US Life Expectancy Ranking Will Drop To 66th by 2050, Study Says

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The United States is set to fall in worldwide life expectancy ranking by mid-century, with widespread obesity adversely affecting people’s health, according to a recent study.

File photo of an obese person. Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images

The peer-reviewed study, published in The Lancet on Dec. 7, forecasted the life expectancy for Americans between 2022 and 2050 after taking into account the effect of more than 350 diseases and injuries.

Study authors said overall life expectancy is projected to increase from 78.3 years in 2022 to 79.9 years in 2035, and to 80.4 years in 2050. The study said the increase “is forecasted to be modest compared with that in other countries around the world.”

As a result, the United States’ global rank in terms of life expectancy is projected to decline from 49 in 2022 to 66 in 2050 among 204 nations and territories. In addition, ranking in terms of health-adjusted life expectancy, which estimates the average number of years a person lives in good health, is projected to fall from 80 to 108.

Despite the slight increase in life expectancy, health improvements are expected to slow down in the nation as a result of obesity issues, according to professor Christopher J.L. Murray, co-senior author of the study and director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).

Rising obesity rates are a “serious risk factor to many chronic diseases and forecasted to leap to levels never before seen,” he said a Dec. 5 statement from the institute.

“The rise in obesity and overweight rates in the U.S., with IHME forecasting over 260 million people affected by 2050, signals a public health crisis of unimaginable scale,” he added.

Researchers estimated that if authorities succeed in eliminating risk factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar by 2050, the United States will succeed in preventing the deaths of 12.4 million people.

Life expectancy ranking of American females is forecast to drop from 51 in 2022 to 74 in 2050. For men, the ranking is expected to fall from 51 to 65.

“These lower rankings put the U.S. below nearly all high-income and some middle-income countries,” the institute said.

Researchers pointed out that the findings “highlight the alarming trajectory of health challenges in the USA, which, if left unaddressed, could lead to a reversal of the health progress made over the past three decades for some US states and a decline in global health standing for all states.”

Between 1990 and 2021, mortality rates for several leading causes of death, such as stroke, cancer, and ischemic heart disease, declined nationwide, which caused life expectancy to improve during those three decades.

The study was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Chronic Obesity

The study’s categorization of excess weight as a key risk factor to good health comes as the United States is facing an obesity crisis.

More than two in five American adults are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which estimates that more than 100 million Americans are obese and more than 22 million have severe obesity.

Obesity rates have skyrocketed over the past decades, jumping from 30.5 percent in 1999–2000 to nearly 42 percent during 2017–2020, with rates of severe obesity almost doubling.

“Many adults with obesity have other serious chronic diseases. For example, 58 percent of U.S. adults with obesity have high blood pressure, a risk factor for heart disease. Also, approximately 23 percent of U.S. adults with obesity have diabetes,” the agency says.

During a hearing in December 2023, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) highlighted the issue of obesity among children, pointing out the link between having excess weight and getting diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

The senator called for banning the advertising of junk food targeting children, saying that such a move could aid in reducing obesity rates among kids.

“For decades, we have allowed large corporations in the food and beverage industry to entice children to eat foods loaded with sugar, salt, and saturated fat,“ he said. ”This situation has led to an addiction crisis, with ultra-processed foods being as addictive as alcohol and cigarettes.”

In August, former President Donald Trump, now the president-elect, said that he plans on setting up a panel of experts to investigate the reasons for surging childhood health issues, including obesity.

In a video from September, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Health and Human Services, said chemicals in the soil and ultra-processed foods as contributing factors to the country’s obesity situation.

The United States’ food supply is “loaded with high fructose corn syrup and seed oils and hundreds of artificial additives and flavors and processed carbohydrates that don’t exist in nature and that are banned in other countries,” Kennedy said.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 21:45

US Cattle Crisis Worsens As Nation's Herd Size Continues Alarming Side Into Abyss

America's beef cow inventory has steadily declined over the last half-decade, reaching 64-year lows and signaling a deepening crisis across the cattle industry. As the cattle crisis worsens, consumers should brace for higher ground beef prices.

The shrinking beef supply has pushed the nation's herd size to its smallest level since 1961. With severe droughts, high interest rates, costly feed prices, sliding farm income, surging farm debt, and a shifting consumer preference toward cheaper chicken, struggling ranchers have been culling heifers, preventing any meaningful recovery in the number of calves necessary to expand the nation's herds.

As Bloomberg reports, the nation's cattle crisis is set to worsen with new pressures: first, President-elect Trump's anticipated tariff war 2.0, which is expected to tighten domestic beef supplies, and second, immigration reform.

"All of the things he is talking about have potentially negative consequences more so than anything positive," Derrell Peel, a professor of agricultural economics at Oklahoma State University, told Bloomberg, adding, "Our fate's pretty well determined in the cattle industry in the U.S. for the next two to four years" – and it's not looking good."

In February, the United States Department of Agriculture projected that the cattle herd could begin rebuilding by 2025. However, that timeline has since shifted to 2027. The reason is primarily because of high interest rates and poor pasture conditions in the Midwest. 

"Even as the beef industry has experienced periods of growth over the past decades, the animal count has dropped almost 40% since a peak in 1975. During the current downcycle, which started in 2020, the herd has been shrinking at the fastest pace since the big farm crisis of the 1980s," Bloomberg noted.

If Trump introduces new tariffs, it could disrupt the flow of imported beef, further tightening domestic supplies. However, as Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF USA—a group representing cow-calf producers nationwide—explained, this move will drive up beef prices while encouraging investment in rebuilding the nation's cattle herd. 

Bullard said, "Tariffs will provide our industry an opportunity to invest in expansion and to begin rebuilding the herd that has been shrinking at an alarming rate," adding, "Over the long term, consumers are going to be better served because we will no longer have such a dependency on imported products."

America's beef supply relies heavily on small producers raising calves, but with herd levels at half-century lows—combined with new factors like tariffs and immigration reform that could drive prices even higher—consumers need to recognize that food inflation will likely remain sticky through the decade's end.

Earlier this year, Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King told the BMO Global Farm to Market Conference that he wasn't even sure when the nation's collapsing herd size would reverse.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 21:20

NASA Finds Underground 'City' Hidden 100 Feet Below Icy Surface

Via The Mind Unleashed,

In the vast, icy expanses of Greenland, a place more synonymous with desolate, arctic landscapes than with the shadows of human history, NASA scientists have stumbled upon an extraordinary anomaly. Buried beneath a hundred feet of ice lies a remnant of a bygone era, originally hidden from the world above and shrouded in Cold War secrecy.

What was initially just another radar scan over the frosty tundra turned into a discovery of an underground “city,” a relic of geopolitical strategies from a tension-filled past. This isn’t a tale of ancient civilizations, but rather a hidden chapter of recent history, now frozen in time, waiting to be uncovered. What secrets does this icy fortress hold?

The Discovery of Camp Century

In a groundbreaking exploration, NASA’s radar technology unveiled an extraordinary find beneath Greenland’s ice—a secret Cold War base known as Camp Century or “the city under the ice.” This discovery, made in April 2024 during a flight testing new radar equipment, revealed intricate underground structures that have not been seen so vividly until now.

While NASA scientists were testing the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) mounted on a Gulfstream III aircraft, they captured a surprising image. Alex Gardner, a cryospheric scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, noted, “We were looking for the bed of the ice and out pops Camp Century. We didn’t know what it was at first.”​ This advanced radar system is not your typical radar; it’s designed to give a more dimensional view of what lies beneath the ice by not only looking downward but also to the sides.

The UAVSAR technology has proven pivotal in this discovery. It allowed the team to see the underground city in unprecedented detail, mapping out the camp’s layout against historical blueprints and revealing structures that conventional radar had missed. This novel imaging technique represents a significant leap in ice-penetrating radar technology, offering new ways to understand the geological and environmental history of icy regions​.

Photo from NASA Earth Observatory

The rediscovery of Camp Century is not just a historical curiosity but also provides crucial data for understanding ice sheet dynamics and the potential environmental impact of the materials left behind. As the climate changes, the ice sheets’ response is a vital area of study, with UAVSAR contributing to predictions about sea levels and ice stability​.

History of Camp Century

Camp Century, famously known as the “City Under the Ice,” was initially presented to the public as a pioneering Arctic research station. However, its true purpose was far more clandestine. Established in 1959 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, this secretive base was part of “Project Iceworm,” intended to test the feasibility of deploying nuclear missiles from beneath Greenland’s vast ice sheet directly against the Soviet Union.

On the surface, Camp Century featured accommodations and amenities that supported scientific research and the daily needs of its inhabitants, including laboratories, a library, and living quarters. This facade supported its cover story as a hub for polar research, where significant scientific firsts occurred, such as drilling the first ice cores to provide data on the Earth’s past climate​.

Beneath its scientific guise, the camp’s primary objective was far more militaristic. The U.S. planned to create a network of tunnels capable of housing and launching “Iceman” ballistic missiles. These facilities were meant to be part of a broader strategy to ensure the U.S. could respond to Soviet actions during the Cold War. The project was ambitious, aiming to house up to 600 nuclear missiles under the guise of Arctic scientific endeavors​.

