Authored by Steve H. Hanke of the Johns Hopkins University. Follow him on Twitter @Steve_Hanke.

The Grim Reaper has taken his scythe to the Venezuelan bolivar. The death of the bolivar is depicted in the following chart. A bolivar is worthless, and with its collapse, Venezuela is witnessing the world’s worst inflation. 

As the bolivar collapsed and inflation accelerated, the Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV) became an unreliable source of inflation data. Indeed, from December 2014 until January 2016, the BCV did not report inflation statistics. Then, the BCV pulled a rabbit out of its hat in January 2016 and reported a phony annual inflation rate for the third quarter of 2015. So, the last official inflation data reported by the BCV is almost two years old. To remedy this problem, the Johns Hopkins – Cato Institute Troubled Currencies Project, which I direct, began to measure Venezuela’s inflation in 2013. 

The most important price in an economy is the exchange rate between the local currency and the world’s reserve currency — the U.S. dollar. As long as there is an active black market (read: free market) for currency and the black market data are available, changes in the black market exchange rate can be reliably transformed into accurate estimates of countrywide inflation rates. The economic principle of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) allows for this transformation.

I compute the implied annual inflation rate on a daily basis by using PPP to translate changes in the VEF/USD exchange rate into an annual inflation rate. The chart below shows the course of that annual rate, which last peaked at 3473% (yr/yr) in late October 2017. At present, Venezuela’s annual inflation rate is 2875%, the highest in the world (see the chart below).

The One Thing About Tax Reform That NO ONE is Talking About

The markets have been gunning higher on the notion that the Trump Administration is about to unveil a huge tax reform plan.

However, the devil is in the details. And thus far the plan is focusing on corporate tax reform, with the notion that an employer will somehow “pass on” their savings to employees via raises.

First off, while the phrase “corporate taxes” is a great political prop, the reality is that nearly 50% of large corporations pay ZERO corporate income tax.

That is not a typo.

In 2012, the Government Accountability Office performed a study in which it discovered that 43% of companies with $10+ million in assets pay ZERO corporate income tax.

It’s not as if the other 57% are picking up the slack either.

It is well known that large corporations go above and beyond to avoid paying the full, required tax rate. As Forbes noted earlier this year, Apple pays a 25% tax rate (the official US corporate rate is supposed to be 35%).  Microsoft pays a 16% tax rate. Alphabet (Google) pays 19%. General Electric and Exxon Mobil appear to have paid no corporate income tax in 2016.

My point is this: pursuing corporate tax reform is a pointless exercise.  Few if any corporations pay anywhere near the official corporate tax rate of 35%.

So what tax reform should we be talking about?

Individual tax reform.

And why aren’t we talking about it?

Because any discussion of individual tax reform eventually leads to the elephant in the room: entitlements.

The US currently spends 65% of it budget on entitlement spending. Nearly half of American households receive some kind of Government assistance/outlay. Those households that DO pay taxes cover only some of this (which is why the US is running $500+ BILLION deficits every year).

The bond bubble is financing the rest of this.

As I outlined in my best-selling book, The Everything Bubble: the Endgame for Central Bank Policy, politicians promise, but bond markets deliver.

Put simply, the bond bubble is what has financed the enormous entitlement spending of Governments around the world.

Take away the bubble in bonds, which permits Governments to issue debt at rates WAY below the historic average, and most major countries are bankrupt in a matter of weeks.

Well guess what? The bond markets are already beginning to revolt. As I write this, the bond yields on FOUR of the largest economies in the world are rising, having broken out of their downtrends of the last few years. The bond markets for US, Japan, Germany and the UK are all in revolt.

And guess what is triggering this?

INFLATION.

Inflation forces bond yields higher as the bond markets adjust to compensate for the fact that future interest payments will be worth less in real terms.

Bond yields higher= bond prices lower. Bond prices lower= the bond bubble is in serious trouble.

The above chart is telling us in very simple terms: the bond market is VERY worried about rising inflation. And if Central Banks don’t move to stop hit now by ending their QE programs and hiking rates, we’re in for a VERY dangerous time in the markets.

Put simply, BIG INFLATION is THE BIG MONEY trend today. And smart investors will use it to generate literal fortunes.

Imagine if you'd prepared your portfolio for a collapse in Tech Stocks in 2000... or a collapse in banks in 2008? Imagine just how much money you could have made with the right investments.

