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D id a few loose strands of Ebola seep into the organs and tissues of global finance last week? The US equity markets sure enough puked, the Nikkei bled out through its eyeballs, all the collagen melted out of Greek bonds, and treasuries bloated up grotesquely on a putrid stream of terrified “liquidity” that led two Federal Reserve proctologists to maunder about the possibility of a QE-4 laxative, out of which, in due time, will surely gush explosive bloody fluxes of deeper financial sickness.

The oil price fell on its face so hard it crashed through the floorboards. One particular idiot at NPR wrote that this means peak oil was a hoax (Predictions Of ‘Peak Oil’ Production Prove Slippery). I guess she didn’t notice that the junk financing associated with shale oil capex is also dissolving like the poor late Thomas Eric Duncan’s circulatory system. That is, expect a whole lot less drilling in the Bakken and the Eagle Ford in the months ahead, and a substantial fall in production. Unless the US government finds a back door to shovel money at shale (a possibility considering the crucial myth of “Saudi America” to Wall Street psychology), the investment will not be there for the relentless drilling and re-drilling. As other savants on the web have pointed out, it’s not so much that the world is awash in surplus oil as the world is a’glut in people too broke to buy oil. And anyway, the shale oil companies have never made a buck at any price on anything but the real estate shenanigans entailed in their racket, buying and selling leases and so forth, just more paper games. In short, there is plenty of reason to believe that the shale endeavor may founder altogether at $80-a-barrel.

But I was on the road all last week, first in our nation’s capital and then in the capital of Sweden, Stockholm and its environs. Interesting place these days, Washington, DC. It is among the USA’s richest metro areas now, for the simple reason that torrents of grift from the backwash of Wall Street nourish the pathogenic activities of influence peddling the way agar nutrient will cause E coli to flourish in a Petri dish. But for all the awesome yawning vistas of the national mall and its marble monuments, Washington is deeply unpleasant to walk around. The scale is absurd. I hoofed it from the Freer Collection at the heart of the museum district over to M Street in Georgetown, and that was like the Bataan Death March. Arlington, Virginia, just across the Potomac, where my hotel was, is a sadder joke. They’ve spent thirty years pretending to “pedestrianize” it, and the outcome is sort of like Wilshire Boulevard meets Hackensack.

A day later, I was in Stockholm, being forcefully reminded what an actual city is like, one designed for human activity, not just some abstract political notion of “mobility.” People live in the center of Stockholm, lots of them, in five and six story buildings that display great variety and conscious artistry within strong orders of architectural unity. The motifs are a northern folkish classicism. The effect is both reassuring and powerfully coherent. You feel civilized. Your neurology is constantly nourished as you walk. Unlike Americans, the Swedes don’t go about in their pajamas. Also absent were cholo caps, team sports toggery, and clown sneakers. How refreshing to see young people aspire to act like grownups instead of the other way around. And, of course, almost no one is supersized over there.

Then, too soon, I landed back in Newark Airport, Lord have mercy. I grabbed a taxi to the Newark train station to get to the Hudson River line out of New York City back upstate. Along the way on Route 21, I passed a graffiti on an overpass. It said “Omenland.” The anonymous genius who sprayed that there sure caught the US zeitgeist. Newark compares to Stockholm as an Ebola victim in the gutter compares to a supermodel at poolside. The scene in the Newark train station was like the barroom from Star Wars, a creature-feature extravaganza, intergalactic Mutt Central, wookies in hoodies with burning coals for eyes, ladies with pierced cheeks, crack-heads, winos, missing body part people, lopsided head people, and the scrofulous physical condition of the station is proof positive that Chris Christie is unqualified to be president. This is a gateway to New York, America’s greatest city, you understand, and it looks like the veritable checkpoint to the rectum of the universe. You know what occurred to me: maybe it is?

*

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James Howard Kunstler is the author of many books including (non-fiction) The Geography of Nowhere, The City in Mind: Notes on the Urban Condition, Home from Nowhere, The Long Emergency and the four-book series of World Made By Hand novels, set in a post economic crash American future. His most recent book is Living in the Long Emergency; Global Crisis, the Failure of the Futurists, and the Early Adapters Who Are Showing Us the Way Forward. Jim lives on a homestead in Washington County, New. York, where he tends his garden and communes with his chickens.

299 Responses to ““Omenland””

  1. noel bodie October 20, 2014 at 9:57 am #

    Thanks for the update on how those hopelessly misdirected socialists live.

    • CancelMyCard October 20, 2014 at 11:46 am #

      Newark is socialist?

      Who’da thunk . . .

      • QuantumOfIdleness October 20, 2014 at 1:45 pm #

        I don’t know if that is a joke. Stockholm is certainly more socialist than Newark, and Stockholm probably outshines anyplace in the US. I’ve been to Germany, and most German cities certainly do. There’s a lot more to being a run down dump of a city or a society than being socialist or capitalist.

        • wolfbay October 20, 2014 at 8:47 pm #

          Didn’t think Sweden was socialist. Capitalists control the means of production and their world class companies actually make things and even export them.

  2. AKlein October 20, 2014 at 10:16 am #

    JHK’s last sentence says it all. G-d help us.

    • Janos Skorenzy October 20, 2014 at 1:45 pm #

      Indeed. Only a homogenous population can possibly muster the unity and social capital and virtue to restrain governments and corporations from the evil that they are so prone to.

    • seawolf77 October 21, 2014 at 10:26 am #

      Why would he/she want to? Who exactly are we out-praying to garner his support? What have we done to deserve it? On the contrary, what have we done to garner his wrath?

  3. upstater October 20, 2014 at 10:35 am #

    When the country spends $1T per year on “national security”, more on prisons, jails and probation than on colleges and universities and 17% of GDP on “healthcare” there is precious little left over for anything else.

    I was SO hopeful that the financial crisis would have caused imperial retrenchment and a reality check.

    But QE proved me wrong. I continue to be amazed that they have kept the game going so long and so effectively.

    Obviously it isn’t a perpetual motion machine for greed and gratification the 0.0001% and it will stop. But again, who’d a thunk in 2008 that 2014 would look as good as it has?

    • AKlein October 20, 2014 at 10:50 am #

      Upstater, my mother would be amazed at how well it’s still going and she forecast cataclysm back in the 1970’s (when she declared the economy essentially a rigged game even back then.) The question is, how have “they” kept it afloat for so long? I’ve thought about that and I have a conjecture which may explain it. Back in the 1970’s we had similar, but smaller scale, machinations going on. Then Nixon decoupled the dollar from gold. This has allowed ‘”them” to include a vast part of the world in “the game” and that stemmed the calamity for 40+ years. But unless “they” can somehow include space aliens into ‘the game” the jig will shortly be up. Who else has anything we can cleverly loot to keep the charade going? Maybe Russia and/or China? Who?

      • Subvert October 22, 2014 at 2:25 am #

        Defineitely not Russia. Check out Dmitry Orlov’s article this week at cluborlov.com Russia is pretty much in the proverbial catbird seat these days. My mom also declared the global financial state a sham back in the 70’s. Gotta love yer momma!

        Cheers!

  4. Petro October 20, 2014 at 10:38 am #

    Many sad chuckles in reading today’s post. Cooper Union! Congratulations. Too bad I don’t live closer to attend.

    • Frankiti October 20, 2014 at 5:15 pm #

      Even Cooper Union was swallowed by the hucksterism of high-priced education and $100 million dining halls. So sad.

  5. Neon Vincent October 20, 2014 at 10:42 am #

    “The oil price fell on its face so hard it crashed through the floorboards.”

    Yes, both WTI and Brent broke through two levels of support, one at $90 and another at $85, and traders are now using $80 as the floor. As a result, gas below $3.00 arrived in my neighborhood. The Saudis may not have engineered this drop, but it looks like they decided it was a falling knife and got out of its way so that it would stick someone else, namely their OPEC rivals, Russia, and especially U.S. tight oil producers, instead. So much for reducing production and keeping prices up. Also, so much for our tight oil boom if this continues.

    “Did a few loose strands of Ebola seep into the organs and tissues of global finance last week?”

    The answer looks to be yes. Even though the message from authorities on Ebola,continues to be “Don’t Panic”–all they need to do is add the covers to the “Hitchhiker’s Guide” books to the press releases–neither the stock markets nor the American people seem to be in a mood to listen. They want to panic, and this is as good an excuse as any.

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    • thoren October 21, 2014 at 9:52 pm #

      ALL TOO interesting as Artie Shaw would say .
      The announcement of the China-Russia trade block ( and currency swap now solidifies . The Ukraine needs to stop crapping away a change to keep it’s population warm with Russian gas . I wonder if a flaring or oral gas of western leaders can be harnessed ?
      Since China will now supply Russia with all she needs too maintain the semblance of production , the Saudi s are falling on their swords
      needlessly . With Michigan now banning Tesla s the oil supply noose
      again tightens around the neck of Detroit. I had freshly dumped the burbs for urban living back in 72 . The gas lines and nastiness mainly stayed in the burbs as I walked fifteen minute to my job at AT&T. ( AT&T has been institutionally comatose since then: refusing to use either solar or wind to maintain the batteries of phone company offices . ‘Hi kids ! Can you say ‘self embalming ‘??
      It may be Michigan to first return to the Middle Ages . Baked polyps of colon anyone ?? MY guess is on a outbreak of cholera as flush water continues to be denied Detroit residents . The new Africa theme park predicted by my old research boss . ( Don’t go there without your hazmat gear .) Re-invention of cholera and typhus is on the menu served up by Quicken Loan cretins
      As the dollar get’s shown the door , prices in the US make burbie types plant fruit tress . On the menu for barn and breakfast Michigan : contagion . Inner burbs like Ferndale ,Michigan will see cases show up at their health clinics: 40% of Ferndale’s residents have ZERO insurance. ( see Prof Peter Friedlander’s blog . WSU -retired )
      A suggestion Jim : Open a re-purposing operation in your town . Already happening back in my home turf of Motown . Meybe a camp-in with workshops ? A new monthly mag titled Shed Life ??
      Mule veterinarianism is in the cards now . ( Michigan State for THAT one )

      Me ?? I’m setting up a Wayne Karp operation near my apartment
      Scrap and other aluminum .
      Thoren

  6. shotho October 20, 2014 at 10:47 am #

    I don’t know about Newark, but confirms what I’ve always heard about it. Actually, the same can be said about any other major American airport. When you travel overseas to just about anywhere and return, look carefully at the denizens – overweight, greasy hair, bad skin, pierced parts and generous tatoos. It looks to be what it truly is – a collection of degraded human beings. And it foretells what is happening and continues to happen. God help us! Oh, pardon, not supposed to mention that.

    • Anotherplayaguy October 20, 2014 at 9:29 pm #

      These are God’s people you’re talking about. God got them all to where they are now.

      No wonder God doesn’t want to be mentioned.

  7. Daphne DeMuir October 20, 2014 at 10:52 am #

    And today there’s an article in the Chicago Trib about developers deciding not to carry on with the further development of the awful subdivisions that were largely abandoned after ’09 . Instead they seek “raw” land that has better “location.” Where? In windswept no man’s land areas out in Bum-F**k, of course. It does get harder and harder to care about this country.

    • Greg Knepp October 20, 2014 at 11:38 am #

      Daphne, I like your last sentence. I finally stopped caring when Bob Dylan started hawking Cadillacs…”The times they are a’changin”. Indeed, they’re getting worse!

      • Daphne DeMuir October 20, 2014 at 12:11 pm #

        HAHAHA! So true! Between that and our cruel health care “delivery” system it’s hard to be patriotic. I’m 56 and like so many of us I have many friends who are experiencing the slow drip (sometimes fast) of being pushed out of the middle class. I had a tenuous grip on it at best and am now pretty much out.

        • AKlein October 20, 2014 at 12:19 pm #

          Daphne, in a way you are understating the problem. It isn’t just that people are being forced out of the middle class. It’s that large numbers of people are progressively losing what little security they had. That is a much, much worse problem than simply not being middle class. There was a time when both middle class and working class people had a degree of security that now no longer exists. And making matters worse, our real leadership thinks that reducing people’s security is simply acceptable collateral damage to otherwise virtuous behavior – chasing extraordinary profits.

          • Daphne DeMuir October 20, 2014 at 12:28 pm #

            Your are so right, AKlein. Most of the people I’m talking about, including my family, came from middle to lower middle class backgrounds. They did well for a while.Not now. And living in Illinois, we get special front seat VIP passes to watch the spectacle of profit chasing, corruption, cronyism and shameless white collar crime.

  8. Hands4u October 20, 2014 at 10:56 am #

    (to the rectum of the universe)
    “but Misses Johnson; Jerry fell on his ass!” “Now, now Billy, we won’t use ‘that word’. Please, the correct word is ‘rectum’.” And Billy responded in a loud voice, “Wrecked’em?… Damn near killed’em!”

    Sorry, reminded me of the punch line to a joke my father told me when I was a young lad. And now I’m cursed to think of it every time.

  9. Hands4u October 20, 2014 at 11:03 am #

    Jim, will someone be there to record your presentation on the 23rd? If so I would appreciate it being posted to youtube. Thanks.

  10. Buck Stud October 20, 2014 at 11:16 am #

    If you think America looks bad now just wait till you see what the next generation of Americans’ turn out like after being bottle fed the Xbox shit that Kevin Spacey attaches himself too. (In general, we now longer have any Neil Young’s left in America, only sellouts who will peddle any form of disgusting filth if the price is right–way to go Kevin Spacey!) Of course, it’s not just the underlings watching this decadent garbage, but the same group of “Mutt Central Clowns ” that JHK so hilariously describes.

    Google, “Call of Duty Advanced Warfare” Trailer – Kevin Spacey

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  11. the blame/e October 20, 2014 at 11:22 am #

    While you were gone, in response to daily movements toward the crash side and back, some fool idiot named Chuck Jaffe over at Wall Street came out with an article about how “The Dow Jones Industrial Average is Not the Stock Market.” After throwing up my lunch, even I had to admit his bald faced liar pretty much summed things up perfectly.

    The FED is not the FED. QE is not free money for the criminal shyster politicians and banksters, the moneyed elites, for the corporate oligarchs (who are inverting themselves out the door to places like Canada faster than rats leaving a sinking ship of state). The U.S. economy is not dead. Parts of the worst slums in Mumbai, India do not look better than New York City. Death and taxes are not all that is left.

    The reality is much worse.

    “Omenland” is too good a description for this country, where there is nothing even remotely close to resembling a wake up call to size and severity of the consequences this country will someday face. To paraphrase Herbert Stein, “things will go on until they can’t, and then they will stop.” One can only hope at this point.

    Welcome back.

  12. contrahend October 20, 2014 at 11:33 am #

    The U.S. economy is not dead. Parts of the worst slums in Mumbai, India do not look better than New York City. Death and taxes are not all that is left.

    my vote for the most ridiculous nonsense of the week

    no rebuttal required, this is prima facie idiocy

    The husband of Teresa Romero, the nurse who contracted Ebola at a Spanish hospital, confirms his wife is clear of the disease

    score one for beating this thing.

    British nurse who survived Ebola: ‘I’m excited to get back to Sierra Leone’

    score another

    WHO: Nigeria’s Ebola outbreak is officially over

    not so confident about this one

    in brief, amigos, we will whip this virus.

    kontrahend

    • AKlein October 20, 2014 at 12:07 pm #

      And if we “whip it” as you suggest, given the dissembling that is going on in virtually every dimension in this country, can we be sure it wasn’t a paper tiger? And will the next viral threat be real? Consider ISIS. Is it a threat to us or not? Or are we surreptitiously supporting it? That’s part of the bigger problem – we can’t easily separate fact from posturing.

      • Greg Knepp October 20, 2014 at 12:38 pm #

        “…can’t easily separate fact from posturing.”

        True; as it turns out, the most absurd proposition of the Cheney-Bush administration – that “America creates its own reality” – has become solidly embedded in the U.S. governing ethos…and with potentially calamitous consequences.

        • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 8:52 pm #

          “Creates its own reality.” Isn’t that what psychopaths are said to do?

          And when you are in the clutches of a psychopath there is no escape.

          None.

          That’s how America makes me feel. But I know what the answer is: Elect a President who doesn’t have a penis!!!

          Even a conservative. Though a Democrat.

          I am already dreading 2016.

    • Apneaman October 20, 2014 at 12:28 pm #

      Here we go with the “we” shit again. What? Did you volunteer at the Ebola ward in the evenings? Do some pro bono lab work on week ends? If it was spreading rapidly, you’d be screaming that “they” are all a bunch of incompetent fucks.

      • AKlein October 20, 2014 at 12:37 pm #

        Ha! Spot on. I think the “we” in this case is the “American Exceptionalism we” – a morphed cousin of the “Royal we” possibly.

    • the blame/e October 20, 2014 at 1:58 pm #

      Let’s forget for the moment (oh, let’s not), that I did not bring up Ebola at all.

      “The husband of Teresa Romero, the nurse who contracted Ebola at a Spanish hospital, confirms his wife is clear of the disease. Score one for beating this thing.”

      Yeah. Too bad their dog is still dead, eh sparky?

      “[The] British nurse who survived Ebola: ‘I’m excited to get back to Sierra Leone.’ Score another.”

      The British nurse, William Pooley, is a Christian Missionary who, there but for the grace of god and Ebola goes he. It is not enough for these bible thumpers to go about spreading the word of god and the plagues of smallpox and measles to the pagan, heathen, savages. Now we are the pagan heathen savages that must be saved with god and Ebola.

      Pooley was brought home in a C-17 cargo plane at a cost of several million dollars. Delivered to a specialized treatment facility set up just for Pooley his bibles and his Ebola. What the devil did all this cost? I’ll tell you.

      The NBC cameraman, Ashoka Mukpo, is looking for handouts to pay his $500,000 dollar medical bill, and he only flew in on a Gulfstream V.

      Just how man Ebola patients can our fully dysfunctional first world health care system bankrupt before it too becomes bankrupt?

      And, to top it off numb nuts William Pooley is going back to deepest darkest infected Africa, against the advice of his doctors because they don’t know how strong his immunity to Ebola is.

      And finally.

      “WHO: Nigeria’s Ebola outbreak is officially over. Not so confident about this one.”

      Maybe it is time for you (as opposed to “we”), to change your undies, again — Eh amigos?

      • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 9:06 pm #

        I really don’t understand all this silliness. Exchanging preteen insults? Does that really give you any comfort?

        Bottom line: If something like this spreads beyond a small population or small geographical area it’s virtually impossible to stop.

        Especially in a world with such a patchwork of health care systems and with millions of people living in conditions that can only be described as a petri dish for bacteria.

        And then you have the US. More ten-billion-dollar aircraft carriers than the rest of the world combined and a disease-monitoring and response system that isn’t worth a damn. If you recall the response to AIDS – mired in religious ignorance – you’ll know what I mean.

        This is an example of how our leadership absolutely CANNOT fail us. Rhetoric and political bullshit will not do.

  13. loudillon October 20, 2014 at 11:57 am #

    Howard, You came close but the description of the USA:
    It’s that it was once a beautiful country “Taylor Swift” that got
    hijacked by the “Kanye West’s” of the world!
    Nothing more, it’s that type of behavior that’s called “Change”.
    We call it progressive, liberal and diversity, but it’s just criminal Anarchy with absolutely nothing but the destruction of the common moral and the enviorment that produced it.
    Sad thing is you can protect pepole from Ebola, but not people from a phoney reality. At least not for ever!!!

