Strange week but sadly it will only get worse.

Thanks b

Posted by: jo6pac | Feb 21 2021 13:50 utc | 1

Erdogan is learning the Deep State's methods:

Leaders of US Capitol attack linked to Syrian Kurdish YPG: Erdoğan

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 14:57 utc | 2

Called it:

Germany, Once a Model, Is Swamped Like Everyone Else by Pandemic’s Second Wave

I love when I turn out to be correct at the end.

Capitalism is simply incompatible with effectively fighting a pandemic. The only thing that will change is your infrastructural legacy, which determines how long the system will stand without falling apart.

Socialism is the way to go. It's science.

--//--

Free market rampage in Texas:

His Lights Stayed on During Texas’ Storm. Now He Owes $16,752.

‘People turn off their power because they can’t afford it,’ Texas woman slapped with $11,000 electricity bill tells RT

But here's the interesting thing: those energy companies tasted the delicious flavor of monopoly prices. When this is all over, will they be willing to go back to the era of cheap energy prices or will they continue to create rationales to spike them up?

--//--

Good take from Chinahand:

if you remember how the olympics kicked off the whole anti-China crapathon, this is kind of funny. Why so mad, China?

I remember that South Park episode on the 2008 Olympics. The beginning of a now seemingly endless crusade against China.

Not by coincidence, an even more important event happened in 2008. If you're an American, you know what it is.

--//--

Per capita income of Chinese residents continues to grow

From 2011 to 2020, the per capita disposable income of Chinese residents saw an average annual growth of 7.2 percent in real terms after adjusting for inflation, according to official data.

The cumulative growth of the country’s per capita disposable income in real terms over the 10 years reached 100.8 percent.

Disposable income is not very popular statistics in the West, and is more used in Asia (Japan, China). It means the income you have after spending on the essentials (food, energy, rent, transport) and expiring debt. Debt is not a problem in China (unless you're one of those consumerist middle class people who get into debt without needing to), so that essentially means the amount of use values the Chinese have at their disposal is greater than ever and cheaper than ever.

Don't be fooled by China's nominally (i.e. in USD terms) per capita income. What matters for the working classes are the use values, not the exchange values, of the goods you consume.

--//--

Repost:

MSC 2021: US of Today No Longer The One of the 'Cavalry is Coming' in Europe's Eyes, Analysts Say

Posted by: vk | Feb 21 2021 15:17 utc | 3

Meanwhile, in the United States, the massive incompetence of a Covid response might have accidentally on purpose achieved herd immunity - yet we must still be very afraid of a billion variants until everyone gets the jab and lives happily ever after.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/well-have-herd-immunity-by-april-11613669731

Posted by: gottlieb | Feb 21 2021 16:26 utc | 4

Note: I'm Pepsi

Glenn Greenwald — Democrats want more censorship, 1st Amendment be damned…
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/congress-escalates-pressure-on-tech

Ghetto Studies and the Wokegensia
How white liberals get rich dumbing down Blacks in America
https://torrancestephensphd.substack.com/p/ghetto-studies-and-the-wokegensia

UK fintechs seek ‘cure for Brexit’ in Lithuania
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1812991/business-economy

Posted by: Dogon Priest | Feb 21 2021 16:27 utc | 5

This morning I had the feeling that it is time for a re-read of Bulgakov's "The Master and Margarita." The reason for this thought or feeling was that we in the US and west seem to have come all the way down to where Moscow was when the book was written, and where Bulgakov was when he kept the manuscript hidden in a drawer, fearing execution. He kept revising it, but it wasn't published till after his death. (And here is a true incident from my own experience.)

Back when I wanted to read the novel, maybe around 2000, I was on my way to the bus stop in order to go to a bookstore and find the paperback version. At the town hall where the bus would come was a shelf where folk would sometimes put books for others to take. On that shelf, that morning, was a battered copy of the novel, so battered you normally would, without hesitation, throw it in the dumpster.

I took it. But I continued to the bookstore and bought two new copies, different translations, read them and then gave each to one of my family. I've kept the battered one for myself.

Today is the preparatory Sunday for Lent that follows upon Zacchaeus Sunday, Luke 18:10-15, called the Sunday of the publican and the pharisee. Both readings have been about tax collectors, as lessons in humility I think. One good thing about being as low as you can get is that the only way out is up.

Posted by: juliania | Feb 21 2021 16:33 utc | 6

@gottlieb @5 That opinion piece in WSJ presumes much too high prevalence in the general population.

It is bullshit (like nearly everything on that page.)

@vk - "His Lights Stayed on During Texas’ Storm. Now He Owes $16,752."

That's the persons own fault. He choose a tariff that is directly connected to the wholesale price. It is dirt cheap when there is no problem but explodes when trouble is coming. He was warned:

The company passes the wholesale price directly to customers, charging an additional $9.99 monthly fee. Much of the time, the rate is considered affordable. But the model can be risky: Last week, foreseeing a huge jump in wholesale prices, the company encouraged all of its customers — about 29,000 people — to switch to another provider when the storm arrived.

Posted by: b | Feb 21 2021 16:53 utc | 7

B @ 8

thanks for your response, and I appreciate all you do to generate intelligent dialog in a wasteland of ignorance. Perhaps you're right and perhaps not. The height of arrogance is to make a fast judgment on a very complex and questionable narrative. We don't know the actual 'infected' population. We don't know a lot of things. The WHO several months ago suggested about 10% of global population was 'infected' with the 'virus.'

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/05/who-10percent-of-worlds-people-may-have-been-infected-with-virus-.html

Thanks again for your important efforts on behalf of humanity.

Posted by: gottlieb | Feb 21 2021 17:05 utc | 8

much appreciated b... lots of interesting info and coverage... the must read that karlof1 linked to the other day is definitely worth the read.. thanks..

@ juliania... you sure are into the russian authors! i thought lent already started? ash wednesday was this past wednesday?? does the orthodox church have a different date? clearly i don't know much about all this..

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 17:08 utc | 9

@8 b...'That's the persons own fault".. that is the way the capitalist system is designed! it is worse in some places more then others... those in power make the laws...

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 17:11 utc | 10

@Posted by: b | Feb 21 2021 16:53 utc | 8

I am reminded of a quote from the always essential guide to bureaucracy:
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

“But the plans were on display…”
“On display? I eventually had to go down to the cellar to find them.”
“That’s the display department.”
“With a flashlight.”
“Ah, well, the lights had probably gone.”
“So had the stairs.”
“But look, you found the notice, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” said Arthur, “yes I did. It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying ‘Beware of the Leopard.”

I sympathize with that Texan a modicum as I could see myself getting an envelope from the power company
and putting it in the pile on the side table together with Donate to Kittens,etc - to be opened later
during a sporting event commercial break. If only I cared more about kittens I might
have read that power company notice in a timely manner.
Assuming the notice was without ambiguity: "Switch now or you are fucked, kitten hater!".

Posted by: librul | Feb 21 2021 17:35 utc | 11

Disengagement at the biggest trouble spot in Ladakh has been completed by China and India. China has revealed that 4 of its troops died during the June 15 skirmish. India says 20 of its troops died. Initially 3 died and then 17 later died due to cold weather and high altitude according to the official statement. I assume China' statement is true because in June an Indian newspaper reported that Indian soldiers at other areas of the border heard from Chinese counterparts that at least 3 Chinese troops had died. So the delayed announcement by China is consistent with the earlier Indian report. The Indians don't have many helicopters in the area. Could the higher Indian death toll be accounted for by lack of helicopters for casualty evacuation?

Posted by: depsang | Feb 21 2021 17:36 utc | 12

Neocons and their obsession with the word 'credibility' just watched Haas inform us that we must stay in Afghanistan in order to preserve America's credibility. Does it ever occur to any of these genius' that our credibility is harmed by us breaking agreements all of the time rather than our lack of viciousness?

Afghanistan - Taliban
Iran JCPOA
Libya - Gaddafi

You would think that breaking agreements somehow magnifies our greatness.

Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Feb 21 2021 17:53 utc | 13

@ james | Feb 21 2021 17:11 utc | 11 who wrote
"
@8 b...'That's the persons own fault".. that is the way the capitalist system is designed! it is worse in some places more then others... those in power make the laws...
"

Now we are getting down to one of my favorite subjects - Personal Responsibility

How much personal responsibility do individuals have versus the government they live under?

