destruction.



That literally makes zero sense, unless it was lifted from the pages of an Aldous Huxley novel.

The authors of La Russophobe want to interpret "russophobic" in a way that I would paraphrase as "critical of contemporary Russian politics and desiring to improve Russia, because they love the country and its inhabitants". I wouldn't use the word "russophobic" for that, because it's bound to alienate many readers (as we can see on this thread), but I can tolerate that the authors have chosen this odd definition of "russophobic".

[Vicus]

US ‘threatening’ Africa over ties with Russia – defense minister

Washington is concerned by a Russian cargo ship’s visit to a naval base in South Africa, an American official has told the WSJ

Relations between Washington and Pretoria have become strained after a Russian cargo ship visited South Africa’s largest naval base last month, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The country’s defense minister said the US had been pressuring African nations over any links with Moscow, according to the outlet.

Washington is “concerned by the support the South African Armed Forces provided to the ‘Lady R’,” a senior US official told the WSJ, referring to a Russian vessel that was sanctioned in May over its alleged involvement in arms shipments for Moscow.

In early December, the ship was allowed to enter Simon’s Town navy base with its transponders turned off and freely move cargo there, the report claimed. “There is no publicly available information on the source of the containers that were loaded onto the ‘Lady R’,” the official said.

The outlet cited comments made by South African Defense Minister Thandi Modise last month regarding the visit of ‘Lady R’. She declined to reveal what cargo the ship was carrying, only saying that “whatever contents this vessel was getting were ordered long before Covid,” which emerged in late 2019.

Washington “threatens Africa, not just South Africa, of having anything that is even smelling of Russia,” Modise said, as quoted by the WSJ.

The article noted that, under the US law, Washington can place sanctions on any entity that provides services to a black-listed ship.

Darren Olivier, who heads African Defense Review consulting company, told the outlet it was plausible that the ‘Lady R’ was bringing an old order of Russian ammunition to South Africa. Moscow and Pretoria agreed a shipment of 4.5 million rounds of Russian ammunition worth around $585,000 back in 2020, he said.

As for what was loaded on the ship, Olivier pointed out that “South Africa’s defense industry does not generally produce armaments and complete systems that are used by the Russian military.” However, he said Moscow could be interested in dual-use items, including guidance systems and optics for aerial drones.

According to the senior US official, who spoke to the WSJ, the US embassy warned Pretoria in November that a sanctioned vessel was about to arrive in the country, but the South African authorities did not respond. The events surrounding ‘Lady R’ demonstrate the “difficulty” of implementing sanctions on Russia for the US and its allies, the article noted.

https://www.rt.com/news/569629-us-south-africa-modise/

[pounamuknight]

You never bothered to address the content of the article I linked to, instead you went on a campaign against the name of the blog

Well, I wouldn't wanna address hackneyed smears against Nelson Mandala from a site called IRacist.com either

Maybe someone with a better constitution than me can stomach La Bigot's demonization of Putin, but I ain't touching that site with a disinfected digital ten foot pole. Sorry, mate

The quote is from https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Русофобия

[Mashika]

I have no clue.

Welp, i had high hopes you would at least try to figure it out somehow, like reading a bit about it, doing a bit of research or asking around, but nope :)

If you had done that, then you would have understood how idiotic, ignorant and extremely US agenda and propaganda filled this statement is

"We are a Not-for-Profit Russia blog recording the rise (and hopefully fall) of the Neo-Soviet Union"

It's hilarously wrong and complete none-sense. And when i asked about Yeltsin i hoped you would try to understand that issue and then it would become obvious to you that calling Russia a 'Neo-Soviet Union' is just plain ignorant

But do you know what that term means and who came up with it? "Neo-Soviet?"

And "Neo-Soviet Union" has to be one of the most dumb things ever said about Russia, i don't think this person, the one who wrote that, expects or thinks people in the west can understand what the word Soviet means, or truly grasp the level of uneducated dumbness "Soviet Union" represents when used to reference current Russia :)

So i guess that's that

Thanks

Also, this is not a Russian blog, neither is the Moscow Times a Russian news site, these are American sites pushing American propaganda, they are not created by Russians, or get any money or resources from Russia, these are paid for with US money and have a clear agenda. But this is only possible to discern if you look at them from afar, and not from within the western bubble of exceptionalism

I hoped you would read about those things and then get a better understanding and view of this entire issue. It is kind of assumed that if you speak about these things, it is because you were interested in the problem, and when you are interested, you try to learn more, but you seem to just have said 'i don't care' and then just kept going with the stuff you already think you know

There is a reason why people like Alina Lipp, Patrick Lancaster, Eva Barlett and others completely have an opposite view of what the main western media says. It is called "Come and see", they went over there and saw, and then the reality they saw was so shocking they had to tell the world about it. And this has caused them tremendous pain and attacks from the west

What do you call it when a journalist is silenced or attacked by their own government because they said things that were true and had the evidence to back it up, but this truth was inconvenient for the western governments agenda?

Anyway, i hoped you would at least try, but it all ended with 'I have no clue". That was short lived for sure, too bad

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=41663&d=1571031729

I just have to wonder, how do you figure that you are not being lied to, or lead around, if you don't know or truly understand, at least partially, the other side?

What is your criteria to identify something as a truth, if you only know and understand one side of the story? Have you ever heard about the "5 Whys" strategy to get to the root of a problem or narrative? It could be useful if you want to find some truth around that site you posted or any related media you may be reading that goes along the same agenda. I learned it from my dad long ago, it is very useful in lots of situations, like this one. It is a Japanese technique, so not sure if this is applied much on the west, but take a quick read, you may find it useful anyway

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_whys

A good starter point could be:

"The #1 independent English-language Russia politics blog in the world was created and its managed by Kim Zigfeld, a not Russian citizen"
Why?

This is usually a very short lived game or questions, the truth pops up very fast, i have used it before here at Avalon and in other places. Most people refuse to play it when they see inconvenient truths will be exposed and they just can't accept or face an undeniable truth :)

~~

If you don't have a clear understanding of both sides, you will always be easy to lie to, and if you don't try to learn more about the other side, then you are intentionally being a part of your own demise.

I could try to explain why that blog, and the Moscow Times and the other sites related and quoting/referencing each other are pure American propaganda, but i won't. It's tiresome to having to explain it again, and i did already in teh past too many times

You are helping and enabling them to lie to you

[shaberon]

When I came to this thread, my main point was that authoritarian rulers all over the world "constitute a power cartel that might eventually turn into some globalized system, whether it's via US hegemony or via a multipolar world." Nobody responded to that, instead we're talking a lot about the Ukraine situation, I think that would belong into another thread.


I think we all have this kind of concern, but, it's not specific enough.

The Ukraine situation is this very split. The concern as viewed by (U. N. Sec. Council) Patrushev (https://tass.com/politics/1560277):


"Amid the fundamental changes in the world, the corporations have one goal - to preserve the system of global exploitation. It is headed by an elite of businessmen that do not tie themselves to any states. Beneath it are the so-called developed countries and the ‘golden billion.’ And further below is the rest of humanity, contemptuously referred to as the ‘third world’," the Secretary concluded.



Or similarly by Pepe Escobar (https://thesaker.is/why-the-cia-attempted-a-maidan-uprising-in-brazil/):


Straussian neo-cons placed at the top of the CIA, irrespective of their political affiliation, are livid that the “G7 of the East” – as in the BRICS+ configuration of the near future – are fast moving out of the US dollar orbit.

BRICS as “the new G7 of the East,” as defined by Pozsar, is beyond anathema – as much for Straussian neo-cons as for neoliberal.



The situation is directly called a catalyst for over a billion people in India (https://southfront.org/conflict-in-ukraine-accelerated-indias-global-rise/):


...the war allowed India to take advantage of cheap oil prices, thus projecting its own rapid development, so-much-so that Washington now has no choice but to consider India as a serious global player.


Where even according to Reznikov (https://www.indianpunchline.com/bidens-existential-angst-in-ukraine/):


“The cat is out of the bag, finally — the US is fighting in Ukraine to preserve its global hegemony. … in a sensational interview in Kiev, Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov also blurted out in the weekend that Kiev has consciously allowed itself to be used by NATO in the bloc’s wider conflict with Moscow!” This is the view from India. Only the Europeans are so gullible.



And so far we don't have any idea how dangerous is a power cartel between Russia and India pursuing their interests. We've never seen anything with the Petrodollar pushed back, or, the U. S. military de-fanged. A system is being made, more or less literally by the destruction of the old one, which, on the other hand, can be found to have had a lot of very dangerous manipulation behind it.

[Bill Ryan]

I have no clue.

Welp, i had high hopes you would at least try to figure it out somehow, like reading a bit about it, doing a bit of research or asking around, but nope :)

If you had done that, then you would have understood how idiotic, ignorant and extremely US agenda and propaganda filled this statement is

"We are a Not-for-Profit Russia blog recording the rise (and hopefully fall) of the Neo-Soviet Union"

It's hilarously wrong and complete none-sense. And when i asked about Yeltsin i hoped you would try to understand that issue and then it would become obvious to you that calling Russia a 'Neo-Soviet Union' is just plain ignorant

But do you know what that term means and who came up with it? "Neo-Soviet?"

And "Neo-Soviet Union" has to be one of the most dumb things ever said about Russia, i don't think this person, the one who wrote that, expects or thinks people in the west can understand what the word Soviet means, or truly grasp the level of uneducated dumbness "Soviet Union" represents when used to reference current Russia :)

So i guess that's that

Thanks

Also, this is not a Russian blog, neither is the Moscow Times a Russian news site, these are American sites pushing American propaganda, they are not created by Russians, or get any money or resources from Russia, these are paid for with US money and have a clear agenda. But this is only possible to discern if you look at them from afar, and not from within the western bubble of exceptionalism

I hoped you would read about those things and then get a better understanding and view of this entire issue. It is kind of assumed that if you speak about these things, it is because you were interested in the problem, and when you are interested, you try to learn more, but you seem to just have said 'i don't care' and then just kept going with the stuff you already think you know

There is a reason why people like Alina Lipp, Patrick Lancaster, Eva Barlett and others completely have an opposite view of what the main western media says. It is called "Come and see", they went over there and saw, and then the reality they saw was so shocking they had to tell the world about it. And this has caused them tremendous pain and attacks from the west

What do you call it when a journalist is silenced or attacked by their own government because they said things that were true and had the evidence to back it up, but this truth was inconvenient for the western governments agenda?

Anyway, i hoped you would at least try, but it all ended with 'I have no clue". That was short lived for sure, too bad

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=41663&d=1571031729

I just have to wonder, how do you figure that you are not being lied to, or lead around, if you don't know or truly understand, at least partially, the other side?

What is your criteria to identify something as a truth, if you only know and understand one side of the story? Have you ever heard about the "5 Whys" strategy to get to the root of a problem or narrative? It could be useful if you want to find some truth around that site you posted or any related media you may be reading that goes along the same agenda. I learned it from my dad long ago, it is very useful in lots of situations, like this one. It is a Japanese technique, so not sure if this is applied much on the west, but take a quick read, you may find it useful anyway

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_whys

A good starter point could be:

"The #1 independent English-language Russia politics blog in the world was created and its managed by Kim Zigfeld, a not Russian citizen"
Why?

This is usually a very short lived game or questions, the truth pops up very fast, i have used it before here at Avalon and in other places. Most people refuse to play it when they see inconvenient truths will be exposed and they just can't accept or face an undeniable truth :)

~~

If you don't have a clear understanding of both sides, you will always be easy to lie to, and if you don't try to learn more about the other side, then you are intentionally being a part of your own demise.

I could try to explain why that blog, and the Moscow Times and the other sites related and quoting/referencing each other are pure American propaganda, but i won't. It's tiresome to having to explain it again, and i did already in the past too many times

You are helping and enabling them to lie to you:bump:

I'm immediately bumping Mashika's entire post. :)


It's tiresome to having to explain it again, and i did already in the past too many timesYes, she has. But even if it's tiresome for Masha, I'm just one of I suspect many here who enormously enjoys her fiercely intelligent posts, explained at length in not even her second language, sometimes written in the middle of the night her time from her hospital bed where she's been for 6 months now. That takes quite some dedication to at least try once more to educate just maybe a few more western-propagandized minds :flower:

And as a gentle reminder, we're talking about the Multipolar World Order here. (And yes, it IS coming. :) ) We do have other threads about the conflict in Ukraine, Putin, and Russophobia. The WW3? Ukraine/US vs. Donbass/Russia (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?114491-WW3-Ukraine-US-vs.-Donbass-Russia) thread, a huge repository of information, analysis and updates, is closing in on 400 pages and 8000 posts.

That fast-moving thread is sometimes challenging to keep up with, and we all genuinely understand that. But the information there IS good. I follow it in detail every day, contributing where I feel I can, and my understanding of not only Russia but the entire modern world has been enhanced by doing so.

[Vicus]

India won’t support G7 price cap on Russian oil – analyst
The South-Asian nation won’t face EU secondary sanctions, an analyst told TASS

The chances of India backing the G7 price cap imposed on Russian oil are almost zero, as the country will prioritize its own political and economic interests, an analyst from the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) told TASS on Wednesday.

Nandan Unnikrishnan said India would not be targeted with secondary sanctions for rejecting the mechanism introduced by the EU, G7 and Australia in December. The measures target Russia’s seaborne crude, banning Western businesses from providing insurance and other services in respect of the country’s oil cargo unless it’s purchased at or below $60 per barrel.

“At the moment, prospects of India joining the oil price ceiling are almost zero,” Unnikrishnan said in an interview with the news agency.

His comments followed media reports suggesting that New Delhi could join the Russian oil price cap if crude costs go above $60 per barrel.

“India will pursue its own interests – economic, political, strategic. It is currently interested in importing cheap crude from Russia and won’t give up on this, as the nation makes big profits,” added the ORF analyst.

Unnikrishnan also noted that 85% of the Indian economy relies on the private sector, stressing that Reliance Industries, the country’s largest buyer of Russian oil, has significant assets in the US, but it has not stopped imports.

He said Indian companies would act purely in accordance with their business interests.

India, the world’s third-biggest importer of crude oil after China and the US, has been steadily increasing purchases of Russian crude over the past several months, taking advantage of discounts Moscow offered to attract buyers.

At the beginning of 2022, Russia’s share of India’s oil imports amounted to just 0.2%. By the end of last year, it had grown to nearly one million barrels per day, reaching more than 20% of the country’s oil import basket. India reportedly remained Russia’s top importer for three months in a row as of December.


https://www.rt.com/business/569681-india-russia-oil-price-cap/

[Vicus]

Panoramic

Most avalonians don't Participate here:https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?114491-WW3-Ukraine-US-vs.-Donbass-Russia , I know, isn't for everybody stomach...

but just to "remember": War as Politics by other Means (in this planet)
https://oll.libertyfund.org/page/clausewitz-war-as-politics-by-other-means

Therefor this war is dictating world politics NOW no matter what the outcome should be...

I found 2 articles very interesting but too long to post ...

there are about historic and NOW consequence's specially in world economics alliances...

1) The Plan to Carve Up Russia

https://www.sott.net/article/476187-The-Plan-to-Carve-Up-Russia

2) U.S. strategic aim: Break and dismember Russia; or maintain U.S. dollar hegemony? Or a muddled 'both'?

https://www.sott.net/article/476179-US-strategic-aim-Break-and-dismember-Russia-or-maintain-US-dollar-hegemony-Or-a-muddled-both

prepare a cane of strong coffee... :sherlock:

[shaberon]

But even if it's tiresome for Masha, I'm just one of I suspect many here who enormously enjoys her fiercely intelligent posts, explained at length in not even her second language, sometimes written in the middle of the night her time from her hospital bed where she's been for 6 months now. That takes quite some dedication to at least try once more to educate just maybe a few more western-propagandized minds


That's right.

And it's not just that, for instance India is one of those places that needs to look into all this with a big "warning label".

I believe that Russia, China, and Japan have a lot of people who are very nationalistic, I mean this in the sense of preserving their national heritage and culture and so forth. Other places are like this to a more or less degree. As another example of "more", South Africa (https://southfront.org/us-threatens-african-countries-demanding-to-end-relations-with-russia/) just told them to buzz off:


US authorities demand that their African counterparts report details on the cargo contained on the ship, demanding a kind of “justification” for the fact that the country maintains relations with sanctioned Russian companies.

The American authorities seem connected to a belligerent logic according to which it is possible to obtain any kind of advantage through violence and blackmail. But the contemporary world goes in another direction. There is a process of transition towards geopolitical multipolarity that cannot be stopped through blackmail.

Commenting on the topic, Minister Modisa also expressed dissatisfaction with the way in which the US operates its relations with South Africa and other states on the continent. According to her, Washington “threatens Africa, not just South Africa, of having anything that is even smelling of Russia”. Indeed, the US does not seem willing to respect the sovereign foreign policy of African nations, simply ignoring the fact that there is real desire for cooperation with Russia on the part of these states.



As to the fact that American weapons simply costs more--which has made their sales look big since 2008--Hugo Dionisio (https://thesaker.is/everything-upside-down/) says:


The answer lies in several aspects: 1) the North American military-industrial complex is private, therefore, it aims to pursue profit, the enrichment of an elite and the concentration of wealth, with the state being an instrument of this accumulation; 2) the other two have a military-industrial complex that is essentially public – not exclusively – mainly in the most sensitive areas, and is not intended to do more than fulfill its public role, i.e., to guarantee an effective national defense capable of defending the country’s sovereignty.


The big obstacle is just as Deutsche Bank was told it could not do private banking in China:


It is no accident that the two major US demands for changes in the RPC are related to the privatization of its huge (about 30% of the country’s ownership) public corporate sector (mainly banking) and the full opening of the capital accounts.



Obstacle to what? Here is a good idea from Erich Zuesse (https://southfront.org/americas-war-against-communism-was-really-a-war-against-advocates-for-the-poor/):


Two examples — Korea and Indonesia — will be documented here in order to display that America’s Cold War against communism was/is a cover-story, or deceptive cloak, for a war actually against the poor (and the political left) in all nations: in other words, a fascist war, meaning that America’s Government became fascist-imperialist as soon as World War II ended, despite FDR (Franklin Delano Roosevelt — America’s President throughout WW II) having been passionately anti-fascist and anti-imperialist. All of this will be explained here, and documented in the article’s links. First, however, will be explained the underlying economic mechanism employed by means of this war that’s actually against the poor, not ONLY against communists. This modern version of fascist-imperialism relies more on deception — on sophisticated propaganda — than Hitler’s did, because Hitler never pretended to advocate for democracy, whereas America does. So, here it is:

In third-world countries, where labor is non-unionized and cheap, an international corporation can supply the latest industrial machinery, to be worked by the fewest dirt-wage workers in order to undercut the prices of any merely intranational (or ‘local’) corporation while still making intranational (within-nation) profits that are vastly higher than any merely local corporations (which are competing against the multinational ones) in any country can and do; and this is the secret of billionaires (who control international corporations) by which they consequently generate vastly higher rates of return on investment than any merely local entrepreneurs possibly can. Offshoring production thus greatly increases return-on-investment for the billionaires while it drives wages down for the workers in the industrialized countries. On a global scale, it’s a war by the super-rich against the poor. In both respects (by lowering wages in industrialized countries, and prohibiting labor unions in the banana republics), the result is to cause an ever-increasing proportion of the world’s wealth to become concentrated amongst the billionaires — the people who control international corporations. From the standpoint of billionaires, it’s the system that surpasses any other. From the standpoint of the world’s poor, however, it is the worst system imaginable, because it funnels wealth from the masses to the classes (the super-rich); it impoverishes billions while pouring a bigger and bigger share of the world’s wealth into the control of the world’s mere 3,000-or-so billionaires. That’s the way the world works and ever-increasingly has worked ever since 1945.



He goes on to the horrendous things that happened in Korea, including napalm and attempted germ warfare, but as is shown, the "Unipolar Order" is mostly in the Truman Doctrine. And it really has no mask any more, Capitalism, mostly in the sense of the London School of Economics. The "poor"--who once at least were supposed to be protected from this by their monarchs--were about to have protection in Korea but:


As soon as American troops landed in September of 1945, something seemed off about the People’s Republic of Korea. Nationalisation of major industries? Free distribution of land to peasants? People’s committees? Strong labour-unions and an eight-hour work day? To the United States, this experiment in a united Korean peninsula under democratic rule whiffed of communism.


And it was great if you were around and saw the end of the Berlin Wall and the rest of the so-called Iron Curtain, because it really is true that most people in the different countries who are not under manipulation do not automatically hate each other.

I, personally, was not aware at the time to how vulnerable this made them to consumerism and the forces of NED and Liberal Democracy and so forth, but, ones who are interested in retaining their culture don't like it. Now we can say that the Truman-esque military was directly attacked by Iran and nothing came out of it. So the Elephant in the room is a Paper Tiger. Rather than a single site, Russia is attacking a huge collection of "interests".

[Mashika]

I'm on the complete opposite pole of being "American" and still i felt all wrong and uncomfortable about this, i didn't felt like laughing at all, it's offensive and disgraceful. And let's not even talk about the failed symbolism attempt, this is even worse than the Ukrainian Angel Warrior one.

Poor girl, she could not do much about it, she was used in a very shameful way. I feel this is offensive. I'm about to throw up...

There is a comment on that thread that says "Perfect metaphor for the stumbling Empire."
1613969952171757568

Also, this was classless and the arrogance portrayed is beyond cringe.

[Mashika]

Here's another thing a lot of people need to realize

Ask and wonder, what were the top/main countries in the USSR?

Answer: Russia, Ukraine and Belarus

Followed by: Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia

Where are the most conflicting zones now in post-soviet USSR territories?

If you list all of the above you win!

Why is there a specific involvement of the US/West in those countries just before they become unstable or something like the current war happens?

How odd, right? It's like if the US goes and visits, then immediately something bad happens and people die and it gets unstable and then war happens and the country 'needs help'

In general, if you have not realized, the main goal of this entire operation is to take down, destroy, burn down and completely obliterate the culture, governments, people, history and future of all the main countries that could possibly bring back the Union

This is the main goal, take them down 'preemptively' so a reunification never happens. But this goes beyond that, it is meant to take over the control of the land so all the very valuable resources can be extracted and taken away, so that the unipolar world can continue for centuries to go while the people in these parts are diminished and put to the side of history, turned into meaningless serfs that only work for cents a day and are so llimited they could never even attempt to take back their own land, as they are so weak, uneducated, lacking of will and power, they just simply accept their fate (as Banana republics)

This is obvious to me and in general 'us' on this side of the planet, but not so obvious to the western people, as they tend to see all from their own point of view where things happens 'unfortunately' and then they need to 'help' by giving jobs to the poor people.

The thought that those people would not be poor in the first place if their governments had not meddled and ensured their poverty and misery never crosses their minds

[Mashika]

I reserved this post for you, Christian, after you said 'I have no clue" when i asked


Why do you think Boris Yeltsin pointed the finger at Vladimir Putin to be the next president of Russia and what were the implications for modern democratic 'New Russia' when a 'democratic' leader basically skipped democracy to single-handedly select a candidate like Putin, which went against the US desires and plans for 'New Russia'?


Here's why, even if i hoped you would find this on your own, but since you clearly chose to just move forward and basically say you don't care to know, i'll post it myself for other people who may be interested in the short/long term, with the hope this may help understand the real situation we live in right now

I posted this on the WW3 thread, but i believe it's equally valid here as both issues are part of the same greater problem at this point in time



And Boris Yeltsin realized this was the plan and there was no plan ever to 'make Russia a friend of the US" and then he selected Putin as the next president before removing himself. This is something most people even these days don't know

He betrayed the US at the last moment, and chose Putin, who was not even in the picture as a candidate, it was prepared months and months in advance behind the backs of all the western 'partners', then he came out with it and even before elections took place Putin had already been selected and positioned as president of Russia, then he came into full power with an already developed plan to restore Russia and remove all influence from the west

You think some guy just comes up with a multi decade plan to restore a country in a month or two? Putin wasn't that guy, this was a very hard work that took lots of time, all behind the scenes and all carefully planned, and it was a multi-layered agenda, it did took decades but that was part of it all. It was like that, to prevent the situation i described above from happening, that the west would take over the lands, destroy and erase the culture and then rape the land until there was nothing left

By the time Putin took power, the US plan to decimate Russia was already going strong, poverty, drugs, and other corruption was rampant, like pedophilia and other things became very popular in 90s Russia, it took years to remove that and now the west calls this removal of corruption and cultural bizarre rotten mindset a "fight against freedom" or a clear sign of 'totalitarianism' from the Russian government

Behind all that fakery and rotten agenda, there is a truth. The west had big plans for Russia, and none of them involved a nice future for Russians, or even one at all. IT was all about the power and resources and nothing much more

And we see it now, Ukraine fell for it, Russia didn't, Ukraine is a rotten wasteland, Russia isn't, neither is Belorussia because they agreed and planned as well to not accept 'western help' the way Ukraine did

If anything, the stupidity of the US government has pushed Russia and the other post-soviet states they could not buy (coerce) into considering a reunification (Greater Russia or similar). Not a Soviet one, but a Russian Empire one

Talk about shooting yourself in the foot

ETA: Also, The Ukrainian Nazi are like a 'great value' version of the real ones

The real ones, back in the west, are still around, In Canada, The US, Britain and other places that took them in and then allowed them to work their way up to the top in the countries internal power structure until they were the ones directing and controlling education, direction of the country and in general the entire agenda both internally and in foreign policy

This has been proven and it's obvious by how every Nazi infiltrated country acts in the international space, they take over and kill without any remorse, extract all money and resources they can and let the people die and become miserable and they don't look back. Why? Because those people do not belong to the master race, they are disposable and a resource to be used by "God's right" for the main goal

This is unchanged right now, we are just getting closer to the end goal, the signs are obvious, they (the Nazi) are losing patience and have decided to move on with the greater goal. But if you are not asleep you should be able to go look back some decades ago and see the world domination plan is/has been in good progress for very long, just under a different flag and concepts (The perversion of the US original/real culture goes here)

US patriots are considered evil, mentally ill, freaks and in general demonized just like Russians are demonized

There would be no need for US patriots, if those people would not realize that their culture and country is being destroyed. Otherwise they would live normal, happy lives. Why do they turn out this way? Because they notice the change and realize the purpose behind it. Just as Russians did in the mid 2000s once the western induced corruption started to be cleaned out of the country.

By definition we are the same, patriots, and demonized and treated as mentally ill/corrupt/etc people because of it

Be a serf or die, 'with us or with them'. Division is the favorite tool of fascism

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?114491-WW3-Ukraine-US-vs.-Donbass-Russia&p=1538097&viewfull=1#post1538097

So yeah, and there's a lot of stuff as 'background' to get to this, i can say i'm disappointed that you didn't care, after coming forward with some strong statements so to speak. It winded down very fast.. Honestly!

[Denise/Dizi]

If America falls so does the rest of the free World.But America isn't the 'Free World' any more — and neither is Canada, the EU, the UK, Australia or New Zealand. Freedom needs to come from elsewhere now.

I find it interesting that the world tends to use America as it's compass for everything.

Because I have not traveled to other countries, I wanted to ask you Bill, does the rest of the world believe that America is the most free, (if there is such a thing anymore) and most advanced nation in the world? And why do they believe this?

I am just curious if the rest of the world truly is "behind America" when it comes to personal freedoms, and such. (Meaning they wish they were more like America)... I would hope other nations have similar abilities to walk freely down their streets, work and have a personal life as most Americans have.

Of course other things are also considered, but what are the catalysts that make others see America as something "Better"? It just seems to me that if everyone loves (Or hates) America, and what it stands for, then of course the first time they get something wrong, it would also then become the first criticized...

Yes, America gets involved on the world stage in a big way, but I am asking about what you have noticed when being in other countries, and the general feel for such things, as I know you have been in many places. For the typical human when looking at America as a country.

[Mashika]

Hi Denise, long time we have not talked!

I'm not Bill Ryan but i would like to comment on this a bit, if you don't mind




If America falls so does the rest of the free World.But America isn't the 'Free World' any more — and neither is Canada, the EU, the UK, Australia or New Zealand. Freedom needs to come from elsewhere now.

I find it interesting that the world tends to use America as it's compass for everything.

As a compass yes, but not in the way that it seems, most people who reference the American way, and are not aligned to it, reference it as 'not the way to go' so it does work as a compass, but to point in the opposite direction. There are lots of countries in the world, but only a few follow America. And the ones that don't are exposed as 'brutal regimes'. Look at what's about to happen in Africa. Most top level countries over there are soon to be displayed as 'anti-american' and therefore 'anti-democracy and freedom', but of those, the ones that change their mind and align to the US, will immediately be taken off the list of 'brutal regimes'. It's a very limited set of options for them, Either they become pro-american or they end up like Libya. See?



Because I have not traveled to other countries, I wanted to ask you Bill, does the rest of the world believe that America is the most free, (if there is such a thing anymore) and most advanced nation in the world? And why do they believe this?

The world that lives outside the bubble doesn't believe America is the most advanced nation in the world, take India for example, it provides a lot, and i mean 'A LOT' of the engineering that the US uses to move forward, so in a true way, it is India who is moving the world forward. The US is paying for the incredible minds that India has produces over the past decades. But even if the US says "Built in America" they miss to say "By Indian Engineers". There's the catch



I am just curious if the rest of the world truly is "behind America" when it comes to personal freedoms, and such. (Meaning they wish they were more like America)... I would hope other nations have similar abilities to walk freely down their streets, work and have a personal life as most Americans have.

The US has a record of killing more civilians than most 'free' countries in the entire planet, they also have a record of most civilians being in jail than any other country on this planet. And you have a chance to get killed by a cop in the US that goes way beyond any other 'civilized' country once again, in the entire planet. So i don't know how you can be free to walk down the street as you can just check any news channel and there was a shooting at some random school or neighborhood at any time any day. I guess it depends, but in global, you have a greater chance to die in Chicago than in Mexico City, East LA or Shanghai at any time



Of course other things are also considered, but what are the catalysts that make others see America as something "Better"? It just seems to me that if everyone loves (Or hates) America, and what it stands for, then of course the first time they get something wrong, it would also then become the first criticized...

All the rest of the world, like 80+ percent that doesn't belong to the 'international community' also called 'the west', does not think America is something better, they refuse to accept the meddling and often times they pay for it with a coup and blood of their own citizens. As it has been proven lately by the actions of corrupt governments around Latin America and so on

There is a lot more than America represents, but i can and will tell you this. It's been a long time since your ideals, which i respect much because they align a lot with mine as well, are represented or worked/pushed forward by your government

The US government does not represent the US citizens, since very very long ago

I'm sorry i reply to your comment, but i had to say something

I don't think that America, the one that i respect a lot and see as a kind of ideal place, and like you said, where you can walk down the street with full freedom., exists anymore

If you get stopped by a cop, and you refuse to get searched or ask why or get bothered by it, then you may die. Why? They were afraid for their lives even when they pushed you around, incited and provoked a reaction. But it's within the law so it's fine and your death is not a reason to change anything

Is that freedom? You can't park your broken car outside your home for long or it's against the law, is that freedom? I can park my car outside my home until it rots to hell, no one will ask. It is my home and it is my car. You can't, this is your freedom vs my version of freedom

I can have my home remodeled and add a second floor at any time i want, or completely tear down the house and build a new one inside my land, and i won't pay anyone for it, as i will do it on my own hiring private company or people and can you do that in your neighborhood?

What is 'freedom' then?

Let your garden grow potatoes and carrots and lemons and plant a tree with oranges and then gather rain water, can you disconnect from the electric line while having kids? Or you will get visited by the gov to check what's going on? Pay a ticket for that or risk getting your kids getting taken away if you disconnect from electric and water?

I can do all of that without any repercussions, and i don't have any debt to the gov because of it

What is freedom again?

ETA: Adding this, because this is what freedom means to me, in general

I can walk to any place around my town, and every block or so there is one of this

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEUuSxYzZxiFxk9h5_4S5G3nmCEB5ynCEMSOBtXIjSO2W-eLeWhT6II_oSPyIQ-ZgbJWHPAExzKkFbbIBMM0Lc2escH9CF7by0-Yslj2MNgNHzESEFEhXdzQiTNfUlle97qJcj8LUIIFUjXZGv8yb8QY=w1072-h606-no?authuser=0

I can get a truck over there and fill tons of gallons of water and then take them home, and these are free. This is what 'freedom' means for me. I don't need to pay for clean water

People does check with a small test device is the water is not pure or clean enough for drinking, but otherwise you can fix that with some pills or other means. The thing is, the water was completely free and you take any amount you want and then go home

For me, that's what 'freedom' means. You still have water at home in the pipes, but if that goes out or if you go into the mountains or on a long trip and want to gather water into bottles or similar, then you get better pressure from those faucets than from the home ones, and then you go on to your trip. Also if you want to cut off the water from the water company just do it and then you can go every day or two and fill in water from those faucets for free and no one will bother to ask or complain, not even the cops. It's there for you to take as you need

I saw this about some towns in the US, how is this even reasonable? We live in very different worlds. I think i said that before, and i'm not being arrogant about it or anything like that, it's just how things are

Just watch this, how can this be acceptable? I get pure water from a random pipe "for free" (paid by everyone's taxes, as expected), but these people pay for water monthly and can't even get reasonable drinking water at home? What is this?
WU-9jozU9Qw

[Mashika]

There is a reason songs like this exist, but most people forget about them in the very short term, all the time

VYOjWnS4cMY

[Mashika]

And Grand Masta Coolio also had this to say, and nothing changed as well, regardless of how strong his message was. There is not real 'Freedom' in America since very long ago

fPO76Jlnz6c

[Hym]

I'll add some to what Masha has so accurately noted about the illusion of freedoms here in the states.

Here the administrative, bureaucratic state rules by making regulations without any real oversight by anyone that has been elected to represent us, the common folk who actually love to work, to protect us against the truly unconstitutional imposition of those often unnecessary local and state charges. As such, bureaucracies gather fees for doing those things that in other countries are free, as they should be.

That is a marriage of local, state and federal governments with the politicians who write laws giving those same governing bodies the open and uncontested opportunity to impose fines and foreclosures, stealing properties without much chance of a single citizen having real recourse.
It is open fascism.

Not to be missed is that the Congress itself looks every day at the open symbols of fascism on the back wall of its main hall in the House Assembly, where there are two pillars of bundled sticks, often with an axe, supposedly representing the old Roman symbols of united governance. Interpret that according to your knowledge of history, but be sure that intentional or not, all small businessmen and landowners in the country have experienced the harsh hand of amoral administrative corporatism and entrenched slavery that the fasces warn them of.

Be assured that every supposed liberally governed state in the country, called Blue states, are anti-small business, with entrenched administrations that impose regulations, licensure, and taxes that cripple any singular, hard working and honest, self-employed business from freely exercising their inalienable right to be self sufficient and productive members of any community, always adding to the empowerment of those who really work for a living.....whose businesses relieve the taxpayer supported governments of the burdens intentionally created by the welfare state. The distance between totalitarian feudalism in the states, united in discord alone, and those countries stripped of their resources and long lost self sufficiencies, is the illusion in the west that freedom exists in either place. It's pay back time here.

One of the main goals of the globalist plans of the last 3 years, as well as the decades of years past that habituated the society to acceptance of its immoral intrusions, was to cripple, bankrupt and destroy hundreds of thousands of small businesses, in order that those very large, politically connected businesses could dominate the lives of millions. These times are in-your-face slavery that even on the surface of it runs contrary to protecting the public. In no way does it make sense to keep large chain stores open where the exposure to any airborne illness, real or not, more dangerous or not, is many times higher than being a customer at any small business....but no one was loud enough to be heard pointing out the b.s. that excuse represented.

In the west there is a symbol of making dreams come true. It is called a Dream Catcher. If you look close at it, in those few places where it represents the theft of long cherished and hard earned realization of dreams, there is a skull, much like the symbol of the private intel company called Craft, representing the occult craft of the evil that is paid to carry out the dirty deeds of globalists, deeds never done dirt cheap. In reality it is the thief of lives, of dreams, of worthy cause and healthy outcomes.

It is not a wonder to western businessmen when doing business in supposedly 2nd and 3rd world countries that they regularly include payouts to local administrators as part of doing business. It is out in the open, whereas in the states the corruption is hidden in 'fees' and 'assessments', fines and court ordered property seizures, exposing the dark side of the collusion between lawmakers, the corporations they serve, and the judiciary that rarely interprets the precepts and codes written into law, all meant to strengthen the moral intent of their existence.

[pueblo]

Whatever about multipolar, the world at the moment feels distinctly bipolar.

[Ernie Nemeth]

Sure.
No one likes America or the west.
That's why every country in the world is represented at the USA's open southern border, trying to get in.

This proves that: even the illusion of freedom is better than the reality of oppression.

That pretty much sums up the human condition at this time.
Humanity's motto could be said to be: Fake it 'till you make it.
Problem is we forgot to 'make it' because we're too busy 'faking it'.

[Bill Ryan]

Because I have not traveled to other countries, I wanted to ask you Bill, does the rest of the world believe that America is the most free, (if there is such a thing anymore) and most advanced nation in the world? And why do they believe this? I really can't add much at all to Mashika's detailed, highly insightful, and laser-accurate post #61 above (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1538144&viewfull=1#post1538144).
:highfive::highfive:

But one other factor is Hollywood: propaganda across the years from John Wayne to Clint Eastwood to Superman to Rambo to Die Hard to Jason Bourne to Tom Cruise to Captain America. (We might between us assemble a very long list of fictional American heroes, the key word there being fictional. :) )

These kinds of movies are dubbed in dozens of languages and showcased all over the world, including widely in Africa, Latin America and South-East Asia. One has to very strongly suspect, knowing what we do about CIA involvement in Hollywood, that all this is part of a multifaceted decades-long strategy to hard-sell America globally as the world's only source of freedom-promoting heroes.

[Isserley]

I would just like to add here that when I was growing up, in elementary school (90s) we had only one fat kid in the class, we called him Amer. Go figure.
Today, the situation is different and there are many more obese children because of smartphones, etc., but that's another topic.

I want to say that America was already a bad role model for us as children. Sometimes I am disgusted by the fact that all of us who live in small banana countries must speak English already in kindergarten, otherwise life will be difficult for us, we will not be able to get an education or find a job.
My parents' generation was taught Russian and Cyrillic in school, today this is obviously not the case.

Talking about anglosaxon mission completed..

[Violet3]

And Grand Masta Coolio also had this to say, and nothing changed as well, regardless of how strong his message was. There is not real 'Freedom' in America since very long ago

fPO76Jlnz6c

Yes, wonderful song, and those perfectly telescoped words sum it up: 'Gangster's Paradise', opposite of 'Land of the Free'. People fell in love with the very powerful propoganda and the image, confusing 'freedom' with coca cola and the trappings of outward material wealth. Even the gangsta wars became glamorised.

[Applesprig]

I like TOM LUONGO take on the current state of geopolitics. Namely, the big picture is that there is a struggle between 2 factions in the West over who will rule the world and control capital.
1. The old European banking cartel, the E.U.and their stooges ( WEF, Soros, Christine lagarde etc) who are engineering that the centre of control is to be the United Nations. By extension thiey mean to break up the United States and subjugate them.
2. The Federal Reserve (a private bank) backed by powerful U.S banks e.g. JP Morgon et al, DO NOT want to submit to the Davos group ( Jamie Dimon did not attend Davos).

Geopolitics is a boardgame, each placing their pieces to weaken their opponent...... The Fed is raising interest rates primarily to weaken and break European power, crush the Euro.
The Europeans ( this includes the spider in the web, the City of London) is encouraging a BIG war to bring the US into the picture forcing it to spend, spend, spend.... this they hope will break the Fed's power over money markets.

