Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

The Republican Party Can't Rid Itself Of Trump, Even When He's Not There
magazine | author | date

The Republican presidential race entered an alternate universe on Thursday evening, transporting viewers to a moment in time in which Donald Trump never ran for president. Despite the best efforts of his rivals, however, the front-runner's shadow loomed large -- even though he wasn't actually present at the Fox News Republican presidential debate.

Trump's decision to stage a dramatic, last-minute boycott of the event, which was hosted by the news network and Google in Des Moines, allowed candidates to engage in a more meaty -- yet decidedly less entertaining -- affair. ... Read more

Fox News/Google Republican Presidential Iowa Debate (01/28/16) [1:11:39]

*TYT | Fox News-Google GOP Presidential Debate: SUMMARY (01/28/16) [4:05]

"The BoJ's (Bank of Japan) NIRP Will Result In More Currency Wars And Global Growth Slowdown"
ZeroHEdge | author | 01/29/16

"The BoJ actions should lead to further intensification of global currency wars with central banks around the world trying to engineer sustained competitive devaluation against the background of slowing global trade and growth as well as persistent commodity price disinflation. With its latest measures the BoJ will allow Japan to borrow more growth from its trading partners and limit the severity of the imported disinflation." ... Read more

Oil Prices: What's going on? - An Animation (12/07/15) [5:00]

6 Cities In Michigan Have Even Higher Levels Of Lead Than Flint
ZeroHedge | author | 01/29/16

As the nation rightly focuses on Flint’s ongoing water crisis, other cities in the state of Michigan face even higher levels of lead contamination. The alarming pervasiveness of potentially toxic drinking water extends across the United States.

The Detroit News reports that "Elevated blood-lead levels are seen in a higher percentage of children in parts of Grand Rapids, Jackson, Detroit, Saginaw, Muskegon, Holland and several other cities, proof that the scourge of lead has not been eradicated despite decades of public health campaigns and hundreds of millions of dollars spent to find and eliminate it." ... Read more

Donald Trump Tells Bill O'Reilly It's 'An Eye For An Eye' In War With Fox News
HP | Ed Mazza | 01/27/16

The "O'Reilly Factor" host was trying to convince the GOP frontrunner to join Thursday night's debate in Iowa despite his dislike for Megyn Kelly, the Fox News host who will be one of the event's moderators. O'Reilly even tried appealing to Trump's Christian faith, something the candidate has spoken of frequently in an effort to woo evangelical voters.

"I think you should be the bigger man," O'Reilly added. "Don't you think that's the right thing to do?"

"It probably is," Trump agreed. "But y'know it's called an eye for an eye. I guess also you can look at it that way."

"No, no, no," O'Reilly countered. "That's Old Testament. If you're the Christian, the eye-for-the-eye rule goes out. Here's what it is: Turning the other cheek." ... Read more
FoxNews | Donald Trump weighs in on GOP debate controversy (01/27/16) [9:53]

"Nobody Really Knows Anything Right Now"
ZeroHedge | author | 01/28/16

"We learned one thing yesterday: the U.S. Federal Reserve is in the same position as the rest of us when it comes to forecasting the future path of economic growth. Nobody really "Knows" anything right now. Now, there's enough doubt for everyone: markets, central banks, consumers, governments. Everyone. The best thing we can say about that: if markets accept that the Fed is no better informed than they are, maybe investors will devote more time to stock fundamentals and intrinsic value analysis." ... Read more

*AlJazeera | Inside Story - Is the global economy headed for another crash? (01/21/16) [24:33]

11 Secrets To Eating Healthy On A Budget
HP | Julie Thompson | 01/25/16

Eating healthy is great in concept, but is always much more challenging to put into practice. There's the whole will power thing -- how many times can we be expected to resist the call of pizza? There's the fact that it just takes a little more time and effort than walking over to the vending machine. And then there's the real snag, money. ...

In The Clinton-Sanders Spat Over Getting S**t Done, The Party Sides With Clinton
HP | Sam Stein | 01/26/16

In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama promised to unite Washington and the nation behind progressive change. Then-Sen. Hillary Clinton mocked him.

"The skies will open, the light will come down, celestial choirs will be singing and everyone will know we should do the right thing and the world will be perfect," she said. "I have no illusions about how hard this is going to be."

Now, as Clinton runs for president again, many of her allies believe her cynicism was vindicated and are feeling deja vu.

The former secretary of state is trying to convince voters once more that her opponent -- this time, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) -- is promising a unicorns-and-rainbows vision of governance. She's hopeful that seven years of partisan warfare will help her make the case. And she has Capitol Hill veterans and even some Obama veterans echoing her larger points. ... Read more

Buyer's Remorse: How Obama Let Progressives Down by Bill Press

The prominent liberal syndicated radio and television host concisely explains the many ways President Obama has failed to live up to either his promises or his progressive potential, leaving Democrats disillusioned on the issues that matter most.

Bill Press -- a progressive champion and former chair of the California Democratic Party, a one-time co-host of CNN's Crossfire, and the popular nationally syndicated radio and television host of The Bill Press Show--reflects back on what for many progressives has been a disappointing presidency and comes to a depressing conclusion: Obama grossly misunderstood the mandate of the enthusiastic crowds that swarmed him on the campaign trail. Instead of recognizing their burning desire for strong progressive leadership, Obama tried to be a "post-partisan" president. The tragedy of Barack Obama is that, in trying to become the great uniter, he has instead become a grave disappointment.

From climate change to gun safety to, yes, even health care, Obama's legacy on important issues falls far short of what could have been. Time and again, he let down his most impassioned supporters--the ones who used their powerful voices to vote for change--neglecting their priorities and wasting his potential by either not doing enough or, worse, repeating the errors of his predecessor.

President Obama rode into office on a celebratory tide of liberal jubilation, but as his typically centrist presidency comes to a close, he leaves his supporters haunted by what might have been.

