Globalism / Great Reset –
Schuab’s daughter is on record stating climate shutdown were going to happen whether we like it or not.
OBSERVATION - Our benevolent overlords have spoken.
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“’Presented as a measure to protect Australians from false, misleading or deceptive information, or from information intended to cause serious harm, the bill actually is ‘a dangerous attempt to gain control and limit our freedom,’ according to Michelle Pearse, CEO of the Australian Christian Lobby.” the report explained.
The measure is “especially dangerous for Christians who want to express an alternate view to woke culture on gender and sexuality and for those who want to speak out against abortion,” she said.
“The bill is based on providing the media watchdog, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, with the power to strictly regulate what they interpret as harmful information and expression on online platforms like social media,” Pearse told Decision.
OBSERVATION - Australia (as well as many other countries) are serving as the ‘beta’ test zones for WEF inspired policies - chief of which is the control of free speech and thought. The outcome from the wuhan plandemic has demonstrated that the most effective voices must be silenced. Arguments counter to the narrative have to be stopped. The momentum is also growing to criminalize those who ‘spread’ misinformation via fines and even prison time. How dare we challenge our global overlords.
Economy –
A new CBS News/YouGov poll found that a majority 65 percent of Americans view the economy as “bad.” Specifically, the survey of 2,181 U.S. adult residents revealed that 61 percent described the economy as “struggling;” 56 percent said “uncertain;” 36 percent said “unfair;” and 27 percent said “punishing.” What’s even more damning is that a majority of the respondents placed either “a great deal” (44 percent) or some (36 percent) of the blame on Biden’s disastrous economic policies.
OBSERVATION - So far the regime’s efforts to put lipstick on the pig that is our economy hasn’t worked, as the people out there actually paying the bills see reality versus the entitled class within the DC beltway.
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Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago president Austan Goolsbee said Monday that he hasn’t made up his mind about whether to raise interest rates or stop hiking at the Fed’s next policy meeting in September, emphasizing that “nothing is off the table.”
The Fed’s goal, he said during an interview on Yahoo! Finance Live (video above), is to “stick on the golden path” and “get inflation down without causing a recession.”
“Thus far,” he added, “we are on the golden path.”
OBSERVATION - For the Fed, they only have a hammer and that makes everything look like a nail. Granted, the recession scenario expected by many economists to hit this year hasn’t fully blossomed as the many indicators suggested that it would doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet. Housing and commercial property markets are connoting to be hammered, montage rates at decades high levels, REAL wage growth is still negative at current inflation rates and other sectors of the economy that are foundational such as the petroleum industry are being threatened with regulation into extinction. When our economy was far healthier in the Before Years, it only took the deliberate mismanagement of the wuhan plandemic to throw it into a tailspin. Our economy is barely able to handle the post wuhan environment while facing considerably more threats. The can may have been kicked down the road to 2024, but the reckoning will come.
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Lending conditions at U.S. banks are tight and likely to get tighter, according to a Federal Reserve survey released Monday.
The Fed’s closely watched Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey showed that while credit conditions got more strict, demand declined as well.
Those results are important as economists who expect a recession believe that the most likely source will be from the banking system, which has had to respond to a series of 11 interest rate hikes as well as a momentary crisis in March when three midsize institutions failed.
OBSERVATION - Access to funding is critical for small businesses - and higher interest rates combined with stricter standard to qualify will and likely already have choked that portion of the economy. Throttling down small businesses greases the skids for a recession by taking a large sector of the economy out of play and make recovery even more difficult and prolonged.
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A top economist predicted that U.S. unemployment will rise and jeopardize the Federal Reserve’s desire to avoid a recession.
Vanguard’s Joe Davis told Bloomberg’s “What Goes Up” podcast that while a spike in unemployment will suppress wage growth and help inflation fall to the Fed’s target level of 2%, it will also ruin hopes for a “soft landing,” where inflation falls without a recession or big job losses.
Business Insider reported that most banks expect unemployment to rise above 4% in the next 12 months as the Fed’s interest-rate hikes affect the labor market.