    Sincerely,

    Lou

  14. seawolf77 October 20, 2014 at 12:14 pm #

    Your description of life in a foreign land is humorous. Whenever i describe something like that to an American, they become incredibly defensive vis-a-vis the 1960’s “Love it or leave it.” If you can get past the endemic American hostility, you’ll see people are much happier than here in America. There is a calm and a deep happiness that you cannot find here. I suspect much of it comes from the guilt. People in the South still have it bad from the Civil War. It reminds of the Germans at the end of the war. America is guilty of terrible, terrible crimes against humanity and yet the people believe we are a force of good. The cognitive dissonance is mind blowing.

    • AKlein October 20, 2014 at 12:27 pm #

      Seawolf, I partially disagree with you. I believe that most Americans are a force for good, or at least want to be. The problem is that our leadership is largely utterly amoral. To wit, is there a war they can’t get behind if there are profits to be made? Americans have been repeatedly misled to their own disadvantage and to the rest of the world’s too.

      • Anotherplayaguy October 20, 2014 at 9:36 pm #

        And yet Americans continue to elect these cretins.

        Of course, if they didn’t, there would be no more elections.

      • seawolf77 October 21, 2014 at 10:07 am #

        In Vietnam, America lost 58,000 men. Vietnam lost 3,000,000. That’s a kill ratio of 50 to 1. In Iraq today we have lost 5,000 men and conservative estimates put Iraq losses at 1,000,000. That’s a kill ratio of 200 to 1. Remember those Nazi movies where if even one German was killed they woudl execute the whole town?

    • Janos Skorenzy October 20, 2014 at 1:41 pm #

      “If you can get past the endemic American hostility, you’ll see people are much happier than here in America.”

      That sentence doesn’t even make sense. It’s like asking whether a lion is organized like a symphony or a fugue. Happier where? Are the Americans hostile in general or just the Americans in America? Or are the foreigners hostile to Americans in their country or just the Americans in America?

      • seawolf77 October 20, 2014 at 2:57 pm #

        If you had been overseas lately, it would need no explanation.

    • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 9:25 pm #

      I guess we’re only promised the pursuit of happiness rather than the actual thing – at least not on a long-term basis.

      I suppose it’s one of those “it’s the journey not the goal” things. Maybe they’ve all read “Hero with a Thousand Faces”!

      I’m more of an R.D. Laing guy. Knots and all.

  15. Beryl of Oyl October 20, 2014 at 12:37 pm #

    Chris Christie and the Newark train station – as long as people keep buying the myth that there is ‘no money’ for infrastructure…
    A relative of mine was nearly run over in a crosswalk in D.C., so close to the White House that the Secret Service swarmed the scene. I notice around here we keep painting stripes on roads in places where no one should even attempt to cross the street. They might as well paint crosshairs.
    The shale issue made me think of an anti-smoking commercial from the 1970’s, where a woman is up in the middle of the night, all the stores are closed, she ransacks the house looking for just one cigarette, and then she picks up a butt left in an ashtray, and you see her contemplating how there is still some nicotine in there, maybe it will be enough.

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  16. budizwiser October 20, 2014 at 12:43 pm #

    JK,

    I had occasion to spend four nights in DC last month. My only previous experience in the city was as a tourist many years ago.

    On this visit – I stayed at the historic Dupont Hotel -which of course in on the grand Dupont Circle.

    What a hoot. I discovered the rat really do run the city. At least after dark. I spotted one, and thought greatly of my discovery. Much to my surprise – several homeless men pointed to several more.

    Later in the evening, it was clear that they entire area is infested to a degree – I feel – worth mentioning. Rats surrounding our beloved town – oh the humanity……

    I am hardly a sophisticate of international cities so I do have one observation that I request commenting on.

    I simply could not believe how the city is “saturated” with auto traffic. What I find remarkable is that the city does indeed have a very expansive subway system that is “saturated” during rush hours as well.

    I simply cannot understand how and where all the vehicles come from – when I’ve seen the thousands that ride the DC subway systems……..

    • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 9:41 pm #

      America is saturated with auto traffic. Out here in the SF Bay Area the entire region is a parking lot for several hours during the AM and PM commutes, BART is running at capacity much of the time, and the influx of young adults (I’m 66) in my city of Oakland has meant an increase in bus ridership.

      I imagine that there are millions of cars sitting every day in stop-and-go traffic, burning millions of gallons of gas, and I can only say that this is a symptom of why America won’t make it. Worse, we have NO leadership with the backbone to address any of this. Instead we get bullshit about “energy independence.”

      America has the most primitive, inefficient, and expensive transportation infrastructure in the industrial world. Try selling widgets with that!

      We need politicians who will talk about these things the way they all do about spending money on guns and ammo. And the way they babble on about how important it is to protect our inefficient, greedy, incompetent, toxic, criminal private sector. And hammer it at the voters nonstop. Because THAT’S the only way to get action.

      But if the Democrats continue to serve the same masters as the GOP, we who have no power as a result will be even worse off. Because this is anarchy.

      Think about all this when the speeches begin for 2016 and the kinds of things those speeches attempt to “inspire” or “arouse” in the voters – the “we” who are supposed to do so much.

  17. contrahend October 20, 2014 at 12:49 pm #

    Here we go with the “we” shit again. What? Did you volunteer at the Ebola ward in the evenings? Do some pro bono lab work on week ends? If it was spreading rapidly, you’d be screaming that “they” are all a bunch of incompetent fucks.

    i assume this one was directed to me?

    don`t follow the logic, though. was merely pointing out that ebola is not winning. `we` means `the untied states`, because that`s where the virus showed up in around 3 or 4 people.

    don`t understand the jump to incompetent fux either.

    cfn hysteria : 0
    science & technology: 1

    things could change, `we` will wait and see

    kontrahend

  18. rollie October 20, 2014 at 1:01 pm #

    Coming back from Europe truly is a culture-shock. I noticed it as early as 1998 when I had the good fortune to go to Germany for a few weeks. Then it was time to fly home. When you go through an airport, you are sorted into an increasingly specific crowd. You might start at the main terminal (everyone), proceed to the international terminal (international travelers only) to the correct concourse (your airline), to the vicinity of your gate (more likely to encounter people going to your same destination) to the gate itself (everyone going to your destination). Heading through Frankfurt airport toward my flight, I noticed a gradual increase in the incidence of dawdling, obesity, inconsiderate behavior and whining; and a corresponding rise in a feeling I hadn’t felt in weeks – hating everyone. It wasn’t until I got near my gate and started to hear English spoken, that I realized why.

    • seawolf77 October 21, 2014 at 10:02 am #

      Hating everyone! That’s it. That’s the phrase that sums up America.

    • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:59 pm #

      You hate everyone on your flight because they come from urban zones and not from parts of the country where people feel they are NOT missing out by NOT seeing Germany or Europe for two weeks. They got cheaper flights to cozumel or belize.

      • seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 2:09 pm #

        You must be from Louisiana.

        • Karah October 24, 2014 at 10:24 pm #

          Nope. Texas.

          • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 9:58 pm #

            Karah, you walked right into that one!

            One of those “lavatories” of democracy.

  19. BackRowHeckler October 20, 2014 at 1:17 pm #

    Hey Jim, Middle Eastern and Black African Muslims are pouring into Sweden at a prodigious rate. Its against the law in Sweden to criticize this turn of events. There have already been riots, and neighborhoods set on fire. How much longer do you thinks that this Nordic Socialist paradise is going to last? What’s to prevent Stockholm from looking like Newark? Newark was a nice place at one time too.

    brh

    • Apneaman October 20, 2014 at 1:53 pm #

      Pouring? Do you have any numbers? How many is pouring?

      • BackRowHeckler October 20, 2014 at 2:33 pm #

        Muslim population has doubled since 2000 to about 550,000 out of a total population of 9 million.

        If current rates continue, and there’s no reason to believe they won’t, Muslims will make up about 40% of population in Sweden by 2030.

        Do you think Stockholm will look the same and still be a Nordic Socialist Utopia when this happens? I tend to doubt it.

        brh

      • BackRowHeckler October 20, 2014 at 4:07 pm #

        Also I refrained from mentioning Somali Tribesmen — arriving in sub arctic Sweden not knowing how to wear pants or use modern plumbing — raping blond Swedish girls on the streets of Stockholm. The headlines read “Girl Raped by 3 Swedish Men”, and then its not until the bottom of the article, the last sentence, that mentions their names, Mohammed, Mustafa, and Muhhamad. So the media in Sweden are lying, cowardly PC POS just like here. One wonders where are the Swedish men, descendants of Vikings?

        –brh

    • wolfbay October 20, 2014 at 8:58 pm #

      Muslims in Malmo have driven almost all Swedish Jews from the city.

    • ZrCrypDiK October 22, 2014 at 2:24 am #

      OMG, you trolled my @$$, brh.

      “Newark was a nice place at one time too.”

      Beer spewed out my nose reading this drivel. Send me (or LINK) the video to prove that!!!

      May as “well”:

      Damien “Omen”?!? That kid whuz a real CHARMER. Definitely worth a sequel or two (but don’t “quote” me on that)…

      The first paragraph from JHK gets an A+ from me – excellent! OMG, petri dish nomenclature (agar nutrient – hah, someone paid attention in biology class). Don’t get so down on my pajama pants – purely functional (comfortable, warm, keep bugs off, non-exposing, quick-access, etc).

      We are clearly in a price depressionary state. Great depression? Meh, merely a “reasonable” depression. Those costs that appear to inflate are merely due to monopolistic price fixing (no competition/subsidized). Herbert’s sidekick Keiser says so! (heh!!!)

      “The anonymous genius who sprayed that”

      Haha, beef-boy. Quite the artisan! Yeah, we used to breakdance in ’82 – until he took it “uptown” to Chi-town, war-mongering and all… Too much NOT in the “spirit” of thangz.

    • GutenbergGuy October 28, 2014 at 10:14 pm #

      It is unwise to blame poverty on religion, race and ethnicity. Poverty is a product of Capitalism – really the only thing it produces efficiently: millions of units every year with VERY low overhead.

      I prefer to see the Newark airport, indeed all the slummy conditions people describe here, as symptoms and ask why these things occur. I certainly can’t blame the poor and powerless for their conditions.

      The Muslim population is increasing throughout the planet. The question is: Do you intend to respond as civilized humans or are we going to have another conflagration like WWII? With, say, 2 billion dead – or worse.

      Waving our dicks in the air like Dick Cheney and, yes, Hillary Clinton should have us all very fearful. They are fools.

      Many people found comfort in Ronald Reagan’s simple solutions to all problems. Well, do we have that “City on the Hill” he promised? Will we ever figure out he was lying? And why we got this mess instead? We’re armed to the teeth and we can’t feed the children.

  20. BioWebScape October 20, 2014 at 1:28 pm #

    Dear Jim,

    Thanks for a good Monday morning taste of your opinion. Like reading a small slice from the Long Emergancy Monthly newsletter, of looking abck over the last 50 years, this being 2064, and we are reading your old notes.

    The fact that so many Americans are screaming to Close our borders to Ebola, just goes to show you how scared they have gotten over the likes of shows like The Walking Dead. I almost feel at times that we have slipped into that show as the People that tell us the News are whacked. I subscribe to Russell Brand’s Trews YouTube showings, Though I don’t agree with him that Christ is just a figurehead and just like all the other guys out there that was good but not GOD. He is stirring a pot of youthful folks and some older ones toward an idea that the world is not going to be going the way you think it is, and we all should take a stand in changing it.

    I have been thinking along the change lines for decades, but mostly I kept it all in my head and stuied things that would help me do the actions. But I got more in the line of writing ( verbally and visually in my mind’s eye, hardly ever to the typed out stage, though I do have published works and my blog, my works were long before the internet and my blog is the only thing that links me to my thoughts) But I had a Chat with a fellow that is doing some of what I wanted to do, in reality, now.

    Joseph (Jody ) Hardin, Grew up on a farm in Arkansas and later became a comodities broker or such, (paraphasing from memory that article in the local paper) St Joseph’s Farm stands on the grounds of the same named Old orphanage that was a 1900 to 2000 ranged working farm for the Orphans, to help take care of their own food needs. He has partnered a bit with Heifer International, which is also based in Arkansas, to bring as much locally grown food and Arkansas grown food back to arkansas tables, so we as a state don’t have to import 99% of our food, when we sent out 8 billion $ worth every year and have hungry people the state over. Great effort and a lot of people that want to help, he has a lot of folks looking forward to locally grown foods again.

    I have Always thought that cities were wasting space with roofs that did not grow food, and that parking lots, were not covered and solar collectors and food growing platforms.

    My oldest contained garden was an offshoot of another storyline in highschool ( class of 1981) where someone lived underground and had to grow all his own food in his room that was a model of cave living, or Tiny Home living or just how small of a volume of space can you live in and still survive, if you are able to recycle everything, or near on everything? I don’t know for sure, it would vary on the person, but easily under 20,000 Cubic feet of space, I could grow all my own food, if I was given a set amount of matter to work with and a few 10’s of Thousand’s of species to live with me, sort of a Bio-Dome things,,,, but I had these ideas,. from thespace ships of the late 70’s that we grew up in, while in space.

    Well There isn’t as many fat people in the future, but there will always be fat people, it’s in our genetics to eat a lot, and keep eating even if the land around us don’t need cleared…

    Charles

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    • Janos Skorenzy October 20, 2014 at 2:32 pm #

      Note to you: In the good old days of America’s strength, sick people were stopped at the border and sent back to where they came from. How on Earth does a person reach adulthood and not know this? Also immigration was based on the labor needs of America, not some kind of guilt based demented idealism. Now do you really think we need more workers? With an unemployment rate probably over 20%?

  21. K-Dog October 20, 2014 at 1:40 pm #

    The big brain who wrote that article about her peak stupidity for National Propagandistic Reification is named ‘Geewax’. That’s amusing, and the logical fallacies she starts her article with are false analogies. I did not read the entire article. Her thick syrup of deception was too sweet for me to swallow.

    In other news Obama had a credit card rejected recently. Goes to show the search for ‘artificial intelligence‘ has produced some progress.

  22. MisterDarling October 20, 2014 at 1:46 pm #

    Stimulating post this week. JHK got unstuck from his home-range & it energized his prose.

    There were certain nuggets of particular gleam:

    “They’ve spent thirty years pretending to “pedestrianize” it, and the outcome is sort of like Wilshire Boulevard meets Hackensack.”-J H K.

    I’ve noticed that same result in other American cities. Nicely put.

    “The motifs are a northern folkish classicism. The effect is both reassuring and powerfully coherent. You feel civilized. Your neurology is constantly nourished as you walk.”-J H K.

    This is the effect that I typically get from walking in the cities of the Europe and The Isles. The city-scape seems manageable, even enjoyable. Contrast that with the inherent hostility of the sidewalk-less cities of the Sunbelt.

    “This is a gateway to New York, America’s greatest city, you understand, and it looks like the veritable checkpoint to the rectum of the universe. You know what occurred to me: maybe it is?
    -JHK.

    Precisely. The combination of malign neglect and “sadistic architecture” (as Mike Davis put it) constantly signals palpable oligarchic contempt. And what does that say about the habitués of such places?

    Well done and welcome back to ‘OmenLand’…

    🙂

  23. stevenshoulberg October 20, 2014 at 2:04 pm #

    This is why the lack of overweight was so remarkable:

    http://www.dietdoctor.com/

    Scroll over the blue “Health and Weight Loss” heading and start reading. Reread. Apply.

  24. Smoky Joe October 20, 2014 at 2:05 pm #

    “wookies in hoodies with burning coals for eyes, ladies with pierced cheeks, crack-heads, winos, missing body part people, lopsided head people”

    You certainly came back from Sweden with both barrels loaded, Jim. That’s an image worthy of H.L. Mencken’s poisoned pen. And it is also correct. I saw a few green-haired, badly inked, and pierced kids on the streets of Reykjavik this summer, but nothing prepared me for the onslaught of thug-culture meets flabby folk in flip-flops that greeted me Stateside.

  25. volodya October 20, 2014 at 3:03 pm #

    I’m hearing TV programs tout figures. My lord, they’re talking facts and evidence.

    The reality check, they say in connection with ebola, is that thousands die in the USA every year from influenza. So what’s their point?

    Easy, to distract people from ebola, you talk about the flu. You change the subject. Time tested and effective method.

    Another possible objective? Lull people. And so you start with the numbers. If you can talk numbers then you must know what you’re talking about, right? Gives an air of mastery, don’t you think?

    They say that the thousands of deaths every year from the flu are an accepted fact of life. People get sick, people die. So, then, by extension, what’s the big deal with ebola? Just another disease, right? Thousands more dead from ebola …yawn….

    So, downplay ebola and secondly, to inculcate acceptance, you start talking about a NEW NORMAL! Your neighbors get sick with the flu, yeah, your neighbors get sick with ebola, so what…

    Millions get sick from influenza every year. Thousands die. Thousands get sick from ebola. Thousands die. So how are the two comparable? Well, they aren’t, but so what? You may object that influenza is nothing like ebola. Doesn’t matter, you compare them anyway.

    Here’s a guess, next they’re going to talk about “risk”. The deep ruts you’ll see on this particular donkey path are from the many, many loads of Wall Street bullshit over the decades. IOW I’m betting that what you’ll hear about ebola and risk will sound very familiar.

    But, of course, this talk about risk will all just be a distraction from what they do not want to talk about which is lethal incompetence and complacency. Because while you’re talking about the risks you face every day, like when you drive, you’re not thinking about the ludicrous fuck ups at that Texas hospital.

    But it’s not all propaganda. Some people are trying to give honest depictions: I heard a TV news report that said that one sorely afflicted west African country has stopped reporting new cases of Ebola. So, as a consequence, the World Health Org is losing track of numbers.

    Also, someone on TV said that the actual number of cases and deaths is probably 2.5 times higher than those reported. The reason? Many people in west Africa don’t go to health facilities (such as they are) because they won’t get any help anyway. And then they die. And then those around them get sick and die.

    I suspect that nobody really knows the true extent of this.

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  26. pkrugman October 20, 2014 at 3:08 pm #

    “…there is plenty of reason to believe that the shale endeavor may founder altogether at $80-a-barrel.”

    That is good news. Let’s hope shale stays in the ground and is never fracked.

    Climate change is upon us. The Earth hasn’t set a monthly record for cold since December 1916. All monthly heat records have been set after 1997. October 2013 to September 2014 is the hottest 12-month period on record.

    Shale going under and oil staying underground would be a net positive for the Earth and would provide stimulus to alternative energy research and development.

    • BackRowHeckler October 20, 2014 at 3:59 pm #

      I thought the hottest years were in the 1930s.

      I’m trying hard to believe in Peak Oil and its evil cousin Climate Change.

      I need to see a sign.

      brh

      • Georges1202 October 20, 2014 at 6:29 pm #

        It is one of those unfortunate time-dependent phenomena that once you start seeing ‘a sign’ it is far too late.

      • stelmosfire October 21, 2014 at 12:26 pm #

        Howdy Marlin. I’ve got a sign. I am still eating corn on the cob and it looks like it will be still around till Halloween. Latest I have ever seen it this time of year. I jumped the gun on my local weathermans word and pulled all my green tomatoes only to see the temps hit the lower ’40’s. It does not look like a frost for at least the next ten days. I usually get a frost by Oct. 1st. This year has been strange indeed. No apples because of a late frost in May. I guess every year is differant.

      • Tim Taylor October 22, 2014 at 11:49 am #

        This is one area where Kunstler is likely to be wrong. Peak Oil is a belief. A belief created by an unsubstantiated theory by witnessing the output of shallow oil fields over time. Beliefs aren’t truth and they aren’t science. The peak oil quantity itself has been disproven time and again. The theory itself may be valid but deep oil wells may actually be abiotic. Science has now proven that under extreme deep earth pressure that oil may be created. And, they have clearly proven this for abiotic methane on earth and in the solar system.