Manufacturing Depression Enters Uncharted Territory: Caterpillar Retail Sales Have Never Been Worse
ZeroHEdge | author | 01/27/16

Moments ago Caterpillar reported its latest monthly retail sales statistics and the numbers have never been worse. ... Read more
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How Trump and Palin Are a Match Made in Heaven
Rolling Stone | Tessa Stuart | 01/21/16

... "Everybody was trying to get Sarah. Everybody wanted that endorsement," Trump later said on the Today Show. But was there ever any doubt that her vote belonged to Trump, and Trump alone? Those two go together like peanut butter and elk meat. Poor Ted Cruz never stood a chance. ... Read more

*Iowa CNN Democratic Presidential Town Hall, Bernie Sanders (01/25/15) [40:02]

*Iowa CNN Democratic Presidential Town Hall, Hillary Clinton (01/25/15) [39:35]

*TYT | CNN Iowa Democratic Town Hall: The Young Turks Summary (01/25/16) [11:21]

*Wealth Inequality in America [6:25]

The "Real" Donald Trump - A Fascinating Interview From 1990
ZeroHedge | author | 01/26/16

A President Trump is far more likely to occur in our lifetimes than many want to admit. His chances ride on the fact that the current system is terminally corrupt, as well as socially and economically bankrupt. It will crash and burn, whether in slow motion like the past eight years, or very rapidly over the next several. Someone will likely step in to fill this void. In 1990, Donald Trump conducted a lengthy interview with Playboy Magazine. It provides an absolutely fascinating window into the man's mind... Read more

SNL | Sarah Palin endorses Donald Trump for president at an Iowa campaign stop (01/25/16) [5:09]

China Crashes To 13 Month Low After Last Hour Panic Selling; Crude, Futures Tumble Then Surge
ZeroHedge | author | 01/26/16

It has been another volatile, illiquid, whipsawed session, driven by the only two things that have mattered so far in 2016, China and oil.... and stop-hunting algos of course. ... Read more

There Will Be Chaos: Big Oil's Collapse and the Birth of a New World Order
AlterNet | Michael Klare | 01/14/16

The longer such price levels persist, the more devastating the consequences are likely to be.

As 2015 drew to a close, many in the global energy industry were praying that the price of oil would bounce back from the abyss, restoring the petroleum-centric world of the past half-century. All evidence, however, points to a continuing depression in oil prices in 2016 -- one that may, in fact, stretch into the 2020s and beyond. Given the centrality of oil (and oil revenues) in the global power equation, this is bound to translate into a profound shakeup in the political order, with petroleum-producing states from Saudi Arabia to Russia losing both prominence and geopolitical clout. ... Read more

This New Yorker Cover Perfectly Explains the Problem With Donald Trump
MotherJones | Tim Murphy | 01/25/16

That's Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, George Washington, John F. Kennedy, and Abraham Lincoln looking on in disbelief at the mess Trump is making of the American presidential election. It's pretty funny, at first glance, but the problem with this cover is that the only thing many of those ex-presidents would find confusing about Trump is the television he's on. ... Read more

"They see themselves as heroes. Instead people are saying they're manipulating American politics": Jane Mayer on the method behind the Koch brothers' brilliant madness
Salon | David Daley | 01/25/16

Interview of Jane Mayer by Salon:
... I loved your history of the Powell Memorandum, which feels like the clarion call in many ways that started billionaires and big business thinking seriously about how to use their money to influence the political process. Lewis Powell had been a lawyer for the tobacco industry, and would become a justice on the Supreme Court, but in the early 1970s he sounded the alarm to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. That's almost the starting line for the decades-long process of building think tanks and foundations and conservative media -- but you dug out new information on what Powell was up to. How influential was he, and what did he help create? ... Read more

HBO | Real Time with Bill Maher: Disowning Sarah Palin (older, but appropriate (02/06/15) [4:49]

Markets Are In The "Eye Of The Storm", Trader Warns
ZeroHedge | author | 01/25/16

Traders on the NYSE clapped and cheered when the closing bell sounded on Friday as though a couple of green closes somehow made up for the outright chaos that's reigned throughout the month. Oil may technically have entered a new "bull" market and the yuan may have momentarily stabilized, but a quick look at the fundamentals for crude and the backdrop for the global economy suggests any respite will be fleeting. ... Read more
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20 Dead, 200 Hospitalized After Reports US Lab "Leaks" Deadly Virus In Ukraine
ZeroHedge | author | 01/25/16

Amid the so-called "ceasefire" in Ukraine, yet ongoing shelling in many regions, the Donbass news agency reports that more than 20 Ukrainian solders have died and over 200 soldiers are hospitalized after an apparent leak of a deadly virus called "California Flu" from a US lab near the city of Kharkov. ... Read more

3 Addictive Snacks That Are Actually Good for You
HP | The Pollan Family Table | 01/22/16

World's Fastest Rubik's Cube Solving Robot [1.019sec]

The Pentagon Has No Clue How Many Weapons It Has Lost to ISIS
MotherJones | Max J. Rosenthal | 01/22/16

For more than a decade, the United States has supplied huge quantities of weapons and military hardware to the Iraqi government--and a large chunk of that equipment has disappeared and landed in the hands of ISIS fighters and members of Iranian-backed Shiite militias responsible for massacring civilians. Everything from M-16s and bullets to Humvees and tanks have been lost. But neither the US nor Iraqi governments can say how much US-supplied materiel has been diverted to militant groups or how it's ending up there. ... Read more

Major Winter Storm Could Cripple Parts Of Mid-Atlantic
AP & HP | author | 01/20/16

The forecast for a historic blizzard has been there for days, looming over the nation's capital like the UFO from "Independence Day." Projected snowfall totals have ticked steadily upward, to the point where the National Weather Service -- known for its conservative predictions -- says more than 2 feet of snow could land on Washington.

States of emergency have been declared in five states and the District of Columbia. Schools and government offices are being closed pre-emptively. Thousands of flights have been canceled. Food and supplies are disappearing from grocery and hardware stores. College basketball games and concerts will have to wait. ... Read more

Billionaire Blackstone CEO Trolls American Public -- Doesn't Get Why People Are Angry
ZeroHedge | author | 01/22/16

I've written several posts examining the dangerous cluelessness inherent throughout the ranks of the oligarch class over the past several years. One of my earliest and most viral pieces was published two years ago and titled, An Open Letter to Sam Zell: Why Your Statements are Delusional and Dangerous. That article was a response to the billionaire's appearance of CNBC during which he instructed the less financially fortunate to "emulate the 1%," as if their destitution was a result of personal shortcomings as opposed to egregious structural flaws inherent in the rigged, crony, oligarch-controlled Banana Republic economy billionaires such as himself helped mold. ...

... In that article, I outlined many of the reasons people are angry and why they should be angry. In fact, I've published hundreds of articles every year since early 2012 detailing exactly why the country is in such dire straights. It's not just me of course, tens of thousands of people across the globe have been doing it for far longer and to much larger audiences. The reason billionaires are incapable of comprehending what's going on is because doing so would contradict the life-stories they tell themselves about themselves. Make no mistake about it, billionaires think of themselves as truly exceptional people. Privately, they likely muse that their mere presence on earth is nothing short of a glorious gift to humanity from the heavens. These people are deluded, secluded and emotionally stunted in more ways than you could possibly imagine. They have zero capacity for self-reflection. ... Read more

Global Stocks Surge, Oil Soars As Hopes For Central Bank Stimulus Return
ZeroHedge | author | 01/22/16

"There is hope of more stimulus in March and potential for even more stimulus in Japan and China, so if we get concrete positive economic news the rebound could last into next week," said John Plassard, senior equity- sales trader at Mirabaud Securities. "I told my clients to fasten their seatbelts and wait for better news, and this is finally happening."... "The turnaround in sentiment came amid signs central banks may be prepared to act after $7.8 trillion was erased from the value of global equities this year on China's slowdown and oil's crash." ... Read more

Major Winter Storm Could Cripple Parts Of Mid-Atlantic
AP & HP | author | 01/20/16

As people in the South and East readied themselves for a nor'easter that might bring heavy snowfall by week's end, snow fell on much of Kentucky and Tennessee and contributed to at least one traffic-related death Wednesday.

