HEALTH: Eat your blueberries … every day?

Tuesday, April 12, 2022

https://nutritionfacts.org/2022/04/05/benefits-of-blueberries-for-artery-function/?utm_source=NutritionFacts.org&utm_campaign=b8f251f008-RSS_BLOG_WEEKLY&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_40f9e497d1-b8f251f008-25228005&mc_cid=b8f251f008&mc_eid=f40a62cbab

Blueberries Can Improve Artery Function
Written By
Michael Greger M.D. FACLM
on April 5, 2022

*** begin quote ***

If you eat blueberries week after week, you also get chronic benefits, in terms of reduced artery stiffness and a boost in your natural killer cells, which are one of your body’s natural first lines of defense against viral infections and cancer. How can blueberries have all these amazing effects if the anthocyanins—the blue pigments in blueberries purported to be the active ingredients—hardly even make it into our system? Indeed, women were given more than a cup of blueberries to eat, and the researchers couldn’t find hardly any in their bloodstream or flowing through their urine.

At 2:47 in my video, you can see a chart called a chromatogram. The spikes show all of the anthocyanin peaks in blueberries. Before eating blueberries, there is no sign of the pigments in the participants’ blood, which makes sense because they hadn’t been ingested. After one hour of eating them, however, you start to see the spikes appear, and, a few hours after that, they become a bit more distinct. All in all, though, just a few billionths of a gram per milliliter show up. So, “either anthocyanins are extremely potent and, therefore, active at low serum [parts-per-billion blood] concentrations…or their dietary occurrence or bioavailability has been underestimated.” Researchers decided to radioactively tag them and trace them throughout the body.

*** end quote ***

Can’t hurt!

—30—


TECHNOLOGY: Old fashioned keys are “better” than fobs

Monday, April 11, 2022

https://newjersey.news12.com/folly-of-the-fob-skyrocketing-car-thefts-more-proof-that-old-metal-keys-were-better

Folly of the fob: Skyrocketing car thefts more proof that old metal keys were better
Apr 08, 2022, 6:32pmUpdated 10h ago
By: Brian Donohue

# – # – # – # – #

I agree.

It’s funny when I switch cars and look for the start button to press in the truck.

Force of habit and a lack of mindfulness.

How many people still walk around their vehicle and look underneath before driving?  I was taught to look at each of the tires reporting the .  Yes, I’m older than dirt!  Was driving long before tires reported they were flat.

It’s like the habit of opening the (left) driver’s side door with your right hand.  And visa versa.  (With distracted pedestrians on the sidewalk, one has to look out for those fools as well. Argh!)

FWIW.

—30—


BITCOIN: Bitcoi … … makes sanctions quite ineffective

Sunday, April 10, 2022

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/russia-sanctions-bitcoin-conundrum?utm_source=Bitcoin+Magazine&utm_campaign=993d277006-&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f7d45fbb67-993d277006-357073741&mc_cid=993d277006&mc_eid=386b7b0895

SANCTIONS AGAINST RUSSIA POSE A CONUNDRUM FOR BITCOIN
Bitcoin is a free and open monetary network, accessible by anyone — which makes sanctions quite ineffective.
DOMINIC COLLARD
MAR 31, 2022

  • This is a guest post by Dominic Collard. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.

*** begin quote ***
 
Almost half of Russia’s $630 billion reserves have been seized by foreign governments since the invasion of Ukraine. It was relatively easy to do given modern financial infrastructure.

The mainstream temptation is to react favorably to this move. Russia will be poorer and so less able to fund its war. The baddies lose, the goodies win.

*** and ***

The Bitcoin community risks confirmation bias by not thinking through the full implications. It would be naive to think there is only upside. They say Bitcoin changes people; that it is “F-you money” and with it you are no longer beholden to anyone. But what if the person, or the government, with bitcoin needs to be held down. What then?

*** end quote ***

Maybe I’ve become to cynical of all the politicians and bureaucrats.  I wouldn’t assign labels of “baddies” or “goodies” to anyone.  Just a lot of gray.

That being said, I think — as the Canadian Truckers demonstrated — “We, The Sheeple” should be more afraid of “our” Gooferment than some one a great distance away.

“Would you tell me please, Mr. Howard, why should I trade one tyrant three thousand miles away for three thousand tyrants one mile away? An elected legislature can trample a man’s rights as easily as a king can.” Mel Gibson as the character Benjamin Martin in the movie The Patriot http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0187393/quotes

“Think locally; act locally.” — BrionMcClanahan (where I first heard it)

—30—


TECHNOLOGY: Automating a beehive?

