Escobar: The Long And Winding Petro-Gold Road

Authored by Pepe Escobar,

The 15-point plan that Team Trump presented to Iran is already D.O.A.

It’s an imposed capitulation: a surrender document disguised as “negotiation”.

The non-plan plan – imposing demands while begging for a one-month ceasefire – includes zero uranium enrichment on Iranian soil; full dismantlement of Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow installations; all enriched uranium out of Iran; the missile program extremely restricted; no funding for Hezbollah, Ansarallah and Iraqi militias; the Strait of Hormuz totally opened.

All that in exchange for a vague “cancelling the threat of reimposing sanctions”.

The only realistic Iranian response to this accumulated wishful thinking might be Mr. Khorramshahr-4 showering his business card across selected targets – consistent with leveraging economic and military deterrence to dictate the real terms.

And the real terms are harsh:

Closure of ALL US military bases in the Gulf; guarantee of no more wars; end of the war on Hezbollah; lifting of ALL sanctions; war damage reparations; a new order in the Strait of Hormuz (already in effect: collecting fees just like Egypt in Suez); missile program intact.

Conclusion: the infernal escalation machine keeps rolling.

A Member’s Club With an Entrance Fee in Petroyuan

Meanwhile, oil and gas prices are mired in a kaleidoscope of volatility, affecting currencies, equities, commodities, supply chains, inflation scares. This is already an out-of-control global economic shock with devastating consequences in progress.

Before the war, Iran was producing a little less of 1.1 million barrels of oil a day, sold at $65 a barrel with a $18 discount: thus, in practice only $47. Now, Iran has increased production to 1.5 million barrels a day, selling at $110 (and counting), mostly to China, with a maximum $4 discount.

And that does not even include petrochemical sales: on the up and up, and for an array of extra customers. To round it all up, all payments are conducted via alternative mechanisms. Which brings us to a startling fact: for all practical purposes, this is sanctions relief in effect.

Now for the Holy Grail in the war: the Strait of Hormuz. It is de facto open, but with a toll booth controlled by the IRGC.

A toll booth with a twist: veto power over the guest list. Like entering an exclusive private club.

To get the IRGC clearance, a tanker needs to pay the toll: $2 million per vessel.

This is how it works.

You contact an IRGC-linked broker. The broker relays to the IRGC the essential info: vessel ownership, national flag, cargo manifest, destination, crew list, and AIS transponder data.

The IRGC runs background checks. If you are not US-linked, not shipping any Israel-linked cargo, and your flag is not part of “aggressor states”, you’re in. Japan and South Korea, for instance, still have not been cleared.

Then you pay the toll. In cash – whatever currency you have – but preferably in yuan. Or in crypto.

It’s a complex mechanism. The IRGC uses multiple addresses; cross-chain bridges to other networks; over-the-counter desks in jurisdictions way beyond American reach; and integration with all sorts of yuan settlement channels.

After the toll is paid, the IRGC issues a VHF radio clearance – complete with a specific time window linked to a narrow 5-mile nautical corridor through Iranian territorial waters, between Qeshm and little Larak island, where the IRGC Navy can visually identify your vessel. You’re free to go. No need for an escort ship.

All of the above applies, for now, to tankers from China, India, Pakistan, Turkiye, Malaysia, Iraq, Bangladesh, Russia. Some don’t need to pay the full toll. Some get exemptions – on government-to-government basis (as in Sri Lanka and Thailand, both described as “friendly nations”). And some don’t pay anything.

So welcome to a member’s club with an entrance fee mostly in petroyuan. It took a single move from Iran to achieve what endless global summits could not: establishing an alternative settlement system – under fire, tested under supreme stress, and on top of it applied in the most consequential chokepoint on the planet.

Each toll paid in petroyuan bypasses the petrodollar, SWIFT and US sanctions – all in one go. The Iranian parliament will approve legislation institutionalizing the toll booth as “security compensation.” No one saw this coming – and so fast: legalized chokepoint monetization. Without firing a shot. This is what de-dollarization trade is really all about.

The problem is what is not transiting Hormuz: fertilizers. Over 49% of urea for export comes from the Persian Gulf. Ammonia needs natural gas; but Qatar declared Force Majeure after the Epstein Syndicate attack on South Pars and the Iranian counter-strikes. The IRGC is focused on oil because oil finances the tool booth and long term, is at the heart of the post-dollar energy settlement system, fully supported by the Russia-China strategic partnership.

So it’s no wonder the Empire of Chaos and Plunder has gone bonkers. In a flash, in three weeks, we have the petroyuan ruling over the – de facto privatized – most important naval connectivity corridor on the planet. So CENTCOM will go all out Terminator to demolish the tool booth, attempting everything from bombing IRGC installations along the coast and setting up naval escorts for allied tankers to a tsunami of sanctions on toll booth brokers.

What CENTCOM cannot bomb is the precedent of the petroyuan in effect. The whole Global South is watching and doing the math. The whole demented war is actually helping a new payment infrastructure to come to light. The war’s financial dimension is even more crucial than missile breakthroughs.

What Awaits the GCC

Qatar warned Trump 2.0, over and over again, that attacking Iran’s energy infrastructure would destroy Doha’s own energy infrastructure. That’s exactly what happened. Qatar’s energy minister al-Kaabi revealed that he warned the US Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, as well as executives at ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips day after day.

To no avail. Qatar ended up losing 17% of its LNG capacity: $20 billion in lost revenue, and as many as 5 years to fix it. Al-Kaabi: oil could hit $150 a barrel, and this war could “bring down the economies of the world.”

We reach absurdist territory when it’s clear that striking Iran’s South Pars generated less than zero strategic advantage. On the contrary: the counterpunch hit the Persian Gulf energy sector. Yet perversity actually rules. Who ultimately benefitted? American gas companies.

Iran is betting – and that is immensely ambitious – that the Gulf monarchies will eventually do the math. It’s as if Tehran is making it quite clear: if you learn to do business with us, we will let you continue to do your own business.

The new rules include everything from the GCC bypassing the petrodollar to getting rid of US data centers. And if the GCC wants a new security arrangement, better talk to China. All that while the GCC also has to learn how to deal with this oil shock permanently repricing the risk premium on their energy supply. Structural reset does not even begin to describe it.

As it stands, there’s only one certainty: the GCC will be instrumental in the international financial system implosion as it gets ready to pull at least $5 trillion out of the US market so they may be able to fund their survival.

The Long and Winding Petro-Gold Road

To sum it all up: after the attack on the South Pars gas field – the largest on the planet – and the toll booth in the Strait of Hormuz, it’s yuan-gold settlements, all across the spectrum, that are giving the Russia-China strategic partnership an upper hand unthinkable only a few weeks ago.