The National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center warns of heavy, "perhaps crippling" snow across the northern mid-Atlantic region, including Baltimore, Washington and Philadelphia, probably beginning Friday. ... Read more

This global wealth study will make you weep: The most disturbing findings from Oxfam's latest report
Salon & AlterNet | Steven Rosenfeld

You may have seen the headlines from Davos, Switzerland, where Oxfam's latest global inequality report found the world's richest 62 billionaires have as much wealth as the poorest 3.6 billion people. But what's most shocking is not what is happening at the top of the economic ladder, but at the bottom.

“The gap between rich and poor is reaching new extremes," Oxfam said."The richest 1 percent have now accumulated more wealth than the rest of the world put together... Meanwhile, the wealth owned by the bottom half of humanity has fallen by a trillion dollars in the past five years."

“The wealth of the richest 62 people has risen by 44 percent in the five years since 2010 -- that's an increase of more than half a trillion dollars ($542 billion), to $1.76 trillion," Oxfam noted."Meanwhile, the wealth of the bottom half fell by just over a trillion dollars in the same period -- a drop of 41 percent. Since the turn of the century, the poorest half of the world's population has received just 1 percent of the total increase in global wealth, while half of that increase has gone to the top 1 percent." ... Read more

6 Years of Citizens United
HP | Zephyr Teachout | 01/21/16

Six years ago today, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Citizens United vs. FEC. It is not a happy anniversary. I remember waiting for the ruling and opening it up on my computer: when I finally read it, I didn't want to believe that the Court had gone as far as it had and been so careless with our democracy.

Citizens United was bad history, bad logic, bad law. It was a major overreach on the part of the Court (the issue hadn't even been raised initially). In his majority decision that day, Justice Kennedy allowed billionaires and big corporations to spend limitless amounts of money to influence politicians. His description of politics was pretty out of touch. Basically, the Court held that unless there is an explicit, open deal -- "here's $5 million for a vote against banking reform" -- there's no corruption. Nobody with any common sense thinks that huge corporate expenditures don't corrupt politics, but the Court left common sense behind that day. ... Read more

Russian Ruble Crashes To Record Lows In "Panic": "Some Investors Are Selling At Any Price"
ZeroHedge | author | 01/21/16

“It's falling faster than any other currency as we see panic selling in the ruble after it breached the 80 per USD level. Some investors are selling at any price," ... Read more

*Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right by Jane Mayer

Why is America living in an age of profound economic inequality? Why, despite the desperate need to address climate change, have even modest environmental efforts been defeated again and again? Why have protections for employees been decimated? Why do hedge-fund billionaires pay a far lower tax rate than middle-class workers?

The conventional answer is that a popular uprising against "big government" led to the ascendancy of a broad-based conservative movement. But as Jane Mayer shows in this powerful, meticulously reported history, a network of exceedingly wealthy people with extreme libertarian views bankrolled a systematic, step-by-step plan to fundamentally alter the American political system.

The network has brought together some of the richest people on the planet. Their core beliefs--that taxes are a form of tyranny; that government oversight of business is an assault on freedom--are sincerely held. But these beliefs also advance their personal and corporate interests: Many of their companies have run afoul of federal pollution, worker safety, securities, and tax laws.

The chief figures in the network are Charles and David Koch, whose father made his fortune in part by building oil refineries in Stalin's Russia and Hitler's Germany. The patriarch later was a founding member of the John Birch Society, whose politics were so radical it believed Dwight Eisenhower was a communist. The brothers were schooled in a political philosophy that asserted the only role of government is to provide security and to enforce property rights.

When libertarian ideas proved decidedly unpopular with voters, the Koch brothers and their allies chose another path. If they pooled their vast resources, they could fund an interlocking array of organizations that could work in tandem to influence and ultimately control academic institutions, think tanks, the courts, statehouses, Congress, and, they hoped, the presidency. Richard Mellon Scaife, the mercurial heir to banking and oil fortunes, had the brilliant insight that most of their political activities could be written off as tax-deductible "philanthropy."

These organizations were given innocuous names such as Americans for Prosperity. Funding sources were hidden whenever possible. This process reached its apotheosis with the allegedly populist Tea Party movement, abetted mightily by the Citizens United decision--a case conceived of by legal advocates funded by the network.

The political operatives the network employs are disciplined, smart, and at times ruthless. Mayer documents instances in which people affiliated with these groups hired private detectives to impugn whistle-blowers, journalists, and even government investigators. And their efforts have been remarkably successful. Libertarian views on taxes and regulation, once far outside the mainstream and still rejected by most Americans, are ascendant in the majority of state governments, the Supreme Court, and Congress. Meaningful environmental, labor, finance, and tax reforms have been stymied.

Jane Mayer spent five years conducting hundreds of interviews-including with several sources within the network-and scoured public records, private papers, and court proceedings in reporting this book. In a taut and utterly convincing narrative, she traces the byzantine trail of the billions of dollars spent by the network and provides vivid portraits of the colorful figures behind the new American oligarchy. Dark Money is a book that must be read by anyone who cares about the future of American democracy.

Of Course Sarah Palin Endorsed Donald Trump
HP | Paige Lavender | 01/19/16

Former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin endorsed Donald Trump for president while in Iowa on Tuesday.

"You are ready to make America great again!" she told a beaming Trump.

Palin rallied supporters, telling them that he would "kick ISIS' ass" and not "apologize" for America.

"He's going rogue left and right," she said. "That's why he's doing so well." ... Read more

Sarah Palin Endorses Donald Trump (01/19/16) [20:44]

How Sarah Palin paved the way for Donald Trump's noxious populism
Salon | Heather Digby Parton | 01/20/16

These two political hucksters have managed to combine celebrity and xenophobia into a new breed of conservativism

... The only other candidate who got any airtime yesterday was poor Ted Cruz who was obviously personally devastated by Palin's defection, apparently never having noticed before that she is a political celebrity not a serious person devoted to the conservative cause. After all the time they spent together campaigning during his Senate run in 2012, you'd think he'd have some sense of her true character. After all, what does Cruz have to offer Palin? Trump has billions of dollars and major media mojo. Of course she would jump at the chance to guest on his hit show. ... Read more

12 Things Sarah Palin Just Said, In What We Can Only Assume Is Real Life
HP | Nick Wing | 01/19/16

We keep pinching ourselves and it's not working.