THAT is the kind of potential we have today. And if you're not already taking steps to prepare for this, it's time to get a move on.

We just published a Special Investment Report concerning FIVE secret investments you can use to make inflation pay ou as it rips through the financial system in the months ahead

The report is titled Survive the Inflationary Storm. And it explains in very simply terms how to make inflation PAY YOU.

We are making just 100 copies available to the public.

To pick up yours, swing by:

http://j.mp/2xUFPdC

Best Regards

Graham Summers

Chief Market Strategist

Phoenix Capital Research

Via The Daily Bell

Just because a Ponzi scheme is run by a government doesn’t mean it won’t collapse.

The situation in Kentucky serves as a dire warning about larger pension systems including Social Security.

What Kentucky is currently facing in like a bank run. When people hear that a bank is failing, they all scramble to get their money out before it goes bust. This snowballs and the bank runs out of cash that much quicker.

Kentuckians are retiring in droves, hoping to get a piece of the pension funds they were promised. Worried that the money might not be there in a few years, they are opting to start collecting now, lest they get nothing. But this is causing a run-on-the-bank effect. The pension system is collapsing that much quicker.

Politicians have long kicked the can down the road. The idea is that there will always be a future generation, unborn children to pay for the promises they make today. There will always be new suckers to pay for their unfunded liabilities.

But the bubble bursts. Unless a population grows exponentially, this cannot work. That is why it is a Ponzi scheme. There’s always a bottom layer that holds up the rest of the pyramid.

Of course, the government of Kentucky has assured potential retirees that they don’t need to panic. The state claims that even if the legislation passes to fix the problem, government employees will have time to retire on the old plans if they choose.

But that hasn’t seemed to ease the high retirement numbers. In past months, between 24-64% more people have retired (depending on the sector) compared to 2016. And with officials floating the idea of raising the retirement age, many have a better safe than sorry attitude.

This also shows that people don’t trust the government assurances. And of course, they shouldn’t. After all, the government also told them not to worry, the pensions they promised were funded. After a history of governments at all levels reneging on their promises, it is better to take the money and run.

And it’s the same old story for how they got into the mess. Spend now, worry about funding it later. There’s never enough money for the government, have you ever noticed that? Companies balance their sheets or go bust. Governments keep chugging along despite breaking promises, overspending, and failing to plan.

PFM mostly blames the approach used to fund the systems, one used by most public pension plans across the country, which based the government’s contributions to the plans on a percentage of a growing payroll. It says that’s like a homeowner basing mortgage payments on a percentage of future income he expects, or hopes, will grow.

Translation: it was a Ponzi scheme. And that same scheme is used by most government retirement plans. The money in these accounts is reinvested. But you don’t control where they are putting the money. Turns out Kentucky made some bad decisions on placing retirement money in certain hedge funds that didn’t do so hot after the 2008 recession.

Also, in the 1990s when the pension plans were fully funded, the General Assembly approved benefit increases without funding them — including an expensive cost of living benefit increase for Kentucky Retirement System members in place between 1996 and 2012.

The bottom line is that you never want to be dependent on the government, or even a private company for your pension. The only way to truly safeguard your retirement is to take it into your own hands.

Maybe some of your retirement goes into a hedge fund, but certainly not all of it. But a better plan is to do the research for what kinds of stocks and investments make sense. Spread the risk across different sectors, and maybe even different country’s stock markets. If you can’t do the research for proper investments, at least do the research to find out who the best person or organization is to inform you.

Your plan may be in part a company pension or retirement plan. But it should not stop there. It is always better to diversify savings (foreign accounts, cash, precious metals) and diversify investments (property, foreign and domestic stocks). Then you can also spend what you can afford to lose on riskier, but potentially high yielding, speculations (cryptocurrency, startups).

But you know the old saying about doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. With their track record, it’s time to stop putting trust in government to take care of your finances.

TRAVEL advisory notices, which alert passengers to the risks of going to certain places, are standard business for frequent flyers. But last week brought an unusual one. The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP), America’s oldest civil-rights organisation, warned black flyers about the dangers of travelling with American Airlines.