The strategic partnership is locking in no less than a new, rising global settlement mechanism, where petroyuan trades flow straight into physical gold.

As Russia sells massive volumes of oil and gas not touched by the war on its ally Iran, China as the top refiner buys Russian energy while at the same time trying to support its Southeast Asian partners outside of the US dollar.

Russia is converting yuan payments into physical gold at the Shanghai Stock Exchange. Iran is accumulating yuan payments in Hormuz – boosting yuan oil contracts that are convertible to gold. And China is building overseas gold vaults and corridors. The new Primakov triangle, RIC (Russia-Iran-China) is in control via real physical energy and gold.

So this is the major take away of the Epstein Syndicate war on Iran. Russia-China reach the Holy Grail: energy dominance and a gold-backed yuan settlement that bypasses the petrodollar to Kingdom Come.

For all practical purposes, the architecture set up by the “indispensable nation” since the 1990s is showing structural cracks for everyone to see, with global markets updating every possible model variation in real time.

It’s as if the Persians had reinterpreted Sun Tzu, Clausewitz and Kutuzov (the conqueror of Napoleon) into a whole new hybrid. And as a bonus, accomplishing in only three weeks what years’ worth of summits could not.

The petrodollar is on the way out. Alternative payment systems are up and running. And the Global South is watching in real time how the Empire of Endless Bombing can be brought to a standstill by a decentralized war of attrition engineered by a sovereign nation with one-fiftieth of the imperial defense budget.

Multipolarity won’t be born by suits reading papers in executive rooms. Multipolarity will be born in the battlefield, under fire, against all odds.

You will see why it matters so much:

“Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn

Suicide remarks are torn

From the fool’s gold mouthpiece the hollow horn

Plays wasted words, proves to warn

That he not busy being born is busy dying”

Bob Dylan

It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)

*  *  *

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZeroHedge.

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 23:20

Trump Ready To Take US Arms For Ukraine & Divert Them To Middle East

The Iran war has been bad for Ukraine, and President Zelensky knows it. He's frequently been warning partners not to let the global focus on the latest Middle East war distract from supporting Kiev.

But President Trump himself made fresh remarks highlighting just this situation, signaling he's willing to reroute arms originally tied to Ukraine toward the Middle East theater against Iran, reinforcing the obvious and growing pivot in US priorities.

Reporter: Is the U.S. diverting some munitions that were meant for Ukraine to the Middle East?

Trump: We do that all the time. We have a lot of munitions. Sometimes we take from one and use for another. pic.twitter.com/yxxCB7TlLb

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 26, 2026

Pressed on reports that shipments were being redirected on Thursday, Trump shrugged it off as standard practice: "We do that all the time. We have a lot of munitions. Sometimes we take from one and use for another."

He added Washington is no longer directly supplying the Ukrainian government and armed forces, but is instead "selling" weapons to NATO states that then pass them along. This has for many months been the White House's stated plan.

According to The Washington Post, officials say the Pentagon is weighing whether to divert missile interceptors initially intended for NATO purchase for Ukraine and send them to the Middle East.

While a final decision hasn't been made, or has at least not been publicly declared, this would be reasonable given how much US bases in the region have struggled to intercept Iran's inbound missiles and drones.

On Friday Prince Sultan airbase in Saudi Arabia was hit, wounding at least a dozen US troops, with reports of several in serious condition. Expensive US Air Force planes were also hit.

Clearly the US needs more interceptors, and yet Ukraine has for months been raising the alarm over its need for more Patriots and other air defense systems. Russia's assault on Ukrainian cities has not waned, but has been consistent and devastating. 

In early March, Zelensky stated that "We understand that a long war–if it is long–and the intensity of the military actions will affect the amount of air defense we receive." He emphasized: "Everyone understands that, for us, this is a matter of life."

*  *  *

Make sure your protein stack is dialed in... Go with peptides. 

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 22:45

Israeli Forces Raise Flag Over Syrian Town In Latest Raid: 'Provocative Act'

Authored by Jason Ditz via AntiWar.com,

Israeli military vehicles rolled into the town of Hadr in Syria’s Quneitra Governorate days ago and raised the Israeli flag over the town's entrance. Locals say they also closed all but one road leading into or out of the town, and established a checkpoint on that road as well.

Though Israel routinely raids Quneitra's towns and villages of late, raising the Israeli government's flag over a town is more provocative than what usually happens in these incidents, and like most of Israel’s military forays on Syrian soil, they've yet to issue a statement to even attempt to explain the purpose of the operation.

Illustrative via AFP

Hadr is a relatively small town of about 5,000 people along the frontier between Quneitra Governorate and the UNDOF demilitarized zone, a zone which has subsequently been occupied militarily by Israel. Some suburbs of Hadr extend into the demilitarized zone.

Israel also launched operations against multiple other villages in Quneitra earlier this week, including Saida al-Golan and Saida al-Hanout. They captured two young men who were herding sheep to the west of the village.

The troops also captured two village elders in Saida al-Golan, though the elders were ultimately released without incident. The fate of the shepherds remains uncertain, and again the IDF has not commented.

As for the flag-raising incident, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which the mainstream media had long relied on as its main anti-Assad source throughout the prior war, detailed the following of the "provocative act":

Al-Quneitra province: Israeli forces raised the Israeli flag at the entrance of Hadr Town in northern Al-Quneitra countryside [on Wednesday], raising local questions regarding the escalation in the area.

According to sources, these forces closed secondary roads leading to the town from the side of Al-Qanaif checkpoints, and only kept the main road leading to the town open.

This isn't the first time the Israeli flag has been spotted in these southern towns:

SYRIA – Militia forces, affiliated with the Druze spiritual leader Hikmat al-Hijri, raised the Israeli flag in the streets of Suwayda. pic.twitter.com/nM0XyhFBV2

— DOAM (@doamuslims) November 24, 2025

A day before these operations, Israeli troops stopped a wedding convoy near the town of Mashirfa, searching the wedding goers before firing shots in the air and scaring them off. No casualties or detentions were reported in this incident.

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 22:10

6 Things To Know As Iran Conflict Hits 1-Month Mark

Authored by Ryan Morgan via The Epoch Times,

A month has passed since U.S. and Israeli forces jointly launched a surprise attack on Iran, delivering the opening blow in an ongoing effort the U.S. military has dubbed Operation Epic Fury.

Iranian forces have since retaliated with attacks on targets across the region and spooked international trade.

President Donald Trump has recently raised the prospect of a peace deal, but his administration is also preparing additional military options.