Former Alaska governor and onetime GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin appeared alongside Donald Trump on Tuesday at an Iowa campaign event, just hours after officially endorsing the billionaire real estate mogul for president. She had a lot to say, so we'll just go ahead and let it speak for itself. ... Read more

The 21st Century: An Era Of Fraud
ZeroHedge | author | 01/20/16

In "freedom and democracy" America, the government and the economy serve interests totally removed from the interests of the American people. The sellout of the American people is protected by a huge canopy of propaganda provided by free market economists and financial presstitutes paid to lie for their living. It is unclear that the US economy can be revived. When America fails, so will Washington's vassal states in Europe, Canada, Australia, and Japan. ... Read more

Russian airstrikes are working in Syria -- enough to put peace talks in doubt
Washington Post | Liz Sly | 01/19/16

Russia's military intervention in Syria is finally generating gains on the ground for Syrian government forces, tilting the battlefield in favor of President Bashar al-Assad to such an extent that the Obama administration's quest for a negotiated settlement to the war suddenly looks a lot less likely to succeed.

But after 3½ months of relentless airstrikes that have mostly targeted the Western-backed opposition to Assad's rule, they have proved sufficient to push beyond doubt any likelihood that Assad will be removed from power by the nearly five-year-old revolt against his rule. The gains on the ground are also calling into question whether there can be meaningful negotiations to end a conflict Assad and his allies now seem convinced they can win. ... Read more

The "Bayghazi" bust: Michael Bay's new movie is a crass exploitation of Benghazi politics
Salon | Smon Maloy | 01/19/16

"13 Hours," Michael Bay's near-unwatchable Benghazi film, is a gross sop to right-wing conspiracy theorism

Making a movie about Benghazi is a difficult task. There's a phenomenally interesting story to be told about the deadly 2012 assault on the diplomatic outpost that captures the drama of the attack itself alongside the complicated politics of post-revolution Libya, the idealistic motivations of the diplomatic personnel who got caught up in the tragedy, and the clandestine machinations of American intelligence services on the ground. Telling that story would be a monumental challenge, requiring a filmmaker with a gift for subtlety, a talent for weaving complex stories together, and a sophisticated understanding of the raw politics that still envelop Benghazi like so much concertina wire. But we didn't get any of that. Instead, we get Bayhem. ... Read more

13 Hours The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi by Michael Bay (trailer) (2016) [3:05]

Study: Man-Made Heat In Oceans Is Surging, Has Doubled Since 1997
AP & HP | author | 01/18/16

Scientists have long known that more than 90 percent of the heat energy from man-made global warming goes into the world's oceans instead of the ground. And they've seen ocean heat content rise in recent years. But the new study, using ocean-observing data that goes back to the British research ship Challenger in the 1870s and including high-tech modern underwater monitors and computer models, tracked how much man-made heat has been buried in the oceans in the past 150 years.

The world's oceans absorbed approximately 150 zettajoules of energy from 1865 to 1997, and then absorbed about another 150 in the next 18 years, according to a study published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change.

To put that in perspective, if you exploded one atomic bomb the size of the one that dropped on Hiroshima every second for a year, the total energy released would be 2 zettajoules. So since 1997, Earth's oceans have absorbed man-made heat energy equivalent to a Hiroshima-style bomb being exploded every second for 75 straight years. ... Read more

How Corporations and Politicians Use Numbers to Lie -- and How Not to Be Fooled
AlterNet | Larry Schwartz | 01/16/16

The pharmaceutical business, no surprise, is a big numbers abuser. How many advertisements have we seen touting the wonders of a particular drug? "Lowers risk of heart attack by 50 percent!" ...

... Politicians and their marketers have learned their business lessons well when it comes to using numbers to strike fear in the populace and sway opinion. ...

HILLARY: IT'S ME OR THE GOP
HP | Ryan Grim | 01/18/16

With two weeks to go before Iowa's caucuses, the former secretary of state offered several closing arguments:

NBC News-YouTube Democratic Debate (Full) (debate starts about 1inch on progressbar) (01/18/16) [3:56:54]

*TYT | Democratic Debate | NBC News & YouTube: The Young Turks Summary (01/17/16) [16:57]

Cruz Commander (current) [0:56]

'The Big Short': A Tale of Stupidity, Greed, and Corruption
HP | Dean Baker | 01/13/16

I saw the movie last night. It's a great flick. If anyone doubted that it was possible to make a humorous entertaining film about credit default swaps and collaterized debt obligations, The Big Short is the definitive answer to the question. But now let's get to the substance.

Not surprisingly, the movie is prompting another round of revisionist accounts of the housing bubble. If you had not already guessed, the movie's account is one in which the Wall Street boys ran wild and ended up drowning the country and themselves in their own greed. Fortunately for the bankers, they could turn to the government for help. The rest of the country wasn't quite as lucky. ...

... What ultimately convinced me there was a bubble was testimony from Alan Greenspan in which he explained why there was not a bubble. None of what he said made any sense. Therefore I became convinced there was in fact a bubble since the Chair of the Fed could find no remotely plausible explanation in the fundamentals to justify the run-up in house prices. ... Read more
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Stock Prices Plunge In Unprecedented Two-Week Slide
AP & HP | Stan Choe | 01/15/16

Stock prices plunged again Friday and are down more than 8 percent in just two weeks, an unprecedented slide for a start of a year.

The vicious drops feel even more unsettling because they're such a departure from the placid and strong returns that investors had been enjoying for years. Like vacationers returning from a warm beach to a slushy commute to work, the shock of change is making something already painful even more so. ... Read more

Who's coming to Davos 2016?
weforum.org/ | author | 01/18/16

Over 40 heads of state and government, as well as 2,500 leaders from business and society will convene at the 46th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, from 20 to 23 January in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, under the theme, Mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Critical current challenges, such as security, climate change and "new normal" global growth and commodity prices, are among the issues on the agenda. Read more

World Economic Forum
World Population Cartogram 2015

Trump Is Winning, And The GOP Can't Figure Out How To Stop Him
HP | Scott Conroy | 10/15/16

Trump and Cruz dominated the Charleston debate as the Republican race veered more sharply into the surreal.

After Mitt Romney's resounding defeat in the 2012 presidential election, the Republican National Committee commissioned a 97-page report that laid out "a path forward for the Republican Party to ensure success in winning more elections."

