Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Greek Crisis and Southern Europe Immigrant situation / Politics / European Union
By: Submissions
luciano malocco writes: Europe is facing a crisis. Well actually Europe is facing two and both of them are of their own making and almost as serious as each other. The news that nearly 1000 illegals from Libya died over the weekend making the treacherous journey from North Africa to the Italian coastline should shock nobody. This is the result of a disastrous policy by the West namely the US to destabilise not only Libya but also Tunisia, Egypt and previously Iraq. It was called the Arab Spring back in 2011 when the region which was filled with hope for better times to come and a fairer way of life, while Western commentators spoke of bringing democracy to the people of these countries. It was sold to the Western population as the Arab people standing up to their cruel authoritarian rulers to demand something that we here in the West take for granted, Democracy.
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Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Why Europe Lets People Drown / Politics / Social Issues
By: Raul_I_Meijer
That Europe let almost 1000 people die in the Mediterranean in one night shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone, at least not to those who are still occasionally awake. The Club Med migrant crisis has been going on for a long time, and the EU’s only reaction to it has been to slash its budget and operations in the area, not to expand them.
So when the New York Times opens with “European leaders were confronted on Monday with a humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean..”, they’re a mile and a half less than honest. Brussels has known what was going on for years, and decided to do less than nothing.
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Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Wealth Destruction for the 99.9 Percent / Politics / Social Issues
By: BATR
Blaming the 1% for diminished prosperity avoids the real reasons for designed poverty. In round terms, the seven billion souls that populate this planet translate into seventy million to be part of the 1%. Well, that amount is still a very large number to blame for the systemic transfer of riches into the hands of the few. A far more relevant approach is to examine the .001% or around seven million that fall into the mover or shakers of asset and possessions. Before targeting this group of mega wealth, that figure includes a very significant number, who are non players when it comes to global politics or transnational finance.
Sunday, April 19, 2015
No Scripture Is Divine, Authentic and Beyond the Creation of the Human Brain / Politics / Religion
By: Dr_R_M_Mathew
All the existing scriptures were created in the Age of Ignorance and Illiteracy. In such an age, if somebody was telling something unheard by the masses, it was quite natural for the clever men to make the ignorant masses believe it as Divine or Godly or Super Human or Authentic or Directly from the God. Once it became the part of tradition, it turned into the unquestionable edifice of faith.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Is Legal Tax Avoidance Extinct in the UK? / Politics / Taxes
By: MISES
Simon Wilson writes: In the context of the financial crisis, and the government’s ever expanding fiscal deficit, it is perhaps no surprise that the issue of taxation has become one of the most hotly debated topics in the United Kingdom’s upcoming election. Nor is it surprising that the establishment has successfully avoided any discussion of what makes dealing with the deficit so imperative, namely, the taxpayer bailout of the banking system.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Why Russia Will Send More Troops to Central Asia / Politics / Russia
By: STRATFOR
Russia is making a concerted effort to increase its military and security presence throughout Central Asia, just not for the reasons it would have you think. Though the Kremlin is concerned with the threat of spillover violence from Islamist militancy in Afghanistan — its purported motive for deploying more troops — it is far more alarmed by what it sees as Chinese and Western encroachment into lands over which it has long held sway. It is this concern that will shape Moscow's behavior in Central Asia in the years to come.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
U.S. Treasury Secretary Warns Greek Exit Will Cause Enormous Disruption and Hardship / Politics / Eurozone Debt Crisis
By: Bloomberg
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, spoke with Bloomberg Television's Peter Cook about ahead of the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank. Lew discussed his concerns about global growth, the strength of the dollar, and the risk posed by a possible Greek exit from the Eurozone.
On the impact of a Greek Exit, Lew said: "I think that there’s no doubt that if this leads to a crisis that -- such as Greece leaving the Eurozone, it will cause an enormous amount of disruption and hardship in Greece. I have said consistently that no one should think that all of the risk of a change like that is predictable in advance and, you know, even if the contagion risk is much less now than it was, say, in 2012 and earlier, it would not be a good thing in a world economy just recovering from a deep recession to have that kind of uncertainty introduced."
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Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Water Crisis Game Changing Water Revolution / Politics / Water Sector
By: OilPrice_Com
Globally, water demand is threatening to dangerously outpace supply, while in the US, dry states such as Texas and California are suffering from shortages and the future forebodes more suffering. For the North American shale boom, the lack of water is suffocating. Amid this doom and gloom, a water revolution emerges, led by energy industry figures who realized the endless potential of tapping into new water sources and processing them with advanced desalination technology that, for the first time ever, is economically feasible.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
The Drying of California - Corporate Farms Control of Water / Politics / Water Sector
By: BATR
Water and air are the most important resources on the planet. Breathing clean air seems to be accepted as a noble goal and the cost attributed to its improvement is usually universally accepted. However, the same cannot be said about access to fresh water as big business interests often argues. Many corporate interests contend that private ownership of public water out- weighs the rights of actual property owners. Corporate agriculture is quite different from traditional family farming. Yet, the factory farms that have taken over agribusiness demonstrate little regard for preserving a viable water supply.
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Peter Schiff on U.S. Dollars, Drachmas and Debt - Video / Politics / Global Debt Crisis 2015
By: Peter_Schiff
Why might Greece abandon the euro and re-adopt the drachma? Peter Schiff argues that the drachma would be a politically expedient way of defaulting on Greek debt, but would ultimately lead to financial ruin for Greek citizens. Peter believes that the only difference between Greece and the United States is that US creditors still have faith in the dollar. However, it won’t be long before the Federal Reserve makes the dollar as worthless as a drachma.