“It’s going to take some labor market weakness to go that last yard, as many call it, from 3% trend inflation down to 2%,” Davis, Vanguard’s chief global economist and head of investment strategy, told Bloomberg.
“Almost everyone has a rise in the unemployment rate of at least 30 or 40 basis points, so going above 4% over the next year. Well, historically, that has been 100% associated with a recession — now, not necessarily deep in magnitude, but a recession.”
https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/economist-unemployment-rising/2023/07/31/id/1129110/
OBSERVATION - Like I said, we are not out of the woods yet.
CW2 / Domestic violence -
Antifa / Transtifa and related groups continue to operate on a low simmer setting, with no major trigger events to muster support for anything other than local events and even then with lack luster trurnout.
POLITICAL FRONT –
Devon Archer’s congressional testimony has sent democrat apologists into a mega spin cycle via a combination of no reporting of the details / selective reporting of the details and misrepresentation of what was said and what was at stake. For most, his testimony was devastating and revealed what we already knew - biden lied, hunter cashed in on his political ‘connections’ and the illegalities are stacked one upon the other as the DoJ tries to cover them up. This criminal operation makes Watergate looks like child’s play. The evidence of political corruption is vindicating Trump and should cause both impeachments to be overturned - if the Republicans had any spine.
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Interesting thought by Redstate - what if democrats used impeachment as away to remove biden as the 2024 candidate and replace him with a ‘better’ one?
**
Continued rumors that special proscutor Smith may seek pre-trial confinement of Trump when his indictments finally spill out in the classified documents witch-hunt.
Biden Watch –
Biden remains on vacation. . . . .
Illegal Immigration –
Concerns growing in the medical community of the plethora of diseases entering the country along with the illegals. One big ticket item has caught their attention is leprosy, the biblical plague from the Old and New Testaments.
That’s according to the CDC, which says that there is “rising evidence that leprosy has become endemic in the southeastern United States.”
According to researchers from the Kansas City University–Graduate Medical Education/Advanced Dermatology and Cosmetic Surgery Consortium raised concerns about the rise in the number of cases in the U.S.:
Leprosy has been historically uncommon in the United States; incidence peaked around 1983, and a drastic reduction in the annual number of documented cases occurred from the 1980s through 2000. However, since then, reports demonstrate a gradual increase in the incidence of leprosy in the United States. The number of reported cases has more than doubled in the southeastern states over the last decade. According to the National Hansen’s Disease Program, 159 new cases were reported in the United States in 2020; Florida was among the top reporting states.
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/29/8/22-0367_article
One of their conclusions - researchers to suspect “that international migration of persons with leprosy is a potential source of autochthonous transmission.” They noted that “The number of international migrants in North America increased from 27.6 million persons in 1990 to 58.7 million in 2020, so a link to migration may account for the increase in incidence of leprosy in historically nonendemic areas.”
OBSERVATION - Already, the types of diseases entering the US is staggering, according to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP):
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has designated the following conditions as communicable diseases of public health significance that apply to immigration medical examinations conducted in the United States:
Gonorrhea;
Hansen’s Disease (Leprosy), infectious;
Syphilis, infectious stage; and
Tuberculosis (TB), Active—Only a Class A TB diagnosis renders an applicant inadmissible to the United States. Under current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, Class A TB means TB that is clinically active and communicable.
We really don’t need a covert China-linked bio lab in Kalifornia when we have millions crossing the border with all this.
China –
Chinese incursions into Taiwan’s surrounding air and sea zones have continued to be steady to slightly increasing. Some analysts consider August to be one of the periods of time where favorable sea conditions could support an amphibious assault Taiwan.
IMHO, China is unlikely to launch such an assault at this time, they may used the period for exercises to practice such an assault.
Russia -
WAR WATCH - into the second year of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine - Feb 24th, 2022
CURRENT ASSESSMENT - Updated July 9, 2023
Russia is on a defensive footing across most of Ukraine, relying on Russian doctrinal defense in depth to blunt the Ukrainian offensive. With Ukraine lacking air superiority, Russia has taken chance in using its aircraft (helicopters and fast movers) to more directly assist its ground forces, though at an increasing loss of airframes.