But its drafters probably didn't envision that the GOP's "path forward" would involve its 2016 presidential front-runner arguing in a nationally televised debate that its second-place contender is ineligible to serve as president. That is precisely the attack Donald Trump launched against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Thursday night, echoing the Birther 2.0 charge that he's been test-driving lately against his Canadian-born competitor. ... Read more
Republican Debate 2016 FOX Business GOP Debate (full) (01/14/16) [2:00:19]

*TYT | How Bernie Sanders Was The Secret Winner Of The GOP Debate (01/14/16) [4:01]

Art Cashin Comments On Today's Crash: "The Fed Will Try Anything"
ZeroHedge | author | 01/15/16

"The Fed will try anything," warns Art Cashin, calmly explaining that markets "are in 'deep concern' mode," currently and if the S&P hits 1857, "there might be another whole new round of selling." The Fed's solution, Cashin stoically explains to a dumbstruck CNBC anchor, that "it doesn't matter that it hasn't worked in the past," The Fed will unleash moar QE to save the world. ... Read more
CNBC | Art Cashin Comments On Today's Crash: "The Fed Will Try Anything" (01/15/16) [3:57]

Last Bubble Standing
ZeroHedge | author | 01/14/16

EM debt bubble... emaciated, FX Carry... crucified, Crude...crushed, High yield bonds... burst, Chinese equities... blown, Trannies... trounced, Small Caps... slammed, Biotechs... busted, and FANGs finally FUBAR! But there is one big (very big) bubble left in the world that no one is talking about, and a rather large liquidity-busting pin beckons...

In May 2015 we first explained exactly why China was blowing its equity market bubble. Simply put, with more "equity," companies were better able to refinance/roll (note, no interest in debt reduction or deleveraging) their record-breaking mountain of debt and avoid the systemic collapse that is utterly imminent for just a few more months/years.

Now that the equity market bubble has burst, Chinese authorities have chased investors into another bubble.

In October 2015, we warned of the relative risk building in the Chinese corporate bond market.

As the rout in Chinese stocks this year erased $5 trillion of value, investors fled for safety in the nation's red-hot corporate bond market. They may have just moved from one bubble to another. ... Read more
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The Aftermath Of US Intervention: What The "Arab Spring" Looks Like 5 Years Later
ZeroHedge | author | 01/14/16

If you needed a crash course in how not to conduct foreign policy, you need only take a cursory glance at Washington's trials and travails in the Mid-East over the last decade.

On the way to documenting the the carnage unfolding in Libya's oil crescent last week we said that the country, much like Syria, is a case study in why the West would be better off not intervening in the affairs of sovereign states on the way to bringing about regime change. "Toppling dictators" sounds good in principle, but at the end of the day, it's nearly impossible to predict what will emerge from the power vacuums the US creates when Washington destabilizes governments. ... Read more
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The EPA Finally Admitted That the World's Most Popular Pesticide Kills Bees--20 Years Too Late
MotherJones | Tom Philpott | 01/07/16

Bees are dying in record numbers -- and now the government admits that an extremely common pesticide is at least partially to blame. For more than a decade, the Environmental Protection Agency has been under pressure from environmentalists and beekeepers to reconsider its approval of a class of insecticides called neonicotinoids, based on a mounting body of research suggesting they harm bees and other pollinators at tiny doses. In a report released Wednesday, the EPA basically conceded the case.

Marketed by European chemical giants Syngenta and Bayer, neonics are the most widely used insecticides both in the United States and globally. In 2009, the agency commenced a long, slow process of reassessing them--not as a class, but rather one by one (there are five altogether). Meanwhile, tens of millions of acres of farmland are treated with neonics each year, and the health of US honeybee hives continues to be dismal. ... Read more

Obama Loves America So Much He Wants To Save It From Becoming Fascist
HP | Ryan Grim | 01/13/16

"As frustration grows, there will be voices urging us to fall back into tribes, to scapegoat fellow citizens who don't look like us, or pray like us, or vote like we do, or share the same background."

President Barack Obama put the American people on notice Tuesday night that a dark future awaited U.S. democracy if its citizens didn't begin to come together rather than retreat into ethnic or religious corners.

In describing what one Republican senator called an "apocalyptic future," Obama laid out a possible path the country could take away from democracy and toward what sounded like an American version of fascism. ... Read more
President Obama's Final State of the Union Address (full) (01/12/16) [1:03:57]

Dehumanizing the Enemy
http://norumbega.co.uk | author | older, ineresting 2008

The twentieth century was the most democratic in human history. It was also the bloodiest, and these two factors are inextricably linked. For it is the rise of mass democracy during the nineteenth century and into the twentieth that led to wars not between sovereigns, but between entire peoples which, even in the darkest depths of stalemate (as during the First World War) leaders dared not sue for peace, because a propagandized electorate would not accept negotiations with an enemy it had been told was sub-human. ... Read more

*Top 10 Propaganda Campaigns/Posters (older, but good 08/07/15) [10:14]

*The War You Don't See by John Pilger () [1:36:41]

*John Pilger | Truth & Lies in the war on Terror (older, but good 10/26/11) [45:55]

*John Pilger | The War On Democracy (older, but good 06/07/12) [1:34:10]

Aljazeera | Empire - 'War on terror' through Muslim eyes (older, but good 01/28/10) [46:21]

There's A Record-Breaking Hurricane Tearing Through The Pacific
HP | Chris D'Angelo | 01/13/16

The 2015 hurricane season in the central Pacific region officially ended Nov. 30, and the 2016 season does not begin until June 1. But that didn't stop Pali from taking shape and strengthening into a Category 1 hurricane on Monday -- the earliest hurricane on record in the central Pacific.

Only two other tropical storms are known to have formed in the central Pacific in the month of January since 1949, Hawaii News Now reports. Tropical Storm Winona developed on Jan. 13, 1989, and Ekeka, which developed on Jan. 28, 1992, became a Category 3 hurricane. ... Read more

*TYT | Why Bernie Sanders Has Excellent Chance of Winning Now (01/11/16) [11:18]

*Top 10 Reasons Why Bernie Sanders May Actually Become President (older, but good 08/04/15) [13:33]

*Thom Hartmann | You Won't Believe these Facts about the U.S. Economy in 2015... (01/10/16) [5:19]

58 Facts About The U.S. Economy From 2015 That Are Almost Too Crazy To Believe
EconomicCollapseBlog | author | 01/11/16

The world didn't completely fall apart in 2015, but it is undeniable that an immense amount of damage was done to the U.S. economy. This year the middle class continued to deteriorate, more Americans than ever found themselves living in poverty, and the debt bubble that we are living in expanded to absolutely ridiculous proportions. Toward the end of the year, a new global financial crisis erupted, and it threatens to completely spiral out of control as we enter 2016. ...
Toggle Button 58 Facts About The U.S. Economy

ThomHartmann | Great Minds: Ellen Brown - Did You Know Banks Can Take Your Money in A Crisis? Part 1 (01/09/16) [12:52]

There Are Now More Solar Jobs In America Than Oil Jobs
HP | Shane Ferro | 01/12/16

A new report on the state of the solar industry out Tuesday from the nonprofit Solar Foundation shows that the number of jobs in the United States in the solar industry outpaced those in the oil and gas industries for the first time ever. As of November 2015 there were almost 209,000 people who worked in the solar industry, 90 percent of whom only work on solar-related projects, according to the report. While there were only about 185,000 people working in oil and gas in the United States in December 2015, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The one place where solar hasn't caught up to oil and gas, it seems, is in the pay. According to the report, solar installers -- which account for a plurality of jobs in the industry -- get $21 per hour on average. The pay in sales and design is higher, at $28.85 and $26.92, respectively. But oil and gas workers on average get $44 an hour, according to BLS. ... Read more