Here’s where things stand after four weeks of fighting.

Iranian Military, Intelligence, and Political Leaders Killed

The opening U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, on Feb. 28, included decapitation strikes aimed at killing numerous senior Iranian military and political leaders.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the 86-year-old Shia Islamist cleric sitting at the pinnacle of leadership in the Iranian regime, was killed in those initial strikes.

Mojtaba Khamenei, the 56-year-old son of the late ayatollah, has since replaced his father as the supreme leader of Iran. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has said the younger Khamenei was likely disfigured in the strikes on the first day of the conflict, but the exact status of the new Iranian leader remains unclear.

A banner depicting the Iranian regime's new leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran, on March 11, 2026. Khoshiran/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Other senior Iranian leaders killed on the opening day of the conflict included Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Mohammad Pakpour. Israel’s military reported a senior Iranian intelligence official named Saleh Asadi was also killed in the opening attacks, along with dozens of other senior Iranian military and intelligence leaders.

An Israeli strike killed Ali Larijani on March 17. Larijani was a senior security advisor to the late Khamenei and had previously served as a top international negotiator dealing with Iran’s nuclear program.

On March 26, Israeli forces killed Commodore Alireza Tangsiri, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’s naval component.

Iran’s Forces Battered, Still Fighting

As of March 26, U.S. forces have reported striking more than 10,000 Iranian targets during Operation Epic Fury.

The Israeli military has reported several thousand more strikes on Iranian targets over the past month.

In addition to targeting top Iranian leaders, U.S. and Israeli forces have worked to destroy Iran’s offensive military capabilities.

A group of men inspects the ruins of a police station hit by an air strike in Tehran, Iran, on March 3, 2026. Vahid Salemi/AP

At a March 26 White House cabinet meeting, Hegseth said more than 150 Iranian vessels have been sunk. Those vessels include larger traditional warships as well as numerous smaller vessels capable of laying mines in key regional waterways, such as the Strait of Hormuz. 

The joint U.S. and Israeli operations have also sought to drive down the number of Iranian missile and drone attacks.

The Pentagon has said Iran’s missile and drone attacks are down around 90 percent from their peak. Officials have declined to specify how many missiles, drones, or launchers have been destroyed.

Meanwhile, countries around the region are dealing with dozens of drone and missile attacks each day.

Ongoing efforts are also focused on destroying Iran’s military industrial capacity.

A Pentagon official said U.S. operations have “damaged or destroyed over 66% of Iranian missile, drone, and naval production facilities and shipyards.”

Conflict Awakens Iranian Proxy Network

Tehran’s regional partners and proxies have rallied to their side since the start of Operation Epic Fury.

Fighting has intensified along the Israel-Lebanon border over the last month. There, Israeli forces have renewed skirmishes with Hezbollah, a designated terrorist group long considered an ally to Iran’s Shia Islamic leadership.

Israeli forces have reported dozens of strikes and ground raids targeting Hezbollah positions. Israel’s military has also confirmed several of its troops have been killed or wounded in the fighting.

Hezbollah has also launched rocket and drone attacks against Israel.

An Israeli self-propelled howitzer artillery gun fires rounds towards southern Lebanon from a position in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border on March 20, 2026. Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 when Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorists launched rockets at Israel after the killing of the Iranian regime's supreme leader. Jalaa Marey/AFP via Getty Images

In Iraq, U.S. forces are fighting with Iranian-aligned militia groups that exist within Iraq’s state-sponsored Popular Mobilization Forces. At a March 19 Pentagon briefing, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine reported U.S. airstrikes targeting these Iranian-linked groups.

Yemen’s Houthi movement, another designated terrorist group aligned with Iran, has also threatened to resume attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea, as they did in the fall of 2023 and throughout 2024.

Rising Demands on US Forces

Weeks into the Iran conflict, the Pentagon dispatched two separate amphibious ready groups to the Middle East. Each group can consist of up to 5,000 U.S. sailors and Marines, including amphibious landing forces, fighter jets, and troop transport and attack helicopters.

More recently, the Pentagon also dispatched elements of the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, including the division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team.

A growing number of U.S. ground troops have been diverted to the region. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the recent troop deployments are just to provide contingency options.

Speaking with reporters as he arrived in France on March 27 for a G7 Foreign Affairs Ministerial meeting, Rubio said the United States is ahead of schedule on its military objectives in the Iran conflict and can complete them without needing ground troops.

“We can achieve all of our objectives without ground troops, but we are always going to be prepared to give the president maximum optionality,” Rubio said.

U.S. Marines with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit conduct a live fire deck shoot aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, in the Philippine Sea on March 16, 2026. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Gerardo Méndez

13 US Military Personnel Killed

Thirteen U.S. military personnel have been killed in operations against Iran since Feb. 28.

Of these, six U.S. soldiers were killed in a single drone strike on a tactical operations center at the Port of Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1. Another six U.S. airmen were killed when their KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refueling aircraft crashed over western Iraq on March 12.

On March 27, around a dozen U.S. military personnel were injured at the Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia, a U.S. official familiar with the matter told The Epoch Times.

There have been more than 300 U.S. troops wounded in action, according to a U.S. Central Command spokesman. Of that number, 273 have returned to duty.

Three U.S. F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets were shot down in an apparent friendly fire incident early in the conflict.

An F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter was damaged during combat operations over Iran on March 19.

A U.S. official has told The Epoch Times that 10 more unmanned U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drones have been shot down in the conflict.

The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, which was dispatched to the region shortly before the conflict began, sustained fire damage on March 12. The carrier subsequently relocated to Greece to undergo maintenance and repairs.

Peace Talks Ongoing, US Leaders Say

At a U.S.-Saudi investment conference in Miami on March 27, Trump’s special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff said meetings on the Iran conflict are expected within the week, adding, “We’re certainly hopeful for it.”

Witkoff confirmed during a White House Cabinet meeting on March 26 that he has relayed a 15-point proposal to end the ongoing armed conflict with Iran.

“I can report to you today that we have, along with your foreign policy team, presented a 15-point action list that forms the framework for a peace deal,” Witkoff told Trump.

Witkoff declined to specify the terms of the U.S. proposal, which he said was relayed through Pakistani intermediaries.

Iranian officials, meanwhile, have downplayed any such talks.

In a statement shared by Iranian state media, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had received messages from Washington by way of intermediaries, but said, “this is not considered a negotiation.”

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi looks on after he delivered a speech during a session of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament, in Geneva, on Feb. 17, 2026. Valentin Flauraud/AFP via Getty Images

In recent days, Trump has highlighted progress in negotiations with Tehran to end the conflict.