The NAACP says that  “a pattern of disturbing incidents” has been reported by black passengers specifically about American Airlines. Such incidents “suggest a corporate culture of racial insensitivity and possible racial bias”. Of the four incidents that the NAACP cite, two involved prominent black activists, PR Lockhart notes at Vox, a news site. Although the NAACP does not mention them by name, one is thought to be Rev William Barber, a former NAACP leader in North Carolina. He was removed from a flight from Washington, DC, after he responded to rude comments...Continue reading
First published here: http://j.mp/2zksXkd

Crude Oil has been moving higher of late, putting it at a price point that looks to be important from a long-term perspective.

Below looks at Crude Oil over the past 10-years and how it is facing a key breakout test on Halloween-

CLICK ON CHART TO ENLARGE

As mentioned above, Crude Oil is kissing the underside of long-term falling channel (1) and 2017 highs at the same time at (3). It humbly appears to the Power of the Pattern to be a very important price test for Crude.

Below looks at the pattern in Exxon (XOM) over the past few years-

CLICK ON CHART TO ENLARGE

Exxon hit 7-year support recently at (1) and the rally of late has it testing the top of a falling channel and highs earlier this year at (3).

What Crude and Exxon does at these key breakout tests look to be very important for the lagging Energy sector.

Full Disclosure- Premium and Sector members have owned Exxon for almost two months. Stops were pulled up of late, as the breakout tests are in play.

Why you see chart pattern analysis with brief commentary:   There is a ton of news and opinions around markets and assets that make the decision-making process more difficult than it needs to be.   I believe the Power of the chart Pattern provides all you need to see what is taking place in an asset and determine the action to take.  This approach has worked well for me and our clients and I encourage you to test it for yourself.

Receive my free research posted on the blog daily here 

Or,  send an email if you would like to see sample research and take me up on a trial of my premium or weekly research where I provide actionable alerts on breakouts and reversals in broad market indices, sectors, commodities, the miners and select individual stocks 

Email [email protected]  

Call us Toll free 877-721-7217 international 714-941-9381 

Website: KIMBLECHARTINGSOLUTIONS.COM 

Stumbling UK Economy Shows Importance of Gold

- UK economy outlook bleak amid Brexit, debt woes and rising inflation
- Confidence in UK housing market at five-year low
- UK high street sales crash at fastest rate since 2009
- Number registering as insolvent in England and Wales hit a five-year high in Q3
- UK public finance hole of almost £20bn in the public finances set to grow to £36bn by 2021-22
- Protect your savings with gold in the face of increased financial woes in UK

This week markets will be watching the UK with baited breath as the Monetary Policy Committee meets this Thursday to discuss a potential rate rise.

Expectations of a rise have increased to 80% in the last week. If the Bank of England does raise rates it will be for the first time in a decade. It is unlikely to be a dramatic increase though, probably a rise of 25 basis points to reverse the emergency rate cut which followed the Brexit vote.

Should the UK decide to raise rates this will likely boost confidence somewhat in the economy. However any increase in positivity regarding the UK will be short lived once markets realise it will take more than a small rate rise to get the country out of the huge red hole it is currently digging its way into.

Brexit is being blamed for the majority of the UK's woes at present, however this is merely a politician's scapegoat. Confidence in the UK housing market has slipped to its lowest level in five years, family spending power has declined in five out of the last six months, the hole in public finances is likely to increase over 100% from the initial forecast by 2020, personal insolvencies are at a five year high and inflation has hit 3%.

These plus many more financial and economic problems have long been brewing. Problems with money naturally lead to social problems which end up exacerbating themselves further as individuals find continue to struggle on a daily basis.

Sadly the UK is in a real state of limbo thanks to Brexit, how the government will manage to solve the other significant issues such as rising debt levels (public and private), inflation and a slowing economy whilst managing EU negotiations is a feat yet to be witnessed.

We have been approaching a juncture for some time where we must decide as individual savers, investors, pensioners and future pensioners what the best way to prepare for the future is. Do we stand back and believe that the government has our best interests at heart or do we prepare for their failure? Their inability to support the value of the pound, protect interest rates, avoid bank bail-ins and solve the debt crisis are all situations that could see our own savings put at real risk.

Falling confidence both in and inside the UK 

Despite expectations of a rate rise, sterling stumbled in October thanks to weak economic data and more negative headlines regarding Brexit.

What's the one thing governments like to say positively about a weak currency? That it's good for exports...but not in the UK it's not.

As we explained earlier this month, a much revered boost to UK exports following the Brexit vote was most likely down to our gold market. Now that the Chinese have calmed down on their gold shopping spree we are seeing what state the rest of the export market is really in.

