“An Israeli minister has told troops massing at the border that they will soon see Gaza ‘from the inside’ sparking fears a ground invasion is imminent.
“Yoav Gallant, who is the country’s defence minister, told Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers to ‘get organised, be ready’ to move into the Palestinian territory as he vowed there would be ‘no forgiveness’ for Hamas, only it’s ‘total annihilation’.”
“Gaza conflict spills into the West Bank as settler attacks and clashes leave dozens of Palestinians dead.
“Brig. Gen. Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military’s spokesperson, said last week that the military was on high alert in the occupied territory, adding it was preparing to thwart any potential attacks.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/19/middleeast/west-bank-settler-attacks-israel-cmd-intl/index.html
“Jordan fears ‘the worst is coming’ in Gaza war…
“”All the indications are that the worst is coming.. The catastrophe will have painful consequences in coming periods,” Safadi said, adding that diplomatic efforts were not yielding any results in ending the conflict.”
“The US, Britain and Germany called on their citizens to leave Lebanon on Thursday amid growing fears that Israel’s war with Hamas will escalate into a regional conflict.
“The embassies in Beirut issued their warning after shelling intensified between northern Israel and southern Lebanon, the stronghold of Tehran’s ally Hizbollah.”
https://www.ft.com/content/15b04e43-1e0b-4f92-ad71-3aaeeb68402e
“Much of the world’s gas comes from Hamas headquarters. This war could affect us all…
“The questions surrounding Qatar arise chiefly from its strong ties to both Hamas and Iran, which serves as Hamas’s major funder and sponsor. Hamas maintains its head office in Qatar’s capital city of Doha and receives a good deal of its funding from the Qatari government.”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/18/natural-gas-hamas-hq-qatar-israel-prices-lng-supplies/
“Iran called for an oil embargo against Israel over its air strikes on Gaza, causing oil futures to rise.
“Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian called for an “an immediate and complete embargo on the Zionist regime by Islamic countries, an oil embargo against the regime,” according to a ministry statement on Telegram. He also urged Muslim countries to expel Israeli ambassadors.”
“Drone Attacks Syrian Gas Field as Israel Conflict Escalates.
“In reports unconfirmed by the U.S. military, Syrian opposition figures claim that a possible Iran-backed group in Syria launched a drone attack on an oil facility and a U.S. military base in the country’s eastern region, as the Hamas-Israel conflict escalates.”
“US shoots down drones targeting its troops in Iraq as regional tensions flare.
“In a recent incident, two drones attacked the al Asad airbase in western Iraq and another targeted a northern Iraqi base. While US forces intercepted and destroyed two drones, the third caused minor injuries among coalition forces.”
“Biden draws direct link between Putin and Hamas as he urges aid for Israel and Ukraine…
““Hamas and Putin represent different threats, but they share this in common: they both want to completely annihilate a neighboring democracy,” said Biden, sitting at the Resolute desk with flags, family photos, gold curtains and a darkened window behind him.”
“A relentless global bond rout is piling pain on to investors who loaded up on fixed-income assets this year as they spied the end of central banks’ cycle of interest rate rises.
“The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note climbed to around 5 per cent — a level not seen since before the global financial crisis — on Thursday… The sell-off across the world’s bond markets resumed this week after a brief pause as investors flocked to safe assets following the outbreak of Israel’s war with Hamas.”
https://www.ft.com/content/62430601-8c87-4d27-a440-db78f5250a71
“Dollar’s reserve currency status depends on U.S. controlling spending, ‘bond king’ Gundlach warns.
“”Should the Federal Reserve continue to raise rates, which may happen, or should the national debt grow, which is certain to happen, this problem will get much worse,” Gundlach said in an opinion piece. “The future of the U.S. dollar and possibly out-of-control inflation depends on getting the budget and spending under control.””
“Investors now view U.S. Treasuries as “riskier assets.”
“Losses in emerging-market stocks and bonds deepened as the rise in US TREASURY YIELDS and concern about a wider conflict in the Middle East pushed investors to UNLOAD RISKIER ASSETS.”
https://twitter.com/aeberman12/status/1714972774786064722
“The ratio of the Nasdaq to US Treasuries return is currently at a record 8.2x… even at the peak of the 2001 bubble, the largest tech bubble in history, this ratio was ~4.8x.