The base was constructed deep within the ice, with tunnels extending over several miles. Despite the innovative approach to Cold War military strategy, the project faced insurmountable challenges. The ice’s dynamic nature caused structural instabilities within the tunnels, leading to frequent maintenance issues and eventual abandonment of the missile plan. The shifting ice also posed significant risks to the structural integrity of the facility, leading to its decommission in 1967​.

In the decades following its closure, concerns have grown over the environmental impact of the waste left behind, including low-level radioactive waste from the camp’s nuclear reactor. Studies suggest that as the climate warms and the ice melts, these contaminants could be released into the environment, posing new risks to the ecosystem​.

Technological and Engineering Features of Camp Century

The construction of Camp Century was a remarkable feat of engineering, designed to test the feasibility of establishing military facilities under the harsh conditions of the Greenland Ice Cap. This project was not only ambitious but also showcased a range of innovative construction techniques that have informed cold region engineering practices to this day.

Camp Century was constructed using a “cut-and-cover” method where trenches were dug into the ice and then covered with arched steel structures. This method was crucial in creating the protective tunnels that formed the main structure of the base. The entire facility was then insulated to protect against the extreme cold and to ensure that the heat generated within the base did not cause the surrounding ice to melt​.

To support its designation as a self-sustaining underground city, Camp Century included living quarters, a kitchen, a hospital, and even a movie theater, all powered by a groundbreaking portable nuclear reactor, the PM-2A. This reactor was a critical component of the base, providing a reliable power source in an environment where traditional fuel supplies would be logistically challenging to maintain​.

The base’s design and construction required innovative solutions to numerous challenges, such as the structural integrity of buildings under ice and the management of thermal effects caused by the heat generated within the base. These innovations have left a lasting impact on polar construction techniques and have been studied for their potential applications in other remote and harsh environments​.

Moreover, the data and experience gained from the construction and operation of Camp Century have been invaluable in the development of future designs for ice-cap camps. This project demonstrated that subsurface ice-cap camps are both feasible and practical, and that nuclear power can significantly reduce the logistical burdens of supporting isolated, remote military facilities​.

Secrets Uncovered

The unveiling of Camp Century’s true purpose marked a significant chapter in Cold War history. For years, the world believed that Camp Century was solely a scientific research station focusing on Arctic studies and ice core sampling. In reality, it was a cover for a highly classified military operation known as Project Iceworm.

Initially portrayed as a peaceful research facility, Camp Century was publicly celebrated as a model of polar innovation and technological achievement. The facility was featured in documentaries and news articles, praising its advanced infrastructure and the potential scientific advancements it could bring​.

The truth about Camp Century came to light in 1997 when the Danish Parliament published documents revealing that the base was intended to serve as an underground launch site for nuclear missiles targeted at the Soviet Union. This disclosure came as a shock to the international community, especially since Denmark had been assured that the operations at Camp Century were purely scientific​.

This revelation not only strained U.S.-Danish relations but also raised significant ethical and legal questions about the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Greenland. The Danish government expressed deep concerns, as they had not consented to the militarization of their territory, which they were led to believe was being used for benign scientific purposes.

The declassification of Project Iceworm’s objectives prompted a broader discussion about the environmental impact of the military base, particularly concerning the nuclear reactor used to power the camp. Concerns were raised about the potential release of radioactive materials stored under the ice, which could emerge due to the accelerating ice melt caused by global warming​.

Camp Century’s Effect on the Environment

The thawing of Greenland’s ice sheet is poised to reveal the remnants of Camp Century, including hazardous materials such as low-level radioactive waste and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are known carcinogens. This potential exposure is a significant environmental threat, as the melting ice could release these contaminants into the surrounding ecosystem and beyond​.

As the ice melts, estimated projections suggest that by as early as 2090, the base could become exposed, unveiling not only the physical structure but also the environmental hazards contained within. This includes an estimated 9,200 tons of physical materials, 53,000 gallons of diesel fuel, and other toxic wastes such as PCBs, which have long-term persistence in the environment and can bioaccumulate in wildlife and humans​.

The exposure of these contaminants poses not only environmental risks but also political and diplomatic challenges. The cleanup and management of this waste will require coordinated international efforts, potentially straining relationships between the United States, Denmark, and Greenland. The situation underscores the broader impacts of climate change, where thawing ice is not just a physical change but a catalyst for emerging political conflicts over accountability and environmental stewardship​.

Echoes from the Ice: Reflecting on Camp Century’s Legacy

The rediscovery and impending exposure of Camp Century not only unearths a relic of the Cold War but also reminds us of the lasting environmental impacts of human endeavors. This hidden base, once a symbol of military ingenuity, now poses significant environmental risks as the consequences of its hazardous wastes are set to re-emerge due to the warming climate. The challenges ahead are not only technical or environmental but also deeply political, involving negotiations and responsibilities that span across nations and generations.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 20:55

​​​​​​​Bean Mania: Arabica Coffee Hits New High, Cocoa Jumps To 7-Month High

Cash-strapped US consumers should be deeply concerned about rising food inflation. It's 'stickier' than ever as coffee and cocoa prices surge.

Arabica coffee futures in New York hit a record high on Tuesday, driven by ongoing fears of a global supply crunch. Prices surged nearly 5% during the session, reaching their highest level in data dating back to 1972. At that time, coffee prices soared due to the disastrous Black Frost, which devastated Brazilian yields.

"Concerns over Brazil's 2025-26 arabica crop grew this week," said Steve Pollard, an analyst at Marex Group, as quoted by Bloomberg.

Pollard added, "Recent crop tours point to production in the mid-30 million bags," which would result in yet another supply shortfall.

Major agricultural trader Volcafe Ltd. recently slashed Brazil's arabica production outlook due to severe drought conditions. The trader projected that South America would produce just 34.4 million bags of arabica coffee in the next growing season, down 11 million bags from the prior September estimate, according to Bloomberg.

Volcafe also forecasted a global coffee production shortfall of 8.5 million bags for the 2025-26 season, marking the fifth consecutive year of deficits.

"We are currently experiencing a strong fundamental phase in the coffee market, which we expect to sustain the elevated price levels," said Viktoria Kuszak, a research associate at Sucden Financial.

In the cocoa market, the most active contract in New York jumped to the highest level in seven months over West Africa's dismal production outlook, yet another crop experiencing dwindling global supplies.

The most-active cocoa contract has jumped 58% to $10,500 per metric ton since late October, the highest since June. This comes as adverse weather dents supplies from top growers in Ivory Coast and Ghana.

"The outlook for the mid-crops have deteriorated in the past weeks," said Steve Wateridge, head of research at TRS by Expana, adding, "The weather conditions in next three months will determine whether we see further deterioration."

Broad food price trends via the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations' Food Price Index, which tracks international prices of a basket of globally traded foods, show that prices have alarmingly re-accelerated this year. 

Back to the cocoa market: The new surge in bean prices certainly sits well with famed commodity trader Pierre Andurand's bullish thesis earlier this year about worsening global supplies.

The big takeaway is that food inflation is very sticky despite the government saying otherwise.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 20:30

Taliban & Hamas 'Congratulate' Syrian People & Julani After Assad Fall

The hardline and extremist Islamic groups Hamas and the Taliban have been among the first regional entities to offer congratulations to the Islamist-led 'rebels' and the Syrian people after the overthrow of the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Afghanistan's Taliban government announced the following on Sunday soon after al-Qaeda spinoff Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) gained control of the presidential palace and government ministries and state media stations in Damascus:

"We express hope that the process of power transition be carried out in a manner aligned with the aspirations of the Syrian people, paving path for the establishment of an independent and service-oriented Islamic government," a foreign ministry statement said, calling for Syria to be able to "move forward free from external interference".

AFP/Getty Images

Hamas in Gaza had a similar message, praising the Syrian people for achieving their "aspirations for freedom and justice" after the Syrian Army collapsed and Assad fled the country.

In Hamas' first public statement on the Syria crisis, the group said: "We stand strongly with the great people of Syria […] and respect the will, the independence and the political choices of the people of Syria."

Hamas further expressed hope that post-Assad Syria will continue "its historical and pivotal role in supporting the Palestinian people."

The head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ziad Al-Nakhala, also issued a congratulations, offering similar words. All of the aforementioned groups are considered terrorists by Washington and many governments around the world.

But in the case of HTS which now rules Damascus and much of the major cities in Syria, Washington and London are reportedly mulling whether to drop the formal terror listing.

The Israeli government has issued a warning to HTS and the jihadist factions in Damascus, saying that they will go the way of Assad if they threaten Israel. IDF tanks are meanwhile just about 25km to the south of Damascus, after moving in the country ostensibly to secure a 'buffer zone'.

The groups now in control of Syria have an ideology no different than the Taliban's, and in many cases are even more extreme...

Taliban in Latakia today,they didn't enter Alawite villages,but they are in city coast. says: we "conquered" Levant for Islamic Sharia & defeat"polytheism"
طالبان باللاذقية
يمنع منعا باتا الالتزام بالبيانات الصادرة عن مشايخ الطايفة العلوية التي تدعو شعبنا العلوي الى تسليم السلاح pic.twitter.com/brY3NCHkyz

— AlawiteMuslimDefenceLeague (@AlawiteLeague) December 9, 2024

The head of HTS and new ruler of Damascus, Abu Mohammed al-Julani, had in his 'victory' speech from Umayyad Mosque praised the "heroic mujahideen". Julani said, "Today, Syria is purified, thanks to God almighty... Thanks to God almighty, then thanks to the heroic mujahideen." 