Saturday, April 9, 2022

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/beewise-hives-save-colonies-from-colony-collapse/?utm_campaign=newsletters&utm_medium=weekly_mailout&utm_source=05-04-2022

Company’s Innovative Smart Beehive Gets $80 Million in Funding to Save Bees From Any Hazard

*** begin quote ***

The traditional hive most commonly used in the world today (the Langstroth box) was designed by humans about 150 years ago. Most people are so used to them they mistakenly confuse them with bees’ natural habitat.

By completely redesigning the beehive, a company called Beewise was able to address many of the inefficiencies of the box and significantly improve bees’ well-being and life longevity.

*** end quote ***

I found this fascinating.

And, an example of replacing a 150 year old solution with an improved one.

400$/month? Too rich for my backyard.

Maybe a GoFundMe could put one in a park as a way of “helping”?

—30—


TINFOILHAT: Did Will Smith Smack Chris Rock on Behalf of Big Pharma?

Friday, April 8, 2022

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2022/04/06/big-pharma-advertising-at-all-time-high.aspx?ui=f9839516412491bb1e06c9e47058c6fb81b9b9b6acedf03e65e93dfdb263c1b9&sd=20210317&cid_source=dnl&cid_medium=email&cid_content=art1ReadMore&cid=20220406_HL2&mid=DM1147686&rid=1454211325

Big Pharma Advertising Dollars Are at an All-Time High
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola
April 06, 2022

  • The drug industry influences and manipulates media through advertising dollars. In 2021, drug companies spent an aggregate $6.88 BILLION on direct-to-consumer advertising (DCTA), up slightly from $6.86 billion in 2020
  • The U.S. and New Zealand are the only two countries that permit DCTA, making media in these countries more likely to have pro-pharma bias
  • The Will Smith-Chris Rock drama during the Oscars may have been nothing more than a subliminal publicity stunt for Pfizer’s upcoming alopecia drug

*** begin quote ***

Over the past year, the U.S. government spent $1 billion of U.S. taxpayers’ money to advertise the COVID jab, which is the most dangerous and least proven drug ever marketed, while simultaneously calling for the censorship of anyone who dared to address the risks of this novel treatment
By law, drug ads must not be false or misleading, must present a “fair balance” of information describing both the risks and benefits of a drug, must include facts that are “material” to the product’s advertised uses, and must include a “brief summary” that mentions every risk described in the product’s labeling. Few if any ads for the COVID jab have fulfilled these requirements

How do you control major media? The short answer — illustrated in the video above — is: through advertising dollars. Big Pharma advertising dominates, making up a large portion of a given media outlet’s revenue, and that funding gives Pharma the power to dictate what ends up in the news and what doesn’t.

While Big Pharma has frequently spent more on advertising than on research and development, over the past couple of years, ad spending has increased to new heights.1

In 2021, drug companies spent an aggregate $6.88 BILLION on direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA), up slightly from $6.86 billion in 2020.2 And, remember, DTCA is only permitted in two countries in the world, the U.S. and New Zealand, so media tend to be particularly biased in favor of Big Pharma those two countries.

Did Will Smith Smack Chris Rock on Behalf of Sponsors?

Pfizer, Novartis, Eli Lilly, Incyte and Exact Sciences even sponsored the 2022 Academy Awards, which was “an unusual turn for the industry,” according to some biopharma professionals.3 Chances are you heard about how Will Smith smacked Chris Rock across the face. Smith supposedly took offense over a comment about his wife’s lack of hair.

Jada Pinkett Smith has alopecia areata, which is believed to be an autoimmune disorder. Isn’t it amazing, then, that Pfizer, a primary sponsor of this year’s Oscars,4 is working on an alopecia drug? They announced “top-line results” from a Phase 2b/3 trial in August 2021.5

 
It’s especially curious since three of the other sponsors — Eli Lilly, Incyte (partnering with Lilly) and Novartis — also have alopecia drugs nearly ready to go.6,7,8 Coincidence? Or a cleverly disguised publicity stunt for soon-to-be-released drugs? If the latter, it would put a whole new spin on the concept of subliminal advertising.

*** end quote ***

Well, here’s a a Conspiracy Theory that needs some watching?  

Clearly, like all “good” Conspiracy Theories, it has some plausibility.  Money, motive, opportunity … …. and best of all it has “that’s just crazy” defense.  

I’ll have to dig out my “conspiracy theory” ruler to measure how to label this.

Remember my 2010 taxonomy on conspiracy theory: (1) Government; (2) Political; (3) Historical; and (4) Miscellaneous. S0 I may have to add a “Commercial” category.

Can’t find my conspiracy theory ruler.  Guess I’ll have to reinvent it. Argh!  The scale would go from “Generally Accepted As True” all the way to “Generally Accepted As False” with “tab stops” at “unlikely”, “plausible”, “possible”, “less likely than not”, “more likely than not”.  I welcome input on my scale.

For this one, I’d assign it a label of “plausible”.  I take no opinions but would like to see evidence (i.e., a Pfizer email; a check to the parties involved).  Rumors and innuendo can move it on the scale.