“In other words, the Nasdaq to US Treasuries return ratio is now 70% HIGHER than it was in 2001. It’s now also 5.5x HIGHER than it was at the peak of the 2008 financial crisis. There has never been a larger gap between return in equities and US Treasuries. Something needs to give.”
https://twitter.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1714621872770334893
“A number of U.S. banks saw continued pain in the third quarter on delinquent commercial real estate loans in their portfolios, as stress in the sector persists.
“Building owners that borrowed money to finance their properties are being squeezed by high interest rates and vacant offices as workers opt to work from home. Weak demand for offices could trigger a wave of borrowers to default on their loans and put pressure on banks and other lenders…”
“Climate activists force Fed chair Jerome Powell off stage in New York…
“At the Economic Club of New York, protesters stormed the stage holding a banner that read “Fed Is Burning: Money, Futures, Planet” and chanting “Off fossil finance!” Powell, who was on stage, briefly left the event before returning to deliver his speech as planned.”
“The co-founders of Just Stop Oil have been arrested in dawn raids ahead of an “unprecedented” series of protests in London.
“Roger Hallam, 57, and 29-year-old Indigo Rumbelow were arrested at separate addresses after officers “forced entry to their homes, searched belongings and confiscated papers”, Just Stop Oil said in a statement.”
“More English councils face bankruptcy, leaders warn, as deficits reach £4bn.
“The bleak message, set out in a letter to the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, said council budgets were “under pressure like never before” because of the rapid deterioration in their finances caused by inflation and soaring demand for social care.”
“Millions of UK families could face cuts to the value of their benefits next year as ministers seek to make space for a fiscal giveaway in the run-up to the next election…
“Jeremy Hunt, chancellor, said last week that he faced “difficult decisions” in his Autumn Statement next month because of the spiralling cost of servicing government debt and fragile public finances.”
https://www.ft.com/content/d8af0578-fd9b-40d4-b7f6-81759fdf6bdf
“The cost of UK state borrowing is close to a 15-year high – levels seen only twice since the global financial crash.
“The amount the UK government has to pay – the yield – to borrow money for 10 years via its benchmark 10-year bonds – known as gilts – rose to more than 4.7% on Thursday. Only twice since the 2008 crash has such a high been reached, both times in August this year.”
https://news.sky.com/story/10-year-uk-gilts-reach-near-15-year-high-129877
“UK And Germany See No Way Back To Energy Trade With Russia.
““There is no way back to energy relationship with Russia that we saw before the war. This relationship has ended,” said Miguel Berger, Germany’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom. The UK’s Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Graham Stuart, echoed those comments, saying that there would be no return to the previous energy relationship with Russia for the UK either…”
“Industrial energy users push for subsidies ahead of German government meeting.
““Please take note of the increasingly dramatic economic situation of the energy-intensive industries in Germany,” the letter addressed to Scholz and his ministers reads… “the massive cutbacks in local production that can already be observed are acutely endangering jobs and locations,” the representatives of the steel, paper, chemical and glass industries, as well as trade unions, write.”
“Euro area borrowing costs rise, Italian yield hits highest in almost 11 years.
“Euro area borrowing costs were close to their highest in around a decade as investors balanced expectations for higher-for-longer rates against appetite for safe-haven assets on fears that the conflict in the Middle East might widen beyond Gaza. Bond prices move inversely to yields.”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/euro-area-borrowing-costs-rise-081439602.html
“Bank of Japan intervenes as 10-year JGB yield hits fresh peak.
“The Bank of Japan intervened in the Japanese government bond (JGB) market on Friday as the 10-year JGB yield touched a decade high early in Asian trading, driven up by surging U.S. Treasury rates… The rise prompted the Bank of Japan (BOJ) to step in as it tries to stabilise market expectations and slow the pace of yield gains.”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/bank-japan-intervenes-10-jgb-010831196.html
“The crisis in China’s property sector deepened as Country Garden, the country’s biggest developer by sales, reportedly missed its final deadline for an interest payment on a dollar bond, putting it at risk of default.