“They say, ‘Oh, we’re not talking’ ... They are begging to work out a deal,” Trump said during the March 26 Cabinet meeting.

Trump also revealed that Iranian leaders had offered permission for 10 oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz unharmed as a gesture of goodwill.

In a separate comment on Truth Social on March 26, Trump threatened worsening consequences for Tehran if a deal isn’t reached soon.

“They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is no turning back,” he wrote.

The push to negotiate an end to the fighting comes as Iranian attacks have targeted fuel facilities along the Persian Gulf, as well as commercial traffic in the Strait of Hormuz—through which around 25 percent of the world’s oceangoing oil and other global commodities pass.

Gas prices in the United States have risen by an average of $1 a gallon since the start of the conflict, as the fighting continues to threaten fuel markets.

Additional Middle East energy sites hang in the balance.

On March 21, Trump issued a 48-hour deadline for Iran to completely reopen the Strait of Hormuz or see its energy sites destroyed. Following Trump’s initial ultimatum, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened to completely close down access to the Strait of Hormuz and target energy facilities in Middle Eastern countries that host U.S. forces. They also threatened to attack crucial water desalination facilities operated by those neighboring countries.

Trump has since postponed his strike deadline to April 6.

*  *  *

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Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 21:00

US Monitoring Surge In China's Detention Of Panama-Flagged Vessels

Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times,

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission on March 26 accused China of detaining Panama-flagged vessels in response to Panama’s termination of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison’s concessions for two key ports.

Panama’s Supreme Court ruled in late January that the concessions held by Panama Ports Company, a unit of CK Hutchison, for the Balboa and Cristobal terminals in the Panama Canal were unconstitutional.

The ruling followed an audit by Panama’s comptroller, which alleged irregularities in the 25-year extension of the concession granted in 2021.

Following the ruling, Panama named U.S. subsidiaries Maersk APM Terminals and Mediterranean Shipping ​Company’s (MSC) Terminal Investment Limited as interim operators of the ports under 18-month contracts.

Laura DiBella, commissioner at the Federal Maritime Commission—an independent federal agency regulating the U.S. international ocean transportation system—said on March 26 that China has increasingly detained Panama-flagged vessels “under the guise of port state control” and the level of detentions was “far exceeding historical norms.”

“These intensified inspections were carried out under informal directives and appear intended to punish Panama after the transfer of Hutchison’s port assets,” DiBella said in a statement.

“Given that Panama‑flagged ships carry a meaningful share of U.S. containerized trade, these actions could result in significant commercial and strategic consequences to U.S. shipping.”

DiBella said that detaining or impeding vessels documented under U.S. law, as well as those from other nations engaged in commerce with the United States, are “inconsistent with the Commission’s mandate” to protect America’s global supply chain.

“The [Federal Maritime Commission] is charged with ensuring an efficient, competitive, and economical transportation system for the benefit of the United States,” she said.

The commissioner added that China’s Ministry of Transport has summoned Maersk and MSC to Beijing for high‑level discussions, but details had not been provided on the talks.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters on March 27 that the U.S. government had made “wrongful allegations” and accused Washington of trying to assert control over the Panama Canal.

CK Hutchison has denounced the ruling as unconstitutional and launched international arbitration proceedings against the Panamanian government, seeking more than $2 billion in damages, according to the Federal Maritime Commission.

“CKH considers the ruling, the executive decree, the purported termination of PPC’s concession, and the takeover of the terminals to be unlawful,” CK Hutchison said in a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on March 23.

The Panama Canal carries about 5 percent of worldwide maritime commerce, and U.S. President Donald Trump has sounded an alarm about the Chinese influence on the critical waterway that connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

CK Hutchison, which has ties to the Chinese Communist Party, has plans for a $23 billion sale of global ports, including the Panama assets, to a consortium led by BlackRock and MSC.

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 19:50

Secret Service Agent Assigned To Jill Biden Shoots Himself In The Leg At Philadelphia Airport

Perhaps incompetence is contagious...

A Secret Service agent tasked with protecting Jill Biden managed to become his own biggest threat, accidentally shooting himself in the leg at Philadelphia International Airport last week, according to Reuters.

Thankfully, Biden wasn’t anywhere nearby, presumably because the universe decided one crisis at a time was enough.

Photos: Daily Mail

The report says that the incident, politely labeled a “negligent discharge” (bureaucratic code for oh sh*t), happened in an unmarked car just before 9 a.m. Other officers rushed in to help, and the agent was taken to the hospital in stable condition—injured pride not listed but heavily implied.

"The Secret Service's Office of Professional Responsibility will be reviewing the facts and circumstances of this incident," Secret Service spokesman Nate Herring said, according to the Daily Mail. He continued: "We are grateful for our law enforcement and public safety partners who provided medical assistance."

Police surrounded a black Chevy Suburban outside Terminal C at Philadelphia International Airport amid ongoing security disruptions with some checkpoints closed and passengers rerouted through other terminals.

Good news: airport operations continued smoothly. And by that we mean likely with 12 hour waits at security due to lack of TSA agents.

Because nothing says “government has it all under control” in an airport nowadays like an armed professional shooting himself and everyone else just carrying on with their flights.

* * * COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE

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Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 18:05

Secret Service Agent Assigned To Jill Biden Shoots Himself In The Leg At Philadelphia Airport

Perhaps incompetence is contagious...

A Secret Service agent tasked with protecting Jill Biden managed to become his own biggest threat, accidentally shooting himself in the leg at Philadelphia International Airport last week, according to Reuters.

Thankfully, Biden wasn’t anywhere nearby, presumably because the universe decided one crisis at a time was enough.

Photos: Daily Mail

The report says that the incident, politely labeled a “negligent discharge” (bureaucratic code for oh sh*t), happened in an unmarked car just before 9 a.m. Other officers rushed in to help, and the agent was taken to the hospital in stable condition—injured pride not listed but heavily implied.

"The Secret Service's Office of Professional Responsibility will be reviewing the facts and circumstances of this incident," Secret Service spokesman Nate Herring said, according to the Daily Mail. He continued: "We are grateful for our law enforcement and public safety partners who provided medical assistance."

Police surrounded a black Chevy Suburban outside Terminal C at Philadelphia International Airport amid ongoing security disruptions with some checkpoints closed and passengers rerouted through other terminals.

Good news: airport operations continued smoothly. And by that we mean likely with 12 hour waits at security due to lack of TSA agents.

Because nothing says “government has it all under control” in an airport nowadays like an armed professional shooting himself and everyone else just carrying on with their flights.

* * * COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE

Speaking of meat that's been shot, order the Grass-Fed Steak Lover's Bundle!

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 18:05

Middle-Schoolers' "Let's Go Brandon" Sweatshirt Case Goes To Supreme Court

Authored by Dave Huber via The College Fix,

Lower courts have ruled school can ban wearing such apparel as ‘can reasonably be interpreted as profane’

The case of two Michigan middle-school brothers who were told to remove their hoodies emblazoned with the phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The siblings are represented by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression which says the boys’ school violated their First Amendment rights.

The phrase was popularized during a 2021 NASCAR event when a crowd was shouting “F*** Joe Biden!” but the NBC interviewer told racer Brandon Brown they were yelling “Let’s go Brandon!”

A judge in 2024 ruled the phrase could “reasonably be interpreted” as profane.

Last October, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in a 2-1 decision, confirming the case was about “the vulgarity exception.”

Referencing the landmark Tinker free speech case, Judge John Nalbandian (a Trump appointee) wrote “The Constitution doesn’t hamstring school administrators when they are trying to limit profanity and vulgarity in the classroom during school hours [… they’re not] powerless to prevent student speech that the administrators reasonably understand to be profane or vulgar.”

(Ironically, the brothers’ principal, Joseph Williams, had said he “was not aware that the school had experienced any disruption from students wearing ‘Let’s Go Brandon’” sweatshirts.)

FIRE’s petition to the SCOTUS notes the previous rulings allow individual teachers and administrators to “create and enforce their own test for ‘vulgarity’ [–] a political shirt could have First Amendment protection in second-period algebra but not third-period biology.”

“Let’s Go Brandon” is no different than using words “heck” or “shoot” in place of their obvious profane counterparts.

FIRE Supervising Senior Attorney Conor Fitzpatrick said “The school district’s censorship assumes that students cannot handle seeing even sanitized expressions. But America’s next generation is not so fragile, and the First Amendment is not so brittle.”

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 17:30

Middle-Schoolers' "Let's Go Brandon" Sweatshirt Case Goes To Supreme Court

Authored by Dave Huber via The College Fix,

Lower courts have ruled school can ban wearing such apparel as ‘can reasonably be interpreted as profane’

The case of two Michigan middle-school brothers who were told to remove their hoodies emblazoned with the phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The siblings are represented by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression which says the boys’ school violated their First Amendment rights.

The phrase was popularized during a 2021 NASCAR event when a crowd was shouting “F*** Joe Biden!” but the NBC interviewer told racer Brandon Brown they were yelling “Let’s go Brandon!”

A judge in 2024 ruled the phrase could “reasonably be interpreted” as profane.

Last October, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in a 2-1 decision, confirming the case was about “the vulgarity exception.”

Referencing the landmark Tinker free speech case, Judge John Nalbandian (a Trump appointee) wrote “The Constitution doesn’t hamstring school administrators when they are trying to limit profanity and vulgarity in the classroom during school hours [… they’re not] powerless to prevent student speech that the administrators reasonably understand to be profane or vulgar.”

(Ironically, the brothers’ principal, Joseph Williams, had said he “was not aware that the school had experienced any disruption from students wearing ‘Let’s Go Brandon’” sweatshirts.)

FIRE’s petition to the SCOTUS notes the previous rulings allow individual teachers and administrators to “create and enforce their own test for ‘vulgarity’ [–] a political shirt could have First Amendment protection in second-period algebra but not third-period biology.”

“Let’s Go Brandon” is no different than using words “heck” or “shoot” in place of their obvious profane counterparts.

FIRE Supervising Senior Attorney Conor Fitzpatrick said “The school district’s censorship assumes that students cannot handle seeing even sanitized expressions. But America’s next generation is not so fragile, and the First Amendment is not so brittle.”

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 17:30



 

 

This week, I speak with Judd Kessler, author of “Lucky by Design: The Hidden Economics You Need to Get More of What You Want,” and a professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

We discuss his research into the hidden markets that allocate value to desirable things such as restaurant reservations. We also delve into Judd’s research into how couples allocate their resources within a relationship and possible alternate ways to distribute concert tickets.

A list of his current reading/favorite books is here; A transcript of our conversation is available here Tuesday.

You can stream and download our full conversation, including any podcast extras, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube (audio), YouTube (video), and Bloomberg.All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.

Be sure to check out our Masters in Business next week with Songyee Yoon, founder and managing partner of Principal Venture Partners, an AI-focused investment firm established in 2024, and since 2025 a member of the board of directors of HP Inc.

 

 

 

Authored Book

 

Current Reading/Favorite Books

 

 

 

The post MiB: Judd Kessler, Lucky by Design appeared first on The Big Picture.

Debbie Dupes Dallas: Porn Legends Clone Themselves With AI To Keep Raking It In Long After Retiring

Worn-out porn stars have found a fresh way to keep raking in the cash long after they've aged out of the business, according to a new report from WIRED.

Joi.com

OhChat, a British startup that lets adult creators clone themselves with AI, has inked deals with Lisa Ann and Cherie DeVille to license their likenesses on the platform, basically creating a digital version of them in every possible way that can churn out custom sex scenes for paying customers.

Despite leaving the business in 2019, Lisa Ann now charges $30 per month to give fans the ability to cook up X-rated scenarios of her using the bot.

“This keeps my name alive,” said of her AI clone in an interview with WIRED. “She’s never going to age.”

“For guys that like to say good morning or good night, they now have that access. The fact that I'm not shooting scenes anymore also allows new scenes to be created,” she added.

Adult performer Alix Lynx licensed her image to Joi.com

WIRED reports:

Other competitors in the space include My.Club, Joi AI and SinfulX AI, the platform that adult film actress Georgia Koneva partnered with this month, saying, in a press statement, that her avatar gave her a “new way to share my voice and personality with the people who follow me.” According to SinfulX AI, it also develops “original” synthetic characters using licensed source imagery from adult performers whose content it has the rights to use. In the same statement, the company said that those AI-generated “characters” are “designed not to replicate any single individual while still maintaining the realism for which its content is known.”

However, Ann concedes that human porn is still preferred by a majority of people.“Guys are always going to want real content. Men are always going to want to see new scenes. There will always be a need for all of it. But the fact that I’ve never been awake from 11 pm to 7 am, and now there’s a 24-hour clone that can chat for me—that alone is something. It allows me to keep my brand alive,” she said.

