Tag: economy

Guess Who’s Getting Purged? How Chinese Citizens Turn Fear Into a Black Market

If you’ve ever wanted to know what Chinese political paranoia looks like in action, congratulations! The CCP just handed us the perfect specimen.

Turns out, Xi Jinping’s ongoing purge of senior officials has gotten so intense, so incomprehensible, and so secretive, that an actual underground market has emerged.

Chinese citizens are now literally paying money to access what appear to be leaked details about which officials are under investigation. Shadowy online groups claim to have insider information on the next wave of purges.

According to Bloomberg, authorities are playing whack-a-mole trying to shut these leaky groups down. But they can’t because the demand is too high. This is the price of the CCP making itself a total black box.

The purge market is just the symptom. The disease is that the CCP created a system with no stability, no clear rules, and no way to know if tomorrow you’ll be promoted or investigated. So citizens and lower-ranking officials are doing the rational thing: trying to buy information to stay ahead of the knife. Or maybe they’re just betting for money, like Polymarket for General Hostility.

This also reveals something much darker about CCP governance. It’s not like these are leaks from innocent whistleblowers. These are just corrupt people trying to navigate a corrupt system. Can they be trusted to predict what’s coming next? Buyers hope so.

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RFK Jr. Torches CNN’s Erin Burnett After Attempting to Discredit Affordable Meals Featured on MAHA’s New Food Show: ‘TDS Has So Debilitated’ Her That She Abandoned Common Sense and Basic Arithmetic

The far-left hacks at CNN are so terrified of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement that they have completely abandoned basic math just to attack Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. blasted CNN host Erin Burnett after her program aired a ridiculous “investigation” attempting to discredit the affordable meals featured on Kennedy’s new cooking series, The Real Food Show.

Kennedy’s program, inspired by President Trump’s Make America Healthy Again agenda, features chefs preparing nutritious, whole-food meals for approximately $5 or less per serving.

But CNN decided to “fact-check” Kennedy by purchasing full containers of nearly every ingredient—even when the recipe required only a spoonful—and then charging the entire package price to one meal.

During Wednesday’s episode of Erin Burnett OutFront, CNN correspondent Tom Foreman recreated the show’s crispy salmon cakes with apple, white bean, and greens salad.

The official HHS recipe serves four people for approximately $5 per serving using frozen wild salmon—and even less when made with canned salmon.

CNN, however, claimed it cost $70.54 to purchase all the ingredients.

Foreman complained that HHS priced one egg rather than an entire carton, eight cents’ worth of red onion rather than the whole onion, and 40 cents’ worth of avocado mayonnaise rather than the full $11 container.

“Grocery stores don’t sell things that way,” Foreman declared.

Of course, the remaining eggs, onion, mayonnaise, olive oil, mustard, vinegar, herbs, and other pantry staples do not disappear after preparing the meal. They remain available for the next recipe.

CNN also disputed HHS’s salmon price, saying the network paid more than $24 for what it described as the closest comparable frozen wild-caught sockeye salmon, compared with the show’s listed price of $8.99.

Although the CNN segment acknowledged that HHS used “standard recipe costing methodology,” the network nevertheless presented its full grocery-store checkout total as the “real” cost of Kennedy’s meal.

Burnett concluded the segment without addressing the obvious distinction between the upfront cost of stocking a kitchen and the actual amount of food consumed in a single recipe.

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Elizabeth Warren Proves She Has No Idea How the Basic Concept of ‘Supply and Demand’ Works

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren was recently mocked on CNBC for fearmongering over the economy and getting tons of stuff wrong in general.

This is what Warren does now. It is what she has done every single day since the 2024 election. she complains and fearmongers about Trump and doesn’t even seem to care if what she is saying is even remotely true.

Now she is showing the world that she has no idea how the simple concept of supply and demand works.

Townhall reports:

Elizabeth Warren Proves Once Again That She Has No Idea How Basic Economics Works

It’s a fairly good rule of thumb that if Elizabeth Warren is against something, it’s probably a good thing that you should support. Or, at the very least, it reveals just how ignorant she is about how our supply-and-demand economy actually works.

She’s now waging a war against “dynamic pricing,” which she claims is how “giant companies … squeeze you even more.”

Yes, when people want more ice cream in the summer, the demand goes up while supply usually stays the same. So prices will go up. Same thing with tea bags in the winter.

Consumers often accept dynamic pricing. Airline tickets, for example, vary by price based on the day of the week and the season. Hotel room prices are subject to dynamic pricing, too.

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$40tn debt: U.S. unhinged empire is a threat to world peace

The United States hit a dubious milestone this week, announcing that its national debt had exceeded $40 trillion. No other nation comes close to this level of absolute financial indebtedness.

This is not simply a matter of out-of-control financial bankruptcy. It is an ominous sign of an unhinged empire that is desperately trying to salvage its historic failure by scorched-earth tactics of endless war.

