Friday, August 15, 2025

Working Lunch

 Diners,


​  Kremlin reveals details of Putin-Trump summit
The Alaska talks will focus on a broad range of issues and will be followed by a joint press conference, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov has said
​  Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ushakov said that “final preparations” were underway for the meeting on Friday, which will take place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Given the short notice for the summit, “everything is being done in an intensive mode,” including tackling several technical issues, including visa-related matters, he added.
​  Ushakov said the summit will begin at approximately 11:30 a.m. local time (19:30 GMT) with a one-on-one conversation between Putin and Trump, accompanied by interpreters. “Then, there will be negotiations in the format of delegations, and these negotiations will continue over a working lunch.”
​  The Kremlin aide noted the very high level of the Russian delegation, which he said would include Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Ushakov himself, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, and Special Presidential Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries Kirill Dmitriev, who has been a key figure in the Ukraine settlement process.
​  “In addition to the presidents, five members from each delegation will participate in the negotiations,” he said, adding that “of course, a group of experts will also be nearby.”
​  Regarding the agenda, it is “obvious” that the central issue in the talks will be the Ukraine conflict, Ushakov said, adding, though, that “broader objectives of ensuring peace and security will also be addressed, as well as current and most acute international and regional issues.”​   
https://swentr.site/russia/622876-kremlin-reveals-details-putin-trump-summit/

​  US efforts to settle Ukraine conflict ‘energetic and sincere’ – Putin
He said that the American leadership is making “quite energetic and sincere efforts to stop the hostilities” and working to “create long-term conditions of peace between our countries and in Europe, and in the world as a whole.”​   https://swentr.site/russia/622894-putin-us-energetic-sincere/

​  Trump, Putin soon to sit down for high-stakes Ukraine talks in Alaska
Putin is ‘bringing a lot of business people from Russia,’ Trump said aboard Air Force One, ‘but they’re not doing business until we get the war settled’
​  Trump will personally receive Putin on the tarmac at 11 am local time, rolling out the red carpet for the Russian leader. There’s an active International Criminal Court arrest warrant against Putin for war crimes since 2023. But the US is not obliged to arrest him since it’s not part of the ICC.​..
​..Putin press secretary Dmitry Peskov says no documents are expected to be signed after the summit.
​  US Defence Secretary Pete HegsethGeneral Dan Caine, the president’s top military adviser, and General Alexus Grynkewich, the top Nato and US commander in Europe are part of the delegation. So are US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
​  Trump’s top economic advisers, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who have played a key role negotiating tariff deals with trading partners, also traveled with the US president to Anchorage.
​  Meanwhile, Putin is bringing his top diplomat Sergey Lavrov along with Defence Minister Andrey Belousov, Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov.
Kirill Dmitriev, Special Envoy and Chief Executive Officer of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, and Yuri Ushakov
, aide to Putin are also aboard.
​  The central objective of the summit is to pursue a ceasefire agreement for Ukraine...

​..Conspicuously absent is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the leader of a nation at the heart of Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. There have been concerns about Trump agreeing to a deal unacceptable to Kyiv...
​..Just hours before landing in Anchorage, Trump posted on social media that he spoke with Putin’s loyal ally Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko...
​..The discussions will address Russia’s demands for Ukraine to cede regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, abandon NATO membership ambitions, and cap its military strength – conditions Kyiv has fiercely opposed. Lifting Western sanctions on Russia, reallocating frozen Russian assets, and adjusting US and European military aid to Ukraine could also come up.
​  On Wednesday, Trump described the summit in Alaska as “setting the table for the second meeting”, which could involve Zelensky and happen “almost immediately” if he gets the answers “we have to have”.
​  “There’s a very good chance that we’re going to have a second meeting which will be more productive than the first”, he told reporters, saying that a call was planned with Zelensky and other European leaders after Friday’s summit.​   
https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3322061/trump-putin-soon-sit-down-high-stakes-ukraine-talks-alaska

​  How an Alaskan military base is preparing for Trump-Putin meeting
Optics may be ironic, but security concerns can be addressed, officials say.
​  An Alaskan military base long used to intercept Russian aircraft is now racing to welcome one instead.​   https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2025/08/how-alaskan-military-base-preparing-trump-putin-meeting/407438/

Watch Live: Trump, Putin Share Warm Greeting, Handshake As Alaska Summit Kicks Off​   https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/history-making-summit-alaska-trump-en-route-meet-putin-everything-you-need-know

​  Kiev tries to kill as many civilians as it can right before talks
Zelensky’s power is contingent on the war continuing, so he’s trying his best to derail or sour any negotiation that could lead to peace​   
https://swentr.site/russia/622884-kiev-alaska-talks-escalation/
Desperate Ukraine Mounts Large Drone Attacks Hours Ahead Of Putin-Trump Talks​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/desperate-ukraine-mounts-large-drone-attacks-hours-ahead-putin-trump-talks