“The company, which has about $200bn (£163bn) in liabilities and nearly $11bn in dollar-denominated offshore bonds, was due to make a $15.4m coupon repayment this week, but failed to do so…”
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/19/china-country-garden-default-bond-payment
“Bangladeshi banks on brink of a major liquidity crunch…
“Meeting sources said other burning issues like NPL buildup, forex dearth and exchange rate-related volatility came up in the meeting where the BB governor asked the bankers to pay more attention on asset recovery, steps to bring more remittance and export proceeds.”
https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/economy/banks-on-brink-of-a-major-liquidity-crunch
“No end to the Papua New Guinea fuel shortages.
“Papua New Guineans continue to face fuel shortages brought about by one of the main suppliers, Puma Energy, not having access to enough foreign exchange to pay for what it needs. More rationing is coming…”
“‘Very thin budget’: Forex shortage triggers cost-of-living crisis in Malawi…
“Since 2021, the country has been experiencing acute foreign currency shortages, a consequence of reduced exports, experts say. This has led to a scarcity of essential goods such as food, medicine, fertiliser and fuel.”
“Epra faces MPs’ wrath over rising pump prices [Kenya]…
“Kaloleni MP Paul Katana sparked the debate after demanding to know if pump prices would be reduced in the near future. “There is a huge outcry by Kenyans following the recent increase of fuel prices by as much as Sh6 per litre,” he said.”
https://nation.africa/kenya/news/epra-faces-mps-wrath-over-rising-pump-prices-4405086
“Fuel prices surge in Congo amidst protests and economic struggles.
“In the Republic of Congo, diesel prices have risen by 25 percent in October, marking another increase following a hike in January. Similarly, since July, the pump price of gasoline has also surged by 25 percent. Authorities in Brazzaville attribute the soaring fuel prices to recommendations made by the International Monetary Fund.”
“Fuel Scarcity Hits Lagos, Abuja [Nigeria] as Pump Price Crosses N600…
“Our correspondents observed long queues at the few stations still dispensing fuel in Lagos on Thursday, while some major outlets belonging to NNPC have suspended sales. Independent marketers selling petrol have increased prices between N600-N650, up from N568-N585 previously.”
https://thenigerialawyer.com/fuel-scarcity-hits-lagos-abuja-as-pump-price-crosses-n600/
“Lithium Price Crash Could Trigger Shortages From 2025…
“…what has really spooked the markets is looming supply coming online from China, Australia and Chile, “Supply is coming on stream faster than you can say ‘boo’. Demand remains strong but prices have been unsustainable for some time now,” analyst Dylan Kelly of Ord Minnett has told Mining.”
“The Green Power Grid Isn’t Coming… Build millions of miles of transmission lines, with Chinese materials?
“The International Energy Agency said this week that 49.7 million miles of transmission lines—enough to wrap around the planet 2,000 times—will have to be built or replaced by 2040 to achieve the climate lobby’s net-zero emissions goal. This amounts to a plan for everyone to buy more metals from coal-fired plants in China.”
https://www.wsj.com/articles/international-energy-agency-green-energy-transmission-lines-co2-26f9cfa
“With Climate Crisis Deepening Worldwide, Third Committee [UN] Urges States to Ramp Up Environmental Legislation, Provide Funding to Hard-Hit Developing Nations.
“As the global environmental crisis inflicts despair on millions of people worldwide, States must implement and enforce stronger climate and environmental laws, the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) heard today…”
https://press.un.org/en/2023/gashc4387.doc.htm
You can read the previous “Economic” thread here. I’ll be back tomorrow with a “Climate” thread.
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Can someone explain to me this widespread forex shortage? What is the cause of it? Thanks!
Foreign exchange reserves are just that – reserves of foreign cash and other assets held by any given nation’s central bank. When we are talking about poorer nations, they really need a stash of hard currency, especially the US$, to buy goods like food, medicines and fuel on the international market.
Inflation and other factors like higher borrowing costs have been forcing these countries to burn through their reserves faster. Some countries now have so little that they are struggling to cover their basic requirements, hence the fuel shortages mentioned in various articles above.
Israel will win. Again. Will blow over. Again.
Another quarter-million Palestinians will disappear. Again. Unless other Arab nations get involved, which I personally cant see happening. Most of the arabic MENA is too poor and weak to do anything other than make empty threats.
