Financially Vulnerable,
The working-hypothesis I promote is that what we see in the world "not making sense" is the transition to economic contraction after 300 years of economic growth powered by fossil fuels and advances in the technology to burn them to perform work and make useful things. The concept of "Peak Oil" was calculated by the world's foremost petroleum-geologist, M. King Hubbert around 1957, came true for the US peak around 1971, and peak conventional-oil around 2005. The Arab Oil Embargo and Global Financial Crisis followed those inflections from increase to decline.
In late 2018 there was a peak in oil + condensates, followed by the repo-crisis the next August, Event 201 in New York to war-game a global coronavirus pandemic, the go-live in Wuhan in December 2019, and COVID-lockdowns and bank-bailouts in spring of 2020.
June 13, 2020 I posted this from Fabio Vighi:
The mainstream narrative should therefore be reversed: the stock market did not collapse (in March 2020) because lockdowns had to be imposed; rather, lockdowns had to be imposed because financial markets were collapsing. With lockdowns came the suspension of business transactions, which drained the demand for credit and stopped the contagion. In other words, restructuring the financial architecture through extraordinary monetary policy was contingent on the economy’s engine being turned off. Had the enormous mass of liquidity pumped into the financial sector reached transactions on the ground, a monetary tsunami with catastrophic consequences would have been unleashed.As claimed by economist Ellen Brown, it was “another bailout”, but this time “under cover of a virus.” Similarly, John Titus and Catherine Austin Fitts noted that the Covid-19 “magic wand” allowed the Fed to execute BlackRock’s “going direct” plan, literally: it carried out an unprecedented purchase of government bonds, while, on an infinitesimally smaller scale, also issuing government backed ‘COVID loans’ to businesses. In brief, only an induced economic coma would provide the Fed with the room to defuse the time-bomb ticking away in the financial sector.
https://thephilosophicalsalon.com/a-self-fulfilling-prophecy-systemic-collapse-and-pandemic-simulation/
November 2025 saw a year of rising US tight-oil output with a new and slightly higher peak of oil + condensates. In February the US attacked Iran for no apparent reason better than Israel told them to. That war forced the Strait of Hormuz closed, which was widely predicted, greatly reducing the flows of sour crude oil, natural gas, helium and fertilizer to the world, and impairing global financial arrangements based on those flows of core commodities.
This doesn't make sense in the context of the last 300 years of growing global wealth based upon utilization of fossil fuels, but if that flow has finally peaked, and we face a long decline of real wealth, then we need to reconsider how it might make sense in the context of a world of less...
The world declining in real wealth does not mean the decline happens evenly, and one consortium of wealth might maintain wealth by destroying the industrial production capacity of a rival consortium, and/or choking off its supplies of critical resources, as at the Strait of Hormuz, or the Black Sea, for instance.
War of resource-denial is an attractive option, because the choking of critical supplies to a rival can be imposed at less expense than traditional kinetic war for productive territory. Imposing an early loss or a relatively more severe loss upon a rival, or even upon a neutral player, may improve the relative standing of a robust player within the game hierarchy, even if absolute wealth lessens in the process.
I propose that the initiatives we are seeing from the US, Russia and China reflect, a new form of game being played in the long decline of industrial economy, with different limitations and objectives than were assumed in the centuries of growing global industrial economy.
Since 2008 risks have all been concentrated under national public programs, while profits have been legally garrisoned to private ownership, which is largely hidden from view. What is about to take place is partly described in The Great Taking, which ellen Brown explained well here: The Great Taking, How They Can Own It All https://ellenbrown.com/2023/10/03/the-great-taking-how-they-plan-to-own-it-all/
The looming risk to our elite "owners" is revolution. To that end they are arranging vast, life threatening-wars to emergently occupy and kill-off the men who might work together to overthrow them and redistribute wealth within their countries. Those men are now to be known as "Communist Terrorists", if you please.
The Honest Sorcerer, The Oil Price "Mystery" - Why high oil prices are a mythical red dragon - and what to focus on instead
The real issue is not the price of crude oil. Remember: the economy runs on refined products: gasoline, diesel, jet fuel etc. The cash (wholesale) price for ultra low sulfur diesel fuel, powering everything from goods transportation, agriculture, mining, construction and acting as a back up fuel for electricity generation, has returned to $4 per gallon, or $168 per barrel. How does that compare to a ~$80 oil price? .....It is not oil at $150 which will kill the economy—that is a mythical red dragon “economists” scare their audience with—but record high fuel prices. Citing the cost of crude oil is thus a total misdirection.