The world is being held hostage by a pathological system that is no longer tolerable for the sake of humanity, development and peace.

Perhaps of more significance than the total figure – astronomical though that is – is the accelerating pace of U.S. debt growth. Since 2016, the arrears have doubled, up from $20tn. Over the next decade, the U.S. national debt is predicted to climb to $64tn.

In the year 2000, the American account stood at a “mere” $6tn. The last quarter of a century has seen the arrears pile up from endless wars, reckless military spending, and massive tax cuts for the corporate elite. The debt has become irreversible under prevailing policies.

Servicing interest on the arrears now runs at $1tn a year and is one of the largest federal budget expenditures. This means that the United States is caught in a debt spiral from which it cannot extricate itself. It is digging a deeper and deeper hole.

There are profound implications for the United States as a society. As Robert Reich, a former Labour Secretary, noted, the servicing of runaway debt means less money for “schools, healthcare, roads and bridges and social safety nets.” The grim conclusion is that social inequality in the U.S. – already at record levels – will become even more destructive. That speaks of social immiseration and collapse.

There are also far-reaching detrimental impacts on the U.S. and global economy. Even mainstream commentators warn of a historic fiscal crisis pending for the United States from soaring interest rates and hyperinflation. That, in turn, will be transmitted to the rest of the world, especially those countries with large holdings of American debt.

But the exceptional U.S. financial mess is not just a matter of economics. It is an urgent issue of global peace and security.

There are several causes of mounting American debt. However, the main driver, by far, is that nation’s relentless warmongering and militarism, as economist Jeffrey Sachs and other commentators have long contended. It is systemic and chronic.

This year saw the United States celebrate its 250th anniversary since its founding as a modern state. For most of its history, about 95 per cent of the 250 years, the United States has been at war, either through conquest or subterfuge, according to its own Congressional records and eminent historians like David Vine.

No other modern nation comes close to this bellicose conduct, and that is a reason why no other nation comes close to the level of financial debt of the U.S.

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US Set to Impose 50% Tariffs on $20 billion Worth of Canadian Products

The United States is set to impose 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian products early Saturday after last-ditch negotiations failed to resolve the latest strain in already tense relations between the historic allies.

President Donald Trump’s import taxes will hit about 5% of what Canada ships to the United States every year, including products ranging from hockey sticks to tongue depressors.

“Tonight, Canada declined to finalize the trade deal under the terms agreed earlier this week. Despite the U.S. offer to Canada to receive the best treatment of any major exporter to our market, new demands and walk backs of other commitments by Canada have upended the careful balance reached in the past days,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement read to reporters on a press call shortly before midnight.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded, “Last-minute changes in the U.S. proposed terms were unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal.”

Carney said his government would announce additional support for Canadian workers and businesses in the coming days.

Greer said the U.S. offer was “forward-looking” and included “a historic economic and national security partnership.”

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The Strait of Hormuz Is Repricing the Entire World Economy

The politicians continue to speak about the Strait of Hormuz as though this were merely a regional dispute between Iran and its neighbors. That is complete nonsense. The strait is one of the most important arteries in the global economy, carrying roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas shipments. Brent crude has moved above $91, but the headline price of oil is only the beginning. The real economic damage appears in shipping rates, insurance premiums, refinery margins, diesel prices, electricity costs, and ultimately government borrowing. War does not remain confined to the battlefield. It enters every household through inflation.

Washington claims the strait is open while Iran insists it remains closed. Both statements are political propaganda because it is the shipowners, insurers, and commodity traders who determine whether a waterway is commercially open. A tanker can theoretically pass through Hormuz, but that means nothing if the insurance premium becomes prohibitive or the crew refuses to accept the risk. Most politicians have never operated a business and do not understand that commerce depends upon confidence—not government declarations. Once confidence collapses, trade will retreat regardless of how many officials stand before cameras insisting that everything remains under control.

This is why the cost of the conflict cannot be measured solely by the number of barrels temporarily removed from the market. Every vessel delayed or redirected reduces available shipping capacity and increases freight rates elsewhere. Insurers must reprice the probability of a tanker being damaged, captured, or destroyed. Refineries must compete for alternative supplies, while countries dependent upon Gulf energy begin building precautionary inventories. Traders add a geopolitical premium because nobody knows whether the next missile will strike a ship, a refinery, a pipeline, or an export terminal. These costs compound through the entire system long before the average person notices the increase at the gasoline station.

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Mamdani’s City Grocery Store Official Explains How Their Plan to Keep Privately Owned Stores in Business Will Make Things Even Worse

A woman who is supposedly the lead person from Zohran Mamdani’s team for city-owned grocery stores was recently asked if their plan will put privately owned stores out of business, which, it obviously will.

She explained that privately owned stores that are in trouble will be able to apply for grants from the city, which is only going to make things worse, and far more expensive.