But even empty threats can disrupt gulf shipping and supply chains, if all these reports on oil futures, prices etc are a yardstick.
Im still confused about all the concerned headlines on bond yields. One of Nate Hagens recent interviews with a finance nerd talked about his view of a “yield curve control” method which central banks will most likely use to stabilise the financial system going into the future of oil scarcity/increased expense … or in other words, “kick the can down the road” for another decade or so to stave off collapse.
He used China as an example, which stopped buying new US treasuries in around 2013, letting them mature, but not buying new ones. There are now safer places for long-term parking of funds to ensure the purchase of oil.
Or something like that, LOL
Still dont “get it” 100%, and already watched it twice, but will have to watch it again 🙂
“I’m still confused about all the concerned headlines on bond yields.”
Rain, there’s not much to be confused about. Higher borrowing costs for longer just make everything less affordable, whether it’s government services or your mortgage, and have a stultifying effect on economies (most of the major ones are already stagnant). And of course there is the risk of something significant breaking in the financial system under that duress.
Japan has used yield curve control for years but inflation forced it to start loosening that policy in July. It’s no panacea; just another form of monetary methadone like QE. Australia tried it for a while, too:
“When in due course the central bank has to give in, bond yields jack up violently, creating dislocations in the critical market for government securities while damaging the all-important credibility of the central bank essential to its influencing investors’ expectations about rates and inflation. In the end, YCC seems to be a powerful short-term tool that, however, creates long-term problems of its own. Today, the Bank of Japan is the last of the big central banks to use the instrument – and might come to make the same experience lamented by Australia’s rate setters here.”
https://www.exploring-economics.org/en/discover/review-of-the-yield-target/
Hello Pan
Just a question. To your knowledge, are there any overview articles/books on the let’s call it ‘Jihad’ money flows in the Mena countries and Africa for convenience. Hezbollah has been maintaining a huge well-armed army for decades now and takes part in all kinds of ‘proxy wars’.
Hamas has submerged all of Gaza and has a kind of ‘military industrial’ complex there with tens of thousands of Hamas personnel also engaged in it year after year.
In several countries in Africa the same picture from Yemen, Sudan, Libya to Nigeria. France has now been thrown out without a fight and Kabul was conquered in a mere two hours after 20 years of ‘Western’ rule
Surely there must be a huge Jihad economy behind it. Qatar, Iran, Russia? But how much money and exports of weapons and technology, advanced or otherwise, are actually involved and perhaps more importantly ‘for what purpose’.
Surely, the economic and social chaos in countries like Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Libya etc etc etc can hardly all be traced to ‘anti colonialism and anti Americanism and anti France.
Macron was paraded around like a hero just a few years ago in both Lebanon, with which France has/had a special relationship, and all those African countries.
Does it sometimes apply here that ‘chaos’, ‘jihad’, criminality jubilantly march hand in hand towards a ‘new Madmax world order ?
Zip, that is a huge avenue of enquiry. Iran and Saudi are definitely the primary funders of Islamist parties and militant groups in the Middle East but the overall picture will inevitably be complex and nuanced, and I have no expertise in this area. I found this article about Iran:
“Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and the elite Qods Force provided arms, training and financial support to militias and political movements in at least six countries: Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories, Syria and Yemen… In 2020, the State Department estimated that Iran gave Hezbollah $700 million a year. In the past, Tehran had historically given $100 million annually to Palestinian groups, including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.”
https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/irans-islamist-proxies
I was curious about how further flung Islamist groups like Al Shabaab in East Africa, Boko Haram in Nigeria and Abu Sayyaf in The Philippines are funded. Apparently, it is not so much foreign backers as extortion of local businesses, kidnap ransoms, illicit trade etc. that pay for their activities.
Yes it is very complex indeed, especially now that we have entered a kind of ’emo’ war with Gaza civilians and children as ‘tearjerker’…..
Just imagine the UK with a ‘Hezbollah-like’ democratic movement and ‘shadow army’ that has ‘weighed and disposed’ of everything for almost two decades and has the other ‘religious minorities’ as ventriloquist puppets.