The Guardian explains:

The trade deficit in goods hit a record high, as the gap between what the UK bought and sold widened in August to £14.2bn. That was much bigger than expected, and up from £12.8bn in July. Imports surged by 4.2% during the month, while exports only rose by 0.7%. The overall trade deficit, including services, widened to £5.6bn in August from £4.2bn in July.

...and from within things aren't much better

Currency and export markets are not the only ones having a problem with the UK. There are nervous feelings much closer to home - in people's own homes and on the high street.

A Halifax bank survey found one in five British adults surveyed expect house prices to fall over the next 12 months. This is the weakest reading for consumer expectations since October 2012.

This negativity regarding the housing market is thanks to concerns over the economy, weak wage growth and concerns over rising inflation. For years the UK government has rallied around the UK housing market, convincing citizens that owning a home was a right of passage. It seems the jig is up.

Most new buyers are losing faith in the housing market as not only is the cost of borrowing set to raise but raising the funds for a deposit is near impossible. In the three months to August there was negative wage growth, bringing the total number of months of negative growth to six for 2017, alone.

In all regions of the UK incomes have failed to rise by more than the current inflation rate of 3%. This is not only placing pressure on the housing market but also on consumer spending.

A 'steep drop' in retail sales was reported in the CBI survey this month, alongside orders placed with suppliers dropping at their fastest rate since the spring of 2009.

But people still need to eat, clothe themselves, keep a roof over their families' heads and this is where the government has gone so badly wrong. By fuelling an era of cheap credit, stealthflation, zero-hour contracts and low wage growth families and individuals no longer know how to survive on their wage packets.

The annual rate of growth of consumer credit climbed is currently at 9.9%, having been as high as 10% in the summer.

According to Bank of England data, another £641m was put onto plastic in the month of September, the sharpest increase in debt since May 2016. The total credit card debt stock reached £69.4bn, the highest on record.

Unsurprisingly, this isn't sustainable. The number of people registering as insolvent in England and Wales hit a five-year high in the third quarter

The number of those registering as insolvent is only set to get worse should interest rates rise. A hike would push up the cost of both secured and unsecured borrowing.

As Gillian Guy, the chief executive of Citizens Advice, told the Independent:

“The rise and rise of consumer debt is a cause for alarm at a time when large numbers of people are already in financial difficulty."

Broken government = broken economy

Of course, very little of the 'on the ground' problems such as wage growth and consumer debt levels are making the headlines.

The headlines are the same as they have been for the last 18 months or so: BREXIT DISASTER.

Is it a disaster? Who knows, but what we do know is that it is costing a huge amount of money with even more expected to be paid out in the coming years. This is all money that the UK simply does not have.

It was only a fortnight ago that we found out Britain’s stock of wealth had fallen from a surplus of of £469 billion to a net deficit of £22 billion. This is down to a massive write-down of the UK’s assets and a drop in foreign direct investment (again, a lack of confidence in the UK).

Meanwhile the gap between government spending and tax receipts is also expected to 'outperform' expectations. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) expects it to reach £36bn by 2021-22, more than twice the initial official forecast of £17bn.

On the issue the IFS said:

“It is hard to see how the chancellor can both maintain the credibility of his fiscal targets and respond effectively to the growing demands for spending”

Quite. The outlook is not good. Productivity is expected to decline in the UK as the majority of jobs being created are low-skilled, low-wage jobs created for those in need. How this helps the UK tax receipts? It doesn't.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said the UK government will need to significantly lower its estimates for the economic output per hour worked in Britain. In a massive miscalculation admission it states that it views the 0.2% rate of productivity growth over the past five years as a better guide for 2017 than its forecast of 1.6% in March.

EU, it holds the first charge

Not only does the UK government not have the income to sort out its deficit or increase spending but the EU is coming after us for more money.

No one quite knows just yet what the 'divorce bill' will be, but more worryingly it looks like we can't get back the money we placed in a  bank we own 16% of.

According to Alexander Stubb (vice president of the European Investment Bank) the UK may have to wait 30 years to get its £3bn back from the EU’s bank after Brexit and could be on the hook for £30billion if “things go sour”.

As bad as this sounds, can we at least enjoy the hint of irony in this situation. A UK government that has done very little to support customers from the tyranny of British banks, supported bail-outs and pushed for bail-ins is now facing its own problems getting back its money from a bank.