        There is more excess oil in the world today than when it was $10 a barrel in 1998. There is mass excess production and consumption in the world created by corporate capitalism. When that slack is removed, demand for oil could literally collapse. Additionally, Peak Oil also intimates peak carbon energy. We clearly have thousands of years of carbon energy. It may be dirty to extract but that’s a separate issue. As much as I enjoy reading the musings of Howard, he isn’t a scientist and doesn’t always think like a scientist. It’s more likely that Peak Oil, at least in this moment, is a myth. A social movement just like human-caused climate change.

  27. anville October 20, 2014 at 3:36 pm #

    While the NPR article that you link to does point out that world oil production hasn’t yet peaked, it never calls the concept of peak oil a hoax, or even implies it (from my perspective).

    In fact, it brings up issues with fracking boom and some of the complex relationships between production and pricing. It even closes allowing that peak oil predictions may have just been premature.

    Or did you mean to link to a different article?

  28. pkrugman October 20, 2014 at 4:04 pm #

    “I thought the hottest years were in the 1930s.” — BRH

    You may be right for the USA. I am referring to global.

  29. fairguy October 20, 2014 at 4:10 pm #

    I had the good fortune to visit Stockholm for work in early December 2011. It was snowing and very cold, but people were out in the streets with their families, celebrating the holiday season. Department store windows were decorated with murals, an open air ice skating rink was crowded, and the public space was pretty and welcoming. The really nice thing about downtown Stockholm is its (very real) walkability and accessibility by public transportation. As Jim mentions, the people are like from a different planet – handsome, well dressed and mannered. The “trade-off” is that they live fairly simply, in small dwellings without unnecessary vehicles, belongings and big box junk. Compare this to Manhattan or most other US cities, where you might live “simply” in a condo but when you walk out to the street it’s like a cesspool. I think the one exception is Portland, OR.

  30. Frankiti October 20, 2014 at 5:12 pm #

    Great piece. Although the denizens hate admitting to it, mostly because it’s a cliche, but DC is truly a soul-less itinerant town. NoVa with its endless sprawl of vinyl town home communities and freshly poured overpasses… a nightmare.

    I remember flying into JFK and having to drag my luggage to the rail-line (outside and across a busy access road) which connects the international to the domestic terminal, when a very elegant foreign couple of unknown extraction apologized to me for the ugly embarrassment of JFK, a gateway to their adopted city.

    Returning to the US from European cities should leave one contemplating what America does do better; hundreds of worthless cable channels and junk food… that’s all we got.

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    • Georges1202 October 20, 2014 at 7:09 pm #

      Don’t forget the National Security State – a truly impressive rathole that we shovel untold billions into every year.

  31. Karah October 20, 2014 at 6:28 pm #

    Noone knows the true extent of anything as small as a virus.
    All. Viruses operate the same. It is the way people die from ebola that makes itdifferent.

  32. GunHillTrain October 20, 2014 at 7:07 pm #

    I’ve been through Newark’s station (the former Pennsylvania Railroad station) many times in the last thirty years, and it usually seemed like a busy but fairly pleasant place. If anything, the maintenance has improved over time. The exterior and much of the interior have a subdued Art Deco style. It appears less cramped and more inviting than the present version of Penn Station in New York. I haven’t been to Europe so I can’t make any comparisons with stations there.

  33. debt October 20, 2014 at 7:43 pm #

    Dear Jim,

    We happy denizens out here on the West Coast say come pay us a visit. Santa Cruz, Berkeley, SF. It’s been a while….

  34. veryveryvermont October 20, 2014 at 8:18 pm #

    Fusion. The answer is fusion! You know, we BECOME the SUN…

  35. pkrugman October 20, 2014 at 9:00 pm #

    “The US equity markets sure enough puked…” — JHK

    DOW at 4,000 must be just around the corner… but not today. Today the markets were UP.

    UP 17.25 points … Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index

    UP 57.64 points … Nasdaq composite index

    The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were higher for a third straight day.

    UP 19.26 points … Dow Jones industrial average

    Ebola? ISIL? Maybe we will have apocalypse tomorrow? But the markets don’t seem to care.

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  36. Rex October 20, 2014 at 10:11 pm #

    I yes, America….
    The land of overweight, undernourished people in body, mind and spirit, driving oversized vehicles to overly large malls in their pajama, sporting tattoos, baseball caps and overly large sneakers, purchasing food in large quantities that has been over processed, clothes that were made in a far off land with slave labour that look like hell after the first wash, talking on their latest cell phones using a language that just barely resembles English, worshiping people that play sports and make sounds that is supposed to be music but isn’t, aimlessly wondering the downtown streets of cities that are dead after the office towers close for the day or in far of suburbs where everyone hides in their cookie cutter houses made of press board and plastic, completely ignorant of politics, geography or history of the US not to mention the rest of the world, all the while proudly displaying the stars and stripes and arrogance that claims this land is the best land in the world.

    • BackRowHeckler October 20, 2014 at 11:25 pm #

      That about sums it up, Rex

      A national economy based upon portable telephones; everybody looking down into their portable telephone at all times and in all places, wearing pajamas in public in the middle of the workday.

      That’s where we’re at right now and this isn’t the end; its going to get worse.

      –brh

  37. BackRowHeckler October 21, 2014 at 12:20 am #

    This battle of Kobane is looking a little like Stalingrad. ISIS launched new attacks all over Iraq and Syria in the past 24 hours. Not in numbers, but in the desperation.

    Its like General Lee in 1864 doing all he could to hold on to Petersburg, Va., with his disintegrating Army of Northern Virginia, then breaking off a Corp under Jubal Early to attack Washington.

    • seawolf77 October 21, 2014 at 10:00 am #

      As a strategist, General Robert E Lee is vastly overrated. He ordered Pickett’s Charge against Meade’s forces and attacked UP HILL on Cemetery Ridge, against the advice of his generals, against all the rules of war, against just plain common sense. Sun Tzu must have been rolling over in his grave. What possible motive could he have had except throwing the war and losing on purpose.

      • MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 2:23 pm #

        re | “Sun Tzu must have been rolling over in his grave.”-seawolf.

        Indeed.

      • Greg Knepp October 21, 2014 at 2:44 pm #

        You’re right; while it is true that Lee was a better-than-average tactician (especially in comparison to his incompetent foes of the early war) it is also true that, as a strategist, he stunk!

        Grant and Sherman were the first to understand the nature of modern warfare : its technical requirements and potentials, and its dire consequences.

        Lee’s elevation to mythic warrior-god was due, in part, to northern politicians’ need to kiss Dixie ass in order to woo voters in the newly readmitted southern states.

    • stelmosfire October 21, 2014 at 12:39 pm #

      Did you ever read “900 Days” about the siege of Leningrad? The chubby folks were all known to be cannibals. Desperate times breed desperate people.

      • MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 2:33 pm #

        re | “The chubby folks were all known to be cannibals.”-st.elmo.

        I’m reminded of ‘the well-fed woman” character in Cormac McCarthy’s ‘The Road’…

    • MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 2:30 pm #

      re | “Its like General Lee in 1864 doing all he could to hold on to Petersburg, Va., with his disintegrating Army of Northern Virginia, then breaking off a Corp under Jubal Early to attack Washington.”-brh.

      Or, it’s like the Wehrmacht getting ordered by Herr Hitler to split off an entire army corp-sized element – to attack Stalingrad – when there was nothing between their consolidated force and the rich oilfields of the Caspian Sea but scattered Soviet units…

      That’s what meth does to better judgment.

      The rest is History.

      • seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 3:51 pm #

        Actually Hitler did have a strategic target in Stalingrad, and it had nothing to do with the name of the city. The Red October Tractor Factory was producing the greatest secret weapon ever deployed, the T-34 tank. The T-34 tank was not deployed until the Germans were surrounding Moscow. It was a devastating blow to their morale. A superb machine, the T-34 tank factory was the bait, Hitler took it, and the rest is history. Stalin was a much better strategic thinker than Hitler.

  38. MikeMoskos October 21, 2014 at 1:49 am #

    A few days ago I wrote to my city’s events coordinator that they should start a farmers’ market in the city hall parking lot or on the street nearby as a way of revitalizing the decayed business district nearby. The district was partially rebuilt along New Urbanism principles, though they put zero thought into activating it.

    Since I copied all the council members, one wrote me back to tell me about all the new, exciting events they had planned and that a new farmers’ market was opening in a mega park the county runs within the city limits. In other words, he completely missed my point of hundreds of shoppers showing up weekly, throw some money at the mom and pop brick and mortars, thereby allowing rents to rise and more taxes to be generated on land the city is already maintaining. I can’t wait for him to read my response email introducing to strongtowns.org. I’m confident I’ll get a clueless email back.

  39. Swiss Expat October 21, 2014 at 6:06 am #

    Sweden is just fine as long as you don’t wear a skullcap or speak Hebrew in public.

  40. Karah October 21, 2014 at 8:15 am #

    Npr article is verifying that the new technology of fracking is depleting wells faster. This will inevitably lead to peak production not just because of the money being pumped in or out or even the flat demand…it is simply the max being produced and not including reserves. So, yes, we are at peak and we will see crazy gas pricing as they try to outrun depletion by capitalizing as much as they can which is not much. eventually it will keep depleting either through lack of revenue because of low demand because they are pumping so fast or just lack of reserve to stabilize the ups and downs in market not have regular cash flow….the nation will carry debt forever.
    we are witnessing history everyday. 10% of gas is corn which was processed with gas. we see the results of this everyday when we shop how we are exchanging what is real food for gasoline…what is not real and an illusion. the writing is on the wall. the scales have been weighed. people are going to live to see the fulfillment of all this and some are going to suffer. people did have problems with y2k. that was real. globing warming is real. people and animals suffer from it now. and its all tied together to the unforeseen effects of putting too much confidence in technological solutions for everything.

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    • Karah October 21, 2014 at 8:43 am #

      americans have been driving an avg of 9,000 miles a year for the last 27 years.

      they have been paying an avg of 2$ a gallon.

      thats an avg of 18,000$ a year in gas for every american driver.

      that is about how much you can make working a minimum wage job.

      so, in order to have a vehicle, you must expect to pay that much or more. therefore you must be working more than forty hours a week or making more than min wage to own a vehicle.

      most people can not afford a house or a vehicle in this country.
      most people are being held hostage to a way of life dictated by lobbyists and govt officials in all strata.

      whoever is supporting the american way of life is being heavily subsidized by the govt.

      • stelmosfire October 21, 2014 at 12:34 pm #

        um, I must be an unusual idiot. Last year I did about 6000 miles with 3 vehicles and 3 drivers, 2K per driver. I have to get out more ;o).

        • stelmosfire October 21, 2014 at 12:45 pm #

          I bought a new car in 2011, first new car in my life, I am in my late 50’s. It has 6000 miles on it. If I didn’t go to Florida it would have maybe 3500.

      • hineshammer October 21, 2014 at 3:07 pm #

        Hey Copernicus, $2/gallon multiplied by 9000 miles does not equal $18,000, unless your car only gets 1 mile per gallon. Jesus, talk about using bad math to try and make a point.

        • Frankiti October 21, 2014 at 5:35 pm #

          This place is haunted by some serious dimwits.

        • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:15 pm #

          oops…i was thinking about all those avgers stuck in rush hour traffic

      • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:20 pm #

        300 gallons a yr on avg…which makes the avg yr gas bill 600$

        thats over 60$ a mth for gas on avg…which means it is more than that for a lot of drivers. think ford f150.

        then think of all the gas used to haul fracking fluids

        the numbers catch up with you if you do not figure out something fast…and that is what peak production is all about.

        the pressures on this way of doing things is tramendous

        i have got to stop posting early in the mornings…

        • hineshammer October 21, 2014 at 6:33 pm #

          Holy dog shit Karah, you need to give up on even trying to use math to make an argument. Last time I checked there were 12 months in a year. 600 divided by 12 is 50 which is NOT over 60. Just quit now, please.

          • Karah October 21, 2014 at 7:16 pm #

            okay…but i was hoping someone would give me money…

            he he he

            i will stop posting altogether.

          • Karah October 21, 2014 at 7:17 pm #

            i was not arguing…i was just avging…

          • Karah October 21, 2014 at 7:22 pm #

            wow…this place is so boring.

  41. contrahend October 21, 2014 at 9:01 am #

    americans have been driving an avg of 9,000 miles a year for the last 27 years. they have been paying an avg of 2$ a gallon.
    thats an avg of 18,000$ a year in gas for every american driver.

    consults mathematician Fincalmountain & redo your calculation. jeezus.

    people did have problems with y2k

    well what were they? didn’t happen. another failed endtymes prediction.

    ISIS launched new attacks all over Iraq and Syria in the past 24 hours. Not in numbers, but in the desperation.

    as some of us said, ISIS is ho hum. they’ll be obliterated. allah’s last stand.

    I yes, America….
    The land of overweight, undernourished people in body, mind and spirit, driving oversized vehicles to overly large malls in their pajama, sporting tattoos, baseball caps and overly large sneakers, purchasing food in large quantities that has been over processed, clothes that were made in a far off land with slave labour that look like hell after the first wash, talking on their latest cell phones using a language that just barely resembles English, worshiping people that play sports and make sounds that is supposed to be music but isn’t, aimlessly wondering the downtown streets of cities that are dead after the office towers close for the day or in far of suburbs where everyone hides in their cookie cutter houses made of press board and plastic, completely ignorant of politics, geography or history of the US not to mention the rest of the world, all the while proudly displaying the stars and stripes and arrogance that claims this land is the best land in the world.

    so good it had to be reposted. yecch.

    “The US equity markets sure enough puked…” — JHK

    well, jimmy’s got some great lines, but he’s horrid at predicting events & given to wild exaggeration.

    kontrahend

    • stelmosfire October 21, 2014 at 12:50 pm #

      Thankfully my car gets more than 1 MPG!

    • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:32 pm #

      it is a problem when your computer becomes obsolete when its internal programs are not written to include the roll over to 2000.
      we usually see yr dates writ as las two numbers and if it rolls over to 00 it could interfere with functions that depend on a positive number
      or it could just look funny.

      maybe it was more cosmetic than anything else hiwever the banking systems are computerized and dates of posting credits and debits is very important logging info.

  42. Steven W. Maginnis October 21, 2014 at 2:39 pm #

    Dear Mr. Kunstler: So sorry I can’t attend the Cooper Union talk, it;’s out of my way and on the wrong night of the we week for me. If you ever happen to find yourself again in Essex County, New Jersey, where Newark is located, I have two suburban towns for you to visit there: Montclair, where they’re implementing New Urbanist policies with some success (the former mayor there, Jerry Fried [2008-2012] is a big fan of yours), and Livingston, where a mendacious New Urbanist knockoff in the center of town is a complete failure. It was built from the ground up and modified to benefit cars. Montclair is accessible from Newark by train; Livingston is accessible by city bus, but you really need to rent a car and take I-280 to get there more easily (and pass through and under East Orange, the home of New Jersey hip-hop). Newark Penn Station may not be full of beautiful people, but the station itself is a fine Art Deco structure, at least it wasn’t razed to make way for an arena. Newark itself used to have up to 450,000 people in its glory days; ironically, it’s a small city that is at the proper scale to prosper in the Long Emergency.

  43. pkrugman October 21, 2014 at 2:41 pm #

    “Thankfully my car gets more than 1 MPG!” –Stelmosfire

    Most cars get more than 1 MPG, even Hummers. As technology advances cars become more efficient, up to a 300 MPG Volkwagen.

    http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2014/09/17/volkswagen-fuel-efficiency

    We won’t run out of oil this century. I can’t say the same for the 22nd century, so we should conserve in any event.

    • hineshammer October 21, 2014 at 3:11 pm #

      “Most cars get more than 1 MPG, even Hummers.”

      No shit.

      • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:33 pm #

        RVs may get anywhere from 6 to 10 mpg…so there…

  44. Buck Stud October 21, 2014 at 4:15 pm #

    Many years ago a girl and I drove by a movie theater which was showing a movie titled “Evilspeak”. She was an optimistic, innocent type–“a girl girl…livin’ in Resada”– and I, a fledgling future reader of Cluster Fuck Nation. She looked up at the title, a bit befuddled, and uttered, “Elvis what?”. I said no, not Elvis, but Evil: Evil Speak!

    We didn’t last long. She saw Elvis and I saw Evil and so we called the whole thing off.

    In the aftermath I sort of missed her sunny optimism; it was good for me. Which is why I enjoy the see no evil posts of Asoka Rugman and Contrahend. On some level they feel good… like a belly laugh after a good joke 🙂

    • ozone October 21, 2014 at 5:27 pm #

      Truly! …But sometimes the rose-tinted specs can cause eye strain and badly blurred vision.
      Here’s some yuks that have a basis in observable political realities unless one is as perspecacious as your average fencepost. Doesn’t look like the stubbornly-pursued “strategy” of Omenland is going to conclude happily:

      http://www.cluborlov.com/ClubOrlov

      (Not sure if that link is going to work properly. The name of the article is, “How to start a war and lose an empire”.)

      Careful what you wish for, Folks.

      • Buck Stud October 21, 2014 at 10:20 pm #

        That’s an interesting link, fascinating in many ways.

        As a complete outsider apprehending the truth in this matter seems like a walk through a hall of Byzantine mirrors. But Orlov provides a fascinating perspective.

        One thing I didn’t agree with was this comment:

        “That plan didn’t work because Putin and Lavrov intervened and quickly convinced Assad to give up his useless chemical weapons stockpile. The Americans were livid. So, everybody knows this story—except Panetta. ”

        I don’t who he is referring to in regard to “everybody” but he certainly can’t be thinking of Main Street America. I would be surprised if 1 out of a 100,000 Americans knows of the above and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was 1 in 500,000.

      • Janos Skorenzy October 21, 2014 at 10:57 pm #

        Getting any deer? Or are you too busy tailgating?

        Don’t forget about pickles and pemmican. The former is not only a superb method of preservation, but also the sour flavor is very good for the digestion. Pemmican provides (like oil) more bang per cubic inch than anything else and deserves a place in the pack of every hunter or hiker.

    • Karah October 21, 2014 at 6:38 pm #

      buck, you wouldn’t last with jhk readers either…relationships are more like food and wine parings that deal with the less intellectual parts of the brain. i think you should seek that woman out and try, try again.

      • Buck Stud October 21, 2014 at 10:37 pm #

        Very true Karah. However, I always wondered about those James Carville and Mary Matalin type relationships. But I suppose for people with that kind of dough politics is just another game, a form of play and diversion as life will go on very well for these types no matter the political outcome.

        Personally I never did get the apolitical mindset and I despise the mindset that equivocates politically divergent philosophies. For instance, I was listening to a talk radio sports buffoon who was berating the political ads and who went on to further state that he ‘hates all politicians’. It was a phony outburst in my estimation; after all, everybody hate politicians and what better way to manipulate/ingratiate the audience in a blatantly self-serving manner.

        • Karah October 24, 2014 at 10:37 pm #

          That guy you refer to is reflecting what JHK discussed with the French expatriot author when he said “everyone is against everyone”. So, the “ingratiater” should Immediately move to Mexico if that is how he REALLY feels about his country.

          Of course, it is hyperbole. He hates all politicians…that do not help his cause. What better way to get more listeners because we have a majority of people not happy with their politicians.

    • Janos Skorenzy October 21, 2014 at 9:59 pm #

      Buck, here: a great Black Man with a spirit like unto the Fathers tells the simple truth about the evil, illegal, long legged Mac Daddy you voted for.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOOEo35YLGM

      • Buck Stud October 21, 2014 at 10:43 pm #

        Oh yes, another talk radio “Black Conservative” echoing that ancient rant: ‘One day we’re going to get sick and tired of it and have a rebellion…a ‘Conservative Christian’ one no less!”