The month plus of Ukraine offensive action has forced Russia to give up terrain on all fronts - most notably in the Bakhmut area where Russian forces are now being in danger of being encircled.
Russian reserves are increasingly being used to try to stop Ukrainian advances. Just how big and combat capable of a reserve force is debatable. Reports that Russia has amassed about 180,000 troops opposite of Kharkiv may be a ploy to freeze some of the Ukraine forces out of the offensive to the south. However, this number includes cooks, bottle washers and other logistic elements, so the ‘teeth’ numbers are likely much lower.
Russia’s strategic ballistic and cruise missiles continue to show evidence of massively reduced inventories. Recent attacks indicate the Russia has started to produce its own Shahed drones with Iranian assistance. Russia capable of continued, though limited, attacks in this arena.
Russia is capable of launching small scale attacks in various sectors of company and small sized elements, but any large scale offensive action in the face of the heavy demands from defending against the Ukrainian offensive are essentially nil.
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Over half a dozen military conscription offices were attacked with Molotov cocktails yesterday across the country. In most instances, the people who did it were pensioners as old as 80 years old.
Though unconfirmed, in some cases the arsonist claim they were instructed to do it by an individual presenting himself as an FSB employee.
Kerch Bridge update –
The bridge has been closed over the past several days over fears of another Ukraine attack as well as to facilitate repairs.
Ukraine –
WEATHER FORECAST – Thunderstorms early in the week with temperatures in eastern Ukraine forecast to reach the 100s towards the end.
Longer term forecasts for mid to late October include cold and rains across Europe. Highs only in the 50s and 60s Fahrenheit.
24 HOUR ROUND UP –
Information continues to be tight concerning operations along the front from both sides. Kharkiv was targeted with some Shaed drones overnight and scattered Russia artillery strikes along the entirety of the front.
Satellite images show that the railroad bridge in Chongar, one of only two railroad crossings connecting Crimea to the rest of Ukraine is severely damaged after a Storm Shadow Strike earlier this week. Russia relies heavily on rail to move men and material, because it doesn’t have the road lift capacity. When the Kersch Bridge rail road portion gets taken out - when, not if- Russian forces will find themselves in a very severe pickle.
Ukraine resumed drone strikes in Moscow, striking the “IQ-Quarter” the same Building which was Hit a few days ago, the Drone is reported to have struck the 17th Floor which is occupied by the Russian Ministry of Digital Transformation. The drone strike also caused Moscows air port to temporarily close.
According to Russian military sources, “The Armed Forces of Ukraine made an attempt to attack the patrol ships “Sergey Kotov” and “Vasily Bykov” of the Black Sea Fleet with three sea unmanned boats, performing tasks to control navigation in the southwestern part of the Black Sea, 340 km southwest of Sevastopol. The navigation “control” is linked to the attempt to blockade ships from primarily shipping Ukraine grain. No word on any successful strikes by the drone ships.
OUTLOOK –
Ukraine continues to hammer Russia’s C3 and logistics nodes while its aggressive and successful counter battery fire neutralizes the much larger Russian artillery advantage. Analysts note that Ukraine has hit key rail nodes throughout southern and eastern occupied Ukraine - massively disrupting Russian logics efforts that are now having to bring supples and material in to Ukraine from the east and not from the Crimea region.
The progress of the offensives in southern Ukraine is taking shape much like those last fall against Russian forces west of the Dniper River. Cut off supplies and reinforcements while maintaining pressure that forces Russian to try to maintain the same level of artillery and ground troop actions. This is now on a much larger scale.
It seems from all the OPSEC related silence on Ukrainian actions that there may be a tactical pause in effect to consolidate the breach in the so called first Russian defensive line in order to assess Russian movements of troops to reinforce the defense and to bring other Ukrainian forces into position to exploit weak points and success. The tactical situation is dynamic and fluid and can change quickly.