"We've Burned Through All Buffers": Oil Traders Warn Market Running On Fumes https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/weve-burned-through-all-buffers-oil-traders-warn-market-running-fumes
Pepe says (my transcription):
“This is not a conspiracy theory. I heard this same possibility of discussion from well placed, anonymous sources. It is a calculated implosion of the global economy. ‘Let’s blow it all up.’ As our last measure, because it [things] won’t get better. Of course we can profit. We can zero out our foreign debt. We can restart all over again.’ So this would be the new meaning of the Great Reset. This is the only plausible, logical, rational explanation….” https://merylnass.substack.com/p/2-things-having-and-treating-cyclosporiasis
Making matters worse, much worse—and fitting neatly into this little story we are uncovering here—are the recent and highly successful Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries and shipping on the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Russian diesel exports were already down by 683,000 barrels a day but now they have completely collapsed to zero from 800,000 barrels a day before the war, forcing Russia to import fuel. Needless to say this comes on top of Persian Gulf diesel exports falling by more than 520,000 barrels compared to last year—a deficit which is also supposed to increase due to renewed Hormuz hostilities. And while usually the US Gulf is the main producer to fill such gaps, refineries there are already running at full bore, at 96% utilization. This would make India the world’s refining swing producer but New Delhi has recently doubled export duties on diesel and jet fuel as the government wants more of those barrels available at home before they leave for overseas buyers. This is how the world enters a major diesel fuel crunch—potentially leading to a historic economic downturn—even as oil prices stay comfortably below $100 a barrel. https://thehonestsorcerer.substack.com/p/the-oil-price-mystery
Meryl Nass MD posted this, 2 things: having and treating cyclosporiasis, and what might be the end game of the recent uptick in the Iran War
After Pepe (Escobar) spoke eruditely for 30 minutes, he finally got to the bottom line: what does this all mean?
He says, and this makes sense to me too, that the only plausible explanation for what Trump is doing is that those who control Trump have a potential plan to bring on the Great Reset. And since they control how it will go down, they can profit as it happens.Pepe says (my transcription):
“This is not a conspiracy theory. I heard this same possibility of discussion from well placed, anonymous sources. It is a calculated implosion of the global economy. ‘Let’s blow it all up.’ As our last measure, because it [things] won’t get better. Of course we can profit. We can zero out our foreign debt. We can restart all over again.’ So this would be the new meaning of the Great Reset. This is the only plausible, logical, rational explanation….” https://merylnass.substack.com/p/2-things-having-and-treating-cyclosporiasis
Caitlin Johnstone on deep state weaponization of the New Red-Scare: They're Launching A New COINTELPRO For The 21st Century
The United States has for example placed sanctions on UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese for calling attention to Israeli atrocities in Gaza, justifying the move by claiming the human rights expert has “expressed support for terrorism”. In the UK, police have been arresting people on terrorism charges just for holding signs which say “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”.
The designation has nothing to do with actual acts of terrorism as the average westerner conceives of that notion. In 2024 the US government removed its $10 million bounty on former Al Qaeda leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (AKA Abu Mohammad al-Jolani) because he facilitated Washington’s regime change agendas in Syria, where he is now the sitting president. https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/theyre-launching-a-new-cointelpro
Simplicius on US looking for suckers to invade Iran: Speculations Over Ground Campaign into Iran Again Heat Up as US Moves to "Isolate" Coastal Zone https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/speculations-over-ground-campaign
Larry Johnson, China’s Beidou Satellite System is a Game Changer in Iran’s War with the US
Hat tip to Kevin Wamsley of Inside China Business. His recent video explaining the importance of China’s Beidou satellite navigation system provides a critical insight into the current success of Iran’s missile strikes on US and Israeli targets. It is a game changer. Let me summarize it. During the 12-day war in June 2025, Iranian missiles and drones struggled against sophisticated Israeli and American electronic warfare. GPS jamming and spoofing repeatedly disrupted their guidance systems, limiting their effectiveness during the intense 12-day conflict. Fast-forward to early 2026, and the battlefield dynamics had shifted dramatically. Iran’s precision strikes began threading through advanced air defenses, hitting high-value targets across the Gulf with surprising accuracy. Intelligence analysts pointed to one key factor: Iran had ditched GPS for China’s Beidou satellite navigation system.
The US unwittingly provided the spark that ignited China’s quest for the Beidou. The story begins in 1993 when a single Chinese container ship, the Yinhe, sailing to Iran, the vessel was accused by the CIA of carrying chemicals for weapons production. Middle Eastern ports, under pressure from the US, refused entry and the ship was stranded in the Indian Ocean. The US not only pressured allies but reportedly disabled the ship’s GPS access, forcing it to drop anchor for weeks. Inspections in Saudi Arabia eventually cleared the vessel, but China received no apology or compensation.
The US unwittingly provided the spark that ignited China’s quest for the Beidou. The story begins in 1993 when a single Chinese container ship, the Yinhe, sailing to Iran, the vessel was accused by the CIA of carrying chemicals for weapons production. Middle Eastern ports, under pressure from the US, refused entry and the ship was stranded in the Indian Ocean. The US not only pressured allies but reportedly disabled the ship’s GPS access, forcing it to drop anchor for weeks. Inspections in Saudi Arabia eventually cleared the vessel, but China received no apology or compensation.
This humiliation—losing navigation mid-ocean due to reliance on a foreign-controlled system—became a pivotal lesson for Beijing. It accelerated development of an independent satellite navigation network: Beidou (BDS)...
..Beidou outperforms GPS in coverage and precision across roughly 165 countries, offering a resilient alternative that cannot be unilaterally jammed or spoofed by Western powers.