He and his fighters have long been on record as seeking to establish an 'Islamic State' and governance based on Sharia law. The Assad government had represented the last secular state in the Middle East, belonging to the Baath party.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 19:40

China's Oil Demand Could Peak In 2025

By Tsvetana Paraskova of OilPrice.com

Oil demand in China, the world’s top crude importer, could peak as early as next year as the penetration of electric vehicles and LNG trucks is accelerating, state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) said on Tuesday.

At this time last year, CNPC expected a peak in oil demand coming to China by 2030.

Now, after a year of EVs and LNG-fueled trucks displacing some gasoline and diesel demand, respectively, the peak in China’s oil demand may occur five years earlier, in 2025, according to a report by CNPC economists carried by Bloomberg.

China’s oil demand growth has been slowing down due to weaker economic performance and a shift to electric vehicles and LNG-fueled trucks, oil industry executives said at the APPEC conference in Singapore in September.

Although some of the weakness is attributable to weaker economic performance, the shift toward EVs and LNG trucks is removing some road fuel demand permanently, analysts say.

China’s shift toward EVs will bring about domestic gasoline demand peaking either this year or next, according to Vitol Group’s CEO Russell Hardy.

“Gasoline is likely to peak this year or next year in China — not because nobody’s moving, but simply because the fleet is slowly changing towards electric vehicles,” the top executive of the world’s largest independent oil trader told Bloomberg in an interview in September.

Earlier this year, Vitol pushed back its expected timeline for global peak oil demand beyond 2030. Hardy said in February that a slower pace of the energy transition would push peak oil demand beyond 2030.

Nevertheless, Vitol sees weakening Chinese gasoline demand growth and diesel demand due to the electrification of transport and greater use of LNG for fueling trucks.

The rise of electric vehicles and the growing use of LNG in trucking have combined with slower-than-expected economic growth and activity to dent China’s oil demand growth and undermine earlier forecasts of global oil demand this year.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 19:15

Americans Are Driving Their Older Cars Into The Ground

Americans, hit by inflation, higher interest rates, and supply-chain issues, are buying fewer new vehicles. The four-year average for annual sales is now 15.5 million, down from 17.7 million pre-pandemic, per the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The slowdown in new car sales might seem like good news for auto repair and parts companies, as older vehicles typically need more maintenance. Cars between four and eleven years old are in the "sweet spot" for repairs, yet signs show many Americans are cutting back on maintenance spending, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In May, tire retailer Monro reported a sharp decline in same-store sales, citing low- to middle-income consumers opting for cheaper, off-brand tires due to a glut of imports. Spending on services like brakes and shocks dropped even more.

Similarly, in September, Genuine Parts, owner of Napa auto-supply stores, experienced its worst single-day stock drop in decades, as retail sales fell significantly. CEO William Stengel blamed a "cautious end consumer deferring certain service and maintenance-related purchases."

The Journal wrote that Valvoline also reported weaker-than-expected sales recently, with its shares falling 9%. CEO Lori Flees noted that competitors, like tire service centers, were offering discounted oil changes to attract traffic, as many consumers delayed core services.

Carfax data shows 30% of vehicles in the U.S. are overdue for tire rotation and 19% for an oil change. This penny-pinching is widespread, with lower-income households trading down to cheaper options across industries. However, skimping on car maintenance could backfire.

A no-name tire costing $149.99 for a Ford Explorer comes with a 40,000-mile warranty, while a Goodyear option priced at $254 offers a 60,000-mile warranty and better safety.

The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index is up 36% over five years, meaning maintenance investments now have a greater payoff. Still, iconic brands like Goodyear, which saw an 8.3% drop in tire sales in the Americas last quarter, face pressure from cheap imports that are gaining market share.

However, while motorists might trade down on parts, they still need local services—an advantage foreign manufacturers can't replicate.

The rise in EV sales, which require less maintenance, could impact auto parts stores and quick-lube chains, but it’s too recent to explain the current dip in spending, the report says. 

Pandemic-related shifts, like remote work and fewer miles driven since 2020, have also played a role, though driving levels have recently returned to 2019 norms.

Maintenance spending should stabilize as wear-and-tear returns to normal, even if the economy weakens. Historically, during downturns like the 2007-2009 recession, auto-parts retailers outperformed, with the three most retail-focused chains beating the S&P 500 by an average of 55 percentage points.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 18:50

Landlords Increasingly Faced With Squatters, Sometimes With Deadly Consequences

Authored by Allan Stein via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A property manager in Phoenix says that dealing with itinerant “squatters” is one of the least pleasant parts of the real estate business.

Sometimes, you can’t control what happens, Calvin Favata with Your Holdings told The Epoch Times.

Rashaad Johnson, 29, had been renting a Your Holdings unit in South Phoenix for about two months and never had any trouble. But he was a “nice guy” who sometimes let squatters who lived in the vacant house across the street use his bathroom shower, Favata said.

A squatter removes belongings from an apartment as Maricopa County constables serve an eviction order in Phoenix, Ariz., on Sept. 30, 2020. John Moore/Getty Images

Favata said the shower situation soon “got out of hand,” and the company had to stop it.

“We even put padlocks and deadbolt [locks] on the bathroom doors so they couldn’t use it,” Favata said.

On Oct. 14, one of the squatters asked Johnson to use the shower, but when he refused, the man dressed in body armor allegedly told Johnson he was going to get his gun.

The man returned and killed Johnson, as well as wounding another tenant, a 32-year-old woman who was with him.

Phoenix police charged Refugio Jimenez, 49, with first-degree murder and burglary, including misconduct involving body armor, felony drug possession, and other crimes.

Favata said that Johnson’s senseless death was apparently “over a shower.”

“Since then, I’ve been here every day. We’ve got cameras back up,” Favata told The Epoch Times as he picked up tools from the back of his company truck outside the residence.

He said squatters have always been an issue and it’s hard to get rid of them. The situation has gotten worse in the Phoenix area in recent months.

(Top) Phoenix property manager Calvin Favata stands in front of the residence where one of his tenants was allegedly shot to death by a suspected squatter on Oct. 14, 2024. (Bottom) The house across the street where six alleged squatters were staying, on Nov. 2, 2024. Allan Stein/The Epoch Times

“It’s pretty much any house you see that’s vacant. I thought it would be pretty much here and there,” Favata said.

“The one [property] we just bought, I had to do all the electrical and plumbing. They took all the copper out of the house.”

‘Snowbirds’ Targeted

Scott Blake is the constable for the Hassayampa District, one of the largest districts in Arizona’s Maricopa County. The district includes Phoenix.

Blake, like Favata, said he has seen more squatters in recent months. The situation appears driven by increasing homelessness, rent costs, and the snowbird phenomenon.

In the summer, thousands of snowbirds will leave their Arizona property for milder climates and return in the winter. Some seasonal residents return to find a total stranger living in their home and refusing to leave.

“There is a group of people in society that wants to live for as little as possible. If they can live for free, they do,” Blake said.

“It’s more frequent than it ever was. I see it once a week now. A lot of times, when the squatter is confronted by law enforcement, they will leave. It’s very rare that it goes as far as me.”

Blake said that the shooting in Phoenix shows what can happen when a landlord or tenant confronts an alleged squatter.

Recent incidents in other states have put the issue in the spotlight.

A man looks to get a view of an abandoned mansion covered in graffiti in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles on Sept. 20, 2024. Neighbors said the house has been a refuge for squatters coming and going for over two years. Robyn Beck/ AFP/AFP via Getty Images

Two suspected squatters were arrested in March for allegedly killing an apartment resident in New York City and stuffing her body inside a duffel bag in Pennsylvania, according to news reports.

In October, Los Angeles police said that a homeowner in Van Nuys was attacked by a suspected squatter. The homeowner managed to pin down the trespasser when officers arrived.

Another alleged squatter was arrested in May for first and second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of two men hired to clean a house, local media reported.

Blake said that getting rid of a squatter is an often complicated matter, and each state has its version of “squatters rights.”

According to turbotenant.com, squatters in Arizona can make landlords’ lives extremely difficult once they’ve settled into a property.

“Even more anxiety-inducing, if a squatter stays on a property long enough and meets specific requirements, they might eventually be able to claim it as their own through a legal process called adverse possession,” the website stated.

A Notice to Vacate is issued to squatters to leave the property within a certain period to begin the eviction process under Arizona law. The next step is to file an eviction lawsuit in court to remove squatters.

Blake said that the entire process can take up to 21 days.

“In Arizona, we are blessed with one of the fastest eviction procedures in the United States,” he said. “In some states like California, the process can take as long as a year.”

An ‘Invasion’ of Squatters

The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) reports that squatters have become a significant problem in California and across the United States.

“Thousands of properties across America are being invaded by squatters, who move in and live rent-free causing major damage, or in worse cases, injury or death to property owners—and there’s really no expedient, easy legal way for property owners or the police to remove them,” according to the organization’s website.

A newly erected fence blocks the front of a vacant home that Moms 4 Housing activists occupied during a monthslong protest, which ended in a court ordered eviction, in Oakland, Calif., on Jan. 28, 2020. Philip Pacheco/AFP via Getty Images

The group said the internet and dark forums have become a clearinghouse for advice on how to break into someone else’s home and “establish a right to be there.”

