Inflation and interest rates: the US experience

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

Pakistan’s misery continues

Pakistan has a general election today. It will decide on the next government of the world’s fifth-most populous nation and the governments of its four provinces — Punjab, Singh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Around 128 million people can vote to pick 266 representatives to form the 16th parliament in a first-past-the-post system. They will also vote to elect the legislatures of the country’s four provinces.

Pakistan’s misery continues

China Overtakes Europe in Clean Energy Tech Research

China has become a powerhouse in clean energy, and has overtaken the EU on clean technology research, a paper prepared for the European Commission has shown.

“China has caught up with the EU in R&D expenditure. While Chinese R&D intensity more than doubled since 2000, EU R&D intensity grew much slower. As a result, China caught up with the EU while the US keeps a consistent lead,” according to the brief on the EU-China exposure in trade, investment, and technology.

“China is increasingly becoming a world leader in science and innovation, for several critical technologies outlined in the 2023 Commission Recommendation on critical technology areas for the EU’s economic security,” the authors of the study for the Commission wrote.

China Overtakes Europe in Clean Energy Tech Research

China is eating Europe’s lunch, as well! On another note, the EU should worry more about their dependence, on the US, than on China. Then again, they’re a vassal state of the US.

Previously:

Senate Approves AMLO’s Request for US Military Personnel in Mexico

This past Wednesday, December 13, the Senate approved the request from president Andrés Manuel López Obrador for the presence of US military personnel in Mexican territory.

Senate Approves AMLO’s Request for US Military Personnel in Mexico

Related:

President AMLO invites US special forces to train troops in Mexico

The request to the Mexican Senate for the entry of 11 armed US personnel to participate in the exercise “Strengthen the capabilities of the Special Forces of the Ministry of National Defense” was signed by López Obrador less than a week after he met with US President Joe Biden in San Francisco on November 17.

FDA Weighs New Application To Approve MDMA As First-Ever Psychedelic Medicine For PTSD + More About MAPS

A psychedelics-focused drug development company is officially asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review an application to approve MDMA as a prescription medication for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) announced on Tuesday that it submitted the new drug application (NDA) to FDA, requesting an expedited review given that the agency previously designated the psychedelic as a breakthrough therapy.

FDA Weighs New Application To Approve MDMA As First-Ever Psychedelic Medicine For PTSD

H/T: The Most Revolutionary Act

The MAPS Public Benefit Corporation is subsidiary of Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies. MAPS was founded by Rick Doblin.*

Related:

*Rick Doblin is a USG asset. Carl Jung was personally handled by Allen Dulles.**

**Psychoanalytic roots of CIA psychoprofiling/pseudoscience

Read More »

Jeff Bezos Donates $120 Million to Fight Homelessness, Then Invests $500 Million to Make It Worse

Among the three richest people on the planet, mega-billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos received some praise last week for announcing approximately $120 million in donations to a number of groups fighting the scourge of homelessness in the United States

Jeff Bezos Donates $120 Million to Fight Homelessness, Then Invests $500 Million to Make It Worse

H/T: Unorthodox Truth

World Court orders Venezuela to refrain from action in border dispute with Guyana + More

World Court orders Venezuela to refrain from action in border dispute with Guyana

Friday’s ruling is the latest development in the larger border dispute. The ICJ said in April it had jurisdiction over the case, but a final ruling could be years away.

Interestingly, Judge Joan Donoghue used to work for the US State Department. 🤔

Related:

Essequibo and Other Border Issues: Venezuela’s Territorial Losses to Imperialist Powers Through the Centuries (Part 1)

Previous posts on Venezuela v Guyana

Opposition NGO warns Essequibo question might end up in war between Venezuela and Guyana + More

Control Ciudadano (Social Watch – CC) Chairwoman Rocío San Miguel said Guyanese President Irfaan Alí’s recent statements regarding the military support of several countries to defend the Essequibo amounted to a “very strong warning for Venezuela,” which will hold a referendum on the matter on Dec. 3.

NGO warns Essequibo question might end up in war between Venezuela and Guyana

Rocío San Miguel is Venezuelan Opposition.

Related:

US Defense officials to visit Guyana amid Venezuela row: Guyanese VP

Both nations claim the 160,000-square-kilometer (62,000-square-mile) region, in a dispute that has intensified since ExxonMobil discovered oil there in 2015.

Another major discovery in Essequibo in October added further to Guyana’s reserves, making them greater than those of Kuwait or the United Arab Emirates.

US Escalates Essequibo Dispute by Militarizing Guyana

Venezuela: Maduro Warns of ExxonMobil Interference Ahead of ‘Historical’ Essequibo Strip Vote

For historical context: The Secret Agenda Behind the Venezuela-Guyana Conflict