To recap, taxpayers pay for city-owned grocery stores and then, when those stores threaten privately owned stores, taxpayers will fund grants for those stores. The taxpayers just keep paying and paying, no matter what happens.

Townhall reports:

In an interview on Wednesday, Waverly Neer, a senior vice president of the NYC Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), which is overseeing Mamdani’s city-run grocery-store rollout, revealed that one proposal under consideration would let nearby grocers apply for grants to offset revenue lost to the city’s subsidized stores. In other words, New York City may use taxpayer money to undercut local businesses, then use more taxpayer money to compensate them for the damage they caused.

“I think ultimately the goals of these locations, not just here in East Harlem, but you know, any borough location is to be complementary to the neighborhood,” Neer said. “And really, you know, rising tides, right? We can we can all cooperate and work together in a meaningful way. ”

“Do you mind? What is the I’ve heard that that term from EDC officials that these are meant to be complementary. What does that mean?” Spectrum News NY1’s Dan Rivoli asked. “What does that complimentary mean in terms of policy operations and things like that? ”

“Yeah, I think we’re, you know, as an agency, looking at a number of different complementary policies and programs, grants, incentives that can come alongside these grocery stores to support other, you know, local independent businesses that are in the neighborhoods,” Neer replied. “We’re going to continue to listen and we’re going to continue to engage and be, you know, alongside the operator as our partner. Like I said, making sure that we are complimentary to the other businesses that are here in the neighborhood.”

“So other locations, other grocery stores can get grants from the city under this?” Rivoli clarified.

“[That’s] something on the table,” Neer said.

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I’m Sorry, The Feds Wasted HOW MANY TRILLIONS in Improper Payments?

Instead of drawing out the big mystery over how much of your money Washington wastes on improper payments, I’ll just tell you right up front: In the 20 years between 2003 and 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates the total money blown on payments made in error, or in the wrong amount, or with no documentation (!!!) is $2.7 TRILLION.

That’s a two followed by a seven followed by 11 zeroes. That’s almost double what we spent last year on Medicare/Medicaid combined, or on Social Security. It’s triple last year’s defense budget. It’s almost triple the unconscionable amount we spent last year just servicing Washington’s outstanding debt.

It is almost exactly the same amount Washington collected last year in personal income taxes. And if that doesn’t make your blood boil, you must be reading this inside a walk-in freezer, chewing on a mouthful of Lopressor.

The incomprehensible numbers come from a Cicero Institute report earlier this year titled “Rebuilding Public Trust by Ensuring Accountability in Government Spending.”

Dream on, right?

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Washington is driving America toward a debt crisis we can’t ignore any longer

A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. Those words are widely attributed to Alexander Tytler, the Scottish judge and historian who lived from 1747 to 1813. There is, however, some debate over the attribution. Historians and researchers have questioned whether Tytler actually wrote the passage in the form in which it is commonly quoted, whether he expressed a similar idea that was later expanded and attributed to him, or whether the passage originated elsewhere. The exact authorship may be debatable. The warning itself is not.

Here is the prophetic quote:

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.”

This is no idle warning. Look at the United States today and the pattern is hard to miss. This is exactly what is happening today.

Our founders were statesmen who sacrificed much to create a system focused on the common good. They had businesses, farms, and families, and they risked everything to build a limited government unlike any the world had seen. Today we are governed largely by professional politicians, many of whom have never signed the front of a paycheck or run a business. Their careers are spent in government, and they are focused on re-election, promising voters increasingly more, but not paying for these programs.

The late Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, a practicing physician, saw this coming. In his book “The Debt Bomb”, written 15 years ago, he warned of the fiscal path we were on. The problems he described are here.

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More than 400 Canadians filing for bankruptcy every day as rates hit financial-crisis levels

More than 400 Canadians are filing for bankruptcy every day as bankruptcy rates climb to their highest level since the 2008-09 financial crisis.

Nancy Snedden, president of BDO Debt Solutions and host of Your Money on VOCM, says the current pace works out to roughly 17 Canadians filing for bankruptcy every hour.

That’s approximately 408 Canadians every day.

More than 37,000 Canadians filed for bankruptcy during the second quarter of 2026, according to Snedden, representing a 6.9% increase compared with the same period last year.

The increase comes as Canadian households face growing pressure from everyday expenses and debt payments.

A recent Equifax Canada report found more Canadians are struggling to make ends meet and keep up with their monthly bills and debt obligations.

The latest figures also come amid a broader increase in insolvencies. Federal Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy data released earlier this month showed June recorded the second-highest number of consumer insolvencies for that month on record and marked the sixth consecutive year of increasing June insolvencies.

Canadian households have spent years dealing with elevated living costs and higher borrowing costs, putting additional pressure on people carrying mortgages, credit-card balances and other debts.

Snedden encouraged Canadians facing financial trouble to seek help and investigate available debt-relief options before their situation worsens.

At the current pace cited by BDO, more than 12,000 Canadians would be filing for bankruptcy every month.

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