​  Pepe Escobar, The Bear & The Eagle Face-Off In Alaska ​- Exit Ukraine, Enter the Arctic
​  Ukraine, though, will not be the main theme in Alaska. The ever-perceptive Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov cut to the chase: what really matters is that “the first signs of common sense are appearing in Russia-US relations, which were absent for several years before.”
​  Ryabkov was quick to also highlight the dangers: the risk of nuclear conflict in the world “is not decreasing”; and Russia sees the risk that “after the expiration of the New START Treaty, nuclear arms control will be completely absent”.
​  Once again: Alaska is just the beginning of something much bigger – including, finally, a serious discussion about “indivisibility of security” (what Moscow wanted already in December 2021, rebuffed by the autopen administration).
​  And that brings us to the Arctic – and serious stuff that will certainly be debated in depth at the upcoming Vladivostok forum.
​  The Arctic holds at least 13% of global undiscovered oil reserves and 30% of undiscovered natural gas. Russia controls at least half of all these reserves. The Empire of Chaos badly wants to be part of the action.
​  Yet one thing is possible massive US investment in joint Arctic projects with Russia. Something entirely different is the US joining the Northern Sea Route (NSR) – which the Chinese call the Arctic Silk Road. The NSR reduces shipping time between Asia and Europe by up to 50%.
​  The Russian-Chinese rationale for the NSR – including the expansion of Russia’s unique nuclear icebreaker fleet - is exactly to bypass the Suez Canal and connectivity channels controlled by the US. The key question then is what would it take to swing Moscow to accept a Trump-Putin deal in the Arctic.
​  So on Ukraine, in principle, Russia has all the cards – as long as the special military operation goes on, now on overdrive. On hybrid war, the tariff chapter, the US ruling classes finally realized they have no cards – because blowback caused by secondary sanctions will badly damage the US. What’s left then is a commercial deal: the Arctic.
​  It's quite intriguing that even the JPMorgan Center for Geopolitics admitted that the best solution for the Ukraine mess is a Georgia scenario: that would somewhat offset the optics of a total capitulation by the West. Only Ukraine would capitulate: no NATO, no EU, no money, no security guarantees.
​  Inestimable Prof. Michael Hudson has condensed how Alaska will proceed under two vectors: “Part I is whether the US will acknowledge that the trajectory of the current fighting is for a total Russian victory, on the terms that Putin has been explaining for two years: no NATO membership, no foreign arms supplies, Nuremberg-like trials of the Banderite leaders, and perhaps reparations by Ukraine and NATO for the rebuilding of formerly ‘Ukrainian’ Russia.”
​  Assuming Trump accepts it, and that’s a major “if”, then comes the real nitty gritty (remember Ryabkov), “starting with whether a new atomic missile and arms treaty will be put in place.”
​  Russia’s version of peace, writes Prof. Hudson, will flow along these lines: “We don’t want an atomic war with the United States. Let’s agree that if a German or other EU/NATO missile hits Russia, when we retaliate it will only be against Britain, Germany and France, not North America.”
​  Prof. Hudson is adamant that “America has only one thing to offer other countries: the (temporary) promise NOT to hurt them. There’s nothing positive to offer, given its de-industrialization and the world’s de-dollarization.”
​  As it stands, and also considering the multiple ramifications of the hybrid war against BRICS, Alaska carries the potential of offering Washington a way out of the debris of a massive strategic defeat.
​  Any analyst who tried to understand the special military operation from the beginning, in detail, could tell that Russia’s war involved something much bigger than Ukraine. It was always about the burial of the “rules-based international order”, in fact the whole old order architecture. That is happening as we speak in the black soil of Novorossiya. Strategic patience, in the end, does pay.   
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/escobar-bear-eagle-face-alaska

​  Nice historical-meeting photographs, including Eisenhower and Khruschev:  Trump & Putin to Meet in Seward's Icebox
Looking forward to the conference and looking back at the American-Russian meetings of the past.
​  At the White House on September 27, 1959. This was the first time a Soviet leader visited the United States. A funny exchange occurred when President Eisenhower asked Khrushchev if he would like to do a helicopter sightseeing tour around Washington D.C. Khrushchev declined the invitation, at which point Eisenhower expressed his regret that “You won’t join me for this special tour.” Upon hearing this, Khrushchev said, “Oh, If you are to be in the same helicopter, of course I will go!’”   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/trump-and-putin-to-meet-in-sewards

​  Professor Anthony Hall,  Canada's Role in the Alaska Setting of the Putin - Trump Talks
​  As Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump meet in Alaska, it is important to appreciate the larger significances of the place where the meeting is taking place. It is not accidental that the USA purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867, the very year that the British Parliament enacted the British North America Act. This British enactment created the Dominion of Canada as new incarnation of “Canada.”​   https://anthonyjhall.substack.com/p/canadas-role-in-the-alaska-setting

​  Simplicius, Pokrovsk Breakthrough Continuation
A quick scattershot update as addendum to yesterday’s main report on the ongoing Pokrovsk situation.
​  Now that we’ve had a day for events to settle a bit, we can get at least a somewhat clearer picture of what’s sticking and what isn’t, as far as the advances go. Despite Ukrainian claims of counter-attacks and deployments of elite units, it appears the bulk of Russian advances have solidified...
​..Azov National Guard head Bogdan Krotevych says there is no infantry at all in Pokrovsk, the entire front is held by drones:  “We ran out of people.”​   https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/sitrep-81325-pokrovsk-breakthrough

​  Moon of Alabama,  "The Ukrainian Soldier ... is just not there."
At least six brigades of Ukrainian forces were pulled from other parts of the front in an attempt to check the Russian breach of the line. Some were ambushed while on the way others while taking up their new positions. Theose who arrived did not manage to change the map.
​  Pulling these forces from other parts of the frontline will leave holes in those parts for Russian forces to further attack through. The breakthrough will thus be repeated elsewhere. This process can be repeated and repeated until the whole Ukrainian defense breaks down and the army retreats in panic.​  
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2025/08/the-ukrainian-soldier-is-just-not-there.html#more

​  EU plotting ‘regime change’ in member state – Moscow
Brussels wants to replace Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban by next spring, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service has claimed​   
https://swentr.site/news/622856-eu-plotting-regime-change-in/

​But still no representation in this "democracy":  AfD Tops Poll As Germany's Most Popular Political Party   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/afd-tops-poll-germanys-most-popular-political-party

And still no arrests...  Oversight Chair: Bill Clinton Is “Prime Suspect” In Epstein Investigation   https://modernity.news/2025/08/14/oversight-chair-bill-clinton-is-prime-suspect-in-epstein-investigation/