Blake said that, in some cases, a squatter may produce a fake lease to show police, who then treat squatting as a civil matter.

Read the rest here...

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 18:25

Here's How Manhattan DA Plans To Keep Trump Case Alive

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg - who had a Biden DOJ plant in his legal case against former President Donald Trump - is trying to ensure his hush money case doesn’t vanish into thin air as Trump prepares for his return to the White House.

According to court filings revealed Tuesday, Bragg’s office is fiercely opposed to dismissing the case outright but is open to pausing proceedings while Trump serves his second term as president.

The 82-page legal brief, prosecutors’ most detailed argument yet, stops short of recommending an explicit course of action but outlines several ways to keep the case alive. Among them: delaying sentencing until after Trump leaves office in 2029 or freezing the case while leaving the jury’s guilty verdict intact, The Hill reports.

"The extreme remedy of dismissing the indictment and vacating the jury verdict is not warranted in light of multiple alternative accommodations that would fully address the concerns raised by presidential immunity," wrote Assistant District Attorney Christopher Conroy.

The filing comes as Trump, now president-elect, wages a legal battle to quash the 34 felony charges stemming from hush money payments to an adult film star. Trump’s lawyers claim his status as president-elect grants him immunity and demands immediate dismissal.

Prosecutors, however, aren’t buying it. They argue that immunity doesn’t apply until Trump is inaugurated, meaning the case could theoretically proceed to sentencing before January 20, 2025 — a prospect Trump has vowed to fight tooth and nail.

Judge Juan Merchan, who presided over Trump’s trial, will now decide the case’s fate, with a ruling expected any day.

A Legal Tightrope

The DA’s office acknowledged the complications of prosecuting a sitting president but stopped short of saying the case should be completely shelved.

Trump was convicted by a Manhattan Jury 'of his peers' on 34 counts of falsifying business records, however his reelection to the highest office in the land has put a damper on prosecutors' plans.

Sentencing was initially scheduled for last month, only to be postponed indefinitely by Judge Merchan, making it increasingly unlikely Trump will face punishment anytime soon.

That would leave open the possibility that Trump could still proceed to sentencing in 2029, after he leaves office.

Alternatively, state prosecutors said the judge could terminate the case without tossing Trump’s conviction, noting a jury verdict removed the presumption of innocence, he was never sentenced and his conviction was “neither affirmed nor reversed” on appeal because of presidential immunity. -The Hill

Trump’s legal team is crying foul, claiming the prosecution disrupts his transition efforts and his ability to govern effectively. "Wrongly continuing proceedings in this failed lawfare case disrupts President Trump’s transition efforts and his preparations to wield the full Article II executive power authorized by the Constitution pursuant to the overwhelming national mandate granted to him by the American people on November 5, 2024," Trump's attorneys fumed in a recent filing.

Prosecutors hit back, accusing Trump of using delay tactics to muddy the waters. “Having filed those motions to dismiss and then sought repeated adjournments of sentencing to permit their determination by this Court, it is particularly brazen for defendant to argue that the Supremacy Clause bars the Court from taking any action on the motions defendant himself filed,” Conroy wrote.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 18:00

Hurricane Helene Recovery In North Carolina Town Fueled By Devoted Locals

Authored by Jeff Louderback via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Nestled in the mountains of Yancey County in western North Carolina, Burnsville looks like a town that might feature in a Norman Rockwell painting or a Hallmark Christmas movie.

NuWray Hotel owners Amanda Keith, and her husband James Keith, provided meals to residents and volunteers in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Burnsville, N.C., on Nov. 30 ,2024. Jeff Louderback/The Epoch Times

Even before Thanksgiving, the town square was decorated for Christmas. Antique shops, cafes, and coffee houses dot Main Street, bustling with activity. On the surface, it appears to be a typical holiday season, but all is not as it seems. Two months after Hurricane Helene struck the region, Burnsville and Yancey County are still on a long path to recovery.

Crystal Capps, a real estate agent whose family has lived in Yancey County for several generations, said immediate and long-term assistance is essential for ensuring locals’ safety and enabling them to remain in the region.

“There is a sense of urgency. Winter weather is here. People are tough in these mountains, but it’s cold— too cold for people to be sleeping in tents and in their cars,” Capps told The Epoch Times. “I saw houses floating down the river when Helene hit. I’ll never forget that. For those who survived but are displaced, they need help.”

Capps is one of several Burnsville natives, including many friends from Mountain Heritage High School, who serve on the board of the Appalachian Disaster Coalition.

“We have a lot of work to do, but we have hope, and we are doing all we can to give hope to people who are struggling,” she said.

Bradley Honeycutt was born and raised in Yancey County. His parents live on a 48-acre mountainside property and have cattle and horses.

Honeycutt helped start the Appalachian Disaster Coalition just days after the storm. He was born and raised here and graduated in 2006 from Mountain Heritage High School.

Helene made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region on Sept. 26 as a Category 4 hurricane. It left a swath of destruction throughout the Southeast extending to western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee.

Raging floodwaters and landslides from Hurricane Helene reached western North Carolina on Sept. 27, devastating urban and rural communities and severely damaging roads, homes, and power sources.

Just before Helene hit, storms drenched Asheville and surrounding western North Carolina towns when a weather front stalled over the Appalachian Mountains. Some areas received more than a foot of rain, saturating the land before Helene arrived.

Some roads remain only partially repaired in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Yancey County, N.C., on Nov. 30, 2024. Jeff Louderback/The Epoch Times

Hundreds of roads were blocked or completely washed away, requiring rescue crews to reach victims by mule, horseback, and on foot. Search and rescue efforts, and delivery of supplies, were challenging because many residents who live on a mountainside only have one way in and one way out.

Honeycutt heard about what was happening in western North Carolina on the news. He tried to reach his parents all day on Sept. 27.

Finally, a cousin connected a Starlink terminal to a generator, enabling internet access, and contacted him through Facebook Messenger, he told The Epoch Times.

“It’s really bad,” he was told. “We don’t know what the rest of the county looks like, and we have not heard from your mom and dad,” his cousin said.

Honeycutt booked a flight to Charlotte and arrived at his parents’ property on Sept. 28.

“They weren’t there when I got to the house. I knew they were safe because the generators were running and the lights were on. When they pulled into the driveway, we hugged and talked for around an hour. Then I said, ‘I gotta go and see what I can do.’” he said.

Honeycutt contacted friends who had experience with search and rescue after disasters. They traveled to Yancey County to help.

Friends in Dallas, where he is finishing a degree in architecture and design with the intent to return to Burnsville and open a business, established social media accounts under the name “Bradley Loves Burnsville.”

The accounts gained followers, and Honeycutt outlined the area’s immediate needs to them.

“We needed propane. We needed gas. Before we knew it, a tanker with 11,000 gallons of gas arrived. Necessities and other items like generators started coming in. It was chaos,” Honeycutt said. “There was no outside communication since cell phones didn’t work. No water. No power. It was dark, and we were on our own.”

Recognizing immediate and long-term needs for temporary and permanent housing, and trauma therapy, Honeycutt established an incorporated nonprofit called Appalachian Disaster Coalition.

The current priority is getting displaced residents into campers and temporary homes, Honeycutt said. The group has partnered with other nonprofits to expand their capabilities. Eventually, they plan to build 30 three-bedroom, two-bath, single-family homes for locals in Yancey County.

Appalachian Disaster Coalition and other independent groups are important in ensuring the town isn’t forgotten, Honeycutt said.

Read the rest here...

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 17:40

GM To Wind Down Cruise Robotaxi Operations

General Motors is winding down its Cruise robotaxi division, according to a new report from Bloomberg. 

GM's exit from the market leaves Google's Waymo and Tesla as the two main names in autonomous driving. The division "proved costly and full of reputational pitfalls" for General Motors, the report said.

GM and Cruise will merge technical teams to focus on autonomous tech for future GM vehicles, halting robotaxi development due to high costs and stiff competition, the company announced Tuesday.

This marks a significant shift after Cruise weathered industry challenges and resumed operations following a high-profile incident last year.

The Bloomberg report said that GM's retreat from the robotaxi business reshapes its ambitions. CEO Mary Barra's vision of transforming GM into a tech-driven company with $50 billion from Cruise now seems distant. The move aligns GM with its core car-making focus, abandoning mobility-as-a-service goals.

This shift comes as Waymo expands and Tesla targets a 2026 robotaxi launch. Cruise had resumed operations with safety drivers in Dallas and Houston and planned California testing before the pivot.

The DOJ and SEC were among multiple agencies probing GM Cruise after a collision with a pedestrian last October. 

Following the incident, California revoked Cruise's permits, citing the company's lack of transparency. A review by law firm Quinn Emanuel cleared Cruise executives of intentional deception but criticized their leadership and confrontational attitude towards regulators. The victim survived the accident.

Recall back in December 2023 we noted that Cruise was slashing 24% of its workforce as part of a restructuring. The autonomous driving unit at the time said it would lay off 900 of its 3,800 employees, most of whom were in the commercial operations and related corporate functions.

Exemplifying the difficulties of autonomy, the news came on the same day it was reported that Tesla was sued by the family of a deceased driver who lost his life during an accident where a car was purportedly operating on 'Autopilot'. 