U.S. Banks Have 247 Trillion Dollars Of Exposure To Derivatives
EconomicCollapseBlog | author | 12/29/15

Did you know that there are 5 "too big to fail" banks in the United States that each have exposure to derivatives contracts that is in excess of 30 trillion dollars? Overall, the biggest U.S. banks collectively have more than 247 trillion dollars of exposure to derivatives contracts. That is an amount of money that is more than 13 times the size of the U.S. national debt, and it is a ticking time bomb that could set off financial Armageddon at any moment. Globally, the notional value of all outstanding derivatives contracts is a staggering 552.9 trillion dollars according to the Bank for International Settlements. The bankers assure us that these financial instruments are far less risky than they sound, and that they have spread the risk around enough so that there is no way they could bring the entire system down. But that is the thing about risk -- you can try to spread it around as many ways as you can, but you can never eliminate it. And when this derivatives bubble finally implodes, there won't be enough money on the entire planet to fix it. ... Read more

ReasonTV | Is a Pentagon "Slush Fund" Draining the Economy and Militarizing Foreign Policy?. (01/08/16) [10:31]

TYT | Government Wastes Millions And YOU Pay For it. (12/28/15) [3:33]

Undrinkable, the story of how Flint found itself in the worst crisis of the city in decades. (01/09/16) [26:28]

When My Cute Black Kid Becomes What You Fear Most
HP | author | date

My sons are so atypically good-looking in the eyes of strangers, in fact, that it is often assumed that whichever parent isn't present is white, or any other more widely acceptable race. More than once, individuals have demanded that I detail our lineage as far back as I remember, because it defies logic that my children are black.

The implication is obvious: it's unbelievable that such beauty could be seen in an average black person. ... Read more

Democracy Now! U.S. and World News Headlines for Monday, January 11 [12:56]

*DR | Debate Over The Second Amendment To The U.S. Constitution (01/11/16) [1hr]

TRNN | Economist James Henry and Ho-fung Hung say China's debt-to-GDP ratio above 240% is an indicator that there is a major disconnect between the market and the real economy (01/11/16) [16:55]

TRNN | Hilary Lewis of Earthworks says: California Methane Leak One of the Worst Climate Disasters in US History, Part 1 (01/10/16) [7:01]

TYT | EPA Finally Discovers What's Killing The Bees (01/10/16) [4:52]

RT | CrossTalk: on Middle East: Russia's strategy (01/11/16) [24:27]

RT | Keiser Report: Fed power & American-Chinese wages convergence (E860) (01/09/16) [22:32]

Legendary Singer David Bowie Dead At 69
HP | Stephanie Marcus | 01/11/16

... Bowie, who was born David Robert Jones in Brixton, south London, scored his first hit in 1969 with the song "Space Oddity" and secured an enduring fanbase with his early albums "The Man Who Sold the World" and "Hunky Dory."

But the singer's breakthrough didn't happen until 1972, when he unveiled his androgynous alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, which catapulted him from "cult figure to rock icon." He leveraged that glam-rock persona and popularity to produce albums for Lou Reed and Iggy Pop, before retiring the Stardust character in 1973. Bowie made his last appearance as his alter ego at a London show on July 3 of that year. At one point during the 18-song set, he told the audience, "Of all the shows on the tour, this particular show will remain with us the longest, because not only is it the last show of the tour, it's the last show we'll ever do." ... Read more

RBS: "This Is Simply The Worst Week We Had In Recent History... After Too Much Policy Kool-aid"
ZeroHEdge | author | 01/08/16

This week is simply the worst we had in recent history for markets, RBS exclaims, the worst ever start to the year for The Dow, the worst since 1999 for S&P and the second-worst for credit since 2008. Worst still is, they think there's more weakness ahead and that many fundamental risks will continue to haunt markets. Why? Simple! Investors drank too much policy kool-aid last year.
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Internal War Is Now On The Horizon For America
ZeroHEdge | author | 01/08/16

As our situation in this country becomes more precarious, there are going to be far more flashpoints than anyone will be able to keep track of. It is inevitable that a fight between corrupt elements of the U.S. government and regular people will erupt.If internationalists were to get their way fully with the world and future historians write their analysis from a globalist perspective of the defunct American nation, they will probably say simply that our collapse was brought about by our own incompetence - that we were our own worst enemy. Yes, they would treat America as a cliché. They will of course leave out the destructive influences and engineered disasters of elitists, that would just complicate the narrative. My hope is that we do not prove these future historians correct, and that they won't have an opportunity to exist. .... Read more

Revealed: White House seeks to enlist Silicon Valley to 'disrupt radicalization'
theGuardian | Danny Yadron | 01/07/16

The White House will attempt to enlist Silicon Valley's major technology firms in its efforts to combat terrorism on Friday when a delegation of the most senior intelligence officials fly to California to meet with executives from companies including Facebook, Twitter, Apple, Microsoft, YouTube and others.

A copy of the agenda obtained by the Guardian indicates the White House seeks more or less to channel Silicon Valley's talent into its war against Islamic State and other extremist groups. ... Read more

Ted Cruz: Attacks From Trump And McCain Reflect An Establishment In 'Full Panic Mode'
HP | Samantha Jo Roth | 01/07/16

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) says he thinks John McCain questioning his citizenship is an indication that the political establishment is in "full panic mode," and that the Arizona Republican senator's real motivation is that he secretly supports Marco Rubio for the Republican nomination.

"I think there's no doubt that the Washington cartel is in full panic mode," Cruz said, responding to questions from reporters before a town hall in an airplane hangar in Webster City, Iowa. "Everybody knows John McCain is going to endorse Marco Rubio." ... Read more

Cruz & Trump Could Crater the GOP: A History Lesson
Salon & AlterNet | Heather Digby Parton | 01/07/16

... But while Republicans were high-fiving each other over their great victory, the court issued an immediate stay of the proposition and the Latino community in California began to protest and organize. And they also began, in great numbers, to vote Democratic. The fallout from Prop 187 and a few subsequent anti-immigrant proposals decimated the Republican Party in California. In 1994 the GOP held 26 of 52 (50 percent) U.S. House seats in the California delegation. Today they hold just 15 of 53 (28 percent). The Republican nominee has not won California in the last 6 presidential elections.