UK savers need to start learning from the mistakes of their leaders.

Conclusion: prepare for the long-term

The 2008/09 financial crisis was not the first economic disaster to hit the United Kingdom. Consider the Wall Street crash on 1929. It very quickly affected this small island nation, causing the economy to shrink by more than 5% and unemployment to spiral to 17%. All in just three years.

Today we find ourselves on arguably scarier ground. Despite lower unemployment, it is an increasingly unproductive labour force with which we find ourselves. It's nine years ago that the last financial crisis started and the economy has rebounded by less than 10% - a far slower pace than after the Great Depression.

The difference? In the 20th century the government put in place policies that worked for the long-term health of the economy. Today, governments are not looking at anything other than day-to-day results. They no longer prepare for the long-term health of the economy.

They are looking at Brexit and how to boost confidence in the UK. They have no idea how to do anymore, Brexit has got their knickers in a twist. This is unlikely to help struggling savers and consumers in the meantime.

Very often plans that result in positive outcomes a few years down the line aren't good for an election just a couple of years away. This means that we live in a five-year cycle of economic policies, budgets and grand plans.

Unfortunately this leaves savers and investors fending for themselves when it comes to planning their long-term finances. This is made more complex by the increasingly uncertain times in which politicians and central bankers are inevitably navigating us towards.

With this in mind we need to take our finances into our own hands. As we explained last week, we must prepare. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.

Investors should protect themselves from the financial risks of the UK government by diversifying their savings and owning physical gold -not paper or digital gold.

Physical gold that is allocated and segregated cannot fall victim to bail-ins when the government is short of cash or inflation when the central ban needs to print more money.

Physical gold in your portfolio reduces the level of counterparty risk your savings are exposed to and ensures some level of sovereignty and financial safety and freedom when it comes to your wealth.

These financial risks including bail-ins are a threat to all savers in the western world.

News and Commentary

Small Caps Routed as U.S. Stocks Fall, Bonds Rise (Bloomberg.com)

Gold price rises 3.2% in Q3 (MiningWeekly.com)

Gold notches a gain for a second day as strong dollar pauses its climb (MarketWatch.com)

Gold steadies ahead of bumper week for central bank news (Reuters.com)

Trump likely to pick Jerome Powell as next Fed chair: source (Reuters.com)

Credit: Wall Street Journal

This Could Be Huge: Gold Bar Certified By Royal Canadian Mint Exposed As Fake (ZeroHedge.com)

Why Are Markets Rising Everywhere? Investors Can’t Stop Buying Every Dip (WSJ.com)

The US government quietly added $200+ billion to the debt this month alone. (SovereignMan.com)

Are ICOs Replacing IPOs? (USFunds.com)

The economy is failing. We need to think radically about how to fix it (TheGuardian.com)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

31 Oct: USD 1,274.40, GBP 964.21 & EUR 1,095.60 per ounce
30 Oct: USD 1,272.75, GBP 966.91 & EUR 1,093.80 per ounce
27 Oct: USD 1,267.80, GBP 968.35 & EUR 1,090.18 per ounce
26 Oct: USD 1,278.00, GBP 968.34 & EUR 1,082.34 per ounce
25 Oct: USD 1,273.00, GBP 964.81 & EUR 1,081.67 per ounce
24 Oct: USD 1,278.30, GBP 970.36 & EUR 1,087.32 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

31 Oct: USD 16.82, GBP 12.72 & EUR 14.45 per ounce
30 Oct: USD 16.74, GBP 12.69 & EUR 14.39 per ounce
27 Oct: USD 16.72, GBP 12.76 & EUR 14.38 per ounce
26 Oct: USD 16.97, GBP 12.84 & EUR 14.37 per ounce
25 Oct: USD 16.89, GBP 12.75 & EUR 14.34 per ounce
24 Oct: USD 17.04, GBP 12.92 & EUR 14.49 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- Wozniak and Thiel Fuel Bitcoin-Gold Debate: Gold Comes Out On Top
- Russia Buys 34 Tonnes Of Gold In September
- Gold Will Be Safe Haven Again In Looming EU Crisis
- Gold Is Valuable Due to “Extreme Rarity” – Must See CNN Video
- Gold Is Better Store of Value Than Bitcoin – Goldman Sachs
- Next Wall Street Crash Looms? Lessons On Anniversary Of 1987 Crash
- Key Charts: Gold is Cheap and US Recession May Be Closer Than Think
- Gold Up 74% Since Last Market Peak 10 Years Ago
- How Gold Bullion Protects From Conflict And War
- Silver Bullion Prices Set to Soar
- Brexit UK Vulnerable As Gold Bar Exports Distort UK Trade Figures
- Puerto Rico Without Electricity, Wifi, ATMs Shows Importance of Cash, Gold and Silver
- U.S. Mint Gold Coin Sales and VIX Point To Increased Market Volatility and Higher Gold