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 17:20

Kroger-Albertsons Merger Blocked By Court In Latest Anti-M&A Farce By Biden Admin

The Biden administration, desperate to make an impact somewhere, anywhere, in its final, dying days, has struck again.

Just around the time we learned that Biden was set to finally kill the Nippon Steel of US steel, we learned that a federal judge had also blocked supermarket giant Kroger from acquiring Albertsons, siding with that anti-M&A puppet of various outgoing socialist interests, Lina Khan, who said the $20 billion supermarket merger would erode competition and raise prices for consumers, when in reality it will only lead to more supermarket failures, fewer jobs and even higher prices for consumers.

U.S. District Judge Adrienne Nelson agreed with the Federal Trade Commission’s argument that Kroger would become the dominant player in traditional supermarkets if allowed to add nearly 2,000 stores by taking over Albertsons, its smaller rival. Nelson rejected the companies’ counterargument that selling 579 stores to C&S Wholesale Grocers would replace the lost competition.

“Evidence shows that defendants engage in substantial head-to-head competition and the proposed merger would remove that competition,” Nelson wrote in the ruling, clearly unaware that grocers have a less than 1% profit margin, or that a similar ruling blocked the Jetblue-Spirit merger less than a year ago, culminating with Spirit's bankruptcy, mass layoffs and even higher prices for those carriers who remained.

The decision is a significant milestone for the FTC under the Biden administration, whose chair Lina Khan has waged legal battles to stop megadeals rather than accept companies’ proposed fixes to address competition concerns.

For the companies, the decision is a major blow to a deal that executives have said is critical for competing against bigger retail powers like Walmart and Amazon. Attorneys for Kroger and Albertsons have previously said they would likely abandon the deal if the judge sided with the FTC.

An FTC spokesman said the ruling “protects competition in the grocery market, which will prevent prices from rising even more.”

As the WSJ reports, Kroger and Albertsons had both spent hundreds of millions of dollars on lawyers, bankers and other advisers since they announced the deal in October 2022, according to securities filings. If the deal is called off, Kroger has to pay Albertsons a $600 million breakup fee.

Kroger is the biggest traditional U.S. supermarket operator by sales, representing about 9% of the grocery market, while Albertsons is the second-largest supermarket with 5% of American grocery sales. Both companies have been surpassed by megaretailer Walmart, which for decades has been the country’s biggest seller of groceries, and Costco’s grocery sales have nearly caught up to Kroger’s.

The deal with Albertsons would have nearly doubled Kroger’s total store count, exceeding the scale of Walmart’s 3,500 supercenters. Rodney McMullen, Kroger’s longtime chief executive, had pledged to eventually invest $1 billion annually in lowering prices at the acquired Albertsons stores, where he said prices typically run 10% to 12% above a Kroger store.

But FTC attorneys argued the deal would only give Kroger a reason to increase prices by removing a competitor. The FTC said the merger would result in excessive concentration of supermarket ownership in over 1,900 local markets across the country, far more than what the companies acknowledged.

Kroger and Albertsons compete head to head for consumers in many markets, especially on the West Coast and in states such as Colorado and the city of Chicago.

Nelson’s order granting the FTC a preliminary injunction doesn’t immediately kill the deal. The FTC and the parties could continue to litigate a separate case testing the legality of the merger in the agency’s in-house court. A trial before an FTC administrative law judge is scheduled for no sooner than Dec. 18.

Kroger shares closed 5.1% higher, while Albertsons stock dropped 2.7%.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 16:40

Opposition To Woke Progressivism Energizes Trump Coalition

Authored by Peter Berkowitz via RealClearPolitics,

In January, Republicans will gain undivided control of the federal government’s political branches. Yet President-elect Donald Trump’s comfortable 312-226 electoral-college victory over Vice President Kamala Harris and his narrow margin in the popular vote – 49.9% to 48.4% – do not constitute a landslide. Considering also Republicans’ razor-thin House majority and several vulnerable seats the 53-47 Republican Senate majority must defend in 2026, it is early to speak of a national political realignment. Whether the GOP expands and establishes firmly the impressive multi-racial and multi-ethnic working-class coalition that Trump built over the last nine years turns on the coalition’s composition and the forces that unified it around the most unlikely of two-term presidents.

In 2024, Trump enjoyed stunning, nearly across-the-board improvements over his 2020 performance. The president-elect increased his numbers in 2,764 of America’s 3,112 counties – including those that tend Democratic – while all 50 states shifted right. Trump achieved “unprecedented” levels of support for a Republican presidential candidate among black, Latino, and Asian peoples. Although female voters went 53% to 46% to Harris, Trump bettered his results with women. And, in a mid-November CBS news poll, 57% of adults in the United States under 30 were happy or satisfied with Trump’s victory and 58% of those 30-44 years of age. Harris surpassed President Joe Biden’s 2020 results only among white, college-educated voters.

Several factors propelled citizens of different groups to vote for Trump. As Fareed Zakaria observes, Trump “celebrated risk-taking and spoke the language of disruption and radical reform,” which attracted men, entrepreneurs, and technologists. Moreover, the GOP nominee faced a weak opponent who, until three months before the election, conspired with her party and the press to pretend that the unpopular president was as sharp as ever. The perception that Biden presided over lawless migration, high inflation, and indulgence of crime fomented discontent, especially among the working class. In addition, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs and transgender activism, which flourished under the Biden administration, angered Trump voters. DEI impelled the federal bureaucracy, big business, major media, and universities to disparage merit as a bigoted standard and to provide preferential treatment to non-Jewish and non-Asian minorities and women. Transgender activism denied the public relevance of biological differences between men and women.

Many Trump voters view the Democratic Party as “woke.” So do some Trump critics, prominent among them New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who maintained shortly after the election that “woke is broke.” The term originally emerged in the 1940s among African Americans who described as woke those acquiring awareness of injustice in society. In today’s national conversation about politics woke refers to fashionable progressive opinions about society, morality, and politics contrived in universities and spread by elites to government, corporations, the mainstream media, Hollywood, and Silicon Valley.

Woke progressivism is not a fixed creed or settled doctrine but embraces a mix of recognizable and interrelated attitudes, ideas, and goals. Typically, woke progressives maintain that society is divided into oppressors and oppressed. They equate virtue with victimhood. They teach that white supremacy and male supremacy gave birth to the United States and that systemic racism and sexism permeate America’s unwritten norms, founding principles, and basic political institutions. They insist that social justice requires government and private organizations to discriminate against white men to ensure that the minorities and women whom they oppress acquire positions of wealth, status, and power at least equal to their proportion in society. They reject civility, toleration, and colorblindness as hopelessly compromised by their association with America’s corrupt constitutional heritage. And they despise dissent from their axioms and aims, which they interpret as dispositive evidence of dissenters’ racism and sexism.

Woke progressivism promotes the social, political, and economic attainment of minorities with privileged status on the hierarchy of grievance – especially those already moving in elite circles. And it advances careers of highly credentialed white people by signaling their rectitude to fellow initiates while giving the pleasure of lording their moral refinement over the clueless rabble.

Yet woke progressivism’s appeal is limited. It is an ideology that is poorly designed to win over white men or, for that matter, their wives, mothers, and daughters who in many cases take umbrage at the vilification of their husbands, sons, and fathers. It also rankles men and women of all races and ethnicities who believe that America, for all its shortcomings, remains a land of hope and opportunity. And it appears illiberal and antidemocratic to the inspiring diversity of persons who hold that inherent human dignity requires equal respect for the rights of all. The combination of vilified white men, the females who love them, and nonwhite citizens who feel gratitude for American freedom and opportunity seems to embrace a majority of citizens.

In “Academe’s Divorce From Reality,” recently published by the Chronicle of Higher Education, William Deresiewicz indicates that Trump voters rightly associated woke progressivism with the Biden administration. An essayist, scholar, and longtime critic of universities’ betrayal of liberal education, Deresiewicz argues that the election represented a referendum on “the politics of the academy.” That politics converges with woke progressivism. “Its ideas, its assumptions, its opinions and positions – as expressed in official statements, embodied in policies and practices, established in centers and offices, and espoused and taught by large and leading portions of the professoriate – have been rejected,” he maintains.

“Over the last 10 years or so” – as Americans’ confidence in higher education plummeted – “a cultural revolution has been imposed on this country from the top down,” according to Deresiewicz. “Its ideas originated in the academy, and it’s been carried out of the academy by elite-educated activists and journalists and academics.”

Overlapping in many respects with Biden-administration sympathies and objectives, this university-driven cultural revolution aims at “decriminalization or nonprosecution of property and drug crimes and, ultimately, the abolition of police and prisons; open borders, effectively if not explicitly; the suppression of speech that is judged to be harmful to disadvantaged groups; ‘affirmative’ care for gender-dysphoric youth (puberty blockers followed by cross-sex hormones followed, in some cases, by mastectomies) and the inclusion of natal males in girls’ and women’s sports; and the replacement of equality by equity – of equal opportunity for individuals by equal outcomes for designated demographic groups – as the goal of social policy.”

The university-driven cultural revolution anathematizes fundamental institutions and rejects nature, “insist[ing] that the state is evil, that the nuclear family is evil, that something called ‘whiteness’ is evil, that the sex binary, which is core to human biology, is a social construct.”