How much personal responsibility did the person with the huge bill take for their situation? Did they know the consequences of their actions but think they would not apply here?

Which brings me to the most nasty of personal responsibility obfuscators, religion. If you are of faith then when your Plato's Cave Display tells you that the owners of global private finance are doing God's work, you nod and stay the course.

So, who is the judge of personal responsibility. In my mind it is the sum definition of good government which continues to evolve as humanity evolves. The shit show we have now is nothing like that.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 21 2021 17:55 utc | 14

Trick question here

If those religions are so "good for humanity" then why aren't they organizing their membership to challenge/change the social order for the better, instead of this anti-humanistic shit show we see in the West at present?

Or are they as bankrupt as the God of Mammon religion that binds them all?

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 21 2021 18:02 utc | 15

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 17:08 utc | 10

A serial was made for TV, with excellent Russian actors, it is worth watching. There is a route in Moscow were the action takes place, especially the so called "bad flat" or the apartment with a spell where Bulgakov lived. It is a museum now, but back in the 20's was a communal apartment were living was kind of sordid.

Posted by: Paco | Feb 21 2021 18:04 utc | 16

@b #8
Indeed - that's what happens when retail customers get into wholesale areas that they have no business getting into.
Although to be fair - the entire Griddy business model is just Robinhood writ into electric utilities.
Specifically in Griddy's case: use normally cheap wholesale prices to lure suckers in - who also pay $9.99 to Griddy - knowing full well these suckers are going to get screwed in a corner event like this SSM.

Posted by: c1ue | Feb 21 2021 18:08 utc | 17

It appears we are now talking to Iran about a number of things.

Washington in Talks With Iran Over Detained Americans, Biden's National Security Adviser Says

Also talk about the deal, and the sanctions. I have a hunch it will go well beyond that.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 18:10 utc | 18

The new model?

Feudalism.

https://planetfreewill.news/reinventing-the-company-town-nevada-teases-self-governing-innovation-zones-for-big-tech-business-with-own-taxes-courts/

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak is trying to lure high-tech firms into his state with an offer to allow them to effectively form independent governments at the county level, capable of levying taxes and even forming courts.

You can leave the company store but your social merit rating
will follow your bio-installed chip wherever you go.

"Wherever You Go, There You Are"
- Zen according to AI

Posted by: librul | Feb 21 2021 18:11 utc | 19

@ b | Feb 21 2021 16:53 utc | 8 Re: Johns Hopkins doc's April herd immunity prediction:

Nobody knows; time will tell...We can hope so...

Someone here predicted confidently one year ago in Feb 2020 that Covid-19 was nothing serious to get excited/worried about iirc.

SARS Classic (early 2003) disapeared on its own w/o any experimental gene therapy drugs, vaccines, or antiviral drugs after ~ 1.5 year . Fact.

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 18:14 utc | 20

US considers lifting sanctions on Iran as part of nuclear deal revival plan

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 18:18 utc | 21

"There are attempts to start similar groups outside the WHO. But people's health is not a field where one can play geopolitics. Unless there is a conspiracy behind this to reduce the population of the Earth. Many are now starting to develop such theories and concepts."

Sergei Lavrov

Now go read the rest, b linked it above.

Posted by: Per/Norway | Feb 21 2021 18:44 utc | 22

I usually avoid talking about Covid with many people who seem to have no ability to think for themselves. ie. TV addicts. You cannot convince those who already know absolutely all.

This is a comparatively clear explanation between Gene therapy and Vaccines. SARS-CoV-2 is “the virus” and Covid-19. "The World Health Organization was clear in stating that there should not be a conflation between the two of these things. One is a virus, in their definition and one is a set of clinical symptoms."

https://www.westonaprice.org/podcast/its-gene-therapy-not-a-vaccine/

The only reason we are using PCR tests is that governors and the Department of Health and Human Services are maintaining a state of emergency. The second that that state of emergency is lifted in any state or in the country, the PCR test won’t be allowed to be used. We’re maintaining a state of emergency so that manufacturers can keep selling a thing that would never be approved if it was subject to a clinical trial. It goes for what’s being called vaccines too. The gene therapy that Moderna and Pfizer are doing, both of those would be suspended immediately if the state of emergency got lifted. People don’t understand that if you lift the state of emergency, the whole house of cards falls.

I personally will not reply for this post. People are too emotionally involved.
I put it here for information

Posted by: Stonebird | Feb 21 2021 18:54 utc | 23

Pure comedy.
BTW I'm Pepsi
Video: After Texas Power Grid Disaster Jen Psaki Was Asked Why Biden Signed Executive Order Giving China Access To U.S. Power Grid - The WH Press Secretary Has No Answer
https://conservativeus.com/video-jen-psaki-asked-why-biden-signed-executive-order-giving-china-access-to-u-s-power-grid-the-wh-press-secretary-has-no-answer/

Posted by: Dogon Priest | Feb 21 2021 19:04 utc | 24

For the surprise of zero persons:

‘We have lost the streets,’ Belarusian opposition figure Tikhanovskaya says, predicting more protests in spring

Didn't know revolutions had to wait for the spring. Those so-called color revolutions should be rebranded as the weekend revolutions or seasonal revolutions.

--//--

@ Posted by: b | Feb 21 2021 16:53 utc | 8

I understand your rationale, but, from the standpoint of macroeconomic theory, there's no free will: the decisions of each individual are irrelevant. By the same logic we could also posit the company's CEO could simply donate the energy to the consumers, charging USD 0.00 (a random wrong decision by an individual). The concept of the monopoly prices (rent) stands correct.

The so-called theory of "asymmetry of information" does not stand the rigors of the scientific method. Social wealth (and profit) doesn't arise from individuals taking correct and wrong guesses, but from social human labor. Ironically, capitalism (the society that came with this "theory") is the most dependent on predictability of all systems ever created by humankind not named socialism. In fact, there's a historical correlation between human triumph over nature (technological progress) and its capacity to predict what will happen (because it has objective power over the objective material world).

Posted by: vk | Feb 21 2021 19:05 utc | 25

Posted @ Saker blog accolades to MOA too!!!

I was a "power broker" once upon a time. The long ongoing tap root rot I indeed witnessed; e.g., Clinton gave green light to investment banks' "subprime" financial warfare. Reagan 1980s, manipulations for billionaires, 24% interest rates overnight! And, Wars, 1960s, e.g., Vietnam & "evildoers", Nixon, et al. Before my time, 1933, the Great Depression warned and was forgotten. China made a deal with the FED, and there was/is an agenda (2001-2003). Only one child policy created Big T boys, and they came of age. China's Opium War via Rothchild, a reckoning to be sure. China is not going to allow nor are any of the BRICS, going to allow Rothchild to own world earth. Texas is an interesting timing,
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/jaishankar-unveils-indias-brics-website/articleshow/81114766.cms

https://www.huawei.com/us/searchresult?keywords=Texas

I refused loans to "Big T" boys from China (2003,4,5??) or thereabouts. As a mostly starving artiest my whole life I was definately disapointed & depressed.

The East is not going to be the slop carrier for the West anymore.

My choice is for every human being to be free, a body called government isn't modernized enough! Digital algorithms have completely changed the dynamic, of course the technology is an instant electromagnetic learning tool.

Marx, my cousin once removed said: "People of the world unite, all you have to lose are your chains". I stand in his long in the tooth wisdom.

Been arrested x2, jailed & tortured x2, every material world valuable and loss of loved ones too, all for the most begone... simply because I refuse to shut up about "what it is":

FREEDOM

Saker' blog truly stellar, Great Shining LIGHT an understatement (Moon of Alabama I also bow to the LIGHTS)

Thanks

Posted by: RKelly | Feb 21 2021 19:09 utc | 26

@19 Bemildred
I have the same feeling. When the Iranian parliament set a deadline Biden had to cross that deadline, just in order to make the point that the USA doesn't care about an ultimatum from whoever.

The vaccine situation in Russia is odd. With a production capacity of 10 million doses per month and two doses per person Russia hasn't even the capacity to vaccine half it's population annually. Yet that's not even a problem, because the majority of Russian don't want to get vaccinated. Really strange. How exactly does Russia plan to get out of lockdown?

Personally I would say that Sputnik V is the best combination of effectiveness and safety (though not necessarily price and availability). It will probably play an important role in the next years, since it is readily available and it's production and distribution through license agreements should be possible in many countries. It will probably replace most other vaccines in the long run, except the mRNA-vaccines.