Final note, Ukraine has hit Moscow twice in as many days. Its own long range drone capability - the so called “Beaver” drones - is rapidly developing and in the intermediate term cause all kinds of problems with Russian PR by bringing the war to the mostly sheltered denizens of Moscow. The fact that they have had success - in the most recent case of hitting the same govt target twice in a row, - has embarrassed the putin administration and has dismayed the weakness of the Russian military to protect the city. Russia’s options - throw dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles at Ukraine targets to get marginally similar results. Though many analysts thought that Russia would be out of such weapons by now, clearly they cannot sustain massive assaults like those a couple weeks ago, where several dozen ballastic/cruise missiles were fired over the course of several days. Now the rate is down to a handful and are being wasted mostly on terror efforts (striking civilian apartments) than strategic targets.
Belarus -
Wagner presence continues to grow as they establish their operation base and move out to start ‘training’ Belarus troops. They continue the PR push threatening to cause mischief against Poland and Baltic nations.
Poland –
Armor heavy units continue to be positioned near the Belarus border.
Europe / NATO General –
“The presence of Wagner fighters in Belarus poses a serious threat to Lithuania, Poland and Latvia,” President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda said. According to him, they started monitoring the situation and intensified intelligence measures, because Wagner can be used for provocations.
Africa general –
The situation in West Africa is poised to spin dangerously out of control as a regional conflict is becoming a potential reality.
Both Burkina Faso and Mali announced that they would go to war to assist Niger if ECOWAS intervenes. ECOWAS has given Niger a week to dissolve the coup and jihadist factions are watching. France has also issued an ultimatum to Niger.
In the African Republic, there are now several military bases of Western countries with a total contingent of troops of 1.5 thousand French and 1 thousand US military.
This fight is developing along the lines of “junta-ruled” nations backed by Russia , and civilian-governed nations backed by France, US and the EU.
OBSERVATION - Though Russia backs the coup in Niger, the amount of support they can be expected to provide would largely be cheering from the sidelines as the war in Ukraine has severely tasked its military are resources.
A regional war would throw the region into a deep famine and economic disaster, in addition to associate increase in diseases. There is a remote chance of direct French and US involvement due to the presence of forces in the country. Remote, but not out of the question, especially France which has deep ties to the country.
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Other African news, political leaders in South Africa have become more vocal in condoning growing support to exterminate all whites in the country (Boers). Since apartheid was removed in SA, the nation has spun downward into a third world cesspool, with corrupt govt after corrupt govt failing to meet even the basics needed for the population. The white Afrikaners have over the past few years withdrawn from society and have worked to protect their farms - the only thing that is working in the country - from being pilfered. Should the black racists in SA have their way, a famine of huge magnitude will strike southern Africa as the blacks there have demonstrated time and again that they are incapable of running the agricultural system on their own. Currently SA’s power grid is in shambles and its water supply system is falling apart as well.
Black Swans
Hurricane / Typhoon season’s peak is approaching this month. Already China has been hammered with record rain and our Gulf and Atlantic coastlines are certainly vulnerable. Pay attention to your local weather forecasts and don’t be caught unawares. Major storm(s) could impact agriculture as well as fuel supplies.
Thank you.
Best reporting anywhere. Thanks Godzilla.
Economy –
In a rebuke to the biden regime’s bleats that the US economy is doing great, the US’s credit rating has been cut to AA+ from AAA, in an unexpected blow to the world’s biggest economy.
The rating agency said its downgrade “reflects the expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years, a high and growing general government debt burden, and the erosion of governance relative to ‘AA’ and ‘AAA’ rated peers over the last two decades that has manifested in repeated debt limit standoffs and last-minute resolutions.”
“The rating downgrade of the United States reflects the expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years, a high and growing general government debt burden, and the erosion of governance” relative to peers, said Fitch in a statement.
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The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a massive, unexpected drop in America’s oil inventories. The API’s survey data showed a week-over-week crude oil decline of 15.4 million barrels – far surpassing analysts’ expectations of a 900,000-barrel drop. Gasoline inventories saw another 1.68-million-barrel decline, which puts inventories 7% less than the five-year average. (FO)
OBSERVATION - This is not a good trend. Inventories drifting down do not provide much buffer in the event of a supply disruption - a concern compounded by the lack of an viable strategic reserve, which biden continues to refuse to refill. Prices here in the Redoubt have climbed 20 cents/ gal over the past couple weeks - and this in the face of the tail end of the summer tourist season.
