Mike Norman Economics

WWI and WWII began in Eastern Europe.Coincidentally, a similar situation exists in the South China Sea as in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov.Any coordination with the CW attack on Aleppo?Geopolitical AlertTensions Flair in Black Sea & Donbass Days After UK’s New Deployments to Region Jim Carey Fort Russ NewsBREAKING: Ukraine Begins Heavy Shelling of Donetsk Republic Joaquin Flores TASSRussia asks for convening UN SC meeting on Sea of Azov situation TASSUkraine’s Security Council...

Smackdown. It’s a common complaint that Russian media are controlled by the state. By contrast, the Western media, and Western opinion formers, such as academics and think tank members, are considered to be independent and impartial. Yet in reality, the relationship between them is often far cozier than people understand, and sometimes far cozier than it ought to be. I’m sure that everybody involved in the Integrity Initiative believes that they are acting for the best. But if they have...

Though pundits have been scrambling to find new and inventive ways to describe the extraordinary nature of this year’s midterm elections, in one respect they’re just like the 2014, 2010, and 2006 contests: they’re the most expensive on record. Money has poured, in particular, into Democratic candidates’ coffers, with mediagenic figures like Texas Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke collecting massive amounts from out-of-state donors. Thomas Ferguson is the leading scholar of money in American...

Now, Idlib militants and their supporters around the globe will make an attempt to blame the Assad government for the November 24 incident in Aleppo city. They will likely pretend that “evil Assad” carried out a chemical attack on the government-controlled city in order to accuse the “moderate opposition” of doing this and thus disrupt the peaceful process in the country.First signs of this campaign can already be observed in some MSM reports. For example, in its report on the chemical...

Likewise, after a one-month hiatus, China is resuming its imports from Iran. It has oil companies that don’t deal witht he US and so can be used for camouflage. Informed ConsentIndia Doubles Iran Oil Imports: Are Trump’s Sanctions Cratering? Juan Cole

James K. Galbraith reviews Robert Skidelsky's Money and Government:The Past and Future of  Economics, Yale University Press, 2018 American Affairs Volume II, Number 4 (Winter 2018): 79–86 The Past and Future of Political EconomyJames K. Galbraith |

The U.S. inflation-linked bond (TIPS) market is in an interesting position right now. Inflation protection seems cheap, but the question always remains: is it cheap for a reason? Unfortunately, I am not able to answer that question, I am going to just briefly outline the debate…. Bond Economics  Brief TIPS Market CommentBrian Romanchuk

Caitlin Johnstone — Rogue JournalistNewsweek-Employed Spy Explains To Us Why Assange Should Be ProsecutedCaitlin Johnstone TASSUS highly likely to venture new provocation against Russia - Lavrov TASSNord Stream-2 opponents only support US’ anti-Russian steps - Lavrov Sputnik InternationalWhat Integrity? Russian Officials, Analysts Speak Out on UK Hybrid Warfare Plot Sputnik InternationalRussia Scrambles Warplanes as Ukrainian Navy Moves on Kerch Strait – Reports TASS"Western patrons...

(The new issue of Jacobin has a piece by me on the state of economics ten years after the crisis. Since it’s not online yet, I’m posting the full text here, plus a few paragraphs that did not make it in. Even though they gave me plenty of space, and Seth Ackerman’s edits were as always superb, they still cut some material that, as king of the infinite space of this blog, I would rather include.) J. W. Mason's BlogIn Jacobin: A Demystifying Decade for EconomicsJW Mason | Assistant Professor...

At the late hours of November 24, unknown militants launched several rockets containing chlorine gas at residential areas in the northern part of the city of Aleppo, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). “Terrorist groups fired rocket shells containing toxic gases at al-Khalidiye and al-Neel Street neighborhoods in Aleppo city,” the SANA said in a press release. The reporter of the Syrian News TV in Aleppo said that 75 civilians, including at least 14 children, were intoxicated...