The Global South meanwhile waits patienly.

[Mashika]

As far as the freedom or 'perception of freedom' i think one main item to consider is this. When you are living on a country and are very immersed into that way of living, you mostly can't see the flaws of the system in which you grew up, everything makes sense and seems natural

I moved out of Russia when i was around 14, but i have been full time out of Russia for 8 years now, i lived in Japan, then Ukraine, in the Donbass and in particular in Luhansk, but i have also lived in Donetsk region and then moved Mexico, and i went to stay in Spain and then other Latin American countries, and Cuba before finally living full time in Mexico. I've been in lots of places and once i returned to Russia i could see it all from a very different perspective. Some things did not made any sense, while some did still and some customs were unnatural for me, even if in the past i would have not even registered that it did not made any sense to do things the way they were done

It was sobering, my country was not perfect, it was very flawed and some of the things people did as a day by day thing, i found laughable and backwards. I wasn't in love with everything anymore

My perception of what freedom is, differs a lot from what other people consider freedom. I can see that in several ways Russia has a lot more freedom than the US, for example i learned there's some kind of rules of how many inches you must park your car away from the curb and you get a ticket if you parked too far or too close. This is something i found ridiculous and beyond authoritarian. Imagine that, cops going through the streets looking for cars that may be parked too close to the curb. It's hilarious, ridiculous and more in my eyes, but i don't think people who live in places where that rule is applied see it the way i see it. I also see how cops can kill you on the US for anything, even inside your home, they are trigger happy and then mostly never anything happens to them, i find that shocking

In Russia, i have found that you can insult cops, talk to them as regular people and ignore their "authority" if you want as long as you have not done already anything that is considered a crime, but i found that in other countries, including the US, if you look at cops too much or make eye contact, they may get uneasy or look back and try to figure out if you are acting odd or something, and then you may be stopped and questioned

I had friends in Russia get into a fist fight with a cop and beating the hell out of the guy, then just get up and move away from the location, the cop didn't request for 100 officers to come help, he accepted defeat and moved on, in the US my friend would be dead. So i don't know if that counts as 'freedom' but it does seem to me that at least is 'more fair' than getting jumped on by 100 cops and then killed for 'resisting arrest' while all you wanted to do was to breath or trying to cover against the thousand fists hitting you in the face, because you know, there's that thing "Survival Instinct" that pushes you to use your hands to try and avoid harm, but the cops, for some reason, expect you to just lie down and accept the beating of your life and be thankful you didn't get shot

That doesn't make any sense to me, that's not freedom, in my eyes. It's an oppressive system and much more. You may end up on the wrong side of things by a swat team just because, or get shot because you didn't understood the confusing directions shouted at you at the same time by 3 separate cops all screaming their throats out at you in an hysterical manner, instead of calmly talking to you

So i don't know, the word freedom or the word 'rights' seems to depend a lot on ways of life, i suppose a lot of people may think that Russia is an uncivilized nation because you can get into a fist fight with a cop and no one will interfere and let the two persons handle the fight and whoever gets defeated has to deal with it, like adults. And then laying down and accepting a beating from 20 cops all stacked up on top of you like brutal hyenas is considered being civil? What is respect for authority? Is that how you feel safe and a sign of freedom?

Being able to defend yourself from another person who is trying to harm you is, and should be considered a right, regardless of who the other person's title is. If you can't chose to defend yourself from a person who is trying to beat you up, even if it's a cop, then you have no real freedom or rights, it's a simulation and you may die under their hands because you refused to accept the abuse. That's how i see it, and i understand that my way may seem brutal or uncivilized, but i can tell you that cops around here know they can't just show up in group and try to beat up some guy like they do in the US, they refrain from that abuse of power because they do know they may end up being the ones getting the beating of their lives. It keeps them sober away from the power trip

So freedom and rights are really not a global, equally understood concept, it depends a lot on ways of life, customs and other aspects of where you are, the culture and many more things. It's a very difficult concept to describe


Also that kind of rule that if a person challenges you into a fight and you accept, then it is a fight between you two, no one should interfere, regardless of who the person may be, a cop or military, if the cop loses they will have to go home and treat their harmed ego back into health, and accept they just were unable to win. They will not shoot you to death out of hurt ego or pride, or power trip


This applies for a lot of other cases too, and i suppose it does look brutal from a western perspective, like a lawless nation of sorts, no law, no respect for the authority and so on, but from my point of view, i just see it as something that is fair

[Mashika]

And that same mentality, that way of being, you can see it applied at a higher level in the Ukraine vs Russia war

Because think about it, it is Russia against a bunch of nations all piling on top and trying to harm in all possible ways, like rabid hyenas, and Russia takes it and pushed back without asking for help from anyone

Is it fair that a group of nations pile up like that on top of a single nation? It's the same approach as the bunch of cops piling up on top of a defenseless person and beating the hell up of the guy, then accusing him of resisting arrest or not being compliant

I see that as very unfair and as against normal civilized behavior, acting like a pack of hyenas is not civilized. It does show up as a cultural issue, in both domestic ways and at international level

Leaders of other nations (not NATO) do see this and they don't like it, they know they danger of the pack of hyenas coming their way if they are not compliant, so they are preemptively acting on it, because they know that eventually it will be their turn. This is why lots of countries around the world are now pushing hard for the multipolar world, because there's no other way at this time. You have to ensure the pack of hyenas won't be able to come and attack you while in the open, and the only way to do that is to also have a pack of your own, otherwise it's you against a 100 rabid hyenas trying to eat your insides


That's how it is, not how it should be, if the world was fair, but how it is in reality, unfair and brutal


Ask the people of Yugoslavia, how did they do when the pack of hyenas came? Oh we can't, they are dead now

[Isserley]

...
Ask the people of Yugoslavia, how did they do when the pack of hyenas came? Oh we can't, they are dead now

Some ar still alive with fine memory :bigsmile:

Good question. I was born in Yugoslavia until it broke due to the gruesome war in 1991. I spent my first years of school in a shelter and not in school.
Almost everyone older than me claims that life was better in Yugoslavia because Tito maintained this communist country well, one could live comfortably and this ideology of the "non-aligned movement" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-Aligned_Movement) went well.
But after the breakup, war-torn newly created countries still have not recovered from the corruption, privatization and transition to democracy to this day.
But we have democracy now and membership in the EU :HELP!:

[Mashika]

...
Ask the people of Yugoslavia, how did they do when the pack of hyenas came? Oh we can't, they are dead now

Some ar still alive with fine memory :bigsmile:

Good question. I was born in Yugoslavia until it broke due to the gruesome war in 1991. I spent my first years of school in a shelter and not in school.
Almost everyone older than me claims that life was better in Yugoslavia because Tito maintained this communist country well, one could live comfortably and this ideology of the "non-aligned movement" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-Aligned_Movement) went well.
But after the breakup, war-torn newly created countries still have not recovered from the corruption, privatization and transition to democracy to this day.

Very similar to how Donbass kids experienced their first years, also in underground shelters and basements, and not in school. The pattern repeats almost in an identical way in every single place touched by that group of nations

I remember reading about it all, and how hundreds of thousands died and possibly much more after over the next decades, as side effects killed slowly. Is there anyone paying for those crimes against humanity? Nope

I also have several 'Yugo' Ak-47 rifles, when i asked why these were called "Yugos' if they were AK-47 (Made by Russia) it was explained to me in short words "There was a country named Yugoslavia that made these"

And then you learn about it and what happen, i don't think a lot of people realize the shocking nature of figuring out that kind of stuff, it opens your eyes to a different reality than the one you thought you knew for certain

The words "There was a country' still kind of have an effect on me, you get to not know the full truth at the time but the thought remains "but... what happened to them?"




But we have democracy now and membership in the EU :HELP!:
lmao, i don't know how to feel about that. It's almost comical, in a very tragic way :)

[Isserley]

I also have several 'Yugo' Ak-47 rifles, when i asked why these were called "Yugos' if they were AK-47 (Made by Russia) it was explained to me in short words "There was a country named Yugoslavia that made these"

Ha, interesting.
The Yugo was also a car that was produced in YU.. :bigsmile:
https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/erjnG6WdsdveD_zoHAaetg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTM1NDtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en-US/homerun/car_and_driver_581/f31dfca784249c43ff85e870ce2d7de6

It was exported all over the world, I even saw it in Hollywood movies. A cult car. Thy used to produce a lot of stuff here and now only fog (political narrative) is produced.
Yugoslavia was a self-sufficient country and this is not recommended in today's world.
Neither self-sufficient individuals nor countries.

[Mashika]

I also have several 'Yugo' Ak-47 rifles, when i asked why these were called "Yugos' if they were AK-47 (Made by Russia) it was explained to me in short words "There was a country named Yugoslavia that made these"

Ha, interesting.
The Yugo was also a car that was produced in YU.. :bigsmile:
https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/erjnG6WdsdveD_zoHAaetg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTM1NDtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en-US/homerun/car_and_driver_581/f31dfca784249c43ff85e870ce2d7de6

It was exported all over the world, I even saw it in Hollywood movies. A cult car. Thy used to produce a lot of stuff here and now only fog (political narrative) is produced.
Yugoslavia was a self-sufficient country and this is not recommended in today's world.
Neither self-sufficient individuals nor countries.

Oh i remember seeing similar cars, don't know about that car, but a lot of other stuff from Yugoslavia was very sturdy, like made out of adamantium lmao

We had a joke that if you were running with a Yugo AK you should be careful not to fall or drop it hard on the floor, because the pavement is going to break apart..... :bigsmile::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL:

[Isserley]

I also have several 'Yugo' Ak-47 rifles, when i asked why these were called "Yugos' if they were AK-47 (Made by Russia) it was explained to me in short words "There was a country named Yugoslavia that made these"

Ha, interesting.
The Yugo was also a car that was produced in YU.. :bigsmile:
https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/erjnG6WdsdveD_zoHAaetg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTM1NDtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en-US/homerun/car_and_driver_581/f31dfca784249c43ff85e870ce2d7de6

It was exported all over the world, I even saw it in Hollywood movies. A cult car. Thy used to produce a lot of stuff here and now only fog (political narrative) is produced.
Yugoslavia was a self-sufficient country and this is not recommended in today's world.
Neither self-sufficient individuals nor countries.

Oh i remember seeing similar cars, don't know about that car, but a lot of other stuff from Yugoslavia was very sturdy, like made out of adamantium lmao

We had a joke that if you were running with a Yugo AK you should be careful not to fall or drop it hard on the floor, because the pavement is going to break apart..... :bigsmile::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL:

Hahaa :ROFL:

I have heard similar sayings about Russian products - Lada cars for example. Indestructible. There is no more stuff like that unfortunately.

[Mashika]

Yugoslavia was a self-sufficient country and this is not recommended in today's world.
Neither self-sufficient individuals nor countries.

So very true, it has to be a "we all share the same weight together or you are out of the club"

As in the concept that if everyone is part of it, then the group becomes stronger than a single individual could be

The problem with that is that once more, it forms a power structure in which some lead and are more powerful and make the choices, and the others have to follow through or end up in the wrong side of things. Any power structure like that eventually gets corrupted once the individual goals do not align with what the one at the top has as their main goal

We see that repeating all over history, until the ones below do something about it and regain control of their own will and future, self determination. Then history repeats again

It has never been balanced correctly, and i wonder if that's even possible because of how human nature works. I guess we may get to see soon enough

[Denise/Dizi]

Because I have not traveled to other countries, I wanted to ask you Bill, does the rest of the world believe that America is the most free, (if there is such a thing anymore) and most advanced nation in the world? And why do they believe this? I really can't add much at all to Mashika's detailed, highly insightful, and laser-accurate post #61 above (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1538144&viewfull=1#post1538144).
:highfive::highfive:

But one other factor is Hollywood: propaganda across the years from John Wayne to Clint Eastwood to Superman to Rambo to Die Hard to Jason Bourne to Tom Cruise to Captain America. (We might between us assemble a very long list of fictional American heroes, the key word there being fictional. :) )

These kinds of movies are dubbed in dozens of languages and showcased all over the world, including widely in Africa, Latin America and South-East Asia. One has to very strongly suspect, knowing what we do about CIA involvement in Hollywood, that all this is part of a multifaceted decades-long strategy to hard-sell America globally as the world's only source of freedom-promoting heroes.

i would have to agree that Hollywood has fictionalized what the average "American" is, or how they behave... Sadly most see the television, and believe that this is a true snapshot of an entire nation... Thank You for noting that the media, whether television, the movie industry, or the intelligence agencies have played a large part in the perceptions of others, of what Americans are "Like".

[Mashika]

1614640281638387712

[Denise/Dizi]

To Mashika, and others following this thread...

I do thank you sincerely Mashika, for breaking down what you note, are ridiculous things that Americans live through. The things that you noted DO happen in America.. Most in the more heavily populated areas however... It does not happen in all states, and all regions of those states... Truly those things are blown up to appear as if the entire country is constantly living in a warzone... It is not...

But you went on to suggest that other nations also have some ridiculous things that happen there as well, and for that I applaud you. No country is perfect, and as you suggested, most really do not notice how absurd things are until they leave their home and travel elsewhere. I have not traveled much but just by meeting and exchanging with others, I cannot help but note that the world is extremely different, region to region..

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Let me post this for those who are unaware what "Freedom" Americans are actually celebrating... Because I believe some are confusing language here.,, Both in using the word "Freedom" and what Americans believe...

We are actually celebrating the "freedom" from the rule of the monarchy in Great Britain...

In the signing of the Declaration of Independence, on July 4th, 1776, By issuing the Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists’ motivations for seeking independence. By declaring themselves an independent nation, the American colonists were able to confirm an official alliance with the Government of France and obtain French assistance in the war against Great Britain.

We celebrate the "freedom" of being a group of 13 colonies influenced by Britain rule... And at which point, became our own independant nation. And with that came new responsibilities to the nation, in which we gave up some personal freedoms to the new governing body, that at the time, represented a wish among the people to rule themselves. It has since gotten out of hand drastically, as every nation has. That "Freedom" means we make our own decisions, or at least those people elected do, rather than an outside monarchy, or government.

True the choices and laws they make (in most cases) are ridiculous, and we need some extreme changes, but we are not talking about who is free to walk their dog on the sidewalk... But more the overall freedom of being a standalone nation. In other instances, I believe the word is being used in most cases, out of context.

Sadly we will always be living in a multipolar world, so long as one individual believes they have the right to rule over another, or to dictate to them what they can or cannot do, or whether or not they owe someone else, merely for living on this planet.... Like you suggested paying for water... When it is freely available on the planet. Paying for food, when we can grow it. (If you choose not to grow it yourself that's different)

Just for Masika...

This place is a mere few miles from my home (Within 3 miles), we too have water sources as you suggest... The international media just doesn't cover what we call "Local" stories in America, unless they're "Tragic" or can have an impact on a world stage to give an "illusion" of America that they want to promote. My area is very unique...

ecm-jXkaAo4

Yes we do have major property restrictions... Fire guidelines, digging restrictions, and water restrictions. Why do we vote for such things? Well, we live in fire country, we are at the top of the state where trees thrive, and fires go wild in the canyons. Surely you have seen them in the news, or here on Avalon...

Our water supply is the water supply for the growing fields in the valley and the major water supplier for all of Southern California, so our dams, and their health, falls upon our shoulders... We conserve and keep it clean for the well being of everyone in the state.

We are required to create space around our homes to prevent fire spread.... We are required to get permits and inspections as I live in a historic town. Most buildings are extremely old. One spark and town itself would have to be rebuilt. They check such things... They make sure wiring is up to code, fire extinguishers are available, fire alarms work, etc.

We cannot dig, as many mines reside underfoot, and we could cause a collapse should we do so... More recently we had a collapse in a local town water treatment facility, as a sinkhole appeared...

New building is regulated to protect against fire spread, and wiring does become an issue when people drag defunct trailers onto properties to "Live freely" and they short out and cause fires. or older homes are rebuilt without updating old wiring... It is to the point where they are out of control in the charges they charge, but most of it, is useful, when people are held accountable to their community, in order to protect said community.

I live in a historic town, they do regulate what you build upon it, as they want to keep the feel of the area. And most places do the same... But this is my area, my city, county, and state, all areas have their own guidelines. It isn't all one cookie cutter rule... Nothing is here in America, unless it is a FEDERAL regulation.

We do not face the same police brutality issues in my area. I am not suggesting they do not exist, I am suggesting I want people to know this is not an issue that you find everywhere in America. You are only seeing extreme areas. There are more "Gentle areas" in America than the media suggests.

I just wanted to try to clarify my experiences having lived here my entire life. But no where in the world is there perfection sadly... We have yet to get our act together.

[Hym]

Thanks Denise for your detailed response. You covered a lot of what i should have written about, thus the reasons for there being some regulations and codes in our communities.

I should have noted the difference between common sense codes and regulations, as the contrast to the punitive fee structures and the unnecessary regulations that prohibit builders from sometimes even entering into the businesses, especially in construction.

Almost every single code or regulation, in contrast to the excess in fees used by jurisdictions to cover their own excesses, waste and graft, is there for very good reasons. We do it right, always. In fact, cutting corners wastes time.

I am such a stickler for always doing it right, especially those hidden things only a craftsman would know, that after the massive damage done by an earthquake in L.A. I was probably the first builder, maybe the only one, who was ever asked by inspectors to video record my work and bring that in for inspection, the inspectors being so busy and them knowing me personally. I had always taken stills of every level of my work anyway, my form of insurance, so it wasn't a stretch for me.

The costs of covering insurance, workman's compensation, along with local and state taxes are added to the burden of just getting on the job site. You can see why the removal of excess fees and overregulation, while always sticking to all of the common sense building codes, creates a healthier society. The difference from state to state and even county to county within a singular state is often dramatic. The buildings are built to the same quality, the same safety guidelines, but the amount of building varies a great deal from area to area, depending upon the amount of graft and political thievery going on in each area.

The interesting difference between one state and the other was one I found refreshing, like getting a B general license in one highly regulated state and a GB in another relatively smaller state. Because so many people were unnecessarily dying from CO/carbon monoxide poisoning in the smaller, GB state they added a 5th section to the GC testing to prevent those not licensed to install gas/propane lines and appliances from ever doing that work, thus preventing a fair amount of deaths, even as a few home owners and some builders and repairmen still do what they should not, a proof borne by my family almost dying from a promised, but missed, never done, safety check that was not performed before we moved into a rental when we first arrived here. I still have the 3 red tags, with pictures, condemning the trailer, from that near death experience.

It may sound odd and maybe a waste of time to some, but while in the union I took classes outside of my expertise, not only to be safe, but more so to know about why I needed much more training to do such work, and thus why I always deferred to those who were safe, experienced and appropriately skilled in those crafts.

I quickly understood why there were some, not a lot, of excellent, highly skilled contractors in the film industry because the amount of time it takes out of the week to work at your independent career, while also dealing with the bureaucracy, the "Red Tape", was removed when you get a weekly check and someone else was dealing with paperwork and liability, even as a union leader on sets and builds there is liability for being unsafe and not taking care of your crew safety.

That is until the union reality sets in, and you end up in another world, a highly dishonest one, where the price of admission runs against all you may have done correctly while being independent. Too bad the union is so screwed up, making the effort to deal with unhealthy union enforced mandates, pay/favor/bend over, silence-to play career advancement realities stark excesses, the real tax on working men and women's lives. These are often people, highly skilled and moral, caring, ass-kicking workers, who just want to work.

Even in this case the union I see as the biggest responsible agent in the death and injury that some of us union members warned about before the filming of Rust. When productions know a union to be weak, they exploit the conditions and the workers often suffer, and in cases like the beautiful Halyna's case, die. There are necessary conditions, lacks, and then there are excesses, and productions ALWAYS exploit at least one of them.

Caught between bureaucracy and a frickn' union really makes a lot of people gain another sense of being aware. I see it as another necessary step in healing the small corruptions that affect the bigger ones, and ultimately understanding that having a multipolar world is healthy for all involved.

Since when, in the history of this world, outside of some small communities, has a one world governance ever been good for humanity? Don't let the definition pass by as a good thing, without it being noticed as the snake oil it is, especially when that little beeyawtch of a singular world order has envenomated the crap it just convinced millions to take !!!

If we are assuming that having a unipolar world is a good thing, I would contend that someone selling the koolaid is already trippin'.... and dropping acid in a world with 2 poles that are dancing this fast is very unhealthy. I tell myself to Let go of my assumptions and regain my balance....to Dance a little myself..

Going away from such a nepotistic working environment, inhumane on some levels, makes dealing with almost any bureaucracy, laden with any level of overkill, seem less of a burden....perspectives being so relative to the discussion. I could put up an ad in a statewide newspaper here and get 2 or 3 times more the number of detailed complaints from ex union members than there are present members in the union itself....That would be fun....in a surprising way to the public, but only if all of the comments were vetted, checked out and honest. FOIA'ing that would be cool, but the number of honest lawyers not connected to the corruption in this state is too small to ask more than 20 times trying to find one.

Ex film union members sometimes call up each other to congratulate them on not being in the back stabbers union anymore. Really. It is a common thing here. It's a natural and organic support system that moves on, every now and then recognizing the healthy absence of rancor, of complaints, and threats to your career. It's seeing some still in the union going out of their way to say they'd work with me, anytime and anywhere, which gives me the warm and fuzzies....The reaching out that sadly reeks of a painful hurt they're still dealing with, but it's one they can remove...if they were actually UNITED, not controlled.....as if they were actually in a UNION.

[shaberon]

Namely, the big picture is that there is a struggle between 2 factions in the West over who will rule the world and control capital.

1. The old European banking cartel, the E.U.and their stooges ( WEF, Soros, Christine lagarde etc) who are engineering that the centre of control is to be the United Nations. By extension thiey mean to break up the United States and subjugate them.

2. The Federal Reserve (a private bank) backed by powerful U.S banks e.g. JP Morgon et al, DO NOT want to submit to the Davos group ( Jamie Dimon did not attend Davos).



This is roughly correct. For 1, generally Bank of International Settlements, and Democratic Party; 2 more represented by the Republican.

In New York there was also rivalry between "Old Money" (such as Morgan) and "New Money" (such as the Astors).

Keeping in mind that Black Rock announced "Great Reset" in September 2019 at Jackson Hole, Wyoming--this was before Covid was even a rumor. As soon it was a "rumor", we saw that English business people already knew it was a "deadly epidemic" and used no-compete agreements to order medical supplies from China. Currently, this same company, Black Rock, is intending to own much of Ukraine, and, from an article by Engdahl (https://southfront.org/how-blackrock-investment-fund-triggered-the-global-energy-crisis/):


Fink delivered the new agenda for capital investing. He declared that Blackrock will exit certain high-carbon investments such as coal, the largest source of electricity for the USA and many other countries. He added that Blackrock would screen new investment in oil, gas and coal to determine their adherence to the UN Agenda 2030 “sustainability.”

Fink made clear the world’s largest fund would begin to disinvest in oil, gas and coal.

Fink was also able to get four new board members in ExxonMobil committed to end the company’s oil and gas business.


With that fateful January 2020 CEO letter, Larry Fink set in motion a colossal disinvestment in the trillion-dollar global oil and gas sector. Notably, that same year BlackRock’s Fink was named to the Board of Trustees of Klaus Schwab’s dystopian World Economic Forum, the corporate and political nexus of the Zero Carbon UN Agenda 2030. In June 2019, the World Economic Forum and the United Nations signed a strategic partnership framework to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.




We see the consequences, a likely "de-industrialization" of Germany, which, ironically strengthens Russia who has no need to submit to these Capitalists. If they had not dug their way out some years ago, chances are this would be happening there too.

Engdahl thinks it is an attack by Finance against Energy.

Here in the U. S., we do indeed have a different kind of criminal, which is almost the same, but seeks specifically the benefit of American billionaires and the U. S. military as a more dominant force than the U. N.


The, I suppose, abuse of the Monroe Doctrine has largely contributed to unrest in Central and South America, and so the "harvest" of Latins into the U. S. is not a natural occurrence but a manipulation. For example, I have a Guatemalan exclave, because our cotton mills were shuttered and the companies offshored to Guatemala. After conditions there deteriorated, then, the Guatemalans were inspired to move here to try to get into anything that might be left. By this point we are a de facto colony of Spain. In most countries, streams of illegal immigration like this would not be tolerated, so again there is a type of internal manipulation going on here.

I can imagine leaving Guatemala when you are fourteen, getting a degree in the U. S., and then a job in India.


I was impressed the other day, I looked at a set of new knives that were decent quality, by a German-sounding manufacturer, and "Made in India". Quite far from "cheap flimsy junk" you might expect from them. Of course, a knife aficionado is not able to call anything "top grade" unless you have a pedigree going to Adam, but I would say they are at par with anything that at least a European would not laugh at.


Yes, the Yugo AK has a great reputation, as does their other equipment.


Does India limit the Germans' ability to run up a whole big private banking system? I don't know. There is such a thing in China, but it is small, tightly-regulated, and not owned by foreigners. From what I can tell, one can credit portions of Russian and Chinese law which exercise some protection of the populace from privatized vulture capitalism. It is easy to see how this is backwards from the principles at Davos gatherings.

[shaberon]

We are actually celebrating the "freedom" from the rule of the monarchy in Great Britain...

In the signing of the Declaration of Independence, on July 4th, 1776, By issuing the Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists’ motivations for seeking independence. By declaring themselves an independent nation, the American colonists were able to confirm an official alliance with the Government of France and obtain French assistance in the war against Great Britain.


More specifically, the main objection was that the Bank of England had managed to indebt the monarchy mainly through war, in turn from which was the imposition of ridiculous taxes on the colonists.

The colonies had already begun their own development before rebelling. It came boiling up after Benjamin Franklin told King George that in America, there were no poor houses, because unemployment was almost non-existent. This was effectively because the colonies were using their own locally-issued "scrips" instead of any kind of national currency.

In 1812, a British attack was defeated, based around the same reasons.

After the beginning of the London School of Economics, the national currency was effectively signed away by Woodrow Wilson.

It is like a Declaration of Dependence, or an unconditional surrender. Sounds a little strange, but the School has a Soft Kill theory, which joins forces with New York, and then there is a Hard Kill branch which more or less from Switzerland begets the Bolsheviks.

It is not hard to see how this would be intended to make Americans more pliable to an anti-Russian political stance in the long run.

One has lost the understanding of the Founding Fathers, which must have had something in common with certain persons in France and Russia, who were aware of the threatening nature inside London's financial system. It manages to directly attach itself to France as a direct consequence of the Revolution, and just takes a little longer to get its hands in the U. S.

At this point, our Secretary of the Treasury is a governor of the IMF, i. e. is a foreign agent.

I believe we can still say they Crown cannot just dictate a tax to us. Otherwise, there used to be a few simple things which everyone was taught, which it was believed that a new country would only work with an educated moral population. Most everything seems to have slipped away...

[Bill Ryan]

I'm already convinced that Russia and China (including Putin and Xi) have nothing to do with the WEF — if they ever had! But this report from TASS seems to add even more evidence that they're doing their own multipolar world thing:


https://tass.com/economy/1562563

Russian, Chinese businessmen to skip 2023 World Economic Forum in Davos

None of business representatives from Russia and China would be in attendance at the 2023 World Economic Forum in Davos, which kicks off on Monday, the American business news agency Bloomberg reported.

According to the agency, "There are roughly 116 billionaires registered to attend this year’s event, 40% more than a decade ago. In addition to the absent Russians, there are none from China this year…"

"India, a consistently big presence in Davos in prior years, has 13 billionaires attending, including coal magnate-turned-diversified industrialist Gautam Adani, whose wealth soared by $44 billion last year," the agency reported.

"Americans, as usual, form the largest group, with 33 billionaires set to attend, including corporate titans who skipped last year’s event…," Bloomberg reported adding that 18 European billionaires had been registered to attend the World Economic Forum.

The 2023 World Economic Forum is hosted by Switzerland’s Davos between January 16 and 20.

[mountain_jim]

sorry for this (comedic?) intrusion but shows how some Meme'ers feel about the WEF

https://twitter.com/WallStreetSilv/status/1614745000939589634?s=20&t=Uo4vb8nvJ7C18o9QjNl5Qw

1614745000939589634

[Vicus]

That's what you get if don't like multipolar world

The World Economic Forum & the World Health Organization Are Elevating Themselves Above the World’s Governments :sherlock:
Paul Craig Roberts

“In the last three years, the common people’s exclusion from what is still sold as a democratic process has reached a pinnacle.” — Peter Koenig

As former senior economist for the World Bank and the World Health Organization, Peter Koenig has inside information. He shares it with us here: https://www.globalresearch.ca/wef-who-they-running-death-cult/5804177

First, ask yourself how Klaus Schwab’s organization, WEF, and Rockefeller, Bill Gates, and Big Pharma’s organization, WHO, got the word “world” in their name. The only organization on a world level is the United Nations. As it name implies, it is an organization of independent nations. The nations speak, not the world, much less a private organization like the WEF and a privately funded organization like WHO.

Globalists who speak in the name of the world have already pulled a fast one on us by appropriating a name that suggests that two private organizations speak for the world. Both of these organizations are in the process of acquiring this private authority over humanity. The WEF has been at it for 53 years, and the WHO since 1948 when it was founded by Rockefeller. In this current year, WHO has a big push underway to acquire authority over the health policies of every country. If WHO succeeds, this privately funded organization will be independent of governments and have no political accountability to people. The same organization who lied and deceived with its assurance that the Covid jab was “safe and effective” is grasping for the power to impose worldwide whatever diktat it wishes. Are you happy with this?

Both the WEF and WHO operate by inventing threats and controlling their explanations, such as human-caused global warming and pandemics, the solution to which is the centralization of power and erosion of national sovereignty and accountability to the people.

For 53 years WEF has worked diligently to create the image of itself as the top club to which to belong. They groom up-and-coming political, professional, and business leaders. An invitation to attend a meeting makes the recipient feel special. Those without invitations yearn for them. This works to create certainty about the rightness of the WEF agenda. Attendees hear addresses that they have no capability of challenging and accept the ideas as they come from big names. After 53 years of this, the WEF has a large and influential following.

WHO has gone further into becoming an official world government organization by being brought into the United Nations system. If WHO succeeds in getting control over every country’s health policy, it will be the end of independent science in medicine. Except for nuclear war, it is difficult to imagine a more disastrous development.

Imagine that you are a US Senator or a House committee chairman and you comprehend that these organizations’ agenda is to terminate national sovereignty. What can you do about it? If you begin speaking against them, exposing them, they use their vast network to cut off your political campaign contributions and to demonize you as a reactionary standing in the way of solutions to the world’s pressing problems.

The independence of people and countries has been moved far along the path to their demise.

Second, ask yourself how it can be that these two organizations that hyped the Covid narrative to the hilt can have any credibility now afterwards when every government’s official data show a massive increase in unexplained excess deaths following the Covid vaccination? It is the vaccinated, not the unvaccinated, who are suddenly dying and developing illnesses. Doctors also report a surge in cancer and a drop in fertility following the vaccination campaign.

Thousands of medical scientists and doctors have concluded from the evidence that the mRNA vaccines are deadly to many and cause a wide range of serious and permanent health injuries to many more. Some of the most prestigious medical scientists and doctors in the world have called for the immediate halt to mRNA injections. Yet, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved the injections for infants, and many parents remain so ignorant that they participate in the murder and health injury of their own children.

It is an honest question to ask how such insouciant, gullible, and trusting people can withstand the WEF/WHO onslaught.



https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2023/01/15/the-world-economic-forum-the-world-health-organization-are-elevating-themselves-above-the-worlds-governments/

[Vicus]

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKRMIqkgDK_b8OwG2XiVbvZnP0QRBUJezTmIdrCj-NkWhLjLUlBqYzoAkq0DX2vY-1xdTXbk0za6icdIQtQPXrhXYPd0xVsX9HW6xmGyjdkThPFX_ZKw57jG37ntIPu_6Y_w1suaARVY-qFU4cNn6wLNj0xpATydCURjfu9nb-rqNuZgunQE/w400-h309/WEF_00001.jpg

[shaberon]

WHO since 1948 when it was founded by Rockefeller. In this current year, WHO has a big push underway to acquire authority over the health policies of every country. If WHO succeeds, this privately funded organization will be independent of governments and have no political accountability to people. The same organization who lied and deceived with its assurance that the Covid jab was “safe and effective” is grasping for the power to impose worldwide whatever diktat it wishes. Are you happy with this?


Strangely, this seems to be one of the few things that the "world" was unanimous about, according to Wiki:


During the 1945 United Nations Conference on International Organization, Szeming Sze, a delegate from China, conferred with Norwegian and Brazilian delegates on creating an international health organization under the auspices of the new United Nations. After failing to get a resolution passed on the subject, Alger Hiss, the secretary general of the conference, recommended using a declaration to establish such an organization. Sze and other delegates lobbied and a declaration passed calling for an international conference on health. The use of the word "world", rather than "international", emphasized the truly global nature of what the organization was seeking to achieve. The constitution of the World Health Organization was signed by all 51 countries of the United Nations, and by 10 other countries, on 22 July 1946. It thus became the first specialized agency of the United Nations to which every member subscribed. Its constitution formally came into force on the first World Health Day on 7 April 1948, when it was ratified by the 26th member state.



International Sanitary Conferences (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Sanitary_Conferences) were French in 1851 and exclusively European until the United States showed up in 1881. So there were long-term, cumulative international health projects which WHO absorbed.


The WHO relies on contributions from member states (both assessed and voluntary) and private donors for funding.

Since the late 20th century, the rise of new actors engaged in global health such as the World Bank, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and dozens of public-private partnerships for global health have weakened the WHO's role as a coordinator and policy leader in the field.


It sounds like "the world" "voted" for it, and pay taxes (assessments) to it.

I am not sure I want a "rule by medicine". Would that be Medi-ocracy?

[Bill Ryan]

A good one-word summary of Africa's alignment.

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/16473

CyberspecNews/16473

[shaberon]

A good one-word summary of Africa's alignment.

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/16473

CyberspecNews/16473



That itself is a near-quote of an "Against Oligarchy" statement from an article by Batiushka (https://thesaker.is/game-changing-russia/) on the futility of it all:


The West’s defeat in the Ukraine is simply the last nail in the coffin of the arrogant, ignorant, ethnocentric, colonialist, triumphalist and thoroughly corrupted West of the last 500 years and more.


What is clear, however, is that Russians want some things to remain from the past. The first thing is that they do not want any treacherous oligarchs/ aristocrats, but want a meritocratic elite that patriotically serves the nation rather than itself. They also want a fair social contract, greater equality between rich and poor, with a political system that is accountable and not corrupt, they want social justice, free education and healthcare, decent pensions, a working infrastructure and reasonable housing.



And that is the virtual opposite of Rick Thomas on Davos (https://southfront.org/davos-2023-fragmenting-the-world/) as pro-Oligarchy:


The WEF is the future world government, plain and simple. Schwab is already its first president, and arguably the unacknowledged and unofficial CEO of the world.


Though the WEF meets in Davos every year, it is actually headquartered in the tiny town of Cologny, outside of Geneva, 265 miles west.

...the WEF itself suggests that a globalised world is best managed by a self-selected coalition of multinational corporations, governments and civil society organisations, which it expresses through initiatives like the Great Reset and the Global Redesign.



Evidently, the WHO and WEF are both based around Geneva. The Bank of International Settlements is at Basel. From the responses:


“Swiss nation” which is the first model of melting pot of nations – Germans, French and Italians under the umbrella of templars/freemasons with Venetian banksters. “Switzerland” is natural creation as much as shoes made of plastic. Note that Swiss federal parlament gives protection for those criminals. Switzerland is unbeliavable controlled, militarist, fascist state, just as Singapore + banking secrecy is far more important than any of god’s commandments or of the entire set of them. Or the universe or God himself. In Switzerland, banker is a personification of a God.

An Idea of world wars for the sake of bankers came from Swiss banking circles. Swiss circles openly called for assasination of Archduke Ferdinand in order to reshuffle the world. That country is not a country at all, it is a corporation built on misery of others.


According to The Saker:


Since 1917 the only “Ukrainian identity” is being “anti-Russia”. That’s over 100 years of anti-Russian propaganda. First from the Bolsheviks, then from the consolidated and united West, then from the Zapadentsy since 1991 and now even more strident since 2014.

That is a reality we all have to live with (thank you to the Papacy and the West for creating these conditions!)



There is a rationale behind that, which is the Vikings were remarkable because of developing enough surplus that they were able to pull a noticeably higher percentage of people out of agriculture, and they were attacking European countries which were more tied to the land and did not have those kind of resources. Due to its remoteness, Switzerland is the only place they did not affect. Moreover, the Swiss Pike proved to be the best battlefield weapon until the age of gunpowder, so it was never invaded or taken over. That is why it has the reputation of originally "safe keeping" or, i. e. banking.

Its relation to papistry is unusual.




And for the moment called Thursday (https://sputniknews.com/20230119/us-slated-to-hit-debt-ceiling-amid-biden-republican-deadlock-1106476468.html):


According to the Treasury Department, Congress has acted 78 times to raise, extend or revise the debt limit, which was changed 49 times under Republican presidents and 29 times under Democratic administrations.

If Congress fails to raise the debt limit, the US would automatically default on its payments.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Republicans should understand it is their constitutional responsibility to raise the debt limit and is something that should happen without any conditions.



That means our government could no longer afford itself seventy-eight times, and so far they always just keep borrowing more, which averages out to around $60,000 per individual. During the year, you just pay interest service on this from your taxes, and eventually they just charge more for the same thing.


Pattberg came up with a long comparison of the Aztec Empire and modern Germany for which I wish we would stick to the somewhat standard term Miscegenation (https://thesaker.is/painful-similarities-between-the-german-collapse-and-the-aztec-empire/):


Example 1. The Turkish diaspora in Germany’s industrial belt of North-Rhine Westphalia alone now numbers in the 4.5 million. Those “German-Turks” still have their motherland, Turkiye, which has 85 million inhabitants, more than Germany. Do not fall for the “official” German regime statistics, they are totally fake and manipulated. For example, one year they just list 1.2 million Turkish nationals, while in reality, another 3.3 million Turks in North-Rhine Westphalia are “sleeper Turks” with German passports.


What I notice is, of course, that is the same thing that allowed Hitler to gain power.

"Multipolar" is also the opposite of Miscegenation.


From what I can tell, Hitler was a pro-German Nazi. Yet among the Germans were also "international Nazis", who had in mind "using and losing" the whole country, after which:


This is really happening in Germany, since I was born and can remember. They have been telling us since childhood that bloodline, hereditary, and history are but grotesque “Hitlerian” ideas and concepts— and very antisemitic and undemocratic! “You must unlearn them!” As to the motive of (childless) tyrant Merkel, her case is proven clear: Forget about the horrible ideas of homeland and ancestry. “Everyone who lives here,” she told the leaders of the world, “is the People.”



It is much like we can say we have a choice of two kinds of criminals in the United States. One kind is Hitler-esque because of wanting the individual country to be powerful, and, the other that wants it as a flunky of the United Nations. Maybe you could call them Nationalism and Liberalism but both are Capitalist Fascists. I would put it forward that this kind of echo chamber has been manipulated since around the 1600s imparting the belief of something like these are the only two possible realities.