Posted by: m | Feb 21 2021 19:13 utc | 27

Posted by: m | Feb 21 2021 19:13 utc | 27

Well, I'm still watching it, not over, however it's clear where we are heading. Right now it is "talking about hostages through the Swiss", but not clear anybody is actually going to do anything. What you can say is all the tough talk was just that. Various kibitzers weighing in on it too.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 19:22 utc | 28

this is from @46 grieved in the previous thread... i am curious for a conversation about this as well.. is this covid thing being set up as a way of limiting world population?? lavrovs statement which i quote goes into this - "But people’s health is not a field where one can play geopolitics." but it seems this is what the usa-uk and some other countries have done - play politics and emphasize capitalism above the health of people.. see comments from grieved below..

"The final paragraph that Lavrov speaks is something that goes far beyond anything that has ever been stated out loud in the diplomatic world. I was going to wait for an open thread - because I really don't want to go off topic in this thread - but it's so important, and the interview has now been introduced here, so here goes.

We have only recently discussed the reduction of global population by the rich. It has long been discussed at the deeply theoretical level of conspiracies, but only now after the obvious inaction and lack of caring of recent years can it be made as a logical conclusion from a logical argument based on observation.

So now, Lavrov brings it up, as the stinger in the tail of an already formidable performance, and pushes the global paradigm to a wholly different place. Quote (my emphasis):

"... This is another example of rules on which ‘order’ will be based.
"There are attempts to start similar groups outside the WHO. But people’s health is not a field where one can play geopolitics. Unless there is a conspiracy behind this to reduce the population of the Earth. Many are now starting to develop such theories and concepts."

~~

I have much to say about this but I'll wait for an open thread because it's pretty off-topic - if anything Lavrov says can really be off-topic in this world of affairs."

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 19:22 utc | 29

@psychohistorian - 15

Religions were established to take the focus of the common man from their current sufferings at the hands of their 'betters', their masters; by fostering dreams of an always exciting future, preferably after their death.

Whoever said, "religion is the opiate of the masses" (Marx I think), was right on.

In these modern times, religion would more accurately be described as a drug explicitly given to induce "battered wife syndrome" or even "Stockholm Syndrome".

Posted by: nudge | Feb 21 2021 19:23 utc | 30

@gm | Feb 21 2021 18:14 utc | 21

Someone here predicted confidently one year ago in Feb 2020 that Covid-19 was nothing serious to get excited/worried about iirc.

And it was correct. What we need to worry about is severe and entirely different from the pretext that is currently forced upon us.

Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 21 2021 19:27 utc | 31

Ehm ... I should have written this differently. What I meant to say is that the AstraZeneca and the Sinovac vaccines have both been flops. A few more vaccines will probably also turn out to be failures. Yet they all use similar production technologies. Why should anybody invest into further research of ones own vaccine if buying a Sputnik V license is as effective but cheaper and much quicker?

Posted by: m | Feb 21 2021 19:27 utc | 32

@ psychohistorian | Feb 21 2021 17:55 utc | 15................... personal responsibility topic.... good topic and general question... it is a balancing act when you think of the gov'ts role verses the individuals role... we all have to take responsibility for our actions.. but i see in a capitalist system that those who no, or little ethics or morals thrive more then those with ethics and morals.. this is very judgmental on my part! i am reminded of the comment that there are more socio and psychopaths on wall st then anywhere else.. funny enough many of these people are now writing for the msm and in gov't positions in the usa! maybe i have a very jaded and wrong view on it all, so i am not one to talk about any of it!

@ Paco | Feb 21 2021 18:04 utc | 17.. thanks paco.... does the series have english subtitles?? i am interested in it..

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 19:28 utc | 33

personally i think a lot of the hostility towards religion - i see this towards unions funny enough - seems misplaced and only gets at one angle of a much broader jigsaw..

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 19:29 utc | 34

b @ 8: wow, Bernhard, that's harsh, man!
In one way you're right, of course, but gosh you don't think its even a little unfair?

Suppose I offer to sell you a toaster at half price, but every once in 1000 times you use the toaster it might give you a nasty electric shock that could seriously injure you. Now I'm not allowed to sell something like that, right? because its dangerous.

But they're allowed to offer risky, dangerous electricity plans which rely on the customer switching plans at the last minute to avoid an egregious charge. What are the chances that he is a "sophisticated investor", and not just an average guy?

Posted by: Deltaeus | Feb 21 2021 19:33 utc | 35

re:james | Feb 21 2021 19:22 utc | 29 etc
several words to add to the speculation - georgia guidestones.

Posted by: tucenz | Feb 21 2021 19:38 utc | 36

Hilarious comment to Biden's racism... :-)
https://twitter.com/stclairashley/status/1363224533759574016

Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 21 2021 19:40 utc | 37

RE population control: Malthusian economics has been around for quite a while. Population control was a popular subject in my youth, generally along the lines of birth control now or four-horseman control later. Club of Rome, Limits of Growth, all much debated. I think we have arrived at later. We are already neck deep in resource wars.

RE responsibility: I have always considered since I thought it over that responsibility and authority go together. You are responsible for what you have authority or control over. You want to know who is reponsible, ask who is in charge.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 19:51 utc | 38

@ Posted by: Stonebird | Feb 21 2021 18:54 utc | 24

I agree with you. The PCR test has never been approved anywhere as a diagnostic device. Besides, it is a test method that has neither been validated nor standardized.

On a similar note, the vaccines are being used under an EUA (emergency use authorization) that’s because none of them have completed their clinical studies. For example, the expected completion date for the Pfizer vaccine is January 2023. Experiments with experimental vaccines with a new technology are ongoing with millions of people as we speak.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04368728

On a similar note, I believe an EUA is possible only if there is no proven treatment for a disease, e.g. Covid-19. That tells me why our authorities are dragging their feet in approving Ivermectin treatment. Nobody claims that there is no need to conduct more trials with Ivermectin. But a simple risk benefits analysis (of using Ivermectin) should convince anyone that it should be made much easier for physicians to prescribe Ivermectin and for the populace to obtain it. But if Ivermectin is approved for treating Covid-19 then how can these experimental vaccines be given to people anymore?

Here is a recent talk on Ivermectin and its use in treating Covid-19.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OY8QV7lnFFo&feature=youtu.be

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 21 2021 19:52 utc | 39

Free market rampage in Texas:

His Lights Stayed on During Texas’ Storm. Now He Owes $16,752.

Posted by: vk | Feb 21 2021 15:17 utc | 3

There are wise people in Texas and not so wise. A not so wise person uses electric heating and lighting during an ice storm, and his local utility frantically bids for available power (I guess it is done by a computer program). Win! As a reward, for an hour both home and office is warm and lit for an hour, using few kilowatts that cost 1000 each. Later the country plunges in darkness, like the neighboring country that lost the bidding and thus was cold and dark for an extra hour.

A wise person shuts everything and flies to Cancun. Plenty of warmth and light down there, and much much cheaper! But as I was commenting before, the public frowns upon clever politicians -- Senator Cruz in in a bit of hot water. To recover, he will need to blab for at least a year and hide his intelligence completely.

Posted by: Piotr Berman | Feb 21 2021 19:53 utc | 40

Canada's federal opposition Conservative party are trying very hard, with direct assistance from the corporate media, to stampede the parliament into an official declaration of "genocide" directed at China over the de-radicalisation programs in Xinjiang. Several months ago, a parliamentary subcommittee arrived at similar conclusion after hearings which heard exclusively from Uighur activists tied to Zenz. The posturing and group think on display promoting a rushed vote on a hasty decision is disconcerting, as "genocide" declarations have some consequence in international law and should not be approached as frivolously as in this case.

Interesting shift with over-generalized insults, in that they used to be directed at persons seeking information i.e. "truthers", and now they are directed at persons reject information i.e. "denialists". Apparently there are many genocide denialists whose moral character must be denounced in the Canadian media.

Posted by: jayc | Feb 21 2021 19:55 utc | 41

@ Dogon Priest | Feb 21 2021 19:04 utc | 25

Re: Chinese bulk power equipment systems

Hoh boy.... China is the largest maker of wind turbines/farms on the planet.

Just guess how much political $h!t will be hitting the windmill if it turns out that a lot of those frozen-up Texas wind farm system components turn out to have been made in China.