​  Shellenberger: "Democrats Know How To Prevent Crime, They Just Don't Want To"
A Washington Post poll shows Black residents are twice as concerned about crime as White residents.
​  DC’s homicide rate is higher than in any year since 2005, except during the 2020 crime spike.
Criminologists agree: “Increasing police presence prevents homicides.”
​  Europe has twice as many police per capita as the U.S. and far lower crime rates.
Shellenberger says Democrats know the solution but won’t use it:
​  “Obviously the Democrats know how to prevent crime. They just don’t want to.”
And Trump’s crackdown? Not a stunt — a strategy:​ “It’s to win over the black vote… the black community suffers the highest rates of homicide.”​   
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/shellenberger-democrats-know-how-prevent-crime-they-just-dont-want

An MSNBC talking head claimed Tuesday that climate change is more of a threat in Washington D.C. than crime.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/msnbc-mouthpiece-claims-climate-change-more-dangerous-crime-dc

Israel pounds Gaza City, 123 dead in last 24 hours​   https://www.arabnews.com/node/2611718/middle-east

Israeli military approves plan for expanded offensive in Gaza, spokesperson says​   https://www.euronews.com/2025/08/13/israeli-military-approves-plan-for-expanded-offensive-in-gaza-spokesperson-says

​  Taking over all the neighboring countries:  Netanyahu Says He Backs 'Greater Israel' - Drawing Outrage From Arab States
In the newly published interview he said he is on a "historic and spiritual mission" and expressed strong attachment to the vision of a Greater Israel, which is a longtime reference to Israel encompasing parts of Jordan, Egypt and Syria - along with the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/netanyahu-says-he-backs-greater-israel-drawing-outrage-arab-states

​  The German government has approved the export of a new submarine to Israel, just days after announcing a partial halt to the country's arms exports to the Jewish state, the Berlin-based taz newspaper reported Wednesday.​   https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/germany-approves-delivery-of-submarine-to-israel-report-says/3658475

​  Over 20,000 arrested in Iran on suspicion of espionage during war with Israel
Officials are urging citizens to ‘maintain vigilance’ as they did during the 12-day war, as the hunt for infiltrators continues
​  Iranian police arrested around 21,000 people on various charges during the 12-day war with Israel, Iran's national police force reported on 12 August.​   https://thecradle.co/articles/over-20000-arrested-in-iran-on-suspicion-of-espionage-during-war-with-israel

Tulsi Gabbard Releases Damning Email That Puts Clapper In The Hot Seat​:  "This is one project that has to be a team sport."​   https://www.dailywire.com/news/tulsi-gabbard-releases-damning-email-that-puts-clapper-in-the-hot-seat

​  Kash Patel Uncovers Obama Deputy AG Sally Yates’ Email Ordering FBI Agents to Shut Down Clinton Foundation Corruption Investigation — “SHUT IT DOWN”​   https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/08/bombshell-kash-patel-uncovers-sally-yates-email-ordering/

​  "Sir Keir" richly deserves this:  British People Have Had Enough...​   In a striking display of public discontent, close to 750,000 people at time of writing have signed an official parliamentary petition demanding an immediate general election in the UK.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/british-people-have-had-enough

​  New EU Media “Freedom Law” Allows for Journalist Arrests if Justified by “Public Interest”
A shield for reporters on paper, it hands governments the pen to rewrite the rules.
​   Although the law outlines protections such as prohibiting spyware or coercion to expose sources, those assurances are undercut by built-in loopholes.​ Governments can bypass them if their actions are allowed under national or EU law and deemed proportionate to a vaguely defined “general interest.”
​  That permission extends to intrusive surveillance technologies in cases tied to crimes carrying a maximum prison term of three years or more, a list that ranges from terrorism and human trafficking to offenses labeled as “racism and xenophobia.”
​  The legislation also orders each country to maintain registers of media owners and addresses. It targets so-called “disinformation.”​   
https://reclaimthenet.org/eu-media-freedom-act-allows-arrests

​  Escape Key, Trojan Horse
​  When the World Health Organisation approved its new Pandemic Agreement in May 2025, most headlines focused on familiar promises: faster outbreak response, improved prevention, and expanded emergency powers. Yet tucked inside the fine print is something more ambitious — a mechanism capable of steering human behavior by controlling access to the building blocks of modern life.
​  That mechanism is called Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS). Officially, it ensures a ‘fair exchange’ of virus samples and related data. In practice, it functions as an allocation system. It decides who receives medicines, technology, funding, and even preferential trade terms — and under what conditions. Compliance keeps you in the network; noncompliance locks you out.
​  Those conditions are elastic. Today, they concern how a country handles pathogens. Tomorrow, they could stretch to cover farming practices, climate policies, or digital identity programs — because under the WHO’s One Health doctrine, almost any human activity can be reframed as a public health issueFood production, environmental regulation, and trade are all linked to ‘health system resilience’ in this logic.​..
​..The concept is sold through a moral narrative. In policy forums, it appears in the language of Holistic Global Health Security (HGHS) — a vision of cooperative, justice-based governance that treats climate change, inequality, and social determinants as health concerns. This version is aspirational: equity, dignity, and shared responsibility.
​  It is light on enforcement details but rich in moral legitimacy.
​  PABS is the other face — the operational blueprint. It spells out binding agreements, centralised registries, unique digital identifiersalgorithmic allocation, and compliance-linked access to resources. It is the legal and technical apparatus that turns the humanitarian vision into enforceable reality.​   
https://escapekey.substack.com/p/trojan-horse

 ​  From February,  Elon Musk says there's 'only a 20% chance of annihilation' with AI​   
Elon Musk said in a Joe Rogan interview there's "only a 20% chance of annihilation."
He said he still thinks AI will be smarter than humans and will pose an existential risk.
"I always thought AI was going to be way smarter than humans and an existential risk. And that's turning out to be true," he said.