It seems to me that Hitler unwittingly did exactly what internationalism wanted, to damage Russia but fail to conquer it, and, instead, lose Germany to the European Central Bank. Now, having his policies utterly undiscussable, we are told:



And while in any other country in the world, work permits for foreigners are often extremely hard to get by, Germany actually pays 5,000 euros a month [$5k] to the invaders for not working. After a while, the bred-and-fed migrant forces also demanded more land, better housing, easy women, positions of power, and, always always, privileged treatment.

The Germans even gave away their apartments, schools, gym halls, free transport, free medicare, and expenses accounts to these poor, strong foreign men. It felt so good to “share wealth” and to “give back” to complete strangers.


The indigenous Germans pay for their leaders’ betrayal just like the indigenous Aztecs did. They already live a slave-like existence and must part 50% of their incomes to the rulers. With the rest, they pay rent, charges, fees, arbitrary fines, transport to work. They pay income tax, property tax, consumer tax, solidarity tax, inheritance tax, tax on tax. And the rulers take all that unearned money, send most of it to America and the money lenders, and the rest they trickle into the pockets of the “New Germans.”

In effect, the classical Germanic tribes, the “Old Germans,” the Teutons, the Franks, the Saxons, the Goths, the Norse, and so on, are now economically drained, dispossessed, and spit on their racist graves. And, would you believe it, many Germans now apparently die “suddenly and unexpectedly,” due to “the lack of immunity from some foreign-born virus,” you’ve heard that scholarship before.



Quite an infernal scheme, if you say something you are a racist supremacist, if not then you are giving away everything for free to anybody.

[Mashika]

1615837628061949965

For you, little person, you better start learning Spanish, because this song will serve you very right from now on

dU-jYM1fikE

[Mashika]

And this, It just happened

hPQInSSM4_E

¤=[Post Update]=¤

Vive la révolution!

[Mashika]

Think Fast, and Think Smart

Just because you in person have not experienced this, it doesn't mean it did not happen

[wegge]

1615837628061949965

For you, little person, you better start learning Spanish, because this song will serve you very right from now on

dU-jYM1fikE

Imagine Bourla would have laughed at any of the quite funny questions. A crack would have been heard all over the Matrix.

[Mashika]

1615837628061949965

For you, little person, you better start learning Spanish, because this song will serve you very right from now on

dU-jYM1fikE

Imagine Bourla would have laughed at any of the quite funny questions. A crack would have been heard all over the Matrix.

Любо братцы , любо

But i suspect that's impossible

[Vicus]

Saudi Arabia ready to ditch dollar in trade – Finance Minister

Shift from US to Chinese currency has previously been discussed between Beijing and Riyadh

Saudi Arabia is ready to discuss trading in currencies other than the US dollar, according to the Kingdom’s finance minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, as cited by Bloomberg.

Al-Jadaan's comments come a month after China’s President Xi Jinping said that Beijing is ready to make energy purchases in yuan instead of the US dollar in trade exchanges with members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). China's leader highlighted the necessity of the shift while speaking at a Chinese-Arab summit hosted by Saudi Arabia earlier this week.

“There are no issues with discussing how we settle our trade arrangements, whether it is in US dollar, in euro or in Saudi riyal,” Al-Jadaan said on Tuesday during an interview with Bloomberg in Davos, Switzerland.

The oil-rich kingdom is seeking to deepen its ties with vital trade partners, including China. The readiness for talks on the issue expressed by Riyadh may signal that the world’s biggest oil exporter is open to diversifying away from the US dollar after decades of pricing crude exports in the US currency. The riyal, the Saudi national currency, has been pegged to the greenback, too.

The trend towards the shift to national currencies that is recently being observed among the major participants in global trade chains is partially attributed to the policies of secondary sanctions that Washington is pursuing. Initially, the steps towards ditching the US currency in trade, particularly in the energy sector, were intensified in the wake of the sweeping sanctions introduced by Western nations against Russia, one of the world’s major energy producers and exporters, over the military operation in Ukraine.

https://www.rt.com/business/570056-saudi-arabia-dump-dollar-trade/

[Vicus]

Global South: Gold-backed currencies to replace the US dollar :clapping:
Pepe Escobar
The Cradle
Thu, 19 Jan 2023 16:30 UTC

The adoption of a commodity-backed currencies by the Global South could upend the US dollar's dominance and level the playing field in international trade.

Let's start with three interconnected multipolar-driven facts.

First: One of the key take aways from the World Economic Forum annual shindig in Davos, Switzerland is when Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan, on a panel on "Saudi Arabia's Transformation," made it clear that Riyadh "will consider trading in currencies other than the US dollar."

So is the petroyuan finally at hand? Possibly, but Al-Jadaan wisely opted for careful hedging: "We enjoy a very strategic relationship with China and we enjoy that same strategic relationship with other nations including the US and we want to develop that with Europe and other countries."

Second: The Central Banks of Iran and Russia are studying the adoption of a "stable coin" for foreign trade settlements, replacing the US dollar, the ruble and the rial. The crypto crowd is already up in arms, mulling the pros and cons of a gold-backed central bank digital currency (CBDC) for trade that will be in fact impervious to the weaponized US dollar.

Are you ready for the R5?

The original idea revolved around a currency basket similar to the Special Drawing Rights (SDR) model, composed of the national currencies of BRICS members - and then, further on down the road, other currencies of the expanded BRICS+ circle.

Lissovolik explains that choosing BRICS national currencies made sense because "these were among the most liquid currencies across emerging markets. The name for the new reserve currency — R5 or R5+ — was based on the first letters of the BRICS currencies all of which begin with the letter R (real, ruble, rupee, renminbi, rand)."

So BRICS already have a platform for their in-depth deliberations in 2023. As Lissovolik notes, "in the longer run, the R5 BRICS currency could start to perform the role of settlements/payments as well as the store of value/reserves for the central banks of emerging market economies."

It is virtually certain that the Chinese yuan will be prominent right from the start, taking advantage of its "already advanced reserve status."

Potential candidates that could become part of the R5+ currency basket include the Singapore dollar and the UAE's dirham.

Quite diplomatically, Lissovolik maintains that, "the R5 project can thus become one of the most important contributions of emerging markets to building a more secure international financial system."

The R5, or R5+ project does intersect with what is being designed at the Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU), led by the Macro-Economics Minister of the Eurasia Economic Commission, Sergey Glazyev.

continue: https://www.sott.net/article/476432-Global-South-Gold-backed-currencies-to-replace-the-US-dollar

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/16876

CyberspecNews/16876

[Mashika]

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/16876

CyberspecNews/16876

*International Serf community

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/Slavyangrad/31004

Slavyangrad/31004

[artamis]

multipolar is just sooooo good! Looking forward to it, big changes are happening, let's hope for the better!

[Mashika]

New US ambassador in Russia, Hooray?




New US Ambassador Lynn Tracy arrived at the Russian Foreign Ministry for the first time, she was greeted with chants of "war is a US business" and "America is a terrorist country"


DonbassDevushka/42731

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/18263

CyberspecNews/18263

[Mashika]

Here's the perfect example of "You don't understand that you don't understand", as from the point of view of the US government and anyone working on that level


ivFTIh5i38A


All this talk is based on one giant misunderstanding and an even bigger assumption


"That the US government is trying to do some good therefore the US are the good guys"


Long story short: No they aren't


If you start talking about something, you need to first understand how it got to the point you are beginning to talk about, and not just skimp over it and assume it is true. Because if this guy truly understood all what happened before and not just reference it by passing, then he would know all he is saying exists only in Narnia, or la-la land


Something about Iraq, the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan etc, but let's move on and not inspect the reality over that, we just going to move over and pretend we don't know the crimes against humanity the US performed over there and just call it some "good work".

"Now let's do a mild criticism of US policy that doesn't involve directly calling our government for the clearly documented crimes of war and against humanity everyone knows about but if i would speak up about i will no longer have a career or a job anywhere"


Problem: Most countries affected by US policy of "me above and you pay me or die", either directly or not, or who have strategically considered their options, have already figured out that the way is not with them, but "the highway"

The US government has built a nation that depends on a single strategy for their own survival. This is not known by a lot of American citizens, but it is clear as water for most people outside
The US lives on a "every other country must pay up or be consumed so we live a better, more privileged life than the rest, therefore we are 'the best'" Otherwise known as 'exceptionalism", the American dream, the myth, the reason why the American continent is called "The Americas" in the US but old books of history and even more recent maps and even website have the entire continent called "America" and not 'The Americas". I even saw books not older than like 1948 or so that had maps in which the entire continent, all the way up from Canada and down to Chile and Argentina was just simply called "Amerika"

All of them, all of those countries, were part of "Amerika", and history is rewriten of course, but how do people forget? I know people who remember and did not forget

So to wonder why countries feel off or odd or negative against the entire culture of "We are nice to you, poor friends on the south" ideology, seems off and off all around


People at the higher ground always looks at the ones at the lower ground as midgets


And, the best way to keep being the best, is to ensure the others can't become better than you, through any means necessary


The question is not if the US is doing that, they are. The question is, when will the citizens of the US wake up and realize what their government has been doing all along over the entire planet, 'on the American citizens behalf"?

[Mashika]

Also, for people who have not become aware of this misuse of power, here's something to read and ponder about

Monroe Doctrine (1823)
https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/monroe-doctrine#:~:text=The%20Monroe%20Doctrine%20is%20the,further%20colonization%20or%20puppet%20monarchs.


The Monroe Doctrine is the best known U.S. policy toward the Western Hemisphere. Buried in a routine annual message delivered to Congress by President James Monroe in December 1823, the doctrine warns European nations that the United States would not tolerate further colonization or puppet monarchs. The doctrine was conceived to meet major concerns of the moment, but it soon became a watchword of U.S. policy in the Western Hemisphere.


The Monroe Doctrine was invoked in 1865 when the U.S. government exerted diplomatic and military pressure in support of the Mexican President Benito Juárez. This support enabled Juárez to lead a successful revolt against the Emperor Maximilian, who had been placed on the throne by the French government.


Almost 40 years later, in 1904, European creditors of a number of Latin American countries threatened armed intervention to collect debts. President Theodore Roosevelt promptly proclaimed the right of the United States to exercise an "international police power" to curb such "chronic wrongdoing," in his so-called Roosevelt Corollary (https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/roosevelt-corollary) (or extension) to the Monroe Doctrine.



While the Monroe Doctrine’s message was designed to keep European powers out of the Western Hemisphere, Roosevelt would strengthen its meaning to justify sending the United States into other countries of the Western Hemisphere. As a result, U.S. Marines were sent into Santo Domingo in 1904, Nicaragua in 1911, and Haiti in 1915, ostensibly to keep the Europeans out. Other Latin American nations viewed these interventions with misgiving, and relations between the “great Colossus of the North” and its southern neighbors remained strained for many years.


In 1962, the Monroe Doctrine was invoked symbolically when the Soviet Union began to build missile-launching sites in Cuba (https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/aerial-photograph-of-missiles-in-cuba). With the support of the Organization of American States, President John F. Kennedy threw a naval and air quarantine around the island. After several tense days, the Soviet Union agreed to withdraw the missiles and dismantle the sites. Subsequently, the United States dismantled several of its obsolete air and missile bases in Turkey.


After that, it only kept growing, because why not, right? Once you taste power, you are never fed up enough of it


So the term "our backyard" in reference to the south of what used to be "America" now references "South America" and North America is above and beyond, looking down and out to the 'neighbours" on the poor side of our land

How could ever someone expect this to work for long?

Ever heard of the "North American United States"? or simply "North America" but at the same historical time, wasn't "United States of America"? No? I guess not


The US relationship with the south of America, It's like a violent home scene, the husband beats the wife every day. then one days he takes away the washing machine and sells it to buy drugs or drinks, then gets home and says "Why didn't you wash my clothes as you always do!" And the wife: But you sold the machine.. And he: I don't care, you should wash them the same, buy a new one and then beats the hell our of her, doesn't give her any more money but next day once again asks for ready warm washed clothes. And he forbid hers from working for someone else, because she must only serve him and no other person ever

That's how that 'relationship' works. And then the wife beater wonders why she wants to leave and find protection somewhere else


And i could also add some stuff about Biden and the current issues with "Friends" of the Biden family, namely the Aleman family in Mexico, who you have no idea who they are truly, and why they are so important, but so very little talked about across all the "Hunter's laptop" issue all around


It's just there in front of everyone, but no one has taken a look? lol

[Matthew]

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/18263

CyberspecNews/18263

Bill, or anyone else, ... do you think BRICS will sideline Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) or do you think it will lead to it's own rival CBDC? I can't see how BRICS would be any kind of useful alternative to escape CBDC, because I assume it will become centrally digitized too. Happy to have my wrong assumption corrected here.

[Mashika]

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/18263

CyberspecNews/18263

Bill, or anyone else, ... do you think BRICS will sideline Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) or do you think it will lead to it's own rival CBDC? I can't see how BRICS would be any kind of useful alternative to escape CBDC, because I assume it will become centrally digitized too. Happy to have my wrong assumption corrected here.


But centralized around what?

If the backer of a currency goes away, and another completely disconnected organism comes around, and if everyone switches to the new one, then who cares or bothers to go check what happened to the one that went down?


The alternatives have already been implemented and slowly progressing towards 'production' quality, at which point countries can do business without going through "that one", then immediately the second part of the world works without any side effects. This is being worked on for several years now, but not yet there. Look around, all countries are building up their own "currency" for international transactions across them, but not including the US or allies

"
Russian FM says BRICS group to consider common currency"

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/economy/russian-fm-says-brics-group-to-consider-common-currency/2797085



Lavrov said the West uses "the same colonial methods with which it exploited developing continents," and continues using them "to plunder foreign countries and uses resources of global importance to its advantage."
"By its actions, the West has proved that all the values and mechanisms of globalization that it itself created and promoted, including the inviolability of property, fair competition, the presumption of innocence, can be trampled on at any moment, and can also betray its allies at any moment. This is proved by the practice of not so long ago events in Afghanistan, Iraq, and during the Arab Spring of 2011," he said.


The thing here is, how do you expect that if all countries want to move away and don't invite 'the bully' into their meetings, they will still go and pay and move their money through the bully's central bank? They don't want to, and they don't want to keep having to 'explain' what they do or with how or when to a 'central authority' that none of them chose or elected or wanted in the first place


So as soon as they can get rid of the uninvited guest, they will sure will get rid of him


This is not against the US citizens, this is a reaction to the nasty ways the US government has acted and the constant provocations all across the world of "with me or face the consequences"


The western central bank will mean nothing once 80 percent of the world does business without it, then it will be just a "once were" thing and eventually it will fade out and whatever countries refused to join the new system will have to apply or die as well


That's what the west can't handle right now, because it's the same old "WE and then you" ideology that doesn't work anymore

[Matthew]

...

The thing here is, how do you expect that if all countries want to move away and don't invite 'the bully' into their meetings, they will still go and pay and move their money through the bully's central bank? They don't want to, and they don't want to keep having to 'explain' what they do or with how or when to a 'central authority' that none of them chose or elected or wanted in the first place


So as soon as they can get rid of the uninvited guest, they will sure will get rid of him


This is not against the US citizens, this is a reaction to the nasty ways the US government has acted and the constant provocations all across the world of "with me or face the consequences"


The western central bank will mean nothing once 80 percent of the world does business without it, then it will be just a "once were" thing and eventually it will fade out and whatever countries refused to join the new system will have to apply or die as well


That's what the west can't handle right now, because it's the same old "WE and then you" ideology that doesn't work anymore

Thanks for taking the time to respond... I guess you're saying you're not so worried about it, so perhaps that's a good sign from my point of view? Is your point that BRICS inherently distributed?

This gave me a sense of assurance:


The BRICS will need to investigate the potential of using multiple CBDC bridging technologies and other alternatives to promote international trade and foreign investment from the outset before the currencies are formally adopted. Making changes to these systems at a later stage will prove to be more expensive. To enable international trade through the CBDC, one must explore the broad dimensions of system interoperability and the arrangements that the Central Banks must consider to implement such structures.

https://cyberbrics.info/promoting-brics-economic-integration-via-central-bank-digital-currencies%EF%BF%BC/#:~:text=With%20this%20shift%2C%20Central%20Bank,banking%20architecture%20in%20these%20countries.

^ That BRICS is some kind of spanner in the works for CBDC.

But I guess what I'm wondering is how keen are the BRICS countries on digital currency? I don't assume BRICS is an antidote to CBDC. In 2001 Goldman Sachs didn't know about bitcoin, BRIC[S] primary purpose was as an anti-dollar mechanism, not an anti CBDC mechanism.

If digital currency, that is tracked and expires so you can't save it, is popular with state leaders why wouldn't BRICS facilitate that? There is nothing I see in BRICS that inherently cares or guards against this issue, it's job is to undermine the dollar only. The big issue in a multipolar world is concerning the dollar but on a personal level the hot topic is about avoiding CBDC.

[Vicus]

China ‘counters US dollar hegemony’ with gold reserves, Argentina yuan currency swap deal

Advancing global de-dollarization, China’s central bank is boosting its gold reserves while signing currency swap deals in yuan with countries like Argentina, encouraging the use of renminbi instead of US dollars.

China’s central bank has taken a series of steps to accelerate the global drive toward de-dollarization, challenging the hegemony of the greenback.

The People’s Bank of China is increasing the share of gold in its foreign-exchange reserves, bucking the US dollar, which has for decades been dominant in international central bank holdings.

This January, China also signed an agreement with Argentina’s central bank for a currency swap deal, in which Beijing will provide 130 billion Chinese yuan (roughly $19 billion USD) to help Buenos Aires stabilize its currency and economy.

The South American nation said it is “committed to deepen the use of the RMB [renminbi] in the Argentine market for bilateral exchange”. (Renminbi is the official name of the Chinese currency, and is often used interchangeably with yuan, which is the unit of account of that currency.)

China’s semi-official newspaper Global Times commented that the deal makes it “likely that more Latin American countries will increase the use of Chinese yuan in order to counter the US dollar’s hegemony, and strengthen economic ties with China”.

These moves show how China is responding to the new cold war that the United States is waging against it.

Concerned that the aggressive sanctions that Washington has already imposed could expand into an all-out economic war, Beijing is decreasing its holdings of dollars in reserves and encouraging the use of its currency in trade with other nations – thereby chipping away at the global reserve currency.

Meanwhile, Russia’s central bank has pledged to buy yuan in the foreign-exchange market to hold in its reserves. And Beijing is already purchasing oil from Moscow in its national currency.


https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/01/08/china-dollar-gold-reserves-argentina-yuan/

[Vicus]

‘Disneyland’ for investors is over, Nassim Taleb warns
1 Feb, 2023 14:54

Famed author and former trader says the market is not ready for high interest rates

Former banker Nassim Taleb, best known for his bestseller “Black Swan,” has advised market players to brace for drastic changes worldwide, due to rising interest rates.

In an interview with Bloomberg TV, aired on Tuesday, he said that over the past 15 years, investors have grown used to near-zero interest rates, introduced to drag Western economies out of the 2008 financial crisis. This triggered a number of asset bubbles, with assets trading much higher than their true value. Taleb estimates these at more than half a trillion dollars, calling them “illusionary wealth,” with market valuations out of proportion to companies’ cash flow.

“What do zero interest rates bring? Tumors. All these years, assets were inflating like crazy. It’s like a tumor, I think it’s the best explanation, because you’re happy with the growth, but it’s uncontrolled growth, and then ‘boom’,” Taleb said, explaining that “tumors” include everything from Bitcoin to soaring real estate prices.

According to the analyst, if a company earns less than 4.75% of its value – the current short-term interest rate in the US – it is losing money. And with interest rates likely to grow further due to lingering inflation, asset bubbles are likely to burst.

“It doesn’t rain money anymore… Disneyland is over, the children go back to school. It’s not going to be as smooth as it was the last 15 years,” he warned.

Taleb argued that it is hard to justify current stock market levels unless US interest rates “miraculously” return to near-zero levels, which the Fed will not allow as it has “realized zero-rates don’t work” and create only “cosmetic growth.”

“The stock market is way too overvalued, for interest rates that are not 1%... and this is unsustainable… The stock market has to adjust to normal levels,” he stated, warning that it will take some time before the situation stabilizes.

“Things won’t be fine for a while. We have the weirdest valuations in history,” Taleb added.

Nassim Taleb is known as a writer and economist. He has published three economic bestsellers, and introduced the concept of a ‘Black Swan,’ referring to hard-to-predict and rare events that have significant consequences for financial markets.


https://www.rt.com/business/570815-disneyland-investors-risk-analyst/

[All is one]

ONE WORLD: different evolutionary roads

What do you guys think of the idea of having a world run by different systems instead of having our world evolve towards a one world order?
One world in which one can choose what type of system one wants to use/belong to; similar to having the different valuta being used and recognized amongst different countries today.

Do you think it is possible to have different societal systems used around the globe simultaneously?
Whereby every system is recognized, respected and understood, this in order so that they can exist in harmony next to each other.

(Parallel systems that one can choose to be a part of and which will give people back their natural rights etc. whilst also keeping order, protecting the people and preventing destructive chaos. )


Possibilities for practical organization:


Importance of ID cards and privacy

The ID card could be used to indicate to which system you want to belong to. This would mean that if you’ve indicated to want to follow the technocratic course one would fall under their laws and restrictions, if you’ve indicated you want to follow the other evolutionary road, plan B, one would fall under the protection of that structure.

(directly choose how you want to live and have it validated on your ID card)


Overlapping area’s

How to organize this in one world?

What about with traffic rules and regulations etc. ?

Well if one would have 2 (or 3) systems existing parallel to each other in the same society both/all systems would need to agree on some rules as well, like traffic rules, but could diverge from each other on other subjects like health care rules, schooling rules, etc.

This way people could be free to choose their pathway towards the future.

People who like the soothing aspects of a system that controls everything can choose to live under that system, people that want to live a lifestyle in accordance with alternative ways of living can also choose that path.

This way humanity would not only build a harmonious balanced future but one that is strong enough to pass the test of time.


Alternatives exist

Many alternatives for current health and education system etc. already exist, but they just ain’t structured and recognized as much as the main stream system …

So more structuring recognition etc. of the alternative systems could help in setting up a new system of equal value as the mainstream system.


Importance of a new blueprint

It is important that a blueprint for the new alternative system is first made and the new societal structures created. So that a choice is an option and not an illusion.

(In the mean time one maybe could already choose to be part of the creation of that new system, but it will only be able to be finalized in a definitive decision and indication as soon as the system exists completely. This so that the indication is a step on a road to follow and not a step in the void/dark. )


2 parallel systems in one world is it possible?

It’s for a large part up to the people to shape reality, but to be able to do this they need to be able to agree on what and how they want things to be. As soon as a large enough group can agree; new systems can be created.

Thus whether a multi-system world can become a reality depends on the capacity of people to work together and agree on things.

The real question is if people subconsciously want to be free or if they’ve subconsciously already chosen not to put effort in creating any other options or solutions?


All is one

[Ernie Nemeth]

What happened? This was another thread a moment ago.
Ya, I thought it was already covered in this thread.
..........
I lost a long post, probably for the best, one might think. Maybe, but I thought it was alright.
When I posted it, there was no longer the thread to post it to.
...........
Okay, rant over.


edit: calmer now
found the post
it is saved but was saved to the new thread, which doesn't exist
mods, please post it to this thread
note: deleted most of rant

[Vicus]

Time is up... for the "west"

https://www.sott.net/image/s33/669635/medium/putin_watch.jpg

Why building a new world order is now an existential issue for Russia

It is important to understand that the West's proxy war against Russia is not just another slight bump in the road in our centuries-old relations, but rather a deep, protracted conflict with long-lasting consequences. The old strategy, beginning with Peter the Great, to Europeanize the country and take its place in that world, is no longer relevant.

Which is more important - politics or strategy? Before answering, we need to define the terms. The former is a very broad term. It covers a wide range of meanings - from the political course to the smallest opportunistic steps of a tactical nature. Moreover, politics can refer not only to the activities of a single area, but to an infinite number of topics, such as the domestic politics of Israel, the politics of the great powers in the Pacific, or global politics in the first quarter of the 21st century.

By comparison, the concept of strategy is much narrower and more defined. It has two main components - the goal the subject is aiming for, and the general path it has chosen to reach the goal. Strategy is very sensitive to circumstances and is constantly being adjusted, but the specific details of moving towards the goal belong to tactics. Unlike politics, which has its origins in civil administration and involves interaction with other forces operating in the same field. Strategy, which has its roots in military affairs, involves resistance. That is, the obligatory presence of an adversary.

In the time of the Prussian military theorist Carl Clausewitz, who famously said that war is the continuation of politics by other (namely violent) means, strategy meant military strategy, which was strictly subordinate to politics as the highest category. Subsequently, the use of the word changed. Strategy increasingly came to be understood as higher politics, while politics was often understood as political tactics.

It is clear to everyone that the modern world has entered a period of several crises: geopolitical with an acute phase of great power rivalry and the emergence of new players on the global stage, economic with the regionalization of economics and finance, values including the inability of modern Western obsessions to become universal and the struggle between tradition and innovation within the West itself, as well as between the West and the East and South, and now the North - Russia, and so on. A major factor influencing the course and outcome of each of these crises has been the explosive growth of technology in various fields, from computer science to bioengineering. These circumstances make it extremely difficult not only to anticipate the general course of events, but even to position correctly to deal with their consequences.

Therefore, when dealing with the crises of our time, it is particularly dangerous to get caught up in fantasies. It is equally reckless to drift at the mercy of the currents. So, it follows that the strategist (planner and navigator) and the politician (the pilot) must work together and in very close contact with each other.

So far, all this seems rather abstract. Let's sharpen the question. What should be Russia's strategy and policy in the current circumstances, one year after the start of the military operation in Ukraine?

Let us begin by assessing the current situation. One effect of the conflict has already been a fundamental change in the external environment in which Russia finds itself. Its political relations with the collective West, and its allies, have become openly hostile and the armed conflict in Ukraine is a proxy war by the West against Russia.

Economic relations with this part of the world have been permanently undermined and are shrinking like Mars bars. Cultural, scientific, sporting and humanitarian ties have been severely curtailed, the information war has reached maximum intensity, and the Iron Curtain in Europe has been rebuilt - this time by the West.

However, Russia is not completely isolated. It maintains and develops partnerships in many areas with the world's new centers of power, and other countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. This part of the world community includes most of the world's states, where the majority of the human population lives and where more than half of the global economy is concentrated. It can rightly be called a world majority with the clear understanding, of course, that this majority is not a bloc and that its members are not allies of Russia. They are guided primarily by national interests and are deeply integrated into the global economy and the Western-centric institutions that serve it, which significantly limits interaction with Moscow.

The dramatic shift in the external cycle has led to profound changes within Russia. The old model of mainly exporting raw materials and importing technology no longer works. The political system, which was built on liberal American-French models and then adapted more or less successfully - in substance, not in form - to domestic traditions, is obviously in need of a profound overhaul. The quasi-ideology of pragmatism and the cult of money, which dominated the country after the collapse of the USSR, proved to be flawed and harmful. In short, the end of the historical orientation towards integration with the Western world logically requires Russia to reorient itself. But what does this mean? To which "self"? Soviet, tsarist or otherwise?

A prerequisite for Russia's long-term strategy is victory in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The most important criterion for such a victory is a state that is guaranteed not to lead to a renewed war after some time. On the contrary, a defeat - if it is hypothetically possible - could provoke a destabilization of the country, accompanied by the disintegration of Russian statehood. The stakes for Russia in the current conflict are therefore existential and fundamentally higher than those of the US and its allies.

As far as foreign policy is concerned, Russia's strategy of moving towards the goal outlined above, i.e., the status of a major world player, implies - among many other obvious things - active participation in building a new world order that excludes domination by any one country or group of countries.

This is an impossible task for Russia alone. That is why it makes sense to start peace-building efforts by developing the existing institutions and practices of non-Western countries such as the BRICS, the SCO, the EAEC and the CSTO. This is a huge and complex task that requires the coordinated efforts of many states, but it is here that the groundwork is being laid for the creation of political, economic, financial and other institutions suited to the realities of the first half of the 21st century.


https://www.sott.net/article/476980-Why-building-a-new-world-order-is-now-an-existential-issue-for-Russia

[Vicus]

"What do you guys think of the idea of having a world run by different systems instead of having our world evolve towards a one world order?"

post: https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1541659&viewfull=1#post1541659

Good idea for communities like Avalon; 13000 members plus 600 visitors...positive thinking in each country the same...
that make a little city in each country...rest of the world settlement by "sheep people"...sorry, but just look around...they move only by friction...

History lessons: :sherlock:

_ Ancient Greek: Warring each other city states just once united Victorious against Persian invaders.30 years later in civil war...

_ Alexander Imperium dismember after his death, his companions and friends warring each other for pieces.

_ Roman Empire slowly disintegrated because too much expanded, ring a bell?...
from his carcasses give birth to European states warring each other until today...

_ The Americas, after kicking colonial powers civil wars everywhere...

_ Africa, Asia more of the same...

_ Today: the Dying "west"

I try to think positive but "reality is a bitch!"

[Vicus]

5 Feb, 2023 08:27
India ditches dollar to bypass sanctions on Russian oil – Reuters

Local refiners are reportedly using UAE dirhams to pay for most of the Russian oil bought from Dubai-based traders

Indian refiners are now using Emirati dirhams instead of US dollars to pay for most of the Russian oil they purchase via traders based in the United Arab Emirates, Reuters reported last week, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The Indian authorities have not supported the measures against Russia adopted by the G7 in response to the conflict in Ukraine. The steps are aimed at cutting Moscow’s energy revenues.

A $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian seaborne oil exports was introduced by the EU, G7 countries, and Australia on December 5. The mechanism prohibits Western companies from providing insurance and other services to shippers of Russian oil unless the cargo is purchased at or below the set price.

A similar measure targeting petroleum exports came into force on February 5. It sets the price of refined petroleum products imported from Russia at $100 per barrel for diesel and $45 per barrel for fuel oil.

Though New Delhi decided not to take part in the restrictions, Indian banks and financial institutions remain cautious about clearing payments so as not to unintentionally fall foul of the other measures introduced against Russia.

Previous attempts to pay traders for Russian crude in dirhams through Dubai banks reportedly failed, forcing Indian refiners to switch back to the US currency. The State Bank of India, the country’s top bank, is now clearing the dirham payments, the sources told the news agency, disclosing some details of the transactions.

Indian refiners reportedly make most of their purchases of Russian crude from Dubai-based traders, including Everest Energy and Litasco, a unit of Russian oil major Lukoil.

In July of last year, media reports emerged that Russia expected some Indian buyers to pay for crude in dirhams. Later, Indian refineries reportedly turned to the yuan and dirhams for Russian coal as well.

https://www.rt.com/business/570960-india-russia-oil-uae-dirhams/

[Bill Ryan]

I had to post this somewhere, and this thread seemed appropriate.

This is an extremely clever and moving video, just a couple minutes. HIGHLY HIGHLY recommended.

:heart:

https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses/20728

UkraineHumanRightsAbuses/20728

[Vicus]

Russia to reroute oil exports to ‘friendly’ states – official
14 Feb, 2023

Energy supplies will not go to countries that support price caps, Deputy PM Novak has said

Russia intends to shift the exports of its oil and petroleum products to ‘friendly’ countries this year, increasing their share in total supplies shipped abroad to 75-80%, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak has revealed.

“As for supplies to states that maintain illegitimate price restrictions, our position here is widely known and remains unchanged: such countries will not receive Russian oil,” Novak wrote in an article for the magazine Energy Policy on Monday.

He noted that oil production in Russia amounted to 535.2 million tons in 2022, which is 2% more than in the previous year. Oil exports increased by 7.6%, to 242 million tons, Novak wrote.

The deputy PM also noted that last year, in order to reorient Russian oil supply to friendly countries, a project was implemented to increase transportation via the major eastern port of Kozmino. As a result, deliveries to the countries in the Asia-Pacific region rose to 42 million tons per year.

Moscow has been diversifying its energy supplies in response to Western sanctions. The EU’s ban on Russian refined petroleum products, which came into force on February 5, set a price limit of $100 per barrel for diesel, jet fuel, and gasoline from Russia, and a $45-per-barrel cap for other oil products that trade below the crude price, such as fuel oil used in industry.

The price caps, together with an EU ban on imports of Russian oil products, are part of a broader agreement among the G7 countries. It follows a $60-per-barrel cap on Russian crude that the G7 along with the EU and Australia imposed on December 5.

The measures prohibit Western companies from financing, insuring, trading, brokering, or carrying cargoes of Russian crude and oil products unless they were bought at or below the set price caps.

Moscow has opposed any attempts to cap the prices of its energy exports. The Russian government has banned crude sales to buyers that mention the price ceiling in their contracts, and a similar restriction is expected to be introduced in response to the EU’s latest cap on oil products.


https://www.rt.com/business/571403-russia-oil-exports-friendly-states/

[Bill Ryan]

I think this better belongs here than on the Nord Stream sabotage thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?119616-Nord-Stream-1-2-Pipeline-Sabotage). The significance is that while western media and western politicians are largely totally silent about this, the rest of the world now knows the whole story: China, Russia, India, Iran, Syria, all the BRICS and SCO nations, everyone in Africa and South America, and so on.

The global south's learning point from this is that the US is a pathological rogue state and can never be trusted. The 'rules-based' international order follows no rules at all other than its own hegemonic, self-serving ones. It'll never be allowed to prosper again.

https://t.me/intelslava/44586

intelslava/44586

[Vicus]

Russia and Bolivia Use Their Currencies for International Trade 16 February 2023

"Financial operations can now be carried out using national currencies, which means a blow to the hegemony of the dollar," said Ledenyov.

This week, Russian and Bolivian companies began to carry out international commercial transactions using the ruble and the Bolivian instead of the U.S. dollar.

"Financial operations can now be carried out using national currencies, which means a blow to the hegemony of the dollar," said Mikhail Ledenyov, the Russian ambassador to Bolivia.

This modality of international trade is possible thanks to agreements that monetary authorities reached after holding several virtual meetings in 2022.

“As a result, direct correspondent accounts in rubles and Bolivianos were opened between Gazprombank and Union, the largest Bolivian state-owned bank,” Lendenyov said, adding that this facilitates the work of Russian companies in the Andean market.

The diplomat also mentioned that Bolivian companies are interested in exporting tropical fruits, soybeans, wine, alcoholic beverages, coffee, lithium, tin, gold and silver to Russia.

To achieve this goal, they are intensifying consultations with the embassy to establish direct contacts with Russian companies.

"I hope that Bolivians will present their proposals at the next meeting of the Russia-Bolivia Intergovernmental Commission, which is scheduled to take place this year," Ledenyov said, adding that both countries are interested in increasing health cooperation.

“Bolivia has areas where it is difficult to build and manage a stationary hospital. However, mobile diagnostic methods can be used, with different technologies and special vehicles. This project is under negotiation,” the Russian diplomat pointed out.

https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Russia-and-Bolivia-Use-Their-Currencies-for-International-Trade-20230216-0006.html

[All is one]

Just to clarify: My post is not about a multipolar world, but about a multi system world.
https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1541659&viewfull=1#post1541659

I know it has a similar ring to it, but it’s a very different idea. I guess it was added to the multipolar thread because it also suggests a different societal structure, directed towards more personal freedom, instead of the aspired one world order.

And yes; any major change towards a new world balance and harmonious structure in this world will unfortunately only happen after lots of friction. This is because everyone has a different idea of what the best organization on a small scale and on a global level is.

But I think if the focus is on a positie outcome for all the people and all sides involved, that terrible transition period, might just be worth the hassle.

Of course it seems like an utopian idea, but it's as possible as the dystopian plans of the elite. The only difference is that we (sub)consciously have more belief in the dystopian ideas and therefor all keep contributing to the realization of that dystopian paradigm.
The most important thing that is needed for any plans and visions to become possible is belief and effort. That’s also why all new plans and directions are first discredited, ridiculed and people are constantly demoralized as much as possible to believe in anything better than the dystopian future being rolled out.


CURRENT SYSTEM/METHOD: DEMORALIZE THE PEOPLE AND FEED THEM THE DYSTOPIAN IDEAS

IDEAL SYSTEM: PRESENT BETTER IDEAS - ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO BELIEVE IN AND WORK ON ONE OR MORE BETTER SYSTEM(S)

The intention of having a multi system world would be to have unity whilst also giving people more chance to choose their way of living, by having multiple systems run at the same time in the same country & regardless of the place one lives.
In this way people can keep living where they live right now, or move if they want to, but are also able to choose te system they want to be a part of. (for example follow the mainstream medical treatments or not)

I know people don’t just get along and form harmonious functioning groups, that’s why I think the only way for there to be harmony is if the alternative way/ways of living gets a stronger organization & also gets recognition and an official place in society, next to the mainstream lifestyle.

I think physically separating different lifestyle is possible on a small scale, but not on a large scale and not wanted/possible for many people. Hence the idea of having different societal systems run regardless of the place one lives …

Thus I think having multiple societal systems to choose from for humanity to choose it’s own road into the future might just have the most chances on succeeding in bringing together the possibility of more personal freedom; independence etc. whilst also keeping things harmonious.

Oh and different systems also means that the power will not be as corruptible as in the one world order system.

[Vicus]

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdBbNFH2YY4bxV0toKp3J5iBpt68BBrGXanONnbgwmLBCe_2jCMONWYHBjhSKFc5EiMXT8JfBfUQFIVEeutWoxeU_qNFM EKYn2VgSD8cem6MxKkc04cGBANYYENO8I6c4VIpa_uOPxcOd770WWdQQDF340Cncv59fLI59Flus6bD4tQrr_0g/w400-h393/collapse00007.jpg

[shaberon]

The western central bank will mean nothing once 80 percent of the world does business without it, then it will be just a "once were" thing and eventually it will fade out and whatever countries refused to join the new system will have to apply or die as well


That's what the west can't handle right now, because it's the same old "WE and then you" ideology that doesn't work anymore


This sums up almost everything we are seeing these days.

It is material, but, it must also be deeply psychological concerning this "ideology".

It is a has-been, or Paper Tiger...

[Bill Ryan]

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdBbNFH2YY4bxV0toKp3J5iBpt68BBrGXanONnbgwmLBCe_2jCMONWYHBjhSKFc5EiMXT8JfBfUQFIVEeutWoxeU_qNFM EKYn2VgSD8cem6MxKkc04cGBANYYENO8I6c4VIpa_uOPxcOd770WWdQQDF340Cncv59fLI59Flus6bD4tQrr_0g/w400-h393/collapse00007.jpgA very apt quote from Edward Gibbon's classic, 6-volume The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, published in 1821:

The Roman government appeared every day less formidable to its enemies, more odious and oppressive to its subjects.

[alh02]

The grand chessboard, multi-polar world order.

Who’s who in the zoo?

Connecting the dots…

x585c8Ldou8

[Bruce G Charlton]

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdBbNFH2YY4bxV0toKp3J5iBpt68BBrGXanONnbgwmLBCe_2jCMONWYHBjhSKFc5EiMXT8JfBfUQFIVEeutWoxeU_qNFM EKYn2VgSD8cem6MxKkc04cGBANYYENO8I6c4VIpa_uOPxcOd770WWdQQDF340Cncv59fLI59Flus6bD4tQrr_0g/w400-h393/collapse00007.jpgA very apt quote from Edward Gibbon's classic, 6-volume The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, published in 1821:

The Roman government appeared every day less formidable to its enemies, more odious and oppressive to its subjects.


I always like to point out that, as an admirer of Byzantium - at the time Rome collapsed - the Empire had had its capital in Constantinople for a century; and the Eastern Roman Empire lasted (albeit dwindling in size after the first couple of hundred years) for another *1000 years* approximately.