        Yawn. Does this guy look like he could walk around the block or shovel his sidewalk, much less go toe to toe with a militarized police force/National Guard?

        Your gullibility and susceptibility to sensationalized posturing surprises me at time Janos. As Karah infers, maybe too much time ‘in the head.

        • Janos Skorenzy October 21, 2014 at 11:03 pm #

          That’s not his point. His point is the evil of Obama. Again you turn a Conservative into a straw dog for your target practice. Will you not listen to this great American? Or does it offend you that some Blacks have left the Leftist Plantation?

          • Buck Stud October 22, 2014 at 12:31 am #

            This ‘great American’ asserts that ‘….white tax dollars are funding drugs and prostitution…’.

            WTF—who takes that type of nonsensical hyperbole seriously? I doubt that even the great American takes his rap seriously.

            Come on Janos you’re better than this…nothing but pure theater and entertainment…probably a pretty good paying gig for the right voice.

  45. contrahend October 21, 2014 at 5:50 pm #

    Which is why I enjoy the see no evil posts of Asoka Rugman and Contrahend. On some level they feel good

    just goes to show cfn’ers don’t read for content. i typically cite facts that back up my assertions.

    i see plenny o’ evil, but lots of positive progress/change happening.

    case in pint (as i like to say at the bar) – where’s the ebola news?

    …chirp chirp…..

    well, here it is:

    Ebola vaccine could be ready for West Africa by January, WHO official says

    Amber Vinson is doing well, mom says

    Spanish nurse completely free of Ebola

    in other news about the blessing of technology:

    http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/paralyzed-man-able-to-walk-again-following-groundbreaking-surgery/

    kontrahend

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  46. Civility118 October 21, 2014 at 6:03 pm #

    Jim, re: The Fate of the Cities in The Long Emergency on 10/23 in NY.

    Will this videotaped and uploaded on TedTalks or elsewhere? I hope so…

  47. MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 7:26 pm #

    re | The Market (this week)

    Fed Chief Bullard hinted that QE might not be ended immediately last week and the market rebounded.

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-10-21/magic-number-revealed-it-costs-central-banks-200-billion-quarter-avoid-market-crash

    Under 20th Century conditions, that might have made me feel good. In this century, not so much. Every dollar that goes into supporting a stock-market while real demand crashes is not only wasted, but a down-payment on future harm.

    When giant, lowest-common denominator bell-weathers like Walmart, Coke and McDonald’s lose traction, there’s not much left.

    Coke:
    http://www.ajc.com/news/business/coke-profit-falls-14-percent-in-3rd-quarter/nhn3b/

    McDonald’s:
    http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstocks/mcdonalds-quarterly-profit-falls-30-percent/ar-BBaooOS

  48. MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 7:54 pm #

    A n d… Since I see that someone needs to counter the ambient gloom of ignorance that sometimes gathers on CFN…

    — — —

    There are some who regularly feel the need to put their gullibility on display by stating that the job market has been net-gaining jobs for the past 54 or 60 months, etc.

    Not so. Quite the opposite, actually.

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes a number it claims is the amount of jobs created every month. That number includes 50-75k ‘jobs’ generated automatically, based on something called the ‘birth-death model’ (the number of jobs the economy would have produced under conditions that were normal in the 1990’s).

    So, right from the start, this number is a lie. The BLS *admits* it is:

    http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2009/10/even-bls-admits-birth-death-model-skews-unemployment-numbers-during-recessions.html

    So, what happens is the BLS tells the public that ‘180,000’ jobs were created, then weeks later revises that number by subtracting the birth-death model amount and the corrected number is less than 135k jobs.

    Since it takes more than 135,000 jobs/month just to keep up with population increase (even by the most conservative estimates), this equals yet another net-loss month.

    This is how the BLS reports that jobs were created without admitting that it was another month of net job-loss. Very convenient for the administration…

    If you don’t know that, then this stuff:

    http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS11300000

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-02/workforce-participation-at-36-year-low-even-as-more-jobs-beckon.html

    … makes no sense. That’s right, the BLS admitted that people are leaving the job-market steadily. Everyone ‘in the know’ knows this.

    Employment is down to “6%” because there aren’t almost jobs left to lose (at this stage).

    Just to be clear, this was a P S A. I’m just doing my part by sterilizing and incinerating some of the trash being bandied about the CFN community.

    Cheers!

  49. Janos Skorenzy October 21, 2014 at 10:09 pm #

    Russia begins to militarize the new “Middle East”, the Arctic! Because of the oil of course.

    Have a Map of the World? Turn it upside down – it’s an interesting cognitive exercise. We must learn to think in new categories and from new perspectives.

    http://www.infowars.com/russia-deploys-troops-robots-along-entire-2nd-middle-east-arctic-belt/

    Note the use of robos. The Terminators are coming.

  50. pkrugman October 21, 2014 at 10:12 pm #

    “Ebola is fully under control by early 2015. Sporadic cases in other countries are dealt with by treatment and contact tracing. By Q4 2015, multiple Ebola vaccines and drugs are in the pipeline limiting the overall threat Ebola poses.” — from the link provided by Ozone describing a “best case scenario”

    This is a deceptive description which ignores current reality. Senegal and Nigeria have already stopped Ebola virus transmission in 4th quarter 2014. The vaccines, as Contrahend reports, will be in theatre 1st quarter 2015 (not Q4 2015). The U.S. military and WHO are likewise in theatre developing infrastructure.

    CFN has as an article of faith that people are stupid and governments are dysfunctional and/or inefficient. As much as CFN misanthropes are jonesing for a pandemic that wipes out a significant portion of humanity, it just is not going to happen.

    Those who cared for or came into contact with Duncan have completed their quarantine period with no infections. Likewise the cruise ship passengers. Everyone has tested negative. Not a single new Ebola infection in the U.S. last week or this week. Not a single death of any U.S. citizen from Ebola. Nina, Amber, and Ashoka are not dying.

    How long is CFN going to ignore reality and engage in spin art? How long is CFN going to spin Ebola and hype it as a “threat”? How long is CFN going to ignore Obama’s leadership? How long is CFN going to continue denying effective government action in the U.S. stopped the transmission of the Ebola virus?

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    • Janos Skorenzy October 21, 2014 at 11:01 pm #

      Well said and they did it “over there”. The other Black Nations closed their borders to the infected countries. How much longer is America going to be too proud to follow the Black Man’s lead?

      Commonsense dictates Ebola must be contained in its place of origin as much as possible.

    • nsa October 21, 2014 at 11:04 pm #

      Krugie and Beanie,
      Good to see that you both are back from the honeymoon and posting again on CFN…….

    • MisterDarling October 21, 2014 at 11:33 pm #

      re | “How long is CFN going to ignore Obama’s leadership? “-‘rugman’.

      I see what’s going on now… You are simply impervious to facts, logic and seem to have no long-term memory.

      Thanks for the warning.

  51. BackRowHeckler October 22, 2014 at 12:04 am #

    Hey Ozone is that your twin playing for the SF Giants?

    I’ll be damned if Hunter Pence isn’t the spitting image of you.

    Ladies and Gentlemen, I’ll be brief.

    Events are occurring in N Iraq and Syria the world hasn’t witnessed in a long time.

    Handicapped and downs syndrome children and adults are being beaten to death and beheaded.

    Young women by the hundreds, maybe the thousands, are being stoned to death, buried alive in pits, and gang raped with impunity. Why hasn’t the western feminist movement spoken out on this?

    Captured soldiers and civilians beheaded and the severed heads brandished upon pikes, 700 in the past week.

    This is not a mere passing phenomena that at some point will burn itself out. Hell has opened up and there is an evil loose in the world suddenly; we are stunned by its brutality and don’t know how to respond. One thing for sure, pinprick bombing with carrier born fighter bombers wont do the job.

    –brh

  52. BackRowHeckler October 22, 2014 at 12:35 am #

    One more thing, this Pope.

    We have images of young Chaldean Christian girls forced to kneel before smiling bearded Muslim fanatics and their heads are cut off, just because they’re Christians.

    You see their little bodies spread out on the earth in a pool of blood, headless.

    Hey Pope, this is what you should be worried about, not whether or not some goddam queers in London and San Francisco can bugger each other and pretend they’re ‘married’.

    a thousand years ago the Pope mustered armies from all of Europe and sent them east to protect Christian Holy sites and Christian Pilgrims. The least this Pope could do is issue a statement, object, make a plea for it to stop.

    Imagine trying to raise an army from modern western Europe now, in Holland or Sweden, to protect Christians? You would be charged with a hate crime.

    –brh

  53. Leftbanker October 22, 2014 at 4:19 am #

    What I find so humorous about the people who criticize European-style socialism is not only are they unable to properly define socialism, they don’t even know what capitalism is. So much of the economic activity taking place in America today is simply speculation in one form or another which isn’t true capitalism, for that to happen you must add value to a product. Another thing these misguided tea-partiers don’t understand is that almost every European city is a better place to live than almost anywhere in the USA—something they would know if they had a passport and bothered t travel a bit. It never ceases to amaze me how well people live almost everywhere here in Spain in spite of the bad news on their economic front (and don’t forget that this was mostly created by criminal speculators and had little to do with their brand of socialism).

    So keep bad-mouthing the godless European socialist as our country slides deeper into striking income and social inequalities as if we are using the film The Road Warrior as our guide.

    • BackRowHeckler October 22, 2014 at 10:26 am #

      Spain?

      We sold our place in Spain.

      Could only be there a few months a year at most; meanwhile there was the ever present danger of the place being occupied — and taken over — by ETA squatters, Spain being a little weak on the issue of property rights.

      –brh

      • Frankiti October 22, 2014 at 6:36 pm #

        Sure, ETA squatters… in Benidorm. The okupas won’t hit your place if it’s somewhat nice, but marauding gangs of slavic thieves might.
        Europe is not just slow-food; it’s slow everything. Americans have whatever (literally) they want at their doorsteps in days via Prime memberships. Americans do, in fact, get things done. American customer service, even with automated lines and overseas call centers, is far beyond the horrible service one receives in Europe.
        Then there is the red-tape… with everything be it government or private sector. Everything moves at a glacial pace.
        What is most striking is the American obsession with violence. We don’t blink at a myriad of crime scene TV shows and movies depicting sadistic torture and endless first person shooter video games, but if we see a tit with a pasty during the Super Bowl people lose their marbles. America glorifies death and violence. Europeans concentrate on life, and a naked body is life…

        • BackRowHeckler October 23, 2014 at 12:10 pm #

          Not to mention the fine looking women in Spain, Frankiti, real fine.

          Which is life-affirming too, in its own way.

          brh

  54. FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 6:54 am #

    Pretty good article by D.Orlov

    http://cluborlov.blogspot.com/2014/10/how-to-start-war-and-lose-empire.html

    How to start a war and lose an empire

    The Russians seem to have finally realized to what extent the playing field has been slanted against them. They have been forced to play by Washington’s rules in two key ways: by bending to Washington’s will in order to keep their credit ratings high with the three key Western credit rating agencies, in order to secure access to Western credit; and by playing by the Western rule-book when issuing credit of their own, thus keeping domestic interest rates artificially high. The result was that US companies were able to finance their operations more cheaply, artificially making them more competitive. But now, as Russia works quickly to get out from under the US dollar, shifting trade to bilateral currency arrangements (backed by some amount of gold should trade imbalances develop) it is also looking for ways to turn the printing press to its advantage.

    To date, the dictat handed down from Washington has been: “We can print money all we like, but you can’t, or we will destroy you.”

    But this threat is ringing increasingly hollow, and Russia will no longer be using its dollar revenues to buy up US debt. One proposal currently on the table is to make it impossible to pay for Russian oil exports with anything other than rubles, by establishing two oil brokerages, one in St. Petersburg, the other, seven time zones away, in Vladivostok. Foreign oil buyers would then have to earn their petro-rubles the honest way—through bilateral trade—or, if they can’t make enough stuff that the Russians want to import, they could pay for oil with gold (while supplies last). Or the Russians could simply print rubles, and, to make sure such printing does not cause domestic inflation, they could export some inflation by playing with the oil spigot and the oil export tariffs. And if the likes of George Soros decides to attack the ruble in an effort to devalue it, Russia could defend its currency simply by printing fewer rubles for a while—no need to stockpile dollar reserves.

    ====================================================

    What Orlov failed to mention is a huge trump card in the hands of US/Federal Reserve – fact that they actually own Russian Central Bank and control personal appointment process.

    Russian Central bank categorically refuses to conduct nationally-oriented policy by:

    1. Refusing to provide enough long-term, cheap liquidity in rubles to Russian economy to promote industrialization and replace foreign credit.

    2. Refusing to undertake sufficient measures to prevent capital flight from Russia – which they could easily do even without introducing draconian measures like capital controls.

    Russian Central Bank is being much more effective tool against Russia than all Western sanctions,

    I wonder what Putin plans to do about it. One way is when new Euro Asian Union finally takes place to introduce new Central Bank with new currency – even name of that currency has been circulated – “Altyn” – just like Euro and ECB of European Union.

    Or will he send Russian Marines to take over existing one (figuratively speaking) – not unlike what FDR did with FED in 1930s.

    Those friggin Central Banks – cant live with them, cant live without them. Brilliant invention of Tzeentch

  55. FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 7:53 am #

    For those who REALLY want to understand how the world works, I recommend that video with English subtitles – leading Russian economists discuss things the way they really are. One of them – Glaziev – academician, close adviser to Putin.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH4Pcgoi3eE

    Two Russia’s huge problems:

    1. Lack of conceptual ideology – they dumped communism, but what’s instead?

    2. Dependency of “Independent Russian Central Bank” on Washington

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    • Janos Skorenzy October 22, 2014 at 2:01 pm #

      They should adopt National Socialism, just like everyone else. Russia First. Russia for the Russians – and not for Chechens and Siberian tribesmen. But they are going the wrong way, still trying to imitate us or trying to go back to some version of the old Soviet Union. Universalism is a trap. Freedom lies in the particular or not at all.

      Under Fascist Theory, each Nation will have its own version of National Socialism, with features unique to it because of its specific history and traditions. Obviously if a Nation has no tradition of freedom then its Fascism will not have any either. No sane person ever said all nations or cultures are equal.

      • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 5:33 pm #

        “They should adopt National Socialism”

        You are quite wrong about it. What you do not understand that “Russian” is NOT nationality, it is Civilization. For instance, I am a Jew and I could trace my Jewish ancestors 4 generations back, but at the same time I am Russian since I belong to Russian Civilization, Russian Culture. My favorite poet is Pushkin, who was a mix of Negro-Russian blood himself, but still became the greatest Russian poet of all time.

        Russian Empire was always expending first by conquering adjacent nations and then absorbing them, partially adopting their culture, not enslaving them. In the 19th Century there was Caucasian War of 1817–1864 against Chechen and another great Russian Poet, Lermontov, fought in that war in the Russian Special Forces. He was a killer, but he also wrote “Caucasian Prisoner” in which he described the valor and dedication of Chechen fighters.

        Can’t say the same about American Indians.

        • Janos Skorenzy October 22, 2014 at 6:33 pm #

          Jews always seek to universalize Nations into Empires because they do very well in such multicultural chaos. Such things usually destroy the native people and culture though. But you don’t give a rat’s ass about those. Russia, just like the United States, is just a vehicle to your people; something to be used, used up, and then discarded.

          You have your own nation. It’s called Israel. You should be there.

          There’s a reason Dostoyevsky’s prison journals aren’t widely published and found in bookstores with his other books – he criticized the Jews in a very deep way.

          There’s a reason Fincaln never talks about Solzhenitsyn – because he was a Russian Nationalist who knew the Jews were against Russia.

          • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 7:07 pm #

            The popular misguided believes of folks with less-than-advanced intellect is that the Jews are the “cause of all evil”. In my live I happened to meet a lot of different Jews – from KGB informers to poet-dreamers.

            However I agree the Jewish people are different in one respect – their love and ability for acquiring new knowledge. Probably a long genetic memory of studying Torah.

            I would say that the Jews serve more as catalyst of various events, good as well as evil in society. There is a very small number of us in any given Nation – usually 1 – 2%, nevertheless Jews plays prominent roles in society in areas of art, science and (unfortunately for many of us who don’t happen to get monthly pay checks from Rothschild) finance.

            For example, Karl Marx – a well known Jew and the author of “Communist Manifesto” in some theories was a dupe working for British Intelligence and lily-white Anglo Sax Lord Palmerston, and Fredric Engels was his case officer. The real cause of British Foreign office was to create a social theory that could destabilize the Continental competitors of British Empire.

            If that story is to be true, who bears the full blame for Communist theories devastating the Globe in the 20th century? Jew Marx or Lily-White Lord Palmerston?

    • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 5:59 pm #

      I think that a winning ideology for Russian Federation would be something like a combination of US Constitution and the Soviet Constitution of 1977. For instance, in the Preamble to US Constitution there is phrase “promote the general Welfare”. I would replace it with something like “create the best possible conditions for each individual to express God-given creative abilities to the fullest extent possible”

      I would leave the American Bill of Rights pretty much unchanged, but to the basic political rights of the individual, I would add the President Roosevelt Economic Bill of rights. Those rights were prescribed in the Soviet Constitution of 1977.

      The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;

      The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;

      The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;

      The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;

      The right of every family to a decent home;

      The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;

      The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;

      The right to a good education.

      • Janos Skorenzy October 22, 2014 at 7:37 pm #

        Russian Civilization? No, it’s Orthodox Civilization of which Russia is the largest and most powerful nation. But instead of being the protector of Orthodoxy, you would have Russia become a hodgepodge of different peoples devoid of any unifying principle.

        And why not bring in more Negroes to produce more Pushkins, right? You Devil.

        • Janos Skorenzy October 22, 2014 at 7:41 pm #

          England was one of the first nations to be overwhelmed by Jewish Finance. So Marx wasn’t serving any Anglo-Saxon, Christian Civilization – but a bastardized Nation of greedy White and Jewish merchants and bankers eager for spoils.

          • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 7:53 pm #

            Poor old England. Don’t you feel sorry for them?

        • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 7:50 pm #

          I don’t mind Orthodoxy to be the main Russian religion, but most of the Russian folks I happen to know are agnostics (including yours truly). They may proudly wear an Orthodox crucifix, but usually that’s as far as they go.

          You can’t really make a specific religion a unifying force of Humanity.

          • Janos Skorenzy October 22, 2014 at 8:34 pm #

            Humanity? I thought we were talking about Russia. Even if the Russians aren’t that Christian anymore, that doesn’t mean they want to be subsumed in a horde of Asian Humanity. Stop being a fanatic.

            I have defeated you, don’t you think?

  56. contrahend October 22, 2014 at 9:38 am #

    “Amber Vinson is doing well, mom says”

    Her mom says, huh? That’s what you call citing facts?

    I’d assume she got this info from the docs, don’t you? Do you think she made it up?

    12:48 A.M. U.S. Ebola nurse’s [Pham] status upgraded to good from fair

    Great news.

    9:48 A.M. Red Cross official: Ebola can be contained within four to six months

    Great news.

    Today Ebola is believed to have infected some 8,000 people. The figure for HIV is 35 million. For hepatitis C that’s about 130 million and another 300 million have hepatitis B.

    technology saves the day.

    sorry cfn’ers. better ‘luck’ next time.

    kontrahend

  57. seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 10:31 am #

    Few people realize the polio vaccine was a Trojan Horse that introduced cancer causing viruses into the American people. It also was responsible for AIDS. Now I don’t know about you, but growing polio on monkey kidneys and then processing that into something to be injected into the bloodstreams of millions of Americans sounds like a bad idea to me. Viola how that all changed when an American president was afflicted with the disease. Now we have Ebola, the Johnny come lately to the viral block. Almost miraculously, infected people are allowed into the population and the entire medical bureaucracy looks like a bunch of nincompoops. All we need now is somebody famous to get the disease, a drug company to come up with a vaccine for it, and a law requiring all Americans to receive it and Lord knows what they’ll out in our veins next. I remember standing in line at school to get the polio vaccine and thinking to myself “WHAT IF THEY’RE WRONG?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!”