It mobilizes the federal government, higher education, and the private sector to establish and manage “the DEI regimes, the training and minders and guidelines, that have blighted American workplaces, including academic ones.”

It commandeers language to compel obedience to its dictates, “promulgat[ing] an ever-shifting array of rebarbative neologisms whose purpose often seems to be no more than its own enforcement: POC (now BIPOC), AAPI (now AANHPI), LGBTQ (now LGBTQIA2S+), ‘pregnant people,’ ‘menstruators,’ ‘front hole,’ ‘chest feeding,’ and, yes, ‘Latinx.’”

And it seeks not merely acquiescence to its policies but solemn allegiance – outward and inward – to its imperatives: “It is joyless, vengeful, and tyrannical. It is purist and totalistic. It demands affirmative, continuous, and enthusiastic consent.”

A recent report of the Network Contagion Research Institute at Rutgers University, “INSTRUCTING ANIMOSITY: How DEI Pedagogy Produces the Hostile Attribution Bias,” lends social-science support to the observation that woke progressivism, contrary to its promise to advance social justice, fosters distrust and enmity among citizens. For example, researchers asked one group to read representative statements contending that America is rife with systemic racism and the other to read nonpolitical materials. Researchers then presented to both groups a hypothetical involving a college applicant who, following an interview, is denied admission. While the hypothetical mentioned neither the applicant’s nor the interviewer’s race, those who read the DEI materials were significantly more likely to see bigotry at play.

NCRI researchers’ several studies consistently found that “ideas and rhetoric foundational to many DEI trainings,” contrary to DEI claims, neither “foster pluralistic inclusiveness” nor “increase empathy and understanding.” Rather, “[a]cross all groupings, instead of reducing bias, they engendered a hostile attribution bias…amplifying perceptions of prejudicial hostility where none was present, and punitive responses to the imaginary prejudice” (footnote omitted).

The NCRI findings reinforce common sense. If, in the spirit of woke progressivism, elite universities teach that American institutions are hateful, students will learn to despise their country and scorn the patriots among their fellow citizens. If elite universities teach that Americans are either oppressors or oppressed, the best and the brightest will view politics as war and education as propaganda. If elite universities teach that group identity takes precedence over the dignity of the person, graduates will regard themselves as duty bound to trample over individual rights in pursuit of social justice.

And if our elite universities – and the graduates they annually launch into the world – keep it up, they will increase the Trump coalition’s chances of landslide election victories and enhance the prospects of a national political realignment built around working-class men and women joined by individuals of all colors and classes who cherish freedom and democracy in America.

Peter Berkowitz is the Tad and Dianne Taube senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. From 2019 to 2021, he served as director of the Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. State Department. His writings are posted at PeterBerkowitz.com and he can be followed on X @BerkowitzPeter.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 16:20

Elon Musk: "We Should Unwind" The NGO Industry

Non-governmental organizations receiving taxpayer dollars are under scrutiny for misusing funds in shady operations. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, set to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), have announced plans to investigate how taxpayer funds are funneled into NGOs. 

Let's begin with an exchange between Musk and Ramaswamy on X one week ago...

"We need to scrutinize U.S. government funding of "non-government organizations." It's an oxymoron that represents a waste of taxpayer dollars, but the real problem runs deeper: Americans deserve transparency on opaque foreign aid & nonprofit groups abetting our own border crisis," Ramaswamy said, while quoting another X user who explained how Victoria Nuland, appointed to the Board of Directors of the National Endowment, funded overseas NGOs involved in questionable activities in Georgia, Ukraine, and Syria.

We need to scrutinize U.S. government funding of “non-government organizations.” It’s an oxymoron that represents a waste of taxpayer dollars, but the real problem runs deeper: Americans deserve transparency on opaque foreign aid & nonprofit groups abetting our own border crisis. https://t.co/KiD9ahRLAk

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 2, 2024

Musk agreed, commenting, "Absolutely."

With such vague and expansive authority, some of these NGOs effectively act as agents of the government, often pursuing politically motivated agendas such as promoting woke propaganda, engaging in censorship, supporting endless foreign wars, and even supporting the migrant invasion into the US. 

On Tuesday morning, Musk scrutinized the NGO industry once again. He said, "We should unwind this IMO," referring to one X user who posted how the NGO industry's total assets over the last two decades exploded. 

We should unwind this imo https://t.co/LjvRwNovZa

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2024

Whoa. 

More than 10% of the US workforce is employed in the nonprofit sector.

In 2012, they made up:
- 27% of DC's workforce
- 18% of NY, MA, ME, VT, RI
- 16% of PA

Be sure to follow @fentasyl for more fun facts about the bloated nonprofit albatross. pic.twitter.com/hqmnuJo1ln

— ~~datahazard~~ (@fentasyl) December 10, 2024

And this. 

NGO reform is a big deal. It's a major unregulated power base of the radical activist left that is pushing destructive policies like illegal immigration (human trafficking), Soros prosecutors (fueling crime waves), and Big Tech censorship (anti-constitutional actions).

Cut the… https://t.co/X31tEEoZQm

— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) November 7, 2024

Marc Andreessen, the billionaire investor and co-founder of the influential Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, told Joe Rogan during a recent interview how the "government outsources to these NGOs the things it's not legally allowed to do .... such as censorship." 

NGOs ARE GOVERNMENT CENSORSHIP IN DISGUISE

As Marc Andreessen pointed out, "NGO is a great term: Non-Governmental Organization.

It's sort of a charity, but most of the time, it's a political entity that's funded by the government and grants.

But then, it's not an NGO. It's a… pic.twitter.com/sLe0rm7mRJ

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) December 10, 2024

Americans are realizing that these mysterious NGOs serve as workarounds for the federal government that encounter constitutional limitations or fear of political backlash.

DOGE appears to be the entity that will end this NGO madness. 

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 15:45

Nearly 4 Years Later, No Letup In Jan. 6 Prosecutions, Possible Pardons Or Not

Authored by Julie Kelly via RealClearInvestigations,

Even as President-elect Donald Trump promised on Sunday to act “very quickly” on pardons for many of the protesters involved in the events of January 6, the Biden administration’s Justice Department is continuing to arrest and try people for actions that occurred almost four years ago while opposing motions to delay trials because of the need for “the prompt and efficient administration of justice.”

If the defeat of Kamala Harris constituted at least a partial repudiation of the lawfare against Trump and his supporters, the message appears to be lost on top brass at the DOJ. Prosecutors are pushing ahead with what they consider the department’s crowning achievement: the so-called “Capitol Siege” investigation into the events of Jan. 6, 2021.

In what Attorney General Merrick Garland describes as the biggest criminal investigation in Department of Justice history, more than 1,560 people have been charged for federal crimes never before used against political protesters, including under a post-Enron obstruction statute overturned by the Supreme Court in June. At least 1,000 of these defendants have been convicted – either at trial or by accepting plea offers –  with some 650 defendants ordered to serve time in a federal prison. Sentences range from a few days in jail to up to 22 years as the DOJ seeks “terror enhancements” to tack on additional time.

Activity in the J6 investigation accelerated the month before the election. At least 16 individuals were arrested; home security camera footage obtained by RCI shows the heavily-armed pre-dawn FBI raid of a subject in California on October 17.

Shortly after the election, DOJ officials instructed attorneys working on J6 cases to carry on regardless of the pending change in leadership. “[Federal] prosecutors in the Justice Department’s Capitol Siege Section received guidance this week about how to proceed in pending Jan. 6 cases … including a directive to oppose any Jan. 6 defendant’s requests for delays,” Ryan J. Reilly of NBC News reported on Nov. 9. “Prosecutors are instructed to argue that there is a societal interest in the quick administration of justice and these cases should be handled in the normal order.”

At the same time, the Biden Justice Department is continuing to apprehend protesters. On Dec. 4, for example, the DOJ announced the arrest of a 44-year-old Alabama man, Robert James Bonham, charging him with a range of crimes, including “assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder.” 

If Trump shuts down the department’s “Capitol Siege” section, as he is expected to do, Bonham will never go to trial. But this does not appear to concern Matthew Graves, U. S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. Appointed by President Biden in November 2021, Graves has presided over the sprawling J6 investigation and now continues to advance related cases. 

His office has opposed the J6 defendants’ requests to halt proceedings until after Trump is sworn in next month. Judges began receiving a slew of defense motions starting the day after the election asking to postpone trials and hearings, but Graves said there is “public interest in the prompt and efficient administration of justice” as a reason to continue business as usual.

Federal judges in Washington agree with the DOJ’s approach. According to an analysis by RCI, 44 pardon-related motions including requests to delay trials and sentencings have been filed since November 6. Of those, judges, with the exception of Judge Rudolph Contreras, have denied each one. Several more are pending awaiting the court's decision.

Judge Dabney Friedrich denied a motion to delay a J6 jury trial scheduled to begin the week after the election. Mitchell Bosch, a man from New York charged with several offenses, was set to go on trial on Nov. 13, but his public defenders filed a motion the day after the election  arguing their client “cannot receive a fair trial in the District of Columbia six days from today due to the heightened public emotion and highly publicized media attention surrounding yesterday’s presidential election, which resulted in the re-election of Donald Trump.” 

The attorneys noted that “92.4% of the D.C. electorate voted for Vice President Kamala Harris, with only 6.7% voting for President-elect Donald Trump.”

