ericbj

A long monologue that tells us the USA is NOT a democracy. Therefore the question needs to be re-phrased.

Those who think NATO countries should increase their military budgets by a few percent to be able to confront the Russian Federation on the battlefield are likely grossly underestimating the financial requirements, and the strains to be imposed upon their already extenuated economies. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1333250/wwii-military-spending-share-income/ Western Europe is currently governed by economic imbeciles, for whom diplomacy is an unknown art. And as if that is not enough, they are also unable to master the arts of war, which are supposed to be an extension of diplomacy. Post-Soviet Russia was never a threat to Western European nations and in fact sought closer relations with them. Then Atlanticist aggressive anti-Russian propaganda and menacing expansionism forced the Russian government to reconsider its position. At the same time, by arousing patriotic sentiment, NATO threats have encouraged greater public support for Putin's government. The opposite of what was intended. Even now, I do not believe Russia seeks to overrun western Europe. They are not that illogical. There were years of deliberate NATO provocation and, finally, a powerful Ukrainian striking force assembled and softenng-up barrage unleashed, before Russia resorted to a pre-emptive military strike. Those that fail to understand this should study the sequence of preceding events. Of course there were other ramifications that led to the decision-making. Does anyone believe these days that NATO interventions in the Middle East, North Africa, and South-East Europe were all about human rights and democracy? Western official and MSM narratives seek to indoctrinate Western Europeans into believing this fable of a nascent Russian expansionism, projecting onto Russians the characteristics of the accusers. If the war-mongering propagandists carry on hard enough and long enough about Russian intentions of overrunning NATO nations, perhaps one day the idea might take root and have them say to themselves "Why not do it?" But the way things are going they will not need to. West European nations are self-destructing.

I have been using iHerb for many years and have found them fast and reliable. One factor that further cemented my loyalty to them was when, some years ago, I heard a nutritionist say that iHerb have the products independently analysed before they will offer them for sale. Not for effectiveness. That would be highly challenging. But to ensure that the quantities of active ingredients correspond with the claims of the manufacturer. The informant said they were the only supplier he knew of that did this; that products that failed to meet the manufacturers specs were rejected; and that a few products contained zero quantity of the claimed active ingredients.

You could well be right, the way things are going at present. But it is not ineluctable. A determined few with a clear vision of what is needed can change the course of history. The drone society was created in large measure by self-interested politicians who seek votes, while at the same time garnering the sponsorship of the rentier-capitalists (financial spoilers, not constructive builders). Such politicians are the antithesis of statesmen. One must try to distinguish those who seek to draw benefits from society while contributing nothing from those who contribute as best they can but who may need some support at times. As during inevitable economic downturns. E.g. when Winston Churchill, as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1911, in Lloyd George's Cabinet, laid the foundations of retirement pensions and unemployment benefit, these were contributory benefits for the labouring classes, little able to organise such things for themselves. Contributions came from workers, employers, and government. Churchill was of course ostracised and vilified by his own class. And he would continue to be disdained long after by the Thatcherites and their asset-strippers. https://www.oxbridgenotes.co.uk/revision_notes/economics-university-of-cambridge-political-aspects-of-british-economics/samples/churchill-and-the-welfare-state-essay Economic cycles have always occured, way back in history. We are in a pickle right now because our governments think they can break the cycle. They are simply storing up much greater chaos and distress for when their efforts finally meet dismal failure. I suspect that moment may be near. One of the failures of vision of so-called socialist governments is a failure to appreciate that well-being requires a substantial measure of material wealth. Which is derived from productive work and commerce at all levels of society. It cannot be created by government edict.

Maybe you have forgotten, or perhaps never knew, that JFK wanted to dissolve and replace the CIA precisely because they deliberately misinformed him.

Another prediction - not mine: https://internationalman.com/articles/how-to-survive-the-great-taking/ Use your own judgement.