To me, this extraordinarily-prolonged survival suggests that Gibbons's diagnoses of the cause of collapse (eg. Christian conversion) were wrong - or, at least, simplistic.

From the POV of England, the collapse of the Western Empire was indeed a disaster for instance, rapidly halving the standard of living (according to one book I read - which decline probably meant halving the population). Yet links with Constantinople long remained. As late as aftermath of the Norman Conquest, many thousands of Anglo Saxons (especially nobles) left England and found their way to Constantinople; where they became a bodyguard for the Emperor, and were given their own English quarter of the city which survived for many generations.

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/EurasianNew/34883 (https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses/21020)

EurasianNew/34883

[Vicus]

"From the POV of England, the collapse of the Western Empire was indeed a disaster for instance, rapidly halving the standard of living (according to one book I read - which decline probably meant halving the population). Yet links with Constantinople long remained. As late as aftermath of the Norman Conquest, many thousands of Anglo Saxons (especially nobles) left England and found their way to Constantinople; where they became a bodyguard for the Emperor, and were given their own English quarter of the city which survived for many generations."

from:https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1544014&viewfull=1#post1544014

Well, what have we learned from the Anglo/Saxon tribes? after furious résistance against Rome advance bringing it to stop...
Like the picts in north England? why don't killed already the Emperator when they got the chance? hummm...
all the battles and martyr/heroes death...for what? to spring in bed with romans at the first chance? and were given their own
quarter? yeah, every loyal dog get his quarter too...the strategy here is learn from Master...and then try their own "Empire"

They learned so well that today make same errors and now is their time... to fall...:sherlock:

[Bill Ryan]

Slightly longer than usual (35 minutes), but here's Alexander Mercouris talking about the multipolar world order, signaled now by China's top diplomat Wang Yi in his recent trip to Moscow and Europe.

China and Russia align to challenge collective west


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lBSOAnQrhE

[shaberon]

I always like to point out that, as an admirer of Byzantium - at the time Rome collapsed - the Empire had had its capital in Constantinople for a century; and the Eastern Roman Empire lasted (albeit dwindling in size after the first couple of hundred years) for another *1000 years* approximately.


Yes, exactly, for the most part this is what we are still dealing with. The former Byzantium is now Moscow.

From this view, things look much different. Being once the educated culture to the extent of the Mediterranean, the west basically sanitized it. One finds attempts at re-entry, such as the Medici Renaissance, which in essence was thwarted and replaced by another. Probably the real Rosicrucians, also replaced by others wearing the name. In the long run, most of the former Roman areas represent a total boot of the Byzantine.

Even comparing the cities, Byzantium was a capital of culture and trade ever since ca. 600 B. C. E., whereas Rome was never nothing much besides a wolf.

This is probably the single most powerful circumstance behind the whole thing.

Almost exactly like the curtain/Wizard of Oz/money, but bigger.

[Tintin]

Certainly related to, but necessarily name-dropping "multipolar" a nicely made succinct piece here: "The Village at the Edge of World War III.".

WW3 is as much a spiritual and moral conflict both within and outwith the individual as it is a direct confrontation with arms, against corporatists who are totalitarian in nature. We may need to reappraise how we use the term "World War III" and the contexts in which we apply it perhaps outside the limited scope of armed conflict.

This spiritual war has been going on for aeons and may reach its apotheosis soon.

This 10 minute film deals with one of many of these battles in this endless war.

It was sourced from here:
URL - lbry://@FreedomTirade#f/AT-THE-EDGE#f

--------

The Village at the Edge of World War 3 - a trailer for 'PRECIOUS WATER DECEPTIONS'

Description provided:


The "clean green tech" energy transition is a faux panacea, causing more suffering in Africa than all previous colonial exploitation. Many people in South Africa
have no water and electricity supplies because the "clean tech' fourth industrial revolution is consuming everything in its wake. The WEF "clean tech' agenda is
nothing less than looting on the road to total control of the planet and total loss of sovereignty for all..... or is it? Will countries like South Africa stand up
to the looters once and for all, or will they capitulate?

https://avalonlibrary.net/Tintin/THE%20VILLAGE%20AT%20THE%20EDGE.mp4

[David Trd1]

The grand chessboard, multi-polar world order.

Who’s who in the zoo?

Connecting the dots…

x585c8Ldou8

This is great - Bump

[alh02]

This is great - Bump

If you liked that, you’ll like this too.

Lays it all out beautifully 👌🏼

Z_a90fhHR_4

[grapevine]

Certainly related to, but necessarily name-dropping "multipolar" a nicely made succinct piece here: "The Village at the Edge of World War III.".

WW3 is as much a spiritual and moral conflict both within and outwith the individual as it is a direct confrontation with arms, against corporatists who are totalitarian in nature. We may need to reappraise how we use the term "World War III" and the contexts in which we apply it perhaps outside the limited scope of armed conflict.

This spiritual war has been going on for aeons and may reach its apotheosis soon.


The "clean green tech" energy transition is a faux panacea, causing more suffering in Africa than all previous colonial exploitation. Many people in South Africa
have no water and electricity supplies because the "clean tech' fourth industrial revolution is consuming everything in its wake. The WEF "clean tech' agenda is
nothing less than looting on the road to total control of the planet and total loss of sovereignty for all..... or is it? Will countries like South Africa stand up
to the looters once and for all, or will they capitulate?


Your post and video made me feel ashamed as an onlooker, Tintin, as our old, colonial ways, are still very much apparent. Here's a complementary video, a short of a longer Joe Rogan interview with Siddharth Kara about the Cobalt Mining and Lithium Battery:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMafI9SdGyo&ab_channel=ThirdEyeOpener


As a PS: South Africa is paying Tottenham Hotspur FC R1Billion
South Africa’s tourism agency gave preliminary approval to a sponsorship deal with English football club Tottenham Hotspur and government officials are being consulted on whether it should be finalized.

Discussions were ongoing when details were prematurely leaked to the media, according to Themba Khumalo, South African Tourism’s acting chief executive officer. He declined to comment on the details or value of the deal, which the Daily Maverick news website said could be worth about R1 billion.

Tourism generates about 3% of South Africa’s gross domestic product, down from 6.4% before the Covid-19 pandemic, and the government aims to grow the industry to shore up an economy that’s being battered by record power cuts.

The tourism agency aims to tap the English team’s global fan base to help meet a target of more than treble visitor numbers to 21 million visitors by 2030.

[Tintin]

Certainly related to, but necessarily name-dropping "multipolar" a nicely made succinct piece here: "The Village at the Edge of World War III.".

WW3 is as much a spiritual and moral conflict both within and outwith the individual as it is a direct confrontation with arms, against corporatists who are totalitarian in nature. We may need to reappraise how we use the term "World War III" and the contexts in which we apply it perhaps outside the limited scope of armed conflict.

This spiritual war has been going on for aeons and may reach its apotheosis soon.


The "clean green tech" energy transition is a faux panacea, causing more suffering in Africa than all previous colonial exploitation. Many people in South Africa
have no water and electricity supplies because the "clean tech' fourth industrial revolution is consuming everything in its wake. The WEF "clean tech' agenda is
nothing less than looting on the road to total control of the planet and total loss of sovereignty for all..... or is it? Will countries like South Africa stand up
to the looters once and for all, or will they capitulate?


Your post and video made me feel ashamed as an onlooker, Tintin, as our old, colonial ways, are still very much apparent. Here's a complementary video, a short of a longer Joe Rogan interview with Siddharth Kara about the Cobalt Mining and Lithium Battery:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMafI9SdGyo&ab_channel=ThirdEyeOpener


As a PS: South Africa is paying Tottenham Hotspur FC R1Billion
South Africa’s tourism agency gave preliminary approval to a sponsorship deal with English football club Tottenham Hotspur and government officials are being consulted on whether it should be finalized.

Discussions were ongoing when details were prematurely leaked to the media, according to Themba Khumalo, South African Tourism’s acting chief executive officer. He declined to comment on the details or value of the deal, which the Daily Maverick news website said could be worth about R1 billion.

Tourism generates about 3% of South Africa’s gross domestic product, down from 6.4% before the Covid-19 pandemic, and the government aims to grow the industry to shore up an economy that’s being battered by record power cuts.

The tourism agency aims to tap the English team’s global fan base to help meet a target of more than treble visitor numbers to 21 million visitors by 2030.

We knew it was bad Miller, but, gads, that's the pits - no joke there by the way, not even remotely a joke. :facepalm:

Thanks for sharing; we do need to keep being reminded of this. Seeing the reality there, stark naked reality really ought to make consumers really pause and perhaps trigger a 'No' button next time they're tempted to 'upgrade', 'sustain' etc.

[grapevine]

It gets worse Tintin:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hX7XaKvyVWs&ab_channel=FireCuts

Human Rights Violations in DRC Mines
Cobalt mining in the DRC is rife with human rights abuses, such as the use of child labor. According to Amnesty International, an estimated 40,000 children are employed in artisanal mining in the DRC. A lack of proper safety precautions is also common practice and accidents frequently occur.
6 Nov 2021
https://borgenproject.org/cobalt-mining-in-the-drc/

[grapevine]

I have to put a caveat in here:
In the video above I was quite shocked at Elon Musk's attitude and then when I explored You Tube further noticed the video was spliced together by a channel called Fire Cuts and wasn't a bona fide interview between Joe Rogan and Elon Musk. The other videos on this channel with Elon Musk have been spliced together also. I don't know what the term for this is, but if you splice two cars together it's called a "ringer". I could of course delete it but think it still serves a purpose, hence this warning. Nevertheless, apologies to all.

[shaberon]

Cobalt mining in the DRC is rife with human rights abuses, such as the use of child labor. According to Amnesty International, an estimated 40,000 children are employed in artisanal mining in the DRC. A lack of proper safety precautions is also common practice and accidents frequently occur.
6 Nov 2021
https://borgenproject.org/cobalt-mining-in-the-drc/



So, to recap, there is an approximately 400 year old conflict set by the country of Belgium.

Some of the fallout from the competition includes the Boer War, the first discernable use of propaganda for the public to glibly support a Capitalists' war.

There was an old trail of Blood Diamonds, whose cutting enriched the cities of Antwerp and Amsterdam. Cobalt is like am amplified modern version, in fact this story is as old as its binge demand for electronics in the 1990s.

Agriculture and other raw materials are exploited similarly.

Vast tracts of land managed by the World Wildlife Fund are said to be exchange points and staging grounds for the Crown's black ops.

No, this kind of rechargeable battery is not particularly seductive as the way of the future. What if through some horrible accident all that battery paste goes up your nose. What ever will you do. How can we make and use all of it without a steady stream of plastic from petroleum. Nothing is particularly viable here.


At least we can say the French military has mostly taken their hands off Uranium.

DRC is really big and complicated. How do you do it when the foreseeable economic future of the whole world can only exacerbate the situation?

[Vicus]

Mali's PM credits Russia for turning the tide in its fight against terrorism and being a reliable partner - 'Russia does not double-deal'

RT
Tue, 28 Feb 2023

Russia has helped to turn the tide in Mali's fight against terrorism and has proven that it does not have ulterior motives in its involvement, the African nation's acting prime minister has said.

"The terror has moved to the other camp. Terrorists no longer instill fear in Malians. On the contrary, the Malian Army scares the terrorists," Choguel Kokalla Maiga told RIA Novosti.

He credited Russian military assistance for this change in the interview published on Tuesday, and praised Moscow's approach in dealing with his government. Russia "is a reliable partner and does not double-deal," he said.

Its assistance is not limited to military hardware, Maiga stated. Russian supplies of food, fertilizers and energy to Mali are growing, and the two governments are working on boosting trade further. Moscow has also offered a 20% discount on market price for some key products, he added.

"We don't want to be hostage to other states, who would decide whether or not to deliver fuel to our nation and whether or not there would be food on Malians' tables," he said.

The prime minister also rebuked the EU for its attitude towards his country, reiterating his criticism of European Council President Charles Michel. In an interview with the French media earlier this month, Michel accused Mali's transitional authorities of breaking with "traditional partners, and particularly with European partners," and claimed that "the consequence is a state that is collapsing." Bamako dismissed the remarks as part of a "disinformation campaign."

Maiga noted that politicians in Europe tended to make "really laughable statements to the media," and that his government was not limited in terms of foreign partnerships.

"Those who want to cooperate with Mali should take a note from Russia and respect our principles," he suggested.

He also reiterated an assessment by his foreign minister that the EU "was to be blamed for the destruction of Libya, which was the major cause of the escalation of terrorism in Africa," particularly in the region of Sahel.

France and the UK were the primary drivers behind NATO's 2011 bombing campaign, which ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Militias and arms smugglers looted the national military's weapons depots amid the conflict. Libya remains fractured more than a decade later.

https://www.sott.net/article/477823-Malis-PM-credits-Russia-for-turning-the-tide-in-its-fight-against-terrorism-and-being-a-reliable-partner-Russia-does-not-double-deal

[shaberon]

Human Rights Violations in DRC Mines



I responded to this with some established historical information, and, it appears I am direly in need of an update (https://tass.com/world/1583349):


PARIS, March 1. /TASS/. A huge rally in support of Russia’s policy and President Vladimir Putin took place on Wednesday in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where young Congolese took to the streets carrying Russian flags and speaking up for cooperation with Moscow, AFP reported from Kinshasa.

"Putin, come to help us! We need reliable partners like Russia!" said the organizer of the rally, Bruno Mimbenga.

Simultaneously, the demonstrators, who gathered outside France’s embassy to the DRC, protested against French President Emmanuel Macron’s upcoming visit. The protest was held under the slogans ‘Macron is a murderer,’ ‘Macron is the godfather of DRC balkanization,’ ‘Congolese say no to France’s policy.’

The protesters pointed out that they consider France a key ally of Rwanda in confrontation with the DRC. Kinshasa accuses Kigali of supporting insurgents on Congolese territory.

Later this week, Macron is scheduled to arrive in Kinshasa as part of his African tour aiming to mend rapidly deteriorating relations with African nations.



Well, this just doesn't go that great after Libya. How do you fix that in French? Remember, you had four centuries to figure out how to not be a divide-and-conquer supremacist bigot, lesson not learned yet. So. You just get replaced by Russia, which, for a while at least, you had enough sense to accept as a companion. What happened to that? Please don't say anything. Do whatever you want, but please don't say anything. It would be inappropriate.

[Bill Ryan]

Even Britain's The Spectator is now telling it how it is.

https://t.me/DonbassDevushka/46627

DonbassDevushka/46627

[Bill Ryan]

This really is rather telling. :)

https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1631929663441313792
1631929663441313792

[shaberon]

France apparently had this wise retort (https://sputniknews.com/20230304/macron-says-drc-should-not-shift-responsibility-for-countrys-security-issues-to-france-1108026146.html) to the Congolese:


I reject the responsibility that may be attributed to France... Excuse me for being straightforward, but since 1994 you have not been able to restore military, administrative and security sovereignty. This is a fact, there is no need to look for guilty parties outside the country," Macron said.


Really? No one from outside Congo had anything to do with it?? I mean, yes, Africans are racist murderers against other Africans, but, this is what Europeans capitalize on. Think of the whole era of slavery! Europeans only showed up to buy humans that had been captured by Africans, which means they had absolutely nothing to do with it.

Excuse me while I wash my brain with a mixture of formaldehyde and sand...

[Brigantia]

This is an interesting video from The Duran, discussing France losing its grip on its former colonies in Africa. Clearly they realise how weak Macron has become.

One evening with nothing else to do I browsed Flightradar, and was amazed at the number of Air France flights going to various cities in Africa. It dawned on me then that their influence was still strong there.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnShOnDOyE0

[Bill Ryan]

And another Duran video, about how Belarus president Lukashenko was greeted on his arrival in China like royalty. :) It was quite a significant message to the US and the west.

Lukashenko meets Xi Jinping. Cold war lines are being drawn


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91y2l_FPGYY

[Vicus]

History is an eternal repetition. Here are quotes from those who lived through the fall of the Roman Empire.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdBbNFH2YY4bxV0toKp3J5iBpt68BBrGXanONnbgwmLBCe_2jCMONWYHBjhSKFc5EiMXT8JfBfUQFIVEeutWoxeU_qNFM EKYn2VgSD8cem6MxKkc04cGBANYYENO8I6c4VIpa_uOPxcOd770WWdQQDF340Cncv59fLI59Flus6bD4tQrr_0g/w400-h393/collapse00007.jpg
https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Cole_Thomas_The_Course_of_Empire_Destruction_1836-scaled-768x477.jpg

https://vigilantlinks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/142d3279bc102747chuteempireromaincauses-1024x635.jpg
“The Empire has become a police state, with spies and informants everywhere. People are constantly watched, and their every move is watched by the authorities.” – Synesius of Cyrene, Greek bishop of the 4th century AD. J.-C.

“The Roman Empire is ruled by a small group of elites who only care about their own interests. They have no concern for the welfare of the people, and will do anything in their power to maintain their power.”
– Salvian, 5th century Christian writer

“The Roman government has become tyrannical and oppressive. People are no longer free to speak their minds or express their opinions without fear of reprisal.”
– Ammianus Marcellinus, Roman historian of the 4th century AD. J.-C.

“The taxes levied by the Roman government are a heavy burden on the people. They cause great suffering and great difficulty, and yet the government shows no mercy.”
– Synesius of Cyrene, Greek bishop of the 4th century AD. J.-C.

“The taxes imposed by the Roman government are unfair and oppressive. People are forced to give away their hard-earned money to support the luxurious lifestyles of the elites.”
– Augustine of Hippo, Christian theologian of the 4th century AD. J.-C.

“Some people have sunk to such levels of depravity that they seek sexual pleasure with animals. This is a sign of the moral decay of our society.”
– Suetonius, Roman historian of the 2nd century AD. J.-C.

“The morals of women have become as corrupt as those of men. They indulge in all kinds of shameful behavior and no longer have any sense of decency or shame.”
– Seneca the Younger, Roman philosopher of the 1st century AD. J.-C.

“Women have become corrupt and immoral. They are no longer satisfied with fulfilling their traditional roles as wives and mothers, but rather seek power and influence in society.”
– Ammianus Marcellinus, Roman historian of the 4th century AD. J.-C.

“The men of our time have become effeminate and decadent. They are more interested in their appearance and their pleasure than in their duties and responsibilities. They have lost the spirit of self-sacrifice and service”
– Cassius Dio, 3rd century AD Roman historian

“The men of our time have become effeminate, preferring to spend their days in luxury and indulgence. They have lost the courage and strength that made our ancestors great.”
– Salvian, Christian writer of the 5th century AD.

“The sexual practices of our people have become so perverted that they are now considered normal. Men marry men and women marry women, and no one bats an eyelid.”
– Ammianus Marcellinus, Roman historian of the 4th century AD.

“In our time it is easier to break the law than to obey it, and virtue is more often punished than rewarded. We now love pleasure more than honor, and value money more than justice.”
– Jerome of Stridon, Christian scholar of the 4th century AD

“The Roman bureaucracy was like a maze, with countless layers of officials and paperwork. It was impossible to do anything without paying bribes or pulling strings.”
– Procopius, Byzantine historian (circa 500-560 AD)

“The institutions of the Roman Empire were breaking down, its armies were weakening, and its people were becoming less and less able to defend themselves.”
– Salvien, theologian and Christian writer (around 400-480 AD)

“Government was crippled by bureaucracy and people were oppressed by taxes. Roads were in bad shape and towns were in decline.”
– Cassiodorus, Roman statesman and writer (c. 485-585 AD)

“Roads are no longer safe and bridges are collapsing. Public buildings are in ruins and aqueducts are in poor condition. The public treasury is empty, and the army is ill-equipped.”
– Ammian Marcellinus, Roman historian and soldier (c. 330-395 AD)

“Courts are corrupt, tax collectors are greedy and officials are incompetent.”
– Zosimus, Greek historian, describing the administrative collapse of the late Roman Empire in the 5th century AD.


https://vigilantlinks.com/2023/02/history-is-an-eternal-repetition-here-are-quotes-from-those-who-lived-through-the-fall-of-the-roman-empire/

[Vicus]

Russia bans Soros-funded NGO 6 Mar, 2023

Germany-based Transparency International has been designated as a threat to constitutional order

The Prosecutor General’s Office has declared Transparency International unwelcome in Russia, describing the Berlin-based organization on Monday as going beyond its mandate to interfere into the country’s internal affairs.

“It has been established that the activities of this organization clearly go beyond its declared goals and objectives,” the office said in a statement. “Formally acting as an organization fighting corruption around the world, it interferes in the internal affairs of the Russian Federation, which poses a threat to the foundations of its constitutional order and security.”

The Russian chapter of Transparency International was declared a foreign agent in 2015. Monday’s decision means Russian nationals could face prison time if they worked for the organization, and penalties for giving it financial aid or disseminating its materials.

Founded in 1993 by a group that included former World Bank officials and US intelligence operatives, Transparency is best known for its annual ‘Corruption Perception Index’ (CPI), which ranks countries on a scale of their perceived propensity for graft. It lists among its donors a plethora of Western government agencies and powerful trusts, including Open Society Foundations, the network of controversial businessman and sponsor of neoliberal causes, George Soros.

The organization withdrew the accreditation of its US chapter in 2017 over “differences in philosophies, strategies, and priorities.” TI-USA was widely criticized for being a front for multinational corporations, giving its Integrity Award to then-US secretary of state Hillary Clinton in 2012 and blocking calls to help NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden in 2013.

Transparency International Brazil is currently under investigation for alleged collusion with prosecutors in the ‘Car Wash’ scandal, which was used to convict former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on trumped-up corruption charges. Da Silva’s conviction was later thrown out and he won the 2022 election.


https://www.rt.com/russia/572545-transparency-international-unwelcome-prosecutors/

[shaberon]

The organization withdrew the accreditation of its US chapter in 2017 over “differences in philosophies, strategies, and priorities.” TI-USA was widely criticized for being a front for multinational corporations, giving its Integrity Award to then-US secretary of state Hillary Clinton in 2012 and blocking calls to help NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden in 2013.


This bit says a lot if you think in terms of Schwabian internationalists vs. USA-firsters.

I would have presumed that CPI was coming from some American company, so, it is telling to know that it was not.

[Bill Ryan]

An immensely important, pivotal development, to such a degree that this might be the marker tipping point for the end of US hegemony on the world, the likely demise of the petrodollar, and the weakening of Israel — besides much else. 30 minutes of detailed explanation, largely by Alexander Mercouris.

HUGE deal brokered by China — Iran & Saudi Arabia restore diplomatic ties


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgpzgrPYPhw

[mountain_jim]

^ ZH coverage

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/archrivals-iran-saudi-arabia-restore-ties-china-brokered-deal

Archrivals Iran & Saudi Arabia Restore Ties In China-Brokered Deal

BY TYLER DURDEN
FRIDAY, MAR 10, 2023 - 09:16 AM
Iran and Saudi Arabia announced that the two longtime rivals and enemies are restoring diplomatic relations following years of tensions, which involved each side charging the other with state-sponsored terrorism. Crucially, China helped see the deal through and hosted meetings of the two sides in Beijing.

NBC describes that "The deal, which will see the two countries reopen embassies in each other’s capitals, was sealed during a meeting in China — a boost to Beijing’s efforts to rival the United States as a broker on the global stage." Indeed this is the message China is quick to emphasize:

SAUDI ARABIA, IRAN TALK IN BEIJING IS VICTORY OF PEACE: WANG YI

A joint communique confirming the restoration of relations from was issued by Riyadh, Tehran, and Beijing - and was first published in state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA). The statement emphasizes "a shared desire to resolve the disagreements between them through dialogue and diplomacy, and in light of their brotherly ties."

It spells out that the next step is for foreign ministers from both countries to "meet to implement this, arrange for the return of their ambassadors, and discuss means of enhancing bilateral relations."

Representing the Iranian side in the Beijing talks was Ali Shamkhani, a close adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khameni. On the other side was Saudi Arabia’s Minister of State Musaad bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, with the two engaging in intense negotiations.

Not only has the regional rivalry, which intensified most during the decade of the proxy war in Syria which began in 2011, been set amid a centuries-long divide over correct interpretation of Islam (Shia Iran vs. Sunni Saudi Arabia), but it has also spilled over in places like Yemen, scene of another grinding proxy war which pit Shia rebels against a Saudi-backed government.

The Saudis and Iranians also clash in supporting rival political factions inside Lebanon, with Tehran being the Shia paramilitary group Hezbollah's biggest backer. For these reasons, accusations of supporting terrorism have been frequently hurled back-and-forth over the years. Iranian state media, for example, has long charged the Saudis with being a prime covert backer of the Islamic State (ISIS) in their drive to overthrow President Assad in Syria.

The detente is also a surprise given the warming relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, based on attempts to bring Riyadh into the Abraham Accords. Very likely, this new agreement which was helped along by China will delay any possibility of the Saudis and Israelis establishing official relations on an accelerated timeline.

* * *

Below is the official joint communique (https://www.spa.gov.sa/w1867376):

Riyadh, March 10, 2023, SPA -- In response to the noble initiative of His Excellency President Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, of China’s support for developing good neighborly relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran;

And based on the agreement between His Excellency President Xi Jinping and the leaderships in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Islamic Republic of Iran, whereby the People’s Republic of China would host and sponsor talks between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran;
Proceeding from their shared desire to resolve the disagreements between them through dialogue and diplomacy, and in light of their brotherly ties;

Adhering to the principles and objectives of Charters of the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and International conventions and norms;

The delegations from the two countries held talks during the period 6-10 March 2023 in Beijing - the delegation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia headed by His Excellency Dr. Musaad bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, and National Security Advisor, and the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran headed by His Excellency Admiral Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Saudi and Iranian sides expressed their appreciation and gratitude to the Republic of Iraq and the Sultanate of Oman for hosting rounds of dialogue that took place between both sides during the years 2021-2022. The two sides also expressed their appreciation and gratitude to the leadership and government of the People’s Republic of China for hosting and sponsoring the talks, and the efforts it placed towards its success.

The three countries announce that an agreement has been reached between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran, that includes an agreement to resume diplomatic relations between them and re-open their embassies and missions within a period not exceeding two months, and the agreement includes their affirmation of the respect for the sovereignty of states and the non-interference in internal affairs of states. They also agreed that the ministers of foreign affairs of both countries shall meet to implement this, arrange for the return of their ambassadors, and discuss means of enhancing bilateral relations. They also agreed to implement the Security Cooperation Agreement between them, which was signed on 22/1/1422 (H), corresponding to 17/4/2001, and the General Agreement for Cooperation in the Fields of Economy, Trade, Investment, Technology, Science, Culture, Sports, and Youth, which was signed on 2/2/1419 (H), corresponding to 27/5/1998.

The three countries expressed their keenness to exert all efforts towards enhancing regional and international peace and security.

Issued in Beijing on 10 March 2023.
For the Islamic Republic of Iran
Ali Shamkhani
For the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Musaad bin Mohammed Al-Aiban
Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, and National Security Advisor
For the People’s Republic of China
Wang Yi
Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Director of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee
--SPA

< more at link >


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fq3Kho9XgAI1o0F?format=jpg&name=large

[shaberon]

NBC describes that "The deal, which will see the two countries reopen embassies in each other’s capitals, was sealed during a meeting in China — a boost to Beijing’s efforts to rival the United States as a broker on the global stage."



Isn't it nice that NBC will chew your food before you swallow it.

China just opened a bridge to Russia. They have been slaughtering each other fanatically for centuries. This is irreproducible.

Arabic caliphates have been slaughtering everyone for centuries. To get them to even sit down for a time-out is irreproducible. Is NBC insinuating that within its footage archives that the U. S. has something that even looks like a toy replica of the above?

The deal is "an opportunity for the U. S. to adjust its strategies to remain relevant in the modern world".

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/RealPepeEscobar/status/1634587401271009281

1634587401271009281

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/escobar-moveable-multipolarity-moscow-ridin-newcoin-train

Escobar: Moveable Multipolarity In Moscow - Ridin' The "Newcoin" Train
Authored by Pepe Escobar,

The new currency should be able to become an “external money” storage of capital and reserves down the road, not just a settlement unit...

Ah, the joys of the Big Circle Line (BKL, in Cyrillic): circumnavigating the whole of Moscow for 71 km and 31 stations: from Tekstilshchiki – in the old textile quarter – to Sokolniki – a suprematist/constructivist gallery (Malevich lives!); from Rizhskaya – with its gorgeous steel arches – to Maryina Roscha – with its 130 meter-long escalator.

The BKL is like a living, breathin’, runnin’ metaphor of the capital of the multipolar world: a crash course in art, architecture, history, urban design, tech transportation, and of course “people to people’s exchanges”, to quote our Chinese New Silk Road friends.

President Xi Jinping, by the way, will be ridin’ the BKL with President Putin when he comes to Moscow on March 21.

So it’s no wonder that when a savvy investor at the top of global financial markets, with decades of experience, agreed to share some of his key insights on the global financial system, I proposed a ride on the BKL – and he immediately accepted it. Let’s call him Mr. S. Tzu. This is the minimally edited transcript of our moveable conversation.

Thank you for finding the time to meet – in such a gorgeous setting. With the current market volatility, it must be hard for you to step away from the screens.

S. Tzu: Yes, markets are currently very challenging. The last few months remind me of 2007-8, except instead of money-market funds and subprime mortgages, these days it is pipelines and government bond markets that blow up. We live in interesting times.

The reason I reached out to you is to hear your insights on the “Bretton Woods 3” concept introduced by Zoltan Poszar. You’re definitely on top of it.

S. Tzu: Thank you for getting straight to the point. There are very few opportunities to witness the emergence of a new global financial order, and we are living through one of those episodes. Since the 1970s, perhaps only the arrival of bitcoin just over fourteen years ago came close in terms of impact to what we are about to see in the next few years. And just as the timing of bitcoin was not a coincidence, the conditions for the current tectonic shifts in the world financial system have been brewing for decades. Zoltan’s insight that “after this war is over, ‘money’ will never be the same again…” was perfectly timed.

Understanding “external money”

You mentioned bitcoin. What was so revolutionary about it at the time?

S. Tzu: If we leave aside the crypto side of things, the promise and the reason for bitcoin’s initial success was that bitcoin was an attempt to create “external” money (using Mr. Zoltan’s excellent terminology) that was not a liability of a Central Bank. One of the key features of this new unit was the limit of 21 million coins that could be mined, which resonated well with those who could see the problems of the current system. It sounds trivial today, but the idea that a modern monetary unit can exist without backing of any centralized authority, effectively becoming “external” money in digital form, was revolutionary in 2008. Needless to say, Euro government bond crisis, quantitative easing, and the recent global inflationary spiral only amplified the dissonance that many felt for decades. The credibility of the current “internal money” system (again, using Mr. Poszar’s elegant terminology) has been destroyed long before we got to the Central Bank reserve freezes and disruptive economic sanctions that are playing out currently. Unfortunately, there is no better way to destroy credibility of the system based on trust than to freeze and confiscate foreign currency reserves held in Central Bank custody accounts. The cognitive dissonance behind the creation of bitcoin was validated — the “internal money” system was fully weaponized in 2022. The implications are profound.

Now we are getting to the nitty-gritty. As you know, Zoltan argues that a new “Bretton Woods 3” system will emerge at the next stage. What exactly does he mean by that?

S. Tzu: I am also not clear on whether Mr. Poszar refers to the transformation of the current Western “internal money” system into something else, or whether he hints at the emergence of the “Bretton Woods 3” as an alternative, outside of the current financial system. I am convinced that a new iteration of the “external money” is unlikely to be successful in the West at this stage, due to the lack of political will and to the excessive government debt that has been building up for some time and grew exponentially in recent years.

Before the current Western financial order can move to the next evolutionary stage, some of these outstanding liabilities need to be reduced in real terms. If history is any guide, it typically happens via default or inflation, or some combination of the two. What seems highly likely is that the Western governments will rely on financial repression in order to keep the boat afloat and to tackle the debt problem. I expect there will be many initiatives to increase control over the “internal money” system that will likely be increasingly unpopular. Introduction of CDBC’s, for example, could be one such initiative. There is no doubt in my mind that we are in for eventful times ahead in this respect. At the same time, it also seems inevitable at this stage that some sort of an alternative “external money” system will emerge that will compete with the current “internal money” global financial order.

And why is that?

S. Tzu: The global economy can no longer rely on the “internal money” system in its current weaponized state for all its trade, reserve, and investment needs. If sanctions and reserve freezes are the new instruments of regime change, every government out there must be thinking about alternatives to using someone else’s currency for trade and reserves. What is not obvious, however, is what the alternative to the current flawed global financial order should be. History does not have many examples of successful “external money” approaches that could not be reduced to some version of the gold standard. And there are many reasons why gold alone, or a currency fully convertible into gold, is too restrictive as a foundation of a modern monetary system.

At the same time, recent increases in trade in local currencies unfortunately have a limited potential as well, as local currencies are simply a different instance of “internal money.” There are obvious reasons why many countries would not want to accept other’s local currencies (or even their own, for that matter) in exchange for exports. On that I fully agree with Michael Hudson. Since “internal money” is a liability of a country’s Central Bank, the lower the credit standing of the country, the more it needs investable capital, and the less willing other parties become to hold its liabilities. That is one of the reasons why a typical set of “structural reforms” that IMF demands, for example, is aimed at improving credit quality of the borrower government. “External money” is badly needed precisely by the countries and the governments that feel they are hostages to the IMF and to the current “internal money” financial system.

Enter the “newcoin”

A lot of experts seem to be looking into it. Sergey Glazyev, for instance.

S. Tzu: Yes, there were some indications of that in recent publications. While I am not privy to these discussions, I certainly have been thinking how this alternative system could work as well. Mr. Pozsar’s concepts of “internal” and “external” money are a very important part of this discussion. However, the duality of these terms is misleading. Neither option is fully adequate for the problems that the new monetary unit – let’s call it “newcoin” for convenience – needs to solve.

Please allow me to explain. With the weaponization of the current US dollar “internal money” system and a simultaneous escalation of sanctions, the world has effectively split into the “Global South” and the “Global North,” slightly more precise terms than East and West. What is important here, and what Mr. Pozsar immediately noticed, is that the supply chains and commodities are also getting weaponized to some extent. Friend-shoring is here to stay. The implication is that the newcoin’s first priority would be facilitating intra-South trade, without relying on currencies of the Global North.

If this were the only objective, there would have been a choice of relatively simple solutions, ranging from using renminbi/yuan for trade, creating a new shared currency (fashioned after euro, ECU, or even Central African CFA franc), creating a new currency based on the basket of participating local currencies (similar to the SDR of IMF), potentially creating a new gold-pegged currency, or even pegging existing local currencies to gold. Unfortunately, history is full of examples of how each one of these approaches creates their own host of new problems.

Of course, there are other parallel objectives for the new currency unit that neither of these possibilities can fully address. For example, I expect that all participants would hope that the new currency strengthens their sovereignty, not dilutes it. Next, the challenges with the Euro and previously gold standard demonstrated the broader problem with “fixed” exchange rates, especially if the initial “fix” was not optimal for some members of the currency zone. The problems only accumulate over time, until the rate is “re-fixed,” often through a violent devaluation. There needs to remain flexibility in adjusting relative competitiveness inside the Global South over time for participants to remain sovereign in their monetary decisions. Another requirement would be that the new currency needs to be “stable,” if it were to become successful unit of pricing for volatile things like commodities.

Most importantly, the new currency should be able to become an “external money” storage of capital and reserves down the road, not just a settlement unit. In fact, my conviction that the new monetary unit will emerge comes primarily from the current lack of viable alternatives for reserves and investment outside of the compromised “internal money” financial system.

So considering all these problems, what do you propose as a solution?

S. Tzu: First allow me to state the obvious: the technical solution to this problem is a lot easier to find than to arrive at the political consensus among the countries which might want to join the newcoin zone. However, the current need is so acute, in my opinion, that the required political compromises will be found in due course.

That said, please allow me to introduce one such technical blueprint for the newcoin. Let me start by saying that it should be partially (I suggest a share of at least 40% of value) backed by gold, for reasons that will soon become clear. The remaining 60% of the newcoin would be composed of the basket of currencies of the participating countries. Gold would provide the “external money” anchor to the structure and the basket of currencies element would allow the participants to retain their sovereignty and monetary flexibility. There would clearly be a need to create a Central Bank for the newcoin, which would emit new currency. This Central Bank could become a counterparty to cross-swaps, as well as provide clearing functions for the system and enforce the regulations. Any country would be free to join the newcoin on several conditions.

First, the candidate country needs to demonstrate that it has physical unencumbered gold in its domestic storage and pledge a certain amount in exchange for receiving corresponding amount of newcoin (using the 40% ratio mentioned above). Economic equivalent of this initial transaction would be a sale of the gold to the “gold pool” backing the newcoin in exchange for proportional amount of the newcoin backed by the pool. The actual legal form of this transaction is less important, as it is necessary simply to guarantee that the newcoin that is being emitted is always backed by at least 40% in gold. There is no need to even publicly disclose the gold reserves of each country, as long as all participants can be satisfied that sufficient reserves are always present. An annual joint audit and monitoring mechanism may be sufficient.

Second, a candidate country would need to establish a gold price discovery mechanism in its domestic currency. Most likely, one of the participating precious metals exchanges would start physical gold trading in each of the local currencies. This would establish a fair cross-rate for the local currencies using “external money” mechanism to set and adjust them over time. The gold price of the local currencies would drive their value in the basket for the newly-emitted newcoins. Each country would remain sovereign and be free to emit as much of local currency as they choose to, but this would eventually adjust the share of their currency in the newcoin’s value. At the same time, a country would only be able to obtain additional newcoin from the central bank in exchange for a pledge of additional gold. The net result is that the value of each component of newcoin in gold terms would be transparent and fair, which would translate into the transparency of newcoin’s value as well.

Finally, emissions or sales of newcoin by the central bank would be allowed only in exchange for gold for anyone outside the newcoin zone. In other words, the only two ways external parties can obtain large amounts of newcoin is either receiving it in exchange for physical gold or as a payment for goods and services provided. At the same time, the central bank would not be obliged to purchase newcoin in exchange for gold, removing the risk of the “run on the bank.”

Correct me if I’m wrong: this proposal seems to anchor all trade inside the newcoin zone and all external trade to gold. In this case, what about the stability of newcoin? After all, gold has been volatile in the past.

S. Tzu: I think what you are asking is what could be the impact if, for example, the dollar price of gold were to decline dramatically. In this case, as there would be no direct cross-rate between newcoin and the dollar, and as the central bank of the Global South would be only buying, not selling gold in exchange for newcoin, you can immediately see that arbitrage would be extremely difficult. As a result, the volatility of the currency basket expressed in newcoin (or gold) would be quite low. And this is exactly the intended positive impact of the “external money” anchoring of this new currency unit on trade and investment. Clearly, some key export commodities would be priced by the Global South in gold and newcoin only, making the “run on the bank” or speculative attacks on newcoin even less likely.

Over time, if gold is undervalued in the Global North, it would gradually, or perhaps rapidly, gravitate to the Global South in exchange for exports or newcoin, which would not be a bad outcome for the “external money” system and accelerate the broad acceptance of newcoin as reserve currency. Importantly, as physical gold reserves are finite outside of the newcoin zone, the imbalances would inevitably correct themselves, as the Global South will remain a net exporter of key commodities.

What you just said is packed with precious info. Perhaps we should revisit the whole thing in the near future and discuss the feedback to your ideas. Now we’ve arrived at Maryina Roscha, it’s time to get off!

S. Tzu: It would be my pleasure to continue our dialogue. Looking forward to another loop!

[grapevine]

Are the Arab countries turning to move into China’s orbit?