You’ve reported a lot in recent years about Lebanon’s economic and political collapse with numerous problems, yet…. it functions with a formidable fighting force and war machine that can operate eon three/four fronts simultaneously….
Contrary to what Rain claims, this war that is coming is anything but a ‘runaway race’….where the winners are already known. “Free Palestine” ….. yes yes yes beware, we could soon come home from a cold shower
And what happens next in the EU…. keep your fingers crossed.
Zip, the official Lebanese army has been affected badly by the economic crisis with unpaid soldiers having to moonlight in other professions (Iran-backed Hezbollah faring much better, of course):
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230512-cash-strapped-lebanese-soldiers-moonlight-as-mechanics-waiters
Palestinians are very much second class citizens in Lebanon, I was surprised to learn:
“There are around 210,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, according to UNICEF. Most live between the country’s handful of refugee camps because they are barred from owning property and banned from accessing formal education or holding many jobs in Lebanon.”
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/19/cant-stay-silent-any-more-rage-in-lebanon-over-war-on-gaza
Ha Pan, Thanks for your reply.
That indicates exactly the problem. What do we actually know about it?
Our ’emo memes’ are short, blind and deaf and certainly have no historical dimension.
Hezbollah is a Shiite Lebanese!!! fighting group and is now the main Lebanese army. Their national army, just like their political circus of recent years does not amount to anything, is totally powerless and provides hand and hand services to Hezbollah. Hezbollah was spawned and supported and actually established since 1978 by the Iranian National Guard…. Their development is stormy and breathtaking 🙂
Truly a success story of a well-organised Shiite Jihad group that step by step has become an increasingly important factor in all Mena conflicts.
The axis of evil 🙂
Very fascinating and indeed Palestinians are an extremely useful ‘tool’ for them in their Jihad along with the Palestinian Hamas. The Israeli army however you look at it was already defeated by Hezbollah in 2006.
They are not going to take that risk a second time….. That will be a hopeless endeavour that can only be settled in a by nuclear disaster.
Throughout history, ‘second-class citizens’ Palestinians/Jews etc
have always been well used ‘by others’ for all sorts of purposes.
Btw, I hope you are surviving the inclement weather. Alpes-Maritimes getting a lot of rain:
“The situation in the Vésubie Valley is deteriorating by the minute as a significant rainfall event continues to unfold. Extremely dangerous conditions in southeast France right now with numerous reports of flooding.” [Video in the Tweet]
https://twitter.com/WxNB_/status/1715271002530234495
Zip said, “Surely there must be a huge Jihad economy behind it. Qatar, Iran, Russia? But how much money and exports of weapons and technology, advanced or otherwise, are actually involved and perhaps more importantly ‘for what purpose’.”
I think a huge proportion of the money and arms comes from the US. In fact, the people that took over Niger recently were US trained. Yes, it is complex and I certainly have not been able to get nearly all the facts, but, ham-handed/confused US policies backed up with lots and lots of dollars and weapons can explain at least half of it.
Lou, US funding in that part of the world, as in Niger, is primarily anti-Jihadist, although I’m sure geopolitical expediency sometimes muddies those waters. Israel has historically been by far the biggest beneficiary of US military funding overseas but was overtaken by Ukraine in 2022.
Russia is the leading seller of arms to sub-Saharan Africa, having overtaken China:
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/le-monde-africa/article/2023/03/28/russia-overtakes-china-as-leading-arms-seller-in-sub-saharan-africa_6021018_124.html
“… US funding in that part of the world, as in Niger, is primarily anti-Jihadist, …”
Looking at the official numbers, I am sure that you are correct, unfortunately, the black market in weapons is a big business with some of the arms given to Ukraine finding there way into the hands of Jihadists and people that simply hate the colonizers. CBS news showed that about 30% of the aid sent to Ukraine has been diverted elsewhere. Where did it go? I think I know where a lot of it went. Aid “to fight Jihadism” is diverted all the time. It is just a matter of how clever the man in charge is and his long term intent.
Zip said, “Surely, the economic and social chaos in countries like Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Libya etc etc etc can hardly all be traced to ‘anti colonialism and anti Americanism and anti France.