—30—

Conspiracy Theory Ruler

“Generally Accepted As True”
“unlikely”
“plausible” — plausible conspiracy theory
“possible”
“less likely than not”
“more likely than not”
“Generally Accepted As False” 

Taxonomy

Government
Political
Historical
Commercial — commercial conspiracy theory
Miscellaneous.

—30—


RANT: Hollywood hypocrisy — Will Smith outrage; Roman Polanski award

Thursday, April 7, 2022

https://nypost.com/2022/04/04/spare-me-hollywoods-nauseating-hypocrisy-over-will-smith/

Spare me Hollywood’s nauseating hypocrisy over Will Smith — these same people gave Roman Polanski an Oscar after he raped a child
By Piers Morgan
April 4, 2022 4:55pm  Updated

*** begin quote ***

There are few better illustrations of Tinsel Town’s warped morality than the shocking case of acclaimed film director Roman Polanski who was 44 when he drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl. 

He admitted unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor but before he received his full sentence, he fled America in 1978 and has never returned to face justice for his despicable crime.

Now, given Hollywood’s current fit of faux-indignant moral rage over Will Smith’s slap to Chris Rock’s face, and its frantic effort to cancel him off the face of the acting planet, you might assume that it reacted with far greater fury and disgust to someone who abused and sodomized a young girl after plying her with quaaludes.

But you would be wrong.

Instead, Hollywood carried on hiring Polanski to direct movies from his European exile, and in 2003, it awarded him the Oscar for Best Director at the Academy Awards for his work on The Pianist.

Of course, he wasn’t there to receive it in person … … … 

*** end quote ***

Once again I find myself on the same side of an argument as Piers Morgan.  What’s the world coming to?  Who’s moving which way?

I really don’t care what “celebrities” do or say.  And, especially when the hypocrisy is overflowing.

That goes for politicians, bureaucrats, and “experts” who are out of their area of expertise.  

In this case, Piers Morgan is spot on and “over the target”.

Careabout

—30—


GOVEROTRAGEOUS: You really didn’t think that Hunter’s art work was worth a kool ½ mill $ each. Did you?

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2022/04/02/mark-levin-biden-may-be-the-most-corrupt-president-in-american-history/

Mark Levin: Biden ‘May Be the Most Corrupt President in American History’
JEFF POOR  2 Apr 2022

*** begin quote ***

Earlier this week, during an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity,” conservative talker and host of FNC’s “Life, Liberty & Levin” Mark Levin weighed in on the ongoing saga of corruption allegations aimed at President Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden and other members of Biden’s family.

Levin described President Biden as possibly the “most corrupt president in American history” and called for a special counsel to investigate.

*** end quote ***

“Possibly”?  “May Be”?

I’d suggest there is no “possibly” or “may be” at all. 

It the Biden’s were R’s, then the mob would be “outraged”.

You really didn’t think that Hunter’s art work was worth a kool ½ mill $ each.  Did you?

Argh!

—30—

https://justthenews.com/accountability/russia-and-ukraine-scandals/ron-johnsons-unanswered-2020-questions-joe-biden-loom

*** begin quote ***

  1. Why did you meet with Devon Archer, your son’s now-convicted business partner, at the White House on April 16, 2014? What was discussed?  Did you discuss anything related to Ukraine, Hunter Biden or Burisma?
  2. Were you aware that Devon Archer joined the board of Burisma six days later?
  3. In April 2014, you gave a speech in Kiev calling for Ukraine to expand its natural gas production, Burisma’s core business. In private emails, Hunter Biden and Archer took credit for the language in the speech. Why did you make the request and did your son or his business partner have anything to do with it? (NEW)
  4. Were you aware that Burisma’s owner, Mykoloa Zlochevsky, was generally viewed as a corrupt oligarch and that his London bank account containing $23 million had been seized by British officials only15 days before Hunter Biden joined the board of a company he owned?
  5. Was Hunter Biden aware that British officials had seized Zlochevsky’s bank account?
  6. When did you first become aware of Zlochevsky and Burisma’s reputations for corruption?
  7. Do you believe Zlochevsky and Burisma are corrupt?
  8. Were you aware in April 2014 that Hunter Biden joined the board of Burisma? When did you first become aware that Hunter Biden joined the board of Burisma? When did you become aware of how much Hunter Biden was being compensated by Burisma?
  9. Why do you believe Burisma recruited and paid Archer and your son to be on its board?
  10. What skills or knowledge do you believe Hunter Biden possesses that qualified him to be on Burisma’s board and receive $50,000 to $166,000 per month for his and his partner’s services?
  11. When did you learn your son had not paid taxes on some of his overseas work, including on monies received from Burisma?
  12. When did you first learn your son was facing a federal investigation?
  13. State Department officials have testified your son’s work for Burisma while you oversaw [as vice president] Ukraine policy created the appearance of a conflict of interest and they further wrote in a classified email in 2016 that the conflict had undercut U.S. anticorruption efforts in Ukraine. How do you respond to those criticisms? (NEW)
  14. What exactly had Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin done that caused you to threaten to withhold $1 billion in desperately needed aid from Ukraine if President Poroshenko didn’t fire him?
  15. What do you know about Hunter Biden’s business dealings in China?
  16. A 2017 series of memos referred to a Chinese business deal your son was involved in that reserved 10% equity for the “big guy.” What did you know about it and were you that “big guy?” (NEW)
  17. What if anything do you know about your son’s dealings with Russian oligarch Elena Baturina?
  18. Did you ever meet with any of Hunter Biden’s foreign business partners from China, Russia or Ukraine, including but not limited to Burisma’s Vadym Pozharskyi or Baturina or her Moscow mayor husband?
  19. What do you know about financial benefits your brothers and sister-in-law have obtained because of their relationship to you?
  20. Emails on your son’s laptop now in the hands of the FBI refer to shared accounts or bills between you and him. Did your son ever give your any money, gift or financial benefit from his business dealings? (NEW)