    • beantownbill. October 22, 2014 at 1:10 pm #

      I was one of the original group who was tested with the Salk vaccine in 1954. It turned out I was in the subgroup that received the actual vaccine, not the control group that received a placebo. Several months later I got a certificate that said ” Polio Pioneer” – 1954. Exactly 60 years later, I am healthy, knock on wood.

      I don’t know how old you are, but I remember quite clearly the polio epidemic at that time. The media’s reaction then was pretty much the same as now. Every day on the radio they announced the number of new polio cases in Massachusetts. It was pretty scary because, unlike the present Ebola outbreak, many people knew someone who actually had already contracted polio (mostly children).

      I think the whole polio flap back then was because of the outbreak, not because FDR got polio (he had died 9 years prior).

      The idea of injecting parts of live virus to stimulate one’s immune system sounds rather gross, but by and large, the method seems to work. I’ve never heard that the polio vaccine caused AIDS and other diseases. Do you have a citation I could look into?

      Another thing to be aware of is that a number of polio survivors who didn’t receive the vaccine have been experiencing “polio-like” symptoms later in life. It appears these people possibly still have the virus after all these years. We never really know if all virus units have died in a human body.

      • seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 1:25 pm #

        The book is “Dr. Mary’s Monkey.”
        http://doctormarysmonkey.com/
        Cancer is a far greater “epidemic” than polio ever was. 1 in 3 Americans will get it, especially the so called soft tissue cancers like breast and prostate.

  58. volodya October 22, 2014 at 11:56 am #

    Karah

    About viruses, you’re right, they’re all alike in that their common purpose is to hi-jack your cellular machinery.

    Not to beat this thing to death but I don’t grok the smugness and complacency coming from public officials. I think they WAAAY under-estimate the adversary and they WAAAY over-estimate themselves. I think that humility is the proper attitude and I’m not seeing much of it.

    About auto ownership, you’re correct, the likelihood of someone making minimum wage and owning a car is pretty small. Unless maybe they’re living in the car and it’s an uninsured junker. Forget about home ownership unless we’re talking a shack with no power or running water.

    A LOT of people around here scrape by with minimum wage/low wage retail type jobs or restaurant jobs that have irregular hours, no benefits. Some of the younger ones live with their parents. As for the older ones, while most aren’t in shelters, they’re in run-down, shared apartments or rooming houses. There’s quite a few homeless around. It’s the usual thing.

    I read a story about a local that lives in his van. If I remember right he has a job that pays him enough to get by. He pays a monthly fee for parking, sleeps in the vehicle and stores his junk in it. Can’t remember how he cooks or where he finds facilities to wash etc.

    These people are basically screwed. They aren’t living life. They’re on hold. Waiting for something better that isn’t coming.

    Businesses want their employees poor but their customers rich. It apparently never occurs to these intellectual sub-normals (or, for that matter, their trumpet-blowers like on this site) that, collectively, their employees are their customers. You make the employees poor and you have no customers.

    • MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 9:51 pm #

      re | “Businesses want their employees poor but their customers rich. It apparently never occurs to these intellectual sub-normals (or, for that matter, their trumpet-blowers like on this site) that, collectively, their employees are their customers. You make the employees poor and you have no customers.”-volodya.

      Exactly. that’s why the current situation isn’t Capitalism in the classic sense that Henry Ford understood it. He intentionally paid his workers well enough to be his customers.

      What’s occurring right now is a very degenerate form of economic cannibalism. It’s eating itself.

    • Karah October 24, 2014 at 10:53 pm #

      Especially during a recession/depression/compression/whatever you want to call “just breaking even era” we are currently enduring.

      A lot of businesses do rely on their employees for profits and they should be compensated for that reality. Happy employees, PEOPLE, bring more to your business than regular clientele. If a worker is happy and doing well, they will talk about it and spread the word. This makes your business, even a humble one, more appealing to people who have money to spend. Earlier businesses built community and that was lost with economic downturns. It should be the opposite reaction, you should hire more employees during an economic downturn. Those employees are paid to be in your store when no one else is, and they have income when no one else has. I’m not promoting the depression era company store…where people become debt slaves…that’s been tried and is still active today. Working and purchasing are very highly personal choices. You do not have to work at a particular place and you do not have to buy something from a particular store. The Monopoly model has died a million little deaths.

  59. FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 2:04 pm #

    Russian academician Sergei Glaziev predicts that the West Great Depression will end in 2018 and US, China, Europe and Russia will enter a new Kondratiev long wave of technological development (40-50 years).

    The most dangerous time in his opinion for new regional conflicts (like Ukraine or Syria) will be between 2015 – 2018,

    What we are witnessing today is a struggle between the leaders of old and new techno-economical paradigms.

    In his opinion the drivers for new technological long wave will be Nanotechnology, Informational Technology + Robotics, Bio-Medical industry and Breakthroughs in Education and Cognitive Science.

    He maintains that even today the elements of 6-th technological wave are growing at annual rate of 30 – 70%

    http://www.russiapost.su/archives/35835

    I guess Russians are of better opinion about the future of US than most Americans are, not to speak of members of this particular blog.

    • seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 2:20 pm #

      “The Fourth Turning” also espouses this view albeit in 4 20 year cycles. Seems appropriate that prophets arise in the last 20 year cycle, which we are in.

    • beantownbill. October 22, 2014 at 2:38 pm #

      i don’t know who this Glaziev is, but IMO he’s given the most accurate and positive prognostication I’ve heard in a long time. Not everyone is gloom and doom, I guess. Thank you for the info.

      • FincaInTheMountains October 22, 2014 at 5:00 pm #

        Sergei Glaziev is a full member of Russian Academy of Science, Economics, adviser to President Putin. Young fellow, 52, dirigiste.

        Wants to nationalize Russian Central Bank, switch from using foreign investment to domestic national currency credit with low rate and long duration, probably the second most-hated (after Putin) man in Russia by Western Banking Cabal.

  60. beantownbill. October 22, 2014 at 2:50 pm #

    Although Ebola is a seriously dangerous pathogen, I’m cautiously optimistic about it not becoming widespread in America. We’ll have to wait to see if other cases crop up from people’s contact with the original victims here. It’s no use speculating on whether or not the virus is mutating in ways disadvantageous to us, as we’ll find out in time, anyway.

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  61. seawolf77 October 22, 2014 at 2:59 pm #

    Priceless.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHa-AvLk4no

  62. ExtraO October 22, 2014 at 9:15 pm #

    Best ClusterFuck Nation column in ages. You always write better when you are, or have recently been, on the road.

  63. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 9:45 pm #

    re | Sources of Supply – Afgh.

    State Department “disappointed”;

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-10-22/76-billion-reasons-why-us-war-drugs-afghanistan-failed-1-chart

    MisterDarling ‘unsurprised’… 😉

    People at Foggy Bottom knew back in 2006 that the program wasn’t tracking.

  64. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 9:52 pm #

    Part 1 of 2:

    re | The Market (this week)

    Fed Chief Bullard hinted that QE might not be ended immediately last week and the market rebounded.

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-10-21/magic-number-revealed-it-costs-central-banks-200-billion-quarter-avoid-market-crash

    Under 20th Century conditions, that might have made me feel good. In this century, not so much. Every dollar that goes into supporting a stock-market while real demand crashes is not only wasted, but a down-payment on future harm.

  65. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 9:54 pm #

    Part 2 of 2:

    When giant, lowest-common denominator bell-weathers like Walmart, Coke and McDonald’s lose traction, there’s not much left.

    Coke:
    http://www.ajc.com/news/business/coke-profit-falls-14-percent-in-3rd-quarter/nhn3b/

    McDonald’s:
    http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstocks/mcdonalds-quarterly-profit-falls-30-percent/ar-BBaooOS

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  66. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 9:56 pm #

    Part 1 of 2:

    A n d… Since I see that someone needs to counter the gloom of ignorance that sometimes gathers on CFN…

    — — —

    There are some who regularly feel the need to put their gullibility on display by stating that the job market has been net-gaining jobs for the past 54 or 60 months, etc.

    Not so. Quite the opposite, actually.

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes a number it claims is the amount of jobs created every month. That number includes 50-75k ‘jobs’ generated automatically, based on something called the ‘birth-death model’ (the number of jobs the economy would have produced under conditions that were normal in the 1990’s).

    So, right from the start, this number is a lie. The BLS *admits* it is:

    http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2009/10/even-bls-admits-birth-death-model-skews-unemployment-numbers-during-recessions.html

  67. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 10:05 pm #

    Part 2 of 2:

    …So, what happens is the BLS tells the public that ‘180,000’ jobs were created, then weeks later revises that number by subtracting the birth-death model amount and the corrected number is less than 135k jobs.

    Since it takes more than 135,000 jobs/month just to keep up with population increase (even by the most conservative estimates), this equals yet another net-loss month.

    This is how the BLS reports that jobs were created without admitting that it was another month of net job-loss. Very convenient for the administration…

    If you don’t know that, then this stuff:

    http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS11300000

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-02/workforce-participation-at-36-year-low-even-as-more-jobs-beckon.html

    … makes no sense.

    That’s right, the BLS admitted that people are draining out of the job-market steadily.

    Everyone ‘in the know’ knows this.

    Employment is down to “6%” because there are almost no jobs left to lose (at this stage).

    Just to be clear, this was a P S A. Just doing my part!

    🙂

    Cheers!

    • Buck Stud October 22, 2014 at 10:39 pm #

      Fincaln writes:

      “There is a very small number of us in any given Nation – usually 1 – 2%, nevertheless Jews plays prominent roles in society in areas of art, science and (unfortunately for many of us who don’t happen to get monthly pay checks from Rothschild) finance.”

      Isn’t that the truth. Just today I was looking at this wonderful landscape by Isaac Levitan, one of the great Russian landscape painters:

      http://uploads8.wikiart.org/images/isaac-levitan/autumn.jpg

      (I tries to post up thread but there was no reply button under your post.)

      • Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 2:25 am #

        And he wants Eastern Europe and Russia to follow the same path that ruined the West.

    • Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 4:25 am #

      http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/unemployment-charts

      It’s almost 25%. A Sandow of a Shadow. Say Shadow again and again. We are under the Shadow. We have become Mordor.

  68. MisterDarling October 22, 2014 at 10:14 pm #

    Under Obama’s ‘leadership’:

    http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/oct/21/us-withholding-torture-photographs-iraq-afghanistan

    They’re suppressed because a lot of them are A LOT worse than the Abu Ghraib pictures…

    Think about that. As a matter of fact, just let your imagination run wild…

    😉

  69. FincaInTheMountains October 23, 2014 at 7:06 am #

    Is there a strategic plan behind all that madness?

    According to Academic S.Glaziev, the “Great Depression of 2008-2018” is bound to end soon and the world will enter a long Kondratiev wave (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kondratiev_wave) of techno-economical growth based on the Sixth Technological Paradigm.

    Here they are:

    1. (1600–1780) The wave of the Financial-agricultural revolution
    2. (1780–1880) The wave of the Industrial revolution
    3. (1880–1940) The wave of the Technical revolution
    4. (1940–1985) The wave of the Scientific-technical revolution
    5. (1985–2015) The wave of the Information and telecommunications revolution
    6. (2015–2035?) The hypothetical wave of the post-informational technological revolution

    Sixth Technological Paradigm will be based on:

    1. Nanoelectronics
    2. Molecular and Nano Photonics
    3. Nano Materials and Nano material finishing
    4. Nano-systemic technology
    5. Biotechnology and Nano Biotechnology
    6. New Informational Technologies
    7. Cognitive Science
    8. Socio-Humanitarian technology
    9. Convergence of all mentioned above (NBIC)

    The elements of Sixth Technological Paradigm are currently growing at a healthy annual rate of 30-70%,

    It is obvious that US wish to remain a leader of new wave of development and leave its main competitors back in the dust of Fourth and Fifth Technological Paradigms.

    To achieve that US are employing aggressive Financial and Military-Political technologies.

    On one hand the US have launched a World-wide process of Hyper-Monetary inflation of the existing Monetary-Financial system that thanks to the Export of Inflation hits economies of so called “developing” countries much harder than it hits USA.

    On the other hand, USA have launched the wave of Military-Political destabilization of vast territories from Ukraine to Middle East. (Any possible destabilization within USA, like Ferguson are brutally suppressed). Huge amounts of money ($20 billion a year) are being invested in destabilization processes in Russia.

    Of course all that will eventually cause a collapse of the existing Monetary-Financial System in the nearest future. But the Prize of Leadership in new Sixth Technological Paradigm worth it,

    The financial system would be easily reset after US have a firm grip on new technological reality.

    For those who are young enough to live it through: don’t sweat, stock up with popcorn and watch the show.

  70. BackRowHeckler October 23, 2014 at 12:24 pm #

    Still waiting for American and European feminists, campus gender warriors, Code Pink, Gloria Allred etc. to issue some kind of statement concerning the massive brutal gang rape campaign ISIS is carrying out against women in the captured towns, cities and villages in Iraq and Syria. There is also the matter of stoning woman to death in front of their families, burying them alive in pits, and in the case of Christians and Yazide women, beheading them.

    As I mentioned Downs Syndrome and Handicapped children and adults are being beaten to death and beheaded.

    The only thing I’ve heard so far are students at Harvard stating the US is a worse threat to humanity than ISIS, which confirms my suspicions about Harvard and the whole Ivy League.

    Still waiting …

    brh

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  71. BackRowHeckler October 23, 2014 at 12:30 pm #

    Hey Fincain what’s the deal with your posts about Russia?

    Are you being paid by the Russian Govt. to write all that sh#t or are you doing it on your own?

    And if Russia is so wonderful what the hell are you doing here in the USA, which according to everybody on this site, sucks?

    brh

    • MisterDarling October 23, 2014 at 9:41 pm #

      re | “which according to everybody on this site, sucks?”-brh.

      Exaggerations will get you nowhere, BackRow.

      You know better…

      😉

      • BackRowHeckler October 24, 2014 at 7:25 am #

        Little hyperbole and attempt at humor on my part, MD.

        (which fell flat)

        I retract that statement, sir!

        brh

    • stelmosfire October 24, 2014 at 6:51 am #

      Mornin’ Marlin, The USA does not suck. The lumpenproletariat attitude does though. We have it made here and all I get is whiners. I’ll admit I want to go to New Zealand, not really sure, but I’ll take my little corner of paradise over most other places!. Just sayin! RT

  72. Buck Stud October 23, 2014 at 12:35 pm #

    I just never did get all this Obama hating from the right. After all, didn’t President Obama introduce legislation that effectively eliminated medical preexisting condition clauses for all Americans in the Affordable Care Act. And by all Americans that would include the unhealthiest of the country which is, ironically, “Tobacco Road” otherwise known as the Deep South of Red State America.

    But now after reading this link I understand what all the anti-Obama hoopla is all about and straight from the collective lips of conservative White Christian America no less:

    http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/bible-code-definitively-proves-obama-antichrist

    • Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 2:56 pm #

      You are a man without a clue or a clue that you need a clue. Obama is a creature of the corporations. How can anybody with even a room temperature IQ not see this?

      • Buck Stud October 23, 2014 at 3:35 pm #

        Evidently, the right-wing biblical scholars didn’t get that memo: Obama isthe “anti-Christ, God Dammit !”

        I can see how one might become defensive and derisive as you have just done; after all, the link of the ‘Great American’ you proudly posted the other day is imbued with the same irrational lunacy of the one I just posted.

        And BTW, your assertion that ‘Obama is a creature of the corporations’ is generic and meaningless: All politicians–even a Bernie Sanders– must operate with corporate consideration because corporations are a fact of life in America.

        At any rate, Obama doesn’t seem nearly as beholden to corporations as his GOP counterparts; every one of his SC nominees (along with every other other Dem appointed nominee) voted against “Citizens United” otherwise known as ‘Corporation Are People’. And notice, just for the sake of nuance, I didn’t say that Obama has not bent over backward for large corporate interests –so roll this word around your brain: GRADATION.

        I know everything with you is black and white and it’s impossible for you to see shade as illuminated: it’s all one big black opaque mass. However, within a shadow mass is reflected light from the light masses, bouncing from here and there. A shadow mass may be warmer and darker in the deep regions and more influenced by the blue sky reflections in the edges near the transition from light to shade. In other words, a beautiful tapestry of distinct color shapes in those regions that only appear as one black note to your eyes.

        What’s amusing, if not disturbing, is not your lack of perceptual acuity; it’s your complete arrogance and certainty in spite of that lack. And even at that a little empathy is in order because who has ever pointed this out to you?

        A heads up: quit listening to silly buffoons preaching rebellion and fat right-wing blowhards mouthing equally absurd inanities.

    • BackRowHeckler October 23, 2014 at 4:52 pm #

      White Christian America?

      What about Black Muslim America?

      Let’s see what Minister Farrakhan has to say.

      –brh

  73. volodya October 23, 2014 at 12:58 pm #

    MisterDarling, you commented on some of the posters on this site. I thought I’d give you my 2 cents on it.

    I see this comment section as a place for discussion and exchange of views. And there’s a lot of good quality stuff here. Whether or not someone agrees with majority opinion is secondary.

    For what it’s worth, I see a “troll” as someone who isn’t a bona fide commenter. They have their own purposes. They may be get their jollies from inciting emotional responses. Or they may be paid to disrupt. Either way, their effectiveness is magnified if other commenters engage with them.

    You get to define “troll” as you see fit. You get to decide for yourself who is or isn’t. And you get to determine how and if you interact with them.

    Sometimes you get people that disagree with a majority view. Honest dissent is one thing. But, even so, there’s a question of why bother being on a site if they so consistently and vehemently disagree with the host and other posters. It’s akin to butting into conversations where they have no interest in the topic of discussion.

    Having said that, there are good hearted people who don’t see eye to eye. You know how it is, two witnesses to an event can give radically different accounts. And the things we discuss have many moving parts. I don’t want to shut my ears to it as nobody has a total grasp on what’s happening.

    But there are trolls. They don’t illuminate, they don’t inform. They serve no useful purpose. Personally, I don’t bother with trolls. And there are individuals on this site that I don’t bother with.

    • MisterDarling October 23, 2014 at 9:29 pm #

      re | “But there are trolls. They don’t illuminate, they don’t inform. They serve no useful purpose. Personally, I don’t bother with trolls. And there are individuals on this site that I don’t bother with.”-volodya.

      Yes, you are right. But I give CFN-ers the benefit of the doubt.

      By the way…

      Here’s something that reminded me of one our little chats:

      “thoughts of violence against wall st.”

      http://wallstreetonparade.com/2014/10/new-york-feds-conference-evokes-thoughts-of-violence-against-wall-street/

      Takeaway quote:

      “What everyone wants to believe is that when things reach a tipping point and go from being merely crappy for the masses to dangerous and socially destabilizing, that we’re somehow going to know about that shift ahead of time. Any student of history knows that’s not the way it happens. Revolutions, like bankruptcies, come gradually, and then suddenly. One day, somebody sets himself on fire, then thousands of people are in the streets, and before you know it, the country is burning. And then there’s no time for us to get to the airport and jump on our Gulfstream Vs and fly to New Zealand. That’s the way it always happens. If inequality keeps rising as it has been, eventually it will happen. We will not be able to predict when, and it will be terrible—for everybody. But especially for us.”