According to Jim Rickards: "1. MARKET MELT-UP. Markets are at or near all-time highs based on every available metric: P/E ratios, CAPE ratio, market cap/GDP ratio, concentration risk, etc. This is accompanied by indexing, investor complacency and analyst euphoria. When such conditions have existed in the past, they have always been followed by market crashes of 50% to 90% unfolding over several years. Examples include Dow Jones (1929), Nikkei (1989), NASDAQ (2000), and S&P 500 (2008). "We are now positioned for an historic crash. The specific cause does not matter - it could be war, natural disaster, a bank or hedge fund collapse or another unexpected event. What matters is the super-fragility of the market when the trigger is pulled. This is why Warren Buffett has over $300 billion in cash and why central banks are buying gold. Prepare now. Don't be the last one to know. "2. A U.S. RECESSION IS COMING. There are ample signs that the economy is headed for a recession … . "3. CURRENCY WARS ARE BACK, AND TRADE WARS ARE COMING. … .

'They' want you to believe these things ended long ago. But individual mind-control continues unabated, more sophisticated now. Check it out on uncensored media channels. "Conspiracy theorists!" some will say. Not sure who first coined the term. But it was popularised by the CIA to discredit those who disbelieved the 'single-shot-from-behind' official narrative of the killing of JFK. Which is now discredited by available photographic analysis of the multiple bullet wounds to the head. Despite doctoring of the photos. And as regards mass-mind control, hands up those that still disbelieve in it.

A book that might help to enlighten the debates surrounding Covid-19 as well as offering insights as to how to deal with future pandemics: 'Disease X' https://philipmcmillan.substack.com/p/disease-x-book-reviewed-by-ai Have not read it, so cannot myself comment upon it. Merely drawing attention to its existence. Several years ago I heard Bill Gates tell us to expect another pandemic in 2025; and thought initially the WHO's failed attempt to ramp up the monkey-pox narrative was the prelude to this. Have no idea whether Bill Gates' spiel is still on-line, and if so where. But clearly to judge from his promotion of Event 201, which took place in October 2019, he has an uncanny ability to foresee potential future pandemics: https://www.weforum.org/press/2019/10/live-simulation-exercise-to-prepare-public-and-private-leaders-for-pandemic-response/ It seems Bill G.'s collaborators on Event 201 have restricted access to one of their learned papers, so we have to go to archive.org to recover it: 'The SPARS Pandemic 2025-2028' https://ia902805.us.archive.org/25/items/spars-2025a-2028/spars 2025a2028_text.pdf

"Why in the world would we still be talking about Covid?" "You must read between the lines."

Sounds like you have a pretty healthy life-style. Fermented foods, correctly produced, are extremely rich in health-giving bacteria. Probiotics marketed by the big drug companies contain a few million bacteria per dose according to the manufacturers' specifications. However doses of at least several billion are said to be necessary to be effective. To produce such concentrations is expensive and it is obvious that few people will pay the necessary prices. There are specialised companies that produce high-potency probiotics for a limited market, at high prices. Long-live fermented foods! Many more people than realise it have fungal infections these days; commonly of candida albicans, starting in the intestines. I first learnt about it when working as an unpaid volunteer in a cancer centre. According to the doctor and nutritionist who founded and headed the centre, "candida overgrowth is found in 100% of cancer patients". Candida occurs naturally in the digestive tract as a yeast which participates in the digestion of proteins. But if excess space is created around it by killing off the bacteria that help to keep it in check, it can spread. And in so doing transform itself into a filarial fungus. … [dragged away to a New Year's Eve party! 🙂 Home the following day] … The candida threads attach themselves to the intestinal walls, causing perforations in the one-cell thick lining which restricts passage into the blood-stream of all but the smallest molecules. The result is hyperpermeability of the intestines, commonly referred to as "leaky gut". Leaky gut means that macro-molecules of half-digested or undigested food can pass into the blood. They are recognised as foreign bodies and immediately attacked by the immune system. However, as the leaky gut develops, the situation deteriorates, with the immune system being slowly overwhelmed. Intolerances to foods that were previously well tolerated can develop. Eventually the candida itself may escape to infect other organs throughout the body. Some oncologists have even claimed cancer to be a fungal disease. But this is probably an oversimplification. Cancer cells are constantly formed within all of us. Tumours develop when the immune system is so weakened as to be unable to deal with the constant threats to the body's integrity. p.s. https://greenmedinfo.com/disease/respiratory-infections

