Mike Norman Economics

A good run down on how the situation in the Ukraine developed. The US is so hawkish. Since WW2 the country has been nearly always at war. Expanding NATO into Eastern Europe was extremely profitable. What’s really happening in Ukraine, and why is NATO expansion a red line for Russia? Most Americans have no sense of the vital political and historical context that created this crisis. It has been completely hidden by major U.S. media, Brian Becker explains on The Socialist Program.[embedded...

Capitalism has been taken over by techno-feudalism says, Yanis Varoufakis, and social democracy died along with it. Amazon has too much control in the marketplace, and the other tech giants know everything about us. The elite have become richer despite covid - or the 2008 crash, which they have paid for as they caused it - but now in many Western countries many people are not getting enough food. This is pure neoliberalism at work, but was it their fault that they were so unlucky and became...

Backgrounder. Pepe sees false flag drawing Russia in as likely, resulting in sanctions. The US plan is to encircle Russia (and China) militarily and bankrupt them economically through imposition of sanctions, starting with Russia. Because this worked so well with Iran? And neither the Russian nor the Chinese military are comparable to Saddam's. So get out the popcorn. This could get interesting. Meanwhile, the four horsemen — war, famine (climate change), pestilence (pandemic), and death —...

Longish backgrounder. Lotsa numbers, too.The Vineyard of the SakerSitrep China: As the competitors start entering the newly constructed Olympics villages the war beat goes onAmarynth and the Here Comes China Newsletter by Godfree Robertshttp://thesaker.is/sitrep-china-as-the-competitors-start-entering-the-newly-constructed-olympics-villages-the-war-beat-goes-on/

Strange, given that there is no evidence of Russian troops mobilized for an imminent offensive, as even the Pentagon admits. A possible reason for the seeming US "overreaction" would be a provocation by false flag to elicit a Russian reaction that can justify the US in calling "Russian aggression," even if the reaction would be using standoff weapons rather than troops and tanks rolling across the border.Zero HedgeUS Citizens Told Depart Ukraine Now By Any Means Possible In New Embassy...

Bannon on current economic situation…. “stagflation!” on steroids….

It’s Wednesday and I am flat out finalising writing commitments and my teaching responsibilities at present. I have also been doing a lot of media interviews given the inflation release yesterday. People are believing the nonsense coming out in the financial press that inflation is ‘out-of-control’ and interest rates need to be hiked to stop it in its tracks. How will increasing interest rates allow a Covid sick truck driver to return to work any quicker? How will a rise in rates, increase...

Federal gov't is now running an $18 bln surplus for January, sucking income and savings from the economy.

Sputnik InternationalIMF: Russia-Ukraine Conflict Could Further Increase World Energy Costshttps://sputniknews.com/20220125/imf-russia-ukraine-conflict-could-further-increase-world-energy-costs-1092510865.htmlUkraine’s Defence Minister Slams Foreign Media for Whipping Up ‘Russian Invasion’ Fears (US and UK took a step too far? It's resulting in disunity rather than...

There are too many lobby groups in Washington pushing for war with Russia, says Douglas Macgregor. He also says that Trump liked to be liked, especially when pandering to his base, which stopped him getting things done.  Douglas Macgregor, a retired US Army Colonel and former Pentagon senior advisor, analyzes the US-Russia standoff in Ukraine; the aftermath of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan; Trump's failure to act on 2016 campaign anti-interventionist rhetoric, only to surround himself...