  74. volodya October 23, 2014 at 1:14 pm #

    MisterDarling, I view official statistics as worse than useless. They mislead and misinform. As bad as the garbage that Pravda used to put out.

    Never mind official statistics. The academic world in my view is as bad. The economics profession in general is in thrall to one interest group or another. How can you have objective and dispassionate research if the economist identifies himself as “liberal” or “conservative” or works for an industry association? You can do worse than judge for yourself as to the trajectory of events and conditions.

    Or listen to the views of your buddies. They may be deep in the weeds of their own locale and personal circumstances. But you accumulate these anecdotes and you start to have something approximating a coherent picture. It can’t be worse than what you get from government or business or universities. I wipe my ass with all that.

    • MisterDarling October 23, 2014 at 10:16 pm #

      re | “But you accumulate these anecdotes and you start to have something approximating a coherent picture. It can’t be worse than what you get from government or business or universities.”-volodya.

      I factor official, unpublished, cross-referenced 1st person reportage, data that I collect… even community chatter from places like CFN into my ‘big picture’.

  75. Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 2:54 pm #

    Finally we get a rough idea of how many illegal aliens are in America: 34 million. This is based on the advertised printing contract for green cards.

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2800356/us-immigration-authorities-prep-order-34-million-blank-green-cards-work-authorization-papers-obama-readies-executive-order-illegal-aliens.html

    And this proposed amnesty is in the face of an over 20% unemployment rate. See the shadow stats site for confirmation.

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  76. Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 3:05 pm #

    Thought Experiment: If it was proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that Obama was not an American Citizen, would that change Buck’s adulation for him? Probably not. What is legality to the smitten? What does American Law matter in the face of Black Godhood? America can go to the dogs as long as Obama’s legacy remain intact.

    A case in point: When Martin Luther King’s plagiarism was exposed, did the Liberals stop worshiping? The poor schmoe whom he stole from for his thesis said how proud he was that such a great man used his work. Buck is just such a schmoe.

  77. Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 4:24 pm #

    Bad news for the Brownies and Liberal Goobers. Looks like the Good Guys were right again.

    http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/autopsy-analysis-michael-brown-may-have-gone-for-darren-wilson%e2%80%99s-gun/ar-BBaA3WG?ocid=ansWashpost11

    President Obama actually mentioned this case overseas as an example of police tyranny. What a “president”. What a country. But Obama is just a symptom in the end. But what can we do about the legions of Liberal Goobers and their hate filled Black and Brown “clients”?

    • BackRowHeckler October 23, 2014 at 4:45 pm #

      Vlad we knew from day 1 Brown was a thug and a criminal and that he attacked Darren Wilson inside the police car, trying to gain control of his sidearm.

      The only question is, are Holder’s inquisitors from the Justice Department honest investigators looking for the truth, or are they political Brown Shirts out to Railroad Wilson on some trumped up Civil Rights charge? After Wilson is exonerated what’s likely to happen is the rest of Ferguson will be burned down and the remaining whites and all legitimate business will get out of town, leaving behind yet another barren smoking section 8 welfare craphole like Camden, NJ or Oakland, CA.

      Sharpton, Holder, Jackson and co. et al, will likely show up next spring after the snow melts at some other incident, whipping up hatred and inciting riots and looting. You can pretty much count on it.

      –brh

  78. Janos Skorenzy October 23, 2014 at 7:07 pm #

    Brown’s mother viciously attacks his grandmother and cousin for selling Michael Brown merchandise. The apple certainly didn’t fall from the tree in this case. It’s competition for the Gentle Giant Ghetto Lottery Ticket – and competition is good, right?

    http://www.amren.com/news/2014/10/police-investigating-assault-and-theft-following-argument-between-brown-family-relatives/

    The real question is when if ever will Liberals start to feel embarrassed for ever believing these people are our equals. And what penalties will they face for forcing these absurdities on the American Public – leading to loss of jobs, homes, communities, and lives?

  79. nsa October 23, 2014 at 9:41 pm #

    Just remember Davy Crockett’s last words at the Alamo: “Where’d all these fucking lawn care assholes come from”?

  80. MisterDarling October 24, 2014 at 1:52 am #

    re | Ebola in the Big Apple:

    http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ebola-patient-york-city-hospital/story?id=26406430

    …it gets around.

    BTW, I’m not that worried abut Ebola getting out of control in the continental US anytime that soon. . . As I mentioned more than once, I’m more concerned about it jumping to a high-impact nations w/next to no sanitation, that assuages unpleasant facts of mortality through reincarnation.

    I’m referring to India, of course.

    *Nighty-night*!

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  81. FincaInTheMountains October 24, 2014 at 8:01 am #

    Here are some interesting numbers regarding nanotechnology market :

    http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/nano/reports/MCR_11-0201_JNR13_NNI+at+10+years_11051_2010_192_print.pdf

    The value of the products incorporating nanotechnology reached about $200 billion in 2008 of which about $80 billion was in US.

    For 2015 it is projected that total value of the products incorporating nanotechnology will reach 1 trillion of which about $800 billion would be in US.

    The market is doubling every 3 years as a result of successive introduction of new products.

    Well, surprise, surprise… Good ol’ US of A are not doing that bad after all. US is cornering the market with 80% lead in the next generation technology.

  82. FincaInTheMountains October 24, 2014 at 8:10 am #

    “And if Russia is so wonderful what the hell are you doing here in the USA, which according to everybody on this site, sucks?” brh

    Did you actually read my posts, brh? I left US about 10 years ago.

    “Are you being paid by the Russian Govt. to write all that sh#t or are you doing it on your own?”

    Unfortunately not, I am not being paid by Russian government, unfortunately yes, I am doing that sh*t on my own.

    Why? Just like the rest of you, trying to figure out what in the world is going on.

    • Buck Stud October 24, 2014 at 11:27 am #

      Listen up Fincal. BRH doesn’t ‘have to actually read’ your posts because he “just knows”:

      “Vlad we knew from day 1 Brown was a thug and a criminal…”.

      Don’t be questioning BRH, Fincal; he knew what the Grand Jury findings would be even before the Grand Jury convened. Got it now?

      It’s more than a feeling you see, from the pointy cap on the head to the sheet on the toes, some people just know, know, know.

      • BackRowHeckler October 24, 2014 at 12:02 pm #

        When did the video appear of the Gentle Giant robbing the tobacco store and roughing up the owner? That kind of gives you an idea what Michael Brown was all about.

        There is another Gentle Giant in Charlottesville, Va., and two dead girls. I wonder if Sharpton will be showing up for that one? Maybe not.

        Check out the cheating at UNC, As and B+s for no show, no work, no classroom courses in the African Studies Department. It was hilarious watching the hosts dance around this on PBS last night.

        Column in WSJ today by the author of ‘Bottomless Well’, claims lower prices for oil will not affect fracking, says technology is getting better all the time. Don’t know if its true.

        brh

    • BackRowHeckler October 24, 2014 at 12:05 pm #

      OK I must have missed that. I know you said you were born in Kharkov but thought you were still here. My apologies.

      I do read your posts. There’s a lot in there, that’s all.

      brh

    • Janos Skorenzy October 24, 2014 at 2:10 pm #

      And Russians have no necessary connection with “Russian Civilization”, right? They’re just another ethnic group like Chechens, Kalmucks, or Jews.

      They’ve played this scam on America and every other White Nation. Now they’re coming for the Slavs.

  83. FincaInTheMountains October 24, 2014 at 9:37 am #

    Shameful Huffington Post Headline: “EBOLA HITS GOTHAM”

    Single case of a doctor testing positive for Ebola virus who returned from treating Ebola patients in Guinea warrants such headline?

  84. progress4what October 24, 2014 at 1:21 pm #

    Thanks for the week’s work, JHK! Really nice Ebola analogies and metaphors, too. Only problem is, Ebola is starting to look like 100%, straight-up, American-style hype. HYPE – I say, in the very best sort of frenetic exaggeration of which the Mainstream Media here in the US is capable.

    Don’t get me wrong. Ebola is a nasty disease. Nobody wants to get Ebola. And the symptoms of Ebola, with feces coming out of one’s nose while nasal mucus comes out of one’s anus – wow. Here is a disease that is perfect for freaking out every single one of the disease-phobic denizens of the Homeland.

    Nasty disease; but apparently not very contagious. We are to believe that NONE of Thomas Eric Duncan’s (I still like that name, btw, it sounds so civilized) family caught his case of Ebola – even though they were living with him closely for two days after he started showing symptoms and BEFORE he was re-examined at the ER for the second time, and prior to his death. And, certainly, no one on any US commercial aircraft seems to have caught a case of Ebola – even though our moronic govt. gave 100’s of people plenty of chances. Think about it.

    Everything about Ebola coverage has been designed to torque up the fear factor. Just to pull one example – think about the helicopter live-shots of Ebola patients being transferred in the open. There must be 57+ ways to transfer patients that would make more sense. They could have done it in a hangar, where wind and prop-wash would not be flapping the hems and fringes of the personal protective equipment (PPE) of all the many medical workers involved in the transfer. They could have done the transfer at night. Or, they could have simply declared a FAA no-fly zone and ordered that no live shots be shown on the TEEVEE news. Hell, they do that routinely most anytime there is SWAT police activity, these days.

    I won’t call conspiracy, out of deference to our host. But somebody, somewhere, decided it was a good idea to freak out the Homeland concerning Ebola.

    Why?

    Are we really that stupid?

    • Janos Skorenzy October 24, 2014 at 2:59 pm #

      Well it’s good cover for the other atrocities like the coming amnesty. No comment on the 34 million pieces of green paper about to be printed?

      Also it got attention away from the Entero Virus from Central America which has caused more damage.

  85. FincaInTheMountains October 24, 2014 at 1:25 pm #

    Putin picks up US gauntlet

    Putin lashes out at US, West for destabilizing world
    http://rt.com/news/198924-putin-valdai-speech-president/

    Vladimir Putin has lashed out at the United States for destabilizing the world order of checks and balances for its own gains. He also accused the West of inflaming the situation in Ukraine and said Russia was not interested in building an empire.

    The Russian President delivered a fierce broadside aimed at the United States at a speech for the Valdai Club in Sochi, which is an informal group of scholars. He hit out at Washington for behaving without regard to the rest of the world’s interests

    Bottom line: “We are living in very dangerous world with no rules”

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  86. progress4what October 24, 2014 at 1:48 pm #

    One more for you, JHK:

    http://www.archdaily.com/560673/frank-gehry-claims-today-s-architecture-is-mostly-pure-shit/

    Funny stuff!

    =====================

    And before somebody gives me grief, about live shots of SWAT activity. Yeah, I know, they are shown all the time. But, I also know that somebody in the law enforcement chains of command are not shy about ordering news helicopters away from a scene.

    The usual excuse given is something along the lines of, “We don’t want the noise of aircraft disturbing the suspect.”

  87. BackRowHeckler October 24, 2014 at 2:09 pm #

    Whoa! Wait a minute! The Hatchet Man in NYC is a Columbia University Grad, another proud Ivy Leaguer!

    Having only gone to State U, I look up to the Ivy League, clearly our betters.

    Can anybody here explain the connection between College Libs, Islamists, leftists, and the cult of cutting off heads. I know there’s a link but I just can’t figure it out. Don’t be too surprised if you see the image of Che Guvera disappearing from T shirts around campus and replaced by the kid who set off the bombs in Boston. They kind of look alike anyway.

    Why is the American media ignoring what is happening to women in Iraq and Syria, which the world hasn’t seen since the Red Army’s rape campaign in Germany in May-June 1945?

    –brh

  88. BackRowHeckler October 24, 2014 at 2:11 pm #

    And the murdering of the handicapped and downs syndrome kids, in the British media but not the American media?

  89. FincaInTheMountains October 24, 2014 at 5:17 pm #

    Putin’s speech: “New Rules or a Game without Rules”
    http://eng.kremlin.ru/news/23137 (English)

    ….

    Today’s discussion took place under the theme: New Rules or a Game without Rules. I think that this formula accurately describes the historic turning point we have reached today and the choice we all face. There is nothing new of course in the idea that the world is changing very fast. I know this is something you have spoken about at the discussions today. It is certainly hard not to notice the dramatic transformations in global politics and the economy, public life, and in industry, information and social technologies.

    The Cold War ended, but it did not end with the signing of a peace treaty with clear and transparent agreements on respecting existing rules or creating new rules and standards. This created the impression that the so-called ‘victors’ in the Cold War had decided to pressure events and reshape the world to suit their own needs and interests. If the existing system of international relations, international law and the checks and balances in place got in the way of these aims, this system was declared worthless, outdated and in need of immediate demolition.

    Pardon the analogy, but this is the way nouveaux riches behave when they suddenly end up with a great fortune, in this case, in the shape of world leadership and domination. Instead of managing their wealth wisely, for their own benefit too of course, I think they have committed many follies.

    We have entered a period of differing interpretations and deliberate silences in world politics. International law has been forced to retreat over and over by the onslaught of legal nihilism. Objectivity and justice have been sacrificed on the altar of political expediency. Arbitrary interpretations and biased assessments have replaced legal norms. At the same time, total control of the global mass media has made it possible when desired to portray white as black and black as white.

    In a situation where you had domination by one country and its allies, or its satellites rather, the search for global solutions often turned into an attempt to impose their own universal recipes. This group’s ambitions grew so big that they started presenting the policies they put together in their corridors of power as the view of the entire international community. But this is not the case.

  90. pkrugman October 24, 2014 at 8:16 pm #

    “Why is the American media ignoring what is happening to women in Iraq and Syria…” — BRH

    A cursory search found articles in Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy, etc. so the American press is reporting this.

    New York is part of the United States and the New York Times reported on it:

    “There have been cases of men taking multiple wives, as well as accounts of rape, forced marriage and women being sold into slavery.

    In an article in Foreign Policy, Aki Peritz and Tara Maller wrote that male jihadists were “committing horrific sexual violence on a seemingly industrial scale,” citing reports from the United Nations and Amnesty International.”

    I urge CFN to support the United Nations and Amnesty International. They are supporters of human rights.

    And don’t confuse “male jihadists” with “muslims” just as White Citizens Council or abortion clinic bombers or Seal Team Six are not representative of Christianity.

    Some who claim to be Christians or claim to be Muslims engage in violent actions. Both Christianity and Islam are religions of peace, in spite of what Jesus once said. Jesus was just stirring the shit.

    “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” — Jesus (Matthew 10:34)

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    • Karah October 24, 2014 at 11:06 pm #

      You should really compare that scripture with the counsel given Peter who cut off the arresting soldiers EAR.

      One reason Jesus came was to SAVE, not judge. That reason does not conflict or contradict his other reasons.

      The “sword” in the scripture does not refer to warfare, it refers to the sword emanating from his mouth in the form of laws and principles originating with God the Father and not man. Anyone who listens to that voice will be changed like with a sword or fine cutting instrument because it will separate the men from the boys, the right from the wrong and the wicked from the righteous.

      ***

      I think more doctors and nurses would go to Africa if they had a mandatory Quarantine in a resort-like facility for 30 days upon entry into the USA!

      • Karah October 24, 2014 at 11:08 pm #

        correction: ALL INCLUSIVE resort-like facility

    • BackRowHeckler October 25, 2014 at 1:50 pm #

      United Nations and Amnesty International?

      Are you shittin me?

      Where the f-ck are they? They’re are needed right now, today, as heads are being cut off and girls are being raped. I know, I know its none of our business. President Ebola ends wars, he doesn’t start them.

      And what parasites and poseurs UN members are, busy condemning Israel and sucking $$$ out of the US when the goddam world is on fire, as useful as teats on a bull, living it up in Manhattan at expensive whorehouses and upscale eateries.

      –brh

  91. MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 1:35 am #

    Really, we don’t appreciate the rare talent of CFN’s Resident Fascist.

    It’s lines like this:

    “And why not bring in more Negroes to produce more Pushkins, right? You Devil.”-j.

    And this;

    “They’ve played this scam on America and every other White Nation. Now they’re coming for the Slavs.”-j.

    That really make you think about a time-warp portal stuck open somewhere.

    I haven’t come across anyone else on the web that drops this many olde-timey *Antique Fascist* [tm] comments of wit & wisdom with such unselfconscious aplomb.

    The language of Antique Fascism [tm] seems natural to him, as if it were his native tongue…

    I’m thinking that the copywriter for the *WhiteMansBurden* [tm] line of laptop bags, knapsacks and multi-purpose totes should emulate this style.

    Just a thought.

    Cheers!

    • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 3:00 am #

      The Truth is speaking to you from deep inside your heart. I am just the not so humble instrument of it. But you make light of me as a way to silence the Voice from deep inside yourself. You know that our System is a Lie and the Peoples and Cultures are not equal in worth.

      I mean really! Do you agree with the Swedish Government which told the Swedish People a couple of years ago that they were just another ethnic group in their own country? That’s what our resident “Russian” is in essence saying about his vision for Russia. No one has to teach them these things – they just seem to naturally know how to destroy a nation just as termites know to bore thru wood and desire to do so.

      In any case, thanks for the compliment. But there’s lot of good “Fascist” writing on the web. White Nationalism isn’t limited to Fascism, there is also the new philosophy of Identitarianism as well just old fashioned Nationalism – which basically becomes Fascism during times of War or Threat. In some Cultures, there was a War Chief or King who took over from the regular one for such times. Same thing.

      • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 10:00 am #

        Maybe you can use your talent to land a Ministry of Propaganda gig with the New Secessionist State of “Reagan”. It would no doubt be a more rewarding and meaningful life than shivering in a cold winter Idaho single wide and crossing your fingers every Friday night at the Bingo hall.

        Good luck Mate!

        http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/author-wants-southern-states-secede-over-gay-rights-name-new-country-reagan

        • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 10:08 am #

          But I do have to hand it to the author in the above link; he clearly sees the handwriting on the wall which states that any future Democratic presidential candidate starts off the election with 242 Electoral College votes. Which means a very narrow path that will inevitably grow smaller and smaller with demographic change for any future GOP/Right Wing candidates. Hence the calls for secession

          And of course, Father Time calling back the sheep to that great Tea Party pasture in the sky.

          • BackRowHeckler October 25, 2014 at 1:42 pm #

            Hey Buck what’s going to happen when whitey is no longer around to foot the bill for this great future Socialist Paradise?

            That’s what’s happened in Rhodesia and it hasn’t turned out so well. Increasingly South Africa, too, is taking on the hue of a 3rd world sh#thole as the white population decreases.

            Or haven’t you thought that far ahead?

            brh

        • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 1:29 pm #

          Reagan? The schmoe who amnestied millions of hostiles? Buck, you still don’t get it: we’re not Republicans. Some of us have managed to escape from the to the two party (one regime) plantation. Sorry you are still trapped in the dual part of your mind, the part that can’t count past two.

          The two parties are just different sides of the same economic coin. They both worship money and care little for actual people. So crack your whip all you like Cracker – we aint coming back.

          • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 4:37 pm #

            Who said anything about ‘whitey not been around’?

            I was stating that right-wing politics doesn’t have a bright Electoral College future as most right-wing/GOP supporters are in the older age brackets and yes, happen to be white males.

            But there are still plenty of beautiful white liberals,independents and non-crazed Republicans in the country BRH. And just compare some of these liberal havens to, say, Mississippi

      • MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 10:37 am #

        Janos,

        Saw this link and thought that you might be interested:

        http://priceonomics.com/how-americans-hate-each-other/

        Cheers!

        • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 1:38 pm #

          You can’t be serious. The article is a joke. It ignores the fact that Blacks commit violent crimes at seven times the White rate and Hispanics three times. Whites and Northeast Asians produce peaceful and prosperous societies and Blacks don’t. In between these two extremes are the other peoples of the world.