Prop 187 and the Pete Wilson years had two effects that shifted the state dramatically to the Democrats. First, the number of Latino voters grew quickly in response to perceived attacks on the Latino community. In comparison to other states that did not experience the same anti-immigrant environment such as Texas or New York, the research clearly demonstrates that Latino voter registration in California increased must faster than anticipated by population growth alone. Second, during the mid-1990s extensive research documents a increase in Latino votes for the Democratic party in California that was sustained throughout the 2000s. Not only did more Latinos start voting, they started voting heavily against the Republican Party. ... Read more

Rachel Maddow's Side-by-Side Trump vs. George Wallace Comparison Is So Spot-On It's Scary
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While some political observers argue that Donald Trump's presidential campaign -- and his success -- are unprecedented, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow argued on Tuesday that his style can be traced back to the rhetoric employed by segregationist Alabama Gov. George Wallace (D). ... Read more
Trump campaign style harkens back to George Wallace in 1968 (01/05/16) [19:08]

It's Official: 2015 Was America's Second-Hottest Year on Record
MotherJones | James West | 01/07/16

It's official. The United States roasted in 2015. All that unseasonably warm December weather that saw flowers blooming in Central Park and shirtless Christmas Day volleyball set a record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which released its year-end findings on Thursday. In fact, 29 states in the eastern half of the country experienced their hottest Decembers on record, a phenomenon that sealed 2015's fate: It was the second-warmest year ever recorded in the contiguous United States. ... Read more

CorbettReport | Much Ado Nothing About Something (01/07/16) [4:55]

Global Stocks Crash After Spiraling Chinese Devaluation Unleashes Worldwide Chaos And Selling
ZeroHedge | author | 01/07/16

Once China set the Yuan fixing some 0.5% lower, the biggest drop since the August devaluation, all hell broke loose and unleashed a global selling panic after China's stock market was promptly shut down less than 30 minutes into trading, then European shares dropped the most in more than 4 months as Asian equities plunges, as did US stock futures, the dollar weakened against the euro and the yen; crude plunged to fresh 12 year lows. Gold rose. ... Read more

George Soros: It's 2008 All Over Again
ZeroHedge | author | 01/07/16

Surging volatility in global equity, currency, and credit markets and significant stress in a major world economy have George Soros on edge. Speaking at an economic forum in Sri Lanka, the billionaire hedge fund manager warned global markets are facing a crisis and investors need to be very cautious. On the heels of the second trading halt in four days, Soros exclaimed "I would say it amounts to a crisis... which reminds me of 2008." ... Read more

*TYT | Bernie Sanders's Plan To Break Up Megabanks (01/05/16) [11:00]

Bernie Sanders' Social Security Plan Gets A Huge Boost
HP | Daniel Marans | 01/05/16

... Meanwhile, a counter-offensive was brewing. Social Security Works and its allied organizations began publicly promoting an idea they long had privately supported: that Social Security should be increased in order to combat a growing retirement income gap. They were fond of citing many of the same figures the Times put forward in its weekend editorial.

"Currently, 36 percent of retirees rely on Social Security for 90 percent or more of their income; over all, 65 percent of retirees rely on it for more than half of their income," the Times noted. "The average monthly benefit hovers around $1,300."... Read more

*North Korea Fires Up H-Bomb
Reuter & HP | author | 01/05/16

North Korea said it successfully tested a miniaturized hydrogen nuclear device on Wednesday, claiming a significant advance in the isolated state's strike capability and setting off alarm bells in Japan and South Korea.

The test, the fourth time North Korea has exploded a nuclear device, was ordered by young leader Kim Jong Un, state media said. "Let the world look up to the strong, self-reliant nuclear-armed state," Kim wrote in what North Korean state TV displayed as a handwritten note.

The announcement on North Korean state TV followed detection of a 5.1 magnitude earthquake near its known nuclear test site earlier. The state claims the test was done in "self defense against the U.S. having numerous and humongous nuclear weapons." ... Read more

Leader Of Oregon Militants Is No Match For Megyn Kelly
HP | Judah Robinson | 01/05/16

On "The Kelly File" on Monday, Kelly interviewed Ammon Bundy -- the leader of an anti-government group that has occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in Burns, Oregon, since the weekend.

Bundy says one reason the group is occupying federal land is to support father and son ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond, who returned to prison to serve extended sentences this week for setting fires that spread to federal lands in 2001 and 2006. ... Read more
FoxNews | Megyn Kelly Destroys Bundy Mob Leader With Just An Icy Stare (01/04/16) [6:19]

US Factory Orders Deep In Recession - Tumble YoY For 13th Month In A Row
ZeroHedge | author | 01/06/16

US factory orders have never dropped this far for so long without the US economy overall being in recession. November's 4.2% YoY drop is the 13th consecutive monthly drop. Revistions to durable goods data shows a 1% drop in new orders ex-defense in November after rising 1.4% in October.. and as a reminder, this data was buoyed by a 46.9% surge in defense aircraft and parts orders to all-time highs. Traders better hope for moar war or the reality of the economy will peak out from behind the military-industrial complex veil. ... Read more
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TRNN | Why is the Mainstream Media Ignoring Sanders' Campaign? (01/04/16) [4:21]

The Impossible Could Be A Real Contender In 2016
HP | Howard Fineman | 01/05/16

Voters in 2016 are more skeptical than ever of leaders in all realms, beset by a lack of growth in real wages, and vociferously divided on immigration, race, religion, policing, guns, terrorism, refugees and drugs.

"So they are lashing out in one way or another. For Democrats, it tends to be lost manufacturing jobs, low wages, Wall Street and the banks. Among Republicans, it's immigration, courts supporting gay marriage, and big government, by which they mostly mean higher federal taxes," Devine said. Read more

First $1.5 Billion Hedge Fund Casualty Of 2016 Blames HFTs For Making A Mockery Of Investing
ZeroHedge | author | 01/05/16

"We have come regretfully to the conclusion that the current algorithmically driven market environment is one which is increasingly incompatible with our fundamental, research orientated, investment process. The bear market in emerging market equities, which began in 2011, may eventually engulf developed markets too." ... Read more

Economists Don't Know Much About the Economy, #46,523: The Story of the Robots
HP | Dean Baker | 01/04/16

The public's confidence in economists was rightly shaken by the fact that almost no economists recognized the housing bubble and the damage that would be caused by its collapse. We still don't know the full cost of this failure, but the latest projections from the Congressional Budget Office imply lost output of more than $17 trillion (at $50,000 per person) through 2025. And that is apart from the lives that have been ruined due to unemployment and the loss of homes. ... Read more

This Just Became The Most Important Map In Geopolitics
ZeroHedge | author | 01/04/16

Earlier today, in "Mid-East Melee: Sectarian Showdown Looms As Bahrain Cuts Ties With Iran, UAE Recalls Ambassador," we brought you the latest from the war-torn Mid-East where a worsening spat between Saudi Arabia and Iran threatens to plunge the region into chaos. Make no mistake, things were already out of control. The conflict in Syria has mushroomed into a global proxy war, Iraq is struggling to drive Islamic State from key cities, and Yemen remains mired in war nine months after the Saudis entered the fray to drive back the Houthis and restore the Hadi government.