* * * IQ Male Enhancement will leave you virtually diamonds

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 16:55

O'Reilly Exposes San Francisco As A Violent Third-World Drug Dystopia Infested By Illegals

Authored by Steve Watson via modernity.news,

Veteran commentator Bill O’Reilly just returned from filming a special in San Francisco — and the reality on the ground is far worse than most Americans understand.

O’Reilly painted a stark picture of a city ruined by open borders, sanctuary laws, and Democrat leadership that refuses to enforce basic order.

In raw footage shot inside the Tenderloin neighborhood - now a notorious open-air drug market - O’Reilly showed how the system itself perpetuates the collapse. 

Bill O’Reilly travels into San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood, now a violent, third-world open-air drug market.

What he uncovered is deeply disturbing.

California Democrats aren’t just ignoring the chaos they’ve created...they’re GIVING homeless people CASH, which they… pic.twitter.com/on0Ni49wGq

— Overton (@overton_news) March 27, 2026

“What the currency here is, is heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, all of it tinged now with fentanyl, which will kill you like that,” he reported, adding “Now these addicted people, these street people, they don’t care whether they live or die. Their whole lives center around intoxication.”

“At the same time the city gives them needles, crack pipes, it’s just insane. So the problem never gets solved. It’s circular,” O’Reilly emphasised.

“Now, why do they come here? Why not go to Des Moines or some place like that? Because the City of San Francisco and the State of California gives them MONEY, as we discussed earlier. Cash! For nothing! And they use the cash to get intoxicated, to buy drugs. So why wouldn’t you come here, to San Francisco?” O’Reilly further urged.

Here’s a longer segment:

O’Reilly then laid out the bigger picture in an interview segment, naming the illegal gangs driving the violence and the officials who have done nothing to stop it. 

Bill O’Reilly just returned from filming a special in San Francisco — and what he’s seeing on the ground is WORSE than anyone realizes.

He described a violent third-world, illegal alien–infested drug dystopia…and says the Democrats are FULLY covering it up.

O’REILLY: “You know… pic.twitter.com/mHQfRBL9gi

— Overton (@overton_news) March 26, 2026

“You know who sells narcotics down there in San Francisco and in Oakland?” O’Reilly said. “Honduran drug gangs who are here illegally.”

“You know who protects them? The sanctuary laws of San Francisco and California.”

“They strut around armed to the teeth, knowing that no one on the federal level can bother them, because the state and the city won’t cooperate as almost every state does with joint task force. California won’t do it,” he stressed.

“So Honduran drug gangs in this country illegally are fueling a MASSIVE fentanyl crisis that has destroyed the city of San Francisco. And the mayor knows it. And the governor knows it. And Pelosi knows it. And Kamala Harris knows it, and they NEVER did anything about it,” O’Reilly added.

O’Reilly described scenes that belong in a failed state: children walking to school forced to watch drug addicts inject needles into their necks. He detailed machete violence tied directly to the same illegal gangs.

“Now, Hondurans here illegally cut off people’s hands with machetes if they don’t pay their drug debts,” he continued. “This isn’t about narcotics. This is about massive violence.”

“It was once the most beautiful city in the country. I used to love to go there. Meanwhile, two miles away, Nancy Pelosi is living in an $8 million house guarded by security. So she doesn’t have to experience any of it,” O’Reilly detailed.

This collapse did not happen overnight. It is the direct outcome of the same policies that have been ongoing for years.

San Francisco’s office district has not only become a ghost town but is literally covered in human waste. 

Cash App founder Bob Lee was stabbed to death in what was supposed to be a “good part” of the city.

More recently, a grim statistic has confirmed San Francisco as one of America’s worst cities. One in eight home sellers lost money, with an average loss of $100,000.

The videos of needles, tents, open drug use, and total breakdown of public order have been there for anyone willing to see them.

Yet the same officials O’Reilly names kept pushing the same failed approach: sanctuary protections shielding illegal gangs, cash payments to addicts, free needles and pipes, and zero cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

The result is a once-iconic American city turned into a fentanyl-soaked zone where schoolchildren dodge junkies and violent illegal gangs operate openly while the political class retreats behind private security.

O’Reilly’s reporting confirms what millions already know from citizen videos and on-the-ground accounts: unchecked illegal immigration, sanctuary cities, and the progressive “harm reduction” model are not acts of compassion. They are policies that destroy urban America.

The elites who engineered this disaster never have to live with the consequences. Pelosi does not walk the Tenderloin. Harris did not fix the problem during her time in California. Newsom still refuses to confront it.

Only a sharp return to secure borders, actual enforcement of immigration law, and rejection of the open-air drug market model can reverse decades of damage. San Francisco stands as living proof of what happens when those basic principles are abandoned. Anything less simply keeps feeding the same deadly cycle.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 16:20

Alarming West Texas Oil Theft Emerges As National Security Threat

Criminals are exploiting weak points across the West Texas oil production region, which accounts for 15% of the world's energy resources. This emerging wave of oil theft is burning a multi-billion-dollar hole in the budgets of oil and gas operators across the Permian Basin and is becoming a national security threat.

Bloomberg reports that oil and gas producers are losing at least $1 billion, if not more, per year due to oilfield theft in what the outlet describes as something straight out of a "Mad Max" movie.

At the center of the Permian Basin is Martin County, one of the most important oil-producing counties in the country.

The outlet spoke with Sheriff Randy Cozart, who estimates that about 500 barrels of crude are stolen each week. Industry groups say statewide losses are accumulating and range from $1 billion to $2 billion annually.

"Where there's money, there's crime," Cozart explained. "And there's lots of money in oil right now," he said, especially with WTI prices near triple-digit territory due in part to the energy shock in the Middle East.

One of the major problems in the Permian Basin is the recent increase in criminal activity, which some say is due to the Biden-Harris administration's nation-killing open-border policies.

Ed Longanecker, president of the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association, told the outlet that oil companies in the region could incur losses of up to $2 billion. He said that figure does not cover thefts across the New Mexico portion of the Permian.

"The old joke in the oil field used to be that if it wasn't bolted down, it would get stolen," Michael Lozano, who runs government affairs and communications for the Permian Basin Petroleum Association, said, adding, "Now they're unscrewing the bolts, and they're stealing those too."

A recent Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas survey of oil executives showed that at least 60% said their operations were affected by oil thefts. 

Bloomberg described one method thieves use to steal oil:

Today's Permian Basin thieves might instead connect vacuum trucks to storage tanks in broad daylight and siphon it out, sometimes covering their license plates or swapping vehicles to evade law enforcement, authorities say.

Now, regulators and the FBI have taken notice because these oil thefts are becoming a growing economic security and critical infrastructure threat.