          In terms of “hate crimes” (an amorphous subjective category to begin with), Hispanics can be victims but not perpetrators. When they commit them, their numbers are credited to the White account. Now if the compilers are willing to engage in these kinds of shenanigans, how can they be taken seriously at all? They obviously have a hate filled, anti-White, PC agenda.

          • MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 11:57 pm #

            re | “They obviously have a hate filled, anti-White, PC agenda.”-j.

            Obviously.

            😉

  92. FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 10:00 am #

    What did Putin actually said in yesterday speech:

    1. Russia is not going to play politically-correct games anymore. If you have any serious proposals, let’s discuss.
    2. All systems of international security are ruined and future is not guaranteed to anyone. Blame firmly resides with US.
    3. Builders of NWO have totally failed and have built something on the sand. It is NOT only up to Russia to build a new system of international security, but it is impossible to build one without her and at her expense.
    4. Russia prefers a conservative approach to introducing any changes into system of international relationship, but does not oppose to any fresh new ideas.
    5. Russia is not going to take advantage of ensuing chaos and is not going to build new empire (she has enough land in Siberia and Far East in needs of development), but will not allow to save the world order at her expense.
    6. Russia is not going to reformat the world according to her views, but will not allow o reformat herself according to anybody views as well.
    7. Russia doesn’t want chaos, is not pursuing war and is not going to start one. But at the present time Russia views possibility of a Global War as almost certainty and is preparing for it.
    8. Russia is not going to enter any conflicts with clumsy builders of NWO as long as it not threatens her interests. She would let the “builders” to keep making same mistakes. However, if it does threaten Russia interests, be aware.
    9. In her policy, internal as well as external, Russia will no longer align itself with elites positions, but with the “Will of the People”

    • MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 10:36 am #

      Yes, it was an interesting speech.

      Coming from Putin and the new political culture of Russia where words must have consequences and lead to action, maybe not just talk either.

      • FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 10:44 am #

        Didn’t we just see it in August in Ukraine? Rumor has it that defeat of Ukr’s punitive forces was dealt by lightening strike of two Russian brigades.
        They did it so quickly and unexpectedly that didn’t leave CIA with any pictures to post on FaceBook.

        • MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 11:55 pm #

          FitM,

          Back in the day we had an unofficial standard: “In and Out before the Confusion has a chance to set in” – and by ‘confusion’ we didn’t just mean the opponent’s, we also meant getting it done before military bureaucracy had a chance to screw anything up.

          “They did it so quickly and unexpectedly that [it] didn’t leave [the] CIA with any pictures to post on FaceBook.”- FitM.

          This needs to be paraphrased as the new standard.

          🙂

          Cheers!

  93. MisterDarling October 25, 2014 at 10:39 am #

    Something for Contrahend:

    http://i.imgur.com/FYBHOTN.gif

    It’s interesting to see which states get on board and which don’t…

    Cheers!

  94. volodya October 25, 2014 at 11:09 am #

    If a worker is happy and doing well, they will talk about it and spread the word. This makes your business, even a humble one, more appealing to people who have money to spend. – Karah

    You bet. The employee is the business’s most effective advertising tool. When you ask someone who they work for and, if they look at their shoes when they tell you, well, you have a measure of the management and the company. It’s a whole nother thing if they give even a semi-enthusiastic answer (no work-place is a bed of roses).

    Earlier businesses built community and that was lost with economic downturns. It should be the opposite reaction, you should hire more employees during an economic downturn. Those employees are paid to be in your store when no one else is, and they have income when no one else has. – Karah

    Now this is why I read this site. Think of all the times that a talking head on a biz news show or a columnist in the biz pages used the term “counter-intuitive”. Generally it’s used in the context of trying to con you out of your money, to make the writer or talker sound more intelligent than they actually are, to make it seem like they have a deeper insight than a mere mortal like you. “Counter-intuitive”? How about “fraudulent”?

    Now what you said is “counter-intuitive” but don’t get upset. I don’t mean that you’re trying to con people out of money or you are put one over on someone. I mean it in a different way. I just mean that for all the reading I’ve done I’ve never ONCE come across a suggestion like this. Because nearly EVERYBODY would immediately and intuitively think that either 1) the business of priming the economic pump in a downturn is the government’s job or 2) if it’s not the government’s job then it’s the central bank ie the Fed steps in to mess with interest rates or money supply.

    So, do you mean to tell me that BUSINESS should do their part? You mean that BUSINESS should act with forebearance and forethought? That BUSINESS should look at who they harm? Do you mean those guys that are happy to take with both hands, to vehemently object to any whisper of the word “tax”, to deny most stridently that any business has ANY obligation to the community that made the business possible?

    Are you serious in suggesting that those offshorers and tax avoiders and tax inverters and haters of paying even a minimum wage, those guys that have the chutzpah to claim that Fedex drivers are independent contractors should pay some mind to ANYTHING other than immediate profit maximization or that, heaven forfend, longer term interest sometimes requires shorter term sacrifice?

    This would require a cultural change.

    Well. OK, let’s think how this might work.

    Let’s think worst case scenario: let’s say times are bad and businesses are up against it. And I don’t mean Wall Street. What could we do if a business is running out of cash? Or running out of bank credit?

    Suppose the Fed had a credit facility for such businesses.

    So imagine that stressed businesses could use the Fed for some help instead of using the usual remedy of down-sizing-right-sizing-re-engineering and all the myriad b.s. terms used to obscure FIRING.

    What did the government and the Fed do in the wake of the 2008 debacle? Nothing but money for banks and AIG. Oh and GM. Who could forget GM? But what about the many, many other businesses that could have used help? Or their employees for that matter?

    That is to say, something for companies that do something other than play with numbers on computer screens or high frequency pilferage of people’s savings.

    Anyway, a tip of the hat Karah. Some outside the box thinking. Always good. As I said, what you suggest requires a massive cultural change. But from the smallest seed comes the tallest tree.

    • Karah October 25, 2014 at 8:33 pm #

      Thanks, kudos for your excellent description of why it is not being done on a massive scale…

      It is being done, though, when it comes to the people who really care about people. Some CEOs have seen the dangers in obliterating our culture, what it means to be American, and have foregone their pay raise in order to save companies like HOSTESS cakes.

      Other smaller manufacturers who are run by a patriarchal figure, with much experience in the trade, who has not written his own paychecks during the recession/depression/compression in order to benefit his employees; the people who make his money to begin with. Sure, if business owners could produce up into their 90s without much help (like CEOS) from anyone else, they would be just fine. But businesses are not ONE PERSON. Businesses usually support entire TOWNS of people. Look at any town in the USA and you will see only 5 top employers and the rest of the businesses live off their profits. 3 of the top employers anywhere are city, county and FED/Not For Profits. If a business owner decides not to work with the gov’t, he relies on the private sector. There’s LOTS of Entrepreneurs who actively do this. They are doing just fine.

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:17 am #

      re | “What did the government and the Fed do in the wake of the 2008 debacle? Nothing but money for banks and AIG. Oh and GM. Who could forget GM? But what about the many, many other businesses that could have used help? Or their employees for that matter?”-volodya

      GM was bailed-out because of GM’s auto-loan operation. So really the bail out was 100% for the FIRE sector.

      Keeping employees on during a downturn instead of firing them (and incurring the cost of recruiting and rehiring during the next upturn) is one “counter-cyclical stimulus” measure.

      The reason that we don’t have people starving in the streets during this downturn is because of other counter-cyclical stimulus measures that were instituted by FDR’s regime during the last Depression… And of course there’s a flock of nitwits that want to get rid of those.

      Even the pharaohs of ancient Egypt had a form of counter-cyclical stimulus: storing grain during “fat years” to ration out during “lean years”.

      Counter-cyclical stimulus (done in a disciplined manner) is just what responsible societies do.

      Yes, getting America to understand and accept this requires a culture change. So that rules out voting change in. Cultures are changed by one thing: Trauma.

      Another useful analogy: The Israelites went into Egypt as a scattered collection of tribes, and they came out of Egypt as One People.

      • Karah October 26, 2014 at 4:18 am #

        NPRS PLANET MONEY has a survey showing how most people make a living at $XX,XXX per year.

        if you are making 40k a yr which is what most peope make in this country working fulltime you are either a

        truck driver
        nurse
        manager

        that means the most prosperous industries revolve around oil, pharmaceuticals and finance. trucks need gas, nurses need meds and managers determine how and when everyone else working gets paid. fastfodd worker does not make the list yet we see them everywhere. they are our underground economy. if the slaves ever unionize then we will truly see a different world.

  95. progress4what October 25, 2014 at 2:21 pm #

    Busy week for me. Some of it was work, and the rest of it was another one of those cross-state funerals that family duty requires of me from time to time. So, here’s one more post concerning a couple of things that caught my eye and that stuck in my memory enough to allow a response.

    Buck –
    Be careful what you wish for. The older, whiter, more “American,” and slightly more “Republican?” generation is, indeed, passing away at an alarming rate. You need to realize that your Democrats are also owned by international oligarchs. They will cause ruin at least as fast as the Repubs would have. Also, you need to consider that one-party rule is going to lead to very strong excesses.

    Also to Buck –
    Saying that the late Mr. Brown exhibited thuggish behavior during the videotaped robbery of his local convenience store is a completely defensible and logical statement. Saying that Backrow the Hecker belongs in a KKK outfit for pointing it out is neither defensible nor logical.

    It is, however, a great example of the sort of rhetorical overreach that is taking the US populace to an unfortunate spot, as regards relations between African-Americans and the rest of the country.

    Also, to backrow and others – I don’t know what’s wrong with the liberal left, the MSM, the Pope, and many others as regards calling out the behavior of ISIS and trying to do something about it.

    Also, I don’t know what’s wrong with the Swedes, the Danes, and the other European peoples who are ALREADY having troubles with Muslims and minorities – yet continue to allow them into their countries at a high rate. There’s something wrong, and it’s all going to end badly if “modernity?” every ends. (Yeah, yeah, soaker trolls – modernity will NEVER end. That’s what JHK tells us every week, too. sarc on/off)

    You can argue, and many do, that Western culture in the United States deserves to die a slow death due because slavery, and because Indian genocide.

    But what did the Swedes do to deserve this?

    Gotta’ hit the road.

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    • stelmosfire October 25, 2014 at 2:52 pm #

      They invented meatballs with brown sauce instead of spaghetti sauce, I can’t forgive that!

    • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 3:22 pm #

      Exactly. Every White Nation has its own rationale to argue that Whites have no right to have their own nation. Colonial history or no Colonial history – doesn’t matter. They still have to fundamentally change and their Whites need to go into the Night of History. Someone really doesn’t like us, someone very powerful. And I have a pretty good idea who. They don’t need to be elected and their policies aren’t up for discussion. See the Boston Globe article below.

      http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2014/10/18/vote-all-you-want-the-secret-government-won-change/jVSkXrENQlu8vNcBfMn9sL/story.html?event=event25

    • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 4:48 pm #

      Prog,

      That’s a good point, one party excess. Or even worse, a philosophical laxity as a result of the diminished antagonist.

      BRH, to my reading eyes seems a bit eager and premature in his proclamations. I say what for the actual GJ findings although it’s very suspicious, these selective leaks.

      Pre-judge = prejudice= the metaphorical pointy hood on the head: The structural apex symbolizing the constricted, condensed thoughts of the head it resides upon.

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:21 am #

      re | “But what did the Swedes do to deserve this?”-prog4.

      Indeed… Something tells me that this is not going to end well.

  96. pkrugman October 25, 2014 at 2:44 pm #

    “Which means a very narrow path that will inevitably grow smaller and smaller with demographic change for any future GOP/Right Wing candidates.” — Buck Stud

    Buck, it will be even narrower for GOP chances in 2016 if the GOP takes control of both the House and the Senate in the midterm elections.

    Can you imagine the naysayers having control of both House and Senate? They would then have to have some kind of positive legislative agenda instead of just filibustering and blocking Obama. They will be shown to have no constructive ideas beyond deregulation (which led to 2007’s collapse), cutting spending (which has left millions in dire straits), and giving tax breaks to the 1% (the so-called “job creators” who have not used the tax breaks to create jobs).

    After seeing how ineffective the Republicans are at legislation (if the Republicans don’t use their control to shut down the government again), the way will be clear for Democrats to be elected in 2016.

    Of course, as Janos says, CFN does not care who is in power because they are “beyond” the red/blue illusion. Janos has some conspiracy theory about who the real powers are, those evil ones who are “really” in control of the world: the Jews, Trilateral Commission, Bilderberg Group, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Club of Rome, the Rothschilds, etc. etc.

    Oh, and BLS government statistics are bullshit according to Volodya and Mr. Darling, except for the statistics on labor market participation rates that support their trashing of the monthly positive job numbers. They depend on and cite BLS numbers… which seem to be reliable statistics when they support their argument trashing Obama.

    Arguing over whether the private sector has created 150,000 new jobs a month or whether it was revised downward to 135,000 jobs a month is ridiculous. We are seeing net gains month after month… for 60 consecutive months.

    It is like no one remembers what Republicans gave us after seven years of George W. Bush’s right-wing pro-1% policies: a hemorrhaging of 700,000 to 900,000 jobs per month in 2007, the outsourcing of factories, and flight of the one-percenters’ wealth to offshore or Swiss bank accounts. The 1% are rapists of the USA, not “job creators.”

    The rich should be taxed again at a top marginal income tax rate of 91% as they were under Eisenhower, from 1953 to 1961. CFN loves the 1950s… America was such a great white nation then… right?

  97. Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 3:17 pm #

    Dedicated to Buck. It’s a clue – from that very Liberal Rag the Boston Globe no less. Take a clue from a wiser Liberal than you.

    http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2014/10/18/vote-all-you-want-the-secret-government-won-change/jVSkXrENQlu8vNcBfMn9sL/story.html?event=event25

    • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 4:22 pm #

      I didn’t find that article all that illuminating. Let’s be honest here: the GOP would love nothing better than national security disaster to occur on President Obama’s watch so they could seethe with rage and utter “we told you so.”

      In fact, that bulls eye goes for every Dem/Progressive politician. And so Dem national security policy/strategy essentially mirrors the GOP policy because if an ‘event’ happens on their watch the GOP will hangs those ‘soft on National Security Libs’ from a high fucking tree.

      And not only the hanging of progressive politicians, but all their noble and humane legislation such as the Affordable Care Act, lowering student loan interest rates, protecting Social Security and Medicare, the environment, voting rights for all, etc,etc,etc.

      So progressive politicians need to have a spotless national security record and essentially do two jobs at once: keep the country safe and keep the social safety net safe from those who would destroy it the fog of a national security hysteria.

      Why wasn’t that dynamic mentioned in the article? And that is a large part of the ‘sameness’ the author believes he perceives.

      Can you imagine if President Obama would have turned tail from Lebanon like President Reagan did after the Marine barracks bombing? What would BRH say about that? or Sarah Palin or Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh? Would they give President Obama the same pass as they gave President Reagan?

      So Dems have to be twice as competent as the diabolical right wing counterparts because they are negotiating a severe and hypocritical double standard.

      • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 6:22 pm #

        Your behavior is unworthy – your arguments no better than a freshman female poly sci major. Any criticism of Obama is responded to with a barrage of criticism of Bush, which of course misses both my point and the point of the article. The Regime is above the Parties. James and Mary Madeleine got married. Bush the Elder calls his friend Bill Clinton, “Bubba”. Meanwhile the rubes still believe with the fervor of Pro-Wrestling Fans.

        Getting out of Lebanon was one of the few smart things Reagan did. He also refused to start WW3 when the Soviets shot down one of our planes. A great President of Peace when compared to the war mongering Obama. But in Truth, if in Obama’s place he would do what Obama has done and vice versa. They are Executives after all – the Stockholders set policy and tone. And who are they? Good question. Not the Congressmen nor the Judges either.

      • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:36 am #

        re | “Can you imagine if President Obama would have turned tail from Lebanon like President Reagan did after the Marine barracks bombing? What would BRH say about that? or Sarah Palin or Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh?”-BS.

        I don’t have a dog in this fight, per se, but I am amused at how *selective* memories are about what Reagan did and did not do.

        He did “turn tail” after that bombing – after weeks of ignoring written warnings from Hezbollah that they did not want a beef with NATO forces but that the naval shelling of the highlands needed to stop. [*]

        And then he tried to blame it on the Democrats. It was a classic.

        There’s a lesson in that, Buck.

        — — —

        [*] The result was a one of the most successful VBIED operations in history. The fuel-am bomb delivered by small pick-up truck __LIFTED__ the entire barracks building off of its foundations. It just wasn’t a good day for the Marines.

        Mike Davis called car-bombs the “poor-mans guided missile”. Having seen them in action, I’m inclined to agree.

  98. pkrugman October 25, 2014 at 4:37 pm #

    From the article cited by Janos:

    “There is very little profit to be had in learning about, and being active about, problems that you can’t affect, policies that you can’t change.”

    But one way policies can be changed is by VOTING. Women fought for the vote. Black fought for the vote. The youth fought for voting rights at age 18. You old white guys can talk about how voting does not matter. Some of us know better and we will never stop VOTING.

    The proof that VOTING is effective is how much energy the Republicans put into trying to stop people from voting. Using false claims of voter fraud, the Republicans have passed voter suppression laws that aim to bring back Jim Crow times.

    The head of the Republican Governors Association said as much to the supposedly non-partisan Chamber of Commerce two days ago, when he laid bare the GOP’s voter-suppression agenda.

    Republicans especially want to keep Blacks and Latinos from voting. Demographics are against the Republicans.

    • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 6:23 pm #

      Then why are the Republicans so pro-amnesty? If they were for the White Race, they’d be against the Invasion.

      • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 7:45 pm #

        They screwed up and now it’s too late to undue the damage. So you have GOP candidates talking extreme on immigration in the primaries and moderate during the general elections. In chess, they call that a near check mate.

        Beyond that your dream of a monolithic “white race” is pure fantasy; witness the historical strife in Europe.

        Get rid of the blacks and then it’s the Mexicans. Get rid of the Mexicans it’s time to go after the dirty Irish from Boston. And then the Catholics etc,etc,etc.

        In other words, you’re just a foot soldier pretending to be the tip of the spear for some mythological “White Race”.

        I’ll bet your Eric The Red Halloween costume is pretty cool though 🙂

        • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 9:27 pm #

          You bet they “screwed up”. It’s called betraying your nation but you don’t get that. So let’s just say they have betrayed their own base to such an extent that they are in process of making themselves irrelevant in terms of having power. That’s what comes from importing into America millions of unregistered Democrats. So yes – they played the short game for immediate profits and Democrats played the long game for ultimate power. You are on the winning team. Happy? You will rule in a Kingdom of Dirt, Violence, and Squalor.

          • Buck Stud October 25, 2014 at 11:02 pm #

            Betray the nation or just being efficient capitalists? Some would say that we’re simply witnessing the inevitability of capitalism. Of course you don’t see it that way; your absolutism and idealism clouds the view and so you interject morality into the mix.

            Jobs/entire factories were shipped to Mexico–‘that giant sucking sound’–and soon thereafter to China and India. It’s your hot dog stand on a pyramid dynamic and that’s just the way capitalism rolls: Dog eat dog until the last dog stands. Economic entropy.

            You also invoke the ‘Philosopher King’ as one who would wisely govern ‘his people’. But who will choose these remarkable ones’ who will only govern if dragged kicking and screaming to the Ruler’s Throne? Their inferiors, whose vision would naturally lack the acuity to detect those who do see?

            You have some great insights but your idealism along with your reluctance to acknowledge pragmatic reality strikes me as bordering on delusion for the sake of a pressure valve cathartic release.

