https://www.newser.com/story/329715/he-trolled-greta-thunberg-days-later-an-arrest.html?utm_source=8at8&utm_medium=email&utm_content=1638080016508607709&utm_campaign=20221230

Never pick a fight with a teenager on social media. You aren’t going to win.

If you haven’t seen this story on other sites, it’s worth a read.

Andrew Tate is a former kick boxer whose misogynistic comments got him banned from Twitter. Unfortunately for him, Elon Musk reinstated his account and one of the first things he did was to pick a fight with Greta Thunberg. When she cut him to ribbons, he replied with a video that included the image of a pizza box. That pizza box tipped off authorities as to where he was and they arrested his smart ass for a string of crimes. To which Greta replied: “This is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes,”

Ania K is a Polish-born writer and YouTube vlogger. She seems to me to be just a normal person who pursues a curiosity and shares the experience. But of course, Ania K may be a Kremlin operative, a Tokyo Rose, a Mata Hari.

In that case, God save the American empire from Ania K’s evil!

For my part, Ania K seems genuine and her videos are interesting. This one was made relevant by a recent post in the Forum which claimed that the Russian banking system is collapsing.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/12/russian-tycoon-pavel-antov-dies-putin-ukraine/672601/

This is what happens in Russia if Putin does not care for your opinions. Now tell us how Zelensky is a fascist and just as bad as Putin.

While prophecies and predictions are fun to discuss, a look back at 2022 is also fun and interesting.

https://open.substack.com/pub/morningshots/p/2022-a-consequential-year-in-review?r=7hgxp&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

Charlie Sykes does a nice review of 2022. Factual and sourced (links throughout).

I know some of the posters here take issue with The Bulwark. Mostly because they are more accurate than the “sources” used and opinions shared by those who don’t like The Bulwark. Which I find a bit humorous because it is a group of old school conservatives who don’t pull punches on calling out what is considered “conservative” today.

The End (of the Petrodollar) is Nigh…

One of the underappreciated consequences of the war in Ukraine is the economic boost given to China. Specifically, China is well positioned to offer its currency as an international medium of exchange, displacing the U.S. dollar.

The effects will be horrible within the U.S., as our currency will lose purchasing power. Worse, there is almost nothing we can do to prevent the replacement of the petrodollar, as all the key decisions are in the hands of other countries who no longer need nor (because of Ukraine) have reason to trust us.

https://tinyurl.com/y37dnfnm

While Trump’s most loyal supporters were incited to criminal behavior that would cost them years of their lives, the fiancé of Donald Trump, Jr. demanded and was paid $60,000 for a three minute speech at the “Stop the Steal” rally on January 6th. If you wanted to make something up to smear the Trump family as greedy, banal leeches sucking the blood from their supporters it would be hard to top this. But hey, $60,000 is chicken feed compared to the $250 million raised off the Big Lie.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/15/capitol-attack-panel-trump-election-defense-fund

Always on the grift!

https://theweek.com/house-of-representatives/1019645/gop-rep-elect-santos-defends-bogus-resume-explanation-would-go-way

Even Tulsi Gabbards takes issue with Rep. (Elect) Santos and his “embellishments”. Not too mention he thinks any explanation concerning his (lack of) employment at Goldman-Sachs “would go way above the American peoples’ heads”. Potential translation of that statement: “The voters are too stupid”.

Continue reading “GOP 2023” →

Vox Day makes an interesting observation concerning the application of Constitutional provisions to private companies:

The self-appointed defenders of capitalism very much want you to ignore the fact that every single corporation is a government creation. And as such, not only should they not enjoy the Constitutional protections of the rights possessed by individuals who are posterity of the Founders, they should be subject to the same limits that are imposed on the government.

Put another way, corporations exist because government charters them. Accordingly, corporations cannot behave in ways that government is not permitted to behave.

I rather like Day’s point, although I have only just begun to think about it. Perhaps there is an error I haven’t yet recognized.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/28/long-lines-at-russias-atms-as-bank-run-begins-ruble-hit-by-sanctions.html

“This is a full-fledged bank run that’s already underway,” Maximilian Hess, a Russian economy expert and fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, told CNBC.

The Russian people are about to have all of their savings converted into “war bonds” that won’t be available until “after the war.” That’s pretty interesting considering they’ve also been told the country isn’t at war.

PM David Zweig Suppression of dissent

The CDC met with Twitter and other tech firms to manage information about COVID. During Trump’s time in office, it was primarily to provide accurate information and to discourage runs on scarce supplies in grocery stores. But when Biden’s team came in, the emphasis turned to censoring contrary opinion, including that of legitimate experts and quotations of CDC website material that did not support the narrative.

Many of the suppressed opinions have proven to be true.

The previous Twitter executives took the White House directives eagerly as they were in line with their own biases.

Read the full thread