After the 2025 conflict exposed vulnerabilities in GPS-dependent systems, Iran moved decisively. By late 2025 or early 2026, it integrated Beidou into its missile and drone arsenals...
After the 2025 conflict exposed vulnerabilities in GPS-dependent systems, Iran moved decisively. By late 2025 or early 2026, it integrated Beidou into its missile and drone arsenals...
..Key advantages of Beidou for Iran include:
Resistance to jamming/spoofing — Advanced frequency-hopping and anti-interference tech.
Higher accuracy — Circular error probable under 5 meters in key regions, enabling precise strikes with fewer munitions.
Real-time command — Secure messaging allows mid-flight adjustments over long distances.
Resistance to jamming/spoofing — Advanced frequency-hopping and anti-interference tech.
Higher accuracy — Circular error probable under 5 meters in key regions, enabling precise strikes with fewer munitions.
Real-time command — Secure messaging allows mid-flight adjustments over long distances.
This upgrade has contributed significantly to Iran’s ability to penetrate US defenses in the Gulf countries and dramatically improved Iran’s ability to strike critical targets, which has undermined confidence in US security guarantees in the Gulf. https://sonar21.com/chinas-beidou-satellite-system-is-a-game-changer-in-irans-war-with-the-us/
Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-07-18
The Iran-US war jumped a rung overnight: night seven of US strikes reached Iran's underground weapons storage for the first time, and Iran answered by hitting Prince Sultan in Saudi Arabia — its first direct strike there in nearly four months — while US officials quietly confirmed American casualties at Jordanian bases. Oil ripped toward $90 with the Strait of Hormuz down to a trickle.
On the screens, China's Kimi K3 dethroned Fable 5 and set off a synchronized tech flush that put the SOX in a bear market, wiped a claimed $1T off SpaceX, and — for a few hours — handed Apple the most-valuable-company crown back from Nvidia. Korea's margin-call cascade is the structural story underneath. https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-07-18
The Iran war went vertical overnight: a sixth straight night of US strikes moved openly onto Iranian bridges, railways and a civilian airport, and Iran answered by hitting five Gulf states at once — Bahrain's BAPCO refinery burning, the King Fahd Causeway struck, Al Udeid in Qatar targeted. The financial tell shifted from Korea to Japan, with the Nikkei entering a technical correction and the memory/AI complex leading a global risk-off. Meanwhile Kostiantynivka has fallen and Kyiv's government is eating itself over the (Defense Minister) Fedorov sacking. https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-07-17
CENTCOM says two US troops killed in Iranian attack on Jordan base.
Iran formally suspends MoU with the US, declaring agreement is over & commitments will no longer be fulfilled.
US strikes disrupt southern Iran's telecom network, knocking out 116 communication towers amid new infrastructure war.
Iran pounds Kuwait's energy infrastructure, damaging power & desalination facilities. https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/kuwait-pounded-iranian-barrage-oil-and-desalination-plants-come-under-attack
Iran formally suspends MoU with the US, declaring agreement is over & commitments will no longer be fulfilled.
US strikes disrupt southern Iran's telecom network, knocking out 116 communication towers amid new infrastructure war.
Iran pounds Kuwait's energy infrastructure, damaging power & desalination facilities. https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/kuwait-pounded-iranian-barrage-oil-and-desalination-plants-come-under-attack
Iran's large-scale 'retaliation' on US bases and Gulf states overnight included a rare first if confirmed. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it conducted a missile or drone attack on an American special operations command center at al-Tanf in Syria on Friday. https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/irgc-targets-us-command-center-syria-unprecedented-attack
In June 2026, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu wrote to Republican Representative Marlin Stutzman of California, saying that “the time has now arrived [for Israel] to move from aid recipient to partner” with the United States. Yesterday, on Fox News, Netanyahu again repeated the proposal to move “from aid to partnership“.
What Netanyahu proclaims is at the core of the proposed “United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative”, which has been included in a section of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that seeks to push the Pentagon budget to $1.5 trillion in 2027. This proposal to the annual military policy bill aims to essentially merge the Israeli and the US militaries.
While the initial bill, the “United States-Israel FUTURES Act,” failed as a standalone bill, the core provisions have been included in the NDAA. This aims to “expand and accelerate bilateral defense technology research, development, testing, evaluation, integration, and industrial cooperation” between the US and Israel, led by an “executive agent” decided by the US Defense Secretary.
This merger would integrate the United States and Israeli occupation militarily, including “data fusion”, “network integration”, research and development, weapons and bio-manufacturing, and collaboration with AI, cyber, and quantum machine learning technologies. While the Israeli occupation forces and US military are already deeply connected and share many of their genocidal tactics, this represents a significant entanglement of the two most belligerent and murderous militaries in the world. If passed, this would be the most integrated the United States is with any country on earth... What Netanyahu proclaims is at the core of the proposed “United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative”, which has been included in a section of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that seeks to push the Pentagon budget to $1.5 trillion in 2027. This proposal to the annual military policy bill aims to essentially merge the Israeli and the US militaries.