The attorneys further insisted disgruntled D.C. voters could retaliate with a conviction. “If jurors believe that the President-elect is a threat to democracy, that he does not take the events of January 6, 2021, seriously, and that he will pardon those involved that day, there is a real and significant possibility that, in their aversion to those views, they will punish Mr. Bosch or use this case to send a message that they disagree with the President-elect.”

But Friedrich, whose husband, Matthew, worked on the Enron task force with current Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, was unpersuaded. “Despite the recent election, the Court continues to conclude that the Court's voir dire procedures will be adequate to screen out potential jurors who cannot be fair and impartial.”

And after a single day of deliberations, the jury returned guilty verdicts, two felonies and four misdemeanors, on Nov. 18. (The DOJ has a 100% conviction rate in J6 jury trials; no J6 defendant has been fully acquitted of all charges since trials began in March 2022. Judges also continue to deny all change-of-venue motions.)

Three J6 jury trials are set to begin this week. For the trial of one of those defendants, a man charged with civil disorder and four misdemeanors, Judge Amy Berman Jackson recently entered an order allowing prosecutors to describe January 6 to jurors as an "attack on the Capitol," "attack on Congress," and a "riot.” 

But political bias in the aftermath of Trump’s election is not the only factor judges refuse to consider as they move J6 cases along. Trump’s pledge to pardon most, if not all, J6ers also receives a cold reception in the E. Barrett Prettyman federal courthouse located a few blocks from the Capitol.

The day after the election, an attorney representing Christopher Carnell, who was convicted of nonviolent misdemeanors following a bench trial in February 2024, asked the judge in his case to delay a scheduled hearing based on the possibility of a pardon. “Throughout his campaign, President-elect Trump made multiple clemency promises to the January 6 defendants, particularly to those who were nonviolent participants,” attorney Marina Medvin wrote on Nov. 6. “Mr. Carnell, who was an 18-year-old nonviolent entrant into the Capitol on January 6, is expecting to be relieved of the criminal prosecution that he is currently facing when the new administration takes office.” 

But Beryl Howell, the former chief judge of the court, immediately rejected her request and set a sentencing hearing for Carnell this week.

Her colleagues on the D.C. federal bench, citing either a public interest in continuing court proceedings or making separation of powers arguments, followed her lead with recent rulings:

Judge Reggie Walton: “[The] potential future exercise of the discretionary pardon power, an Executive Branch authority, is irrelevant to the Court’s obligation to carry out the legal responsibilities of the Judicial Branch.” – November 7 order denying motion to postpone sentencing.

Judge Amit Mehta: “Defendant's speculation that he may receive a pardon is not good cause to stay this matter.” – November 11 order denying motion to continue trial.

Judge Paul Friedman: “Whatever the President-Elect may or may not do with respect to some of those charged for their conduct at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 is irrelevant to the Court’s independent and legal responsibilities under Article III of the Constitution.” – November 12 order denying motion to continue trial.

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly: “The principal bases for [the defendant’s] requested continuance are that President-elect Donald J. Trump has ‘repeatedly stated that he would pardon’ those involved in the January 6 riot and that ‘a new Attorney General may dismiss’ the case against him. The Court joins others in this District in rejecting Defendants' invitation to speculate about future clemency or charging decisions. " – November 21 order denying motion to continue trial.

Chief Judge James Boasberg: “Speculation as to what the incoming Administration may do is not a basis for a continuance.” – December 2 order denying motion to postpone sentencing.

Royce Lamberth, a Reagan appointee, is the most outspoken judge when it comes to any downplaying of what happened on Jan. 6. In an April 2024 Wall Street Journal profile, the 80-year-old jurist was described as “a leading voice pushing back against attempts by Republican politicians to play down the Jan. 6 attack.” Lamberth said he decided to speak out, an unusual move for a federal judge presiding over cases for which he is obligated to remain impartial, because “justifications for the Capitol attack” represent an affront to “the integrity of the judicial system.”

Lamberth is sparing no harsh words in rejecting pleas for relief before Inauguration Day. Accusing J6ers of “[subjecting] our Capitol and our country to the horrific scene of their anti-democratic rage,” Lamberth refused to postpone the sentencing of Philip Sean Grillo, who was convicted of civil disorder and the common four misdemeanors. Any presidential pardon, Lamberth continued, would not undo the work of the courts and D.C. juries.

“To continue Mr. Grillo’s sentencing now simply because he may receive a presidential pardon would discredit the time and thought these citizens expended on the trial and would subvert our criminal justice process and the separation of powers.”

On December 6, Lamberth not only sentenced Grillo to 12 months in federal prison but took the unusual move of remanding him into immediate custody; judges usually allow a defendant to report two to three months following sentencing. Lamberth's decision appeared to make sure Grillo spent some time in jail before a presidential pardon spared him.

In a 13-page sentencing document explaining his reasons for imposing such a harsh move, Lamberth again criticized what he believes are attempts to "minimize the events of January 6." Lamberth then erroneously claimed five police officers died as a result of the protest. "One can only wonder what further horrors might have transpired if our elected officials had not gotten out in time. No matter what ultimately becomes of the Capital Riots cases already concluded and still pending, the true story of what happened on January 6, 2021 will never change."

He again took issue with Trump's plans to pardon J6ers and emphasized his independent role as a jurist. "The fundamental American principle of separation of powers would be empty of meaning if the courts allowed themselves to become paralyzed based on conjecture about the coordinate branches’ future actions. I will do my job, as I am bound by oath to do, and the President will do his; it is as simple as that."

And at least one D.C. judge is taking direct aim at Trump for even considering pardons. Trump-appointee Carl Nichols, who presided over Steve Bannon’s contempt case and sentenced the longtime Trump adviser to four months in a federal penitentiary, went so far as to say in a recent court hearing that it would be “beyond frustrating and disappointing” for the incoming president to issue “blanket pardons … or anything close.”

But it’s not just existing cases that are being fast-tracked before the transfer of power. Graves has announced the arrest of at least 10 Jan. 6 protesters since Election Day; last week, Graves charged at least three individuals for their participation in the Capitol protest. 

There is no indication the DOJ will halt the pursuit of J6ers even as the pardon of Hunter Biden raises concerns over the practice of presidential pardons. Shortly after Joe Biden pardoned his son, Trump posted a message on Truth Social referring to the J6ers in what some consider a sign he is considering a similarly broad pardon. “Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years? Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!” Trump wrote.

In apparent response, the New York Times editorial board criticized the Hunter Biden pardon not on its merits but because it makes it easier for “ Trump [to] pardon the perpetrators of the violent Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.”

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 15:25

Dalio Predicts Global Debt Crisis, Backs Bitcoin & Gold

Authored by Helen Partz via CoinTelegraph.com,

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio expressed concerns about a potential “pending debt money problem” in global finance and urged a shift toward hard assets like Bitcoin and gold.

Dalio, the founder of one the world’s largest hedge funds, Bridgewater Associates, said he would invest in “hard money” like gold and Bitcoin while avoiding debt assets, the South China Morning Post reported on Dec. 10.

The veteran investor referred to “unprecedented levels” of indebtedness seen in all major countries, including the United States and China, stressing that its current levels will not be sustainable.

“It is impossible for these countries to be able to not have a debt crisis in the years ahead that will lead to a great decline of money value,” Dalio said in a speech at a financial conference in Abu Dhabi.

“Steer away from debt assets like bonds and debt”

“I believe that there would likely be a pending debt money problem,” Dalio said, referring to debt as one of five big forces driving the global economy alongside money, economy, internal political order and external geopolitical order.

Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio. Source: SCMP

“Don’t get too caught up on the twists and turns of the day-to-day headlines, and instead, think more about the big forces,” he said, adding:

“I want to steer away from debt assets like bonds and debt and have some hard money like gold and Bitcoin.”

Dalio previously believed cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin would not succeed in the way people hoped they would, but he has emerged as a major BTC supporter in recent years.

In 2022, Dalio said it’s reasonable to allocate up to 2% of an investment portfolio in Bitcoin in addition to gold to hedge against inflation. Previously, the billionaire investor said he would still choose gold over Bitcoin, highlighting the importance of diversification.

Gold bug Peter Schiff urges Biden to dump Bitcoin

Dalio’s acknowledgment of Bitcoin as a hard asset comes as US President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office in January, with many expecting the launch of a US Bitcoin national reserve in 2025.

However, some financial observers, including gold advocate Peter Schiff, have urged that the implications of a Bitcoin reserve in the US could be “harmful.”

Peter Schiff urged Biden’s administration to ditch Bitcoin holdings before Donald Trump takes office in 2025. Source: Peter Schiff

Schiff took to X on Dec. 9 to suggest that President Joe Biden’s administration could do “one good thing” before leaving office by selling all the Bitcoin that is currently held by the US government.

“Not only would the money raised reduce the 2024 budget deficit, but it would put an end to all the nonsense about creating a harmful ‘“Strategic’ Bitcoin Reserve,” Schiff stated.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 14:40

Treasury Yields Drop After 3Y Auction Tails But Is Otherwise Solid

The year may be drawing to a close but the US needs to feed the government debt monster - which just hit a record $36.17 trillion - with more and more debt come rain, shine, Chritmas, New Years, etc, etc, and this week happens to have three coupon auctions on deck, the first of which just concluded.