​  Martin Armstrong's computer, "Socrates" has a long and excellent predictive record:  The Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force
​  The computer warned that we would experience a rise in civil unrest in 2025, with conditions only worsening in the years to come. Trump actively militarized the capital and has plans to dismantle ongoing civil unrest with a newly established Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force.
​  The Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force, as indicated by internal Pentagon documents, would be composed of hundreds of National Guard troops who would have the ability to respond to calls of civil unrest in under an hour. The 600-strong force will be split into two groups of 300, all of whom will be expected to be on standby at all hours in case the people of America begin to rebel. The first 100 troops would be deployed within an hour, the second and third waves would be sent within a two to 12-hour period, depending on the severity of the situation.
​  Arizona and Alabama will house the newly created force at pre-established military bases. In the event of civil unrest, armed troops will be transported via commercial airliners immediately. The Pentagon subtly announced the creation of this task force one day after the president deployed troops to Washington, D.C., but the documents bear time stamps from earlier in the month.​    
https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/world-news/civil-unrest/the-domestic-civil-disturbance-quick-reaction-force/

​  Bank Of America Nixes Rule That Led To 'Debanking' Of Conservative Religious Groups​ 
​  Critics have linked such denials to a federal regulatory concept known as “reputational risk,” which allows banks to refuse service over concerns about potential harm to their image. In recent years, some financial institutions applied similar standards to religious viewpoints, including opposition to same-sex marriage, categorizing them as hate speech. Most major banks, including JPMorgan Chase, dropped the “viewpoint” language in 2023. Bank of America had been the last large holdout.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/bank-america-nixes-rule-led-debanking-conservative-religious-groups

​Joshua Stylman, The Boomer Mirage: One Chart. Three Generations. Total Extraction.​

​  The institutions that promised stability—education, government, media, finance—mutated into extraction machines. Still speaking the old language, they now served a different purpose: to keep people compliant inside a system that no longer offered a way out.
​  This wasn't merely economic. It was existential. The foundations of meaning—family, ownership, stability—were quietly downgraded to lifestyle preferences, and then systematically priced out. People without homes are easier to relocate. People without families are easier to isolate. People without rootedness are easier to govern.
​  The Boomers didn't design the con, but they lived in its payout phase...
​..But here's where the extraction becomes truly sophisticated. As the traditional American Dream died, a new form of participation emerged: digital membership in what amounts to a global dollar club
​  As​ KF recently explained in his analysis of the GENIUS Act, stablecoins—digital bank accounts disguised as innovation—have exploded to serve 400 million users globally while generating massive profits for their issuers.
​  The trade-off is stark. Boomers got real assets with relative transactional privacy. The next generation gets digital "assets"—stablecoin wallets, app-based banking, algorithmic financial services—in exchange for comprehensive surveillance. What looks like financial inclusion is actually the infrastructure for total economic monitoring.
​  This represents the systematic replacement of real value with declared value across every domain. America has become a "club promoter" for the global dollar system, offering relaxed entry requirements that have drawn hundreds of billions into U.S. treasury-backed stablecoinsUsers get access to "dollar-denominated wealth" through stablecoins that pay them no interest while the issuers pocket billions from the treasury yields.​..
..The surveillance trade-off is particularly insidious. In the short term, these systems offer less monitoring than traditional banks—no extensive paperwork, minimal identity verification. But once everyone is locked into the digital infrastructure, America can impose far stricter controls than ever beforeEvery transaction becomes trackable, every account becomes freezable, every economic participant becomes manageable.
​  We're witnessing the replacement of physical ownership with digital access—and calling it progress. Where Boomers built equity in homes, the next generation builds balances in accounts that can be monitored, modified, or eliminated with keystrokes...
..But if you look at the control mechanism of a social credit system and we know the federal government is doing remarkable things to pull together all the data they need to do a social credit system controlled by private corporations, tech companies, essentially.' The outcome isn't predetermined—it's being decided right now.​   https://stylman.substack.com/p/the-boomer-mirage

  ​AI and Bitcoin eat "your" lunch:  Power-Bill Crisis Spreads From Maryland To New Jersey, May Doom Democrats As 'Green' Implodes
​  The power bill crisis is still in its early stages. Goldman analyst Hongcen Wei wrote an alarming note to clients on Wednesday, warning that a majority of U.S. power grids "have already reached dangerously low spare capacity levels that are at or below the critical reliability threshold. This raises blackout threats and results in power price spikes during high-demand usage hours."   https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/power-bill-crisis-spreads-maryland-new-jersey-may-doom-democrats-green-implodes

​  "Price-Spikes & Blackouts": America's Power Crisis Is Just Getting Started
​  The epicenter of America's power crisis appears to be on the PJM Interconnection grid, with the Mid-Atlantic area at ground zero. Power bills in the Baltimore area are skyrocketing, driven mostly by disastrous green policies that have shuttered reliable, low-cost fossil fuel power generation plants in favor of unreliable solar and wind energy, allegedly to address a climate crisis. Now demand is surging, whether from AI data centers, EVs, or other electrification trends, which means there's a massive mismatch in power supply versus power demand.
​  Goldman analysts led by Hongcen Wei have been tracking the power crisis and warned in a note on Wednesday that power market tightening has expanded from the three grids they covered last month (read here) to all regional markets.
​  "We find that 9 out of 13 US regional power markets have already reached critical tightness this summer, while expecting all but one to reach critical tightness by 2030," Wei wrote in the note to clients.
​  The analyst continued, "For the rest of this summer, we highlight power reliability risks in PJM (Mid-Atlantic), MISO (Mid-Continent), the Northeast (New York and New England) and the Southeast (Florida and Tennessee), given both critical tightness and forecasted August heatwaves."​  
https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/price-spikes-blackouts-americas-power-crisis-just-getting-started