Against that backdrop, the region could have done without the events that unfolded over the weekend. By executing prominent Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, Riyadh has infuriated the Shiite community which took to the streets in protest, even going so far as to firebomb the Saudi embassy in Tehran.

In order to understand the upcoming sectarian strife and in order to fully grasp who belongs to Iran's sphere of influence and who is loyal to the Saudis, one needs to have a working knowledge of what the Sunni-Shiite split looks like across the region. Because this is set to become the key geopolitical issue in the weeks and months ahead, we thought it an opportune time to present the following map from Goldman which does a nice job of delineating the sectarian split. Note the asterisks which indicate the affiliation of a country's leadership. ... Read more
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I Was Terrified When My Mind Detached From My Body -- This Is Depersonalisation
AlterNet | Hannah Ewens | 12/29/15

You're staring straight ahead. Somehow your awareness peels away from you, in slow motion. It's like you've cracked in two, and one half is facing the wrong way. Are you in your physical body, which you know must still be there? Before you know it, you're up on the ceiling somewhere, watching yourself down below.

I've read that depersonalisation is one of the body's stress responses. You can't deal with a situation, so it almost ejects you, makes you feel disconnected. Which would be amazing, if it wasn't so awful. When it first happened to me -- to this extreme, at least -- I was on holiday with my dad, sister and brother. Something felt off, uncomfortable. I'd been feeling anxious and out of sorts all week, ... Read more

Gunmen Seize Federal Building In Oregon
HP | author | 01/04/16

The men include at least two sons of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and have said they'll stay for "years."

"We're planning on staying here for several years," Ammon Bundy said in a video posted to Facebook Saturday. "We're calling people to come out here and stand.... We have a place for you to stay warm. We have food planned and prepared. We need you to bring your arms. And we need you to come to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge." His brother Ryan Bundy told The Oregonian's Ian Kullgren the militiamen are "willing to kill and be killed if necessary," Kullgren tweeted Saturday. ... Read more

This Year's El Niño Is On Track To Rival The Worst On Record
HP | Dominique Mosbergen | 01/04/16

NASA says the destructive weather system "shows no signs of waning."

The El Niño of 1997-98 was the worst on record. It caused an estimated 23,000 deaths worldwide as widespread drought, flooding and other natural disasters rocked the globe.

The catastrophic weather system also caused the most devastating coral bleaching in recorded history, killing off about 16 percent of the world's reef systems. In the U.S., the total economic impact of that year's El Niño was between $10 billion and $25 billion.

... The weather system -- which has already wreaked havoc globally, contributing to the East Coast's balmy Christmas, deadly storms in the South and the worst floods in South America in 50 years -- "shows no signs of waning," NASA wrote on Dec. 29. ... Read more
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This Time Isn't Different
ZeroHedge | author | 01/04/16

The reckless herd has been in control for the last few years, but their recklessness is going to get them slaughtered. Corporate profits are plunging. Labor participation continues to fall. A global recession is in progress. The strong U.S. dollar is crushing exports and profits of international corporations. Real household income remains stagnant, while healthcare, rent, home prices, education, and a myriad of other daily living expenses relentlessly rises. The world is a powder keg, with tensions rising ever higher in the Middle East, Ukraine, Europe, and China. The lessons of history scream for caution at this moment in time, not recklessness. 2016 will be a year of reckoning for the reckless herd. ... Read more

Atlanta Fed Just Slashed Q4 GDP Forecast To Barely Positive 0.7%, Down 1.2% In Ten Days
ZeroHedge | author | 01/04/16

Moments ago, in its latest Q4 GDP revision, the Atlanta Fed just pulled the rug from under the economy (and the market now that bad news for the economy is bad news for stocks), and slashed its latest quarterly forecast by another 50%, from 1.3% to a barely positive 0.7%. In other words, according to the Atlanta Fed, Janet Yellen launched a rate hike cycle in a quarter when GDP will be just 0.7%, and which when averaged across the prior 3 quarters, would mean that the US will have grown at just 1.8% in 2015, a 25% drop from the 2.4% GDP growth in 2014. ... Read more

Eat Your Veggies: 9 Deliciously Different Recipes
HP | Jennifer Segal | 01/03/16

Vegetables don't have to be boring or relegated to a side dish. From roasted broccoli with chipotle honey butter to balsamic glazed roasted beets, these recipes are so flavorful and satisfying, they could carry an entire meal. ... Read more

Record Flooding Drowns Midwest
Reuters & HP | author | 12/31/15

At least 27 people have died in the region's flooding since the weekend.

Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma braced for more flooding on Thursday as rain-swollen rivers, some at record heights, overflowed their banks, washing out hundreds of structures, leaving thousands of people displaced from their homes, and some 9.3 million people in areas under flood warnings.

The days of downpours have pushed rivers in the U.S. Midwest to levels not seen in decades, the National Weather Service and local officials said.

Flooding has destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses and Southern states can expect the same as overflowing rivers push downstream toward the Gulf of Mexico, the National Weather Service said. Significant river flooding is expected for the lower Mississippi River into mid-January, the NWS said. ... Read more

How the battle against the Islamic State is redrawing the map of the Middle East
Washington Post | Liz Sly | 12/31/15

Confronting The 'Caliphate'

AMIRIYAT FALLUJAH, Iraq -- Along the vast, zigzagging perimeter of the Islamic State's self-styled state, the militants are steadily being pushed back as the forces­ ranged against them gain in strength. In the process, new borders are being drawn, new fiefdoms are being carved out and the seeds of potential new conflicts are being sown.

A war seen by the United States as primarily aimed at preventing future terrorist attacks in America is being prosecuted for very different reasons by the diverse assortment of Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni fighters battling in both Iraq and Syria, often in pursuit of competing agendas that work to subvert the goal of defeating the militants.

In northern Iraq and Syria, Kurds are busily carving out the borders to new Kurdish enclaves. Shiite militias, now the most powerful force in Iraq, are extending their reach deep into traditionally Sunni areas of northern Iraq. The Syrian government is focusing its energies on reclaiming land seized by its opponents during the five-year-old rebellion against it, while deeply divided Syrian rebels in turn are fighting a two-front war to hold their ground against both the government and the Islamic State. ... Read more
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Firefighters Extinguish Dubai Blaze After All-Night Effort, Investigate Cause
Reuters & HP | author | 01/01/16

Firefighters on Friday appeared to have mostly extinguished a blaze that suddenly engulfed one of Dubai's most prominent skyscrapers on New Year's Eve, witnesses said.

Dubai, among the most open and peaceful cities in the war-battered Middle East, prides itself as a tourist and business hub. But the metropolis, one of seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE), may face questions about the safety of its rapidly-constructed cityscape, especially after another high-rise building caught fire earlier this year. ... Read more