Are the Arab countries turning to move into China’s orbit?
How will the U.S react to China’s growing presence in the Arab world?
Will Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf countries be in the BRICS be in the The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBM62hfeEzo&t=737s&ab_channel=GeorgeGalloway

Interesting debate from George Galloway with representative panel on this fast-moving transition which threatens to reshuffle USA and the West even further down the queue. What is cause for concern, however, is that none of the emerging powers have great Human Rights records.

If you are short of time to watch the entire video, of particular interest is the Chinese delegate's perspective which starts at 35.14, which puts a more balanced view onto the matter.

[arwen]

Death of a Myth. Americans Need to Wake Up to the Realities of a Post-unipolar World Before It’s Too Late. (https://www.globalresearch.ca/death-myth-americans-need-wake-up-realities-post-unipolar-world-before-its-too-late/5811859)

By George D. O’Neill, Jr.
Global Research, March 13, 2023

https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/America-Ukraine-Fire-Flags-400x225.jpg


As we witness the collapse of various mainstream narratives, especially those surrounding the U.S./NATO war with Russia in Ukraine, Americans should begin to reassess their understanding of U.S. national leadership. Most American citizens have no notion of the great disparity between what their government does overseas and the stories they hear from its mouthpieces. As a result, Americans unwittingly support all sorts of foreign operations with little or no understanding of what is actually going on. For years, they have been misled by a non-stop propaganda campaign that is only now beginning to crumble.

We are experiencing the death throes of the United States’ unipolar hegemony over large parts of world. Until citizens begin to realize the magnitude of their government’s policy deceptions, it will become increasingly difficult to understand the United States’ changing global position and adjust to the effects of the growing negative perception of our country held by many people around the world.

Since World War II, and particularly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United States was the dominant and unrivaled world power. Instead of being a peacekeeper and honest “world’s policeman,” the U.S. has increasingly been a destabilizing bully. Many leaders worldwide have been reluctant to speak up about the increasingly destructive nature of U.S. foreign policy for fear of being punished. But as U.S. stature and power declines, large parts of the world have been seeking arrangements to protect themselves from U.S. predation.

Most Americans do not understand why such realignments are occurring, thanks to a constant stream of propaganda about America being the “most generous,” the “exceptional nation,” a “nation that sets aside its interests for the benefit of the world,” an “important source of good” around the globe as the “protector of the rules based order,” always shouldering the heavy responsibility to protect the international system and weak nations from bad actors, ad nauseam. According to a number of sources, U.S.-caused wars have been directly responsible for the deaths of more than 10 million people since World War II. The neoconservatives will scoff at these facts and their sources, but most of the rest of the world believes this to be true.

Most Americans cannot accept these observations because they contradict the narrative given them by the omnipresent state propaganda machine. While the ever growing list of American misdeeds abroad has for years been largely unchallenged at home, it has become increasingly obvious to many across the globe. Americans should take note. For example, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has just published an overview of what they see as U.S. misbehavior. The U.S. establishment and well-meaning patriots may dismiss the Chinese observations, but they ring true to many who live outside of the neoconservative propaganda bubble.

Contrary to establishment mythology, the U.S. is famous for breaking its promises, violating treaties, and abandoning agreements. The list is long: the U.S.’s 1990 promise not to move NATO east into former Warsaw Convention countries, the abrogation of the ABM, INF, Open Skies, START treaties, the JCPOA, the agreement with Libya, and others. The U.S. has also repeatedly flouted international law by invading countries that do not bow to U.S. hegemony.

There are a number of U.S. agencies that covertly fund NGO election interference operations. Most Americans have no idea that the Cold War–era National Endowment for Democracy was created to influence elections in countries around the world, and has interfered in many. (The National Endowment for Democracy was spending money in Russia until the Russians expelled them.) Then there are the famous “Color Revolutions” sponsored by various U.S. agencies. Some estimate the U.S. has interfered in as many as fifty countries.

The days of pretending to ignore this destructive behavior are drawing to a close. We are entering a period in which the populations of many countries may decide that being subject to American hegemony is not in their interests. Increasing numbers of countries have joined and formed alternative alliances outside U.S. influence. SCO, BRICS+, OPEC+, and others have experienced growing membership as countries that believe their interests are better protected by these non-U.S. affiliated alliances sign on.

The fallout of the tragic and unnecessary Ukraine war has accelerated this movement to seek other cooperative associations. As America’s European allies are learning, there can be huge political and economic costs to being associated with the U.S. The populations of Europe have watched their own economies suffer and paid dearly for energy because of the ten rounds of self-destructive sanctions imposed on Russia.

The purveyor and protector of the “rules-based order” decided that Germany should not import cheap Russian natural gas. America’s president and a senior State Department official threatened to cut off the pipeline supplying Russian natural gas if Russia did not bow to Washington’s wishes. Coincidentally, the Nord Stream gas pipelines were blown up not long after. The U.S. Secretary of State said the sabotage was an “opportunity,” and the assistant secretary of State appeared to be satisfied. The neoconservatives lauding this act of terrorism against an ally of the U.S. may believe pretending Washington was not responsible will reassure America and Europe, but the rest of the world believes otherwise.

Many will ignore or diminish the consequences of a possible U.S. role in the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. But this addition to the list of callous acts believed abroad to be perpetrated by the U.S. further would undermine the narrative of America as the “generous nation,” “leader of the free world,” “protector of the rules-based order.” For years, these contradictions were skillfully finessed and ignored by a compliant press and complicit institutions that profited from these deceptions. But as the U.S. appears less powerful, the rest of the world is beginning to take notice and are moving to seek other protective friendships.

Less than two years ago, the “most powerful military in the history of man” was chased out of Afghanistan by a group of ragtag militants armed with small arms and mounted on donkeys, bicycles, and motor scooters. The Taliban now has $80 billion worth of U.S. military equipment our leaders left behind. The excuses may have been convincing to the Washington elites and were sold strenuously by regime-aligned media outlets. The rest of the world knows better. The old post-Vietnam collapse tropes, claiming “we would have won if only we were really allowed to fight,” ring hollow after twenty years, hundreds of thousands killed and made homeless, and several trillion dollars spent on that disaster.

Contrary to the many assertions that the Russians would collapse from the shock and awe of the “sanctions from Hell,” the ruble has not turned into rubble as Joe Biden predicted. The U.S. and its NATO clients are running out of ammunition and arms to send to Ukraine, which is being bled white at their behest. It appears that Russia will steadily grind down the Ukrainian military. All of this is reminiscent of World War I. The proto-neoconservatives sold that war as a quick engagement that would be over by Christmas 1914. Four years later, 20 million were dead and many more were wounded or displaced; subsequently most of the European Christian monarchies collapsed, Russia descended into communism’s seventy-year nightmare, and the “War to End all Wars” to make the world “safe for democracy” set the stage for the even more horrific World War II.

A century later, we are sleepwalking into World War III. Americans should ignore the state-sponsored propaganda (eerily similar to that which led up to WWI), wake up, look at what their leaders have wrought, and do all they can to end support for this cruel war before we face a Great War–like conflagration or worse.

George D. O’Neill, Jr., is a member of the board of directors of the American Ideas Institute, which publishes The American Conservative, and an artist who lives in rural Florida.

[shaberon]

What is cause for concern, however, is that none of the emerging powers have great Human Rights records.


Who does?

I really don't think Saudi Arabia qualifies as a natural country, like Israel. So they have power over numerous oilfields and will do xyz if you don't look like their picture-perfect version of Islam. Yes, the House of Saud are known to other Arabs as "Apes", and so they represent little except how to dominate and sell your clansmen for exploitive purposes, since oil would not have been worth much in your local economy.

There isn't exactly a culture on that peninsula, except for Yemen. Apes do what they can to degrade that. But, of course, no one else cares, because it is just part of Syria, not Ukraine, and so if it is not neck deep in historical Nazis, there is nothing to deny. Just raw death and flocks of starving vultures who should know better than to live in a desert, where everything dies quickly, except it is not very many of them.

If you want a balanced and fair view, you have to ask Oman.

Most everything else that goes on in that general area is an insult and travesty to the idea of "human being".

China still has some internal problems, yet, we understand, Tibet---CIA compromised, Uighurs---CIA compromised, so, if they seem perhaps a bit over-reactive in those directions, it is understandable. If I thought the CIA had anything to do with my neighborhood, I would talk about them like this for the rest of my life. Foreign affairs indeed. Those guys drive around downtown in old cars with the floorboard rusted out so you won't think it's them. Hint: think of everyone you meet as an agent in disguise, and figure out how to flush them.

I don't just deal with numbers and data. There could be some point in time where a guy decided to execute six million people, and it was a good thing to do. Ongoing repression by taxation and rentier classes is never a good thing, even if it was not immediately fatal to anyone.

Seeing as that vast quantities of oil are also being drawn into India, with no concern for what the U. S. thinks, or, may, possibly, even like, by the time we look at two countries, it is a population of close to three billion or about a third of the whole planet. And people would sit around and ask questions about how the supply priorities are going to work??

From what I have seen from the past couple of years, uni-polar dominance is already gone, and realistically it is more of a question about how the U. S.-and-vassals are going to adjust or not.

[Vicus]

How the China-brokered Saudi-Iran deal will change the Middle East 14 Mar, 2023

Beijing has utilized a long-awaited opening to undermine the established American-dominated ‘order’ in the region

Last week, Saudi Arabia and Iran announced a landmark deal, brokered by China in Beijing, to formally restore diplomatic relations. The agreement saw the two sectarian arch rivals in the Middle East agree to put aside their differences and to normalize ties.

It was the first ever deal of its kind overseen by China, framing itself as a peacemaker, and showing that its commitment to have good relations with every country in the region is not just based on rhetoric but actual substance. Some have described it as a sign of a “changing global order.”

To put it mildly, it is bad news for the United States and deals a massive blow to the near-unlimited geopolitical sway Washington has long held over the region via its strategic relationships with countries such as Saudi Arabia. Additionally, it effectively ruins a US led campaign to pressurize and isolate Iran and hinders American efforts to shape regional politics in Israel’s favor via the Abraham Accords. It is no surprise that the Western media is calling the Chinese-brokered deal a “challenge” to the international order, but what order is that? The ability of the US to dominate the Middle East? Perhaps brokering peace is a good thing.

US foreign policy in the Middle East
Since the decline of European colonial empires, the United States has been the sole military hegemon in the Middle East, using a network of partnerships from Israel to the Gulf States to sustain domination over the region and allowing the US to exploit its energy resources. In order to maintain this position, the US has long needed adversaries in order to perpetuate an ongoing security dilemma and force reliance on it as a security guarantor, which is also beneficial to the US military industrial complex. These policies have accumulated decades worth of wars, insurgencies and attempts at regime change.

Detractors to the US agenda have included revolutionary Arabist regimes, such as Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and Bashar Assad’s Syria, terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS, and of course the post-1979 Islamic Republic of Iran. It was after the US gave up on its botched attempt to topple Assad that policymakers in the Trump administration decided to focus on Tehran, tearing up US participation in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and imposing a crippling sanctions regime. In retaliation, Iran has waged a series of proxy conflicts against US partners in the region, most notably assisting the Houthis in Yemen against the Saudi-backed government, which has overseen the carpet-bombing of occupied regions.

China’s policy in the Middle East
Unlike the United States, China’s policy in the Middle East is non-interventionist, and assumes a neutral posture in regional conflicts, taking a position of respect for national sovereignty. However, this does not mean Beijing has no interests in the region. As it grows and develops domestically, its need for secure access to energy resources has increased, leading it on a diplomatic push to build good relations with every country in the region, and this has only accelerated as the US has pushed to isolate China from the West. Despite the intra-regional power struggle, in the past two years, Beijing announced strategic partnerships with both Iran and the Gulf States.

Multipolarity
Because China did not have the same military footprint or stakes in the Middle East as the US, many analysts were dismissive of Beijing’s ability to seriously act as a diplomatic mediator in the region. They believed that its attempts to build good ties with everyone were spread too thin. However, the Saudi-Iran deal shows this assumption was wrong. But how did it happen?

First, it should be noted that the Gulf States are not “value” allies to the US in the way European countries are, and not “morally obligated” to follow the American cause. Rather, they are self-interested monarchies with very different ideological and value systems (strict Wahhabi Islam) and have seen the US as a “patron” in guaranteeing their economic and security interests (oil for weapons). This is not a “marriage”, just business.

continue: https://www.rt.com/news/572898-china-saudi-iran-deal/

[Vicus]

Cuba accepts Russian payment system 16 Mar, 2023
ATMs in Havana allow cash withdrawals in pesos using MIR cards issued in Russia

Cuban banks have started accepting MIR cards, Russia’s alternative to Visa and Mastercard, the payment system announced on Tuesday.

Several banks in Havana have installed ATMs displaying the logo of the MIR system, and offering the option to withdraw cash using Russian bank cards in Cuban pesos.

“The MIR payment system continues to work on expanding the acceptance of the cards in friendly countries including Cuba,” the network’s press service noted, adding that it is now focused on enabling transactions using MIR cars in Cuban shops, restaurants and other retail outlets.

Russia launched direct flights to Cuba in December, as the Caribbean country is a popular destination for Russian tourists. Moscow and Havana are seeking to boost their economic ties, with a Russian trading house opening in the Cuban capital.

Russia started developing its own national payment system when the US targeted the country with sanctions in 2014. Last year, as Moscow was hit by further sanctions in response to its military operation in Ukraine, including the blocking of many Russian banks from SWIFT, the government started promoting the domestic system as a reliable alternative. Russia’s SPFS ensures the transfer of financial messages between banks both inside and outside the country. :clapping:

https://www.rt.com/business/572969-cuba-accepts-russian-mir-payment-cards/

[Vicus]

China dumping American debt – US Treasury data 16 Mar, 2023

https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.03/m/64133a4885f5405e680ff244.jpg

Beijing’s holdings of US securities have dropped to their lowest since May 2009

China has continued to slash its holdings of US treasury securities amid the growing threat of economic sanctions from Washington, according to data released by the US Treasury on Wednesday, which showed the holdings slid to $859.4 billion in January from $867.1 billion in December.

The decline in January was more than double the $3.1 billion cut in December, though slightly less than the $7.8 billion reduction in November.

China, the second largest foreign holder of US government debt, has reduced its holdings for six consecutive months, with the figure dropping below the symbolic $1 trillion mark in April 2022.

The decrease in investments comes amid Beijing’s efforts to diversify its portfolio and reduce dependence on the US dollar while promoting the broader international use of the Chinese yuan amid the threat of sanctions, the South China Morning Post reports.

China has already trimmed its holdings by 34.1% over the past ten years, including a 16.6% cut in 2022 based on US data, deputy director of the Department of International Finance at the Institute of Finance and Banking Zhang Ming told the SCMP.

https://www.rt.com/business/573087-china-dumping-american-debt/

[pounamuknight]

Small significant steps to a bigger brighter multipolar future :handshake:

1637816988113281024

1637726914386468864

[shaberon]

A few words on a sign of success (https://southfront.org/chinas-success-in-reconciling-saudi-arabia-and-iran-huge-blow-to-us-hegemony/):


In short, with the mediation of China, the two regional powers, often framed as having a Sunni-Shi’a rivalry, made it official that they are embarking on a new path of improving relations instead of further spoiling them for the sake of serving Western interests that are contrary to the interests of the Islamic World.

Therefore, it is quite clear who the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs had in mind when it announced that overcoming differences between Iran and Saudi Arabia will have a “beneficial effect on freeing the countries of the region from external interference” – evidently this is in reference to the US.


The US has been the dominant force in the Middle East since the end of British and French colonialism in the 1940’s. The region has been in a constant state of war since then, with the US now maintaining 30 military bases in the Middle East – five of them in Saudi Arabia.

For the US that relies on its global network of military bases to maintain hegemony, Beijing is showing non-Western countries how a multipolar world can function with great power diplomacy based on agreements and reconciliation, and not rooted in the idea that “might is right,” like Washington adopts.


Although described as on the "wrong side" of a peace deal, China does not seem to be against Ukraine (https://sputniknews.com/20230320/putin-xi-meeting-could-herald-end-of-dollar-hegemony-and-us-domination-1108590067.html):


He explained that Beijing's interest in peace stemmed from Ukraine's membership of its 'Belt and Road' initiative to secure trade routes to Europe and Africa. China has provided loans to improve Ukraine's ports, roads, and rail infrastructure. It is also the country's biggest trade partner, the source of 14.4 per cent of Ukraine's imports and buying 15.3 per cent of its exports.


While we watch the outcome of
bad plans (https://sputniknews.com/20230320/xi-jinpings-landmark-visit-to-moscow-shows-us-plan-to-isolate-russia-backfired-spectacularly-1108588806.html):

... in 2022, Russia’s economic growth in many ways outstripped, for example, the economic growth of Britain, which has been “at the tip of the spear with regard to opposing this special military operation.”

The current developments are, to a great degree, the result of Washington’s “maniacal obsession” with Moscow, the researcher emphasized.

Half a century ago, there was a drive for major US corporations to embark on massive direct foreign investment in the People's Republic of China, he noted.

“That's what led to the entente with China over a half century ago… Because of a desire to encircle the Soviet Union, the United States cut a deal with China. But now that deal obviously has backfired in a spectacular fashion. And what's even more remarkable is that rather than seeking to pivot, to try to somehow slow down this economic juggernaut in China, you see US imperialism bogged down once again with regard to confronting Moscow.”

[grapevine]

Russia Claims More Bakhmut, Prigozhin Warns of Ukraine attack; China Russia Go For Full Integration

Russia Claims More Bakhmut, Prigozhin Warns of Ukraine attack; China Russia Go For Full Integration, West Nervous

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3igbb9q06I&ab_channel=AlexanderMercouris
21st March 2023

Latest reporting on Ukraine from Alexander Mercouris of The Duran.
From 1:05:34 Alex acknowledges, with dismay, the creation of a Multipolar World against the West.

[arwen]

Xi Jinping delivers a chilling message for the West as he tells 'dear friend' Vladimir Putin 'change is coming that hasn't happened in 100 years... and we are driving it' (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11887931/Xi-Jinping-Vladimir-Putin-say-change-coming-ominous-message-West.html)

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/03/21/23/68963905-11887931-image-m-18_1679441882805.jpg

Extract:


China's President Xi Jinping told a grinning Vladimir Putin 'change is coming' in an ominous parting message as he departed Moscow last night following talks with his Russian counterpart.

'Change is coming that hasn't happened in 100 years. And we are driving this change together,' Xi told Putin via his interpreter – words sure to set alarm bells ringing in the West.

'Please, take care, dear friend,' he added, gripping the Kremlin leader's hand warmly before being waved off by the Russian despot, who bid Xi a 'safe journey'.

After the two leaders hailed a 'new era', Xi's plane left Moscow's Vnukovo airport on Wednesday. He was seen off by a guard of honour who played the Russian and Chinese national anthems, Russia's RIA Novosti news agency said.

In February 2022, the pair announced they had forged a 'no limits' friendship and Putin invited Xi to visit the Russian capital. They have since publicly talked of strengthening their 'special relationship', with Moscow and Beijing both rejecting what they say are US attempts to create a 'unipolar world' controlled by Washington.

¤=[Post Update]=¤

Russia draws in Africa with charm offensive against Western ‘neo-colonialism’ (https://www.theafricareport.com/294453/russia-draws-in-africa-with-charm-offensive-against-western-neo-colonialism/)

https://www.theafricareport.com/media/2023/03/Russia-Africa-e1679490952376-732x418.jpg


Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the Russia-Africa International Parliamentary Conference in Moscow, March 20, 2023. © Sputnik/Vladimir Astapkovich/Pool via REUTERS

On 19 and 20 March, some 40 African delegations travelled to Moscow ahead of the Russia-Africa summit scheduled for July in St Petersburg, to discuss cooperation and the fight against the influence of “former colonial powers”.

[arwen]

Russia Writes Off 20 Billion In Debt To African Countries (https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Russia-Writes-Off-20-Billion-In-Debt-To-African-Countries-20230320-0015.html)

https://www.telesurenglish.net/__export/1679350552835/sites/telesur/img/2023/03/20/xitsmutai.jpg_1718483346.jpg


The International Parliamentary Conference "Russia - Africa in a multipolar world" has brought together 40 African nations in Moscow.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that Russia has written off debts of African states worth more than 20 billion dollars.

Putin's comments came on the occasion of the International Parliamentary Conference "Russia - Africa in a Multipolar World," where the Russian President said that the volume of mutual trade "reached almost $18 billion by the end of last year."

In this regard, the President added that the volume of trade between Russia and African countries will benefit from "the more vigorous transition to national currencies in financial settlements and the establishment of new transport and logistics chains."

On the occasion, Putin said that in case the Black Sea grain agreement is not extended, Russia will supply food to needy African nations free of charge.

"We are convinced that Africa will become one of the leaders of the new emerging multipolar world order," Putin said, and added that the role of the African continent in international affairs is steadily growing.

Russia and African countries, along with many states of Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, "defend the traditional moral norms and social principles of our peoples, and oppose the neocolonial ideology imposed from abroad," the Russian President said, pointing to the global majority stance against neocolonial ideology.

Putin expressed Russia's commitment to work together with Africa "to strengthen fair and equal interstate relations and improve mechanisms of mutually beneficial economic cooperation."

[shaberon]

Pretty good day for fuming as usual (https://tass.com/world/1592827):


Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, who was part of the expanded circle of Russian delegates at the talks, pointed out that he was pleased that most Westerners were furious about Russia-China high-level talks.


McGovern (https://sputniknews.com/20230322/just-crazy-ex-cia-agent-on-us-plans-for-two-front-war-amid-xi-putin-meeting-1108682298.html) on Putin:


"He says, 'You know, I thought there might be some logic in it, but there isn't. They're just crazy. You know, I thought for a moment that there may be some some subtle reasons, but I no longer believe that this is a product of arrogance and a feeling of impunity'."

Russia and China "can't be sure that these 'crazy people' won't do something even crazier than they're already trying to do in Ukraine," over Taiwan, McGovern stressed. "I fear for what decisions will be made this spring when the Russians start to prevail definitively in Ukraine."


Chossudovsky re-ran something from 2008 (https://southfront.org/the-new-world-order-crisis-and-the-reproduction-of-real-life-food-water-and-energy-three-fundamental-necessities-of-life-in-jeopardy/):


The article also focusses on the U.S. population control agenda as contained in the National Security Study Memorandum 200 (NSSSM 200) formulated during the Nixon Administration.

The U.S. Congress set up a Commission on “Population Growth and the American Future”. (See Center for Research on Population and Security).

Under the helm of Henry Kissinger, the Commission’s unspoken objective was to curb World population with a view to serving US strategic and national security interests.

It is worth noting that the NSSSM 200 has been the source of inspiration of Klaus Schwab, et al in the formulation of the World Economic Forum’s Depopulation Agenda.



He goes on to how computer-programmed trades are used to manipulate food, water, and energy around the globe. I believe the following is an example of a derivative?


According to William Engdahl;

“… At least 60% of the 128 per barrel price of crude oil comes from unregulated futures speculation by hedge funds, banks and financial groups using the London ICE Futures and New York NYMEX futures exchanges and uncontrolled inter-bank or Over-The-Counter trading to avoid scrutiny. US margin rules of the government’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission allow speculators to buy a crude oil futures contract on the Nymex, by having to pay only 6% of the value of the contract.

At today’s price of $128 per barrel, that means a futures trader only has to put up about $8 for every barrel. He borrows the other $120. This extreme ‘leverage’ of 16 to 1 helps drive prices to wildly unrealistic levels and offset bank losses in sub-prime and other disasters at the expense of the overall population.



So in that example a $120 loan is created, which is not quite tied to that barrel of oil. It is just on the trader's credit. Moreover, this debt can become the "collateral" of another loan, i. e. "re-hypothecated". And that is where most of "the money went", into these bubbles of nothingness to the tune of a Quadrillion or more, compared to the two or three trillion in cash that even exists.

Sure it was real estate derivatives that were highlighted around 2008, but this is the same kind of thing isn't it?

The article links another then-current which seems to respond fairly well:

Ian Angus, Food Crisis: “The greatest demonstration of the historical failure of the capitalist model”,

[shaberon]

This is notable not for the fact he didn't say it very eloquently, but for what Dr. Assad (https://southfront.org/syria-saudi-arabia-reached-breakthrough-agreement-to-restore-relations-report/) is saying:


From his side, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad welcomed Saudi Arabia’s agreement with Iran during his recent visit to Russia, and said that the kingdom was longer intervening in the war in Syria.

“Syria is no longer a place of Iranian-Saudi conflict, as it was at some stages by some parties at that time. Saudi policy took a different turn towards Syria years ago and it is no longer… I mean, it was not within the framework or was not in the process of interfering in internal affairs or supporting any factions in Syria,” the president said during an interview with RT.



For real? I wouldn't believe it from anyone else. He seems to claim the Saudis gave up. This must be "a failure of Israeli foreign policy". Well Israel had become strange bedfellows with SA a few years ago, and, one would think it was with the intent of provoking them *against* Iran and Syria. And now Syria is somewhat on speaking terms with Turkey, if not the greatest, neither is pro-US, I think that Gulenist coup had dire consequences for western and Zionist projects.

Since there is still insurgency in Syria, and, the Saudis must have been one of the most important backers, who is picking up the slack?

[Vicus]

US warns Russia and China over dollar alternative 24 Mar, 2023

The greenback will remain the world’s reserve currency, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has predicted :ROFL:

Russia and China will face substantial difficulty in their efforts to create an alternative to the US dollar in international trade, American Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen claimed on Thursday.

Russia is conducting a rapid withdrawal from transactions in “unfriendly” currencies, against the backdrop of expanding EU and US sanctions. As part of the move, Moscow has shifted away from the dollar towards the ruble and local currencies in settlements with major trade partners such as China and India.

“I certainly want to see the dollar remain as the world’s reserve currency, and there is a motivation that Russia and China have to try to develop another system that avoids the use of the dollar,” Yellen said at a hearing of the US House of Representatives Appropriations Subcommittee. The Treasury official claimed it would be “tremendously difficult” for Moscow and Beijing to achieve their aims.

Russia began de-dollarizing its economy in 2014, when Western countries introduced sanctions after Crimea voted to secede from Ukraine and reunify with Russia. The process has accelerated after more than $300 billion in Russian foreign exchange reserves and other assets were frozen by the West last year.

The latest data from the Bank of Russia shows that the Chinese yuan has become a major player in Russia’s foreign trade. Its share in Russian import settlements had jumped to 23% by the end of last year, from only 4% in January 2022. The yuan’s share in export settlements also surged, from 0.5% to 16%.

In contrast, the share of the US dollar and euro in Russia’s export settlements dropped substantially last year, from 65% in January 2022 to 46% in December.

In February, the yuan overtook the dollar as the most traded currency on the Russian stock market for the first time ever, according to data from the Moscow Exchange.


https://www.rt.com/business/573507-yellen-dollar-russia-china-altenative/

[shaberon]

Does this constitute an official statement (https://sputniknews.com/20230326/saudi-state-tv-show-mocks-biden-as-senile-and-foolish-as-actor-imitates-his-real-life-blunders-1108791769.html)?



Saudi state television mocked US President Joe Biden at length this week in a scathing portrayal that paints the head of state as senile and foolish.

In the video, which was widely shared online, a horrified 'Kamala Harris' attempts to escort an actor playing Joe Biden off stage as he tries to greet imaginary people.

On social media, a number of alarmed viewers said the satire as painful, but reflective of reality.
“It's accurate. It's funny. It's not going to end well,” wrote one Twitter user.

Others pointed out that there was almost no need to produce a new video showing a doddering Biden attempting to shake hands with people who don’t exist, given that he’s repeatedly been documented doing just that.




Or this (https://sputniknews.com/20230325/how-has-ukrainian-conflict-affected-the-eus-well-being-1108787281.html)?


In a speech to a US corporate lobby group, Ukraine's Zelensky thanked Black Rock, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Elon Musk's Starlink, promising:

“Everyone can become a big business by” buying up Ukrainian assets

“We are defending freedom and property”



That is from a larger article explaining how over the past year, most of Europe's productivity versus GDP has not gone particularly well, whereas the one in Russia does not seem terribly hampered.





Then we can add a few names to the dirt from, what appears to be one of the same chapters from undervalued assets (https://southfront.org/the-most-undervalued-assets-in-europe-are-now-in-eastern-ukraine-who-is-the-first-to-benefit/):



The main goal of the corrupt Ukrainian authorities was to get rid of inhabitants of the rural part of the region, consolidate large volumes of highly fertile and irrigated agricultural land, and then sell or lease it to Western corporations, either directly or through Ukrainian oligarchs.

The same went for the industrial complex. Most of the largest enterprises owned by the Ukrainian state were systematically driven into bankruptcy, and sold for peanuts, with companies backed by Anglo-Saxon capital as the ultimate beneficiaries.

Kiev achieved the desired result by lowering the level of social welfare of the inhabitants of the region, ruining infrastructure, while blocking access of products of medium and small farms to the mass market, etc.


According to official Ukrainian statistics, from 2000 to 2020, the total population of the Zaporizhzhia region decreased by 300,000 people. Other unofficial sources claimed that in fact the population decreased by about 500,000, mainly due to the departure of inhabitants of the countryside.

The new owners began using unmanned harvesters and tractors, instead of local labor. It was much more expensive to maintain these machines than hire the locals, but it wasn’t about money. It was about politics.


One of the explicit examples of the Western-Kiev strategy, which was designed to consolidate large tracts of land to facilitate their sale to Western corporations, was the operation of the Agroprosperis. This was one of the largest agricultural holdings in Ukraine in 2020, with a land bank of 300 thousand hectares. The beneficiaries of this agrarian giant are the US citizens, and owners of the NCH investment fund, George Rohr and Maurice Tabasinik.

In the same year, the Americans intensified their financial and credit activity through their Agroprosperis Bank. It began to provide financing secured by agrarian receipts, thereby providing Ukrainian farmers with access to fast, but expensive, money. The true goal of this programme was to burden small and medium-sized farmers with debt, and drive them to bankruptcy. The end goal was to buy up their agricultural products and land at a price well below market value.

This is very similar to the way global financiers are squeezing small and medium-sized farmers in the southern U.S. states.



It probably is. Works in the midwest too. I thought everybody knows this. Something is wrong with this picture. As for the petrol industry:



At the end of 2021, the only personal owner of AZMOL was a British citizen, Dicken Terence William who owned 24% of the company’s shares.

Today, this plant is nationalized and belongs to the Zaporizhzhia Region Administration of the Russian Federation.




And from a much larger article on the Pentagon or DoD from Zuess (https://southfront.org/where-the-1-3-trillion-per-year-u-s-military-budget-goes/), there is also a good criticism of the following mouthpiece:


Mick West, who blogs as metabunk, is a propagandist for the “Establishment” or the billionaires’ preferences of what the public should believe; and, on 16 May 2018, he headlined “Debunked: Missing $21 Trillion / $6.5 Trillion / $2.3 Trillion – Journal Vouchers”.

The only way for an authentic progressive political candidate to deal with this is to declare publicly (and to document it by means of linked-to-evidence news-reports online, like the present one) that ‘our’ Government and media are controlled by the organized mega-crooks, who are this nation’s wealthiest individuals — the only group of individuals who benefit from it — who are this nation’s actual enemies: its corrupters. But, of course, no billionaire will fund such a campaign, and any news-medium that reports on it (except by lying against it) will likewise get no investors.


Article is somewhat in-depth about no audit, can't pass an audit, and offers meaningless slogans about "accounting". It is only many trillions of dollars or something. If I recall this was one of the plausible motives for 9/11 to destroy one of the Pentagon's financial vaults so even these early mistakes would be erased. Twenty years later even more is more missing for less reason.

I would admit there was no way I would expect a moderate Saudi Arabia to be one of the first observable shifts. I would not expect the DoD policies in Ukraine to be viable in the long term, but that seems an unusual consequence that such an almighty pillar of the dollar is no longer "pure".

[Ewan]

The main goal of the corrupt Ukrainian authorities was to get rid of inhabitants of the rural part of the region, consolidate large volumes of highly fertile and irrigated agricultural land, and then sell or lease it to Western corporations, either directly or through Ukrainian oligarchs.

The same went for the industrial complex. Most of the largest enterprises owned by the Ukrainian state were systematically driven into bankruptcy, and sold for peanuts, with companies backed by Anglo-Saxon capital as the ultimate beneficiaries.

Kiev achieved the desired result by lowering the level of social welfare of the inhabitants of the region, ruining infrastructure, while blocking access of products of medium and small farms to the mass market, etc.



And it worked so well they are rolling it out to pretty much every western nation and the frogs can't stop the water slowly boiling because they don't realise the heat has been turned on already.

Holland has a dedicated thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?118943-Dutch-Farmers-Fighting-Back-Against-Government-s-Green-Agenda-Connected-to-WEF).

(local info: Here in western Ireland I hear plenty of criticism of the EU agricultural policies being dicated from Brussels, but it is just typical moaning so far - no plans for action that I'm aware of.)

Also don't forget Bill Gates buying up land in America like it was going out of fashion. He won't be hiring labourers, too busy getting the laboratories set up for Frankenstein Foods Inc.

[shaberon]

I stirred the proverbial honeypot by mentioning Cagliostro in relation to the Knights of Malta. Might have been in the WWIII thread. But it is exactly this era which casts the "mono-" and "multi-" orders that we are discussing. And particularly because the other day we also looked at how the Bank of Prussia became the Reichsbank, which was almost the sole source to copy for Nelson Aldrich, whose idea moved forward to become the Federal Reserve.


These are a few notes on the historicity surrounding such a Bank.


Empress Catherine the Great of Russia was herself Prussian. Born as "Sophie", we will find her an attempted pawn or tool in shifting allegiances:





The choice of Princess Sophie as wife of the future tsar was a result of the Lopukhina affair, in which Count Jean Armand de Lestocq and King Frederick the Great of Prussia took an active part. The objective was to strengthen the friendship between Prussia and Russia, to weaken the influence of Austria, and to overthrow the chancellor Alexey Bestuzhev-Ryumin, a known partisan of the Austrian alliance on whom the reigning Russian Empress Elizabeth relied.



When Sophie was married in 1745 to the future Tsar Peter III, he was then:


Duke of Holstein-Gottorp


and when he became Tsar in 1762:


Peter III could hardly speak Russian and pursued a strongly pro-Prussian policy.

The two countries were on opposing sides of the Seven Years' War, and Russian troops were threatening Berlin at the time of Peter's accession to the throne. He immediately switched sides in the war and withdrew his troops from Prussia, undoing hard-earned gains.

The things that St. Germain is known to have said, are quite accurate in terms of the situation around the Seven Years' War, in which, the main powers, Britain and France, were both submerged heavily in debt to the banks--and that debt was hugely influential to both the American and French revolutions.



As for the King of Prussia:


However, he never gave up and on 3 November 1760 the Prussian king won another battle, the hard-fought Battle of Torgau. Despite being several times on the verge of defeat Frederick, allied with Great Britain, Hanover and Hesse-Kassel, was finally able to hold the whole of Silesia against a coalition of Saxony, the Habsburg monarchy, France and Russia.


Russian troops withdrew from Berlin and marched against the Austrians. This dramatically shifted the balance of power in Europe, suddenly handing the delighted Frederick the initiative. Frederick recaptured southern Silesia.



After "rescuing" King Frederick, Peter planned war against Denmark in order to restore parts of Schleswig to his Duchy.


In June 1762, 40,000 Russian troops assembled in Pomerania under General Pyotr Rumyantsev, preparing to face 27,000 Danish troops under the French general Count St. Germain in case the Russian–Danish freedom conference (scheduled for 1 July 1762 in Berlin under the patronage of Frederick II) failed to resolve the issue. However, shortly before the conference, Peter lost his throne (9 July [O.S. 28 June] 1762) and the conference did not occur. The issue of Schleswig remained unresolved. Peter was accused of planning an unpatriotic war.


That refers to Claude-Louis St. Germain. It is a relatively common name, with at least three minor fiefs similar to counties also bearing the name. So we see what he was up to at the very moment he was deposed. What is thought to have happened is that he fled, realized that the military, the nobles, and the Senate had defected to his wife, and abdicated. He perhaps became ill and died within about two months.

Ever since her marriage, Sophie or Catherine had been approached by "strong political groups" that did not like her husband. From a young age he would have been expected to inherit the Russian throne. In itself that may not have been a big deal, but, his character.

In Russia, this intensified.

Peter was soon gotten rid of, by, among others, Dashkova (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yekaterina_Vorontsova-Dashkova):


The couple was close friends with Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alexeyevna and disliked the Grand Duke Peter, fearing for the future of Russia under the rule of the pro-Prussia future tsar. In December 1761, Empress Elizabeth became severely ill and died January 5, 1762. Her nephew ascended the throne, began undoing her policies and kept a submissive position towards his idol and Russia's enemy, Frederick the Great, much to the displeasure of his court and military. Yekaterina, along with several nobleman and members of the Imperial Guards, lead a coup d'état against him on June 28, 1762, that put his wife on the throne.

She also met Benjamin Franklin in the French capital on February 3, 1781 and the two became close friends, corresponding frequently and showing mutual respect and admiration.

...the first woman in the world to head a national academy of sciences, the first woman in Europe to hold a government office and the president of the Russian Academy, which she helped found.




Considering the land grab that Peter tried to do, the same conflict proceeds through the nineteenth century:


When the Danish government tried to integrate Schleswig, but not Holstein, into the Danish state, Prussia led the German Confederation against Denmark in the First War of Schleswig (1848–1851). Because Russia supported Austria, Prussia also conceded predominance in the German Confederation to Austria in the Punctation of Olmütz in 1850.

Bismarck realised that the dual administration of Schleswig and Holstein was only a temporary solution, and tensions rose between Prussia and Austria. The struggle for supremacy in Germany then led to the Austro-Prussian War (1866), triggered by the dispute over Schleswig and Holstein, with Bismarck using proposed injustices as the reason for war.

German provinces unified in 1871, under two opinions as to whether Austria was also Germany.

In 1875, the Bank of Prussia becomes the Reichsbank.

In 1908, Nelson Aldrich copies this privately-owned central bank as the blueprint for the Federal Reserve.


In mentioning St. Germain above, then, for one thing he was quite close to Marie Antoinette, and, was almost certainly around for the removal of Peter III. What may be misunderstood about him was that he was never a member of a Masonic Lodge. He was occasionally welcomed as a guest. What also seems to be the case is that he had provided a map, which showed the then-future changes which would come through the French Revolution and Napoleon, and it extended out to the 1870 Franco-Prussian war. There is a single copy of it in Russia.

It seems he got his knowledge by meeting with the powerful banking houses and realizing the consequences of their intent.

He was not really a Mason, whereas Cagliostro tried to get people to defect out of Strict Observance.

In Austria, Maria Theresa suppressed Jesuits as well as Masons and Rosicrucians. This was a culmination because Jesuit offices had been shut down by most of the countries. They were almost unilaterally held to be political meddlers.


Being largely unemployed in 1773, the Jesuits set about to infiltrate Masonry and Rosicrucianism.


Masonry was not a Jewish phenomenon until post-Napoleon.


1807: A French Masonic Strict Observance Lodge is charted in Frankfurt named Loge St. John de L’aurore Naissante or Chabrath Zereh Boqer Aour, unlike other German Lodges of the time this one admitted Jews; rechartered as Loge zur aufgehenden Morgenrothe by the Duke of Sussex in 1817 (1812-1842, His Royal Highness Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, son of King George III, the Duke of Sussex united the rival lodges, the Ancient and the Modern, into a single, potent force). Under the German name, they had applied with Karl of Hesse Kassel, but he refused. Jews are then able to become Craft Masons, but they are seeking an alternative to the Scottish Rite, which is Christian only. Interest would have naturally flowed towards Strict Observance.