*** end quote ***

—30—


GUNS: “Disarm the population” is NEVER a good idea for the poor slob who is sent to it!

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/04/02/al-gop-senate-hopeful-mike-durant-in-2011-disarming-the-population-would-be-a-pretty-good-step-toward-law-and-order-in-u-s-cities/

AL GOP Senate Hopeful Mike Durant in 2011: Disarming the Population ‘Would Be a Pretty Good Step Toward Law and Order’ in U.S. Cities
JEFF POOR
2 Apr 2022

*** begin quote ***

U.S. Army veteran Mike Durant, the current frontrunner in Alabama’s U.S. Senate Republican primary race, once suggested applying military philosophy to restore “law and order” in some U.S. cities by disarming the population.

In 2011, Durant discussed the violence initiated by United Nations forces going door to door to seize firearms in a speech before the U.S. Army War College.

As an aside, he speculated about how doing that in “some of our U.S. cities” could be a means to achieving “law and order.”

“[F]rom a military perspective, the first thing that needs to be done is disarm the population,” he said. “Let’s face it, if we could do that in some of our U.S. cities, that would be a pretty good step toward law and order. But you ever ask yourself, why don’t we do it here? Because it’s hard. It can result in rioting and widespread rebellion and you know, making the situation worse than it already is. But for some reason, we sort of hand-wave all that kind of stuff and go head and hand all those missions down to our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines. And that’s what happens here.”

*** end quote ***

I don’t this it’s fair to paint him as having recommending this.  He said: “ask yourself why”.

For all the gun grabbers, who want to disarm “We, The People”, I invite them to go into the big cities and have at it. 

No, they want others to their dirty work for them.  And a lot of good people will get killed in another “fool’s errand”.

Let’s bring all the girls, boys, women, and men home now! We have so many politicians and bureaucrats to send in their place if it’s really needed!

—30—


EDUCATION: Another reason for the separation of “education” and the State?

Monday, April 4, 2022

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/04/03/south-carolina-womens-basketball-team-refused-to-take-court-during-national-anthem/

South Carolina Women’s Basketball Team Refused to Take Court During National Anthem
WARNER TODD HUSTON 3 Apr 2022

*** begin quote ***

Ahead of Friday’s NCAA Final Four tournament game, the South Carolina Gamecocks refused to take the court and remained in the locker room during the playing of the national anthem.

*** end quote ***

I’m sure that the Taxpayers of South Carolina, the veterans —  disabled or not — in and from South Carolina, as well as all the parents of the KIA, MIA, WIA, and other war related casualties are very “proud” of these snowflakes expressing their opinion while risking nothing.

As a little L libertarian, I’ll just add this to file “Reasons Why the Gooferment should not be involved in EDUCATION”.  (Among other things.)

—30—


GOVEROTRAGEOUS: Bioweapons At US-Linked Ukraine Labs

Sunday, April 3, 2022

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/pentagon-says-pathogens-us-linked-ukraine-labs-not-offensive-bioweapons

Pentagon Clarifies There’s No “Offensive” Bioweapons At US-Linked Ukraine Labs
BY TYLER DURDEN
SATURDAY, APR 02, 2022 – 04:30 PM
Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com, 

*** begin quote ***

A Pentagon official told Congress on Friday that there are no “offensive” biological weapons in any of the dozens of US-linked labs in Ukraine.

“I can say to you unequivocally there are no offensive biologic weapons in the Ukraine laboratories that the United States has been involved with,” Deborah Rosenbaum, the assistant secretary of defense for nuclear, chemical, and biological defense programs, told the House Armed Services subcommittee.