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 19:56 utc | 42

What's with the lumps of tar that are getting washed ashore in Israel now? They've closed the whole length of the coast apparently because of this environmental hazard. They say it's the aftermath of a severe storm they had recently. However, I couldn't find any reports from Syria or Lebanon regarding this phenomenon. Since they all share one environment, one coastline, shouldn't Syria and Lebanon be affected as well? Does anyone know more?

Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Feb 21 2021 19:57 utc | 43

When deregulated electricity came to my municipality it was in guise of green renewable energy. The local Greens put two years of heavy work into that referendum. Anyone with common sense or a particle of skepticism knew that in this case green was a stalking horse for deregulation. Deregulation would not have passed muster here. But the Greens got it through. They are majority Ph.D. So they have no common sense at all.

Day after referendum the sales force descended. Within a week the Greens no longer existed. If you slammed door in salesman’s face they called you on the phone. For five years I got at least two phone calls a day and at times it was hourly.

Twice I was slammed. Slammed means suddenly you have a new electric provider. A bill arrives in the mail from someone you have never heard of and it is hard to know if it is even real, but it probably is. To get unslammed the remedy is infinite phone calls and hours on hold day after day. Or you can hire an attorney. Or you can make a trip and appear in person at your congressman's service office. I would rather never be within a kilometer of the slime that represents me in Congress but there are times you have to compromise your principles.

Have to mention that any and all who failed to display sufficient enthusiasm for green renewable energy were dragged through the mud. We were called reactionaries, dinosaurs, Libertarians, Republicans. It goes without saying we were baby killers. This was heated and public and impossible to evade.

So no, it is not their own fault.

Posted by: oldhippie | Feb 21 2021 20:08 utc | 44

So that is what BBC stands for: Bellingcat Broadcasting Corporation

Posted by: bevin | Feb 21 2021 20:26 utc | 45

@oldhippie | Feb 21 2021 20:08 utc | 44

That is a very interesting story. I think you once said you live in Illinois [?].

Was that greenwashed deregulation referendum effort run state-wide, or just in your individual municipality or power company district? (Asking for a friend who lives in a nearby state)

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 20:27 utc | 46

Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 21 2021 19:52 utc | 39

I think the whole thing is simply to keep a "state of emergency" going. So Ivermectin, vitamin D or HCR, Zinc and other useful items have to be run down by the MSM. They WILL be useful and if avilable should be used, but it is a waste of time expecting "Government health services" to give permission. (My advice is if you can, "do-it-yourself" is the best formula.)

Why? Is it a simple question of a lot of money ? Vallance and Whitty in the UK received £21 and £23 million from Bill Gates. Hancock is suspected of fraud, giving massive contracts to buddies. Or is there a lot more behind it?.

The Lavrov interview (@24. I've only just read it) mentions EU representatives reading from notebooks, instead of negotiating. The same thing happens in the medical sphere. Who is giving the orders? Why?

Even the mask thing, It is now "illegal to wear sunglasses and a hat at the same time as a mask in Germany, because the Police can't identify you", is the best Benny Hill/Mr. Bean slapstick - if it wasn't so serious. Or even "wear two masks because testing on tailors' dummies proves it is better".

There are so many holes in the whole subject, both medical and social, that I am simply stupified by the level of crass .......idiocy, that we are discovering in todays' society.
***

You said; But if Ivermectin is approved for treating Covid-19 then how can these experimental vaccines be given to people anymore?. Human testing, as Pfizer and the other gene manipulators are not tested fully. They are now using pregnant women and children as trial subjects.

"Incidental" brutality to see the damage on human collateral?

Posted by: Stonebird | Feb 21 2021 20:32 utc | 47

Re: jayc #41,

Yeah, even CBC is getting in on the act, interviewing CIA agents, oh I mean, "Uighur activists", pushing for a high handed declaration of Chinese guilt for "genocide" against the Uighurs, evidence and neutral investigations be damned. The sheer idiocy that they are advocating is stupefying. How does this benefit Canada, who are the people pushing this claim (remember the vigra pill popping rape troops of Libya or the incubator babies of Kuwait), what does such a declaration even mean, what can piss-ant Canada do about it (answer: grab America's coattails even harder as the US spirals down the drain). Worst of all, no one, absolutely no one, in the mainstream media is honestly discussing this subject and the geopolitical context that these claims are being sold around. The mainstream media have still not learned the lessons of Iraq (or Libya, or Ukraine, or Yugoslavia or Vietnam).

Posted by: Kadath | Feb 21 2021 20:35 utc | 48

Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Feb 21 2021 19:57 utc | 43

Oil spill: It says they think it came from a passing ship. Trying to identify which one.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 20:39 utc | 49

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 19:28 utc | 33

I've checked, youtube has the 12 chapters but no subtitles, I've spent quite a while looking to no avail, all commercial sites with required registration, even though it is 15 years old already. The only way to get it would be with a P2P app, it would be a 10Gig dl. Too bad because it is a truly well made serial with excellent actors and a decent budget.

Posted by: Paco | Feb 21 2021 20:43 utc | 50

Re Lavrov and depopulation.

I’m only linking deagel.com because Dmitry Orlov thought them credible enough to mention them in one of his articles I linked to here previously.

Global population forecast 2025

Posted by: Down South | Feb 21 2021 20:49 utc | 51

gm@46

Evanston Illinois. Just can’t remember why this was local but it was. Pretty sure it was the whole town, city limits.

There is only one set of power lines. All the power comes from Com Ed.The game was the new providers would pay a distribution fee to Com Ed, then buy green power somewhere. Com Ed is already somewhat invested in wind power. And is the largest US operator of nuclear. So the idea was if a customer bought from the green provider that power came from a wind turbine or a nuke. This would push Com Ed to play nice. Too complex to ever be real, easy to game. Nothing but an opportunity for con artists.

Posted by: oldhippie | Feb 21 2021 20:54 utc | 52

What I mean by credible @ 51, is that Orlov thinks this is what they are planning to achieve by 2025.

Posted by: Down South | Feb 21 2021 20:58 utc | 53

Posted by: james | Feb 21 2021 19:28 utc | 33

Here a good option for you, there is a film by the name Morfiy or Morphine, in English, it is autobiographical since Bulgakov was a physician and the film is made by the late director Aleksey Balabanov, the best of modern Russian filmaking. It is based on a short story, and it is about a physician just out of university without any experience, sent to the boondocks and then the revolution comes. The film is electric like all Balabanov's films plus it paints a picture of a rural backward country and at the same time a decadent bourgeoise. Besides it is a regular film not as long as a 12 chapter serial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44lzTTjZB0I

Posted by: Paco | Feb 21 2021 21:07 utc | 54

@16: If belonging to a religion means that when you are out of work someone of the congregation pulls strings so you get a paid job, or when you are ill someone comes to do your shopping for you, then religion is good for you. Whether God exists or not is another matter.

Posted by: passerby | Feb 21 2021 21:11 utc | 55

@Down South | Feb 21 2021 20:49 utc | 51 RE Deagal.com Forecast 2025

Notice the entry for USA population in 2025? 99 Million !? 70% pop. loss from 2019 (332 Million). Also a 30% population loss for Canada. But only 3% population loss for Mexico

Is Deagel expecting an asteroid strike in US, or Yellowstone Caldera to blow up?

Also large population losses for NW European countries. Anglo-saxon/WASP-targeting bioweapons?

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 21:20 utc | 56

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 21:20 utc | 56

Deagel: They explain their reasoning at the bottom.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 21:27 utc | 57

Al Jazeera English is reporting a temporary deal has been struck to allow the IAEA to continue its 'snap' inspections in a watered-down form for the next 3 months.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/2/21/iaea-iran-agree-temporary-deal-inspections-access

Posted by: S.P. Korolev | Feb 21 2021 21:39 utc | 58

Ralph Nader poses tough questions for Pelosi about her complete bungling of the Impeachment Trial--twice! The message IMO is there's to be no law enforcement when it comes to High Crimes committed by the POTUS, for much of what Trump's guilty of Obama and Biden are as well--and in several cases far worse since they committed thousands of Capital Crimes.

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 21:46 utc | 59

Stonebird #24

Thank you for that post. I was disappointed in a person claiming to be a scientist that makes no mention of vaccines from the Russian Federation or China or Cuba etc. ie half the world is ignored, such is the terror that smothers the discourse and all reason in the USA.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 21 2021 21:49 utc | 60

Nathan Mulcahy #39

On Ivermectin from the Jerusalem Post: I posted the link to this yesterday on an other thread #137 on No Change president...