Macron was paraded around like a hero …”
I think I spent a long time imagining that the US and the west in general were actually good guys. I think everyone likes to think that their country generally does the right thing. I simply no longer think that is the case. And as an extension of that, I think people in the global south hate the west in a big way (for cause). Parading Macron around like a hero just means that he had the leadership in his pocket, and that leadership was able to put on a show for their master.
I think you are mistaken….
That the US would be behind everything is a somewhat outdated Pavlow reaction since their failed invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Should they want to!!! Slowly but surely, the balance of power has shifted.
Hezbollah/Iran as one of the driving power factors in all recent Mena conflicts leave little doubt about that.
It is as if we are blind to that…. and just as ‘everyone’ shouts ‘death to America and France’
Here is a wiki link about Hezbollah… reads like a ‘spy novel’ of an unprecedented realistic quality
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezbollah
This caught my eye…off the wall topic
After more than 40 years studying humans and other primates, Sapolsky has reached the conclusion that virtually all human behavior is as far beyond our conscious control as the convulsions of a seizure, the division of cells or the beating of our hearts.
This means accepting that a man who shoots into a crowd has no more control over his fate than the victims who happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It means treating drunk drivers who barrel into pedestrians just like drivers who suffer a sudden heart attack and veer out of their lane.
“The world is really screwed up and made much, much more unfair by the fact that we reward people and punish people for things they have no control over,” Sapolsky said. “We’ve got no free will. Stop attributing stuff to us that isn’t there.”
Sapolsky, a MacArthur “genius” grant winner, is extremely aware that this is an out-there position. Most neuroscientists believe humans have at least some degree of free will. So do most philosophers and the vast majority of the general population. Free will is essential to how we see ourselves, fueling the satisfaction of achievement or the shame of failing to do the right thing.
Saying that people have no free will is a great way to start an argument. This is partly why Sapolsky, who describes himself as “majorly averse to interpersonal conflict,” put off writing his new book “Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will.”
Sapolsky, 66, has a mild demeanor and a Jerry Garcia beard. For more than three decades, he escaped the politics of academia to study baboons in rural Kenya for a few months every year.
“I’m really, really, really trying not to sound like a combative jerk in the book,” he said. “I deal with human complexities by going and living in a tent. So yeah, I’m not up for a lot of brawls about this.”
https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientist-decades-dont-free.amp
……Sapolsky knows he won’t persuade most of his readers. It’s hard to convince people who have been harmed that perpetrators deserve less blame because of their history of poverty. It’s even harder to convince the well-off that their accomplishments deserve less praise because of their history of privilege.
….His true hope, he says, is to increase compassion. Maybe if people understand how thoroughly an early history of trauma can rewire a brain, they’ll stop lusting for harsh punishments. Maybe if someone realizes they have a brain condition like depression or ADHD, they’ll stop hating themselves for struggling with tasks that seem easier for others.
Just as previous generations thought seizures were brought on by witchcraft, some of our current beliefs about personal responsibility may eventually be undone by scientific discovery.
Rather long article in the link….what are it’s implications to a personalized God?
“It’s hard to convince people who have been harmed that perpetrators deserve less blame because of their history of poverty…”
Eckart Tolle suggests that when Jesus said of his tormentors, “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do,” he was speaking literally. In other words, the Roman soldiers were just unconsciously acting out their conditioning.
Thank you for pointing that aspect of conditioning..
In my younger days I explored the teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti, who stressed that very thing in his lifetime of talks throughout the world…
Jiddu Krishnamurti (/ˈdʒɪduː ˌkrɪʃnəˈmʊərti/ JID-oo KRISH-nə-MOOR-tee; 11 May 1895 – 17 February 1986) was an Indian philosopher, speaker and writer. In his early life, he was raised to be the new World Teacher, an advanced spiritual position in the theosophical tradition, but later rejected this mantle and distanced himself from the related movement. He spent the rest of his life travelling the world speaking to large and small groups, as well as individuals. He emphasized topics such as choiceless awareness, psychological inquiry, and freedom from the need for any religious, spiritual or cultural authority.
Jiddu Krishnamurti
Krishnamurti in the 1920s
Born
11 May 1895
Madanapalle, Madras Presidency, British India
Died
17 February 1986 (aged 90)
Ojai, California, U.S.