CW2 / Domestic violence -
In view of the ham handed new indictments against Trump, I’ve pondered just what may trigger a “hot” CW2 scenario - and those thoughts scared the snot out of me. While the Trump indictments are an attempt at death by a thousand cuts, there are far more lethal concerns out there - Assassinations.
Top of the list - an attempt against Trump. There is enough vitriol and calls for violence in the leftist interweb and yes, even overt MSM realms calling for violence that this is scary. There are plenty out there on the right who would see this as the time to start retaliation in kind. This retaliation would also trigger Federal crackdowns and even unconstitutional attempts to forcibly disarm the country. This brings to mind Lexington and Concord from the Revolutionary War. It goes down hill from there.
Our under protected USSC - should Thomas or other conservative judges (yes plural) get hit - the democrat controlled Senate - with help by the half dozen or so RINOs, would push radical leftists into the vacant seats.
We haven’t seen political assassinations in our country for a long time. But they are building to become the next step in the escalation of the left’s campaign to silence and eliminate opposition.
Wuhan Plandemic –
Believe it or not, the MSM has been giving air time to nut jobs who say that we need to return to wearing masks…..
Even more unbelievable is the effort by the CDC to mandate annual wuhan shots, just like the flu shots.
POLITICAL FRONT –
Weaponization of the DoJ can no longer be denied following Trump’s indictment on 4 federal counts:
- Conspiracy to defraud the US
- Conspiracy to Obstruct an Official Proceeding
- Obstruction of and Attempt to Obstruct an Official Proceeding
- Conspiracy against Rights
It is *very* important to note he was not charged with Seditious Conspiracy or Insurrection
The Trump case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkin, who is described by AP News as “the toughest punisher” of J6 cases, placing all defendants in all cases behind bars.
OBSERVATION - these charges reek of desperation by the Swamp. In essence, the DoJ has made First Amendment rights unconstitutional and illegal. These indictments move the hands of the spicy time clock several minutes to D-day. I refer readers to other conservative commentators for better expression of just how far the DoJ has drifted into totalitarian over this.
Biden Watch –
Biden remains on vacation. . . . .
Cyber attacks/warfare –
Russia -
WAR WATCH - into the second year of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine - Feb 24th, 2022
CURRENT ASSESSMENT - Updated July 9, 2023 (under review Aug 2, 2023)
Russia is on a defensive footing across most of Ukraine, relying on Russian doctrinal defense in depth to blunt the Ukrainian offensive. With Ukraine lacking air superiority, Russia has taken chance in using its aircraft (helicopters and fast movers) to more directly assist its ground forces, though at an increasing loss of airframes.
The month plus of Ukraine offensive action has forced Russia to give up terrain on all fronts - most notably in the Bakhmut area where Russian forces are now being in danger of being encircled.
Russian reserves are increasingly being used to try to stop Ukrainian advances. Just how big and combat capable of a reserve force is debatable. Reports that Russia has amassed about 180,000 troops opposite of Kharkiv may be a ploy to freeze some of the Ukraine forces out of the offensive to the south. However, this number includes cooks, bottle washers and other logistic elements, so the ‘teeth’ numbers are likely much lower.
Russia’s strategic ballistic and cruise missiles continue to show evidence of massively reduced inventories. Recent attacks indicate the Russia has started to produce its own Shahed drones with Iranian assistance. Russia capable of continued, though limited, attacks in this arena.
Russia is capable of launching small scale attacks in various sectors of company and small sized elements, but any large scale offensive action in the face of the heavy demands from defending against the Ukrainian offensive are essentially nil.
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The naval exercises Ocean Shield - 2023 started in the Baltic Sea, more than 30 ships and boats, 20 other vessels, 30 aircraft, about 6 thousand military personnel taking part, - the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
NOTE -With the inclusion of new NATO members, the Baltic has essentially become a NATO ‘lake’.