​  A massive Wyoming data center will soon use 5x more power than the state's human occupants - but no one knows who is using it
New​ Wyoming facility could consume twice as much electricity as the entire state currently produces annually
​  Data center developers will build custom natural gas and renewable plants to feed massive energy needs
Crusoe refused to confirm any involvement of OpenAI despite growing speculation and prior partnerships​   
https://www.techradar.com/pro/a-massive-wyoming-data-center-will-soon-use-5x-more-power-than-the-states-human-occupants-and-no-one-knows-who-is-using-it

​  BREAKING MANUSCRIPT: mRNA Vaccines and SARS-CoV-2 Synergistically Fuel Global Excess Mortality and Illness
Landmark 380-reference analysis unveils the “Hybrid Harms Hypothesis” — showing how mRNA shots may prime the body for years of amplified harm from subsequent COVID-19 infections.​   
https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/breaking-manuscript-mrna-vaccines

​He called them on the manipulation of test groups to exclude those affected by Autism:  Medical Journal Rejects RFK Jr.'s Call To Retract Paper   https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/medical-journal-rejects-rfk-jrs-call-retract-paper

  It's a friendly lawsuit to force government action, a necessary step:  HHS Reboots 'Task Force On Safer Childhood Vaccines'
The Task Force will produce recommendations for:
​ “The development, promotion, and refinement of childhood vaccines that result in fewer and less serious adverse reactions than those vaccines currently on the market.”
​  “Improvements in vaccine development, production, distribution, and adverse reaction reporting — along with supporting research to make vaccines safer.”
​  The Defender, a news outlet operated by Children’s Health Defense (founded by current HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.), noted that the announcement came just one day before the agency’s deadline to respond to a lawsuit alleging Kennedy violated federal law by failing to convene the task force after taking office.
​  Filed in May by attorney Ray Flores and funded by CHD, the suit claims Kennedy has been in breach of the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, which mandates that the HHS secretary establish a vaccine safety task force and submit progress reports to Congress every two years.
​  The Defender explained that the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act requires HHS to form a task force made up of the health secretary, the FDA commissioner, and the directors of NIH and CDC, and to report to Congress every two years on vaccine safety improvements.​   
https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/hhs-reboots-task-force-safer-childhood-vaccines

Kellogg's Agrees To Remove Artificial Dyes From All Cereals​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/kelloggs-agrees-remove-artificial-dyes-all-cereals

​"Fatality Fries" are like potato-chips: French Fries Versus Baked Potatoes: One Raises Diabetes Risk 20 Percent, The Other Doesn't   https://www.zerohedge.com/food/french-fries-versus-baked-potatoes-one-raises-diabetes-risk-20-percent-other-doesnt

  Meryl Nass MD follows the trail of the industrial-byproduct "forever chemicals" illegally dumped in sewage systems:  
Reuters picked up a letter to the President asking for his help to stop the pesticide liability ban and the ban on the EPA's PFAS sludge draft report
​  Referring to Sections 453 and 507 of the House Interior Environment Appropriations bill​   
https://merylnass.substack.com/p/reuters-picked-up-a-letter-to-the

​Evanescent Planetary Life Form (pictured with okra, sweet potatoes and peppers)


Wednesday, August 13, 2025

A Fresh Start

 Poised,


  Breaking the ice by revising and renewing New START would be widely welcomed, a good opening to broadly discussing European security balances, which must include Russia.  Top Russia-US diplomats hold phone call before Trump-Putin Alaska meet
​  Russia says both sides affirm intention for Putin-Trump meet in Alaska on Friday, where Ukraine war set to be discussed.​   https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/12/top-russia-us-diplomats-hold-phone-call-before-trump-putin-alaska-meet

​  Russia-Ukraine updates: Kyiv, EU leaders meet Trump ahead of Putin summit​  
Here’s a brief recap of the day’s main events:
​  European leaders held a phone call with Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, discussing a series of issues before Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
​  Zelenksyy expressed his desire to be present for future meetings between Trump and Putin, with several European leaders echoing his insistence that Ukraine should be present during discussions over its future.
​  Trump said the call went well, rating it “a 10” and saying there could be a “quick second meeting” with both Putin and Zelenskyy if the initial meeting with Putin “goes OK”.
​  The UK, France, and Germany issued a joint statement saying that a deal must include a “robust” security guarantee for Ukraine and that tougher sanctions should be applied against Russia if Putin does not agree to a ceasefire on Friday.​   
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/8/13/live-ukrainian-european-leaders-to-speak-to-trump-before-putin-summit

​  Big Serge says that Ukrainian units are down to 30% of their designated manpower, consisting of new recruits or exhausted veterans, and without adequate tanks, armored personnel carriers or artillery. They are stretched very thinly along over 1000 kilometers of front, with gaps left when men are pulled to meet Russian assaults. Russia has exploited such a gap north of Pokrovsk, opening it through unmanned Ukrainian defensive trenches, and now preparing to hold it against Ukrainian counterattack by an Azov battalion, which is already tired and depleted.  Scraping the Barrel: Attrition and Cannibalization - Russo-Ukrainian War: Summer, 2025  https://bigserge.substack.com/p/scraping-the-barrel-attrition-and

​  Gilbert Doctorow,  Sputnik Globe: Putin's Master-Move: How BRICS Has Become the World's New Control Room
​  This brief commentary on why Vladimir Putin reached out to BRICS leaders following his acceptance of the Alaska summit with Donald Trump underscores the cohesion of BRICS
​  I was pleased to be one of the respondents to Sputnik on this issue. To what they have quoted here, I add the point they did not put up: that just as Joe Biden’s sanctions and encirclement policies drove together Russia and China, Russia and Iran, so Donald Trump perversely is strengthening greatly the alliance in BRICS of India, Russia, China and South Africa by his bullying.​   
https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/sputnik-globe-putins-master-move

