Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Return of Sovereign France, Europe’s Changing Landscape / Politics / France
By: Dan_Steinbock
In France, President Hollande’s utter failure to foster broad consensus for structural reforms has paved the way for a contested election. While public debate focuses on Emmanuel Macron as the savior of France, the real story is that Marine Le Pen's agenda has shifted the French political landscape. Before TV debates, the French presidential election featured 3-4 viable candidates, which together accounted for 85-90 percent of the total vote. Until recently, the leader of the Front National, Marine Le Pen, and the centrist Emmanuel Macron, have garnered about 25 percent in the polls, followed by the center-right François Fillon (20%), and the socialist Benoît Hamon (15%).
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Wednesday, March 22, 2017
In Japan, Russia and China Find Common Ground / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: STRATFOR
For the first time in three years, Russia and Japan have revived an avenue of negotiation that had stalled in the face of enduring tension between the two nations. Foreign and defense ministers from both countries met in Tokyo on Monday to hold 2+2 talks on security issues in the Asia-Pacific region. As expected, Japan took the opportunity to question Russia's recent attempts to bolster its defenses on the southern Kuril Islands, to which Tokyo has long laid claim. Russia fired back with its own objections to Japan's desire to build up its ballistic missile defenses as North Korea pushes ahead with its nuclear program.
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Tuesday, March 21, 2017
Trump Watershed Budget / Politics / US Politics
By: BATR
You have never seen an attempt to change direction in the Federal juggernaut, as outlined in the Trump budget to revamp discretionary spending. Bob Adelmann of The New American provides an apt appraisal in Trump’s “Blueprint” Budget Is a Policy Statement; Real Budget to Follow. For a full reading of this framework review the White House document. OMB Director Mick Mulvaney, has delivered a bold variation from the normal accommodation to the political careerists and influence peddlers.
Monday, March 20, 2017
Obamacare Healthcare Repeal or Obamacare 2.0? / Politics / Healthcare Sector
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
This Thursday, the House of Representatives will vote on a Republican bill that supposedly repeals Obamacare. However, the bill retains Obamacare's most destructive features.
That is not to say this legislation is entirely without merit. For example, the bill expands the amount individuals can contribute to a health savings account (HSA). HSAs allow individuals to save money tax-free to pay for routine medical expenses. By restoring individuals' control over healthcare dollars, HSAs remove the distortions introduced in the healthcare market by government policies encouraging over-reliance on third-party payers.
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Monday, March 20, 2017
Why The Status Quo Is Under Increasing Attack By 'Populist People Power' / Politics / Social Issues
By: Gordon_T_Long
Protecting The Status Quo Is Failing
We need to fully appreciate yet another example of what the mainstream media doesn't yet get! The "People" increasingly don't see the system working for them anymore and have as consequence become much more willing to try something very different, possibly even extreme, depending on how serious their personal blight has become!
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Sunday, March 19, 2017
Scotland Independence Referendum 2.0? / Politics / Scotland
By: Stephen_Lendman
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Why the SNP WILL Destroy Scotland, Exit UK Single Market for EU - IndyRef2 / Politics / Scotland
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The SNP have declared that their primary reason for demanding a second Independence referendum barely 2 years on from the last 'once in a lifetime' referendum was as a consequence of the UK intending to LEAVE the European Union including exiting the EU Single Market.
Saturday, March 18, 2017
Angela Merkel in Washington / Politics / US Politics
By: Stephen_Lendman
Friday, March 17, 2017
The Only Article You Need to Read to Understand the Trump Phenomenon / Politics / US Politics
By: Graham_Summers
The following is an attempt to explain the Trump phenomenon. It is NOT a pro-Trump article; it is simply an explanation for how Trump accomplished what he did, and why so few predicted his success and the impact of his economic policies.
There’s a simple reason so few people in the media and in finance understand the economic impacts of a Trump Presidency.
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Friday, March 17, 2017
3 Maps That Explain Why Syria Raqqa Battle Will Drag On / Politics / ISIS Islamic State
By: STRATFOR
BY GEORGE FRIEDMAN AND ERIC CZULEGER : The United States, Turkey, and Russia have deployed forces to fight against the Islamic State in a run-up to the final battle for Raqqa. But no one has made a definitive move.
We’ve touched on Syria before, but this is because the battle for the ISIS heartland is complicated by geography and conflicting interests of regional and international actors.
These three maps show the complexity of this battle and why it will be a marathon rather than a sprint.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017
Dutch and French Electons - Winners are Losers and Left is Right / Politics / European Union
By: Raul_I_Meijer
The Dutch elections on Wednesday have provided a whole bunch of Orwellian narratives. PM Mark Rutte’s right wing VVD party, actually the ‘business’ -or should we say ‘rent-seekers’ in 2017- party, who lost some 20% of the seats they had obtained in the previous parliamentary election in November 2012, down from 41 to 33 seats, is declared the big winner. While Geert Wilders’ very right wing party, PVV, won 25% more seats -it went from 16 to 20- and is the big loser.
Moreover, Rutte’s coalition partner, labor PvdA, gave up 29 out of 38 seats to end up with just 9. That’s a loss of over 75%. Together, the coalition partners went from 79 seats in the 2012 election to 42 in 2017. That’s an almost 50% less. Not that it could prevent Rutte from proudly declaring: “We want to stick to the course we have – safe and stable and prosperous..” Makes you wonder who the ‘we’ are that he’s talking about.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017
Red States Have Had Their Say… It’s Now the Blue States’ Turn / Politics / US Politics
By: Harry_Dent
We’ve not seen this level of political polarization since the Civil War. And it’s not unique to the U.S. It’s happening around the world… a backlash against globalization.