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
The Ultimate Middle East Dilemma: Time For Us To Stop Intervening? / Politics / Religion
By: Harry_Dent
The last time I was speaking in Dubai, my wife had lunch with three highly intelligent women from Shia, Sunni, and Christian backgrounds.
Ordinarily you wouldn’t expect three people with these backgrounds to agree on something, but they did on one thing….
That is, the West doesn’t understand why the Arab world hates them.
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Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Coming to Terms With the American Empire / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: STRATFOR
George Friedman writes: "Empire" is a dirty word. Considering the behavior of many empires, that is not unreasonable. But empire is also simply a description of a condition, many times unplanned and rarely intended. It is a condition that arises from a massive imbalance of power. Indeed, the empires created on purpose, such as Napoleonic France and Nazi Germany, have rarely lasted. Most empires do not plan to become one. They become one and then realize what they are. Sometimes they do not realize what they are for a long time, and that failure to see reality can have massive consequences.
Monday, April 13, 2015
Ron Paul Asks New World Militarism: Who Profits? / Politics / New Cold War
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Militarism and military spending are everywhere on the rise, as the new Cold War propaganda seems to be paying off. The new "threats" that are being hyped bring big profits to military contractors and the network of think tanks they pay to produce pro-war propaganda.
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Sunday, April 12, 2015
A Case for Monetary Independence / Politics / Central Banks
By: MISES
Lucas M. Engelhardt writes: “Sound money and free banking are not impossible — they are merely illegal. Freedom of money and freedom of banking are the principles that must guide our steps.” — Hans Sennholz
When I was asked to give the Hans Sennholz Memorial Lecture, I was uncertain what I should speak about. Should I give an inspirational, autobiographical talk about life as a young academic? Should I present cutting edge research? Should I advocate for better policy in some “hot” political topic? In the end, I looked at the title of the lecture — this was the Hans Sennholz Memorial Lecture. So, I decided that I should present something Sennholzian — especially since I am a Grove City College alumnus, though I was never a student of Sennholz — who had retired before I was a student here.
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Sunday, April 12, 2015
Drought and the Failure of Big Government in California / Politics / Water Sector
By: MISES
Ryan W. McMaken writes: California Governor Jerry Brown has announced that private citizens and small businesses — among others — will have their water usage restricted, monitored, and subject to heavy fines if state agents determine that too much water has been used. Noticeably absent from the list of those subject to restrictions are the largest users of water, the farmers.
Saturday, April 11, 2015
End Of Islam, Hinduism And Christianity And Rise Of The Age Of Humanism, Spirituality And The Universal God - Sanadhana Dharma / Politics / Religion
By: Dr_R_M_Mathew
Twenty First Century is the Age of Spirituality and Humanism, as the Humanity is getting fed up with Fascism, Materialism and Terrorism. The role and relevance of Islam, Hinduism and Christianity have been eroded for they have become fascist and materialistic, corrupted with Corporatism and Consumerism. They are on decay and decline; they have nothing to offer for the pressing problems of the Humanity.
Thursday, April 09, 2015
Who Owns the North Pole? / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: MISES
Benjamin M. Wiegold writes: The battle for the North Pole is snowballing between national governments along the Arctic Circle, as they all have their eyes set on the vast natural resources residing in the Arctic region. Indeed, it’s estimated the Arctic Ocean floor contains 22 percent of all unused oil and natural gas in the world — the largest remaining untapped concentration.
From this year until 2017, the US will hold the chair of the Arctic Council (AC) — an international forum founded in 1996, comprised of member states Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the US.The purpose of the AC is to
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Wednesday, April 08, 2015
Russia’s Central Bank Governor Is Way Smarter Than Ours / Politics / Central Banks
By: Raul_I_Meijer
It wouldn’t be a first, but it would certainly be a – bigger – shock. That is to say, the Bank of England hijacked the head of Canada’s central bank some time ago, but, while unexpected enough, that would pale in comparison to the US hiring the present Governor of the Russian central bank, Elvira Sakhipzadovna Nabiullina. It would still seem to be a mighty fine idea, though.
Not that I think it will happen, not to worry if you think Yellen is just what it takes at the Fed. But Nabiullina is both razor sharp and fiercely independent. Yellen is obviously neither; she’s a cog in a machine that huffs and puffs and pumps and dumps to make sure her overlords in the blissful world of US finance make ever more profit no matter how bad things get in American society.
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Tuesday, April 07, 2015
Best Government - Governs Least / Politics / Government Intervention
By: BATR
Once upon a time the Founding Fathers were considered to be the personification of the American Republic. Most notable among giants, was Thomas Jefferson. The significance of his authorship of the Declaration of Independence is heralded as the very essence of the purpose for fighting the revolution. Jump onward to the present era and examine the sentiment held by the populace. The seeming disconnect from the political thought of the 18th and 19th century to the attitudes in this 21st totalitarian collectivist mindset that dominates the culture, often resembles life on a different planet.
Tuesday, April 07, 2015
Russia Nervously Eyes the U.S.-Iran Nuclear Deal / Politics / Nuclear Weapons
By: STRATFOR
Reva Bhalla writes: When a group of weary diplomats announced a framework for an Iranian nuclear accord last week in Lausanne, there was one diplomat in the mix whose feigned enthusiasm was hard to miss. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov left the talks at their most critical point March 30, much to the annoyance of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who apparently had to call him personally to persuade him to return. Even as Lavrov spoke positively to journalists about the negotiations throughout the week, he still seemed to have better things to do than pull all-nighters for a deal that effectively gives the United States one less problem to worry about in the Middle East and a greater capacity to focus on the Russian periphery.