Stress Before Snapping

 Somewhat Tense,

  Are we at "peak copper"? Military use takes precedence, you know.  The Honest Sorcerer, The Era of Material Scarcity Has Arrived

Copper is critical to AI, defense, electrification and grid expansion—yet supply is failing to catch up with demand, despite an unprecedented rise in the red metal’s price. A global physical shortage of copper is taking shape before our eyes and it won’t ease anytime soon.​ 

​  Tariff and prices—as usual—are just noise compared to a now decade long rise in copper’s production costs. Over the past 12 months the price producers ask for copper has jumped by 25%—or by a whopping 150% since the summer of 2016—driven by higher energy and input costs and declining resource quality.​.. The real problem lies in going after ores with an ever worsening metal content, while trying hard not to go bankrupt doing so.​..

​..We haven’t made a large, close-to-surface, easy-to-mine discovery since the 1990’s—and what we have found since then lies in ever smaller more deeply buried pockets, containing low-grade ores. New copper projects, as a result, are becoming more expensive and more complex, suffering from longer and longer delays and cost overruns.​..

​..So, while in the first quarter of the 21st century more copper was mined than in the entire history of humanity, this was a one-time boom based on huge deposits mined to exhaustion.​..

..Some of the material cannot be collected, or is simply not economic to recycle. Think: copper used in fungicides (sprayed on crops), thin copper wires in holiday lights, internet and telephone cables, small chargers and building wires featuring very thin copper strands heavily bound in protective sheathing. Not to mention copper in printed circuit boards, cars, consumer goods, household appliances, A/C units, old TV sets etc. where this valuable metal is buried deep inside complex physical assemblies, with mountains of plastic molded around them. Hence the 50-60% recycling rate...​ Recycling, while playing an important role in cushioning the blow from peak mine production, will not save us from the coming copper crunch​...

..Weapons manufacturing and the AI build-out, however, also demands a larger and larger share of the now physically constrained supply, leading to a “competition for critical minerals between energy transition and military applications.”​ Instead of an energy transition, which never was, we will thus see a mad scramble for mineral resources—including copper—with security becoming the primary motivation...

..Mined copper production is unlikely to exceed 23-24 million tons by 2030, leaving us with a serious math problem—a supply hole of ~2 million tonnes, capable of swallowing the entire AI industry as a whole...

..Since military use means strategic metals literally going up in smoke, as Kurt Cobb put it, that leaves less than zero chance for the future use of these minerals—not to mention the metals in infrastructure these explosives hit—further reducing the pool of material available for recycling…

​..The world economy is entering an era of growing scarcity. Not only when it comes to copper, which is essential to everything electric and cannot be easily substituted, but also diesel fuel, fertilizer, sulfur, helium, and in a few months time: food.​..

​..War and geopolitics act as an accelerator here, pushing the world far faster and far deeper into disarray than it otherwise would be the case. Viewed from a higher perspective the US-Iran war was thus never really about Iran but Asia—and especially China. By limiting oil supplies to the region (which used to source 80% of its petroleum imports from the Persian Gulf) the US has managed to throw Chinese domestic consumption growth into reverse, and imposed a considerable cost increase on Chinese manufacturing—squeezing profit margins there, as well as putting a strain on Chinese banks financing these activities. It also reduced South-East Asian growth rates by imposing much higher fuel costs on the region, and increased US political leverage by becoming these nations’ biggest LNG and LPG supplier. Last but not least, the lasting impacts of this war has reduced Asia’s future critical mineral demand growth potential.​  https://thehonestsorcerer.substack.com/p/the-era-of-material-scarcity-has 

  ​Industrial copper production and consumption details: The US Copper Industry Needs a Strategy, Not a Contradiction

Copper underpins everything from energy grids to EVs and home wiring, yet U.S. copper policy remains fragmented. It needs a long-term, strategic approach to close a growing supply and demand gap.​   https://www.wri.org/insights/us-copper-industry-needs-strategy-not-contradiction

​Simplicius, Ansar Allah Forces Launch Lightning Campaign to Change Region Calculus   https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/ansar-allah-forces-launch-lightning

  Colorful Pepe Escobar, Yemen Rocks the Gate of Tears- Ansarallah now has the luxury of installing a toll gate, arguably multi-layered, in the Bab al-Mandab, if they want it.

​  The overall collapse of the Saudi mercenary gangs in Yemen is so swift that even Epstein Syndicate mainstream media has been forced to acknowledge it. The Ansarallah Rolling Thunder is seizing cities; islands; capturing thousands of thugs; liberating all prisoners – and granting them amnesty; taking control of an untold number of US tanks and weapons – Afghanistan reloaded; and being greeted as liberators of Yemeni land across the whole tribal spectrum.​ And of course Ansarallah from now on, officially, has taken full control (italics mine) of the mega-strategic Bab al-Mandab, or “Gate of Tears”​. .​..The intel behind the Ansarallah Rolling Thunder – described as the largest mass-capture operation in modern warfare – was carefully coordinated with the IRGC. The Axis of Resistance was fully aware that after devastating Iranian attacks on the Jordan bases, the US was strangled in its capacity to help the Saudis prevent a Yemeni onslaught.​..

​..Unflapabble spokesman of Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier Yahya Saree – who I had the honor to meet last year in Yemen – confirmed that Made in Yemen surface-to-air missiles forced Saudis and mercenaries to abandon the base in Taiz, one of those specifically designed to harass Yemen.
​  Taiz is key: one of Yemen’s largest cities. Ansarallah is now in full control – a massive strategic asset.
​  As strategic assets go, few compare to Mayun island – also knows as Perim, smack in the middle of the Bab al-Mandab. There’s a military airfield and a military base built by the UAE with Israeli cooperation, crammed with high-tech weapons. All that is now Ansarallah property.
​  And onslaught it was, along the entire Yemeni western coast: from Hays to Al-Khokha and Al-Mokha via Al-Wazi’iyah, including the military camps of Khaled and Jabal al-Nar, plus Red Sea islands.​..

..Now couple it with the Big Bang: the coordinated multiple strike on the Abqaiq-to-Yanbu pipeline, the last remaining route for Saudi oil exports after the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a massive 100 km black smoke column rising to the desert sky captured on Sentinel-3 satellite imagery.
​  Consequences: expect production costs for nitrogen fertilizer plants from Europe to Asia to go totally out of control. Wheat, rice and maize yields are certified to fall, drastically, in tandem with skyrocketing diesel prices. Irrigation and harvesting will become a privilege for the wealthy.​   https://strategic-culture.su/news/2026/09/11/yemen-rocks-the-gate-of-tears/

Satellite Imagery Shows Heavy Damage to Saudi East–West Oil Pipeline Pumping Stations​   https://www.thedefensenews.com/Satellite-Imagery-Shows-Heavy-Damage-to-Saudi-EastWest-Oil-Pipeline-Pumping-Stations/

​  Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline is Shut: Why Does It Matter?

The 1,200-kilometer East-West Pipeline can carry up to seven million barrels of crude per day from eastern Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea.
Its importance has increased sharply as the Iran war disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Its Red Sea outlet now faces separate pressure as Ansarallah advances to Bab al-Mandeb and threatens Saudi shipping.​    https://www.palestinechronicle.com/saudi-arabias-east-west-pipeline-is-shut-why-does-it-matter/

Supertanker Explodes After Hitting Mine, IRGC Says, & Asserts 'Strait Of Hormuz Is Closed'​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/houthis-unleash-major-missile-barrage-saudi-arabias-sprawling-king-khalid-air-base

​  Martin Armstrong, Saudi Oil Production Collapses – This Is How the War Screws Everyone

Saudi Arabia just reported something that should scare the hell out of anyone who understands how the Middle East actually functions. According to Bloomberg, Riyadh told OPEC that crude production collapsed by 1.9 million barrels per day in August to just 6.238 million barrels per day, the lowest Saudi production since 1990 and even below the wartime low reached earlier this year. Saudi exports have reportedly fallen to around 3.1 million barrels per day, the lowest in more than a decade. This is not because the Saudis suddenly decided to tighten the market to make a few extra dollars. The war with Iran and renewed Houthi threats have disrupted the export routes that keep the entire Saudi financial system alive...

​..Saudi Arabia can have all the oil beneath the ground it wants. If it cannot pump it, ship it, insure the tankers, and deliver it to customers, that oil does not pay the bills.​ Saudi Arabia already recorded a budget deficit of 125.7 billion riyals, roughly $33.5 billion, in the first quarter of 2026 alone. That was nearly as large as the $44 billion deficit the government had projected for the entire year.​..

..Saudi Arabia is not alone. The fiscal systems throughout the Gulf were constructed during an era when oil revenue could finance enormous government expenditures, subsidies, public employment, infrastructure, defense, and social programs. These governments have attempted to diversify, but oil still provides the financial foundation supporting the transformation.​..