Occupations
Philosopherauthorpublic speaker
Notable work
The First and Last Freedom (1954)
Commentaries on Living (1956–1960)
Freedom from the Known (1969)
Relatives
Annie Besant (adoptive parent)
Era
20th-century philosophy
Region
Eastern philosophy Indian philosophy
Institutions
Krishnamurti Foundation (founder)
Krishnamurti wrote many books, among them The First and Last Freedom, The Only Revolution, and Krishnamurti’s Notebook. Many of his talks and discussions have been published. His last public talk was in Madras (now known as Chennai), India, in January 1986, a month before his death at his home in Ojai, California. His supporters — working through non-profit foundations in India, Britain, and the United States — oversee several independent schools based on his views on education. They continue to transcribe and distribute his thousands of talks, group and individual discussions, and writings by use of a variety of media formats and languages.
Vince, I am likewise an admirer of Jiddu.
The question of free will is deep but perhaps we can say that, in order for the Universal Intelligence to play the game of “being humankind” with itself, free will needs to exist in relative terms – but ultimately it is as illusory as the fleeting egoic entity that believes itself to possess something called free will.
Those fortunate enough to transcend their personal ego to some extent can retrospectively get a sense of how conditioned and unconscious it was – how lacking in free will – but they are not gaining in free will; rather they are starting to operate more in the service of the Universal Intelligence: “He must become greater; I must become less (John 3:30-36).”
Btw I am not religious in any traditional sense; I hope I am not horribly triggering people by quoting bible verses. 🤣
Robert A. Heinlein once said, “Man is not a rational animal; he is a rationalizing animal.
Not the same as Sapolsky’s thesis, but it seems very close, and is easily verified in our own lives.
There is no true individual free will, but I think we as a society can influence our behaviors by the engineering of our environments. People don’t walk in America because they choose to drive cars. Instead, they drive cars because our environment is designed for it, and actively makes walking difficult. The individual cannot be reached, but as a society we can design our world to make certain behaviors convenient, cheaper and healthier. Our environment dictates our adaptation.
The problem is we are so entrenched in one world we cannot pivot now. It will need to be by the decay of our current environment. At least that is coming. Hopefully we can learn lessons from our mistakes.
Pan – I meant this dude lecturing Nate on countries exporting their debt through bonds.
Its long, but towards the end he prattles on about countries using bonds (especially US ones) to buy oil
.. as oil/energy gets more expensive in the future, through scarcity/depletion etc .. long-term bonds wont be able to keep pace with oil prices… hence forex reserve drops and inching at a snail pace towards de-dollarisation..
https://youtu.be/bIq0o40Jo80?si=L3EWrK45LrYS1NB4
Rain, I’ll have to try to find time to watch that, as my brain is struggling to wrap itself around your summary. 😆
It looks to me as if hard affordability limits are already encroaching irresistibly on even the developed world but perhaps the financial wizards still have a trick or two up their sleeves.
Thanks for the link Rain. I generally don’t listen to Hagens because he really grates on me for some reason, I can’t even put it in words. Anyway, Luke Gromen really seems to get oil and finance and apparently ignores the environmental side of reality. (which goes to my theory that someone very astute in one field probably doesn’t understand any other field – Does that mean that someone who doesn’t understand any field (Me) is actually better qualified to comment on world affairs?).
I think this is (sort of) what Luke said:
If interest rates are low, bond prices are high. If you have a highly priced bond, someone will want it, and if they have oil that you want, you have a trade. If they don’t want your bond because interest rates are high so the bond is cheep you won’t get a deal.
If the bond is paying sufficient interest that you can hold it, and using the interest buy oil or sell the bond to buy oil without loosing money you will want to buy and store bonds – treasuries. But, what is happening lately, the treasuries do not keep their value relative to the price of oil, and so China for example stopped buying treasuries. Instead, they are buying long term oil contracts from oil producing countries.
Then, he went on to say that the dollar is on the verge of becoming much less valuable.
I was going to post the global debt site again but the Clever Ape has no ability to think critically much less pay it’s debt. Can’t wait to see how many brilliant loser lenders there are going to be.
More than happy to post this again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An8nMykc-Rk
Sorry! I forgot the monkey mind’s motto: “It’s not my fault.”