*** end quote ***

So correct me if I am wrong but the Pentagon has just ADMITTED that there are US biological weapons labs in the Ukraine.

And we wonder why Putin is pissed?

If Russia had biolabs in Mexico or Canada, then what would be the USA reaction?

Argh!

—30—


GOLD: A gold back currency

Saturday, April 2, 2022

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2022/04/02/russia-could-be-planning-the-ultimate-gold-move/

Russia Could Be Planning the Ultimate Gold Move

*** begin quote ***

Imagine the global response to the first national currency of the 21st Century backed by physical gold! At a stroke, Russia could reposition itself as a globally relevant economy, virtually guarantee international investor interest, and re-establish its currency as a store of value. And it could do all this without violating sanctions.

Consider the response from the U.S. and EU, both suffering four-decade high inflation, both crippled by debt and awash in freshly-printed currency. A new Russian gold standard would represent an economic coup over the west. All without firing a single shot.

Though the odds of such a move seem low, it looks like the kind of out-of-left-field move that Putin delights in. We’ll be paying close attention to developments in this story over the next few months.

*** end quote ***

Hell, I’d buy me some roubles.  A gold back currency,  Where do I sign up?

—30—


HEALTH: NY Times Latest to Mislead Public on New Ivermectin Study • Children’s Health Defense

Saturday, April 2, 2022

https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/ny-times-mislead-public-ivermectin-study/?utm_source=salsa&eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=a00a2e8c-3156-4f4b-85a8-a703c029bc06

NY Times Latest to Mislead Public on New Ivermectin Study • Children’s Health Defense

  • The New York Times on Wednesday sent an email to subscribers titled: “Breaking News: Ivermectin failed as a Covid treatment . . .” The Times was referring to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine, covered March 18 by The Wall Street Journal. In both cases, the newspapers failed to provide an accurate critical analysis of the study.

By Madhava Setty, M.D.

*** begin quote ***

Rather than pounding the final nail in the coffin around ivermectin’s utility in treating COVID, the NEJM study raises more questions.

  • What would the effect have been if a higher dose shown to be effective were administered?
  • What would be the benefit of this medicine in patients with no risk factors?
  • How statistically significant would the results have been if more participants were enrolled?
  • Why weren’t more participants enrolled as the study progressed given the emerging benefit of the drug and the absence of adverse events?
  • Why did the investigators define a primary outcome with such different real-world implications (ER visits vs hospitalizations)?
  • With less than 50% of the placebo arm adhering to the study protocol, why were their outcomes included in the analysis?
  • What effect did vaccination status have on outcome? If this is the primary means endorsed to prevent hospitalization, why wasn’t vaccination status mentioned as a confounder?
  • Did the investigators choose to limit the study as it became clear that an Ivermectin benefit would be too big to ignore?

*** end quote ***

​Heaven forbid there would be a real test because it might “embarrass” the experts!

—30—

 


HEALTH: Did the Covid Vaccine kill Bruce Willis’ career?

Friday, April 1, 2022

https://www.lewrockwell.com/2022/03/no_author/aphasia-can-be-caused-by-the-covid-vaccine/

Aphasia Can Be Caused by the Covid Vaccine
How do we know Bruce Willis’ aphasia wasn’t caused by the vaccine? Nobody is talking about it.
By Steve Kirsch
Steve’s Kirsch newsletter

March 31, 2022

*** begin quote ***

I wanted to make sure everyone knows aphasia is one of the thousands of symptoms whose reporting rates were elevated after the COVID vaccines rolled out. It’s #1574 on that sorted list of symptoms elevated by the COVID vaccine that we calculated back in November 2021.

*** end quote ***

“Nobody is talking about it.”

So too another tree falls in the forest with no one to hear it.

—30—


RANT: Let the research begin on what was on the laptop,

Thursday, March 31, 2022

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/matt-gaetz-enters-hunter-biden-laptop-data-congressional-record

Matt Gaetz Enters Hunter Biden Laptop Data Into Congressional Record
BY TYLER DURDEN
WEDNESDAY, MAR 30, 2022 – 04:20 PM
Authored by Ken Silva via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

*** begin quote ***

“I seek unanimous consent to enter into the record on this committee the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop, which I am in possession of.”

*** end quote ***

I look forward to the “muckrakers” exposing all the corruption to the light of day.

—30—


HEALTH: Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

https://costplusdrugs.com/

I sent this to a few friends.

*** begin quote ***

I don’t know how you feel about high drug prices, Mark Cuban, or ​trying anything new.

BUT, (and there is always a BIG butt), here’s a new offering by Mark Cuban of discount generic drugs.

I’m trying it and will let you know how it works for me.

On the surface, it appears to be a big cost saving even over my insurance’s drug plan.

Not all my drugs are there, but enough to give it a try.