While the initial bill, the “United States-Israel FUTURES Act,” failed as a standalone bill, the core provisions have been included in the NDAA. This aims to “expand and accelerate bilateral defense technology research, development, testing, evaluation, integration, and industrial cooperation” between the US and Israel, led by an “executive agent” decided by the US Defense Secretary.
..In this case, the merger will deepen ruptures across the political, social, and economic system as the United States moves closer to its proxy. The main beneficiaries of this will be the weapons companies that profited immensely from and have made Israel’s genocide in Gaza possible, as they enter into new seamless contracts.
Israel is increasingly viewed across the world, and within the United States, as a pariah state. In the US, 60% of adults have an unfavourable view of Israel. This push to further integrate with Israel puts the US on the line in an attempt to ensure the continuation and longevity of the settler colonial project. By entrenching the US military with Israel’s own, it provides a layer of protection that goes even further than the impunity that has given Israel full rein to commit a holocaust in Gaza and further colonisation of the occupied West Bank. This integration will mean that Israel is given unfettered support to carry out its genocidal trajectory for the total colonisation of Palestine, inhibiting any future presidents from changing this relationship...
..This is a clear response to the massive movements that have erupted across the world for nearly three years in opposing Israel’s genocide and the role of countries in facilitating it. The US is, in a way, absorbing Israel to provide the legitimacy being chipped away at internationally and domestically, ending the narrative opposition to unlimited foreign aid to Israel, which has garnered bipartisan support... Israel is increasingly viewed across the world, and within the United States, as a pariah state. In the US, 60% of adults have an unfavourable view of Israel. This push to further integrate with Israel puts the US on the line in an attempt to ensure the continuation and longevity of the settler colonial project. By entrenching the US military with Israel’s own, it provides a layer of protection that goes even further than the impunity that has given Israel full rein to commit a holocaust in Gaza and further colonisation of the occupied West Bank. This integration will mean that Israel is given unfettered support to carry out its genocidal trajectory for the total colonisation of Palestine, inhibiting any future presidents from changing this relationship...
This NDAA is dangerous. Through the US-Israeli integration, it would facilitate more deadly technology, more weapons for genocide, and make it nearly impossible to sever support for Israel by the US. https://scheerpost.com/2026/07/15/israel-and-the-united-states-are-merging-their-militaries-heres-why/
“There are some people within their system, we know beyond a shadow of a doubt, who are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion to keep the war going on indefinitely,” Vance said.
He argued that those involved were not advocating continued military action in pursuit of a clearly defined objective, but were instead seeking to prolong the war without an endpoint...
He argued that those involved were not advocating continued military action in pursuit of a clearly defined objective, but were instead seeking to prolong the war without an endpoint...
..Vance referred to reporting suggesting that some of those funds had reached online influencers who later attacked him and the ceasefire agreement.
“When I open up the pages of Time magazine and I see that there’s a literal foreign influence campaign being funded to tank the very deal that I was pursuing, and, oh by the way, many of the people who were receiving that money were actually attacking me in completely dishonest ways, my response to that is: ‘Well, go to hell,’” he said.
“I’m going to do what I have to do for the American people. I represent Americans first,” Vance added...
“When I open up the pages of Time magazine and I see that there’s a literal foreign influence campaign being funded to tank the very deal that I was pursuing, and, oh by the way, many of the people who were receiving that money were actually attacking me in completely dishonest ways, my response to that is: ‘Well, go to hell,’” he said.
“I’m going to do what I have to do for the American people. I represent Americans first,” Vance added...
..Vance’s unusually sharp comments suggest that the disagreement is no longer being contained behind closed doors and has instead developed into a public struggle over US policy, Israeli influence and the future direction of the war. https://www.palestinechronicle.com/go-to-hell-jd-vance-accuses-israeli-officials-of-trying-to-prolong-iran-war/
A detailed Palestinian Christian report documenting Israel’s genocide in Gaza, the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and Israel’s apartheid system will be discussed across the Church of England after its General Synod overwhelmingly backed engagement with the document, despite warnings from pro-Israel groups, including Britain’s chief rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis. The Synod voted to stand in solidarity with Palestinian Christians and their fellow Palestinians. https://israelpalestinenews.org/palestine-is-disappearing-church-backs-genocide-report-despite-chief-rabbis-bid-to-block-debate/
Anna Liedtke files criminal complaint in Israel over alleged attack by female guards and says abuse was intended to silence campaigners https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/15/gaza-flotilla-activist-rape-complaint-israel-anna-liedtke
With over 9,500 missing in Gaza, Palestinians search for family members under the rubble, in the "numbered graves cemetery," or in Israeli prisons. https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/missing-unidentified-gaza-dead-detained-numbers-cemetery
Fatima Saed Youssef, 34, is among the most serious cases in the prison. She suffers from hepatitis C, in addition to a severe infection at the site of a surgery she underwent before her arrest.
Youssef has also lost around 22 kilograms within a few months of her detention, raising growing fears that her health could deteriorate further due to continued medical neglect.