I agree. But would add this: Antibiotics have likely saved millions of lives. (An uncle of mine suffocated to death from quinsy at the age of 21 in 1925 - likely avoided with penicillin). But antibiotics have probably contributed to the premature death of hundreds of millions. By the immeasurably slow process of undermining the immune system. Why? Because administered orally they habitually cause dysbiosis of the gut; and our intestinal flora are the first line of defence of the immune system. (The second line of defence is the 80% or so of the immune system's killer cells that are said to hang out, every time one has a meal, on the other side of the intestinal wall. Make sure to consume live (unpasteurised) fermented foods after a course of antibiotics. Oral antibiotics are not the sole culprit. Blame must also go to ultra-processed industrial foods containing bacterial-killing preservatives, the chemically-contaminated nutrient deficient products of modern farming, excess sugar and lack of prebiotic soluble fibre in present-day diets, etc. Finally: antibiotics encourage fungal infections. They are these days synthesized, but mostly derived from fungal secretions.

Let those who wish to be vaccinated be vaccinated. Let those who wish to wear masks wear masks. And the converse should also be true. If you search Google you will find endless support for the restrictions imposed by officialdom. But Google, once relatively unbiased, is known now to shape its search algorythms to suit its financial interests. And even respected academic institutions must keep an eye on their bottom line. Studies support both sides of the arguments regarding vaccines, face masks and lockdowns. But there can be little doubt that there has been criminal negligence, at the very least, where those suffering from mild Covid have been turned away from hospitals without any form of advice except to return when the disease becomes serious. And many similar such mistakes. If errors they were. The Covid virus is a large, heavy one, as viruses go. Spread largely by contact. And fragile. Soap and water kills it. No need for toxic hand-washes. Not airborne except on droplets of spittle. About 30,000 base units, it is said. Whatever base units may be. Subject to faulty replication, i.e. mutation. Nothing like the wee polio virus which has only produced two or three mutations during its long presence amongst us. According to one report "a moderate positive correlation was found between mask usage and deaths in Western Europe, which suggests that the universal use of masks may have had harmful unintended consequences." Nothing conclusive there. But I tend to disagree with the possible reason they offer for this. According to the F.L.C.C.C. doctors and healthcare professionals (about 600 of them internationally) they had zero deaths amongst their Covid patients as long as blood oxygen was maintained above 78% (the norm being 95 to 100%). Masks, depending upon type and upon the individual, can reduce respiratory oxygen by up to 20%. Just a personal footnote: I am unvaccinated (as regards Covid), in my 80s, with co-morbidities, contracted what was probably Covid in October last year. This was long a "dark red" province, up on a border not recognised by Covid, nor now by the cholera. Three days of hell in bed, knocking back doses of the vile CDS. Up on the fourth day. And cycling into town on the fifth for lunch at my favourite tea-room. Viruses have been with us for millions of years and can be knocked on the head. The means are not lacking and the cost is negligible.

"Ignore the mistakes of the past and learn nothing from them. Just keep repeating them."

In brief: "Money-printing". Increases in money supply outstripping increases in assets (goods and services). In detail, see here: "The global economy is a pyramid scheme | End of the Road (full documentary)" https://youtu.be/6F7h1VJGp8w

Since you dismiss rather than answer the points that I raise I have no intention to waste time and effort in doing research at your behest. You are free to publish the details you consider to support your case. But your bias should be self-evident to those with open eyes and an open mind. For the non-francophones here, I should have mentioned in my previous post that 'L'Arnaque du PIB' translates as The GDP Fraud. The sources I quoted from in that post are concerned with economic realities rather than political or geopolitical propaganda.