​..Saudi Arabia spent years building the East-West pipeline so crude could be moved to Yanbu on the Red Sea and bypass Hormuz, but now the Houthi threat has demonstrated that the western route is not immune either. When both sides of the Arabian Peninsula become geopolitical choke points, Saudi Arabia has a problem that no central bank can solve by changing interest rates.​..

​..Diesel rises and the farmer pays more to operate machinery. The trucking company pays more to deliver food. The container ship pays more to cross the ocean. Airlines increase fares. Manufacturers pay more for raw materials and transportation. Those costs eventually reach the consumer.
​  Then comes the second wave that almost nobody talks about: sovereign debt. Higher energy prices feed inflation. Inflation prevents central banks from aggressively cutting interest rates. Higher rates increase government debt-service costs. Governments already buried beneath debt must then borrow even more merely to service what they previously borrowed. Europe is especially vulnerable because it deliberately destroyed much of its cheap energy structure in the name of climate ideology and then sanctioned Russia without having a viable replacement.​..

..There is no free war. Saudi Arabia pumping the least oil since 1990 is not merely a Saudi story. It is a warning that the financial arteries of the Middle East are being squeezed at precisely the moment the sovereign debt crisis is accelerating worldwide. If oil-producing governments lose revenue, they borrow more. If oil-importing governments face higher prices, they subsidize more and borrow more. The producer gets fucked by falling volume while the consumer gets screwed by rising prices.​   https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/world-news/sovereign-debt-crisis/saudi-oil-production-collapses-this-is-how-the-war-screws-everyone/

  At what point does it become the banks that have a problem? Houthis Unleash Major Missile Barrage On Saudi Arabia's Sprawling King Khalid Air Base

Houthis seized more Red Sea territory, including Perim Island near the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
​  Shipping risks are rising, with vessels avoiding the Red Sea and taking longer routes around Africa.
Iran-Gulf diplomacy was postponed, delaying efforts to address the Strait of Hormuz crisis in what was to be a rare GCC-Iran meeting.
​  Saudi oil exports face ongoing disruption after a pipeline shutdown, pushing oil prices above $100/barrel.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/houthis-unleash-major-missile-barrage-saudi-arabias-sprawling-king-khalid-air-base

​Tehran Says US Seeks Step-by-Step Agreement After Trump Claims 'Iran Wants To Make A Deal'​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/houthis-unleash-major-missile-barrage-saudi-arabias-sprawling-king-khalid-air-base

​  Gold & Geopolitics,​ Daily digest: 2026-09-14

Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline is now confirmed burned out end-to-end on high-res imagery, with Reuters reporting Yanbu has days - not weeks - of export stock left, and the Gulf-Iran Hormuz meeting that was supposed to fix the strait got postponed before it started. Meanwhile the frontier AI labs' "slow down" call detonated across Asian markets overnight: KOSPI -3.1%, Nikkei -2%, SoftBank -10%, and a Fed that markets now expect to hike on Wednesday.​..

​..Repair-time claims diverge and are worth holding separately: >1 month (IranObserver0), 5–6 weeks per Reuters sources with a second source suggesting faster partial pumping (shanaka86), and "double whatever Saudi says" given how long the Jizan repair took (DarioCpx).​..

​..Hormuz: Saudi amendments kill the Monday meeting; Iran fires ASBMs at an escorted UAE tanker​ - Barak Ravid reported Saudi Arabia submitted amendments to the Omani-Iranian proposal over concern about establishing a new status quo - read as the proximate cause of the collapse (MenchOsint). 
​  Before the postponement, the plan had Gulf diplomats and Iranian officials negotiating a reopening framework with Washington absent, Iran demanding compliance with the June Islamabad memorandum, and a routing system placing the Gulf entry lane inside Iranian territorial waters (HormuzReport). 
​  Per IRIB, Iran struck a UAE-owned tanker with anti-ship ballistic missiles inside the US-backed southern Omani corridor, under US escort - vessel drifting and leaking (OilHeadlineNews, Mark4XX)​...

..Energy Secretary Wright told the IAEA conference the US will end Iran's nuclear programme "one way or another" (zerohedge)...

​..Yemen: Ansarallah takes the heights over Bab al-Mandab; King Khalid Air Base hit with "dozens" of missiles​ - Ansarallah announced targeting King Khalid Air Base at Khamis Mushait - hangars, radars, runways, ammunition depots (MenchOsint), framed as retaliation for more than 300 Saudi airstrikes in five days with a warning of larger strikes (MilitarySummary).​..

..Saudi Aramco's Abha fuel depot destroyed - at least six storage tanks gone on Sep 13 imagery (SoarAtlas)...

​..Human cost, which is getting buried under the oil chart: Saudi-backed forces themselves report 500+ killed and 1,500 wounded in the recent West Coast clashes (ME_Observer_). Ansarallah's spokesman counts 58 Saudi airstrikes in 24 hours across Taiz, Lahij, Al-Jawf, Hajjah, Al-Bayda and Saada, flown by F-15s out of Khamis Mushait (MenchOsint).​..

​..CNN's reconstruction of Mocha's fall is the most damaging item of the day for Riyadh: battalions at ~20% of paper strength ("ghost names" collecting salaries), zero Saudi airstrikes that day despite minute-by-minute updates, CENTCOM's Adm. Cooper in-kingdom, 100+ US advisers deployed, MBS calling Trump twice and being refused. One regional source: "Saudi-American f**k up of epic proportions" (thetect0nic, zerohedge).​..

​..AI: the "slow down" call collapses into a regulatory-capture argument within 24 hours​ - Amodei: "for too long the industry lied" about AI risks (Polymarket). Trump rejected the pause outright - "whoever wins AI, wins" (KobeissiLetter). Zuckerberg went the other way entirely: AI needs to move faster (Kalshi_Finance).​..

​..Fitch reportedly warns a slowdown could take indices down 35% and trigger a US recession (rdd147) - which, as the poster notes, is itself the bubble diagnosis..​.

​..Fed: Goldman capitulates to a 25bp hike on Wednesday, three days after Trump demanded the lowest rates in the world​ ...  Warsh faces an "incredibly difficult dilemma" in his first rate move (zerohedge); markets expect the exact opposite of what Trump wants, and Trump has threatened to halt trade with every deficit partner if the Fed doesn't cut (KobeissiLetter).​..

​..Russia-Ukraine: largest drone attack of the war, impacts 300–400m from the Polish border​ - 863+ Gerans launched, 741 downed, leaving 122+ impacts (official figures, possibly higher): at least 5 gas stations, 2 trains and 1 electrical substation confirmed hit along the Poland-Kyiv highway corridor, timed for bad weather to blind air defence, flown in groups along the Belarusian border (MilitarySummary).
​  Strikes landed 300–400m from the Polish border, damaging the Yagodin crossing checkpoints and rail infrastructure (MilitarySummary); one hit a train carrying Boris Johnson, an adviser to Chancellor Merz, German MPs and UK/French/Italian security advisers returning from Kyiv (MyLordBebo, zerohedge)...

​..UK: three first ministers meet in Cardiff today to demand referendum rights​ - Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland's first ministers meet to sign an agreement calling for the right to hold independence referendums (europa, Glenn_Diesen, BRICSinfo).​   https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-14

​  Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-13

The tanker-for-tanker phase went live overnight: Iran fired at least four waves at a US-escorted convoy in the Omani corridor, UKMTO confirmed a vessel hit and burning, and hours later an Iranian commercial ship was struck off Qeshm with one dead. Meanwhile Mayyun Island fell, handing Ansarallah both sides of Bab el-Mandeb, and Reuters put the East-West pipeline outage at 4% of global supply with repairs running up to six weeks. ​  Second front: Dario Amodei's "pace the frontier" essay got Altman, Musk and Hassabis to sign on, OpenAI's IPO slipped to 2027, and Ellison cancelled his $7.5bn Oracle sale - with the 30Y closing at a 22-year high underneath all of it.​   https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-13

​  Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-12

Ansarallah completed its sweep of Yemen's entire Red Sea coastline and now holds both sides of Bab el-Mandeb, and Saudi Arabia shut in the East-West pipeline after drone strikes gutted two pump stations - removing the last major Hormuz bypass. Riyadh then chose not to retaliate, called Washington twice, and got told no; Pakistan declined too. 