The AMO said Fatima’s suffering is not limited to her illness, noting that her six children are being deprived of their mother. Her family also lacks accurate information about the level of medical care she is receiving inside the prison because of restrictions on visits and communication. https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/07/15/366715/
Youssef has also lost around 22 kilograms within a few months of her detention, raising growing fears that her health could deteriorate further due to continued medical neglect.
The AMO said Fatima’s suffering is not limited to her illness, noting that her six children are being deprived of their mother. Her family also lacks accurate information about the level of medical care she is receiving inside the prison because of restrictions on visits and communication. https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/07/15/366715/
According to the sources, the settler fled the scene following the incident. Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulance crews transported the child to a hospital for medical treatment. https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/07/16/366719/
Israel keeps killing in Gaza as it polishes its reputation in US – Daily Update https://israelpalestinenews.org/israel-keeps-killing-in-gaza-as-it-polishes-its-reputation-in-us-daily-update/
Government removes legal protections for Nile crocodiles as Ben Gvir pushes for detention compound ringed by reptiles https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-advances-crocodile-prison-plan-palestinian-prisoners
Saudis Cleared To Buy A Whopping 20,000 Laser-Guided Rockets
The Saudis are clearly arming themselves to defend against a massive number of drones in future conflicts. https://www.twz.com/air/saudis-cleared-to-buy-a-whopping-20000-laser-guided-rockets
The Saudis are clearly arming themselves to defend against a massive number of drones in future conflicts. https://www.twz.com/air/saudis-cleared-to-buy-a-whopping-20000-laser-guided-rockets
Thursday 7/16/26, Simplicius, Political Crisis in Kiev as Shrinking Zelensky Ousts Popular Defense Minister
Large crowds have gathered in protest of President Zelensky for his decision to remove the popular Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
Since his appointment early this year, Fedorov was said to have been instrumental in fighting corruption and transforming the AFU into even more of a technologically dominant force.
At only 35 years of age, Fedorov was young, dashing, intelligent, energetic, and because of these things, posed a direct threat to Zelensky who, rumor had it, feared that Fedorov was gearing up to eventually vie for the presidency himself.
But the main reasons Fedorov was dismissed was reportedly over a loggerheads with Syrsky, who himself told Zelensky in no uncertain terms that it was either “me or him”.
In short, Syrsky made Zelensky choose between the two all because Fedorov had criticized Syrsky and wanted him removed. Perhaps even more importantly, Fedorov was fighting to stop the massive grift in the Defense Ministry, which was a big no-no as the “senior officials” making a killing off of military contracts had essentially turned it into a mob and did not want anyone cutting off their tap of Western funds. https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/political-crisis-in-kiev-as-shrinking
In short, Syrsky made Zelensky choose between the two all because Fedorov had criticized Syrsky and wanted him removed. Perhaps even more importantly, Fedorov was fighting to stop the massive grift in the Defense Ministry, which was a big no-no as the “senior officials” making a killing off of military contracts had essentially turned it into a mob and did not want anyone cutting off their tap of Western funds. https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/political-crisis-in-kiev-as-shrinking
Also Thursday, July 16, Moon of Alabama, Another Anti-Western Coup In Kiev
Today, in addition to another barrage of Russia missiles, Kiev was also struck by a power struggle between the mafia like ‘family’ around acting president Vladimir Zelensky and the western financed ‘grant structures’ around the unconstitutional anti-corruption authorities.
Six month ago Zelensky installed the 35-year old Mykhailo Fedorov as Minister of Defense. Last night, under the guise of a larger cabinet reform, he fired him.
Fedorov is a tech savvy ‘silicon valley’ guy who knows how to promote himself. His job was to reform the draft system and the recruitment offices known for snatching people off the street to feed them as cannon fodder into the assault brigades of the Soviet-trained Commander in Chief General Alexander Syrsky (‘the best general the Russians have’).
Fedorov set out to modernize the Ukrainian army by hyping drone warfare and more effective procurement. This however led to resistance from two important constituencies.
The regular military despised Fedorov for his lack of knowledge about military affairs. Fedorov bought fancy ‘cyber’ weapons and long-range drones while the soldiers said their needs were elsewhere.
Those of the Zelensky ‘family’ who were making billions from military procurements were aghast when Fedorov started to cut into their business...
..Meanwhile the core job Fedorov was hired to do, the reform of the recruiting system, has made zero progress. Public attacks on recruitment officers and news of draftees dying during the drafting process appear nearly daily.Today, in addition to another barrage of Russia missiles, Kiev was also struck by a power struggle between the mafia like ‘family’ around acting president Vladimir Zelensky and the western financed ‘grant structures’ around the unconstitutional anti-corruption authorities.
Six month ago Zelensky installed the 35-year old Mykhailo Fedorov as Minister of Defense. Last night, under the guise of a larger cabinet reform, he fired him.
Fedorov is a tech savvy ‘silicon valley’ guy who knows how to promote himself. His job was to reform the draft system and the recruitment offices known for snatching people off the street to feed them as cannon fodder into the assault brigades of the Soviet-trained Commander in Chief General Alexander Syrsky (‘the best general the Russians have’).
Fedorov set out to modernize the Ukrainian army by hyping drone warfare and more effective procurement. This however led to resistance from two important constituencies.