Prof. Eli Schwartz, founder of the Center for Travel Medicine and Tropical Disease at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, last week completed a clinical trial of the US Food and Drug Administration-approved drug ivermectin, a broad-spectrum antiparasitic agent that has also been shown to fight viruses.

The double-blind, placebo-controlled study included 100 people with mild to moderate cases of the disease who were not hospitalized for the virus. It tested whether ivermectin could shorten the viral shedding period, allowing them to test negative for coronavirus and leave isolation in only a few days.

According to his still unpublished data, Schwartz said the drug was shown to help “cure” people of the virus within just six days. Moreover, the chances of testing negative for coronavirus were three times higher for the group who received ivermectin than the placebo, he told The Jerusalem Post.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 21 2021 22:08 utc | 61

b@8 (and vk passim)

The tendency of liberalism to deny the consequences of society stems from its myth of the 'individual'. Liberalism imagines a world of rational subjects each making decisions in a sovereign way (Thatcher's 'there is no such thing as society'). This allows capitalism to erect a moral framework that represents the consequences of an economy as the consequences of personal decisions. In this way, success (wealth) is 'reward' and failure (poverty) is punishment. It's what Max Weber called 'secular Protestantism'. The working classes participate in this evaluative ideology (Gramsci); it is the source of their self-loathing and the reason they always vote against their own best interests. They all believe their lack of means is a consequence of their lack of intelligence, work ethic, failure of entrepreneurial spirit, etc etc. Here is Marx's own critique of the way liberalism washes its hands of the effects of capitalism:

"The... theory... which is also expressed as a law of nature, that population grows faster than the means of subsistence, is the more welcome to the bourgeois as it silences his conscience, makes hard-heartedness into a moral duty and the consequences of society into the consequences of nature, and finally gives him the opportunity to watch the destruction of the proletariat by starvation as calmly as any other natural event without bestirring himself, and, on the other hand, to regard the misery of the proletariat as its own fault and to punish it. To be sure, the proletarian can restrain his natural instinct by reason, and so, by moral supervision, halt the law of nature in its injurious course of development." - Karl Marx, Wages, December 1847

While it may be superficially true that our poor Texan could have cunningly evaded copping the wholesale price the fact remains that he is—as all Texans are—a victim of a system structurally designed to extract exorbitant rents from his need for power. A socialist system would not see him as a battery hen to be skimmed or as an atomized individual who should 'sink or swim' (in the words of that local mayor) but would seek to prevent power, food, water, air, housing, education, health, etc etc from being hijacked and sequestered by vested interests accessible only by outrageous fees. Socialism would outlaw rent-seeking, which is the theft of meaningful life by carpetbaggers and their corrupt partners in government.

Posted by: Patroklos | Feb 21 2021 22:13 utc | 62

@ karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 21:46 utc | 59 with the Ralph Nader link

I read it and am less than impressed.

Ralphie left out the part about the GOP/Trump folks saying that they were going to call Pelosi to the witness stand........magic, it all turns into kabuki, correct?

Play up the mythological left/right divide and never, ever focus on the top/bottom levers controlling the left/right meme.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 21 2021 22:13 utc | 63

RE:Deagel: They explain their reasoning at the bottom.

-Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 21:27 utc | 57

Yes, but this is exactly the part that does not make sense to me:

If there is not a dramatic change of course the world is going to witness the first nuclear war. The Western block collapse may come before, during or after the war. It does not matter. A nuclear war is a game with billions of casualties and the collapse plays in the hundreds of millions.

Nuclear war would be a big lose-lose for most ot the combatants...so why are all the the projected large losses in the West only if Deagel is projecting a big nuke exchange. Does Deagel expect the West to nuke itself?

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 22:14 utc | 64

Video report about Russian UAVs, including the latest Hunter drone working in tandem with the SU-57.

Posted by: alaff | Feb 21 2021 22:23 utc | 65

What appears to be somewhat relevant to Lavrov's hinting highlighted by Grieved is renewed emphasis on revitalizing rural regions by China as the linked item announces:

"No.1 central document vows rural vitalization: Document details plan to advance modernization of agriculture, rural reforms."

But there's more to it than what appears on the surface:

"Apart from routine issues such as long-term policy to guarantee farmers' incomes, improve infrastructure and basic public services in rural areas, analysts pointed out that the country's top policymakers are prioritizing 'self-reliance' in this year's document given the challenges the country is facing.

"'The direction pinpointed in the document draws on issues that occurred in the new situation, for example, the coronavirus-plagued 2020, and potential challenges in the next few years,' Jiao Shanwei, editor-in-chief of cngrain.com, a website specializing in grain news, told the Global Times on Sunday.

"Over the past year, the problem of rising food prices that plagued the world seems to be intensifying. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the food supply chain, paralyzed transportation and ultimately increased global food prices, highlighting the demand for the world's second-largest economy to strengthen self-reliance in grain supply." [My Emphasis]

Securing the food supply for the long term future is to be a "top priority" of the newly commencing 5-year plan along with vast increases in spending on medical services to bolster health security, particularly in the rural areas where outbreaks are more common.

Food and health security are also Russian priorities along with utility and transport connectivity in its vast rural zones, too. When looked at broadly, China and Russia's development plans are strikingly similar with major stress on self-reliance. China has now announced prioritizing self-reliance in two very important economic areas--Food Security and semiconductor/hi-tech development, while also reinforcing the national healthcare system's capabilities everywhere with an emphasis on rural regions.

What might we make of these developments relative to Lavrov's intimations? China is clearly going to make the further protection of its people its highest priority, and is trying very hard to overcome those areas where its overshot ecologically. Russia had already embarked on similar policy goals, and Putin is keen to keep the throttle wide open in their implementation. And as Russia continues to move away from the EU and closer to China and its Eastern Bloc, Putin apparently saw the need to speak out against what's known as Russian Chauvinism or "caveman nationalism" as Putin recently called it, which was reviewed in this article.

So, is something sinister afoot, in more than the usual sense, or are the Russians and Chinese just being pragmatic given the state-of-the-world? I would like to ask Lavrov to explain what prompted his words.

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 22:50 utc | 66

@ uncle tungsten | Feb 21 2021 22:08 utc | 61

Thanks UT! With every week the Ivermectin data continues to gain more credibility. But if my hypothesis is correct that an official approval of a treatment would jeopardize the entire scheme of vaccinating people with an experimental concoction, then it will be interesting to see how far “they” will go to keep the sheeple scared enough to make them do what the masters say.

I was able to convince my primary physician to prescribe Ivermectin as prophylaxis - god bless him. But I have to pay $41 for 3 doses each time. It would have been $71 without insurance - even though this 30 year old drug should cost just cents. I did contact suppliers from India who would ship me 100 (6 mg) tablets for $50 ($35 of it for S&H). They don’t require any prescription and would declare the shipment as “medication for personal use”. That’s where I paused. There is a high likelihood that US customs would confiscate the package. And since I have to prepay, I’ll lose the money. But more importantly, customs might prosecute me for importing illegal drugs. I have no doubts about my government’s priorities. It will defend the rights of big Pharma to gauge me for profit making, instead of helping me save myself and my family from a disease that can be deadly.

So I am biting the bullet and buying Ivermectin at an astronomical high price. What else to expect when you live in a failed, rogue state?

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 21 2021 23:05 utc | 67

Posted by: gm | Feb 21 2021 22:14 utc | 64

Well, to be candid, it looks like some form of "clever" propaganda to me. The underlying premise is that the Russians and/or Chinese are working to take us out with a first strike; which I take as the usual projection. This seems unlikely to me, but you can't really say it won't happen. On the other hand, the USA has been working on that project ever since WWII. They are quite obstinate about it.

I think it is unlikely because a.) they have not done so yet, and yet we look pretty vulnerable, and b.) they don't look near dumb enough to think it is a good idea even if they could pull it off. What they do seem to have done is make damn sure if we try it will be the last thing we try. It seems pretty clear they want to talk us down. I think we would be wise to do that.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 21 2021 23:06 utc | 68

Nathan Mulcahy@39

Watched your video. Excellent for information. I have been following closely and have half memorized the FLCCC site. And still learned a lot.

Anyone else should be aware that Marik is a horrible speaker. Production values are bad too. The introductory is also weak. The introducer also substantially understates Marik’s credentials. Worth the time in spite of all problems.