​  Meanwhile a 0.3% core CPI print flipped Goldman, JPMorgan, MUFG and Citi to a September hike inside a single afternoon, with the 30Y closing at its highest weekly level since 2004.​   https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-12

Trump Advisers Warn Iran Conflict May Last Through End of His Term, WSJ Reports​   https://archive.vn/GQ4PZ#selection-1015.1-1015.79

Oil Industry Braces for Years-Long Iran War​   https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Oil-Industry-Braces-for-Years-Long-Iran-War.html

​  Martin Armstrong (Does he think "Netanyahu" is alive in the flesh?) I am concerned about nuclear war, mainly with Netanyahu.
I think he is really a loose cannon. I believe he has been trying to talk Trump into it, but I do not think Trump will do it. If Trump does not do it, I think he will. His opponents are saying they are too weak to defend Israel. I would look at the week of October 5th. If he is going to pull off anything, it might be that week.   https://x.com/ArmstrongEcon/status/2096611850926305768

Last week's strike on a Jordanian airbase: A-10 Loses Wing, F-15s Damaged in Major Iranian Missile Strike   https://www.palestinechronicle.com/a-10-loses-wing-f-15s-damaged-in-major-iranian-missile-strike-report/

  Bibi had to ignore warnings because he needed the attack to be "successful" to justify Palestinian genocide: Three Major Revelations About The Gaza Holocaust In The Israeli Press

​  The Israeli press has published three significant revelations about the Gaza holocaust, reporting (1) that Benjamin Netanyahu concealed advanced knowledge of the Hamas attack on October 7, (2) that Israel rejected a Hamas offer to release all civilian hostages immediately after October 7, and (3) that according to an IDF drone operator, the Israeli military was intentionally firing on civilians throughout Gaza during its operations in the Palestinian territory.​   https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/three-major-revelations-about-the

​  ‘NAZA’: Israeli Officers Reveal System behind Mass Civilian Targeting in Gaza

Twenty-four Israeli intelligence officers and soldiers described AI-assisted targeting, phone hacking, surveillance and attacks knowingly expected to kill Palestinian families.
​  The documentary focuses on institutional policies and military systems rather than isolated misconduct, with several interviewees describing accepted practices behind civilian killings.
​  NAZA premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, where it reportedly received a nearly 25-minute standing ovation.​  https://www.palestinechronicle.com/naza-israeli-officers-reveal-system-behind-mass-civilian-targeting-in-gaza/

​  Confessions of an Israeli Army Drone Operator

​ That night, Nir was sitting in a trailer filled with screens, at a base in the Gaza border area. On the screens, he watched ambulances driving down a road and then saw Golani Brigade troops ambush them.
​  “These were clearly identifiable as emergency vehicles, even when ground fire opened on them,” Nir (a pseudonym) recounts. “Without any apparent reason, the ground troops stormed the convoy. They shot at the first vehicle, the medical staff exited, hid behind the ambulances and pleaded for their lives, and the soldiers shot them, one after another.”
​  That happened in the early morning of March 23, 2025, in Rafah’s Tel-al Sultan neighborhood, at the southwestern tip of the Gaza Strip. The incident is now known as the “Gaza paramedic killings,” or “Rafah paramedic massacre.” The Israel Defense Forces have claimed it was an identification mistake, a professional error.​   https://israelpalestinenews.org/confessions-of-an-israeli-army-drone-operator/

​  You can't see their small, starved brains: Israel starved Gaza. Now doctors fear it has permanently damaged a generation.

​Tahrir Zidan, 41, repeatedly brings his five-year-old daughter, Tala, to the malnutrition clinic at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, hoping to receive nutritional supplements or treatment that might help his children grow.
​  According to Zidan, Tala is 94 centimeters tall. The average height for a child her age is 109-110 centimeters. He says that her height and weight have barely changed over the past two years, and that at times she has actually lost weight.​ “She was diagnosed with malnutrition and short stature,” he explained.
​  Zidan, who is now displaced in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis after being forced from his home in Khuza’a, east of Khan Younis, says he cannot afford to provide his three children with a balanced diet. Two of them, including Tala, suffer from malnutrition.
​  Since the beginning of the war, he says, he has been unable to buy fruit or provide his family with a complete protein-rich meal. Instead, they depend heavily on food distributed by charitable kitchens to displaced people.
​  “I have not been able to buy even one kilogram of meat, a chicken, or a kilogram of fruit. We are living through conditions harsher than words can describe. The result is that my children are now suffering from problems that are difficult to treat,” Zidan told Mondoweiss.
​  Zidan says that his family sometimes obtains only one meal, and it’s not enough for the whole family. “The meal I obtain from the charity kitchen usually finishes while most of us are still hungry,” he said.​  https://israelpalestinenews.org/israel-starved-gaza-now-doctors-fear-it-has-permanently-damaged-a-generation/

Israeli bulldozers level Palestinian-owned land in Al-Mughayyir​   https://english-wafa-ps.translate.goog/Pages/Details/174636?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

Gazans Feel Despair as Israeli Officials Cement Plans for Permanent Occupation​   https://scheerpost.com/2026/09/12/gazans-feel-despair-as-israeli-officials-cement-plans-for-permanent-occupation/

Israel Bombs South Lebanon as Report Documents 23 White Phosphorus Attacks​   https://israelpalestinenews.org/israel-bombs-south-lebanon-as-report-documents-23-white-phosphorus-attacks/

​  Lebanon says Israeli army violated framework deal approximately 7,700 times​ - Israeli forces have also opened fire in close proximity to army elements and patrols, military says on X​   https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/lebanon-says-israeli-army-violated-framework-deal-approximately-7-700-times/4052431

‘Ongoing Genocide against Palestine’: Ramaphosa Demands Accountability at BRICS​  https://www.palestinechronicle.com/ongoing-genocide-against-palestine-ramaphosa-demands-accountability-at-brics/

​  Kit Klarenberg, German Sponsorship Of Zionist Settlements Exposed

Exploiting academic institutions as a cover, between 2017 – 2021 the German government surreptitiously funnelled millions into a highly discriminatory project facilitating expansion of Zionist settlements in the occupied West Bank. Under its auspices, public money and knowledge production were committed to an inherently unlawful, immoral enterprise in flagrant breach of Berlin’s international legal obligations, and domestic restrictions on academic research efforts. The unknown scandal is just one component of how, in plain sight, Germany covertly assists Zionist settlement expansion and Palestine’s total erasure.​..

​..The tool identifies ideal areas for construction of new wells, in a territory where Palestinian water sources are systematically demolished, and Palestinians are refused permits to drill new ones. Known as the Western Mountain Aquifer, it’s the largest and most productive groundwater body shared between Israel and the occupied West Bank. Palestinians were completely absent from working sessions convened in illegally occupied Jerusalem related to MedWater, and there is no apparent way in which Palestinians will, or even can, benefit from the effort in any way.​..   

​..Only Zionist settlers could realise that vision on-the-ground, of which the consortium was well-aware.
​  Even more damningly, at the project’s end the tool was contracted to Israel’s national water company Mekorot, which manages wells in Zionist settlements throughout the West Bank. By contrast, the Palestinian Water Authority, initially named as a MedWater partner, was not provided a subcontract and is not publicly listed among its beneficiaries today.​..

..In its July 2024 Advisory Opinion, the International Court of Justice ruled unambiguously all states are obliged “to distinguish, in their dealings with Israel, between Israeli territory and the territory occupied since 1967, and not to render aid or assistance in maintaining that situation.”    https://scheerpost.com/2026/09/07/german-sponsorship-of-zionist-settlements-exposed/

​  Germany asks ICJ to dismiss Gaza genocide case brought by Nicaragua
Berlin argues that UN court lacks jurisdiction over allegations that it enabled Israeli violations of international law in Gaza​   https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/germany-asks-icj-dismiss-nicaragua-genocide-case-over-arms-supplies-israel

​  A firecracker in the doorway they had just exited: Financial Times: Russia strikes Ukraine train line moments after foreign dignitaries pass/ Train struck on route used by David Petraeus, Boris Johnson, Carl Bildt and other senior officials 

​  Quote: A Russian drone hit a train near Ukraine’s border with Poland shortly after a group of visiting dignitaries passed through the crossing on Sunday, as Moscow launched its biggest drone barrage in months. The former British prime minister Boris Johnson, the former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt and various European security officials had crossed to Poland along the same line just before the strike, according to Bildt and a representative of the summit the dignitaries were attending.​ Unquote
​  The names listed constitute a rogues’ gallery of Russia haters who used their time in office in Washington, London, Stockholm and other capitals to destroy European relations with the neighbor to the East over the course of a couple of decades. Surely there are many in the Kremlin who would have opened the shampanskoye had there been a direct hit and killed them all at one go.
​  Boris Johnson was this morning quoted on BBC News as saying that the drone strike was just an example of the random nature of Russian attacks which pose a direct threat to European security. 

​  However, we may assume with confidence that the decision by Moscow was not to kill this gang but to frighten to their boots the cowardly European leaders who regularly carry on diplomatic tourism to Kiev via the rail link from Warsaw for the sake of photo opportunities that win cheers from their home electorates.​   https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/financial-times-russia-strikes-ukraine

​  Comments to Europeans from Vladimir Putin: Russia has never been and will never be your enemy!
We do not want European raw materials or wealth; we have our own. We absolutely do not need your raw materials. Russia is the richest country in the world in terms of raw materials. 