Local officials in Texas and New Mexico are closely watching the oil theft crisis. Texas has responded by creating a task force under the Railroad Commission, lawmakers are studying total economic losses, and the FBI has become more involved.

The question now is whether the energy shock emerging from the Middle East and the resulting national security threats will pressure states and the federal government to fortify critical energy infrastructure from the Gulf of America to the Permian Basin and elsewhere, as the risk of drone threats and sabotage continues to rise.

Tyler Durden Sat, 03/28/2026 - 15:45

Peter Schiff: Printing Money Is Not the Cure for Cononavirus



In his most recent podcast, Peter Schiff talked about coronavirus and the impact that it is having on the markets. Earlier this month, Peter said he thought the virus was just an excuse for stock market woes. At the time he believed the market was poised to fall anyway. But as it turns out, coronavirus has actually helped the US stock market because it has led central banks to pump even more liquidity into the world financial system. All this means more liquidity — central banks easing. In fact, that is exactly what has already happened, except the new easing is taking place, for now, outside the United States, particularly in China.” Although the new money is primarily being created in China, it is flowing into dollars — the dollar index is up — and into US stocks. Last week, US stock markets once again made all-time record highs. In fact, I think but for the coronavirus, the US stock market would still be selling off. But because of the central bank stimulus that has been the result of fears over the coronavirus, that actually benefitted not only the US dollar, but the US stock market.” In the midst of all this, Peter raises a really good question. The primary economic concern is that coronavirus will slow down output and ultimately stunt economic growth. Practically speaking, the world would produce less stuff. If the virus continues to spread, there would be fewer goods and services produced in a market that is hunkered down. Why would the Federal Reserve respond, or why would any central bank respond to that by printing money? How does printing more money solve that problem? It doesn’t. In fact, it actually exacerbates it. But you know, everybody looks at central bankers as if they’ve got the solution to every problem. They don’t. They don’t have the magic wand. They just have a printing press. And all that creates is inflation.” Sometimes the illusion inflation creates can look like a magic wand. Printing money can paper over problems. But none of this is going to fundamentally fix the economy. In fact, if central bankers were really going to do the right thing, the appropriate response would be to drain liquidity from the markets, not supply even more.” Peter explained how the Fed was originally intended to create an “elastic” money supply that would expand or contract along with economic output. Today, the money supply only goes in one direction — that’s up. The economy is strong, print money. The economy is weak, print even more money.” Of course, the asset that’s doing the best right now is gold. The yellow metal pushed above $1,600 yesterday. Gold is up 5.5% on the year in dollar terms and has set record highs in other currencies. Because gold is rising even in an environment where the dollar is strengthening against other fiat currencies, that shows you that there is an underlying weakness in the dollar that is right now not being reflected in the Forex markets, but is being reflected in the gold markets. Because after all, why are people buying gold more aggressively than they’re buying dollars or more aggressively than they’re buying US Treasuries? Because they know that things are not as good for the dollar or the US economy as everybody likes to believe. So, more people are seeking out refuge in a better safe-haven and that is gold.” Peter also talked about the debate between Trump and Obama over who gets credit for the booming economy – which of course, is not booming.