Posted by: oldhippie | Feb 21 2021 23:10 utc | 69

The deadline issued by the Iranian Parliament for the Outlaw US Empire to rejoin the JCPOA has passed. In a tweet he made earlier, Zarif pointed to a PressTV interview that reviews most everything including today's implementation of the new law:

"IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, who is currently in Tehran, made the visit after Iran on February 21 informed the UN watchdog of its decision to suspend voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Safeguards Agreement in line with the new law passed by the Parliament."

In the interview and his tweet, Zarif again stated Iran's position:

"As the offending side, US must take corrective measures:
-commit to JCPOA
-effectively fulfill obligations

"Iran would reciprocate immediately by reversing its remedial measures."

But Biden hasn't made any action despite some words disavowing Trump's position. IMO, these two passages from Zarif tell the tale:

"'The US is addicted to sanctions, bullying, and pressure. But it doesn’t work for a country with millennia of history. We have had a global empire that lasted longer than the United States’ history,' Zarif told Press TV....

"'Trump left the [nuclear] agreement hoping that Iran’s government would crumble. Now, he’s gone, and we’re still here,' he said. 'I think that’s a good lesson. Seven consecutive US presidents are gone. Every one of them wanted to get us out. All of them are out. We’re still here.'"

It's akin to the Assad Curse, which makes sense since Iran's allied with Syria.

So, what remedial action will Iran take next? IMO, it will install more centrifuges and enrich to a higher level than 20%, which is perfectly legal for it to do under the NPT, and it will be done under IAEA oversight since contrary to BigLie Media, the IAEA remains in Iran doing its work.

As far as Biden, action is all Iran wants to see, so words are utterly worthless.

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 23:19 utc | 70

Nathan Mulcahy @67--

In the item cited by UT it says:

"the US Food and Drug Administration-approved drug ivermectin"

So, you shouldn't have any problems importing it. Since you clearly have doubts, call customs and find out.

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 23:26 utc | 71

@70 Cont'd--

Should've included this Sputnik report that includes views from the Outlaw US Empire and its UK vassal, and includes this important citation:

"'As the party who reneged on its obligations and brought the agreement to its sorry state, the onus is on the US to take steps that would demonstrate to Iran that it is a reliable negotiating partner', said Ali Vaez, director of the Iran project at the International Crisis Group, which was led by Rob Malley until he was tapped to be special envoy.

"'It is hard to imagine that anything short of a meaningful economic reprieve would get Iran’s attention', he went on."

Over a barrel again as only certifiable actions will suffice, and they can't be limited to one time only crap--once sanctions are lifted, they must remain lifted. The Empire that proclaims itself Boss of the World certainly isn't boss in this case. Nor can he repeat Obama's actions of placing sanctions after signing the JCPOA.

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 23:44 utc | 72

@ Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 21 2021 23:26 utc | 71

Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll check with customs.

The drug is indeed approved but requires a prescription. Will have to see if my physician will go the next step and write me a prescription for multiple doses.

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 22 2021 0:03 utc | 73

Nathan Mulcahy @67 and Karloff @71

You can buy veterinary Ivermectin online (Amazon). It is a paste that is fed to horses. It costs about 6.50 for a plunger with 5/6 doses in it.

Even the I-mask+ protocol states that they do not see a problem with veterinary Ivermectin. I have already taken three doses (according to their proflaxis protocol) and have not had any problems.

Posted by: naiverealist | Feb 22 2021 0:04 utc | 74

@ tucenz | Feb 21 2021 19:38 utc | 36... thanks.. the georgia guidestones are interesting.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Guidestones
the inscriptions are worth consideration.. there are 10 of them - especially number 8 based on psychohistorians earlier question on this thread -
"Balance personal rights with social duties."

Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
Guide reproduction wisely — improving fitness and diversity.
Unite humanity with a living new language.
Rule passion — faith — tradition — and all things with tempered reason.
Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
Balance personal rights with social duties.
Prize truth — beauty — love — seeking harmony with the infinite.
Be not a cancer on the Earth — Leave room for nature — Leave room for nature.

@ Paco | Feb 21 2021 20:43 utc | 50

i have found something on youtube - 10 parts... does this look like it??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz8LjPqWsPc

spoke with a friend who pointed out a couple of interesting documentaries on some jazz guys - for anyone interested..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Called_Him_Morgan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Name_Is_Albert_Ayler_(film)

both are by the same director and are supposed to be quite good....

Posted by: james | Feb 22 2021 0:07 utc | 75

There's a fantastic sitrep at The Saker's, "How Democratic is China," that I'd link to if I wasn't certain the software wouldn't snag it for "moderation"; but then everyone ought to have The Saker's site in their favs or know how to get there. It's quite excellent and shreds the Anti-China propaganda about it being undemocratic. Here's one three paragraph outtake:

"By the 1980s the electoral process had deteriorated, powerful family clans dominated local elections and villagers regularly petitioned Beijing to send ‘a capable Party Secretary to straighten things out’. So the government invited The Carter Center to supervise the process and, by 2010, voter turnout had outstripped America’s and the Prime Minister encouraged more experiments, “The experience of many villages has proven that farmers can successfully elect village committees. If people can manage a village well, they can manage a township and a county. We must encourage people to experiment boldly and test democracy in practice.” Five years later President Xi asked the Carter Center to reevaluate the fairness of election laws and to educate candidates in ethical campaigning, 'Democracy is not only defined by people’s right to vote in elections but also their right to participate in political affairs on a daily basis. Democracy is not decoration, it’s for solving people’s problems.' Like Capitalism, Democracy is a tool in China, not a religion.

"There are six hundred thousand villages and successful candidates, who need not be Party members, begin their five-year terms with a trial year at the end of which, if they fail to achieve their promised goals, they’re dismissed. Otherwise they spend their second year reviewing and adjusting their objectives, knowing that their successes could be propagated nationwide.

"Village representatives choose peers to represent them at district level where further voting elects county representatives until, eventually, three thousand provincial congresspeople, all volunteers, convene in Beijing and strive for consensus as earnestly as they do in their villages. Congresspeople are volunteers, ordinary citizens whose progress to the national level requires prudence and common sense. Tiered voting makes it difficult to join a higher level assembly without the support from politicians below and impossible for the Party to completely control the process. As a result, one-third of National People’s Congresspeople are not Communist Party members, nor are other parties merely decorative. Parties like the China Democratic League[6], the Kuomintang[7] and the Jiusan Society[8] (whose all-PhD members campaign for climate initiatives, increased R&D budgets and data-driven health policies) regularly produce outstanding Ministers."

Whoa!! Have you ever read or heard any Western Media outlet say China has a multiparty political system?!? Like Crazy Man! Can ya Dig it? Makes you wonder WHY they don't want anyone to know the truth about how China's political system works. Somewhere in the distance I hear Arsenio Hall say, Things that make ya go Hmmmm....

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 22 2021 0:15 utc | 76

How democratic is China? Here is an excellent video on the Chinese system. It is a few years old but I’d think that fundamentally not much has changed.

In the US you can change the party in power but not the policies. In contrast, in China you can not change the party but the policies.

Besides, the legitimacy of the government doesn’t come from purple finger electoral victory, but the approval of the citizens. And democracy is just one (of many) methods of governance. It IS NOT THE GOAL. The goal is the betterment of the quality of life of the majority of the populace. Which system is better?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0YjL9rZyR0&t=399s

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 22 2021 0:44 utc | 77

thanks stonebird @ 24 <= genetic scripts are for bioengineering target victims.. these are not traditional vaccines.

I would not allow to infect my body, unless several generations of experience prove long term, the script does
not engineer my body.

m@ 27 says The vaccine situation in Russia is odd. With a production capacity of 10 million doses per month and two doses per person Russia hasn't even the capacity to vaccine half it's population annually. Yet that's not even a problem, because the majority of Russian don't want to get vaccinated. Really strange. How exactly does Russia plan to get out of lock down? <= None of my friends in the USA governed America want the vaccine because it is not a vaccination in the classical sense, and no one has proven it works.. or no one has been given the information to prove it is genetically safe.. people in Russia know about genetic engineering.. .