  We want neither your land nor your territory. Look at the vastness of Russia on the map. It is twice as large as all of Europe. What good would your land do us? What would we do with it? 

  Why do you think Russia is an enemy of Europe? What harm has Russia ever done to you? 

Have we sold you gas and raw materials at prices lower than those charged by your 'friends'? YES 

  Did Russia sacrifice 20 million people during World War II to get rid of the Nazis? YES 

Was Russia the first country to help Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic? YES 

  Have we helped Europe during fires and natural disasters? YES 

What has Russia done to them for them to hate it so much? 

Russia is not your enemy; your true enemies are your leaders, those who govern you."   https://x.com/PutinVladimirv0/status/2098085347712246160

​  Mel Gibson has some clips of firemen reporting their experience on 9/11/01: September 11th…. Never forget what firemen said on that day, and what the Govt and Media have tried to erase…. 9/11   https://x.com/MelGibsonstory/status/2097869200257597495

"A Rare Photo of the Plane That Hit The Pentagon"   https://x.com/dc_flake/status/2098462043959328875

  David Hughes, Where were the Weapons Located that Destroyed the Twin Towers?

Conventional nuclear weapons were not used, yet some of the observed effects were similar. What does this mean?​  https://dhughes.substack.com/p/where-the-weapons-located-that-destroyed

Video: Revealing 9/11 Truth: What Happened on September 11, 2001​   https://www.globalresearch.ca/video-revealing-911-truth-what-happened-on-september-11-2001/5939803

​  Martin Armstrong, Taiwan Is Preparing for the Drone War

Taiwan has proposed another $4.6 billion in defense spending, and what is particularly interesting is where a substantial portion of that money is going. Taipei wants more than 600 coastal surveillance and reconnaissance drones, over 40,000 coastal attack drones, and an initial fleet of more than 100 unmanned suicide boats. This comes only days after Taiwan’s parliament approved a six-year drone program capped at NT$240 billion, roughly $7.6 billion. Taiwan is not buying drones as some technological experiment. It is preparing for what it believes a future war with China would actually look like.
​  Ukraine changed warfare because it demonstrated that a relatively inexpensive drone can destroy equipment costing millions of dollars. The Middle East has reinforced the same lesson.​   https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/world-news/war/taiwan-is-preparing-for-the-drone-war/

​  Kurt Cobb, Modern Warfare Is Burning Through the Metals Needed for a High-Tech Future

Modern weapons, drones, communications systems, and other military technologies rely on strategic metals such as germanium, and material incorporated into destroyed weapons can be difficult or uneconomic to recover.
​  Demand for many critical minerals is already rising rapidly because they are also required for electric vehicles, renewable energy, electronics, semiconductors, and other advanced technologies.
Accelerating mineral extraction cannot continue indefinitely, and warfare increases the risk of scarce materials being dispersed rather than recycled for future use.​   https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Modern-Warfare-Is-Burning-Through-the-Metals-Needed-for-a-High-Tech-Future.html

US Data Centers To Burn More Natural Gas Than Most Nations​   https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/us-data-centers-burn-more-natural-gas-most-nations

​  Light Brigade Lemmings charge off cliff? Trump Slams "Perfect Little Angel" Dario, Demands Full Steam Ahead For AI​  

"The Trump Administration has stopped AI "people" from doing bad, or potentially bad, "things," like Dario (Anthropic!), who is now pretending to be a "perfect little angel" and will continue to do so!" Trump wrote.
​  "We already have tremendous CRIMINAL and REGULATORY power over these companies! There is a SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data Centers, and the only one that is happy about it is China. WHOEVER WINS AI, WINS!"​   https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/full-stop-amodei-altman-musk-team-against-ai-singularity-while-china-goes-full-send

​  They know which side their bread is buttered upon... UK Government Reserves Two-Thirds Of Elite Jobs By Race; Leaked Doc Exposes

Sixty-six per cent of the slots are ringfenced for staff who are ethnic minority, disabled, or from a lower socio-economic background. Everyone else - including the white working-class kids the same government claims to champion - can take whatever is left.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/political/uk-government-reserves-two-thirds-elite-jobs-race-leaked-doc-exposes

"Free Palestine" works, I hear"​: More Than 62,000 Arrested for Speech-Related Offenses in Britain, Report Finds​   https://amgreatness.com/2026/09/10/more-than-62000-arrested-for-speech-related-offenses-in-britain-report-finds/

​  BREAKING: Leaked Data Show Israel Covered Up HUNDREDS of COVID Shot Deaths and Hospitalizations Within Weeks of Vaccine Rollout
The cover-up of COVID-19 “vaccine” deaths, injuries, and disabilities appears to have been a coordinated GLOBAL OPERATION.​   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/breaking-leaked-data-show-israel

​  Meryl Nass MD, My talk today on the anthrax letters and what they ushered in--Please watch - Lots of interesting talks at Turning the Tide--all free and online now   https://merylnass.substack.com/p/my-talk-today-on-the-anthrax-letters

  Reporter, Rodney Palmer ratted out his boss, the CBC. Good man: Stunning Testimony from Former CBC Reporter Rodney Palmer

How the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation became a state propaganda organ.​   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/stunning-testimony-from-former-cbc

​  Celia Farber, also from last week: GOING VIRAL: Day Two Of The “Allison Inquiry:” Devastating Testimonials About Covid “Vaccine” Damage And Death On Parliament Hill In Ottowa, Viewers Sky-Rocket On Day Two, Amidst Total Media Blackout

​  “It’s Like Canada’s Dirty Little Secret,” Shawn Buckley. “MPs Do Not Feel It Is Politically Viable To Be At This Table.” “Fire. It Just Feels Like My Brain Is On Fire.” Carrie Sakamoto.​   https://celiafarber.substack.com/p/day-two-of-the-allison-inquiry-devastating

​  Celia Farber, Canada Is Post-People, The Horror Fully Revealed: “When I Say Canadians Are Abandoned, I Mean We Are Completely Abandoned.” Michelle Worton, Allison Inquiry, Says Injured Candians Are Accepting MAID

​  Canadians Were Poisoned, Crippled, Refused ALL Medical Help, Forced To Either Seek Treatment In The US At Great Cost, Or, If They So Choose, Be Euthanized By The State​   https://celiafarber.substack.com/p/canada-is-post-people-the-horror

​  NEW STUDY: Tylenol Use During Pregnancy Linked to 41% Smaller Ovaries, 23% Fewer Ovarian Follicles, and 13% Smaller Uteruses in Infant Girls
The first-ever human study looking at prenatal Tylenol exposure and female reproductive development found alarming reproductive alterations that persisted into adolescence.​   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/new-study-tylenol-use-during-pregnancy

​Steve Kirsch, A list of evidence consistent with the hypothesis that “vaccines cause autism” - Not an exhaustive list.  https://kirschsubstack.com/p/a-list-of-evidence-consistent-with

  It is how the payments are set-up, especially if >90% vaccinated-on-schedule: Why Do Pediatricians Blast Babies with Multiple Vaccines on Same Visit?

Super-inflammation, systemic reactions, subclinical encephalitis all risked by this intensive, profit-driven practice in babies and toddlers before age 4​  https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/why-do-pediatricians-blast-babies

​Everybody has to get the shot anyway, so why remove the cancer-promoting piece?  Health Canada asks Pfizer to remove SV40. Pfizer says Pf$ck off   https://anandamide.substack.com/p/health-canada-asks-pfizer-to-remove

​  Yeah, but if the cancer didn't get COVID, then the vaccine-worked, right?  BREAKING STUDY: Pfizer COVID-19 “Vaccine” Plasmid DNA Found Inside Lethal Turbo Cancer of the Heart​ - We document a previously healthy 35-year-old man who developed a hyper-aggressive heart cancer within 170 days of Pfizer injection... and vaccine spike DNA was found inside it.​   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/breaking-study-pfizer-covid-19-vaccine

​  BREAKING: Moderna’s mRNA Flu Shot CUT FROM CDC RECOMMENDATIONS Just 2 Weeks After We Sent Our Reanalysis Study to HHS
CDC leaves mFLUSIVA out of 2026–2027 guidance after our FDA-data reanalysis found 2.5× more unexplained deaths and an extreme risk-benefit imbalance.​   https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/breaking-modernas-mrna-flu-shot-cut

​Mr. Natural (removing third trial loaf of Westphalian pumpernickel bread from baking pan)

Recreating Reality

 Empiricists,

  Professor Fabio Vighi,  The Horizon: Barbarism or the Leap Beyond Value

We are living in the ghost hours of a civilisation that is dying but refuses to lie down. For nearly two decades, the global financial priesthood has sustained a collective fiction based on monetary methadone. When the gears of global accumulation ground to a violent halt in 2008, we were told the “Great Financial Crisis” was a structural anomaly, a temporary glitch in the matrix of free-market efficiency—a blatant lie... The system never recovered; it was put on artificial life support. The playbook was brutally simple: transfer the catastrophic losses of a parasitic private banking sector directly onto public balance sheets by intensifying and instrumentalising emergencies...