The Golden Dawn is similar to Masonry, having got its hands on the Cipher Manuscript and materials of Fratres Lucis such as Crata Repoa.


Fratres Lucis is another kind of "recycled" name, i. e. it was picked up again around 1770 for a new organization in Germany. This is similar to "Rosicrucian", i. e. being applied in various ways by new organizations which are not that connected to their namesake. Knights of Malta could be called an organization that remained intact, but, post-Napoleon, battered and twisted beyond recognition and moved to Italy.


If we turn to the original precursors for these names, it does, indeed, make an arc which leads to--something like an alliance--but also of monarchs opposite the Money Power.


Around 1348, Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV granted a charter for the University of Florence. 1438 was the opening of the Platonic Academy there involving Pico della Mirandola who found manuscripts in the Etruscan town Perugia. And 1530 was the beginning of the Maltese Falcon wherein H. R. E. Charles V (the last papally confirmed or crowned emperor) granted that country to those who became known as Knights of Malta.

Later, Pinto in fact kicks the Jesuits out and uses their wealth to start the University of Malta. He also used St. Germain to rebuff an infiltration from Adam Weishaupt with bankers and priests. We can find a bloc forming here of Prague--Florence--Malta even prior to the famous Rudolf II (r. 1576–1612).

The Theosophists (Isabel Cooper Oakley, Theosophical Review vol. 22) got their information out of the estate of Count Wilkorski of Poland. Within the material it specifically uses the term Theosophist and states its headquarters are in Asia, and that Blue or St. John's Masonry is the only authentic. The year they give to Fratres Lucis Florentine birth is 1498. Isabel's version of the Hidden Tradition in Masonry (https://skirret.com/papers/cooper-oakley/traces-all.html) also refers to Crata Repoa, in the 1770 German version, which may have had a Venetian original, published by Humberto Malhandrini in 1657--which unfortunately is only known to HPB and the name does mean rogue or trickster.


Crata Repoa was a hugely influential ritual manual being Egyptian, which no one understood at the time as the Rosetta stone had not been found. Nevertheless, it is a seven degree system with planetary correspondences and so forth.

Mentioned in Traces of the Mysteries (http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v14/ph_064.htm).

Nevertheless it is seen as almost spurious. However both Crata Repoa and the F. L. document are the spine of Golden Dawn. Well, it could be semi-spurious, in the sense of not being transmitted directly from Egypt. The 1770 version is often thought to be the result of those Germans combing all the neo-Platonic sources such as Plotinus and Iamblichus, taking every note about initiation they can find, and assembling it together.

What seems likely now is that it appears, up to a certain point, the original Knights of Malta or Knights of John the Baptist were, similarly to the Templars, initiated into the Johannite tradition and operated a magical college as demonstrated by Pinto initiating Cagliostro. This obviously was in conjunction with the Holy Roman Empire or at least Hapsburgs and Medicis. After the Knights of Malta's defeat by Napoleon, the Jesuits were back in power. This leads to a complicated situation wherein HPB fights the pope in order to help Garibaldi put the monarch Victor Immanuel back in power in Italy (Metana 1867).


Grand Master Pinto (in office 1741-1773) initiated Cagliostro (ca. 1765) and was seen as of the same caliber with St. Germain, with whom he was personal friends, and used to dupe the bankers with an alchemical preparation of temporary gold.

Malta since 1734 was nominally a fief under the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, from 1759 under Ferdinand III. Bernardo Tanucci pressured Pinto to follow the Bourbon policy of suppression of the Jesuits.


So if we review the turbulence of the French Revolution, we may notice that later books on Judeo-Masonic conspiracy do not mention the Jesuits. In Bavaria, Baron Knigge was an influential personality who was a devotee of the Strict Observance Rite, and we can only suggest that not all those around him supported all his views.


In 1782, Count de Virieu, sensed a conspiracy neither church nor monarch will withstand. He didn't write a book, he just made one statement, so there are no further details. But then in 1786, Ernst von Gochhausen created a book called "Revelations about the cosmopolitan political system" (or World Citizens' Republic) which predicted the French Revolution by Masons, Illuminati, and Jesuits. A brief page (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_August_Anton_von_G%25C3%25B6chhausen&prev=search) on him states that his view is that when the Jesuits were suppressed in 1773, they were working on the Enlightenment and ways to destroy society so people would flock to the pope. Implication is they hooked the Bavarian Illuminati to start this.

Now we will suspend the Illuminati for a moment and propose that some members were against state and church domination, but to them, the concept of revolt did not extend to the destruction of society for that purpose. This view is the same as restoring the King of Italy, to keep it from going to pieces.

The most direct way it appears to have translated into the French Revolution is when Nicholas Bonneville, impressed by J J C Bode of the Bavarian Illuminati, started a newsletter called "The Tribune of the People" which called for a citizens' militia, and was among the first to offer to take the Bastille. He was a disciple of St. Martin and friend of Thomas Paine, and opposed to the Terror. He also wrote "The Jesuits expelled from Masonry" and "Broken Dagger by Masons" from an experience in English Masonry, where he denounced the Jesuits as promoters of the Templar myth and doctrine of revenge. In the revolution, the Terror was not the original plan, but even this, represented by Maximillien Robespierre--who said something warning of a conspiracy that none dared mention--was then sent through changes.

As well as Bonneville, Prince Karl of Hesse also looked towards J J C Bode instead of Weishaupt or Baron Knigge. This is who St. Germain protected by going against the emperor of Russia, and with whom he spent the end of his official life.

After Russian forces were removed, those northern provinces became the domain of Prince Karl of Hesse, Landgrave of Schleswig-Holstein. Karl of Hesse was a devout Protestant Christian, who never gained a good understanding of mysticism, although he had joined German Masonry, the Jacobins, and the Bavarian Illuminati and attended the big masonic conventions.

He did not think that Adam Weishaupt and Baron Knigge had the greatest ideas, and mostly admired J J C Bode, whom he thought believed in a Rousseau-ish philosophy mixed with moral religion. He also found that seeds of the revolution were present at the 1782 Wilhelmsbad convention, without going into much detail. Prince Karl left his own book of memoirs, a lot of which is available in a Google translation (https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=fr&u=https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Un_Prince_allemand_du_XVIIIe_si%25C3%25A8cle_d%25E2%2580%2599apr%25C3%25A8s_des_m%25C3%25A9moires_in %25C3%25A9dits/02&usg=ALkJrhgb3xFy_EgStIgGFjkLCUFkRA2bJQ).


If anything, the confusion of new ideas seems mystically clearest in the lodges around Savalette des Langes.


Well, it is not inconceivable that, in Europe, one might wish to rebel against tyranny or Catholicism. But if you start going to meetings, you discover that rented antifa mobs are in the plan, and there are vested interests renting them. Basically the same as now. Many of the countries headed for the Multi-polar order found out first hand.


The significance here is such that it has its own page as financial costs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_costs_of_the_Seven_Years%27_War#:~:text=Great%20Britain%20spent%20more%20than,of%20the%20B ritish%20Government's%20budget.):


The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) brought great financial burdens on Great Britain, Kingdom of Prussia, Austria, France, and Sweden. The costs of fighting a protracted war on several continents meant Britain's national debt almost doubled from 1756 to 1763, and this financial pressure which Britain tried to alleviate through new taxation in the Thirteen Colonies helped cause the American Revolution.


In America, it worked, whereas in Europe, most countries were plowed under by an already-standing private central bank. Around 1760, a tripartite faction of Austria, France, and Russia became aware of the nature of the Money Power, viz., The Seven Years' war is being experienced. On another side, Prussia and UK, major centers of the private central banking idea.

What became the United States was friendly to the Russian side for similar reasons.



What we see is a shift from Austrian power to the ascendancy of the families of the Knights Teutonic called Junkers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junker_(Prussia)):


While Austria was traditionally considered the leader of the German states, Prussia became increasingly powerful and by the late 18th century was ranked as one of the great powers of Europe.

For the brief Austro-Prussian War:


Bismarck maintained that he orchestrated the conflict in order to bring about the North German Confederation, the Franco-Prussian War and the eventual unification of Germany.

Bismarck had an entirely different view after the war in 1866: he was interested only in strengthening Prussia through the eyes of a staunch realist. Uniting Germany appeared immaterial to him unless it improved Prussia's position.


It did; they dominated the other Germans. He agitated the next conflict by scaring the non-unified Germans and insulting the French:


These discussions, leaked by Bismarck to the German states in the south, turned former enemies into allies almost overnight, receiving not only written guarantees but armies that would be under the control of Prussia.

King Wilhelm then sent a message to Berlin reporting this event with the French ambassador, and Bismarck shrewdly edited it to make it "like a red tag to the bull" for the French government.



Easily connecting the dots, when Bismark put this together, the UK knew they had to have it. Voila!





Suppressed in Bavaria, Bode (https://api.equinoxpub.com/articles/fulltext/17875) (1731-1793) was the collector of the Illuminati Files.

With Nicolai and Biester (https://www.proquest.com/openview/2e3ef8233d2b512192c3553dd5950627/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y), Bode was charging that Jesuit infiltration would reduce the Enlightenment to violence so that people would flock to the Catholic shelter. In 1795, he was accused of opening an Illuminati club in France, and this goes on to a dissertation which seeks to prove that this is simply a reverse tactic, possibly fictional. This becomes popularized through several new books. But it is a Jesuit tactic. There is a several year gap between the original writers and then this perpetual wave of Judeo-Masonic conspiracy writers highly popular in Germany.



An original Vienna 1788 (https://www.academia.edu/26530257/JOHANN_JOACHIM_CHRISTOPH_BODE_THE_ELEVATION_CONFIRMED_BY_THE_HIGHEST_FRATERNAL_CHOICE_POWER_AND_VIGO UR_TO_THE_FIRST_DEGREE_OF_THE_LAUDABLE_ORDER_OF_THE_GOLDEN_ROSE_CROSS_1_7_8_8) Rosicrucian manual in Munich:


...is registered with as the author Johann Joachim Christoph Bode, whereas this name is neither on the title page, nor on the subtitle page.


Part of the point is that while disbanded, the Jesuits did not drop dead. At least some of them were able to find patronage. Comparatively, through the time of Napoleon, at Malta (https://www.napoleon-series.org/military-info/battles/1798/c_Malta.html):


During the French Revolution in 1792, the Order’s property in France was confiscated by the revolutionary government, which caused financial trouble for the knights.

Desperate for assistance, the knights looked to the Russian empire and the tsar, Paul I.

While Grand Duke, Tsar Paul I had developed an interest in the Catholic Church and also the Order of St. John. He was greatly intrigued by the knights and entertained the idea of becoming the Grand Master himself. Fortunately for Paul, the Order and Russia enjoyed improved relations from 1796. On 10 December 1797 the Russian Tsar became “Protector of the Order of Malta .” The Tsar would later be awarded the title of Grand Master. In the end, the knights’ decision to accept the Tsar’s patronage ended badly for both sides. The French used the Russian alliance as cause to invade Malta and end the Order’s tenure on the island [1798].


The Society of Jesus was restored by Pope Pius VII, a Benedictine, on August 7, 1814.

[Vicus]

Brazil and China sign pact to abandon dollar 30 Mar, 2023

The two BRICS nations will now reportedly trade in their own currencies

http://https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.03/thumbnail/642574eb203027391a1384c8.jpg

Beijing and Brasilia have signed an agreement on trade in mutual currencies, abandoning the US dollar as an intermediary, and are also planning to expand cooperation on food and minerals.

According to media reports, the deal will enable the two BRICS members to conduct their massive trade and financial transactions directly, exchanging renminbi for real and vice versa, instead of using the US dollar for settlements.

“The expectation is that this will reduce costs... promote even greater bilateral trade and facilitate investment,” AFP quoted the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency as saying on Wednesday.

The countries also reportedly announced the creation of a clearinghouse that will provide settlements without the US dollar, as well as lending in national currencies. The move is aimed at facilitating and reducing the cost of transactions between the sides, and getting rid of dollar dependence in bilateral relations.

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced earlier that such arrangements will boost the usage of the renminbi for cross-border transactions between enterprises and financial institutions in the two countries, and further facilitate bilateral trade and investment.

China has been Brazil's largest trading partner for more than a decade, with bilateral trade hitting a record $150 billion last year.

According to the Secretary for International Affairs at the Ministry of Finance of Brazil, Tatiana Rosito, 25 countries are already making settlements with China in yuan.


https://www.rt.com/business/573852-brazil-china-abandon-dollar/

[Vicus]

West’s labeling of Russia as ‘imperialist’ disgusts most Africans – senior diplomat to RT

Many on the continent are aware of Moscow’s role in liberating them from colonialism, says Oleg Ozerov

African countries are beginning to recognize their own national interests and are breaking away from the Western-dominated world order, Oleg Ozerov, the head of the Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum has claimed in an exclusive interview to RT.

Speaking to RT host Oksana Boyko, Ozerov noted that African-Russian relations have been on a significant upswing in recent years and that Russia is treating its African partners in a dramatically different manner than Western countries, which have retained a colonial mindset in their dealings with the continent.

This mindset “manifests itself in the form of patronizing attitudes, lecturing and moralizing, insisting that the Western model alone should be accepted as a gift from the gods by our African friends” the diplomat explained, adding that this “aura of arrogance” is backed by a desire to keep African nations dependent and subservient to the West.

Meanwhile, Ozerov pointed out that many African people are “aware of the role Russia has played in liberating them from colonial bondage,” which is why the majority of Africans feel nothing but “disgust and revulsion” when they witness attempts to label Russians as imperialist or claims that Russia aims to plunder the continent.

According to Ozerov, contrary to the West’s belief that its political model is the only acceptable one, Russia, as well as China, is promoting a new model of international order that recognizes different forms of political governance and treats them with respect.

Ozerov noted that while Russia uses the same diplomatic tools to negotiate with Africa as the West, what sets it apart is that Moscow has no hidden agendas in its dealings.

One example provided by Ozerov is the West’s attempts to impose green energy policies on the African continent while simultaneously “sucking out” its natural resources such as oil, gas and coal to use back in Europe. The diplomat argued that African nations are beginning to realize that this approach is ultimately meant to prevent real industrialization on the continent.

Russia, however, is instead offering its extensive expertise in nuclear power to help the continent establish a reliable source of clean energy and further develop its industry, Ozerov said.

The diplomat also touched upon the issue of hunger in Africa, stating that Russia has a large amount of agricultural and fertilizer products that it is willing to offer to the continent, but noted that such exports are currently blocked by the West’s “illegal” sanctions.

https://www.rt.com/russia/573746-russia-africa-west-relations/

[Bill Ryan]

This is centrally relevant to everything we see happening round the world today. Chris Martenson takes just 20 minutes to explain how when the US froze (and tried to seize) Russian assets this time last year. that broke the trust in the current dollar-based global financial system. Now, the rest of the world is responding fast.

(The answer to the video title question below is YES. :))

Are we approaching the END of US DOLLAR hegemony?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfDXnNpQQgs

[Gwin Ru]

...

https://henrymakow.com/upload_images/uan-replaces-dollar.jpg

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/DonbassDevushka/51974

DonbassDevushka/51974

[arwen]

I'll just leave this little gem here......

1642925742165049360

For those not on Twitter, the full text of the above Tweet:


Astounding statement from White House official talking head Karine Jean-Pierre:

“We are deeply concerned about the transition of Brazil and China to national currencies when conducting mutual settlements. This is a violation of the rights of our citizens who rely on a stable dollar exchange rate on the world market .

America will not allow other countries to dictate their terms to it in mutual trade. We want to warn that the violation of the rights of ordinary Americans will not remain without consequences for these countries".

[Bill Ryan]

I'll just leave this little gem here......

1642925742165049360Wow. :)