Free market rampage in Texas: His Lights Stayed on During Texas’ Storm. Now He Owes $16,752. by: vk @ 3 I understand it was the LNG control system freezing <=that caused the no power problem in Texas? a female on a Mexico list commented she worked for the Texas regulatory body that overseas the power grid and the regu. body was often advised to protect the LNG values that feed the control system against weather.. according to her, when the LNG values froze up 85% of the grid power disappeared, the only power available was from an off shore windmill. since there was no way to deliver .. )can anyone confirm this ..

jayc @ 41 <=I think you hit on why covid 19 was released.

gm @ 42.. yes, according to the source of my comment @ 3 the windmills froze nearly a day later, but it was the LNG valves freezing that took out 85% of the grid. . I think the whole thing is simply to keep a "state of emergency" going. <=agree but like wolf people have begun to understand.

Belildred's answer to jayc @ 41 is right on.. has anyone asked BP about exploratory wells? @Down South @ 21

2021 20:49 utc | 51 RE Deagal.com Forecast 2025

Notice the entry for USA population in 2025? 99 Million !? 70% pop. loss from 2019 (332 Million). Also a 30% population loss for Canada. But only 3% population loss for Mexico large population losses for NW European countries. Anglo-saxon/WASP-targeting bio-weapons? by: gm @ 56 yes., once again I agree with James @29.. When the monopoly powers substitute a genetic script for a traditional live virus vaccination intentions become a major concern; when out of the blue a manufactured vaccine is pushed and the traditional solutions not only ignored but suppressed. its time for concern.

According to his still unpublished data, Schwartz said the drug was shown to help “cure” people of the virus within just six days. Moreover, the chances of testing negative for corona virus were 3X higher for the group who received Ivermectin than the placebo, he told The Jerusalem Post. by: uncle tungsten @ 61 <= extremely interesting, Ivermectin treats mange in dogs very well .

Nuclear war project large losses in the West. Does Deagel expect the West to nuke itself? It already has, with these genetic scripts substituted for vaccination. by: gm @ 64

karlof1 @ 76 <= unz.com had a great article by Saker.. it was exactly as you outline.. China is more democratic than anywhere in USA governed America.. in fact, it seems to be bottom up just like the articles of confederation government (1776-1788) that the defeated the British Empire and all their corporate people on the ground in America was before the constitution snuffed out the Articles government when it was ratified by the same people that planned it in 1788.

Posted by: snake | Feb 22 2021 0:54 utc | 78

@stonebird 24
thank you. I read the interview. The professor sounds like a sane person who understands both the science involving viruses, vaccines, gene therapy and the human emotions driving political agendas world wide. At this point I'm not going to take any "covid vaccine", especially the Pfizer and Moderna. However, I do wonder about countries like Russia, China and Cuba who are producing and taking their vaccines. I believe their governments to be far more ethical. Are they wrong on this? corrupted?

Posted by: migueljose | Feb 22 2021 0:58 utc | 79

Re: Boeing 777 with P & W engines...

ABC.net.au news broadcast 2 minutes ago, Japan.gov has banned the above aircraft type from Japanese airspace until further notice. Can't say I blame them. Japan has more than enough home-grown disasters without extending the WELCOME mat to new ones from outside.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Feb 22 2021 1:06 utc | 80

@ Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 21 2021 23:05 utc | 67 Re: ivermectin

I live in the US, and since covid started I have been self-identifying as a small [80 kilogram] horse, as is still my right (I think(?)) here in the Land of the Free.

So I trot over with my owner to my local rural/tractor farm & feed store's veterinary supply section, and master buys me FDA approved 1.87% ivermectin apple flavored horse paste OTC, preloaded in an easy-to-measure out oral syringe tube. Cost: ~ $7.00 per tube.

Each oral syringe tube holds 7.30 g of paste, equivalent to 136.5 mg of ivervectin. This amount of paste is enough for eight (8) 0.20 mg/kg doses for a trim 80 kg horse such as myself => works out to 16 mg ivermectin/dose for me).

Owner weighs my ivermectin paste out using a handy inexpensive pocket sized milligram scale electronic balance, to be sure to get the doses right. Thus each 16 mg ivermectin equivalent dose cost my owner only $0.88.

A single tube has lasted this healthy horse almost 3 months, following the FLCCC I MASK+ suggested protocols:

https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/FLCCC-I-MASK-Protocol-v4-2020-11-22.pdf

Please keep my secret. I don't want anyone to know I'm a horse on the internet.

Posted by: gm | Feb 22 2021 1:17 utc | 81

Updated news from the Texas Free Market Fiasco:

Houston, Fort Worth Mayors Say Government Should Pay for Texans' $5,000 Electric Bills

As the only US state not connected to the country's central power grid, Texas has a deregulated energy market that enables consumers to select from several competing sources of electricity.

Demand has skyrocketed when a record-breaking freeze engulfed a state unaccustomed to severe weather, and those Texans who were still able to turn on their lights found themselves with electricity bills of $5,000 or more for only five days of use.

Kinda confirms my original take on the subject: a free market setup for the energy distribution sector in Texas generated unusually high prices when its infrastructure crumbled suddenly due to a mild snowstorm. Prices skyrocketed because that was the price of cost of energy distribution with a subpar infrastructure in a hostile environment (which generates high waste, therefore lower labor productivity), not because some random Texans fucked up with their life decisions. It's the same principle of artisanal production, where artisanal commodities are objectively more expensive per unit in relation to mass manufacturing because the method used to produce them is more inefficient (more labor intensive; more waste of time and resources relatively); analogously, a crappier, more ancient or unprepared infrastructure will result in more expensive energy per unit because the same (or even more) labor will be necessary for much less energy distributed to the consumer.

As expected, the prefectures - maybe even the State itself - will have to help those Texans to pay those bills, because, otherwise, those private companies will accrue losses. This is a bailout of the energy sector, not of the Texan people.

The story of the distributor who warned its clients to change distributor in advanced is also more nuanced:

Electricity retailer Griddy’s unusual plea to Texas customers: Leave now before you get a big bill

Griddy isn’t the only one out there actively encouraging its customers to leave. People were posting similar pleas on Twitter over the holiday weekend from other Texas retail power providers offering everything from $100 rebates to waived cancellation fees as incentives to switch.

Customers may not even be able to switch. Rizwan Nabi, president of energy consultancy Riz Energy in Houston, said several power providers in Texas have told him they aren’t accepting new customers due to this week’s volatile prices.

Griddy is also a very small retailer: the Dallas News article mentions it just had 29,000 customers. A drop in the ocean of a State that has 23 million inhabitants, that is, not indicative of market behavior.

But even then, the other retailers already were speculating or protecting themselves over the inevitable volatility of energy prices - then to come due to the snowstorm (which they knew would come because the USA has one of the best meteorological systems and infrastructure in the world due to the high incidence of hurricanes and blizzards in the country). The Texan people had all the freedom in the world to leave their present retailer - but the other retailers also had all the freedom in the world not to accept them as new customers. No information paradox here, just pure Law of Value in action.

The evidence, therefore, points that Marx's Law of Value is the correct theory. There was only so much energy Texas could produce and sell capitalistically, and when supply suddenly dropped due to an alien factor (unusual snowstorm to crappy infrastructure), the capitalists who held the now scarce energy extracted monopoly rent.

Posted by: vk | Feb 22 2021 1:30 utc | 82

United Airlines has grounded all its Boeing 777s.

Posted by: lysias | Feb 22 2021 1:30 utc | 83

If a substitute treatment like ivermectin proves effective, doesn't that render the emergency authorizations for untested vaccines obsolete?

Posted by: lysias | Feb 22 2021 1:32 utc | 84

Re. Bemildred@2
" Erdogan is learning deep state methods".
Istanbul is deepstate central.
Mr "the Great Turan" Erdogan is not a speaker of English.
Does it occur to you that he may employ a multinational, e.g. Western P.R. company?
The rubric is "globalism".

Posted by: Australian lady | Feb 22 2021 1:40 utc | 85

Is it a sign of the times that the rhetoric is getting more pointed and shorter? The reporting seems to represent that.

"
BEIJING (Reuters) - China and the United States must clearly define their policy boundaries and have an accurate understanding of each other’s strategic intentions, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said on Monday.

Cui, who made the comments during a forum in Beijing, said matters such as Taiwan, Xinjiang and Tibet are red line issues for Beijing.
"

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 22 2021 1:47 utc | 86

From the India Marxist newspaper: China detains three bloggers for ‘insulting’ PLA soldiers who died in Galwan Valley clash
MoA barflies won't be amongst them: all Western fanboys of Xi Jinping.