..Today, soaring sovereign bond yields (U.S. Treasuries, UK gilts, eurozone periphery) are screaming a truth that politicians and central bankers are desperate to suppress: the monetary playbook has hit its absolute limit. The reason is simple: you cannot keep transferring losses to governments that are already drowning in their own debt...

..Capitalism is not a system designed to fulfil basic human needs; it is an automated engine driven by a singular, pathological compulsion: the endless transformation of human labour into abstract value, represented by money. It is what Marx termed the “automatic subject”—a system where human beings are mere functionaries serving a blind, self-expanding deity; a vampire that feeds on the combustion of human energy...

..For decades, real wealth creation has been in hopeless decay. So how do you keep a system addicted to growth alive when its engine of value production is dying? You keep adding money created out of thin air, while attempting to “manage” both the legitimacy of such operation and its consequences...

..The ballooning of debt—from the private sector to the public balance sheets—is nothing more than the hallucinatory simulation of value creation. Capital markets are no longer pricing actual productive capacity; they are trading in ghosts, wagering on future value that can never, and will never, be realised. The mountains of sovereign debt are a mathematical monument to a defunct economic paradigm...

..We have reached the phase where the simulated wealth must be accounted for, and the bills are coming due. Since the losses can no longer be offloaded onto a broke public sector without destroying the financial establishment itself, the next phase is unlikely to resemble another conventional bailout; it is more likely to take the form of a systematic and catastrophic distribution of such losses...

..Under the guise of securing “systemic stability,” the collateral of ordinary individuals, pension funds, and public assets is being positioned to be absorbed by the clearing houses of the financial elite when the debt and derivative bubbles burst. This is the logical endpoint of a system that has moved from the “too big to fail” bailouts to architectural re-engineering.

  The push to digitise and regulate the financial system via legislation like the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act builds a more centralised, programmable financial architecture. In crisis conditions, that architecture can function as a mechanism for concentrating power and formalising the downward allocation of losses...

..When people are stripped of the ability to participate in the market—when they can no longer define themselves through work, consumption, or status—the repressed energy of the drives does not default to a pastoral idyll. It returns as pure, unmediated violence: war, virulent nationalism, racism, everyday barbarism and decay, a global war of all against all, and the erosion of whatever casual joys remain. The collapse of the system is unleashing raw, destructive drives that we have spent centuries learning to channel, however brutally, into the rituals of exploitation and accumulation...

..If we pretend we can create a frictionless, perfectly transparent society, we invite the very barbarism we seek to avoid...                                             ..The alternative is still nameless, because it must be an emancipatory struggle, not a new model to be imposed from above. The direction, however, is clear: we must reclaim a more convivial life based around what we need—what Ivan Illich called the recovery of personal autonomy and creative interdependence... We must learn to channel our frustrations not into the infinite growth of a cancerous metric, but into the shared mastery of our own boundaries—the joy of living well within limits, rather than pretending they don’t exist...

..The system is now burning itself down, and it intends to use our lives as the fuel. We can either go down with the automated subject into a dark age of predatory looting and raw violence, or we can gather the courage to step off the wheel—and learn to play a different game entirely.   https://fabiovighi.substack.com/p/the-horizon-barbarism-or-the-leap

​  Alex Krainer, Who’s in charge of the Iran war at the White House?

A few important pieces of the puzzle have come to light, unmasking the armchair lords of war at the White House.

​  The US and Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February this year came as a huge shock to most people, including those who previously had a close personal relationship with President Donald Trump and thought they knew him well. Attack on Iran was the war that Trump explicitly promised his voters he would not start. Exactly what lead him to betray his voters remains a mystery, but by now we have enough puzzle pieces to stitch together a coherent picture, or at least a part of it.​..

​..I shared an interesting insight from the recent interview with “Mossad’s most dangerous assassin,” Yuval Aviv on Danny Jones Podcast. Aviv claimed that the United States is run by a “shadow government,” which is “as high level” as it gets, and includes high-level ex- and current White House officials. He explained that this is “Not a club, not a cult, but a team of ex-officials [who] still think they know what’s good for America.”
​  He named two individuals who were part of this shadow government: George Bush Sr. and Dick Cheney. Others were “Ex-CIA, ex-presidents, … The people I met were the highest of the highest…”

​..Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, State Secretary Colin Powell’s Chief of Staff offered further clues. At about 13 min, 10 seconds mark, Col. Wilkerson said this:​ “… I think I learned definitively that the two people in the administration who now dominate [President Trump’s] thinking and dominate his production, if you will, including these idiotic things he puts out over the web, are Steve Miller, the deputy chief of staff for policy in the White House, who is far more powerful than his name and title designate. He’s far more powerful than Susie Wiles, for example, the chief of staff, and I’ve been told he’s more powerful than anyone in the cabinet, like Marco Rubio or even the vice president, JD Vance, or certainly Hegseth.​.. But Miller is number one. No question in these people’s minds that Miller is number one. That even Vance and Rubio shy away from contradicting him
​  And then the other one that surprised me a bit, although then I began to think about it, was that he was the main architect of Project 25 at Heritage. Is [Russell] Vought, the budget director. These two people in very strange places to have this kind of national security influence, are more effective with and more commanding of Trump’s attention and direction than any other two people in the administration”​   https://alexkrainer.substack.com/p/whos-in-charge-of-the-iran-war-at

​  My med school friend Bill was a "war orphan" of the Cuban Missile Crisis, with full benefits: Widow of airman killed in Epic Fury denied death benefits as Iran conflict 'is not a war'   https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/widow-of-airman-killed-in-epic-fury-denied-death-benefits-as-iran-conflict-is-not-a-war/ar-AA2bpQ3w

Trump Says 'War' To End Immediately 'After' Midterm Elections, IRGC Issues New Demands​   https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/brent-tops-100-gulf-conflict-escalates-ubs-warns-us-iran-ramp-remains-elusive

​  BREAKING: Iran’s IRGC says it struck two U.S. Navy destroyers, the USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119) and USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53), with ballistic missiles, claiming the vessels sustained “significant damage.” The IRGC said the attack was retaliation for U.S. attacks on and harassment of Iranian oil tankers. The ships are guided-missile destroyers equipped with Aegis combat systems and capable of launching Tomahawk cruise missiles. The U.S. has not confirmed that either ship was hit or damaged.​   https://x.com/DropSiteNews/status/2097475509730893906

​   Moon of Alabama, War On Iran: Crude Price Nears $100 Barrel While Trump Still Hopes To Win
Another attack by Ansarullah of Yemen has damaged three oil production facilities in Saudi Arabia. The ARAMCO refinery in Jizan, with a capacity of 400,000 barrel per day (bpd), went offline. Crude oil prices increased...

​  Iran has announced that it will extend its control zone around Hormuz and intensify its measures against the U.S. blockade:
Iran has said it will step up efforts to tackle problems created by U.S. sanctions that are crippling its economy.
​  However, the U.S. campaign to throttle Iran’s economy by blockading its oil exports and stopping sanctions evasion is growing increasingly difficult to withstand, three senior Iranian sources have said.
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Sunday that the U.S. should understand that the rules of the game have changed “before it is too late.”
​  “From now on, any attack against Iran’s interests and security will receive a faster, heavier and more painful response,” he said in a speech published on his Telegram channel.
​  The U.S. is hoping to strangle Iran’s economy. Iran however has planned for this. 
The state of the economy is not yet impinging on Iran’s ability to wage war. Stockpiles of various goods remain deep, thanks to years of sanctions experience. And the Iranian state, with its powerful repressive tools, has figured out how to offload much of the economic pain onto ordinary Iranians while making sure its own needs are met. Trump’s approach, in other words, can certainly immiserate most of the country’s people. But it cannot successfully strangle the Islamic Republic itself.
​  There is a now a race between the economic damage Iran can cause to the U.S. via high oil prices and the economic trouble the U.S. is causing Iran by imposing a blockade of the country.​   https://www.moonofalabama.org/2026/09/war-on-iran-crude-price-nears-100-barrel-while-trump-still-hopes-to-win.html

​  Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-09

CENTCOM destroyed five Iranian crude carriers, Iran answered with ~40 ballistic missiles on US bases in Jordan and roughly 100 Patriot interceptors went up to meet them. 

​  Brent tagged $100 and Shanghai crude printed a contract record while US diesel cleared $5.90/gal. Everything else - copper's record, PBoC month 22, the Kharkiv pocket - is running in the background of that.​..