Important Guides

For your perusal, below are our most popular guides in 2017:

Essential Guide To Storing Gold In Switzerland

Essential Guide To Storing Gold In Singapore

Essential Guide to Tax Free Gold Sovereigns (UK)

Please share our research with family, friends and colleagues who you think would benefit from being informed by it.

Content originally published at iBankCoin.com

Tony Podesta sent a Cease and Decist letter to “Tucker Carlson Tonight” hours after resigning from his role at the Podesta Group – a D.C. lobbying firm accused by a former executive of pedaling Russian influence along with fellow lobbyist and short-lived Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort.

Tony Podesta threatened "Tucker Carlson Tonight" after resigning. Wanted our reporting shutdown. #Tucker @FoxNews

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) October 31, 2017

Watch: 

Manfort was indicted over the weekend on 12 counts ranging from tax fraud, money laundering and giving false statements between 2006 and 2015, and is currently under house arrest after turning himself over to the FBI Monday morning – fueling speculation as to whether Tony Podesta’s sudden departure from his firm is connected.

Of note, Monday's indictment lists "Company A" and "Company B" as firms involved in the investigation - which NBC reports are the Podesta Group and DC public relations firm Mercury Public Affairs.

Last week Carlson reported that Tony Podesta is a central figure in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Directly after his report, Carlson’s show was contacted by a former long-time executive of the Podesta Group with “direct personal knowledge” of Tony Podesta’s questionable activities, which Carlson divulged the next evening.

While the nature of Podesta’s threat has not been made public, Carlson later tweeted “We’re confident the Mueller probe will reveal a lot more about Tony Podesta’s lobbying practices in the near future.”

We're confident the Mueller probe will reveal a lot more about Tony Podesta's lobbying practices in the near future #Tucker @FoxNews

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) October 31, 2017

To review:

 After meeting with the former Podesta Group executive who has been “extensively” interviewed by Robert Mueller’s Special Counsel, Tucker Carlson Tonight relayed several highly troubling aspects of the Tony Podesta’s relationship with business associate and fellow lobbyist, Paul Manafort.

According to the former Podesta Group executive, Manafort and Tony Podesta were running a Russian influence-peddling racket up and down Washington D.C., bringing a “parade” of Russian oligarchs to congress for meetings. Podesta was also “Basically part of the Clinton Foundation,” meeting regularly to discuss the now-infamous Uranium One deal.

Highlights, as previously reported (video below):

• Lobbyist and temporary Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort is at the center of the Russia probe – however the scope of the investigation has broadened to include his activities prior to the 2016 election.
• Manafort worked with the Podesta Group since at least 2011 on behalf of Russian interests, and was at the Podesta Group offices “all the time, at least once a month,” peddling Russian influence through a shell group called the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine (ECMU).
• Manafort brought a “parade” of Russian oligarchs to congress for meetings with members and their staffs, however, the Russia’s “central effort” was the Obama Administration.
• In 2013, John Podesta recommended that Tony hire David Adams, Hillary Clinton’s chief adviser at the State Department, giving them a “direct liaison” between the group’s Russian clients and Hillary Clinton’s State Department.
• In late 2013 or early 2014, Tony Podesta and a representative for the Clinton Foundation met to discuss how to help Uranium One – the Russian owned company that controls 20 percent of American Uranium Production – and whose board members gave over $100 million to the Clinton Foundation.
• “Tony Podesta was basically part of the Clinton Foundation.”
• Believing she would win the 2016 election, Russia considered the Podesta Group’s connection to Hillary highly valuable.
• Podesta Group is a nebulous organization with no board oversight and all financial decisions made by Tony Podesta. Carlson’s source said payments and kickbacks could be hard for investigators to trace, describing it as a “highly secret treasure trove.” One employee’s only official job was to manage Tony Podesta’s art collection, which could be used to conceal financial transactions.