We are living in crazy times. I have a hard time believing that most of the general public is not awake, but in reality, they are. We've never seen anything like this; I mean not even under Obama during the worst part of the Great Recession." Now the Fed is desperately trying to keep interest rates from rising. The problem is that it's a much bigger debt bubble this time around , and the Fed is going to have to blow a lot more air into it to keep it inflated. The difference is this time it's not going to work." It looks like the Fed did another $104.15 billion of Not Q.E. in a single day. The Fed claims it's only temporary. But that is precisely what Bernanke claimed when the Fed started QE1. Milton Freedman once said, "Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program." The same applies to Q.E., or whatever the Fed wants to pretend it's doing. Except this is not QE4, according to Powell. Right. Pumping so much money out, and they are accusing China of currency manipulation ? Wow! Seriously! Amazing! Dump the U.S. dollar while you still have a chance. Welcome to The Atlantis Report. And it is even worse than that, In addition to the $104.15 billion of "Not Q.E." this past Thursday; the FED added another $56.65 billion in liquidity to financial markets the next day on Friday. That's $160.8 billion in two days!!!! in just 48 hours. That is more than 2 TIMES the highest amount the FED has ever injected on a monthly basis under a Q.E. program (which was $80 billion per month) Since this isn't QE....it will be really scary on what they are going to call Q.E. Will it twice, three times, four times, five times what this injection per month ! It is going to be explosive since it takes about 60 to 90 days for prices to react to this, January should see significant inflation as prices soak up the excess liquidity. The question is, where will the inflation occur first . The spike in the repo rate might have a technical explanation: a misjudgment was made in the Fed's money market operations. Even so, two conclusions can be drawn: managing the money markets is becoming harder, and from now on, banks will be studying each other's creditworthiness to a greater degree than before. Those people, who struggle with the minutiae of money markets, and that includes most professionals, should focus on the causes and not the symptoms. Financial markets have recovered from each downturn since 1980 because interest rates have been cut to new lows. Post-2008, they were cut to near zero or below zero in all major economies. In response to a new financial crisis, they cannot go any lower. Central banks will look for new ways to replicate or broaden Q.E. (At some point, governments will simply see repression as an easier option). Then there is the problem of 'risk-free' assets becoming risky assets. Financial markets assume that the probability of major governments such as the U.S. or U.K. defaulting is zero. These governments are entering the next downturn with debt roughly twice the levels proportionate to GDP that was seen in 2008. The belief that the policy worked was completely predicated on the fact that it was temporary and that it was reversible, that the Fed was going to be able to normalize interest rates and shrink its balance sheet back down to pre-crisis levels. Well, when the balance sheet is five-trillion, six-trillion, seven-trillion when we're back at zero, when we're back in a recession, nobody is going to believe it is temporary. Nobody is going to believe that the Fed has this under control, that they can reverse this policy. And the dollar is going to crash. And when the dollar crashes, it's going to take the bond market with it, and we're going to have stagflation. We're going to have a deep recession with rising interest rates, and this whole thing is going to come imploding down. everything is temporary with the fed including remaining off the gold standard temporary in the Fed's eyes could mean at least 50 years This liquidity problem is a signal that trading desks are loaded up on inventory and can't get rid of it. Repo is done out of a need for cash. If you own all of your securities (i.e., a long-only, no leverage mutual fund) you have no need to "repo" your securities - you're earning interest every night so why would you want to 'repo' your securities where you are paying interest for that overnight loan (securities lending is another animal). So, it is those that 'lever-up' and need the cash for settlement purposes on securities they've bought with borrowed money that needs to utilize the repo desk. With this in mind, as we continue to see this need to obtain cash (again, needed to settle other securities purchases), it shows these firms don't have the capital to add more inventory to, what appears to be, a bloated inventory. Now comes the fun part: the Treasury is about to auction 3's, 10's, and 30-year bonds. If I am correct (again, I could be wrong), the Fed realizes securities firms don't have the shelf space to take down a good portion of these auctions. If there isn't enough retail/institutional demand, it will lead to not only a crappy sale but major concerns to the street that there is now no backstop, at all, to any sell-off. At which point, everyone will want to be the first one through the door and sell immediately, but to whom? If there isn't enough liquidity in the repo market to finance their positions, the firms would be unable to increase their inventory. We all saw repo shut down on the 2008 crisis. Wall St runs on money. . OVERNIGHT money. They lever up to inventory securities for trading. If they can't get overnight money, they can't purchase securities. And if they can't unload what they have, it means the buy-side isn't taking on more either. Accounts settle overnight. This includes things like payrolls and bill pay settlements. If a bank doesn't have enough cash to payout what its customers need to pay out, it borrows. At least one and probably more than one banks are insolvent. That's what's going on. First, it can't be one or two banks that are short. They'd simply call around until they found someone to lend. But they did that, and even at markedly elevated rates, still, NO ONE would lend them the money. That tells me that it's not a problem of a couple of borrowers, it's a problem of no lenders. And that means that there's no bank in the world left with any real liquidity. They are ALL maxed out. But as bad as that is, and that alone could be catastrophic, what it really signals is even worse. The lending rates are just the flip side of the coin of the value of the assets lent against. If the rates go up, the value goes down. And with rates spiking to 10%, how far does the value fall? Enormously! And if banks had to actually mark down the value of the assets to reflect 10% interest rates, then my god, every bank in the world is insolvent overnight. Everyone's capital ratios are in the toilet, and they'd have to liquidate. We're talking about the simultaneous insolvency of every bank on the planet. Bank runs. No money in ATMs, Branches closed. Safe deposit boxes confiscated. The whole nine yards, It's actually here. The scenario has tended to guide toward for years and years is actually happening RIGHT NOW! And people are still trying to say it's under control. Every bank in the world is currently insolvent. The only thing keeping it going is printing billions of dollars every day. Financial Armageddon isn't some far off future risk. It's here. Prepare accordingly. This fiat system has reached the end of the line, and it's not correct that fiat currencies fail by design. The problem is corruption and manipulation. It is corruption and cheating that erodes trust and faith until the entire system becomes a gigantic fraud. Banks and governments everywhere ARE the problem and simply have to be removed. They have lost all trust and respect, and all they have left is war and mayhem. As long as we continue to have a majority of braindead asleep imbeciles following orders from these psychopaths, nothing will change. Fiat currency is not just thievery. Fiat currency is SLAVERY. Ultimately the most harmful effect of using debt of undefined value as money (i.e., fiat currencies) is the de facto legalization of a caste system based on voluntary slavery. The bankers have a charter, or the legal *right*, to create money out of nothing. You, you don't. Therefore you and the bankers do not have the same standing before the law. The law of the land says that you will go to jail if you do the same thing (creating money out of thin air) that the banker does in full legality. You and the banker are not equal before the law. ALL the countries of the world; Islamic or secular, Jewish or Arab, democracy or dictatorship; all of them place the bankers ABOVE you. And all of you accept that only whining about fiat money going down in exchange value over time (price inflation which is not the same as monetary inflation). Actually, price inflation itself is mainly due to the greed and stupidity of the bankers who could keep fiat money's exchange value reasonably stable, only if they wanted to. Witness the crash of silver and gold prices which the bankers of the world; Russian, American, Chinese, Jewish, Indian, Arab, all of them collaborated to engineer through the suppression and stagnation of precious metals' prices to levels around the metals' production costs, or what it costs to dig gold and silver out of the ground. The bankers of the world could also collaborate to keep nominal prices steady (as they do in the case of the suppression of precious metals prices). After all, the ability to create fiat money and force its usage is a far more excellent source of power and wealth than that which is afforded simply by stealing it through inflation. The bankers' greed and stupidity blind them to this fact. They want it all, and they want it now. In conclusion, The bankers can create money out of nothing and buy your goods and services with this worthless fiat money, effectively for free. You, you can't. You, you have to lead miserable existences for the most of you and WORK in order to obtain that effectively nonexistent, worthless credit money (whose purchasing/exchange value is not even DEFINED thus rendering all contracts based on the null and void!) that the banker effortlessly creates out of thin air with a few strokes of the computer keyboard, and which he doesn't even bother to print on paper anymore, electing to keep it in its pure quantum uncertain form instead, as electrons whizzing about inside computer chips which will become mute and turn silent refusing to tell you how many fiat dollars or euros there are in which account, in the absence of electricity. No electricity, no fiat, nor crypto money. It would appear that trust is deteriorating as it did when Lehman blew up . Something really big happened that set off this chain reaction in the repo markets. Whatever that something is, we aren't be informed. They're trying to cover it up, paper it over with conjured cash injections, play it cool in front of the cameras while sweating profusely under the 5 thousands dollar suits. I'm guessing that the final high-speed plunge into global economic collapse has begun. All we see here is the ripples and whitewater churning the surface, but beneath the surface, there is an enormous beast thrashing desperately in its death throws. Now is probably the time to start tying up loose ends with the long-running prep projects, just saying. In other words, prepare accordingly, and Get your money out of the banks. I don't care if you don't believe me about Bitcoin. Get your money out of the banks. Don't keep any more money in a bank than you need to pay your bills and can afford to lose.











The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers , Whistelblowers , truthers and many more













The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers , Whistelblowers , truthers and many more

The FBI released a summary of its file from the Hillary Clinton email investigation on Friday, showing details of Clinton's explanation of her use of a private email server to handle classified communications. The release comes nearly two months after FBI Director James Comey announced that although Clinton's handling of classified information was "extremely careless," it did not rise to the level of a prosecutable offense. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced the next day that she would not pursue charges in the matter. "We are making these materials available to the public in the interest of transparency and in response to numerous Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests," the FBI noted in a statement sent to reporters with links to the documents. The documents include notes from Clinton's July 2 interview with agents, as well as a "factual summary of the FBI's investigation into this matter," according to the FBI release. Throughout her interview with agents, Clinton repeatedly said she relied on the career professionals she worked with to handle classified information correctly. The agents asked about a series of specific emails, and in each case Clinton said she wasn't worried about the particular material being discussed on a nonclassified channel.