At 1pm, the US Treasury sold $58BN in 3Y paper, at a yield of 4.117%, down from last month's 4.152% but tailing the When Issued 4.116% by 10.1bps, and the third tail in a row.

The bid to cover dipped to 2.577 from 2.603 last month, but was just above the 2.56 six-auction average. As shown in the chart below, the BTC on the 3Y has been pretty much fixed for the past 6 years in the 2.4-2.8 range.

The internals were ok. Indirects dropped to 64.2%, from 70.6% in November, and below the recent average of 66.4%. And with Directs surging to 20.7% from 9.6% in November, and above the 17.1% average, Dealers were left with just 15.1%, the lowest since September.

Overall, this was a solid if not stellar auction, and good enough to prevent more selling in the secondary market: the yield on the 10Y was flat after the auction and has since dipped 1bp to 4.22% after earlier rising as high as 4.24%, a one week high.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 14:25

SCOTUS Asked To Block State From Investigating Doctors Who Question COVID-19 Policies

Authored by Matthew Vadum via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas this week revived an emergency application to block the Washington Medical Commission from investigating licensed physicians in the state over their criticism of COVID-19 policies.

A man receives a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in downtown Seattle on Jan. 24, 2021. Grant Hindsley/AFP via Getty Images

The Washington state commission deems the doctors’ dissenting views on the disease as potentially dangerous misinformation that should be suppressed. The physicians counter that just because they have medical licenses they don’t forfeit their free speech rights under the First Amendment.

The Dec. 4 order by Thomas regarding the application in Stockton v. Ferguson was unusual in that Justice Elena Kagan rejected the same application on Nov. 20. The applicants renewed their request in a court filing directed to Thomas on Nov. 22.

Supreme Court rules allow an application that has been denied by one justice to be presented to another justice. Neither Thomas nor Kagan explained their respective decisions.

The application is now scheduled to be considered by all nine justices at the court’s private judicial conference on Jan. 10, 2025. The justices could grant an injunction against the commission, deny the injunction, or schedule the case for oral argument.

As of Dec. 6, the Supreme Court had not requested a reply from the commission.

The application was brought by former professional basketball player John Stockton along with Drs. Richard Eggleston, Thomas Siler, and Daniel Moynihan and another 50 unidentified medical doctors, as well as Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit founded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

President-elect Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated on Jan. 20, 2025, has nominated Kennedy to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy, an attorney, is also listed as co-counsel on the application.

The applicants filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, which denied the injunction on May 22. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied the injunction on Sept. 3. An appeal remains pending in the Ninth Circuit.

The application states that it concerns the state’s program that targets “Washington-licensed physicians for expressing public views on COVID-19 that diverge from prevailing orthodoxy.”

The state calls the doctors’ viewpoint “misinformation” and claims that it may “regulate this speech,” which is something the Supreme Court ruled in National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra (2018) that it cannot do, according to the application.

“The Court should speak clearly and decisively to state actors, professional organizations, other non-state actors, and the national media: Public speech does not lose its constitutional protection from government action simply because it is uttered by a healthcare professional, even if it is at odds with medical orthodoxy,” the application stated.

In September 2021, based on its authority under Washington state’s Uniform Disciplinary Act, the Washington Medical Commission began enforcing a policy against doctors “for public speech critical of COVID-19 policies,” which has resulted in “disciplinary actions against at least ten healthcare practitioners,” it stated.

Around the time the enforcement actions began, Washington Secretary of Health Dr. Umair A. Shah said, “It has never been more vital for trusted healthcare professionals to band together against the threat of misinformation.”

“As we battle COVID-19, with so many tools at our disposal to protect ourselves and others, it is viral misinformation, rooted in unfounded scientific claims, that often stands in our way.”

The commission is prosecuting Eggleston and Siler for opinion articles that they wrote in The Lewiston Tribune and American Thinker, respectively, that criticized COVID-19 policies.

The applicant Children’s Health Defense, which has a Washington state medical doctor as a member, joined the application because “[the nonprofit group] is actively involved in advocacy and protecting freedom of speech and Covid vaccine related issues and educates the public on these issues,” the application stated.

The applicants’ attorney, Richard Jaffe of Sacramento, California, told The Epoch Times that he is “hopeful” about the application.

“It’s a disfavored practice to go to a second Supreme Court justice after the first one has turned down the request, so it was a long shot,” he said.

But Thomas “seems to think it’s an important issue” that needs to be heard, Jaffe said.

There are many articles in the mainstream media “talking about how they’re not sanctioning enough doctors for speaking out in public against vaccination or repeated boostering,” he said.

“The country needs some guidance from the Supreme Court as to what the First Amendment means in terms of a physician’s free speech,” Jaffe said.

The Epoch Times reached out for comment to the respondent, Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson. No reply was received by publication time.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 13:25

Walgreens Shares Spike Off 28-Year Lows On Private-Equity Interest; Report

Having plunged from over $105 billion market cap in 2015 to less than $8 billion currently (amid mounting pressures on both its pharmacy and retail businesses), it appears Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) has got cheap enough to spark private equity interest.

The Wall Street Journal reports that WBA is in talks to sell itself to a private-equity firm in a deal that would take the pharmacy chain off the public market after its shares have been on a downward slide for nearly a decade.

WBA and Sycamore Partners have been discussing a deal that could be completed early next year, assuming talks don’t fall apart, according to people familiar with the matter.

WBA shares are soaring on the news (after an initial halt for volatility). WBA is up 25%, just shy of October's highs...

And judging by the massive short-interest, it could go dramatically higher...

Any deal would be a big bite for Sycamore, a New York-based firm that specializes in retail and consumer investments and more recently is better known for smaller deals. The firm would likely sell off pieces of the business or work with partners, one of the people said.

WSJ reports that Walgreens has long been seen as a potential private-equity target, though for many years its size seemed to put it out of reach.

Private-equity firm KKR made a roughly $70 billion offer for the company in 2019, Bloomberg and the Financial Times reported at the time. Walgreens’s market value was then over $50 billion, which would have made it one of the largest take-private transactions ever had it come to fruition. 

Private-equity appetite for buying retailers has waned since high-profile flops including Toys “R” Us made financing such transactions much more difficult. In the past few years, only a handful of sizable retailers have been sold to private-equity firms, though many have attracted takeover interest. 

One of Sycamore’s last major deals was when it bought office-retailer Staples for almost $7 billion in 2017. It was among the suitors for Kohl’s in 2022. In September, Sycamore announced a small deal for the restaurant chain Playa Bowls. 

Sycamore’s current investments include several clothing brands including Ann Taylor Loft and Aéropostale as well as the department-store chain Belk. 

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 12:44

Microsoft Shareholders Vote 'No' On Bitcoin Reserve

Authored by Tristan Greene via CoinTelegraph.com,

Microsoft shareholders voted against a resolution to add Bitcoin BTC$97,604 to the company’s balance sheets during the firm’s annual meeting on Dec. 10. 

The National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR), a pro-free-market think-tank based in Washington, D.C., had proposed the resolution, framing it as a corporate duty to provide value to shareholders through profit diversification. 

Shareholders meeting

The NCPPR submitted a pre-recorded video outlining their proposal, which was played during the shareholder’s meeting. The video, which opened with the line “Microsoft can’t afford to miss the next technology wave, and Bitcoin is that wave,” was replete with charts and figures demonstrating the potential value of holding BTC. 

In making its case, the group promised that adopting Bitcoin would create trillions in value and “strip away risk” from shareholders. The video echoed sentiments previously made in the text of its resolution: 

“The institutional and corporate adoption of Bitcoin is becoming more commonplace. Microsoft’s second largest shareholder, BlackRock, offers its clients a Bitcoin ETF.”

The proposal did point out that Bitcoin was “more volatile” than corporate bonds, and thus advised against holding “too much of it,” but also advised against risking shareholder value by “ignoring Bitcoin altogether.”

As such, the NCPPR recommended using between 1% and 5% of the firm’s profits to purchase Bitcoin. The proposal formally requested that Microsoft “conduct an assessment to determine if diversifying the Company’s balance sheet by including Bitcoin is in the best long-term interests of shareholders.”

In a 14A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Microsoft’s board formally recommended against the proposal. In its remarks, the board called the proposal “unnecessary” and said the company “already carefully considers this topic.”

“As the proposal itself notes, volatility is a factor to consider in evaluating cryptocurrency investments for corporate treasury applications that require stable and predictable investments to ensure liquidity and operational funding.”

Too reliant on FOMO?

Much of the proposal’s text appears to rely on the “fear of missing out” or “FOMO” mentality. The proposal cited both MicroStrategy and BlackRock’s Bitcoin adoption as motivational factors. The NCPPR has given Amazon similar guidance. 

However, Microsoft’s board was unswayed ahead of the vote.

“Microsoft has strong and appropriate processes in place to manage and diversify its corporate treasury for the long-term benefit of shareholders,” wrote the board in the aforementioned SEC filing, “and this requested public assessment is unwarranted.”

In the filing, the board recognized that MicroStrategy’s operations were similar to its own but declined to extend the comparison beyond the two firms’ differing approaches to the burgeoning cryptocurrency market. 

According to preliminary results, the shareholders voted against the resolution and kept with the board’s guidance against adopting Bitcoin.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/10/2024 - 12:25