Let me know if you’re interested in my experience with it or not.

FWIW YMMV

*** end quote ***

I think it’s worth trying and it MIGHT save a lot of money.

—30—


ECONOMICS: The economy has yet to recover from covid, but the stock market is being inflated

Tuesday, March 29, 2022

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/nothing-has-changed-except-everything

Nothing Has Changed, Except For Everything
BY TYLER DURDEN
MONDAY, MAR 28, 2022 – 09:30 AM

*** begin quote ***

The signs and symptoms I’m paying attention to are as follows (read this list slowly, and take it all in):

  • We have a market that saw the NASDAQ (an index) rise about 120% in less than 2 years off its March 2020 lows, despite the fact that our economy never materially recovered during the same period of time.
  • Our money supply (M2) rose between 21.7% and 26.92% year over year, between April 2020 and February 2021. Its long term YOY average rise, including this data, is just 7.16%. Prior to 2020, most YOY growth was between 3% and 5%.
  • Our inflation rate is at its highest point in about 30 years, and that is using a totally different method for measuring inflation than we used to. If we used the standards for measuring CPI in the 1980s, inflation would likely be at all time record highs for our nation.
  • We have the most material hot war in Europe since World War II taking place, with little visibility on how it will end. At the same time, relations with Russia and China have not been this contentious in decades. Russia and China also look to be posing a serious, calculated challenge to the U.S. dollar’s reserve status.
  • As I pointed out days ago, stocks relative to GDP are also in uncharted territory, where reversion to the mean would mean a minimum of a 40% drop from here.

But hey, Jim Cramer says he thinks “the bear market is over”. He’s on CNBC. I’m not.

*** end quote ***

Hard to imagine what will happen when the politicians and bureaucrats have “managed” the US into a horrific depression.

Sigh!

It’s not going to be pretty for the non-rich.

—30—


RANT: Don’t punish the dogs for weather

Monday, March 28, 2022

https://nypost.com/2022/03/26/iditarod-race-punishes-mushers-for-sheltering-dogs-from-storm/

Alaska’s Iditarod race punishes mushers for sheltering dogs from storm
By Rich Calder
March 26, 2022 2:21pm  Updated

*** begin quote ***

Iditarod rules say dogs cannot be taken inside shelters except for race veterinarians’ medical examination or treatment. However, cruel or inhumane treatment of dogs is also prohibited during the event.

*** end quote ***

I suggest that rule writers be kept outside.  The humans and dogs should be inside.  Then let’s see if the “rules” change.

Sorry but the dogs should be inside and the humans outside.

Argh!

—30—


We’ve Defined ‘Woman’ for You

Sunday, March 27, 2022

Over the last few days, there has been much “debate” over the word “woman” and how to define it. The discussion over the proper definition of the word erupted across social
— Read on townhall.com/columnists/townhallcomstaff/2022/03/25/we-know-the-definition-of-a-woman-n2605031

# – # – # – # – #

Why did the nominee tiptoe around an easy question?

Perhaps to avoid a discussion of the “trans” issue?

Dumb.

Hit it head on. “There is a difficult issue but courts don’t make public policy. We interpret laws based on specific facts of a case.

Or at least we should.

Argh!

—30—


HEALTH: Wayne Mackie dead at 62 — why?

Sunday, March 27, 2022

https://nypost.com/2022/03/26/longtime-nfl-official-wayne-mackie-dead-at-62/

SPORTS

Longtime NFL official Wayne Mackie dead at 62
By Ryan Dunleavy
March 26, 2022 2:24am  Updated

*** begin quote ***

Longtime NFL official Wayne Mackie died unexpectedly Thursday night in Florida. He was 62.

Mackie, a Brooklyn native and Colgate graduate, was described by those who knew him as a “New Yorker through and through.” He worked a 20-year career at New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, serving as director of operations and inspecting homes to make sure they met residential code.

*** end quote ***

Requiescat In Pacem, good sir.

I read recently that a way to recover the public’s trust in the Covid “vaccine” would be to autopsy all premature unexplainable deaths.

This fellow was probably in great shape for his age after being an NFL official for years.

So, what caused his death?

Not to invade his, or his family’s, privacy, but this is an important public policy question that needs to be answered.

(IMHO)

—30—


RANT: Madeleine Albright says 500,000 dead Iraqi Children was “worth it” wins Medal of Freedom

Saturday, March 26, 2022

https://youtu.be/omnskeu-puE

Madeleine Albright says 500,000 dead Iraqi Children was “worth it” wins Medal of Freedom

# – # – # – # – #

I try never to speak ill of the dead.

BUT, (and there is always a BIG butt), I’ll make an exception.

As a little L libertarian, I am ashamed at this video … … … over and over again.

Killing little children is a national disgrace.

And, it continues in Yemen and scores of other places.