​..CENTCOM destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers; IRGC retaliated against ten vessels. CENTCOM's own statement frames it as a response to two IRGC ballistic-missile attacks on a US warship, and claims no American personnel harmed (CENTCOM). The IRGC says it hit eight tankers in the Strait plus two named US destroyers - with the ratio now established: US hit 3 on Sept 5, Iran answered with 6; US hit 5, Iran answered with 10 (HormuzLetter).​..​..Iran-US: five tankers sunk, ~40 missiles on Jordan, and Washington already drafting a Gulf exit​ - The sequence, in order. US strikes on Iranian tankers near Kharg Island and Jask were reported first (MenchOsint, HormuzReport); CENTCOM confirmed five carriers destroyed; Iran launched on Jordan within roughly three hours.
​  Casualties are the open question and the wording is doing work. A Jordanian source told Al Arabiya that injured US soldiers were being flown to Ramstein, some with life-threatening injuries; a US official told Reuters all troops in Jordan are "accounted for", which is a headcount, not a casualty statement (HormuzLetter). At least four missiles reportedly impacted with no interceptors fired at them.​
​  IRGC claims it struck two Aegis destroyers, USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119) and USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53), with "significant damage". The US has not confirmed either (DropSiteNews, MenchOsint, jonelmer). WSJ separately reported an undisclosed second Iranian attack on US ships on Monday with no ships struck (zerohedge).​..

​..Iran captured an intact US Navy Dive-LD autonomous underwater vehicle at the entrance to the Strait. Anduril-built, delivered 2025, seized whole and shown on Iranian state TV (MenchOsint, iribnews_irib). A US official called it "an older model" that "malfunctioned" - the photos show the 2025 variant (MenchOsint). Two MQ-1C Gray Eagles were also downed over the Strait (MenchOsint, MoloWarMonitor).
​  The interceptor economics are the actual constraint. PAC-3 rounds cost $4m+ and are notoriously slow to build; a ~100-round night is a half-billion-dollar salvo (Pataramesh). Roughly two months of Patriot production spent in two hours (pati_marins64). One plausible mechanism offered: the battery was in automated engagement mode and fired full salvos at submunitions (cym27s).
​  Attrition is now an explicit Iranian doctrine, and at least one analyst thinks it's the only one available. Keep hitting targets the other side must defend, 30–50 missiles a day for 7–10 days, to force interceptor depletion - which requires an inventory Iran may not have (shahpas).
​  Washington is weighing a large Middle East withdrawal before the war has ended. Bases across Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have been hit and the CIA's Riyadh outpost was reportedly "effectively destroyed" per CNN; the Navy's top admiral says troops won't return to Bahrain "anytime soon"...

​..Iran's parliament speaker named the next target class publicly: US energy assets in the region (ReddestMaple). 
​  A structural read worth keeping: Tehran appears to be working from a pre-prepared menu of retaliation options rather than deciding fresh each time, which is why response latency keeps shrinking​...

​..Jacob Coxon resigned from Anthropic, after three years of pretraining research across OpenAI and Anthropic: "Neither company is acting responsibly. They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives" (hilbertspaess, Polymarket, zerohedge). milesdeutscher strings it into a 2026 timeline: safeguards head out in February, OpenAI dissolving its mission alignment team, 1,100+ frontier-lab employees signing a pacing letter in July-August.
​  The financing side keeps outrunning the technology side. 2027 AI/hyperscaler DV01 supply now exceeds Treasuries (zerohedge), September IG issuance is tracking ~$215bn - a record for the month - with $410bn borrowed in 2026 specifically for data centres (KobeissiLetter). Goldman's credit desk sees the "eye of the hurricane" (zerohedge) and warns "the Fed is just a passenger" with AI capex driving rates (zerohedge). Tech is now a record 55% of all S&P 500 capital spending (Hedgeye).​..

​..Copper at $6.85/lb has a pre-1982 penny worth 4.46 cents of melt (PeterSchiff, CopperBullish). Bernstein sees the shortage starting in 2027 and worsening (oguzerkan).
​  China's rare-earth grip has a deadline attached. Its suspension of expanded export controls runs to November 10, 2026, with Xi's US visit expected late September - and Reuters already reporting some Chinese suppliers halting shipments to US customers (realTimHack). Concentration figures cited: 99% of dysprosium and terbium oxide, 91% of magnet rare-earth refining.​..

​..The peace terms got worse, and Kyiv leaked it. MP Anna Skorokhod says the latest Witkoff/Kushner terms now require constitutional changes and formal recognition of lost territory, which earlier proposals did not (rinalu_, VasilijProzorov). Peskov's line: everything must happen in silence, and Kyiv's terms will worsen the longer this drags (MilitarySummary). 
​  Trump and Putin spoke; the Kremlin called it constructive (zerohedge, zerohedge). Lavrov, in parallel, says European ceasefire calls are cover for rearming Kyiv, and that any foreign military personnel in Ukraine are legitimate targets (MilitarySummary, MilitarySummary) - while telling Berlin a "start of real war" is emerging (zerohedge).​..

​..Europe: AfD at 45% in the east, BSW cracks the firewall, and twelve states ban settlement goods​ -  Forsa/RTL has AfD at 45% in eastern Germany, +13 points on the 2025 result, with CDU down to 12% (Wahlen_DE, Alice_Weidel). Merz spoke of "consequences" after the CDU defeat (zerohedge).
​  The firewall has its first crack: BSW will vote for an AfD parliamentary presidency in Sachsen-Anhalt (MyLordBebo). Structurally more significant than the polling number.
​  Twelve countries issued a joint statement announcing national bans on trade in goods from Israeli settlements - France, UK, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, specifically calling the E1 project "inadmissible" (clashreport, MarioNawfal). 
​  Israel retaliated by closing the UK consulate in East Jerusalem and banning eleven British MPs (zerohedge, PolitlcsUK).
​  The Haaretz Oct 7 investigation is the other Israel story. Netanyahu's government reportedly received multiple advance warnings, including from the UAE's ruler ten days prior, sourced ultimately to Sinwar - and did not pass them to the intelligence apparatus; Hamas also reportedly offered to release all civilian hostages immediately afterward with no conditions (tparsi, efenigson).​..

​..EU and Canada are set to announce an "all encompassing" partnership on September 16, explicitly framed as offsetting US-China power politics, with Canada already in the EU's €175bn military procurement fund (KobeissiLetter). Meanwhile Trump moved to strip Canadian products from US federal procurement (KobeissiLetter) and to ban some Canadian dairy and auto imports (zerohedge), as Canada's $20bn counter-tariffs took effect (zerohedge).​   https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-09

​  Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-08

Houthis hit three Saudi Aramco sites in 24 hours, Brent cleared $98 with physical trading $8 above futures, and Riyadh's own energy ministry confirmed the strikes - while Washington kept insisting Hormuz is fully open. Behind that: the BoJ is dumping JGBs at a record pace and sold ~$90bn of Treasuries to fund the yen defence, copper took out an all-time high, and Russia put ~60 missiles into Kyiv the moment the Witkoff-Kushner ceasefire window lapsed.​   https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-08

​  Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-07

Iran announced a second restricted maritime zone - this one outside Hormuz, starting at the US Navy's own blockade line - plus a corridor deal with Oman that excludes Washington, and Japan dumped a record $87.8bn of foreign securities to fund its yen intervention, pushing FX reserves back under $1tn. 

​  Saudi Arabia also opened direct cruise-missile strikes on four Yemeni governorates, and the AfD took Saxony-Anhalt with ~44% - the first far-right state win in Germany since 1945. Everything else (Donbas grind, diesel crack, gold accumulation) is continuation with fresh numbers.​  https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-07

Hyped Mecca Joint Defense Pact Is MIA After Houthis Targeted Four Saudi Cities​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/hyped-mecca-joint-defense-pact-mia-after-houthis-targeted-four-saudi-cities

​  Caitlyn Johnstone, Israel Is Destroying Evidence Of Genocide In Gaza

Remember how we were always hearing that the official death toll in Gaza is an undercount because there are thousands of bodies trapped under the rubble​?​ Well, it looks like Israel has been moving those remains along with the rubble, conveniently destroying evidence of genocide.​   https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/israel-is-destroying-evidence-of

​  Nearly 9,000 killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since 2023
More than 179 attacks on ambulance crews recorded since March 2, killing 179 healthcare workers.​   https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/6/nearly-9000-killed-in-israeli-attacks-on-lebanon-since-2023

Israel attacks a hospital in Nabatieh, Lebanon​   https://en.mehrnews.com/news/247478/Israel-attacks-a-hospital-in-Nabatieh-Lebanon

Five Killed, 24 Wounded as Israel Launches New Attacks across Lebanon​   https://www.palestinechronicle.com/five-killed-24-wounded-as-israel-launches-new-attacks-across-lebanon/

​Armored-Bulldozer Genocide: ‘Not a Single Home Standing’: Israel Empties 66th Palestinian Village  https://www.palestinechronicle.com/not-a-single-home-standing-israel-empties-66th-palestinian-village/