Maybe the first thing to attempt is to determine the exact nature of the damage that is causing the pain. This would involve seeing a specialist. By which I mean someone other than a G.P. or the average hospital doctor. A chiropractor might be a good choice. Used Dr Philip Parry very successfully about a dozen years ago, for a severe debilitating pain in the neck: "Thai registered Chiropractor, consultant at Rajavej Hospital Chiang Mai and Piyavate Hospital (TRIA) Bangkok, treating patients with neck & back pain, sciatica, headaches, sports injuries, arthritis, allergies & many paediatric chiropractic complaints." Possibly there is one or other of these suggestions that might help: https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/features/alternative-treatments I have seen it said that pain exists where there is a shortage of oxygen, i.e. poor circulation, often caused by wounding. Might explain some circumstances.

I suggest doing some research of your own. But here is to kick you off: https://www.shadowstats.com/ "ShadowStats Newsletter: 'John Williams’ Shadow Government Statistics' is an electronic newsletter service that exposes and analyzes flaws in current U.S. government economic data and reporting, as well as in certain private-sector numbers, and provides an assessment of underlying economic and financial conditions, net of financial-market and political hype." You will nowadays need a subscription to access it. However, various financial newsletters refer to shadowstats.com in order to get a clearer view of the economy than that offered by the U.S. Government. More readily available sources include: self-explanatory: https://intellectualtakeout.org/2018/06/three-common-ways-governments-misuse-statistics-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/ Many shades of wrong: what governments do when they manipulate statistics: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09692290.2020.1769704#d1e174 When Do Governments Manipulate Official Statistics? An Empirical Analysis: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=4244682 Dealing more with the U.K. economy is the publication 'Fortune & Freedom' by Southbank Investment Research. See here to subscribe: https://www.facebook.com/southbankinvestmentresearch Details about manipulation of French official statistics I had from the 'Lettre d'Information du Petit Economiste' - https://lepetiteconomiste.com/ - and 'La Lettre Economique d'Olivier Delamarche' - https://www.ultrabourse.com/ - [see 'L'Arnaque du PIB'] to both of which I was subscribed until about five years ago. At least the French did not, in those days at least, emulate the U.K. practice of including the earnings of crime and prostitution in their GDP figures.

Is Russia facing an economic crisis? The global economy is falling apart, and no one can tell where the global crisis will hit hardest. It could be Russia. Time will tell. But there have been umpteen stories over the past couple of years of how Russia was about to fall apart, etc., etc. So for now I prefer to wait and see. Exchange rates are relevant when it comes to purchase of foreign produced goods, or to locally produced goods heavily dependent upon foreign inputs. Such as gas or oil. German and other E.U. consumers will be able to tell you something about that. Russia is largely self-sufficient in its most vital needs. And many of its requirements for sophisticated manufactured goods can be met by China. China needs much of what Russia can supply: energy, minerals, and agricultural produce. So they are mutually self-supporting in trade. Unemployment in Russia is extremely low, and demand for labour is such that wages are rising faster than inflation. In fact wage rises are fuelling inflation - the opposite of what is happening in, say, the U.K. There are sectors of the Russian population that suffer from inflation. Such as pensioners. Their pensions are linked to inflation. But this is the overall inflation rate whereas the individual person experiences a higher rise in his cost-of-living than that. [U.K. annual pension increases long ago ceased to be linked to the government's bogus inflation figures, but instead to the lesser figure for the average increase in wages]. Russia distorts its statistics? To my knowledge Britain, France, the U.S. do the same. And I'm sure there are other countries besides. GDP was supposed to, and once did, express a country's industrial production. The U.K. now includes figures (presumably 'guesstimates') for the earnings of crime and prostitution. Maybe these two industries should be developed further? Finally, I would suggest that a country that can afford to fight poverty is not on its beam ends.