Putin and Erdogan had a phone call, discussed grain deal, agreed on Putin’s visit to Turkey
Russian Personnel Issues –-
Putin ratified a law on July 31 increasing the fine for failure to arrive at a military registration office after being summoned for mobilized personnel or conscripts
Ukraine –
WEATHER FORECAST – Thunderstorms early in the week with temperatures in eastern Ukraine forecast to reach the 100s towards the end.
Longer term forecasts for mid to late October include cold and rains across Europe. Highs only in the 50s and 60s Fahrenheit.
24 HOUR ROUND UP –
Much of the openly reported action has been what I would term ‘strategic’ - ballistic / Cruise / drone missile attacks on rear areas. Russia overnight stuck the Port of Izmail again, destroying grain silos It’s Ukraine’s largest port on the Danube delta & is located just across the border from Romania (NATO member). Drones also unsuccessful targeted Kyiv overnight.
Ukraine stuck targets across occupied Crimea, most likely storage facilities. One Russian training facility on a spit in southern Crimea was hit, killing dozens of soldiers.
In a followup to the reported seaborne drone attack on the Russian patrol ships “Sergey Kotov” and “Vasily Bykov” ( There were stories a container ship - Sparta-IV, reportedly carrying weapons coming from Syria being escorted by the ships). Russian sailors after the attack reportedly asked for evacuation. In intercepted conversations between the crews of Ka-29 helicopters (involved in the evacuation) and coastal aviation services, coordinates of the vessels are transmitted and the number of casualties were specified. There is being talked about one dead and five wounded. There is no confirmation that any of the ships sank or extent of damage.
Velyka Novosilka Axis-
Ukraine forces pushed Russian forces south of Starornnaiorske. Russian units now backed into Mokri Yaly River pocket. Russian counter-attacks reported as unsuccessful.
Bakhmut Axis -
Russian troops have withdrawn from the positions at Andriivka, south of Bakhmut.
Crimean front ———
Pro-Ukrainian residents of Crimea are “systematically” attacking Russian military bases with Molotov cocktails, forcing Russia to tighten its surveillance over the peninsula, Ukraine’s military intelligence reported on Aug. 1.
Russian Territory –
Russian partisans burned down another railroad relay cabinet in Tver, 90 miles northwest of Moscow, disabling the railroad traffic lights in the area and halting all train traffic
Arson attack attempt reported at military enlistment office in St.Petersburg. Arson attack attempts were also made against military enlistment offices in Nakhodka, Sestroretsk, Stavropol, Maykop, Nizhnekamsk, Kazan and Ishimbai.
OUTLOOK –
Tight reporting by both Ukraine and Russia suggests a tight and tense conflict is ongoing in the major front areas. Russian withdrawals in the Bakhmut area suggest that holes are developing in the Russia defense created by efforts to reinforce defense in the south.
I expect Ukraine to once again start moving southward at a greater pace as Russian defenses continue to get worn down. Russian milblogger reports of poor morale and lack of ammunition are on the rise. Things are dynamic and can change quickly.
Belarus -
Lukashenka, said he was joking when he said that Wagner mercenaries wanted to attack Poland.
“I joked that the Wagner fighters were talking that they would go on a trip to Rzeszow. Why? Because the equipment and weapons went from Rzeszow to where these “Wagner soldiers” fought near Artemovsk (Bakhmut). Thousands of their guys died there. And they will remember this,” he said.
OBSERVATION - Those kind of “jokes” will get your country pulverized by a war with Poland. Poland is itching for a reason to hit Belarus.
Poland –
Poland announces that 2 Belarusian military helicopters intruded Polish airspace today, flying across the Białowieża National Park. They flew across the border at a low altitude to avoid radar and then quickly returned back home. Some reports indicator that they penetrated 3 Km into Poland before turning back.
OBSERVATION - I suspect that this will be the last time Poland lets this happen. Should Belarus get frisky again, any other helicopter or other incursion will become a smoldering heap.
Turkey –
See Russia above RE: phone con with putin.
Africa general –
French forces have begun evacuating French and other European nationals from Niger.
The coup has resulted in a US drone airbase in Niger that was supporting the fight against ISiS elements in Africa has been closed.