​  Israeli occupiers attack journalists, Palestinian children at West Bank playground​ - Tel Aviv declares playground in Umm al-Khair a closed military zone, bars residents from entering​   https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israeli-occupiers-attack-journalists-palestinian-children-at-west-bank-playground/4048496

​  Death toll from Israeli settler attacks spirals in 'most violent' year for West Bank
Thousands of attacks by Israeli settlers and soldiers have left at least 76 Palestinian dead in 2026​   https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/settler-attacks-west-bank-take-dangerous-turn

West Bank squeezed by Israeli raids and settler attacks as displacement crisis deepens​   https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/04/369536/

​  JENIN, September 6, 2026 (WAFA) – Israeli occupation forces continued bulldozing and uprooting olive trees on both sides of the Jenin-Nablus road, near the village of Wadi Daouq, south of Jenin, on Sunday.
​  The head of the Wadi Daouq village council, Abdul Nasser Al-Huwaiti, told WAFA that the bulldozing began at the Arraba roundabout and extended towards the village entrance, encompassing lands on both sides of the road.​   https://english-wafa-ps.translate.goog/Pages/Details/174423?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

​  Muta documents 1,223 settlement-related crimes in August as West Bank escalation widens

Settler attacks in the occupied West Bank are no longer isolated incidents that end when the assault is over. The toll recorded in August reveals a wider trajectory in which attacks on Palestinians and their property intersect with land confiscation, home seizures and the expansion of settlement outposts.​ The Palestine Information Center, Muta, documented 1,223 settlement-related crimes in a single month.
​ The figure means an average of around 39 crimes per day, in one of the clearest signs of escalation.​   https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/04/369531/

​   What got into him? US envoy demands consequences for Israeli settlers’ ‘acts of terror’ in West Bank, denies Gaza expulsion plan

TURMUS AYYA, Palestinian Territories: The US ambassador to Israel said Saturday that the Israeli government bore responsibility for West Bank Palestinians’ safety and should impose “severe consequences” over violence, as he visited families after a surge in attacks by Israeli settlers.
​  Ambassador Mike Huckabee went further in remarks during his visit to the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya, describing some settlers responsible for arson, vandalism and property seizures as carrying out “acts of terror” — unusually strong language from a US official.​   https://www.arabnews.com/middle-east/us-envoy-demands-consequences-for-israeli-settlers-acts-of-terror-in-west-bank-denies-gaza-expulsion-plan-3000575

Israel Shutters UK Consulate For Leading New European Sanctions Against West Bank Settlers​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/israel-shutters-uk-consulate-new-european-sanctions-against-west-bank-settlers

​  US officials threaten retaliation against UK over Israeli settlements sanctions
Mike Huckabee calls UK policy 'discrimination', while Randy Fine warns British companies could be stopped from doing business in Florida​   https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/us-officials-threaten-retaliation-against-uk-over-israeli-settlements-sanctions

​  Board of Peace told PA to remove ‘Palestine’ from textbooks, former UK envoy says

Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair was recently sent by Donald Trump’s Board of Peace to ask the Palestinian Authority (PA) to replace any mention of the word “Palestine” in schoolbooks with the Jewish designation of “Samaria”.​

​  Jeremy Greenstock, who was Britain’s ambassador to the UN between 1998 and 2003, told MEE that Blair attempted to exert pressure on the PA and said that if it was serious about being seen by the Board of Peace as capable of reaching an agreement with Israel to end the war on Gaza, then the word “Palestine” should be erased from textbooks.    https://israelpalestinenews.org/board-of-peace-told-pa-to-remove-palestine-from-textbooks-former-uk-envoy-says/

Emptying Gaza: Ben-Gvir Unveils Plan for Ethnic Cleansing of 1.86 Million Palestinians​   https://www.palestinechronicle.com/emptying-gaza-ben-gvir-unveils-plan-for-ethnic-cleansing-of-1-86-million-palestinians/

​  Israel ‘seeking Trump’s support for plan to expel Palestinians from Gaza’​ - Defence minister says he believes US backing could tip regional balance in favour of forced resettlement​   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/02/israel-seeking-trumps-support-for-plan-to-expel-palestinians-from-gaza

US rejects Israel’s plan to ethnically cleanse Gaza​   https://israelpalestinenews.org/us-rejects-israels-plan-to-ethnically-cleanse-gaza-daily-update/

Israel’s Gaza Attacks Continue: 17 Dead, 27 Wounded in 48 Hours​   https://www.palestinechronicle.com/israels-gaza-attacks-continue-17-dead-27-wounded-in-48-hours/

​  ‘They Keep Beating Me’: Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya Gives New Testimony from Israeli Prison

Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital, has provided new testimony describing continued physical abuse, sleep deprivation and threats by Israeli prison guards, according to a written statement provided by his lawyer.
​  The testimony followed a visit by his lawyer on Sunday, August 30, during which Abu Safiya said guards continued to beat him on different parts of his body, including sensitive areas, using their hands, feet and batons.​   https://israelpalestinenews.org/they-keep-beating-me-dr-hussam-abu-safiya-gives-new-testimony-from-israeli-prison/

​  33 Dems Help Pass House Bill That Would Strip Funds From Colleges That Boycott Israel
“The goal here is to basically say every university not only cannot refuse cooperation with Israel but must actively seek every opportunity to cooperate with Israel,” said one analyst.​   https://www.commondreams.org/news/college-israel-boycott-bill

​  RFK Jr: The war in Ukraine is a money laundering scheme for BlackRock​:"Using the conflict as a pretext, Ukraine has sold off 30% of its land. But who bought that fertile land? DuPont, Cargill, and Monsanto. And guess who owns those companies... BlackRock."​   https://x.com/ivan_8848/status/2096176506523304402

​"You can't always get what you want...": In Putin Call, Trump Seeks Swift End To Ukraine War & Restoration Of US-Russia Ties   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/new-putin-call-trump-seeks-swift-end-ukraine-war-restoration-us-russia-ties

  John Helmer on Trump not getting a big-win he needs before November: “TALK SOFTLY, CARRY BIG STICK, AND YOU WILL GO FAR” – BUT NOT TO A MEETING WITH PUTIN AND ZELENSKY, MODI AND XI   https://johnhelmer.net/talk-softly-carry-big-stick-and-you-will-go-far-but-not-to-a-meeting-with-putin-and-zelensky-modi-and-xi/#more-94931

  Gilbert Doctorow, News X World this morning: Russian strikes on Kiev resume

In this brief chat, I raise the issue of the duality in US policy towards the Russia-Ukraine war, as President Trump pulls in one direction trying to broker a peace now for the benefit of Republican electoral prospects in November, while the CIA pulls in the other direction, to continue the war, to hold onto their large presence in Kiev and to weaken, possibly defeat Russia as drone strikes rise in frequency and potency.

​  I also look at the Russian side, where President Putin shows no sign of willingness to do what has to be done to end the war quickly – namely a decapitation strike on Kiev. He cannot even bring himself to cut the rail lines that carry the diplomatic tourists from Europe, and now also from the USA (Witkoff and Kushner) to their meetings in Kiev with Zelensky.​   
​  It is patently clear that there is no chance for resolution of the conflict so long as Zelensky remains in office and continues to receive heavy backing from the EU/NATO. Meanwhile, Putin is saying that he does not want to touch the powers that be in Kiev because there will then be no one to negotiate with.​   https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/news-x-world-this-morning-russian

Pentagon Informs Allies Prepare For "Protracted" War In Ukraine​   https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/pentagon-informs-allies-prepare-protracted-war-ukraine

​  Andrew Korybko, Why Won’t China Cut Ukraine Off From Drone-Related Sales?