The regular military despised Fedorov for his lack of knowledge about military affairs. Fedorov bought fancy ‘cyber’ weapons and long-range drones while the soldiers said their needs were elsewhere.
Those of the Zelensky ‘family’ who were making billions from military procurements were aghast when Fedorov started to cut into their business...
Fedorov had gained some prominence with western journalist and ‘grant structures’ aligned with EU and U.S. non-government organizations. As soon as it was known that he would be fired they called for demonstrations. This morning a few dozen people turned out for another ‘cardboard Maidan’.
Immediately recruitment officers appeared to check who of those protesters were eligible for military service.
Fedorov has made the big mistake to think that the war should be about winning against Russia. https://www.moonofalabama.org/2026/07/another-anti-western-coup-in-kiev.html
Friday, July 16, Zelensky's Cabinet Reshuffle Backfiring As He Names New Defense Minister
Amid a continuing status of martial law in Ukraine, one European headline underscores that President Zelensky's significant cabinet and defense ministry reshuffling has 'backfired'. Public outrage and rare protests have ensued in the capital and across various cities after he sacked popular Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who many Ukrainians see as having turned the tide of the war with Russia, implementing an ambitious tech-focused drone strategy.
Zelensky has now confirmed the dismissal by appointing Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) chief Yevhen Khmara as acting defense minister.
..Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent of the WSJ, Yaroslav Trofimov, has pointed out that "Many Ukrainians (and not just Ukrainians) see this as Zelensky putting petty politics ahead of winning the war." If the protests grow rapidly, it could cause Zelensky's external supporters to sour on him. https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/zelenskys-cabinet-reshuffle-backfiring-he-names-new-defense-minister
Moon of Alabama, Economist: Let’s Start A War To Get Europeans Used To It
The Economist, the British media outlet of the Rothschild banker clan, has long been pushing for war against Russia. It is troubled though, because the population of (west-)Europe has no interest to die for those who profit from such conflicts.
Various surveys in Europe have found that people have no interest in ‘defending their country’, when that ‘defense’ is proposed to happen on the east side of the Dnieper river.
The editors have thus invited a U.S.-financed scholar to provide ideas on how the Europeans can be enticed to war.
Nathalie Tocci, a James Anderson Professor of the Practice at the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies Europe, took up the invitation (archived):
"EUROPEAN LEADERS understand that conflict is closer than ever—hence the sharp rise in defence budgets, as showcased at NATO’s recent summit in Ankara.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, European leaders have often expressed awe at Ukrainian resilience. But there is something else behind Europeans’ amazement: fear that they may not show the same resolve. This is not because of some inherent courage in Ukrainians which Europeans lack. It boils down to the fundamentally different "
Mrs. Tocci’s answer, as we will see, is “no!” ...
"Were European soldiers to be stationed in Ukraine, it would bring reality closer to home. And perhaps a fraction of Ukraine’s courage, humility and creativity could infect other European societies. European troops would not be put in harm’s way out of sheer generosity, but to help prepare for war—and prevent it from spilling into the rest of the continent."
Oh – sending German, French and Italian soldiers to Ukraine to kill Russian’s would “perhaps” bring a “reality”, which today does not exist, home? It would prevent the war “from spilling into the rest of Europe”?
So German, French, Italian soldiers sent to kill Russia soldiers in Ukraine would deter, not provoke, Russia from sending Oreshniks, or even larger nuclear missiles, to Berlin, Paris or Rome? (If you believe that please contact Mrs. Tocci’s sponsor.)
That would, obviously, not be the case.
But to prevent a larger European war is, as Mrs. Tocci writes ‘on invitation’ by The Economist, not the real aim of such an endeavor.
Her concern is to “encouraging citizens to develop a mindset that would better prepare them for war”. To do so, she says, we should provoke a war that is guaranteed to engulf us all. https://www.moonofalabama.org/2026/07/economist-lets-start-a-war-to-get-people-used-to-it.html
Andrew Korybko on the next-door neighbors' feelings, Nearly Half Of Poles Now Want To Stop Arming Ukraine https://korybko.substack.com/p/nearly-half-of-poles-now-want-to
EU to strip draft age Ukrainians of refugee protection - Military-age newcomers must prove compliance with Kiev’s mobilization rules under the new scheme https://web.archive.org/web/20260716052407/https://www.rt.com/news/643091-eu-ukraine-men-protection/
Zelensky ‘wants civilian deaths’ – Ukrainian spy - Kiev was allegedly plotting a terrorist attack that would overshadow the Moscow Crocus City Hall massacre https://web.archive.org/web/20260716075814/https://www.rt.com/news/643114-zelensky-wants-civilian-deaths/
Gilbert Doctorow on the inexorable pressure upon Russia to militarily escalate against Europe, Crimea – the new war zone
In my latest interviews and essays, I have made reference to the 3-hour international teleconference hosted by Russian staff based in Vienna who report to Sergei Lavrov at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Their conference was intended to raise international awareness of the ‘terror attacks’ that Ukraine is directing against the civilian population of the Kherson region, which is one of the 4 oblasts incorporated into the Russian Federation via referenda held in September 2022. The main speakers in this Zoom teleconference were the governor of Kherson oblast, leading doctors and victims of kamikazi drones and land mines laid by Ukrainian drones. We were told that the Ukrainian attacks have resulted in all electricity being cut off in the oblast and to generally unsupportable living conditions. This conference was entirely in line with the collection of evidence by the Russian investigative authorities regarding Ukrainian war crimes, as if there will be a kind of Nuremberg trial when the conflict ends in Russian victory. It is surely also intended to show the broad Russian public that its government is DOING SOMETHINHG about the marauding Ukrainians. However, it seems not to have occurred to the organizers that what they were saying and presenting indicates clearly that Russia is losing the war notwithstanding the advance of its troops along the line of confrontation in Donetsk...