            For better or worse, deporting millions of Mexican immigrants simply isn’t going to happen. So it seems to me, if your beloved’ white race is as superior as you claim, then leading by example is your only hope. And by that, I mean showcasing the most outstanding traits/characteristics of Western European culture which all people seem to naturally emulate and gravitate towards, witness the Chinese love of classical music.Or on a more degenerate note, the worldwide love of base American culture.

            But how would you ever separate the inevitability of capitalism for it’s own sake (is there really another possibility when it comes to capitalism beyond the ultimate bottom line?) from the interests of your hypothetical nation? And how would you tell or explain to a Rush Limbaugh type (somebody who you frequently cite BTW) that his overseas outsourcing venture is not in the countries best interest? They would label you a ‘protectionist’ in the same way they label logical health care mandates as ‘Socialism’.

          • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 11:48 pm #

            My beloved White Race? What about yours? My Idealism? Where’s yours? Democrats are supposed to be half Socialists at least. And yes, Capitalism is a betrayal. How can sending so many of our jobs overseas not be considered a betrayal? It would be like striking a man and saying “I have nothing against you, just your body.” The economy is the body of the nation. A Nation is both body and mind just like the individual person is.

      • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:38 am #

        Janos: I’m going to ask you something that I never anticipated asking you.

        Janos, why are you feeding the trolls? Hmmm?

        🙂

        • Janos Skorenzy October 26, 2014 at 3:57 am #

          Who? Krugs? Buck? Unbelievably, some even consider me a troll. And if no one considers you a troll, you are doing something wrong. The so called middle is always wrong. Reality is dynamic after all. To stay in the middle means always looking at what others are doing – an utterly trivial state of consciousness which is putty to be shaped by the Elite. In contrast, the real Middle is the moving line of the I Ching. It’s to flow with the Tao and against the stream of decaying life. So I do not call you a Troll. You have some good posts, but you haven’t earned your spurs yet.

          • Buck Stud October 26, 2014 at 10:56 am #

            Well said but you forgot to note the irony: Mr.Pedestrian protesting opposing opinions in a very troll like manner.

            Your ‘always looking at what others are doing’ comment reminded me of a story about Cezanne. Cezanne had his easel set up fastidiously studying nature. Another painter had his easel set up behind Cezanne fastidiously studying and copying Cezanne’s personal interpretations of nature. And so it goes for those prone to convention and there infantile protests of diversionary points of view.

            But just like the conventional, it’s all very predictable and expected

          • MisterDarling October 27, 2014 at 12:48 am #

            This is funny. . . I wasn’t referring to Buck at all.

            It’s interesting when people get defensive.

            😉

    • Janos Skorenzy October 25, 2014 at 9:42 pm #

      Did the Blacks vote to be replaced by the illegal immigrants from Central America and Mexico? The love the Elite had for the Blacks proved very short term indeed.

      Between them and the poor Whites, we already more peasants than we needed.

  99. contrahend October 25, 2014 at 5:03 pm #

    Something for Contrahend:
    http://i.imgur.com/FYBHOTN.gif

    Keep in mind that’s starting at zero in every single state as of just a few years ago.

    Technology saving the day again.

    Kontrahend

  100. pkrugman October 25, 2014 at 6:01 pm #

    For Contrahend:

    http://www.bluenergyusa.com/SWT_Comparison.html

    Combining wind and solar means energy production day and night (in a residential unit 6 feet at the base and 18 feet high), 37% more than solar panels alone or a wind turbine alone.

    Sweet technology.

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    • FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 6:23 pm #

      It all sounds sweet and dandy, unless you try it yourself. I did. Dismal results. I ran both wind turbine and solar panels right next to the ocean on the beach house. If you throw in the mix complicated charge controllers, batteries, inverters and heat sinks you’ll go haywire.

      Besides, when they quote you on the power output, the mean PEAK results. 90% of the time you get 25-30% of advertised power.

      It was a fun project, but at the end I gave up. Still miss quite a few thousand worthless Federal Reserve Fiat notes.

      Good luck.

    • FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 6:27 pm #

      Oh, by the way, small detail: the frigging pipe the wind turbine was mounted on sang. Yes, it was making a howling sound at night. House turned into a haunted house. Had to take it out.

  101. contrahend October 25, 2014 at 6:28 pm #

    great stuff blueenergy, really loved it.

    we’re moving towards a day when small localized energy production at the residential level will greatly reduce pollution, energy loss during transmission and bring down the cost of energy to an insignificant level.

    we are in the age of energy ascent.

    kontrahend

    • FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 6:51 pm #

      No, we aint

  102. FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 6:48 pm #

    Latest E-Cat Results (Andrea Rossi’s Cold Fusion power generator)
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-h-bailey/fusion-energy-hope-or-hype_b_6031968.html

    Now the same team of Italian and Swedish researchers (which does not include Rossi himself) has released a new paper, entitled “Observation of abundant heat production from a reactor device and of isotopic changes in the fuel.” This paper describes a much more sophisticated experiment, with better equipment, and claims substantial power output, up to 3.6 times more than the electrical energy input to the system. The experiment was performed not at Rossi’s facilities but at an independent laboratory in Lugano, Switzerland.

    It should be emphasized that the team’s papers have NOT passed peer review, although they have been submitted to journals.

    I found also a similar claim of cold fusion in Novosibirsk, Russia, claimed to be in production trial.

    Now if you put on top a claim by Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works that they are going to have a prototype (working?) in a year of small fusion reactor, don’t you think something’s up in the air?

    Could it be that we ARE on the verge of HUGE technological breakthroughs as claimed by Russian Academician? And not just in Energy, but in material production, finishing, medicine based on Nanotechnologies?

    Than the crash of the dollar-based monetary-financial system will mean ABSOLUTELY nothing, not such a big thing as claimed by doomers and gloomers.

    Hey, my family in three generations seen 4 times total crash of ruble-based monetary system in Russia, and so what? not a big deal, as long as you could preserve some degree of law-and-order (which Russia did all 4 times).

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:47 am #

      re | “I found also a similar claim of cold fusion in Novosibirsk, Russia, claimed to be in production trial.

      Now if you put on top a claim by Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works that they are going to have a prototype (working?) in a year of small fusion reactor, don’t you think something’s up in the air?

      Could it be that we ARE on the verge of HUGE technological breakthroughs as claimed by Russian Academician? And not just in Energy, but in material production, finishing, medicine based on Nanotechnologies?”-FitM.

      I hope that some version of this comes true. I really do. I’ve been a fan of Fusion technology since I was a child – and that was quite a while ago.

      But… back on planet Earth ‘hope’ is not a plan.

  103. FincaInTheMountains October 25, 2014 at 7:13 pm #

    Novorussian Special Forces: The Song refrain says “Dance Russia, Cry Europe, Ukraine is totally f*cked”
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1_7l9YIcJ4

  104. pkrugman October 25, 2014 at 10:26 pm #

    Finca, you probably had a wind system with blades. Those can be noisy.

    This is a wind spiral:

    **Totally soundless (no sounds besides the wind) due to the spiral shape and the rotation speed does not exceed the wind speed.

    **The device is safe for people, animals and nature.

    **Uses winds from all directions, even turbulent winds (a propeller turbine has to be turned into the wind and shut down above 45 mph)

    **Works with gentle summer breezes and in violent storms

    **Rotates at the same speed as wind velocity; stays balanced with self-regulating stability

    http://www.bluenergyusa.com/SWT_Advantages.html

    • FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 7:32 am #

      It weren’t blades making noise, it was a mounting pipe that was making a howling sound.

      But good luck, put your money where your mouth is, spend 50-60 thousand dollars into a home-based system, disconnect yourself from electrical grid and then tell us how you “love it”.

      I am all for increasing “energy flow density” – amount of energy that could be generated per hour, per square mile – and only nuclear generation in some form or another can provide it.

      Home-based system will be extremely expensive also in term of maintenance due to their inherit complexity. Right now most of you are dealing with electrical power by flipping a switch on the wall, I doubt that many of your would be able to handle a more complicated task like changing a blown fuse – now imagine a system that requires periodic maintenance that is at least 10 times more complex than a fuse.

  105. BackRowHeckler October 25, 2014 at 10:35 pm #

    ISIS is deploying Chlorine Gas in Iraq.

    As far as I can determine Chlorine Gas hasn’t been used since 1918 on the Western Front.

    Its really astonishing neither side resorted to gas on the Eastern front 1941-1945, as desparate as that fighting was. The fact that ISIS has no reservation about using now, in 2014, says alot about that organization and the nature of the warfare now occuring.

    –brh

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    • FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 7:46 am #

      Well, well…. Remember a year ago Syrian President Assad was accused of using chemical weapons against his own citizens and Russia was maintaining that it was anti-Assad forces?

      Now when we have a prove that ISIS (part of anti-Assad forces) is using chemical weapons, conveniently enough nobody remembers that.

  106. pkrugman October 25, 2014 at 10:41 pm #

    City Walk is a unique six-part series that reveals the way walking is transforming cities across America, and in the process, re-connecting us to our bodies, our civic values and public space.

    Season one of City Walk features 30-minute episodes exploring various aspects of pedestrian life in cities including: Los Angeles, Portland, Boston, Atlanta, Washington DC, and New York. As the show explores the “walkability” of these communities, viewers will learn about American history by exploring culturally rich neighborhoods, stunning architecture, monuments and beautiful parks that have helped define the character of each city.

    =============

    The USA is a rich and great multicultural country with a great President.

    • FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 7:54 am #

      Of course they are and that is why they should increase the food-stamp allowances for 50 million Americans from current level of $1.47 per meal to at least $3 per meal.

      Even in the third-world country I currently in you can’t buy a decent meal for $1.47, the going price for rice, beans and a little-bit of a chicken is around 100 – 150 pesos, or $2.30 – $3.44

  107. nsa October 26, 2014 at 12:21 am #

    Some child of the urban milieu gonna give your ancient wrinkled white ass a good solid beat down mugging…..exhibiting their version of civic values in the public square…..

    • BackRowHeckler October 26, 2014 at 4:30 am #

      You know who else got bumped off the head of the French State oil company. Yeah, last week his private aircraft ran into a snowplow at a Moscow Airport.

      Apologies were issued all around, and the plow driver is in trouble.

      –brh

  108. BackRowHeckler October 26, 2014 at 4:34 am #

    The driver was drunk at the time.

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:34 pm #

      re | “The driver was drunk at the time.”-brh.

      Of course he was… You know those ‘crazy’ Russians! Always with the vodka!

      /s

      Strangely enough, this is the same guy that made that public statement three months ago about not needing to be tied to the petrodollar. And then he dies on the way back from a meeting in Russia.

      Huh! Funny how stuff just happens, eh?

  109. FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 7:19 am #

    France to adopt a law against deliberate shortening of lifespan of electronic devices

    http://www.kommersant.ru/doc/2596115 (In Russian, can’t find English reference)

    Manufacture and importers of electronic devices will be punished with up to €300,000 in fines and up to 2 years in prison for deliberate shortening of the lifespan of electronic devices.

    Planned obsolescence or built-in obsolescence in industrial design is a policy of planning or designing a product with an artificially limited useful life, so it will become obsolete.

    That include a special “built-in counters” – used in some printer cartridges – that will render device unusable after certain time or number of uses, usually right after warranty expiration.

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  110. FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 8:30 am #

    My latest project on the Island – producing animal feed from Royal Palm Nuts

    For year and a half now I’ve been running a shop producing animal complete feed from the fruits of the Royal Palm trees. The North of the Island has millions of Royal Palms, all of them on some private land. Every Palm is producing a harvest of 60-100 pounds of nutritious nuts and they all go to waste (well, at least 90% of it).

    So, business idea is simple – pay land owners fee for the right to harvest, pay local gatherers for climbing the palms (they could be 50 feet high), process nuts by drying and milling, mix them into feed, sell to the farmers,

    Dried and milled Palm nuts are being used to replace imported corn from US. My calculations show that the price is at least twice as cheap as price of imported corn, while nutritious value is practically the same. Besides, it is 100% natural.

    Additional advantage that it is creating relatively well paying local jobs. For instance, normal salary here is 8,000 pesos (around $183) per month, my gatherers are making 30,000 – 40,000 pesos a month ($690 – $920).

    6 months ago I have hired a pretty good product and sales manager from the locals and by now we have tripled the sales.

    I still barely break even, but hope to start turning some profit in about 6 months (If I don’t go broke before). We are producing less than we have demand for, but next week starting a process of tripping the production capacity – buying a bigger truck for delivery and a new mixing machine.

    My own cows are now 100% on my own feed (and grass, of course, we have year-round grazing pastures)

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 12:37 pm #

      You’re not anywhere near Mustique, are you?

      😉

      • FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 1:52 pm #

        I wished

  111. volodya October 26, 2014 at 3:14 pm #

    Mister Darling

    Hanauer’s right that when it hits the fan it hits the fan. And there’s no time to duck.

    I think it’s just talk. My gut tells me that, even when it comes from guys like Hanauer, the possibility isn’t taken seriously especially by Washington and Wall Street. Wall Streeters are good at their scams and competent in the social and business milieu of Manhattan and Washington. But it’s a big world out there.

    Washingtonians think they know. They know some stuff. But not nearly as much as they think they know. At the end of the day the Ivy League diplomas are just wall ornaments and all those billions are just so many electrons in databases.

    Greer writes about war-band formation as one of the drivers but also one of the outcomes of general civilizational collapse. The disgruntled and marginalized take matters into their own hands when governments either cannot or will not govern or govern against their interests.

    You can point to the current mayhem in various parts of the world: Mexico, North Africa, Nigeria, Yemen, ISIS. Some of it may have something to do with American civilizational collapse but I suspect that it has much more to do with long-standing LOCAL issues. Nothing to do with the US. The US can be burstingly ascendant or flat on its ass. Would make not a stitch of difference.

    And the USA, for all the grandiosity of its imagined role in the world, is a small proportion of the world’s population. The people at Georgetown dinner parties may have this exalted view of themselves, you know, given the great and powerful eminences in attendance and all the witty repartee and deeply learned conversation.

    But there are other people in other parts of the world, like Moscow, Beijing, Teheran, Islamabad, Delhi, with their own dinner parties, with their own views and sources of knowledge and resources and political support. And their own nukes.

    Americans cannot by a long-shot be everywhere controlling everything and giving orders and bribing and subverting and expecting orders to be followed and expecting people to stay bribed and to act the way they’re supposed to. The world just doesn’t conform to that model. It never has. Sometimes people act in accordance with American wishes but that’s usually because their collective interests are in accord with American objectives.

    I know, I know, the common US view is that it’s AMERICA that supports these guys or those guys, that it’s AMERICA that calls the shots. It’s AMERICA this and AMERICA that. Makes me laugh. I would point out that this is an Ameri-centric view, that while it is good for bouts of American jaw-jutting and chest-puffing, it has not much relationship with reality.

    While a lot of regimes are more than happy to take US money or other “aid”, the fact is that American money isn’t needed. Many or most regimes have more than enough local resources and political support. The dough the US expends ends up in Swiss bank accounts. That goes for the money the Russians and Chinese throw around.

    Does anyone seriously think that the butchers running Egypt need US money? Or Israel for that matter?

    Anyhow, not to say that mayhem isn’t in the cards. It may well be. But nobody can read the cards. Nobody sees things coming. The 1914-18 blood-bath, the Bolshie revolution, the rise of Hitler, the Chinese revolutions and various other death-fests caught everyone by surprise. It can hit the fan first in the US or it can happen outside the US first with the shit storm crossing the borders. I guess that when it happens we’ll know. But between then and now there’s many a mile of denial.

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 6:11 pm #

      re | “Anyhow, not to say that mayhem isn’t in the cards. It may well be. But nobody can read the cards. Nobody sees things coming.”-volodya.

      When it comes to economic events that’s not true. The events of 2007-8 were foretold 3-4 years in advance.

      When it comes to violence, you are more correct. It’s really hard to get the snapping point just right, but that generally follows the economic collapse, so there is some warning there.

      re | “Americans cannot by a long-shot be everywhere controlling everything and giving orders and bribing and subverting and expecting orders to be followed and expecting people to stay bribed and to act the way they’re supposed to. The world just doesn’t conform to that model. It never has.

      and;

      “While a lot of regimes are more than happy to take US money or other “aid”, the fact is that American money isn’t needed. Many or most regimes have more than enough local resources and political support. The dough the US expends ends up in Swiss bank accounts. That goes for the money the Russians and Chinese throw around.”-v.

      I agree with you.

      It’s comments like these that signal to me that you are someone with some hands-on experience in getting stuff done in the Big Open Wide World, without having Uncle Sam holding your hand and baby-sitting you every step of the way.

      That is a world that I know something about, and unless you have that experience, it’s hard to know about it any other way… And equally hard to illuminate the uninitiated about.

      Don’t think for a second that I take the Hanauer article or some kind of ‘gospel’. Many times I mark a link simply because I’m keeping track of what people *think* they understand about a situation.

      Cheers!

  112. contrahend October 26, 2014 at 5:23 pm #

    Some of it may have something to do with American civilizational collapse…

    haha, tx for the laugh!

    man you guys are so melodramatic. lol.

    all your base are belong to us

    kontrahend

  113. FincaInTheMountains October 26, 2014 at 8:33 pm #

    BS. There aint gona be no collapse. There aint gona be no “Mad Max”. It’s all just to sell “glomie and doomie” books.

    It takes a lot of money and work to organize “collapse” – say in Ukraine it took 23 years to raise a new generation of street hoodlams ready to burn Molotovs on the street.

    Even then it wouldn’t work if not for CIA who bribed Kiev’s officials to disarm riot police and stop it from appropriate response.

    In Russia it didn’t work at all – even during worst time of the 90s people didn’t riot.

    Yeah, sure, the FED pyramid of cards most likely will collapse, just to be immediately replaced with another pyramid of cards, perhaps of different color. May be they’ll tell you that NOW it is sure backed up by gold. It will not be, never.

    You think people will not accept it? Sure they will. They will have no choice.

    • MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 11:20 pm #

      re | “There aint gona be no collapse.”-FitM.

      Too late. They lost it in 2008.

      Everything since then has been defibrillators and advanced palliative care. The can’t be stopped their way and so the patient will bleed out. At that point there will be no pulse – ie., your money won’t work.

      It will be replaced by another one, sure. But that takes time. A lot of stuff can die out completely in that gap of historical time.

      So, Financial Collapse is Stage One. Your response is typical in the after-math of Stage One. All failing regimes get busy telling anyone that will listen that everything is just fine and to doubt that is ‘treasonous’.

      You remember ‘Baghdad Bob’ don’t you?

      😉

      • FincaInTheMountains October 27, 2014 at 7:35 am #

        Right after elections Obama will jump on the plane to China to negotiate TRANSITION PERIOD. Neither China nor Russia have any interest in uncontrolled collapse of the US (remember thousands of deployed nuclear warheads? as well as other unpredictable shit)

        We may see some Ebola-Media-hype induced quarantines to better control population during transition period, but most likely not. They just covering their options.

        Financial/Monetary reset is NOT precursor to civilizational collapse – no friggin way. Being born-raised Americans you instinctively think it is – because essentially you all worship money – the only thing that has never failed you.

        Again, my family 3 generations lived through 4 monetary resets in Russia – NEVER a single time lead to chaos.

  114. MisterDarling October 26, 2014 at 11:31 pm #

    re | Behavior Typical of Failing Regimes

    oh, isn’t that interesting?

    http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2014/10/22/keith_alexander_stock_trades_potash_aluminum_russia_china

    and also this:

    https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/10/24/nsa-official-implicated-potential-conflicts-interest-resigns/

    Isn’t t odd that so much of what the NSA collects is useable for insider trading? I use the word ‘odd’ intentionally b/c some people don’t think it’s ‘funny’, at all.

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