World Bank Poverty Outlook for Russia : October 2024: https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/099829310162421721/idu139cc068e1392a1497e1ba221287858c23786 Reuters: "Poverty level in Russia dropped to 9.3% in 2023" https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/poverty-level-russia-dropped-93-2023-says-statistics-service-2024-03-06/ I am bewildered why fighting poverty [successfully so, it seems] can be regarded as proof of a declining economy. The global economy was already stressed before half-baked politicians - serving themselves and vested interests, and backed by MSM-deluded members of the public - stressed it further. With a "pandemic" and proxy wars. People would do well to study economic data, including those from official, pro-western sources, before jumping to conclusions about Russia's economic demise.

Some ramifications of the US-China trade war: "US price tag for China's gallium export ban: $602 billion and new monopolies for Huawei" https://youtu.be/Qp4DNpJjHSs

Whether or not Trump is "going soft" on China, he would be well advised to do so. It is possible that some have not been following the global economic news. Of how China has begun retaliating against the U.S. by imposing … sanctions. The Chinese are starting to play the win-lose game, in place of their avowed "win-win" strategy. Restricting imports of, for example, U.S. agricultural produce, and banning exports of, for example, rare earths. Time will tell who loses the most.

Is it a deliberate ploy of the Deep State (essentially agents of U.S. oligarchs) to encumber voters with either egotistic-bombasts or script-readers as candidates ? Perhaps Trump envisages a new War Plan Red. In which case Canadians will need a Defence Scheme No.2. It is interesting to remark that U.S. forces have several times attempted to conquer what is now known as Canada. And each time failed. "We were refugees, American loyalists, British soldiers, First Nations, a mixed bag of people who realized they had a common land to defend." Reference to the War of 1812. https://www.history.com/news/how-u-s-forces-failed-to-conquer-canada-200-years-ago

The problem is whether my remittances from the UK to my Thai bank account are assessable. The local tax office seems to think they are not. Unfortunately my reading of things differs; despite the fact that I have no desire to pay tax. And also no desire to be penalised for not paying it. Have certainly brought in more than the 60K baht required to register; failing which one may be subject to a fine. You have prompted me to do a quick check on how much I have remitted to my Thai bank account this year and it looks to be just under 300K. So one needs now to take into account allowances. My expenditure well exceeds 300K baht because of purchases overseas and in Thailand made with foreign credit and debit cards. Notably about 200K for outpatient treatment in a Thai hospital, not covered by my accident-only-inpatient-only health insurance. [At 80 years of age health insurance becomes prohibitively expensive]

It seems that without a TIN you cannot pay Thai income tax. And yet, if you receive in Thailand in one tax year (1st Jan. to 31st Dec.) at least 60,000 baht, you are obliged to register for tax. I.e. to obtain a TIN. Failing which a fine, even if income is below the tax threshold. "Receiving in Thailand" includes transfers to Thailand from abroad. For me, Thai derived income is negligible, being only interest on a bank deposit account (from which I believe tax is deducted at source). But I remit to Thailand, from time to time, several months-worth of my measly UK DWP pension. Plus a bit derived from savings; savings that are held as precious metals and converted into fiat currency as needed. On Wednesday I went to the local tax office to ask for the form to fill in to request a TIN. However the person I dealt with, who appeared to be the manager, felt I was not eligible for a TIN because not having significant income from within Thailand. I pointed out I receive transfers from abroad into my Thai bank account; and showed him my passbook. He studied this and my passport with its 'O' visa, spoke of making photocopies but did not do so, made some telephone calls, studied his computer, and finally it was arranged I should come back another day. Seems no foreigners in these parts are registered to pay tax unless they have a business or are employees. I can see one further hurdle, if all other obstacles are cleared. According to online doc., a copy of one's rent agreement is required. I have none. Despite renting the same house since 1st December 2007. If I ask for a rent agreement, through the intermediary of an employee at the business of the house-owner's son-in-law (since I have not seen the house-owner for several years) there is a high risk of a rent increase.