Like Gandhi, Lennon, and Jesus … suffer the little children.

Shame on us!

—30—

 


VOCABULARY: “SLUDGE” — the administrivia that make getting things done near-impossible

Friday, March 25, 2022

https://bigthink.com/smart-skills/sludge/

Sludge: How paperwork, wait times, and confusion degrade our well-being

  • Sludge may be inevitable, but there are better ways to manage such frictions in our daily lives.

with Cass Sunstein

*** begin quote ***

As defined by Harvard law professor Cass Sunstein, sludge is the amorphous accumulation of daily frictions that separate people from the things that can make their lives easier or better. Think tedious paperwork, long wait times, and bureaucratic procedures to fulfill simple requests. If you’ve ever navigated the layers of an automated answering system to speak with a human representative only to be put on hold for hours listening to public-domain slow jazz, then you know the pains of sludge.

*** end quote ***

Just yesterday, I called Walgreens about an OTC item that ordered on their website.  I had it confirmed then canceled.

I called three times.  Navigated phone choices.  Got a person each time who asked my name and birthdate — despite it wasn’t about a prescription — and they “transferred” me to a number that rang innumerable times then “transferred” me to survey “in order to give you outstanding service”.  Regardless if you took the survey or not, it hung up on you.

So I went to the store — ready for war — a nice lady took my name and birthdate — I have no idea why — and my order number.  She also said that they would fill my order but it would take an hour.

Argh!  So I left to do errands and came back,

New lady.  Took my name and birthdate — Argh! — and had no idea why order was cancelled.  Or why my order wasn’t ready.

Earlier lady returns equally clueless.

Then the pharmacist gets involved.  Also clueless as to why.  (It is an OTC item.)

After another hour, I get my order.  No apologies and no explanations.

SLUDGE in inaction.

Argh!

—30— 


INSPIRATIONAL: Strollers at the border

Thursday, March 24, 2022

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/strangers-are-leaving-strollers-diapers-and-toys-at-the-border-for-ukrainian-refugee-moms-look/

Strangers are Leaving Strollers, Diapers, and Toys at the Border for Ukrainian Refugee Moms (LOOK)
By  Andy Corbley – Mar 18, 2022

*** begin quote ***

An image recently shared around social media of empty strollers on a Polish rail border crossing has inspired a mountain of donations for Ukrainian refugees.

Now at Przemyśl Station, women, children, and infants fleeing the war are being greeted by mountains of clothes, stuffed animals, strollers, diapers, and more after they step off the train.

ABC reports that the number of spare carriers and strollers from Polish mothers have been particularly inspiring, with many donators leaving handwritten notes behind, with words of support.

“We see on the television and hear on the radio what happened, and we say ‘okay we can help,’” one Polish mother and volunteer told ABC.

*** end quote ***

The beauty of the charitable spirit brings one to tears.

—30—


TECHNOLOGY: Twitter, LinkedIn, and Medium deplatforming — are they declaring they are NOT a “common carrier”?

Thursday, March 24, 2022

https://stevekirsch.substack.com/p/the-final-word-from-twitter-on-my?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo0MTQyNTAzMCwicG9zdF9pZCI6NTA3OTYwMjIsIl8iOiJ3dWtjQSIsImlhdCI6MTY0Nzk1Nzc3NSwiZXhwIjoxNjQ3OTYxMzc1LCJpc3MiOiJwdWItNTQ4MzU0Iiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.q2jPYmNmrf7OZUiHun3q4AojKCwAdEBBdJr06q7nO5s&s=r

The final word from Twitter on my account (after 13 years): we’re deleting you and everything you ever wrote

  • After 13 years on Twitter, I was suspended for life a second time on Feb 6, 2022 and I was just notified today that there is no appeal. It took them 6 weeks to review my appeal.

Steve Kirsch

*** begin quote ***

Summary

Twitter, LinkedIn, and Medium all believe deplatforming me (and others who share my beliefs that early treatments work and the vaccines are dangerous) is a service to their community.

The message these companies want to send to everyone is that if you stick to the popular narrative, you will not be punished.

This is a new America where you need to conform or you will be deplatformed.

*** end quote ***

I guess it’s time for me to leave ANY platform that “deplatforms” ANY ONE for anything other than a “free speech violation”.

—30—


MONEY: Can bitcoin stop the “bad guys”? Can anything?

Wednesday, March 23, 2022

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/bitcoin-the-foundation-of-human-rights?utm_source=Bitcoin+Magazine&utm_campaign=f8fa15ec24-&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f7d45fbb67-f8fa15ec24-357073741&mc_cid=f8fa15ec24&mc_eid=386b7b0895

BITCOIN CAN BE THE FOUNDATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
The bad guys can’t stop Bitcoin, but Bitcoin can stop the bad guys.
GREGOR HERBORT
MAR 18, 2022

*** begin quote ***

60 years ago, it was not Syrians, Afghans, Iranians and people from various African states who had to leave their homes and sought refuge.