​  Putin's Master-Move: How BRICS Has Become the World's New Control Room
​  After meeting Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff — and before the much-anticipated summit — President Vladimir Putin called key Global South leaders. India’s Narendra Modi, China’s Xi Jinping, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, and Brazil’s Lula da Silva were all briefed on the latest Ukraine talks.
​  "President Putin has taken a very important step which will into the future set a precedence," Prof. Fulufhelo Netswera from Durban University of Technology in South Africa tells Sputnik.​ This lets him act confidently with BRICS backing — while equally empowering other members in similar cases.​   
https://sputnikglobe.com/20250812/putins-master-move-how-brics-has-become-the-worlds-new-control-room-1122599591.html

Doomsday​: Pokrovsk Operationally Encircled​ - DRG Spotted Near Dobropillia​, Military Summary 2025.08.12​   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMerm0FSrnY

Doomsday​: Russians Consolidate New Positions​ - Preparing a New Wave of Offensive​, MS For 2025.08.13​   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVYSNblyxI0

​  Nobody else is saying that Zelensky will cede territory.  Ukraine ready to give up lost territories to settle conflict
  Ukraine may give up the territories it had already lost in order to end hostilities and receive security guarantees in the form of arms supplies and NATO membership, The Daily Telegraph wrote.
​  According to the newspaper, Vladimir Zelensky softened his stance in the run-up to the Russia-US summit.
​  It says that the Ukrainian government is ready to freeze the conflict along the current line of combat engagement.
 At the same time, Kiev is not ready to cede territories that it controls in the people’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk (DPR and LPR), and the regions of Zaporozhye and Kherson.
​  The report says European officials believe that Zelensky "has leeway with a growing number of voters who would stomach surrendering land to Moscow as the price for the end" of the conflict. The Daily Telegraph writes that Zelensky "would also have to perform a juggling act as he would be blocked by his country’s constitution from ceding territory without a nationwide referendum."
​  According to the publication, Kiev will only agree to a peace settlement that offers "robust security guarantees in the form of weapons deliveries and a path to NATO membership."​   
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/235304/Ukraine-ready-to-give-up-lost-territories-to-settle-conflict

​  Russia Accuses Ukraine of Planning Provocation Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit in Alaska
​  The Russian Ministry of Defense has issued a warning alleging that Ukrainian authorities are preparing a provocation targeting civilians in the Kharkiv region, aimed at disrupting the upcoming Russia–United States summit between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, scheduled for August 15 in Anchorage, Alaska.
​  According to the statement, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) allegedly transported a group of foreign journalists to the city of Chuhuiv on August 11 under the pretext of reporting on civilian life near the front lines. Moscow claims these journalists are being positioned to document the aftermath of a planned strike on a densely populated residential area or hospital, which would then be blamed on Russian forces to generate negative media coverage and undermine bilateral cooperation on resolving the war in Ukraine.​   https://www.telesurenglish.net/russia-accuses-ukraine-of-planning-provocation-ahead-of-trump-putin-summit-in-alaska/

Increasing the danger: Journalist killing in Gaza sends a chilling message​   https://www.arabnews.com/node/2611522/media

​  Israeli army places journalists' names on assassination list
​  Sunday, Israeli forces killed five Al Jazeera staff, including Al-Jazeera correspondents Anas Al-Sharif and Mohammed Qareqa, as well as photographers Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Nofal, in a targeted strike on their media tent outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. This deadly attack highlights the mounting threats against journalists trying to cover the unfolding crisis.​  https://en.mehrnews.com/news/235308/Israel-place-journalists-name-on-army-list-for-assassination 

​  US defers to Israel on killing of journalists
The United States on Tuesday declined to criticize Israel over the killing of five Al Jazeera journalists in the Gaza Strip, referring questions to its ally.
​  The Israeli military alleged that Anas Al-Sharif, a prominent face on the Qatar-based network covering the violence, headed a Hamas “terrorist cell” and was “responsible for advancing rocket attacks” against Israelis.
​  “What I will tell you is that we refer you to Israel for information regarding Al-Sharif,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters.​   
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2611650/world

Israel faces widespread condemnation after Al Jazeera correspondents killed in Gaza​   https://www.euronews.com/2025/08/11/israel-faces-widespread-condemnation-after-al-jazeera-correspondent-killed-in-gaza

Three-quarters of UN members support Palestinian statehood​   https://www.arabnews.com/node/2611412/middle-east

Macron calls Israel’s Gaza offensive ‘a disaster waiting to happen’, proposes UN mission​   https://timeukraineisrael.com/en/news/macron-calls-israels-gaza-offensive-a-disaster-waiting-to-happen-proposes-un-mission/

Netanyahu: 'If We Wanted To Commit Genocide, It Would Have Taken Exactly One Afternoon'​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/netanyahu-if-we-wanted-commit-genocide-it-would-have-taken-exactly-one-afternoon

​  How Netanyahu’s political survival depends on the genocide in Gaza
​  Netanyahu may view this war as essential to his survival, but the cost of that survival is becoming increasingly unsustainable for both Israel and the United States. Israel grows more isolated and vulnerable each day; the US is increasingly seen as complicit in war crimes; and Palestinians are being driven deeper into despair and radicalisation. This is the very formula that turned America’s endless wars in Afghanistan and Iraq into disasters: an enemy that multiplies with every bombing, an ever-receding horizon of victory, and a legacy of destruction that will last generations.
​  If Washington wants to break this cycle, it must change its policy: end unconditional military aid, apply real pressure for a ceasefire, and initiate a political process centered on Palestinian rights. Without such a shift, Haaretz headlines will keep counting: “Israel at War, Day 700… Day 800…” and the deadly queues for food aid will continue to tell the same truth—that this war continues not for security, but for politics. And as the Afghanistan experience showed, no war designed for domestic politics ever ends with honor.​   
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250811-how-netanyahus-political-survival-depends-on-the-genocide-in-gaza/