Former Podesta Group Exec: Paul Manafort was in PG offices "all the time" representing Russian political and business interests. #RussiaGate http://pic.twitter.com/6dFB1MJRdP

— ZeroPointNow (@ZeroPointNow) October 25, 2017

"Tony Podesta was basically part of the Clinton Foundation," Podesta Group may be concealing financial transactions through art collection. http://pic.twitter.com/yyyo57THMJ

— ZeroPointNow (@ZeroPointNow) October 25, 2017

Full monologue below:  

Follow on Twitter @ZeroPointNow § Subscribe to our YouTube channel

Via The Daily Bell

Let’s Not Pick and Choose Our Freedoms

Prostitution has been illegal in California for 145 years. But for the first time, judges appear to be considering overturning the law.

In the past, challenges to the law have been outright dismissed. But now judges have agreed to take a closer look at the California law.

“Why should it be illegal to sell something that it’s legal to give away?” A judge asked in court.

And he has a point. We shouldn’t limit other people’s freedom, no matter how distasteful it seems. It may offend you. But that is no reason to stop other people from doing what they want.

And while many would seek to equate prostitution to human trafficking, these are two separate issues. In fact, it may be easier to focus on human trafficking if prostitution were legal. Resources which currently waste time picking up the same prostitutes and cycling them through the courts could be redirected to catching actual traffickers.

And legal prostitutes in the industry could then shed light on illicit activities involving trafficking if they didn’t have to fear being prosecuted for prostitution itself.

Police Can Arrest You for Anything They Want in St. Louis

An ordinance in St. Louis is aimed at giving police broad powers to arrest protestors. City officials are arguing in court that the town law is not a violation of free speech.

The ordinance states that police officers can arrest people for interfering with or obstructing officers “in any manner.”

The case stems from protests in 2015 over police killings. The ordinance was challenged but upheld, and that decision is now being appealed.

The code is vague and overly broad. It allows police to construe some reason to arrest almost anyone they come into contact with. The police arrested people for standing or walking in the road after being told not to.

The ordinance even allows police to arrest anyone who even talks to them while making an arrest.

Police already have too much power to arrest people. This law is clearly contrary to free speech and limits the right to protest and speak your mind.

Some people might think it is rude, but basic acts of protest, or even yelling at police, is protected free speech. If we want to keep our rights, we have to respect those ones that annoy us.

WWI Memorial Cross Must be Taken Down, Court Rules

A 92-year-old monument in Maryland to WWI veterans has been ruled unconstitutional. A three-judge panel in the U.S. court of appeals made the ruling because the memorial is in the shape of a cross. They say it must be taken down.

The group that sued says it is discriminatory against other religions and violates the separation of church and state.

But what the constitution actually says is that Congress shall make no law establishing a religion, or preventing the free exercise thereof.

Does a memorial in the shape of a religious symbol really constitute establishing a religion? How is that preventing anyone from exercising their own religion?

This is just another case of whiny people making an issue out of nothing. It’s a World War One memorial. If you don’t want to make future memorials in the shape of religious symbols, fine. But who is wasting their time trying to get an almost 100-year-old monument torn down?

Some people have too much time on their hands and are just looking for things to be offended about.

Seems like its easy to hear concerns that inflation is back and that interest rates have to rise. Below looks at the Inflation Indicator (TIP/TLT) and how it is experiencing a key test of resistance at this time.

CLICK ON CHART TO ENLARGE

The TIP/TLT ratio reflects that the trend has been lower inside of falling channel (1) since the highs back in 2011. The ratio hit the top of the falling channel earlier this year at (2) and was unable to break out. After hitting the top of the falling channel at (2), the ratio has turned lower and has traded sideways the past few months.

The ratio is now testing the top of its short-term trading range at (3), where a key resistance test is in play. If resistance would hold at (3), it would suggest another short-term peak in inflation is taking place and it could send a short-term positive message to government bonds, that have been hit hard of late.

For inflation to become an issue, it needs to break out of resistance at (3) and break above falling channel (2).

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By EconMatters

We discuss the Bob McNair controversy in context with the bigger picture issue of the NFL`s Brand Image with Consumers in this business and marketing related video. The NFL is a Marketed Product, the wider audience appeal, the more money for everyone involved in the Game!

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