This couple had planned to stay in Crimea until September, as was their custom, but the near total halt to gasolene sales due to Ukrainian destruction of refineries and storage tanks serving Crimea left them high and dry on the hill since local drivers who took them around in the past now had no fuel. So they were left without the possibility to get down to the town for provisions... Moreover, Yevpatoriya is one of the several municipalities in Crimea that has daily blackouts: the electricity has been cut by drone attacks on substations...
Under these circumstances, our friends were very lucky to procure train tickets to get out thanks to their advanced age, which gave them priority... At the train station in Feodosia hundreds of Russian summer visitors were desperately trying to get out. And once our friends got their seats on the train provided to them out of solicitude for old pensioners, they were lucky that their train made it across the Kerch bridge to mainland Russia without delays. I say that because the parallel automobile bridge has in recent days seen suspension of traffic for 12 hours or more at a time...
..But once across the bridge, the challenges facing our Petersburg friends did not end. As they approached the city of Krasnodar, a major agricultural hub to the northeast, their train came under constant and insistent drone attacks. Fortunately, the train crew was prepared to counter the drones, probably with small arms. And so they escaped from this threat and moved on into central Russia and eventually to Petersburg.
The point of this story is that today Crimea is a war zone. What Vladimir Putin achieved with the liberation of Crimea in March 2014 is now being lost by the latest phase of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/crimea-the-new-war-zone
They couldn't re-tool old machines to make re-designed shells, nor wait for new machines: New $500M Artillery Shell Plant Failed To Produce Any 155mm Parts - A scathing new Pentagon Inspector General report found problems at the plant delayed the Army's 100,000 round-per-month goal. https://www.twz.com/land/new-500m-artillery-shell-plant-failed-to-produce-any-155mm-parts
Alex Krainer has lived in reality. "Natural monopolies" should be public. It's old news: Is private enterprise best?
Western free market ideology says, yes; but empirical evidence and real life experience says, no. Private enterprise often destroys value rather than create it. At the very least, real-life experience suggests that not all private enterprises are superior, nor are all state-run enterprises inferior. In the past, I shared the experience with the trash collection services in Croatia. During the socialist era, trash collection was run by state companies, and our towns and cities were clean and orderly. I remember that many foreign visitors would remark how our cities were remarkably clean, and they really were.
But then, in the early 2000s, the service was privatized and the magic of private, free market capitalism took effect. Today, trash collection is much more expensive than before, private owners reduced the number of collection points, forcing everybody to carry their trash farther (effectively working for trash collectors for free), and the cherry on top is that our cities are no longer clean and orderly...
..Earlier this week, Thames Water, Britain’s largest water utility company, disclosed that they were about to run out of money and their annual results showed that they’re £18.5 billion in debt. The independent online news publication, OffGuardian, appropriately commented: But then, in the early 2000s, the service was privatized and the magic of private, free market capitalism took effect. Today, trash collection is much more expensive than before, private owners reduced the number of collection points, forcing everybody to carry their trash farther (effectively working for trash collectors for free), and the cherry on top is that our cities are no longer clean and orderly...
“You are a monopoly. You are selling something literally everyone needs for literally everything they do literally every day and that falls from the sky for FREE. How in the hell are you not making money?”
To make the very long story short, Thames Water was privatized in 2006. It was acquired for about £8 billion by an investment consortium led by the Australian merchant bank Macquarie. The following year, Thames Water made £241 million in profits. So far, so good - yay, free market capitalism! But the new owners paid themselves £656 million in dividends in 2007, nearly triple the profits the company earned. Thames Water continued to pay its owners over £200 million in dividends every year for seven consecutive years.
When it was privatized in 2006, Thames River had zero debt, but already in the first year under its new owners, the company’s debt load went to £3.4 billion. By 2017 it soared to £10.8 billion and by 2026, as we saw, to £18.5 billion... It’s a neat business - a legalized, open-ended looting operation...
"..During the 11 years in which our funds were shareholders in Thames Water, we oversaw the largest investment programme in the company’s history and the highest rate of investment per customer in the industry.” Whatever this "largest investment programme, highest per customer in the industry" was, it was NOT done to improve the service it provides to its customers. To the contrary, in private ownership, Thames River service deteriorated spectacularly. Macquarie was perfectly aware of this, and knew to get out just in time...