Israel Steps up Gaza City Bombing After Netanyahu Vows to Expand the Offensive​   https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5174036-israel-steps-gaza-city-bombing-after-netanyahu-vows-expand-offensive%C2%A0

Israel intensifies bombardment of eastern Gaza after Netanyahu announces expansion of operation​   https://timeukraineisrael.com/en/news/israel-intensifies-bombardment-of-eastern-gaza-after-netanyahu-announces-expansion-of-operation/

​  5-year-old disabled Gaza boy dies from Israel's forced starvation, weighing less than 7 pounds
A medical source says Muhammad Zakaria Khudr's weight dropped from 26 kilograms (26 pounds) to 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds) before his death.​   
https://trt.global/world/article/c5f0ab604e6c

​  Illegal Israeli settlers' attacks, army raids force 30 Palestinian families out of West Bank
Rights group says families from Ain Ayoub near Ramallah fled due to arson attacks, livestock poisoning, and harassment by illegal Israeli settlers under army protection​   
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/illegal-israeli-settlers-attacks-army-raids-force-30-palestinian-families-out-of-west-bank-/3656944

At least 100 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza, health ministry says​   https://www.euronews.com/2025/08/12/at-least-100-palestinians-killed-in-israeli-attacks-across-gaza-health-ministry-says

WHO says 148 Palestinians died from malnutrition in Gaza due to Israeli aid blockade​   https://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/who-says-148-palestinians-died-from-malnutrition-in-gaza-due-to-israeli-aid-blockade-3706323

ADL CEO: Trump is Implementing Biden and ADL's 'National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism'​   https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=65008

​  Backing Netanyahu, Trump Suggests Israel Needs To Ramp Up Military Pressure on Hamas
The president told Axios that it's up to Israel what to do next​   
https://news.antiwar.com/2025/08/11/backing-netanyahu-trump-suggests-israel-needs-to-ramp-up-military-pressure-on-hamas/

Graham To Israel: 'Enough Already, Destroy Hamas' - Just As The US Did To Germany & Japan​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/graham-israel-enough-already-destroy-hamas-just-us-did-germany-japan

Netanyahu floats 'allowing' Palestinians out of Gaza as mediators renew truce push​   https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2025/08/netanyahu-floats-allowing-palestinians-out-gaza-mediators-renew-truce-push

Moving hellholes...  Israel in talks with South Sudan to resettle Palestinians from Gaza, sources say​   https://www.euronews.com/2025/08/12/israel-in-talks-with-south-sudan-to-resettle-palestinians-from-gaza-sources-say

​Is the ICC also banned for such statements?  Grok AI Briefly Suspended On X After Gaza Genocide Posts   https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/grok-ai-briefly-suspended-x-after-gaza-genocide-posts

​  Escape Key, The Lie About Lies
​  There's a particular type of lie that reveals more about a system than any policy document or mission statement ever could: the lie about lies. This is when pointing out logical contradictions gets labeled as ‘dangerous misinformation’ — when the act of exposing mutually exclusive claims becomes treated as more threatening than making mutually exclusive claims in the first place.​   https://escapekey.substack.com/p/the-lie-about-lies

​  New Zealand opposition co-leader ejected from parliament for seeking support for bill to sanction Israel
'If we find six of 68 government MPs with a spine, we can stand on the right side of history,' 
Greens co-leader Chloe Swarbrick tells parliament​   
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/new-zealand-opposition-co-leader-ejected-from-parliament-for-seeking-support-for-bill-to-sanction-israel/3657725

​  Celia Farber,  American MD Returns From Gaza, Gives Detailed, Shocking Account Of Day To Day Life,With Photos, To Theo Von, Including A 30 Year Old Woman Whose 15 Week Fetus Was Shot Through The Neck In The Womb
​  Muslims Are Forbidden From Suicide; Some Who Lost Their Whole Family Often Go To GHF Sites In Hopes Of Being Killed. Advanced AI Weapons Being Tested On Palestinians, Palantir Central To Operations​   https://celiafarber.substack.com/p/american-md-returns-from-gaza-gives

Syria, US to Discuss Suwayda Killings in Amman Talks, But Druze Aren’t Invited​ - US official urges ‘restraint’ in Suwayda​   https://news.antiwar.com/2025/08/11/syria-us-to-discuss-suwayda-killings-in-amman-talks-but-druze-arent-invited/

​Hey, that's Israel's "Samson Option":  Pakistan's military chief 'warns "we'll take half the world down with us" in nuclear weapon threat'   https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14990011/Pakistans-military-chief-warns-half-world-nuclear-weapon-threat.html

​  while trying not to laugh...  Philippine military blames China for ships collision in disputed South China Sea
The Philippine military has blamed China for the collision of two Chinese navy and coast guard ships while trying to drive the Philippine coast guard and fishermen from a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.​   https://www.euronews.com/2025/08/12/philippine-military-blames-china-for-ships-collision-in-disputed-south-china-sea

But "No" to US Army chasing them in Mexico...  Mexico Extradites 26 Alleged Cartel Leaders To US​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/mexico-extradites-26-alleged-cartel-members-us

​  'Denied my urgent requests': Former U.S. Capitol Police chief goes to war with Pelosi as she rips Trump for federal D.C. takeover
'Ma'am, it is long past time to be honest with the American people'​   
https://www.wnd.com/2025/08/denied-my-urgent-requests-former-u-s-capitol/

​  ‘Immediate Action Is Necessary’: D.C. Police Union Backs Trump’s Capital Takeover
"The Union agrees that crime is spiraling out of control, and immediate action is necessary to restore public safety."​   
https://www.dailywire.com/news/immediate-action-is-necessary-d-c-police-union-backs-trumps-capital-takeover