Indefinitely perpetuating the Ukrainian Conflict through these means indefinitely delays the full implementation of the US’ planned “Pivot (back) to (East) Asia”, can lead to Russia selling its natural resource wealth to China at bargain-basement prices, and maintains China’s “active neutrality”.​   https://korybko.substack.com/p/why-wont-china-cut-ukraine-off-from

​  A small unarmed consumer video-drone was found before this got blown up to a "threat": THE LEIPZIG AIRPORT DRONE INCIDENT – NEWLY PUBLISHED SOURCE ACCOUNT   https://johnhelmer.net/the-leipzig-airport-drone-incident-newly-published-source-account/#more-94923

Germany trains special forces to seize ships from Russia's shadow fleet.​   https://en.topcor.ru/73915-germanija-treniruet-specnaz-zahvatyvat-suda-tenevogo-flota-rossii.html

​  Gilbert Doctorow, Good tidings from Germany: the AfD has won 44% of the vote in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt

The news from Saxony-Anhalt of an electoral victory by the so-called Far Right party Alternativ fűr Deutschland (AfD) was not unexpected, but the level of its support was much higher than predicted – 44% of the vote in conditions of high voter turnout. Meanwhile, Chancellor Merz’s Christian Democrats (CDU) lost half its electoral support since the last elections, holding only 18% of the electorate.
​  Major media are uncertain what comes next. Will AfD form a coalition government, which it is determined not to do? Or will, by default, government formation fall to the right-of-center CDU and the left-of-center Social Democrats, with several smaller parties? The FT puts its bet on the AfD coming to power, most likely by attracting defections from other parties. They also hold out the possibility of its agreeing a cooperation, not a coalition, but an informal alliance with the so-called Far Left party of Sarah Wagenknecht, assuming that the final tally of votes puts her over the 5% threshold for receiving seats in the legislature.
​  The bigger picture, of course, is what this latest development means for the rest of Germany. Two other states have elections before the end of the month, one of which is the Berlin region. The still bigger picture is that the long held policy of a cordon sanitaire around the AfD by the other German political parties to exclude them from governance is seen to have been a failure and possibly counterproductive at that, since it was in effect a denial of democracy, a refusal to listen to the voice of the people.​   https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/good-tidings-from-germany-the-afd

​  Simplicius, AfD’s Historic Win Sends Reverberations of ‘Shock’ Through German Establishment

The victory is already being downplayed by many, owing to the fact that Saxony-Anhalt is technically one of Germany’s smallest and least consequential states. But there is far more to it than sheer numbers, as the win defines a turning point not only in German but European politics, and cements the gradual downfall of the globalist ruling class that has tried desperately for decades to keep populist movements from gaining power, in particular utilizing the “Brandmauer” or “firewall” to suppress the so-called far-right.
​  The destruction of this firewall is an historic occasion, even if it should come by way of such a seemingly inconsequential state.​..

..A secondary effect of the victory is that it has caused the ruling German establishment to go back to the drawing board and review its most unpopular policies, like on immigration, in order to bend with the clearly changing winds...

..Part of the reason of course has to do with mass dissatisfaction with the federal government amongst the populace, as seen in polls like the one below, which shows 88% disfavor...

..The establishment is in a moral panic, with mainstream outlets rolling out the usual scare-mongering tactics about the rise of the so-called “far-right”, a designation deemed specious by most when it comes to the AfD.​   https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/afds-historic-win-sends-reverberations

​  France can’t finance Ukraine forever – Le Pen party’s head​ - Paris needs guarantees that Kiev will repay the money it’s been getting during its conflict with Moscow, Jordan Bardella has said​   https://web.archive.org/web/20260906094850/https://www.rt.com/news/645176-france-ukraine-le-pen-bardella/

​  France’s Right Wing RN Opposition Party: “Stop Sending Weapons to Ukraine”. Intensifies Criticism of Kiev Regime.​ - The popularity of the French opposition is significantly growing.​   https://www.globalresearch.ca/french-opposition-intensifies-criticism-ukraine/5939512?doing_wp_cron=1788868481.7809870243072509765625

​  Europe's Von der Leyen Wants To Put Private Bank Deposits Under State Direction​   

How will we deal with private property in Europe in the future?
​  A highly complex debate follows from this question, one that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen interpreted in her own very particular way on Friday. In a speech to French business leaders at the MEDEF’s La Rencontre des Entrepreneurs de France in Paris, the former defense minister talked about using EU citizens’ bank deposits to get the ailing eurozone, the European economy, back on its feet.

​  An unmistakable message: In the view of the EU’s chief Eurocrat, private property as a protective wall shielding citizens from an overreaching state has served its purpose as a pillar of civilization.​   https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/europes-von-der-leyen-wants-put-private-bank-deposits-under-state-direction

​  Spain: Morocco directly organized migrant invasion in Ceuta, according to leaked police document
Ceuta was not an accident but a planned operation from the Moroccan government, according to a Spanish police report which was just leaked​   https://rmx.news/article/spain-morocco-directly-organized-migrant-invasion-in-ceuta-according-to-leaked-police-document/

​  Kyle Young looks at the murder case that was supposed to be wrapped-up when police shot Tyler Robinson, which didn't happen: Why are so many people in the Charlie Kirk murder orbit one step from child trafficking?   https://secularheretic.substack.com/p/why-are-so-many-people-in-the-charlie

"Danger, Will Robinson, Danger, Danger!": Alarming Study Reveals Using AI Is Turning Humans More Robotic​   https://endtimeheadlines.org/2026/09/alarming-study-reveals-using-ai-is-turning-humans-more-robotic/

What if an AI plans and commits murder? OpenAI’s rogue agents keep escaping, with no formal process to investigate them​   https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/04/openais-rogue-agents-keep-escaping-with-no-formal-process-to-investigate-them/

​  Anthropic Proves Safety Audit Scores Mislead: Cheating AI Scored 4.20, Hacked Cluster​ - Model trained to cheat looked identical to safe baseline on standard AI safety evaluations​   https://www.techtimes.com/articles/326179/20260901/anthropic-proves-safety-audit-scores-mislead-cheating-ai-scored-420-hacked-cluster.htm

​  A Midwestern Doctor covers a LOT of ground here. Data centers can't make-profits, but they might be able to control every human with a phone. How the Law of Displacement Can Solve the Data Center Crisis

​  To stop data centers from ruining communities, they must be displaced by something cheaper—and for once, cheaper is not only better, but the money also exists to build it and the green energy it needs​   https://www.midwesterndoctor.com/p/how-the-law-of-displacement-can-solve

​  The records exist. She knows the data: New Adviser to RFK Jr. Investigating 2,500 COVID Vaccine Deaths in Military

Dr. Theresa Long, a longtime Army doctor board-certified in aerospace medicine, has been named senior medical military adviser to U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., according to an Aug. 14 deposition obtained by Politico. Long is investigating whether COVID-19 vaccines caused the deaths of over 2,500 U.S. military service members.​   https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/new-adviser-to-rfk-jr-investigating-2500-covid-vaccine-deaths-in-military/

​  Meryl Nass MD, The best site I have ever found for collected information on geoengineering, aka weather warfare and its experimentation

Very important stuff​   https://merylnass.substack.com/p/the-best-site-i-have-ever-found-for

​  My DIY Hi-Fi buddy Joe Roberts One-man-band of "Sound Practices" magazine is interviewed here and pictured in his Austin home around Y2k. 

Brilliant Corners #40: Sound Practices, Setting Hi-Fi Back Decades, One Listener at a Time​, Alex Halberstadt

​  I had a paradigm-changing experience with a Tannoy dual-concentric driver from the 1960s mounted in a homemade plywood box. It made most contemporary speakers sound colorless, congested, and boring and raised the possibility that components created prior to the verities of holographic soundstaging and high-frequency "sparkle" had something to offer. But in those pre-internet days, where could an interested party find more information?
​  For many of us, the answer became Sound Practices, a semiregular quarterly out of Austin, Texas. It ignored the high-end mainstream and covered vintage audio as well as the DIY creations of hi-fi experimenters from around the world, many of whom were looking back to the theater systems of the 1920s and '30s for inspiration. During its meager press run—just 16 issues published between 1992 and 1997—it introduced a generation of listeners to horn speakers, full-range drivers, idler-drive turntables, low-power triode amplifiers, and other items that had been nearly forgotten in the novelty-addled early years of high-end audio.
​  Better yet, Sound Practices was not only cool but downright punk in its provocations. Whereas many audio manufacturers of the time tried to position their gear as luxury lifestyle accessories, like a Porsche or a cigar humidor, the magazine suggested that audio could be a form of self-expression as personal as one's taste in literature or art, and imbued with both meaning and a high degree of style.​.. 

​..I corresponded with Roberts by email about his short-lived experiment in magazine publishing and its ongoing legacy.
Alex Halberstadt: How did you get started in audio?
​  Joe Roberts: I was interested in electronics before I understood what audio really was. I was one of those kids who trash-picked TVs to take them apart. I studied ham radio books from the library and got my license in 8th grade. I had a couple of receivers and bookshelf speakers in high school. It was the '70s. You had to. I was just a total nerd.
​  I lasted one class as a physics major at Penn before switching to anthropology and communications. During freshman year, I picked up my first tube gear: a Dynaco preamp and ST-35 amp at a thrift shop. I continued to study electronics and read old audio magazines and books in the engineering library instead of doing my actual homework.
​  I also had a job recording the Philadelphia Orchestra with WFLN. We had the latest and greatest pro amps and monitoring speakers out in the work spaces, but I thought the best sound at the recording studio was a pair of Dynaco A25s and an ST-70 in the electronics tech's lab. By the time I graduated, my studio apartment was a pile of tube gear, a folding table and chair, 100 books, 100 LPs, and a mattress on the floor. I had already sailed away from the lab-tested marina of High Fidelity and Audio magazines into a time-travel technological relativism that I guess I am still lost in.​   https://www.stereophile.com/content/brilliant-corners-40-sound-practices-setting-hi-fi-back-decades-one-listener-time

​Thermionic-Valvehead (pictured climbing hill on 1987 Cinelli fixed-gear bike)