..In the four years after Macquarie’s exit, Thames River was fined £32.4 million for 11 water pollution cases involving recurring spills of untreated sewage into streams, rivers and the sea. Thames Water wasn’t the only private utility polluting Britain either: between 2015 and the 2023, there were 59 prosecutions of water companies in England...
..One of the first things Thames River’s owners did after they acquired the company was to set up offshore subsidiaries in the Cayman Islands. This is not normally required to improve water treatment service for customers in England. What it does do, however, is facilitate large-scale looting of public wealth and money laundering. Even Thames River employee pension scheme wasn’t spared: in 2008, the company’s pension fund had a £26.1m surplus. By 2015, it was £260 million in deficit. https://alexkrainer.substack.com/p/is-private-enterprise-bestWho gets to control the narrative machines? Trump Wants To Revoke Broadcast Licenses Of Networks That Didn't Air His Election Meddling Speech https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/trump-wants-revoke-broadcast-licenses-networks-didnt-air-his-election-interference-speech
Imagine a tight House race in a swing state. In the final weeks of the campaign, a new super PAC begins spending heavily against the incumbent. It runs ads on local television and reaches individual voters with highly tailored texts. The messaging is hard-hitting and seems to be swaying the electorate. None of it traces back to the opposing campaign....
.The super PAC is funded by a single LLC whose donor cannot be identified, and its spending decisions are being made by an AI agent that has been given a budget and a political objective and is now operating without any meaningful human direction. The "consultants" placing the ads are software. The text messages were crafted by the AI.
This is not a hypothetical we will face in some distant future. The technology already exists. A wealthy person, foreign government, or corporation that wants to influence an election without ever exposing themselves to scrutiny could set up such a campaign operation today. And under the Supreme Court's current campaign finance doctrine, the states and Congress may have little power to stop it...
This is not a hypothetical we will face in some distant future. The technology already exists. A wealthy person, foreign government, or corporation that wants to influence an election without ever exposing themselves to scrutiny could set up such a campaign operation today. And under the Supreme Court's current campaign finance doctrine, the states and Congress may have little power to stop it...
..The constitutional doctrine that currently protects the right of these companies to spend millions in our elections is the same doctrine that will be asked to protect something even stranger: The "speech" of artificial intelligence itself. https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/supreme-courts-ai-collision-course
The first (3/4) part gets into a lot of specific details of the necessity to design electric vehicles from the ground up differently from internal combustion vehicles. Every inefficiency demands more expensive battery. Having discovered this at near-fatal expense, both ford and Toyota approach showdowns with financial emergencies, with very different near-term strategies. Ford & Toyota Are Betting the Farm on the SAME Desperate HAIL MARY | Engineer Explains https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k77X47h6OVU
Andrea now has a newborn who she can't hold, lovingly smile into the face of, or nurse. Judge Revokes Bail for Mother Charged With Murdering Twins Who Died 8 Days After Vaccines - This is easily the most disturbing story of the year. https://www.vigilantfox.com/p/judge-revokes-bail-for-mother-charged
Steve Kirsch, The Official Louisiana State Data Has No Other Explanation: US Childhood Vaccines Are Increasing Infant Mortality
54/55 subgroup analyses show harm. It’s not random. It follows a perfect dose-response gradient (antigens/aluminum). Critics have all failed to explain how this is consistent with a safe vaccine. https://kirschsubstack.com/p/the-most-devastating-anti-vax-studyThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Health Alert Network (HAN) on the increase in cyclosporiasis in the United States.
The numbers published by the federal health agency are as follows: Since May 1, 1,645 lab-confirmed cases were reported to CDC in people who acquired cyclosporiasis in the United States. Cases were reported by 34 states. https://outbreaknewstoday.substack.com/p/cdc-han-on-cyclospora-infections
The numbers published by the federal health agency are as follows: Since May 1, 1,645 lab-confirmed cases were reported to CDC in people who acquired cyclosporiasis in the United States. Cases were reported by 34 states. https://outbreaknewstoday.substack.com/p/cdc-han-on-cyclospora-infections
Paul Marik MD says to strictly avoid sunburn, but cultivating daily moderate sun exposure without burn appears beneficial for most people.
Preventing Melanoma (Part 1): Why This Dangerous Skin Cancer Develops Its the(intense-episodic) UV radiation https://paulmarik.substack.com/p/preventing-melanoma-part-1-why-thisMetformin is the life-extending "fountain of middle-age", but it's a secret (bad for business): Why 'Big Pharma' Will Never Make a Cheap Anti-Aging Drug https://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2026/07/16/why_big_pharma_will_never_make_a_cheap_anti-aging_drug_1194451.html
Injured and bereaved Senators know not to talk about vaccine-injuries. Deny to survive: A Midwestern Doctor, What The US Senate Showed America About COVID-19 Vaccine Toxicity -- COVID-19 vaccine injures are so common many of the legislators who pushed them have also been severely injured—but still won't admit it. This culture of silence around these injuries must end. https://www.midwesterndoctor.com/p/what-the-us-senate-showed-america
Dodged That Bullet (pictured recently with rural veggie garden)