Here's the full text of the tweet:

~~~

Astounding statement from White House official talking head Karine Jean-Pierre:

“We are deeply concerned about the transition of Brazil and China to national currencies when conducting mutual settlements. This is a violation of the rights of our citizens who rely on a stable dollar exchange rate on the world market.

America will not allow other countries to dictate their terms to it in mutual trade. We want to warn that the violation of the rights of ordinary Americans will not remain without consequences for these countries.

[shaberon]

“We are deeply concerned about the transition of Brazil and China to national currencies when conducting mutual settlements. This is a violation of the rights of our citizens who rely on a stable dollar exchange rate on the world market.



What a caterwauling catechumen.

What she means is she want to protect the gears the Fed shifts by adjusting interest rates, and blot out these cycles so no one pays attention to how fiscal policies cause catastrophes. When the public becomes aware, for example, that adjusting the value of Treasuries makes them dangerously unreliable, the world is less interested in collecting them, as in Not by Yuan Alone (https://sputniknews.com/20230331/not-by-yuan-alone-whole-set-of-national-currencies-to-deep-six-us-dollar-dominance--1109012015.html):


"Asian countries, and in part also African countries, depend less on the US dollar than was the case in the recent past. The US economy is, therefore, in a much weaker position than used to be the case with regard to the US public deficit and the possibility to finance it through the purchase of US government bonds by foreign countries’ financial institutions – such as the People’s Bank of China. The US is thereby losing its ‘soft power’ across the global economy and financial markets, as it is clear that the world is becoming multipolar, which rebalances this ‘soft power’ with, among other things, some sort of a multicurrency international monetary regime," Rossi continued.



They presume they should be able to get cash unlimitedly at will. If not, how could they ever do all this deficit spending? They are trying to defend a big negative. But as the pieces slip away:



According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the share of US-dollar-denominated foreign exchange reserves stood at 59.8%, as of Q3 2022, down from 72% in 1999. International players are continuing to switch from the greenback to other currencies for their reserves, overseas trade, and banking services.

For instance, Moscow not only adopted the yuan – also referred to as renminbi – as a reserve currency, but also pledged to use the Chinese means of payment "between Russia and countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America."

The yuan also appears to be ready to dethrone the petrodollar: last year, Beijing called on Gulf leaders to settle their gas and oil deals with China in yuan. The US and China remain the world's top two consumers of crude, using 18.7 million and 15.4 million barrels per day, respectively. Energy settlements in yuan are likely to deal a heavy blow to the greenback.


Moreover, earlier this week, China's national energy giant CNOOC and France's TotalEnergies completed their first yuan-settled liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal through the Shanghai Petroleum and Natural Gas Exchange.



According to another analyst:


They help to bypass the SWIFT Banking network, the need for US dollars, the need to have US secondary banks as an intermediary and all the related charges. If trade between two countries does not involve the United States, there is simply no reason to use the United States as an intermediary."

Indeed, the trend of cutting the dependence on the dollar and switching to national means of payment in international settlements is gaining steam. India and Tanzania have recently concluded a deal enabling them to use their respective currencies in bilateral trade.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has gone even further by seeking to reduce dependence not only on the greenback but also on euros, yens, and British pounds in financial transactions.




And because countries already have Treasuries, those are loans, for which we owe them a lot of debt:



"The US dollar is a debt based currency," Devonshire-Ellis explained. "If you look at the debt of the United States, it's significantly higher than its annual GDP. It is going to lead to problems in terms of how you value the US dollar when faced with a debt larger than our own production. That is going to spur arguments around the US dollar value (…) The US owes a lot of countries a lot of money, the viability and the sustainability of that is going to be called into increasing question."


Nonetheless, the problem is that the United States has abused its position leading to a significant erosion of trust in the US and now as a result, the American dollar's role as the global reserve currency is being challenged and rolled back, Devonshire-Ellis concluded.



What a deadly game, right? One doesn't exactly have a "national currency", since the closest effective thing is these Treasury Bonds, which means one borrows money for the opportunity to use money that is authored by a private bank. Such scenarios lead politicians into egregences such as Covid and military conflict.



The rest posted here is not current, but a historical platform that, inasmuch as there has been this running Capitalist scheme, there has also been a resistance. And if we were to symbolize that, there is the hero of two countries:


Marquis de Lafayette (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_du_Motier,_Marquis_de_Lafayette)


M. de Lafayette was actually a Monarchist who liked Benjamin Franklin and Marie Antoinette. He did not like Robespierre, the Jacobins, Jesuits, Napoleon, or slavery. He fought in the American and French Revolutions, and later worked with the Charbonniers and the Italian and Greek Carbonari. More specifically he was a Constitutional Monarchist, which was the idea behind the Bourbon Restoration.


In speeches, Lafayette decried those with connections at court who had profited from advance knowledge of government land purchases; he advocated reform.

As leader of the National Guard, Lafayette attempted to maintain order and steer a middle ground, even as the radicals gained increasing influence. He and Paris' mayor Jean Sylvain Bailly instituted a political club on 12 May 1790 called the Society of 1789 whose intention was to provide balance to the influence of the radical Jacobins.


He never accomplishes much in French politics and winds up in prison. They did also use Nine Muses Lodge (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Neuf_S%C5%93urs) where you can find the first Jesuit book mixes it up with Jacobinism. Having posted about the dawning differences of "the West" in secret societies here (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?120183-The-Multipolar-World-Order--yes-it-s-coming-&p=1549923&viewfull=1#post1549923), in general, Masons are not the same as Rosicrucians, which are not the same as Orders of Knighthood. These frequently have dissension and differences of opinion in different branches, if not in the same room.

Europe has difficulty forming an identity around the ethical issues of Christianity and Judaism, and most of these orders and societies fail to progress into mysticism very effectively.

During the late 1700s, the first conspiracy books were on Jesuits; after the death of J J C Bode, literature is seized by Jesuitry and counters with Judeo-Masonic conspiracies. This vein is continuous through the Anti-Masons, Whigs, and Republicans, the British Union of Fascists, and the John Birch Society.


Note that the Jesuits had inherited the power of an institution which had already been in the business of dominating Europe for a thousand years.

Bode is more or less making the accusation that they use Enlightenment societies to inflame violence, so they will be seen as the solution.

Such societies are where you go if you want to talk about anything outside of mainstream diktat. There are individuals such as Lafayette and Bode who believe that revolution is the only way to justice, and others who have more extreme ideas.




The closest thing to Humanism and Pythagoreanism attempted to rise in the Medici Renaissance, was swept through some changes, and essentially banished to Russia.


One of the oldest universities in the world is Florence, and also HRE Charles IV was behind openings at Pavia and Prague (https://247wallst.com/special-report/2022/04/01/the-oldest-universities-in-the-world/2/).


Charles V granted that settlement of the Knights Hospitallers known as the Maltese Falcon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribute_of_the_Maltese_Falcon), 1530.


The capital was even moved to Prague by Rudolf II (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor):

In 1607 the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II created the Grand Master [of Malta] a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (Reichsfürst).

Rudolf gave Prague a mystical reputation that persists in part to this day, with Alchemists' Alley on the grounds of Prague Castle a popular visiting place and tourist attraction.

Rudolf was a patron of the occult sciences, along with this and his practice of tolerance towards Jews; it was during his reign that the legend of the Golem of Prague was established.



Almost simultaneously:


Malta and the Order of St. John played an important role in Catherine's plan: the island of the knights was to serve as a bridgehead for a permanent Russian presence in the Mediterranean. Already in 1698 Tsar Peter had sent delegations and diplomats to Hospitaller Malta to negotiate a Russo-Maltese alliance against the Ottomans


That never quite came to be. Napoleon's victories trashed this order and it became whatever it is today. However:


Since the days of Catherine the Great (1729–1796), the Romanov rulers had been considered by Russian lamaists as the incarnation of White Tara, a female bodhisattva typically associated with Buddhist tantric practice and considered an emanation of Chenresig (the bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas), and the protectress of the Tibetan people.





So, there was something known as Rosicrucianism in the early 1600s, and, there was something called Fratres Lucis from Florence, ca. 1498. This is before you could say there was such a thing as Freemasonry, although there was Craft Masonry. And then these, original, orders, or more likely underground brotherhoods, sort of dissipate into nowhere, and the names are recycled later.

The important example is Fratres Lucis being used again around 1780 by von Ecker. Is this exactly Masonic? According to an article on Rosicrucianism (https://world-news-research.com/goldrosicr.html):


First, the founder, Hans Heinrich von Ecker und Eckhoffen, was an ex-member of the Gold- und Rosenkreuz. Secondly, the order drew on the same well of symbolism and esoteric tradition as the Gold- und Rosenkreuz. Thirdly, the initiates to the highest of the five grades of the order, the grade of Melchisedeck, were known as “Royal Priests” or “True Rosicrucians.”

...the most prominent member of the Gold- and Rosenkreutz, King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia.


And he is also claimed by something even older but still current, the Order of St. Joachim (https://www.stjoachimorder.org/history-of-the-order/the-enlightenment/):


The Gold Rosicrucians was headed by Johann Karl Baron von Ecker und Eckhoffen, who in 1787 was Chancellor of The Order of Saint Joachim. Baron von Ecker und Eckhoffen is named as a member of several other mystic societies, including the Christian Masonry of Bohemia in 1756, and the Asiatic Brethren.



Considering its patrons:


The Dukes of Württemberg were known as patrons of the arts, but also were key figures in the beginnings of Rosicrucianism. In the late 1500s and early 1600s, the court of a previous Duke of Württemberg was well known as a centre of alchemical and occult activities, with Simon Studion and Johann Valentin Andreae as its most notable Rosicrucian figures.


That is fairly original, and later there is confusion:


Albert Pike, a controversial but influential American Freemason and American Civil War general, carelessly and wrongly lumped The Order of Saint Joachim in with many of these Illuminati-related Enlightenment societies.


As is generally known:


Thomas Jefferson wrote a tribute to Weishaupt’s ideals and reformist zeal.


The specific ban hammer:

Increasing Jesuit animosity and anti-clerical sentiment from the Illuminati brought the unwanted attention of the Catholic Elector of Bavaria, who was already in confrontation with the Protestant Germanic states to the north. As a result the Elector of Bavaria issued edicts for the suppression of the Bavarian Illuminati on June 22, 1784, which were repeated in March and August, 1785 (the same year as Catholic Bavaria and Austria’s German ambitions were thwarted by Frederick the Great and the Germanic League).


And how disconnected such Masonry is:


An active man, he was also the Commander of the Priory of Bohemia for the Sovereign Order of Malta. In 1789 Kollowrat founded the first Masonic Lodge in Malta itself – St. John’s Lodge of Secrecy and Harmony – until it was ordered closed by the Inquisition in 1792.


Masonry is not a part of the Hospitallers like it was not of the Templars. However neither one of these groups was strictly Catholic either.



Concerning the Brothers or Knights of Light, or Asiatic Brethren, the fact that it is different and was never popular because it is too difficult is shown from the manuscripts of Count Wilihorski or Wieligorski of Warsaw. It refers to its Fathers as Heads of the Seven Churches of Asia. It has three degrees of Knights, then Levite and Priest. Unlike most other systems, it simply says the Knight degrees take seven years. The body had a total probation of fifteen years before you could even vote in it.

What happened was that when Austria and Russia shut down all these lodges, they simply dragged the library contents back to St. Petersburg and Moscow. From this one Polish count came fifteen hundred occult books and innumerable manuscripts. The Theosophists managed to find the Fratres Lucis manuscript in all that stuff. This is perhaps their most unique piece of evidence, and if the system can use the number seven or a multiple of seven, it does so.


Von Ecker's opinion of the typical Rosicrucian in his time is pretty much the same as what the G. D. looks like today, i. e., offer and promote wealth and power.

Poland was being invaded and divided in the 1770s. The first map for the partition of Warsaw includes "...a coat of arms and white eagle, with a dedication to Count Michal Wielhorski, who was then in Paris making a last ditch effort to preserve Poland's "Republic." One very curious element to this example of the map is the use of a modified version of the Kierdeja coat of arms, used by several Polish families, including the Wielhorski family...Count Michal Wielhorski (1730 - 1794), a Polish noble, official, politician, diplomat and writer. He was the Lithuanian "Grande Maitre d'Hotel" (Master of the Kitchen) in the years 1763-1774, Lithuanian Great Quartermaster in 1758-1762, who served as the starost and envoy of the Bar Confederation to France up to the First Partition. Count Wielhorski traveled to Paris in 1770, where he consulted with both Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Gabriel Bonnot de Mably, to submit suggestions for the reformation of Poland's unique "Golden Liberty", which had deteriorated from a semi-republican, semi-democratic political system, into a state of virtual anarchy. This map was prepared during Wielhorski's stay in Paris and undoubtedly reflects the prevailing French Enlightenment sympathies toward Poland's efforts to preserve its independent republic status." (BLR Antique Map information)



Ecker, with the help of certain collaborators, founded the order of the Ritter des Lichts in Vienna in about 1780 or 81.


It is uncertain whether he immediately formed an association for such secret work in Vienna or whether Justus had already founded one. Ecker, however, brought it fully to life, initially under the name of the Brothers of Light. Its ritual was kabbalistic; thus, for example, the two pillars bore the sephirotic names of Netlzach and Hod. When this form was found no longer suitable the order was given a different one and emerged under the name of the Asiatic Brethren of Saint John in Europe.




Ecker hoped to present his new order to the masonic world at the Wilhelmsbad convention of 1782. To this end he travelled to Schleswig early in 1782 to visit the Landgraf Carl von Hessen-Kassel, a prominent freemason and an avid explorer of mystical and esoteric rites who will be encountered again. Whatever took place between Ecker and the Landgraf, he did not succeed in his aim, since a protest against his appearance at Wilhelmsbad was registered by a group of leading members of the Berlin lodge Friedrich zum goldenen Moewen, headed by Woellner. Curiously, it is reported that Woellner later became a member of Ecker's order, along with Bischoffswerder and Crown Prince Frederick William, but at the time he and his co-protestors clearly felt acute resentment against Ecker.

“We know that Satan's emissaries are coming there to work their mischief We know that a totally new bogus order, the Knights of the True Light..."


In 1784 Ecker took up residence in Vienna, and the following year he and Hirschfeld reorganized the order as the Asiatic Brethren.

This was just the time when the Freimaureredikt was being promulgated (it came into effect early in 1786), and Ecker was now hoping that his order would find new protection in the north.

Under the protection of Carl von Hessen, Ecker and Hirschfeld now moved to Schleswig, which became the headquarters of the Asiatic Brethren.


As a Christian rebuke of them:


In the foreword Muenter laments the theosophical, magical and Rosicrucian strains in Freemasonry which had become stronger in recent years, threatening to turn people away from philosophy and enlightenment. He affirms the link between these strains and the suppressed Jesuit order, and goes on to attack the Rosicrucians for the way in which they nonsensically mix alchemy and theology and for the hierarchical nature of their system and the blind obedience and belief that they demand of their followers.


So the Asiatic Brethren sought to admit Jews, although it was recruiting Masons. In France and England, Jews could become Masons. To make a local system:


These Melchisedeck lodges were a device to enable the Asiatics to admit Jews while at the same time insisting that they be already initiated as masons. Since nearly all regular masonic lodges in Germany administering the Craft (or St. John's) degrees were exclusively Christian, it was necessary to claim the existence of an alternative Craft-degree system for Jews. In fact, the Melchisedeck lodges existed only in name, and the conferring of the Melchisedeck degrees was probably a formality. Mueinter, in a footnote, deplores this practice: "It is, as every Entered Apprentice knows, the first rule of a regular working lodges of all systems, that only Christians can be accepted." And he adds, quite incorrectly, that no lodges under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of London admit Jews. In fact, as already mentioned, the English lodges were at pains not to be exclusively Christian.


Meanwhile the order had spread far and wide, and there are records of lodges in Prague, Innsbruck, Berlin, Frankfurt, Wetzlar, Marburg and Hamburg.


In his defense about whether his order was compromised by Jesuits and the like, von Ecker says:


By the old order we mean the one which was not constituted as a systematic body but, as I have said, was passed on by word of mouth to those who were worthy.


von Ecker died in August 1791.



What happened is that their use of a French Masonic charter became highly unfavorable in the climate of German nationalism. German Lodges were compelled to relinquish it, which means they had to find a new authorization. Prince Karl of Hesse was not "anti-Semitic" in the idea of forbidding Jews, but, he would only grant a charter that kept them out of high offices and so forth because:


While Carl was willing to recognize the importance of the Jewish tradition of esoteric wisdom, he still clung to the belief that Christianity was the ocean into which all true initiatory traditions flowed.


He was an alchemist who belonged to every secret society and accepted Kabbalism, and remained a devout Christian above all. His friend St. Germain was an alchemist who had no interest in Jesus.

Even at that level, they only have so much in common.


As a consequence of that, here is what gets accepted and rejected:



After the break with Carl von Hessen the Judenloge succeeded in obtaining authorization from the English Grand Master, the Duke of Sussex, to operate under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of London. Henceforth its position was secure, but it remained isolated and ostracized by the mainstream of German Masonry.

Meanwhile Hirschfeld had tried to introduce the rites of the Asiatic Brethren into the Frankfurt lodge, but the lodge would have none of it. When an anonymous pamphlet, Das Judenthum in der Maurerey, was published in 1816 attacking the lodge in venomous terms and pointing to its links with Hirschfeld, the members published a rebuttal of the pamphlet's allegations, stating that the lodge had never pursued alchemical speculations and denying that anyone called Hirschsfeld had ever been a member.


It also happens to be said:


The ostensible reason that German masons give for rejecting Jews is that the latter cannot swear on the Gospel, but in fact the real motive is commercial jealousy.

The four signatories of the letter include the Jewish founder Geisenheimer and F.J. Molitor, both of whom sign themselves "S P R", Souverain Prince RoseCroix.



Understanding that the Bank of Prussia is about to eat the other German banks, some dangerous information is routinely confessed on anything about German banks (https://www.german-way.com/travel-and-tourism/banks-money/):



Germany’s first commercial bank was established in Hamburg in 1619. The Giro bank lasted until its takeover by the state-run Reichsbank in 1875.

By the early 1800s Frankfurt am Main was a banking center under the House of Rothschild.



True enough, and it is still in headlines over the issue of Restitution (https://www.preussischer-kulturbesitz.de/en/news-detail-page/article/2016/06/27/restitution-to-freemasons-forgotten-victims-of-national-socialism.html):


In September 2011, the Foundation handed over three paintings from the Alte Nationalgalerie to a society called “Freimaurerloge zur aufgehenden Morgenröthe” (Dawn Twilight Freemasons’ Lodge). “Zur aufgehenden Morgenröthe” was a Masonic lodge founded in Frankfurt am Main in 1807. During the first decades of its existence, it served as the central forum for the progressive Jewish bourgeoisie in Frankfurt. At the time, Jews were still excluded from membership of most clubs. Although it was committed to the ideal of religious tolerance, the lodge had a predominantly Jewish profile until 1935, when freemasonry was finally suppressed by the Nazi regime.


From the history of Jews (https://www.cairn-int.info/journal-archives-juives1-2010-2-page-30.htm) in this area:

...its first lodge master was Siegmund Geisenheimer, an associate of the Rothschild family. The historians Jacob Katz and Paul Arnsberg have shown that its members included almost all the leading families of the old Jewish community in Frankfurt along with those who had rapidly climbed the social ladder—such as the Hanau, Goldschmidt, and Rothschild families, and in particular their younger members.

But with the conservative, nationalist reaction that followed 1815, the Morgenröte became an almost exclusively Jewish lodge, continuing in vain to denounce the exclusive Christianization of German Masonry. The other lodges refused to have any further contact with it.


So, you see a post-Napoleonic English authority being applied in Frankfurt, moreover, considering its name, the place thought to be the inspiration for the English Golden Dawn (http://www.mastermason.com/luxocculta/golden.htm):


The Golden Dawn was founded on the discovery of a manuscript in cipher that, when subsequently deciphered, formed the basis of its ritual. Where this ritual ultimately originated is a mystery as is the role of an address that was found with the manuscript, an address of a Rosicrucian adept in Germany who was to give permission for the ‘re-establishment’ of an English branch of the Order.


Eventually in 1817 Morgenrothe found the full recognition it was seeking through August Frederick, Duke of Sussex, the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England, who empowered the lodge to operate as a Masonic lodge without any restrictions, with the added assurance that ‘parallel degrees would be instituted for them’. . Morgenrothe eventually left UGLE for membership in the Eclectic Covenant of Frankfurt in 1870.



From that point it becomes more obvious. German nationalist Nazis probably do not understand international finance Nazis. The Jesuits do understand the playbook of false flags, Antifa, cointel, and so on, which, so to speak, maintains a threat against themself. Of course this becomes most manifest through the Allied countries.

Whatever is going on through these Lodges that administer and unite German and English Capitalism has nothing to do with the Illuminati or St. Germain. Instead, the latter attempted to counter some of the unfluences around Beaumarchais (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Beaumarchais):


Beaumarchais assisted him in gaining the King's approval for the new military academy he was building, the École Royale Militaire, and in turn Duverney promised to help make him rich.

Beaumarchais went to Madrid with a letter of introduction from the Duc de Choiseul, who was now his political patron.

Last night poor, wealthy today (https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1xx99rr):


Not everyone at Versailles turned their envy of Beaumarchais into insults or injury.

The great financier Joseph Pâris-Duverney had made a fortune with his two brothers as arms merchants to the French army during King George’s War between France and England from 1740 to 1748. He doubled the size of his fortune supplying arms to the French army in the great Seven Years’ War from 1756 to 1763, the world conflict which, as noted, began in the American wilderness when Lieutenant Colonel George Washington ambushed a squadron of French troops and killed its commander.


Coming from the liquidation (https://www.chateauversailles-recherche.fr/english/publications/paper-publications/supports-to-external-publications/joseph-paris-duverney-financier-d-etat-1684-1770.html) of John Law:


For the following five years, they played an almost governmental role. This period is decisive in understanding the rise to power of the Pâris brothers, who began by supplying provisions to the armies, then consolidated their position with building projects, and finally strengthened it through a constant search to obtain the protection of princes and sovereigns using an unusual approach of systematically exploiting the influence of women close to the seat of power. These ranged from Mme de Maintenon to Queen Maria Leszczinska and the Marquise de Pompadour, and included Alexandrine de Tencin, Mme de Prie and the Duchess of Châteauroux.

When the four brothers went their different ways in 1726, it was only for a short period, after which the two younger brothers, Duverney and Monmartel, came back to take centre stage where they would remain. From this date onwards, through the royal mistresses, Duverney reached the height of his power. He was initially appointed director and general administrator of food supplies, distinguishing himself in provisioning, and indeed the strategic management of the armies, and taking an active part in the economic and financial policies of the kingdom, before devoting most of his time to the École Militaire. Right up until his voluntary retirement, his influence continued to grow, supported at first by the Duchess of Châteauroux and later by the Marquise de Pompadour, the goddaughter of his brother Monmartel, who was the court banker.



Conversely, the friend of St. Germain, Karl, was of the House of Hesse-Kassel, not the lord of the fief, who was his father. It is with this individual that "Bauer" becomes "Rothschild", i. e. starting its lucrative services for in Hesse (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesse):


The Landgrave Frederick II (1720–1785) ruled Hesse-Kassel as a benevolent despot, from 1760 to 1785. He combined Enlightenment ideas with Christian values, cameralist plans for central control of the economy, and a militaristic approach toward diplomacy. He funded the depleted treasury of the poor government by loaning 19,000 soldiers in complete military formations to Great Britain to fight in North America during the American Revolutionary War, 1776–1783. These soldiers, commonly known as Hessians, fought under the British flag. The British used the Hessians in several conflicts, including in the Irish Rebellion of 1798. For further revenue, the soldiers were loaned to other places as well. Most were conscripted, with their pay going to the Landgrave.


His son Karl held power and resided at Schleswig, 1769 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Charles_of_Hesse-Kassel). In 1803:

The Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel was also elevated to the status of Prince-Elector (Kurfürst), with his state thereby becoming the Electorate of Hesse or Electoral Hesse (German: Kurhessen, Kur being the German-language term for the Empire's College of Electors).

On 25 January 1805, Charles was granted the title "Landgrave of Hesse" by his elder brother, who had assumed the higher dignity and title of Imperial Prince-Elector.

The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in August 1806, rendering Hesse-Kassel's electoral privilege meaningless. Hesse-Kassel was occupied by the French in October 1806...


The more sordid details are with the next ruler of the province, older brother William (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_I,_Elector_of_Hesse):


Upon the death of his father on 31 October 1785, he became William IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel. He was said to have inherited one of the largest fortunes in Europe at the time.

William looked for help in managing his estate. He hired Mayer Amschel Rothschild as "Hoffaktor" in 1769, to supervise the operation of his properties and tax-gathering. The wealth of William's estate provided a good living for Rothschild and the men had a strong relationship; he founded the Rothschild family dynasty, which became important in financing and banking in Europe. Although they had been acquainted since 1775, William IX did not formally designate Rothschild as his overseer until 1801.

The early fortunes of the Rothschild family were made through a conjunction of financial intelligence and the wealth of Prince William. During the Napoleonic Wars, William used the Frankfurt Rothschilds to hide his fortune from Napoleon. This money then saw its way through to Nathan Mayer, (N.M.) in London, where it helped fund the British movements through Portugal and Spain. The interest made from this venture was reaped by the budding banker barons, who used it to swiftly develop their fortune and prestige in Europe and Britain. It was not long before their riches outweighed those of their benefactor, William of Hesse-Kassel.


He was a member of the Tugendbund, a quasi-Masonic secret society founded after the Battle of Jena–Auerstedt in June 1808 at Koningsberg.

[arwen]

1643053498483855361

Text of the Tweet:


The collapse of U.S. influence over Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom’s new alliances with China and Iran are painful emblems of the abject failure of the Neocon strategy of maintaining U.S. global hegemony with aggressive projections of military power. China has displaced the American Empire by deftly projecting, instead, economic power. Over the past decade, our country has spent trillions bombing roads, ports, bridges, and airports. China spent the equivalent building the same across the developing world. The Ukraine war is the final collapse of the Neocon's short-lived “American Century.” The Neocon projects in Iraq and Ukraine have cost $8.1 trillion, hollowed out our middle class, made a laughingstock of U.S. military power and moral authority, pushed China and Russia into an invincible alliance, destroyed the dollar as the global currency, cost millions of lives and done nothing to advance democracy or win friendships or influence.

[arwen]

Malaysia and China Team up With ‘Asian Fund’ to Take on the U.S. Dollar (https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/malaysia-and-china-team-up-with-asian-fund-to-take-on-the-u-s-dollar-mace/?utm_source=880hpy)


April 4, 2023

More bad news for the Biden administration.

According to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, China is willing to engage in discussions about establishing an Asian Monetary Fund, resurrecting a proposal from decades ago that aimed to decrease dependence on the US dollar. Anwar put forth the idea of creating the fund, emphasizing the importance of reducing reliance on the International Monetary Fund or the US dollar.

Anwar said, “When I had a meeting with President Xi Jinping, he immediately said, ‘I refer to Anwar’s proposal on the Asian Monetary Fund’, and he welcomed discussions.”

“There is no reason for Malaysia to continue depending on the dollar.”

The proposal for an Asian Monetary Fund is not a new idea. It was first suggested in the late 1990s as a way to reduce Asia’s dependence on the International Monetary Fund and the US dollar following the Asian financial crisis.

The proposal failed to gain traction at the time due to opposition from the US and concerns about regional rivalries. However, with the rise of China as a major economic power and increasing trade tensions with the US, there has been renewed interest in the idea in recent years.

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[Bill Ryan]

A very interesting and illuminating half hour discussion mostly featuring Jeffrey Sachs, an academic and unaligned diplomat of great experience, who has just returned from China.

The Chinese are apparently a little bewildered, he says, about all the recent American warmongering rhetoric. And he reports that all the Chinese really want is to do business in a multipolar world of sovereign nations, while he and Alexander Mercouris observe that while Russia may have all the commodities (oil, minerals, food) that the rest of the world needs, the really major emerging power bloc will be that of China+India.

BRICS rising as neocons destroy the west


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR4IErrOQhU

[Bill Ryan]

Wow.

https://t.me/CIG_telegram/29234

CIG_telegram/29234

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/DonbassDevushka/52864

DonbassDevushka/52864

[pounamuknight]

The empire used to brag about their multilateral sanctions (https://www.rt.com/news/498173-pompeo-iran-mulilateral-sanctions) superhero power

But as a multipolar horizon gets brighter, this modern day siege weapon begins to recede
1643176916332040193
Making imperial oligarchs cringe

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And fearmonger into WMD levels of cringgge :facepalm:

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[Vicus]

Syria, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye: Truces, not peace 04 Apr 2023

https://www.sott.net/image/s33/675398/large/Bashar_Erdoran.jpg

As reconciliation efforts sweep through West Asia to mend ties between old foes, the new China- and Russia-brokered deals will not usher in real peace until the US stops prolonging conflict

The mid-March Moscow summit between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin was notable for being publicized in advance. Since the outbreak of the Syrian war, Assad's foreign visits have not been publicly revealed until after they have occurred. This small but significant detail suggests the Syrian president has a newfound confidence in the political and security conditions outside his national borders.

While the participants kept a tight lid on leaks, informed sources from both Moscow and Damascus disclosed to The Cradle that the Syrian and Russian presidents discussed the following issues:

Economic ties: With a focus on Syria's energy sector, Putin expressed Russia's readiness to invest in the production of electricity in the Levantine state, which post-conflict, suffers from a 75 percent deficit in production. Putin also expressed Moscow's willingness to help Syria meet its vital grain needs.

Relations with Turkiye: While in Moscow, Assad reportedly refused to hold a four-way meeting between the deputy foreign ministers of Syria, Turkiye, Russia, and Iran. The Syrian president reiterated that Turkiye occupies Syrian lands, and negotiations between the two countries cannot advance from the security to the political level without a clear and public pledge from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to withdraw his military forces from the occupied territories, and open the main roads linking Syrian provinces - particularly the Latakia-Aleppo road, known as the M4 highway.


However, Moscow pressed its case, and reportedly reached an agreement between Damascus and Ankara stipulating that their negotiations would continue and move to the political level, with the main item on the table being Turkish withdrawal from Syrian lands. The basis for a much-awaited summit between Assad and Erdogan will be discussed at a later date.

The sources say that, for domestic political purposes, Erdogan needs to meet Assad before Turkiye's May presidential elections, to convey to voters that he seeks to stop the war at his country's southern borders, intends to repatriate the approximately three million Syrian refugees back home - a hot topic for voters - and to assure the Turkish Alevi electorate that he is not hostile to their sect, to which his rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu belongs.

Relations with Saudi Arabia: Putin, who has been leading the mediation efforts to normalize Saudi-Syrian relations, briefed Assad on the results of his talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS). According to official sources in Damascus and Moscow, Putin's initiative has made progress in reactivating critical communication between Damascus and Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia's strategic shifts

On 23 March, 2023, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the start of talks with Syria to reactivate consular work, which is a prelude to the return of normal diplomatic relations between the two countries, as reported by Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.

Sources speaking to The Cradle have confirmed that any potential progress in Syrian-Saudi relations are the result of these Russian mediation efforts, and are unrelated to the game-changing Saudi-Iran agreement struck in Beijing on 10 March. The sources believe that a meeting between Riyadh and Damascus may occur after the end of the month of Ramadan.

While the success of Saudi-Iran negotiations under Chinese auspices, and the potential breakthrough in Saudi-Syria relations under Russian sponsorship, suggest a strategic eastward turn for the kingdom, sources close to Riyadh emphasize that there is no change in the Saudi-US relationship.

While Riyadh's relations with Washington have experienced declines in the past, recent shifts in the global political, economic, and military landscapes have prompted MbS to diversify his country's partnerships, while preserving the strategic alignment with Washington.

continue: https://www.sott.net/article/479034-Syria-Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Turkiye-Truces-not-peace

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BrianMteleSUR/status/1641107495178444800

1641107495178444800

[shaberon]

In this whole topic nothing surprises me, except Dr. Assad saying Saudi Arabia is "out" and them doing a "local pivot" to "where I am". Any custodian of pilgrimage sites ought to be thinking about those peoples who are heavily drawn from one's neighbors. But of course it was a type of subverted puppet regime.

On the previous page I posted some stuff which was potentially sympathetic towards the Carbonari. The reason is as reflected in a user comment to Pepe Escobar's Moscow Diary (http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/57444.htm), Capital of the Multi-polar World:



I'm half Greek so I share your efforts to liberate humanity from the chains of Capitalism. However I respectfully suggest to you that Capitalism is a very detailed form of government where the elite and money lenders run the whole society of the rich, for the rich and by the rich in detriment of the rest of the population.




Well, that includes the Fascist and the Antifascist Totalitarians. Doesn't care about left or right. It does care about property, such as the amassing of large central banks, so the other post mostly looked in Germany. And so the relevance to this is how did we land ourselves in this situation, what is it. Why is it like a defective, dead limb of "multi-polar?"


What are "multi-polar" people stepping away from?


One thing I have noticed is that there is a one world currency movement, it is not a private party like Davos--I cannot quite remember if it is part of the U. N.--still has Jesuits involved.


To be fair of course, many Jesuits are interesting and never really did anything wrong. And in one sense, this may have been decent early relations with China, by attempting to spread religion but without the thought that it also meant a conversion to European culture. To the extent that Jesuits tried to protect ancestor worship from the pope. And then it is thought their early captures of Confucian writings were responsible for that Age in Europe called Enlightenment. This is the same thing they are later accused of infiltrating and subverting. Here are a few reflections on their visits from Jesuits in China 1842-1954 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvh8qxws):


Within two hundred years, members of the Society of Jesus, commonly called Jesuits, became advisors of monarchs, missionaries to foreign lands, defenders of the poor and the papacy, making enemies of those jealous of their power and influence. Such enemies, who finally forced Pope Clement XIV to suppress the Jesuits...


That was 1773, but, the same society comes back and returns to China ca. 1842, after the Opium Wars, and:


The resentment felt by many Chinese following the annexation of Chinese territory by Europeans during 1898 resulted in growing unrest in the empire. The Chinese felt humiliated and defeated after the invasion of Russia, Germany, England and France, and by the concessions demanded after their defeat. As a result, a new wave of antiforeign fervour grew among the Chinese...



On 22 January 1922, Costantini made an official visit to the president of the Chinese Republic, and held discussions with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, M Wang. Considering the expansion of foreign influence in China and the internal movement toward an independent nation, Wang wanted in future to deal with the representative of the pope, and not with foreign legations concerning matters relating to the Catholic missions. In suggesting a new agreement...


During 1925, there was an increase in anti-Christian propaganda. Reports were coming into the French legation with slogans like ‘Christianity is a poison to the Chinese’; ‘Christianity was the place where was born the diplomats who sold our country’; ‘Christianity is the soul of international capitalism’. Christianity was believed to serve imperialism in order to conquer China, with priests as spies of imperialism. The history of Christianity in China was seen as a way to conquer China by means of opium...


That represents Restoration. The fact that they did not die when suppressed in 1773 is for example Early Modern (https://www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/the-early-modern-jesuit-mission-to-china-a-marriage-of-faith-and-culture/):


The presence of ex-Jesuits, who continued their labors as secular priests, also played a role in sustaining the church.


This wasn't a Nuremberg Trials, nobody went to prison. Their offices were closed. In some cases this may barely have affected the people themselves. So, it is not an excuse why they could not have had anything to do with the French Revolution. Technically, no, not as a body or not officially, but if they can "sustain a church" in China, what can they do closer to home?

How they got there was in the World of the Pope, Spain got the West and Portugal got the East:


Following the passing of Ricci in 1610, the Jesuits fell out of favor with the state officials at Nanjing, the southern capital of the Ming dynasty. In a series of indictments, the Jesuits were charged with disturbing social order, hijacking the teachings of Confucius, and conspiring with the Portuguese crown.


Macau offered the Jesuits resources necessary for the maintenance of the mission and their own livelihood; in return, the Jesuits advocated for the Portuguese agenda of the city before the Chinese state.


This did not take two hundred years. Considering the society was only founded in 1540, among early Missions (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesuit_missions_in_China):


As early as 1546, two Chinese boys enrolled in the Jesuits' St. Paul's College in Goa, the capital of Portuguese India. One of these two Christian Chinese, known as Antonio, accompanied St. Francis Xavier, a co-founder of the Society of Jesus, when he decided to start missionary work in China. However, Xavier failed to find a way to enter the Chinese mainland...


It is not unusual for the Chinese to enter Indian schools, they had been going for a thousand years already. After this early foothold, colonialism sucked the life out of India's educational system, which led to breakdowns and poverty. From latter-day followers of Xavier, finally as the result of a lot of Missions (https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Jesuit_China_missions):


However, one should not overlook the fact that the Jesuit financial policy grievously aggravated the difficulties of that church. Their missionaries involved themselves in business ventures of various sorts; they became the landlords of income-producing properties, developed the silk industry for Western trade, and organized money-lending operations on a large scale. All these eventually generated misunderstanding and tension between the foreign community and the Chinese people. The Communists held this against them as late as the mid-twentieth century.


None of this is news to China. Did France or Portugal ever host Confucian missions and have to deal with whatever the Confucians are trying to pull?

It is true that Christianity was in China since ca. 600 in the form of the Church of the East, which, of course, has nothing to do with Rome. There, the Pope has always had the difficulty of a non-unified Italy and questions about what his temporal powers are. The first important ally was the relatively distant France, and the significant rival was Venice. So the Holy Roman Empire was created as a power base. That is not in Italy either, which means that eventually, in the Italian peninsula, there is difficulty determining if one's alliances run to a Germanic king, or to the Pope under the unlikely name of Guelph (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guelphs_and_Ghibellines):


The Ghibellines were the imperial party, while the Guelphs supported the pope.

The names were probably introduced to Italy during the reign of Frederick Barbarossa. When Frederick conducted military campaigns in Italy to expand imperial power there, his supporters became known as Ghibellines (Ghibellini). The Lombard League and its allies were defending the liberties of the urban communes against the Emperor's encroachments and became known as Guelphs (Guelfi).

The division between Guelphs and Ghibellines was especially important in Florence, although the two sides frequently rebelled one against the other and struggled for power in many of the other northern Italian cities as well. Essentially the two sides were now fighting either against German influence (in the case of the Guelphs) or against the temporal power of the Pope (in the case of the Ghibellines).



This is memorable since it catches one of the first people I think of as writing this same political tale in symbolism:


After the Tuscan Guelphs finally defeated the Ghibellines in 1289 at the Battle of Campaldino and at Vicopisano, the Guelphs began infighting. By 1300, the Florentine Guelphs had divided into the Black and White Guelphs. The Blacks continued to support the Papacy, while the Whites were opposed to Papal influence, specifically the influence of Pope Boniface VIII. Dante was among the supporters of the White Guelphs. In 1302 he was exiled when the Black Guelphs took control of Florence.


The Pope usually relies on France for security. We found that Marquis de La Fayette was a Constitutional Monarchist, i. e., there is such a thing as a type of revolutionary to install a king. This happened quite temporarily in France, until around 1830 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/2638827), the French Bourbons were removed and replaced by Liberals.


The Bourbons had returned to power after the abdication of Napoleon, 1815. The simultaneous effect in Italy from the Congress of Vienna (https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/The-rebellions-of-1831-and-their-aftermath):


Only the Savoy kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont remained outside the Austrian system designed and imposed on Italy by the Austrian foreign minister Klemens, Fürst (prince) von Metternich. Under Russia’s secret protection the Savoy government proved dependably reactionary.

In the Papal States the restoration, achieved principally by the diplomacy of the cautious secretary of state, Ercole Cardinal Consalvi, brought increasing government centralization. Educated men who had held positions of responsibility under the French and Italian governments resented bitterly the restoration of clerical control over all aspects of public life.

Many judicial and administrative reforms of the French era survived, but concessions made to the church in a concordat concluded in 1818, as well as financial retrenchment, hampered the progress of the bourgeoisie.


Then likewise in Italy, I think we can find a parallel to the difference between de La Fayette and Robespierre, similarly with Garibaldi and Mazzini:



Already in existence under French rule, apparently with a vaguely nationalist program, the society gained strength and formulated more-definite constitutional aims. The southern bourgeoisie was determined to take part in political life and to promote its interests openly. From the south the lodges of the Carbonari quickly spread to the Marche, the Romagna, Piedmont, and Lombardy.


The moderate Liberals, most of them Carbonari, had demonstrated a readiness to compromise with the absolute monarchs. They had distrusted democrats and republicans who sought to achieve Italian unification by political revolution and force of arms. Among these were the Adelfi, a secret society of the followers of Filippo Buonarroti. Ultimately, the task of organizing new cadres of democratic and republican opponents of the restoration governments fell to Giuseppe Mazzini, scion of a bourgeois and Jacobin family of Genoa. Exiled in 1830 at the age of 25, Mazzini turned away from both Carboneria and Buonarrotism and established his own organization, Giovine Italia (Young Italy).


In 1836 Mazzini, who had established relationships with democratic revolutionaries in other countries and cofounded Giovine Europa (Young Europe), left Switzerland and settled in London.

Mazzini’s democratic and republican movement was crumbling. In February 1853 an insurrection against the Austrians failed in Milan.


In 1857 Italian nationalists founded the monarchist-unionist Italian National Society, which supported the policies of Cavour. Under the presidency of Manin and the vice presidency of Garibaldi...

Although he did not outlaw conspiratorial movements, Cavour was determined to solve the Italian question by international politics rather than by revolution. At a secret conference held at Plombières, France, in July 1858 he arranged with Emperor Napoleon III for French military intervention in the event of Austrian aggression against Piedmont. Cavour’s goal was the complete expulsion of Austrian troops from the peninsula. In return for this help Piedmont had to cede Savoy and the county of Nice to France and outlaw the Mazzinian movement...

On October 26, 1860, Victor Emmanuel II met with Garibaldi on Neapolitan soil and was greeted as “king of Italy.”

And then we see a tactic of Capitalism around 1860 (https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Italy-from-1870-to-1945):


Many peasants espoused an especially violent form of brigandage, which, though fomented and often assisted by emissaries of the exiled Francis II, was a form of class warfare against the agrarian bourgeoisie. Men on horseback occupied villages in the south, killed Liberals, and raised the white flag of the Bourbon kingdom.



The main issue of political debate in late 19th-century Italy was land ownership. Liberal governments insisted that the municipalities should sell off most of the common land to private owners...



Yes, of course. You rig up a land confiscation system, I can understand that armed mobs are going to attack you.

Has it not long since been realized that such "owners" respond to nothing but force?


To summarize then yes, M. de La Fayette and Garibaldi were both Monarchists who belonged to Masonic Egyptian Rites, which were new in the 1800s due to discoveries. At the time, this would have corresponded to "not convinced" about the Templar Heritage myth, and at least being open-minded that something Egyptian may have value or wisdom. There is a rapid disconnect from English Masonry, which, in turn, gets its hands on the Frankfurt Lodge. M. de La Fayette had just literally been fighting the Rothschild Hessian merceneries in America.

The new United States had diplomats in France, Spain, and The Hague, not Prussia. And yet we are going to get a guy to go copy the Prussian Bank as if it were an obelisk covered with ancient hieroglyphs.


I believe this type of secret society also had its followers in Greece. Rebels against what was already known as the Money Power. Otherwise I expect most revolutions in Europe were a copycat industry, run by radicals, advocating the removal of monarchs so that for example what happened to Italy would continue. Transfer of land and other wealth to the few by a legalized system.

Russia had the political awareness of it all along, but not these kind of Lodges.


I am not sure how there could be an issue of "Russia and China presenting an alternative system" when they already have experience in identifying and removing the objectionable classes. More like they are picking off parasites. Then there is a domino effect across the Middle East which is supposed to be impossible. Even Tanzania says it does not need dollars for bilateral trades. It is in the Swahili culture which has 300+ million members. These people have an upsurge in Asian male DNA from ca. year 1,000. I would not tend to say India is making any "new alternative". They used to do stuff like this, pre-colonialism.


It seems to me that Western mono-polism is an aberration which was not there and then it was placed there, then it grew and we see it has run its course. The German bakery from 1688 with increased demand may have been forced to close, but, their weapons foundries are doing extraordinary. I do not think the products will be used for many victories, but there is a small chance they may actually be used.

[Ravenlocke]

Text:

Pranksters Vovan and Lexus posing as Zelensky tricked ECB President Christine Lagarde into disclosing her plan to launch a "Digital Euro" in October that will give central banks control over how citizens can spend money:

"There will be control. You’re right. You’re completely right. We are considering whether for very small amounts, you know, anything that is around 300, 400 €, we could have a mechanism where there is zero control. But that could be dangerous...

I don’t want Europe to be dependent on an unfriendly country’s currency, for instance, you know, the Chinese currency, the Russian currency... I don’t want Meta, Google, or Amazon to suddenly come up with a currency that would take over the sovereignty of Europe."

Central bank digital currencies are the latest battleground in the ongoing struggle for individual liberties. Without global awareness, central banks will pull off a massive violation of human rights, and citizens will cheer them on while they do it.

https://twitter.com/KanekoaTheGreat/status/1644116706544189441

1644116706544189441

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1644866288123101188

1644866288123101188


https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1644873337485623299

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[Bill Ryan]

It's very hard not to smile at this. :)

https://t.me/DonbassDevushka/53761

DonbassDevushka/53761

[arwen]

Europe must resist pressure to become ‘America’s followers,’ says Macron (https://www.politico.eu/article/emmanuel-macron-china-america-pressure-interview/)

BY JAMIL ANDERLINI AND CLEA CAULCUTT
APRIL 9, 2023

The ‘great risk’ Europe faces is getting ‘caught up in crises that are not ours,’ French president says in interview.

https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=1024,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/09/GettyImages-1250850747.jpg


ABOARD COTAM UNITÉ (FRANCE’S AIR FORCE ONE) — Europe must reduce its dependency on the United States and avoid getting dragged into a confrontation between China and the U.S. over Taiwan, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview on his plane back from a three-day state visit to China.

Speaking with POLITICO and two French journalists after spending around six hours with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his trip, Macron emphasized his pet theory of “strategic autonomy” for Europe, presumably led by France, to become a “third superpower.”

He said “the great risk” Europe faces is that it “gets caught up in crises that are not ours, which prevents it from building its strategic autonomy,” while flying from Beijing to Guangzhou, in southern China, aboard COTAM Unité, France’s Air Force One.

Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party have enthusiastically endorsed Macron’s concept of strategic autonomy and Chinese officials constantly refer to it in their dealings with European countries. Party leaders and theorists in Beijing are convinced the West is in decline and China is on the ascendant and that weakening the transatlantic relationship will help accelerate this trend.

“The paradox would be that, overcome with panic, we believe we are just America’s followers,” Macron said in the interview. “The question Europeans need to answer … is it in our interest to accelerate [a crisis] on Taiwan? No. The worse thing would be to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the U.S. agenda and a Chinese overreaction,” he said.

(Full article at link above in title)

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/AZgeopolitics/status/1645370120242360320

1645370120242360320

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/MyLordBebo/status/1646584964320821250

1646584964320821250

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Kanthan2030/status/1647291783817330691

1647291783817330691

[Vicus]

BRICS to surpass G7 in share of global economic growth – Bloomberg
19 Apr, 2023

https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.04/thumbnail/643ec9d985f540400f10799a.jpg

The bloc of developing countries will be a larger driver of development than the Western Group of Seven major economies

Members of the BRICS group – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – are expected to outpace the US-led G7 in terms of their contribution to the world’s economic growth, from this year, Bloomberg reported on Monday.

According to the outlet’s calculations – based on the latest IMF data –the BRICS countries will contribute 32.1% of the world’s growth, compared to the G7’s 29.9%.

The Group of Seven nations (G7) – consisting of the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan – has long been considered the most advanced economic bloc of countries on the planet. Russia was a member, until 2014, when it was expelled due to the fallout from the Western-backed Maidan coup in Ukraine.

The report indicated that in 2020, the contributions from BRICS countries and the G7 to global economic growth were equal. Since then the performance of the Western-led bloc has been declining. By 2028, the G7’s contribution to the world economy is predicted to decrease to 27.8%, while the BRICS will account for 35%.

Bloomberg calculations show that China will be the top contributor to global growth over the next five years, with its share set to be double that of the US. China’s share of global GDP expansion is expected to represent 22.6% of total world growth by 2028, the outlet wrote. India is projected to contribute 12.9% of global GDP.

“In total, 75% of global growth is expected to be concentrated in 20 countries and over half in the top four: China, India, the US and Indonesia. While Group of Seven countries will comprise a smaller share, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and France are seen among the top 10 contributors,” the outlet wrote.

A recent study by a UK-based macroeconomics research firm has also found that the gap between the two groups in terms of global economic weight is expected to continue to grow. The analysts noted that China and India have been experiencing robust economic growth, and more countries are interested in joining BRICS.

Earlier this year, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that “more than a dozen” nations have expressed interest in joining BRICS, including Algeria, Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bangladesh have acquired equity in the New Development Bank, the funding organization of BRICS.

Last year, BRICS countries proposed the creation of their own currency in order to move away from the US dollar and the euro in mutual transactions.


https://www.rt.com/business/574957-brics-to-pass-west-economy/

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/TheCradleMedia/status/1648816698705731584

1648816698705731584

https://thecradle.co/article-view/23848/brics-set-to-surpass-g7-in-economic-growth

BRICS set to surpass G7 in economic growth
The member states of the BRICS group, which include Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, are expected to surpass the US-led G7 states in economic growth expectations, according to a Bloomberg report.

Bloomberg estimates that the BRICS nations will contribute 32.1 percent of global growth, compared to the G7’s 29.9 percent, based on the most recent IMF figures.

According to the Bloomberg analysis, the G7 and BRICS nations each contributed equally to global economic growth in 2020. The western-led bloc’s performance, however, has since declined. The G7 is expected to make up just 27.8 percent of the global economy by 2028, while BRICS will make up 35 percent.

“In total, 75 percent of global growth is expected to be concentrated in 20 countries and over half in the top four: China, India, the US, and Indonesia. While Group of Seven countries will comprise a smaller share, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and France are seen among the top 10 contributors,” Bloomberg reports.

The report comes as BRICS has been receiving more and more interest from other states wanting to join.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said that “more than a dozen” countries have shown interest in joining BRICS this year, including Algeria, Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.

Other countries such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bangladesh have acquired equity in the BRICS’ New Development Bank.

The US Dollar has become more unreliable for dollarized economies due to rising interest rates regulated by the US Federal Reserve (FED) and the bank’s weaponization of the dollar through financial sanctions.

In addition, the west, especially Europe, is facing a growing energy crisis resulting from sanctions targeting Russian energy markets due to its invasion of Ukraine and the US sabotage of the Nordstream pipeline. Germany has also begun to shut down its remaining nuclear power plants.

In January, Lavrov said that the BRICS countries will discuss creating a common currency at the group’s upcoming summit this August.

Referring to the current US dollar-dominated international financial system, which exposes participant countries to the threat of economic sanctions imposed by Washington, Lavrov claimed that “serious, self-respecting countries are well aware of what is at stake, see the incompetence of the ‘masters’ of the current international monetary and financial system, and want to create their own mechanisms to ensure sustainable development, which will be protected from outside dictates.”

On 13 April, Brazil’s President Ignacio Lula da Silva called on the member states of BRICS and countries that seek to become part of it to replace the dollar in foreign trade.

“Every night, I ask myself why all countries have to base their trade on the dollar,” he said, adding the question, “Why can’t we do trade based on our own currencies.”

[Ravenlocke]

Text:

Russia and Cuba will continue to work on the formation of a multipolar world order, Sergey Lavrov said during a meeting with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez in Havana.
Lavrov noted that the Russian side is satisfied with the way the political dialogue between the two countries is developing.
http://t.me/vicktop55/14739

https://twitter.com/vicktop55/status/1649076730601127938

