Mike Norman Economics

 I only like British eccentric pop music, although I did get into the Magnetic Fields, an American band who are very heavily influenced by British pop bands, like the Human League, so back to English pop again. Anyway, I always loved There She Goes by the La's, a 1980s band from Liverpool, so I bought the debut album, and boy, did I hate it first of all, it was all R&B and rough, like the early Rolling Stones, the sort of thing I absolutely hate.. Not wanting to waste my money, though, I...

In this interview granted to the website www.les-crises.fr, Roland Dumas, who was French Minister of Foreign Affairs during the crucial period 1989-1991, explains the negotiations with the USSR and confirms the verbal promise made by him and the other leaders at the time not to expand NATO to the East in the future.YouTubeHow the West promised the USSR that NATO would not expand eastward (27 min)https://youtu.be/ddg8APRm1ZA

Philip Pilkington criticizes David P. Goldman's recent post, linked to previously here at MNE. Pilkington is an MMT-savvy economist. In his view, Goldman as the causality wrong, which one will recognize as a typical MMT correction of conventional economics.MacrocosmPPP Now Determines RMB-USD: And if this trend holds it could threaten the USD's reserve currency statusPhilip Pilkingtonhttps://macrocosm.substack.com/p/ppp-now-determines-rmb-usd?utm_source=url

While David Stockman's economics is way out of paradigm with MMT, his geopolitics is much more realistic. His researched view on the Ukraine-Russia crisis is worth taking into consideration.Zero HedgeStockman: "We're Not Useful Idiots!"https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/stockman-were-not-useful-idiots

Three scenarios are proposed: 1) Russia invades Ukraine as the US and UK charge. (Unlikely) 2) Ukraine invades Donbass using the pretext of a false flag and Russia is drawn in. US and UK charge Russian aggression. (Likely) 3) No invasion. (Maybe)1 and 2 result in Cold War with The West against Russia and China. This is apparently the US/UK objective.That seems to cover it, albeit with some nuances possible.My take. The US and UK would not be hyping this to such a high level for nothing to...

The policy recommendations of NSC-68 have been widely discussed in scholarship, though avoiding the hysterical rhetoric. It reads like a fairytale: ultimate evil confronted by absolute purity and noble idealism. On one side is the “slave state” with its “fundamental design” and inherent “compulsion” to gain “absolute authority over the rest of the world,” destroying all governments and the “structure of society” everywhere. Its ultimate evil contrasts with our sheer perfection. The...

Zero Hedge (So we are all "terrorists" now for sharing information?)The Mind Control Police: The Government's War On Thought-Crimes & Truth-TellersJohn W. Whitehead & Nisha Whitehead via The Rutherford Institutehttps://www.zerohedge.com/political/mind-control-police-governments-war-thought-crimes-truth-tellersElon Musk Accuses SEC Of "Harassment" And "Weaponizing" His 2018 Securities Fraud...

As expected, a rejection of the US response to Russia demand for security guarantees. In the absence of the readiness of the American side to agree on firm, legally binding guarantees of ensuring our security by the United States and its allies, Russia will be forced to respond, including through the implementation of military-technical measures....In addition, the US and UK continue to hype the threat of imminent Russian aggression. The situation looks bleak for peace, The US and UK appear...

The Australian Bureau of Statistics released the latest labour force data today (February 17, 2022) – Labour Force, Australia – for January 2022. The situation is this: most states have now abandoned Covid restrictions and the virus has spread quickly and is now impacting significantly on the availability of workers. One standout in today’s data is the dramatic fall in monthly hours worked (-8.8 per cent). This puts paid to the notion spread by economists that there is a trade-off between...

The "do what everyone else is doing" strategy is NOT a winning strategy.