​  White House says homeless people in DC will be forced into shelters or put in jail. Advocates say ‘that should terrify everyone’
Trump is criminalizing homelessness while doing ‘nothing’ to make housing more affordable​   
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-homeless-washington-dc-police-b2806411.html

Appeals Court Rules DOGE Can Access Sensitive Federal Data​  https://www.zerohedge.com/political/appeals-court-rules-doge-can-access-sensitive-federal-data 

  ​Escape Key,  Test Case for Global Control  [Individual "rights" are "selfish" and "immoral" when they oppose what must be done for the good of the earth.]
I selected what is supposed to be one of the happiest countries on Earth — Denmark.
​  Because if you're a Danish farmer, happiness is in short supply these days.
While the world focuses on alleged 'far-right' movements across Europe, something more sinister is brewing in the home of Lego, Carlsberg and Hans Christian Andersen. Under the cover of environmental protection, the government is planning to confiscate huge chunks of farmland and destroy the agricultural industry that feeds the nation.
​  This is not ‘conspiracy theory’. It's all documented in obscure official government reports — reports that somehow ‘forgot’ to ask the farmers what they think about being put out of business.
​  In 2022, world leaders signed the Convention on Biological Diversity Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, an agreement which commits countries to 'protect' 30% of all land and sea by 2030. But what 'protect' actually means is taking land away from the people who use it productively and placing it in ‘biodiversity reserves’ or similar programmes.
​  The Netherlands feels the pain already. Dutch farmers have been protesting for years because their government needs to seize 3.5% land territory to hit their 30% target. But Denmark has a much bigger problem — they need another 15% of the entire country.​   
https://escapekey.substack.com/p/danish-land-grab

​  Sasha Latypova re-posts this still urgent article, with a petition to sign:  PREP Act Brief: "License to Kill" must be repealed.
A collection of articles for ease of educating your friends, family, doctors and legislators. Please sign the petition to repeal the PREP Act linked in the post.​  https://sashalatypova.substack.com/p/prep-act-brief-license-to-kill-must

  ​A Thanksgiving 2025 heads-up from Jessica Rose, Ph.D.  The new pending "plandemic" - is it scheduled for November?
What it might involve and when it might be 'declared'​   https://jessicar.substack.com/p/the-new-pending-plandemic-is-it-scheduled

​Physicist and longevity researcher, Josh Mitteldorf,  Insulin: Keeping your insulin levels down is the most accessible path to longevity   https://mitteldorf.substack.com/p/insulin

​  Push To Cut Livestock For Climate Goals (Due To Burping & Farting) Worries UK Farmers, Ecologists​  
Officials insist no mass cull is planned.
​  But farmers are concerned that it’s part of a growing push to reduce livestock levels, which could sacrifice traditional grazing and damage the fragile ecosystems it supports.
​  The UK’s net-zero policies go further than those of the European Commission, where cattle farms remain outside regulatory crosshairs until next year.
​  In February, the UK’s independent adviser on climate action, the Climate Change Committee (CCC), whose advice strongly guides government policy, recommended a 27 percent decrease in cattle and sheep numbers by 2040 in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
​  According to the UK government, agriculture is the country’s largest source of domestic methane emissions, accounting for 49 percent of total emissions. Of this, around 85 percent of agricultural methane comes from cows and other ruminant animals through enteric fermentation and is released as mostly burps but also flatulence.​..
​..Britain’s livestock farms, which are mostly grass-based, are integrated into the iconic patchwork countryside, with sheep and cattle grazing in open fields divided by hedgerows and stone walls as part of a complex natural ecosystem.
​  Alan Hughes, a fourth-generation tenant farmer who is part of the Farmers to Action agricultural rights campaign, told The Epoch Times that wider net-zero proposals on livestock ignore the ecological function of grazing.   
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/push-cut-livestock-climate-goals-due-burping-farting-worries-uk-farmers-ecologists

​  Climate Physicist, Anastassia Makarieva explains that neither the questions nor the "answers" are straightforward.  Is Extra CO2 Good/Food for Plants?
Reflections on the latest DOE climate report: If we shrugged off anthropocentrism, we would see that CO₂-enhanced growth is not proof of a thriving biosphere, but a sign of its fever.
​  We have now subjected the biosphere to a vast experiment — injecting enormous amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels at a rate equal to about one-tenth of what the biosphere synthesizes each year. How did the biosphere respond? Global carbon budget assessments tell us: it began producing extra organic carbon — carbon that, crucially, nobody consumed! (Think about it: the biospheric production line has ramped up output, but no one has claimed the surplus. How should we interpret that? What does it mean?)
​  As a result, a biotic sink for anthropogenic carbon formed, so atmospheric CO₂ now accumulates not at 10 GtC per year as we burn fossils, but at a significantly lower rate. I’ve covered these processes in detail in two earlier posts, which I invite you to read:
​  New Global Carbon Data Revives the "Missing Sink" Problem
​  Nature is trying to fix our mess—it’s time to recognize its power
Here, it’s enough to note that many people — including the DOE report authors — take this as evidence that “CO₂ fertilization” has made the biosphere bigger. Dr. Craig Idso, for instance, illustrates his point with photos showing plants grown under elevated CO₂ concentrations becoming larger (see below).
​  But a recent study by Bar-On et al. (2024) in Science — unmentioned in the DOE climate report — shows that global plant biomass has not increased over the past thirty years. This means something else is happening on a planetary scale: plants don’t grow bigger but are producing extra material that the rest of the biosphere does not consume, so it accumulates somewhere — likely in soils or in dissolved form in the ocean.​   
https://bioticregulation.substack.com/p/is-extra-co2-goodfood-for-plants

​Carbon Processor (pictured with black eyed pea row)