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https://twitter.com/vicktop55/status/1649098844687286272

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[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/thesiriusreport/status/1649282705379540992

1649282705379540992

[grapevine]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCcZShH7GuM&ab_channel=GeorgeGalloway

George Galloway's short but succinct closing thoughts from the latest MOATS.

[Bill Ryan]

I have to confess, I did like this fun image. :)

https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/56661
(https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/56661)
DDGeopolitics/56661

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Daark_web/status/1651678918850535424

1651678918850535424

[Bill Ryan]

https://t.me/CIG_telegram/30222

CIG_telegram/30222

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652587350495752192

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https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652587814452883456

1652587814452883456

https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652588840111177728

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https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652589275307970566

1652589275307970566

¤=[Post Update]=¤

https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652591088757252097

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[Bill Ryan]

https://twitter.com/apocalypseos/status/1652587350495752192

The 17-hour Global Conference on Multipolarity has ended, bringing together 124 intellectuals from 63 countries. Among the speakers are Lavrov, Alexander Dugin, Maria Zakharova, Nikolay Malinov, Franklin Niyamsi, Dogu Perincek, and Pepe Escobar.
[... and much more ...]Wow, what a terrific thing to read at the end of a long day.

:heart::heart2: :grouphug: :heart2::heart:

[grapevine]

Unfortunately we in the West are not part of it :thumbsdown:

[Vicus]

The ‘clash of civilizations’ is already underway as the world resists Westernization 4 May, 2023

China’s judgment is sound in attempting to rally non-Western nations against imposed values

https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.05/m/6450fbfd85f54025c70a87ce.jpg

“China’s latest attempt to rally the world against Western values,” reads a headline in The Economist, an outlet which is well known for its Anglo-capitalist outlook.

The article begins by citing Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” thesis, which argues that a clash between East and West would define the post-Cold War future as a form of cultural and religious identity conflict. In presenting this theme, the article then dives into what Xi Jinping has touted as his ‘global civilization initiative’ based on the premise that “civilizations can live in harmony.” The catch, as interpreted by The Economist, is that the “West must stop promoting its values, or Huntington will be proven right.”

Arguably, the world has been in a cultural conflict for a while now, and it didn’t start with US-China competition. The rise and surge of political Islam, after all, pursuing hard-line interpretations of Sharia law, and even going as far as terrorism and insurgency, was a reaction to Westernization in the Middle East, an attempt to try and enforce an Islamic identity against it. To some extent, the War on Terror was a ‘clash of civilizations’ as much as it was a clash of ideologies and cultural identities which saw each other as mutually existential threats.

For the past 400 years or so, Western nations have dominated the world. European empires, as well as the United States, subjugated nations and built colonial states across the globe. This was done primarily for economic reasons, allowing these countries to enrich themselves at the expense of colonies and creating vast commercial empires which were enforced by military power. Such imperialists framed themselves as benevolent guardians who represented a higher form of civilization and values which they were “bringing” to the colonized. Thus, as they spread their empires throughout Africa, Latin America, the Indian subcontinent, Asia, and elsewhere. Westerners also sought to expand their ideology and value systems.

It is because of this that “Westernization” and “globalization” have effectively meant the same thing, as the empires of old were the ones that brought the world together through the economic and trading system they created. But starting in the 20th century, many of the countries which were colonized by the West started to resist their oppressors, and movements for independence and liberation surged. One such movement, of course, was the rise of the Communist Party in China led by Mao Zedong, and every movement he inspired.

continue: https://www.rt.com/news/575650-clash-civilizations-china-westernization/

[Vicus]

South American nations seek to avoid dollar 3 May, 2023

Brazil could extend a line of credit to debt-laden Argentina in mutual trade

The presidents of Argentina and Brazil have announced plans to continue working on the development of a mechanism allowing them to avoid using the US dollar in bilateral trade.

Crisis-hit Argentina is seeking to rebuild its reserves to cover trade costs and future debt repayments as a key component of a major debt deal with international creditors.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Argentinian counterpart Alberto Fernandez were expected this week to reveal the new mechanism allowing Argentine firms to continue trading with Brazil without draining dollars from the country’s reserves. However, the leaders announced following a meeting on Tuesday that the plan still needed to be fine-tuned.

https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.05/m/64527d3e85f54059991593d1.jpg

“The meeting was long, difficult and we will carry out many more meetings,” Lula said alongside Fernandez, as quoted by the Associated Press. “I made a commitment to my friend Alberto Fernandez that I will do every and any sacrifice so we can help Argentina in this difficult moment.”

The proposed scheme reportedly includes a line of credit to finance Brazilian businesses that export to Argentina, aimed at avoiding the use of US dollars in settlements.

According to Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, the two nations are studying possible guarantees in order for Brazil’s government to provide financing.

“They’ve made the decision to help make sure that Brazilian companies continue exporting to Argentina and they had asked us to do some homework, which we have already done, and have to do with the necessary guarantees,” Fernandez said. He added that Economy Ministry officials will be meeting their Brazilian counterparts next week to discuss the details.

Earlier this year, Argentina sealed an agreement with China that allows companies in the debt-laden nation to pay for Chinese imports in yuan.

Buenos Aires owes $44 billion to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The nation is currently renegotiating the agreement signed with the fund last year to restructure some of its loans.

https://www.rt.com/business/575723-argentina-brazil-dollar-trade/

[Vicus]

Why the planet is done with "the empire of lies" imperialism...

Great "panoramic" about all topics connected bringing the rise of Multipolar world


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nk-WfmY5aNA

take your time, its worth of...

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Kanthan2030/status/1655887541885894656

1655887541885894656

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/GeopoliticaEcon/status/1655246479320129542

1655246479320129542

https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/04/15/brics-bank-dollar-local-currencies-dilma/

BRICS Bank de-dollarizing, promises 30% of loans in local currencies, new chief Dilma Rousseff says

The new president of the BRICS Bank has revealed that the Global South-led bloc is advancing toward de-dollarization, gradually moving away from use of the US dollar.

The New Development Bank plans to give nearly one-third (30%) of its loans in the local currencies of the financial institution’s members.

Dilma Rousseff, the left-wing former president of Brazil, took over the leadership of the Shanghai, China-based New Development Bank (NDB) this March.

The NDB was created in 2014, by the BRICS bloc of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, as a Global South-oriented alternative to the US-dominated World Bank, which is infamous for imposing neoliberal economic reforms on impoverished countries, which hinder their development.

In an interview with China’s major media outlet CGTN on April 14, Rousseff explained, “It is necessary to find ways to avoid foreign exchange risk and other issues, such as being dependent on a single currency, such as the US dollar”.

“The good news is that we are seeing many countries choosing to trade using their own currencies. China and Brazil, for instance, are agreeing to exchange with RMB (renminbi) and the Brazilian real”, she said.

“At the NDB, we have committed to it in our strategy. For the period from 2022 to 2026, the NDB has to lend 30% in local currencies, so 30% of our loan book will be financed in the currencies of our member countries”, Rousseff added.

“That will be extremely important to help our countries avoid exchange rate risks and shortages in finance that hinder long-term investments”, the new NDB president stressed.

Members of the NDB not only include the founders of the BRICS but also Bangladesh, the UAE, and Egypt. Uruguay is likewise in the process of joining, and many other countries have expressed interest.

Argentina, Iran, and Algeria have formally applied to join the extended BRICS+ bloc, and according to the foreign minister of Russia, Sergei Lavrov, other nations that are interested “include Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Argentina, Mexico, and a number of African nations”.

South Africa’s foreign minister, Naledi Pandor, revealed in January that BRICS plans to “develop a fairer system of monetary exchange” in order to weaken the “dominance of the dollar”.

“The systems currently in place tend to privilege very wealthy countries and tend to be really a challenge for countries, such as ourselves, which have to make payments in dollars, which costs much more in terms of our various currencies”, she said.

“So I do think a fairer system has to be developed, and it’s something we’re discussing with the BRICS ministers in the economic sector discussions”, Pandor added.

This April, Brazil’s current president, Lula da Silva, a fellow member of Dilma’s leftist Workers’ Party, took a historic trip to China, where he called to challenge US dollar dominance.

While in Shanghai, Lula was the first head of state to visit the NDB headquarters, where he attended the swearing in ceremony for Dilma.

Lula said the NDB’s goal is “creating a world with less poverty, less inequality, and more sustainability”.

He added that the bank should play a “leading role in achieving a better world, without poverty or hunger”.

Dilma also commented, “As a former president of Brazil, I know the importance of the work of multilateral banks to support developing countries, particularly NDB, in addressing their economic, social, and environmental needs”.

“Becoming the president of the NDB is undoubtedly a great opportunity to do more for the BRICS, the emerging markets, and developing countries”, she said.
In her interview with CGTN, Rousseff explained her goals with the BRICS Bank:

It is very important to me that New Development Bank, the bank of the BRICS, acts as the tool to support the development priorities of the BRICS and other developing countries.

We need to invest in projects that contribute to three fundamental areas:

First, we need to support the countries with regards to climate change and sustainable development goals.

Second, we should promote social inclusion at every opportunity we have.

And I believe we should finance their most critical and strategic infrastructure projects.

That said, we want to promote quality development.

Developing countries still don’t have the necessary infrastructure. They don’t have enough ports, airports, and highways to meet their needs. And many times, the ones they have are not adequate.

They still have to build alternatives and more modern models of transportation, for instance.

I see China, a country that has developed capability for alternative transportation at the scale and quality it needs.

NDB has to support the other countries to also build their quality infrastructure as well, like high-speed trains.

It is very important to invest in technology and innovation, invest in universities for example.

Our countries will not overcome extreme poverty if we don’t invest in education, science, and technology.

When asked what challenges the BRICS and NDB face, Rousseff replied:

The world now is under the threat of high inflation and restrictive monetary policy, particularly in developed countries.

Such monetary policy means a higher interest rate, and therefore a higher probability of reduction in growth and a higher probability of recession.

This presents an important question for the BRICS. We need a mechanism, a so-called anti-crisis mechanism, which must be counter-cyclical and support stabilization.

It is necessary to find ways to avoid foreign exchange risk and other issues, such as being dependent on a single currency, such as the US dollar.

The good news is that we are seeing many countries choosing to trade using their own currencies.

China and Brazil, for instance, are agreeing to exchange with RMB (renminbi) and the Brazilian real.

At the NDB, we have committed to it in our strategy. For the period from 2022 to 2026, the NDB has to lend 30% in local currencies, so 30% of our loan book will be financed in the currencies of our member countries.

That will be extremely important to help our countries avoid exchange rate risks and shortages in finance that hinder long-term investments.

[Bill Ryan]

A small news item, but this is now happening everywhere in South America and Africa.

There are already many Chinese products everywhere in Ecuador (some very good quality, I have to say) — a new addition is a $900 (no typo!) Chinese electric car (https://engineerine.com/how-china-is-making-ev-for-just-900/) — but now it's going the other way as well.


https://cuencahighlife.com/new-china-trade-deal-could-have-massive-economic-impact-government-declares-covid-19-emergency-over-impeachment-trial-could-start-may-20

New China-Ecuador trade deal could have ‘massive economic impact

The new trade agreement between Ecuador and China, signed on Wednesday, will have a “massive economic impact” on the country’s agricultural, seafood and manufacturing sectors, according to the Ministry of Production and Trade.

“We believe there will be an increase of at least $3 billion in exports in the first year of this arrangement,” the Ministry said in a bulletin. “China is Ecuador’s largest trading partner and the amount of goods moving between the two countries will only increase.”

Following 10 months of negotiations, Ecuador becomes the fourth Latin American country to sign a trade agreement with China.

The new agreement will allow preferential access for 99% of Ecuador’s current exports to China but without fees or tariffs, with shrimp, bananas, roses and cut flowers, cocoa, coffee, being most significantly affected.

In addition, products such as cheese, pork, chicken, pitahaya, pineapple, mango, blueberries, quinoa, processed foods, fresh and canned fruits, wood products, wooden accessories, handicrafts, among others, will arrive for the first time in China without restrictions.

The Ministry said that import tariffs will remain for some product coming from China to protect Ecuadorian producers. These will apply to some textiles, school shoes, ceramics, tires, furniture, sugar, rice, potatoes and corn, among others.

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/KawsachunNews/status/1656488568640995328

1656488568640995328

https://twitter.com/camilapress/status/1656519331402883072

1656519331402883072

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/TheCradleMedia/status/1658530290233401344

1658530290233401344

https://thecradle.co/article-view/24880/iraq-bans-us-dollar-transactions-in-latest-move-towards-de-dollarization

Iraq bans US dollar transactions in latest move towards ‘de-dollarization’

The Iraqi government issued a ban on 14 May outlawing the use of the US dollar for both personal and business transactions, coming as part of a growing ‘de-dollarization’ trend and an overall decline in Washington’s economic influence.

The ban was enforced on 14 May and aims to boost the use of Iraq’s local currency, the dinar.

It is also designed to reduce the gap between the official government exchange rate and the exchange rate offered by the black market, which continues to fluctuate and has resulted in price surges.

In a statement, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said: “The dinar is the national currency in Iraq. Your commitment to transact in it instead of foreign currencies boosts the country’s sovereignty and economy.”

The ministry added that anyone dealing in currencies other than the local currency would be subject to legal punishment and said that it is committed to “hold accountable anyone who attempts to undermine the Iraqi dinar and the economy.”

In order to properly enforce the ban, the Interior Ministry’s Crime Directorate has requested that traders sign agreements assuring the government that they will conduct transactions in local currency only.

According to General Hussein Al-Tamimi of the Crime Directorate, violators of these pledges will be forced to pay a fine of one million Iraqi dinars, adding that repeat offenders may be subject to prison time.

“If the violator repeats it, he will face an imprisonment penalty of up to one year plus a one-million Iraqi dinar financial fine. In case of a third violation, that penalty will be doubled, and we will have the business license turned,” the official added.

US dollars are already scarce in the country’s official markets as a result of recently imposed measures by Washington to control the movement of dollars inside Iraq. While the new government of Mohamed Shia al-Sudani has moved swiftly to contain the financial fallout, these US policies have given rise to a debate inside Iraq about the benefits of de-dollarization.

Iraqi MP and member of the Finance Committee in Iraq’s Council of Representatives, Hussein Mouanes, told The Cradle in an exclusive interview earlier this month that “Iraq has been and continues to be a slave to the US dollar … every country’s economic strength depends on the strength of its currency.”

“It is clear that Iraq is economically dominated by the US, and our government does not truly control or have access to its own money … We believe that it is crucial to move away from the hegemony of the dollar, especially as it has become a tool to impose sanctions on countries. It is time for Iraq to rely on its local currency,” he added.

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Trollstoy88/status/1658547981883256832

1658547981883256832

[Bill Ryan]

A 'BRICS' Olympics'... I never saw that coming. :)

https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/63396

DDGeopolitics/63396

[grapevine]

A 'BRICS' Olympics'... I never saw that coming. :)

https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/63396

DDGeopolitics/63396

Wow! They really are putting the boot in and good for them. It'll be the Bricsavision Song Contest next ! :sing: :pound:

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/ricwe123/status/1659534274322653187

1659534274322653187

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/ArthurM40330824/status/

1659567908664532992

[Ernie Nemeth]

I guess the new multipolar world order will have differing opinions on mask use...

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/KevorkAlmassian/status/1659603823789326348

1659603823789326348

Y1IY3SAmZ3I

[Bill Ryan]

BRICS is most certainly going to be the major geopolitical alliance from here on out. The list of countries applying to join is growing rapidly.

https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/64252

DDGeopolitics/64252

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Geopolitics_Emp/status/1659789354590453760

1659789354590453760

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/onlydjole/status/1660769895032709120

1660769895032709120

[Vicus]

The US bombed Laos into oblivion and is now trying to scare it away from cooperation with China

https://www.sott.net/image/s33/679129/large/646b6d4185f5403c8b094202.jpg
FILE PHOTO: A young man rides atop a load of cluster bomb casings and bomb scrap that his family is taking to a scrap market in town, Xieng Khouang, Laos, 2005.

Laos - a landlocked communist state in Southeast Asia, wedged between China, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar - has the potential to be a nexus of sorts for the entire region. However, its cooperation with Beijing has come under fire from the West.

The impoverished nation holds the unenviable distinction of "the most bombed country in history" after the US dropped over 2 million tons of bombs on it during the Vietnam War. Laos is still weathering the consequences, including deaths from unexploded munitions. Faced with numerous challenges, it has leaned on its giant northern neighbor for assistance.

In recent years, Laos has benefited considerably from China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In late 2021, the China-Laos railway was built, a high-speed system connecting the country's capital to Beijing. This has been a gamechanger for its foreign trade and exports. Сurrently, a new superhighway is also being built across the country. Last week, however, an article from Reuters attracted widespread disdain on social media as it sought to frame China's development in the country as risking a "new pandemic." It was titled 'China, birthplace of the covid pandemic, is laying tracks for another global health crisis.'

The article argued that Laos is home to a bat population that carries "novel coronaviruses," the same source which allegedly gave rise to Covid-19. By building a highway through the country's tropical forests, the argument goes, humans will be brought into closer contact with bats, thus destroying their environment and risking a new pandemic. This textbook example of an over-the-top 'China bad' story exaggerates and fixates on the speculated negative consequences of Beijing's activities, never providing the full picture. It is never touched on, for example, how up to 50 people a year in Laos continue to die from undetonated US bombs dropped on the country during the Vietnam war.

continue:
https://www.sott.net/article/480536-The-US-bombed-Laos-into-oblivion-and-is-now-trying-to-scare-it-away-from-cooperation-with-China

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1660994032862998530

1660994032862998530

https://ar.motor1.com/news/668189/autos-chinos-yuanes-argentina/

Until a few months ago, automakers could import vehicles in Argentina with two modalities: paying with Central Bank dollars (at the official exchange rate, but with waits of up to a year to get the official approval of the SIMI/SIRA) or with the "Frank Sinatra Dollar" (the "own dollars" option, of faster but expensive procedure, read more).

However, since the swap with China was activated to make an exchange of Argentine pesos with yuan from the Asian country, the Central Bank began to have in its reserves the equivalent of 5 billion dollars in Chinese currency. Those yuan are being used to pay directly for imports from China, without using the scarce dollars of the BCRA.

The main beneficiaries of this modality are the importers of Chinese cars, who have already managed to enter 800 vehicles into the country using this modality. The conversion of pesos to yuan is done by taking the exchange rate of the official dollar as an intermediary, although without using the North American currency.

The benefit, for now, is for Chinese car importers, who in this way manage to enter products that they had delayed, in addition to achieving a greater profit margin. In dealerships, customers at the moment are not seeing this advantage: it may be that there is more stock of Chinese cars, but prices will not go down despite the fact that they now use a more convenient import exchange rate.

In 2022, the best-selling Chinese cars in Argentina were the Ford Territory, Cherry Tiggo4, Chery Tiggo2 and Baic X35 (see statistics). The Clarín newspaper published a special report about this new import modality created to the measure of Chinese cars. You can read it in full below.

Note from the Clarín newspaper

The shelter of least expected value: Chinese cars, paid with yuan at official value

The Central Bank does not sell dollars to the importer: it uses the "swap" of reserves in Chinese currency, equivalent to US$ 5 billion. So far this year, about 800 vehicles were sold.

By Luis Ceriotto

Who has ever seen a yuan? Unlike the dollars that Perón already mocked in 1948, or even euros, the currency of the People's Republic of China is not seen by savers as a haven of value.

However, during the first quarter of this year there were almost 800 buyers of zero kilometer vehicles who, indirectly, acquired millions of yuan from the Central Bank that were used to pay for those imports.

With high-end imported vehicles, as Clarín pointed out this week, the Government opted for the pragmatic route and now accepts the payment with dollars in cash by the customer, so as not to require the use of reserves from the Central Bank. That modality was incorporated into the Import System or SIRA, to unlock imports that had been slowed down for more than two years by the stocks.

Since November, about 2,000 high-end units have already entered, whose price has a dollar bill component ($488 per unit, at the end of Tuesday) that includes at least 50% of the final price.

With Chinese vehicles, the situation is different: like all imported vehicles, their price lists are nominated in dollars. But in this case, the Ministry of Commerce and the Central Bank approve imports by the traditional means, that is, with the importer acquiring the currencies at official price in the Single Market and Free of Exchange (MULC). Instead of 488 pesos per dollar, buyers pay 242 pesos (Tuesday's closure) per unit.

Why do some cars do and others no? The difference is the source of funding. Chinese vehicles are not paid with dollars, but with the yuan that the Central Bank treasures among its reserves. They are equivalent to about 5 billion dollars (each yuan is equivalent to 0.14 dollars) and Chinese automakers, from now on, accept to be paid with that currency.

This was described by one of the main members of the Chamber of Automotive Importers and Distributors (CIDOA). "Those of us who have representation of Chinese car brands have the option of using yuan to pay. The SIRAs come out easily with that option. In China you can pay with dollars or yuan and the Central Bank has a fund in yuan equivalent to 5 billion dollars," half-dead with laughter, he said.

In sales, Chinese cars are not exactly leaders: in total, vehicles of that origin totaled 756 patents between January and April, against a total of almost 150,000 (less than 0.3%).

In Argentina there are 13 brands of Chinese origin, which converge in the CIDOA chamber. The leader in the sector is Chery, with just 179 patents in the first four months of the year. Chery is one of the most experienced brands in the country and with an assembly plant in Uruguay. The representation for 15 years has been held by the Socma group. Founded by Franco Macri, the late father of the former president, Socma had been the leader of car manufacturing in Argentina in the 1980s and 1990s, when he had the representation of the former Sevel (Fiat and Peugeot). Franco Macri went so far as to announce, in 2008, that Chery would invest 500 million dollars in a factory in the country, a project that never materialized.

Now the one who made a similar announcement is the Argentine ambassador to China, Sabino Vaca Narvaja, who in February assured that the company had confirmed an investment of 400 million dollars to install a factory. Chery's commercial representation is still from Socma, who did not participate in that announcement. There were also no Chery executives accompanying the Argentine ambassador.

Two other brands, Shineray and Changan, assemble small trucks in Argentina. In La Plata, the local company Ralitor produces the local version of the Shineray T30 small truck. While in La Rioja there is Changan Argentina, represented by Omar Daneri (cousin of Manuel Antelo), who assembles the small truck in MD201 pick up format.

The second best-selling Chinese brand so far this year is Foton (167 units), a manufacturer of small and utility trucks. It is followed by BAIC (72 units), Haval (54) and Shineray (54): these three brands include in their range of imported products expensive 4x4 type vans, whose prices in dollars bring them closer to their competitors in Europe or Korea. The difference is that those brands can be paid with the "swap" of yuan.

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Kanthan2030/status/1660701420289667072

1660701420289667072

https://twitter.com/Kanthan2030/status/1660722844182130688

1660722844182130688

[christian]

A very interesting and illuminating half hour discussion mostly featuring Jeffrey Sachs, an academic and unaligned diplomat of great experience, who has just returned from China.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR4IErrOQhU

I wouldn't say Jeffrey Sachs is unaligned, he's rather a prime example of a globalist deep-state bureaucrat. He's not aligned to the US or to any particular country, but to the globalist dream of a worldwide technocracy. As I've said before, I'm afraid that's what the mulitpolar world is all about. While the drive towards a global technocracy has so far been dominated by the US, leadership is now becoming more diversified, but that doesn't change anything about the general objective which is totalitarian control.

Here is a comprehensive article about Jeffrey Sachs by independent journalist Aya Velázquez called "The fabulous world of Dr. Sachs" (https://ayavela.substack.com/p/the-fabulous-world-of-dr-sachs).

[Bill Ryan]

A very interesting and illuminating half hour discussion mostly featuring Jeffrey Sachs, an academic and unaligned diplomat of great experience, who has just returned from China.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR4IErrOQhU

I wouldn't say Jeffrey Sachs is unaligned, he's rather a prime example of a globalist deep-state bureaucrat. He's not aligned to the US or to any particular country, but to the globalist dream of a worldwide technocracy. As I've said before, I'm afraid that's what the mulitpolar world is all about.Yes, Jeffrey Sachs holds a few odd views. He's had one or two epiphanies in his time, but (e.g.) still believes that reducing carbon emissions is important re climate change.

Significantly, I'd suggest, he's been widely criticized in the west for his support of the political stances of both Russia and China. As a result of that he's increasingly dismissed by mainstream pro-US commentators, and that might tell us something.

(I should have specified "unaligned with the views of the US and EU". He has no formal alignment with Russia or China, merely advocating for them both in his writing and interviews.)

China may be problematic in quite a few aspects, but everything I see around me screams that the US is extremely dangerous to the entire human race in too many ways to easily list. And the EU, UK, AUS, NZ all just dance to the US's tune, while the BRICS+ nations all back away tigether slowly and carefully.

If the Ukraine war escalates into a kinetic, missile-launching WW3 — which as each week passes seems less and less impossible — all that will be at the US's hands, and the US neocons do seem to want exactly that.

(If that were to happen, though, the US would probably be destroyed within a day. My guess is that the Russian military has already wargamed all that out with confidence, but Putin definitely doesn't wish to initiate the catastrophe. Some others in Russia might have a different view, though, Medvedev maybe being one of them.)

Meanwhile, here's a view from Russia that reassures me. :)

https://t.me/thecoppermountain/4218

thecoppermountain/4218

[christian]

Jeffrey Sachs […] [has] been widely criticized in the west for his support of the political stances of both Russia and China. As a result of that he's increasingly dismissed by mainstream pro-US commentators, and that might tell us something.

(I should have specified "unaligned with the views of the US and EU". He has no formal alignment with Russia or China, merely advocating for them both in his writing and interviews.)

China may be problematic in quite a few aspects, but everything I see around me screams that the US is extremely dangerous to the entire human race in too many ways to easily list. And the EU, UK, AUS, NZ all just dance to the US's tune, while the BRICS+ nations all back away tigether slowly and carefully.

I agree that Sachs is unaligned with the US or with any other nation. He's aligned with the globalist agenda.

It's common knowledge, especially in the non-Western world, that the US has been the world's bully for quite some time. What happens now is problem–reaction–solution on a global scale. US hegemony is the problem, the reaction is that people around the world want an end to US hegemony, the solution is a multipolar world where all major governments are aligned with the globalist agenda.

Governments have often been accurate at pointing out the flaws of hostile governments, but when the rubber hits the road they all work to establish a technocratic dystopia. They all went along with CoViD lockdowns and experimental immune therapies. Russia has its own digital ID (https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/07/19/russia-to-phase-out-paper-passports-by-2022-a66489), social credit system (https://www.google.com/search?q=social+credit+system+russia), and a central bank digital currency (https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/02/17/bank-of-russia-to-pilot-cbdc-in-april/).

The decentralization of political power among the countries of the world merely camouflages the centralization of governance measures through international institutions and federations such as BRICS, the UN, the WHO, the IMF, and others.

True liberation is in the empowerment of the individual, the decentralization of power not among countries, but all the way to the individual level—the reduction of government authority in favor of more civil liberties. All major governments oppose this.

[Vicus]

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpEY-DciGpJrpQuCIV0akVMfdKD13fHPhBr1fYOQt83tU0HkNxrcnIOYHuhQKY3-lYUeGV8I4lJMYpX37YcJ1k2iDa8soE4E-ccuEH4mUGTclpyXiooRwC4dcGibAbg-W6F4CNQG5KnquH3ufgMcW7RI3DjdweUGam9mtwwA6tJ-C7qK77k-AC7Hjbog/s600/rebel-memes00006.jpg

[Bruce G Charlton]

Jeffrey Sachs […] [has] been widely criticized in the west for his support of the political stances of both Russia and China. As a result of that he's increasingly dismissed by mainstream pro-US commentators, and that might tell us something.

(I should have specified "unaligned with the views of the US and EU". He has no formal alignment with Russia or China, merely advocating for them both in his writing and interviews.)

China may be problematic in quite a few aspects, but everything I see around me screams that the US is extremely dangerous to the entire human race in too many ways to easily list. And the EU, UK, AUS, NZ all just dance to the US's tune, while the BRICS+ nations all back away tigether slowly and carefully.

I agree that Sachs is unaligned with the US or with any other nation. He's aligned with the globalist agenda.

It's common knowledge, especially in the non-Western world, that the US has been the world's bully for quite some time. What happens now is problem–reaction–solution on a global scale. US hegemony is the problem, the reaction is that people around the world want an end to US hegemony, the solution is a multipolar world where all major governments are aligned with the globalist agenda.

Governments have often been accurate at pointing out the flaws of hostile governments, but when the rubber hits the road they all work to establish a technocratic dystopia. They all went along with CoViD lockdowns and experimental immune therapies. Russia has its own digital ID (https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/07/19/russia-to-phase-out-paper-passports-by-2022-a66489), social credit system (https://www.google.com/search?q=social+credit+system+russia), and a central bank digital currency (https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/02/17/bank-of-russia-to-pilot-cbdc-in-april/).

The decentralization of political power among the countries of the world merely camouflages the centralization of governance measures through international institutions and federations such as BRICS, the UN, the WHO, the IMF, and others.

True liberation is in the empowerment of the individual, the decentralization of power not among countries, but all the way to the individual level—the reduction of government authority in favor of more civil liberties. All major governments oppose this.

An important point. In choosing to support what is clearly the lesser of evils; we should not fall into the trap of regarding it as good.

However; not all countries are the same.

I think there is considerable evidence that Russia - specifically - has been on a trajectory towards good, as I understand good; deriving from its explicit alliance of government with the strong and spontaneous grassroots Orthodox Christian revival that began as soon as the Soviet Union collapsed.

This resurgence of religious faith has (I believe) provided a basis for positive, active, explicit and sustained official support for subordinate, but important, 'goods' -- such as protecting and preserving a valued sense of nation/ people/ culture/ civilization/ destiny; and many of the core human values relating to marriage, family, children etc. - by contrast, such values are increasingly (officially, and by all major institutions - including churches, and mass media) illegal, demonized, prosecuted, persecuted and inverted in The West.

How far this has progressed is debatable, and whether it can continue is uncertain: my point is that Russia may be the only country in the world today which includes such aims - apparently sincerely - as explicit and top-down goals.

[christian]

I think there is considerable evidence that Russia - specifically - has been on a trajectory towards good, as I understand good; deriving from its explicit alliance of government with the strong and spontaneous grassroots Orthodox Christian revival that began as soon as the Soviet Union collapsed.

This resurgence of religious faith has (I believe) provided a basis for positive, active, explicit and sustained official support for subordinate, but important, 'goods' -- such as protecting and preserving a valued sense of nation/ people/ culture/ civilization/ destiny; and many of the core human values relating to marriage, family, children etc. - by contrast, such values are increasingly (officially, and by all major institutions - including churches, and mass media) illegal, demonized, prosecuted, persecuted and inverted in The West.

Politicians like to pretend to make value-based politics. They do that to appear honorable, whether it's politicians in the West with the values of wokeness or politicians in Russia with the values of family and Christianity. In reality, they all pursue cold, hard realpolitik (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik) that advances the national interest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_interest).

Russia is running out of people. They don't reproduce fast enough, and not a lot of people want to move there, especially when compared to Europe or the US. Promoting family values makes perfect sense in that context. The geopolitical analyst Peter Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

[Bill Ryan]

The geopolitical analyst Peter Zeihan

This is his YouTube page. (For others reading this), scroll down a little and see the titles of his videos.

https://youtube.com/@ZeihanonGeopolitics/videos


Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

Nonsense. Zeihan also thinks Ukraine shot down 6 Russian Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. He has no idea what's actually going on. He's not an analyst at all, just a pro-US/UK/EU Russophobic propagandist.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2rS7-hNTbQ
I could go on and on about Russian military capability. But there's little point. As the English say, the proof is in the pudding.*
* For non-Brits, a definition (https://www.dictionary.com/e/slang/the-proof-is-in-the-pudding/). The proof is in the pudding is an expression that means the value, quality, or truth of something must be judged based on direct experience with it — or on its results.

[Bruce G Charlton]

I think there is considerable evidence that Russia - specifically - has been on a trajectory towards good, as I understand good; deriving from its explicit alliance of government with the strong and spontaneous grassroots Orthodox Christian revival that began as soon as the Soviet Union collapsed.

This resurgence of religious faith has (I believe) provided a basis for positive, active, explicit and sustained official support for subordinate, but important, 'goods' -- such as protecting and preserving a valued sense of nation/ people/ culture/ civilization/ destiny; and many of the core human values relating to marriage, family, children etc. - by contrast, such values are increasingly (officially, and by all major institutions - including churches, and mass media) illegal, demonized, prosecuted, persecuted and inverted in The West.

Politicians like to pretend to make value-based politics. They do that to appear honorable, whether it's politicians in the West with the values of wokeness or politicians in Russia with the values of family and Christianity. In reality, they all pursue cold, hard realpolitik (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik) that advances the national interest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_interest).

Russia is running out of people. They don't reproduce fast enough, and not a lot of people want to move there, especially when compared to Europe or the US. Promoting family values makes perfect sense in that context. The geopolitical analyst Peter Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

"Russia is running out of people."

This is true; but applies to every developed nation in the world, without exception. Although the scale of the problem (clearest in East Asia) is statistically somewhat diminished- while the effects are worsened - in countries with mass immigration.

The difference is spiritual. Russia regard demographic collapse as a problem; and as substantially a spiritual and religious problem.

Almost everywhere else in the developed world (especially The West) regards incremental extinction (and replacement) of its native people as Not a problem, but instead a Good Thing; or else a merely secular problem - to be addressed by economic incentives and the like.

I regard such differences - indeed oppositions - in evaluation and 'attitude' as of primary spiritual importance (at the national level).

Presumably you don't?

[christian]

Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.
Nonsense. Zeihan also thinks Ukraine shot down 6 Russian Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. He has no idea what's actually going on. He's not an analyst at all, just a pro-US/UK/EU Russophobic propagandist.

Zeihan says in the video you shared that Ukraine might be lying about how many Kinzhals were shot down. That doesn't sound like he believes the official Ukrainian statements.

There's a good article (https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/a43920769/ukraine-patriot-vs-russian-kinzhal-missile/) by Popular Mechanics on the issue of the downed Kinzhals. In essence, it's a virtual certainty that both Ukraine and Russia lie about such incidents, so there's no way to tell for sure, but Ukraine has certainly downed a Kinzhal in the past and likely intercepted some now.

I don't agree with Zeihan on a lot of things, but Russia's demographic decline is easily provable. Zeihan pointed to Russia's demographic decline in his 2014 prediction that a Russian war of aggression would only make sense if they start it by 2022. Whether you think he's an analyst or a propagandist, he called it, I think you've got to give him his due on that one.

rkuhWA9GdCo

I agree that the proof is in the pudding when it comes to Russian military capability, as this war drags on much longer than Russian leadership had anticipated. The Dutch open-source intelligence research group Oryx tracks visually confirmed Russian material losses and tracked so far almost 2,000 lost tanks (https://www.newsweek.com/video-russia-ukraine-tank-1802093). That's the lowest estimate, and it's already significant. Before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia had somewhere between 3,330 (https://inews.co.uk/news/world/tanks-russia-how-many-putin-military-ukraine-leopard-2-abrams-2108097) and 12,420 (https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2022/03/15/how-many-tanks-does-russia-have-in-ukraine-and-how-many-have-they-lost-so-far/) tanks, but the higher estimate includes "plenty of old or obsolete military equipment tucked away in vehicle parks and warehouses that can be used to make up shortfalls or which can be reactivated and sent creaking into battle to replaces losses—if there are still crews to operate them."

Speaking of pudding, it reminds me of the story of the Russian baker who was fined for selling pro-peace cakes (https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3218824/ukraine-war-russian-baker-fined-pro-peace-cakes). The fact that Russia made a law that prohibits citizens from protesting the war (https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-war-discrediting-armed-forces-law/31875273.html) is rather telling about the true spirit of Russian politics.

https://i.postimg.cc/25rWrTXw/7d836563-fe5a-44d4-9eab-ec471301b288-ffa1f73c.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

[christian]

Russia regard demographic collapse as a problem; and as substantially a spiritual and religious problem.

Almost everywhere else in the developed world (especially The West) regards incremental extinction (and replacement) of its native people as Not a problem, but instead a Good Thing; or else a merely secular problem - to be addressed by economic incentives and the like.

I regard such differences - indeed oppositions - in evaluation and 'attitude' as of primary spiritual importance (at the national level).

Presumably you don't?

Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their national interest. Trusting the official statements of any government is the surest to get duped, in my opinion.

[s7e6e]

We need Russia as a reality check for the Western world, not as an example to follow. And I'm saying this having the deepest respect for the Russian rich culture and ancient history.

[Bruce G Charlton]

Russia regard demographic collapse as a problem; and as substantially a spiritual and religious problem.

Almost everywhere else in the developed world (especially The West) regards incremental extinction (and replacement) of its native people as Not a problem, but instead a Good Thing; or else a merely secular problem - to be addressed by economic incentives and the like.

I regard such differences - indeed oppositions - in evaluation and 'attitude' as of primary spiritual importance (at the national level).

Presumably you don't?

Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their national interest. Trusting the official statements of any government is the surest to get duped, in my opinion.

@Christian "Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their national interest. "

Actually I think that's just completely wrong.

I would say that there is no Western Government in the world today that is advancing its national interest - In fact completely the opposite.

Western governments are dedicated to destroying their nations, culture and peoples by multiple simultaneous strategies, pursued and escalating over more than two decades. Encouraging and enforcing sustained and pen-ended mass immigration including many dangerous, hostile and unproductive people - and severely taxing the native populations - and a massive raft of laws and regulations that favour non-natives and recent arrivals, above long-term multi-generational natives. Encouraging, subsidizing and enforcing anti-natalist sexuality and policies, across the board. Deliberately causing inflation by massive money supply expansion. Destroying agriculture. Gratuitously provoking and escalating a superpower WWIII, and then leaders forcing their indifferent or unwilling nations to enter the conflict at great loss of treasure (and - the intention is - life)... The list goes on.

This is not a subtle thing! And Western government policies - and laws, and the Western mass media - are explicit on these matters; and mass compliance is zealously enforced .

A country in which the government explicitly pursues its own national interest - or even pretends to pursue its own national interest! - is something we only see out-with the US/ UK/ EU and aligned nations.

[Paul D.]

Russia regard demographic collapse as a problem; and as substantially a spiritual and religious problem.

Almost everywhere else in the developed world (especially The West) regards incremental extinction (and replacement) of its native people as Not a problem, but instead a Good Thing; or else a merely secular problem - to be addressed by economic incentives and the like.

I regard such differences - indeed oppositions - in evaluation and 'attitude' as of primary spiritual importance (at the national level).

Presumably you don't?

Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their national interest. Trusting the official statements of any government is the surest to get duped, in my opinion.

@Christian "Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their national interest. "

Actually I think that's just completely wrong.

I would say that there is no Western Government in the world today that is advancing its national interest - In fact completely the opposite.

Western governments are dedicated to destroying their nations, culture and peoples by multiple simultaneous strategies, pursued and escalating over more than two decades. Encouraging and enforcing sustained and pen-ended mass immigration including many dangerous, hostile and unproductive people - and severely taxing the native populations - and a massive raft of laws and regulations that favour non-natives and recent arrivals, above long-term multi-generational natives. Encouraging, subsidizing and enforcing anti-natalist sexuality and policies, across the board. Deliberately causing inflation by massive money supply expansion. Destroying agriculture. Gratuitously provoking and escalating a superpower WWIII, and then leaders forcing their indifferent or unwilling nations to enter the conflict at great loss of treasure (and - the intention is - life)... The list goes on.

This is not a subtle thing! And Western government policies - and laws, and the Western mass media - are explicit on these matters; and mass compliance is zealously enforced .

A country in which the government explicitly pursues its own national interest - or even pretends to pursue its own national interest! - is something we only see out-with the US/ UK/ EU and aligned nations.

I can't speak for Christian but if he omitted the word " national " in his quote , then I totally agree.
i.e.
Governments use morals and spirituality as pretexts to advance their interest. Trusting the official statements of any government is the surest to get duped, in my opinion.

[christian]

I would say that there is no Western Government in the world today that is advancing its national interest - In fact completely the opposite. […]

A country in which the government explicitly pursues its own national interest - or even pretends to pursue its own national interest! - is something we only see out-with the US/ UK/ EU and aligned nations.

Is it possible that you confuse the state with the people? The national interest is the goals and ambitions of the state, not that of the people. All governments prioritize the national interest, the interest of the state, not the interest of the people. The national interest is all about increasing governance. In different countries, different strategies are appropriate to achieve this goal.

Russia desperately needs more people to sustain itself, so they seek to incorporate large parts of Ukraine into Russia. They mostly send ethnic minorities into the war, they're often rather poor and they're seen as less important to the functioning of the Russian state. When they die it reduces the threat of insurrections in regions of Russia that are dominated by ethnic minorities. Wars have always been used to rally the people behind the government, this is also true in Russia where the war is sold as a humanitarian effort to protect ethnic Russians, while the government introduces ever more draconian laws to curtail civil liberties. Any way you slice it, Russia uses the war against Ukraine to increase governance, to advance the national interest, and the people have to pay for this war, they don't benefit.

In relatively free and wealthy Western countries that already attract a lot of immigrants, it makes sense for the government to create chaos, because they don't want rich, empowered people that could stand up for their sovereignty or threaten the power base of the state, especially when the state wants to be incorporated into a globalist superstate. These countries also paint the chaos they create as humanitarian efforts, and to a large degree it works, it does rally people behind the government. In Germany, for example, most people support CoViD lockdowns "for public health," energy rationing "for the climate," and badly controlled immigration "to support refugees."

From what I see, it's only some of the smaller countries where politicians care a bit more about the people and less about increasing governance. That's a case in point that decentralization should go as far as possible, with the individual fully owning themself being the ultimate goal. The people don't need gigantic states, these always spawn the most cruel and megalomaniacal governments.

[pounamuknight]

Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

Nonsense.

His industry of nonsense is creative

1632221645531381761

12 years ago, Zeihan said the empire's biggest threat (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-worldwide-threats-hearing/) was gonna collapse within 10 years

50969

He's since added another 10 years

[christian]

Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

Nonsense.

His industry of nonsense is creative […] 12 years ago, Zeihan said the empire's biggest threat (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-worldwide-threats-hearing/) was gonna collapse within 10 years

I don't understand this "all or nothing" attitude in regard to Peter Zeihan. Analysts say a lot of things. Sometimes they're on point, sometimes they're far off.

I specifically mentioned Zeihan's analysis of Russia's demographic decline that led to his 2014 prediction of a Russian war of aggression by 2022.

In reply, Bill mentioned Zeihan's comment about Kinzhal missiles and you mentioned Zeihan's prediction of China's collapse.

I'd like to draw some attention to Graham's hierarchy of disagreement (https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Hierarchy_of_disagreement) where both of your disagreements would be on the second lowest level:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Graham%27s_Hierarchy_of_Disagreement.svg/640px-Graham%27s_Hierarchy_of_Disagreement.svg.png

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/velerie_a/status/1663262765509754881

1663262765509754881

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/Sinnaig/status/1663235774614061071


1663235774614061071


https://twitter.com/Sinnaig/status/1663277434429399045

1663277434429399045

[Bill Ryan]

Zeihan predicted that if Russia wants to launch a major military operation to do something about its demographic decline before it runs out of soldiers, Russia has to do it by 2022. He made that prediction in 2014.

Nonsense.

His industry of nonsense is creative […] 12 years ago, Zeihan said the empire's biggest threat (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-worldwide-threats-hearing/) was gonna collapse within 10 years

I don't understand this "all or nothing" attitude in regard to Peter Zeihan. Analysts say a lot of things. Sometimes they're on point, sometimes they're far off.

I specifically mentioned Zeihan's analysis of Russia's demographic decline that led to his 2014 prediction of a Russian war of aggression by 2022.

In reply, Bill mentioned Zeihan's comment about Kinzhal missiles and you mentioned Zeihan's prediction of China's collapse.

I'd like to draw some attention to Graham's hierarchy of disagreement (https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Hierarchy_of_disagreement) where both of your disagreements would be on the second lowest level:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Graham%27s_Hierarchy_of_Disagreement.svg/640px-Graham%27s_Hierarchy_of_Disagreement.svg.png


Christian, if I think something's nonsense, I'll say so. Period. :)

:focus:

[Ravenlocke]

JP Morgan will hold its “Global China Summit” in #Shanghai tomorrow. Along with Jamie Dimon, there will be many prominent US elites like CEOs of Starbucks and Pfizer, Henry Kissinger, and Condoleeza Rice.

JPMorgan just gained full ownership of its China mutual fund joint venture this year, after adding ownerships of a local futures unit in 2020 and a securities unit in 2021.

China’s financial sector is staggering $60 trillion in size. None of these bankers and capitalists are going to decouple from China.

https://twitter.com/Kanthan2030/status/1663608401132408832

1663608401132408832

[Bill Ryan]

This is closely connected with the new multipolar world, BRICS+, and more. It's also of considerable interest to myself in Ecuador, which is still on the USD, and there seems to be no public discussion at all about what happens to Ecuador if the USD crashes. (A friend of mine knows one of the very senior bankers here, and asked him that very question. The answer was that he didn't know, and he seemed to be entirely truthful.)

https://t.me/CyberspecNews/32023
|
CyberspecNews/32023

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1663710355078430721

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1663710355078430721?s=20

[Ravenlocke]

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1663705284131315712

1663705284131315712

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/brazil-s-lula-pushes-for-regional-currency-at-south-america-summit/2910628#

Brazil’s Lula pushes for regional currency at South America summit

MEXICO CITY

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for the creation of a regional trade currency while hosting a summit of South American leaders on Tuesday.

Lula discussed the importance of a common currency for the region and called for the revival of the regional bloc previously known as the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) at the gathering, which was attended by 11 other leaders and representatives of South American countries.

He was accompanied at the Itamaraty Palace in the capital Brasilia by the leaders of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Surinam, Uruguay and Venezuela.

Peruvian President Dina Boluarte did not attend the summit for diplomatic reasons and was instead represented by the leader of the Council of Ministers of Peru.

The leaders attended the summit at the invitation of Lula, who is seeking a more integrated bloc to address common problems within the region such as healthcare, the environment, trade and organized crime.

Among the proposals he made is the possible issuance of a common currency for the South American region, which would facilitate trade and counteract trade dependency on the US dollar.

Earlier this year, Lula and Argentine President Alberto Fernandez announced their intention to create a common currency between their countries called “the sur,” or “south,” and planned to invite other Latin American nations to join what would have been the world’s second largest currency union, but the plans were put on ice due to complications.

The currency was to have been one of the various measures planned to solidify ties between the South American countries. ​​​​​​​

Lula meanwhile said that UNASUR represents a good start to further international cooperation and integration.

UNASUR was a mechanism for consultation, coordination, integration and political dialogue created in 2008 by the leaders of the Pink Tide, a group of left-leaning non-communist governments that rose to power at the end of the 1990s and in the new millennium in Latin America headed by leaders including Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in Argentina, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Brazil and Evo Morales in Bolivia.

According to Lula, the ideology fostered a rupture in regional cohesion, and by 2018, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Paraguay desisted from participating in UNASUR.

With Lula's return to the presidency, however, Brazil formally returned to UNASUR in April.

"For more than 10 years, UNASUR has allowed us to get to know each other better. We consolidated our ties through a broad political dialogue that accommodated differences and allowed us to identify common denominators. We implemented cooperation initiatives in health, infrastructure and defense. This integration also contributed to important trade gains. We formed a robust free trade zone, whose figures reached a record value of $124 billion in 2011," said Lula.

[Vicus]

EU to break ranks with US on Russia and China trade – Bloomberg 30 May, 2023

The bloc is reportedly unwilling to pursue the hawkish stance on trade with Beijing and Moscow being promoted by Washington

https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.05/thumbnail/647628f285f54012a25cf703.jpg

The European Union does not intend to condemn Russia and China for "economic coercion" in its joint trade strategy with the US, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday citing a draft document.

According to the outlet, the US has been advocating a more confrontational stance on China, while members of the EU have been reluctant to adopt a hawkish approach despite embracing the concept of "de-risking" regarding outbound investment, which is endorsed by both Washington and Brussels.

The EU reportedly seeks to reduce its economic exposure to the Asian powerhouse by signing on to the US-led policy of curbing Beijing's access to advanced technologies. At the same time, the bloc is struggling to maintain a balance in relations with Washington and China, which remains an important trading partner for the EU.

France and Italy objected to references to China as a non-market economy during internal meetings, Bloomberg reported citing sources familiar with the document.

While previous strategy drafts called out China's "anti-competitive and harmful non-market policies and practices," in particular in the semiconductor sector, the latest version does not include that language.

The US also proposed accusing China and Russia of "economic coercion" in earlier drafts of the document. The final text of the trade strategy mentions the problem but avoids calling out the two countries by name, Bloomberg said.

US and EU representatives have reportedly agreed on a simplified draft avoiding harsh rhetoric while still enumerating the core issues. The document is expected to be published after the conclusion of the trade meeting between the two sides, which is taking place in Sweden on Tuesday and Wednesday.


https://www.rt.com/business/577151-eu-us-trade-strategy-russia-china/

[Vicus]

Time to ditch the dollar – Cuban president 31 May, 2023

With US dominance broken, the BRICS nations can build a fairer world, Miguel Diaz-Canel told RT

Giving up the US dollar will free developing countries from Washington’s “sanctions, blackmail, aggression, and slander,” Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel told RT in an exclusive interview due to air on Thursday.

The dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency enables the US to pursue an “aggressive hegemonistic policy of building walls, imposing punitive sanctions, blackmail, aggression and slander,” Diaz-Canel said. Against this policy – which has seen Cuba embargoed for six decades by the US – Diaz-Canel added that “BRICS provides a brilliant alternative for economic integration, especially for developing economies.”

Since it was first coined in 2001, BRICS has grown from an acronym for five emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – into an informal alliance that has overtaken the US-led G7 bloc in its share of global GDP, has its own development bank, and counts Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Argentina among 19 prospective members.

Amid calls for a common BRICS currency to settle trade bills, members of the group have begun to conduct more bilateral trade in their own currencies, eschewing the US dollar.

“I believe that we need to recognize the leading role of Russia in shaping this multipolar world,” Diaz-Canel said, stating that continued “de-dollarization” will lead to “more inclusive and more mutually beneficial trade” for those who reject the US’ “lies and empty promises.”

Although Cuba is not a member of the BRICS group, the island nation has been a close partner of Russia since the days of the Soviet Union, and trade between Moscow and Havana tripled last year to $452 million. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko visited Cuba last week, where he announced that Russian firms were planning more investment in the country’s tourism sector.

“It is at times like this that we get friends from other countries supporting us with real actions and under conditions that are not harmful to our independence,” Diaz-Canel told RT.


video: https://www.rt.com/news/577195-cuba-president-interview-brics/