The red states scored a massive victory when President Donald Trump won against the odds. Six states switched from borderline blue to borderline red during that election.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017
Scotland Second Independence Referendum War - SNP Determined to Destroy the UK / Politics / BrExit
By: Nadeem_Walayat
In the run up to Scotland's September 2014 Independence Referendum, the Scottish Nationalists from Alex Salmond to Nichola Sturgeon down promised that they would abide by the results of the referendum, declaring that it was at least a once in a generation decision if not once in a life time decision. So here's a reminder of why the SNP cannot be trusted who blindly only see Independence as the answer to every question, and thus remain fanatically determined to destroy the United Kingdom at every opportunity.
Thursday, March 16, 2017
Trump’s Infrastructure Boondoggle / Politics / Infrastructure
By: Mike_Whitney
Donald Trump’s $1 trillion infrastructure plan is not an infrastructure plan and it won’t put $1 trillion of fiscal stimulus into the economy. It’s basically a scheme for handing over public assets to private corporations that will extract maximum profits via user fees and tolls. Because the plan is essentially a boondoggle, it will not lift the economy out of the doldrums, increase activity or boost growth. Quite the contrary. When the details of how the program is going to be implemented are announced, public confidence in the Trump administration is going to wither and stock prices are going to plunge. This scenario cannot be avoided because the penny-pinching conservatives in the House and Senate have already said that they won’t support any plan that is not “revenue neutral” which means that any real $1 trillion spending package is a dead letter. Thus, it’s only a matter of time before the Trump’s plan is exposed as a fraud and the sh** hits the fan.
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
“Ryancare” Dead on Arrival: Can We Please Now Try Single Payer? / Politics / Healthcare Sector
By: Ellen_Brown
The new American Health Care Act has been unveiled, and it has been pronounced an even greater disaster than Obamacare. Dubbed “Ryancare” or “Trumpcare” (over the objection of White House staff), the Republican health care bill is under attack from all sides, with even conservative leaders calling it “Obamacare Lite”, “bad policy”, a “warmed-over substitute,” and “dead on arrival.”
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Tuesday, March 14, 2017
SNP Declare Scotland to Commit Economic Suicide Early 2019, 2nd Independence Referendum / Politics / UK Politics
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The cult like SNP that sees Independence as the answer to EVERY question and so IS are once more demanding another once in a generation Independence referendum, barely 2 years since the last one. This despite current opinion polls stating that 55% of Scots want to remain within the United Kingdom. Though facts on the ground barely register with Scotland's IS fundamentalists who could be seen as being just as dangerously determined to destroy the United Kingdom as are their Levant namesakes. Permanently deaf, dumb and blind to the real world consequences of that which they zealously seek, an outcome that would amount to Scotland committing economic, social and territorial suicide, for that is what happens when nations tear themselves apart and this whilst Britain is attempting to pull itself away from the European Union is clearly meant to do maximum damage to England and Scotland, in their never ending quest for suicide as is the ultimate goal of all cults.
Monday, March 13, 2017
Caesar, Turkey and the Netherlands Ides of March / Politics / European Union
By: Raul_I_Meijer
I don’t think Holland realized they planned their election on the Ides of March, don’t remember the date or event ever being mentioned when I lived there as a child. That Washington knew what it was doing when back in 2013 it set the end of the latest debt ceiling compromise to March 15 is not likely either. Nor is Janet Yellen deliberately setting the Fed’s ‘next’ rate hike on the date. They may all, in hindsight, wish they had possessed a little more historical knowledge.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Rediscovering Community Wizard / Politics / US Politics
By: Rob_Kirby
We all live in and with a debt based system, so in the spirit of Keynesianism – perhaps we might want to try “borrowing” something of very great value from the past.Catherine Austin Fitts is former asst. sec. Federal Housing Administration [FHA] at HUD in the Bush I Administration. It was during her time in government that Fitts realized government finances needed to be re-engineered from the ground up – one locality at a time. When she left her post in government, she formed Hamilton Securities, which became a contractor to FHA.
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Sunday, March 12, 2017
Seven Bowls – Current Threat, Personal & Financial Protection Shield / Politics / Social Issues
By: Jim_Willie_CB
Although finance & economics are the primary themes for the Hat Trick Letter and its related research, it is impossible to ignore the reality of widespread coordinated aggravated attempts to destroy our lovely blue orb, planet Earth. The globalists are hell-bent on ruining the entire biosphere for the home to humanity. Gold & Silver might be the best protection for the financial and economic deterioration, if not destruction, as individuals and financial entities work to ensure the preservation of their assets. However, Gold & Silver should be part of any concerted effort toward preparedness in emergency supply. The Jackass has diverted in this one article instance from the primary newsletter themes in order to warn people about the threat to the entire human species. The common theme among the perpetrators is the Satanism practiced by the Western Elite, who are gradually being exposed for their pedophilia and child sacrifice rituals. Their symbols are all through the corporate signposts, often identified by alert observers.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
The Paradoxical Rivalry of US and China for Industrial Innovation / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: Dan_Steinbock
By the early 2020s, rivalry for industrial innovation will accelerate between the U.S. and China. Ironically, the Trump White House has opted for a poor-economy industrial policy, whereas China has a rich-economy policy. The former seeks past glory; the latter cannot wait to get to the future.Read full article... Read full article...