It was Kazakhs, Ukrainians, Jews, Poles, Russians and Germans who needed a new home before, during and after World War II. Displaced by an occupying power, by the ruling government and by hunger and war.

Many had to leave their hometowns and were not able to take much with them, let alone transfer money across national borders. This is what happened to many Jews. Refugees were deprived of their remaining possessions in Germany. In a perfidious way, the war and the extermination of the Jews were thus co-financed.

Within experiences of these and other inhuman acts, the Universal Human Rights have been defined. A commission led by Eleanor Roosevelt worked out 30 articles under the auspices of the United Nations in 1948.

Reading these 30 articles, it becomes clear that the potential bad guy is often seen on the side of the state or government.

*** and ***

Everyone has the right to freely access a healthy international currency!

*** end quote ***

I certainly like that it’s inflation proof.  It may be a hopeless gesture to liberty, but what choice do we have?

—30—


POLITICAL: The Gooferment shouldn’t punish those who dispute the election results

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

https://sharylattkisson.com/2022/03/read-watchdog-group-files-tries-to-overturn-sanctions-on-sidney-powell-trump-lawyer-who-challenged-2020-election-results/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Sharyl+Attkisson+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=Daily+Newsletter&vgo_ee=9GwjIKYNhIK3eFXY6NCvBw%3D%3D

(READ) Watchdog group files brief; tries to overturn sanctions on Sidney Powell, Trump lawyer who challenged 2020 election results
DATED: MARCH 19, 2022 BY SHARYL ATTKISSON

*** begin quote ***

“Courts sanctioning lawyers pursuing election law claims in the heat of an election is a dangerous game that could allow election corruption to go unchecked,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The partisan retaliation and harassment of lawyers involved in litigating the 2020 election dispute is unprecedented and undermines the rule of law – and courts should not take part in it.”

*** end quote ***

How anyone can say that there was no election fraud in the 2020 election is delusional!

The simultaneous “pause” in four key state in the middle of the night and DJT goes from being in the lead before the pause to losing after the pause is prima facie evidence of fraud.

The Deep State, the Corrupt Corporate Media, and Big Tech conspired to rig the election.

It’s obvious that the USA is now, and has been for awhile, a corrupt oligarchy.  

“We, The Sheeple” should wait until they are loading people on the trains destined for camps to begin to resist.

One can only hope that we can get our liberty back.

“Yes. In the end, you will walk out. Because 100,000 Englishmen simply cannot control 350 million Indians, if those Indians refuse to cooperate.” — movie Gandhi (1983)

So to, one city filled with politicians and bureaucrats can not control 320 million Americans if we all refuse to cooperate.  Peaceful non-violent cooperation.

Pick your “battles” but just gum up the works.  The Canadian Truckers expose the tyrannical State in Canada.  Let’s do the same in the USA.

Save your nickels, bullion, and bitcoins.  The may inflate the dollar but it can’t touch real money.

Argh!

—30— 


VOCABULARY: “Security Theater”

Monday, March 21, 2022

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2022/03/why-vaccine-cards-are-so-easily-forged.html

Why Vaccine Cards Are So Easily Forged
Bruce Schneier

*** begin quote ***

Back in 2003, at the height of our collective terrorism panic, I coined the term security theater to describe measures that look like they’re doing something but aren’t.

*** end quote ***

Well, for once, he and I disagree.  The smug cheater getting away with fraudulent documents instills in society that some are above the “rules”.  Like when politicians are unmasked but force everyone else to mask up.  One set of rules for me; another for thee. Doe the smug cheater get to run red lights and put others at mortal risk?

As a little L libertarian, I don’t recognize the Gooferment as having the power to mandate a lot of what it does.  I’m for the “night watchman” government if we have to have one at all.  So, when the Gooferment politicians and bureaucrats promulgate their diktats, I feel free to treat them as “suggestions”.

“I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.” — Robert A. Heinlein

So I stop at red lights and stop signs and expect others to do the same.  Not because the Gooferment has a diktat about it, but it is common sense to cooperate in the real world. 

If a shop keeper feel that masks are need for the well-being of their patrons — even if masks are ineffective and just provide some crazy people psychological comfort — then I’ll either accept their invitation to shop there wearing a mask or go somewhere else. (It’s not my role in society to disturb the peace and preach “any gospel” to the infidels.

Sigh, there are common sense rules that we obey for the benefit of humanity. And, they are way above diktats in moral authority.

But “theater” of any type should be mock, skirted, or just ignored if at all possible.  

(Note: I don’t do bail money. So obey that old knight. “But choose wisely, for while the true Grail will bring you life, the false Grail will take it from you.” Grail Knight in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097576/quotes)

—30—