Posted by: Antonym | Feb 22 2021 1:59 utc | 87

Nice to meet a few horses here. Veterinary ivermectin may well be safe but in one of the interviews someone from FLCCC stopped short of recommending it. I understand. For now I am going stick with the expensive regular stuff snd will try to figure out how to get it from India.

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 22 2021 2:06 utc | 88

"Play up the mythological left/right divide and never, ever focus on the top/bottom levers controlling the left/right meme."

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 21 2021 22:13 utc | 63

Excellent, and totally right on target. One might add racism and a few other isms to that statement. That's why most never mention the reality of "class war"...

Posted by: vetinLA | Feb 22 2021 2:08 utc | 89

@76 karlof1

Yes, more gold from Godfree Roberts on China.

Imagine if in the US framework we had such a system where, say, local council members had one year to show success or be fired - but more to the point, if from a successful tenure at the local level they could see their ideas adopted and repeated up the chain, potentially all the way to national policy-making. Imagine if they themselves could follow that trajectory up the chain and become national policymakers themselves over time.

Personally, I don't have to perform much of a thought experiment to see that the solid citizens who form part of my local community would be great at the national level, if such a meritocratic advancement system took them there.

In other words, as I have postulated before, the differences between people and nations are in the grand scheme minimal: they are not what determine how a country does, by and large, so much as the system of self-governance that exists.

~~

@77 Nathan Mulcahy

Great video from Eric Li - highly recommended - anything he says about the Chinese and US systems is gold, many thanks.

Posted by: Grieved | Feb 22 2021 2:15 utc | 90

What are we to make of Sergey Lavrov's latest interview, and the bombshell he drops in his closing paragraph, bringing the concept of population reduction squarely onto the table? This is a reduction, he is clear, not as a voluntary gradual downsizing by global society, but forcibly, by rulers, performed upon the ruled.

This interview is linked by b in his post, and I can't recall if I've ever seen him mark a link as a Must read before, but so it is.

Before the final paragraph came an entire body of commentary from Lavrov that, in my view, performed an extraordinary function. It took everything we've all been discussing, here and around the world, and referenced recent hints and conjectures and matters that were not completely clear - and dealt with them one by one to make each point unmistakably clear.

So we know about Ukraine and we know about EU and we know about sovereignty and we know about the decaying US - and we know about the formal attitude and policy of the Russian Federation to these things and all others covered in the interview.

For the top diplomat of an important sovereign nation to say the things he said, in the way that he said them, is simply a landmark, I believe, a milestone in international relations. This Lavrov interview is of a piece with Putin at Munich in 2007, at the UN in 2015 and this year in his latest pronouncements.

Commentators across the entire world have been parsing Putin's recent comments and guessing at Lavrov's, and now there's no need to guess anymore. Russian policy is clear. A Rubicon of sorts has been crossed.

~~

And all of this would have been enough from Sergei Lavrov, but it appears that he and Russia were ready to talk openly of many things. At the end of the interview, when the whole world would have been greatly content with what he had given us, he offers two closing paragraphs.

The first one I'm supplying here only for the context of what he means by rules-based orders. He is setting the stage to display how individuals and discrete forces might act in their own conspiracies for their own ends, regardless of the international law agreed by the whole world.

The final one is the killer remark that has now changed the entire level of discourse in the world:

For example, Paris has launched an International Partnership Against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons. Under this non-universal, non-UN partnership, the EU creates the so-called ‘horizontal’ regime of sanctions to be imposed on anyone that France-initiated partnership points at. A similar sanctions regime is being created for cybersecurity. Instead of any open-ended discussion, the French are promoting some partnership to defend freedom in cyberspace. This is another example of rules on which ‘order’ will be based.

There are attempts to start similar groups outside the WHO. But people's health is not a field where one can play geopolitics. Unless there is a conspiracy behind this to reduce the population of the Earth. Many are now starting to develop such theories and concepts.

Lavrov poses the question: do you have the right to set agendas outside of international law? And if so, what are those agendas? And how do they justify themselves? Is it one way, or is it not, he asks.

And he plays mercilessly with cherished ambitions of the oligarchy. He has spoken of the unspeakable. Could there truly be a desire on the part of the rich and powerful to diminish the population of the poor and powerless? Lavrov just made this a real question. Knowing Russian diplomacy as we do, we see that there can only be a building on this question. There can be no going back to not asking it.

Thank you, Russia. For myself, living in the US, I felt powerless to broach this question to the powers that be. Russia has done it for me. This will not be the end.

Posted by: Grieved | Feb 22 2021 2:57 utc | 91

As a final note on the Lavrov interview - what is the effect upon the affairs of the world, from Lavrov's saying the things he has said?

I remember from the Maidan in 2014 for several years following the heated discussions of Russia losing the "information war". I always felt she was changing paradigms rather than fighting the battles in the terms of the aggressor, and although I find this too subtle to put into words at the moment, I have long felt that Russia has been winning this war, on her own terms, and in her own way.

Yes, the empire embraces massively greater audience control with its Wurlitzer than Russia with its own efforts, but the quality of Russia's information is massively better than that of the western propaganda.

And those propagandized are of little account in the movement of things. Whereas those who depend on accurate information are of some account in the movement of things. It has been hard to see this because the relative scale of the two sides is so unequal. But we can imagine a balancing effort, and even a tipping point at some time. And then, the better information will sweep the battlefield entirely, and rout the enemy utterly.

And even now, along the way, these words are not without effect, just as the presence of Russia is something that cannot be ignored in any equation.

Posted by: Grieved | Feb 22 2021 3:01 utc | 92

Kadath @ 48;
I ve heard that canada has troops in Estonia ..part of nato training manuevers...
Which is total bs. We are doing our part with our nose up the us arse. Wtf are we doing, playing the great game in the world as if we were a ‘Player’. We are better served by keeping our nose clean from us entanglement ....the us is a buring viking ship funeral for the us middle class. Stick a fork in it!

Posted by: James joseph | Feb 22 2021 3:05 utc | 93

thank you, grieved@91 for saying everything i've been thinking since i read lavrov & then today godfree roberts. yes, extraordinary. thank you, karlof1, b, smoothie, xi, & putin. we are blessed to have such minds as yours guiding us.

Posted by: emersonreturn | Feb 22 2021 3:06 utc | 94

karlof1 @70
Extremely informative
karlof1 @60
My query: what does rural vitalization mean? And for whom? Hard for me to think it's one-way for the small farmer serf class

Posted by: Dogon Priest | Feb 22 2021 4:06 utc | 95

A simple question: if a POTUS with a backbone (not this one, obviously) refuses to sign that Israeli secret letter is he/she then free to reveal the existence of all prior letters?

As in: my fellow Americans, witness the abject cravenness of my predecessors, and let us all have a candid conversation regarding foreign entanglements.

I would wager that such an act would be the most important thing any President can do, because without that conversation the USA is doomed.

Posted by: Yeah, Right | Feb 22 2021 4:37 utc | 96

I don’t think it is possible to disobey your boss.

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Feb 22 2021 4:40 utc | 97

Below is a link to a Reuters posting about political movement in the quest for "sharing responsibility" for the spike in energy cost in Texas

Texas utilities can't stick customers with huge bills after storm: Abbott

If humanity could have reasonable conversations about risk management/sharing we wouldn't have to BS our way through these sort of events.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Feb 22 2021 4:50 utc | 98

Australian lady #85
Erdoghan:

Does it occur to you that he may employ a multinational, e.g. Western P.R. company?
The rubric is "globalism".

I would not trust the little rat as far as I could kick him. I assume I am not alone and I observed his little caper in Azerbaijan was quickly snuffed out and turned to Russia's advantage. I bet he is totally pissed off about that as he would have been mightily rewarded by the west belligerents had he succeeded.

His longevity is assured - for now.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 22 2021 5:45 utc | 99

@Grieved | Feb 22 2021 2:57 utc | 91

Thank you, Russia. For myself, living in the US, I felt powerless to broach this question to the powers that be. Russia has done it for me. This will not be the end.

Thank you for highlighting Lavrovs interview, with explosive contents. Like many, I have had the final question Lavrov asks on my mind, because the issue has been visible for anyone willing to see for years. Like you I felt powerless on how to deal with it, and I guess that is how we are supposed to feel. I join your thanks to Russia for speaking openly, and we must take the opportunity to get this aired everywhere.

Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 22 2021 6:20 utc | 100