Tag: Federal Reserve Bank of New York

Trump’s Prescription for Poverty: Forced Psychiatry and the Criminalization of Homelessness

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Trump order pushes forcible hospitalization of homeless people

Related:

Trump Pushes Policies That ‘Treat Homelessness and Mental Illness as a Crime’

New Research Shows Risks of Coercive Psychiatric Treatment

A new study from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is raising difficult but necessary questions about a practice that affects hundreds of thousands of lives each year: involuntary psychiatric hospitalization.

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This equates to a 79% increase in risk of being charged with a violent crime, and almost a doubled risk of dying by suicide or overdose, in the three months following evaluation for hospitalization.

The researchers also found hospitalization often caused destabilization. It led to declines in employment and earnings, and increased use of homeless shelters. It did not lead to better outpatient care or more consistent medication use.

US Ukraine Mineral Deal- Shades of Iraqi reconstruction scandal- US to provide security & the Trump admin connection to Iraq’s post-war reconstruction scandal

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

US Ukraine Mineral Deal- Shades of Iraqi reconstruction scandal- US to provide security

Elbridge Colby and Keith Kellogg both served in the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq in 2003 under Paul Bremer and are now part of the Trump administration. The CPA, which acted as the transitional government overseeing post-war reconstruction in Iraq, faced significant criticism for its mishandling of reconstruction funds. Over $8 billion allocated for Iraq’s rebuilding remains unaccounted for, including more than $1.6 billion in cash that was discovered in a basement in Lebanon.

Meanwhile, in Iraq, Chinese companies are actively engaged in constructing a wide range of infrastructure projects, including housing units, universities, commercial centers, schools, health facilities, and power stations. They have also played a key role in developing the Nasiriya airport.

Sources:

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Inflation and interest rates: the US experience

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Once again the US Federal Reserve is in a quandary. Does it cut its policy interest rate soon in order to relieve pressure on debt servicing costs for consumers and businesses and perhaps avoid a stagflationary economy (ie low or no growth alongside higher inflation); or does it hold its current interest rate for borrowing in order to make sure inflation falls towards its target of 2% a year?

Inflation and interest rates: the US experience

Citi launches blockchain-based token services for cash management and trade finance

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)
Lena Petrova, CPA – Finance, Economics & Tax

Citigroup, the American multinational investment bank and financial services corporation, has become the latest firm to wade into the blockchain waters as Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) has announced the creation and pilot testing of the Citi Token Services for cash management and trade finance.

Citi launches blockchain-based token services for cash management and trade finance

Evil offer to Taliban

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Over the last few weeks, a flurry of diplomatic efforts in the West Asia region brought the Taliban to the fore. Last week, the Iranian foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, traveled to neighboring Pakistan at the head of a large delegation. During the visit, many security issues were discussed, with the situation in Afghanistan seeming to be one of them. This is evident from the fact that Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran’s presidential envoy for Afghanistan, accompanied the foreign minister during the three-day visit.

Evil offer to Taliban

Related:

Taliban, US hold first official talks since Afghanistan takeover

Taliban Prepare Suicide Bombers in Water Dispute With Iran

Taliban rejects Iran claim leaders of ISIL sent to Afghanistan

Tales of the American Empire: The American Colony of Iraq

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

In 2003, the United States launched an unprovoked invasion of Iraq, destroyed that nation, and transformed it into a colony. Its proud, professional army was disbanded, its government institutions run by the Baath Party were dismembered, and its national oil company was privatized. The United States created a puppet government and army controlled with a massive spy system that identifies and liquidates dissidents called terrorists. The billions of dollars earned each year from Iraqi oil exports is sent to the New York Federal Reserve bank. Americans use these funds to manage Iraqi government operations, to include the pay for its government officials and generals.

Most American troops left in 2011, but several thousand remained hidden away as training units and backed by American combat units in nearby Kuwait. They engage in occasional combat as part of the ongoing “Operation Inherent Resolve.” In 2020, Iraq’s parliament rebelled and voted to expel all American troops from Iraq. American leaders ignore this demand, blame unrest on Iranian interference, and continue to rule and loot Iraq.

The American Colony of Iraq via Tales of the American Empire

Academic Study Finds that One of the Four Largest U.S. Banks Could Be at Risk of a Bank Run

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

The systemic threats to the U.S. financial system were not remedied when Congress passed the watered-down Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation in 2010. While that has been evident with each Federal Reserve bailout of the mega banks and their derivative counterparties, the threat has now gained increased urgency for Congress to confront as a result of a new academic study. A team of four highly-credentialed academics at four separate universities present compelling evidence that one of the four largest U.S. banks, with “assets above $1 trillion,” could be at risk of a bank run.

Academic Study Finds that One of the Four Largest U.S. Banks Could Be at Risk of a Bank Run

Two Fed-Supervised Banks Blew Up Last Week; Two More Dropped Over 40 Percent Yesterday; and the Fed Wants to Investigate Itself — Again

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Two Fed-Supervised Banks Blew Up Last Week; Two More Dropped Over 40 Percent Yesterday; and the Fed Wants to Investigate Itself — Again

Last Friday, California state regulators closed Silicon Valley Bank and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) became the receiver. Its stock price had lost over 80 percent of its market value over the prior year; $150 billion of its $175 billion in deposits were uninsured, either because they exceeded the $250,000 FDIC cap and/or they were foreign deposits. The bank was effectively operating as a Wall Street IPO pipeline in drag as a federally-insured bank. The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco had quietly been bailing it out – to the tune of $15 billion. Oh – and by the way – its primary regulator was the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. And while all of this hubris was occurring, the CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, Gregory Becker, was sitting on the Board of Directors of his regulator, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

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Oh, and by the way, the Fed member banks in each of the 12 Federal Reserve Districts that can choose to be regulated by the Fed, literally own their regulator. That’s right, they own the stock in their regional Fed bank, which is a private institution, unlike the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C. which is an “independent” federal agency. (See, for example, These Are the Banks that Own the New York Fed and Its Money Button.)

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Adding to the ongoing arrogance of the Fed, its Chairman, Jerome Powell, released a statement two minutes after the market closed yesterday, stating that “The events surrounding Silicon Valley Bank demand a thorough, transparent, and swift review…” So, once again, it’s decided to investigate itself. The Fed’s Vice Chairman for Supervision, Michael Barr, will oversee the investigation.

The Latest Digital Token Scheme from Hell: New York Fed Teams Up with Citigroup and Sullivan & Cromwell

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Just two business days after the crypto exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy and headlines swirled around the world suggesting it had used its crypto token to perpetuate a massive fraud reminiscent of Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, the New York Fed thought this would be an ideal time to announce it was launching a digital token pilot with the serial fraudster, Citigroup. (See here for the unintelligible, jargonized version from the New York Fed; here for the decrypted translation from CoinDesk; and here for a sampling of Citigroup’s rap sheet.)

The Latest Digital Token Scheme from Hell: New York Fed Teams Up with Citigroup and Sullivan & Cromwell